The Least Disliked Episode 2023: VOY Season 5

[BlueStuff]

Our addictive biyearly game of rapid elimination returns - now with more shows than ever. It's generally a lot of fun, providing a chance to mentally revisit those episodes you may not have thought about in a while. With that in mind, why not play again?

So, here's the game. The basic idea is your standard elimination game. I'll provide a list of the episodes for each season and you need to eliminate your least favourite or the one you deem the 'worst.' Please provide an EXPLANATION for why you are eliminating your choice and be sure to copy and paste the list with your choice removed. Finally, leave at least 2 eliminations by other posters before you eliminate another episode.

No tactical voting! You cannot remove an episode just because you feel it would threaten your preferred episode's chance to win. Pretty simple. Enjoy!

Star Trek: Voyager
Hall of Champions
2011 - Meld
2013 - Living Witness
2017 - Blink of an Eye
2019 - Tinker, Tenor, Doctor, Spy
2021 - Scorpion (I)
2023 -

Season 5

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Infinite Regress
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Counterpoint
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
The Disease
Course: Oblivion
The Fight
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
11:59
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Qonundrum]

As always, Trek screws up on the topic that people colloquially call "screwing":

The Disease​

Good grief...

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See, when boinking someone, it's about a magical biochemical bond (or genuine addiction, with corinithian leather seats) and not something approaching a real disease (which, among other things, might give your skin a leathery feel). It's all sadly not the best way to do a lame allegory by not doing an actual allegory that's not related to the topic being allegorized (e.g. "if we're going to be damned, let's be damned for what we truly are" - a rather underrated quote from Encounter At Farpoint, and that does a damn better job at (name it, as far as allegories go) than this episode of Star Drek - Voyager Edition (aka "the Janeway Flip-Flop Hour of Duhhhrrrama")...

At least the acting isn't bad. Garrett Wang deserved better.

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Seven has a point. Or had. It depends on your point of view. Depending on which one, how would you convince the other to believe the opposite of her point?

Considering this is the worst episode of the season, what might the good episodes be... which could be Oscar the Grouch using Big Bird as a backscratcher followed by dinner at this point. Or the other way around, feathers don't taste like chicken...


What's left:
Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Infinite Regress
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Counterpoint
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
The Fight
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
11:59
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Takeru]

The Fight, it's like the writers took the worst parts of Riker's weird dream episode and Deanna flying through clouds to talk to aliens and mashed them together. This is just not a good episode.


Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Infinite Regress
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Counterpoint
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
11:59
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[ReddishAlert]

Infinite Regress. I like Seven and she does a good job. I just feel like it is a trope they over use in sci fi tv when the producers or actor want to show off (see Data: Masks). I can think of an episode like this in so many shows I like and they always feel indulgent to me.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Counterpoint
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
11:59
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Sakonna]

DIE "COUNTERPOINT" DIE!!!! Holy hell do I despise this episode. Absolutely on my list of franchise low points. At no point does the story grab me or convince me or pull me in. I find the central Janeway/Kashyk connection completely false, and the notion that she really felt something for this Nazi is grotesque and the ugliest moment of Janeway character assassination in a series that was filled with ugly moments of Janeway character assassination.

I saw this episode years after original air, so I knew it was highly regarded, and I was SHOCKED by how terrible it was. It was like hearing people describe "In The Pale Moonlight" for years, then when I finally sit down to watch it's "Code Of Honor." (I actually checked more than once to see that I was in fact watching the acclaimed "Counterpoint" -- I did not see how it was even possible that the shit I was seeing could be well-regarded. I was briefly certain someone had fucked up at Netflix and linked the wrong ep to the "Counterpoint" button)

This is comparatively minor, but the lazy slapdashness of Tuvok just BEING ON THE BRIDGE WITH ALL THE NAZI'S AT THE END like it's nothing also drives me insane. The entire stakes of the whole episode require hiding Tuvok from these villains, but sure, he can be standing in front of them at the end like it's nothing. Such lazy, hacky work.

TRASH! This one seriously goes on my "Burn Every Copy" pile. One of Trek's most shameful and repulsive failures.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
11:59
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Sakonna]

Wow, writing that "Counterpoint" elimination was a rush! Felt great to type it all out!

@Takeru, you can have your "Visitor"-killing dagger back now. I might want to borrow it again in Enterprise season 3, there's probably the next Universally Beloved Classic which is Intensely Despised by me.

 

[Brennyren]

It's time for "11:59" to go. It's boring. And I don't wanna say there's no chemistry between Kate and Kevin Tighe -- but there's no chemistry between Kate and Kevin Tighe. While it's not a bad lesson that your forebears may have been cool even if they weren't heroes, it's fairly incomprehensible that Janeway didn't realize that Shannon was going to marry Henry Janeway. Hey Kathy, what's your family name? And TBH, I always kinda wished that they had cast the series regulars as the townsfolk, rather than dragging in other people who didn't particularly interest me.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Gravity
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Sakonna]

I have always been a fan of "11:59", basically because holiday episodes are my Kryptonite so I would love a Voyager Christmas regardless of any actual merits of the ep. But somehow...

it's fairly incomprehensible that Janeway didn't realize that Shannon was going to marry Henry Janeway. Hey Kathy, what's your family name?

...I never noticed this! That is absurd.

And TBH, I always kinda wished that they had cast the series regulars as the townsfolk, rather than dragging in other people who didn't particularly interest me.

That is a GREAT idea! So true, that would have been a million times better.

 

[Summer Solstice]

Gravity - something about this episode doesn't quite work for me. I think it might be the actress's performance style or the lack of chemistry between Noss and Tuvok. I really enjoyed the young Tuvok scenes and I liked that the episode focussed on Tuvok and the solar system inside a gravity well was a pretty cool idea.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Warhead
Equinox (I)

 

[Seven of Five]

Everything about Warhead is dreadfully mediocre. I love The Doctor, but even Robert Picardo can't save this.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Juggernaut
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)[

 

[ReddishAlert]

Juggernaut has to go. It’s fine. No worse than that and no better. But very much feels like a filler to me. I also really liked B’Elanna at the show’s start because her character has such promise and the actress is excellent at playing different tones. This episode always infuriates me that the writers couldn’t think of something new with all that potential. It’s season 5 and it’s still “She’s angry!”

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Course: Oblivion
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)[

 

[Summer Solstice]

DIE "COUNTERPOINT" DIE!!!! Holy hell do I despise this episode. Absolutely on my list of franchise low points. At no point does the story grab me or convince me or pull me in. I find the central Janeway/Kashyk connection completely false, and the notion that she really felt something for this Nazi is grotesque and the ugliest moment of Janeway character assassination in a series that was filled with ugly moments of Janeway character assassination.

I saw this episode years after original air, so I knew it was highly regarded, and I was SHOCKED by how terrible it was. It was like hearing people describe "In The Pale Moonlight" for years, then when I finally sit down to watch it's "Code Of Honor." (I actually checked more than once to see that I was in fact watching the acclaimed "Counterpoint" -- I did not see how it was even possible that the shit I was seeing could be well-regarded. I was briefly certain someone had fucked up at Netflix and linked the wrong ep to the "Counterpoint" button)

This is comparatively minor, but the lazy slapdashness of Tuvok just BEING ON THE BRIDGE WITH ALL THE NAZI'S AT THE END like it's nothing also drives me insane. The entire stakes of the whole episode require hiding Tuvok from these villains, but sure, he can be standing in front of them at the end like it's nothing. Such lazy, hacky work.

TRASH! This one seriously goes on my "Burn Every Copy" pile. One of Trek's most shameful and repulsive failures.

I can totally respect that. The story does pull me in and I really like this episode, but I think the ending is unrealistic - Kashyk knows there are telepaths on Voyager and that's grounds enough to arrest all the crew, I think that's what would happen in "real life". I also find it interesting that in-universe it seems like our heroes have won, but actually they won the battle (saving the telepaths on the shuttle) but lost the war (the Devore now know how to find the wormhole in future).

It's time for "11:59" to go. It's boring. And I don't wanna say there's no chemistry between Kate and Kevin Tighe -- but there's no chemistry between Kate and Kevin Tighe. While it's not a bad lesson that your forebears may have been cool even if they weren't heroes, it's fairly incomprehensible that Janeway didn't realize that Shannon was going to marry Henry Janeway. Hey Kathy, what's your family name? And TBH, I always kinda wished that they had cast the series regulars as the townsfolk, rather than dragging in other people who didn't particularly interest me.

I think your idea of casting the series regulars as the townsfolk is a really good one - I like the scenes set in the past but most of the scenes on Voyager felt like filler. If everyone appeared in scenes as the townsfolk, they wouldn't need each character to be in at least one of the scenes on Voyager even if it felt like the character didn't need to be there.

Everything about Warhead is dreadfully mediocre. I love The Doctor, but even Robert Picardo can't save this.

I think "Warhead" and "Nightingale" have the same problem with trying to show Harry in a leadership role: he's the lowest ranking main character. The EMH isn't particularly interested in doing what Harry says, Seven is a better leader than Harry ("The Omega Directive") so it feels strange for her to follow him. (I know for the plot of "Warhead" to work, the EMH has to go to the planet, but it would have been interesting to see Harry in a leadership role where he was eg in charge of an away mission with a few crew who were a lower rank than him.)

 

[Sakonna]

"Course: Oblivion" Young me loved the darkness of this ep. Now I watch it and think -- what is the point?

I mean, at the time TV was still so sanitized, so then the point was just to demonstrate this was a world where there could be extreme darkness.

But now that TV as a whole is on it's tenth wave of anti-hero shows -- what's the point? We're drowning in pointless reveling in bleak hopelessness. I need there to be a larger point, and I don't see "Course: Oblivion" offering one.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Once Upon a Time
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Warp 10 (Pepperoni)]

It brings me great pleasure to eliminate Once Upon a Time. Horrible episode, horrible holodeck characters. A painful watch.

Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
In the Flesh
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Takeru]

Wow, writing that "Counterpoint" elimination was a rush! Felt great to type it all out!

That's how I feel when I rant about The Visitor, it feels great to get it out of your system especially when its an episode almost everyone seems to love for reasons that elude me.
I happen to really like Counterpoint, so it's funny to be on the other side this time.

@Takeru, you can have your "Visitor"-killing dagger back now. I might want to borrow it again in Enterprise season 3, there's probably the next Universally Beloved Classic which is Intensely Despised by me.

Anytime, I think it needs a fancy klingon name, something like Epi'blergh.



In the Flesh goes next, they introduced a great new enemy with Species 8472 and in just one episode they come to an understanding and basically neutralize the danger, they wasted a lot of opportunities here, I wish they had used them bit more as villains.


Night
Drone
Extreme Risk
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Seven of Five]

Extreme Risk is a bit of a waste of Roxann Dawson. She was brilliant here, but it was unrealistic how the way she was suffering just appeared out of nowhere.

Night
Drone
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Bliss
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Summer Solstice]

This list is now a few episodes I love and quite a lot of episodes that I like. I'm going to eliminate "Bliss" - it's done very well but it's pretty much the same episode as "Persistance Of Vision", with Seven and Naomi in the role that Kes had, and the EMH in the same role in both episodes.

Night
Drone
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Bride of Chaotica!
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[ReddishAlert]

I’m going to take out Bride of Chaotica!
I think it’s a fun enough episode but holodeck episodes are holodeck episodes.

Night
Drone
Timeless
Nothing Human
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Warp 10 (Pepperoni)]

I really enjoy all the remaining episodes, hmm. I'll remove "Nothing Human", as though it presents a great ethical dilemma, it isn't as fun as some of the ones remaining.

Night
Drone
Timeless
Thirty Days
Latent Image
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)

 

[Oddish]

Latent Image bites it. I think that (1) Janeway was right to alter the Doctor's memory, and (2) The Doctor, trained in procedures like amputations and excision, should have understood the necessity of her action.

Night
Drone
Timeless
Thirty Days
Dark Frontier
Think Tank
Someone to Watch Over Me
Relativity
Equinox (I)