‘PHAGE’ (VOY)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
In the first ‘Voyager’ episode called ‘Caretaker’, we were introduced to the alien race called the Kazon. Here in the episode called ‘Phage’, we’re introduced to another alien race called the Vidiians.
In the episode, Voyager investigates a planetoid that is hoped to contain dilithium deposits. They hope to collect some dilithium in order to provide extra power for the ship on their journey home. 🙂
When they get to the planetoid, an away team beams into a network of caverns within the planetoid. 😐 The away team includes Chakotay, Harry Kim and Neelix, who suggested the planetoid.
In searching for the dilithium, Neelix gets attacked by an unseen alien and is left in a state of shock. He’s beamed directly to Voyager’s sickbay, where it is discovered that his lungs have been removed.
The holographic Doctor finds a way to keep Neelix alive by projecting a pair of holographic lungs into his torso, using the sickbay’s holographic emitters. Tom Paris and Kes help the Doctor in this venture.
Thankfully, the Doctor is successful and Neelix is alive, although he must remain absolutely motionless. He’s only able to talk in that state for the rest of his life until his lungs can be recovered.
One of the criticisms made against ‘Voyager’ as a series is that Neelix can be an annoying character. Reviewers like Lance Parkin and Mark Jones found Neelix ‘too irritating’ throughout this certain story.
Incidentally, Lance Parkin has written a number of ‘Doctor Who’ stories over the years. 😀 I can see the arguments made against Neelix as a character, since he can be a little over-emotional at times. 😐
This is especially when he gets claustrophobic in the medical harness that he’s in and he’s berating the Doctor in sick bay. He also suspects Tom Paris having feelings for Kes whenever she’s with him. 😐
Honestly, I don’t mind Neelix as a character. Ethan Phillips plays him well in the series. I don’t think he’s one of the best characters in ‘Star Trek’, but there are some good moments to uncover in him. 🙂
Going back to Lance Parkin and Mark Jones, despite criticising Neelix, they’ve praised Robert Picardo’s performance as the holographic Doctor. And yes, the Doctor is well-served in this episode.
It was intriguing to see the scene he had with Kes when he doubted his worth as a physician since he’s actually an emergency hologram. But Kes reminds him that he achieved the impossible to save Neelix. 🙂
It’s argued that this ‘Voyager’ episode is similar to ‘Spock’s Brain’ in the original series where aliens harvested Spock’s brain. I can see similarities between those two episodes, but I don’t really mind that.
Meanwhile, Janeway and her crew do all they can to retrieve Neelix’s lungs from the aliens who harvested them. They soon leave the planetoid and follow a ship with the alien harvesters on board.
Voyager ends up going into an asteroid where the alien harvesters have ended up. After outwitting the aliens, Voyager finds their ship in the asteroid. The Voyager crew beams the aliens aboard their ship to interrogate them.
The aliens are revealed to be the Vidiians. They’re hideous-looking aliens who have been suffering for a very long time from an incurable disease called the Phage. They harvest organs in order to live.
The Vidiians that Voyager have captured in this episode include Cully Fredericksen as Dereth and Stephen Rappaport as Motura. Janeway is able to express sympathy for what the Vidiians have gone through.
But she gives them a firm warning that she’ll do whatever is necessary to protect her people from their harvesting. This is especially once she learns that Neelix’s lungs are already in one of the aliens.
The Vidiians offer to help by providing the expertise needed to perform a transplant of an organ from one crewmember into Neelix. Kes volunteers to donate one lung into Neelix so that he can recover and live.
Thankfully, the procedure is successful and both Neelix and Kes are alive and well. As Kes recovers in sick bay, the Doctor informs her that once she’s better, he’ll train her as a back-up medical assistant.
‘Phage’ is a good instalment in the ‘Voyager’ series. I like how it introduces the Vidiians as an alien species. I also like how it explores the Doctor’s character a bit and how he finds a purpose aboard Voyager.
‘Phage’ (VOY) rating – 8/10
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