Star Trek: Voyager

Star Trek: Voyager

← 5th of 12mainStar Trek series →

Abbreviation:

VOY^↓

Created by:

• Rick Berman
• Michael Piller
• Jeri Taylor

Studio:

Paramount Pictures

Original network:

UPN

Production dates:

1994–2001

Original run:

16 January1995–23 May2001

Seasons:

7

Episodes:

168(4 are feature-length)

Timespan:

2371–2378

Star Trek: Voyager is the fifthStar Trek series. It was created byRick Berman,Michael Piller, andJeri Taylor, and ran onUPN, as the network's first-ever series, for seven seasons in theUSA, from1995 to2001. In some areas without local access to UPN, it was offered to independent stations throughParamount Pictures, for its first six seasons.

The series is best known for itsfamilial crew, science fiction-based plots often involvingtemporal issues, the prominence of action sequences, and increased emphasis on bothhumor and grit. The writers noted that many episodes had underlying themes and messages or were metaphors for current social issues, as its predecessors had also done. This is the firstStar Trek series to feature afemale captain in a leading role, though not the first in the franchise overall.

Voyager follows the events ofStar Trek: The Next Generation and ran alongsideStar Trek: Deep Space Nine during its first five seasons.

• Main Title Theme^{file info} (composed byJerry Goldsmith)

Series summary[]

Launched in the year2371, theIntrepid-classFederationstarshipUSSVoyager was aship built to return toStarfleet's founding principle of scientific exploration. It was fitting that the ship'scaptain,Kathryn Janeway, rose through thescience ranks rather than command. On the ship's first mission while departing thespace stationDeep Space 9, which required it to find and capture aMaquisvessel that disappeared into the treacherousBadlands, the crew ofVoyager, as well as that of the Maquis ship it was pursuing, were swept clear across thegalaxy and deep into theDelta Quadrant. This was the doing of a powerfulalien being known as theCaretaker. The seventy thousandlight year transit cost the lives of over a dozencrew members. Captain Janeway was forced to destroy the massivealien array that housed the remains of the Caretaker. In doing so, she saved an alien race, theOcampa, but strandedVoyager and the crew in the Delta Quadrant.

United in a common purpose, the surviving Maquisrebels joined with Janeway's Starfleet-trained crew onVoyager. Though a journey back to theAlpha Quadrant would have taken more than seventy years through unknown and treacherousterritory, the crew ofVoyager was well served by Janeway's skilled leadership and their steadfast determination. Ultimately,Voyager returned to theAlpha Quadrant in seven years.

The crew's journey home was eventful.Voyager made first contact with over four hundred completely newspecies in the Delta Quadrant, discovered links toEarth's earlyspace explorationhistory, utilized and even pioneered new technologies, all the while engaging in countless other adventures. ("Distant Origin")

The crew encountered species ranging from the violent and ruthlessKazon, thePhage-afflictedVidiians, the colorfulTalaxians, and the ephemeralOcampa. The crew's other encounters included run-ins with the temporal sophistication of theKrenim, the predatoryHirogen, the toxicMalon, and the schemingHierarchy. The crew picked up passengers along the way, including the wily but extremely resourceful TalaxianNeelix (who served, at times, asVoyager'sambassador,morale officer, and even headchef), along with the OcampantelepathKes (who, as a parting gift to the crew, used her powers oftelekinesis to thrustVoyager 9,500 light years closer to the Alpha Quadrant).

Most memorable, however, wereVoyager's repeated clashes with the dreadedBorg. While each encounter posed grave danger,Voyager prevailed every time. At one point, Janeway negotiated a temporary peace with the Borg when they perceived a common threat in amysterious alien species fromfluidic space. ("Scorpion") At other times, she was able to liberatedrones from theBorg Collective, includingSeven of Nine (who became a permanent member of the crew),Mezoti,Azan,Rebi, andIcheb. Other instances pittedVoyager against not only the Borg but also against the nightmarishBorg Queen herself.

Several years afterVoyager's disappearance into the Delta Quadrant,Starfleet Command learned of the starship's fate. Subsequently, thePathfinder Project was created, aStarfleet Communications project that attempted to communicate withVoyager through theMIDAS array, via amicro-wormhole and theHirogen communications network. Thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm ofLieutenantReginald Barclay, the communications technology improved to a level whereby contact could be made regularly. In2377, the crew received monthly data streams from Earth that included letters from the crew's families, tactical upgrades, and news about the Alpha Quadrant.

By the end of the year,Voyager made a triumphant return to the Alpha Quadrant, under the guidance of Starfleet and the Pathfinder Project, by utilizing and then destroying a Borgtranswarp hub, and after a turbulent trip, a celebration was held in honor ofVoyager's return home.

DistinguishingVoyager[]

Despite the general prosperity ofStar Trek: Deep Space Nine,Paramount pressuredRick Berman for yet anotherStar Trek television series. Although it was decided very early on that the new series would be set aboard a starship once again, it was important for the writers to vary the series fromStar Trek: The Next Generation in other ways. Berman stated, "WhenVoyager came around and we knew we were going to place the next series back on a starship we wanted to do it in a way that was not going to be that redundant when it came toThe Next Generation. So we had a certain amount of conflict on the ship because of the Maquis. We had a different dynamic because we were not speaking every day to Starfleet and because we had a female captain. Those were the major differences that set this show apart from the others... It had the core belief of whatStar Trek was all about, both in terms of the excitement and the action and in terms of the provocative elements of ideas thatStar Trek has always been known to present to the audience." (Star Trek: Voyager Companion, p. ?)

The series' premise of being lost in deep space was itself a variation on a theme explored inThe Next Generation.Michael Piller explained, "We remembered the episodes, many episodes, where Q would show up and throw one of our ships or one of our people off to a strange part of the universe. And we'd have to figure out why we were there, how we were going to get back, and ultimately – by the end of an episode – we'd get back home. But [...] we started to talk about what would happen if we didn't get home. That appealed to us a great deal [...] You have to understand that Rick, Jeri, and I had no interest in simply putting a bunch of people on another ship and sending them out to explore the universe. We wanted to bring something new to theGene Roddenberry universe. Thefans would have been thefirst people to criticize us if we had not brought something new to it. But everything new, everything was... a challenge, in the early stages of development ofVoyager." ("Braving the Unknown: Season 1",VOY Season 1 DVD special features)

Jeri Taylor concurred thatVoyager had to be different from its predecessors. She stated, "We felt a need to create an avenue for new and fresh storytelling. We are forced into creating a new universe. We have to come up with new aliens, we have to come up with new situations." Taylor also recalled, "We knew we were taking some risks. We decided, in a very calculated way, to cut our ties with everything that was familiar. This is a dangerous thing to do. There is no more Starfleet, there are no more admirals to tell us what we can and cannot do, there are no Romulans, there are no Klingons, there are no Ferengi, no Cardassians. All those wonderful array of villains that the audience has come to love and hate at the same time will no longer be there. This is a tricky thing to do." ("Braving the Unknown: Season 1",VOY Season 1 DVD special features)

Differentiating the new series from what had gone before hardened the challenge of inventing the series' main characters. Jeri Taylor recounted, "It took a long, long time, it took us weeks and weeks and weeks, even to come up with a cast of characters, because we found that somany wonderful characters had already been done and we didn't want toexactly repeat ourselves. We'd come up with an idea then say, 'No, that's too much likeData,' or, 'That's too much likeOdo,' or, 'That's too much likeWorf.' So to try to find the right balance of characters, in terms of gender and alien species and that kind of thing, really took a long time." ("Braving the Unknown: Season 1",VOY Season 1 DVD special features)

↑John Van Citters listed "VGR" as the series' official abbreviation when announcing the "DSC" abbreviation forStar Trek: Discovery.[1]MA, among other venues, will continue to use the abbreviation VOY forVoyager, for historical reasons.

Reception[]

During its seven-year run,Star Trek: Voyager was nominated for 34Emmy Awards, mostly in "technical" categories such as visual effects and makeup. It won seven, including "Outstanding Individual Achievement in Main Title Theme Music" forJerry Goldsmith's theme.

Main cast[]

Starring[]

• Kate Mulgrew asCaptainKathryn Janeway

Also starring[]

• Robert Beltran asCommanderChakotay
• Roxann Biggs-Dawson asLieutenantB'Elanna Torres

• Jennifer Lien asKes (1995-1997)
• Robert Duncan McNeill asLieutenantTom Paris
• Ethan Phillips asNeelix
• Robert Picardo asThe Doctor
• Tim Russ asLieutenant CommanderTuvok
• Jeri Ryan asSeven of Nine (1997-2001)
• Garrett Wang asEnsignHarry Kim

Executive producers[]

• Rick Berman – Executive Producer
• Michael Piller – Executive Producer (1995-1996)
• Jeri Taylor – Executive Producer (1995-1998)
• Brannon Braga – Executive Producer (1998-2000)
• Kenneth Biller – Executive Producer (2000-2001)

Opening credits[]

Theopening credits forStar Trek: Voyager contained imagery ofUSSVoyager passing near various spatial phenomena.

Episode list[]

Season 1[]

Season 1, 15 episodes:

Season 2[]

Season 2, 26 episodes:

Season 3[]

Season 3, 26 episodes:

Season 4[]

Season 4, 26 episodes:

Season 5[]

Season 5, 25 episodes:

Season 6[]

Season 6, 26 episodes:

Season 7[]

Season 7, 24 episodes:

Related topics[]

• VOY directors
• VOY performers
• VOY recurring characters
• VOY studio models
• VOY writers
• Recurring characters
• Character crossover appearances
• Undeveloped VOY episodes
• Paramount Stage 8
• Paramount Stage 9
• Paramount Stage 16

Syndication[]

With five seasons,Voyager reached syndication in some markets airing as a daily strip on weekdays in most markets or as a weekly strip on weekends in selected markets, with the first cycle of episodes from the first five seasons began airing on13 September1999, with the second cycle of episodes covering the 25 episodes ofSeason 6 and the final episode ofSeason 5 beginning on13 November2000 and the final cycle of episodes covering episodes of thefinal season and the final episode ofSeason 6 beginning on25 October2001.Voyager was broadcast in syndication for four years until12 September2003, with some stations continuing to carryVoyager after leaving syndication.

Media[]

• Star Trek: Voyager novels
• Star Trek: Voyager comics (IDW)
• Star Trek: Voyager comics (Malibu)
• Star Trek: Voyager comics (Marvel)
• Star Trek: Voyager soundtracks
• Star Trek: Voyager on VHS
• Star Trek: Voyager on LaserDisc
• Star Trek: Voyager on DVD

External links[]

• Star Trek: Voyager atWikipedia
• Star Trek: Voyager atMemory Beta, the wiki for licensedStar Trek works
• Star Trek: Voyager at theInternet Movie Database
• Star Trek: Voyager atTV IV
• Star Trek: Voyager atStarTrek.com