Voyager Revisited

Season 3 Episode 12 Macrocosm - Why spend all our time watching a virus on the news when we could watch a virus on Voyager? A virus that mutates and grows to be huge. Bonus: our Captain really kicks virus ass. If only we had antigen bombs in the 21st century. Joe Rosensteel is here to wade through the gooey moments of this Alien-style scary story. Is this an escapist romp suitable for self-quarantine viewing, or a bit too close to home? It depends on how much you’ll enjoy a bad ass Janeway in a tank top blasting these viruses into smithereens! We wish all our listeners, as the Tak Tak say, “Good health. Strong body. Pure mind.” Host Jean MacDonald with Joe Rosensteel.

Nightgale, Season 7, Episode 8 - In the latest of our character-focused episodes, Frank Wu joins Jean to talk about Harry Kim. Frank is a four-time Hugo Award winning artist, who recently designed the bookcover for the Klingon translation of The Art of War. He is a super enthusiastic fan of all things Star Trek. We touch on some of the issues related to Asian representation in Kim’s character. Kim is possibly the least upwardly-mobile Starfleet officer ever, having spent at least 7 years as an ensign. For this episode, we watch “Nightingale” (S7E8), in which Harry gets his chance to take over as captain of a alien medical ship under fire. It’s fun to see Harry in charge, despite Seven’s borgsplaining, but WARNING: to enjoy this episode, you must fast-forward through the B plot. (Sorry, Icheb, but yikes!) Host Jean MacDonald with Frank Wu.

Initiations, Season 2, Episode 2 - Podcaster and comic con host Moisés Chiullán joins Jean to talk about Star Trek’s first Native American main character and a great first officer, Chakotay. We also chose to focus on the episode “Initiations,” in which Chakotay is ensnared in a Kazon rite of passage, to pay tribute to Aron Eisenberg, best known for portraying Nog on Deep Space Nine for seven seasons. Eisenberg passed away this fall at the age of 50. As Robert Beltran noted, “We both had a good time. Aron’s a lot of fun to work with. He’s got a wide range and he can do a lot of things.” RIP, Aron. Host Jean MacDonald with Moisés Chiullan.

Gravity, Season 5, Episode 13 - Our guest this week is prolific podcaster from Trek.fm, Justin Oser, who co-hosts Earl Grey and The Line, the latter focused on the new Picard series. Given Seven Of Nine’s return in Picard, Justin’s been rewatching Voyager and recently watched one of our favorite episodes, Gravity (S5E13). Rewatching together gave us a chance to talk about another favorite character, the Vulcan Tuvok, played by Tim Russ, and one of the great series guest stars, Lori Petty, whose character falls in love with him. Host Jean MacDonald with Justin Oser.

The Voyager Conspiracy, Season 6, Episode 9 - Photonic fleas, be free! In this episode, Australian engineer and podcaster John Chidgey comes aboard to make the case for The Voyager Conspiracy (S6E9) as one of the must-watch Voyager episodes on Jean’s Voyager Viewer’s Guide. He argues that it is a crucial moment in the relationship between Captain Janeway and Seven Of Nine, whereas Jean labeled it as a “skip, unless you’re interested.” (Bonus: there are some great moments for Janeway-Chakotary shippers.) Host Jean MacDonald with John Chidgey.

Voyager Revisited, Author, Author - On this episode, Jean talks to Barbara Greenberg, a publishing professional who provides editorial services to publishing houses and independent authors, an avid sci-fi reader, and a huge fan of Star Trek since 1966. Barbara and Jean met in the 1990s, when they both worked in book publishing and have been BFFs ever since. Because of Jean has been laid up by knee surgery, Barbara traveled to Portland from NYC to spend a week helping out. This episode, the first one since Jean’s mishap in Trieste, was recorded with a makeshift setup on the bed. For this episode, we chose “Author, Author” (S7E20), given our shared history in the publishing biz. The Doctor’s holonovel creates bad feelings among his crewmates, sparks a publishing contract dispute, and finally leads to the question of the legal standing of holograms. Host Jean MacDonald with Barbara Greenberg.

Voyager Revisited - Endgame (Series Finale) - On our previous episode, guest Kathy Campbell came on to discuss the pilot of Voyager, “Caretaker.” On this episode, Guy English is here to discuss the finale, “Endgame.” Guy was recently a panelist on The Incomparable’s episode about what makes a good (or bad) TV series ending. Turns out, we both like the Voyager finale better than we remembered. (Spoiler alert: all our episodes have spoilers, but Endgame is double trouble. You have been warned.) Host Jean MacDonald with Guy English.

Voyager Revisited, Caretaker (Pilot) - In a departure from our usual format, Kathy Campbell, who has never watched an episode of Star Trek: Voyager, comes on to discuss the series pilot, Caretaker. Kathy and Jean were the hosts of SestraCast, the Orphan Black watch/rewatch podcast. Kathy was new to the Orphan Black series, Jean had watched it multiple times and they had a lot of fun sharing from two different perspectives, Taking a page from the SestraCast playbook, first time viewer Kathy brings a fresh perspective as we look at the strengths and weaknesses of this introduction to the Voyager crew and its plight, as the ship ends up in the Delta Quadrant, 70,000 light years from home. Host Jean MacDonald with Kathy Campbell.

Voyager Revisited: The Doctor - This week, James Dempsey, programmer, podcaster, and band leader, joins Jean to talk about the EMH aka The Doctor. The Doctor’s great range of personality traits, brought to life by the delightful Robert Picardo, make this character one of Star Trek’s most memorable. The rewatch assignment for this episode is “Tinker Tenor Doctor Spy” (S6E4), which gives The Doctor an opportunity to shine as an opera singer, a painter, and even a spymaster. Host Jean MacDonald with James Dempsey.

Voyager Revisited, Seven of Nine - Game developer, podcaster, and Democratic candidate for Congress Brianna Wu is our guest. Brianna has been my idol in her dedication to Voyager, so it was such a thrill to have her on as a guest on the show. Brianna is a huge admirer of our favorite de-assimilated Borg, Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01, or as we call her, Seven. She makes a compelling case for Seven as a lens through which to view humanity’s qualities. Our homework assignment, chosen by Brianna, was Equinox, the two-part episode from the end of Season 5/beginning of Season 6. It’s one of the most powerful episodes in Star Trek, and gives Seven a chance to demonstrate her commitment to her new-found humanity. Host Jean MacDonald with Brianna Wu.

Coder, designer, and host of the Roundabout podcast, Tammy Coron comes on the podcast to have a chat about Captain Janeway. Tammy relates how her mom was a big fan of Kate Mulgrew, and together they watched the Voyager series when it aired. Tammy is a big fan of Star Trek generally, and an admirer of Gene Roddenberry’s vision. This week’s Voyager assignment is “Deadlock” (Season 2, Episode 21), with double dose of our favorite captain. Host Jean MacDonald with Tammy Coron.

Voyager Revisited Episode 1 - On the premiere episode, Scott McNulty of Random Trek comes on to talk about Star Trek, why he likes what he likes, and why you should feel free to like what you like. We also imagine would happen in a captain swap between Voyager and Deep Space 9, and how fun it would be to see Janeway take on Gul Dukat. We watched a non-random episode, chosen by Scott, called “Blink Of An Eye” (S6E12), and discussed what makes it a good episode of Star Trek generally and Voyager specifically. Host Jean MacDonald with Scott McNulty.

Voyager Revisited, Episode 0 - In honor of the upcoming 25th anniversary of Star Trek: Voyager, here’s a new podcast for Star Trek fans who love the show… or want to revisit their opinions. Each episode features host Jean MacDonald with a Star Trek fan to discuss a character, alien, or story from Voyager. Host Jean MacDonald.