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 Hello. My name is The Digital Dude, and I'm a geek. I am not ashamed by this in any way, and I do not attempt to hide this fact when I meet new people and make first impressions. I don't hide behind 4-inch-thick spectacles and I'm not a shy person, either, but I do feel that it's fair and just to place such a label on anyone who spends as much time on their computer as I do. Having an inherent love for science fiction is another characteristic of the household geek; naturally, I'm an avid Star Trek fan and not only have the movies and best episodes prominently displayed in my home video collection, I also hang intricately-painted models of various starships from my ceiling. For the last seven years, I've watched Star Trek: Voyager religiously. I've seen every episode at least three times and could probably answer 99% of any Voyager trivia you might come up with. Though the characters haven't been as exciting as the ones from The Original Series or The Next Generation, I've found the circumstance of a ship that's lost and alone, 70,000 light years away from home (on the other side of the galaxy), to be an excellent ingredient for some really good never-thought-of-that-before science fiction stories. At the very core, the show is a testament to the human spirit: having the courage to face innumerable odds and possessing the strength of will to conquer one's enemies are qualities which have inspired countless songs and stories throughout our history. For the most part, Voyager has been an excellent source of inspiration and enjoyment for me; however, after having waited 7 long years for the conclusion to the story, I found the series finale to be nothing short of a slap in the face.
Millions of people worldwide have thought and speculated about Voyager's end; countless conclusions have been conceived by countless minds during the course of the series. While I realize it's simply not possible to come up with an ending to a show that will make everybody happy, the bad feeling I've had ever since the end credits suddenly appeared on the screen is something I haven't been able to shake.
In the seven years that the USS Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant, they went up against incredibly powerful foes and prevailed each and every time. No other crew in Star Trek history has been as bold or determined as the crew of Voyager; no other captain has stood in front of the Borg Queen, in the very heart of enemy territory, with such open defiance. Being so far away from home, with no possibility of ever receiving reinforcements, the Voyager crew was forced to apply their talents and, through their innovation and determination, forged alliances and developed new technologies to help accomplish their goal of once again setting foot on their home planet.
With that said, I couldn't possibly think of an end to such a spectacular series that would be more disappointing. After seeing a crew prove themselves so fearless and self-reliant, only to have their "Mommy" come back in time 26 years and give them weapons that destroy Borg ships with a single shot and armor that generates itself just like the metal that protects the Batmobile, I wondered if the episode was really written by the writers' five-year-old sons and daughters. Yes, I realize that there have been over 600 Star Trek episodes written in the last 35 years, but there have also been thousands of books released. With the unlimited scope of the human mind's creative potential, there's really no excuse for a studio with a budget such as Paramount's to recycle a past episode, swap a few characters and try to call it the conclusion to such an amazing series. With such a lousy story, it's no wonder why the studio held the cast and crew under such tight security: if the script ever got out, the show's ratings would probably have received an all-time low.
Don't get me wrong, folks, I enjoyed "Endgame" every bit as much as I could; every member of the cast gave a stellar performance, the music was powerful and the special effects were nothing short of spectacular. Still, I would much rather the crew got home using their own smarts, rather than having their hands held all the way home. Each time I see the armor-cocooned ship erupt from the exploding bowels of an unsuspecting Borg ship and rocket towards the Federation fleet (not only is the story recycled, but the Enterprise D-esque ship in the middle of the fleet is, too), I tell myself that "this isn't really happening" and it's all just a bad dream. Ah well. What's done is done, I guess; no amount of ranting or whining will change things. I guess I've just learned from "Endgame" that if you don't like something, go back in time and change it. Anybody got a time machine? - "The Dough" - "Letters" - Frequently Asked Questions - Book Review Center |
