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"Repentance" is the 159th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager airing on the UPN network. It is the 13th episode of the seventh season . Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet and Maquis crew of the starship USS Voyager after they were stranded in the Delta Quadrant far from the rest of the Federation .
- Overview
- Summary
- Log entries
- Memorable quotes
- Background information
- Links and references
makes contact with a Romulan ship through a wormhole that leads back to the Alpha Quadrant.
Teaser
Aboard the USS Voyager, Captain Kathryn Janeway notes in her log that Ensign Harry Kim has discovered subspace emissions indicative of a wormhole and Voyager's crew are elated by the possibility of a way home. Kim reports that Voyager is too far away from the wormhole to get a detailed analysis of where it leads. The ship will have to get within a thousand kilometers and Kim notes that diverting the ship to the wormhole will mean a significant course change. Janeway decides to head for it anyway and she orders Lieutenant Tom Paris to set a course. The helmsman suggests to Janeway that if the wormhole is successful in bringing Voyager back home, they petition the Federation Astronomical Committee to officially designate the distortion as the "Harry Kim wormhole."
Act One
Upon Voyager's arrival, it is found that, unfortunately, the wormhole is only thirty centimeters in diameter: much too small for Voyager to pass through. Captain Janeway speculates that the wormhole is in an advanced state of decay and has likely been collapsing for centuries. The crew attempts to send a microprobe through the wormhole, but it gets stuck in a gravitational eddy inside the wormhole. Initially dismayed, the crew soon realizes that someone on the other side of the wormhole is scanning the probe. In sickbay, The Doctor is examining Lieutenant Walter Baxter as he quizzes Kes about his possible injuries. Baxter rudely directs all of his comments to Kes, and openly questions The Doctor's abilities. When Baxter's injuries are healed by The Doctor, he thanks only Kes and leaves. Kes asks The Doctor if he noticed how rude Baxter was to him, but he tells her that he is used to being treated like a hypospray. Kes asks The Doctor for more of a learning challenge: she wants to learn more about Human anatomy. In a senior staff meeting, B'Elanna Torres says that the microprobe will be destroyed in 72 hours. As they brainstorm, Harry Kim has an idea to send a subspace carrier wave using the microprobe as a relay. While reconfiguring the signal generator, Kim talks to Torres about the family he misses at home. He asks her if there's anyone who would miss her, and she tells him that the Maquis are the closest thing to family she has. Her father left her and her mother when she was five-years old. When Kim inquires about her mother, Torres says she "thinks" she returned home to Qo'noS. Kim expresses surprise that she only thinks her mother is there, but Torres tells him that she and her mother did not get along and informs him that no one back in the Alpha Quadrant cares one way or another whether she is alive. After reconfiguring the signal generator, they send a series of sub-harmonic pulses. After a few minutes of intense waiting, Tuvok and Tom Paris report that Voyager is receiving a signal coming from the wormhole. It is on the same carrier wave and amplitude, originating in the Alpha Quadrant, which shocks the crew.
Act Two
Kes enters the captain's ready room as she's working, but the captain drops what she's doing, pleased to see her. She tells the captain that she is unhappy about the way the crew treats The Doctor. Janeway tells Kes that she has actually heard reports of him being brusque, rude, and lacking bedside manner; they are thinking about reprogramming him. Kes argues that he is alive, an argument that Janeway refutes – he is just a hologram, nothing more. Kes points out that he's self-aware and communicative with the ability to learn. When Janeway reminds Kes that he's only like that because he's been programmed to be that way, Kes asks if the fact The Doctor is a hologram doesn't mean he should be treated with simple respect. Janeway hesitates, caught short by Kes's words, and promises to look into it. Encouraged by the success of his test signal, Kim investigates the possibility of voice communication. Janeway sends a basic hail requesting a response. After clearing up the reply, the crew hears a message from a Romulan cargo vessel in the Alpha Quadrant sector 1385. Janeway tells the Romulan that they are a Federation vessel in the Delta Quadrant. The Romulan thinks she is lying because the Delta Quadrant is too far way, insisting them to be a Federation spy vessel in the Alpha Quadrant. The Romulan cuts off communication abruptly. Tuvok tells Janeway that there are no shipping lanes in that sector and the Romulan ship is more likely to be a science vessel engaged on a secret mission. Janeway tells Kim to hail him continuously. Janeway enters sickbay and activates The Doctor. He explains that he was deactivated by Ensign Kyoto in the middle of preparing a culture. Janeway tells The Doctor that he has become a full-fledged member of the crew, and he doesn't have the luxury of being an emergency supplement anymore. The Doctor asks if he is to be reprogrammed, but Janeway reverses her earlier stance and tells him no, but wants to know if there's anything she can do to help him. He tells her that he would like to be turned off, as he is frequently left for hours with nothing to do, and when he does get turned off he isn't asked if it is convenient. Janeway suggests giving him control over his deactivation sequence; allowing him to turn himself off or to prevent anyone else doing so. The Doctor is surprised and humbled at the fact that someone is attempting to be considerate towards him as Janeway promises to get someone to look into it, and asks him if there's anything else. Taken aback by this turn of events and unprepared to respond fully just yet, The Doctor tells the captain he'll get back to her. Kim establishes two-way communication with the Romulan and wakes Captain Janeway. The Romulan is highly suspicious of a Federation starship claiming to be in the Delta Quadrant. The Romulan identifies his ship as the cargo vessel Talvath, but refuses to give his name. He has analyzed their hailing frequency and found that it originates in the Delta Quadrant, but he doesn't see how that is possible. He asks what Voyager's mission is in the Delta Quadrant. Janeway explains that their mission was in the Alpha Quadrant and that they were pulled against their will by a powerful entity to their present location, and are now trying to get home. He still thinks they are Starfleet spies on a surveillance mission. Janeway assures him they are no threat, and requests simply that the Romulan pass on messages from the crew to their families and friends. He replies that it would ease his apprehension if he could see that she is who she says she is, and tells her that he believes he can use a signal amplifier on his ship to establish a video link.
•"Captain's log, stardate 48579.4. The crew has been scanning constantly for anomalies that might help us shorten our journey home. Ensign Kim has reported an exciting discovery – a subspace disturbance which may be a wormhole."
•"Captain's log, supplemental. Encouraged by his success in transmitting a signal to the Alpha Quadrant, Mr. Kim is investigating the possibility of establishing a voice link with whoever is at the other end of the wormhole."
"There is of course a 75% chance the wormhole will not lead to the Alpha Quadrant."
"Very true. But you could also say there's a one in four chance it will. Those aren't bad odds."
- Tuvok and Janeway
"If I had to get treatment for something serious, if I needed surgery for instance, would he be performing it?"
"Of course and quite expertly, too."
"I don't know. I'd have to think twice about that."
Story and script
•The plot concept of this episode was originally pitched by Hilary J. Bader, a former intern on Star Trek: The Next Generation. The writing staff of Star Trek: Voyager immediately wanted to buy the pitch. (Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages, p. 139) Executive Producer Jeri Taylor commented, "Hilary Bader has given us a lot of wonderful stories. That story was one of the early ones we bought." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 40) This episode was ultimately the only one of Voyager in which Bader was involved. •Although Jeri Taylor had written "Caretaker" (Voyager's pilot episode) with fellow series creators and Executive Producers Michael Piller and Rick Berman, this was the first Voyager teleplay that Taylor wrote without either of her fellow producers being credited as a co-writer. (One of Bill Dial's job descriptions was as a producer, but he did not serve in that capacity on Voyager.) Michael Piller noted about this episode, "It was Jeri's first script." (Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages, p. 139) •During the months of September, October, and November 1994, Jeri Taylor was deeply engrossed in developing this episode's screenplay. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 323) Taylor said of her work on this episode, "I ended up doing a rewrite on [Hilary Bader's story]." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 40) •Despite the producers having decided not to feature any Alpha Quadrant species or characters too often on Voyager, Jeri Taylor made an exception with this episode. (Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages, p. 139) •One decision that was made by committee was not to show crew members composing the messages that the Romulan had promised to convey to their families. Jeri Taylor recalled, "It was certainly something we talked about. But we decided that to leave it unspoken might be more powerful." (Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages, p. 139) •The episode's final draft script was submitted on 23 November 1994. The script was further revised, up to and including 15 December 1994. •The episode was originally formatted as a teaser and five acts. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 23) However, Jeri Taylor had known – by the time she arrived at her office on the Paramount Pictures lot at 7:00 am, Monday, 5 December 1994 – that the series would be changing to a new four-act format and she was under the impression that this alteration would affect all regular episodes of the series, which had not yet debuted. Taylor consequently spent the rest of the morning reformatting this episode's script, rewriting the endings of the episode's first three acts. Just prior to attending an afternoon production meeting pertaining to this episode, Taylor handed her changes to preproduction script supervisor Lolita Fatjo; it was the responsibility of both her and assistant script supervisor Janet Nemecek to ensure that the script was thereafter formatted, printed and distributed to the entire shooting company (the episode's cast and crew). Due to the many hours it necessarily took to finish preparing the new script pages and deliver them, however, the members of the shooting company received them only after going home at the end of that day. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 26) •The first act of the final draft script begins with: (1) the bridge scene wherein Kim reports the wormhole's existence to Janeway, (2) the first of the sickbay scenes (with Baxter talking indirectly about The Doctor to Kes) and (3) the scene wherein a probe from Voyager becomes lodged in the wormhole and the ship starts to detect the presence of someone on the other side. As a workable teaser was needed, however, the eventually-used teaser of this episode is the same scene that starts the final draft script's first act. The third scripted scene of that act was moved to the start of the act, followed by the sickbay scene. •Evidently, it was also decided that a log entry would start the new teaser; the log entry that begins the episode's final version does not appear at all in the final draft script. However, the stardate of this log entry was taken from the scripted version of the log entry that begins the episode's second act, which became a supplemental entry instead. •The episode's shooting script likens the wormhole in this episode to the Bajoran wormhole in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The scene description of this episode's wormhole, when its interior is first shown on Voyager's viewscreen, reads, "The screen swirls with gaseous energy – but a watered-down kind of energy. It lacks the dynamism and majesty of the DS9 wormhole… instead of brilliant, electric colors, it's a sickly yellow-brown… as though it's withered, slowed, and dying." •The final draft script also refers to the setting of Telek R'Mor's ship as "the cockpit of a shuttle-sized craft." •The year from which Telek R'Mor comes from was originally going to be 2352, a date that even appears in the shooting script, before being changed to 2351. •At the end of the episode, reaction shots of Kes were scripted to be shown in response to both The Doctor asking for a personal request and him clarifying that it's a request for a name. In the final version of this scene, however, the shot remains with The Doctor before cutting to a view of Voyager slowly continuing on its journey. The latter shot was not scripted. •Speaking about her experience of writing this episode, Jeri Taylor noted, "I love writing people shows and the building of this arc between Janeway and this Romulan commander – which began with his complete doubt, skepticism and weariness, all those Romulan things – in a sense, by long distance, that built into a relationship and closeness and almost a friendship. The idea that by the end he was almost our champion was a lot of fun." (Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages, p. 139) Of how the episode ended up, Taylor opined, "The show was fully realized, one of those shows that had a little of everything." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 40)
Deleted scenes
•Star Trek: Voyager's writing staff initially planned for this episode to introduce viewers of the series to the concept of a holonovel (which was new to Star Trek: Voyager) and for the series to thereafter frequently revisit the concept. To this end, Jeri Taylor devised a Wild West holoprogram for Janeway, intended to be part of the episode's teaser. The Western scenario was subsequently discarded but the concept of having the teaser scene serve as an introduction to Janeway's holonovel remained. During the writing of the episode's shooting script, the holographic scenario was changed to being a Gothic mystery, with the teaser scene set in a drawing room of the mid-19th century. This scene was filmed but, in the long run, virtually everyone wanted to abandon the idea. One reason why the teaser was changed to a shipboard scene was due to Rick Berman finding it more exciting than the originally-planned holonovel one. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, pp. 10-12, 18 & 20) The Gothic scene later became the majority of the teaser of the later first season episode "Cathexis", with slight changes from the version in this episode's shooting script. •The first briefing room scene of this episode is immediately followed, in the installment's shooting script, by a scene that involves Kes and Neelix in the latter's kitchen. The scene features Neelix and Kes preparing alien vegetables while Neelix eagerly talks about a discussion he recently had with Janeway, about the possibility of her giving him a field commission and uniform. Neelix is excited that the conversation went well and that Janeway even likened him to Sacajawea. After Kes starts asking Neelix to talk to Janeway about The Doctor's ill-treatment, Neelix tries to dissuade Kes from this idea but his efforts only result in her making the decision to visit the captain herself, an outcome to which Neelix resignedly sighs. Considerable thought went into deciding the fruit for this eventually-cut scene. Originally, a variety of exotic fruit and vegetables was actually planned to be used, including teardrop tomatoes, yucca root, Asian pears, habaneros, jicama, daikon, ginseng, feijoas, bananas, starfruit, prickly pear, and kiwanos. On a suggestion from producer Merri Howard, Rick Berman decided, on 5 December, that the bananas would not be used. He added, "They look too Earthlike." (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 27)
Sets, props, and wardrobe
•This episode did not involve any new or special makeup requirements. As a result, makeup supervisor Michael Westmore did not attend the episode's production meeting. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 15) •The episode's script called for only two sets to be used, besides those of Voyager; these two sets were the environment of Janeway's holonovel and the Romulan bridge (the latter of which evidently utilized modified design elements, such as R'Mor's chair and a graphic to one side of it, that had previously been used for past Romulan episodes, such as TNG: "Face Of The Enemy"). As so few sets were needed, the episode was, in effect, a "bottle show." The shooting company, including Production Designer Richard James, consequently expected that this episode would be fairly easy to produce. They did not account, however, for stress caused by the pronouncement of the change in act formatting for this episode, as well as ongoing work on "Caretaker". (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, pp. 33 & 65) Thankfully, the stress was generally short-lived, lasting (for most people) from the afternoon of Monday, 5 December, to early on Tuesday, 6 December 1994. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, pp. 331-332) •By 5 December, the construction of the set for Janeway's holonovel had sent this episode over its budget, as calculated by construction coordinator Al Smutko, but this was typical of the new series; each of the four preceding episodes had also gone over budget. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 25) Furthermore, the expensive Gothic set was planned to be repeatedly reused, so its cost could be amortized over numerous episodes during the series' run. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 12) Nevertheless, following the pronouncement of the act formatting change on 5 December, Smutko visited Richard James' office to deliver a revised budget estimate, based on the possible need to work some, if not all, of the construction crew additional overtime beyond what had already been expected. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 70) Both James and Smutko were relieved when they separately learned, early the next day, that there would be no need for this, as all sets would work on the days originally scheduled. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 332) •Before the production meeting on 5 December, Set Decorator Jim Mees entirely planned out the set decorating for each of the seven days on which this episode would be filming, with set dressings scheduled to be delivered to the sets according to announced shooting days. The announcement of the act format change immediately ruined some of these plans, however. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 26) •On 5 December, construction work was developing on the sets for this episode (at least the Gothic mansion required for Janeway's holonovel, if not also the Romulan bridge). (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, p. 19) •The production crew considered whether the photograph of Mark with his dog could be changed to a picture of only Mark, despite the facts that the picture had already been shot and that no photographs of Mark without the dog had been taken. Suggestions made were cropping the dog out of the shot and rehiring Mark actor Stan Ivar. On 5 December, Berman agreed on the solution of cropping and enlarging the shot. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, pp. 28-29) Evidently, however, this plan did not come to fruition. •Considerable thought also went into the design of the metallic test cylinder that is beamed from Voyager onto R'Mor's ship. This prop went through three incarnations during the week prior to 5 December 1994, with each version being shown to Rick Berman. Concerned that the prop look visually interesting and convincingly high-tech, Berman requested additional modifications each time. At the episode's production meeting, he expressed an interest in seeing the cylinder again and, when props master Alan Sims held it up, Berman was still unsatisfied with the design; he wanted it to seem more futuristic, have more blinking lights and look more active than it did. Although Alan Sims attested that he had already spent money on it and that it was practically finished, Berman answered that it looked hardly finished at all. Before their discussion ended, Berman made more suggestions about how the prop could be added to, to make it seem more complex. Shortly after the meeting finished, Alan Sims – just about to leave the half-empty meeting room – made a cell phone call to the model maker and instructed that the cylinder be modified by adding "blinkies" (small, blinking lights) to the prop. Even though such lights required batteries and the prop did not include anywhere for the batteries to be hidden, Sims directed the model maker to hollow out the cylinder and hide the batteries inside. Sims also mentioned to the model maker that he would need the new version of the prop by Thursday, 8 December 1994. The following day (6 December), however, Sims was elated to learn that the prop had more time to undergo development, as it was not scheduled for use until the end of the subsequent week. He immediately relayed this news to the model maker. (A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager, pp. 29, 30, 43 & 332)
Starring
•Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway
Also starring
•Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay •Roxann Biggs-Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres •Jennifer Lien as Kes •Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris •Ethan Phillips as Neelix •Robert Picardo as The Doctor •Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok •Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim
Guest Stars
•Vaughn Armstrong as Telek R'Mor •Tom Virtue as Walter Baxter
Jan 16, 1995 · Episode: 2x19 | Airdate: Feb 26, 1996. Voyager rescues a dying Vidiian and during the process of trying to save her life, the Doctor's adaptive program allows him to experience romantic feelings for the first time. Lt. Paris starts objecting to his treatment on Voyager and ends up assaulting Chakotay.
In VOY: Prime Factors the crew answer a distress call from the Sikarians. They turn out to be extremely friendly, bordering on Risian. In VOY: The 37's the crew answer a distress call and find various preserved humans.
Recap. The second big Hope Spot for the USS Voyager. Of course, this is still Season One. In the mess hall, Paris, Kim, Torres and Seska gossip and laugh about Kim's love life. Janeway notices and realizes that the two crews are finally starting to unite. But then she's called away to the bridge to answer a distress call from a Sikarian ship.
This episode provides examples of: Almost Out of Oxygen: Right before the destruction of the duplicate Voyager, Biomimetic Seven reports that they have only ten hours of air left. Apocalyptic Log: The Captain's Log becomes this as the episode goes on, as shown by Harry's final entry. "Acting Captain's log, Stardate 52597.4.
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Neelix searches for a traitor aboard Voyager using his morning news program. A Briefing with Neelix goes on the air for the first time, with the approval of Captain Kathryn Janeway. Neelix happily declares the intention of amusing the ship's crew with news from the ship. He also tries to get other crewmembers to give input, such as asking The Doctor to give health news and getting Ensign Harry ...
