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We’ve reached the end of the latest season of Star Trek: Voyager! In “Basics, Part I” a whole bunch of storylines crash together. The second season serialization has had some up and mostly downs, but the season finale pulls everything together. Is the end result a success that salvages what came before?
The Wikipedia plot summary for “Basics, Part I”:
Ensign Lon Suder, having been confined to his quarters for life as punishment for his murder of Crewman Darwin,[4] has attempted to make amends by making several agricultural advancements. His homicidal tendencies seem to be well under control through the use of Vulcan mental disciplines learned from Tuvok. Seska calls Voyager stating that Commander Chakotay must rescue her and her newborn baby, since Culluh saw that the child was not his. Captain Janeway and Chakotay argue on whether or not to save his son, whether it is a trap or a real plea for help. In the ready-room, everyone thinks up ideas to fight the Kazon in the event of a trap.
An apparent defector of the Kazon is soon found on a stranded ship and taken on board to Sickbay, and explains his predicament, although Chakotay remains suspicious — especially when he mentions Seska’s death. As Voyager travels further into Kazon space, facing heavier attacks that seem focused at the same general area of the ship, the man commits suicide in a violent explosion, which severely damages Suder’s quarters and disables several of Voyager’s systems. As Voyager is overwhelmed by the Kazon, Lt. Paris takes a shuttle to find a Talaxian colony for aid. Voyager is boarded and taken over by Kazon forces. Captain Janeway attempts to activate the ship’s self-destruct sequence to prevent the Kazon from taking the ship, but the system that controls this ability was damaged in earlier Kazon skirmishes, revealing the true strategy of the Kazon.
In this episode of the podcast, Wes and Clay discuss “Basics, Part I” and close out yet another season of Star Trek: Voyager. Plus! The guys chat about sexual technique confusion, proto-Enterprise concepts, and yelling into the wind.