DVD Review | Star Trek: Voyager (Season 3)
Written by: Kage Alan

After a fairly lackluster second season, the writers of “Star Trek: Voyager” punched things up a bit (after shaking things up with their own staff) and delivered the first really solid season of the show.  First, they got rid of those damn Kazon.  After two years of having an enemy the ship should have outdistanced in a month, it was nice to see them finally gone.  And while there was still far too many episodes that used the Holodeck, the stories themselves were a bit more interesting.

After the opener, we’re treated to a very special episode titled “Flashback,” which ties a situation in the present with an incident in the past, back during the time when Tuvok (Tim Russ) served aboard the USS Excelsior with Captain Sulu (George Takei).  “Sacred Ground” tests Janeway’s (Kate Mulgrew) faith in science against faith in a religious higher power while “Future’s End” presents an incredible 2-part episode in which the crew returns home, only in 1996.  Jennifer Lien (Kes) gets to show her acting chops in “Warlord,” which makes it all the more a shame they wrote her off the show.

The Doctor (Robert Picardo) continues to grow as a major character and an episode, “Real Life,” teaches him what a “real” family is like, ups and downs.  Even Q (John de Lancie) struts his stuff as the all knowing snob of the galaxy.  Most of the cast members have an opportunity to shine in this season, some better than others, and the cliffhanger promises great things to come.  It’s almost a shame that the writers had to rely on bringing back the Borg in order to lure viewers back in.  The crew is on the other side of the galaxy and what do they discover?  The Borg.  It makes one wonder why they didn’t just get home at the end of the second or third season and take over where “TNG” and “DS9” left off.

This isn’t to say that “Voyager” wasn’t without its faults this season.  Discovering that Kim was originally from a planet in the Delta quadrant and impregnated in a human host to be raised on earth was, in a word, ridiculous.  This was also a season of change since, in order to boost ratings, it was decided to replace one of the cast members.  Things looked like they were steering towards Garrett Wang, only he made a Top 50 Most Beautiful People List and a show doesn’t throw away that kind of PR.  In the end, they tossed Lien out.

Paramount has released “Star Trek: Voyager (Season 3)” in its original Full Screen ratio.  I can’t help but wonder how it would have looked in Widescreen or been turned into a feature film as it should have.  Picture and audio quality are all top notch here, so absolutely no complaints in those areas.  Extras include “Braving The Unknown: Season Three” (13 min), “Voyager Time Capsule: Neelix” (12 min), “Voyager Time Capsule: Kes” (12 min), “Flashback to ‘Flashback’” (13 ½ min), “Red Alert: Amazing Visual Effects” (17 min), “Real Science With Andre Bormanis” (10 ½ min), a Photo Gallery and sneak peek at the new Star Trek Las Vegas attraction.  Hidden files include 1 ¾ min on “Worst Case Scenario,” 3 ¼ min on “Macrocosm,” 1 ¼ with Robert Picardo about how many women his character has kissed, 3 ½ min on “Blood Fever” and 2 ½ min on “Distant Origin.”  I was really looking forward to seeing a new interview with Jennifer Lien for her Time Capsule, but it’s really just footage of her from the first two seasons.  I can’t say I’m surprised since she was asked to leave after this season in favor of letting Jeri Ryan to step in as a Star Trek sex symbol (fortunately, Ryan turned out to be a very able actress).

I remember not watching much of Season 2 when it first aired on UPN.  The stories just weren’t moving the show forward at all and the material wasn’t fresh.  The concept was, only the stories weren’t.  Fortunately, Season 3 makes some major improvements and begins to move things along at a pace long since missed.  And while I will miss Jennifer Lien in the upcoming episodes (her character was simply never utilized like it could have been), Jerry Ryan does make a welcome addition to the show as well as a source of deadpan humor.  Bring on Season 4!

Season Rating: B+
DVD Special Features: B