What sort of ship is Capt Janeway running?, too busy prissying around with her bouffant hair-do in her ready room is she?. And WHAT sort of Tactical & Security officer is Tuvok when a crew member has VANISHED off the ship and there is no 'automated alarm' in place to alert everyone they have gone.
An easy programming to get old Majel Barrett to let them all know WITHOUT the senior staff having to ASK the computer, "Computer, Locate Kes", Majel says, " Kes is not aboard Voyager".
Looks like even when TIME & TIME again when past experiences have shown this is needed NO ONE gets around to putting it in place. A MASSIVE Plot Hole.
No one can just quite get around to formulating a simple program of an 'instant alert'. "Computer, when anyone leaves the ship without authorisation INSTANTLY alert the bridge", it is all they have to say, or twiddle about a bit and put in a manual coding, easy as that!.
The scriptwriters INSULTING our intelligence that such a procedure would not be in place in the first place, all to further the script, to actually make it work. Otherwise it wouldn't.
Scripts crafted that only actually work when the viewers Intelligence is insulted, and are used too often, are some of the lowest sort of scripts conceived in any series, it is a 'dumbing down' of intelligence.
The better scripts are the ones that carry us along and enlighten us & expand our intelligence. Entertaining & educating. Some of the more 'Cerebral' episodes looking back can be the more entertaining ones.
Yes, at the time it catered for all ages, and they wanted the 'instant' viewing figures to keep it all going, BUT, the producers should have known episodes not quite understood by younger folk can always be viewed & enjoyed in later years.
Then we have yet another big blunder that of not having the cargo bay set up to be an extended BRIG. So that all those within it CANNOT get out. So that it does not need a non speaking part security team on the inside to stand around like plonkers with phaser rifles.
Getting knocked off with their armaments that are then used against the entire ship. Or in this case the security team were continually transported away. SOMEHOW leaving behind the phaser!!, what an accurate transportation system that was!!.
Didn't turn up elsewhere with the phaser did they!. THOUGH they still HAD their com badges, that were soon removed/plucked from them. Nice BIG plot hole there. Didn't quite think that one through.
All the scripts needed feeding through a band of close to hand, ie the studio, a bunch of hard core Trekkies, they'd have pointed these things out. All that fan base available, many with great expertise, yet in a practical way with the script writing was it FULLY utilised?. It would have been SO MUCH better.
Back to this episode & Voyager in general. There have been many times Voyager has picked up undesirables along the way & needed a mass storage area with security similar to a brig. But our intrepid hero's on Voyager just never did learn that.
BTW we still see Jen Lien in the show, I thought she cleared off prior to 79 turning up, when I consider the show actually started to pick up.
***Future Spoiler alert***. ***Future Spoiler alert***.
Wasn't it some goings on about Kes's powers expanding and her having to leave. The root of it CANNOT have been that Jen Lien did not get enough airtime, because there are many episodes JUST primarily about her. She had more than enough screen time, who knows, I'm not too bothered.
WE then had 79 on our plate. To oggle at & admire, a welcome FRESH new character, the first new permanent character in over half of the show. 79 added many things, the obvious physical attraction and of cause there was her acting abilities & over all ongoing character development.
The producers should have added a new outside character every other season or even per season, it may have picked the first 3 seasons up a bit, they dragged a bit, no great over all context. Just bumbling along from one individual episode to another, with the main theme of just getting back to Earth. (maybe with the odd reoccurring Kazon & those organ taking Viidan theme, and Sesko).
Not that the episodes were too bad but that I feel it gained pace later from season 4 onwards. Many agree. All the seasons were OK, but with 79 things got better. I call her 79, 7 of 9 is far too poncy.
AND don't get me started on her official designation, I totally CRINGE when I hear that. Fast forward so as to not hear any instances of that. I don't even like Janeways moniker of "Seven" either. That's utterly wet as well. I'd call her 79 with a slight unspoken innuendo whether she like it or not.
I'd spice up my dealings with the female characters were I on board, it'd be fun to be on Voyager. Best of all the Star Trek series. The best series being the ship/space station that YOU would prefer to be on.
Getting back to this "Displaced" episode, I would say special commendation goes to Neelix, he was very helpful, he always was, it was either in this one or the last one where he was extra keen & helpful. Voyager was lucky to have him on board, he perked the place up, an enjoyable character well played, especially when paired against Tuvok.
The Spock & Bones pairing & sparring was its original inspiration. The Star Trek producers & script writers can in some areas learn & adapt but so it seams the Star Trek Captains are not quite well equipped with this ability.
No wonder so many crewmen were ceremoniously piped out from wherever the ceremony was held, into space in a funeral pod. (yea, no doubt called the ceremony room!). Used quite a lot due to Slack-Alice. Not quite as competent as she needed to be for everybody else's sake's. Yes she tried, it must have been mainly due to the scripts that called for these dramatic killings. It making her look not so competent.
***Future Spoiler alert***. ***Future Spoiler alert***.
OK then!, for Neelix's erstwhile continual efforts I'll up the rating to 3 stars. As the heading still says 2 stars, it was for sure getting 2 stars.
WE are yet to see Neelix emerge bedraggled from someones crew or guest quarters after an encounter with a Klingon female, OR was it two?. One of the highlights of the entire show. Quite daring they put it in. Having a bit of saucy adult fun.
Of cause the entire show is 'well' worth more than 3 stars, it is up there near the top end of a 10 star rating, but for all the reasons I have raised for this episode, whether people like it or not it is just a 3 star rating for Slack Alice Janeways lack of professional planning. AND of cause for the script writers insulting of our intelligence. A rating of 3 stars.
PS, Edited just to add another 'e' in Neelix.
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