Goddess Kremblor

Formerly Evil Tear Bender (name from lodessa after one of my posts). I primarily blog my fandoms, mainly Star Trek and Harry Potter. I have a lot of ships that I like and will reblog for.

[kremblor]

"your sanity means nothing if we stay here"

The way Janeway is all up over Chakotay as she says that too. Like .... I lost it. I ship them so hard but flashed back to her doing so many reckless and idiotic things to save Tuvok even if it means delaying her mission to get the ship home. Kes and Seven? Her adopted proteges ... Yep she'll also go to the extremes for. And she has done things for Chakotay and other members of the crew but here she is just leaning over him, touching him, and all "sacrifice your sanity for my ship"

Like, I know it's because she is relying on her belief that if they escape he will regain his sanity BUT the way we get her Admiral older self violating the TPD because Tuvok has lost his sanity is hilarious (yes it's Chakotay and Seven too but she holds Tuvok has the trump card for a reason and I love that for our space besties). Here she's like "look, we suspect we get out it will end. Just run into insanity with your arms open and help us out of here and we'll see if that's true"

[kremblor]

Not a Voyager episode starting with Chakotay yelling "no make them stop" and I look up at the screen all " ah, yes, the boxing episode"

My brain will randomly forget how to count or do basic math but I hear ONE WORD of a Star Trek episode and it can be like "this is this episode in this season of this series and is the moment when". Is it every time? Not really but I've also not had a proper binge in nearly 5 years now so I'm rusty. But I've named and/or identified each episode of S5 of Voyager so far.

[kremblor]

"none of you deserves to be forgotten"

And the later when Voyager comes across the demon Voyager ship destroyed in space and no means to record it beyond cause unknown.

This show really does like making me seeing Janeway die and then have her perfectly fine seconds later while still managing to give me gut wrenching pain over it all.

[kremblor]

Watching "The Disease" right now and I know we joke a lot about it being Kirk's timeframe that probably caused the regulation brought up in this episode HOWEVER I'd like to present the fact that we have a particular individual on the first interstellar Starfleet (yes Earth Starfleet specifically not Federation) vessel that decided while on an alien vessel and helping said vessel he would interact with an alien in a way that resulted in pregnancy.

Maybe, just maybe, it was after that the regulation came around as a means to further ensure alien encounters go without issue. And it's not always followed (as we see frequently in Trek) but still gotta play the role of Captain when it's broken and things happen like in this episode.

But yeah, it probably would have been more interesting for this regulation if it came up before this episode in another Trek. And this was a sort of funny way of reminding us about it. I know TNG mentions regulations a lot and obviously we could probably assume some of the"don't forget first contact regulations" style commentary is also referring to this sort of thing. But I mean a more direct sort of reference, though we do sort of get the "be careful" stuff with the ENT "Cogenitor" episode and TNG "The Outcast" episode - both have constantly little reminders in it to be careful with closeness but nothing blatantly stated.

So its not really new per say but its still suddenly just there and makes Janeway seem weird when even before this episode in VOY we've had the crew being flirty and close (and her suspiciously close with Kashyk) prior to this episode. You can't tell me they got medical and Captain approval every single time

I refuse to believe that Riker got Beverly's approval every single time. That Jadzia got Bashir's approval. This isn't even bringing up then then needing Sisko or Picard's approval. Did Chakotay get approval for the woman he fell in love with from that species that everyone forgets once they are gone?

I will say that I suspect it's also more - for this regulation specifically - in regards to new species. Dont surprise pregnancies or telepathic bonding from a singular encounter do we? Oh wait ... *Looks at Trip and Harry*

Anyways, still weird it takes 5 seasons for Voyager to bring it up.

[anyataylorjoys]

Richard Roxburgh as Dracula VAN HELSING (2004) dir. Stephen Sommers

[kremblor]

Borg Queen: of course I let Janeway take you make that was always my plan

Also the Borg Queen: you will hell us assimilate humanity because Locutus failed me

So, as Picard realized in "First Contact" the role she wanted for him was essentially consort, king. And when he refuses to return as Locutus she turns to Data - something that does have Picard sacrificing himself so Data doesn't get assimilated not that that worked - which ... Also fails for her. Now, in "Dark Frontier" she is turning to Seven and we know due to PIC that she turns to Jack Crusher (Picard's child). All of them are meant to be her equal and her means to humanity. But each I think are a progression away from the role Locutus was meant to be. That equal//consort/King role.

I mean, Data she is assimilating not by essentially plugging him into the Borg - he is already technology based after all - but by gifting him with aspects of humanity. It's still got that sensual nature to it but she is working in reverse this time, and she went for someone that was a subordinate to Picard - someone close to him yes but still beneath in the structure of things. Thus likely establishing her start at lowering the whole equal level thing.

If we actually believe her plan was to let Seven be taken by Janeway and then take her back to the Borg ... This is doing much the same attempt she tried with Data. Only instead, she is sending one of her drones (individuals she looks over and often speaks as if they are her children/young). And one she essentially had since a child at that to be taken back and dis-assimilated. For humanity to assimilate the drone so that the drone may return and be the vessel by which she - the Queen - can better assimilate humanity. Janeway is an unknown at this point though, to take this plan is to assume much about humanity and risk a lot (which the Queen tends to do so it's not unreasonable for this to have actually been the plan all along)

Neither of these two plans work. We get the whole Jurati thing and that off set of Borg but that is a unique situation and vastly different from what these above things are. The next big humanity take over attempt. Plan the Queen actually goes for or speaks of similarly is the one with Jack Crusher. Where due to Picard's time as Locutus he - much like Seven and other xB - still has nanoprobes within him and manages to pass that on to his child. This time the attempt is basically a siren song across the universe to this growing child in order to lure them into being the beacon that draws humanity in. It's no more "be my equal" manipulations but just straight to "can't teach them when they are grown so gonna manipulate them from infancy"

I could go on but I am loving the Janeway v Queen custody battle on my screen.

[kremblor]

Watching "Dark Frontier" and how the senior staff away team (because it's never lower decks on all but 1 show) just casually strolls through the Borg sphere all because Janeway came up with a big Steal From the Borg plan .... Has me remembering the Prodigy episode where HoloJaneway is all "no avoid Borg" with the kids only to rapidly switch to "okay, stand down weapons and walk casually. Yes yes, calm, breathe, easy, you got this"

Her tired of running from the Borg side came out in that episode and I love that for her. It's not even the real Janeway but they still got that conveyed in her.

Also gotta love that they practice this. Janeway just constantly practicing with her crew running through a Borg sphere and of course she brings her bestie Tuvok for this

[kremblor]

In "Bride of Chaotic" Neelix says they have a ship of 150 people. In "Dark Frontier" the Borg scan Voyager and say the ship has 143 life forms.

How did they lose 7 people between those two episodes? The only other two episodes are "Gravity" and "Bliss"..... I just need the information here Voyager

(yes I know realistically it's just not paying attention to numbers previously given similar to shuttle amount and torpedos but still)

[kremblor]

In "Bride of Chaotic" Neelix says they have a ship of 150 people. In "Dark Frontier" the Borg scan Voyager and say the ship has 143 life forms.

How did they lose 7 people between those two episodes? The only other two episodes are "Gravity" and "Bliss"..... I just need the information here Voyager

(yes I know realistically it's just not paying attention to numbers previously given similar to shuttle amount and torpedos but still)

[kremblor]

Kathryn: those Admirals and I are on a first name basis

I .... I don't think that's entirely the best thing, Janeway. But also this bring the basis to my HC that Edward Janeway was constantly bringing his girls to Starfleet HQ and Kathryn was so much a little nuisance there the various Admirals would just find her not at her father's side and end up babysitting her until Edward could find her. Like, she'd be happily chatting away to young up and coming Nechavey about her latest tennis match only to rapidly switch to "I'm going to be the youngest Admiral ever" to "oh my father is really good at designing ships and he said one day maybe I could too. But the only ships in interested in on the ones that would let me best study the universe." Looks up " did you know that" Edward appearing as the gathered group that just wanted to go for a walk and somehow ended up with a child has the biggest 'oh thank you' look on their face and Edward just "oh sorry, she got away from me. Little explore just can't help but wander off. One of these days she's going to get lost"

And I fully want some Admiral who remembers tiny Kathryn Janeway exploring Starfleet HQ to remember chaotic her and her father making some off hand comment to upon her return from the DQ and mid board of inquires pull a "well, your father was right. You did get lost"

[darksideofthecoffeebean]

Some people might say she's a nepo baby, others that she just inherited the right habits.

I like both ideas. 😄

[kremblor]

I honestly like to think it's a mix. Like, her and Tom are nepo babies. Part of why I love Starfleet Academy is we got a nepo baby in that as well and they do an amazing sort of "living up to" thing with Genesis that we get to see unfold. And we know that was there with Tom but with Kathryn ... It's not really hinted at as something that got to her. But this is the woman who ended up in a deep months long unmoving depression after her father died.

She's that kid who would go to work with their parent, get known by everyone, then end up joining that same work force as said parent .... And then everything just keeps going wrong which makes their name even known MORE.

I have so many HCs I could get into about this. Like Owen and Edward being friends because most of the Admiralty likely knew each other and when stationed in same areas why not have the families get together.

But also like Kathryn has a mix of the right habits and the "did she really beam herself down to a planet alone to finish a mission because her subordinates lives already got risked once and she refused to do that again?" Habits. Like, the Admirals probably hear that and wonder if that's more her mother or father.

[kremblor]

Watching "Bliss" and the way that one of Janeway's hopeful illusions is Mark's engagement being broken off really just shatters me. And brings me back to the whole constantly thinking of EPIC/Odyssey when watching Voyager.

Because like .... Part of that story is also the fact that Odsesseus and Penelope both cannot be entirely certain that the other is truly still there. That they are alive or waiting or who knows what. But they maintain the hope and keep pushing forward. Penelope refuses to let go, holding to the belief that her husband is alive and will return despite all evidence to the contrary presented before her. And Odysseus constantly holds out that he will manage to make it back to his wife no matter what - he holds on to that by clinging to the belief that she IS waiting.

And in this episode we see this with Janeway. While her journey has shifted to "home/Starfleet" for her and "get my crew back to their family" (yes she has her mother and sister but her early presentation is centered in Mark) it's in this moment in this episode we see a part of her has still been clinging to the idea of maybe just maybe their is a hope still in Mark. Logically she knows the answer is no, has even accepted that, but emotionally ... I don't think she has actually gotten to process it all properly which means she hasn't gotten to accept and recover on an emotional level

Just ... The way I could get into all this so much. Everyone is getting all these messages from home in this episode based on their desires and what they would want most. Pardons. Jobs. Security upon return. These are themes we see in this episode. Only for Janeway's to be Mark, Mark once more available to be with her. It's not her mother or sister writing her - that desire to hear from them wasn't stronger than the one about Mark.

[kremblor]

I love that in "Resolutions" when Janeway could let go of everything and settle into life on a planet .... She goes full science mode and attempts to get her and Chakotay back home no matter what. All while Chakotay has started to let go and accept this is where they are going to be living now.

Meanwhile, in "Gravity" it's Tom - who has someone he loves on Voyager mind you - that has begun to accept and is allowing himself to find a way to live on this desert of a planet. While Tuvok is "I'm going to keep trying to contact Voyager because they are going to keep trying to rescue us". Tom just wants Tuvok to fall for the chick they are stuck with and Tuvok is stranded all internally mentally calling out for Voyager and T'Pel despite T'Pel not being in Voyager. That man is internally all "if I mentally call for her loud enough maybe Voyager will hear me better"

And you know maybe that is how Janeway does hear him.

Anyways, this episode started and my brain immediately went "they had to make Tuvok married because if he wasn't they wouldn't have a valid excuse to not have the Captain and their Vulcan get together given how often this show repeats the Kirk-Spock stuff"

Like, yeah, same reason be applied for why now JC but that marriage really does do a lot to protect that Captain and their Vulcan writing

[kremblor]

I love the way Tuvok is looking at Janeway as she reacts to Tom describing Archania. And then he looks back at Chakotay after she asks who Tom had in mind. He is so ready to throw her into this but also was like "you want this one or is it me?"

You know Tuvok got as many holoimages of this mission as he could just to pull out later when they get home all "and her my beloved T'Pel is where" incoming Janeway screaming from the other room, T'Pel already holding the holoimages, Janeway screeching to a halt, Tuvok smirking "you handed me them because you knew she wouldn't tackle me for them didn't you?" "It was only logical. As I was saying, that's her as Archania"

[kremblor]

Tom "maybe we should just get out and push"

Janeway: tilts her head in motherly disappointment

I love how quickly she responded like that. It was like pure instinct. And then she proceeds to - after the briefing - immediately tell a story about a time she was on Admiral Paris ship. Like we know we know you knew his father.

Anyways, how often did Owen Paris bring little Tom onto the ship Janeway?

[kremblor]

Tom "maybe we should just get out and push"

Janeway: tilts her head in motherly disappointment

I love how quickly she responded like that. It was like pure instinct. And then she proceeds to - after the briefing - immediately tell a story about a time she was on Admiral Paris ship. Like we know we know you knew his father.

Anyways, how often did Owen Paris bring little Tom onto the ship Janeway?

[kremblor]

I'm starting "Latent Image" and just knowing the Doctor says this is 18 months ago is so fascinating to me. Specifically, the decision he made that caused the cascade failure. Like, we don't have a Stardate for this episode but where it falls between is "Thirty Days" (stardate 52179.4 which hillschmidt gives as March 7 2375) and "Gravity"( Stardate 52438.9 which is given as June 10, 2375). That's a good buffer zone to drop the 3 unknown stardated episodes into. Likely "Counterpoint" is a decent chunk of that time not to mention we know that the date in "Thirty Days" is the start of Tom's thirty days in the brig, so "Counterpoint" would actually be taking place after that chunk of time as well.

So, if we say most of, if not all of, April for "Counterpoint" then that puts "Latent Image" within May. So, go back 18 months and you land around December of 2373 which places us around possibly JUST before "Scorpion" happens. Remembering that he also just around that time ALSO had that whole alters his subroutines and ends up with an evil version of himself thing.... And just before that they had to save his subroutines by graphing his holoengineer diagnostic version onto his subroutines .... It's honestly not that surprising really that when within months of these events (as it's really back to back to back) and his subroutines are going critical the solution is basically .... Erase the damage. They were terrified of losing him.

I get the episode is using at as a "See Seven has grown" moment but man I wish episodes like this ALSO touched in the events happening when those decisions were being made. It would have been a great moment for Janeway to have with the Doctor where she just goes "we almost lost you before I had to make that choice" and he starts to argue that thinking she means the same situation and she is all "No, I mean with you tried to enhance your personality and nearly lost your program as a result. Or when you grew so much as an individual your program couldn't handle it. We found solutions both those times, helped you to recover but this ... You were dying before my eyes and I couldn't find a way to save you"

Just the way it could have been a moment for him to see they did it because they viewed him just as much as a part of the crew and family as anyone else. Vs the treating him like they did at the starting they partially frame it as.

[kremblor]

Kathryn: those Admirals and I are on a first name basis

I .... I don't think that's entirely the best thing, Janeway. But also this bring the basis to my HC that Edward Janeway was constantly bringing his girls to Starfleet HQ and Kathryn was so much a little nuisance there the various Admirals would just find her not at her father's side and end up babysitting her until Edward could find her. Like, she'd be happily chatting away to young up and coming Nechavey about her latest tennis match only to rapidly switch to "I'm going to be the youngest Admiral ever" to "oh my father is really good at designing ships and he said one day maybe I could too. But the only ships in interested in on the ones that would let me best study the universe." Looks up " did you know that" Edward appearing as the gathered group that just wanted to go for a walk and somehow ended up with a child has the biggest 'oh thank you' look on their face and Edward just "oh sorry, she got away from me. Little explore just can't help but wander off. One of these days she's going to get lost"

And I fully want some Admiral who remembers tiny Kathryn Janeway exploring Starfleet HQ to remember chaotic her and her father making some off hand comment to upon her return from the DQ and mid board of inquires pull a "well, your father was right. You did get lost"