Ex Post Facto (VOY)

            So, out of sheer coincidence, both TNG and Voyager’s seventh episodes revolve around a crew member being put on trial on an alien world. Fortunately for me, Voyager manages to make a solid, entertaining hour of television from that premise, while TNG made “Justice”.

            Tuvok has been a background character for a while now, and while “Ex Post Facto” doesn’t give us a huge amount of insight into who he is as a person, it does at least give him an opportunity to do his job as a security chief, and show that while he’s no Odo, he’s at least a much better cop than Worf. When you think about it, investigator is such a totally natural role for a Vulcan, it’s a wonder it’s taken us this long to see one in it (though the role did fall to Spock a few times, notably in The Undiscovered Country.)

            Tom gets the secondary focus in the episode, and while his impulsiveness and relative lack of discipline continue to cause problems for Captain Janeway, ultimately his role in this episode is mostly as the damsel in distress, which doesn’t give him a lot of time to shine. My biggest regret is that the episode didn’t spend just a little more time reflecting on the nastiness of the Benean’s penalty for murder (an implant that makes the perpetrator relive the victims last few minutes every fourteen hours.) It would have given the episode a little more of a sci-fi bent and given Tom more of a chance to do some acting. As it is, he manages to make his romance with Lidel at least a little bit believable, and we get a nice last scene between him and Tuvok.

            But the episode is intended as a whodunit, and in that vein, it succeeds better than most Star Trek episodes that share that premise. Tuvok, like Sherlock Holmes, is a master of logic and deduction, and like a Sherlock Holmes story, the episode gives us enough hints to try and solve it ourselves. The twist at the end, that Tom wasn’t the target at all and all of this was just a complicated way of smuggling some data to the Numiri, is a little bit of a stretch, but not enough to break my suspension of disbelief.

Along the way, the threat of the Numeri provides the opportunity for a couple space battles, which gives B’Elanna and Chakotay a chance to shine. It's a nice reminder that even though the crews have integrated, the Maquis still aren't afraid to break the rules to get things done. This, combined with Kes and the Doctor’s efforts to slow down Paris’s brain deterioration, gives pretty much the entire supporting cast something to do – no small task on a show with seven regulars. All in all, a solid, fun, exciting hour of Star Trek.

Random Observations:

I admire the costuming department for giving the Beneans a little more of a unique feel than the typical alien civvies Star Trek is so fond of, especially Lidell’s 1920’s style cigarette holder, which evoked a kind of retro sexiness. Little details like that really help sell the world the episode establishes.

The banter between Janeway and Chakotay during the space battles is cute! I don’t think I’ve seen those two have chemistry before.

Kes attempting to convince the Doctor he has free will is a really great scene. They remain my two favorite characters right now.

Tuvok is over a hundred years old. He must feel like he’s on a ship full of children. It’s a miracle he lets the Doctor (who’s technically a few months old) talk down to him.

Janeway’s mama bear attitude whenever one of her crew is threatened is becoming her defining characteristic. Her bluffing the Numiri patrols was incredibly badass, though.

Harry's main role in this episode is to get tortured - if Jonah's theory about Sulu is correct, Star Trek really doesn't like Asian people.

No fatalities.

No shuttlecraft lost (they were ready to blow one up, though.)

Photon torpedo count – still 37. They got out of that battle without firing any.