Bride of Chaotica! (episode)

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"Bride of Chaotica!"
VOY, Episode 5x12 Production number: 207 First aired: 27 January 1999
←	106th of 168 produced in VOY	→
←	105th of 168 released in VOY	→
	{{{nNthReleasedInSeries_Remastered}}}th of 168 released in VOY Remastered
←	551st of 727 released in all	→
Teleplay By Bryan Fuller & Michael Taylor Story By Bryan Fuller Directed By Allan Kroeker
Unknown (2375)
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Aliens attack Voyager's holodeck after mistaking Tom Paris' "Captain Proton" program for reality.

Contents 1 Summary 2 Log Entries 3 Memorable Quotes 4 Background Information 4.1 Video and DVD releases 5 Links and references 5.1 Starring 5.2 Also starring 5.3 Guest stars 5.4 Co-stars 5.5 Uncredited co-stars 5.6 References

[edit] Summary

Tom Paris and Harry Kim are enjoying a chapter of The Adventures of Captain Proton on the holodeck as Proton and Buster Kincaid respectively, trying to save Proton's secretary, Constance Goodheart. Meanwhile, the USS Voyager becomes trapped in a layer of subspace.

Unable to end the program, they leave the holodeck running and exit the holodeck via site-to-site transport. After being trapped on the subspace sandbar for several days, weapons fire is detected on the holodeck. Paris and Tuvok investigate and discover that photonic lifeforms have mistaken the holodeck program for reality and are now at war with Doctor Chaotica. Apparently, these lifeforms are explorers and believe that they are making their first contact with humans. Unfortunately, Chaotica believed they were aliens of the fifth dimension and killed one of the lifeforms' emissaries. Tuvok and Paris try to explain to the lifeforms that they are in a simulation but the aliens refuse to believe, as their "sensors" can't pick up "biochemical lifeforms", which they think are artificial.

Paris and Tuvok brief the senior staff on what they've found. They decide the only way out is to play along as the characters in Captain Proton. Paris and Kim resume their previous roles. Captain Janeway is enlisted to play Queen Arachnia. Her assignment is to get Doctor Chaotica to lower his lightning shield. With some help from B'Elanna Torres, the Doctor will pose as the President of Earth. In the program, he encounters one of the photonic aliens and convinces them that Captain Proton is an agent of Earth and is not a threat to them, but Doctor Chaotica is. He is able to convince the photonic aliens to leave once Captain Proton defeats Doctor Chaotica.

Janeway, as Queen Arachnia, eventually completes her mission only after agreeing to become Chaotica's bride and unleashing the pheromone on his right hand. Unfortunately, she tries to have him deactivate the shield by force but he imprisons her. But she is able to use the pheromone on his henchmen. Afterwards, Paris, as Captain Proton, destroys Chaotica's death ray. Janeway then kills Chaotica and his guards. As the others arrive, Chaotica declares that this isn't the last they will see of him.

Once the photonic aliens have left, Voyager is able to continue on its way.

[edit] Log Entries

• "Captain's log, supplemental. We've been spinning our wheels for three days now and still no progress in breaking free of the subspace layer."

[edit] Memorable Quotes

"Chaotica fires his fiendish death ray! Certain death for Proton, as his rocket ship bursts into flames!!!"
"We didn't burst into flames in the last chapter. Why are these recaps always so inaccurate?"
"Well, they brought people back into theaters."
"Cliffhangers!"
"The lost art of a hyperbole."

- An episode trailer for Captain Proton, followed by Kim and Paris

"Coffee, black."
"I'm sorry, Captain. We've lost another two replicators –"
"Listen to me very carefully because I'm only going to say this once. Coffee. Black."
"Yes, ma'am." (To replicator) "Coffee, black. While I've got your attention there are –"
(Holds up hand) "Coffee first." (drinks) "...Now, what's the problem?"

- Janeway and Neelix

"Invaders from the Fifth Dimension!"

- Satan's Robot

"Intercepted communications between Doctor Chaotica and Arachnia. Stop. Chaotica at war with aliens from fifth dimension. Stop. Must strike now to disable death ray."
"Stop. Please summarize the message."

- Paris and Tuvok

"Let me get this straight: trans-dimensional aliens have mistaken your Captain Proton simulation for reality."
"Yes ma'am."
"And now an armed conflict has broken out between these aliens, and Chaotica's holographic army."
"Yes ma'am. His army of evil."

- Janeway and Paris

"The Destructo beam on my rocket ship can disable the death ray, but only if someone gets inside the Fortress of Doom and can shut down the lightning shield."

- Paris

"Well, he's been attacking the aliens with his death ray."
"It's a shame we don't have one."

- Paris and Tuvok

"Think of it as Starfleet's first encounter with Planet X."

- Seven of Nine

"I'm a size four."

- Janeway after accepting the part.

"Ah, I see you've kept my pheromones. I didn't realize you were the scent-imental type."

- Janeway as Queen Arachnia

"The first minute I restore holodeck controls, I'm going to delete this guy."
"Delete – this – guy!"

- Paris and Satan's Robot

"I'll see you at the Fortress of Doom. And remember, you're the Queen!"

- Paris to Janeway

"HAH! You're no match for Arachnia!"

- Janeway as Queen Arachnia after harmlessly absorbing a holographic blast from one of Chaotica's goons.

" I don't know how to tell you this..."(shoots Chaotica with ray gun)"but the wedding's off!"

- Janeway as Queen Arachnia to Dr. Chaotica

"Looks like he burned out a resistor.'"
"A what?

- Paris and Tuvok, as Paris repairs Satan's Robot

[edit] Background Information

• The story was conceived as a way to keep as much action as possible off the bridge, as the Deck 1 sets had suffered smoke and sprinkler damage as a result of a small fire on 2 October 1998. The bridge scenes in the episode were actually shot weeks after the rest of the episode. Robert Picardo jokingly claimed he had started the fire with a lit cigar. [1]
• Nicholas Worth previously played Sorm in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "A Simple Investigation".
• The Bride of Chaotica was also a science fiction film referenced in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Cogenitor".
• In the teaser, Harry Kim comments to Paris that the surface of Planet X looks suspiciously like the "Mines of Mercury" they had seen in a previous episode. This is an in-joke reference to the "Planet Hell" set used to depict many different subterranean or "cave" scenes since the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, including this one.
• Chaotica's Death Ray was previously seen as a weapon in the forests of Minos in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Arsenal of Freedom".

[edit] Video and DVD releases

• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 5.6, 21 June 1999.
• As part of the VOY Season 5 DVD collection.

[edit] Links and references

[edit] Starring

• Kate Mulgrew as Kathryn Janeway/Queen Arachnia

[edit] Also starring

• Robert Beltran as Chakotay
• Roxann Dawson as B'Elanna Torres
• Robert Duncan McNeill as Tom Paris/Captain Proton
• Ethan Phillips as Neelix
• Robert Picardo as The Doctor/President of Earth
• Tim Russ as Tuvok
• Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine
• Garrett Wang as Harry Kim/Buster Kincaid

[edit] Guest stars

• Martin Rayner as Doctor Chaotica
• Nicholas Worth as Lonzak

[edit] Co-stars

• Jim Krestalude as the alien
• Majel Barrett as the computer voice

[edit] Uncredited co-stars

• Tarik Ergin as Ayala/Satan's Robot
• Mark Hoffman as Lonzak's Henchman
• Kirsten Turner as Constance Goodheart

[edit] References

1930s; The Adventures of Captain Proton; Al-Batani, USS; Army of Evil; biochemical lifeform; Bolians; brain probe; "Captain Proton Versus the Cosmic Creature"; carbon-based lifeform; cliffhanger; confinement rings; cosmetic surgery; Cradle of Persuasion; death ray; Den of Crocodiles; destructo beam; deutronic circuitry; Dungeon of Pain; Earthling; fifth dimension; Fortress of Doom; "Hail to the Chief"; Hollywood; imagizer; impulse reactor; intruder alert; lavatory; lightning shield; Mines of Mercury; pain modulator; pheromone; Planet X; protonebula; photonic charge; photonic lifeform; Proton's rocket ship; queen; ray gun; resistor; rocket ship; science fiction; science officer; silk; Sire; sonic shower; space drive; "Spell of the Spider"; Spider People; subspace; subspace sandbar; telegram; Terran

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