Equinox, Part II (episode)
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference.
| This article is written from the Real World point of view |
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| This article is written from the Real World point of view |
|
| "Equinox, Part II" | ||
|---|---|---|
| VOY, Episode 6x01 Production number: 221 First aired: 22 September 1999 | ||
| ← | 119th of 168 produced in VOY | → |
| ← | 119th of 168 released in VOY | → |
| ← | 579th of 726 released in all | → |
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| Teleplay By Brannon Braga & Joe Menosky Story By Rick Berman & Brannon Braga & Joe Menosky Directed By David Livingston | ||
| Unknown (2376) | ||
| ← | Arc: Equinox (2 of 2) | |
Captain Janeway takes her quest for revenge against Captain Ransom to extremes when she orders the use of photon torpedoes against the Equinox, tractors a neutral ship, nearly kills an Equinox crewman during an interrogation, and relieves Chakotay of duty when he questions her actions. (Season Premiere)
Contents |
[edit] Summary
An alien, one of many attacking within Voyager, knocks Captain Janeway to the deck, but she manages to dodge the thermionic radiation. Yelling for tactical control, she uses a deflector pulse to reinforce the shields - at least, temporarily. The aliens' attacks are halted, but damage has been done; Chakotay is unconscious, and there's no response from sickbay. Ensign Kim reports two casualties due to the alien attacks.
The Equinox, in the meanwhile, realizing that the Voyager is under attack decides to maintain course and not charge to the rescue. With the multiphasic shielding in place, the aliens are staying clear.
Janeway, wandering the corridors of her ship, is handed the Doctor's mobile emitter by Neelix, who found the device on Deck 9. She takes it and reactivates the EMH back in sickbay, not realizing that it is the EMH program from the Equinox, whose ethical subroutines have been deleted. The "doctor" explains that when he was taken hostage by the Equinix he deactivated himself to escape. He begins by treating Chakotay, whom Tom Paris has managed to stabilize. While Janeway insists that they focus their efforts on finding the Equinox, Chakotay argues that they need to stop the attacks by the aliens first. While they are debating, they are interrupted by the sound of the interspacial fissures, which indicate the presence of the aliens.
On the Equinox, Ransom tries to persuade Seven of Nine to stop resisting him and to become part of the crew, instead of spending her time on the brig for the remainder of the journey. Seven refuses to comply, however, telling him bluntly that he would be an inferior role model to her, and that Voyager made a mistake to trust him. While trying to treat Seven, Max Burke realizes that their EMH has left them a replacement, and activates the Doctor from Voyager. Seven and the Doctor realize they're stuck on the Equinox together.
Meanwhile, the Equinox prepares to activate their enhanced warp drive, using the aliens as fuel to get back to Earth within several months. However, just as the ship is accelerating, it stalls. The power relays to the modified injectors have been encoded - Ransom quickly realizes it must have been Seven of Nine. He tries to get her to give him the codes, but Seven refuses again. Burke suggests extracting the codes themselves if she won't give them. When the Doctor protests, Ransom simply deletes his ethical subroutines, and gets him to extract the information by any means necessary.
On Voyager, Chakotay and Harry Kim have come up with a way that may allow them to communicate with the life-forms. Despite misgivings, they drop the shields around the bridge and send the message. An alien appears, moves next to Harry's station for a moment, then disappears into its realm. However, the shields are attacked again. Another deflector pulse is activated, but it loses power quickly. Janeway, who is growing more impatient, gives order to repair the warp drive so they can pursue the Equinox. When Chakotay asks to take another shot at the message to the aliens, she rudely dismisses him. Over in the ready room, Chakotay tells Janeway that he understands her anger towards Ransom who has betrayed everything the the Federation and the uniform they are wearing stands for, but that she cannot compromise the safety of this ship to satisfy some personal vendetta. She tells him that she appreciates his candor, but that even so, she is not going to stand for Ransom continuing to murder and torture another life-form so he can get home faster. She vows to hunt him down no matter how long it takes, no matter what the cost and if he wants to call that a vendetta, then he can go right ahead.
Ransom, who is hiding the Equinox in the atmosphere of a planet so they can make the repairs, checks in with the Doctor, who reveals that in order to access the information in Seven, he will have to remove hercortical array which contains an index of her memory engrams. By doing so, however, all of Seven's higher brain functions will be severely damaged. Ransom pleads with Seven to give him the codes, but she refuses. He says that doing this to her is not easy for him but that she leaves him no choice. Seven states that he uses that phrase quite frequently: destroying lifeforms to obtain his goals and then claim that they left him no choice. She stubbornly tells him that he will have to destroy her to obtain the codes. The Doctor proceeds.
- "Captain's log, supplemental. Our warp-drive's back online but repeated sensor sweeps have failed to locate the Equinox."
Chakotay is summoned to Janeway's ready room - she notes it isn't common for him to submit recommendations in writing, holding up a PADD. Commenting on their last conversation he tells her that this was the only way he thought he could interact with her. However, Janeway refuses this suggestion, namely getting in touch with the Ankari, the race who introduced Ransom to the nucleogenic life-forms, as well. She argues that this would take them off course and waste their time. She notes that from studying Ransom's service record, she found that he has the tendency to hide when he is being pursued. She asks Chakotay to use astrometrics to find likely hiding places, such as a nebula.
Equinox, meanwhile, still in hiding in the planet's atmosphere which shields them from Voyager's sensors, sends Noah Lessing and another crew member down to mine some dilithium. The pair beams down, but is captured by a Voyager away team.
The Equinox EMH tries to warn Ransom that Voyager has found them, and that they have polarized their hull plating to mask their approach. The Voyager and the Equinox engage in a brief battle, Voyager taking the Equinox weapon systems off-line. Not willing to accept defeat, Ransom takes his vessel deeper into the planet's atmosphere. Voyager follows, but has to retreat when the deflector, which they are relying on to protect the vessel against the life-forms, begins losing power in its attempts to protect the vessel against the atmosphere. Equinox escapes to warp, while Voyager is forced to repair its primary systems first before being able to pursue.
Janeway interrogates Lessing, whom she has tied up on a chair in the cargo bay. She threatens to drop the shields in the room and let the aliens in if he doesn't tell her Ransom's tactical status. Getting nowhere with him, she goes outside with Chakotay, and drops the shields. Chakotay quickly realizes Janeway isn't bluffing, and asks her to stop what she is doing, that she is going too far. When she refuses to do so, he goes in and rescues Lessing, saving him in the nick of time and still gets him to tell him everything he knows on the Ankari.
Janeway agrees to try and find a nearby Ankari vessel. When everyone else is dismissed from the briefing, she confronts Chakotay, telling him that even though in the past they had their disagreements, he still never openly opposed her. Chakotay argues that she almost killed that man today and that this wasn't about rules and regulations, but about right and wrong; upon warning her that he won't let her cross that line again, she relieves him of duty until further notice.
Janeway orders Tuvok to use a tractor beam on the fleeing Ankari ship, not having the patience to pursue normal diplomatic channels. When Tuvok tries to object, she yells at him to "just do it". The Ankari, who don't want anything to do with the Voyager after what the Equinox did, are forced by Janeway to agree to summon their "Spirits of Good Fortune" and act as translators. Speaking with them in the cargo bay, the life-forms demand the destruction of the Equinox as retribution. Tuvok tries to persuade them that they will punish the Equinox crew in their own way, via imprisonment, but gets nowhere. The life-forms don't believe they would harm their own kind. Janeway tells them the Federation has rules that the Equinox disregarded and unusually promises the lifeforms to deliver the Equinox to them if they stop their attacks on the Voyager. When Tuvok points out her irrational behavior, she threatens to put him in the brig with Chakotay. The lifeforms, however, accept Janeway's offer.
Ransom escapes the challenges of surviving by wearing a synaptic stimulator, a device which allows him to experience various alien vistas. Although only designed to view landscapes, being nowhere as advanced as a holodeck, he sees someone in it: he is amazed to discover it is Seven of Nine, who asks, then instructs, Ransom to find another way home. Seven turns into a nucleogenic lifeform, at which point Ransom ends the program. Burke summons him to the bridge at the same time, as Voyager has found them again. Ransom orders the starship to open a channel, preparing to surrender to Janeway and make peace with the aliens. Burke doesn't want to accept surrender, sends Ransom to the brig, and takes control of the ship. Marla Gilmore points her phaser at Ransom, and takes him away. Burke contacts the Equinox EMH aboard Voyager and asks him to find the vessel's current shield frequency.
Voyager opens fire on the Equinox, and the two ships engage in combat while at warp. Gilmore leads Ransom to engineering, and lowers her phaser - confessing that she is on his side and wants this to end as much as he does. The two begin trying to access the transporter controls.
Voyager destroys the Equinox port warp nacelle, and the ship falls out of warp, leaking plasma. Voyager continues to pursue, still firing its weapons. The EMH transmits the shield frequency to Burke. Voyager moves in, preparing to engage a tractor beam, while Burke manages to fire torpedos through the shields. Despite Tuvok rotating the shield frequency every ten seconds, Voyager suffers extensive damage, losing many weapons arrays and the impulse drive. Ransom suddenly hails the ship and offers to surrender, saying he can transport the Equinox crew to Voyager. Amazed at their captain's sudden change in attitude, Janeway agrees. She tells her crew that Ransom is a Starfleet captain after all, even if he forgot that for a while.
Burke isn't ready to surrender just yet, and places a force field around the bridge. Gilmore is able to transport the rest of the crew to Voyager, including Seven of Nine. She also transfers the Doctor's program back to his sickbay, with ethical subroutines restored. The Equinox EMH threatens to blow out every holoemitter in the room, and blow out the Doctor's command sequencers - when the Voyager Doctor simply deletes him, thus stopping his transmissions to the Equinox.
Ransom, still in engineering, contacts his bridge. He tells the stunned Burke that he has dropped the shields around the ship, except the bridge and his current location. The vital systems are exposed. Burke refuses to transport to Voyager, despite his captain's pleas - instead, he tries to lead the bridge crew to the nearby shuttlebay two decks down, but all perish en route.
As the life forms attack the Equinox warp core, Ransom hails Janeway. He tells her that his ship is about to explode, and he has to get it to a safe distance from the immobilized Voyager. Janeway tries to get Ransom off, asking him to set auto-navigation. He refuses, saying he has no time. He tells her that she has a fine crew and asks her to promise him to get them home. Having set a course away from the Voyager, he wears his synaptic stimulator one last time, looking at a beautiful beach. A moment or two later, Equinox explodes and is destroyed.
- "Captain's log, supplemental. With the Equinox destroyed, the aliens have withdrawn to their realm. I've reinstated Chakotay and we've set a course for home."
After dressing down and harshly rebuking the five former and surviving Equinox crew members, Janeway strips them off their rank, telling them that from now on they will serve as crewmen, that their privileges will be limited and that they will work under close supervision for as long as she deems fit. She says that they need to earn her trust this time.
On the bridge, Janeway wonders how the crew is doing. Chakotay says that Neelix has organized a potluck to boost morale. In a silent moment, she tells him that he may have had good reason to stage a little mutiny of his own. Chakotay admits that the thought had occurred to him, but that it would have been "crossing the line." This strikes a chord with the captain who reflects upon how close her recent actions had come to being any better than that of the Equinox and captain Ransom.
She then notices the dedication plaque of Voyager that has fallen down for the first time in all these years. Wiping it off, Chakotay suggests putting it back where it belongs---mirroring the earlier fall of the Equinox plaque and a similar conversation she had with Ransom...
[edit] Log Entries
- Captain's log, supplemental. Our warp drive's back online, but repeated sensor sweeps have failed to locate the Equinox.
- Captain's log, supplemental. With the Equinox destroyed, the aliens have withdrawn to their realm. I've reinstated Chakotay and we've set a course for home.
[edit] Memorable Quotes
"You know, Janeway's not the only one who can help you explore your Humanity."
" You would be an inferior role model."
- - Captain Ransom and Seven of Nine, when the captured Seven is brought to him on the Equinox
"We all make our own Hell, Mr. Lessing. I hope you enjoy yours."
- - Captain Janeway
"They say...they want the humans to die."
"A difficult place to start a negotiation."
- - Captain of the Ankari ship and Tuvok
"'Fuel'? Is that the euphemism we're using now?"
- - Captain Ransom, to Max Burke
"I'm replicating the salad."
"I'll bring the croutons."
- - Commander Chakotay and Captain Janeway
"I'm afraid your physician's no longer on call."
- - The Doctor, to USS Equinox after destroying the Equinox EMH
"You were off key."
"I beg your pardon."
"My Darling Clementine, third verse, second measure."
"That's impossible."
"Your vocal modulations deviated by point three zero deci-hertz. I can assist you with that as well."
"Really? Holodeck two, tomorrow, sixteen-hundred hours. Just you, me... and a tuning fork."
- - Seven of Nine and The Doctor
"Captain."
"Things didn't work out exactly as I planned, but you've got everyone worth getting."
"We're beaming you out of there."
"This ship is about to explode. I've got to put some distance between us. I've accessed helm control."
"You can set auto-navigation and then transport to Voyager."
"There's no time! You've got a fine crew, Captain. Promise me you'll get them home."
"I promise."
- - Captain Janeway and Captain Ransom
"Will you look at that? All these years, all these battles, this thing has never fallen down before."
- - Captain Janeway, after she notices the dedication plaque has fallen down.
"Max, I've dropped the shieldgrid. Everywhere except the bridge and my current location. The vital systems are exposed. I suggest you beam to Voyager while you still can!"
- - Captain Ransom
"This isn't the brig."
"I know. I'm with you, sir. Let's find a way end this."
- - Captain Ransom and Marla Gilmore
"He's still a Starfleet officer. He may have forgotten that for a while but I believe him."
- - Janeway
"The last time we welcomed you aboard you took advantage of our trust. You betrayed this crew. I won't make that mistake again. Noah Lessing, Marla Gilmore, James Morrow, Brian Sofin, Angelo Tassoni, you are hereby stripped of rank. You'll be expected to serve as crewmen on this vessel. Your privileges will be limited. And you'll have to serve under close supervision for as long as I deem fit. This time you'll have to earn our trust. Dismissed"
- - Janeway
[edit] Background Information
- Captain Ransom and the crew of the Equinox seem to have traded with some of the alien races they came across, but apparently took whatever supplies they needed from other aliens whenever they needed to.
- It seems the Prime Directive was broken many times by the crew of the Equinox, although Ransom tells Janeway that he only ever “walked the line”, a clear deception to cover his atrocities.
- This is the first episode of Voyager where the show is the sole carrier of the Star Trek franchise, following the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine series finale "What You Leave Behind".
- In "Equinox" (Part I), Janeway remarks the maximum warp speed of the Equinox to be warp 8. However, in Part II, she states it to be warp 6. No explanation is given for this change. It is possible that the warp 8 is the normal maximum speed, but with the damage to the Equinox, they can only travel at warp 6
[edit] Awards
- This episode was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series.
[edit] Video and DVD releases
- UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, Paramount Home Entertainment): Volume 6.1, 28 February 2000.
- For the fourth season in a row, the video sleeve is redesigned. The character images remain in place, but the episode band is made smaller, with the volume number at the center, and the two episode names either side.
- In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: Voyager - Movies: Volume 3 (with "The Killing Game"), 5 February 2001.
- As part of the VOY Season 6 DVD collection.
[edit] Links and references
[edit] Special guest star
[edit] Guest stars
[edit] Co-stars
[edit] Uncredited co-stars
[edit] Stunts
[edit] References
Ankari; auditory processor; class 2 nebula; cortical array; cortical node; crouton; hertz; deflector pulse; "Dem Bones"; deuterium; Epsilon IV; Epsilon system; Equinox, USS; ethical subroutine; gas giant; ground squirrel; inertial damper; interspatial fissure; Klingon Bird-of-Prey; McKinley Park; memory engram; "My Darling Clementine"; nebula; Nova-class; nucleogenic lifeform; nucleogenic particle; occipital node; ocular node; pathogenic atmosphere; photon torpedo; photonic charge; poison ivy; potluck; power relay; reticular node; Rigelian bloodworm; Romulan warbird; salad; sensory node; Shakespeare; shield frequency; synaptic stimulator; Tenkaran coast; Terrelian seapod; torture; tractor beam
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