Derek Caelin is writing a bookFeb 5

I've been watching #StarTrek #Voyager with my son. Last night we came to the #Tuvix episode. Here's my hot take, 30 years after the episode aired.

Janeway's decision to kill Tuvix to restore Neelix and Tuvok is unsatisfying, not because it is wrong, because it is out of step with her character.

Janeway's central dilemma is that she puts Star Fleet principles above everything, including her deep desire to get her crew home. The drama of the show is often about her wrestling with this dilemma.

Janeway can absolutely make an amoral decision for the good of her crew, but to ring true she has to acknowledge that she is committing a wrong. Here that doesn't happen.

They could "fix" the episode by having Janeway refusing to kill Tuvix, and grieve. Tuvix then sacrifices himself when he sees Kes' grief. This would be the "easy way out", but one of the rules of old Star Trek is that doing the right thing ends up with good consequences.

Show threadDerek Caelin is writing a bookFeb 5

Alternatively (and somewhat less satisfying): keep the big choice, but have Neelix and Tuvok look aghast at Janeway when they are restored. (After all, they both remember Janeway looking them in the eye and killing them just moments ago.) Add a brief apotheosis in which Janeway experiences grief for her actions. Reveal her to know that she has done something wrong and sense that she has lost something of what she values: she's damaged her relationship with the crew.

This could also be very satisfying. We've established that Janeway is a very moral person and having her sacrifice her morality to get the crew home is a good story. It's "dark" and doesn't fit the tone of the show, but it would at least address the character issue.

Show threadJack Coates 🐀
@derek I like the suggestion! We rewatch Voyager and DS9 all the time. Have to note another very common thread to these and TNG… “wow that terrible thing just happened… and we never spoke of it again.” Next episode the ship is fine, the remaining crew is fine, on to the next. Tuvix fits that perfectly
Feb 5 at 2:14pmWeb