STAR TREK: VOYAGER

   US tv series (1995-). Paramount Network Television. Series creators/executive prods: Rick Berman, Michael Piller and Jeri Taylor. Supervising prod (pilot) David Livingston.The two-hour (less advertisingspace) pilot was aired in Jan 1995, and written by the executive producers. The series is to follow. The 24th-century Federation starship Voyager commanded by Captain Kathryn Janeway (played by Kate Mulgrew)-thefirst female captain to be a regular cast member in the various ST series-is swept away 75,000 light years from home by a godlike being known as The Caretaker, while searching for a group of resistance fighters, the Maquis, which has also been kidnapped. The pilot episode (replaying one ofthe oldest and tiredest STAR TREK themes) deals with attempts to convince the flawed godlike being that humans have autonomy and can cope very well by themselves, some of the action taking place in a cornball virtual reality resembling a midwest farmhouse. The remaining series is to deal with attempts to shorten the trip back to Federation space, reckoned to take around 70 years at "warp speed", with Federation crew and outlaws working in uneasy harmony.The pilot episode suggests that despite cosmetic changes (the tactical/security officer, otherwise resembling Spock, is an Afro-American Vulcan, or looks like one; the captain is female) the STuniverse is much the same as ever, and the routine nature of the script, along with the perfunctory special effects, raise serious questions about how much artistic life there may still be in the ST concept despite its continuing popularity. Other continuing characters are to include Robert Beltran as First Officer Chakota (of native American descent), RoxannBiggs-Dawson as B'Ellana Torres (a half-Klingon), Robert Duncan McNeill-one of the better actors-as Lt. Tom Paris, Jennifer Lien as Kes, Ethan Phillips as Neelix (comic relief), Robert Picardo as Doc Zimmerman, Tim Russ as Tuvok (the black Vulcan Tactical/Security Officer) and Garrett Wang as Ops/Comm Officer Harry Kim.

   The series is syndicated. This is the third live-action ST tv spin-off, its two predecessors being STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION and STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE.

   PN