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Bliss (Voyager episode)
Encyclopedia
"Bliss" is an episode of Star Trek: Voyager
, the fourteenth episode of the fifth season. The episode has an average rating of 4.2/5 on the official Star Trek
website as of September, 2009.
returns from an away mission she finds the crew have discovered what they think is a wormhole
leading directly to Earth. Suspicious of everyone's unfettered optimism despite signs the anomaly may not be all it appears to be, Seven accesses Captain Janeway
's logs. At first, the captain grimly reports that secondary scans determined that the wormhole was a deception, but in supplemental logs, Janeway suddenly believes it is real and that there is nothing to worry about.
Seven locates an alien vessel in the wormhole after a re-scan; not originally detected by Voyagers sensors, she hails it. The alien, Qatai, warns her not to go into the anomaly, and that Voyager is being deceived, but they are cut off when Janeway routes power from the lab to another system. When Naomi Wildman tells Seven that she thinks everyone is acting strangely, Seven realises they are the only two unaffected by whatever is manipulating the crew, Seven because she cannot remember Earth, and Naomi because she has never been to Earth and considers Voyager her real home. She also finds that The Doctor
is not affected either, since he is a hologram. The crew is suddenly and conveniently ordered by Starfleet
to take the Doctor offline to avoid system interference from the wormhole, and to put Seven in stasis to avoid attracting Borg
attention while Voyager passes through the wormhole.
Seven knows that something is manipulating the crew, and compelling them to enter the wormhole with the promise that they will see Earth, but no one will listen. She decides to act. As Chakotay
escorts Seven to her alcove, she tricks him and erects a forcefield to contain him. With Naomi keeping security at bay, Seven transports to Engineering and stuns B'Elanna
with a phaser. After erecting another forcefield there, Seven attempts to shut down the impulse drive
to keep Voyager from entering the wormhole. Janeway transmits a electromagnetic surge to the engineering console that knocks Seven out.
With Seven incapacitated, Voyager proceeds to enter the wormhole. Once they enter the anomaly, the crew falls unconscious and begin to hallucinate. When Naomi wakes Seven, the two look outside Voyager's windows and see that they are not inside a wormhole, but some kind of organic chamber. Seven hails Qatai and convinces him to beam aboard. He explains that the crew has been a victim of telepathy and psychogenic manipulation from a bioplasmic organism, a beast that consumes starships by telepathically preying on their crews' desires. The creature also has the ability to change sensor readings, which explains why Voyager's sensors did not fully detect the deception. Qatai has been trying for years to destroy the creature, which killed his family, not always successful at evading its deceptions, as he at first believes Voyager and her crew to be hallucinations.
After reactivating the Doctor's program, Seven informs him that Voyager is being devoured in the digestive chamber of the organism. Realizing that bodies are designed to expel foreign objects, they plan to fire one of Qatai's tetryon-based weapons at a pocket of antimatter
released from Voyager's warp core, which would make the creature literally vomit Voyager and Qatai out. After firing the first weapon, Seven believes that Voyager has been expelled from the organism. But Qatai hails her from his ship and warns her that now she is the one being deceived, because getting out of the organism is what she really wanted, and the creature simply made her think that one weapon burst would do the trick. The Doctor confirms this with his own scans, and Seven takes Qatai's advice and releases more antimatter. It creates another, larger reaction in the beast that causes it to finally expel the two ships through its esophagus
. After having the Doctor make sure that they really are out of the creature, Qatai departs and Janeway and the others regain consciousness, Voyager resumes its course to the Alpha Quadrant, but Qatai returns to the beast, determined to defeat it.
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
, the fourteenth episode of the fifth season. The episode has an average rating of 4.2/5 on the official Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
website as of September, 2009.
Plot
After Seven of NineSeven of Nine
Seven of Nine is a fictional character on Star Trek: Voyager, portrayed by actress Jeri Ryan. Born human, she was assimilated by the Borg at the age of six. Eighteen years later, Voyager left Borg space with Seven on board, after attempts to negotiate passage through Borg space proved only...
returns from an away mission she finds the crew have discovered what they think is a wormhole
Wormhole
In physics, a wormhole is a hypothetical topological feature of spacetime that would be, fundamentally, a "shortcut" through spacetime. For a simple visual explanation of a wormhole, consider spacetime visualized as a two-dimensional surface. If this surface is folded along a third dimension, it...
leading directly to Earth. Suspicious of everyone's unfettered optimism despite signs the anomaly may not be all it appears to be, Seven accesses Captain Janeway
Kathryn Janeway
Kathryn Janeway, played by Kate Mulgrew, is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. As the captain of the Starfleet starship USS Voyager, she was the lead character on the television series Star Trek: Voyager, and later, a Starfleet admiral, as seen in the 2002 feature film Star Trek...
's logs. At first, the captain grimly reports that secondary scans determined that the wormhole was a deception, but in supplemental logs, Janeway suddenly believes it is real and that there is nothing to worry about.
Seven locates an alien vessel in the wormhole after a re-scan; not originally detected by Voyagers sensors, she hails it. The alien, Qatai, warns her not to go into the anomaly, and that Voyager is being deceived, but they are cut off when Janeway routes power from the lab to another system. When Naomi Wildman tells Seven that she thinks everyone is acting strangely, Seven realises they are the only two unaffected by whatever is manipulating the crew, Seven because she cannot remember Earth, and Naomi because she has never been to Earth and considers Voyager her real home. She also finds that The Doctor
Doctor (Star Trek)
The Doctor, an Emergency Medical Hologram Mark I , is a fictional character from the television series Star Trek: Voyager, played by actor Robert Picardo...
is not affected either, since he is a hologram. The crew is suddenly and conveniently ordered by Starfleet
Starfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
to take the Doctor offline to avoid system interference from the wormhole, and to put Seven in stasis to avoid attracting Borg
Borg (Star Trek)
The Borg are a fictional pseudo-race of cybernetic organisms depicted in the Star Trek universe associated with Star Trek.Whereas cybernetics are used by other races in the science fiction world to repair bodily damage and birth defects, the Borg use enforced cybernetic enhancement as a means of...
attention while Voyager passes through the wormhole.
Seven knows that something is manipulating the crew, and compelling them to enter the wormhole with the promise that they will see Earth, but no one will listen. She decides to act. As Chakotay
Chakotay
Chakotay , played by Robert Beltran, is a character in Star Trek: Voyager. He is the First Officer of the USS Voyager.-Character biography:...
escorts Seven to her alcove, she tricks him and erects a forcefield to contain him. With Naomi keeping security at bay, Seven transports to Engineering and stuns B'Elanna
B'Elanna Torres
B'Elanna Torres is a main character in Star Trek: Voyager played by Roxann Dawson. She is portrayed as a half-human half-Klingon born in 2349 on the Federation colony Kessik IV. Torres joined the Maquis in 2370 and was serving on the Val Jean when brought to the Delta Quadrant...
with a phaser. After erecting another forcefield there, Seven attempts to shut down the impulse drive
Impulse drive
In the fictional Star Trek universe, the impulse drive is the method of propulsion that starships and other spacecraft use when they are travelling below the speed of light. Typically powered by deuterium fusion reactors, impulse engines let ships travel interplanetary distances readily...
to keep Voyager from entering the wormhole. Janeway transmits a electromagnetic surge to the engineering console that knocks Seven out.
With Seven incapacitated, Voyager proceeds to enter the wormhole. Once they enter the anomaly, the crew falls unconscious and begin to hallucinate. When Naomi wakes Seven, the two look outside Voyager's windows and see that they are not inside a wormhole, but some kind of organic chamber. Seven hails Qatai and convinces him to beam aboard. He explains that the crew has been a victim of telepathy and psychogenic manipulation from a bioplasmic organism, a beast that consumes starships by telepathically preying on their crews' desires. The creature also has the ability to change sensor readings, which explains why Voyager's sensors did not fully detect the deception. Qatai has been trying for years to destroy the creature, which killed his family, not always successful at evading its deceptions, as he at first believes Voyager and her crew to be hallucinations.
After reactivating the Doctor's program, Seven informs him that Voyager is being devoured in the digestive chamber of the organism. Realizing that bodies are designed to expel foreign objects, they plan to fire one of Qatai's tetryon-based weapons at a pocket of antimatter
Antimatter
In particle physics, antimatter is the extension of the concept of the antiparticle to matter, where antimatter is composed of antiparticles in the same way that normal matter is composed of particles...
released from Voyager's warp core, which would make the creature literally vomit Voyager and Qatai out. After firing the first weapon, Seven believes that Voyager has been expelled from the organism. But Qatai hails her from his ship and warns her that now she is the one being deceived, because getting out of the organism is what she really wanted, and the creature simply made her think that one weapon burst would do the trick. The Doctor confirms this with his own scans, and Seven takes Qatai's advice and releases more antimatter. It creates another, larger reaction in the beast that causes it to finally expel the two ships through its esophagus
Esophagus
The esophagus is an organ in vertebrates which consists of a muscular tube through which food passes from the pharynx to the stomach. During swallowing, food passes from the mouth through the pharynx into the esophagus and travels via peristalsis to the stomach...
. After having the Doctor make sure that they really are out of the creature, Qatai departs and Janeway and the others regain consciousness, Voyager resumes its course to the Alpha Quadrant, but Qatai returns to the beast, determined to defeat it.