.gif)
Endgame (Voyager episode)
Encyclopedia
"Endgame" is the title of the series finale
of the Star Trek
spinoff series, Star Trek: Voyager
. Originally shown as a double-length episode and presented as such in DVD collections, it is shown in repeat broadcasts as two linked episodes.
Kathryn Janeway
acquires a chrono deflector from a Klingon named Korath and uses it on her shuttle to travel back to 2378 in the Delta Quadrant. She pulls rank on Voyager to emit an anti-tachyon
pulse, collapsing the temporal distortion to prevent the Klingons from following her through.
On board her old starship, the Admiral tells her younger self to return to a nebula filled with Borg that they passed by a few days ago. She provides advanced technologies that would give Voyager the opportunity to get past the massive Borg defenses and enter a transwarp corridor. The Borg, despite spying on the ship and preparing for its attack, are unable to penetrate Voyagers new adaptive hull armour nor capture it with tractor beams while Voyager destroys two Borg Cubes with transphasic torpedoes. They then come upon a Borg transwarp hub at the center, which could save the ship sixteen more years of being stranded in the Delta Quadrant.
However, the Admiral’s efforts are hindered by the desire of her younger self to use the future technology to destroy the transwarp network instead of using it to return home. Trying to blast it from the inside is impossible, as the network adapts to any attack due to the control of the Borg Queen (Alice Krige
, reprising the role for the first time since Star Trek: First Contact
). It can only be destroyed from their end for the Alpha Quadrant contains only exit apertures. The two Janeways argue over the issue until the elder Janeway tells her younger self that Seven of Nine
and Chakotay
, along with 22 other crewmembers, will die if they do not take the road home, and that Tuvok
will become senile from a neurological condition that could have been treated in the Alpha Quadrant if they'd made it back soon enough. Deeply troubled by the knowledge that she is effectively ordering her crew to their deaths, Captain Janeway discusses the issue with them, but they too decide that destroying the Borg’s transwarp hub is more important than returning to Earth, as without it, the Borg's ability to travel across the galaxy will be severely hampered and countless lives will be saved. On seeing the crew’s selfless reaction to the plan, the older Janeway rediscovers a piece of her old fighting spirit and with Captain Janeway, comes up with a plan to both destroy the hub and possibly get Voyager home.
Admiral Janeway takes her shuttlecraft and enters the transwarp hub, finally arriving at the Unicomplex—the center of all Borg activity, where the Borg Queen herself resides. She first appears to the Queen in her mind, claiming she wants Voyager towed back to the Alpha Quadrant (apparently in defiance of the younger Janeway's plans) in exchange for information on how to adapt to the armour and torpedo technologies. However, the Queen is quickly able to detect her shuttle and beams the Admiral to her chambers for assimilation into the Borg collective. A few minutes later, Admiral Janeway unleashes a neurolytic pathogen from within her bloodstream that devastates the Borg, physically making the queen fall apart. With the deactivation of the Queen, the Unicomplex suffers a cascade failure and explodes, killing the partially assimilated Admiral.
Meanwhile Captain Janeway and her crew have entered a transwarp corridor and fire torpedoes at the unprotected manifolds while traveling back to the Alpha Quadrant, but are pursued by a Borg sphere ship that has managed to withstand the pathogen’s effects and assimilate Admiral Janeway's ablative armor
upgrade. It is now following the Borg Queen's final orders to destroy Voyager so that the Admiral (and her sabotage) will never exist. Unable to fight back against the ship’s exterior defenses, Janeway takes her ship inside the sphere, where, upon its arrival in Earth's solar system, she detonates a torpedo that destroys the sphere from the inside.
In the show’s final few minutes, the crew stand dumbfounded that they have finally returned home after seven years lost in the Delta Quadrant and are greeted by a fleet of Starfleet vessels that arrived to fight the sphere. Settling down in her chair, Captain Janeway issues her final orders, the same words that she used at the start of her journey: "Set a course...for home."
and B’Elanna Torres
. Miral is born as Voyager reenters Earth’s solar system. The sounds of the baby’s gurgling are heard over the communications system, to the joy of all the crew. In the alternate future, she is an ensign on a classified mission to obtain a chrono deflector for Admiral Janeway. She threatens two Klingons who accused the Admiral of disrespect with the breaking of their arms. Janeway suggested she spend some time with her parents at the reunion on Earth.
Commander Chakotay
and Seven of Nine
are revealed to have started dating. Though Seven is at first wary of the relationship, and more so after Janeway tells her of her own death, Chakotay persuades her that he wants to be with her, even if it's uncertain how long they will be together; however, Janeway's older self suggests that Seven and Chakotay will eventually be married. In the alternate future, Seven died on the trip home and it is implied that Chakotay couldn't handle the trauma and died on Earth the year Voyager got back to the Alpha Quadrant.
Tuvok
is suffering from a degenerative brain disease, yet does not tell the Captain as the only cure is a mind-meld with a family member—logically, he does not want to distract the Captain. In Admiral Janeway’s future, the disease has progressed too far to be cured and he is in a mental institution.
The Doctor’s “name” saga is finally concluded in the first few minutes of the show, where a future Doctor is seen confessing that he has finally decided, after thirty-three years, to call himself Joe after his new wife’s grandfather. He even plans to have kids. This revelation takes place in an alternate future, one in which the Voyager crew does not ultimately end up. Admiral Tom Paris
expressed a lack of amusement at this, saying "it took you thirty-three years to come up with 'Joe'?"
Neelix
makes a brief appearance on the communications screen talking to Seven of Nine. Two episodes earlier he had left to join a Talaxian colony. He has plans to marry Dexa, a Talaxian woman he first met at the colony and quickly fell in love with. His first appearance in the show was also on a viewscreen.
Harry Kim
is the captain of the USS Rhode Island. He goes to stop Admiral Janeway from going back in time, but he ultimately decides to help his old friend in her cause. In the present timeline, young Ensign Kim is anxious to pursue what is inside the nebula. An amused Captain Janeway tells him "you may be the captain some day, but not today." In the alternate future, Admiral Janeway reminds Captain Kim of the time when he was still an Ensign on Voyager that he wanted to enter the Borg-infested nebula because of the promise of a way home it held, and he reminds her that she stopped him. As a result, USS Voyager's return journey back to the Alpha Quadrant takes 23 years. Janeway says that she now regrets that decision, given what happened later on, and if she knew then that these things would happen she would have indeed taken the risk. In another timeline, it was Harry in the Voyager episode "Timeless" who was determined to rewrite the past and prevent a disaster.
In the last few scenes of this episode, seven classes of Starfleet
ships are seen: Defiant, Galaxy, Excelsior
, Nebula
, Prometheus, and the Akira
, as well as the Intrepid
(Voyager itself). This is meant as a parting nod to the end of the Star Trek: The Next Generation
-era of the three continuous TV series (The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager), since none of these ships are seen in the feature film Star Trek: Nemesis
, the final live-action piece which concludes the Next Generation era of Star Trek. The next Star Trek series, Enterprise
is a prequel to all previously released films and TV series.
The shooting adventure game Elite Force II
uses an 'unseen' part of the series finale as a plot device. In the first level of the game, Voyager' s Hazard Team is assigned to beam aboard the Borg Sphere which has trapped Voyager inside during the trans-warp pursuit, in order to disable the dampening field which, it is claimed at the start of the level, is keeping Voyager captive. The level overall represents the length of 'real time' that Voyager is trapped within the sphere before it ultimately blasts its way out. The level's end is ultimately followed by a cutscene imitating the very end of the 'Endgame' episode, using the game engine's CGI, before it cuts as a segue
into the office of a Starfleet
administrator on Earth, where the game then continues. The game's plot also states that Tuvok is temporarily assigned as Tactical Officer and Second Officer of the Enterprise E
, following Voyagers return to Earth and William Riker
's re-assignment to the starship Titan
.
Series finale
A series finale refers to the last installment of a series with a narrative presented through mediums such as television, film and literature. In many Commonwealth countries, the term final episode is commonly used in regards to a television series...
of the 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...
spinoff series, Star Trek: Voyager
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...
. Originally shown as a double-length episode and presented as such in DVD collections, it is shown in repeat broadcasts as two linked episodes.
Plot
In the year 2404, Earth is celebrating Voyager's 10th anniversary of its 23 year journey home. However, an elderly AdmiralAdmiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Kathryn 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...
acquires a chrono deflector from a Klingon named Korath and uses it on her shuttle to travel back to 2378 in the Delta Quadrant. She pulls rank on Voyager to emit an anti-tachyon
Tachyon
A tachyon is a hypothetical subatomic particle that always moves faster than light. In the language of special relativity, a tachyon would be a particle with space-like four-momentum and imaginary proper time. A tachyon would be constrained to the space-like portion of the energy-momentum graph...
pulse, collapsing the temporal distortion to prevent the Klingons from following her through.
On board her old starship, the Admiral tells her younger self to return to a nebula filled with Borg that they passed by a few days ago. She provides advanced technologies that would give Voyager the opportunity to get past the massive Borg defenses and enter a transwarp corridor. The Borg, despite spying on the ship and preparing for its attack, are unable to penetrate Voyagers new adaptive hull armour nor capture it with tractor beams while Voyager destroys two Borg Cubes with transphasic torpedoes. They then come upon a Borg transwarp hub at the center, which could save the ship sixteen more years of being stranded in the Delta Quadrant.
However, the Admiral’s efforts are hindered by the desire of her younger self to use the future technology to destroy the transwarp network instead of using it to return home. Trying to blast it from the inside is impossible, as the network adapts to any attack due to the control of the Borg Queen (Alice Krige
Alice Krige
Alice Maud Krige is a South African actress. Her first feature film role was as the Gilbert and Sullivan singer Sybil Gordon in the 1981 Academy Award-winning film Chariots of Fire...
, reprising the role for the first time since Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek: First Contact is the eighth feature film in the Star Trek science fiction franchise, released in November 1996, by Paramount Pictures. First Contact is the first film in the franchise to feature no cast members from the original Star Trek television series of the 1960s...
). It can only be destroyed from their end for the Alpha Quadrant contains only exit apertures. The two Janeways argue over the issue until the elder Janeway tells her younger self that Seven of Nine
Seven 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...
and 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:...
, along with 22 other crewmembers, will die if they do not take the road home, and that Tuvok
Tuvok
Tuvok is one of the main characters on the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Tuvok is a Vulcan who serves as the ship's chief of security and its chief tactical officer. Tim Russ portrayed Tuvok throughout the show's run, from 1995 to 2001....
will become senile from a neurological condition that could have been treated in the Alpha Quadrant if they'd made it back soon enough. Deeply troubled by the knowledge that she is effectively ordering her crew to their deaths, Captain Janeway discusses the issue with them, but they too decide that destroying the Borg’s transwarp hub is more important than returning to Earth, as without it, the Borg's ability to travel across the galaxy will be severely hampered and countless lives will be saved. On seeing the crew’s selfless reaction to the plan, the older Janeway rediscovers a piece of her old fighting spirit and with Captain Janeway, comes up with a plan to both destroy the hub and possibly get Voyager home.
Admiral Janeway takes her shuttlecraft and enters the transwarp hub, finally arriving at the Unicomplex—the center of all Borg activity, where the Borg Queen herself resides. She first appears to the Queen in her mind, claiming she wants Voyager towed back to the Alpha Quadrant (apparently in defiance of the younger Janeway's plans) in exchange for information on how to adapt to the armour and torpedo technologies. However, the Queen is quickly able to detect her shuttle and beams the Admiral to her chambers for assimilation into the Borg collective. A few minutes later, Admiral Janeway unleashes a neurolytic pathogen from within her bloodstream that devastates the Borg, physically making the queen fall apart. With the deactivation of the Queen, the Unicomplex suffers a cascade failure and explodes, killing the partially assimilated Admiral.
Meanwhile Captain Janeway and her crew have entered a transwarp corridor and fire torpedoes at the unprotected manifolds while traveling back to the Alpha Quadrant, but are pursued by a Borg sphere ship that has managed to withstand the pathogen’s effects and assimilate Admiral Janeway's ablative armor
Ablative armor
Ablative armor is armor designed to negate damage or destruction to itself from the process of ablation. In contemporary spacecraft, ablative plating is most frequently seen as an ablative heat shield for a vehicle that must enter atmosphere from orbit, such as on nuclear warheads, or space...
upgrade. It is now following the Borg Queen's final orders to destroy Voyager so that the Admiral (and her sabotage) will never exist. Unable to fight back against the ship’s exterior defenses, Janeway takes her ship inside the sphere, where, upon its arrival in Earth's solar system, she detonates a torpedo that destroys the sphere from the inside.
In the show’s final few minutes, the crew stand dumbfounded that they have finally returned home after seven years lost in the Delta Quadrant and are greeted by a fleet of Starfleet vessels that arrived to fight the sphere. Settling down in her chair, Captain Janeway issues her final orders, the same words that she used at the start of her journey: "Set a course...for home."
Secondary stories
The final episode also includes the birth of Miral, daughter of Tom ParisTom Paris
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris, played by Robert Duncan McNeill, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Paris serves as the chief helmsman and an auxiliary medic aboard the USS Voyager...
and B’Elanna Torres
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...
. Miral is born as Voyager reenters Earth’s solar system. The sounds of the baby’s gurgling are heard over the communications system, to the joy of all the crew. In the alternate future, she is an ensign on a classified mission to obtain a chrono deflector for Admiral Janeway. She threatens two Klingons who accused the Admiral of disrespect with the breaking of their arms. Janeway suggested she spend some time with her parents at the reunion on Earth.
Commander 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:...
and Seven of Nine
Seven 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...
are revealed to have started dating. Though Seven is at first wary of the relationship, and more so after Janeway tells her of her own death, Chakotay persuades her that he wants to be with her, even if it's uncertain how long they will be together; however, Janeway's older self suggests that Seven and Chakotay will eventually be married. In the alternate future, Seven died on the trip home and it is implied that Chakotay couldn't handle the trauma and died on Earth the year Voyager got back to the Alpha Quadrant.
Tuvok
Tuvok
Tuvok is one of the main characters on the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Tuvok is a Vulcan who serves as the ship's chief of security and its chief tactical officer. Tim Russ portrayed Tuvok throughout the show's run, from 1995 to 2001....
is suffering from a degenerative brain disease, yet does not tell the Captain as the only cure is a mind-meld with a family member—logically, he does not want to distract the Captain. In Admiral Janeway’s future, the disease has progressed too far to be cured and he is in a mental institution.
The Doctor’s “name” saga is finally concluded in the first few minutes of the show, where a future Doctor is seen confessing that he has finally decided, after thirty-three years, to call himself Joe after his new wife’s grandfather. He even plans to have kids. This revelation takes place in an alternate future, one in which the Voyager crew does not ultimately end up. Admiral Tom Paris
Tom Paris
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris, played by Robert Duncan McNeill, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Paris serves as the chief helmsman and an auxiliary medic aboard the USS Voyager...
expressed a lack of amusement at this, saying "it took you thirty-three years to come up with 'Joe'?"
Neelix
Neelix
Mr. Neelix is a fictional character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. He is played by actor Ethan Phillips.-Fictional Biography:Mr. Neelix is a Talaxian originally from Rinax, a moon of the planet Talax, in the Delta quadrant, although his great-grandfather was Mylean. His entire family...
makes a brief appearance on the communications screen talking to Seven of Nine. Two episodes earlier he had left to join a Talaxian colony. He has plans to marry Dexa, a Talaxian woman he first met at the colony and quickly fell in love with. His first appearance in the show was also on a viewscreen.
Harry Kim
Harry Kim (Star Trek)
Ensign Harry S. L. Kim, played by Garrett Wang, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. He serves as the USS Voyagers operations officer.-Depiction:...
is the captain of the USS Rhode Island. He goes to stop Admiral Janeway from going back in time, but he ultimately decides to help his old friend in her cause. In the present timeline, young Ensign Kim is anxious to pursue what is inside the nebula. An amused Captain Janeway tells him "you may be the captain some day, but not today." In the alternate future, Admiral Janeway reminds Captain Kim of the time when he was still an Ensign on Voyager that he wanted to enter the Borg-infested nebula because of the promise of a way home it held, and he reminds her that she stopped him. As a result, USS Voyager's return journey back to the Alpha Quadrant takes 23 years. Janeway says that she now regrets that decision, given what happened later on, and if she knew then that these things would happen she would have indeed taken the risk. In another timeline, it was Harry in the Voyager episode "Timeless" who was determined to rewrite the past and prevent a disaster.
In the last few scenes of this episode, seven classes of 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...
ships are seen: Defiant, Galaxy, Excelsior
Excelsior class starship (Star Trek)
The Excelsior class is a fictional class of starship in the science fiction franchise Star Trek. The USS Excelsior was designed by Industrial Light and Magic's Bill George for Star Trek III: The Search for Spock...
, Nebula
Nebula class starship (Star Trek)
The Nebula-class starship appears in the Star Trek fictional universe. It was first seen in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and was designed by Ed Miarecki, Rick Sternbach, and Michael Okuda.-History:...
, Prometheus, and the Akira
Akira class starship (Star Trek)
The Akira-class starship is a class of Starfleet starship in the Star Trek fictional universe, appearing first in Star Trek: First Contact and subsequently in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager...
, as well as the Intrepid
Intrepid class starship (Star Trek)
The Intrepid class is a fictional Starfleet starship class in the Star Trek universe, the most notable being Star Trek: Voyagers titular USS Voyager...
(Voyager itself). This is meant as a parting nod to the end of the Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
-era of the three continuous TV series (The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager), since none of these ships are seen in the feature film Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek: Nemesis
Star Trek Nemesis is a 2002 science fiction film directed by Stuart Baird, written by John Logan , and with music composed by Jerry Goldsmith. It is the tenth feature film in the Star Trek franchise, and the fourth and final film to star the cast from the television series Star Trek: The Next...
, the final live-action piece which concludes the Next Generation era of Star Trek. The next Star Trek series, Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise is a science fiction television series. It follows the adventures of humanity's first warp 5 starship, the Enterprise, ten years before the United Federation of Planets shown in previous Star Trek series was formed.Enterprise premiered on September 26, 2001...
is a prequel to all previously released films and TV series.
The shooting adventure game Elite Force II
Star Trek: Elite Force II
Star Trek: Elite Force II is a first-person shooter computer game developed by Ritual Entertainment and published by Activision. It was released on June 20, 2003 for Microsoft Windows. Elite Force II is a sequel to 2000's Star Trek: Voyager – Elite Force...
uses an 'unseen' part of the series finale as a plot device. In the first level of the game, Voyager
Segue
A segue is a smooth transition from one topic or section to the next.-In music:In music, segue is a direction to the performer. It means continue without a pause. It comes from the Italian "it follows". The term attacca is also used in classical music.For written music it implies a transition...
into the office of a 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...
administrator on Earth, where the game then continues. The game's plot also states that Tuvok is temporarily assigned as Tactical Officer and Second Officer of the Enterprise E
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)
The USS Enterprise is a Sovereign-class starship in the Star Trek franchise. It serves as the primary setting of the films Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...
, following Voyagers return to Earth and William Riker
William Riker
William Thomas Riker, played by Jonathan Frakes, is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe primarily appearing as a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation...
's re-assignment to the starship Titan
Star Trek: Titan
Star Trek: Titan is a series of Star Trek novels that take place after the events of the film Star Trek Nemesis, detailing the adventures of the USS Titan under the command of Starfleet Captain William T. Riker. Riker was transferred from the Enterprise-E circa stardate 56844.9...
.
Awards
- This episode won two Emmy Awards. Only four other Star Trek episodes have won this many. It won for Outstanding Music Composition For A Series (Dramatic Underscore) (Jay ChattawayJay ChattawayJay Chattaway is an American composer of film and television scores. He is mainly known for his work as score composer for several Star Trek television series: Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Enterprise...
) and Outstanding Special Visual Effects for a Series, in both cases beating the Voyager episode "Workforce", which was also nominated in those categories. "Endgame" was also nominated for Outstanding Sound Editing For A Series.