I like this episode. It's not even spectacular or an intellectual revelation. And of course it lacks sound physics. It's just one of the episodes I happen to love: exploration and human curiosity, the wonders of space, space exploration, techno babble (silicon based life) and history (fictional history which is our history). That's why I like Star Trek.
I can even spot a romantic attraction between seven and Chakotay. Seven is as great as ever; I even like Chakotay in this episode. He is really enthusiastic - the last time he was as dedicated to a task was when he build Janeway a home and a bathtub.
PS: nice cross reference to Buck Bokai. He appears in DS9.
It seems Chakotay learned a thing or two from watching Janeway.
But I did enjoy this episode. A nice scene with Seven at the end. I always like it when Star Trek delves into its own past. Probably because I have a big interest in our own past, and what will become our future, when it comes to space exploration.
"Read it for yourself", what a great line!
Shout by LeftHandedGuitaristBlockedParent2018-09-06T10:55:29Z
It's probably because I've just finished reading it, but I couldn't help but notice several little details that were shared between this episode and The Martian. This episode has some pretty cool concepts and I got wrapped up in it easily enough. It's yet another voyage of discovery for Seven which continues to be interesting but certainly gets repetitive. Chakotay almost had something to do in this one, and his interest in the history of early space exploration is one of the first character developments he's had in... well, maybe ever. Still, I did enjoy the stern reprimand that Seven gave him after he endangered the shuttle.
However, I think overall that the script just wasn't very good. It's all a bit dry, and I didn't entirely buy Seven's emotional responses towards the end. I really got taken out of the episode when the Delta Flyer took technology from the 350-year-old NASA ship to replace their own because "it's basically the same"? No chance, and pretty stupid.
The flashbacks to the Earth astronaut were kind of cheesy and it all got a bit too patriotic for my tastes.