Review

First a repeating time loop TNG: Cause and Effect style. Then nobody remembers the time loop but Janeway. Then Janeway gets the Phage. Then the doctor tries to kill her. Then Janeway is disembodied TNG: The Next Phase style. Then Janeway's dead father appears and tells her she's dead. Then Janeway realizes she dreamt it all. I'm not sure this episode could get more random if it tried! There are mixed opinions about this of course. Some of the beginning is largely a waste of time, but it's done in such a nicely exciting way that I forgive it. Honestly, the episode gets better and better as it goes along. The teaser was a lousy shuttle crash. We've seen enough of those and they're not particularly remarkable stories. In the end we have an alien who seems to feed on consciousness playing a game of illusions with Janeway. In this respect, the episode is much like TOS: The Cage, which also made good use of illusions. Much like TNG: Where Silence Has Lease, I must say bravo to this episode for it's skillful waste of time. Filler with style.