Review

Not a very "inspiring" premise... another shuttle crash. One wonders if they crash or damage shuttles more often than they don't. But in this case, it was appropriate. Never have I seen a more captivating shuttle crash story. Torres, rescued by a local alien, discovers her savior is in fact using details from her life as material in his plays. The story's focus remains off of Torres and her shuttle problems; we're shown more instead about Kelis and his troubles maintaining his relationship with his patron. While at this point neither plot thread is all that interesting, Torres does a masterful job walking the line of the Prime Directive, giving her savior just enough information without going too far. I like how she referred to Voyager as a ship on the sea and the Borg as a vast army of soldiers who all think alike. The play plot becomes interesting when Kelis decides he wants to expand the Voyager play to convince his patron not to go to war with his neighbor. He cites his culture's history, claiming that many years ago a play took the place of a ritual sacrifice, saving a single life, and all those who'd have been sacrificed in the future. Kelis asks if a play can stop a murder, why can't a play stop a war? At some point, these words hit home for Torres. For she decides to help Kelis after all, when news arrives that his attempt to quell the war goes badly. To enrich his play, Torres uses transporter technology to "ascend to the heavens." I liked their conversation at the end. They weren't just improvising an act for the crowd, they were actually talking to each other. There may have been symbolism in the words for the play, but Torres at the same time was discussing the nature of inspiration with Kelis. The conversation made clear to me that Kelis knew or at least had some kind of idea what Torres actually was and where she actually lived. But he wasn't half as interested in her advanced culture as he was saving his own. In many ways, he was more enlightened than she. The whole story is true to the spirit of Star Trek and charming to watch. A bonus point for the marvelous symbolism.