The 37's

I am appalled at some of these reviews. Many are being so critical about the "science" and "technicalities". Just stop. One of the joys of reading or watching a Science Fiction novel or show is that it's NOT REAL. It's human nature to imagine what "could be". We want to envision what our life could potentially be like in the future. Why do so many people try to place our current reality into a fantasy world? Yea this episode is beyond far fetched. Yea it never could explain the disappearance of Amelia Aerhart. So what? That's not the intention of the writers. Their job was to ENTERTAIN and make you detach youself from reality for an hour. I LOVE this episode. Because I KNOW it's ridiculous. That would have never happened. Or.....could it have??? How do we know??? THATS my point...expand your mind and just accept it for what it is. Pure imagination which obviously many of the critics of this episode lack.

I've always been a Star Trek fan. When it's good it's awesome, when it's bad it's really bad. That said I know there are going to be some episodes that are better than others. This is one of the worse episodes in all of the different series. The fact that this was the first show in season two is a huge disappointment.

A very interesting story but they don't explore the possibility within it.. They could have shown the crew giving technology, replicators, working with them to establish the place as a true settlement, so many possibilities but the episode just ends.. Very odd.. Still fun to watch tho.

I like the idea of a human settlement in the delta quadrant that originated from humans that once were abducted by aliens. Unfortunately the execution of this story is done poorly.

If we forget the more than questionable portrayal of a star ship without wings first gliding through the atmosphere and then landing on a planet, or that they find Amelia Earthart in one of the cryo chambers - I find it doubtful that a civilization will evolve into an advanced society after only 400 years. While the USA thrived in a similar time span, one has to consider that it was a British colony and all sorts of goods were transported over there. Unless this civilization were not able to steal technology from their abductors, they would have basically started from scratch. How to process ore for example if you lack even the simplest tools made out if iron or steel in the first place? How to cut trees to build the first shelters? They also did not bring farm animals or seeds with them (unlike the first settlers in the USA).

And then we never see those three cities they built. First rule of film making: Show, don't tell. The low budget of Star Trek series often destroys the illusion and imagination, the immersion into the story.

Also, how comes not a single crew member wants to stay on this planet and start a new life? There are always people with a different opinion or a different life situation. Just imagine someone that has nothing and no one on earth to return back to. Or an older person that most likely will never return alive if Voyager even manages to travel 70,000 light years (if they stop at every planet or space anomaly this seems rather impossible anyway). Or a young couple that wants to start a family. At least 20-30 people should have shown up in the cargo bay with the wish to stay. But no one showed up. Not even a single Maquis crew member of which many are not comfortable on the Voyager anyhow. And the explorer Amelia Earhart, that was frozen for 400 years, missed all the technological innovations, has always been bold and wanted to embark into the unknown, stays on the planet??? Ridiculous.

Voyager discovers cryogenically frozen people from the 1930s.

There are some great ideas here such as the origins of the 37's and the dilemma the crew is placed in, but I think the two aspects of the story make it all feel a bit rushed and ill conceived.

I dislike the hostage situation because it feels forced and eats up way too much screen time. These minutes could have been used by the Voyager crew looking in more depth at their dilemma and making it feel like a genuinely difficult situation.

Instead of putting the budget into landing Voyager on a planet, I think they should have shown something of the fabulous cities referenced by Janeway. At least one matte background would have been nice.

None of it is bad filmmaking, but there is nothing particularly interesting in what happens and to me it feels like wasted ideas.

The cast are all good, especially Katie Mulgrew. David Graf who played Eugene Tackleberry in the Police Academy film series also guest stars. At one point he has to threaten people with a gun, which (for an 80s child) is obviously a highlight.