For some reason, Ronald D Moore wrote two great Voyager episodes. This is his first offering.
What makes Ron such a great Writer and Producer is his uncanny ability to completely understand all aspects of the Characters he is assigned to write for. He's got Janeway, he's got Paris, he's got Chakotay, Tuvok, Naomi Wildman and even Neelix - But he's got Seven of Sixty-Nine most of all.
What we have here, is "Attached" times Three. Remember when Picard and Crusher were joined at the Brainstem by a paranoid alien race's gadget? Imagine if you had to live that way for a prolonged period - But not with just one other person, but with two others?
Vaughn Armstrong (Lansor) and Tim Kelleher (P'Chan) are joined to Bertila Damas (Marika) in this fashion- All three share a collective of three. Because at one time, they are Borg, and so was Seven. They were all part of her original little subgroup of Borg. But wait, weren't all the other members of Seven's small collective dumped out of the Airlock in Scorpion, Part II? They were, but these original members must have escaped from The Collective before this. Let's just assume for the sake of Continuity, this is what happened- Or, perhaps, they stayed on the Cube while Seven took other Drones to Voyager. However it happened, it is just not significant.
Naomi Wildman sees Seven as family. Are these three also part of Seven's family? They all share one thing in common - They are missing the exact same memories.
This episode explores the processes which may occur when Drones are separated from The Collective and they each start remembering their Individual Pre-Borg Lives. All of them, including Seven, were the only survivors of the crash of a Borg Craft. They all remember what had happened while they waited to be re-assimilated, up to a point, and then it is just Blank. And even Seven had begin remembering who she was - But as she was a child when she was absorbed, she does not see this individuality as the boon the others do. And one encounter with a dying Drone Frightens her.
Our collective's flashbacks reveal that P'Chan was a religious man, Marika was a Bajoran Starfleet Engineer on The Excelsior, and Lansor was a mathematician, who was Fellowshipping with other mathematicians at the time of his assimilation.
These three have escaped the Collective and are trying desperately to become individuals - But this Three-Way attachment, this Collective of Three, cannot sever their link- So they were hoping Seven could help them. Why not just ask her? The Triplet considers this, they must have a consensus before they can act. So they decide to bypass Voyager's security protocols so they can connect to Seven in her Regeneration Kiosk.
But this Mini-Collective had not considered Tuvok's scrutiny of the smallest glitches in the Security Net and he rapidly isolates where it is happening. And Seven herself "Will Not Comply".
When the triad is captured and questioned, Seven decides to try to help them, she does not wish to prevent these three from becoming Individuals.
What is found out is something shocking to Seven, and even more, if the connection is broken the triad cannot survive.
The Doctor wishes to give them back to the Borg for Re-Assimilation - Because he values the continuation of Life. But Seven refuses, and explains to the Doctor the difference between extension of life and Quality of Life. This is one of the Rare times Seven is able to Instruct The Doctor from her Unique point of View.
What this episode offers is that we care about these three former Drones- They were accosted, invaded, caused to act against what they wanted. But Apologies are Irrelevant.
Only Family is relevant.
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