Star Trek: Voyager (TV Series) Juggernaut (1999) User Reviews

A fairly straightforward episode

[GreyHunter · 7/10 · 5 January 2020]

Though not particularly inspiring or clever (whenever a character on a TV show has a lesson or experience early on, you can bet the writers will make it somehow miraculously relevant by the episode's end unless they actually try to subvert expectations) episode, it was a solid "monster of the week" (the monster being the freighter and the danger it represents, not the literal monster here) episode. So instead of spending too much time discussing it, I'd rather discuss something that has been an ongoing issue in Star Trek since the beginning but seems to be especially prominent in Voyager...the bizarre reticence of the ST powers that be to feature suits of any sort -- EVA suits, biohazard suits, radiation suits, space suits in general, etc. Occasionally we'll get a suit when the alternative is simply impossible, like Paris and Torres being stuck out free-floating in the vacuum of space, but it's rare. It almost feels like a mythos vanity, as if the Star Trek bible doesn't like to show characters who aren't immediately identifiable as being from Star Trek via either uniform or general appearance. In this case, aboard a freighter contaminated with radiation and in need of decompression, the fact that there are no radiation suits or EVA suits with magnetic grips (it would seem that 24th century technology could devise a single suit for multiple types of dangers) just seems almost egregiously silly. Granted, a lot of the drama would have to be rewritten, but at least it would make sense contextually.

This is not a problem solely found in this episode or this series, but it is one that is accentuated by this particular episode more so than usual. It just nags while watching. Incidentally, it would have also been nice to offer even a technobabble explanation for why the time frame for inoculation was an issue in the first place, seeing as they could (and did) clearly inject more later, so what did it matter unless there was a severely limited supply for some reason?

Good belly laugh

[moakin2005 · 8/10 · 10 May 2019]

I found the scene with Neelix in the galley, struggling with his Talaxian concoction quite humorous; especially during his second taste test with Chakotay looking on.

Polluters of the Universe

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 7 September 2018]

The Malons reappear. Their enormous garbage ship, a threat to every world they encounter, has become badly damaged, most of them killed. Voyage needs to intervene because in the aftermath, a huge explosion is going to destroy whole civilizations. In the process, B'Allana goes on board the ship along with the away team and must control her temper (a secondary plot element) in order to be effectual. It is a disturbing place. It's another cliffhanger. A rather ordinary episoode.

Those stupid Malons...

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 28 February 2015]

The Malons might just be one of the stupidest races you'll ever see on the Trek shows. After all, they spread toxic waste all over the quadrant and don't seem to care in the least. So, when the ship encounters a damaged Malon freighter, you know that Voyager is going to have a difficult time. It turns out that this Malon ship is about to explode--and this will wipe out everything within several light-years. Naturally, you learn that Voyager's warp drive is inexplicably offline and so there's no other option but to stay and try to fix this ship or deflect it into a nearby sun. But there are some difficulties--most of the Malon crew are dead and there might just be a monster aboard their ship that is causes all these problems!

This is a decent episode but the ending involving Torres was supposed to be important because Torres tried so hard not to be violent. However, in this situation, she seemed really, really inept--as violence was DEFINITELY called for in this case. Still, it is worth seeing.

a few questions

[arpeeka86 · 6/10 · 4 November 2021]

-what was the core worker's motivation? He didn't seem like a deranged person, but one hell bent on revenge, however he could be held a conversation with, as seen in this episode when B'elanna confronts him about the possibility of killing innocents (other ships in the vicinity) along with his crew. Not to mention the fact that he signed up for the job knowing the risks, not counting the fact that survived because his body aadpted so he could be at least earning multiple lifetimes worth of fortune as a core worker who is infinitely resistant to theta radiation.

-when talking about the Malon homeworld and the work the controller does and not particularly liking it, Torres should have offered to share their own technology for recycling (again), probably not every Malon is as greedy as the first one we met in the night episode, it seems a lot of them do not fancy spending half a year tending to toxic waste.

Also, as a previous reviewer mentioned: -why didn't the away team use EVA suits, but instead rely on inoculations?

-it seems there is a time constraint as far as the inoculations' lasting effect goes, but they bring more with them, so what's the point?

Atmospheric episode with some good Torres moments

[snoozejonc · 7/10 · 13 October 2023]

As B'Elanna Torres deals with her anger issues Voyager cross paths with the Malon.

The theme of B'Elanna's short fuse is nothing new but is used in an entertaining albeit slightly contrived way by the writers. However, the fiery character interactions between her and others work well. Everything builds up to a good final confrontation between her and a guest character.

Visually it is one of those dark, shadowy, hazy episodes that generate a good oppressive atmosphere, but you suspect might also be covering the lack of art design at the filmmakers disposal.

Roxanne Dawson is great and the other cast members like Ron Canada support well.

It's a 6.5/10 for me but I round upwards.

Problems with pollution

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 17 March 2010]

When a Malon ship full of radioactive waste has a major malfunction the crew are forced to evacuate and call for help. This call is answered by Voyager but due to the high levels of theta radiation they can't use the warp engines and get clear before the ship explodes flooding a vast area of space with deadly radiation. In order to save Voyager and the surrounding space the two Malon survivors along with Chakotay, B'Elanna and Neelix must return to the Malon ship to prevent it from exploding. One of the Malon is worried believing that the problems are due to a mythical creature that lives in the radioactive waste. His colleague rubbishes the idea as superstition but when one Malon is killed and Chakotay is attacked and injured it is clear that something or someone on board does not want them to succeed in preventing the explosion.

This was a good episode which had an obvious environmental message but didn't show the Malon as bad people just somewhat selfish as a race although individuals did dangerous work to keep their own world clean. The scenes of on the Malon ship were tense; reminding be slightly of Alien in the way the ship itself was creepy and something was after them... although obviously that something was far less violent; this is Star Trek after all. The main star of this episode was Roxann Dawson who did a good job as B'Ellana who in this episode is trying to deal with her anger management issues.

Sympathy for the Cleanup Crew

[pamelaandpaolo · 8/10 · 3 May 2021]

Even though the Federation is a multi-species organization, I enjoy episodes that touch on social issues with real life equivalents. In this case, we learn more about the Malon freighters, whom we've seen mostly as mostly opportunistic sellswords who will pollute the wilderness in exchange for a quick buck. But it seems there is more to them than meets the eye.

Throughout the dialogue, we see glimpses into who these Malon are and why they do the work that they do. Monetary incentives are a big part of it, but the new information introduced is the deadly environment the Malon knowingly subject themselves to. Being a core laborer has high odds of being a death sentence, but the payoff gets routed to the laborer's family. How difficult life must be for the Malon to make a barter for their lives. Occupational hazards tend to be higher in certain communities where access to resources are limited.

This isn't to say that what they are doing is justifiable. The environmental cost is... astronomical.... 😎

Mulder and Scully investigate supernatural events in space

[tomsly-40015 · 3/10 · 10 January 2024]

Unfortunately I can't get much out of this episode. It feels a bit like an X-Files episode: On a Malon freighter that is about to explode and scatter its toxic cargo across light years, the bogeyman seems to be up to mischief - an old legend among the Malon: A supernatural being that lives in the toxic waste and draws its life force from it. But in the end it's just a pretty irradiated crew member who survived by luck and is now out for revenge because the crew left him behind to die.

Voyager sends Torres, Neelix (coincidentally, Neelix has also worked on waste disposal ships and is naturally ideally suited for this job) and Chakotay, along with two Malon crew members who were previously rescued, onto the freighter to prevent the impending disaster. The episode then plays a bit with scary moments, darkness, green gas, strange noises, an attack out of nowhere, a dead person... and then at the end the bogeyman is unmasked and overwhelmed. Pretty lame story.

Torres is also extremely annoying in this episode. She acts like a spoiled, angry little brat who no longer has control over her emotions and snaps at everyone. Also: What about the relationship between her and Paris? You can't see any chemistry between the two anymore. There is absolutely nothing there. Break up finally!

Ron Canada's Voyager Appearance

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 12 June 2013]

Ron Canada has played several antagonistic characters in Star Trek - In Next Generation, he is the interpreter of the progenitor's intent in "The Masterpiece Society" - A rigid legalistic and religious Pharisee. In Deep Space Nine, he was a Klingon Arbiter prosecuting The Federation and particularly Worf.

In this Voyager offering, he is the Captain of a Malon Toxic Waste Disposal Ship which is suffering unexplained malfunctions and disasters. Of course, there is a reason why these things went wrong, but Voyager Members must needs to be sent into the middle of a Maelstrom of Theta Radiation to get to the Bottom of it.

To make Matters Worse, B'Elanna is having a Klingon Fit and is suffering the browbeating of Janeway, Chakotay and Tuvok- Tuvok tries to teach her some Vulcanian Brain-Meditation Techniques, to apparently No Avail.

Apparently, there is some kind of Malon Radiation-Monster which is attacking the Malon crew of Toxic Avengers, in fact, "it" kills off all of the Malons save Ron Canada and Lee Arenberg. Alexander Enberg steps away from his Voyager Vulcan role to play a 3rd Malon Engineer who gets melted by Radiation (You can only identify him by his Voice).

Mostly I liked this ep due to the interactions of Ron Canada and B'elanna. They want to kick each other's arses but they end up having a respect for each other, save for B'elanna giving the guy a Mouth Lashing at the end.

But the very thing which is causing B'elanna problems with the Voyager Crew is the one thing which saves her, Neelix and Ron Canada from being converted into Atomic vapour.

This episode also tells us more about the Malon culture, and that they have built a beautiful culture which can only exist by polluting the entire Delta Quadrant. But even Cultures who Irradiate their galactic Neighbors have Religious Golems. Find Out in this episode.

An episode that attempts to be creepy and unsettling.

[thevacinstaller · 5/10 · 1 February 2023]

In my head cannon, I am assuming there was a scene where it was explained that the radiation on the ship made it impossible for the doctor to beam over and the solve the problems without risk of contamination.

This episode has a higher review score then I thought it would. This one wasn't doing it for me.

We have a character journey of Torres who is attempting to control her anger management issues and at the end of the episode her anger outburst saves her life. What's the message here? My takeaway is that her anger saved her life and is a valuable life saving resource for her.

The episode seemed like it was intended to be a creepy unsettling 'hidden danger' horror type but it just never landed for me. The toxic avenger is the villain of the episode and episode appears to be attempting to make a point about unsafe working conditions with a dusting of environmentalism. The problem with the revenge arc for the worker is the fact that he HAD A CHOICE to do the job and make tons of money. It was his choice with the working conditions known ahead of time. Am I supposed to feel sad about his self made death?!

The hook of the ship being a potential 4 light year environmental disaster was enough to keep me awake during the episode but the other plot elements seemed like they were spliced into the episode in an effort to expand run time and were not fully formed or explored to my personal satisfaction.

The Worst Episode in the Whole Series

[rekall1900 · 3/10 · 4 August 2020]

I don't know what the others who watched this saw and then gave it a good review. What I saw was grade C third rate science fiction. Dirty and gritty

• but mostly dirty. A poor Man's horror story - No where near the great science fiction that comprises most of the Voyager series. And it is, even in the imaginative world of science fiction - hard to believe.

Watch it only if you must see every episode in the series - or for the acting which was decent. I've generously given it 3 stars for the acing - Otherwise I'd give it one star.