The Raven

Seven goes rogue in a protected area of space.

This is a solid character focussed episode.

Seven's backstory and development is the main purpose of this one and the plot achieves this in an interesting way. There are aspects of it that go a bit too far in reestablishing the character's humanity, which does not quite fit with subsequent depictions of her acting more like an ex-drone. However, is a fairly compelling plot in its own right.

A sequence where Seven has some Borg-like action moments is exciting and gives the character a certain coolness, but it's her scenes with Tuvok that for me are the highlights. Both Jeri Ryan and Tim Russ do memorable work.

The award for most annoying alien characters of the season so far goes to the Bomar who look, sound and act ridiculous in most scenes, but serve the writers purpose making Seven's journey less straightforward than it could be.

Was it the right creative decision to cover this backstory so early in one episode? I'm not so sure. I think a bit more intrigue could have been developed with a build up over several episodes. I would have portrayed her as having visions that grow more intense in different episodes as the season progressed before addressing her origins in a later episode.

Some of the visuals are very well done, particularly those associated with the crashed starship.

For me it's a 7.5/10, but I round upwards.