VOY S1E9 "Prime Factors" Review by AnswerMan

Horrible:Meh:Adequate:Good:Fantastic

Voyager encounters a ship that is sending out a distress signal. A creepy guy who appears to be human but with a weed-eater string stuck in his hair informs Janeway that it is Voyager that is in distress. The Sikarians have heard of Voyager's exploits in the Delta Quadrant, and of their courageous voyage home, and have determined that they could use some R&R at their home planet, Sikaris. The guy's a little too touchy-feely for me, and puts off a creepy uncle vibe, but Janeway and Tuvok have just been discussing how the crew finally meshing is a good thing, and agree that some shore leave couldn't hurt either. So off to Sikaris they go.



While there, they discover that the Sikarians seem to live to serve others. They really work to please their guests. Janeway is impressed by a fabric that a vendor has on display, and Creepy Uncle immediately says he'll commission a dress to be made for her. The fabric is  quilted together from the sperm of virgin unicorns or something. She declines, he insists, and they settle on a scarf. Because you know how Janeway is always prancing around Voyager in her fancy scarfs. Harry Kim gets even better treatment, as his shore leave hookup transports the two of them to another planet in a different star system where the breaze during sunrise gives you a full body orgasm. They're on...Alastria. The way she says it, over and over with such emotion and wonder in her voice is more like "Ahhlaaaastreeeahhhhh." Kim calculates that they are roughly 40,000 light years from Sikaris, and can't wait to get back to tell Janeway that the Sikarians have the know-how to send them home. He's just in time to stop Janeway from kissing Creepy Uncle too, so that was good timing for sure. Yuck, she would have regretted that in the morning.

But bad news, the Sikarians have a policy to not share their advanced technology with less-advanced peoples. Kind of like they have a directive, perhaps their first order, maybe even considered "prime," that guides their dealings with other worlds and keeps them feeling morally superior, even when this directive is preventing them from helping worthy people. Huh. The crew gets it, but still it sucks being cock-blocked by their own rules. For the first time they are on the receiving end of the Prime Directive. They have no problem administering the rule to other people, even when it is unfair or even might allow harm to fall on innocents, but when it's them that could gain from bending the rule, they're all for it. It's actually a great discussion, and puts the Prime Directive in a new perspective. We often are presented with situations where it seems like too broad of a rule, but it's an entirely different thing to be the less-developed people in the scenario.

They come up with a plan to offer Creepy Uncle the thing that his people seem to crave the most, which is new stories. They are enlightened people, and get bored of the same old stuff. This is why they are so excited about hosting guests, because they get to hear about new experiences and backgrounds. The crew will offer their entire database of literature in exchange for the technology. That should get their attention! When Janeway presents the plan, Creepy Uncle seems open to it and says he'll present it to the council as an option. Later, she pushes him a bit for time, and he resists. Then it gets heated a little too fast and Janeway gets them kicked off the planet. Her gripe is that the Sikarians only dote over people for their new experiences, and then they get bored and move on to the next thing. They're not just being overly hospitable for the benefit of others, they're doing it for the pleasure that it brings themselves. Which...what's the difference? When we say that it's better to give than to receive, aren't we saying the same thing? The pleasure that we get from knowing that we are the ones that brought joy to another is the motivator, and both sides win. And the fact that Janeway thinks that if they stay they'll soon be dumped for the next new thing....in this context, who cares? They weren't looking for a long term relationship with the Sikarians anyway. The conversation just seems to turn uglier than it needs to, and the points they're arguing are trivial.

Meanwhile, there may be another way. Kim's hookup knows a guy who is willing to make the literature for trajector exchange on the side. Harry informs the captain, who after some debate decides that it's wrong to benefit from someone breaking the law. Even though it's not them that is breaking their own laws, it's someone else breaking other's laws, they determine that there is no difference. I'm surprised this it took so much debate to come to this conclusion. Isn't following the law of the land part of the Prime Directive? I mean going to the black market to obtain alien tech against their clearly stated will isn't really an option for Star Fleet, is it?

Well I guess it is, because Torres, Seska, and Carey devise a plan to make the trade without telling Janeway. They make the trade just in time for the evacuation of the planet. And who is the operative that hands the device over to the engineers? It's none other than (plot twist) Tuvok! He instructs them to not use it until he speaks to the captain. But when they inspect how it works, they discover that it will only work in the atmosphere of Sikaris. It's now or never, and they choose now. But of course it still doesn't work because it's not compatible with Federation technology due to technobabble reasons. The group is busted for their indiscretions, and it did't even work.

Torres tries to take responsibility to cover for Tuvok, but he steps forward and admits his part. Janeway is shocked. She gives Torres a firm warning that the next incident with her will be the last. With Tuvok, she doesn't even know where to begin. As viewers, we don't either. I too was shocked when the straight-edged Vulcan showed up with the ill-gotten device in hand. He explains that he knows the captain well, and he knows that her number one goal is to get the crew home. But he also knows that she won't break the Prime Directive (in this incidence). So instead, he did it, for her. It was the ultimate act of loyalty on his part. "You did it for me, because you knew I couldn't," she mutters as she fights back tears. Tuvok's logic still doesn't sit right with me. For it to work, it means that his loyalty to Janeway is paramount over his sense of duty, own morality, and his commitment to Star Fleet. While Janeway is a great captain, and the two do have a special relationship, I don't see any evidence from any of his previous or future actions that suggest that this is the case. The only solution can be that Tuvok .....is not perfect. He acted on emotion and made a bad decision based on faulty logic. That is truly interesting.

For a fresh perspective of the Prime Directive by turning it on its head, and for a truly surprising twist having Tuvok go rogue, "Prime Factors" is definitely a Good episode.

Published May 17, 2017