Seska Was Voyager‘s Perfect, Messy Foil

Voyager and Deep Space Nine gully galore intriguing parallels arsenic sister bid that aired successful tandem for a bully chunk of their airings. Voyager‘s much episodic format and code struck an altogether antithetic approach to DS9‘s expanding lens connected the acheronian bosom of Star Trek‘s ideas and universe, digging into wider and deeper interconnected storylines. But 1 small portion of Deep Space Nine vigor that Voyager kept aboriginal connected came from an improbable figure: Ensign Seska.

The turncoat Bajoran ex-Maquis revealed her existent individuality arsenic a Cardassian treble cause 30 years agone contiguous with the broadcast of “State of Flux,” mounting disconnected a uncommon small mini-arc for the aboriginal days of Star Trek: Voyager. Although by and ample an episodic show, for better oregon worse, Voyager did occasionally experimentation with short-form arcs present and there, and Seska’s was 1 of them, weaving successful different plotlines crossed the remainder of play 1 until her untimely decease and decision astatine the opening of play three, similar Tom Paris’ seeming discontent aboard the ship, and the associated leaker storyline with Michael Jonas. But she’s astir absorbing arsenic a opposition to however Deep Space Nine portrayed the Cardassians.

Of course, DS9 had plenty, similar the mischievously two-faced Garak, oregon the large and audaciously hammy Gul Dukat. Seska leans much the second than the erstwhile erstwhile the mask’s off, but portion she is suitably duplicitous and scheming successful the ways 1 mightiness expect of a Cardassian infiltrator who finds herself abruptly going from leaking Maquis plans to serving connected a Starfleet vas 70,000 airy years distant from Cardassia Prime, 1 happening defines her successful opposition to the Cardassians we’d been regularly seeing on Star Trek astatine that infinitesimal successful time: she’s conscionable benignant of an implicit blistery mess.

It’s fascinating revisiting “State of Flux” to spot conscionable however everything rapidly falls isolated for Seska. The occurrence mostly deals with Voyager‘s find of a heavy damaged Kazon warship (a thorn successful the crew’s broadside connected and disconnected since the aviator episode), lone to uncover that the harm was caused by misuse of replicator exertion surreptitiously acquired from Voyager. Almost the 2nd the elder unit recognize that there’s a traitor connected board, Seska is terrible astatine covering up the information that she was the 1 who had been trying to state with the Kazon arsenic everything falls isolated astir her, from the unit getting person to her way to the doctor’s find that her communicative astir her Bajoran inheritance was wholly made up. Seska succeeds successful getting distant from Voyager to squad up with Maje Culluh, but it’s a failing-upwards inclination that persists passim the remainder of her appearances across Voyager‘s 2nd play and into her decease that reflects everything “State of Flux” laid retired for her.

© Paramount

The thought of a turncoat who sees the spot successful uncovering combative allies to exploit Voyager‘s concern is precise Cardassian, but Seska finds herself instantly played erstwhile she’s thrust into the patriarchal nine of the Kazon arsenic her newfound besties. Her proposal is mostly lone ever accepted nether scorn and duress from Culluh and his subordinates; contempt her perceived consciousness of superiority she’s perpetually undermined, which is often the origin for the nonaccomplishment of her on-and-off attempts to get backmost astatine Voyager. She tin lone ever hardly marque the champion of a atrocious situation, contempt much often than not having astir of the cards successful play: her past with Chakotay gives her a deliciously idiosyncratic space of attack, her cognition of Voyager‘s capabilities from her clip nether screen marque her a much unsafe foe than astir the amusement had thrown astatine the vessel astatine this point.

But it’s benignant of what makes Seska enactment arsenic a character: contempt each this, villainy oregon otherwise, thing ever rather clicks for her. It’s a large reflector to uphold against Janeway’s determination to person the unit instrumentality the agelong mode location successful the archetypal place, the thought that, if they did yet conscionable spell Seska’s way and exploit their advantageous powerfulness successful an chartless quadrant, it would doom them. Seska is truthful often thwarted successful her schemes by the elemental enactment of Voyager‘s unity, thing seeded done her clip connected the vessel passim the series’ archetypal fistful of episodes—always 1 of the unit to explicit dissatisfaction astatine being nether the yoke of Starfleet ideals and rules, ever 1 consenting to spell circular radical to effort and get things done. In galore ways Seska benignant of has to beryllium a catastrophe arsenic overmuch arsenic a menace to further amplify our heroes’ burgeoning community.

Although Seska would spell connected to look a mates much times aft her decease successful the 2nd portion of “Basics,” it’s fitting that she perishes successful a communicative that is inherently astir the disruption of Voyager‘s assemblage and a usurpation of their harmless abstraction aboard the ship, a two-parter wherever the Kazon successfully negociate to concisely overtake Voyager and dump the Starfleet unit connected an chartless barren planet.

Despite winning, Seska and the Kazon conscionable cannot bushed the crew’s resilience and unity, a reminder that, adjacent truthful aboriginal connected successful this journey, that sticking unneurotic is what’s going to get Voyager done each this. It’s a shame we had to suffer a precise compelling antagonist successful doing so, but that Seska astatine slightest gets to facilitate that solidarity is welcome.

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