(Originally aired March 1, 2000.)

Quotable Moments

Seven: Fun will now commence.

Tom: You two sure have been spending a lot of time together lately.    More Stories Star Trek: Voyager -- Seasons Six and Seven 'Star Trek: Voyager' - 'Ashes to Ashes' (spoilers) Star Trek: Voyager - 'Spirit Folk' Voyager Meets Borg Kids in 'Collective'    Related Links Star Trek UPN Harry: Don't start. Tom: Now, let's see, For those of us keeping score, Harry Kim has fallen for a hologram, a Borg, the wrong twin and now, the dearly departed.

Directed by Terry Windell
Story by Ronald Wilkerson
Teleplay by Robert Doherty

GUEST STARS

Kim Rhodes - Ensign Lyndsay Ballard
Marley Maclean - Kret

WHAT HAPPENED

An alien woman is piloting a shuttle through hostile fire. She is bald, and has bluish mottling on her skin, but many would consider her attractive.

She says something in a foreign language that includes the word "Voyager." To highlight the fact that she's talking about our favorite lost Starfleet ship, we see a diagram of Voyager on her computer screen. And then she says, in English:

"Starship Voyager, if you can hear me, please respond." (more spoilers)

ANALYSIS

"Ashes to Ashes" achieves considerable emotional resonance, centered around the relationship between Harry Kim and Lyndsay Ballard.

Lyndsay is a complex and subtle character. As a result, Harry's attraction to her is quite plausible, as is the frustration he clearly feels about his romantic life. Sensitive viewers may well have a sizable stake in the outcome of this couple's interaction.

As for the aliens of the week, the Kobali are an intriguing species. They are villains, arguably -- certainly they are presumptuous and authoritarian -- but it's also possible to see matters from their viewpoint.

And their procreation method is imaginatively conceived. Indeed, one wonders just how broad a net the Kobali cast in seeking "raw material" for their peculiar plans. And might we be seeing more of these ardent resurrectionists?

In terms of character development, Seven's rearing of the post-Borg kids is emerging, entertainingly if a bit predictably, as an ongoing theme. Regrettably, we never understand exactly what "punishment protocol 9 alpha" entails.

WHAT WE LEARN

Janeway can't cook. She's also not very good at responding to charges of favoritism.

DANGLING PLOT THREADS

How will Tuvok react when practical jokers alter his favorite holodeck program?

TUNE IN NEXT WEEK

The Borg Babies return in "Child's Play", an episode that promises conflict between Seven and Janeway's child-rearing philosophies and some desperate aliens using their own young as Borg bait.