Alice (Star Trek: Voyager)
Encyclopedia
"Alice" is an episode of Star Trek: Voyager
, the fifth episode of the sixth season. The episode has an average rating of 4.6/5 on the official Star Trek
website (as of November 26, 2007).http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/series/VOY/episode/108158.html
The episode bears a striking resemblance in some elements to the Stephen King
novel Christine, such as the idea of a vehicle having a consciousness.
and trades for supplies with the junk-dealer, Abaddon. Tom Paris
discovers a rusty old shuttle in the yard and convinces his superiors to let him bring it aboard and restore it, just as he has been doing with old cars on the holodeck as a hobby. He discovers that the shuttle is equipped with a neural interface. It reads and communicates directly with its pilot's mind, giving it instantaneous maneuverability. He tries out the interface, and the ship makes a record of his brain patterns.
As time goes on Tom becomes more and more obsessive about restoring and caring for his new shuttle, which he has named Alice. He can even hear "her" speaking to him in his mind. His behavior becomes more and more strange. He wants to spend time with Alice and no one else, even his girlfriend, B'Elanna Torres
, who is distressed about Tom's obsession. He begins to neglect his appearance and duties, looking more tired and frantic as time goes on, and he wears a spacesuit designed for use with Alice instead of his Voyager uniform. When power cells from Voyagers back-up systems go missing, B'Elanna finds them in the cargo bay where Tom fixes Alice. She then sneaks aboard Alice to see what's drawing Tom there so strongly, but the ship springs to life, traps her inside, and shuts off life support.
Tom gets B'Elanna out of the shuttle before she is seriously injured, but soon after that he loses control of his own behavior. He boards Alice and speeds away from Voyager with her. They head for a space anomaly called a particle fountain. Alice inexplicably calls the fountain 'home'. Captain Janeway
realizes they cannot fire on Alice because Tom is neurally linked to her and damage to the ship would kill him. B'Elanna taps into the neural interface from Voyager and speaks to Tom, her voice appearing in his thoughts alongside that of Alice. She pleads with him to hang on to her instead of the shuttle. Tuvok
is able to sever the neural link between Tom and Alice, and the crew beams him away just as the shuttle is destroyed in the particle fountain.
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
, the fifth episode of the sixth season. The episode has an average rating of 4.6/5 on the official Star Trek
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
website (as of November 26, 2007).http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/series/VOY/episode/108158.html
The episode bears a striking resemblance in some elements to the Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
novel Christine, such as the idea of a vehicle having a consciousness.
Plot
Voyager finds an alien junkyardWrecking yard
A scrapyard or junkyard is the location of a dismantling business where wrecked or decommissioned vehicles are brought, their usable parts are sold for use in operating vehicles, while the unusable metal parts, known as scrap metal parts, are sold to metal-recycling companies...
and trades for supplies with the junk-dealer, Abaddon. Tom Paris
Tom Paris
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris, played by Robert Duncan McNeill, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Paris serves as the chief helmsman and an auxiliary medic aboard the USS Voyager...
discovers a rusty old shuttle in the yard and convinces his superiors to let him bring it aboard and restore it, just as he has been doing with old cars on the holodeck as a hobby. He discovers that the shuttle is equipped with a neural interface. It reads and communicates directly with its pilot's mind, giving it instantaneous maneuverability. He tries out the interface, and the ship makes a record of his brain patterns.
As time goes on Tom becomes more and more obsessive about restoring and caring for his new shuttle, which he has named Alice. He can even hear "her" speaking to him in his mind. His behavior becomes more and more strange. He wants to spend time with Alice and no one else, even his girlfriend, B'Elanna Torres
B'Elanna Torres
B'Elanna Torres is a main character in Star Trek: Voyager played by Roxann Dawson. She is portrayed as a half-human half-Klingon born in 2349 on the Federation colony Kessik IV. Torres joined the Maquis in 2370 and was serving on the Val Jean when brought to the Delta Quadrant...
, who is distressed about Tom's obsession. He begins to neglect his appearance and duties, looking more tired and frantic as time goes on, and he wears a spacesuit designed for use with Alice instead of his Voyager uniform. When power cells from Voyagers back-up systems go missing, B'Elanna finds them in the cargo bay where Tom fixes Alice. She then sneaks aboard Alice to see what's drawing Tom there so strongly, but the ship springs to life, traps her inside, and shuts off life support.
Tom gets B'Elanna out of the shuttle before she is seriously injured, but soon after that he loses control of his own behavior. He boards Alice and speeds away from Voyager with her. They head for a space anomaly called a particle fountain. Alice inexplicably calls the fountain 'home'. Captain Janeway
Kathryn Janeway
Kathryn Janeway, played by Kate Mulgrew, is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. As the captain of the Starfleet starship USS Voyager, she was the lead character on the television series Star Trek: Voyager, and later, a Starfleet admiral, as seen in the 2002 feature film Star Trek...
realizes they cannot fire on Alice because Tom is neurally linked to her and damage to the ship would kill him. B'Elanna taps into the neural interface from Voyager and speaks to Tom, her voice appearing in his thoughts alongside that of Alice. She pleads with him to hang on to her instead of the shuttle. Tuvok
Tuvok
Tuvok is one of the main characters on the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Tuvok is a Vulcan who serves as the ship's chief of security and its chief tactical officer. Tim Russ portrayed Tuvok throughout the show's run, from 1995 to 2001....
is able to sever the neural link between Tom and Alice, and the crew beams him away just as the shuttle is destroyed in the particle fountain.