“Frankly, I don’t think [the writers] really cared what happened at the end. Voyager has been the ugly step-child of the Star Trek family, and that’s the way we’ve been treated. We’re also the only show that’s had to carry a whole network [UPN] ....the ratings are down because it’s not being seen by as many people in the who could see ER….and then they took it out on us by saying 'This show’s no good. Let’s get it over with as quickly as possible so we can fix it for the next one.'“
“I was very disappointed [with 'Endgame'] ...from mid season onwards I kept waiting for them to start making a move towards wrapping up some of these story arcs, but they didn’t. They finally paste these things together in the last two episodes; stuff that was never set-up correctly to get the full dramatic effect. [Voyager] was meant to be about nine people on the ship, trying to get through some really extraordinary circumstances. Frankly, I’m not sure what it ended up being about.“
“[The writers] has a whole year to prepare, but they waited until the final two episodes to fix things. To me, that’s just a symptom of their uncaring cavalier attitude towards the show.“
“[In the final season] Janeway slowly became an even more obnoxious, domineering, self-righteous know-it-all. And really, that does not equate to any kind of character development. I also don’t like the way they treated [the characters of Tuvok, Kim and Neelix].“
“It was a wistful kind of sadness for me because that time was filled with unnecessary tension. They were manufacturing this huge ‘The end of Voyager’ thing. Sadly, Kate [Mulgrew] got caught up in it and decided she wasn’t going to have any fun. She made it way too difficult to work with her in the last couple of months of the show. She really felt that by doing it a certain way maybe she could have cured cancer, and totally forgot it’s just a TV show. Some people just have to build castles in the sky.“
“Most people seem to find my approach different and refreshing, and that’s why I get invited to conventions. I realize that there are some poor souls who really think that Gene Roddenberry is up there next to God, and take it as a personal affront if I say anything negative about Star Trek. But who in their right mind would ever get offended by an actor saying something critical about a TV show? I think most sane people can keep things in perspective.“
Advice to Jolene Blalock, Enterprise’s First Officer : “I don’t think it has anything to do with [your position on the ship]…you’re going to be in trouble if the writers don’t care about your character. Say what you feel, and let them know that you expect a certain quality. As long as you offer that quality yourself, you have every right to expect it from someone else.“
The full interview can be located in Issue #276 of Starburst Magazine
I agree, why can't Berman and Bragga just go away...
Wes: It's not up to one actor to 'save the show.' He did his job as best as he could under the circumstances. It's TPTB's fault that Voyager was as bad as it was. Things got to a point rather quickly where there was nothing that was gonna change the fact that it was a lousy Trek series.
[ July 15, 2001: Message edited by: The Mighty Monkey of Mim ]
One wonders if this Ensign Hoshi Sato character on Enterprise will get to do any more than Uhura ever did, and whether she'll be able to do anything about it. . .