25 Essential episodes to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Star Trek: Voyager

S6E4: Tinker Tenor Doctor Spy

I have no shame in admitting that I have watched “Tinker Tenor Doctor Spy” an embarrassing amount of times. It is hilarious!

The Doctor has some of the best and funniest episodes on Voyager, and this one is definitely up there among the best.

Like Data before him, the Doctor is constantly trying to become more human—his latest endeavor has him adding a subroutine to help him daydream. Except, he does it wrong and ends up daydreaming constantly.

Worse, a nearby alien vessel taps into his daydreams and believes them to be reality—as a result, they believe that Voyager is a threat to them and come to attack.

Hilarity ensues as the Doctor has to be put in charge of the ship, with the Captain and B’Elanna in his ear feeding him instructions.

There are so many great moments from this episode that I’m grinning just remembering them.

S6E6: Riddles

Tuvok is a Vulcan, and they’re always restrained and logical. So, what happens when a Vulcan loses their memories? That’s the premise of “Riddles” but this episode is as much about friendships as anything else.

Anyone who has watched Voyager knows that Tuvok and Neelix have always had a tetchy relationship—not surprising considering their differing personalities.

But despite Tuvok’s often condescending approach to Neelix, the moment he’s hurt in “Riddles”, Neelix is the first person in Sickbay nursing Tuvok back to health.

As a result, the newly-revived but distinctly non-Vulcan Tuvok becomes Neelix’s closest friend. Which makes going back to his former self hard on both of them.

As I’ve mentioned, I don’t get the hate for Neelix—I think he’s an amazing character, and it’s exemplified in this episode.

Tim Russ is amazing as the stony-hearted Tuvok, but absolutely lights up the screen with the cake baking, cheery Tuvok of “Riddles”. This episode is so bittersweet, that it belongs on this list.