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

S7E11: Shattered

I was tempted to add in every time-travel episode in Voyager, but had to edit my list because there are a fair few of them in the show.

But “Shattered” remains one of my favorites, making it a no-brainer for this list.

Sections of Voyager become fractured in time, and only Chakotay can pass across timeframes because of a Warp core accident. To save the ship, Chakotay needs to enlist the help of the crew—easier said than done when the crew is from the past and future.

“Shattered” finds a unique way of looking back at where Voyager began and how far it’s come. Chakotay has to team up with Captain Janeway on her first day on the ship, Seven when she’s still a Borg, an angry and vengeful B’Elanna while she’s still a Maquis, among others.

It’s fun to see how the crew were once at loggerheads and unsure of their future, and how they have become one big family that truly cares and depends on each other. Plus, there’s plenty of action and excitement, which makes ‘Shattered’ one of the most memorable Chakotay episodes out there.

S7E25: Endgame

Long before Avengers: Endgame, Voyager fans associated ‘Endgame’ with the finale of the series. A lot happens in this epic two-parter, which is packed with excitement, intrigue, and a plot that nobody saw coming.

Our beloved Captain takes center-stage here, with Kate Mulgrew playing two versions of Kathryn Janeway—Captain Janeway from the present, and Admiral Janeway from the future, who goes back in time to bring Voyager home sooner than in her timeline.

Admiral Janeway’s plan requires extensive modifications to the ship, tangling with the Borg Queen, and throwing part of the Starfleet rulebook out the airlock.

The stakes are high, especially once we learn about the people Admiral Janeway has lost—after seven seasons, any loss would be too much, and you can’t help but hope for the best even when the odds are stacked against the crew.

As series finales go, ‘Endgame’ is out of this world and a fitting end to a highly underrated sci-fi show.

And Now… The Conclusion

Voyager was a close friend when I was a teenager—I was so the Reg Barclay of our century—and I’ve made it my mission in life to share my love of the show with everyone I know. In many ways, the crew of Voyager felt more familiar than the other Trek crews, because they were the underdogs looking at their journey from the ground up.

Distilling seven exhilarating and memorable seasons into 25 episodes was a tough task—not that I minded reliving the show through this article! Voyager wasn’t always perfect (but then again, what is?), but the show has copped a lot of hate because it dared to be different.

It’s great to see people praise the show over two decades later—better late than never, as they say.

Here’s to 25 years of Voyager, and to many more years with our favorite ship and crew.