Changes: Year of Hell (episode)

Revision as of 17:12, 15 January 2021

Real world article
(written from a Production point of view)

For the event itself, please see Year of Hell.

Obsessed with restoring the Krenim Imperium, no matter the cost, a Krenim military temporal scientist creates changes in history that all but destroy Voyager.

Summary

Teaser

Day 1

A perfect day on a class M planet. An advanced civilization lives here, evidenced by a sprawling and technologically advanced metropolis. Suddenly, in the sky above, a tremendously large weapon appears. It fires a beam of energy at the city. The beam spreads out over the city and beyond. Every trace of civilization vanishes, replaced by virgin land, as if the planet had never been populated.

Aboard the ship that fired the beam, a young officer checks computer displays and reports to the ship's commander that the temporal incursion is complete and all organisms on the planet have been eradicated. The commander asks if their target event has been achieved. Frustrated, the officer reports that it has not been achieved. The commander speculates that more definitive action is necessary and orders a course laid in for the homeworld of the Zahl. The entire species, he decides, must be erased from time.

Act One

Aboard the USS Voyager, the senior staff is gathered together in the new astrometrics lab to celebrate its completion. Seven of Nine is placed in charge of the lab. She and the co-designer of the lab, Ensign Harry Kim, demonstrate its abilities by showing them a projection of a new course to Earth they have plotted that by Seven's estimate will trim five years from their decades-long journey. Lieutenant jg B'Elanna Torres observes that they are entering a region of space with many class M planets. Seven informs that the territory is claimed by the Zahl, a species the Borg have assigned a low resistance quotient.

The Doctor then begins a long, drawn-out speech he has prepared, much to the chagrin of those assembled. As it becomes obvious that his speech will not be brief, he is interrupted when the bridge hails Captain Kathryn Janeway, informing her of an incoming hail from an approaching ship. The crew, glad to be spared the speech, quickly disperse and ignore The Doctor's invitation to meet up later.

The hailing ship is now firing on Voyager but causing no damage. On the bridge, Lieutenant Commander Tuvok scans the vessel and reports that it is no threat as it is small, its weapons limited, and its warp capacity low. Janeway orders an on-screen answer to the hail. It is a Krenim vessel. The hailer, a Krenim commandant, appears. Furious, he informs Janeway that they are trespassing in Krenim space and orders her to reverse course or face destruction, though his vessel is completely unable to harm Voyager. Janeway, having been told that this space actually belongs to the Zahl, responds with a smirk and dismisses his threat with a disparaging comment about the "size" of what is in his "torpedo tubes". The commandant angrily closes the channel. Janeway orders Voyager's course maintained but also orders yellow alert, just in case.

Day 4

Voyager has entered Zahl space. The ship is stationary with two large, Zahl ships nearby. In the briefing room, a friendly and engaging Zahl official assures Janeway that there is nothing to fear from the Krenim, who were defeated by the Zahl over a generation ago despite their formidable temporal weapons. Their ships, he tells her, still wander Zahl territory claiming the space as their own but are no more than a nuisance. Janeway acknowledges this appraisal with a smile. However, as the ambassador begins inquiring about their lengthy journey, Kim hails Janeway from the bridge and informs her the vessel has returned.

Janeway and the Zahl enter the bridge. The vessel hails and Janeway orders an on-screen answer. It is the same Krenim commandant who, upon noticing the Zahl official, accuses Janeway of consorting with their enemy. The Zahl angrily warns the commandant to disengage, threating to seize his ship and ship him home in a cargo container. As Janeway interjects, Kim reports a huge spatial distortion heading for them, five light years across and expanding. Tuvok scans it and, to the Zahl's shock, reports it to be a space-time shock wave originating from a vessel near the Zahl homeworld. Flight control officer Tom Paris tries to take the ship to warp speed in an attempt to get away from the buildup of temporal energy, but the wave destabilizes the warp field, making escape impossible.

Krenim warship — The Krenim vessel transformed

The wave overtakes all the vessels and everything quickly changes. The Zahl ships vanish. The modest Krenim vessel is transformed into a Krenim warship. On Voyager's bridge, the Zahl official vanishes. The bridge goes from pristine to red alert condition with significant damage, appearing to have been caused over the last several days. Lights flicker and gases leak. Janeway and the other officers go from being relaxed but alert to being tense and disheveled. A crewmember lies dead on the floor. None of the crew are aware that any kind of change occurred.

The ship shudders from the warship's fire. Tuvok reports their shields are at seventeen percent. Before the wave, they were at full strength. The Krenim vessel hails. The Krenim commandant appears, but instead of being impotently angry, he is deadly confident. He offers to forgo the execution of Janeway's crew if she will surrender her ship. When she coldly refuses, he warns her to prepare to be boarded and closes the channel. Janeway orders battle stations, remarking to Chakotay that "this is turning into the week of hell."

Act Two

Voyager is pummeled by the Krenim warship, its torpedoes easily penetrating the ship's deflector shields. Chakotay cannot understand why, but Tuvok answers that the torpedoes are not photonic but chronitonic; they are getting through their shields because they are in a state of temporal flux, slightly out of phase with space-time, simultaneously there and yet not there. Her ship defenseless, Janeway gives the order to flee at warp speed. Once out of immediate danger, she asks for a damage report. Tuvok tells her that 15 crewmembers were wounded during the battle, main power was down, environmental controls on decks 7 and 8 were non-functional, and the main computer core was offline. She asks Ensign Kim if any of the sensors were still functioning. He replies that only the short range ones were working. Janeway then orders a 24-hour tactical alert and orders Tuvok to find a way to modify the shields against the Krenim torpedoes.

The ship that caused the change in the timeline is a Krenim temporal weapon ship. The Krenim weapon revised the timeline so that the Zahl never existed, hence the Krenim were never defeated, and the entire region has again become Krenim-controlled space. The commander, Annorax, is in his chambers aboard his ship. He holds a sealed glass pyramid containing a small lock of red hair. He gazes at it with evident grief. The young officer previously on the bridge, named Obrist, enters and with dignified excitement reports that the erasure of the Zahl from history has restored the Krenim Imperium to 98% of the power it once had; 849 worlds over 5,000 parsecs. However, Annorax asks him whether or not a certain colony at Kyana Prime was restored.

Obrist tells him that in this timeline, the Imperium's territory does not extend far enough to encompass Kyana Prime. He does so in a voice that shows he has been asked this question before and has always had the same answer. Disappointed by this news, Annorax responds that they have failed and orders Obrist to start calculations for another temporal incursion. Frustrated, Obrist hangs his head and shakes it. He earnestly pleads that, in two hundred years of attempts, they have never ever achieved this level of restoration and that even a minor incursion could jeopardize this unprecedented success. Clearly having no interest in entertaining his officer's objections, Annorax sternly orders him to obey his order. Resigned, Obrist acknowledges and leaves.

Day 32

Voyager is chased by a Krenim warship. A torpedo slams into the junction between the saucer section and the stardrive. The bridge looks in worse condition than before as Voyager has been suffering constant Krenim attacks. Tuvok's attempts to modify the shields against the Krenim chroniton torpedoes have failed. However, Chakotay notices the warship's aft shields are down but Voyager's own weapons are non-functional. Meanwhile, The Doctor hails from sickbay and informs them that a power overload is occurring there. Kim tries to stop it but his attempts fail, and the power overload quickly spreads throughout Deck 5. Chakotay immediately orders a complete evacuation of the deck.

File:Voyager deck 5 explodes.jpg

A deck on Voyager explodes

Janeway orders Tuvok to arm four of their eleven remaining photon torpedoes and deploy them like mines. She also gives orders to Paris to let the Krenim get within 5,000 meters of them in order for her plan to work. Tuvok arms the torpedoes and Paris informs Janeway that the Krenim ship is within range. She then tells Tuvok to "do it" as Voyager deploys the torpedoes toward the Krenim Warship which in turn destroys the Warship. Their victory is briefly interrupted by a loud notification sound from the Ops station as Kim reports that the conduits on Deck 5 were overloading and were moments away from exploding. The Doctor quickly shepherds his patients and other crewmembers into a Jefferies tube, where they will be safe from the impending explosion. But as he is about to seal himself and the others in the tube he sees two crewmembers, Emmanuel and Strickler, running desperately toward the hatch. He waits for them until the computer counts the last second before the deck blows. Seeing that, though close, they cannot make it to the Jefferies tube in time, he seals the hatch. Much of the deck explodes outward in a huge line of flame and debris along the top of the saucer section.

The ship is so violently shaken by the explosion that all officers on the bridge are knocked off their feet or out of their seats. Kim reports that sections 10 through 53 on Deck 5 were obliterated. Tuvok gives a casualty report, which includes the deaths of the two crewmembers who did not make it to the Jefferies tube. Janeway ends the red alert as she orders Tuvok to survey the ship deck by deck with a security team to assess the amount of damage Voyager has sustained. Tuvok nods and exits as Janeway looks around at the damage on the bridge. Most of the lights are out, console displays flicker and debris is strewn everywhere. She leaves Chakotay with the bridge and goes to her ready room.

Janeway's ready room is in even worse condition than the bridge. All lights are out and debris covers almost the entire floor and her desk. Her desktop monitor is completely destroyed. Chakotay enters, and advises her that the crew should abandon ship as their strategy of trying to modify the shields is not working and the ship is being decimated. Janeway staunchly disagrees stating that if they separate, they will be unable to pool their talents and will be even more vulnerable to the Krenim; They will stay on the ship as long as the ship remains in one piece. Chakotay accepts this as Paris hails them from the bridge and informs them of yet another attack.

Act Three

Day 47

Kim and an injured Torres are trapped in a dark, debris-strewn turbolift car. Already stuck there for six hours, they continue passing the time by playing guessing games. Despite her increasing pain, Torres stubbornly tries to think of the answer to Kim's latest puzzle when Seven of Nine pries the door open and frees them. Seven answers Kim's final question about the name of Zefram Cochrane's ship – the Phoenix – and tells them the Borg were present during the events. When she informs them that the latest attack disabled the entire turbolift system, Torres wants to go to the Jefferies tubes on Deck 11 to try to repair the EPS relays but Kim insists that she go to sickbay. She realizes he's right and Seven goes to Deck 11 instead.

Meanwhile on the bridge, in front of the flickering master systems display, Janeway, Chakotay, and Paris discuss an a plan conceived by Paris: using transverse bulkheads to seal off sections of the ship in the event of a breach, an increasingly-likely possibility given the ship's current state and the persistent Krenim attacks. Inspired by a similar technology on the Titanic (which the Captain points out ultimately sank), Paris' plan is approved by Janeway. The Doctor hails Paris from the mess hall (Voyager's new medical facility due to sickbay's destruction) asking for his assistance in his capacity as medic.

Chroniton torpedo — Seven finds an undetonated Krenim chroniton torpedo

On Deck 11, Seven opens a Jefferies tube hatch but just as she is about to climb in, she sees an object lodged in the tube's wall. She climbs in, moves close to it and scans it with a tricorder. It is an undetonated Krenim chroniton torpedo with the warhead still armed and ready to go off. She urgently hails Tuvok and informs him of her discovery. He orders her to hold position and not attempt disarming it. When Tuvok arrives, he decides that the safest option is to cordon off the tube with a level 10 force field in order to contain the imminent explosion of the destabilizing warhead. But Seven wants to complete this unique opportunity to scan one of the torpedoes and ascertain its exact temporal variance, which can be used to correctly modify the deflector shields. Tuvok objects and attempts to drag her toward the hatch. Struggling against him to finish, Seven finally succeeds in finding the variance – 1.47 microseconds – but the torpedo detonates before they reach the hatch. Tuvok shields her and the explosion catches him in the face.

Act Four

Day 65

Janeway's birthday — Janeway mulls over her birthday present

Voyager is in a terrible state. Janeway records in her log that the replicator system was severely damaged in the latest attack, forcing the crew to survive on emergency rations. Environmental controls are failing and seven decks are now uninhabitable. The weary crew, having relocated from their quarters and sleeping in bunks, are struggling on. The bridge is now totally wrecked as Janeway attempts to repair the science station. Chakotay, reminding her of the date (her birthday) offers her a gift: a silver pocket watch he replicated for her months earlier. But in their current condition, non-essentials are a luxury they cannot afford and she tells him to recycle it.

Tuvok, now completely blind from the chroniton torpedo blast in the Deck 11 Jefferies tube, shaves with a straight-edge razor in the remains of his quarters. Seven of Nine enters and says that she is "reporting for duty" to lead him on his morning rounds. She has devoted herself to helping Tuvok after sacrificing his sight to shield her from harm. She shows irritation that he has cut himself shaving, having previously offered to help him with personal grooming. Tuvok rejects the notion, clearly not for the first time. Before they leave his quarters, she informs him of an idea she has developed on how to modify the deflector shields to defend against the Krenim torpedoes, using the temporal variance she measured from the torpedo. He decides that they should forgo his rounds and proceed to deflector control.

As they make their way along the darkened, debris-strewn corridors, the two bemoan Human personal habits after Seven crosses paths with her new bunk mate. Chakotay's voice comes through the com system, warning of another incoming attack and ordering all hands to battle stations. Tuvok orders Seven to go to deflector control and bring the modified shields on-line, essentially testing them in battle, while he attempts to make his way to the bridge, feeling along the walls to get there.

Upon arriving at the bridge, Tuvok goes to his tactical station. Blind, he cannot see his station's visual interface and has the computer initiate a tactile interface, allowing him to operate the controls and read the displays by touch. Chakotay requests a weapons status as Tuvok reports that phasers were still working, but the torpedo launchers were offline. Janeway orders an on-screen view of the approaching Krenim warship. Ordering evasive maneuvers, Chakotay and she pester Seven to engage the newly-modified shields. Kim tells the Bridge crew that they're targeting the bridge as Seven succeeds in bringing them on-line. Chakotay orders full port thrusters to evade as the warship fires on them once more. The first torpedo misses due to Paris' piloting skills, but the second hits. This time the torpedo causes no damage; Seven's modifications work perfectly. Janeway orders Tuvok to hail the warship. She advises them to stand down, as Voyager is no longer defenseless against them. They do not answer. She orders Paris to maintain course through Krenim space.

Krenim weapon ship firing — The Garenor are erased from history

Elsewhere, the temporal weapon ship approaches another planet, home to a race called the Garenor. Annorax orders the ship taken into orbit and the weapon to be fully powered and fired. It has the same effect as seen on the Zahl colony: every trace of civilization vanishes, as if it never existed, and the space-time shock wave created radiates outward away from the planet.

Back on Voyager, the Krenim warship is still in pursuit but has ceased firing, unsure how to respond to the recent development; this newfound advantage over the warship is Voyager's first in months. Kim soon reports the approach of a temporal wave from 20 light-years away. Even before this timeline the ship could not outrun it, so it has absolutely no chance in its dilapidated state. The wave hits. But the new shields protect the ship from the wave's temporal changes for the same reasons they protected against the Krenim's temporal torpedoes.

However, the Krenim warship has no such protection. The shocked bridge crew watch as it is reduced from a mighty warship to a once again modest ship with limited armaments that would pose no threat to an undamaged Voyager. A baffled Kim reports that the ship is definitely Krenim but it is no longer the warship they were just facing. Janeway then asks where the Warship went as Paris tells her that long range sensors aren't picking it up either. Chakotay scans the region from the command console and reports that the region has suddenly changed: before the wave, the area was filled with Krenim colonies and warships, but now there are no colonies and only a few small ships. History appears to have been changed so that the Kremim Imperium never existed. Janeway orders Kim to route any data about the wave to astrometrics where she is headed, but Chakotay informs her that astrometrics was offline due to taking heavy damage from the Krenim attacks a few days ago as Janeway tells him to bringing it back online, commenting that their troubles might suddenly be over and finding out why this was the case.

Aboard the temporal weapon ship, Obrist notes the erasure of the Krenim Imperium with great consternation. He reports to Annorax that the incursion has gone terribly wrong. Annorax cannot believe it, insisting that their calculations were perfect. Obrist pores over the sensor data and finds the explanation: as a previously "inert" component, they had failed to account for Voyager's new temporal shields in their calculations. Annorax orders a course be set to go to Voyager.

Act Five

Day 70

Astrometrical scan of the Garenor system — Janeway and Seven investigating the focal point of the spacetime shockwave

Astrometrics is as ruined as the rest of the ship but Seven manages to activate its sensors, finding the database intact. Janeway orders her to call up a previous scan of the area. It shows how the region was: under the boot of the Krenim Imperium, full of Krenim colonies. A new scan confirms what Chakotay found, that the Imperium does not currently exist; History has been changed by the wave. On Janeway's order, Seven tracks its source and finds that it originated from the Garenor homeworld. Janeway says they passed the Garenor just 3 weeks ago, but Seven responds with a strange discovery. She notes with confusion that the sensors show that the Garenor do not exist anymore, also erased from history by the wave. She theorizes that, because of their temporal weapons, the Krenim may also be responsible for the temporal wave. This makes no sense to Janeway, as the change has undermined their own species. She speculates that there is a "big piece of the puzzle still missing," and in the midst of ordering another scan, the ship is suddenly shaken.

Annorax's ship arrives. Aboard, Obrist confirms that Voyager is generating a temporal field. Annorax orders two of her crew collected as samples, along with a small piece of the hull. He also orders preparations for another temporal incursion, this time against Voyager. He cannot have this anomalous temporal component disrupting his calculations and intends to eliminate it.

On Voyager, Kim reports with surprise that the entire Krenim vessel is in a state of temporal flux and like the torpedoes, the ship actually exists outside of space-time. Chakotay rises and walks toward the viewscreen, studying the vessel. He stops at the conn console, beside Paris. Suddenly, both men vanish, transported away. Janeway immediately orders efforts to retrieve them. Kim tries but fails. A hail comes from the weapon ship. Janeway orders it answered on-screen. Annorax appears, calmly but sternly telling Janeway to identify herself and her ship, which she does. He reciprocates and observes that Voyager is not from the Delta Quadrant. Janeway confirms, telling him of their origin from Earth, which was 65,000 light years away, but when she asks about the change in history—emphasizing the erasure of the Krenim Imperium—he curtly responds that it is none of her business. When he tells her that she has diverted him from his mission, she realizes that he is responsible for the change in the timeline. Without denying this, he assures her it is nothing personal but that Voyager must be erased as well, informing her that this will "restore the lives of countless millions." With a curt apology, he closes the channel.

Voyager losing outer hull — The *Voyager* losing its outer hull

The ship fires its temporal weapon on Voyager. So great is its power that the temporal shields are quickly degraded as Seven reports that the shields were weakening from the beam's intensity. Kim reports tensely that the beam is pushing Voyager out of the space-time continuum; they are being erased from history. However, Seven scans the weapon ship and reports that its mass prevents it from achieving speeds in excess of warp 6. Voyager, whose normal top warp speed is in excess of warp 9.9, can escape. But Tuvok cautions that damage to the ship's structural integrity means that warp speed will cause extreme damage.

Escape pods leave Voyager — *Voyager*'s crew abandons ship

Despite Tuvok's concerns and having to leave Chakotay and Paris behind, Janeway feels that right now they have no choice. She orders all hands to clear the outer sections of the hull and for wide scale breaches. She also orders Paris' transverse bulkheads be brought online. Seven reports that the temporal shields are failing as Janeway engages the warp drive, getting away at warp 7. They escape the temporal beam, but not at the cost of Voyager sustaining additional damage to its already severely damaged state as large, jagged pieces of the outer hull peel off and break away.

Day 73

Janeway calls a meeting of surviving crewmembers in the remains of the mess hall. She sadly but sternly informs them of the ship's inability to sustain the crew any longer. She is now forced to make the decision Chakotay had suggested weeks before: to abandon ship. The senior staff, she announces, will stay behind with her and attempt to rescue Chakotay and Paris. She gives the departing crew some inspiring words before dismissing them.

Escape pod hatches open and the pods, carrying most of the crew, emerge from the remains of the hull and fall away from the ship.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Log entry

"Captain's log, Stardate 51268.4. This morning's attack destroyed the power grid on deck 11. No casualties this time but the replicator system was badly damaged. We've gone to emergency rations. As a result, the situation has gotten a little worse. Environmental controls continue to fail, seven decks have been rendered uninhabitable and we've had to relocate the crew. Quarters are close, nerves are frayed, and I'm not sure what's more difficult to maintain – Voyager's systems or the crew's morale. What's important… is that we're together, working towards a single goal – survival."

Memorable quotes

"Who would've thought that this eclectic group of voyagers could actually become a family? Starfleet, Maquis, Klingon, Talaxian, hologram, Borg… even Mr. Paris."

- The Doctor, giving a long-winded speech at the commissioning of the astrometrics lab

"This is turning into the week of hell."

- Captain Janeway, in a twist of irony

"You have the bridge… what's left of it."

- Kathryn Janeway, to Chakotay

"I don't respond well to threats."

- Kathryn Janeway, to the Krenim commandant

"With all due respect… unless you've got something a little bigger in your torpedo tubes, I'm not turning around."

- Kathryn Janeway, to the Krenim commandant

"Sir, you were correct. The Zahl homeworld was the focal point. Its erasure has produced a complete temporal restoration."
"'Complete'?"
"Yes, sir."
"If I told you to count the stars in the cosmos, would the task ever be complete?"
"Sir?"
"Our attempts may be sufficient; they may even be relatively successful, but they will never be complete. Choose your words with more precision."
"My apologies."

- Obrist and Annorax

"The Titanic? As I recall, it sank."
"Let's just say I've made a few improvements."

- Janeway and Tom Paris, on Paris's inspiration for upgrades to Voyager

"Happy birthday."
"Happy what?"

- Chakotay and Janeway

"Shaving is hardly a life-threatening activity."

- Tuvok

"We're just about done rebuilding the internal security sensors and we are ready to program the audio signal. Do you want it to say 'Intruder alert' or should we try something a little more dramatic like 'Warning, intruder alert', or 'Intruders among us. Danger! Danger! Intruders among us.'"
"Intruder alert' will suffice."

- Neelix and Tuvok

"Krenim vessels, this is the captain of Voyager. You may have noticed we have a defense against your torpedoes now. I suggest you stand down."
"No response."
"Their mistake. Bring the ship about. We're going through their space whether they like it or not."

- Janeway and Tuvok

"He's trying to erase us from history."

- Janeway, as Annorax fires on Voyager

"Each of you has done your best, but determination alone isn't going to hold this ship together. It's time we faced reality. We've lost nine decks, more than half this ship has been destroyed. Life support is nearly gone; Voyager can no longer sustain its crew. I promised myself that I would never give this order, that I would never break up this family; but asking you to stay… would be asking you to die."

- Janeway

Background information

Production history

Production number: 011-40840-176
Final draft script: 5 August 1997 [1]
Filming:
- Day 1 – 7 August 1997, Thursday – Paramount Stage 8: Bridge, damaged bridge, briefing room
- Day 2 – 8 August 1997, Friday – Paramount Stage 8: Tuvok's bathroom, damaged mess hall
- Day 3 – 11 August 1997, Monday – Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge; Paramount Stage 9: Corridor
- Day 4 – 12 August 1997, Tuesday – Paramount Stage 9: Corridors, turbolift; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged ready room
- Day 5 – 13 August 1997, Wednesday – Paramount Stage 9: Horizontal and vertical Jefferies tubes, int. Krenim patrol ship/Krenim warship; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge
- Day 6 – 14 August 1997, Thursday – Paramount Stage 9: Damaged corridors, damaged crew quarters; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge
- Day 7 – 15 August 1997, Friday – Paramount Stage 9: Int. Krenim weapon ship (temporal chamber/Annorax's ready room)
- Day 8 – 18 August 1997, Monday – Paramount Stage 16: Astrometrics, damaged Astrometrics
- 2nd Unit – 22 September 1997, Monday – Paramount Stage 8: Bridge, ready room, Krenim weapon ship (temporal chamber)
Airdate: 5 November 1997

Story and script

This episode's plot was primarily influenced by "Before and After", a third season installment of Star Trek: Voyager that gives a preview of this episode by featuring both the Krenim and hints of a timeline in which Voyager undergoes the "Year of Hell", becoming badly damaged in the process. Episode co-writer Brannon Braga explained, "Although I don't like to do episodes that rely on other episodes for exposition, I loved the phrase 'Year of Hell' that Ken Biller came up with for that episode. I loved the look of the show. I loved the look of a destroyed Voyager. I wanted to do a whole two-parter like that." This episode's other co-writer, Joe Menosky, remembered, "This started with the phrase 'Year of Hell' which came out of 'Before and After'. Brannon loved the image […] The optical of the hull of the ship messed up in 'Before and After' because we were being attacked by the Krenim […] stayed, especially in Brannon's mind. He kept saying, 'I just want to wreck the ship.'" (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Menosky also related, "What Brannon often does is come up with an image before there's even a story idea […] The imagistic inspiration for 'Year of Hell', without which it wouldn't have been created as an episode, was the ship all wrecked, a great look." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75)
The reuse of the phrase "Year of Hell" suggested other elements, such as having the two-parter span a year. Brannon Braga remembered, "The notion of having a story that took place over the course of a year […] I thought was a very fresh structural approach." The event also implied a reuse of the time-meddling Krenim. Joe Menosky commented, "We tend to do one big time thing a year, we're thinking should it be time travel? Despite the fact that it wasn't time travel the Krenim used some kind of temporal thing in their torpedoes." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
Indeed, considering the Krenim's destructive temporal capabilities led the writers to explore time travel in an unusual way. Joe Menosky recollected, "Brannon said, 'Time is a weapon. What does that mean?' I said, 'What if there was this big Death Star-like weapon, and you target a planet, and it blows it out of the time continuum? What you have done is erased a thread from the time continuum, everything resets, and suddenly the present is different.'" (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Braga was ultimately of the opinion that Annorax's meddling with time was analogous to an example of alternate history. "If you can imagine, to use an analogy, that the Nazis, after losing the Second World War, invented something like [Annorax's time ship] to erase the Americans from history so that they never existed. It would change the outcome of things," Braga speculated. "But what the Nazis don't realize is that the Americans provided a crucial antibody that helped the Germans fight off a deadly virus, and so they realize they've got to do something else to history. But that doesn't work either. When you pull one thread, another comes undone." (Star Trek Monthly issue 34, p. 15) By having the time continuum messed around in such a way but without departing from the present, the writers managed to come up with a method of doing a time travel story without actually doing time travel. "That was enough for us to start running with this as an episode," Menosky recalled. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
Tuvok was originally to have been more badly wounded in this episode rather than losing only his eyesight. "We were actually going to have him blind and missing a leg," Brannon Braga remembered, "and we were going to do a Forrest Gump-type of digital effect. He was going to have many physical problems, but for production reasons, we ended up with just blindness." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100)
This episode was originally to have been Star Trek: Voyager's third season finale. (Star Trek Monthly issue 34, p. 12; Delta Quadrant, p. 207)
The writing of this episode proved to be generally easier than what would follow: the development of most of the two-parter's conclusion. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)

Cast and characters

Brannon Braga believed that the concept embodied in the character of Annorax – a villain who uses time as a weapon – was (in common with the idea of spanning the episode's duology over the course of a year) "a very fresh […] approach." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
Before portraying Annorax in this episode's two-parter, Kurtwood Smith previously played the Efrosian Federation President in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and Thrax in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Things Past". He believed his DS9 role was somewhat responsible for his casting here. "I guess the producers liked what I did on Deep Space Nine," he said, "and asked me to come back, which was fine with me." Ultimately, he enjoyed playing Annorax more than he had liked portraying his DS9 character. The actor stated, "Because Thrax was actually in the imagination of another character […] he wasn't quite as interesting to play as Annorax. He didn't have nearly as much to do." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 18)
Kurtwood Smith was not a regular viewer of the Star Trek spin-off series but found himself watching Voyager to prepare for his role in this episode and the next. Shortly after completing work on the "Year of Hell" two-parter, Smith admitted, "Lately, I watched more of Voyager [than usual] because I was preparing to do my episodes and wanted to get a feel for what they do, how they do it, [and] what's expected of the guest actors." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 18)
Both Joe Menosky and executive producer Jeri Taylor were extremely pleased with the performance that – for this episode and the next – Kurtwood Smith delivered, Menosky later describing Smith as "incredible." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Taylor appreciatively stated, "We got a wonderful performance from Kurtwood Smith." (Star Trek Monthly issue 36, p. 13)
Brannon Braga observed that the cast of this episode seemed to be enjoying the process of working on the episode. He reckoned, "The actors I think had a lot of fun with it." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
Tuvok actor Tim Russ found that performing a blind Tuvok was somewhat challenging, despite also being refreshingly different from how he usually played the character. The reason he found it difficult was that his instincts, which he could not – on this occasion – allow, were normally to look another performer in the eye when they were speaking to him and to look straight at a member of the production crew if they had called to him from off-camera. "I had to reshoot it or do another take because I looked where I shouldn't have been looking, at the other actors," remembered Russ. He expected that his task of playing this role could have been aided, artificially. "I would almost rather have played it with something covering my eyes, rather than to pretend, because it would have been even more real for me," the actor admitted. "I think it would have changed the performance, if I could not see where I was going. I would have loved to have had that handicap somehow." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100) Russ had very nearly played another blind character on Star Trek a decade earlier, having auditioned for the role of Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Tim Russ also believed that this episode's two-parter contains an insightful exploration of the relationship between Tuvok and Seven of Nine. "You see how this bond could have occurred," he noted. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 101)
Actor Robert Picardo was impressed by the visuals in this episode's two-parter. He enthused, "The 'Year in Hell' [sic] two-parter was really like a movie. The opticals were just as exciting as those you see on the big screen." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 18)

Production and effects

Bob Shuttleworth, krenim — Background actor Bob Shuttleworth behind the scenes as a Krenim officer

Kurtwood Smith found the production schedule of this episode to be somewhat overwhelming. "Because of the way the schedule worked," he recalled, "all of my scenes in the first part [of the two-parter] were compressed into one day. That was a little intense. We also shot the biggest, heaviest scenes at the day's end, so it was hard to have much energy by the time we got to them. Otherwise, it was great. The crew is wonderful." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 18)
While the second scene in this episode was being shot, the principal cast members required for the filming became hysterically amused. "Everyone was there [on the set of Voyager's astrometrics lab] late and we were all a bit punchy," related Seven of Nine actress Jeri Ryan. "All I can remember is, oh, God, Robert Beltran, Tim Russ and Ethan Phillips hopping around the set doing their impressions of Michael Flatley, the Lord of the Dance guy. They were totally out of control. I was laughing so hard that I had tears running down my face." (TV Zone, Special #29, p. 20)
One of the shots from the scene where Seven of Nine and Tuvok try to crawl away from the unstable chroniton torpedo on deck 11 has been sped up, to make it seem like Seven and Tuvok are crawling faster.
Joe Menosky was delighted with Allan Kroeker's work on this episode and said of both parts of the "Year of the Hell" two-parter (despite each of the two episodes having been helmed by a different director) that they "were amazingly well directed." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Similarly, Brannon Braga enthused about this episode, "The production team really, really pulled it off." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108 & 109)
Joe Menosky was also thrilled by the chronological subtitles that are used in this episode and the next, which he once referred to as "great." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
The CGI effects of this episode's two-parter were provided by CGI supplier Foundation Imaging during an extremely busy period for the company; Foundation was also working on effects for DS9: "Sacrifice of Angels" and several other projects. CGI Effects Director Ron Thornton remarked, "We were absolutely hammering it out." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 16) Visual effects supervisor Ronald B. Moore and coordinator Elizabeth Castro were also instrumental in the creation of effects for this episode (as opposed to supervisor Mitch Suskin and coordinator Arthur Codron, who worked on the second half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) The look of this episode was added to in the compositing bay, by animation effects artist Greg Rainoff (who did likewise for the concluding half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108-109)
Creating the look of Voyager as it becomes more and more badly damaged, in this episode and the next, was a process that involved many steps. Ron Moore explained, "We got a lot of drawings from [senior illustrator] Rick Sternbach of different ways we could damage the Voyager. Then we made our plans all the way through the script." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Ron Thornton commented, "Fred Kuramura worked for several weeks building the different versions of Voyager that go through [various stages of destruction]. There were about four different stages of Voyager, in varying levels of disrepair. That took quite a lot of time, but it's one of those things that you never really see." (The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 16)
The elements of this episode that Ron Moore and Elizabeth Castro established included the look of the Krenim weapon ship, the temporal change wave and Voyager's astrometrics lab. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
On the third day of production, Monday 11 August 1997, an additional scene for the episode "Revulsion" was filmed. According to the call sheet, Paramount Stage 8 housed the set for this scene, Chakotay's office, and Robert Beltran and Garrett Wang were filmed.

Costumes and props

The wall decoration in Annorax's ready room was previously seen as wall decoration in Proconsul Neral's office in the Star Trek: The Next Generation fifth season episodes "Unification I" and "Unification II", in the barbershop aboard the USS Enterprise-D in the sixth season episode "Schisms", in the reception area at Arkaria Base in the episode "Starship Mine", in the observation lounge in the seventh season episode "Parallels", and in Minister Kray's office in the first season episode "Ex Post Facto".
Also present in Annorax's ready room are two bird statues which were turned around. These statues were previously seen in Marla Aster's home in the TNG third season episode "The Bonding", in the reception area at Arkaria Base in the sixth season episode "Starship Mine", and in the conference room of the Maquis in the seventh season episode "Preemptive Strike". They can also be seen in several scenes in "Year of Hell, Part II".
Several costumes from this episode were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including John Austin's costume which was later re-used by Eric Hunter in the episode "Tsunkatse" and the costumes of John Thaddeus, Adrian Tafoya, Bob Shuttleworth, Peter Slutsker, Kurtwood Smith, and John Loprieno as well as Keith Rayve's distressed Starfleet uniform. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

Continuity

Day 65 is stated to occur on May 20th (Janeway's birthday). Using this, it is possible to date all the events of this episode; Day 1 occurs on March 16th while Day 73 (the final day depicted in this episode) occurs on May 28th, 2374. This makes this episode and the next the only instalments of Star Trek in which every scene can be precisely dated on the Gregorian calendar.
The stuck turbolift in the turboshaft footage in this episode was re-used from the Star Trek: The Next Generation fifth season episode "Disaster".
In the scene where Kim and Torres play a trivia game (category: Interstellar History), there is a question concerning Zefram Cochrane who launched his first warp-driven starship and resulted to First Contact with the Vulcans; however Torres takes some time to recall the name of the ship (Phoenix). The dialogue is a clear acknowledgment to the events of Star Trek: First Contact.
In a later scene, Seven of Nine tells Harry Kim and B'Elanna Torres that the Borg were present during that event. She claims it is "complicated" when they ask her to elaborate, as the Borg traveled through time to assimilate Humans and remove their resistance, similar to what the Krenim did to the Zahl. This reference to First Contact is also somewhat of an in-joke, as Brannon Braga co-wrote both this episode and that film. Having initially intended to insert an in-joke reference to First Contact in "Scorpion, Part II" (yet another Star Trek production that Brannon Braga co-wrote), Braga thereafter wrote the similar reference into this episode, doing so in a way that he later described as "a lighter fashion." Braga also said of the in-joke in this episode, "It's not a plot nod [...] It's just a little nod to the fans, who'll get a kick out of it." (Star Trek Monthly issue 34, p. 15)
This episode establishes that Kathryn Janeway's birthday is May 20th.
This episode also establishes that Voyager is 65,000 light years away from home.
Astrometrics is unveiled for the first time in this episode, along with Captain Janeway's new shorter hairstyle worn loose, which she maintains for the remaining duration of the show.
The Doctor states that he was first activated on stardate 48315. This is consistent with the events of the pilot episode "Caretaker", in which Captain Janeway makes a log entry for stardate 48315, on the same day that The Doctor is activated.

The episode "Before and After"

Some of the events of this episode are consistent with the season 3 episode "Before and After", in which Kes experiences a future Voyager, including its time in the "Year of Hell". Although the future shown in "Before and After" are a part of an alternate future that does not come to pass, some major events do nonetheless still occur. These include the Year of Hell itself, with the encounter with the Krenim, and the destruction of Sickbay. Notable events that do not occur as depicted in "Before and After" are the absence of Kes, presence of Seven of Nine, The Doctor becoming inoperable for a number of months, the death of Captain Janeway, and the kidnapping of Paris and Chakotay.
Although "Before and After"'s depiction of the "Year of Hell" is seen from the viewpoint of Kes – as she travels through time – her timeline in that episode is not related to any timeline seen in this episode, as Kes is obviously no longer aboard the ship at this point (having left in the earlier fourth season installment "The Gift"). Despite the differences between the timeline featured in "Before and After" and the one shown in this episode, Brannon Braga believed that fans would nonetheless understand that this episode shows an event first depicted in "Before and After". "The fans will recognize that that's what this is," Braga predicted. When asked whether Kes' absence from this episode's two-parter was problematic, Braga replied, "Not at all, because the episode also deals with [Annorax's extremely powerful influence on time]." (Star Trek Monthly issue 34, p. 15)
At the end of "Before and After", Janeway asks Kes to reveal any information on the Krenim that Kes learned during her time jumps and Kes agrees to file a report. Even though the dialogue from "Year of Hell" doesn't directly reflect on any of the knowledge Kes shared, Tuvok picks up on the Krenim torpedo being in temporal flux as soon as the first torpedo hits, thus proving that Kes' report was indeed put to good use even though it wasn't officially acknowledged. However, it is unclear why the report that Kes was supposed to file wouldn't have included the precise chroniton frequency which would have enabled Voyager to implement their own time-flux shielding. This information was needed to fix Kes' condition in "Before and After". In this timeline, however, the frequency of the torpedo is still 1.47 microseconds, as it was in the earlier episode, with Seven of Nine crawling through the Jefferies tube rather than Kes.

Reception and aftermath

This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 4.7 million homes, and a 7% share. [10]^(X)
Midway through the fourth season of Star Trek: Voyager, Brannon Braga was particularly excited about this episode's two-parter and promised, "It will be fun." (Star Trek Monthly issue 34, p. 12) He later stated, "I was very pleased with 'Year of Hell'. It was very tight [....] It was one of those rare episodes, and even rarer two-parters, where all of the elements came together." (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
This episode's two-parter proved unforgettable for Star Trek author Kirsten Beyer. Having started pitching stories to the producers by the time this installment was broadcast, she had heard about the idea of this episode from one of the producers. "One of them had been telling me about this concept they were working on…this 'Year of Hell' that would strip the ship down to its bare bones," Beyer reflected. "I was all for it. I was expecting it to last an entire season, which was one of the early discussions." Beyer was pleased with the first part of the duology, which she defined as "fabulous." [11]
Cinefantastique rated this episode 3 and a half out of 4 stars. (Cinefantastique, Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 88)
Star Trek Magazine scored this episode 5 out of 5 stars. (Star Trek Monthly issue 39, p. 62)
The unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 209) gives the installment a rating of 9 out of 10.
The book Star Trek 101 (p. 175), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block, lists this episode and the concluding part of its two-parter as being, together, one of the "Ten Essential Episodes" from Star Trek: Voyager.

Video and DVD releases

UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 4.4, catalog number VHR 4625, 4 May 1998
In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: Voyager - Movies: Volume 2 (with "Scorpion"), catalogue number VHR 5072, 18 September 2000
As part of the VOY Season 4 DVD collection
As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Time Travel collection

Links and references

Starring

Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway

Also starring

Guest star

John Loprieno as Obrist

Special guest star

Kurtwood Smith as Annorax

Co-stars

Previous episode:
"Scientific Method"

Star Trek: Voyager
Season 4

Next episode:
"Year of Hell, Part II"

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{realworld}}
+{{real world}}
-{{sidebar episode|
+{{sidebar episode
-<!-- See [[Memory Alpha:Episode data project]] -->
+|<!-- See [[Memory Alpha:Projects/Episode data project]] -->
-|          aSelf = Year of Hell
+|image             = Krenim weapon ship 1.jpg
-|         sTitle = Year of Hell
+|writer            = [[Brannon Braga]] & [[Joe Menosky]]
-|        sSeries = VOY
+|director          = [[Allan Kroeker]]
+|date              = 51268.4 ({{dis|March|month}} 16 &ndash; [[May]] 28, [[2374]])
-|        nSeason = 4
+|<!-- Arcs -->
-|       nEpisode = 8
+|arc               = Year of Hell
-|sProductionSerialNumber = 176
+|arc prev          = Before and After (episode)
-|   nAirdateYear = 1997
+|arc next          = Year of Hell, Part II (episode)
-|  sAirdateMonth = November
-|    nAirdateDay = 5
+|arc number        = 2
-|         sImage = Krenim temporal weapon ship 1.jpg
+|arc count         = 3
-|     wsWrittenBy = [[Brannon Braga]] & [[Joe Menosky]]
-|    wsTeleplayBy =
-|       wsStoryBy =
-|    wsDirectedBy = [[Allan Kroeker]]
-|   nNthProducedInSeries = 75
-|   nNthReleasedInSeries = 75
-|      nNthReleasedInAll = 489
-|         bFeatureLength = 0
-|         nSerialAirdate = 19971105
-|                 wsDate = 51268.4 ([[March (month)|March]] 16 - [[May]] 28, [[2374]])
-|     aNextReleasedInAll = You Are Cordially Invited (episode)
-|     aPrevReleasedInAll = Sacrifice of Angels (episode)
-|  aNextReleasedInSeries = Year of Hell, Part II (episode)
-|  aPrevReleasedInSeries = Scientific Method (episode)
-|  aNextProducedInSeries = Year of Hell, Part II (episode)
-|  aPrevProducedInSeries = Scientific Method (episode)
-|aNextInUniverseTimeline = Random Thoughts (episode)
-|aPrevInUniverseTimeline = Scientific Method (episode)
-|             wsArc0Desc = Year of Hell
-|          aArc0PrevPart = Before and After (episode)
-|          aArc0NextPart = Year of Hell, Part II (episode)
-|        nArc0PartNumber = 2
-|         nArc0PartCount = 3
 }}
-{{disambiguate|the event itself|Year of Hell}}
+{{disambiguation|the event itself|Year of Hell}}
 Obsessed with restoring the Krenim Imperium, no matter the cost, a Krenim military temporal scientist creates changes in history that all but destroy ''Voyager''.
-==Summary==
+== Summary ==
+=== Teaser ===
 [[File:Annorax.jpg|thumb|left|Annorax of the Krenim Imperium]]
+;''Day 1''
-Some time prior to [[2174]], the brilliant [[Krenim]] military [[temporal mechanics|temporal scientist]] [[Annorax]], of the once-powerful [[Krenim Imperium]], developed and oversaw construction of a weapon ship whose primary weapon created [[causality paradox]]es by causing [[temporal incursion]]s. Using this ship, he supervised the complete genocide of a race that had removed the Krenim as the dominant power in the [[Delta Quadrant]] by causing the race to never come into existence. But the erasure of that race from history caused the near destruction of his own race and his attempts to undo this led to the erasure of the existence of his wife. For the last two hundred years, obsessed with restoring her along with the full glory of the Krenim Imperium, he and the crew of his [[Krenim weapon ship|temporal weapon ship]] have been creating one causality paradox after another, altering and re-altering history, erasing and restoring race after race.
+A perfect day on a [[class M]] [[planet]]. An advanced civilization lives here, evidenced by a sprawling and technologically advanced metropolis. Suddenly, in the sky above, a tremendously large weapon appears. It fires a beam of [[energy]] at the city. The beam spreads out over the city and beyond. Every trace of civilization vanishes, replaced by virgin land, as if the planet had never been populated.
+Aboard the ship that fired the beam, a young [[officer]] checks [[computer]] displays and reports to the ship's commander that the [[temporal incursion]] is complete and all organisms on the planet have been eradicated. The commander asks if their target event has been achieved. Frustrated, the officer reports that it has not been achieved. The commander speculates that more definitive action is necessary and orders a course laid in for the [[homeworld]] of the [[Zahl]]. The entire species, he decides, must be erased from [[time]].
-===Teaser===
-'''''Day 1'''''
+=== Act One ===
-A perfect day on a [[Class M]] [[planet]]. An advanced civilization lives here, as evidenced by a sprawling, technologically advanced metropolis. Suddenly, in the sky above, a tremendously large weapon appears. It fires a beam of [[energy]] at the city. The beam spreads out over the city and beyond. Every trace of civilization vanishes, replaced by virgin land, as if no one had ever been on the planet.
-Aboard the ship that fired the beam, a young [[officer]] checks [[computer]] displays and reports to the ship's commander that the [[temporal incursion]] is complete and all organisms on the planet have been eradicated. The commander asks if their target event has been achieved. The man frustratedly reports that it has not been achieved. The commander speculates that more definitive action is necessary and he orders a course laid in for the [[homeworld]] of the [[Zahl]]. The entire species, he decides, must be erased from [[time]].
-===Act One===
 [[File:Astrometrics.jpg|thumb|''Voyager''{{'}}s new astrometrics lab]]
-Aboard the {{USS|Voyager}}, the [[senior staff]] is gathered together in the newly-completed [[astrometrics|astrometrics lab]] to celebrate its completion. [[Seven of Nine]] is placed in charge of the lab. She and the co-developer of the lab, [[Ensign]] [[Harry Kim]], demonstrate its abilities by showing them a [[scan]] of a new course to [[Earth]] they have plotted that, by Seven's estimate, will slash five years from the several decades of travel before them. [[Lieutenant junior grade|Lieutenant jg]] [[B'Elanna Torres]] observes from the scan that they are entering a region of space with many Class M planets. Seven informs them of the owners of the region: the [[Zahl]], a [[species]] the [[Borg]] have assigned a low [[resistance quotient]].
+Aboard the {{USS|Voyager}}, the [[senior staff]] is gathered together in the new [[astrometrics]] lab to celebrate its completion. [[Seven of Nine]] is placed in charge of the lab. She and the co-designer of the lab, [[Ensign]] [[Harry Kim]], demonstrate its abilities by showing them a projection of a new course to [[Earth]] they have plotted that by Seven's estimate will trim five years from their decades-long journey. [[Lieutenant junior grade|Lieutenant jg]] [[B'Elanna Torres]] observes that they are entering a region of space with many class M planets. Seven informs that the territory is claimed by the [[Zahl]], a [[species]] the [[Borg]] have assigned a low [[resistance quotient]].
-Everyone is very pleased, but then [[The Doctor]], begins a long, drawn-out speech he has prepared, much to their chagrin. However, he is interrupted when the [[bridge]] [[hail]]s [[Captain]] [[Kathryn Janeway]], informing her of an incoming hail from an approaching ship.
+[[The Doctor]] then begins a long, drawn-out speech he has prepared, much to the chagrin of those assembled. As it becomes obvious that his speech will not be brief, he is interrupted when the [[bridge]] [[hail]]s {{Captain}} [[Kathryn Janeway]], informing her of an incoming hail from an approaching ship. The crew, glad to be spared the speech, quickly disperse and ignore The Doctor's invitation to meet up later.
-On the bridge, [[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Tuvok]] scans the vessel and reports that it is no threat as it is small, its weapons are limited, and its [[warp drive|warp capacity]] is low. Janeway orders an [[Viewscreen|on-screen]] answer to the hail. It is a [[Krenim patrol ship|Krenim vessel]]. The hailer, a [[Unnamed Krenim#Krenim Commandant|Krenim commandant]], appears. He furiously informs Janeway that they are trespassing in Krenim space and orders her to reverse course or face destruction, though his vessel is completely unable to harm ''Voyager''. Janeway responds with a smirk and dismisses his threat with a disparaging comment about the "size" of what is in his "torpedo tubes". The commandant angrily cuts the communication. Janeway orders ''Voyager''{{'}}s course maintained but also orders [[yellow alert]], just in case.
+The hailing ship is now firing on ''Voyager'' but causing no damage. On the bridge, [[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Tuvok]] scans the vessel and reports that it is no threat as it is small, its weapons limited, and its [[warp drive|warp capacity]] low. Janeway orders an [[viewscreen|on-screen]] answer to the hail. It is a [[Krenim patrol ship|Krenim vessel]]. The hailer, a [[Krenim commandant]], appears. Furious, he informs Janeway that they are trespassing in Krenim space and orders her to reverse course or face destruction, though his vessel is completely unable to harm ''Voyager''. Janeway, having been told that this space actually belongs to the Zahl, responds with a smirk and dismisses his threat with a disparaging comment about the "size" of what is in his "torpedo tubes". The commandant angrily closes the channel. Janeway orders ''Voyager''{{'}}s course maintained but also orders [[yellow alert]], just in case.
-'''''Day 4'''''
+;''Day 4''
-[[File:Zahl.jpg|thumb|left|The Zahl ambassador]]
+[[File:Zahl.jpg|thumb|left|The Zahl official]]
-''Voyager'' has entered Zahl space. She is at an all stop, with two large, Zahl ships near her. In the [[briefing room]], a Zahl [[ambassador]], who is very friendly and engaging, assures Janeway that there is nothing to fear from the Krenim, as the Zahl defeated them over a generation ago, despite their formidable weapons based on temporal science. Their ships, he tells her, still wander Zahl territory claiming the space as their own but they are no more than a nuisance. Janeway acknowledges this appraisal with a smile. However, as the ambassador begins inquiring about their epic journey, Kim hails from the bridge and informs Janeway the vessel has returned.
+''Voyager'' has entered Zahl space. The ship is stationary with two large, Zahl ships nearby. In the [[briefing room]], a friendly and engaging Zahl official assures Janeway that there is nothing to fear from the Krenim, who were defeated by the Zahl over a generation ago despite their formidable temporal weapons. Their ships, he tells her, still wander Zahl territory claiming the space as their own but are no more than a nuisance. Janeway acknowledges this appraisal with a smile. However, as the ambassador begins inquiring about their lengthy journey, Kim hails Janeway from the bridge and informs her the vessel has returned.
+Janeway and the Zahl enter the bridge. The vessel hails and Janeway orders an on-screen answer. It is the same Krenim commandant who, upon noticing the Zahl official, accuses Janeway of consorting with their enemy. The Zahl angrily warns the commandant to disengage, threating to seize his ship and ship him home in a cargo container. As Janeway interjects, Kim reports a huge [[spatial anomaly|spatial distortion]] heading for them, five [[light year]]s across and expanding. Tuvok scans it and, to the Zahl's shock, reports it to be a [[Spacetime shockwave|space-time shock wave]] originating from a vessel near the Zahl homeworld.  [[Flight control officer]] [[Tom Paris]] tries to take the ship to [[Warp drive|warp speed]] in an attempt to get away from the buildup of [[temporal energy]], but the wave destabilizes the [[warp field]], making escape impossible.
-Janeway and the ambassador go onto the bridge. The vessel hails and Janeway orders an on-screen answer. It is the same Krenim commandant. He accuses Janeway of consorting with the Zahl. The ambassador angrily warns him to go away with a disparaging threat to seize his ship and ship him home in a cargo container. Janeway calms them down but then Kim reports a huge [[spatial anomaly|spatial distortion]] heading for them, five [[light year]]s across and expanding. Tuvok scans it and, to the Zahl ambassador's great shock, reports it to be a space-time distortion originating from a vessel near the Zahl homeworld. [[Flight Controller]] Lt. jg [[Tom Paris]] tries to take the ship to [[Warp drive|warp speed]] in an attempt to get away from it, but the wave destabilizes the [[warp field]], making escape impossible.
 [[File:Krenim warship.jpg|thumb|The Krenim vessel transformed]]
-The wave hits all the vessels and everything changes. The Zahl ships vanish. The little Krenim vessel is transformed into a mighty [[Krenim warship]]. On ''Voyager''{{'}}s bridge, the Zahl ambassador vanishes. The bridge goes from pristine condition to [[red alert]] condition and appears damaged, as if that had been its state from the start. Lights flicker. Janeway and the other officers go from being relaxed but alert to being tense and disheveled. A crewmember lies dead on the floor.
+The wave overtakes all the vessels and everything quickly changes. The Zahl ships vanish. The modest Krenim vessel is transformed into a [[Krenim warship]]. On ''Voyager''{{'}}s bridge, the Zahl official vanishes. The bridge goes from pristine to [[red alert]] condition with significant damage, appearing to have been caused over the last several days. Lights flicker and gases leak. Janeway and the other officers go from being relaxed but alert to being tense and disheveled. A crewmember lies dead on the floor. None of the crew are aware that any kind of change occurred.
+The ship shudders from the warship's fire. Tuvok reports their [[shields]] are at seventeen percent. Before the wave, they were at full strength. The Krenim vessel hails. The Krenim commandant appears, but instead of being impotently angry, he is deadly confident. He offers to forgo the execution of Janeway's crew if she will surrender her ship. When she coldly refuses, he warns her to prepare to be boarded and closes the channel. Janeway orders [[battle stations]], remarking to Chakotay that "''this is turning into the week of hell''."
+=== Act Two ===
+''Voyager'' is pummeled by the Krenim warship, its [[torpedo]]es easily penetrating the ship's [[deflector shield]]s. Chakotay cannot understand why, but Tuvok answers that the torpedoes are not [[photon]]ic but [[chroniton]]ic; they are getting through their shields because they are in a state of [[temporal flux]], slightly out of phase with space-time, simultaneously there and yet not there. Her ship defenseless, Janeway gives the order to flee at warp speed. Once out of immediate danger, she asks for a damage report. Tuvok tells her that 15 crewmembers were wounded during the battle, main power was down, environmental controls on decks 7 and 8 were non-functional, and the main computer core was offline. She asks Ensign Kim if any of the sensors were still functioning. He replies that only the short range ones were working. Janeway then orders a 24-hour [[tactical alert]] and orders Tuvok to find a way to modify the shields against the Krenim torpedoes.
+The ship that caused the change in the timeline is a Krenim [[Krenim weapon ship|temporal weapon ship]]. The Krenim weapon revised the timeline so that the Zahl never existed, hence the Krenim were never defeated, and the entire region has again become Krenim-controlled space. The commander, [[Annorax]], is in his chambers aboard his ship. He holds a sealed glass pyramid containing a small lock of red hair. He gazes at it with evident grief. The young officer previously on the bridge, named [[Obrist]], enters and with dignified excitement reports that the erasure of the Zahl from history has restored the Krenim Imperium to 98% of the power it once had; 849 worlds over 5,000 [[parsec]]s. However, Annorax asks him whether or not a certain [[colony]] at [[Kyana Prime]] was restored.
-The ship shudders from the warship's fire. Tuvok reports their [[shields]] are at 17 percent. Before the wave, they were at full strength. The Krenim vessel hails. The Kremim commandant appears, but instead of being impotently angry, he is deadly confident. He offers Janeway to forgo of the execution of her crew if she will surrender. When she coldly refuses, he warns her to prepare to be boarded and ends the communication. Janeway orders [[battle stations]], remarking to Chakotay that "''this is turning into the week of hell''."
-===Act Two===
-''Voyager'' is pummeled by the Krenim warship. The warship's [[torpedo]]es easily penetrate the ship's [[deflector shield]]s. Chakotay cannot understand why, but Tuvok answers that the torpedoes are not [[photon]]ic, but [[chroniton]]ic; they are getting through their shields because they are in [[temporal flux]]. Janeway gives the order to flee at warp speed, as they are defenseless. With their escape complete, she orders a 24-hour [[tactical alert]] and orders Tuvok to find a way to modify the shields against the Krenim torpedoes.
-[[File:Krenim temporal weapon ship 2.jpg|thumb|left|Annorax' temporal weapon ship]]
-The ship that caused the change in the timeline is Annorax's temporal weapon ship.  The Krenim weapon revised the timeline so that the Zahl never existed, hence the Krenim were never defeated, and the entire region was always Krenim-controlled space. The commander, Annorax himself, is in his chambers aboard his ship. He holds a sealed glass pyramid containing a small lock of red hair. He gazes at it with evident grief. The young officer, named [[Obrist]], enters and, with dignified excitement, reports that the erasure of the Zahl from history has restored the Krenim Imperium to 98% of the power it once had; 849 worlds over 5,000 [[parsec]]s. However, Annorax asks him whether or not a certain [[colony]], the one at [[Kyana Prime]], was restored.
 [[File:Obrist.jpg|thumb|Obrist, reporting to Annorax]]
-Obrist tells him that in this timeline, the Imperium's territory does not extend so far as to cause the Kyana Prime colony to exist. He does so in a voice that shows he has been asked this question before and has always had the same answer. Annorax disappointedly responds that they have failed then and orders him to start calculations for another temporal incursion. Behind his back, Obrist hangs his head down and shakes it in an exasperated, frustrated manner. He earnestly pleads that they have never ever achieved this level of success in restoring the Imperium in two hundred years of attempts. If they do another incursion, it could all be lost again, but Annorax sternly orders him to obey. Obrist acknowledges and leaves.
+Obrist tells him that in this timeline, the Imperium's territory does not extend far enough to encompass Kyana Prime. He does so in a voice that shows he has been asked this question before and has always had the same answer. Disappointed by this news, Annorax responds that they have failed and orders Obrist to start calculations for another temporal incursion. Frustrated, Obrist hangs his head and shakes it. He earnestly pleads that, in two hundred years of attempts, they have never ever achieved this level of restoration and that even a minor incursion could jeopardize this unprecedented success. Clearly having no interest in entertaining his officer's objections, Annorax sternly orders him to obey his order. Resigned, Obrist acknowledges and leaves.
-'''''Day 32'''''
+;''Day 32''
+''Voyager'' is chased by a Krenim warship. A torpedo slams into the junction between the [[saucer section]] and the [[stardrive]]. The bridge looks in worse condition than before as ''Voyager'' has been suffering constant Krenim attacks. Tuvok's attempts to modify the shields against the Krenim chroniton torpedoes have failed. However, Chakotay notices the warship's aft shields are down but ''Voyager''{{'}}s own weapons are non-functional. Meanwhile, The Doctor hails from [[sickbay]] and informs them that a power overload is occurring there. Kim tries to stop it but his attempts fail, and the power overload quickly spreads throughout Deck 5. Chakotay immediately orders a complete evacuation of the deck.
+[[File:Voyager deck 5 explodes.jpg|thumb|left|A deck on ''Voyager'' explodes]]
-''Voyager'' is chased by a Krenim warship. A torpedo slams into her the junction between the [[saucer section]] and the [[stardrive]]. The bridge looks in worse condition than before as ''Voyager'' has been suffering incessant Krenim attacks. Tuvok's attempts to modify the shields against the Krenim chroniton torpedoes have failed. However, Chakotay notices the warship's aft shields are down but ''Voyager''{{'}}s own weapons are non-functional. Meanwhile, The Doctor hails from the [[sickbay]] and informs them that a power overload is occurring there. Kim tries to stop it but his attempts fail.
+Janeway orders Tuvok to arm four of their eleven remaining [[photon torpedo]]es and deploy them like [[mine]]s. She also gives orders to Paris to let the Krenim get within 5,000 meters of them in order for her plan to work. Tuvok arms the torpedoes and Paris informs Janeway that the Krenim ship is within range. She then tells Tuvok to "do it" as Voyager deploys the torpedoes toward the Krenim Warship which in turn destroys the Warship. Their victory is briefly interrupted by a loud notification sound from the Ops station as Kim reports that the conduits on Deck 5 were overloading and were moments away from exploding. The Doctor quickly shepherds his patients and other crewmembers into a [[Jefferies tube]], where they will be safe from the impending explosion. But as he is about to seal himself and the others in the tube he sees two crewmembers, [[Emmanuel]] and {{dis|Strickler|Ensign}}, running desperately toward the hatch. He waits for them until the computer counts the last second before the deck blows. Seeing that, though close, they cannot make it to the Jefferies tube in time, he seals the hatch. Much of the deck explodes outward in a huge line of flame and debris along the top of the saucer section.
+The ship is so violently shaken by the explosion that all officers on the bridge are knocked off their feet or out of their seats. Kim reports that sections 10 through 53 on Deck 5 were obliterated. Tuvok gives a casualty report, which includes the deaths of the two crewmembers who did not make it to the Jefferies tube. Janeway ends the red alert as she orders Tuvok to survey the ship deck by deck with a security team to assess the amount of damage Voyager has sustained. Tuvok nods and exits as Janeway looks around at the damage on the bridge. Most of the lights are out, console displays flicker and debris is strewn everywhere. She leaves Chakotay with the bridge and goes to her [[ready room]].
-Janeway gets an idea. She orders Tuvok to arm four of their eleven remaining [[photon torpedo]]es and deploy them like [[mine]]s. He does so and her tactics work. The Krenim warship runs into the free-floating torpedoes and is destroyed. But then Janeway's attention is drawn to the impending destruction of the deck that the sickbay is on, due to the power overload.
-[[File:VoyagerBridgeBlows.jpg|thumb|left|A deck on ''Voyager'' explodes]]
-The overload spreads quickly throughout the deck. As the computer counts down, The Doctor urgently herds his patients and other crewmembers into a [[Jefferies tube]], where they will be safe. But as he is about to close the hatch, he sees two crewmembers, [[Emmanuel]] and [[Strickler (Ensign)|Strickler]], running desperately toward the hatch. He waits for them until the computer counts the last second before the deck blows. But they do not make it to the Jefferies tube and he closes the hatch. Much of the deck explodes outward in a huge line of flame and debris along the top of the saucer section.
+Janeway's ready room is in even worse condition than the bridge. All lights are out and debris covers almost the entire floor and her desk. Her [[desktop monitor]] is completely destroyed. Chakotay enters, and advises her that the crew should abandon ship as their strategy of trying to modify the shields is not working and the ship is being decimated. Janeway staunchly disagrees stating that if they separate, they will be unable to pool their talents and will be even more vulnerable to the Krenim; They will stay on the ship as long as the ship remains in one piece. Chakotay accepts this as Paris hails them from the bridge and informs them of yet another attack.
-The ship is so violently shaken by the explosion that all officers on the bridge are knocked off their feet or out of their seats. Kim reports the destruction of 43 sections on that deck. Tuvok gives a casualty report, which includes the deaths of the two crewmembers that did not make it to the Jefferies tube. Janeway ends the red alert and looks around at the damage on the bridge. Most of the lights are out, console displays flicker and debris is strewn everywhere. She gives Chakotay the bridge and goes to her [[ready room]].
+=== Act Three ===
-Janeway's ready room is in even worse condition than the bridge. All lights are out and debris covers almost the entire floor and her desk. Her [[desktop monitor]] is completely destroyed. Chakotay comes to see her. He advises her that they and the crew should abandon ship as their strategy of trying to modify the shields to defend against the Krenim torpedoes is not working and the ship is being decimated. But Janeway staunchly disagrees stating that if they separate, they will be unable to pool their talents and will be even more vulnerable to the Krenim. They will stay on the ship as long as the ship remains in one piece. Chakotay accepts this as Paris hails them from the bridge and informs them of yet another attack.
+;''Day [[47]]''
+Kim and an injured Torres are trapped in a dark, debris-strewn [[turbolift]] car. Already stuck there for six hours, they continue passing the time by playing guessing games. Despite her increasing pain, Torres stubbornly tries to think of the answer to Kim's latest puzzle when Seven of Nine pries the door open and frees them. Seven answers Kim's final question about the name of [[Zefram Cochrane]]'s ship &ndash; the ''[[Phoenix]]'' &ndash; and tells them the Borg were present during [[Star Trek: First Contact#Summary|the events]]. When she informs them that the latest attack disabled the entire turbolift system, Torres wants to go to the Jefferies tubes on Deck 11 to try to repair the [[EPS relay]]s but Kim insists that she go to sickbay. She realizes he's right and Seven goes to Deck 11 instead.
+Meanwhile on the bridge, in front of the flickering [[master systems display]], Janeway, Chakotay, and Paris discuss an a plan conceived by Paris: using [[transverse bulkhead]]s to seal off sections of the ship in the event of a breach, an increasingly-likely possibility given the ship's current state and the persistent Krenim attacks. Inspired by a similar technology on the ''[[RMS Titanic|Titanic]]'' (which the Captain points out ultimately sank), Paris' plan is approved by Janeway. The Doctor hails Paris from the [[mess hall]] (''Voyager''{{'}}s new medical facility due to sickbay's destruction) asking for his assistance in his capacity as medic.
-'''''Day [[47]]'''''
-Torres and Kim are trapped in a dark, debris-strewn [[turbolift]] car. Torres has been seriously injured. The two have been there for six hours. They pass the time playing "guess what I am thinking of" games. Torres, despite her pain, stubbornly tries to think of the answer to Kim's latest puzzle, but then Seven of Nine pries the door open and frees them. She informs them that the last attack rendered the entire turbolift system nonfunctional. Torres wants to go to the Jefferies tubes on Deck 11 to try to repair the [[EPS relay]]s there but Kim insists that she go to The Doctor, who has set up [[triage]] facilities in the [[mess hall]]. She agrees, and Seven goes to Deck 11 instead. Meanwhile on the bridge, in front of the flickering [[master systems display]], Janeway, Chakotay, and Paris discuss an idea that Paris has come up with: using [[transverse bulkhead]]s to seal off sections of the ship in the event of a breach, a very real possibility, given the ship's current state and the Krenim attacks. Janeway agrees to Paris' plan. The Doctor hails from the mess hall and calls Paris, a trained medic, to assist him.
 [[File:Chroniton torpedo.jpg|thumb|Seven finds an undetonated Krenim chroniton torpedo]]
-On Deck 11, Seven opens a Jefferies tube hatch but just as she is about to climb in, she sees an object lodged in the tube's wall. She climbs in, moves close to it and scans it with a [[tricorder]]. It is an undetonated Krenim [[chroniton torpedo]]. She urgently hails Tuvok and informs him of her discovery. He orders her to hold her position and not try to disarm it.
+On Deck 11, Seven opens a Jefferies tube hatch but just as she is about to climb in, she sees an object lodged in the tube's wall. She climbs in, moves close to it and scans it with a [[tricorder]]. It is an undetonated Krenim [[chroniton torpedo]] with the warhead still armed and ready to go off. She urgently hails Tuvok and informs him of her discovery. He orders her to hold position and not attempt disarming it. When Tuvok arrives, he decides that the safest option is to cordon off the tube with a level 10 [[force field]] in order to contain the imminent explosion of the destabilizing warhead. But Seven wants to complete this unique opportunity to scan one of the torpedoes and ascertain its exact [[temporal variance]], which can be used to correctly modify the deflector shields. Tuvok objects and attempts to drag her toward the hatch. Struggling against him to finish, Seven finally succeeds in finding the variance &ndash; 1.47 microseconds &ndash; but the torpedo detonates before they reach the hatch. Tuvok shields her and the explosion catches him in the face.
+=== Act Four ===
-Tuvok arrives in the Deck 11 Jefferies tube and sees the torpedo and decides that the safest option is to cordon off the tube with a level 10 [[force field]] in order to contain the explosion as the warhead is destabilizing and the explosion will likely soon occur. But Seven takes the opportunity to scan it and ascertain its [[temporal variance]], which can then be used to finally modify the deflector shields against the torpedoes. Tuvok, however, drags her away, toward the hatch. She succeeds in finding the variance, 1.[[47]] microseconds, but then the torpedo begins a low whine, the precursor to exploding. Tuvok shields Seven and the explosion catches him in the face.
+;''Day 65''
-===Act Three===
 [[File:Janeway's birthday.jpg|thumb|left|Janeway mulls over her birthday present]]
+''Voyager'' is in a terrible state. Janeway records in her log that the [[replicator]] system was severely damaged in the latest attack, forcing the crew to survive on [[emergency ration]]s. Environmental controls are failing and seven decks are now uninhabitable. The weary crew, having relocated from their quarters and sleeping in bunks, are struggling on. The bridge is now totally wrecked as Janeway attempts to repair the science station. Chakotay, reminding her of the date (her birthday) offers her a gift: a silver pocket watch he replicated for her months earlier. But in their current condition, non-essentials are a luxury they cannot afford and she tells him to recycle it.
-'''''Day 65'''''
+Tuvok, now completely blind from the chroniton torpedo blast in the Deck 11 Jefferies tube, shaves with a straight-edge razor in the remains of his [[quarters]]. Seven of Nine enters and says that she is "reporting for duty" to lead him on his morning rounds. She has devoted herself to helping Tuvok after sacrificing his sight to shield her from harm. She shows irritation that he has cut himself shaving, having previously offered to help him with personal grooming. Tuvok rejects the notion, clearly not for the first time. Before they leave his quarters, she informs him of an idea she has developed on how to modify the deflector shields to defend against the Krenim torpedoes, using the temporal variance she measured from the torpedo. He decides that they should forgo his rounds and proceed to deflector control.
-''Voyager'' is in a terrible state. Janeway records in her log that the [[replicator]] system was severely damaged in the latest attack, forcing the crew to live on [[emergency ration]]s. Environmental controls are failing and seven decks are now uninhabitable. The crew, grimy and weary, struggle on.
+As they make their way along the darkened, debris-strewn corridors, the two bemoan Human personal habits after Seven crosses paths with her new bunk mate. Chakotay's voice comes through the com system, warning of another incoming attack and ordering [[Military parlance#All hands|all hands]] to battle stations. Tuvok orders Seven to go to deflector control and bring the modified shields on-line, essentially testing them in battle, while he attempts to make his way to the bridge, feeling along the walls to get there.
-The bridge is now totally wrecked as Janeway attempts to repair the science station when Chakotay gives her a birthday gift: a silver pocket watch he replicated for her months earlier. But she tells him to recycle it, in their current condition nonessentials are a luxury they cannot afford.
+Upon arriving at the bridge, Tuvok goes to his tactical station. Blind, he cannot see his station's visual interface and has the computer initiate a [[tactile interface]], allowing him to operate the controls and read the displays by touch. Chakotay requests a weapons status as Tuvok reports that phasers were still working, but the torpedo launchers were offline. Janeway orders an on-screen view of the approaching Krenim warship. Ordering evasive maneuvers, Chakotay and she pester Seven to engage the newly-modified shields. Kim tells the Bridge crew that they're targeting the bridge as Seven succeeds in bringing them on-line. Chakotay orders full port thrusters to evade as the warship fires on them once more. The first torpedo misses due to Paris' piloting skills, but the second hits. This time the torpedo causes no damage; Seven's modifications work perfectly. Janeway orders Tuvok to hail the warship. She advises them to stand down, as ''Voyager'' is no longer defenseless against them. They do not answer. She orders Paris to maintain course through Krenim space.
-Tuvok, now completely blind from the chroniton torpedo blast in the Deck 11 Jefferies tube, shaves with a straight-edge razor in the remains of his [[quarters]]. Seven of Nine comes to lead him on his morning rounds. She has devoted herself to being his eyes. Before they leave his quarters, she informs him of an idea she has developed on how to modify the deflector shields to defend against the Krenim torpedoes, using the temporal variance she measured from the torpedo that blinded Tuvok. He decides that they should go to deflector control to try it.
+[[File:Krenim weapon ship firing.jpg|thumb|The Garenor are erased from history]]
-As they make their way along the darkened, debris-strewn corridors, Chakotay's voice comes through the com system, warning of another incoming attack and ordering all hands to battle stations. Tuvok orders Seven to go to deflector control and bring the modified shields on-line, while he quickly makes his way to the bridge, feeling along the walls.
+Elsewhere, the temporal weapon ship approaches another planet, home to a race called the [[Garenor]]. Annorax orders the ship taken into [[orbit]] and the weapon to be fully powered and fired. It has the same effect as seen on the Zahl colony: every trace of civilization vanishes, as if it never existed, and the space-time [[shock wave]] created radiates outward away from the planet.
+Back on ''Voyager'', the Krenim warship is still in pursuit but has ceased firing, unsure how to respond to the recent development; this newfound advantage over the warship is ''Voyager''{{'}}s first in months. Kim soon reports the approach of a temporal wave from 20 light-years away. Even before this timeline the ship could not outrun it, so it has absolutely no chance in its dilapidated state. The wave hits. But the new shields protect the ship from the wave's temporal changes for the same reasons they protected against the Krenim's temporal torpedoes.
-Upon arrival at the bridge, Tuvok goes to his tactical station. Blind, he cannot see the display but he has the computer initiate a [[tactile interface]], allowing him to operate the controls and read the displays by touch. Janeway orders an onscreen view of the approaching Krenim warship. She orders Paris to try to evade them while she and Chakotay pester Seven to hurry with the shields.
+However, the Krenim warship has no such protection. The shocked bridge crew watch as it is reduced from a mighty warship to a once again modest ship with limited armaments that would pose no threat to an undamaged ''Voyager''. A baffled Kim reports that the ship is definitely Krenim but it is no longer the warship they were just facing. Janeway then asks where the Warship went as Paris tells her that long range sensors aren't picking it up either. Chakotay scans the region from the command console and reports that the region has suddenly changed: before the wave, the area was filled with Krenim colonies and warships, but now there are no colonies and only a few small ships. History appears to have been changed so that the Kremim Imperium never existed. Janeway orders Kim to route any data about the wave to astrometrics where she is headed, but Chakotay informs her that astrometrics was offline due to taking heavy damage from the Krenim attacks a few days ago as Janeway tells him to bringing it back online, commenting that their troubles might suddenly be over and finding out why this was the case.
-Seven succeeds in bringing them on-line. The warship fires on them. The first torpedo misses due to Paris' piloting skills, but the second hits. This time the hit causes no damage. Seven's modifications work perfectly. Janeway, with a defiant sneer, orders Tuvok to hail the warship. She advises them to stand down, as ''Voyager'' is no longer defenseless against them. They do not answer. She orders Paris to maintain course through Krenim space.
-[[File:Krenim temporal weapon ship firing.jpg|thumb|The Garenor are erased from history]]
-The temporal weapon ship approaches another planet, home to a race called the [[Garenor]].  Annorax orders the ship taken into [[orbit]] and the weapon to be fully powered and fired. It has the same effect as seen on the Zahl colony. Every trace of civilization vanishes, as if it never existed, and the space-time [[shock wave]] created radiates out away from the planet.
+Aboard the temporal weapon ship, Obrist notes the erasure of the Krenim Imperium with great consternation. He reports to Annorax that the incursion has gone terribly wrong. Annorax cannot believe it, insisting that their calculations were perfect. Obrist pores over the sensor data and finds the explanation: as a previously "inert" component, they had failed to account for ''Voyager''{{'}}s new temporal shields in their calculations. Annorax orders a course be set to go to ''Voyager''.
-On ''Voyager'', Kim reports the approach of the wave. Even if ''Voyager'' were untouched, she could not outrun it, so she has absolutely no chance now in her current ruined state. The wave hits. But the temporal shields protect her as they did against the Krenim torpedoes.
+=== Act Five ===
-However, the Krenim warship has no such protection. Janeway and the bridge officers watch, shocked as it is reduced from being a large, mighty warship to a small ship with limited armaments that would pose no threat to an undamaged ''Voyager''. A baffled Kim reports that the ship is Krenim but it is no longer the warship they were just facing. Chakotay scans the region from the command console between his and the captain's seats and reports that the region has suddenly changed. Before the wave, the area was filled with Krenim colonies and warships, now there are no colonies and only a few small ships. History appears to have been changed so that the Kremim Imperium never existed. Janeway orders Kim to route the data on the wave to astrometrics and leaves to go there, commenting that their troubles might just be over.
+;''Day 70''
+[[File:Astrometrical scan of the Garenor system.jpg|thumb|Janeway and Seven investigating the focal point of the spacetime shockwave]]
+Astrometrics is as ruined as the rest of the ship but Seven manages to activate its sensors, finding the database intact. Janeway orders her to call up a previous scan of the area. It shows how the region was: under the boot of the Krenim Imperium, full of Krenim colonies. A new scan confirms what Chakotay found, that the Imperium does not currently exist; History has been changed by the wave. On Janeway's order, Seven tracks its source and finds that it originated from the Garenor homeworld. Janeway says they passed the Garenor just 3 weeks ago, but Seven responds with a strange discovery. She notes with confusion that the sensors show that the Garenor do not exist anymore, also erased from history by the wave. She theorizes that, because of their temporal weapons, the Krenim may also be responsible for the temporal wave. This makes no sense to Janeway, as the change has undermined their own species. She speculates that there is a "big piece of the puzzle still missing," and in the midst of ordering another scan, the ship is suddenly shaken.
+Annorax's ship arrives. Aboard, Obrist confirms that ''Voyager'' is generating a temporal field. Annorax orders two of her crew collected as samples, along with a small piece of the hull. He also orders preparations for another temporal incursion, this time against ''Voyager''. He cannot have this anomalous temporal component disrupting his calculations and intends to eliminate it.
-Aboard the temporal weapon ship, Obrist notes the erasure of the Krenim Imperium with great consternation. He reports to Annorax that the incursion has gone terribly wrong, for some reason. Annorax cannot believe it, insisting that their calculations were perfect. Obrist searches the sensor data and finds the explanation: ''Voyager''{{'}}s new temporal shields. They caused a discrepancy in the calculations. Annorax orders a course be set to go to ''Voyager''.
+On ''Voyager'', Kim reports with surprise that the entire Krenim vessel is in a state of temporal flux and like the torpedoes, the ship actually exists outside of space-time. Chakotay rises and walks toward the viewscreen, studying the vessel. He stops at the conn console, beside Paris. Suddenly, both men vanish, [[transporter|transported]] away. Janeway immediately orders efforts to retrieve them. Kim tries but fails. A hail comes from the weapon ship. Janeway orders it answered on-screen. Annorax appears, calmly but sternly telling Janeway to identify herself and her ship, which she does. He reciprocates and observes that ''Voyager'' is not from the Delta Quadrant. Janeway confirms, telling him of their origin from Earth, which was 65,000 light years away, but when she asks about the change in history—emphasizing the erasure of the Krenim Imperium—he curtly responds that it is none of her business. When he tells her that she has diverted him from his mission, she realizes that he is responsible for the change in the timeline. Without denying this, he assures her it is nothing personal but that ''Voyager'' must be erased as well, informing her that this will "restore the lives of countless millions." With a curt apology, he closes the channel.
-===Act Four===
-'''''Day 70'''''
+[[File:Voyager losing outer hull.jpg|thumb|left|The ''Voyager'' losing its outer hull]]
-Astrometrics is as ruined as every other area on the ship, but Seven manages to get its sensors up and running and finds its database intact. Janeway orders her to call up a previous scan of the area. It shows how the region was: under the boot of the Krenim Imperium, full of Krenim colonies. A new scan confirms what Chakotay found, that the Imperium does not exist. History has been changed by the wave. On Janeway's order, Seven tracks its source and finds that it originated near the Garenor homeworld. She further notes with confusion that the sensors show that the Garenor do not exist anymore, they were erased from history by the wave. She theorizes that the Krenim may be responsible for the wave as they do have temporal weapons. But this makes no sense to Janeway, why would they change history to undermine themselves? She speculates that there is a "piece of the puzzle still missing."  She is in the midst of ordering another scan when the ship is suddenly shaken.
+The ship fires its temporal weapon on ''Voyager''. So great is its power that the temporal shields are quickly degraded as Seven reports that the shields were weakening from the beam's intensity. Kim reports tensely that the beam is pushing ''Voyager'' out of the space-time continuum; they are being erased from history. However, Seven scans the weapon ship and reports that its mass prevents it from achieving speeds in excess of [[warp factor|warp 6]]. ''Voyager'', whose normal top warp speed is in excess of warp 9.9, can escape. But Tuvok cautions that damage to the ship's [[structural integrity]] means that warp speed will cause extreme damage.
+[[File:Escape pods leave Voyager.jpg|thumb|''Voyager''{{'}}s crew abandons ship]]
+Despite Tuvok's concerns and having to leave Chakotay and Paris behind, Janeway feels that right now they have no choice. She orders all hands to clear the outer sections of the hull and for wide scale breaches. She also orders Paris' transverse bulkheads be brought online. Seven reports that the temporal shields are failing as Janeway engages the warp drive, getting away at warp 7. They escape the temporal beam, but not at the cost of Voyager sustaining additional damage to its already severely damaged state as large, jagged pieces of the outer hull peel off and break away.
+;''Day 73''
-Annorax's ship arrives. Aboard, Obrist confirms that ''Voyager'' is generating a temporal field. Annorax orders two of her crew collected as samples, along with a small piece of the hull. He also orders preparations for another temporal incursion... against ''Voyager''. He cannot have this anomalous temporal component disrupting his mission calculations. He intends to eliminate it.
+Janeway calls a meeting of surviving crewmembers in the remains of the mess hall. She sadly but sternly informs them of the ship's inability to sustain the crew any longer. She is now forced to make the decision Chakotay had suggested weeks before: to abandon ship. The senior staff, she announces, will stay behind with her and attempt to rescue Chakotay and Paris. She gives the departing crew some inspiring words before dismissing them.
+[[Escape pod]] hatches open and the pods, carrying most of the crew, emerge from the remains of the hull and fall away from the ship.
-On ''Voyager'', Kim reports with surprise that the entire vessel is in temporal flux, like the Krenim torpedoes, the ship actually exists outside of space-time. Chakotay rises and walks toward the viewscreen, looking at the vessel. He stops at the conn console, beside Paris. Suddenly, both men vanish, [[transporter|transported]] away. Janeway immediately orders efforts to retrieve them. Kim tries but fails.
+:[[Year of Hell, Part II (episode)|TO BE CONTINUED&hellip;]]
-A hail comes from the weapon ship. Janeway orders it answered on-screen. Annorax appears. He calmly, but sternly, tells Janeway to identify herself and the ship, which she does. He reciprocates and observes that ''Voyager'' is not from the Delta Quadrant. Janeway confirms this but when she asks about the change in history, noting the erasure of the existence of the Krenim Imperium, he curtly responds that it is none of her business. When he tells her that she has diverted him from his mission, she realizes that he is responsible for the change in the timeline. He does not deny it. He assures her that it is nothing personal but ''Voyager'' must be erased as well, informing her that this will restore the lives of countless millions. With a curt apology, he ends the communication.
-[[File:VoyagerHullPeelsOff.jpg|thumb|left|''Voyager''{{'}}s hull peels off]]
-The ship fires its temporal weapon on ''Voyager''. So great is its power that the temporal shields are quickly degraded. Kim reports tensely that the beam is pushing ''Voyager'' out of the space-time continuum; they are being erased from history. However, Seven scans the weapon ship and reports that its mass prevents it from achieving warp speeds in excess of [[warp factor|warp 6]]. Thus, ''Voyager'', whose top warp speed is in excess of warp 9, can escape. But Tuvok cautions that damage to the ship's [[structural integrity]] means that warp speed will cause extreme damage.
+== Log entry ==
-But they have no choice. Janeway orders Paris' transverse bulkheads be brought online, orders all hands to get away from the hull's outer sections and, taking the helm, engages warp drive. They escape the temporal beam. But large, jagged pieces of the outer hull are seen peeling off and falling away.
+*"''Captain's log, Stardate 51268.4. This morning's attack destroyed the power grid on [[Intrepid class decks|deck 11]]. No casualties this time but the replicator system was badly damaged. We've gone to emergency rations. As a result, the situation has gotten a little worse. Environmental controls continue to fail, seven decks have been rendered uninhabitable and we've had to relocate the crew. Quarters are close, nerves are frayed, and I'm not sure what's more difficult to maintain &ndash; ''Voyager''{{'}}s systems or the crew's morale. What's important&hellip; is that we're together, working towards a single goal &ndash; survival.''"
+== Memorable quotes ==
-'''''Day 73'''''
+"''Who would've thought that this eclectic group of voyagers could actually become a family? Starfleet, Maquis, Klingon, Talaxian, hologram, Borg&hellip; even Mr. Paris.''"
-[[File:EscapePodsLeaveVoyager.jpg|thumb|''Voyager''{{'}}s crew abandons ship]]
-Janeway calls a meeting of surviving crewmembers in the remains of the mess hall. She sadly but sternly informs them of the inability of the ship to sustain a crew any longer. She is forced to make the decision Chakotay had suggested weeks before: she orders them to abandon ship. The senior staff, she announces, will stay behind with her and attempt to rescue Chakotay and Paris. She dismisses them.
-The [[escape pod]] hatches open and the pods, carrying the rest of the crew, emerge from the remains of the hull and sail off into the unknown.
-'''''[[Year of Hell, Part II (episode)|TO BE CONTINUED...]]'''''
-==Log Entries==
-*"''Captain's log, Stardate 51268.4. This morning's attack destroyed the power grid on Deck 11. No casualties this time but the Replicator system was badly damaged. We've gone to emergency rations. As a result, the situation has gotten a little worse. Environmental controls continue to fail, seven decks have been rendered uninhabitable and we've had to relocate the crew. Quarters are close, nerves are frayed, and I'm not sure what's more difficult to maintain - ''Voyager''{{'}}s systems or the crew's morale. What's important... is that we're together, working towards a single goal - survival.''"
-==Memorable Quotes==
-"''Who would've thought that this eclectic group of voyagers could actually become a family? Starfleet; Maquis; Klingon; Talaxian; hologram; Borg; even Mr. Paris.''"
 : - '''The Doctor''', giving a long-winded speech at the commissioning of the astrometrics lab
 "''This is turning into the week of hell.''"
-: - '''Captain Janeway,''' in a twist of irony
+: - '''Captain Janeway''', in a twist of irony
-"''You have the bridge... what's left of it.''"
+"''You have the bridge&hellip; what's left of it.''"
 : - '''Kathryn Janeway''', to Chakotay
@@ Line 162: / Line 131: @@
-"''With all due respect... unless you've got something a little bigger in your torpedo tubes, I'm not turning around.''"
+"''With all due respect&hellip; unless you've got something a little bigger in your torpedo tubes, I'm not turning around.''"
 : - '''Kathryn Janeway''', to the Krenim commandant
@@ Line 178: / Line 147: @@
 "''The ''Titanic?'' As I recall, it sank.''"<br />
 "''Let's just say I've made a few improvements.''"
-: - '''Captain Janeway''' and '''Lt. (JG) Tom Paris,''' on Lieutenant Paris's inspiration for upgrades to ''Voyager''
+: - '''Janeway''' and '''Tom Paris''', on Paris's inspiration for upgrades to ''Voyager''
 "''Happy birthday.''"<br />
 "''Happy ''what''?''"
-: - '''Commander Chakotay''' and '''Captain Janeway'''
+: - '''Chakotay''' and '''Janeway'''
@@ Line 202: / Line 171: @@
 "''He's trying to erase us from history.''"<br />
-: - '''Captain Janeway''' as Annorax fires on ''Voyager''
+: - '''Janeway''', as Annorax fires on ''Voyager''
-"''Each of you has done your best, but determination alone isn't going to hold this ship together. It's time we faced reality. We've lost 9 decks, more than half this ship has been destroyed. Life support is nearly gone; ''Voyager'' can no longer sustain its crew. I promised myself that I would never give this order, that I would never break up this family; but asking you to stay... would be asking you to die.''"
+"''Each of you has done your best, but determination alone isn't going to hold this ship together. It's time we faced reality. We've lost nine decks, more than half this ship has been destroyed. Life support is nearly gone; ''Voyager'' can no longer sustain its crew. I promised myself that I would never give this order, that I would never break up this family; but asking you to stay&hellip; would be asking you to die.''"
-: - '''Captain Janeway'''
+: - '''Janeway'''
-==Background Information==
+== Background information ==
-===Story and Script===
+=== Production history ===
+* Production number: 011-40840-176
-*This episode's plot was primarily influenced by {{e|Before and After}}, a [[VOY Season 3|third season]] installment of ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'' that gives a preview of this episode by featuring both the Krenim and hints of a timeline in which ''Voyager'' undergoes the "[[Year of Hell]]", becoming badly damaged in the process. Episode co-writer [[Brannon Braga]] explained, "''Although I don't like to do episodes that rely on other episodes for exposition, I loved the phrase 'Year of Hell' that [[Kenneth Biller|Ken Biller]] came up with for that episode. I loved the look of the show. I loved the look of a destroyed ''Voyager''. I wanted to do a whole two-parter like that.''" This episode's other co-writer, [[Joe Menosky]], remembered, "''This started with the phrase 'Year of Hell' which came out of 'Before and After'. Brannon loved the image [....] The optical of the hull of the ship messed up in 'Before and After' because we were being attacked by the Krenim [...] stayed, especially in Brannon's mind. He kept saying, 'I just want to wreck the ship.{{'}}''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Menosky also related, "''What Brannon often does is come up with an image before there's even a story idea [....] The imagistic inspiration for 'Year of Hell', without which it wouldn't have been created as an episode, was the ship all wrecked, a great look.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75)
+* Final draft script: {{d|5|August|1997}} {{el|indiana.edu/~liblilly/lilly/mss/subfile/taylorjinv.html}}
-*The reuse of the phrase "Year of Hell" suggested other elements, such as having the two-parter span a year. Brannon Braga remembered, "''The notion of having a story that took place over the course of a year [...] I thought was a very fresh structural approach.''" The event also implied a reuse of the time-meddling Krenim. Joe Menosky commented, "''We tend to do one big time thing a year, we're thinking should it be time travel? Despite the fact that it wasn't time travel the Krenim used some kind of temporal thing in their torpedoes.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* Filming:
-* Indeed, considering the Krenim's destructive temporal capabilities led the writers to explore time travel in an unusual way. Joe Menosky recollected, "''Brannon said, 'Time is a weapon. What does that mean?' I said, 'What if there was this big Death Star-like weapon, and you target a planet, and it blows it out of the time continuum? What you have done is erased a thread from the time continuum, everything resets, and suddenly the present is different.{{'}}''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Braga was ultimately of the opinion that Annorax's meddling with time was analogous to an example of {{w|alternate history}}. "''If you can imagine, to use an analogy, that the [[Nazi]]s, after losing the [[World War II|Second World War]], invented something like [Annorax's time ship] to erase the Americans from history so that they never existed. It would change the outcome of things,''" Braga speculated. "''But what the Nazis don't realize is that the Americans provided a crucial antibody that helped the [[German]]s fight off a deadly virus, and so they realize they've got to do something else to history. But that doesn't work either. When you pull one thread, another comes undone.''" (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 34]]'', p. 15) By having the time continuum messed around in such a way but without departing from the present, the writers managed to come up with a method of doing a time travel story without actually doing time travel. "''That was enough for us to start running with this as an episode,''" Menosky recalled. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+** Day 1 &ndash; {{d|7|August|1997}}, Thursday &ndash; [[Paramount Stage 8]]: [[Bridge]], damaged bridge, [[briefing room]]
-* Tuvok was originally to have been more badly wounded in this episode rather than losing only his eyesight. "''We were actually going to have him blind and missing a leg,''" Brannon Braga remembered, "''and we were going to do a ''{{w|Forrest Gump}}''-type of digital effect. He was going to have many physical problems, but for production reasons, we ended up with just blindness.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100)
+** Day 2 &ndash; {{d|8|August|1997}}, Friday &ndash; Paramount Stage 8: [[Tuvok]]'s [[bathroom]], damaged [[mess hall]]
-* ''Voyager''{{'}}s [[engineering]] and [[sickbay]] departments are not shown in this episode. This is because, to reduce the costs associated with preparing the sets to be seen as battle-damaged, the writers were asked to place the action on as few of the ''Voyager'' standing sets as possible. {{incite}} As such, the events aboard the ship take place almost entirely within the corridors, on the bridge, and in the mess hall.
+** Day 3 &ndash; {{d|11|August|1997}}, Monday &ndash; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge; [[Paramount Stage 9]]: [[Corridor]]
-* This episode was originally to have been ''Star Trek: Voyager''{{'}}s [[VOY Season 3|third season]] finale. (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 34]]'', p. 12; ''[[Delta Quadrant (reference book)|Delta Quadrant]]'', p. 207) The episode was given some minor rewrites, with many [[Kes]] lines given to [[Seven of Nine]]. {{incite}}
+** Day 4 &ndash; {{d|12|August|1997}}, Tuesday &ndash; Paramount Stage 9: Corridors, [[turbolift]]; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged [[ready room]]
-* This installment's final draft script was submitted on {{d|5|August|1997}}. [http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly/lilly/mss/subfile/taylorjinv.html]
+** Day 5 &ndash; {{d|13|August|1997}}, Wednesday &ndash; Paramount Stage 9: Horizontal and vertical [[Jefferies tube]]s, int. [[Krenim patrol ship]]/[[Krenim warship]]; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge
+** Day 6 &ndash; {{d|14|August|1997}}, Thursday &ndash; Paramount Stage 9: Damaged corridors, damaged [[crew quarters]]; Paramount Stage 8: Damaged bridge
+** Day 7 &ndash; {{d|15|August|1997}}, Friday &ndash; Paramount Stage 9: Int. [[Krenim weapon ship]] ([[temporal chamber]]/[[Annorax]]'s ready room)
+** Day 8 &ndash; {{d|18|August|1997}}, Monday &ndash; [[Paramount Stage 16]]: [[Astrometrics]], damaged Astrometrics
+** 2nd Unit &ndash; {{d|22|September|1997}}, Monday &ndash; Paramount Stage 8: Bridge, ready room, Krenim weapon ship (temporal chamber)
+* Airdate: {{d|5|November|1997}}
+=== Story and script ===
+* This episode's plot was primarily influenced by {{e|Before and After}}, a [[VOY Season 3|third season]] installment of {{s|VOY}} that gives a preview of this episode by featuring both the Krenim and hints of a timeline in which ''Voyager'' undergoes the "[[Year of Hell]]", becoming badly damaged in the process. Episode co-writer [[Brannon Braga]] explained, "''Although I don't like to do episodes that rely on other episodes for exposition, I loved the phrase 'Year of Hell' that [[Kenneth Biller|Ken Biller]] came up with for that episode. I loved the look of the show. I loved the look of a destroyed ''Voyager''. I wanted to do a whole two-parter like that.''" This episode's other co-writer, [[Joe Menosky]], remembered, "''This started with the phrase 'Year of Hell' which came out of 'Before and After'. Brannon loved the image [&hellip;] The optical of the hull of the ship messed up in 'Before and After' because we were being attacked by the Krenim [&hellip;] stayed, especially in Brannon's mind. He kept saying, 'I just want to wreck the ship.{{'}}''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Menosky also related, "''What Brannon often does is come up with an image before there's even a story idea [&hellip;] The imagistic inspiration for 'Year of Hell', without which it wouldn't have been created as an episode, was the ship all wrecked, a great look.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75)
+* The reuse of the phrase "Year of Hell" suggested other elements, such as having the two-parter span a year. Brannon Braga remembered, "''The notion of having a story that took place over the course of a year [&hellip;] I thought was a very fresh structural approach.''" The event also implied a reuse of the time-meddling Krenim. Joe Menosky commented, "''We tend to do one big time thing a year, we're thinking should it be time travel? Despite the fact that it wasn't time travel the Krenim used some kind of temporal thing in their torpedoes.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* Indeed, considering the Krenim's destructive temporal capabilities led the writers to explore time travel in an unusual way. Joe Menosky recollected, "''Brannon said, 'Time is a weapon. What does that mean?' I said, 'What if there was this big Death Star-like weapon, and you target a planet, and it blows it out of the time continuum? What you have done is erased a thread from the time continuum, everything resets, and suddenly the present is different.{{'}}''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Braga was ultimately of the opinion that Annorax's meddling with time was analogous to an example of {{w|alternate history}}. "''If you can imagine, to use an analogy, that the [[Nazi]]s, after losing the [[World War II|Second World War]], invented something like [Annorax's time ship] to erase the Americans from history so that they never existed. It would change the outcome of things,''" Braga speculated. "''But what the Nazis don't realize is that the Americans provided a crucial antibody that helped the [[German]]s fight off a deadly virus, and so they realize they've got to do something else to history. But that doesn't work either. When you pull one thread, another comes undone.''" ({{STM|34|15}}) By having the time continuum messed around in such a way but without departing from the present, the writers managed to come up with a method of doing a time travel story without actually doing time travel. "''That was enough for us to start running with this as an episode,''" Menosky recalled. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* Tuvok was originally to have been more badly wounded in this episode rather than losing only his eyesight. "''We were actually going to have him blind and missing a leg,''" Brannon Braga remembered, "''and we were going to do a {{wt|Forrest Gump}}-type of digital effect. He was going to have many physical problems, but for production reasons, we ended up with just blindness.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100)
+* This episode was originally to have been ''Star Trek: Voyager''{{'}}s [[VOY Season 3|third season]] finale. ({{STM|34|12}}; ''{{dis|Delta Quadrant|reference book}}'', p. 207)
 * The writing of this episode proved to be generally easier than what would follow: the development of most of the two-parter's conclusion. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
-===Cast and Characters===
+=== Cast and characters ===
-*Brannon Braga believed that the concept embodied in the character of Annorax &ndash; a villain who uses time as a weapon &ndash; was (in common with the idea of spanning the episode's duology over the course of a year) "a very fresh [...] approach." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* Brannon Braga believed that the concept embodied in the character of Annorax &ndash; a villain who uses time as a weapon &ndash; was (in common with the idea of spanning the episode's duology over the course of a year) "a very fresh [&hellip;] approach." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
-*Before portraying Annorax in this episode's two-parter, [[Kurtwood Smith]] previously played the [[Efrosian]] [[Federation President]] in {{film|6}} and [[Thrax]] in the ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' episode {{e|Things Past}}. He believed his DS9 role was somewhat responsible for his casting here. "''I guess the producers liked what I did on ''Deep Space Nine'',''" he said, "''and asked me to come back, which was fine with me.''" Ultimately, he enjoyed playing Annorax more than he had liked portraying his DS9 character. The actor stated, "''Because Thrax was actually in the imagination of another character [...] he wasn't quite as interesting to play as Annorax. He didn't have nearly as much to do.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #18)
+* Before portraying Annorax in this episode's two-parter, [[Kurtwood Smith]] previously played the [[Efrosian]] [[Efrosian president 001|Federation President]] in {{film|6}} and [[Thrax]] in the {{s|DS9}} episode {{e|Things Past}}. He believed his DS9 role was somewhat responsible for his casting here. "''I guess the producers liked what I did on ''Deep Space Nine'',''" he said, "''and asked me to come back, which was fine with me.''" Ultimately, he enjoyed playing Annorax more than he had liked portraying his DS9 character. The actor stated, "''Because Thrax was actually in the imagination of another character [&hellip;] he wasn't quite as interesting to play as Annorax. He didn't have nearly as much to do.''" ({{STV|18}})
-*Kurtwood Smith was not a regular viewer of the ''[[Star Trek]]'' spin-off series but found himself watching ''Voyager'' to prepare for his role in this episode and the next. Shortly after completing work on the "Year of Hell" two-parter, Smith admitted, "''Lately, I watched more of ''Voyager'' [than usual] because I was preparing to do my episodes and wanted to get a feel for what they do, how they do it, [and] what's expected of the guest actors.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #18)
+* Kurtwood Smith was not a regular viewer of the ''[[Star Trek]]'' spin-off series but found himself watching ''Voyager'' to prepare for his role in this episode and the next. Shortly after completing work on the "Year of Hell" two-parter, Smith admitted, "''Lately, I watched more of ''Voyager'' [than usual] because I was preparing to do my episodes and wanted to get a feel for what they do, how they do it, [and] what's expected of the guest actors.''" ({{STV|18}})
-*Both Joe Menosky and executive producer [[Jeri Taylor]] were extremely pleased with the performance that &ndash; for this episode and the next &ndash; Kurtwood Smith delivered, Menosky later describing Smith as "incredible." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Taylor appreciatively stated, "''We got a wonderful performance from Kurtwood Smith.''" (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 36]]'', p. 13)
+* Both Joe Menosky and executive producer [[Jeri Taylor]] were extremely pleased with the performance that &ndash; for this episode and the next &ndash; Kurtwood Smith delivered, Menosky later describing Smith as "incredible." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Taylor appreciatively stated, "''We got a wonderful performance from Kurtwood Smith.''" ({{STM|36|13}})
-*Brannon Braga observed that the cast of this episode seemed to be enjoying the process of working on the episode. He reckoned, "''The actors I think had a lot of fun with it.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
+* Brannon Braga observed that the cast of this episode seemed to be enjoying the process of working on the episode. He reckoned, "''The actors I think had a lot of fun with it.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
-*Tuvok actor [[Tim Russ]] found that performing a blind Tuvok was somewhat challenging, despite also being refreshingly different from how he usually played the character. The reason he found it difficult was that his instincts, which he could not &ndash; on this occasion &ndash; allow, were normally to look another performer in the eye when they were speaking to him and to look straight at a member of the production crew if they had called to him from off-camera. "''I had to reshoot it or do another take because I looked where I shouldn't have been looking, at the other actors,''" remembered Russ. He expected that his task of playing this role could have been aided, artificially. "''I would almost rather have played it with something covering my eyes, rather than to pretend, because it would have been even more real for me,''" the actor admitted. "''I think it would have changed the performance, if I could not see where I was going. I would have loved to have had that handicap somehow.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100)
+* Tuvok actor [[Tim Russ]] found that performing a blind Tuvok was somewhat challenging, despite also being refreshingly different from how he usually played the character. The reason he found it difficult was that his instincts, which he could not &ndash; on this occasion &ndash; allow, were normally to look another performer in the eye when they were speaking to him and to look straight at a member of the production crew if they had called to him from off-camera. "''I had to reshoot it or do another take because I looked where I shouldn't have been looking, at the other actors,''" remembered Russ. He expected that his task of playing this role could have been aided, artificially. "''I would almost rather have played it with something covering my eyes, rather than to pretend, because it would have been even more real for me,''" the actor admitted. "''I think it would have changed the performance, if I could not see where I was going. I would have loved to have had that handicap somehow.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 100)   Russ had very nearly played another blind character on ''Star Trek'' a decade earlier, having auditioned for the role of [[Geordi La Forge]] on {{s|TNG}}.
-*Tim Russ also believed that this episode's two-parter contains an insightful exploration of the relationship between Tuvok and Seven of Nine. "''You see how this bond could have occurred,''" he noted. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 101)
+* Tim Russ also believed that this episode's two-parter contains an insightful exploration of the relationship between Tuvok and Seven of Nine. "''You see how this bond could have occurred,''" he noted. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 101)
-*Actor [[Robert Picardo]] was impressed by the visuals in this episode's two-parter. He enthused, "''The 'Year in Hell' [''sic''] two-parter was really like a movie. The opticals were just as exciting as those you see on the big screen.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #18)
+* Actor [[Robert Picardo]] was impressed by the visuals in this episode's two-parter. He enthused, "''The 'Year in Hell' [''sic''] two-parter was really like a movie. The opticals were just as exciting as those you see on the big screen.''" ({{STV|18}})
-===Production and Effects===
+=== Production and effects ===
+[[File:Bob Shuttleworth, krenim.jpg|thumb|Background actor [[Bob Shuttleworth]] behind the scenes as a [[Krenim officer 003|Krenim officer]]]]
-*Kurtwood Smith found the production schedule of this episode to be somewhat overwhelming. "''Because of the way the schedule worked,''" he recalled, "''all of my scenes in the first part [of the two-parter] were compressed into ''one'' day. That was a little intense. We also shot the biggest, heaviest scenes at the day's end, so it was hard to have much energy by the time we got to them. Otherwise, it was great. The crew is wonderful.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #18)
+* Kurtwood Smith found the production schedule of this episode to be somewhat overwhelming. "''Because of the way the schedule worked,''" he recalled, "''all of my scenes in the first part [of the two-parter] were compressed into ''one'' day. That was a little intense. We also shot the biggest, heaviest scenes at the day's end, so it was hard to have much energy by the time we got to them. Otherwise, it was great. The crew is wonderful.''" ({{STV|18}})
-*The stuck [[turbolift]] footage in this episode was re-used from {{TNG|Disaster}}.
+* While the second scene in this episode was being shot, the principal cast members required for the filming became hysterically amused. "''Everyone was there [on the set of ''Voyager''{{'}}s astrometrics lab] late and we were all a bit punchy,''" related Seven of Nine actress [[Jeri Ryan]]. "''All I can remember is, oh, [[God]], [[Robert Beltran]], Tim Russ and [[Ethan Phillips]] hopping around the set doing their impressions of {{w|Michael Flatley}}, the {{wt|Lord of the Dance (musical)|Lord of the Dance}} guy. They were totally out of control. I was laughing so hard that I had tears running down my face.''" (''[[TV Zone]]'', Special #29, p. 20)
-*One of the shots from the scene where Seven of Nine and [[Tuvok]] try to crawl away from the unstable chronoton torpedo on Deck 12 has been sped up, to make it seem like Seven and Tuvok are crawling faster.
+* One of the shots from the scene where Seven of Nine and [[Tuvok]] try to crawl away from the unstable chroniton torpedo on deck 11 has been sped up, to make it seem like Seven and Tuvok are crawling faster.
-*Joe Menosky was delighted with [[Allan Kroeker]]'s work on this episode and said of both parts of the "Year of the Hell" two-parter (despite each of the two episodes having been helmed by a different director) that they "were amazingly well directed." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Similarly, Brannon Braga enthused about this episode, "''The production team really, really pulled it off.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108 & 109)
-*Joe Menosky was also thrilled by the chronological subtitles that are used in this episode and the next, which he once referred to as "great." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* Joe Menosky was delighted with [[Allan Kroeker]]'s work on this episode and said of both parts of the "Year of the Hell" two-parter (despite each of the two episodes having been helmed by a different director) that they "were amazingly well directed." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Similarly, Brannon Braga enthused about this episode, "''The production team really, really pulled it off.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108 & 109)
+* Joe Menosky was also thrilled by the chronological subtitles that are used in this episode and the next, which he once referred to as "great." (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
-*The [[CGI]] effects of this episode's two-parter were provided by CGI supplier [[Foundation Imaging]] during an extremely busy period for the company; Foundation was also working on effects for {{DS9|Sacrifice of Angels}} and several other projects. CGI Effects Director [[Ron Thornton]] remarked, "''We were absolutely hammering it out.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #16) Visual effects supervisor [[Ronald B. Moore]] and coordinator [[Elizabeth Castro]] were also instrumental in the creation of effects for this episode (as opposed to supervisor [[Mitch Suskin]] and coordinator [[Arthur Codron]], who worked on the second half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) The look of this episode was added to in the compositing bay, by animation effects artist [[Greg Rainoff]] (who did likewise for the concluding half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108-109)
+* The [[CGI]] effects of this episode's two-parter were provided by CGI supplier [[Foundation Imaging]] during an extremely busy period for the company; Foundation was also working on effects for {{DS9|Sacrifice of Angels}} and several other projects. CGI Effects Director [[Ron Thornton]] remarked, "''We were absolutely hammering it out.''" ({{STV|16}}) Visual effects supervisor [[Ronald B. Moore]] and coordinator [[Elizabeth Castro]] were also instrumental in the creation of effects for this episode (as opposed to supervisor [[Mitch Suskin]] and coordinator [[Arthur Codron]], who worked on the second half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) The look of this episode was added to in the compositing bay, by animation effects artist [[Greg Rainoff]] (who did likewise for the concluding half of the "Year of Hell" two-parter). (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, pp. 108-109)
-*Creating the look of ''Voyager'' as it becomes more and more badly damaged, in this episode and the next, was a process that involved many steps. Ron Moore explained, "''We got a lot of drawings from [senior illustrator] [[Rick Sternbach]] of different ways we could damage the ''Voyager''. Then we made our plans all the way through the script.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Ron Thornton commented, "''[[Koji Kuramura|Fred Kuramura]] worked for several weeks building the different versions of ''Voyager'' that go through [various stages of destruction]. There were about four different stages of ''Voyager'', in varying levels of disrepair. That took quite a lot of time, but it's one of those things that you never really see.''" (''[[The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine]]'', issue #16)
+* Creating the look of ''Voyager'' as it becomes more and more badly damaged, in this episode and the next, was a process that involved many steps. Ron Moore explained, "''We got a lot of drawings from [senior illustrator] [[Rick Sternbach]] of different ways we could damage the ''Voyager''. Then we made our plans all the way through the script.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108) Ron Thornton commented, "''[[Koji Kuramura|Fred Kuramura]] worked for several weeks building the different versions of ''Voyager'' that go through [various stages of destruction]. There were about four different stages of ''Voyager'', in varying levels of disrepair. That took quite a lot of time, but it's one of those things that you never really see.''" ({{STV|16}})
-*The elements of this episode that Ron Moore and Elizabeth Castro established included the look of the Krenim weapon ship, the temporal change wave and ''Voyager''{{'}}s astrometrics lab. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* The elements of this episode that Ron Moore and [[Elizabeth Castro]] established included the look of the Krenim weapon ship, the temporal change wave and ''Voyager''{{'}}s astrometrics lab. (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 108)
+* On the third day of production, Monday {{d|11|August|1997}}, an additional scene for the episode {{e|Revulsion}} was filmed. According to the call sheet, [[Paramount Stage 8]] housed the set for this scene, [[Chakotay]]'s [[office]], and [[Robert Beltran]] and [[Garrett Wang]] were filmed.
-===Continuity===
+=== Costumes and props ===
+* The wall decoration in [[Annorax]]'s [[ready room]] was previously seen as wall decoration in [[Proconsul]] [[Neral]]'s [[office]] in the {{s|TNG}} [[TNG Season 5|fifth season]] episodes {{e|Unification I}} and {{e|Unification II}}, in the [[barbershop]] aboard the {{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701-D|-D}} in the [[TNG Season 6|sixth season]] episode {{e|Schisms}}, in the reception area at [[Arkaria Base]] in the episode {{e|Starship Mine}}, in the [[observation lounge]] in the [[TNG Season 7|seventh season]] episode {{e|Parallels}}, and in [[Minister]] [[Kray]]'s office in the [[VOY Season 1|first season]] episode {{e|Ex Post Facto}}.
-*The events of this episode take place between [[March (month)|March 16th]] and [[May|May 28th]], [[2374]]; Day 65 = [[May|May 20]], and the episode ends on day 73.
+* Also present in Annorax's ready room are two [[bird]] [[statue]]s which were turned around. These statues were previously seen in [[Marla Aster]]'s home in the TNG [[TNG Season 3|third season]] episode {{e|The Bonding}}, in the reception area at [[Arkaria Base]] in the sixth season episode {{e|Starship Mine}}, and in the conference room of the [[Maquis]] in the seventh season episode {{e|Preemptive Strike}}. They can also be seen in several scenes in {{e|Year of Hell, Part II}}.
-*Although "Before and After"'s depiction of the "Year of Hell" is seen from the viewpoint of [[Kes]] &ndash; as she travels through time &ndash; her timeline in that episode is not related to any timeline seen in this episode, as Kes is obviously no longer aboard the ship at this point (having left in the earlier fourth season installment {{e|The Gift}}). Despite the differences between the timeline featured in "Before and After" and the one shown in this episode, Brannon Braga believed that fans would nonetheless understand that this episode shows an event first depicted in "Before and After". "''The fans will recognize that that's what this is,''" Braga predicted. When asked whether Kes' absence from this episode's two-parter was problematic, Braga replied, "''Not at all, because the episode also deals with [Annorax's extremely powerful influence on time].''" (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 34]]'', p. 15)
+* Several costumes from this episode were sold off on the [[It's A Wrap! sale and auction]] on eBay, including [[John Austin]]'s costume which was later re-used by [[Eric Hunter]] in the episode {{e|Tsunkatse}} and the costumes of [[John Thaddeus]], [[Adrian Tafoya]], [[Bob Shuttleworth]], [[Peter Slutsker]], [[Kurtwood Smith]], and [[John Loprieno]] as well as [[Keith Rayve]]'s distressed Starfleet uniform. {{stala|9310}} {{stala|2021}} {{stala|5509}} {{stala|1612}} {{stala|4788}} {{stala|5630}} {{stala|4643}} {{stala|9421}}
-*At the end of "Before and After", Janeway asks Kes to reveal any information on the Krenim that Kes learned during her time jumps and Kes agrees to file a report. Even though the dialog from "Year of Hell" doesn't directly reflect on any of the knowledge Kes shared, Tuvok picks up on the Krenim torpedo being in temporal flux as soon as the first torpedo hits, thus proving that Kes' report was indeed put to good use even though it wasn't officially acknowledged. However, it is unclear why the report that Kes was supposed to file wouldn't have included the precise chronoton frequency which would have enabled ''Voyager'' to implement their own time-flux shielding. This information was needed to fix Kes' condition in "Before and After". In this timeline, however, the frequency of the torpedo is still 1.47 microseconds, as it was in the earlier episode, with Seven of Nine crawling through the Jefferies tube rather than Kes.
-*In one scene, Seven of Nine tells Harry Kim and B'Elanna Torres that the [[Borg]] were present when [[Zefram Cochrane]] launched his first [[warp]]-driven starship. She claims it is "complicated" when they ask her to elaborate. This is an acknowledgment of the events of {{film|8}}, in which the Borg travel through time to assimilate [[Human]]s and remove their resistance, similar to what the Krenim did to the [[Zahl]]. This reference to ''First Contact'' is also somewhat of an inside joke, as Brannon Braga co-wrote both this episode and that film. Having initially intended to insert an in-joke reference to ''First Contact'' in {{e|Scorpion, Part II}} (yet another ''Star Trek'' production that Brannon Braga co-wrote), Braga thereafter wrote the similar reference into this episode, doing so in a way that he later described as "a lighter fashion." Braga also said of the in-joke in this episode, "''It's not a plot nod [....] It's just a little nod to the fans, who'll get a kick out of it.''" (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 34]]'', p. 15)
-*This episode establishes that Kathryn Janeway's birthday is May 20th.
-*The astrometrics lab is unveiled for the first time in this episode, along with Captain Janeway's new shorter hairstyle, which she maintains for the remaining duration of the show.
+<gallery>
-===Reception and Aftermath===
+File:Krenim viewer.jpg|The wall decoration...
-*This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 4.7 million homes, and a 7% share. [http://voyagerview.com/review2.html]
+File:Annorax's ready room.jpg|...and the turned around bird statue
-*Midway through the fourth season of ''Star Trek: Voyager'', Brannon Braga was particularly excited about this episode's two-parter and promised, "''It will be fun.''" (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 34]]'', p. 12) He later stated, "''I was very pleased with 'Year of Hell'. It was very tight [....] It was one of those rare episodes, and even rarer two-parters, where all of the elements came together.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
+</gallery>
-*''[[Cinefantastique]]'' rated this episode 3 and a half out of 4 stars. (''Cinefantastique'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 88)
-*''[[Star Trek Magazine|Star Trek Monthly]]'' scored this episode 5 out of 5 stars. (''[[Star Trek Monthly issue 39]]'', p. 62)
-*The unauthorized [[reference works|reference book]] ''[[Delta Quadrant (reference book)|Delta Quadrant]]'' (p. 209) gives the installment a rating of 9 out of 10.
-*The book ''[[Star Trek 101]]'', by [[Terry J. Erdmann]] and [[Paula M. Block]], lists this episode and the concluding part of its two-parter as being, together, one of the "Ten Essential Episodes" from ''Star Trek: Voyager''.
-*Several costumes from this episode were sold off on the [[It's A Wrap! sale and auction|''It's A Wrap!'' sale and auction]] on eBay, including [[John Austin]]'s costume which was later re-used by [[Erick Hunter]] in the episode {{e|Tsunkatse}} {{stala|9310}} and [[Keith Rayve]]'s distressed Starfleet uniform. {{stala|9421}}
-===Video and DVD releases===
+=== Continuity ===
+* Day 65 is stated to occur on May 20th (Janeway's birthday). Using this, it is possible to date all the events of this episode; Day 1 occurs on {{dis|March|month|March 16th}} while Day 73 (the final day depicted in this episode) occurs on [[May|May 28th]], [[2374]]. This makes this episode and the next the only instalments of ''Star Trek'' in which every scene can be precisely dated on the Gregorian calendar.
-*UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, [[CIC Video]]): Volume 4.4, catalog number VHR 4625, {{d|4|May|1998}}
+* The stuck [[turbolift]] in the [[turboshaft]] footage in this episode was re-used from the {{s|TNG}} [[TNG Season 5|fifth season]] episode {{e|Disaster}}.
-*In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection ''[[Star Trek: Voyager - Movies]]'': Volume 2 (with "Scorpion"), catalogue number VHR 5072, {{d|18|September|2000}}
+* In the scene where Kim and Torres play a trivia game (category: Interstellar History), there is a question concerning [[Zefram Cochrane]] who launched his first [[warp]]-driven starship and resulted to [[First Contact]] with the [[Vulcan]]s; however Torres takes some time to recall the name of the ship (''[[Phoenix]]''). The dialogue is a clear acknowledgment to the events of {{film|8}}.
-*As part of the [[VOY Season 4 DVD]] collection
+* In a later scene, Seven of Nine tells Harry Kim and B'Elanna Torres that the [[Borg]] were present during that event. She claims it is "complicated" when they ask her to elaborate, as the Borg traveled through time to assimilate [[Human]]s and remove their resistance, similar to what the Krenim did to the [[Zahl]]. This reference to ''First Contact'' is also somewhat of an [[in-joke]], as Brannon Braga co-wrote both this episode and that film. Having initially intended to insert an in-joke reference to ''First Contact'' in {{e|Scorpion, Part II}} (yet another ''Star Trek'' production that Brannon Braga co-wrote), Braga thereafter wrote the similar reference into this episode, doing so in a way that he later described as "a lighter fashion." Braga also said of the in-joke in this episode, "''It's not a plot nod [...] It's just a little nod to the fans, who'll get a kick out of it.''" ({{STM|34|15}})
-*As part of the ''[[Star Trek: Fan Collective - Time Travel]]'' collection
+* This episode establishes that Kathryn Janeway's birthday is May 20th.
+* This episode also establishes that ''Voyager'' is 65,000 light years away from home.
+* [[Astrometrics]] is unveiled for the first time in this episode, along with Captain Janeway's new shorter hairstyle worn loose, which she maintains for the remaining duration of the show.
+* The Doctor states that he was first activated on stardate 48315. This is consistent with the events of the pilot episode {{e|Caretaker}}, in which Captain Janeway makes a log entry for stardate 48315, on the same day that The Doctor is activated.
+====The episode "Before and After"====
+* Some of the events of this episode are consistent with the season 3 episode {{e|Before and After}}, in which [[Kes]] experiences a future ''Voyager'', including its time in the "Year of Hell". Although the future shown in "Before and After" are a part of an alternate future that does not come to pass, some major events do nonetheless still occur. These include the Year of Hell itself, with the encounter with the Krenim, and the destruction of Sickbay. Notable events that do not occur as depicted in "Before and After" are the absence of Kes, presence of Seven of Nine, The Doctor becoming inoperable for a number of months, the death of Captain Janeway, and the kidnapping of Paris and Chakotay.
+* Although "Before and After"'s depiction of the "Year of Hell" is seen from the viewpoint of [[Kes]] &ndash; as she travels through time &ndash; her timeline in that episode is not related to any timeline seen in this episode, as Kes is obviously no longer aboard the ship at this point (having left in the earlier fourth season installment {{e|The Gift}}). Despite the differences between the timeline featured in "Before and After" and the one shown in this episode, Brannon Braga believed that fans would nonetheless understand that this episode shows an event first depicted in "Before and After". "''The fans will recognize that that's what this is,''" Braga predicted. When asked whether Kes' absence from this episode's two-parter was problematic, Braga replied, "''Not at all, because the episode also deals with [Annorax's extremely powerful influence on time].''" ({{STM|34|15}})
+* At the end of "Before and After", Janeway asks Kes to reveal any information on the Krenim that Kes learned during her time jumps and Kes agrees to file a report. Even though the dialogue from "Year of Hell" doesn't directly reflect on any of the knowledge Kes shared, Tuvok picks up on the Krenim torpedo being in temporal flux as soon as the first torpedo hits, thus proving that Kes' report was indeed put to good use even though it wasn't officially acknowledged. However, it is unclear why the report that Kes was supposed to file wouldn't have included the precise chroniton frequency which would have enabled ''Voyager'' to implement their own time-flux shielding. This information was needed to fix Kes' condition in "Before and After". In this timeline, however, the frequency of the torpedo is still 1.47 microseconds, as it was in the earlier episode, with Seven of Nine crawling through the Jefferies tube rather than Kes.
+[[File:Stuck turbolift.jpg|thumb|The stuck turbolift]]
-==Links and references==
+=== Reception and aftermath ===
+* This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 4.7 million homes, and a 7% share. {{bl|voyagerview.com/review2.html}}
-===Starring===
+* Midway through the fourth season of ''Star Trek: Voyager'', Brannon Braga was particularly excited about this episode's two-parter and promised, "''It will be fun.''" ({{STM|34|12}}) He later stated, "''I was very pleased with 'Year of Hell'. It was very tight [....] It was one of those rare episodes, and even rarer two-parters, where all of the elements came together.''" (''[[Cinefantastique]]'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 109)
-*[[Kate Mulgrew]] as [[Captain]] [[Kathryn Janeway]]
+* This episode's two-parter proved unforgettable for ''Star Trek'' author [[Kirsten Beyer]]. Having started pitching stories to the producers by the time this installment was broadcast, she had heard about the idea of this episode from one of the producers. "''One of them had been telling me about this concept they were working on…this 'Year of Hell' that would strip the ship down to its bare bones,''" Beyer reflected. "''I was all for it. I was expecting it to last an entire season, which was one of the early discussions.''" Beyer was pleased with the first part of the duology, which she defined as "fabulous." {{trekcore|blog/2014/03/kirsten-beyer-interview-protectors}}
+* ''[[Cinefantastique]]'' rated this episode 3 and a half out of 4 stars. (''Cinefantastique'', Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 88)
+* {{STM}} scored this episode 5 out of 5 stars. ({{STM|39|62}})
+* The unauthorized [[reference works|reference book]] ''{{dis|Delta Quadrant|reference book}}'' (p. 209) gives the installment a rating of 9 out of 10.
+* The book ''[[Star Trek 101]]'' (p. 175), by [[Terry J. Erdmann]] and [[Paula M. Block]], lists this episode and the concluding part of its two-parter as being, together, one of the "Ten Essential Episodes" from ''Star Trek: Voyager''.
-===Also starring===
+=== Video and DVD releases ===
+* UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, [[CIC Video]]): Volume 4.4, catalog number VHR 4625, {{d|4|May|1998}}
-*[[Robert Beltran]] as [[Commander]] [[Chakotay]]
+* In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection ''[[Star Trek: Voyager - Movies]]'': Volume 2 (with "Scorpion"), catalogue number VHR 5072, {{d|18|September|2000}}
-*[[Roxann Dawson]] as [[Lieutenant]] [[B'Elanna Torres]]
+* As part of the [[VOY Season 4 DVD]] collection
-*[[Robert Duncan McNeill]] as [[Lieutenant]] [[Tom Paris]]
+* As part of the ''[[Star Trek: Fan Collective - Time Travel]]'' collection
-*[[Ethan Phillips]] as [[Neelix]]
-*[[Robert Picardo]] as [[The Doctor]]
-*[[Tim Russ]] as [[Lieutenant Commander]] [[Tuvok]]
-*[[Jeri Ryan]] as [[Seven of Nine]]
-*[[Garrett Wang]] as [[Ensign]] [[Harry Kim]]
+== Links and references ==
-===Guest stars===
+=== Starring ===
+* [[Kate Mulgrew]] as {{Captain}} [[Kathryn Janeway]]
+=== Also starring ===
+* [[Robert Beltran]] as [[Chakotay]]
+* [[Roxann Dawson]] as [[B'Elanna Torres]]
+* [[Robert Duncan McNeill]] as [[Tom Paris]]
+* [[Ethan Phillips]] as [[Neelix]]
+* [[Robert Picardo]] as [[The Doctor]]
+* [[Tim Russ]] as [[Tuvok]]
+* [[Jeri Ryan]] as [[Seven of Nine]]
+* [[Garrett Wang]] as [[Harry Kim]]
+=== Guest star ===
 * [[John Loprieno]] as [[Obrist]]
-===Special guest star===
+=== Special guest star ===
 * [[Kurtwood Smith]] as [[Annorax]]
-===Co-stars===
+=== Co-stars ===
-* [[Peter Slutsker]] as the [[Unnamed Krenim#Krenim Commandant|Krenim Commandant]]
+* [[Peter Slutsker]] as [[Krenim commandant|Krenim Commandant]]
-* [[Rick Fitts]] as a [[Unnamed Zahl#Zahl Ambassador|Zahl official]]
+* [[Rick Fitts]] as [[Zahl official 001|Zahl]]
-* [[Deborah Levin]] as [[Lang (Ensign)|Lang]]
+* [[Deborah Levin]] as [[Ensign]] {{dis|Lang|Ensign}}
-* [[Sue Henley]] as [[Brooks (Ensign)|Brooks]]
+* [[Sue Henley]] as [[Ensign]] {{dis|Brooks|Ensign}}
-* [[Majel Barrett]] as the [[computer voice]]
+* [[Majel Barrett]] as [[Computer Voice]]
-===Uncredited co-stars===
+=== Uncredited co-stars ===
-*[[David Keith Anderson]] as [[Ashmore]]
+* [[John Austin]] as [[Krenim officer 004|Krenim officer]]
-*[[John Austin]] as a [[Unnamed Krenim|Krenim officer]]
+* [[Cameron]] as [[USS Voyager cmd officer 013|command division officer]]
-* [[John Copage]] as a [[Unnamed USS Voyager personnel#Elderly Human science officer|science division officer]]
+* [[Steve Carnahan]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 013|operations division officer]]
+* [[Cullen Chambers]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 023|operations division officer]]
-*[[Tarik Ergin]] as [[Ayala]]
-*[[Bob Shuttleworth]] as a [[Unnamed Krenim#Krenim officer #3|Krenim officer]]
+* [[John Copage]] as [[USS Voyager sciences officer 002|science division officer]]
+* [[Damaris Cordelia]] as {{dis|Foster|Crewman}}
-*[[Adrian Tafoya]] as a [[Unnamed Krenim#Krenim officer #2|Krenim officer]]
-*[[John Thaddeus]] as a [[Unnamed Krenim#Krenim officer #1|Krenim officer]]
+* [[Carrie Dolin]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 035|operations division officer]]
+* [[Patrick Emery]] as [[USS Voyager cmd officer 005|command division officer]]
+* [[Tarik Ergin]] as [[Ayala]]
+* [[Kevin Finister]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 015|operations division officer]]
+* [[Holiday Freeman]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 014|operations division officer]]
+* [[Caroline Gibson]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 024|operations division officer]]
+* [[J. Hernandez]] as [[USS Voyager sciences officer 005|science division officer]]
+* [[Kerry Hoyt]] as {{dis|Fitzpatrick|Crewman}}
+* [[Alicia Lewis]] as [[USS Voyager sciences bridge officer 002|sciences officer]]
+* [[Susan Lewis]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 006|operations division officer]]
+* [[Rad Milo]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 026|operations division officer]]
+* [[Heather Rattray]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 030|operations division officer]]
+* [[Keith Rayve]] as [[USS Voyager cmd officer 007|command division officer]]
+* [[Jennifer Riley]] as [[USS Voyager sciences ensign 002|science division officer]]
+* [[Joey Sakata]] as [[USS Voyager dual officer 002|science division officer]]
+* [[Richard Sarstedt]] as [[William McKenzie]]
+* [[Lydia Shiferaw]] as [[USS Voyager cmd officer 002|command division officer]]
+* [[Bob Shuttleworth]] as [[Krenim officer 003|Krenim officer]]
+* [[Pablo Soriano]] as [[USS Voyager ops ensign 004|operations division ensign]]
+* [[Noriko Suzuki]] as [[USS Voyager ops officer 021|operations division officer]]
+* [[Adrian Tafoya]] as [[Krenim officer 002|Krenim officer]]
+* [[John Tampoya]] as [[Kashimuro Nozawa]]
+* [[John Thaddeus]] as [[Krenim officer 001|Krenim officer]]
+* [[Unknown performers]] as
+** [[USS Voyager bridge officer 003|Bridge officer (voice)]]
+** [[Emmanuel]]
+** {{dis|Strickler|Ensign}}
-===References===
+=== Stand-ins ===
+* [[Cameron]] &ndash; [[stand-in]] for [[Jeri Ryan]]
-[[2342]]; [[47]]; [[Alpha Quadrant]]; [[antibody]]; [[astrometrics]]; [[Borg]]; [[chroniton]]; [[chroniton torpedo]]; [[Class M]]; [[Zefram Cochrane|Cochrane, Zefram]]; [[Cray]]; [[crew quarters]]; [[Delta Quadrant]]; [[Earth]]; [[emergency hand actuator]]; [[emergency ration]]s; [[Emmanuel]]; [[escape pod]]; [[Federation]]; [[First Contact]]; [[force field]]; [[Clark Gable|Gable, Clark]]; [[Garenor]]; [[Garenor homeworld]]; [[Cary Grant|Grant, Cary]]; [[Grid 005]]; [[hull breach]]; [[inaprovaline]]; {{ShipClass|Intrepid}}; [[intruder alert]]; [[Jefferies tube]]; [[Grace Kelly|Kelly, Grace]]; [[Klingon]]; [[Krenim]]; [[Krenim Imperium]]; [[Krenim patrol ship]]; [[Krenim weapon ship]]; [[Krenim warship]]; [[Kyana Prime]]; [[Maquis]]; [[mess hall]]; [[Milky Way Galaxy]]; [[Neelix]]; [[parrises squares]];  [[parsec]]; ''[[Phoenix]]''; [[M'Kota R'Cho|R'Cho, M'Kota]]; [[red alert]]; [[Rilnar]]; [[sickbay]]; [[spacetime continuum]]; [[Starfleet Academy]]; [[Strickler (Ensign)|Strickler]]; [[structural integrity field]]; [[tactile interface]]; [[Talaxian]]; [[temporal disruption]]; [[temporal energy]]; [[temporal incursion]]; [[temporal shield]]; [[temporal science]]; [[RMS Titanic|''Titanic'', RMS]]; ''[[To Catch a Thief]]''; [[transverse bulkhead]]s; [[tricorder]]; [[turbolift]]; [[Vulcan]]s; "[[Year of Hell]]"; [[yellow alert]]; [[Zahl]]; [[Zahl starship]]; [[Zahl homeworld]]
+* [[Sylvester Foster]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Rick Fitts]]
+* [[Mike Fujimoto]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Garrett Wang]]
+* [[Sue Henley]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Kate Mulgrew]]
+* [[Susan Lewis]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Roxann Dawson]] and Kate Mulgrew
+* [[Lemuel Perry]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Tim Russ]]
+* [[J.R. Quinonez]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Robert Picardo]] and [[Kurtwood Smith]]
+* [[Keith Rayve]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Robert Duncan McNeill]], [[John Loprieno]], and [[Peter Slutsker]]
+* [[Jennifer Riley]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Deborah Levin]]
+* [[Richard Sarstedt]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Robert Beltran]]
+* [[Simon Stotler]] &ndash; stand-in for [[Ethan Phillips]]
+* [[John Tampoya]] &ndash; stand-in for Garrett Wang
+* [[Unknown performers]] as
+** [[Hand double]] for Robert Beltran
+** Hand double for John Loprieno
+=== References ===
-{{VOY nav|season=4|last={{e|Scientific Method}}|next={{e|Year of Hell, Part II}}}}
+[[20th century]]; [[2342]]; [[47]]; [[ability]]; [[adage]]; [[aft]]; "[[Military parlance#All hands|all hands]]"; [[Alpha Quadrant]]; [[annexation]]; [[antibody]]; [[astrometric database]]; [[Astrometrics]]; [[athlete]]; [[athletics]]; {{dis|bark|sound}}; [[battle stations]]; [[birthday]]; [[bite]]; [[blindness]]; [[blood]]; [[boot]]; [[Borg]]; {{dis|bow|ship}}; "[[Military parlance#Brace for impact|brace for impact]]"; [[British Navy]]; [[cargo container]]; [[cat burglar]]; [[category]]; [[Cat's Eye Nebula]]; [[causality paradox]]; [[Championship Finals]]; [[chroniton]]; [[chroniton torpedo]]; [[chronometer]]; [[class M]]; {{revname|Zefram|Cochrane}}; [[Cray]]; [[Cray's crew 001|Cray's crew]]; [[Cray's ship]]; [[crew quarters]]; [[cup]]; [[damage]]; [[damage report]]; [[deck]]; [[Deflector Control]]; [[Delta Quadrant]]; [[Eagle Nebula]]; [[Earth]]; [[emergency hand actuator]]; [[emergency power]]; [[emergency ration]]; [[entertainment]]; [[environmental control]]; [[EPS manifold]]; [[execution]]; [[generation]]; [[Intrepid type escape pod|escape pod]]; [[evasive maneuvers]]; [[Federation]]; [[First Contact]]; [[fixation]]; [[force field]]; {{revname|Clark|Gable}}; [[general court martial]]; [[Garenor]]; [[Garenor homeworld]]; [[gift]]; [[globe]]; {{revname|Cary|Grant}}; [[Grid 005]]; [[harbor]]; [[hatch]]; [[honeycomb]]; [[hull breach]]; [[inanimate object]]; [[inaprovaline]]; [[initials]]; [[internal bleeding]]; {{class|Intrepid}}; [[intruder alert]]; [[Jefferies tube]]; {{revname|Grace|Kelly}}; [[Klingon]]; [[Krenim]]; [[Krenim Imperium]]; [[Krenim patrol ship]]; [[Krenim space]]; [[Krenim weapon ship]]; [[Krenim warship]]; [[Kyana Prime]]; [[laceration]]; [[lung]]; [[man-made object]]; [[Maquis]]; [[mariner]]; [[mess hall]]; [[meter]]; [[Milky Way Galaxy]]; [[military forces]]; [[mirror]]; [[Mister Vulcan]]; [[Montana]]; [[offline]]; [[organism]]; [[parrises squares]]; [[parsec]]; [[phenomenon]]; ''[[Phoenix]]''; [[plank]]; [[pocket watch]]; [[port]]; [[power grid]]; [[pre-warp civilization]]/[[pre-warp state]]; [[purée]]; [[RADAR]]; {{dis|razor|tool}}; {{revname|M'Kota|R'Cho}}; [[red alert]]; [[referee]]; [[replicator]]; [[resistance quotient]]; [[Rilnar]]; [[Riviera]]; [[sail]]; [[Saturn]]; [[security team]]; [[sensor]]; [[shaving]]; [[sickbay]]; [[sink]]; [[spacetime continuum]]; [[square meter]]; [[star]]; [[Starfleet Academy]]; [[steamship]]; [[structural integrity]]; [[structural integrity field]]; [[subspace]]; [[subspace beacon]]; [[surrender]]; [[tactile interface]]; [[Talaxian]]; [[temporal disruption]]; [[temporal energy]]; [[temporal incursion]]; [[temporal shield]]; [[temporal science]]; [[tissue]]; {{RMSr|Titanic}}; ''[[To Catch a Thief]]''; [[towel]]; [[trace element]]; [[transverse bulkhead]]; [[triage]]; [[tricorder]]; [[turbolift]]; [[turbolift system]]; [[Veil Nebula]]; [[vertebra]]; [[vessel]]; [[Vulcan]]; "[[Year of Hell]]"; [[yellow alert]]; [[Zahl]]; [[Zahl city 001|Zahl colony]]; [[Zahl starship]]; [[Zahl homeworld]]
+=== External links ===
+* {{Startrek.com|year-of-hell-part-i|"Year of Hell"}}
+* {{mbeta-quote|Year of Hell}}
+* {{wikipedia-quote|Year of Hell}}
+* {{IMDb-ep|tt0709014}}
+{{VOY nav|season=4|last={{e|Scientific Method}}|next={{e|Year of Hell, Part II}}}}
 [[de:Ein Jahr Hölle, Teil I]]
 [[es:Year of Hell, Part I]]
-[[fr:Year of Hell, Part I]]
+[[fr:Year of Hell, Part I (épisode)]]
 [[ja:VOY:時空侵略戦争・前編]]
 [[nl:Year of Hell, Deel I]]