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The Delta Flyers is a weekly Star Trek: Voyager rewatch and recap podcast hosted by Garrett Wang and Robert Duncan McNeill. Each week Garrett and Robert will rewatch an episode of Voyager starting at the very beginning. This week’s episode is The Gift. Garrett and Robbie recap and discuss the episode, and share their insight as series regulars.

The Gift:
Kes bestows an amazing gift on the crew before transforming into a higher form of life; the Doctor removes Seven of Nine's Borg technology.

We want to thank everyone who makes this podcast possible, starting with our Executive producers Megan Elise and Rebecca McNeill, and our Post Producer Jessey Miller.

And a special thanks to our Ambassadors, the guests who keep coming back, giving their time and energy into making this podcast better and better with their thoughts, input, and inside knowledge: Lisa Klink, Martha Hackett, Robert Picardo, Ethan Phillips, Robert Beltran, and Tim Russ.

Additionally we could not make this podcast available without our Co- Executive Producers: Stephanie Baker, Philipp Havrilla, Kelton Rochelle, Liz Scott, Sab Ewell, Sarah A Gubbins, Jason M Okun, Luz R., Marie Burgoyne, Chris Knapp, Michelle Zamanian, Utopia Science Fiction Magazine, Courtney Lucas, Matthew Gravens, Elaine Ferguson, Brian Barrow, Captain Jeremiah Brown, Rich Gross, Mary Jac Greer, John Espinosa, James Zugg, Deike Hoffmann, Mike Gu, Anna Post, Shannyn Bourke, Vikki Williams, Lee Lisle, Mary Beth Lowe, William McEvoy, Sarah Thompson, Holly Smith, KMB, Dominic Burgess, Amber Eason, Lucas Shuck, Mary Burch, Nicholaus Russell, Darryl Cheng, Alex Mednis, Elizabeth Stanton, Kayla Knilans, Tim Beach, Ariana, Meg Johnson, Marcus Vanderzonbrouwer, Nathan Walker, Shambhavi Kadam, and Christopher Arzeberger

And our Producers:
Jim Guckin, Steph Dawe Holland, James Amey, Katherine Hedrick, Eleanor Lamb, Richard Banaski, Eve England, Ann Harding, Laura Swanson, Ann Marie Segal, Charity Ponton, Chloe E, Kathleen Baxter, Craig Sweaton, Nathanial Moon, Warren Stine, Mike Schaible, Kelley Smelser, AJ Provance, Captain Nancy Stout, Claire Deans, Matthew Cutler, Crystal Komenda, Maxine Soloway, Joshua L Phillips, Barbara Beck, Mary O'Neal, Aithne Loeblich, Heidi Mclellan, Dat Cao, Cody Crockett, Stephen Riegner, Debra Defelice, James Cottrell, Jenna Appleton, Cindy Ring, Andrei Dunca, Daniel Owen, Jason Wang, Gabriel Dominic Girgis, Amber Nighbor, Liz Lowe, Jamason Isenburg, Mark G Hamilton, Rob Johnson, Kevin Selman, Michael Bucklin, Lisa Klink, Justin Weir, Normandy Madden, Joseph Michael Kuhlmann, Mike Chow, Kevin Hooker, Michelle Maroney, Victor Ling, Scott J. Mark, John Mann, Michael "Klink" Klinckhardt, Megan Chowning, Rachel Shapiro, Eric Kau, Joseph Lanning, and Melissa A. Nathan

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Comments

Loretta Lane

"it's like party lights almost unst unst unst unst" "okay" hahahahahahahahaha

Monte Plays Games

I am catching up on all these. Funny the mention of the musical. Curious what Garrett things of the Strange New Worlds take on a Star Trek musical. #alltrekisgoodtrek

SnazzyO

Jeri Ryan was fabulous. But her costume felt like objectification. And the actress physically suffered while wearing it. Ryan overcame that nonsense and made a great character. But the producer’s intent was to increase ratings. That was obvious from the promos at the time. Again, the acting overcame the intent.

SnazzyO

I see your point. But they’ve made it clear the actress was introverted, Mulgrews’ private dinner was a nicer touch IMO.

SnazzyO

Money. Cast cost money and it was a big ensemble to begin with.

SnazzyO

Like many, I mourned the loss of Kes. Her show contributions in the first 3 seasons were outstanding. Jeri Ryan made a wonderful character but the transition was awkward.

Lee Stroud

As a young female physician , when watching the show years ago, I was somewhat disappointed when such an obviously sexualized character was added to attract the predominantly male audience. I still loved the show and continued to watch when I could. Now, in rewatching the show, I can look past that to see the AMAZING, multitalented performer Jeri Ryan was. And, I just had a flashback to when I started watching TOS in the 60’s when Chekov was added to catch the teeny-boppers like me. He, as well, turned out to be such an important character/actor.

Amit J

Well said. My wife and I are almost done with our Voyager rewatch (about halfway thru season 7) and Jeri Ryan's stellar acting chops overshadowed the ridiculousness of her catsuit far more this time around.

Becca English

Aww, Harry called Tom "Tommy" (sort of)! How sweet!

Sunehri_Hotaru

I would totally buy a series of meditations with Tuvok!!!

Vicky Thompson

Posting here in March 2025 after rewatching this episode for the first time since it's original airing. I must say that I hated the fact that Jennifer Lien was let go and I didn't fully appreciate this episode 28 years ago. But after rewatching, my word, what brilliant acting by all. Jeri Ryan came into this series and really gave an incredible performance. The scenes with Kes and Neelix were so sweet and so necessary. I have a genuinely heartfelt attachment to this episode now. I have watched it twice in the last couple of days. A big thank you to Robbie and Garrett for giving us their take!

Anna Post

Omg I love “Love Letters” also completely down with dinner theatre! Could be a part of con!

Anna Post

Because Meditation sound like medication

Anna Post

Is the next Random Flight trip to India?

Anna Post

Also, that type of fall is technically called a flop isn’t it? Pathetic Starfleet flop?

Nancy Lapierre

Kess saving Seven's life is like the fired employee having to train their replacement

bakura

Someone already said it but the regeneration unit is called a Alcove

bakura

I might be wrong but I think I heard that when voyager ended jeri ryan took her Alcove and put it in her apartment. First of all how does someone steel that and second how much do you want to see a picture of that.

K

OMG yes, dinner theater! I’m such a sucker for a show.

Christinaof9

That’s funny I always was very moved by the ending of that scene of Seven hitting Janeway and Janeway ending up comforting her. I never saw it as awkward at all but like a child acting out and hurting and Janeway calming her, thought it was beautifully done!

Christinaof9

I love that Kate Mulgrew threw a party for Jennifer that’s so sweet

Christinaof9

Garret you did good to only cry once I had cried like 10 times every 50 times I’ve seen this episode lol! 😪 So many touching moments with Seven And the pain of coming out of the collective, discovering her individuality, Kes leaving and her goodbyes and final gift… plus so many ethical quandaries that are in play here. Was Janeway being a hypocrite to take her choice away? Also many humorous moments to lighten the mood from the Doctor and actually Harry with his flirtation to a Borg (or that’s how I see it!). 🤣 All in all my favorite episode.

Christinaof9

Captain Kirk was arguably the most sexualized character on television maybe of all time lol

James Morrow

I’m always appreciative for the honesty and frankness from G+R about what was happening behind the scenes during production amongst the cast-their emotions, opinions, etc. I also hope Jennifer received a final professional recognition of her contributions at the end of her last day-although I bet the dinner Kate Mulgrew organized was heartwarming, personal, and kind. I found the discussion about 7’s costume between G+R very interesting. The costume we saw at the end of “The Gift” was a limitation of imagination. There were two tracks of argument: it’s the 90’s and sexualization attracts eyeballs to the TV, and it’s Star Trek and we have some rules in that universe that story should follow. Yes, it’s reasonable to argue that 7 should require occasional special medical treatments or even a modified garment to assist her healing-No, a skin-tight sparkly silver outfit right out of a comic book doesn’t fit the bill because it’s too outlandish. Garrett’s point that she couldn’t wear a Starfleet uniform because she wasn’t part of that organization is consistent (Neelex, Kes), but that’s when the imagination of the costume department should have been let loose to create something that was both consistent with Trek and served the character’s identity. Instead, the imagination was limited because someone or some people decided to stop at the signpost that said, “sexy”. The shape and construction of that costume has always made the statement to me that men must have designed it, approved it, and built it. Why? Because I can’t think of any woman I know who would participate in the creation of a garment that a series regular who also happened to be a woman would need 45 minutes, physical assistance, and a stage-wide public announcement to temporarily shut down production so that she could relieve herself. Imagine being Jeri Ryan-I wonder if she had to endure that for four years. Creepy. In the episode, the Doctor was proud of the garment he created, but I’ve always imagined if Janeway’s actual reaction on first seeing the costume would be to look back at the Doctor and ask him if he were running any ‘personal holographic subroutines’ while designing it.

Andrew Murray

if you just 'dropped Kes off' on some remote planet, no wonder she was in not such a good mood when she returned in "Fury". But since she gave Voyager a kick start and beyond Borg space, I still don't know why she's mad at Janeway and crew (in "Fury") - apart from perhaps having been taken from her homeworld and not known any better. That seems to have been Neexlix' idea since Voyager back in "Caretaker" needed a "Lost In Space Guide to the Delta Quadrant" that Episode).

Andrew Murray

Vulcan meditation and Chakotay vision quest!

Andrew Murray

You'd think "Warp---impossible" would get them home. At least it didn't turn everyone into liIzards - apparently only Warp-10 will do that.

Andrew Murray

No...well the "flop" (according to some fans) is apparently "Discovery" and/or "Picard"

Andrew Murray

That's an interesting question - Chakotay's plan all along, was to get rid of the Borg, and leave them on a planet somewhere to fend for themselves and get picked up by a Borg cube. I wonder how the show would have run if Kes had stayed on. would her evolution still have happened, or happened eventually, e.g. "Endgame" sees an encounter with the borg, but it is Kes that throws Voyager home (to earth) and then destroys the Borg warp conduits.

MiKE DEVLiN

I'm sure the motivation to put Jeri in a sexy, figure-accentuating costume came first, and any Trekkian justification came a distant second :) Anyway - it`s Star Trek- anything can happen if the writers/ producers want it to happen. Seven has no clothes of her own? Seven - meet the replicator - fill your boots! Seven has skin problems analogous to a burn victim? Seven - here`s an Okuda Field Generator (OFG) - she wears it on her belt buckle and it emits a compression field that covers her entire body. Then she wears loose fitting clothing on top :)

GAY Kleven-Lundstrom

I equate Tuvok leaving that lamp in his cabin window to leaving a light in the window for missing family members

Brian Moore

Did Robbie get a new webcam? The keying and overall quality looks better!

Charlotte Telford

I literally came here to write this and I'm so glad you beat me to it because the whole subtext to the costume being so tight because it was a medical necessity is just grim in my opinion. It was, of course, a sexual prop to keep the male masses watching and she could have been dressed similar to Kes (who also wore catsuits but wasn't sexualised) and a reference could have been made about medical undergarments for her healing. I'm kind of disappointed that this isn't obvious to all, but I appreciate that you and Robbie, as men, do see it for what it was. And I can confidently say that I'm not a "woke" fan watching it for the first time and seeing this with 21st Century eyes. I watched the first run as a child (I was 7 when Voyager started and 11 when Seven was introduced) and it just made me feel so uncomfortable. I also think that the producers pretty much forgot that they had a huge female following because let's face it, Seven could have been another awesome female role model to add to the characters of Janeway and B'Elanna but instead, they decided to try and present her as just eye candy. Sad times :(

Taisho Rose

They could have saved some money and just put Tom and Harry in tight spandex costumes *shrug*

Taisho Rose

OMG that would have been so sad though! Maybe the 1st time around Kes sacrifices herself and then Janeway goes back in time to save her and sacrifice herself in her place! That would've had SO MUCH MORE impact!!!

Irene Artho

In terms of the tight suit of Seven, Kes was actually wearing a very similar outfit during the last few episodes, so maybe that was just the standard female non-Starfleet outfit at the time, or it was the "fashion". The borg outfit itself is actually very tight as well. And thinking about Enterprise - T'Pol has a similar outfit and she's non-Starfleet. I think they could have toned it down a bit, but then again think of what Deanna Troi wore in the first few seasons.. And as they mentioned outfits of even the Original series with their skimpy dresses and not to mention the bits of cloth usually used on female guest stars. In terms of Janeway's decision about Seven's treatments, I think it's comparable with a drug addict that needs help. Someone might need to make the decision for them even if they are adults and have their own mind about treatments. They might not want to become clean but they might need to be forced to become clean to safe their life. Although I'm curious as to why Seven's body was on overdrive with the immune system in the first place. Was that a side effect of being disconnected from the hive? On another note I'm surprised Tuvok and Kes gave another go with meditation and a flame - thinking what happened last time they tried that (Tuvok's face boiling). And so much for "you've never shown that much control before".. yes, Kes has, when she had assistance from Suspiria and that other Ocampa in the Episode Cold Fire.

Bonnie Chiaccio

Great analysis as usual guys. My Mondays are always the best! Loved 7, but would miss Kes by this point.

Trine Våbenø (Triyan)

I have seen this episode a couple of times, and I really like it. Kes does a great job, and so do 7/9. But this time, for the first time, I noticed that Janeway is the connection in this episode between the two of them. When 7/9 asks Janeway if she will let her go to the Borg later, if that is her choice, we are not sure as a viewer that it might happen. But then Janeway talkes with Kes when she want to leave the ship, and let her go without holding her back. And that is the connection, and the theme for the episode. This is what tells us Janeway WILL let 7/9 go in the future, if that is what 7/9 really wants. Janeway just have to trust 7/9, like she now trusts Kes.

Stephanie

As a woman in her 20's when Voyager first aired, I can tell you, I was very disappointed in the addition of 7 of 9. Here was a science fiction show that finally included us as powerful main characters. Torres, Janeway and Kes were all beautiful and sexy in their own, which of course is what most humans want to be -- smart, powerful and nice to look at. But the blatant T and A of 7 was really a disappointment. Her outfit did nothing to move along the story or be based in any kind of reality. I think Jeri Ryan is great, so don't get me wrong.

James Morrow

I agree with you-Jeri was and is great. I think that her talent and performance rose above. I know about the tensions behind the scenes, but I think the sub-plot of Seven’s development that she and Kate created onscreen over the four years was quite unique and wonderful. Two women, one a scientist/captain and the other an innocent who was horribly violated, debated and discovered the meaning of consent, individuality, imagination, kindness, etc. It came at the sacrifice of time for the others in the main cast, however at least that sacrifice developed character and story.

John Serafino

Jeez get over it after a quarter century. All of the Star Trek series going back to TOS had one or more strong alien characters that had some deep inner struggle. This made each series interesting. TOS had Spock, TNG had Data and Worf, DS9 had all kinds of conflicted alien characters and eventually got Worf too. VOY lacked this angle except for the doctor. And it was desperately needed. Jeri was some eye candy too, but you can't write good stories without interesting characters. I think the Neelix character could have been so much more, but it never happened.

Janet Potts

Agreed with the analysis of why Janeway believes it's her duty to make decisions on behalf of 7of9. It's not unlike a person with Stockholm syndrome or someone who's been rescued from a cult. They aren't able to think clearly and objectively at first. Even though Janeway doesn't respond to 7of9's question about whether she'd let her leave at a later date, I feel certain that if 7of9 did eventually decide that she wanted to return to the collective, Janeway wouldn't have stopped her. As for the skin-tight suit, I disagree with Garrett's take on it as the reasoning for it (to regenerate her human skin) is entirely made up as a way to justify the costuming choice. The producers had the costume made so tight she had trouble breathing and included a corset and visible ribbing to enhance her hour glass shape. It also made it almost impossible for her to bend over or sit comfortably. Not to mention it taking her at least ½ hour just to go to the bathroom. There were a number of ways they could have chosen to handle Jeri's costume that would compliment the actress and fit the narrative without resorting to hypersexualizing her.

Rochelle Mazar

I finally broke down and became a patron tonight in order to come here and say this: when I started listening to The Delta Flyers, I wasn't necessarily expecting a sophisticated feminist reading of Voyager, but, among other things, that's what we're consistently getting from Robert Duncan McNeill, and I am 1000% here for it. I was a fan already, but you're given me so many more reasons to be one. I'm hoping those Tom Paris plates that give you pep talks in jefferies tubes are going to go on sale soon from the online store, because surely we all need one. ;) Stay fabulous!

Christinaof9

It's a false narrative (and an insulting one) that a woman can't be beautiful, sexy and show it but also be real, serious and impactful, even pushing the boundaries of feminism. Seven/Jeri did and does all those things, bringing a story that was deep, rich and helped thousands of girls and boys like me, from my early teens to my 30's, with her brilliant acting and the beautiful ongoing story of coming to terms with our own individuality and humanity. She changed my life and looked hot doing it lol. I find it insulting that society still holds a belief that men can do that but women can't. James T Kirk was probably one of the most oversexualized characters ever on TV but no one says that took away from the strength of his character! All these years later I would still be proud to say to Jeri - go ahead girl, show us that gorgeous Borg figure while you act your heart out in all your brilliance! 💜

Christine Pabst

The sentence of this episode was Janeways summary for me: "I've got an Ocampan who want to be something more and a Borg who's afraid of becoming something less. Here's to Vulcan stability" 😂🥰

Lisa Minnesma

Me too! I love how supportive and direct he is about it! And speaking up about feeling disappointed when the show went in the other direction. We need more men like that

Taisho Rose

Country Dinner Theater was in a shopping center called the Gateway Mall. Its competitor was the Showboat which was a rather garishly neon-lit building in the shape of a giant riverboat. They both closed down before I was old enough to see any shows, but I remember driving past the Showboat a lot because it was on the way to the ice skating rink where my brothers played hockey, and the Gulf beaches. I've heard so many stories about the heyday of dinner theaters from older generations and people I know in the local performing arts scene. The actors from Gilligan's Island were local favorites. Now dinner theater is mostly limited to mystery whodunnits and you would never see a celebrity acting in them any more.

Jason

I've always thought that the scene in Kes' quarters between Kes and Janeway blurred the lines between acting performance and real emotion. It actually feels like a conversation that Kate and Jen would've had between each other in real life given Jen's imminent exit from the series and it likely being one of their final scenes together. It's such a genuine conversation between two people that really liked each other and the dialogue matched perfectly with what was happening at that time on the other side of the cameras. I thought that what we saw was real emotion from Kate and Jen and not a performance, which makes it that much more sentimental and evocative. I always remember this scene as being one of my favourites.

Heidi Lebrón

They were (are, sorry 😉) certainly good-looking enough that it would have gone over well if the Captain Proton outfits were more like the skin-tight outfits worn by Superman and Batman! But that would bring up the other side of the coin of expecting all "sexy" men to have eight-packs and watermelon muscles, which is also something I take issue with.

Stephanie Baker

Seven’s tight outfit and heels felt like a step back after giving us Janeway and Torres. But I came to love Seven because she was so strong and badass. In a Star Trek world, I would hope that Seven would have felt comfortable wearing whatever she wanted, however I don’t think the actor or character had that kind of freedom.

Jeffra

I think I said ‘alcove’ like 20 times, as if you might hear me. Haha. But then the more I said it, I started questioning myself. Alcove starts to sound really funny. A Borg alcove, really? Wonder why they choose that?

Paul Johnston

The weirdest thing about the whole story arc them trying to reassert 'Seven of Nine' to becoming her former himself self- surely calling her 'Annika' would make more sense? Like keep your borg name but retain the empty name the borg assigned you with

ST Fan CB

Oh no! Why are the boys places switched again? No bueno. IMO, saying that Picardo let his personal feelings affect his performance is saying that he was acting somewhat unprofessional. I prefer to state that the Doctor is acting more human because he IS becoming more human for Pete's sake! Which is what his objective is in many different episodes. My question is: Based on statements by Garrett and RDM about how Voyager was a big and close family and they were tight and they loved each other and everyone was sad about Jennifer leaving, then why was the entire cast not there on her last day to give her a proper send off? Something just seems wrong with that entire situation. Discuss.

Kelly

What was the actual specific reason Jennifer Lien was asked to leave the series? Why couldn’t she and Jeri Ryan both have been on the show? And why was she the one selected to be removed? Did it have to do with her character Kes or the actress Jennifer Lien? I’m still unclear on this! And still so sad about Kes’s departure after being such an important character for so many seasons :(