Star Trek: Voyager developed a cult following unlike its more successful spinoff shows such as The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. The Kate Mulgrew starrer again saw an experimental storyline where the titular Voyager ship was placed in a different dimension and was tasked with handling a diverse crew of Starfleet and Maquis.
One two-parter episode of Voyager tested the ship and Captain Kathryn Janeway to such an extent that it faced several casualties. It is arguably one of the best arcs in the whole show and could have lasted longer if not for one intervention. Bryan Fuller, one of the writers on Voyager revealed the behind-the-scenes drama.
Star Trek: Voyager’s ‘Year of Hell’ was supposed to last a whole season
Star Trek: Voyager was kind of a mixed bag in the franchise. While it was not a typical exploratory storyline like The Next Generation or The Original Series, it was also not a space station-centered serialized story like Deep Space Nine. Brannon Braga and Jerri Taylor’s show was somewhere in between, giving fans a new experience with the IP.
However, Voyager was going to have one of its most insane arcs last a whole season before one of the producers shot down the idea. The show’s season 4 saw the two-part episode ‘Year of Hell’ exploring a deadly battle between the Voyager and a Krenim species ship, which lasted months in the show’s timeline.
Several detours were taken by the series and the Voyager faced great obstacles and casualties before the day was saved by Captain Janeway. Writer Bryan Fuller revealed in an episode of Inglorious Treksperts that the storyline was initially planned to last a season. He said,
We wanted to see Voyager get its ass kicked every episode and through that season was going to be marbled the story of Annorax and the time ship that was changing things. So, we would go back to it every once in a while to remind the audience that is the larger story.
However, the idea was reportedly scrapped by executive producer Rick Berman, who was sick of serialized storytelling after working on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Rick Berman squashed the dreams of Star Trek: Voyager writers with his rejection
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine did a few things differently than its predecessors, with the main plotline being a serialized story rather than episodic. Starring Avery Brooks as the captain of the Deep Space Nine space station, the series was not exploratory like TNG or TOS but was mainly set on the space station, with other species encountering them.
However, when executive producer Rick Berman began working on Voyager, he was reportedly done with the serialized concept and hence, shut down the idea for a season-long ‘Year of Hell’ when showrunner Brannon Braga pitched it to him. Bryan Fuller mentioned that the writer’s room was extremely excited to be able to do it but it was squashed by Berman.
I remember [showrunner Brannon Baga] going over to Rick’s office with all of this enthusiasm and coming back broken and his head hanging low and having to break it to the writing staff. We all felt like we were doing it, we were making great Star Trek. For him to come back and say we can’t and we can only do two episodes as opposed to twenty-two, it was heartbreaking.
Fuller mentioned that the conflict between the writers and Rick Berman was fairly common and was the catalyst for the unique vibe of Star Trek: Voyager.
Star Trek: Voyager is available to stream on Paramount+.
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