Voyager’s “Faces” in Review
The Vidiians return from the earlier Season 1 episode “The Phage”, back for another round of grafting and organ-harvesting. How far will they go this time?
Log Entry
Bound, B’Elanna Torres awakens. She looks fully Klingon.
Voyager is meanwhile returning to pick up an away team from the planet Avery III. In the ship’s mess hall, Neelix serves an especially spiced version of plomeek soup to Tuvok, although the Vulcan declines the meal. The away team – including Lieutenants Paris, Durst, and Torres – is unresponsive. Janeway orders Chakotay to lead an investigation.
In a medical lab, Sulan, the chief Vidiian surgeon, tells Torres he’s extracted her Human DNA, turning her into a pure Klingon. He’s also infected her with the Phage to prove whether Klingons are immune to the disease.
Inside a Vidiian barracks, a Talaxian prisoner tells Paris and Durst that prisoners are being harvested for organs.
While an away team led by Chakotay search a cave, Torres is showing signs of infection, back in the lab. Sulan says, if his research succeeds, she’ll be idolized by the Vidiians.
In the barracks, Paris is awakened by a Human Torres, she having had all her Klingon DNA extracted. She tells him about being embarrassed of her Klingon forehead ridges when she was young.
Meanwhile in the cave, the away team tries to phaser a hidden forcefield. A pair of Vidiians show up, and Chakotay orders an emergency beam-out.
Klingon Torres almost breaks free from her restraints, but Sulan arrives. She tries to seduce him into letting her go, but he refuses.
In the barracks, Vidiian guards come for Durst. Paris attempts to take his place, but Durst willingly goes.
When Sulan returns to the lab, he has Durst’s face grafted onto his, revealing Durst has been killed. Klingon Torres breaks free and strangles Sulan but is interrupted in the process.
Voyager has discovered microfissures in the forcefield, which could be used to beam someone inside the Vidiian facility. Chakotay, volunteering, undergoes a procedure to make him look Vidiian.
Human Torres, exhausted during a work shift, tells Paris she believes the Vidiians extracted her courage along with her Klingon DNA. Vidiian guards take her back to the barracks.
After the disguised Chakotay beams down and Klingon Torres questions the Talaxian prisoner, Human Torres tries to sneakily contact Voyager using a Vidiian console. She’s caught, but Klingon Torres saves her.
Later, Klingon Torres is cooking a rodent and rouses Human Torres to eat. A debate ensues between them about brains versus brawn.
Chakotay finds Paris in the barracks, but a Vidiian guard questions Chakotay. He convinces the guard to allow him to accompany Paris to organ harvesting.
While the Torres pair access a console, the Vidiian guards become alerted. One fires at Human Torres but is hit by Klingon Torres. Doctor Sulan shows up, but so do Chakotay and Paris. Human Torres manages to contact Voyager, but Doctor Sulan shoots Klingon Torres before the team beams out.
In the transporter room, Klingon Torres tells her Human counterpart she’s proud of her for showing courage. The Klingon, mortally wounded, says she can die with honor.
In sickbay, The Doctor plans to insert Klingon DNA into Human Torres, saying she’ll die without it. After The Doctor leaves, she tells Chakotay she’s more at peace than ever but is incomplete, realizing she’ll be fighting her other half for the rest of her life. Chakotay utters nothing. Hesitating for a brief moment but deciding there’s not a single word he can say, he simply leaves.
Status Report
This episode opens with one of the shortest but strongest teasers yet. A dark tone is set from the first shot of Klingon Torres hanging by the wrists. “Faces” delivers a big bang of a start and, fortunately, continues well throughout.
Despite borrowing from The Original Series’ “The Enemy Within”, the theme of split halves provides solid material for internal conflict, which is only amplified through a great performance by Roxann Dawson. Playing both halves of her character gives her an opportunity to shine and shows her abilities as an actress, an asset of the series which hasn’t been allowed to come out up to this point. Her channeling of a full-blooded Klingon is faultless.
The return of the Vidiians to provide horror is also welcomed. “Faces” pushes sympathy for their survival to the breaking point. Durst’s face grafted onto Sulan’s is equal parts repulsive and awesome. Speaking of Durst, while it’s understandable that the episode only has enough time to do what it does, it still would’ve been nice if it’d grieved his death. His ultimate fate is such a horrific way to die, one would’ve expected more.
The ambiguous ending was the right choice. It doesn’t neatly wrap everything up and it leaves Torres to face the repercussions of what happened. Great Star Trek episodes often do such a thing, like The Original Series episodes “The City On the Edge of Forever” and “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield”. Leaving Chakotay visibly not knowing how to comfort his comrade was also perfect and rings very true.
Besides a few retreads from previous Star Trek shows, “Faces” is one of the most original episodes to come along for Voyager. Focusing on the development of Torres in a very successful way, this episode is one of the best offerings so far and a major highlight in the first season.
Nicholas discovered writing and has been perfecting his craft for over a decade. He fell in love with Star Trek in his teens and hasn’t left it since. In 2025, Nicholas received a BA in Political Science with a minor in English from UC Berkeley. Currently, he is pursuing his MA in English Literature from SF State University. He is working on a sci-fi novel that he describes as a “road trip in space.” He enjoys reading, writing, and watching TV shows and movies. When Nicholas isn’t working to further his education, he spends time with his wife and dog.