Summary
One of Seven of Nine’s (Jeri Ryan) most important episodes inStar Trek: Voyagerseason 4 almost had a completely different storyline. As a late addition toVoyager’s cast of characters,Seven had only half the amount of time other characters did for development during the show’s run. However, this didn’t stop her from becoming not only one of the series' most popular characters but also one of the most interesting characters in anyStar Trekmovie or TV show.
As a former Borg drone rediscovering her humanity, Seven’s arc onVoyagerdealt mainly with recovering from the trauma of what the Borg had done to her. One of the earliest examples of this wasVoyagerseason 4, episode 6, “The Raven,” which saw a Borg homing signal draw Seven to the crashed former ship of her parents, Erin (Nikki Tyler) and Magnus Hansen (David Anthony Marshall).“The Raven” was an intense and emotional exploration of Seven’s past, but the episode’s storyline was almost very different.
Every Voyager Character Who Has Returned In Star Trek (& How)
Star Trek: Voyager’s beloved characters have returned in Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek: Lower Decks, and especially Star Trek: Prodigy.
“The Raven” was almost extremely brutal
In an interview withThe Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine,Voyagerwriter Bryan Fuller revealed that the first draft of “The Raven” was the opposite of what the episode became. Although Seven began to revert to her Borg ways during the episode, Fuller stated that in the original story,her transformation was more complete and that her subsequent attack on the crew was devastating, with her essentially going on a killing spreethat seemingly ended in her death. This would have turned “The Raven” from a complex story about Seven’s trauma to an action-packed bloodbath. Read Fuller’s full quote below:
“The first draft was called “Resurrection,” and it was all about Seven of Nine being resurrected as a Borg. The aliens du jour abduct her and tweak her, and essentially she goes on this mad killing spree. The first draft had all these huge chase sequences of the crew trying to get her before she got to Engineering to blow up the warp core, until this last final moment where she’s crawling towards the core – Torres has essentially blown her legs off – and Janeway is saying, ‘Stop this’ while Seven pleads, ‘Please kill me.'”
Some of the elements Fuller describes are still present in “The Raven.” Seven did revert to a more Borg drone-like state after the homing signal from her parent’s ship activated her latent implants. Likewise, Seven did still attack members ofVoyager’s crew, stunning two security personnel in her escape and incapacitatingTuvok (Tim Russ), taking him hostage onboard her shuttle.However, the brutal killing is not present, nor is the idea of the episode’s aliens of the week being the cause. This undoubtedly helped “The Raven” become a much better episode.
Why Star Trek: Voyager Changed “The Raven” For The Better
Seven deserved a better storyline in the episode
Speaking toCinefantastiqueabout “The Raven,“Voyagerproducer Brannon Braga perfectly summed up the explanation of why the episode’s original premise was changed. Braga stated, “When we got the draft in, it was evident that it was a soulless, empty kind of show, and that it had to be about something.” Indeed, a full episode of Seven brutally attacking members ofVoyager’s crew would have been a fairly soulless premise, butit also likely would have done irreparable harm to Seven’s reputation.
Seeing Seven as a child and learning about what she went through at the hands of the Borg made her more human, and in turn, more likable.
Since Seven was such a new character onVoyager, it would have been a mistake to make her the villain of an episode so early on. Having audiences watch her kill so many people would have hurt their opinion of her, but seeing Seven as a child and learning about what she went through at the hands of the Borg made her more human, and in turn, more likable.Star Trek: Voyagermade the right decision in changing “The Raven’s” premise, andthe episode ultimately has become quintessential viewing to understand Seven as a character.
