Persistent, Niggling Questions

[Nate the Great]

PNQ: Suppose Seven never replaced Kes. No Borg stories, no Species 8472, none of that. What could you see as replacement stories?


Undoubtedly a key one would've been Kes having a baby. The way they wrote themselves into a corner with that one means they never could've gotten away with her chosing not to get pregnant again. And given her lifespan it's not like she could've frozen an embryo for later or something like that.



Perhaps there would've been a progression of her mental abilities, even to the point of letting her extend her lifespan.



There would've been a need for another major villain besides the Hirogen.



It saddens me to think of how much better certain episodes could've been without resorting to the "Seven learns something about humanity" trope. I get that it was done well with Spock and Data, but the law of diminishing returns was inevitable.


I wish that Voyager's reputation could've improved gradually, even to the point of a coalition like in Enterprise's later seasons (Voyager would've been better if it was more like Enterprise? Is it Opposite Day or something?).


A proper romance for Chakotay (NOT Janeway) would've been nice. Perhaps adding another member to the crew as a guide and doing it better than Neelix this time.