Redshirts Roundtable: The Best Goodbye

Star Trek Voyager Endgame

David Goodman
Star Trek Voyager – Endgame

Part of me can’t even believe “These Are The Voyages…” is on this list. It’s not so much a goodbye as a middle finger to Enterprise.

But I digress…

For me, it was between “What You Leave Behind” and “Endgame” as to which was the best Star Trek finale. Both were exceptional and some of the finest hours of their respective shows. But for me, I have to give a slight edge to “Endgame.”

First, it included the Borg and not only the Borg but the return of Alice Krige as the Borg Queen, a role that had been played by Susanna Thompson in the character’s other appearances in the series. And while Thompson did a fine job, Krige’s Borg Queen is just on another level.

Second, unlike “What You Leave Behind” the Voyager finale actually did tie everything up. The crew got back to Earth, the Borg Unicomplex is destroyed and. We assume, everyone lives happily ever after.

By contrast, “What You Leave Behind” left us with a ton of unanswered questions. What happened to Sisko? The Cardassians? Does Odo ever come back? The list goes on and on. From a strictly storytelling standpoint, “What You Leave Behind” is probably better than “Endgame” but the Voyager finale actually feels like a finale, which is what you want when you’re saying goodbye to a series after seven years.

And it must be said that in ”Endgame” Janeway proves once again why she is possibly the most badass captain in Star Trek. In the future, now Admiral Janeway got her crew back to the Alpha Quadrant but still isn’t happy. So she steals from the Klingons, travels back in time to make sure they return to Earth faster and without losing Seven of Nine.

I mean, come on. Can you see Picard doing that? Janeway practically out Kirked Kirk on that one.

In retrospect, “Endgame” also served as a fitting ending to the Next Generation Era of shows. It did more to help fans say goodbye to Star Trek than “These Are The Voyages…” could ever hope to.

All the finale on this list have their merits (except for “These Are The Voyages…”) but for my money, “Endgame” is the one I’d put in the vault.