Naomi Wildman deserves more praise for what she added to Star Trek: Voyager

When we talk about great, late-season additions to franchises, we think of Worf in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Captain Christopher Pike in Star Trek: Discovery, T'Lynn in Star Trek: Lower Decks, and Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Voyager. Yet, one of the characters that doesn't get the love they deserve just so happens to be that of Naomi Wildman, a fellow Voyager alum.

Unlike Seven of Nine, who was played by an adult Jeri Ryan, Naomi Wildman was a child. Played by then nine-year-old Scarlet Pomers, Naomi Wildman was a wholly unique character to the show, as she was the only child on the U.S.S. Voyager. Other shows like Star Trek: The Next Generation or Deep Space Nine had a plethora of children due to the nature of their ships.

The Enterprise-D in The Next Generation was more of a city in space than anything else, while Deep Space Nine was a space station, meaning it was far more like an intergalactic mall meets truck stop meets hotel. So there were always kids running around. They were either visiting the station or living there, but either way, there was a lot to be found.

Not so much on Voyager, which had no children regulars on the show due to the nature of the story. With Voyager lost in the Delta Quadrant, having been detached to hunt down dangerous terrorists just prior to getting lost, there was obviously little desire to have families on the ship. No families mean no kids.

Except, one character was pregnant, Samantha Wildman. She wasn't supposed to be on Voyager when she gave birth but when the ship got pulled 75 years away from Earth, she was forced to give birth on the ship. Which she did, to a baby Naomi in the season two episode "Deadlock". It was an episode where Voyager was somehow duplicated, yet stuck together, meaning that one ship had to ultimately be destroyed so the other ship could survive. It's very complicated.

All you need to know is that Harry Kim and an infant Naomi Wildman died on one ship, and before the other ship exploded, the second ship's Kathryne Janeway sent Kim with an infant Naomi over to the surviving Voyager.

It's a wild episode and one that you should check out.

That episode, however, gave us a wonderful character in Naomi Wildman. While not a standout character on her own, she gave characters like Neelix a purpose. Instead of as a guide or a morale officer, he was a teacher and caretaker to a young child. It actually made the character of Neelix far more likable by having a young ward of sorts.

The character of Naomi Wildman also helped show Seven of Nine's softer side, without having to resort to any sort of trauma. She showed a gentler touch with the young girl, being a teacher and guide to her when she showed an interest in science.

The addition of her got the most out of two major characters, and that alone makes her a standout addition to the cast.