Meld (Star Trek: Voyager)

"Meld" is the 32nd episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the 16th episode of the second season. In this science fiction television show, a crewman is murdered aboard starship Voyager. Tuvok investigates and the character Suder is introduced. However, when Tuvok conducts the Star Trek franchise plot device mind meld of the Vulcan alien, things go further awry.

"Meld"
Star Trek: Voyager episode
Episode no.Season 2
Episode 16
Directed byCliff Bole
Story byMichael Sussman
Teleplay byMichael Piller
Featured musicDavid Bell
Production code133
Original air dateFebruary 5, 1996 (1996-02-05)
Guest appearance(s)

Plot

A crewmember named Darwin is found dead and an investigation soon uncovers a murder. It is discovered that Lon Suder, a Betazoid, killed him, because he did not like the way Darwin looked at him.

To discover the reasoning behind Suder's admittedly senseless act, Tuvok initiates a mind-meld with Suder. This causes Suder's violent impulses to be transferred to the Vulcan, giving Suder a sense of calm by causing Tuvok to experience uncontrollable violent urges himself: he even attacks a holographic form of Neelix. Eventually, Tuvok confines himself to quarters, and removes himself from duty as he is unable to control his violent urges. The Doctor attempts to cure Tuvok of his urges by forcing his emotions into the open. This fails, and Tuvok is able to escape. He finds Suder with the intent of executing him, hoping this will satisfy himself. Tuvok is convinced by Suder not to kill him and instead mind-melds in an attempt to get his emotional control back. This meld renders Tuvok unconscious, allowing Suder to notify the crew. Later, the Doctor watches over Tuvok, hopeful that since he controlled himself enough to not kill Suder, he is recovering.

Reception

"Meld" had a rating of 7.9 on 184 user votes on TV.com.[1] Nielsen rating was 5.1 in 1996.[2]

In 2017, Den of Geek included this episode, along with Lifesigns, Death Wish, and Deadlock from Season 2, for their abbreviated viewing guide for Star Trek: Voyager.[3]

In July 2019, Screen Rant ranked "Meld" as one of the top five episodes of the series.[4]

gollark: Also, because the frozen ones count toward trophies.
gollark: I can, as usual, AR stuff if anyone wants.
gollark: I pay so little attention that I missed missing the gold you missed!
gollark: *to-the-second would be better*
gollark: Then there's a 20-day gap until a november release and then a 25-day gap until christmas.

References
  1. TV.com. "Star Trek: Voyager: Meld". TV.com.
  2. "WebTrek - Star Trek: Voyager * NIELSEN RATINGS". users.telenet.be.
  3. "Star Trek Voyager: An Episode Roadmap". Den of Geek. Retrieved 2019-06-11.
  4. "Star Trek: The 5 Best Episodes Of Voyager (& The 5 Worst)". ScreenRant. 2019-07-11. Retrieved 2019-07-15.


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