Voyager is helping a planet defend itself from an onslaught of a series of asteroids when it gets the message that a scientist on the surface has found that this may not be a completely naturally occurring phenomenon. Tuvok, Neelix, and a representative from the planet's government arrive in a shuttle to pick him up, but the shuttle is damaged on the way down and the team must attempt to repair a space elevator in order to get back into transporter range. The motley crew begins to fall apart though; the scientist is poisoned, a squatter and a miner don't trust anyone, and Neelix has an emotional outburst at Tuvok. The government agent turns out to be a bad guy, and tries to kill Tuvok when he, at Neelix's behest, tries to recover the scientist's findings from the roof. Upon their return to Voyager, it is revealed that the findings prove something that Voyager already knew: that the asteroids were being used by a faction that attempts to simulate natural disasters in order to get the population of the planet they're trying to invade to evacuate first. Voyager disables the enemy ship with codes from the new intelligence, and the invaders are foiled.
Wooo! Science fiction in Voyager! Go space elevators! Sure, it's only a backdrop to the story, but I'm happy that the writers found a sciencey idea and included it. Also cool: the aliens that invade by faking natural disasters. It is a pretty neat tactic that would work well with all the less technologically inclined places littering the delta quadrant.
The central conflict of Neelix versus Tuvok though, that's frustrating. It's another example of the writers making a character more obnoxious at the start of the episode so that he or she has more room to grow. Now, Tuvok has always been pretty dismissive and intolerant of Neelix, but he has shifted into high gear for this episode. And let's be completely honest, Neelix is pretty dismissive and intolerant of Tuvok, in his own way. Dismissive in that he is constantly assuming the centuries-long personal commitment (to say nothing of the species-wide commitment) to logic and emotional control is just something he needs to tell the right joke to break. He is constantly underestimating Tuvok's resolve to adhere to his ideals in the most infantile of ways. It is little wonder why Tuvok does not want to spend time with Neelix, ever, under any circumstances. But Neelix is so willfully disgusted with Tuvok's way of life that he tries, with Borg-like relentlessness, to insinuate himself into Tuvok's daily routine, and rob him of the precious hours that he can spend without his inane prattle. Yet, for some reason, he's supposed to be the protagonist here.
Jeri Taylor, one of the producers (but not the author), has this to say: "'Rise' just never quite came together in the way we saw it. It had a wonderful high concept idea, but it had to be anchored by what was going on between Neelix and Tuvok, and I just don't think that came to the forefront in the way that it should have." Really? Almost all of the screen time went to pretending that Neelix was in some way worthwhile. The problem isn't that it wasn't at the forefront, the problem is that you spent any time on it at all. I'm should be thrilled that you actually talked to a guy who heard of a science thing ever. But no, you ruined it.
Watchability: 2/5
Bottom Line: Okay, the Tuvok/Neelix stuff isn't the entire episode, and there was some pretty cool sci-fi stuff.
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