The Star Trek icon is right about the most messed up decision her character has ever made

by Chris Snelgrove
| Published 12 seconds ago

on Star Trek: VoyagerCaptain Janeway made many controversial decisions, but none were as shocking as when she killed the new life form Tuvix in order to save two of her crewmates. Fans constantly debate the morality of what Janeway did, but her representative doesn’t think the decision is worth arguing about.

At a recent conference (a trip to New Jersey), Kate Mulgrew declared that killing Tovix was an “easy choice.” She’s absolutely right: faced with an unthinkable decision, Janeway simply did what was right for her ship and her crew.

Two becomes one

First, a little background: In the episode “Tuvix”, a freak transportation accident resulted in Neelix and Tuvok being merged into the same person (titular name Tuvix). To retrieve these two crew members, Janeway forces Tuvex to return to the carrier so he can be separated. This succeeds in bringing Neelix and Tuvok back to life, but it permanently kills Tuvix, and many fans are convinced that Janeway is a murderer because of this.

Here’s where it gets interesting: Janeway, arguably He is Murderous because her decision led to someone’s death. Kate Mulgrew He didn’t say that killing Tovix was a morally right choice, but that it was an “easy choice.” I explained this answer by pointing out that Janeway wasn’t “holding Tuvix over those two men” because she “loved” Neelix and Tuvok, which is why it was so easy to make the decision to kill Tuvix to get them back.

Janeway was right all along

And she was right to do so because Janeway constantly had to face something Starfleet leaders never had to deal with: a painful lack of resources. For example, Neelix acts as the ship’s cook for the simple reason that the ship does not have enough power to enable the crew to constantly use the copy machines. But the biggest resource deficiency Janeway had to face was that she had a limited number of crew members, and she couldn’t replace anyone who died because Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant.

Tuvix may be the very “new life” she was tasked with searching for, but his continued presence means she will permanently lose two of her best crew members. And the best is quite literal: Neelix is ​​their site only A guide in the Delta Quadrant, his skills as a cook keep the crew alive. Meanwhile, Tuvok is a security chief whose experience in Starfleet goes back as far as helping him and Sulu Captain Kirk During events Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country!

Mathematics on ethics

It may seem brutal, but what Janeway did was a matter of simple calculations: she traded the life of one person whose quantity remains unknown for two capable officers who help keep her crew safe, every day. Sure, Tovix It seemed To have all the skills of both Tuvok and Neelix, but why replace two qualified officers with one man who, at his best, can only do half the jobs the others used to do?

In the absolute best case scenario, Tuvix would be a decent tactical officer, but the ship would lose the cook who helps keep the crew on their feet. Or he’ll focus entirely on being a chef, forcing Voyager to lose its best security officer. Even if all goes well one way or another, Tuvix is ​​just one step away from death, costing the crew two resources they can’t afford to lose.

Kate Mulgrew is right: Janeway did what she had to do, sacrificing her morals in order to make the decision to make the ship safer. It seems very likely that Voyager would never have been able to return to the Alpha Quadrant without the help of both Tuvok and Neelix, so sacrificing Tuvix may have effectively saved hundreds of lives aboard the ship and countless other lives that Tuvok and Neelix have helped protect over the years.

Real talk? If you have a hard time believing why she would sacrifice one life to save hundreds of lives, that’s why she’s the captain and you’re just a guy complaining on the internet.

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