We can receive a commission on purchases made from links.
The episode “Star Trek: Traveling” “TUVIX” (May 6, 1996) was, for many years, made fun of one of the worst episodes of the series. The premise is laughable: a dysfunction of the carrier accidentally merges the severe and logical tuvok (Tim Russ) with the happy Hobbit Neelix (Ethan Philips) to form Tuvix (Tom Wright), a being who shares the personalities of the two. There had been a lot of fantastic, stupid and even stupid stories about “Star Trek” before, but it seemed to go beyond. It looked like a fully achieved television production of an inactive doodle that could be done on the sidelines of their notebook during the history of the 10th year – or, at the very least, a question that one could ask after a giant RIP. Tuvok and Neelix are the opposite. What if they were the same guy? Cosmic.
But years later, after “traveling” was out of the air, new questions began to ask “Tuvix”, exploring the real meaning of the episode. The character of Tuvix, you see, found that he liked to be a composite being and began to develop memories and experiences. Regarding Tuvix, Tuvok and Neelix were both dead, unhappy “parents” who died in “childbirth”. Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) was faced with a brand new member of his crew.
But she also faced a moral dilemma. While Tuvix was a conscious being with his own agency, Janeway demanded that Tuvok and Neelix on his crew so that the USS travel works as she loved. She and the engineers on travel finally discovered a way to re-evaluate Tuvok and Neelix and bring them back to life. To do this, however, it should eliminate Tuvix, performing it effectively.
Janeway executed it. Tuvok and Neelix were restored. To date, fans are opposed to his decision. No more recently than 2020, Mulgrew addressed the issue of its social media accounts.
Janeway shouldn’t have killed Tuvix
Remember that the creation of new beings conscious by accident is common on “Star Trek”. On “Star Trek: The Next Generation”, the crew accidentally created a fully aware holographic version of Professor Moriarty of Sherlock Holmes stories. They also accidentally gave life to the robots called Exoofmps, accidentally cloned William Riker (Jonathan Frakes), and even noted that a network of extraterrestrial nodes gave the company itself a rudimentary conscience. In all these cases, however, Starfleet’s officers took care to respect and explore the new lives they have created, trying to observe their rights as a living being in a ostens.
Janeway did not give Tuvix the same consideration. When she discovered that she could revive her former friends, she ordered Tuvix on the carrier’s carrier, an act she knew would kill him. It was bad. Janeway was wrong. Indeed, Tuvix shouted in Janeway, stressing that executing it was a mean act. He begged his life. Janeway has always ordered him to be executed. It was one of the several times that Janeway bent down his authoritarian impulses to commit acts contrary to ethics.
I am not alone in this point of view. As covered by the Daily Star Trek News website, the writer Manu Saadia (author of “Trekonomics: The Economics of Star Trek”) has already participated in an online discussion with representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in November 2020. Perhaps it would be a good subject for a next Twitch flow. Keep in mind that it was an episode of Sci-Fi TV which was 24 years old. He wrote: “We have to talk about justice for Tuvix, I understand that it is a very niche question, but that matters to the extent that it raises the delicate and that I dare say, eminently * political * to know if the ends of justification of the means.”
Surprisingly, not only Ocasio-Cortez replied, but Mulgrew got involved.
Justice for Tuvix
As we could predict, Ocasio-Cortez had not seen “Tuvix”, but she took a break to note that a discussion could be had. It turns out that Kate Mulgrew was also on the same Twitter thread, and she jumped to defend Janeway’s decision, writing:
“Ready to hear the crew thoughts, as always. However, Tuvok and Neelix should they not have the biggest word to say? Oh wait, they could not! I suppose my decision to restore them to their life. Rewatch and report, AOC …”
Regarding Tuvix, Tuvok and Neelix were dead. The fact that they could have been restored was immaterial to Tuvix … and many viewers as well. Ocasio-Cortez may not know the episode, but it was well known in “Star Trek: travel” to at least answer Mulgrew, writing:
“One thing that I learned by watching Janeway grow is the way leadership means being responsible for working on clear -free dilemmas. All easy decisions are made before he reaches. Janeway leads by emphasizing his mission: to bring her crew home. Thank you, Kate!”
It would be interesting to hear what Ocasio-Cortez thought of “Tuvix” once she looked at him. Anyway, this remains a hot button problem for trekks, because many – not only Saadia and myself – oppose Janeway’s decision. Tuvix should have lived. “Star Trek” respected life, but this respect was rejected in this episode. Again, others feel what Mulgrew did, feeling that Tuvix should have died. He will remain controversial forever.
