UPN 9 News:

UPN 9 News in New York City aired this segment February 14, 2001. Some spoilers for "Work Force" and "Author, Author."

Things are getting explosive on the set of Star Trek: Voyager. There are only few more episodes to tape and the members of the cast have their own ideas about how the series should end. Pat Collins has the story.

Pat Collins: The Voyager stars will tape their last episode on April 11. Robert Picardo is among the cast members lobbying the writers to create the scenes on their wish list before it wraps for good. For the popular Doctor, some wishes are coming true.

[montage of clips from "Tinker Tenor" and the like]

Pat Collins: Robert Picardo is rehearsing a scene for an April Voyager episode. [Note: it looks like "Author, Author."] These days the cast acts like graduating high school seniors. They joke, they tease, and they do not hold back.

Robert Picardo: No one is in any kind of danger of losing their job so that I think people are a lot more honest and straightforward, so that you will hear people complaining freely, where they might have sat on it.

Kate Mulgrew: (to director) A hundred and forty-six people who haven't spoken to their loved ones in seven years...

Director: Right.

Kate Mulgrew: ...are going to pick a chip.

Director: Right.

Kate Mulgrew: And you're going to have them all just grabbing? Wouldn't they be in a line? There has got to be order to it.

[Beltran shakes his head.]

Pat Collins: The cast is playing the same guessing game all Star Trek fans are playing. What will be the next series?

Robert Picardo: The fact that I don't know what it's about is a miracle. They have been so successfully secretive. I have no clue what it's about. The rumors have been around forever that it will be the youngest Star Trek series. I don't even know that to be true. We've been making Star Trek 90210 jokes for five years.

The Doctor: [scene from "Author, Author"] Doesn't anyone want to know who I'm calling?

Pat Collins: Whatever the next Trek series is, it will probably be shot here on a sound stage on the Paramount lot in Hollywood.

Robert Picardo: We've been walking down the same hallways that the guys walked down on The Next Generation. They just painted them a different color for us. So that means for 14 years now, Starfleet officers have been walking in a circle, the same circle. Over on stage 9 over and over again. They still can't find out where the heck they are going.

Pat Collins: Picardo has long wanted to sit in the captain's chair and next week, he will. Janeway, Seven, Tuvok, B'Elanna and Tom are abducted, brainwashed and assigned to a work camp on a distant planet. They are unaware of their true identities. Here Janeway meets Mr. Right.

Jaffen: [scene from "Work Force"] Maybe we could get acquainted after work. There's a little place some of us like to go to. We could get a meal

Pat Collins: Three centuries later and the pickup lines aren't any better. In this episode, Janeway falls for Jaffen, Picardo fights to keep his command. Chakotay goes undercover to persuade his colleagues to come home. The logical Tuvok is the only one that does not succumb to mind control.

[Tuvok grabs Seven and forces a meld on her. He is forcibly dragged away.]

Tuvok: We don't belong here!

Pat Collins: Also on next week's episode, you'll see Seven of Nine wearing something she's never worn before and I'm not going to give that away. I'm Pat Collins, UPN 9 News.