The odd-numbered Season 5 contains several episodes that one could also describe as "odd." Or so it appears on first viewing. If you scratch the surface of these rather strange tales, you will find some excellent storytelling, showing once again how Star Trek: Voyager, in its prime, was pretty fearless when it came to taking chances and being creative. Here is a list of some of our favorites from the rather odd Season 5, with no strange episode left unturned.

"Drone"
A Borg episode similar in tone to TNG's "I, Borg," "Drone" stars the excellent J. Paul Boehmer as the eponymous drone. This solitary Borg, who springs to life following a strange conflux of technological irregularities, demonstrates the power of humanity over machinery and the loyalty that comes with it. No matter how you slice them, for some reason the Borg are just always cool.

"In the Flesh"
This episode features some nice special effects, notably a space-based Earth simulation built by the now suspicious Species 8472 who return to the fold with the newfound belief that Starfleet may be planning an attack against them. On a historical note, Chakotay meets a "Commander Valerie Archer," which raises the now obvious question of possible lineage to an earlier Starfeet captain! But it's always good to see Species 8472 back in action. They may not have captured the same level of antagonism as the Borg, but they are formidable nonetheless.

"Timeless"
In production terms, this was the series' 100th episode, and is in some ways a forerunner to the show's finale, "Endgame," which has the similar plot device of going back in time to fix a past mistake. Here, some excellent special effects, nice acting and a guest performance from LeVar Burton as Geordie La Forge add depth to this solid hour of Trek.

"Thirty Days"
It's rare in Star Trek that we see a crew member reduced in rank (Kirk being the obvious exception). But you can bet your bottom bar of latinum that if they are stripped of rank it's not because of a dereliction of duty, but acting out of necessity and humanity which may go against the rigid book of Starfleet. Paris, in this case, is reduced to an ensign following his role in trying to help out a society based underwater who is facing potential destruction. His actions have the best intentions, but that ol' Prime Directive rears its logical head once again and he pays the price. Oh, and once again you have some great special effects to go with episode. In fact, the effects reach, shall we say, a high water mark.

"Counterpoint"
The title evokes a musical metaphor of playing a new melody over an existing one, an image that works well in this classic tale of the reverse double cross. Even though Janeway gets a rare chance to play kissy face, the twist is that the person she falls for, briefly, is someone who she finds seductive on one level, but distrusts on another. Excellent layers here and some fine acting by the always reliable Kate Mulgrew.

"Bride of Chaotica!"
Holodeck hijinks in monochrome! Satan's Robot, Dr. Chaotica and Captain Proton! Planet X and the Fifth Dimension! Arachnia, Queen of the Spiderpeople! The Fortress of Doom! Ray guns, destructo beams and death rays! (Need we say more?)

"Course: Oblivion"
A classic sci-fi plot, this course is one that takes a few ups and downs before it reveals itself as a nice misdirection. Things start off pleasant enough with the marriage of Tom and B'Elanna Torres, but events soon go south when much of the crew suffers from lethal cellular degradation. Of course, this crew is not "our" crew but one that is a copy from the demon planet visited a year previous where mimetic beings sampled and recreated Voyager and its crew.

"Someone to Watch Over Me"
One of those simple lessons in poignancy, this episode touches a soft spot that everyone can relate to. When the Doctor plays Professor Henry Higgins to Seven of Nine's Professor Eliza Doolittle, it results in one of Voyager's greatest episodes, one that is frequently cited by all involved as one of their favorites from the entire series. The capper is that we sympathize strongly with the Doctor, in theory just a hologram, who's developed unrequited feelings for the beautiful ex-Borg whose emotions remain in check.

"11:59"
A classic you ask? Well, maybe not one of Voyager's best moments overall, but when the show steps out of its established framework, it's great to see the actors using other characters to stretch out a bit. Here we see the tale, as told by Janeway, of an ancestor, Shannon O'Donnell, who worked towards building the ambitious Millennium Gate and overcoming ingrained stubbornness, only the person being stubborn is the patriarchal ancestor of Janeway. What Janeway learns here is that sometimes our forebears are not always what they are cracked up to be, and no small amount of mythmaking goes towards defining who we are.

"Relativity"
So, Seven of Nine is back in Voyager's past trying to fix things for the future guy, otherwise known as Braxton (Remember him?) who is back in time from his own future, which is barely even a blip on the horizon of 500 years ahead, and trying to get a fix on how to make things better in the Voyager future of record. You see the kinds of things you have to deal with in the future?! The only problem here is you have to avoid things like chroniton flux from setting in and ruining things and … oh, just go watch the episode and try to figure it out for yourself!