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Tom Paris

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Tom Paris
Star Trekcharacter
First appearance"Caretaker"(1995)
(Voyager)
Last appearance"We'll Always Have Tom Paris" (2021)
(Lower Decks)
Portrayed byRobert Duncan McNeill
In-universe information
Full nameThomas Eugene Paris
NicknameTom
SpeciesHuman
Affiliation
FamilyOwen Paris(father)
Julia Paris (mother)[a]
SpouseB'Elanna Torres
ChildrenMiral Paris,various lizard babies
Posting
Rank
  • Lieutenant (Lower Decks)
  • Lt.Junior Grade (Voyager)
  • Ensign (Voyager)

LieutenantThomas Eugene "Tom" Parisis a fictional character in the Americanscience fictiontelevision seriesStar Trek: Voyagerand is portrayed byRobert Duncan McNeill.Paris is the chief helmsman, as well as a temporary auxiliary medic, of theUSSVoyager,aStarfleetship that was stranded in theDelta Quadrantby an alien entity known as the Caretaker.

Initially recruited by CaptainKathryn Janewayas a Starfleet "observer" onVoyager's first mission into the Badlands, Paris was reinstated as a Starfleet officer by Janeway and took on the role of beingVoyager's helmsman after the original helmsman was killed during the ship's turbulent displacement from the Alpha Quadrant.

The character's middle name, "Eugene", is a tribute toStar TrekcreatorGene Roddenberry.[1]

Background

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He of all the crew is not dismayed by the cruel fate which has befallen them: what does it matter that they're at the ends of the galaxy? He's flying a ship and having adventures – that's just what he wants to be doing and it doesn't matter particularly to him where it happens.

Rick Berman,Michael Piller,Jeri Taylor,Tom Paris' description,Star Trek: Voyager Bible,1995

The writers planned to use the character ofNicolas Locarnoas a template for Tom Paris, a previous similar character played by McNeill in theNext Generationepisode "The First Duty".Voyager's writers created an entirely new character sharing many of Locarno's attributes.[2]One reason for this is that the writers wanted to have the character be a story of redemption, and they did not like the backstory established for Locarno.[3]

Paris' character has two backstories. The original backstory, and the only one acknowledged onscreen, cast Paris as a disgraced officer dishonorably discharged from Starfleet for covering up pilot error following a shuttle accident on Caldik Prime.[4]In her published novel,Pathways,VoyagerproducerJeri Taylorprovided an alternative story much more similar to Locarno's, moving the accident to Paris' Academy years and making his fellow cadets the victims of his recklessness.[citation needed]

An unproducedVoyagerscript was to have had a flashback to his time attending Starfleet Academy, and shown thatRo Laren,theBajorancharacter fromStar Trek: The Next Generationwas among his classmates.[citation needed]The non-canon Stargazer novel series shows that his uncle Cole Paris served with Jean-Luc Picard during his command of the USS Stargazer.

Appearances

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Prior toVoyager

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In theStar Trekfictional universe,Star Trek: Voyagertakes place in the years 2371 to 2378. Most of Paris' backstory takes place prior to the 2370s.

Tom Paris is the son ofStarfleetAdmiralOwen Paris,[5]with most of his other family also hailing from Starfleet. Following his family's tradition, Paris attendedStarfleet Academysometime in the 2350s and majored in astrophysics.[6]A gifted pilot, he earned an assignment to the Academy's honor squadron.

His relationship with his father was not a good one; while Tom wanted to join theFederationNaval Patrol due to his love for thesea,Owen wanted him to enlist at Starfleet Academy.[7]Admiral Paris often disapproved of his son's tendency to get into fights and his resulting punishments.

After his graduation from Starfleet Academy, Paris was assigned to theUSS Exeter.[8]During his initial tenure at Starfleet, Paris crashed a shuttle he was piloting near Caldik Prime, killing three other Starfleet officers. Afraid he would lose his commission, Paris falsified records to conceal the cause of the accident. His efforts to cover up hispilot errorsucceeded, but overwhelmed by guilt and regret, he confessed. He wascourt martialedfor his actions and dishonorably discharged from Starfleet. This caused a major rift between Paris and his father.[4]

Following his discharge, Paris leftSan FranciscoforMarseille,where he started spending his time drinking and playing pool in Sandrine's, a waterfront bar that he frequented during his academy days.[9]There,Chakotay,a former Starfleet officer now serving with theMaquis,recruited him to serve as a mercenary pilot for the Maquis Rebellion against the Federation. This adventure went no better than his earlier stint in Starfleet as Paris was captured by Starfleet while piloting his first mission for the Maquis.[4]

Tried and convicted of treason for aiding the Maquis Rebellion, Paris was sentenced to serve time in a Federation penal settlement nearAuckland,New Zealand.[8]

Events ofVoyager

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While serving time, Paris is visited byKathryn Janeway,captain of the starshipUSSVoyager.Voyager's first mission was to travel to the Badlands and locate a missing Maquis ship commanded by Chakotay, which also has Janeway's chief of securityTuvokaboard as a spy. Janeway recruits Paris due to his previous experience working with the Maquis, obtaining his temporary release. In return, Paris would serve as an informant during the mission.[4]

Janeway and the crew ofVoyager,while searching for the Maquis ship, are thrown into theDelta Quadrantby a massive energy wave created by an alien known as the Caretaker. Once there, they successfully locate the Maquis ship docked at the Caretaker's array. The survivors of the incident become stranded about 70,000 light-years from Earth. The Maquis ship is destroyed and its crew joins the Federation crew onVoyager.[4]

The marooning ofVoyagerin the Delta Quadrant provides Paris with a new beginning. Janeway gives Paris a field commission as a Starfleet lieutenant and makes him the chief helmsman ofVoyager.He had a rough start, however, as Starfleet and Maquis alike viewed Paris with suspicion due to his previous affiliations with both organizations.[4]Paris worked hard to earn his crewmates' respect. During this time, he became best friends with EnsignHarry Kim,a young officer on his first mission who defied his crewmates to befriend Paris. Eventually Paris is accepted by the crew and becomes one of Janeway's most valued officers.

AsVoyagerbegins its journey home, Paris is involuntarily selected to be an auxiliary medic onVoyageras he had previously studied two semesters ofbiochemistryat Starfleet Academy.[10]He is initially joined and eventually replaced byKesafter she expresses a desire to learn from the Doctor.[11]Later, on an away mission, Paris visits the planet Banea with Harry Kim to find a replacementcollimator.OnceVoyagerarrives to pick them up however, they learn that Paris is accused of murdering a well-known elderly engineering physicist after allegedly being caught flirting with the latter's wife. As punishment, the Baneans imprint the scientist's final moments leading up to his death in Paris' brain, which Paris has to relive repeatedly, slowly causing permanentbrain damage.Tuvok conducts his own investigation to determine the true culprit, and discovers that Paris had been framed by the Baneans' enemies and is being used as a messenger, with the messages being imprinted in the recollection which Paris initially thought to be random letters and numbers. Upon discovery of Paris' innocence, the imprints are removed.[12]

DuringVoyager's second year in the Delta Quadrant, Paris reconfigures a shuttlecraft with the help of Kim and chief engineerB'Elanna Torresand breaks thetranswarpbarrier, achieving warp 10 and becoming the first known person to do so. However, this later causes Paris to experience an accelerated state ofevolutionthat would normally take humans millions of years. During this, Paris kidnaps Janeway in a shuttlecraft and brings her on a warp 10 flight.Voyagerlater finds the duo on an uninhabited planet and discovers that they had evolved intoamphibian-like beings and had reproduced. The Doctor manages to reverse the evolution process usingantiprotontreatments.[13]Later that year, Paris also participates in a plot organized by Janeway and Tuvok in order to flush out a possibletraitoraboardVoyagerthat had been feeding information toSeskaand theKazon,one ofVoyager's enemies. However, this negatively impacts Paris' relations with first officer Chakotay as no one else had known of the plan, all being deceived by Paris' apparent tardiness and attitude. The plot is successful at deceiving the rest of the crew to the point where Neelix, believing that Paris was going to leaveVoyagerfor good, gives a tribute speech on his own onboard show. Paris later manages to sneak on board a Kazon ship and discover the spy.[14]In the season 3 premiere, "Basics",Paris takes backVoyagerwith the assistance of the Doctor, crewmanLon Suderas well as severalTalaxianships afterVoyagerwas taken over by the Kazon.[15]

DuringVoyager's third and fourth years into its journey, Paris is accused ofbombingan alien world along with Kim and is sentenced to jail. Paris becomes gravely injured after beingstabbedduring a prison fight. DespiteVoyagerlater discovering and bringing forward the true perpetrator, Paris and Kim are denied release due to the society's laws. Both men are later saved by Janeway and the others after they break into the prison.[16]Relationships-wise, Paris grows closer to B'Elanna Torres. In one instance, Torres experiences symptoms similar to theVulcanpon farrand aggressively pursues Paris as a result. Knowing that Torres was in a delirious state, Paris does not engage with her, angering the latter as she knew of Paris' advances.[17]The year after, Paris and Torres are on an away mission which had gone wrong. As the pair float aimlessly in space in theirenvironmental suits,the duo confesses to each other their true feelings. Fortunately, they are saved byVoyagerin time. As the rest of the crew are unaware of the duo's relationship, they try their best to keep quiet about it.[18]During that year, Paris also returns to being a field medic after Kes departsVoyagerin "The Gift",serving regular shifts in the sickbay.

The following year, Paris builds his own unique shuttlecraft which he named theDelta Flyer.The construction of the craft was authorized by Janeway asVoyagerhad to retrieve a multi-spatial probe that was lost in the atmosphere of agas giant.Paris and theDelta Flyermanage to safely retrieve the probe.[19]Later that year, Paris is demoted to ensign by Janeway and placed inVoyager's brig for 30 days after disobeying direct ordersto not interferewith another society, called the Moneans, who lived on a planet where the entirety of its surface area was covered in water. Paris, who had an affection for the sea, had become concerned with the planet's gradual loss of water. Upon discovery by Paris that the Moneans' own oxygen-mining operations are to blame for the loss of water, he goes in theDelta Flyerwith a Monean in order to target the oxygen refineries so that they could be temporarily taken out of operation and redesigned in a way that reduced the loss of water. The attack is foiled byVoyagerat the last second, preventing a massive catastrophe. As Paris spends 30 days in the brig, he dictates his whole situation in his personal access display device in the form of a letter to his father to pass the time, later instructing the computer to transmit the letter to his father onceVoyageris within range of Earth.[7]

DuringVoyager's last few years in the Delta Quadrant, Paris is repromoted tolieutenant junior gradein the season 6 finale "Unimatrix Zero"after a year of exemplary service.[20]As Paris and Torres' relationship grew deeper, they marry during an interstellar race.[21]Later that year, when it is revealed that Torres had becomepregnant,Paris manages to convince Torres to let their baby inherit Torres'Klingoncharacteristics when she did not want them.[22]AsVoyagermakes their return to the Alpha Quadrant and Earth in 2378, Torres gives birth to her and Paris' daughter, Miral Paris.[23]

Later career

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Paris briefly appears inStar Trek: Lower Decksin the season 2 episode "We'll Always Have Tom Paris", set approximately three years after the end ofStar Trek:Voyager.InLower Decks,Paris, who by then had been fully promoted to lieutenant, had been moving through various Starfleet ships and posts, conducting handshake tours and speaking of his experiences in the Delta Quadrant. In one instance, Paris visits the USSCerritos,the show's focus ship, much to the excitement of one of the show's main characters.

Non-canonical appearances

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In the non-canonicalVoyagerrelaunch novels, written byChristie Golden,Paris was promoted two steps in rank, like many of theVoyagercrew, and is now alieutenant commander.He is serving as the first officer ofVoyager,under the command of now-CaptainChakotay.

InStar Trek: Voyager – Elite Force,published byActivisionin 2000, Paris appears in the game as the ship's helmsman.

InStar Trek Online,a massive multiplayer online role-playing game developed byCryptic Studios,Paris is active as a Starfleet captain in the early 25th century. Paris makes his first appearance in the game in 2015, with McNeill reprising Paris and voicing him.[24]

Personality

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Personal interests

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Paris had a deep interest in 20th-century Earthpop culture,often utilizing such in his holo-programs. This knowledge helped the crew during time travel incidents.[6]

Paris had also shown an interest incars;he was well-versed with 20th-century automobiles and even created his own holoprogram where he would tinker with cars from that era.[25]This interest was also shown whenVoyagerencountered aFordtruck that originated from 1936 floating in space, as Paris was able to identify the car model and even the year it came from.[26]He also programmed a holoprogram featuring a1957 Chevyfor the Doctor to use when the latter had an attraction to aVidiianpatient.[27]

During Paris' childhood, he had an interest in the sea as well as naval ships; in one instance, Paris was scolded by his father for playing with ancientsailing shipmodels instead of doing his homework. This interest later pushed Paris to do everything in his power to save the Moneans' planet, which was entirely water-based, as it was losing water due to the society's oxygen-mining operations.[7]

While serving onVoyager,Paris also nurtured a long-hidden talent for holo-programming, devising several programs for the entertainment of his fellow crewmembers. His most popular programs included a re-creation of Sandrine's bar, an Irish town called Fair Haven, and a 1930s-era sci-fi movie serial titledCaptain Proton.[9][28][29]

Relationships

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Paris was at times portrayed as feeling resentful toward his father, Owen Paris, due to the latter's words and actions which made Paris feel misunderstood and isolated during his childhood years. Their relationship improved substantially over the course of the series, due to Captain Janeway's willingness to offer him redemption, and later due to his relationship withB'Elanna Torres.

He became good friends with Harry Kim from the start and at times displayed protectiveness in the face of Harry's customary naiveté. In "Caretaker",he rescues the ensign fromQuark,a manipulativeFerengi.[4]Kim later befriends Paris. The bond between both men strengthened after Kim protected Paris while they were imprisoned in a jail complex despite the latter destroying one of Kim's tools while in a delirious state.[16]

Paris also viewed Captain Janeway in high regard. As she recruited Paris to joinVoyageron its initial first mission, he was fatefully brought along to the Delta Quadrant. This made Paris felt like he had been given a second chance in life and was grateful to her for it. In one instance where all members of the crew were forced to abandon ship asVoyagerprepared to self-destruct in order to destroy a missile from hitting an inhabited planet, Paris thanked Janeway for everything she has done before he left the ship in an escape pod while Janeway stayed behind to oversee the auto-destruction sequence.[30]

One member of the crew with whom Paris initially had a somewhat difficult relationship was Chakotay because of their history in theMaquis.[4]Paris also expressed dislike of Chakotay's leadership as he felt that Chakotay was not flexible regarding Starfleet protocols, insisting that he overruled most of the other officers' suggestions and opinions.[27]These tensions even escalated to the point where Paris had to be placed in the brig after pushing Chakotay to the floor.[27]However, it was later revealed that these tensions were all a ruse in a plot to expose a traitor onVoyager,though unbeknownst to Chakotay.[14]Fortunately, throughoutVoyager's seven-year journey home, Paris and Chakotay reconciled (in part due to Paris having earned Chakotay's trust) and became good friends.

Initially, Paris andNeelixalso often got into personal conflicts due to the former's often fraternizations withKes,who was Neelix's girlfriend. Neelix felt jealous of Paris as the latter had given Kes a speciallocketfor her birthday.[31]They later resolved their differences after taking care of an alien baby together while on an away mission.[32]When Paris appeared to be departing the ship in the episode "Investigations",Neelix was shown to be greatly concerned for Paris. When he later found out that Paris was part of a plot to expose a spy aboardVoyager,he volunteered to take part in the plot to bring back Paris safely.[14]When Torres' baby was announced duringVoyager's last year in the quadrant, Paris had initially thought of Neelix to be the child's godfather, though Neelix had to give the role to the Doctor as the former already had goddaughterNaomi Wildman.[22]

Reception

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Wiredranked Paris as the 26th most important character ofStarfleetin 2016,[33]whileComic Book Resourcesranked Paris as the 19th best Starfleet character in 2018.[34]

In 2020,ScreenRantranked B'Elanna Torres and Paris as the 3rd best romantic couple of allStar Trek.[35]In 2021, they also felt that Paris' story arc was an interesting one, as he starts off on probation from Starfleet prison, but then returns to good standing over the course of his adventures on the show.[3]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^Name given based from theStar Trek: Voyagernovel "Full Circle"

References

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  1. ^Okuda, M., & Okuda, D. (1997). The star trek encyclopedia: A reference guide to the future (Updat and expand ed.). New York: Pocket Books. P.374
  2. ^Star Trek: The Next GenerationDVD set, Season 5, Disk 7, "Memorable Missions" featurette.
  3. ^ab"Star Trek: Why Voyager Avoided Reviving A TNG Character".ScreenRant.2021-01-30.Retrieved2021-02-25.
  4. ^abcdefghBerman, Rick; Piller, Michael; Taylor, Jeri (January 16, 1995). "Caretaker".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 1. Episode 1. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  5. ^Okuda, Michael; Okuda, Denise; Mirek, Debbie (2011-05-17).The Star Trek Encyclopedia.Simon and Schuster.ISBN978-1-4516-4688-7.
  6. ^abBraga, Brannon; Menosky, Joe (November 13, 1996). "Future's End".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 3. Episode 8 & 9. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  7. ^abcBiller, Kenneth; Miller, Scott (December 9, 1998). "Thirty Days".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 5. Episode 9. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  8. ^abBraga, Brannon (September 25, 1995). "Non Sequitur".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 5. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  9. ^abSzollosi, Tom; Piller, Michael; Braga, Brannon (February 13, 1995). "The Cloud".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 1. Episode 6. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  10. ^Braga, Brannon; Trombetta, Jim (January 23, 1995). "Parallax".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 1. Episode 3. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  11. ^Dent, Skye; Braga, Brannon; DeHaas, Timothy (February 6, 1995). "Phage".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 1. Episode 5. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  12. ^Carlos Somers, Evan; Piller, Michael (February 27, 1995). "Ex Post Facto".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 1. Episode 8. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  13. ^Braga, Brannon; De Luca, Michael (January 29, 1996). "Threshold".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 15. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  14. ^abcTaylor, Jeri; Schnaufer, Jeff; Bond, Ed (March 13, 1996). "Investigations".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 20. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  15. ^Piller, Michael (September 4, 1996). "Basics".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 3. Episode 1. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  16. ^abBiller, Kenneth; C. Harris, Clayvon (September 18, 1996). "The Chute".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 3. Episode 3. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  17. ^Klink, Lisa (February 5, 1997). "Blood Fever".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 3. Episode 16. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  18. ^Taylor, Jeri (September 17, 1997). "Day of Honor".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 4. Episode 3. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  19. ^Biller, Kenneth (October 28, 1998). "Extreme Risk".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 5. Episode 3. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  20. ^Braga, Brannon; Menosky, Joe; Sussman, Mike (May 24, 2000). "Unimatrix Zero".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 6. Episode 26. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  21. ^Taylor, Michael (October 18, 2000). "Drive".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 7. Episode 3. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  22. ^abKahn, James (January 24, 2001). "Lineage".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 7. Episode 12. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  23. ^Berman, Rick; Biller, Kenneth; Braga, Brannon; Doherty, Robert (May 23, 2001). "Endgame".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 7. Episode 26. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  24. ^"Tom Paris Reporting For Duty!".Arc Games.April 16, 2015.RetrievedOctober 2,2021.
  25. ^Doherty, Robert (April 8, 1998). "Vis à Vis".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 4. Episode 20. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  26. ^Braga, Brannon; Taylor, Jeri (August 28, 1995). "The 37's".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 1. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  27. ^abcBiller, Kenneth (February 26, 1996). "Lifesigns".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 19. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  28. ^Bernheim, Robin (January 12, 2000). "Fair Haven".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 6. Episode 11. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  29. ^Braga, Brannon; Menosky, Joe (October 14, 1998). "Night".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 5. Episode 1. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  30. ^Holland, Gary (February 12, 1996). "Dreadnought".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 17. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  31. ^Biller, Kenneth; Rudnick, Arnold; Hosek, Rich (October 2, 1995). "Twisted".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 6. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  32. ^Szollosi, Tom (October 9, 1995). "Parturition".Star Trek: Voyager.Season 2. Episode 7. UPN.Voyager Episode Transcript.
  33. ^McMillan, Graeme (2016-09-05)."Star Trek's 100 Most Important Crew Members, Ranked".Wired.ISSN1059-1028.Retrieved2019-03-20.
  34. ^"Star Trek: The 25 Best Members Of Starfleet, Ranked".CBR.2018-10-27.Retrieved2019-06-20.
  35. ^"The 10 Best Couples In Star Trek, Ranked".ScreenRant.2021-02-04.Retrieved2021-02-17.
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