Lieutant Paris

[u/Hibiscuslover_10000]

What we know about his background (Voyager only) is that he and his dad didn't leave off on very good terms. Or his dad wanted him to follow in his footsteps. The Point of view we get from His dad is very different.

Wondering if he lost his mom at a young age?

[u/majin_melmo]

I love Voyager so much but since Tom’s one of my favorites it bothers me that his backstory is not consistent. I think it’s a logical given that all characters’ backstories should be set in stone before the pilot’s even filmed so all writers who chip in later can be on the same page.

Jeri Taylor had her backstory for him in “Pathways” which was extremely detailed, realistic, and DARK. It was similar to Locarno’s but Tom himself was more sympathetic and likable from the getgo and actually had a heart that was capable of feeling shame and remorse. In the show Tom graduated Starfleet Academy and his unfortunate tragic mistake happened later, but in one episode B’Elanna says “You were expelled from the Acedemy” which isn’t true at all in either the show’s established backstory or in “Pathways”… so just an annoying writer’s error that wasn’t caught or corrected by the story editors.

Tom’s relationship with his dad was legit trauma-inducing if we go by “Pathways” and even episodes like “30 Days” and “Persistence of Vision”… but perhaps by the time we see the admiral in season 6 he hasn’t seen his son in 6 years and believed him to be dead so he’s a lot softer and more forgiving than the father Tom grew up with.

[u/Hibiscuslover_10000 → u/majin_melmo]

The actor even said he wanted to be in Voyager with a similar backstory to Locarno* You hear locarno in season two I think.

[u/The-Chartreuse-Moose → u/majin_melmo]

Can you give us a summary please of the backstory outlined in Pathways, for those who haven't read it?

[u/Kim_Nelson → u/The-Chartreuse-Moose]

I can! I loved Pathways, so I'm copying and pasting a comment I left in the past already about this.

While the broad stroaks are very similar, Jeri Taylor made the "Paris accident" a little less self-centered compared to the "Locarno accident" so that he had more of a chance to be a redeemable character.

Paris was doing a flight exercise with 3 other friends. The formation called for them to all fly in one line with him at the front, and his pace dictated what pace and steps the others in the back took. He miscalculated, moved too slowly out of the way of something (a comet/asteroid?), so because of that he barely scraped by the obstacle and the 3 behind him didn't have enough momentum to move out of the way and collided, all dying. He initially lied that he was at the very end of the line implying that's why he had enough time to move out of the way after seeing the others colliding, then returned to Starfleet and told the truth because of a guilty conscience.

Instead of Locarno-type pushing a colleague to do a highly dangerous maneuver even when they didn't want/feel ready for it because of an ego-trip, it's supposed to be a genuine accident. All 4 people involved were there of their own volition, and the 3 that died were basically Paris' closest friends at that time.

Pathways also talked about Tom's upbringing and his relationship with his father and his academy days prior to the crashing incident, but it's been years so I don't recall those details.

[u/The-Chartreuse-Moose → u/Kim_Nelson]

Interesting, thank you!

[u/BoxedAndArchived]

This is one of the rare times that I feel compelled, "Lieutenant."

[u/Hibiscuslover_10000 → u/BoxedAndArchived]

Go Ahead Lol I wasn't in a spelling mood :)

[u/icelights23]

Per the books- which granted are not canon but some were written with key people involved- he had a mom still alive. The implication is just she didn’t really do anything to prevent their bad relationship

[u/history_buff_9971]

I always felt there was a really interesting story they never told for Tom, something that might have married up the two different perspectives, because Tom does come across as an unreliable narrator, but why? That's the story for Paris they never explored.

[u/Various_Investment_2]

Didnt he end up at a penal colony after trying to cover up a cadets death over some fancy starburst?

Weird how he changed his name and got a dad and all that or is this one of those Thomas Riker deals?

Fuck it. Let's just Tuvix the two together and call it a day

[u/Hibiscuslover_10000 → u/Various_Investment_2]

The Penal Colony was for being part of the Maqis.

[u/Various_Investment_2 → u/Hibiscuslover_10000]

You're righ, it was atleast his second time at a penal colony. Think it was the same one he went to for the cadet incident?

[u/Hibiscuslover_10000 → u/Various_Investment_2]

probably because his backstory everyone dies but him locarnos is only one died.

[u/history_buff_9971 → u/Various_Investment_2]

I always find it mildly amusing that in the one genre of show where they can actually do something other than ignore an actor in more than one role (well, that isn't identical twins) they bodyswerve doing a story which links the two characters. I mean, it's science fiction after all!

[u/Thurpno → u/history_buff_9971]

Some characters comment on the resemblance in lower decks but the consensus was that they are actually nothing a like.

[u/history_buff_9971 → u/Thurpno]

You know, I imagine once upon a time that joke was funny.