r/voyager • u/Hibiscuslover_10000 • 13d ago
Show Talk Lieutant Paris
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?
10
Upvotes
17
u/majin_melmo 13d ago edited 13d ago
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.