Star Trek: 10 Times Captain Janeway Was Right And Everyone Else Was Wrong

10. Rejecting Villainy In The Void

When Voyager is pulled in to an area of subspace in the titular episode, the crew realise that the place is quite literally a void. There are no stars, no planets, and especially no deuterium. The only matter of any kind is the other ships that are unwittingly trapped there, and the competition for resources is, hence, ferocious and deadly. Even worse, being in the Void is draining the warp core, and Voyager is immediately attacked.

When it becomes clear that ship’s resources aren’t going to last long in these circumstances, Chakotay and Tuvok, wondering if they should be more 'opportunistic' whilst in the Void, gang up on Captain Janeway. When they ask if the crew should be willing to die for their principles, Janeway delivers one of the best, most just ripostes of any captain:

If the alternative means becoming thieves and killers ourselves, yes. […] We may lose a little weight, gentlemen, but we won’t lose who we are.

She proposes forming a sort of 'mini-Federation' ('the Alliance') to share food, supplies, and relevant technology with anyone willing to play by the rules: no stealing, no killing, and no giving up! Chakotay and Tuvok (again!) are immediately sceptical, and later Seven expresses her frustration before making a rapid about-turn with Fantome.

In the end, Janeway is right and her detractors are wrong. Despite the odd speedbump, the Alliance is such a success that all the ships within it escape the Void with Voyager.