But That's Not REAL Star Trek! 7 Reviews That Judged Star Trek Too Quickly
3. When The Maquis Put On Those Starfleet Uniforms At The End Of The Pilot, The Show Was Dead
The above quote was spoken by Ronald D. Moore, the writer who had effectively written the Klingon bible for Star Trek, brought much of Deep Space Nine's adult themes to the fore and who went on to develop the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica. He is a man who's opinion carries weight, and he was damning of the pilot.
Voyager's central theme, other than being lost in the Delta Quadrant, was that the ship was comprised of two crews - one Starfleet and one Maquis. It is fair to say that the Maquis subplot was dropped from the day to day ideas very quickly, as Chakotay and the rest were assimilated into Starfleet as quickly as if they had been assimilated by the Borg.
However, this led to some wonderful storylines. While Chakotay's Native American heritage was quickly dropped, his idealism remained a part of his character going forward. Torres never quite settled into the upstanding Starfleet mold and the various other Maquis members popped up now and again to bring strife, most notably with Seska.
Had the show used this Maquis plot more effectively, then perhaps the series would be a very different beast. As it stands, while never as popular as its forebears, Voyager remains a solid entry in the franchise with some wonderful episodes and characters. The Maquis may have been a fizzled out plot, but the show itself took off.