This is an episode that is 70% A story that totally works and the B story just doesn't. Most of the episode takes place in a flashback to 21st century America when we built an arcology (which they never describe as such even though that is obviously what they are talking about) in the midwest that paved the way for our transition to a multi-planetary species. Specifically it is about an ancestor of the captain who didn't make it as an astronaut getting involved with a guy protesting the project and eventually getting a job working on it. Also she falls in love with the guy and marry's him getting the name Janeway. That stuff is mostly fine. But they also a Neelix heavy B story back on the ship for no apparent reason. Living Witness would have been half the powerful episode it is if it were intercut this way and I can't help but wonder how much better this could have been.
We open with Neelix and the captain discussing Earth history and Janeway bragging about her ancestor who helped build the Millenium Gate, earth's first arcology. Cut to the year 2000 (I am going to pretty much ignore the cuts back to the ship from here on out). Shannon O'Donnell is driving her gradually failing car through Indiana when she passes a Millenium Gate sign. She pulls off the highway looking for gas and gets into an accident. She doesn't have insurance and is too poor to pay her bill so the guy lets her go. It seems the town is all empty except for one book store and when she goes inside she meets Henry Janeway and his son Jason. They are the only holdouts in the town, everyone else has accepted the generous buyout offers so make way for the Gate. She manages to talk her way into a job help organize the protest since Henry doesn't even have a computer.
Outside the store Henry gets into an argument with the spokes person for the Gate who tells him that if he doesn't sell they will likely move the project somewhere else but that just makes Henry get excited. Later that night Shannon runs into the Gate guy in the bar and he offers her a job on the project if she can convince Henry to sell. He also convinces her that the project is actually worth it. Instead of convincing him though they get into a fight and she leaves to drive to Florida. But before he makes it too far she returns, she is in love with Henry. Just hours before the deadline she returns to the store and convinces Henry to sell and marry her and let her work on the Gate while they build a life together. Back on the ship they have an ancestors party or something.
Review: I wasn't sure but I ended up liking the story set in the past quite a bit. I didn't like the cutting back and forth though. Maybe they didn't think they had enough story? It kinda felt like that a bit.
6 out of 10
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