Line #154 Recap/StarTrekVoyagerS3E25S4E1Scorpion


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/voy_scorpion2082.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:The debut of Seven Of Nine.]]
3	A new enemy, capable of blasting the Borg to bits, is threatening to destroy the Collective and then overwhelm the Delta Quadrant. Janeway must form a dangerous alliance with the Borg, represented by the drone Seven of Nine, in order to have any hope of surviving this new threat.
4	-----
5	!!This episode contains the following tropes:
6
7	* AbortedArc: Janeway has created a holoprogram where she can interact with Creator/LeonardoDaVinci and does so over several future episodes. This replaces the never-completed Gothic mystery where she plays a governess.
8	** The infection of Species 8472 of Harry's body is a terrifying threat, eating him alive, all through Part 1. Within moments of Part 2, the Doctor has cleared it up and Harry gets back to duty and the deadly nature of Species 8472's infection with a touch is never mentioned again.
9	* AbsoluteXenophobe: Species 8472 are furious over the 'contamination' of Fluidic Space by outsiders (they are the only species that exists there) and are determined to annihilate all other life in the galaxy.
10	* AchillesHeel: The Borg gather information by assimilation. [[CripplingOverspecialization Unfortunately the cells of Species 8472 are too densely coded for their nanoprobes to work.]] ''Voyager'''s crew (who gather information by investigation) know more about the Species after a few hours than the Borg do after months of conflict.
11	* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene: Janeway shares a couple of quiet moments with Leonardo and Chakotay.
12	* AHouseDivided: Janeway finds herself at odds with her NumberOne, as Chakotay is fundamentally opposed to the alliance with the Borg on moral and practical grounds.
13	-->'''Janeway:''' There are two wars going on. The one out there, and the one in here, and we're losing both of them.
14	* AlienInvasion: Of the entire galaxy. Or at least [[NotSoOmniscientAfterAll according to Kes]]. However, Species 8472 are (extradimensional) alien invaders who are ironically invading the core territory of the Borg, who [[LaserGuidedKarma are themselves alien invaders to the rest of the species in the galaxy]] and who actually invaded Fluidic Space first.
15	* AlwaysABiggerFish: Species 8472 proves to be a ''lot'' more powerful than the Borg, and the attempt to invade Fluidic Space and assimilate them results in a devastating counterattack. Worse, they've seemingly assumed that ''every'' being from outside Fluidic Space is like [[YouWillBeAssimilated the Borg]], meaning the ''entire galaxy'' is at risk from this species' presence...
16	* AndIMustScream: After being attacked by Species 8472, Kim is slowly EatenAlive by alien cells...while he's ''fully conscious''. The only reason he isn't screaming is because he's unable to.
17	* AnotherDimension / EldritchLocation: Fluidic Space.
18	* ArmCannon: Seven appears to have one, as she points her arm at Chakotay when he confronts her with a compression phaser rifle.
19	* ArmorPiercingQuestion: Janeway's attempt to justify the alliance start out with fairly reasonable arguments (such as Species 8472 possibly being a threat months down the line), but as described in WhatTheHellHero, it shifts to downright personal when Chakotay asks her, "How much is our safety worth?"
20	* BadassBoast: Seven threatens to [[ZergRush teleport 500 drones onto Voyager]]. "Do you believe you could offer sufficient resistance?" Janeway says simply that [[DefiantToTheEnd they'd die trying]].
21	* BarrierBustingBlow: The crew's introduction to Species 8472, which then proceeds to [[AttackHello bitch-slap Harry]].
22	* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: After Chakotay asks if she's learned where Species 8472 comes from, B'Elanna regrettably does and shows him a feed of the "Northwest Passage" area the crew's been trying to reach.
23	* BetterTheDevilYouKnow: The reason Janeway decides to side with the Borg rather than Species 8472.
24	* BigOMG: Chakotay when he sees ''15'' Borg Cubes approaching ''Voyager'' from behind.
25	* BodyHorror:
26	** Harry spends half the episode being eaten alive by a Species 8472 infection.
27	** The Borg were already low-key body horror, but fans got pretty used to them over their appearances in the show and movies. So how do you make them horrific again? Show a mangled mass of them merged together into a flesh and metal terror sculpture by 8472's infection.
28	* BothSidesHaveAPoint: Janeway's alliance with The Borg is treated as a necessary evil to ensure safe passage through Borg space, but Chakotay opposes her decision on the grounds that The Borg will inevitably betray the crew and try to assimilate them. Though Chakotay does disobey orders to maintain the alliance and prepares to drop The Borg off on an uninhabited world when they order him to take the ship into Borg space, Janeway at least understands why he did it. On the other hand, Chakotay isn't wrong about The Borg when they do inevitably decide to take the ship and assimilate its crew after Species 8472 is defeated, though Janeway isn't wrong that she still has to get the crew home, Borg or no Borg.
29	* BriefAccentImitation: Janeway when quoting the reports of other Starfleet captains. Immediately after it, Chakotay comments that Ensign Hickman does a pretty good copy of her.
30	* CallBack:
31	** Janeway asks that the Borg chose a drone to act as a liaison, as they did with [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E26S4E1TheBestOfBothWorlds Locutus of Borg]].
32	** Word of God says the shot of Voyager flying through the Borg debris field is a deliberate homage to the Wolf 359 graveyard from the same episode.
33	** Chakotay's innate distrust of the Borg comes from the events of "Unity", when he was implanted with a Borg neural transceiver that was [[AndIMustScream later used to control him]]. Also the Doctor has been analysing the Borg corpse they recovered in that episode.
34	** Janeway studies {{Captains Log}}s from the moment [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS2E16QWho Q first hurled]] ''Enterprise'' far off into deep space at System J-25, to the [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E26S4E1TheBestOfBothWorlds Battle of Wolf 359]].
35	** When Seven talks about weapons to use against Species 8472, [[https://voy.star-trek.info/albums/Season4/4x01-ScorpionPart2/ariane179254_StarTrekVoyager_4x01-ScorpionPart2_0981.jpg the display shows the ship the renegade Borg used]] from the two-part TNG episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS6E24S7E1Descent Descent]]".
36	* CaptainObvious: Seven contemptuously replies, "We are Borg" whenever she's asked a stupid question like [[TheAssimilator "How did you get this classified Starfleet information?"]] or [[InsufferableGenius "Do you have a better idea?"]]
37	* CaptainsLog: At the end of the episode, Janeway writes hers with [[GoodOldWays quill and parchment]].
38	* CatchphraseInterruptus: The episode opens with a pair of Borg cubes doing their YouWillBeAssimilated ResistanceIsFutile thing, only to be KilledMidSentence.
39	* TheChainsOfCommanding: Janeway ponders how she's LonelyAtTheTop, having to make the decision over whether they should proceed into Borg space at great risk, or give up and spend the rest of their lives in the Delta Quadrant. Chakotay assures her YouAreNotAlone. Later when Chakotay won't support her alliance with the Borg, Janeway declares that she's alone after all.
40	* ChekhovsGun: The neural transceiver; the Borg attempt to use them on Janeway and Tuvok in order to link their thoughts to the HiveMind. Chakotay later uses one to link his thoughts with Seven of Nine to distract her.
41	* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Once Species 8472 have been dealt with, Seven of Nine tries to assimilate ''Voyager''.
42	* CirclingMonologue: Seven of Nine when delivering TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
43	* {{Cliffhanger}}: Janeway is in the midst of negotiating an alliance when a squadron of Species 8472 bioships attack and destroys a nearby Borg planet. Only one Borg cube survives the EarthShatteringKaboom and does a HyperspeedEscape while tractoring Voyager behind it.
44	* ClockPunk: Leonardo proudly shows off a clockwork automaton he dubs "The Arm of Hephaestos".
45	* ConservationOfNinjutsu: ''Voyager'' is clipped by a shot that we've seen can rip apart a Borg cube.
46	* ConverseWithTheUnconscious: The Doctor has to put Captain Janeway in an induced coma to treat her injuries. Her last orders are to keep the alliance going, but Chakotay quickly finds a pretext to break off the agreement. Afterwards he goes to Sickbay to apologise to an unconscious Janeway.
47	-->'''Chakotay:''' Well, I've made my decision. If it were only a matter of going against the orders of my superior officer. You're more than just my Captain. You're my friend. I hope you'll understand.
48	* CripplingOverspecialization: It's established in this two-parter that the Borg have gotten so used to being able to forcibly assimilate anything they want that they no longer have the ability to conventionally analyse and counteract threats.
49	* CurbStompBattle: Species 8472 is winning their war against the Borg. A single 8472 bioship was able to wipe out a fleet of 15 cubes all by itself, and a group of 10 acting in concert can Death Star ''a planet''.
50	* CuteMonsterGirl: Q described the first Borg drone Starfleet encountered as "neither a he nor a she". Seven of Nine is [[MsFanservice very much a she]]; even full Borg assimilation can't hide her great... implants. Apparently [[BuxomBeautyStandard large breasts are not irrelevant]] despite the existence of Borg maturation chambers. This is due to the evolution of the Borg concept from their first appearance in "Q Who?" to their second in "The Best of Both Worlds": originally, they were meant to be a species which had bio-engineered themselves out of male/female roles and were only interested in other species technology, but the writers came up with the idea of assimilation, which became their primary trait. Seven looks like a human woman because she ''is'' a human woman, not whatever the Borg began as.
51	* [[DeadGuyOnDisplay Dead Drone on Display]]: The crew find a bunch of dismembered Borg drones stacked in a pile.
52	* DeadMansSwitch: To stop the Borg from assimilating Voyager, all information on the nanoprobe weapon is stored in the Doctor's database where he can erase it by deleting his own program.
53	* DealWithTheDevil: Quoted by Janeway, when she decides to form an alliance with the Borg.
54	* DeerInTheHeadlights: Chakotay's expression when face-to-face with the Borg in the cargo bay.
55	* DerelictGraveyard: The crew find the remains of the fifteen Borg cubes that passed them by...and a [[CurbStompBattle single Species 8472 vessel]].
56	* DispenseWithThePleasantries: When Janeway starts asking Seven about her pre-assimilation past, [[ThatManIsDead Seven cuts her off]]. "Do not engage us in further irrelevant discourse."
57	* DoYouTrustMe
58	-->'''Janeway:''' Do you trust me, Chakotay?
59	-->'''Chakotay:''' That isn't the issue.
60	-->'''Janeway:''' Oh, but it is. Only yesterday you were saying that we'd face this together, that you'd be at my side.
61	-->'''Chakotay:''' [[TheLancer I still have to tell you what I believe. I'm no good to you if I don't do that.]]
62	-->'''Janeway:''' I appreciate your insights, but the time for debate is over. I've made my decision.
63	* DramaticDrop: Kes drops a tray when she has a vision of Harry Kim screaming in agony.
64	* DramaticIrony: A Meta cross-series one. "Scorpion, Part 1" aired concurrently with the ''Deep Space Nine'' Season Five finale [[Recap/StarTrekDeepSpaceNineS05E26CallToArms ''Call to Arms'']], wherein Sisko and company were dealing with the commencement of the Dominion War. So Janeway and the others are thus fighting to save the Delta Quadrant and the rest of the galaxy from the existential threat posed by Species 8472 while being completely unaware the Federation's ''already'' dealing with an invasion on their end -- and that even if Janeway can stop Species 8472, there may not even be a Federation for them to come back home to thanks to the Dominion.
65	* DudeWheresMyRespect: After Species 8472 retreats from the Delta Quadrant.
66	--> '''Seven:''' The Borg have prevailed.\
67	'''Janeway:''' With a little help from us.
68	* DudeWheresMyReward:
69	-->'''Leonardo:''' The cardinal is a thief. I delivered to him two portraits of [[UpperClassTwit his mindless nephew]] less than three months ago. "To be depicted in the heroic mode of an Hercules or an Achilles," so specified our contract. I complied, making that young fool of a nephew [[AdaptationalAttractiveness look far more heroic than nature ever intended]]. An act on my part far greater than anything ever accomplished by Hercules or Achilles! And what have I, the divine Leonardo da Vinci, received in payment?\
70	'''Janeway:''' The cardinal's eternal gratitude?\
71	'''Leonardo:''' Ha ha. ''Esatto''! In other words, ''signorina'', less than nothing.
72	* DynamicEntry: Species 8472 introduces itself by smashing through a wall on what's left of a Borg cube, right before [[AttackHello bitch-slapping]] [[ButtMonkey Harry Kim]].
73	* EarthShatteringKaboom: Part 1 ends with Species 8472 blowing a Borg planet to smithereens with their [[ConvergingStreamWeapon converging stream]] WaveMotionGun.
74	* EnemyMine: The alliance between Janeway and the Borg.
75	-->'''The Borg:''' Species 8472 must be stopped. Our survival is your survival.
76	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: From the moment she's unplugged from her alcove, Seven of Nine shows herself to be notably different from the childlike [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E23IBorg Hugh]] or the monotone [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E26S4E1TheBestOfBothWorlds Locutus]]. Her first words are, "I speak for the Borg" whereas past drones referred to themselves a "we". Unlike in "I, Borg" where this change signified a Borg drone becoming deprogrammed, it shows the extent to which Seven willingly identifies herself with the Collective. She's so proud of her Borg nature and aggressive towards Janeway that the HiveMind can be seen [[AssInAmbassador silently pulling her back into line]] on one occasion.
77	* EveryoneHasStandards: Chakotay won't defend Species 8472 themselves, but he just can't stand the idea of helping "a race guilty of murdering billions" to get themselves back home and is taken aback by Janeway suggesting they'd be doing the Delta Quadrant a favor.
78	* EvilerThanThou: Species 8472, big time. It's not often that [[TheDreaded the Borg]] are afraid of anything.
79	* ExcessiveSteamSyndrome: Clouds of green steam and the tight confines of the Borg vessel don't make things easy for the Away Team.
80	* FacialDialogue
81	** When B'Elanna can't beam the away team off the bioship, Janeway gives her a DisapprovingLook. B'Elanna quickly comes up with another option.
82	** When Chakotay says that turning back doesn't mean giving up on their quest to get home, Janeway just gives a skeptical "Yeah, right!" look.
83	** Lots of {{Meaningful Look}}s between crewmembers unwilling to openly question their superiors; first when Janeway proposes the alliance, then when Chakotay says he's putting an end to it.
84	* TheFarmerAndTheViper: Captain Janeway plans a temporary alliance with the Borg in order to combat Species 8472. When she asks for Chakotay's personal opinion, he relates the parable of "The Scorpion and The Fox". Oddly, the story as told is more tragic than the usual setup, with the scorpion [[TragicVillain apologizing for being unable to help its nature]], when the Borg would consider such an apology irrelevant.
85	* FireForgedFriends: Chakotay gets the [[PuppyDogEyes Gooey Look]] when he tells Captain Janeway YouAreNotAlone in coping with TheChainsOfCommanding.
86	-->'''Janeway:''' Three years ago, I didn't even know your name. Today I can't imagine a day without you.
87	* FleshVersusSteel: The OrganicTechnology of Species 8472 vs. the cybernetic technology of the Borg.
88	* ForeignCussWord: Courtesy of Leonardo, when his machine breaks: ''"Che cazzo?"''[[note]]"What the fuck?"[[/note]]
89	* {{Foreshadowing}}
90	** The crew dubs the apparently safe way through Borg space the "Northwest Passage." Naming something after a nigh-mythical sea route that didn't exist and hundreds of people died trying to find [[WhatDidYouExpectWhenYouNamedIt should make it clear that this path isn't exactly safe]].
91	** Leonardo declares he will build a flying machine, which finally takes wing in "Concerning Flight".
92	** Kes' mental powers will increase even further in the following episode, "The Gift".
93	* TheGadfly: Harry returns to the bridge after all the alien cells devouring his body have been destroyed. B'Elanna tells Harry he still has a tendril up his nose.
94	* GallowsHumor
95	-->'''EMH:''' Don't worry, I'll delete myself at the first sign of trouble. [[VerbalBackspace Well, maybe not the first sign]].
96	* GodzillaThreshold: The fact that the Borg are willing to negotiate with ''Voyager'' at all is proof of how badly they are losing their war against Species 8472.
97	* HardWorkMontage: The crew preparing to enter Borg space.
98	* HopeSpot:
99	** The crew is relieved when the 15 Borg ships leave without incident, but Janeway knows it means something big is going on and that they'd better be aware of it.
100	** The crew spends much of Part 1 trying to get to "the Northwest Passage" safely, as it's the only part of the region that the Borg are avoiding. When they finally get close enough, they learn why the Borg don't venture there: it's full of Species 8472 ships, all of which are emerging from a quantum singularity.
101	* HyperspeedEscape: About the only thing anyone can do against Species 8472 until the nanoprobe-infused torpedoes are completed.
102	* IKnowYoureInThereSomewhereFight: Chakotay interfaces with Seven of Nine and accesses her childhood memories.
103	-->'''Chakotay:''' Listen to your human side...to yourself...the little girl...Seven of Nine! ''[[IKnowYourTrueName Annika!]]''
104	* ImpliedDeathThreat
105	-->'''Chakotay:''' Look, I'll honor the original agreement, but I'm not turning this ship around. It's too dangerous.
106	-->'''Seven:''' Denying our request is also dangerous.
107	* InevitableMutualBetrayal: As soon as Species 8472 withdraws, Seven tries to assimilate ''Voyager''. Fortunately, Janeway and Chakotay are prepared.
108	* InfiniteSupplies: A group of fans who kept count of the number of torpedoes the ship fires discovered that, [[SeriesContinuityError based on the 38 torpedoes they were stated to have]] in the pilot, this is where they should have run out.
109	* {{Irony}}: The Borg also considered the EnemyMine agreement unworkable, due to humanity's individuality and fractious nature.
110	* ItsWhatIDo
111	* KilledMidSentence: The Borg cubes from the opening are destroyed while delivering their "ResistanceIsFutile" line to Species 8472.
112	--> "We are the Borg. Existence as you know it has ended. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Resistance is--" ''('''BOOOOOOOOOM''')''
113	* TheLancer: Chakotay fills this role for Janeway as much in this episode as any other.
114	* LargeHam: The Creator/LeonardoDaVinci hologram, as played by John Rhys-Davies.
115	* LetsSplitUpGang: The away team has only three people, so while Harry is busy downloading data from a Borg distribution node, Chakotay and Tuvok go to investigate the bioship's interior. Harry starts to hear creepy alien roars as the pilot becomes aware of their presence, but Harry isn't attacked until after the away team join up again, so this trope is just used to increase the suspense.
116	* LivingShip: The bioships used by Species 8472.
117	* LockAndLoadMontage: Right after the briefing on the upcoming passage through Borg space.
118	* LogicalWeakness: The Borg rely on assimilation of technology and individuals into the Collective in order to understand their opponent and [[ItOnlyWorksOnce form countermeasure against any tricks their quarry might come up with]]. Species 8472 is an OrganicTechnology species whose immune system is so powerful that Borg assimilation doesn't work on them, and their offensive weaponry so devastating even a Borg cube can't handle more than a couple of hits, leaving them with no room to adapt. The Voyager crew note with interest that because the Borg are focused on assimilation they are incapable of innovation, The Doctor managed to devise a modest countermeasure through traditional study, trial and error.
119	* MaleGaze:
120	** The final shot of "Scorpion, Part Two", with pre-catsuit Seven lying on the biobed while the camera tracks across her prominent Borg implants.
121	** We also get a lingering shot of Kes' tush in her blue velvet FutureSpandex.
122	* MassOhCrap: This episode has two in quick succession. First, ''Voyager'' encounters FIFTEEN Borg cubes. Just one of them managed to destroy 39 ships and kill 11,000 people at Wolf 359, and here ''Voyager'' comes across a fleet of them. And they pass by without bothering to assimilate or destroy ''Voyager''. A little later, ''Voyager'' runs across those same fifteen cubes... as a debris field. OhCrap really doesn't begin to cover it.
123	* MirrorScare: Kes sees an alien reflected in a LCARS panel, but it's all in her head as Species 8472 are accessing her memories to find out about Voyager.
124	* NoodleIncident: When studying up on the Borg, Janeway quotes Captain Amasov of the ''Endeavor'', who previously encountered/fought the Borg. The details of this are never made clear, but given that established canon states that 39 of 40 Federation ships were destroyed at the Battle of Wolf 359, his ship may have been the sole survivor.
125	* NoSell:
126	** Borg weapons prove useless against Species 8472 until ''Voyager'' comes up with modified nanoprobes.
127	** On the disabled Borg cube, the away team finds a Borg drone trying to assimilate part of a bioship's hull over and over again without success.
128	* [[NotWorthKilling Not Worth Assimilating]]: An armada of Borg cubes flies right past ''Voyager'' without stopping, shortly after they enter Borg territory. Only a single ship lingers to scan them, then flies off without trying to attack or assimilate them. As the crew later learns, the Borg had a much bigger problem to deal with.
129	* NothingIsScarier: One of the best teasers in the franchise, and one of the shortest. Two cubes pull up and begin their "ResistanceIsFutile" speech only to be destroyed by a volley of lightning-esque attacks. We don't know what attacked them until halfway through the episode.
130	* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: Seven of Nine's addition to the cast.
131	* NotSoStoic: Tuvok shows a brief moment of fear when the Borg try to attach neural doodads to him and Janeway. Given [[MindRape what usually follows]], this is perfectly understandable.
132	* OffTheShelfFX: The pile of Borg corpses is actually a twelve-inch pile of Playmates Toys action figures that were cut up, glued together, repainted and composited into the scene at the right scale.
133	* OneWordTitle
134	* OOCIsSeriousBusiness:
135	** Near the beginning of the two-parter, Voyager encounters FIFTEEN Borg Cubes closing in behind them...who proceed to more or less IGNORE the starship belonging to one of their primary assimilation targets.
136	** Chakotay doesn't respond to the Doctor's GallowsHumor and snaps at B'Elanna, showing just how unhappy he is at being anywhere near the Borg.
137	** The fact that the Borg are willing to negotiate with Janeway at all shows just how badly they are losing the war with Species 8472.
138	* OrganicTechnology: What excited the Borg about Species 8472 in the first place.
139	* OutsideContextProblem: Species 8472 to ''Voyager'' and the Borg. To think that the Borg themselves used to be this trope!
140	* PintSizedPowerhouse: Species 8472 bio-ships take this up to eleven and then some. One such ship is much smaller than ''Voyager'', yet can destroy a Borg cube within two shots, and nine of them can [[EarthShatteringKaboom annihilate a planet]].
141	* PlotDrivenBreakdown: When Voyager encounters the armada of Borg cubes, they can't do a HyperspeedEscape as the subspace turbulence from all those transwarp-powered cubes is collapsing their warp field.
142	* PokeInTheThirdEye: The aliens tap into Kes' mind via her psychic powers.
143	* PowerPincers: A couple of drones with a large mechanical pincer in place of one hand clamp them around Janeway and Tuvok's necks so they can be implanted with a neural transceiver.
144	* PrayerIsALastResort: Subverted; Leonardo suggests that 'Catarina' accompany him to a church and they pray for guidance. [[OutgrownSuchSillySuperstitions Janeway politely turns down the offer]], but then has a EurekaMoment: What if she made a DealWithTheDevil instead?
145	* RammingAlwaysWorks: When a Species 8472 bioship is pursuing them, the Borg Cube escorting ''Voyager'' turns around to ram the bioship, destroying both ships but protecting the weapon being developed on ''Voyager''.
146	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: And The Reason The Collective Do Not.
147	-->'''Seven:''' When your captain first approached us, we suspected that an agreement with humans would prove impossible to maintain. [[TheEvilsOfFreeWill You are erratic, conflicted, disorganised. Every decision is debated, every action questioned. Every individual entitled to their own small opinion.]] You lack harmony, cohesion... [[PunyEarthlings greatness]]. It will be your undoing.
148	* ResistanceIsFutile: Not so much in the case of Species 8472.
149	-->'''Doctor:''' Resistance, in this case, is far from futile.
150	* RidiculouslyDifficultRoute: The so-called Northwest Passage is a risky corridor through Borg territory that the Borg avoid due to its quantum singularities. Turns out this wormhole activity is the conduit for an invasion force.
151	* RoarBeforeBeating: While working alone on the Borg data node, Harry starts to hear strange alien cries.
152	* RogerRabbitEffect: With the improvements in CGI, the producers decided to have an alien that wasn't a ManInARubberSuit or the usual RubberForeheadAliens, and created Species 8472.
153	* RuleOfThree: The Doctor successfully treats Harry and then Janeway, boasting to Chakotay; "I'm two for two!" By the end of the episode he's fixed up Chakotay as well.
154	* RunningGag: On several occasions, Seven of Nine responds to one of Janeway or Tuvok's questions with "We are Borg".
155	* SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale: The fifteen cubes destroyed by species 8472 in the first part of the episode are found to be about 5.2 light years from Voyager's position. Captain Janeway orders to lay in a course to their position at warp two. According to [[http://en.memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Warp_factor Memory Alpha]], warp two is around 8-10 times the speed of light. Traveling 5.2 light years at that speed would have taken about six months.
156	* {{Seers}}: Kes has flashes of events to come; she even [[FaintingSeer passes out at one point]].
157	* ShuttingUpNow: Chakotay enters Sickbay to find Captain Janeway on her feet, DeathGlare cranked up to eleven. The Doctor is happily burbling about another example of his medical brilliance when he notes the sudden rise in tension and [[ScrewThisImOutOfHere quickly deactivates himself]].
158	* SnowyScreenOfDeath: A Borg drone does this to the long range probe that ''Voyager'' sent out. Fortunately B'Elanna was able to recover the last few seconds of telemetry.
159	* SpinAttack: A Borg cube spins to fire a continuous volley from all sides.
160	* StarfishAlien: The tripedal Species 8472.
161	* StockFootage: The scene when Janeway is beamed aboard a Borg cube to negotiate with the collective was shot with Kate Mulgrew standing in front of a bluescreen, and a recycled shot of the cube interior from ''Film/StarTrekFirstContact'' inserted behind her.
162	* SubmersibleSpaceship: Voyager gets thrown into "fluidic space", a dimension that consists of nothing but green liquid in all directions. The ship is undamaged, although this may be somewhat justified since it's a different universe with different physical laws.
163	* SuicideAttack: A Borg cube flies into the path of a pursuing 8472 warship to protect ''Voyager''.
164	* TakeAThirdOption: The ''Voyager'' crew has [[TwoRoadsBeforeYou two choices]]: fly through the Borg-Species 8472 warzone and risk certain death or assimilation, or turn around and give up any hope of returning to Earth. A talk with Holo!daVinci gives Janeway a third option: make a DealWithTheDevil.
165	* TakingTheBullet: The Borg cube takes an attack from 8472 that's meant for ''Voyager'' before [[RammingAlwaysWorks ramming the bioship]].
166	* TalkingIsAFreeAction: {{Subverted}}--Janeway is in the middle of delivering her proposal to the Borg when Species 8472 launches a HyperspeedAmbush.
167	* {{Technobabble}}: When trying to beam Chakotay, Tuvok, and Kim off the Borg ship. [[FridgeHorror That could just as easily have resulted in]] [[NightmareFuel their bones being yanked out of their bodies]], come to think of it...
168	-->'''B'elanna:''' I can't get a lock on them. \
169	'''Janeway:''' What's the problem?\
170	'''B'Elanna:''' It looks like bioelectric interference from whatever's coming toward them.\
171	'''Janeway:''' Narrow the confinement beam. \
172	'''B'Elanna:''' No effect. I'm going to try a skeletal lock.\
173	'''Janeway:''' What?\
174	'''B'Elanna:''' I think I can get a clean lock on the minerals in their bone tissue. I... [[IndyPloy just came up with it]], but I think it might work.
175	* {{Telepathy}}: Species 8472 can communicate with Kes telepathically.
176	* ThatCloudLooksLike: Leonardo ponders the shadows reflected on the wall of his study. One of them gives Janeway her EurekaMoment.
177	-->'''Leonardo:''' What do you see?\
178	'''Janeway:''' A wall with candlelight reflecting on it. Why? What do you see?\
179	'''Leonardo:''' A flock of starlings, the leaves of an oak, a horse's tail, a thief with a noose around his neck. And a wall with the candlelight reflecting on it.
180	* ThatWomanIsDead:
181	-->'''Janeway:''' You're human, aren't you?
182	-->'''Seven:''' This body was assimilated 18 years ago. It ceased to be human at that time.
183	* ThatsAnOrder: When Harry is being eaten alive by the 8472 cells.
184	--> '''Janeway:''' Fight it, Harry. That's an order.
185	* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: Seven's first suggestion for a nanoprobe-weapon is a delivery system capable of scattering the reprogrammed nanites over several star systems. Janeway talks her down to a small arsenal of anti-ship weapons that will prove a point without resorting to mass murder.
186	* ThinkHappyThoughts: What Janeway tells herself when ''Voyager'' is scanned by the Borg armada.
187	* ThrownOutTheAirlock: When the Borg assimilate one of the cargo bays, Chakotay threatens to depressurise the entire deck if they try anything. He carries out his threat after the Borg take control of the deflector dish to break them into Fluidic Space. Everyone is ejected except for Seven of Nine.
188	* TitleDrop: In Part 1, when Chakotay recounts the tale of "The Scorpion and the Fox" (a variation of "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Farmer_and_the_Viper The Farmer and the Viper]]") to warn Janeway of the dangers of allying with the Borg. Then in Part 2, when Janeway and Chakotay initiate their plan to cut off Seven from the collective.
189	* TryToFitThatOnABusinessCard
190	-->'''Janeway:''' What's your designation?
191	-->'''Seven:''' Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix Zero One. But you may call me Seven of Nine.
192	* TwoPartEpisode: The third on this show.
193	* TwoRoadsBeforeYou: Janeway phrases her dilemma in exactly these terms when talking it over with Leonardo.
194	* UltimateLifeform: Species 8472. So ultimate that they (and their OrganicTechnology) are the only remaining species in their home universe. Incredibly physically dangerous, telepathic, proof against assimilation, their cells, individually, have such a strong immune system that they act as contagious cancer, and have technology that can smash the Borg.
195	* UnspokenPlanGuarantee:
196	--> '''Janeway:''' Bridge to Chakotay: Scorpion.
197	* UnusuallyUninterestingSight: Leonardo doesn't notice "Katarina" is wearing a Starfleet uniform or talking on the communicator. It appears the program has been upgraded since "Persistence of Vision" so the holographic characters don't register anything unusual (this is confirmed in "Spirit Folk").
198	* VillainBall / AwakeningTheSleepingGiant: Turns out the war started when the Borg tried to invade Fluidic Space.
199	* WaveMotionGun: Species 8472 can [[ConvergingStreamWeapon combine the output of nine ships]] into [[EarthShatteringKaboom one single wave of destruction]] -- which even ''looks'' like a wave.
200	* WeaponOfMassDestruction: Species 8472 show they can blow up entire planets. Not to be outdone, the Borg want to go one better.
201	-->'''Seven:''' A multikinetic neutronic mine. Five million isoton yield.\
202	'''Tuvok:''' An explosion that size could affect an entire star system.\
203	'''Seven:''' Correct. The shock wave will disperse the nanoprobes over a radius of five light years.
204	* WhamShot:
205	** Possibly ''Voyager's'' best-ever teaser; it's two Borg cubes getting blown the hell up with just a few concentrated blasts.
206	** They one-up it later, when ''Voyager'' sees 15 Borg Cubes coming right at them.
207	--->'''Chakotay:''' My God!
208	** And then later, those 15 cubes have been reduced to a DerelictGraveyard, meaning that something ''really'' bad just happened to them.
209	* WhatDidYouExpectWhenYouNamedIt: The Northwest Passage was a ''non-existent'' shortcut through the North Polar region, so it's no surprise when their shortcut turns out to be a false hope as well.
210	* WhatTheHellHero: Janeway suddenly seems to forget that the Borg are considered the single greatest threat to the Federation. Officially. By Starfleet Command!
211	-->'''Chakotay:''' How much is our safety worth?
212	-->'''Janeway:''' What do you mean?
213	-->'''Chakotay:''' We'd be giving an advantage to a race guilty of murdering billions. We'd be helping the Borg assimilate yet another species just to get ourselves back home. It's ''wrong''!
214	-->'''Janeway:''' [[ItsPersonal Tell that to Harry Kim]]. He's barely alive thanks to that species. [[MamaBear Maybe helping to assimilate them isn't such a bad idea]]. We could be doing the Delta Quadrant a favour.
215	-->'''Chakotay:''' I don't think you really believe that. I think you're struggling to justify your plan, because your desire to get this crew home is blinding you to other options. I know you, Kathryn. [[TheDeterminator Sometimes you don't know when to step back]].
216	* TheWorfEffect: Once a single Borg cube was regarded as a threat to the entire Federation. The episode opens with ''two'' such cubes giving their ResistanceIsFutile spiel, until they're destroyed in seconds by an unseen force.
217	* {{Workaholic}}: Janeway turns down a suggestion from Chakotay that they get some much-needed food because she's cramming all information in the Starfleet files on the Borg. Later when he points out she hasn't slept in two days, Janeway just dismisses Chakotay and stays up all night pondering how to get them out of their predicament.
218	* YesNoAnswerInterpretation: When Seven of Nine disapproves of Janeway's plan, she asks if Seven has a better one.
219	--> '''Seven:''' We are Borg.\
220	'''Tuvok:''' [[DeadpanSnarker I'll take that as a "yes."]]
221	* YouAreInCommandNow: When Janeway is injured during a Species 8472 attack, she leaves Chakotay in command and tells him to keep the alliance going. It doesn't quite go as she wanted it to.
222	* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: The moment Seven of Nine receives confirmation that Species 8472 is defeated, she attempts to assimilate ''Voyager''.
223	* YouTalkTooMuch: Seven of Nine says something to that effect to Janeway.
224	--> '''Janeway:''' I'm curious, what was your name bef--\
225	'''Seven:''' Do not engage us in further irrelevant discourse.

Context Recap / StarTrekVoyagerS3E25S4E1Scorpion