The Law of Nature: 25 Years of Star Trek: Voyager's "Natural Law"

There are far and few episodes in a series that emphasize the importance of nature and allowing traditional culture to thrive in its natural habitat. However, on May 4, 2001, Star Trek: Voyager challenged that aspect and bringing forth a story of two people stumbling upon a way of life living which predates their futuristic luxury. Written by James Kahn and Kenneth Biller and written by Terry Windell, let us take a look back 25 years later at Voyager's "Natural Law". 

                           Seven of Nine and the Ventu Girl look upon the waterfalls of the lush planet 

In this episode Commander Chakotay (Robert Beltran) and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) find themselves stranded amidst a primitive race of aliens which their shuttle breaks through a mysterious barrier. The two were headed to a conference on Ledos IV but thanks to Chakotay wanting to take a scenic tour of a nearby planet (in his words "just admiring the view" as he looks at Seven...), the pair crash through a barrier onto the lush primitive landscape. As they make their way through the jungle, with Chakotay limping due to an injury, they bicker about being stranded. Seven blames Chakotay for taking the scenic tour instead of heading straight to a Ledosian conference on warp field dynamics. Chakotay detects humanoid life signs and the two come across a privative culture of aliens clothed in skinned garments and braided hair, with no speech hearable pattern. I thought this aspect was quite fascinating as most of the Star Trek aliens speak clear English due to the ever-so-helpful universal translator, or have their own verbal language such as the Klingons. However, this race, called "The Ventu" are different. They sign their language. With reddish skin, and braided hair, the Ventu also mirror early primitive human tribes with animal-skinned clothing, beaded jewelry, painted facial adornment and residence in caves. In the backdrop of several scenes with Chakotay and Seven, we see various scenes of the Ventu cultivating their own food, building weaponry, tanning clothing and living a functionally indigenous, yet independent livelihood. 

                                                          "There's always time for warp field dynamics,

                                                     but you don't see natural beauty like this every day."

                                                            The native Ventu in their natural habitat 

With Chakotay being in pain stays behind while Seven attempts to find shuttle debris to create a beacon back to Voyager. He takes her by the elbow (hmm...hmm) and tells her to be careful as she makes her way through the lush greenery. Chakotay is found by the Ventu aliens and taken into a cave, which Seven locates at nightfall. Visibly, Seven is distressed among the aliens, and tells Chakotay he should have contacted her, but he alerts her that his combadge was destroyed by the scared Ventu.  The wounded Commander tells Seven to get some rest and they sleep among the Ventu, with Voyager having no clue what happened to their crewmen. Meanwhile, we are introduced to a young Ventu Girl who exhibits curiosity to Seven's Borg implant which frightens are beloved Astrometrics officer. 

The next day, we see Chakotay among the Ventu's trying to map a region for him and Seven to get closer to the shuttle debris. We see Chakotay drawing, a reoccurring theme in the episode (just wait for his depiction of Seven as a Peanuts character). After he makes a trade with a local Ventu, Seven sees him exchanging his Starfleet pip for a signed location of their shuttle drawn in the dirt by Chakotay and the Ventu. Seven walks over and says "did you make a favorable exchange?" whereupon he replies how he has learned some of their signed language. Since he cannot make the journey, Seven decides she will go ahead, but she insists that they not make much contact with the primitive aliens. During the course of their conversation, Chakotay shows Seven the Ventu way of thank-you and goodbye, which later we see her take to heart. 

                                              Chakotay flirtatiously gives Seven the Ventu "goodbye"  

                                                 Seven looks unimpressed (even though deep-down she is)

Meanwhile, the sub-plot of the episode entails Lieutenant Tom Paris who was caught speeding in Ledosian space. For his infraction, he has to take "piloting lessons" followed by a test by an aged Ledosian who does everything he can to slow Paris down and sabotage his attempts to rectify the situation. In response, Ensign Harry Kim and Lieutenant B'elanna Torres tease the suavé pilot on his dilemma. This sub-plot gave just enough levity to the episode as the storyline, although not categorized as dramatic did have a serious and moral take on preserving nature and primitive culture. 

Back on the planet, Seven becomes lost after walking all day and a young Ventu girl who was spying on her and Chakotay the previous night comes to help her. She creates a fire and gives Seven a blanket (which I have fondly called "Skittles") over the years. I would like to add that Seven looked absolutely beautiful under the glowing firelight, and the lighting team did a really nice job with the tones because it gave Jeri Ryan's character an ethereal glow in the dark night. The next morning we see Seven with her hair down and visibly disheveled. She signs "good morning" to the young girl and Seven draws a location (better than Chakotay's drawing skills) where she intends to go to. They embark to find the shuttle, but the Ventu Girl takes Seven to a beautiful waterfall, where the two sit and admire its beauty. This is a lovely moment of the character of Seven of Nine, who in coming to terms with her humanity a few episode prior is seen admiring the beauty of nature - a far cry from the Borg Drone three years prior. During this time, Chakotay began to notice the Ventu women wearing ornaments over their eyes (using shuttle debris as Seven's ocular implant) and the Ventu men draw tattoos over their eyes mimicking Chakotay. In other words, the Ventu have began to imitate our favorite Starfleet officers. Stressed without his companion's whereabouts, Chakotay also repeatedly asked where his "friend" was and drew her....infamously. 

                                                     

                                                          The original Seven and Chakotay cosplayers

                                The Ventu Girl shows Seven of Nine the beauty of the Ventu waterfalls 

                                                              Actress Autumn Reeser as the Ventu Girl 

Upon finding the shuttle and its debris, Seven is reunited with a limping Chakotay who has been stressfully looking for Seven with other Ventu tribal members. After hauling the remaining shuttle debris and making contact with Voyager, the curious Ventu Girl is injured and Seven stays behind to help her. Thanks to a med-kit, Seven is able to help the Ventu Girl. In gratitude, the young girl gives Seven "Skittles" and the stoic former Borg tells her she admires her curiosity but warns her to be careful. Just as Seven is signing goodbye (the sign Chakotay had taught her earlier), she is alarmed by voices. A Ledosian scientist has entered through the barrier and is attempting to colonize the planet. Masquerading in the name of education and infrastructure, the message is clear that the Ledosians want to claim the home of their ancestors and modernize their very existence. The ancestors of the Ventu, the Ledosians want to modernize and reshape the planet to fit into the modern times, thus erasing the primitive tradition the Ventu have long cultivated. The debate is brought up to Chakotay and Seven aboard Voyager, where Captain Janeway observes. Chakotay believes the Ledosians should not impose upon the Ventu, while Seven thinks that integration into modern aspects can improve the primitive aliens. However, when Chakotay asks Seven if she knows what's best for them she responds she is uncertain. Captain Janeway tells her pupil "it's not like you to be on the fence" and Seven responds that despite believing the Ventu were of little interest to her, she has now come to respect their way of life and the traditional, isolated lives they live.

                                                                 The Ventu Girl bids farewell to Seven

                                       Seven signs "thank-you" to the Ventu girl after she bestows "Skittles" 

                                                                Lieutenant Paris closes the barrier 

After Tom Paris successfully removes the remnants of Voyager's shuttle before reestablishing the barrier protecting the Ventu from the modernizing Ledosians. As the episode comes to a close, Chakotay pays Seven a visit in the Cargo Bay and after he compliments the Ventu blanket Seven kept, she tells him to take it. He replies "if environmental systems go down you might get cold" and thus, Seven keeps "Skittles".  The two share a flirtatious moment where they speak over eachother and the Commander tells Seven to go first. She thanks the Commander for their diverted trip and how much she appreciated their time among the Ventu. He senses something still bothers her and she notes that she is concerned for their well-being" due to fears the Ledosians could have scanned her modifications and eventually remove the barrier that was re-established. She wonders if she had not made the modifications that would not be possible, but Chakotay gently reminds her that if she had not they would still be stranded there. The scene ends with them sharing a soft smile and they both concur they are glad to be home...on Voyager. In closing the episode ends with the two walking away with a greater appreciation for the futuristic indulgence they have aboard their Federation vessel, along with a deeper appreciation for eachother which eventually cascades them romantically not long after. 

                                        Chakotay gives Seven "Skittles" and the two share a few glances....

Closing thoughts: 

Overall, I found this episode to be extremely ahead of its time in regard to the impact humanity can have on directly and indirectly colonizing a land which does not belong to us. The after  this after thought showed just how much Seven has grown over the years with her observation of humanity and the lives who came into her orbit. She had come full-circle in observing the worth and importance of a traditional lifestyle they live and how it should be nurtured. Likewise, this episode gave Chakotay a moment to shine amongst his natural talent in anthropology and his appreciation of history (previously seen in "One Small Step and "Blink of an Eye"). I truly liked how this episode brought out respect of nature and a unique traditional lifestyle without cheapening or whitewashing it. To coin a phrase, everything felt 'natural' and authentic from the presentation of the aliens to the impact this adventure had on our favorite pair. 

"Natural Law" shows us that some adventures are meant to be so we can learn to appreciate something so rare as an indigenous independent culture quietly tucked away within a lush habitat. In many aspects, I find the story of Natural Law to be extremely relevant to our times. The character of the Ventu Girl is much like a reminder of the beauty and purity of the natural environments around us: the sun, the moon, rain, flowers, sky, rivers, trees, etc. To me, her character is a metaphor to the importance of protecting our environment and ecosystem. She should be cultivated, nourished and protected. As Seven of Nine beautifully stated such an isolation from modern technology can limit the Ventu way of life, but if humanity were to modernize them over night, their evolution would disappear. It is our humanist duty to maintain a respect for other cultures and let them live in peace. Likewise, it is our duty as humans to protect and help sustain our environment on Earth and not take such a perfect planet for granted. May this episode inspire us to get off of our cellular phones and social media and breathe in the fresh air of flowers and witness the grander of waterfalls.

         "When Commander Chakotay and I first encountered the Ventu, I found them primitive,  of little interest to me. But as I spent time with them, I came to realise that they're a resourceful, self-reliant people. Their isolation may limit their potential, but if that isolation ends, so will a unique way of life...."   

- Seven of Nine