LogFAQs > #960723229

pegusus123456 posted...

The biggest problem with Neelix is that he's given more importance than necessary. There are times when he's included in bridge meetings for zero reason other than him being a main character.

Neelix as a concept was brilliant. He was introduced in The Caretaker as actually kinda shifty, inveigling his way into the crew by making himself important enough that they needed him, but also a little manipulative and using them for his own ends (albeit for the protection of Kes rather than anything too malicious), with his overly jolly and friendly/comedic demeanor seeming to be a mask he wore to help ingratiate himself with everyone. He was almost like (more space-hedgehog-y) Dr Smith type, or like Trance off of Andromeda. Like, they needed him, and he seemed sincere enough, but could they really trust that he wasn't up to something self-serving at any given time.

The problem is that by the second or third episode he was already pretty much just the comic relief, like the writers' room had already forgotten that his jocularity was a bit of a front, and as soon as they left the space that he was familiar with, rather than using that for character development as he tried desperately to find a reason to stay important so he could keep getting his way, they usually just went with "hurr durr he is a bad cook, and that's funny."

Ethan Phillips did a good job with what he had to work with, and there are still some good Neelix episodes, but as a character he never really delivered on his initial promise.

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