Star Trek Ruminations

Are they really speaking English on Star Trek, or does it just appear that way for the sake of the 20th/21st century audience? We can't necessarily trust our ears, since the Universal Translator may simply be translating for us as the 20th/21st century audience.  But an exchange between Neelix and Tuvok strongly indicates that it truly is English being spoken on Starfleet ships in the 24th century. A Riddle that Solves the Riddle The episode "Riddles" (VOY) starts and ends with two alternate punchlines for the same riddle: NEELIX: Okay, here goes. A lone Ensign finds himself stranded on a class L planetoid with no rations. His only possession, a calendar. When Starfleet finds him twelve months later, he's in perfect health. Why didn't he starve to death? TUVOK: It is a theoretical possibility that such planetoids contain hot water springs, which could sustain the man for several weeks. NEELIX: But not for a whole year. TUVOK: I concur. Logic dictates that the Ensi...

Tuvok and Neelix have been the obvious odd couple on the ship since Neelix first tried to hug "Mister Vulcan" in the pilot episode. "Riddles" may be the strongest and most touching episode in the Tuvok-Neelix arc. Here the true depth of their friendship is established. Really, it is probably this episode which carries the emotional weight of Tuvok's "dance" for Neelix when he departs at the end of the next season. The premise is an attack by a shadowy (pun intended) race called the Ba'neth leaves Tuvok in a coma. He wakes up mute, disoriented, and with a severe brain injury that leaves him in an child-like state. To obtain information on the weapon, Janeway teams up with an alien investigator to track down Tuvok's assailant. That plot in itself is fairly standard, and it's not the only time the Doctor has claimed he needs more information about a weapon to undue the damage that it has caused. That seems like a stretch - something like sayin...