Summary
- Star Trek: Enterprise referenced Star Trek: Voyager in season 2 with a subtle callback to Captain Proton.
- The reference to "The Bride of Chaotica" film in Enterprise's "Cogenitor" is a nod to Voyager's Captain Proton program and the show's episode of the same name.
- Voyager's Captain Proton program was a popular side plot in multiple episodes and was even brought back in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4.
Star Trek: Enterprise had a subtle reference to Star Trek: Voyager in one episode of season 2. Despite airing one right after the other in the Star Trek timeline, Enterprise and Voyager had very little in common. Voyager explored the adventures of the USS Voyager's crew in the Delta Quadrant during the 2370s, while Enterprise catapulted the franchise back to the beginning of Starfleet, showcasing the missions of the first starship Enterprise in the 22nd century. However, all Star Trek shows are connected, and Enterprise still found a way to reference its predecessors while maintaining its prequel status.
Enterprise's Voyager reference came during season 2, episode 22, "Cogenitor." The episode's plot featured the crew of the Enterprise NX-01 encountering a race called the Vissians, whose society contained a third-gender subclass that was treated like second-class citizens, only used for the purposes of reproduction. Commander Trip Tucker (Conner Trinneer) began mentoring one of these "cogenitors" in secret, teaching them to read and nurturing their interest in Earth culture. This interest led to Trip show the cogenitor an old Earth film, choosing from a list that contained a familiar name.
Star Trek: Enterprise Watched “Bride of Chaotica!” 200 Years Before Voyager
"Bride of Chaotica, The" was in Enterprise's movie database
While Trip and the cogenitor were choosing a movie to watch, Enterprise briefly showed the console display containing the ship's database of films. The list included the name "Bride of Chaotica, The," a blink-and-you'll-miss-it reference to the Star Trek: Voyager episode of the same name. "Bride of Chaotica!" was the 12th episode of Voyager season 5, focusing on a holodeck misadventure storyline that featured the Captain Proton program created by Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill). The episode is one of Voyager's most entertaining, and one of several appearances of Captain Proton on the show.
Enterprise 's movie database also contains a film called "Dixon Hill and the Black Orchid," another subtle reference to a previously-established holodeck program from Star Trek: The Next Generation .
Although Voyager established that "The Adventures of Captain Proton" was an old, Buck Rogers-style science fiction show from the 20th century, Enterprise confirmed its existence with the reference to The Bride of Chaotica in "Cogenitor." Along with this, the episode implied that the Enterprise crew could have easily watched the film 200 years before it inspired Tom Paris to create his famous holodeck program. Including Bride of Chaotica (and the Dixon Hill reference) in "Cogenitor" is a testament to the Enterprise creative team's attention to detail and commitment to making the show feel connected to the wider franchise.
Star Trek: Voyager’s “Bride Of Chaotica” & Captain Proton Explained
The Captain Proton program made several appearances in Voyager
Despite being a fairly silly concept, Star Trek: Voyager managed to get a lot of mileage out of the Captain Proton program. "Bride of Chaotica!" was definitely its most prominent and memorable inclusion, featuring nearly everyone in Voyager's cast of characters taking part in the program to stop the malfunctioning holograms from waging war on a photonic species. However, Captain Proton was seen or referenced in nine other Voyager episodes throughout seasons 5-7, usually featuring Tom Paris as the titular Captain and Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) as Proton's sidekick Buster Kincaid.
Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 brought Captain Proton back to the franchise during the show's Voyager tribute episode "Twovix."
Along with this, Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 brought Captain Proton back to the franchise during the show's Voyager tribute episode "Twovix." The holographic villain Dr. Chaotica (James Sie) was one of several famous Voyager holograms that attempted to wreak havoc while the decommissioned ship was being brought back to Earth to be set up as a museum. Lower Decks is famous for pulling out obscure franchise references so including something about Captain Proton in a Star Trek: Voyager tribute episode was extremely smart on the series' part.
