VOY: What was the deal with Michael Jonas?

[clearspira]

An American and a Nazi are shipwrecked on a desert island together in 1944. Do they continue the war or band together to save themselves? I put it to you that the flag you fight under will suddenly look like nothing more than a piece of cloth when presented with other obstacles to your survival. I put it to you that Hitler will seem like a very small and meaningless man when you are trying to rediscover fire so that you don't freeze to death.

Same here. ''You're a Cardassian, i'm a Maquis. And neither of us want to be here.''

[TGLS]

An American and a Nazi are shipwrecked on a desert island together in 1944. Do they continue the war or band together to save themselves?

Depends. Some people will spend their last breath to spit on your grave.

It's honestly a bit of a weak argument given how powerless Seska is to Voyager.

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

An American and a Nazi are shipwrecked on a desert island together in 1944. Do they continue the war or band together to save themselves? I put it to you that the flag you fight under will suddenly look like nothing more than a piece of cloth when presented with other obstacles to your survival. I put it to you that Hitler will seem like a very small and meaningless man when you are trying to rediscover fire so that you don't freeze to death.

Same here. ''You're a Cardassian, i'm a Maquis. And neither of us want to be here.''

Yes this was explored in the Worf episode where he finds the Klingon/Romulan retreat.

[Deledrius]

Eddington was competent and principled (to a point). Jonas was a rube who did what he did with some justification, but it always seemed like a petty excuse.

Eddington got there in the very end, but that development was part of his arc. And he had a much better ending, too.

[McAvoy]

I don't know about that. What do we know about Jonas? Why was a he a Maquis? I don't even think he was Starfleet before he was a Maquis.

Eddington up until his turn to the Maquis was a model Starfleet officer. An officer more or less sent to replace Odo. Even as a leader of the Maquis (not sure if he was the leader but one of them), he was shown to be very competent and in fact usually a step or three ahead of Starfleet. It took Sisko playing the villian to capture him.

I just don't see the motivations either being similar to each other.

[Deledrius]

I just don't see the motivations either being similar to each other.

Exactly, they really aren't.

[bull705]

So is this all a result of ST:Voyager's poor storytelling? DS9's long term plotlines seem to set up Eddington's turn as a surprise since his presence was seen prior to his defection. Jonas just shows up as some disgruntled Maquis grunt who lost a friend(by this point who hasn't?)and we're supposed to automatically care? He doesn't seem competent enough to be Starfleet material or a mercenary for hire. So was he just some random colonist? And what does siding with the Kazon and Seska actually get him. The Kazon want Voyager tech to gain power in the Delta quadrant so they're not going anywhere. Best case scenario Seska double-crosses Mage Culluh and takes the ship towards the Gamma Quadrant to look for the wormhole to Bajor(Give our best to the Dominion!).

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

Voyager isn't supposed to be a state espionage thriller. It's monster of the week through and through as an antithesis to DS9's overarching focus.

Nobody's plan to sabotage Voyager is met with poetic rebellion and being callously sent by Starfleet to undermine representation in the Delta quadrant, come on now.

[Beastro]

An American and a Nazi are shipwrecked on a desert island together in 1944. Do they continue the war or band together to save themselves? I put it to you that the flag you fight under will suddenly look like nothing more than a piece of cloth when presented with other obstacles to your survival. I put it to you that Hitler will seem like a very small and meaningless man when you are trying to rediscover fire so that you don't freeze to death.

Same here. ''You're a Cardassian, i'm a Maquis. And neither of us want to be here.''

It's more like in WWII an America, zealous German Nazi and ardent Russian Communist are shipwrecked and the arrogant American is not just calling the shots but fucking up a bunch: Is the mutually hatred of the latter two too much to overcome or is their growing mutual hatred of the American enough to get them working together?

[clearspira]

Voyager isn't supposed to be a state espionage thriller. It's monster of the week through and through as an antithesis to DS9's overarching focus.

Nobody's plan to sabotage Voyager is met with poetic rebellion and being callously sent by Starfleet to undermine representation in the Delta quadrant, come on now.

If The Voyager Conspiracy was a real thing, it would have been the greatest subversion in Trek history, maybe even television history. It would have made a woolly show of bad characterisation suddenly make absolute sense. Unfortunately...
1) Berman and Braga would never have had the balls to do it.
2) Fuck me would the fans have bitched.