Voyager's been mugged! Among the items stolen by this kleptomaniac raid are phasers, the Master Computer and the Doctor's mobile emitter. When Captain Janeway and Tuvok beam down to investigate, they're surprised to find the emitter being used by the Leonardo da Vinci holoprogram.
This episode provides examples of:
- Absent-Minded Professor: Tuvok opposes his captain working with the Da Vinci hologram, citing the notorious unreliability of the genius it is based on.
- Agent Scully: A strange form: Leonardo, being a simulation of the most ingenious creative mind of the Renaissance, still refuses to accept the evidence of his eyes, believing it sorcery.
- And Now for Someone Completely Different: We find out fairly early where the mobile emitter went; somehow, Leonardo da Vinci's program was loaded onto it, and he's interpreting the theft as a grand visit to America!
- Arms Dealer: Tau
- Artistic License – Gun Safety: Janeway spends a lot of time with her finger on the trigger of her stolen phaser.
- Attention Whore: Leonardo is reluctant to enter a conversation with Tuvok, until he discovers he's the subject of the conversation.
- "Blackmail" Is Such an Ugly Word: Tau's Establishing Character Moment.Alien Buyer: Your prices are said to be unreasonable.Tau: Unreasonable is such a strong term. But if I can't sell to you, I'll sell to one of the other colonies in your system. A violent sort, your neighbours, aren't they? I'd hate to make your life difficult by offering my weapons to them. But if you don't give me a choice...
- Blatant Lies: Tuvok is from...Scandinavia. Even Leonardo looks skeptical at that one.
- Cabin Fever: The Doctor is not happy about losing his freedom, and grills Seven for gossip on what's happening outside Sickbay.
- Call-Back:
- Janeway and Leonardo have built the glider they were contemplating in "Scorpion".
- Janeway notes James T. Kirk had claimed to have met da Vinci. This refers to the Original Series episode "Requiem For Methuselah" in which Kirk meets an immortal human who was many historical figures, including da Vinci.
- Catchphrase: Tuvok does his "Vulcans do not do X" when Janeway tells him to make small talk with Leonardo to keep him distracted.
- The Charmer: Janeway turns on the flirtation for Tau, posing as an interested buyer.
- Comically Missing the Point: Leonardo interprets everything he sees from his 16th Century perspective.
- Computer Voice: Tau proudly shows off the vocal interface on the computer he's stolen.Leonardo: There is a mechanical woman inside this box!
- Death Glare: Janeway has a hard time concealing this from "Prince" Tau when he tries to sell her computer core back to her.
- Defenestrate and Berate: Janeway wrests a hefty vase off Leonardo before he can toss it down on the mocking citizens below.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: When Janeway tells Da Vinci that Tau is just a high-class robber, Da Vinci doesn't bat an eyelid. As far as he's concerned, that's the game when you're an artist who's being sponsored by a patron—in 15th-century Italy, that was how such men got rich enough to bankroll arts and science.
- Denser and Wackier: Leonardo Da Vinci escapes the holodeck and runs amok.
- Disastrous Demonstration: The episode opens with Leonardo and Janeway entering his workshop soaking wet while unseen Florentines jeer outside, having crashed their prototype flying machine into the river.
- Don't Touch It, You Idiot!: Leonardo's response to Janeway and Tuvok trying to filch the phaser in his workshop.
- Exact Words: Tom lures a trader who has some of their stolen items onto Voyager.Trader: You said you had a warp coil to trade!Paris: I said you could talk with Commander Chakotay. I didn't say he'd do business with you.
- Face Palm:
- Janeway covers her mouth in shock when Leonardo rips up his (historically priceless) design for the glider.
- Clearly implied in Tuvok's look after Janeway insists on continuing her work with Leonardo, who along with his genius also brings along his notorious unreliability.
- Famous, Famous, Fictional: Janeway claims that a few people had theories on Leonardo, including Giorgio Vasari
, Sigmund Freud and James T. Kirk! - Gilded Cage: Lampshaded by Leonardo. "If this is a cage, then it is a cage of gold!"
- Horrible Judge of Character: Because his interpretation of events is limited to his programming, Leonardo sees the amoral thief/trader Tau as a Prince, a worthy Patron to whom he sells his ideas. Although Tau isn't any different from some other Italian princes of his era, as Leonardo himself points out.
- I Kiss Your Hand: Leonardo does an affectionate version to Janeway at the end of the episode.
- Immune to Bullets: Leonardo is so shocked when an energy beam passes through his body, he wonders if they're in the afterlife.
- Insufferable Genius:
- When Ensign Kim turns up at Astrometrics with a possible solution to finding the pirates, Seven says she already thought of it two hours ago.
- When the Doctor wants to know what B'Elanna's disagreement was about, Seven states that it is irrelevant because she, of course, was correct.
- It's a Long Story:
- When Leonardo asks how 'Catarina' got to America, Janeway mutters something about a Portuguese ship, some Turkish pirates, a couple of hurricanes... "I'll tell you about it some other time."
- Janeway tries the "I'll explain later" routine when Leonardo is baffled by transporters and beams of light that pass through him, but he demands an explanation.
- Jaw Drop: Tau gapes in disbelief as our heroes fly off on their ridiculous contraption, too bemused even to fire.
- Just a Machine: Tuvok freezes Leonardo's program in mid-speech. Later though when Tuvok calls the hologram by name, Seven calls Tuvok on it.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Leonardo thinks he's in America. He's right!
- Merchant Prince: Tau is basically a Renaissance-era trading prince Recycled In Space.
- Mundane Utility: Leonardo buys a Starfleet plasma injector conduit for his experiments. "With this I can make mercury flow in three different directions at once."
- Narrative Profanity Filter: When the Doctor begs Seven for all the details of her altercation with B'Elanna, she asks if he wants her to translate the Klingon obscenities too. She's called away by Tuvok before the conversation continues.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Tau allows Leonardo to have whatever resources he likes (presumably Tau finds him amusing) and takes Leonardo with him as he inspects his operations (presumably to show him off to his followers and clientele). Leonardo draws detailed maps of Tau's operation (enabling Voyager's crew to find where he's keeping their computer) and constructs the working glider that they use to escape.
- Non-Answer: When Janeway asks Leonardo why he never finished many of his greatest works, he avoids the question, probably because he doesn't know the answer. But by the end of the episode, he knows.
- Noodle Incident: Seven relates one in which she and B'Elanna got involved in a bit of a tussle in the Mess Hall over Astrometrics stuff. The Doctor needs specifics, as he's trapped in Sickbay without his mobile emitter, so he's forced to live vicariously through the crews' experiences. Unfortunately she's called away before she can translate some rather interesting-sounding Klingon insults.
- No Social Skills:
- When Harry turns up to help Seven, she bluntly tells him to leave if he wishes to fraternize. Harry assures her he's only here to help, and tries to get her to be more polite. Seven just ignores him.
- Janeway sends Tuvok to keep Leonardo busy with small talk. Hilarity Ensues.
Leonardo: This fascinating conversation has left me as dry as Vulcan.Tuvok: (startled) Vulcan?Leonardo: An island off the coast of Sicily. Have you been there?Tuvok: No... - Plot-Demanded Manual Mode: Voyager has to target the space pirates manually after they steal the main computer processor. They destroy one ship and drive the others off, but they still have no control over navigation and propulsion, and so can't immediately chase after them.
- Renaissance Man: Leonardo da Vinci, of course! Even Tuvok, notoriously hard to please, is impressed by the quality and accuracy of Leonardo's hand-drawn maps. He's less impressed when Leonardo shows off a similarly detailed drawing of a dragon — with Tuvok's ears for wings!
- Right Behind Me: Janeway has just finished talking via communicator with Chakotay on how she's going to find their stolen computer, when Tau appears behind her with a phaser.
- Screen Shake: The holodeck shakes as Voyager is fired upon; Leonardo thinks it's an earthquake and we hear horses whinnying in fright in the streets of Florence.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Faced with the mockery of the Florentines after his Disastrous Demonstration, Leonardo decides he's Surrounded by Idiots and he'd have better luck working for the King of France.
- Space Pirates: Tau has built his wealth on stealing from others, after acquiring his translocator beam technology (which he also stole). Apparently much of the city is involved in similar activity, mixed with commerce.
- Tap on the Head: Tau is planning to ransom Janeway back to her own ship, when Leonardo brains him with a container.
- True Companions: Leonardo has no love for Europe and would rather stay in the Gilded Cage of "America," but Janeway knows how to talk to her childhood hero and relate to him as a friend and partner, such that he decides to "go back to Europe" for her sake.
- Unusual Ears: Leonardo is fascinated by Tuvok's 'monstrous' ears.
- You Cannot Grasp the True Form: When Janeway's explanations and Hand Waves are blown away in the face of the technologies in use, da Vinci expresses extreme discomfort and fear with what he recognizes as sorcery, again an aspect of his program limitations. Eventually Janeway grounds him with an analogy — if he was a bird, he would not understand the greater world of art, politics and philosophy. So too there are wonders which even Leonardo da Vinci cannot comprehend.
