In this episode, B'Elanna Torres struggles with bad news, while the senior staff race to build a new, special shuttle, the Delta Flyer, to recover a space probe from a gas giant.
[1] The Delta Flyer was designed by Rich Sternbach, and exterior views were rendered by computer graphics by Foundation Imaging.
Chief Engineer B'Elanna Torres submits designs for the hull and propulsion systems, but seems uninterested in the project, and distant from Paris despite their ongoing romantic relationship.
The Delta Flyer is finally completed, and Torres volunteers to join its crew, insisting that she be there to monitor the hull stability.
She is commended for her actions, and celebrates with a plate of banana pancakes, finding herself experiencing positive emotions for the first time in several days.
A costume worn by Roxann Dawson as B'Elanna Torres in this episode was originally designed for William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk in a cut opening scene from the film Star Trek Generations.
After the episode aired, Dawson received a good deal of positive fan mail in the way her character dealt with depression and ultimately overcame it.