Q turns up once more on Voyager with his son in tow. Charging Janeway to teach him behaviour, Q leaves, but returns with the ultimatum that the Continuum wants him to behave or he will be turned into an amoeba forever.

It's great to see Q back again, and John de Lancie is as on form as ever as the smug and superior life form. His rapport with Janeway is also nicely observed, with the captain giving as good as she gets and refusing to believe his bluster. The places he turns up are once again the cue for some good comedy moments, something Voyager has always been sadly lacking in. The opening few minutes of the episode are particularly funny as Q grows increasingly frustrated with his son, who has inherited the same mischief-making tricks as his father.

Keegan de Lancie, John's son, does a fine job in bringing Q's son (er, Q, naturally) to life, coming across as a teenage boy with a lot more power than normal ones have to get what they want. He's funny, he's got a wonderfully dry delivery of his lines, and it's a treat every time he refers to the captain as Auntie Kathy. The only major problem with the story is that it's far too similar to past Q stories from TNG, particularly Déjà Q, in which the original Q lost his powers and had to cope as a human. Much the same thing happens here, only Q helps his son learn his lessons this time, and the writers conveniently forget that Q still has a lot of useful knowledge. Making him a member of the crew doing menial jobs seems something of a waste.

The relationship between Q and Icheb comes across well, with the boys clearly enjoying the chance to relate on a similar level. There's a lot to like here, but it's a little too close to past stories to make it an all-time classic.

****

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