VOYAGERS! GUIDEBOOK
THE ULTIMATE PICTURE FANSITE!
In Manhattan, 1982, seemingly clueless Voyager Phineas Bogg crash lands into the room of lonely orphan Jeffrey Jones. Phineas loses his guidebook in a tug of war with Jeffrey's faithful dog Ralph and has to rescue Jeffrey from a fall out the window. After a few cosmic trips full of bickering and bonding, Jeffrey becomes the 'history book in pants' and proves to be an invaluable companion to Bogg. As they travel through the ages keeping history on track, Phineas uses a brass device known as the 'omni'. It tells him locations and dates. Bogg's omni only went up to the year 1970, however a glitch had sent him to Jeffrey's time-zone. It is later learned that Jeffrey was chosen to be a Voyager, and it wasn't a mistake he landed there. When the omni light is red, it means history has hit a snag and it's a Voyager's job to correct it. A green light means success and they can move on to the next assignment.
The omni usually lands them in the midst of their future or current assignment. Along they way they forge memorable friendships and experience exciting, dangerous and humorous encounters with notable historical figures.
In Bogg's case, a number of escapades leads to a little innocent romance, as per his 'reputation.' The Voyagers help inspire the creation of the airplane with the Wright Brothers and save Abraham Lincoln from abduction. They attempt to solve the case of Jack the Ripper with Nellie Bly and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and rescue Harriet Tubman from hanging so she could start the underground railroad. Jeffrey gives Thomas Edison a push to create the light bulb, and Babe Ruth the confidence to play the game. These voyages, along with many other escapades, is all in a day's work for this tireless duo.
Voyaging through the Cosmos! 1982 Style
Starry background!
The Boys in flight!
The multi-directional/dimensional planes of...Time!
And finally, Planet Earth approaching and getting ready for the landing!
Who is Phineas Bogg?
Phineas Bogg (played by Jon-Erik Hexum) is one of a society of time travelers called Voyagers that strive to keep history on it's proper, current course. No explanation is given is as to why history veers off course, but we accept the fact that this mysterious group is in charge of keeping it all together. Little is known of Phineas' early life, except that he was a pirate of sorts. This fact is obvious, based on his standard choice of clothing. In the episode 'Old Hickory and the Pirate' Phineas mentions that some of his best friends had been pirates, Blackbeard, Calico Jack, to name a few. In the last episode of the series Phineas explains that he had helped young Jules Verne out of a brawl in France, and Verne later used him as inspiration for his character 'Phileas Fogg' in his famous novel, 'Around the world in eighty days.'
The adventures of the Voyagers begin when he becomes stuck with Jeffrey Jones. Phineas often relies on Jeffrey to help him throughout their travels. In the Pilot episode Phineas casually explains that a 'blonde in his class' distracted him from learning his history lessons and he admitted to sleeping in class. Later in the series, the writing took a turn and made Phineas a more responsible, 'smarter' adult, complete with shorter hair and a neater appearance.
Phineas is often riled when Jeffrey gets too big for his britches and will mutter catch-phrases like, 'smart kids give me a pain' or, 'I'll deal with that smart mouth of yours later!' If Jeffrey isn't certain about a fact in the time period, Phineas will point out that he's supposed to be the 'history book in pants.' Some of Phineas' trademarks are his fear of dogs, and the old beef jerky he carries around in his pouch.
Phineas has strong poker playing habits, using the method of an old Hungarian card game he learned called 'Schnibbitz.' It was a game that won him 'twelve goats' from the Gypsies. He usually wins in time to save the day and once at the risk of losing the Omni for young Harriet Tubman's freedom. Phineas is a great ladies man and manages to fall for a woman in most time zones they encounter. This disgruntles Jeffrey, who eventually made up the rule by the third episode, 'No romance while the omni is red!' Despite their frequent squabbles over the historical events and the roguish methods Phineas sometimes employs, the two become inseparable friends with Jeffrey always calling him, 'Bogg.'
Jeffrey Jones
Phineas and 11 yr-old Jeffrey Jones (played by Meeno Peluce) first met when Phineas' Omni malfunctioned and took him to 1982. This was unusual because the circuitry of Phineas' Omni only allowed him to travel up until the year 1970. He landed in the apartment of Jeffrey's selfish aunt, who was his guardian after his parents' death. Jeffrey, although a streetwise kid from New York City, is very sensitive and often cries over his supposed failures on the voyages and the tragic death of his parents. He tearfully tells Phineas in the Pilot episode that he was with them when they died and couldn't get anyone to stop and help save them from the camper fire. Phineas often becomes the supportive, father figure at these moments and constantly reassures him that everything will 'be okay.' Jeffrey is a very intelligent boy and truly knows his history because his father was a history professor. He essentially becomes a replacement for Bogg's lost Guidebook, however Jeffrey means much more than that to Phineas. Throughout the series we see how Bogg even takes on a father-figure role to him, like when he reprimanded him for wanting to shoot guns.
When Phineas was torn emotionally and decided to leave Jeffrey with his great-grandparents, Jeffrey desperately reminded him that he's 'already got a family! It's you.' It is discovered mid-season when Phineas is brought to trial, that Jeffrey was supposed to become a Voyager and it was not an accident Phineas landed in 1982. At the trial we also learn that Bogg does love Jeffrey and would never let anything happen to him. Jeffrey promised Bogg that even if they tried to take his memories away, he would never forget him and all they'd been through.
When Jeffrey admitted to it being a 
time machine, Edison laughed heartily, "Now that would be an invention!"
The Time Machine movie model. Notice the red and green lights and the backing is like a brass fan-reminiscent of the omni's lid.
The Guidebook is just that-a textbook designed specifically for Voyagers. Phineas and Jeffrey fumble through history without it and do pretty well...for now! However, the Guidebook is the necessary tool that all Voyagers must carry on their assignments. It gives them vital information- names, places and dates- in order for them to bring history back to a green-light state. We never see the inside of the Guidebook on the series, so we'll have to take their word for it. The pictures here are from Guidebook replicas that are made online. Here is a link to purchase one! Guidebooks
Video by: Voyever
According to the Guidebook replica, the 'real' Guidebook automatically updates itself. It's printed by the same mysterious people that manufacture the Omni, and is actually written in their language, but each Voyager can read it in his own language, which, I think, tends to support the hypothesis that the Omni has a translation function. I would posit that there is a "Planet Voyager," and that there is also a race of people indigenous to that planet who have solved the problem of time-travel. They produce the Omni and the Guidebook, and pluck people out of the time-stream to become Voyagers.
In 'Billy and Bully,' when Jeffrey tells Bogg the Code says "No romance while the Omni's red." Well, we know there's no such actual Code, but there is one that says no Voyager is to become romantically involved with another Voyager. (I imagine that applies mainly to field workers, though it doesn't specify in the Guidebook.) So much for anything serious ever developing between Phineas and Olivia, and quite possibly, the reason why Phineas only admired Susan from a distance.
On Field Stripping the Omni, it says that for an experienced professional, it takes a minimum of three hours on a model 316-50; for a novice on a 313 (the one Bogg has), it can take up to eight hours.
Information about Omnis in general: All Omnis of model 313 go from 1450 BC to 1970. That's pretty interesting, consider Bogg's first voyage with Jeffrey starts during the time of Moses' infancy, 1450 BC. The gold one that Isaac Wolfstein had was a model 310, which had a variable range, though 1925 AD was the latest any of them could go. There was also a model 305, which was pewter and went from 1450 BC to 0 AD. The earliest Omni, the 314, was platinum and went from 0 AD to 1500 AD. The 316-50's "Open time calibration" apparently means that it has no territorial parameters, but can go anywhere in time.
The book also mentions a "field office." That sounds similar to my 'Voyager's Aide' series and other series on Fanfiction.
Who is Voyager Drake?
Drake is Phineas' class rival since their days at the Voyager Academy. Even then, Drake was a cheater and harbors a lifelong grudge against Phineas for confronting him about it. He is an extremely pompous and jealous man. Drake went on to become a harsh lawyer for the Voyager Tribunal as a Code Violation Prosecutor. Drake rigidly adhere to the Voyager code. He applies the philosophy, "The means justify the ends," claiming to be Machiavelli's best pupil. He believes in discipline and order above all else and has had strong influence falsely accusing Voyagers of every rank, and sending them into banishment.
Because conviction means banishment, Drake is now a fugitive at large and Phineas' arch-enemy. It is up to Phineas and Jeffrey to bring him back and prevent him from ruining history!
She was trying to beat the record of a literary character named, Phileas Fogg. He is the hero of the novel, 'Around the world in 80 Days.' We also learn that Phineas helped the author, Jules Verne in his youth and thus became the inspiration for the daring hero in the novel. After some confusion over who the real Ripper is, Drake's plot is foiled by Phineas and Jeffrey and he gets away...AGAIN!
WHERE WILL THEY WIND UP NEXT?
At this point...anywhere your heart desires them. I always wanted the Voyagers to get involved in the French Revolution. Phineas could have assumed the role of the Scarlet Pimpernel and thus inspire the later famous novel. There are so many key points in history and prominent figures to meet it would be impossible to list them all. I often look for the 'lesser known' or underdog figures, whose contributions have made an invaluable impact on society and history itself. However, I would have wanted them to meet Susan B. Anthony, nurses Florence Nightingale & Mary Seacole. A fun episode could revolve around the Circus and the boys meeting Phineas T. Barnum...and gave Jon-Erik more chances to display his acrobatic skills. The Gold Rush was also a fascinating time in history.
It would have been interesting to see the boys go to the fifties, perhaps meeting Elvis and helping Rock and Roll. VOYAGERS! could have showcased Jon-Erik's great talent for the piano by having them meet Mozart or Beethoven or other classic composers. I always love at the end of every adventure how Jeffrey would advise all the viewers,
"Take a Voyage down to your public library, it's all in books!"
