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The Doctor (Star Trek: Voyager)
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{{short description|Fictional character from Star Trek: Voyager}} {{DISPLAYTITLE:The Doctor (''Star Trek: Voyager'')}} {{multiple issues| {{More citations needed|date=November 2013}} {{notability|date=July 2023}}<!-- Grech papers do not show notability - see talk page -->}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2024}} {{Infobox character | name = The Doctor | series = [[Star Trek]] | image = TheDoctor.jpg | portrayer = [[Robert Picardo]] | first = "[[Caretaker (Star Trek: Voyager)|Caretaker]]" (1995) | last = "[[Star Trek: Prodigy season 2|Ouroboros, Part II]]" (2024) | creator = Dr. Lewis Zimmerman With help from Lieutenant Reginald Barclay and a team of other engineers | species = [[Hologram]] | affiliation = {{Plainlist| * [[United Federation of Planets]] * [[Starfleet]] }} | spouse = Charlene (holographic wife)<br>Lana (Human wife) | children = One (technological progeny via mobile emitter)<br>Jason Tabreez (Kelemane's species son)<br>Jeffrey (holographic son)<br>Belle (holographic daughter) | lbl23 = Posting | data23 = {{Plainlist| * Chief medical officer *[[USS Voyager (Star Trek)|USS ''Voyager'']] }} }} '''The Doctor''', an '''Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH)''', is a fictional character portrayed by actor [[Robert Picardo]] in the television series ''[[Star Trek: Voyager]]'', first aired on [[UPN]] between 1995 and 2001. He is an [[artificial intelligence]] manifest as a [[holography in fiction|holographic projection]], and designed to be a short-term adjunct to medical staff in emergency situations. However, when the ''[[USS Voyager (Star Trek)|USS Voyager]]'' is stranded on the far side of the galaxy without medical personnel, he is forced to act as the [[starship]]'s permanent chief medical officer. In an example of the ''Star Trek'' franchise's exploration of artificial intelligence, a rudimentary [[algorithm]] becomes a major character in the show. ==Casting== In a 2020 interview, Picardo said his agent told him that he was selected from 900 actors who auditioned for the role. {{quote|"I got the part without understanding that the character would be the outsider, the [[Spock]]-like character. The character who initially inherited that was [[Data (Star Trek)|Data]], who had no emotion and longed to be a real boy in the same way as Pinocchio. I thought that, because [[Tuvok]] was a [[Vulcan (Star Trek)|Vulcan]] character, he would deal with those issues. Once I realized that I had gotten the plum role, it was a delightful surprise. I went from thinking I had the dullest role in the show to believing I may have the best role in the show. That was a little daunting."<ref name="Interview">{{cite web|url=https://www.startrek.com/news/voyagers-caretaker-an-interview-with-robert-picardo|last=Stobie|first=Jay|title=Voyager's Caretaker: An Interview with Robert Picardo|date=16 January 2020}}</ref> }} He added that he first learned what a hologram was from being selected for the role. "I was confused, I didn't know what it meant for him to be a hologram or a computer program. I didn't understand enough about Star Trek 'science,' which is based on real science, although we still don't know how to make a hologram with density. So I got the part without knowing at all what I was in for."<ref name="Interview"/> Picardo initially auditioned for [[Neelix]]. Despite [[Ethan Phillips]]' getting the part, Picardo was asked by the producers to come back and audition for The Doctor—something that shocked him, because usually actors would be passed over completely.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/community/chat/archive/transcript/1245.html |work=Star Trek Official Site |publisher=StarTrek.com |title=Robert Picardo ("The Doctor" - VOY) |date=May 6, 2002 |quote=When I didn't get the part, the producers shocked me by asking me to reconsider The Doctor. Usually in TV, when you have tested for one role, they simply throw you into the ash can and move on to another actor. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100709203940/http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/community/chat/archive/transcript/1245.html |archive-date=July 9, 2010 }}</ref> During his audition for the role of The Doctor, Picardo was asked only to say, "Somebody forgot to terminate my program." However, he then [[wikt:ad lib#Verb|ad lib]]bed, "[[Leonard McCoy#"I'm a doctor, not a..."|I'm a doctor, not a nightlight!]]" (Picardo was initially afraid that he might have ruined his chances—ad libbing, he explained, was something that one just "did not do" in an audition.) ==Depiction== The Doctor begins his service on the [[USS Voyager (NCC-74656)|USS ''Voyager'']] as the standard Emergency Medical [[Hologram]] (EMH) built into almost every newer [[Starfleet]] ship's [[sickbay]]. The EMH is to be used should the ship's doctor be incapacitated or require emergency assistance.<ref name="Grech-2020">{{cite journal |last1=Grech |first1=Victor |title=Doctors in Star Trek: The emergency medical hologram in Star Trek: Voyager |journal=Early Human Development |date=May 2020 |volume=144 |pages=104993 |doi=10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2020.104993 |pmid=32098692 |s2cid=211525128 }}{{Expression of Concern|doi=10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2021.105328|http://retractionwatch.com/2021/03/31/beam-us-up-elsevier-pulls-26-covid-19-papers-by- researcher-with-a-penchant-for-star-trek/ ''Retraction Watch''|http://retractionwatch.com/2020/12/10/elsevier-looking-into-very-serious-concerns-after- student-calls-out-journal-for-fleet-of-star-trek-articles-other-issues/ ''Retraction Watch''}}</ref> In the series' first episode, ''Voyager''{{'}}s chief medical officer, along with his nurse, are killed, necessitating extended use of the EMH. The EMH eventually develops his own personality, although he generally maintains his acerbic wit and irritating "version one" bedside manner. As he was originally intended as a temporary medical backup system, not as a [[digital life form]], ''Voyager''{{'}}s journey strains his programming to some limits. He gives himself a name during episode S1E12 Heroes and Demons, "Schweitzer". (This name did not carry throughout the entire series.) The Doctor becomes the chief medical officer, with [[Kes (Star Trek)|Kes]] and [[Tom Paris]] at various times acting as nurses. Attempting to develop a realistic personality, the Doctor not only manufactures a holographic family ("[[Real Life (Star Trek: Voyager)|Real Life]]"), he also has an increasing number of other "human" experiences. This results in the Doctor's program evolving to become more lifelike, with emotions and ambitions. He develops meaningful and complex [[Interpersonal relationship|relationships]] with many members of the ship's crew. The Doctor also develops talents as a [[playwright]], artist, and photographer, and even becomes a [[connoisseur]] of [[opera]]. He has multiple other experiences with "family", including having a son with a "roommate" while trapped on a planet for three years. During the episode "[[Blink of an Eye (Star Trek: Voyager)|Blink of an Eye]]", he asks an associate to inquire further about his progeny. A recurring theme are the ethical aspects of an artificial, yet apparently sentient, being. In the episode "[[Latent Image (Star Trek: Voyager)|Latent Image]]", treating two patients with an equal chance of survival, with only enough time to treat one, The Doctor chooses Harry Kim, a friend. The other patient, Ensign Jetal, dies. The Doctor is overwhelmed with guilt, believing that his friendship influenced his choice. When the stress nearly leads to his program breaking down, Captain Janeway has his memories of these events deleted. When The Doctor later discovers clues as to what had happened, Captain Janeway is convinced by him and others that he has a right to learn to come to grips with the guilt in the manner of any other sentient being rather than be treated merely as a defective piece of equipment. The Doctor submits a holonovel titled ''Photons Be Free'' to a publisher on Earth, detailing the manner in which holograms are sometimes treated by Starfleet. His characters are closely based on ''Voyager''{{'}}s crew, but exaggerated to appear more intense and vicious, creating fears among the crew their reputations would be ruined. [[Tom Paris]] convinces The Doctor to make adjustments without sacrificing his theme. The Doctor lacks legal rights as [[United Federation of Planets|Federation]] law does not classify him as a "sentient being". Thus he is forbidden to make any subsequent changes to the holonovel. [[Kathryn Janeway|Captain Janeway]]'s efforts result in The Doctor being accorded the status of "artist", although not a "person". This permits him to rewrite the novel. Four months later, it is known throughout the [[Alpha Quadrant]] as a very thought-provoking piece of work. Several other EMHs, now relegated to mining duty, experience the novel. {{listen | filename = Please State the Nature of the Medical Emergency.ogg | title = Please state the nature… | description = 2012 Picardo performance of the line | image = [[File:Delta-shield.png|50px]] }} The Doctor's standard greeting is "Please state the nature of the medical emergency" when activated, though later modified to say whatever he chooses. In "[[Jetrel]]", it is revealed that he was given the ability to activate and deactivate himself. The Doctor later acquires a mobile holographic emitter from the 29th century ("[[Future's End]]"). Although he has previously been confined to [[Sickbay]] or the [[Holodeck]], the mobile emitter allows The Doctor to move about freely, making him ideal for missions where the environment would be harmful or otherwise fatal to the crew. In one notable incident, when an away team is trapped on a radioactive planet, The Doctor is able to infiltrate the people and almost single-handedly rescue the team because, as he points out, being a hologram renders him immune to the radiation, stating that "being a hologram does have its advantages." In a 2020 interview, Picardo recalled his initial reticence to the concept of a mobile emitter: {{quote|I remember I was in [Voyager producer] Brannon Braga's office when he told me. He said, "Your character is so popular, we need to be able to put you in more scripts, in more situations and settings. What do you think?" I said, "I think it's a bad idea." This was one time when I was clearly wrong and the producers were absolutely, a hundred percent right. I conveyed to him exactly what I described to you earlier, that the character's differences define him and make him interesting to the audience. If I'm not limited to the sickbay or the holodeck, then I'll just be like anybody else. I'm glad they did it, as it gave me many more stories. But because the character had been kind of a break-out character{{nbsp}}... whenever somebody plans to mess with a winning formula, I think anyone's reaction would be, "Are we sure we want to do that?"<ref name="Interview" /> }} The Doctor's programming evolves from his first romance, Dr. Denara Pel, to the point where he falls in love with [[Seven of Nine]], though she is unable to reciprocate. In an alternate future episode, "[[Endgame (Star Trek: Voyager)|Endgame]]", The Doctor finally adopts a name (see below) and marries a human female named Lana. In the final episode of ''Star Trek: Voyager'', a future version of Janeway also informs him of his later invention of a device known as a "synaptic transceiver", something that fascinates The Doctor; he is cut off by the "present" Janeway, who is abiding by the Temporal Prime Directive, before he can learn more. === Emergency Command Hologram === The "Emergency Command Hologram", aka "ECH", is first coined by The Doctor in the episode "[[Tinker, Tenor, Doctor, Spy]]", in which he creates a program which allows him to daydream, such as adding routines which allow him to take command of ''Voyager'' – including a command uniform – in the event of the command crew being incapacitated. At the end of the episode, [[Kathryn Janeway|Captain Janeway]] promises to consider the idea. In the following season episode "[[Workforce (Star Trek: Voyager)|Workforce]]", the idea is realized when the crew is forced to abandon ship, and The Doctor takes over command functions. ===Backup copies=== The Doctor's program requires a custom-built photonic processor, and Starfleet outfitted ''Voyager'' with only two. This hardware itself also cannot be replicated, hence the Doctor cannot be easily backed up, restored, or copied. ''Voyager'''s computers cannot help run his photonic program, and cannot contain a usable backup of its image. The Doctor's entire program uses 50 million gigaquads ("[[Lifesigns (Star Trek: Voyager)|Lifesigns]]" and "[[The Swarm (Star Trek: Voyager)|The Swarm]]" mention these limitations). The episode "[[Living Witness]]" depicts a future Delta Quadrant civilization building a museum around ''Voyager'' artifacts, including its redundant EMH photonic processor. ===Name=== A recurring theme in the Doctor's life is his lack of a proper name. Starfleet did not assign a name to him, and initially, the Doctor claims that he does not want one, until the episode "[[Eye of the Needle (Star Trek: Voyager)|Eye of the Needle]]", when he asks Kes to give him a name. He later adopts such names as "Schweitzer" (after [[Albert Schweitzer]]); "Shmullus" (in "[[Lifesigns (Star Trek: Voyager)|Lifesigns]]" by [[Vidiian]] patient Dr. Denara Pel); "Van Gogh"; "Kenneth"; "Jones"; and several others. His friends suggest the famous historical Earth doctors "[[Galen]]" and "[[Benjamin Spock|Spock]]". The captioned dialog of early episodes, and early promotional material for the series premiere, refer to him as "Dr. Zimmerman", after his creator, Lewis Zimmerman. The Doctor is ultimately referred to as simply "The Doctor" and addressed as "Doctor" or "Doc", which he answers to without concern, and the issue of the Doctor's name virtually disappears over the course of the series. However, in the [[Endgame (Star Trek: Voyager)|series finale]], in an alternate future timeline the Doctor has finally chosen the name "Joe" after his new wife's grandfather (and Picardo's [[Robert_Picardo#Early_life|own father]]). Tom Paris remarks about this choice: "it took you ''33 years'' to come up with '''Joe''{{'}}?". ==Characteristics== Before the arrival of the mobile emitter, The Doctor's holo-program was confined to sickbay, holodecks, and other areas equipped with holographic systems. Depending on the availability of suitable holographic patterns and the capacity of his pattern buffers, The Doctor can alter his appearance. This was illustrated especially in the episode "[[Renaissance Man (Star Trek: Voyager)|Renaissance Man]]." The Doctor is also able to download his program and personality subroutines into a humanoid with Borg implants, indirectly "possessing" that individual and gaining control over its "host" body. Such was the case when he was forced to hide within the body of [[Seven of Nine]] in "[[Body and Soul (Star Trek: Voyager)|Body and Soul]]". ==Emergency Medical Hologram== The EMH is a holographic computer program designed to treat patients during emergency situations, or when the regular medical staff is unavailable or incapacitated. EMHs are a standard feature onboard all [[Starfleet]] ships, but they are there only to supplement the living medical crew during emergencies, not replace it. Programmed with all current Starfleet medical knowledge, The Doctor and all Mark I programs are equipped with the knowledge and mannerisms of historic Federation doctors, as well as the physical appearance of their programmer Dr. Lewis Zimmerman. The EMH can retain an enhanced personality over time if utilized frequently.<ref name="Grech-2020"/> Mariella Scerri and Victor Grech have proposed that the EMH is "an examplar of [[Philosophy of artificial intelligence#Can a machine have a mind, consciousness, and mental states?|strong AI]]" (a [[Philosophical theory|philosophical position]] on artificial intelligence according to which "computational states are functionally equivalent to mental states"<ref name="Scerri-2000">{{cite journal |last1=Scerri |first1=Mariella |last2=Grech |first2=Victor |title=Artificial intelligence in medicine |journal=Early Human Development |date=June 2020 |volume=145 |pages=105017 |doi=10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2020.105017 |pmid=32201033 }}{{Expression of Concern|doi=10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2021.105328|http://retractionwatch.com/2021/03/31/beam-us-up-elsevier-pulls-26-covid-19-papers-by- researcher-with-a-penchant-for-star-trek/ ''Retraction Watch''|http://retractionwatch.com/2020/12/10/elsevier-looking-into-very-serious-concerns-after- student-calls-out-journal-for-fleet-of-star-trek-articles-other-issues/ ''Retraction Watch''}}</ref>).<ref name="Scerri-2016">{{cite magazine |last1=Scerri |first1=Mariella |last2=Grech |first2=Victor |name-list-style=amp |date=July 2016 |title=Artificial Intelligence in Medicine |magazine=[[The New York Review of Science Fiction]] |volume=28 |issue=11#335 |pages=22–29 |publisher=Burrowing Wombat Press |issn=1052-9438}}</ref> Another author observed that consequent to the EMH's portrayal in ''Voyager'', "sentient computer programs embodied in a computer-generated hologram became a commonplace idea – even a convention – in subsequent fiction".<ref name="Johnston-2015">{{cite book |last=Johnston |first=Sean F. |date=2015 |title=Holograms: A Cultural History |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-871276-3 |page=96}}</ref> ==Other appearances== In a minor role in the movie ''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]'', Picardo plays the emergency medical hologram of the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)|USS ''Enterprise''-E]]. Doctor [[Beverly Crusher]] activates it/him, albeit reluctantly, as a means of distracting the [[Borg (Star Trek)|Borg]] while she and other crew members escape from the besieged sickbay. He replies, "I'm a doctor, not a doorstop", an homage to [[Leonard McCoy|Doctor McCoy]]'s catchphrase line "[[Leonard McCoy#"I'm a doctor, not a..."|I'm a doctor, not a ...]]" In the ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' episode "[[Doctor Bashir I Presume]]", Picardo portrays Zimmerman, who here attempts to develop a Long-Term Medical Hologram. (The EMH also was a feature in the defunct [[Star Trek: The Experience]] amusement exhibition at the [[Las Vegas Hilton]].) In 2019, Picardo said CBS producers had expressed interest in also having him in ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]'' as either The Doctor or his creator, [[Lewis Zimmerman]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://io9.gizmodo.com/robert-picardo-says-he-could-sign-up-for-star-trek-pic-1836849985|title=Robert Picardo Says He Could Sign Up for Star Trek: Picard's Second Season|last=Whitbrook|first=James|date=July 31, 2019|access-date=February 27, 2020}}</ref> Several other versions of the EMH have appeared onscreen. The EMH Mark II, a new and upgraded EMH, is played by [[Andy Dick]] in the ''Voyager'' episode "[[Message in a Bottle (Star Trek: Voyager)|Message in a Bottle]]". ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]'' features an EMH called "Emil", part of a holographic suite aboard the ship ''La Sirena'', modeled after Captain Cristobal Rios and played by [[Santiago Cabrera]]. ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'' features a 32nd-century EMH known as "Eli", played by [[Brendan Beiser]]. ==Reception== In 2018, [[The Wrap]] ranked Voyager's EMH as the 22nd best character of ''Star Trek'' overall, noting the character as a "sarcastic, overworked hologram", one that also had time for jokes and helping fellow crewmates.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.thewrap.com/all-39-star-trek-main-characters-ranked-from-spock-to-wesley-photos/| title = All 39 'Star Trek' Main Characters Ranked, From Spock to Wesley March 2018| date = September 8, 2021}}</ref> In 2016, ''[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]]'' magazine ranked the character as the 16th most important character in service to [[Starfleet]] within the ''Star Trek'' science fiction universe.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2016/09/star-treks-100-crew-members-ranked/|title=Star Trek's 100 Most Important Crew Members, Ranked|last=McMillan|first=Graeme|date=September 5, 2016|magazine=Wired|access-date=March 20, 2019|issn=1059-1028}}</ref> In 2016, [[Syfy|SyFy]] ranked "The Doctor/Voyager EMH" as the second best of the six main-cast space doctors of the ''Star Trek'' franchise.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/every-major-star-trek-doctor-ranked|title=Every major Star Trek doctor, ranked|last=Roth|first=Dany|date=June 29, 2016|website=SYFY WIRE|language=en|access-date=July 4, 2019|archive-date=July 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190704150923/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/every-major-star-trek-doctor-ranked|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2013, [[Slate (magazine)|''Slate magazine'']] ranked The Doctor one of the ten best crew characters in the ''Star Trek'' franchise.<ref name="Yglesias 2013 r823">{{cite web | last=Yglesias | first=Matthew | title=Star Trek Movies, Series, and Characters Ranked | website=Slate Magazine | date=May 15, 2013 | url=https://slate.com/culture/2013/05/star-trek-rankings-movies-tv-series-villains-and-crew-members-from-best-to-worst.html | access-date=January 23, 2024}}</ref> ==See also== {{Portal|Speculative fiction|Television}} *[[Elementary, Dear Data]] (TNG S2E3 aired December 5, 1988 – also explored holographic A.I.) *[[Vic Fontaine]] (a holographic personality on ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'') *[[Arnold Rimmer]], holographic character on ''[[Red Dwarf]]''. ==Notes== {{reflist|30em}} ==External links== {{Memoryalpha|The Doctor}} * [https://www.startrek.com/database_article/the-doctor The Doctor] at [[StarTrek.com]] {{Memoryalpha|Emergency Command Hologram}} {{Star Trek: Voyager}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Doctor, The}} [[Category:Television characters introduced in 1995]] [[Category:Fictional artificial intelligences]] [[Category:Fictional physicians]] [[Category:Fictional surgeons]] [[Category:Fictional health professionals]] [[Category:Fictional singers]] [[Category:Fictional writers]] [[Category:Fictional characters who can turn intangible]] [[Category:Fictional characters from the 24th century]] [[Category:Star Trek: Voyager characters]] [[Category:Holography in television]] [[Category:Starfleet medical personnel]]
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