Star Trek: Voyager
"Fair Haven"
Air date: 1/12/2000
Written by Robin Burger
Directed by Allan Kroeker
Review by Jamahl Epsicokhan
"The fight spilled out onto the street. Before long, he climbed up a tree and began shouting your name. Mr. Neelix managed to talk him down." — Doc to Janeway about a heartbroken hologram, a scene worth picturing
Nutshell: Only so-so on its given terms, and I have very mixed feelings about those terms.
The use of holograms on Voyager has at times made me very uncomfortable. "Nothing Human," in which a holographic re-creation of a real Cardassian surgeon helped save Torres' life, was a perfect example of the kind of mess the writers can create when permitting holograms to attain such limitless realism under manufactured circumstances. And who can forget the silly use of Leonardo da Vinci in "Concerning Flight," an episode that had the man's life knowledge carried around to be used as a conversation stimulator for Janeway as she tried to elude the bad guys?
As far as I'm concerned (maybe you agree, maybe you don't), holograms should not automatically be assumed as "real" people except in cases where they are long-term social participants who were created or permitted to grow as artificial lifeforms. Examples: the Doctor or Vic Fontaine. Your average holographic chump conjured on the holodeck out of "photons and force fields" (as Janeway describes it) is not an artificial lifeform; it's an elaborate computer simulation. To assume more opens a can of worms that makes me very leery, with implications that grow larger than any given story is willing to tackle. (For starters, just where/when does sentience begin?)
So now, in "Fair Haven," we have years of Janeway as the asexual captain finally dropped in order to give her a holographic love interest named Michael (Fintan McKeown). When I first heard about this premise a month or two ago, did I think it was a good idea? No, because there seemed to be too much messy unreality baggage factored into the equation. How does an emotional connection exist between a person and a simulation? What are the implications of such a relationship?
"Fair Haven" prompts in me some very mixed feelings. On one hand, I disagree with the basic premise—the idea that a holodeck character can make a good substitute for the real thing. (Hiding in the holodeck a la Barclay in "Pathfinder" has generally been seen as unhealthy and ultimately fruitless.) On the other hand, a big element of this story is about Janeway's hang-up with the fact that Michael is a hologram, resulting in some arguments that, quite frankly, needed to be said for this episode to work at all. The story, to its credit, manages to address some questions I was asking before the show even aired. It didn't resolve those questions to any real satisfaction, but it did manage to bring them up and argue them to some degree.
The Irish dwelling of Fair Haven is sixth season's take on the annual Voyager holodeck theme. My favorite hangout is still the more intimate and simple pool hall in Marseilles, but Fair Haven has a sort of idyllic context that seems to make sense for a pleasant setting the whole crew can enjoy. It's a triumph of Hollywood back-lot scene-setting, but it's not a triumph of imagination. (And is it me, or did it seem like an out-of-the-way effort was made to gratuitously insert [IRISH PUB BRAWL] into the script? Couldn't avoid that cliché.) Whether you go for this sort of thing depends on how much you appreciate these sort of setting showpieces for their novelty value. David Bell's thematically Irish score helps, I must say.
Overall, I didn't find this to be a particularly effective romance. I did, however, appreciate a few of the ideas behind it. What works are some of the implications that arise on the side, like Janeway's acknowledgement that Michael is a hologram, and the fact that she realizes her ability to change everything about him to make him more "perfect" is a big part of what makes the experience seem phony. I also sort of enjoyed McKeown as Michael, who creates an everyman persona that's sometimes likable, particularly his understated, confused vulnerability evident in the final scene.
But leading up to the (ambiguous) payoff is far too much pedestrian Standard Trek Romance material. The only real chemistry between Janeway and Michael is in the pathos of that final scene, after all the issues of real/not-real have been laid out for us; everything beforehand feels a bit forced. The romance here seems motivated more by the writers having said, "It's about time we gave Janeway a love story," than it seems like a logical outgrowth of events, character, or even spontaneous attraction.
Maybe the biggest problem is that Janeway just doesn't seem believably in character when flirting, dancing joyfully, arm wrestling, throwing rings, etc. These two characters aren't compelling enough to watch on the screen together. Part of the problem is that Mulgrew overplays the sentiment with exaggerated gestures. Mulgrew has always had a tendency to play up body language with stylized performances, but here it seems overly "playful" and too much for the audience's benefit. An early scene where a borderline-giddy Janeway gets a radiation inoculation in sickbay had me wondering just what kind of drugs she was on. (Okay, we get it—you're in an unusually good mood.)
On the other hand, I did get something out of the other end of the spectrum, when Janeway broods in her quarters. This sentiment is played up with an equal de-emphasis on subtlety, but it works a lot better because it grows out of emotions that seem to be genuinely held. Janeway has a quiet, defeated way about her sullen state—after it fully registers that her new holographic acquaintance is not a real person and she realizes that she is in fact very lonely.
It's perhaps a telling sign that the show's most entertaining scene is an amusing Janeway/Chakotay exchange on the bridge, which reveals about 100 times the chemistry of any Janeway/Michael scene. The J/C dialog is natural, playfully jibing, and friendly. (Doesn't this seem like the real potential here?) It's an episode like this that makes me wonder just what happened back in "Resolutions."
But never mind; Janeway/Chakotay is not an option because we can't have the captain having affairs with members of her crew. (As much as J/C interests me on the curiosity level, it would almost certainly be a bad, messy idea for the writers to attempt.) But is hooking Janeway up with a hologram the answer? I'm not sure. Quite frankly, hooking her up with an alien of the week might be more satisfying; at least it might seem like a real relationship with some sort of believable potential, rather than an extended, confusing fantasy with all the holographic real/not-real baggage to go along with it.
There are scenes in "Fair Haven" that suggest the captain's destiny is one of unfortunate loneliness. Those scenes are the ones that the show gets right. But a key Doc/Janeway conversation suggests that perhaps there is a future for Janeway and her holographic love interest after all. And then the episode ends with complete ambiguity, revealing that Janeway needs to sort some things out, and hinting that she might load Michael's program into the hologrid at some point in the future.
I'm realizing that this episode perhaps has a built-in Catch-22. Like the Doctor says, the captain's options are limited (though I'm not entirely convinced they must be as limited as the writers decree). So turning to alternatives might be necessary. But is this really solving the problem? Doc says so, but I dunno. More than anything, the romance seems to be testing waters—but testing for what? This relationship can become ... what? Is this a cure for boredom, high-tech physical/emotional masturbation, or an attempt for something more? Does it even matter since the chances of these issues being revisited are close to nil? Man, what a mess this makes. If nothing else, new writer/producer Robin Burger's first script for Voyager has found a way to provoke some thought.
In the meantime, there's plenty of laid-back filler, which is forgivable for what's essentially a shore-leave episode, I guess, but I can't say I was particularly entertained by it. Nor was I excited about the bargain-basement filler "danger" plot, involving some approaching spatial turbulence that basically serves as a metaphor for a hurricane or severe thunderstorm in space (and has the crew bracing for impact and escaping into the holodeck since there's nothing else to do while they wait out the storm).
All things considered, "Fair Haven" is a mediocre romance story. There's too much filler and bizarre characterization, and not enough chemistry. What remains of value are the arguments about how "real" a holographic simulation can be. It's a halfway interesting concept to tackle, but in the end it left me just as frustrated as ever about the supposed nature of holograms. At one point Doc tells Janeway that Michael is as real as Janeway needs him to be. But is he? Or will Janeway feel as hollow about the experience in a month as she did when she first sobered to the fact it was all an illusion? Can she—should she—force herself to accept the imaginary as reality?
By the end, Janeway is hopelessly conflicted over this dilemma. So am I. Janeway is not satisfied with how things turned out. And, unfortunately, neither am I. "Fair Haven" is a nice try on some levels, but it has too much implied messiness and ultimately doesn't work. And besides—Janeway deserves better than a hologram.
Next week: Societal development goes warp speed.
Previous episode: Pathfinder
Next episode: Blink of an Eye
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114 comments on this post
Tue, Jan 1, 2008, 5:28pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Mar 21, 2008, 8:46am (UTC -6)
So two stars? I'd rank it higher. Its certainly an episode you can show to your girlfriend and We don't have many of those...
Sat, Nov 8, 2008, 10:50pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Apr 12, 2009, 9:25am (UTC -6)
I cannot agree with Jammer's criticisms about a lack of chemistry between Janeway and Michael, I think it was there in spades. In fact, I loved Janeway's girlish behaviour around Michael. It's exactly the kind of high one can get when they meet someone that literally takes their breath away.
The question of whether those feelings are appropriate from A) the captain and B) towards a hologram are valid, but I also think excusable given the R & R nature of the situation, where one is predisposed to having a good time.
Whether a hologram is 'really' sentient or not is neither here nor there IMO. If it can pass the Turin test (where you cannot tell the difference between a real person and a simulated one), which the Michael simulation clearly seems to be able to do, despite being programmable, then I think it becomes difficult to draw the line. It becomes a real, immersive environment. But of course, once out of the environment, you'd be much more analytical.
In fact, the very real tension that Janeway experiences between sober reality and embracing a perfect simulation, is what elevates this episode above standard fare.
There were also so many funny lines (such as 'delete wife' and Tuvok the barometer, to name a couple), that it simply made for a very entertaining and likable episode. I'd give it a three.
Wed, Apr 15, 2009, 3:43am (UTC -6)
Tue, Aug 11, 2009, 5:52pm (UTC -6)
On a side note, Neelix constantly makes reference to helping with low morale on the ship, but the crew is never shown as anything other than blissfully happy. This strikes me as odd considering the situation- it would be nice to see at least one nervous breakdown, depression, anything.
Wed, Dec 9, 2009, 7:16am (UTC -6)
I'm not really sure what to take from the episode - not to change your loved ones? If that's the case, she dumped him for non reasons anyway, even if she can't change him anymore.
Ugh... it just makes me thing the entire endevour is pointless. The show has some really nice scenes too.
Wed, Apr 7, 2010, 6:24pm (UTC -6)
Chakotay's scene was hilarious - plenty of chemistry there. 'Delete the wife'.
Mon, Jul 12, 2010, 1:46pm (UTC -6)
WTF!?!
WHAT THE FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA...!!!!!?????!!!!!
This episode not only deserves MINUS FOUR stars, but it's such a load of taurine feces that it should get minus FOURTEEN stars, with the surplus ten spilling over into subsequent episodes. THAT's how crappy it is!! O.K., the episode itself wasn't stupid. Parts of it were actually funny. But the idea is so preposterous as to be beyond any critique.
Highlight of the show: Paris telling Tuvok "You'd make a good barometer, Tuvok: Every time you get queasy we go to red alert." hahahahahahahah!!!!!
Sun, Aug 22, 2010, 7:17pm (UTC -6)
What a coincidence that the Irish town resembles so closely the French town in "The Killing Game."
Sun, Nov 28, 2010, 1:22pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Jan 22, 2011, 5:47am (UTC -6)
Fri, Feb 4, 2011, 4:08pm (UTC -6)
It would have been fun if one of the characters had been called Father Ted that would have been funny
Sun, Feb 6, 2011, 12:57pm (UTC -6)
Now we have a whole damned town in the holodeck, with countless members of the crew throughout...dialogue in the episode even has Kim declaring crewmembers in various areas of town simultaneously.
It's a flaw I just can't get past even if the episode is otherwise good, which this one most certainly is not.
Even the earlier seasons' Sandrines, when full of Voyager patrons, came close to pushing the limits of spacial respresentation.
Tue, Mar 22, 2011, 6:19pm (UTC -6)
Anyway, the crew has to suffer Neelix's "cooking" because they need to conserve energy by not using replicators, yet they're essentially walking around in one giant replicator using masses of energy all the time. Hmm. (And what happened to non-volatile memory in the future? A power drain erases data... wow)
Logic aside then..
It had promise - a romance story for Janeway after all these years and a chance to have a good shot at tackling the hologram reality and sentience issues. But as usual the writers didn't have the guts to make a decision, so unfortunately it was left half baked, with most of the questions raised but none of them answered or even tackled in any meaningful way. (Janeway also gets to say "he's only a hologram" in front of the poor Doctor for about the 5th time in the series. Classy.)
It just left me wondering why they could never just FACE the hologram issue and sort it out.. clearly at some point with some kind of social triggers they become sentient. I don't think it happened with this Michael character, but certainly the Doctor and Vic and I'd say with enough interaction perhaps they all do - so hang on, Starfleet are creating and destroying life here, playing God. That has HUGE implications. Let's see them!! Oh wait, it's just Voyager :(
I do have to give the episode some credit, "delete the wife" was an absolute scream and the scene in general was amusing (I couldn't help but wonder if she'd ask to access the er "pleasuring parameters" and check the dimensions there. Dirty girl, Kathryn, dirty.)
All in all classic Voyager: something that could've been a lot more in the right hands, but which misses out due to a lack of guts on the part of its creators and ends up being a half story as the Starship ADHD drops the subject like a lead balloon and whizzes off towards something completely different.
Mon, Apr 4, 2011, 4:30am (UTC -6)
Tue, Aug 9, 2011, 12:30am (UTC -6)
Maybe she should really be fired as captain for not being able to avoid a cloud when she is in a ship that is warp capable. I couldnt understand that.
Anyway assuming there was no way around the storm cloud, I dont understand why anyone cares who she humps on the holodeck. Shes got to be an adult and realize that hes not real. The whole episode is childish and the point lesson of the episode is what....you can't change people. Ok learned that one a long time ago. All in all a little below average, but fun to see Janeway smile. Since she finally got laid. :)
Thu, Aug 25, 2011, 3:54am (UTC -6)
I also think it damages Janeway's character having her in a relationship with a hologram (and not a sentient, self-aware hologram like the Doc, either). There was actually something borderline sleazy about the way she was programming in her preferred specifications...how is this much different from some saddo blowing up an inflatable sex doll? It just doesn't sit well. It makes janeway look a bit stupid (and extremely desperate) and it highlights the general stupidity of Voyager's writers when it came to their (over)use of the holodecks.
Sat, Sep 17, 2011, 10:45pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Sep 17, 2011, 10:50pm (UTC -6)
Sat, Sep 24, 2011, 1:21pm (UTC -6)
Or even worse, imagine the embarrassing potential accidents that could arise from a power drain while hooking up with a hologram. Janeway and and Michael are on a bed, when the bed suddenly disappears. CRASH. Janeway and Michael are having a kinky afternoon in the upper loft of a friend's barn. BOOM. You get the idea.
Imagine this scene:
Doctor: Please state the nature of the medical emergency.
Janeway: It's none of your business. Just treat my back.
Doctor: But captain, if I know how you received the injury I'll be better able to treat it.
Janeway: Computer; disengage the doctor's vocal subroutines!
*end scene*
As for the episode, eh... I didn'f hate it as much as I expected to. In fact, I kind of enjoyed some of it. It was kind of nice to see a softer side of Janeway, and the questions raised about the viablity of having a relationship with a hologram were interesting. The Irish stereotyping was pretty cringe worthy though, and I don't think I ever needed to see Tuvok get space sick like that.
I think two stars is about right, actually.
Wed, Jan 18, 2012, 7:50am (UTC -6)
Sun, Feb 5, 2012, 2:12am (UTC -6)
Janeway is being true to her fiancee for couple of seasons and others she's oozing big time chemistry with chakotay. Damn if Chakotay would just take charge and shake her, this would be a show I think my girl friends would watch.
Oh and someone here said something about sci-fi should be more space, etc. as an engineer I love that stuff. However, I'm also human and a woman who loves good entertainment. So a sci-fi series doing some episodes out of that context is a good thing. I see that complaint all the time and it's starting to sound like the whining I hear from the male engineers at my work who can't seem to just focus and just do their job instead of drama about their wives or too much work that have become too much because they were whining the entire day at work instead of working. Sorry if I offended anyone I'm just venting at this point and projecting.
Mon, Jun 4, 2012, 2:00pm (UTC -6)
How does that work? If you're intoxicated by it (because you "allow" it?), then how do you have the clearmindedness to know when it needs to be "dismissed"?
Mon, Jun 4, 2012, 10:44pm (UTC -6)
@Brian O'Connell, Fair Haven was a 19th Century representation of "sunny" Ireland. Hence, the candles.
Now, if Harry REALLY wanted Tommy Boy to create an accurate simulation of 19th Century Ireland he would have insisted on a potato famine to go along with the fog. And maybe an epidemic of "The Galloping Consumption" (TB) for good measure.
Ah well. Sláinte and...
Delete The Wife.
Tue, Jun 19, 2012, 1:18am (UTC -6)
So I recently watched it for the first time (the first time I have watched a 'new' episode of Star Trek since the Enterprise finale aired!) and was... pleasantly surprised. It was fun. I thought the ending was ridiculous (The Doctor saying Michael was 'as real as he was' was offensive and dumb), but overall I had a lot of fun with the episode. I think 2 stars is about right, but I still liked it.
Tue, Aug 28, 2012, 2:41am (UTC -6)
Sun, Dec 23, 2012, 2:31am (UTC -6)
Thu, Jan 31, 2013, 2:08pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jan 31, 2013, 2:45pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Apr 22, 2013, 10:52pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jul 11, 2013, 11:14pm (UTC -6)
Also the simulation was open to the whole ship so if they did do the nasty anyone could have walked on in AND all of the walls and such are made of electrons, probably not much that would muffle noise...ahem.
Sun, Jul 28, 2013, 2:08am (UTC -6)
One of the worst, and that is saying a lot.
The idea that this is what the crew likes? The whole crew? No one rather have the planet Risa, which has been established it is already a virtual paradise, or even a version of Vegas? Hawaii? etc...
Wed, Jul 31, 2013, 7:59am (UTC -6)
I'd say Fair Haven gets it wrong, mostly by not having enough humour or fun even when trying its hardest to be charming. And I didn't buy the romance as presented, expect for Janeways' torn expression as she kisses a man who isn't Mark and of course "delete the wife" made me laugh!
I think it should have stuck at the physical level and just explored her loneliness and mixed feelings in what she's doing to satisfy some of that longing. It would remove a lot of the baggage and made for a more believable, braver story.
And I hated the way a storm was used as a easy way out of the storys' implications and renders everything meek and meaningless. Half a star.
Wed, Jul 31, 2013, 8:28am (UTC -6)
They should have ran with the analogy and used it as a means to explore the emotional implications as well as challenging the supposed shame built up around the act by so-called social standards. The truth is everybody masterbates wether they're a man or a woman, 15 or 50 and even being single or not makes little difference. So why not explore this part of the human condition?
This isn't even something I care about. It just annoys me how fruitless and pointless the whole episode is, when a little bravery and maturity could have made for something much more. I'd rather they never bothered at all.
While I'm still here, allow me to correct a few mistakes in my last post! *Leonardo, *except and hopefully that's it!
Tue, Aug 13, 2013, 3:15pm (UTC -6)
not my favorite episode because of the lack of action and mystery. but i liked the questions about "to love or not to love a hologram."
2 star for being mildly entertaining.
Sun, Oct 27, 2013, 11:17am (UTC -6)
Sat, Dec 14, 2013, 9:11am (UTC -6)
Just like the "French" bar was populated with Italians.
Also, I love how everyone on Star Trek is fascinated by the early 20th century! And they know so much about it, too! They never go vintage with late 23d century. No, ALWAYS the first half of the 20th. How strange. You know, just like today everyone's an absolute expert on 17th century music and customs and history, and everytime we want to go vintage that's where we go.
Anyway, terrible episode, the first of season 6 I couldn't finish.
Fri, Jan 10, 2014, 9:44am (UTC -6)
The exception, of course, is for retro music. Then they zip right past the 20th century and it's as if all music ceased after the era of Beethoven. Would've been cool if Riker went to his quarters after work and turned on some Eagles or some Jefferson Starship.
JJ Abrams remedies this in the reboot, but of course for the worse.
Tue, Jan 21, 2014, 7:18am (UTC -6)
b3ta.com/board/10806514
Sat, Jan 25, 2014, 1:17am (UTC -6)
Sat, Feb 22, 2014, 7:59pm (UTC -6)
Not only is that ridiculous, it opens up a massive ethical dilemma. But this episode, and almost all Trek's from TNG have shirked this.
Thu, Mar 6, 2014, 8:56pm (UTC -6)
I hated the storm. Frankly, I hated this episode except the friendship of janeway and chakotay on the bridge. I liked seeing some deep continuity that they aren't superficial but loyal friends.
Tue, May 27, 2014, 5:19pm (UTC -6)
Trek hasn't been consistent with the holodeck characters. The Doctor and Vic are clearly "people" with experiences of their own, while other characters are just simulations. The Doctor has no reason to think that Micheal is as real as he is. If they are people, it's wrong to turn them off.
The idea of large numbers of people on a holodeck makes little sense. Take for example "Take me out to the holosuite." You're the batter, and you see the pitcher 90 feet away, and you also see the outfielders a couple hundred feet away. The holosuite is only a few dozen feet away, so you can't really be seeing these people. What you are seeing is holographic projections of the people to simulate distance. That means each person is in their own holographic "bubble", a projection centered on themselves. Why not have a large number of "holo-cubicles"?
Wed, May 28, 2014, 10:08am (UTC -6)
As for Voyager's holodecks... didn't the Hirogen make them bigger and link them? Maybe they didn't undo all of that and so they could make an Irish Village?
"if the holodeck failed... it could be embarrassing"
LOL.... that would have been hilarious.
And yes, I found the whole "sentient hologram" thing to be annoying. I mean, Data was supposed to be unique in that nobody could replicate his electronic sentience but then the Enterprise D made Moriarty with little trouble, Bashir's friend designed Vic and Voyager's Doctor became sentient.
I always felt Voyager's doctor became sentient due to years and years of constant on-time + a huge computer system + lots of experience doing things he wasn't programmed to do... forcing him to learn/adapt and by doing so evolve the ability to learn/adapt. I guess I just imagine Michael not being sentient because I just imagine him being a floppy to Doctor's terrabyte hard drive or a toaster to his iPad. The doctor's program is always said to be huge, I can't imagine they have the storage space for every hologram to have a program the size of the Doctor.
The other intriguing thing about the Doctor is that Voyager uses BIO gel packs, so actually the processors making the Doctor's decisions are not even all electronic. That gives him an even larger claim to be able to be "accidentally sentient" than Vic/Moriarty.
::shrug:: I'll stop now, this conversation is far too interesting for such a disappointing episode :P
Tue, Nov 11, 2014, 7:26pm (UTC -6)
"In fact, I loved Janeway's girlish behaviour around Michael. It's exactly the kind of high one can get when they meet someone that literally takes their breath away."
I just watched this again, and I agree. I have never had any feelings one way or the other about Mulgrew's acting ability -- didn't think she was a good actress, didn't think she was a bad actress. But here, she really impressed me with only gestures, facial expressions, and body language -- I *believed* Janeway was majorly attracted to Michael.
Sun, Nov 30, 2014, 10:26am (UTC -6)
Agreed, on the one hand we have reality (Chief O'Brien) and then they smash us in the mouth with this lephrachronic tripe. The worst vandalism was when Colm Meaney had to personally endure this racial torture during Up The Long Ladder.
Sun, Jan 18, 2015, 12:53pm (UTC -6)
I love it, so it makes me wonder what we who love it have in common, and what those who hate it have in common.
It would be interesting to do a survey.
Thu, May 7, 2015, 6:09pm (UTC -6)
Fri, May 29, 2015, 8:03pm (UTC -6)
The only thing I found worth watching was the Doctor and Janeways discussion about her romantic options. It's true that her options are limited, but I don't agree that the holodeck could provide a decent alternative. They aren't real. It's all good and fine if you're playing out a story with yourself as a character in it, because you're always aware of that fact.
But when you start seeing holograms as real people that have to fulfill real human desires, then you're taking it too far and Janeway did the right thing by walking away before things got even worse.
In the end, Michael and Fair Haven are just an elaborate illusion. They are what Tom and Janeway made them to be. You can never get any real satisfaction from anything they say or do, because in the back of your mind you know you (or someone else programmed them to be that way).
It was a waste of an episode for me personally, as I didn't enjoy 95% of the content and the part that does work is an ethical/moral debate that is too headache inducing to think about in depth, so I don't. Not a shining moment in the Voyager saga, as far as I'm concerned.
Tue, Jul 21, 2015, 6:12pm (UTC -6)
And what the hell happened to the famous Vulcan stoicism? Spock will stay at his post to the point of collapse, whereas Tuvok gets a slight upset tum and acts like a dying Swan!
Wed, Mar 9, 2016, 10:02pm (UTC -6)
But anyway, back to this dreck of an episode. To be honest, it was better than I expected. Of course, once I saw a holodeck-heavy episode, I expected the worst, so that's not saying much. The episode's strength is in recognizing the uncomfortableness of the premise, and Janeway's portrayal, at least after she gives up on her little fantasy, is solid. This isn't Barclay in there, thankfully enough (speaking of which, who's idea was it to put an episode about loving holograms right after a Barclay episode?). Otherwise this would have been terrible instead of just bad. But the episode had no clue where it was going.
The biggest problem was the Doctor's discussion with Janeway in the hallway. I mean, it's fine that he did that; he is probably the only one who could discuss it with her. But the discussion was just ridiculous. The Doctor was treating the holographic bartender as a real person, that the only difference was between force fields and photons and flesh and blood. And Janeway kept claiming that that was the only difference. Um, no. How about... he's not sapient. He's a mere computer creation. He is simply a created construct. Whether a cheap facsimile in a cyborg outfit with real flesh and blood and moving parts or a cheap facsimile in a photonic environment is not the difference maker. It's the fact that he's a cheap facsimile.
So the Doctor's claim that the bartender was just like him is false. The Doctor is unique. He is an actual AI that can think for itself. The bartender thinks whatever the computer tells him to think, and the computer tells him to think whatever Tom or Janeway programs him to think. He has no free will of his own! That the episode seems to think that photons vs flesh is the only thing standing between a relationship between Janeway and the bartender is silly. If it was real, then Janeway deleting the wife is a moral abomination!
If Janeway wants to pork the bartender, whatever. It's her hormones. But to treat this as anything more than a fantasy is insulting to the real interactions and real relationships people have. And no, it's not just because Janeway can tweak the programming whenever she wants. Sure, not being able to change the programming may make her fantasy more challenging, but it's still just a fantasy. The bartender is still a computer program following its orders, simply moving along its preconceived notions. Janeway can still end program and ignore the bartender for weeks at a time without feeling guilty. Why? Because it's not real. If Janeway wants to indulge in a fantasy on her downtime, that's her choice. But stop pretending its anything more than a fantasy!
Then again, maybe the reason the Doctor phrased it like that was because he was hoping other female members of the cast would start getting interested in bumping holographic uglies. Why he of all people chose to be a celibate priest is beyond me; he's hornier than Paris!
But I digress. Getting back to Janeway, like I said, the episode brings this up as if she is having a real relationship with the bartender, even though its just a program. But the episode kinda has to present it that way for it to have any value, even if it is stupid. After all, if it's just Janeway relaxing in the holodeck by romancing a 19th century figure, we already had that back with her Charlotte Bronte holonovel. And no matter how much the episode might pretend this could be a real relationship if Janeway just stops fiddling with his program, that's not the case. Janeway would have no qualms about ending the program to deal with Voyager (she's not Barclay, after all). She would have no qualms about setting aside the bartender for a real person if a real person comes along. If Voyager came home tomorrow, she would drop the bartender immediately. Why? Because its a fantasy, not real. No matter what the episode claimed. So, the entire premise of the episode is nullified, which means, well, what's the point?
Meanwhile, to set up this bad idea for a plot, we had several ridiculous contrivances:
1) The holodeck safeties apparently don't work during bar brawls, despite the fact that broken glass and splintering tables can be kinda dangerous. And what's with nobody able to shut down the program when it happened? No one could say "Computer, freeze program" like every other holodeck episode?
2) How convenient that all 140 people on Voyager wanted to hang out in an Irish town where the only thing to do is throw rings at a peg and drink? Sorry Naomi, the adventures of your water and tree friends are no longer allowed, the grownups want to play instead.
3) So anyway, this town is open to everyone on Voyager, and probably has a few people roaming around in it at any time. Yet Janeway casually deletes all the characters so she can dance alone with her virtual paramour. No one else noticed? And more importantly, the captain didn't worry that no one else would notice? The rest of the episode implied that Janeway didn't want the rest of the crew to know about her little fantasy (and for good reason; that probably isn't appropriate to share with the crew). Shouldn't she be a little more concerned with hiding her feelings?
4) Now, after all these years, the holodecks are integrated into the rest of the ship's systems?
5) Harry cares more about saving the holodeck program than his own life? Dude, the ship was going to explode, who cares if Fair Haven can't be saved?
6) Speaking of which, what's with Tom and Harry choosing which characters to save? If you get a corrupted hard drive, are you able to tell it which files you want to remain corrupted and which ones you have no choice on? Didn't think so.
I suppose I could forgive some or even all of these contrivances, for the most part they aren't a big deal. But when they serve to setup a plot I don't care for, then that means I'm not in a forgiving mood.
Sat, Mar 12, 2016, 6:15am (UTC -6)
But.... I don't know, there is something more to it. God knows there's no problem with Janeway getting her oats, and the conversation with the Doctor is a fairly frank examination of that. And Janeway's girlish behaviour around Michael is actually quite endearing. It's just that it all doesn't seem very organic.
There are plenty of other fun moments - Seven's skill at rings ("I have superior hand-eye coordination") being a real laugh out loud moment. So a conflicted 2.5 stars overall.
Thu, Jun 2, 2016, 9:17pm (UTC -6)
(computer, replicate pillow for me to scream into)
Thu, Jun 2, 2016, 9:20pm (UTC -6)
Mon, Jun 13, 2016, 1:03pm (UTC -6)
Our Captain is a human woman and she has her needs too. :-)
All our other Captain's have had their flings so I have no problems with this.
"Delete the wife" .... ROLMAO!!!
3 stars, because I've grown just about numb to holodeck stuff.
Tue, Aug 16, 2016, 3:40pm (UTC -6)
Anyhow, Janeway disappoints me. Given the chance to have a hologrammatic man, she changes a regular guy she has real chemistry with into a sensitive, pontificating poetry lover. What is wrong with this woman? To each her own, I guess. But it sounds like she wants somebody basically boring and predictable.
Thu, Aug 25, 2016, 7:25pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Aug 25, 2016, 9:06pm (UTC -6)
You're confusing consciousness with sentience. If your claim was correct that any cause-effect process was the same as any other then we'd be as "sentient" as a rock or a gust of wind. Obviously those are different sorts of systems from life forms, so what you're looking at is whether a human is [i]conscious[/i] or not, which is a fair question. But there is no question that we are sentient, and that a simplistic computer program like a video game is not. Can a certain sophistication in a programming language create sentience? That's a question, although not one really addressed by Voyager. TNG vaguely alludes to it with Data, but doesn't go the hard sci-fi route of exploring the technological aspect of it, instead allowing Data to teach us about humanity rather than using humanity to teach us about Data. But rudimentary holodeck programs are no more sentient than the life support systems on the ship are.
The case Voyager was apparently trying to make for the doctor is that because his program ran for so long and accumulated so many pathways or whatever, that his learned behaviors began to match the complexity of those of the crew. Whether this actually happened is up for debate; I personally don't think so.
Thu, Aug 25, 2016, 11:00pm (UTC -6)
According to the dictionary definition, sentient is "having the power of perception by the senses; conscious" or "characterized by sensation and consciousness", although I will agree with you that conscious is the better word. The question of what it takes to be conscious is obviously a valid one, which is why I qualified my statement with "arguably."
Mon, Aug 29, 2016, 11:28am (UTC -6)
Doctor:Not now
Irish stereotype:But iv'e broken the 5th commandment again!
Doctor:Say 10 our fathers and get me latter.
Um Doc the Catholic 5th commandment is Thou shalt not kill the innocent.
So that annoying old Irish guy is a repeated murder? that strangely makes him more endearing to me.
Thu, Sep 8, 2016, 8:21pm (UTC -6)
I liked this one (***)
Fri, Sep 9, 2016, 2:25am (UTC -6)
Going back to the holodeck being used for masturbation, I would imagine that people fall for holograms like this fairly frequently because the brain has a hard time distinguishing fact from fiction in these circumstances and so we can see how the brain could be easily confused to the point of becoming emotionally attached to a hologram. Hell look at what happened to Harry, he fell in love with a hologram (well a half hologram) and in the reprisal to this episode he is about to go on a date with one of the Fair Haven holograms.
I just want to say that holodeck cleanup must be the absolute worst assignment on the ship. They must be like that sauna cleanup guy from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Tue, Nov 15, 2016, 7:45am (UTC -6)
I thought everyone was banging holodeck characters. Are we to assume that only the few crew members that paired off are getting any? Are they so cloistered in the future that there's no holo-whorehouse? Sounds like a good reason for a mutiny.
1 star
Tue, Nov 15, 2016, 11:08am (UTC -6)
Ugh... Not without a mop and a bucket.
Sun, Jan 1, 2017, 4:33am (UTC -6)
Wed, Jan 18, 2017, 2:18pm (UTC -6)
As soon as they start marketing holodecks I'm getting one - that's all there is to it.
Fri, Feb 3, 2017, 6:38pm (UTC -6)
I won't be suprised if Mulgrew despised this episodes. In fact, I think she should reject the plot of her character fall for hologram!
So here, we have Janeway fall for holo fantasies in a way much worse than Geordie La Forge (fall for Leah Brahms, but manage to avoid attachment, just using for help to resolve problem, and abandon it afterwards), also worse than Barclay (holo-addict, but deep inside know it's not real and never develop a real relationships, just using as a getaway from social-related work problem)
Meanwhile Janeway gone further by having relationships and having problem to detach herself from it, possibly using it as a whore-holo in the process, or at least heavily hinted (Doctor : "Do you have intimate relationship?" Janeway : "That's noe of your bussines"). She knew full-well it's not a real relationships and not healthy right? Awful.. awful episodes
Someone might try to said by using Doctor argument :
"He's as real as I am. Don't matter as long as your feel is real"
Really Doc? If I recall correctly, last time you're trying to be a ships counselor and take a role of psychiatrist it's failed miserably and costing someone life because he's overlook the complexity (Retrospect).
Don't matter? That thing is being confined to the holodeck, can't comprehend outside of holodeck world.. It's far.. far from being a sentient being, and do you think it's okay to develop relationship with it?
While in Doc case thats can be debated for many reasonable reasons. That sullivan-holo is far from it. Is Doc suggesting it's okay develop real-relationship and attachment to it? Suggesting that can produce a healthy 'relationship'.
I agree if the holo-man can be used for some kind of 'pressure relieve', but downright stupid unheatlhy suggesting it can be a real relationship.
Is Doc suggest Janeway take route of being holo-addict? Bravo Doc!
Heck, this will make Barclay case is a healthy and having small social/psyhology problem compared to Janeway if Doc reasoning should be taken!
Prior to this episode, we've established that having attachment to holo environment (holo-dict) is an unhealthy for psychology and prone to social problem (TNG-Hollow Pursuit, TNG-Booby Traps, VOY-Pathfinder).
Turning and let the character into an independent and sentient being is also unwise and out of question, as it can lead to unpredictable/unfathomable consequences, even possibly creating a whole new race (The Killing Game).
So how the hell let relationship to a holo-character is a good and healthy? Where is this reasoning even came from?
While I'm shocked Doc's suggesting continue pursue this unhealthy relationships, I'm flabbergasted Janeway didn't have a word to counter it and follow Doc suggestion to consider it.
Just when you thought Janeway character can not be more ruined, the writers found one eh....
Awful episodes! Half star
Sat, Mar 11, 2017, 4:31pm (UTC -6)
Also, what happens to secretions of sex when the holodeck turns off. Whose sad job is it to mop up the holodeck afterwards?
Sat, Mar 11, 2017, 5:08pm (UTC -6)
Harry of course, duh!
Sat, Apr 15, 2017, 8:46am (UTC -6)
"Delete The Wife."
Brilliant....
Mon, May 15, 2017, 9:48pm (UTC -6)
I hate that reasoning, especially since they were looking at 75 years to come up with a solution, but I get it, they wanted an excuse to keep the holodecks online without raising questions about power conservation. But other times, like in Night, they make a reference to pulling power from the holodecks. They failed, but for an entirely different reason. And that brings us to this episode, where they DO draw power from the holodecks for the express purpose of provoking catastrophic loss of the Fair Haven program and manufacturing a sentimental moment for the closing scene.
The one thing I hate worse than making up stupid rules for story purposes, that make no sense in the real world, is when they turn around and break their own rules arbitrarily just to serve a different story point later. See also: Sword Art Online.
Mon, May 15, 2017, 10:17pm (UTC -6)
Wed, Aug 2, 2017, 4:53pm (UTC -6)
Here we have a series set in this brand new unexplored wondrous--in theory-- part of the galaxy and instead we get a filler fluff piece in a holodeck featuring a lukewarm romance and a MacGuffin spatial anomaly. No thanks!
I was never one of those fans who felt Voyager sucked because it wrapped up the star fleet/maquis friction or sucked because it didn't make a big deal out of repairs or supplies etc etc. No, those things didn't bother me. I would have been perfectly satisfied with it being TNG in the Delta Quadrant. I mean TNG was consistently good week in and week out with solid standalones that I enjoyed a great deal. TNG also had a gravitas and rarely ventured into the silly
However Voyager was not TNG in the DQ. It had more in common with campy contemporaries like Xena or Hercules than TNG. And it was episodes like this that didn't help. But the Irish sets and music were lovely. Always been a sucker for the Irish
Sat, Oct 21, 2017, 5:11pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Dec 3, 2017, 5:19pm (UTC -6)
If anything, I think the stereotypes were underplayed. Maybe they should have put some leprechauns in there? This would have been the perfect theme for DS9 to show how "flawed" humans were, if it were serious about such a thing.
Mon, Feb 5, 2018, 12:57pm (UTC -6)
Sun, Mar 25, 2018, 6:10pm (UTC -6)
"Irish stereotype:Exuse me Father I need a bit of counsel
Doctor:Not now
Irish stereotype:But iv'e broken the 5th commandment again!
Doctor:Say 10 our fathers and get me latter.
Um Doc the Catholic 5th commandment is Thou shalt not kill the innocent.
So that annoying old Irish guy is a repeated murder? that strangely makes him more endearing to me."
LOL I came here exactly to post that, I guess the Doc is a Lutheran pretending to be a catholic priest or something
Wed, Aug 8, 2018, 7:40pm (UTC -6)
And like in "Nothing Human" the holograms are so easy to create -- just a few voice commands and they're basically fully sentient beings. I like that Janeway tries to create the perfect man and then realizes what she's doing and prevents herself from doing it again. I think she realizes she can enjoy herself with the hologram in the future, but that she should stick to reality. Not really a big payoff for an hour of mostly boring filler. At least she gets to use her Irish roots.
I liked the "confession" Janeway tells Doc -- the 2 have a good frank conversation about romance. But even better was Chakotay teasing the captain when on the bridge -- why didn't Janeway confide in Chakotay who she says she trusts more than anybody else?
The space anomaly was stupid. What was the point of it? Just to have Janeway say that the holodeck could be put on ice (meaning she's not out of control in love) so the deflector could have more power to cut a path through the "space storm"? And what of Tuvok's "space sickness"? (more fluff)
Barely 1.5 stars for "Fair Haven" -- there have been better holodeck Trek episodes for sure. It only became clear about half way through the show what the issue was going to be -- will Janeway have a real romance and then what? Or would the spacial anomaly make the holodeck run wild? Glad the episode didn't go there. There just wasn't enough of substance to this episode and the whole falling in love with a hologram doesn't cut it. Not a great Trek romance either.
Fri, Aug 10, 2018, 7:04pm (UTC -6)
Here's an idea: If after six years of Delta Quadrant chastity Janeway decides she's going to boink a hologram, why not create a holographic Mark?
Sat, Aug 11, 2018, 10:02am (UTC -6)
Richard Riehle, also known as Batai (the one who wasn't Daniel Stewart) from "The Inner Light."
Thu, Oct 25, 2018, 5:34pm (UTC -6)
Let's, see:
--The writers just don't show Janeway the same respect they do Picard. This is disappointing, but mostly, she's a badass and she's all I've got on Trek, as far as a truly "in command" wholly independent, confident woman, so I'll persevere.
--People can get very attached to fictional characters. They can love them, cry real tears at their deaths, masturbate thinking of them, etc. So really, nothing new or unusual in Janeway's attraction to Michael. In fact, I would think infatuations with holo characters would be very, very common.
--Tuvok being queasy, well, probably no-one will buy this, but I think this related to Janeway being queasy about her relationship with Michael. Tuvok can be seen as representing her rational, scientific, dutiful side. He's queasy.
--Janeway and Chakotay: Voyager does a good job keeping it subtle between them, but there is a mutual attraction there that they both know they can't indulge.
--Doc encouraging the Captain's relationship: I think he does this, even to the point of stretching the rationalization to say Michael is "as real as he (Doc) is, because he really wants the Captain not to deny herself. And too, it's hard for him to be objective on this topic.
Mostly, I think the series would have been better off without Fair Haven - which, it turns out, is neither fair, nor a haven.
Sat, Nov 10, 2018, 7:23am (UTC -6)
Thu, Jan 3, 2019, 2:14am (UTC -6)
Sat, Jan 12, 2019, 5:21pm (UTC -6)
Uhm... Following Braxton's "A-B-C" theory (Future's End), should we wait for Seamus knocking at Barclay's for "tuppence"? :-D
Thu, Sep 12, 2019, 4:41pm (UTC -6)
I kind of liked it. Janeway finding a nice guy. Irish flute. *sigh*. I actually sighed at the end. Laughed out loud once: "Girl meets boy, girl changes subroutines of boy."
On the other hand fair haven is a pretty boring place. I mean once or twice (ok more often if you find a charming, good looking, trinity college educated guy who is totally into you *sigh*) but I would get over this place quickly. I also thought for the first 15 minutes that the big reveal would be that the storm is influencing Janeway and not that she is just lonely. Strange bahavior of her sometimes bordering on inappropriate. Narrative also somewhat shaky. Ending a little nonsensical.
Let's see what Jammer has to say. In my new run watching the worst Voyager episodes I want to write my impressions first before I read what Jammer has to say.
So I read it and kind of agree. I thought there were more than one scene where Janeway and Irish guy had something going but her behavior often seems weirdly joyful. Everything else in the episode fell completely flat for me. I actually have a hard time remembering what happened. Storm something, Tuvok something, shot the storm, Harry Kim arm wrestling... successfully! On the holodeck everybody can be a winner, I guess.
Well whatever I wanted to watch the bad fair haven episode. Damn!
Not today.
Mon, Sep 23, 2019, 2:19am (UTC -6)
I think Jammer got this episode about right, maybe 1.5 stars instead of 2. I'm glad that Jammer also noticed Mulgrew's overacting *Yes, thank you!* and although I thought the idea of Janeway actually falling for a hologram to be preposterous, the episode was kind of fun to watch.
On a side note. I think I've finally found a way to enjoy VOY, although many of the episodes are not good. I now think of TOS and TNG as depictions of legendary characters within the ST universe while VOY is not. VOY still has very capable officers and crew members, but they are more like people we know today who are very high functioning and talented, but with all of the foibles of 20th/21st century humans. TOS and TNG are the GOAT type characters and obviously the creators of those shows took the writing and production more seriously. I feel that the show-runners of VOY were just having fun with the ST universe and trying out plots that would not have been considered in TOS and TNG (although TOS 3rd season had some stinkers). I don't know, just my ramblings.
Back to this episode. It's cool if Janeway does the nasty with a holodeck program; the falling in love part was stupid though.
I agree with many of the complaints above. Why go to late 19th century/early 20th century Ireland?? I'd be on Risa, or a similar place, doing terrible things to a hologram ;).
And people, sorry to break it to you but the VOY Dr. is NOT sentient, neither is DATA, nor any hologram. Quoting the Critical Drinker "go away now".
Mon, Sep 30, 2019, 2:38pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Oct 3, 2019, 1:56am (UTC -6)
So naturally, their 24/7 holodeck program that "everyone wants" is of a white, 19th century Irish village, complete with the crew dressing in period costumes like bar maids and priests. It can't get more white bread than that.
Star Trek: Enterprise continued this problem. Most of the senior staff are white, into meat and potatoes, water polo and other boring crap. Who knew that the future centuries would basically be 'Merica in space? There's no sense at all that Earth has united and that its cultures are widely distributed, known, and available to everybody. The only thing we get is a very serious Vulcan, and a native American character who is distinguished by having a facial tattoo. Wow, big whoop.
The problem goes on in other episodes. Tom Paris and his fascination with hot rod vehicles, juke boxes, and being a grease monkey. Harry Kim and playing the clarinet. Neelix making a holodeck version of Hawaii.
You can tell that this entire show is under a white male gaze and there is no attempt to even manifest one inkling of Roddenberry's dream of a highly diverse, accepting society that is deeply self-reflective. It basically just looks like Americans in space.
Look at how much effort Roddenberry put into casting TNG. It was painstaking. Picard is from Europe, Geordie from the Moon, Worf a Klingon, Troi a Betazoid, Riker from Alakaska, and later Ro Laren from Bajour. They made a real effort to make the ship cosmopolitan. Later Trek iterations were basically white 'Merica and it only got worse from Voyager onward.
Thu, Oct 3, 2019, 2:17am (UTC -6)
Of-course this just further supports your general point.
Sun, Nov 10, 2019, 6:02am (UTC -6)
In "Fair Haven" the affection is at least half way there, but because there's nothing else of substance it still falls flat on an overall scale of things. There's not much of a main plot, no b-plot and it's not even remotely believable that the whole Voyager crew is going gaga over Paris mega lame rendition of early 20th century Ireland.
With that said, it's still a treat to see Kate Mulgrew shining in every scene; among other things showing the audience a girly side of the Captain, not seen often before and done to perfection.
So it's worth 2 stars or maybe 2,5 at most, but I'd probably still include it on my re-watch list - simply due to my Janeway bias.
Thu, Dec 12, 2019, 12:13pm (UTC -6)
First off, I personally can’t stand a holodeck episode. It is terribly overdone in Star Trek. The whole idea of safety protocols going off line is completely unbelievable. Worse, I find it ridiculous that one cannot just turn the holodeck off. I don’t believe any of the holodeck romance stuff. I get that Janeway is lonely, but I cannot believe that she would even remotely fall for a holodeck character. Worse, I would never believe that Janeway (or any of the Starfleet captains we have ever met) would ever risk one of her crew in order to save a holocharacter. Absolutely nothing about this episode works.
And really, how are we supposed to care about holodeck characters that will inevitably be deleted at the end of the episode or at least we will never see again. And talk about stereotyping! Holy cow does this one ever insult the intelligence! The whole Irish country folk trope is insulting to everyone watching, the Irish in particular!
Nothing about this episode works. It is terrible and should never have been produced. Other reviewers have this episode negative stars. Generally I think of these types of reviews as hyperbole, but in this case it is appropriate as it so bad that it actually degrades the value of the series as a whole. It degrades Janeway. It degrades Star Trek. It is episodes like these that Star Trek critics love to pan.
It is one of the worst episodes of any Star Trek episode ever, right up there with Spock’s Brain.
Awful.
Mon, May 18, 2020, 12:21am (UTC -6)
Mon, Jun 8, 2020, 2:38pm (UTC -6)
Plus "Delete The Wife" is funny as fuck lol
Thu, Aug 20, 2020, 4:54pm (UTC -6)
I enjoyed the episode. It was a study of Janeway’s loneliness, a chance for Kate to show some range, and also a study of if you could change features of your partner whenever you liked, would you and is that a good thing or not.
It’s a fun episode, that mostly worked for me. Ideally it would have been left there, but they couldn’t leave it and it went badly in the other episode later in the season.
Thu, Dec 24, 2020, 10:54am (UTC -6)
Downside is that it's a little ambiguous as to what these holographic characters are. Are they non-sentient computer programs, created for the crew's enjoyment? Or are they something more? There's little question that the Doctor, Vic Fontaine, and Moriarty achieved sentience, but can that happen with others? Especially on Voyager, given that its computers (where holograms dwell) were designed to mimic organic brains?
Sun, Jan 17, 2021, 11:42am (UTC -6)
Sun, Feb 28, 2021, 8:10am (UTC -6)
I also disliked this episode in it's first run (i was 20 when i first saw it), but now I found it an interesting character study on Janeway's personal life and feelings. Oh how times have changed!
Sun, Feb 28, 2021, 10:24am (UTC -6)
Mon, Mar 1, 2021, 12:00pm (UTC -6)
Bob (a different one) and I are in complete agreement - I still hate it.
Tue, Oct 5, 2021, 1:43pm (UTC -6)
Mulgrew's wonderfully expressive, fun acting in this particular episode (she's excellent in most episodes in my opinion, but there's an extra liveliness to her performance here) and (of course) 'Delete the wife' remain highly entertaining after all these years.
Sat, Dec 4, 2021, 10:39am (UTC -6)
Tue, Jan 4, 2022, 10:38am (UTC -6)
Never be afraid to delete the wife.
Mon, Jul 4, 2022, 6:12pm (UTC -6)
There are ideas here that are good, such as Janeway's uneasiness with altering the program to make the perfect mate, and the Doctor counseling her to there is nothing wrong with her using the holodeck for flings.
The Doctor questioning the difference between flesh and blood vs photons and force fields is really interesting. I agree with Jammer that this instantly becomes a can of worms, but I do think it has merit if the Doctor is considered sentient. Because to the Doctor, these are issues as profound as they come, essentially religious/philosophical issues.
But it sure did take a while to get to this stuff and it was not exactly dwelled upon. And Voyager's worst cliché of having to be attacked occurred late in the show when the nebula started firing torpedoes at the ship or whatever supposedly happened.
Yes I'm a "yank" but I don't think the Irish stereotyping is quite the issue here it was in the TNG episode because this is explicitly a fictitious holodeck program. The town doesn't have electricity because it was set in 1980s Ireland, duh.
Fri, Oct 7, 2022, 1:11am (UTC -6)
Fri, Oct 7, 2022, 10:50am (UTC -6)
How can you award 3 stars to this trash? Did you mean to say 3 stars out of 50? I'm not usually a fan of holodeck episodes, the exceptions being "Worse Case Scenario" and "Living Witness".
Final score: 1/10
Sat, Nov 5, 2022, 7:56pm (UTC -6)
Star Trek fans have always loved romanticizing the characters, ranging from the original Kirk/Spock slash to the fact my twelve year old self's first love was Doctor Crusher (I'm more a Kira Nerys man these days).
There's nothing particularly weird about having a parasocial relationship like this in real world with lots of women reading romance fiction for this very reason. I see Janeway's relationship with Michael no different than Twilight or 50 Shades of Gray. I mean, video game romances are a thing as well. Bioware makes a living on players wanting to be with Leliana, Ashley Williams, Tali, Garrus, or Alistair.
Indeed, it's kind of weird everyone seems to tease Janeway this episode about it and in a way that's clearly uncomfortable for her. I mean, it seems like something you'd respect a person's privacy over.
I feel like I enjoy the episode's premise but I don't think they did a good job with an interesting idea: how people enjoy interactive entertainment in the future. Maybe it's just I think Fair Haven is a terrible idea and the Parisian Pool Hall or WW2 france would have been more fun. At least less insulting.
Sun, Jan 22, 2023, 9:59pm (UTC -6)
My take on this episode and the series as a whole: it would have been more interesting to see the characters make the "wrong" decision more often, and then to follow up with consequences. Should J and C have gotten into a relationship? Probably not. Would it have been interesting to explore the ramifications? Sure would have.
Should Janeway fall in love with a holo? Probably not. But would it have been interesting to revisit it as time went on? Would she have found some aspects fulfilling and others hollow? Would the crew care? Would she fall for an organic and then feel like she was being unfaithful to a holographic character? Would she evolve away from him? Try to pull a Moriarty and make him sentient? Accept it and marry him??
Mon, Mar 27, 2023, 4:27am (UTC -6)
The message seems to be: “If it works for you, who gives a shit?” Which is commendable and progressive for the time.
The interesting thing is Kathryn can’t readily enjoy this off-romance, not just because of the level of power she feels over the hologram (which is the same reason she can’t be romantically involved with her crew, not a coincidence), but also just classic Irish Catholic-style guilt over the “unusual” nature of her relationship.
It’s a really good Janeway show, kinda messy with the sci-fi b-plot metaphor and some early humor, but there’s some great scenes and the Chakotay/Janeway scenes reaffirm their chemistry righteously reminding us of their little flair seasons ago. Easy 3/4
Mon, Mar 27, 2023, 4:28am (UTC -6)
“Delete the wife.” has got to be one of Mulgrew’s all-time best deliveries
Sun, Jun 18, 2023, 12:13pm (UTC -6)
Thu, Jul 20, 2023, 9:41pm (UTC -6)
Fri, Jul 21, 2023, 4:18pm (UTC -6)
>It's cozy and fun and makes me happy.
Carbon Creek was cozy and is possibly worthy of a 6/10 score, this is just an empty holodeck episode with very little sci-fi. 2/10 at most.
Thu, Jul 27, 2023, 6:49pm (UTC -6)
@Andrew why did you think this episode was good, I'm really curious?
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