Characters' Fav Holonovels

[RagazzaMatta]

Just for fun.

We see a lot of characters playing favorite Holonovels over the course of the series. Janeway's Victorian gothic, Tom's retro sci fi, etc. I've always wondered what else those characters liked to play and what other characters liked.

I'll start. I imagine Harry playing mainly two types. One where he's in command of his own ship, the other something so insanely sexually deviant I'm not sure u could even imagine the details. Like a crew wide orgy. Then he'd encode it so no one knew, but the computer would malfunction and accidentally load it instead of a required training scenario and everyone would end up seeing it.

 

[Sparkle Fabulosa]

One could assume Harry enjoyed Beowulf, as he was running a simulation of it in "Heroes and Demons."

 

[Thomas Eugene]

Chakotay makes the impression that he is not the kind of guy who is mad about the holodeck.
Having said that, he's always been interested in archaeology ... so he might have a few holoprogrammes about archaeological digs. And just to stay on top form, he occasionally runs a boxing simulation.

Harry obviously enjoys adventure holonovels so in addition to Beowulf and Chaotica he probably runs anything to do with adventure. Robin Hood and William Tell ... or something more modern, like Captain Kirk's (or any other Starfleet Captain's) daring exploits.

Seven must run programmes that are not irrelevant to her development as a human being. She probably does research in areas like cooking, interior design, floral design, social behaviour .... nothing that's particularly entertaining but useful for her development.

Tuvok might run Sherlock Holmes (or Poirot) quite a lot, which would match the Vulcan definition of "entertainment". He basically uses these programmes to develop his investigation skills so that he can become a better detective. I guess that he is basically into developing holodeck programmes rather than actually running them. Most of these programmes must revolve around crew discipline and efficiency like physical and psychological training programmes, battle simulations etc. After what happened to them in BASICS, I'm sure he started developing a survival simulation. He might have written one for integrating the Equinox crew into the Voyager crew and one for the three stray sheep in GOOD SHEPHERD. He must also have a programme, which he uses himself, when he experiments with new plant species. So even though he doesn't make the impression he is very much into the holodeck, he probably spends most of his time there developing this and that, perfecting one holographic simulation after another.

B'Elanna seemed to enjoy the Paxau simulation - who wouldn't? -, we were also able to witness how she had created a kind of toy boy for herself. She also goes with Tom to various other resorts like Tahiti and the one in DRIVE when the Doctor also wants to join them because there's a championship golf course there. So she must enjoy anything recreational where the temperatures are not too low. Although we occasionally see her in some violent programmes (the Klingon programme in DAY OF HONOR and the Cardassian one in EXTREME RISK), she doesn't enjoy those situations too much. They both have to do with either her Klingon background or her being a Maquis and since both of these are connected to pain, she must generally want to avoid violent simulations like those. So she must have created a plethora of environments where she can just enjoy the sunshine and relax.

To counterbalance all the science (and the technobabble ) she has to deal with, Janeway must have created various literature and history programmes. In addition to Gothic fiction and Leonardo da Vinci, she must be spending her time with Charles Dickens, Isaac Newton, ancient Greek philosophers and all sorts of other culturally important people from Earth and from alien cultures like Vulcan philosophers and Romulan playwrights, etc. At the same time she also loves Velocity and we've seen that she has forgotten a lot about tennis (how can you even be so bad at tennis when you're so good at velocity?), so she must use different sports programmes as well - on a regular basis.

I'm sure the Doctor has a wide range of programmes in which his ego is massaged and put on pedestal, in all of which, needless to say, he is the main character. So he must sing operas all the time, he must play the most important male protagonists of the outstanding dramas of world literature, such as Hamlet, Faust, Oedipus etc - and of course, other characters from other Federation literature as well. In addition, he must organise tours to galeries and museums, and on these occasions he plays the role of the knowledgeable tour guide, enthralling his audience with his amazing knowledge in a wide range of subjects.

Tommyboy is the (not yet crowned ) King of the Holodeck and has an endless selection of programmes that revolve around one central theme: fun. These might be relaxing like Chez Sandrine's or silly like the Chaotica simulation - the main idea is that they are fun, fun and ... fun. He surely makes the impression he has a few sex programmes as well - if he does, I'm sure he is not the only crew member to use them. In addition, he as well as the Doctor spend a lot of time writing holonovels (rivalry?) which they try to publish anywhere they can. Once they realize that they are both capable of writing good quality stuff, they start cooperating and write an adventurous novel about some kind of conflict in which the main player saves the day while a holographic Doctor's versatile skills turn out to be an invaluable help to the otherwise wacky protagonist.

I'm sorry to say that I have no idea if Kes and Neelix use the holodeck or not. They seem to be content with their lives on Voyager as they are ... so they might not do much on the holodeck. Although occasionally it is perhaps here that Neelix develops his cooking skills (which look really like they are in need of development ...) and perhaps it is here that Tuvok occasionally teaches Kes to meditate.

 

[Lynx]

I wouldn't be surprised if Kes had some holodeck programs about visiting different sightseeing places and historical places on Earth and other planets since she was eager to learn about a lot.

According to the book "Pathways" by Jeri Taylor, when Neelix was a child, he had fantasies of being the Talaxian hero Prince Morax or the Talaxian master spy Xebot so I guess that he had some holodeck adventures about being those heroes involved in dangerous missions.

 

[The Lonely Man]

I thought the holo characters Flotter and Trevis were very well conceived ideas.

 

[KelisThePoet]

Tuvok has a Vulcan monastery program ("Ashes to Ashes"). I wonder if he would like a holo-adaptation of Falor's Journey (from which he draws his lullaby in "Innocence"), or if he would say the only logical way to experience the story is in the original 348 verses accompanied by lute. Saint Brendan's Voyage, the story of a medieval Irish monk's spiritually edifying adventures on the unexplored Atlantic Ocean, is the kind of terran literature I would recommend to him, if a holo-adaptation were available.

Since Janeway's favorite writer is Dante, I imagine she might play a holonovel of the Divine Comedy, which is the kind of literature that would adapt really well to an interactive holo-simulation, anyway.

Chakotay seems to appreciate the Beowulf story on a more anthropological level than Harry. He might accordingly be drawn to other holo-adaptations of ancient epic and folklore, such as the Iliad--the kinds of stories that (arguably) reveal cultural practices and mindsets.

B'Elanna likes Klingon romance novels ("Real Life"), so she might be drawn to the same kinds of holonovels. In addition to holonovels drawn from Klingon material, I could imagine her playing a holo-version of Heliodorus' Aithiopika, a terran romance from late antiquity with plenty of violence.

I think the doctor would like social protest holonovels. Perhaps a holo-version of The Grapes of Wrath?

 

[Sophie74656]

I'm drawing a blank on the of the episode...the one with the mutiny holodeck program.

In the end B'Elanna mentioned a detective story, so she might like those. I could see her enjoying something with a puzzle to solve

 

[The Lonely Man]

I'm drawing a blank on the of the episode...the one with the mutiny holodeck program.

In the end B'Elanna mentioned a detective story, so she might like those. I could see her enjoying something with a puzzle to solve

Worst case scenario.Very good episode.

 

[Catarina]

One could assume Harry enjoyed Beowulf, as he was running a simulation of it in "Heroes and Demons."

this had some sort of comedic play in my head as if to say "Or not..." to the previous post.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I like to think Chakotay has a holoprogram where he practices talking back to Janeway, but never has the guts to do it IRL.

 

[Sophie74656]

I like to think Chakotay has a holoprogram where he practices talking back to Janeway, but never has the guts to do it IRL.

I don't think he would need that. More than once he openly disagreed with a decision she made and told her so

 

[F. King Daniel]

I don't think he would need that. More than once he openly disagreed with a decision she made and told her so

All I can think of is "Equinox", where she sends him to his room for disagreeing with her and he's not seen again.

 

[Sophie74656]

All I can think of is "Equinox", where she sends him to his room for disagreeing with her and he's not seen again.

Right off the top of my head I'm thinking Scorpion, he disagreed with her there

 

[LJones41]

I like to think Chakotay has a holoprogram where he practices talking back to Janeway, but never has the guts to do it IRL.

Chakotay always had the guts to talk back to Janeway. Which is what always got him into trouble with her.

 

[Voth commando1]

Chakotay disagreed with Janeway more times I think than Voyager's detractors will admit-Scorpion, Equinox, Janeway resisting him in Workforce(albeit under vastly different circumstances), he expressed doubts about Seven of Nine, tried to save B'lanna's rear when she struck Lieutenant Carey and doing so could have provoked a confrontation with Janeway-he did try to minimize any fallout or escalation from that though, the Voyager Conspiracy-Chakotay comes somewhat closer to accepting Seven's conspiracy theories than Janeway does, and although he didn't clash with her openly there were quite a few episodes where you tell from his demeanor and often soft reservation that he didn't always agree with or trust Janeway's judgement.

 

[KelisThePoet]

I find it odd that anyone would single out Chakotay for criticism as a first officer who didn't stand up to the captain. Spock was an interesting but fiercely loyal friend and first officer to Kirk. Riker was a complete yes-man to Picard. Even Kira and Sisko, for all their background differences and discomfort over the "Emissary" thing, didn't have all that many professional disagreements. In fact, the only captain/first officer pair that got along worse than Janeway and Chakotay was Archer and T'Pol.

So what gives. Are the people who want a more rebellious Chakotay just not interested in those other shows (possible)? Do they feel like his Maquis background should make him especially rebellious (reasonable, though I'd disagree)? Or is there some conscious or subconscious resistance to a male first officer being obedient to and supportive of a female captain (a harsh charge to level, I know, but given the situation, I think the possibility needs to be raised)?

 

[Thomas Eugene]

All I can think of is "Equinox", where she sends him to his room for disagreeing with her and he's not seen again.

Right off the top of my head I'm thinking Scorpion, he disagreed with her there

In PARALLAX, there conflict over how they view the Maquis and who should be the new chief engineer is outright fierce.
Other examples include UNIMATRIX ZERO when Janeway even asks him if he could postpone his disagreement until after she has returned (can't quote her exact words) or THE DISEASE in which Chakotay expresses his disapproval of Janeway's punishing Harry for a little sex.
Chakotay also tries very hard to convince Janeway in NIGHT that she is making a mistake by locking herself up in her quarters and isolating herself from the crew. Also, in TIMELESS he says "If we've waited this long ..." implying that perhaps they could wait a little longer instead of risking getting home the way Janeway is planning to but she cuts him short by saying "We've waited long enough ...".
So yes, there are multiple occasions in the show when he is in disagreement with her.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

I wonder who'd like this type of scenario (doesn't have to be a captain)?

A 24th century captain whose favorite holodeck time consists of playing a supporting bridge crew role on a TOS-era ship (think Sulu, Chekov, Scotty). Would make TOS fans happy. The captain does it because a) it helps them remember what it's like to be a subordinate b) they like that era c) and it creates many interesting story moments. For instance, a TOS style episode taking place within that program, the captain mistakenly referring to a lieutenant commander as "sir" after they've left the program, etc.

 

[KelisThePoet]

Sounds like "Trials and Tribble-ations," but on the holodeck.

 

[KelisThePoet]

I just re-watched "Author, Author" today, and it got me thinking that the doctor might enjoy the holo-equivalent of a science documentary or the like. Photons Be Free isn't like a documentary in structure, but the rhetoric of the introduction reminded me of documentary rhetoric, combined with the doctor's love of dramatizing the scientific in other episodes.