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Robert Picardo Interview

By Amy
October 26, 2000 - 1:45 PM

The Great Link has posted an interview with Robert Picardo (the Doctor) taken from the November issue of Star Trek Monthly magazine. In the interview, conducted by Paul Simpson, Picardo talks on the two upcoming Doctor-focused episodes, 'Critical Care' and two-parter 'Flesh and Blood', in addition to his character's relationships with the crew (particularly Janeway), his future in the Federation and the revelation that our dear Holodoc is 'fully functional'. Here's a couple of excerpts:

We're beginning work on Part II of Flesh and Blood tomorrow [7 September], and I call it 'The Doctor as Patty Hearst'. The Doctor is a kidnap victim, and then he starts to sympathise with his kidnappers. He starts to realise that perhaps they're more like him than the crew of Voyager in some ways, because they're all holograms. He sympathises with their cause, and makes a Devastating Error!

"It's a very interesting show, and guest stars an actor called Jeff Yagher, who happens to be a close friend of mine, so that's making it fun to work with your buddy. The two-parters like Year of Hell or Dark Frontier have mostly either been a big ship show, or a Seven of Nine show, so this is the first time they're hanging one on me."

"The most difficult aspect of the relationship between Janeway and the Doctor, from the Doctor's point of view, is that Janeway has never fully accepted an artificial intelligence as her equal. So there have been lots of wonderful shows written on the fact that she may not be respecting him or treating him with the same kind of consideration she would give an organic member of the crew. She values him, insofar as he's very valuable to the ship, but I just think that sometimes, as we are in Flesh and Blood, when we're dealing with issues of holographic rights, she can get to a certain point where she's like, 'All right, let's get on with it. Enough already.' And that's happening in this one - and I think she's right. I can't say that to the other holograms, though."

For the full interview, drop by here at the Great Link.

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