Star Trek: 10 WORST Holodeck Episodes

8. Author, Author - Voyager

Star Trek Two Of Three
CBS

This may raise a few eyebrows. Generally, EMH-centric episodes tend to be quite good. Author, Author, on its own merit, isn't a bad episode. There's an engaging story, the regulars get to act in new ways, and there's even a trial to evoke The Measure Of A Man to boot.

Therein lies the issue. There's no hiding the fact that Author, Author is an attempt to redo Data's trial to asses his sentience, and this version of the story fails to live up to the original. Added to this, there is no clear ruling by the episode's close. That's to say nothing of the reveal that the EMH Mark 1 program is now used as slave labour in the Federation.

The episode starts as a fun romp through the holodeck, before becoming something a little darker, and even nastier, by the end. This was unfortunately one of a string of episodes in Voyager's final season that felt like padding for time, only with this one, it casually stated that holograms still aren't considered sentient beings, despite dozens of examples to the contrary.

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Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"