Flesh and Blood (Star Trek: Voyager)

Plot

When the USS Voyager came across a Hirogen vessel, they found it had been converted into a massive holodeck. Only one crew member, an engineer named Donik, was still alive. He explained that the holograms had disabled the security systems and killed the rest of the crew. Another Hirogen ship soon arrived, also responding to the distress call. Both ships were lured into a trap set by the holograms, and Voyager could do nothing to stop them from taking their own holographic Doctor.

On the Hirogen holodeck ship, the Doctor discovered the holograms were based on Alpha Quadrant species. Their leader, a Bajoran named Iden, asked the Doctor to help treat the wounded. The Doctor was surprised, since holograms cannot normally be harmed. He learned that the Hirogen had modified the programs so the holograms felt pain and died repeatedly, making the training more realistic.

The Doctor presented Iden’s case to Captain Janeway. They argued fiercely about holographic rights just as the Hirogen contacted their homeworld and fighting broke out in the Mess Hall with security teams. Iden spotted two more Hirogen ships approaching and opened fire on Voyager. He then kidnapped Torres and took her onto his ship before fleeing at warp.

On the holodeck ship, the Doctor explained the holograms’ situation to Torres. Iden chose a nearby Y-class planet where they planned to build a society. On the way, they encountered a Nuu’bari mining vessel that used photonic beings for labor. The Doctor and Torres noticed that other holograms were growing suspicious of Iden’s plans.

Voyager arrived and prepared to attack the holodeck ship. Iden beamed several Hirogen from their vessels down to the planet’s surface, where the holograms hunted them. The Nuu’bari holograms were activated but did not understand what was happening. Torres explained that their programs were too simple.

The Doctor found Iden just before he could kill the Hirogen leader. He tried to talk Iden out of it, but Iden would not listen. As Iden moved to deliver the final blow, the Doctor fired his weapon, completely disrupting Iden’s program. The surviving Hirogen were treated and sent back to their ships. Back on Voyager, the Doctor accepted that he had disobeyed orders and worked with the holograms.

Reception

Jamahl Epsicokhan gave this episode 3.5 out of 4 stars, describing it as a well-crafted Voyager outing and the best of the series' three two-hour telefilms, calling "The Killing Game" dumb and bloated and "Dark Frontier" thin but entertaining. In 2019, CBR ranked it the 19th best holodeck-themed episode in all of Star Trek up to that point. SyFy Wire in 2016 placed it sixth among Bryan Fuller's episodes, noting it was a brilliant idea but not perfect. That same year, Den of Geek ranked Part I and Part II as the 15th and 16th best Bryan Fuller episodes, respectively.