After evolving throughout Star Trek: Voyager, the USS Voyager's Emergency Medical Hologram appeared as a mentor to Academy hopefuls in Star Trek: Prodigy. Starfleet Academy producer Alex Kurtzman was inspired by Picardo's Star Trek: Prodigy performance and brought the Doctor into the new Star Trek show as a Starfleet Academy instructor. By the time of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy's 32nd century, the Doctor would have been continuously running for between 800 and 900 years. Not only does that make the Doctor one of Star Trek's oldest characters, it also puts the EMH on the level of Star Wars' Yoda.
Robert Picardo Compares The Doctor In Star Trek: Starfleet Academy To Yoda
The Doctor Is A 900-Year-Old Mentor & Franchise Glue
During TrekTalks 4 benefiting the Hollywood Food Coalition, Robert Picardo discussed his involvement in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy with fellow Star Trek: Voyager star Kate Mulgrew, comparing Starfleet Academy's version of the EMH to Yoda—and it's an apt description. Like Yoda in the original Star Wars trilogy, the Doctor will be a 900-year-old mentor training new members of a hopeful organization. Starfleet retreated after Star Trek: Discovery's Burn rendered warp drive useless, and the Jedi Order's surviving members went into hiding after Darth Sidious' (Ian McDiarmid) Order 66 called for their demise. See Picardo's quote as transcribed by TrekMovie below:
“You know, Yoda, I think, was 900 when he finally died. So I do think of myself as the Yoda of the Star Trek franchise. And look, it could be worse, I could be short and green and made out of rubber. So I think I do look pretty good.”
Because of their ages, the Doctor and Yoda can both be in new projects after appearing in previous eras. Originally, Yoda and the Doctor were off-putting loners who became solid mentors for Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan). Yoda taught Jedi younglings in the prequel trilogy and Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and the Doctor guided Star Trek: Prodigy's teenage cast. Plus, the Doctor being a functionally immortal hologram in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy easily maps onto Yoda returning as a Force Ghost in Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi.
Why The Doctor Is The Perfect Yoda Star Trek Has Needed All Along
Centuries Of Experience Make The Doctor A Perfect Mentor
In Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, Star Trek: Voyager's Doctor will be the Yoda-type character that Star Trek needed all along. Yoda was around during Star Wars' High Republic era, when the Jedi Order wasn't as corrupt. That made Yoda the perfect guide for Luke—not just in the Original Trilogy, but in the Sequel Trilogy, when Luke has to reckon with his failure to rebuild the New Jedi Order. Having perfect digital recall of the Star Trek timeline from the 24th to 32nd centuries means the Doctor can help Starfleet Academy's new class avoid the mistakes of the past.
Because Star Trek: Discovery's Burn happened 100 years earlier, Starfleet Academy's cadets won't know what Starfleet was like in its prime. The 22nd century characters who came to the future on the USS Discovery already know what a functioning Starfleet looks like, but Starfleet won't succeed in the 32nd century by trying to return to an idealized past. Instead, the Doctor can help Starfleet understand they must look ahead to thrive. By including Star Trek: Voyager's Doctor as its Yoda, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy truly connects every era of the Star Trek franchise to each other—and to its future.
