[omegaman]

Why do you think the Doctor's character was so popular?

[Gunny1]

Originally Posted by omegaman

Why do you think the Doctor's character was so popular?

Personally, I think it's a confluence of the fact that the defined character is one of the most initially limited - defined as being 'one dimensional', if you will, - while Mr. Picardo, from the get-go, was one of the more 'three dimensional' figures in the show. I think the duality between actor and script is what provided for such a wonderful overall performance. Even as, in character, he was explaining his limitations, he could convey both the awareness and disgust of those limitations, while providing at least a foreshadowing of what he could become.

(It must be a 'Robert' thing, as I found much of the same dichotomy for Chakotay... unfortunately, aside from a few very specific episodes, you only really saw it as brief sparks in-episode; cases more of an actor OVERCOMING scripts, rather than the sort of dedicated exploration of character development the Doctor received...)

[MPQ]

IMHO, he was the most likeable character on Voyager. He was the comic relief, he grew from being "just" a hologram to a fully aware member of the crew with rights and privlidges and all that happy stuff.

[rocketman70092]

I think people liked him b/c of his quest to become human. (Remind you of anyone found on Omicron Theta?)

I never really cared for the doctor though. We went from being an uptight a-hole to being a pretentious a-hole.

Tom Paris was my favorite from ep. 1 when he saved Harry from Quark.

[stew123au]

His terrible bed side manner coupled with his genuine caring for the crew and his quest for acceptance as a full member of the crew made him special.

[Oregon_Coast_Trekkie]

One thing people love in Trek is character growth. The Doctor is a prime example of great writing, great acting can do for a chacter's growth and evolution.

[KathrynJaneway]

The Doctor grew on me. He got a lot better after he got the mobile emitter. I love how he bored the crew with his slide shows.

[medusapartner]

the holographic doctor was popular with even those like me who thought the show the poorest of all the Star Trek series, because he was:

1) sarcastic
2) could be shut off

[jaksajak]

The EMH is awesome because his character concept is a good mix of Data, Bones, and um Picardo. He had issues because he was a program, but also a member of the crew, and had more McCoyism's than Bones himself. Picardo brought great depth and comedy to the character and was truly entertaining. He was great as the Cowboy in Inner Space too.

[Zardoz]

Originally Posted by jaksajak

The EMH is awesome because his character concept is a good mix of Data, Bones, and um Picardo. He had issues because he was a program, but also a member of the crew, and had more McCoyism's than Bones himself. Picardo brought great depth and comedy to the character and was truly entertaining. He was great as the Cowboy in Inner Space too.

Good observation!