Warning: SPOILERS For Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3, Episode 4 - “A Space Adventure Hour"Starfleet’s first encounter with holodeck technology happened 110 years beforeStar Trek: Strange New Worlds. Directed by Jonathan Frakes, and written by Dana Horgan and Kathryn Lyn,Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3, episode 4, “A Space Adventure Hour,” creates a holodeck murder mystery for Lt. La’an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) to solve.
Star Trek: The Next Generation’s series premiere, “Encounter at Farpoint,” introduced the holodeck as it became popularly known.Holodeck episodes in multipleStar Trekseriesbecame a fan-favorite staple, and holodeck technology was also spotlighted inStar Trek: The Next Generation’s movies,all of which are set in the 24th century.
Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3, episode 4, reveals that Captain Christopher Pike’s (Anson Mount) USS Enterprise was tasked with testing out holodecks on starships in 2261. Thispredates holodecks inTNG’s era by a century.However, one Starfleet Officer experienced a holodeck 110 years before La’an onStrange New Worlds.
Starfleet’s First Encounter With A Holodeck In Star Trek’s Timeline Was In Enterprise
Trip Tucker Was The First Starfleet Officer To Experience Holodeck Technology
Star Trek: Enterpriseseason 1, episode 5, “Unexpected,” was the first time a member of Starfleet set foot in what was essentially a holodeck. In this earlyEnterpriseepisode, Commander Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer) comes aboard a Xyrillian ship, where its engineer, Ah’len (Julianne Christie),shows Trip the wonders of a changeable holographic environment.
Taking place in 2151,Star Trek: Enterpriseseason 1, episode 5, happens 110 years beforeStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3, episode 4. However,thisEnterpriseouting isn’t remembered as a holodeck episode,although “Unexpected” lets the firstStar Trekprequel series toy with showing an ersatz holodeck in the 22nd century.
Star Trek: Enterprise’s “Unexpected” is, rather, a forgettable romp centering on Trip Tucker getting pregnant by the Xyrillian despite being male. Yet the introduction of holodeck technology onEnterprisecan be considereda seed that would later lead Starfleet to embrace holodecks on starships and starbases.
When Was Star Trek’s Real First Holodeck Episode?
It Was In Star Trek: The Animated Series
Star Trek’s first holodeck episode technically happened 13 years before Star Trek: The Next Generation’s series premiere in 1987.Star Trek: The Animated Seriesseason 2, episode 3, “The Practical Joker,” introducedthe ‘recreation room,’ essentially a proto-holodeck, aboard the USS Enterprise.
Star Trek: The Animated Series' “The Practical Joker” is also the first instance of a holodeck malfunction that endangered the crew of Captain Kirk’s Starship Enterprise.Star Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3, episode 4, nodded toTASwhen Captain Pike called the holodeck the “recreation room,“andStrange New Worlds' holodeck malfunction now predatesTAS’s by 9 years.
Trip Tucker was the first known human to marvel at holodeck technology onStar Trek: Enterprise.
Star Trek: Strange New Worldsintroducing the holodeck, even if it didn’t catch on in 2261, essentially sets up the holodeck/recreation room inStar Trek: The Animated Series, which continued the voyages ofStar Trek: The Original Series.But inStar Trek’s timeline, Trip Tucker was the first known human to marvel at holodeck technology onStar Trek: Enterprise.
