James T. Kirk and Seven of Nine are from different eras of Star Trek but their journeys to becoming Captain of the Enterprise is a story they share.
SUMMARY
- Lt. Kirk and Commander Seven of Nine both have unique journeys to becoming Captains of the USS Enterprise, a newer kind of macro story in Star Trek.
- J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 2009 movie explores Kirk's rise from Starfleet Cadet to Acting Captain of the Enterprise, a story not replicated in the TV series.
- The recent era of Star Trek focuses on telling the story of how Captains earn their commands, a departure from the traditional fully formed Captain introductions.
Star Trek's James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley) and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) don't have many similarities on the surface, but they share one important story in common. On Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Lt. Kirk was just promoted to First Officer of the USS Farragut en route to his destiny to become Captain of the USS Enterprise. Star Trek: Picard season 3 ended with Commander Seven of Nine's rise to Captain of the USS Enterpise-G. How Kirk and Seven earned their commands is a newer kind of macro story Star Trek is telling.
J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 2009 reboot movie is the first real instance of showing how a Captain of the Enterprise is made. In the alternate Kelvin Timeline, James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) was a Starfleet Academy Cadet who stowed away on the USS Enterprise when it responded to a Romulan attack on Vulcan. In the course of Star Trek 2009's runtime, Kirk skyrocketed up the ranks, eventually becoming the Acting Captain of the Enterprise. After Kirk's leadership saved Earth from the Romulan time traveler Nero (Eric Bana), Kirk was fully promoted to Captain of the Enterprise. Kirk's wild, roller coaster ride from Cadet to Captain isn't something Star Trek TV series have tried to replicate, but the journey to the Enterprise Captain's chair is a story now seen in both Star Trek: Picard and Strange New Worlds.
Kirk & Seven Of Nine's Star Trek Stories Are About Earning Being Captain of the Enterprise
When Strange New Worlds eventually ends, James T. Kirk will take over as Captain of the Enterprise from Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), and this is the overall journey Kirk is now on. Lt. Kirk comes aboard the USS Enterprise in Strange New Worlds season 2 specifically to learn the finer points of command from Captain Pike. Kirk doesn't yet realize the Enterprise is his destiny, but it's already evident he is enamored with the flagship, and he enjoys the company of its crew. The Prime Timeline Kirk's rise to becoming Captain isn't as dramatic as J.J. Abrams' Kirk, but when James eventually does take the center seat, it will feel fully earned the way it didn't for Chris Pine's Kirk.
Seven of Nine's progression to becoming Captain of the USS Enterprise-G in Star Trek's 25th century is an even more remarkable and unlikely story. The reclaimed Borg Drone wasn't even welcomed by Starfleet after the USS Voyager returned to Earth from the Delta Quadrant, and Seven, instead, spent years peacekeeping with the Fenris Rangers in the Beta Quadrant. Seven eventually joined Starfleet but serving as First Officer of the USS Titan-A was difficult for her, thanks to Seven's contentious relationship with Captain Liam Shaw (Todd Stashwick). But Seven has the right stuff for command, and she was named Captain of the Enterprise after Shaw's death. Captain Seven's next chapter is poised to be told if Star Trek: Picard's proposed spinoff, Star Trek: Legacy happens.
Why Other Enterprise Captains Aren't Shown Earning Their Commands
The story of how a Captain of the Enterprise earns his or her command is a relatively new one for Star Trek. Previously, Captains of the Enterprise were introduced as fully formed and already in charge of the famous starship. This includes Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), who was firmly the top dog of the Enterprise when Star Trek: The Original Series premiered. The stories of how and why Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula), Captain Christopher Pike (Jeffrey Hunter/Anson Mount), Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), and even the USS Enterprise-B's Captain John Harriman (Alan Ruck) earned the Enterprise's center seat haven't been told.
The likely reason is that Star Trek still works from the mold of the 1960s' concept for the series where the Captain of the Enterprise is an unquestionably capable commander and central hero of a TV series. How or why Kirk or Picard, when Star Trek: The Next Generation premiered in 1987, became Captain of the Enterprise was a question that the series' creators starting with Gene Roddenberry weren't interested in answering. It's only in the recent era of Star Trek, sparked by J.J. Abrams' 2009 movie about Kirk and the Enterprise's origin, that the journey to the Enterprise's Captain's chair became a story Star Trek's current creative teams wanted to tell.
Discovery's Burnham Also Earned Being Captain
Star Trek: Discovery season 3 concluded with Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) becoming Captain of the USS Discovery, which is when it became clear that the show's macro story up to that point was really about Burnham's long road to earning the center seat of her starship. Discovery takes many cues from J.J. Abrams' movies, and these include Burnham being more of an action heroine like Chris Pine's Kirk who is flawed and makes grave mistakes but embarks on a path to redemption that leads to the Captaincy of her starship. Michael Burnham's rise to Captain of the Discovery is the basic mold Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Picard and Kirk in Strange New Worlds are following.
Even before Burnham became the USS Discovery's top dog, Star Trek: Discovery told another rise to the Captain's chair when Commander Saru (Doug Jones) broke away from being First Officer to earn the center seat. Saru, in fact, yielded Discovery's Captain's chair to Michael so that she could achieve her destiny. In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, James T. Kirk's destiny is clear, but how he becomes Captain of the Enterprise is the interesting part. Meanwhile, Seven of Nine's new life as Captain of the Enterprise-G is waiting to be told in Star Trek: Legacy. In all, Star Trek has learned that watching how icons become Captains of their starships is as satisfying for audiences as it is for the characters.
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