Star Trek: 10 Times Captains Lost Control
They're meant to be the steadfast leader of the crew. So, what happens when the captains lose it?
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00:00There are times in a captain's career when the pressure of command can become too much.
00:04When, then, should the line be drawn on what they should and should not do?
00:07In the name of peace, how much war can they wage?
00:10The captains in Star Trek have faced this question on many occasions.
00:14Those wars may be external, involving several ships and a lot of firepower.
00:18They may also be internal wars raging in the soul.
00:21In the many years of Star Trek's history, the times that captains have really lost control
00:25tended to be few.
00:26The point of commanding a starship is to be the calm head on what could be a chaotic body.
00:31Those in command need to be able to weather the most difficult of times and steer their
00:34crews to safety.
00:36However, sometimes that does mean wading into murky waters.
00:39The things that they teach in captain school do not always apply to the events in space.
00:43They may think that they are trained for every eventuality, but what is a captain to do when
00:47the ship is dead in space and the mission must be completed, by any means necessary?
00:51Some captains, with their position and power, choose to wage a private little war.
00:55While it is up to history to condone or condemn, it happens with a surprising frequency in
01:00Starfleet.
01:01So, with that in mind then, I'm Ellie with Trek Culture, and here are 10 times captains
01:05lost control.
01:0610.
01:07Picard won't let them leave the Devron system
01:10In the series finale, Picard is bounced backwards and forwards in time by Q, trying to figure
01:15out the mystery of the anomaly in the Devron system as he does.
01:18In each different time period, Jean-Luc is portrayed with all the control that he would
01:22muster at that time in his life.
01:24In the scenes set in the past, he is the newly appointed captain of the Enterprise, though
01:28barely seven years younger than his present day self.
01:31Both versions of Picard are controlled and keep a cool head.
01:34The same cannot be said for the future version of Picard.
01:37In what has become something of a prophecy depicted by his portrayal in Star Trek Picard,
01:41Jean-Luc is shown to have far less patience with the universe and other people around
01:46him.
01:47He pushes his way through situations, insisting on resolutions while others may hold back.
01:51Never is this more evident than his determination to remain in place and continue the scans
01:55in the Devron system, despite the threat of attack by the Klingons.
01:59He overrides Beverly, insults Worf, and impatiently waits for the Pasteur to scan the area.
02:04This is exacerbated once the Klingons finally launch their assault, resulting in the destruction
02:09of the ship and the death of several crew members.
02:11Though saved by the Enterprise, he implores Admiral Riker to the point of hysteria to
02:16remain where they are, citing their departure as a danger to all of humanity.
02:20Despite the later outcome, the crew watch in sadness as the once great captain goes
02:24to pieces in front of them.
02:269.
02:27Commodore Decker takes on the Planet Killer
02:29The Doomsday Machine remains one of the best episodes of the original series, mixing drama
02:34with action in a way that few of the other episodes ever really did.
02:38The threat of the Planet Killer is akin to the threat of the shark from Jaws.
02:41It is seemingly unstoppable, simply devouring what it can.
02:45The USS Constellation engages the machine and is almost blasted to pieces by the far
02:49superior entity.
02:51Commodore Matt Decker, in a bid to save his crew, beams them down to a planet's surface,
02:55intending to simply risk his own life by attacking with the damaged Constellation.
03:00He then watches in horror as his crew are consumed while the machine destroys the world
03:04he set them down on, snapping his grasp on reality.
03:07He is lost aboard the wreck of his once pronounced ship, only to be later rescued by the USS
03:11Enterprise.
03:13In the Enterprise, he sees the one thing he wants more than anything else, revenge.
03:17The Enterprise is fully powered and he feels that he can engage the machine in a matched
03:21fight, though quickly discovers he has hopelessly underestimated it, narrowly avoiding destruction
03:26yet again.
03:27As a desperate final act, he stakes a shuttle and flies directly towards the gaping mouth
03:32of the machine.
03:33Kirk tries to convince him to return back, but it is useless.
03:36With a final scream of terror, Decker is consumed by the Planet Killer as the shuttle explodes
03:40within.
03:41Despite the ultimate sacrifice, it was enough to give the Enterprise the clues it needed
03:45to destroy the machine.
03:478.
03:48Captain Maxwell takes on the Cardassian Empire
03:51While most of the Starfleet action in The Next Generation would be contained to the
03:54Enterprise, on occasion the universe widened to include other officers and other starships.
04:00One such event involved the hunt for O'Brien's former CEO, Captain Benjamin Maxwell, of the
04:05USS Phoenix.
04:06A survivor of the Cardassian Wars, Maxwell is convinced that the Cardassians are arming
04:10for another conflict.
04:12While later years would prove his theory, at the time there is no evidence and so he
04:16resolves to find some.
04:18Maxwell comes across as a very reasonable, affable man.
04:21He engages with Picard and O'Brien, seemingly oblivious to the seriousness of his infractions.
04:26The very fact that the Enterprise has been sent to hunt him seems to simply slide off
04:30in the beginning.
04:31Picard brings him down to Earth with a bang.
04:33Quickly assured that he does not have the support of the Federation, Maxwell returns
04:37to his ship with the promise of coming along quietly.
04:40With that, he takes the ship away, ending his career in a heartbeat.
04:43He both attacks and destroys several Cardassian ships, straining relations with the Union
04:48even further.
04:49Picard sends O'Brien in to attempt to calm the situation, as the next option is to engage
04:53and destroy the Phoenix.
04:55Maxwell is not lost beyond hope.
04:57O'Brien talks him down, sympathizing with the man's position, but ultimately reminding
05:01him that the wars can't destroy their future as well as their past.
05:04The Phoenix stands down and Maxwell is taken into custody.
05:087.
05:09Archer Orders the Creation and then Execution of Trip's Clone
05:13Archer's resolve to stop the Xindi War is seen in its most frightening aspect here.
05:18With the grave injury of Trip during a test to make the engines more stable at higher
05:22speeds, the ship is stuck.
05:23Floch suggests a radical option, creating a short-lived clone of Trip as a neurological
05:28donor.
05:29It sounds like something from a H.P.
05:30Lovecraft novel, science and horror combined in one.
05:33What makes the idea more disturbing is that Archer accepts with relatively little deliberation.
05:39His obsession to stop the disaster that is coming is driving him to greater lengths than
05:42he has ever thought possible.
05:44Sim, as he is dubbed, grows quickly, showing all of the signs of full sentience.
05:48He doesn't want to die, though the procedure will be fatal.
05:51He researches ways to extend his lifespan, though Floch reveals he was aware of them.
05:55They are unresearched, and in the centre of the expanse is certainly not the place to
05:59begin.
06:00Archer speaks to Sim, telling him he would much rather Sim volunteer for the procedure,
06:04but leaving it very clear that there is no choice either way.
06:07Sim will be going through with it, even if that means Archer escort him with security
06:11personnel to the medical bay.
06:13Even with this, Sim tries to escape, though in the end it is for naught.
06:17Archer rewards him with a funeral service, though there is a little shading the fact
06:21that this man was born to die, and Archer not only allowed it, but sped his passing.
06:266.
06:27Picard and Robert Fight
06:28Captain Picard has, in his long history with Starfleet, maintained control over emotion
06:33wherever possible.
06:34His most recent years are marked by more and more incidents of this control slipping,
06:38though for the first three seasons of The Next Generation, he rarely lost his cool.
06:42Then the Borg came, and with them came the destruction of 39 Starfleet ships, with the
06:47loss of 11,000 lives.
06:48Through his abduction and assimilation by the Borg, Picard led the assault as Locutus,
06:53fully aware of what was happening with no power to stop it.
06:56Once the threat has been taken care of, the Enterprise is granted some much-needed shore
07:01leave, returning to Earth to do so.
07:03Picard takes the opportunity to visit his brother Robert's family in France, enjoying
07:07the time with his nephew and sister-in-law, though immediately butting heads with his
07:11brother.
07:12This continues, while the old-school Robert seems to scoff at the notions that Jean-Luc
07:16has about technology and advancement.
07:18Their bickering intensifies until, in a very un-Picard manner, the two of them erupt into
07:22a fistfight in the middle of their vineyard.
07:24While they stop the fight within moments, even going so far as to laugh about the state
07:28of their mud-covered bodies, Jean-Luc's laughter turns to tears as he finally breaks
07:32down, spilling the trauma he feels about his inability to stop the Borg.
07:36His brother, listening with empathy, manages to get the last word in.
07:39The great Jean-Luc Picard is human, after all.
07:41They help each other up, and their relationship is stronger for it.
07:455.
07:46Sisko Sinks Further and Further into the Romulan Plot
07:49In the Pale Moonlight stands as both one of the strongest episodes of Deep Space Nine
07:53and one of the darkest moments in Star Trek up to that point.
07:57The Starfleet captain knowingly commits crimes to con an empire into going to war.
08:01Gordon Bree would most likely have had quite a few things to say about that.
08:05When the story picks up, the action has already happened.
08:08The audience watches Sisko attempt to come to terms with the fallout.
08:11He details his initial plot, and it was his idea to bring the Romulans into the war.
08:16There are many people that he could have chosen to work with, but he goes straight to Garruk.
08:20Garruk is one of the most enigmatic characters in Star Trek.
08:23What is known about him is shaded in layers of grey, never quite rising to the brighter
08:28comers.
08:29Sisko approaches him because this is what he needs.
08:31The Starfleet, with the exception of Section 31, has not trained him for this level of
08:35duplicity.
08:36The resulting forgeries, murders, and declarations of war all serve to ensure that Sisko's
08:40plan is a success.
08:42The Romulans are going to help the Federation.
08:44However, where Sisko devolved from his original intentions to becoming embroiled in Garruk's
08:49darkness is lost in the murky shades of grey that he must now live with.
08:52Though, as he tells the audience, he can live with it.
08:56Number 4.
08:57Archer Steals a Warp Coil Enterprise Got Dark
09:01In several reviews of the show, its relative light nature has been expounded upon.
09:05However, as the show sank deeper and deeper into the Xindi arc, the crew began to face
09:09challenges that few of the series had depicted before.
09:12Left without a safety net, they were forced to fend very much for themselves.
09:16In the episode Damage, Archer struggles hard with the decision to do what is necessary
09:20to save his crew.
09:21There are echoes of Captain Ransom here, certainly allowing the audience to have a deeper understanding
09:26of the other captain.
09:28Archer sends an armed away team to steal the warp coil of an alien vessel they encounter.
09:33This is so far removed from everything that Starfleet stands for that it is something
09:36that tests the man to his core.
09:38He asks Phlox how he has dealt with crises of ethics and conscience before.
09:43Phlox tells him to do what he thinks is right.
09:45In this case, to be wrong is to be right.
09:47There is no question of Enterprise abandoning her search for the Xindi, yet doing so will
09:51condemn these kind aliens who offered everything but the warp coil as aid.
09:55Archer informs Phlox that there may be more casualties coming his way.
09:58Though Phlox at this point does not know why, he says that he will be ready.
10:02The two men share a moment and Archer sinks further into this hell he finds himself in,
10:06desperate to do anything to save humanity at the cost of his soul.
10:113.
10:12Janeway Hunts Down the Equinox
10:14One thing that was a constant for Captain Janeway in all of the years that Voyager spent
10:18lost in the Delta Quadrant was her steadfast resolution to get her crew home.
10:23She would show strength on countless occasions, overcoming the challenges of their situation.
10:27She was a reliable and inspirational commander.
10:30In some ways, Captain Ransom of the Equinox was a mirror version of Janeway.
10:34He too was willing to go above and beyond to get his crew home, though he quickly fell
10:38to abandoning the Prime Directive to do it.
10:40This led not just to inciting the rage of the aliens he had been harvesting, but also
10:45into attacking and stealing from Voyager herself.
10:47Janeway, putting it mildly, was not pleased.
10:50This was a betrayal on two fronts.
10:52First, the obvious betrayal that left Voyager in a dangerous position with the aliens, but
10:56second was the betrayal of Starfleet's values by Ransom.
10:59Her anger began to cloud her judgement.
11:01She began a hunt for the Equinox, extensively with the goal of rescuing Seven of Nine, though
11:06serving to allow Janeway her revenge on Ransom.
11:09This was most evident in her continued attacking of the vessel, torpedoes and all, regardless
11:13of the casualties.
11:14In a way, Janeway is brought back from the brink by Ransom himself, sacrificing his life
11:19to move the Equinox away from Voyager before the core explodes.
11:23As Chakotay and Janeway reflect at the end of the episode, this is the closest Janeway
11:27has ever come to going over the edge.
11:292.
11:30The Line Will Be Drawn Here
11:32This was the moment when First Contact really hammered home the seriousness of Picard's
11:37struggle with the Borg.
11:38For years, the experiences inside the Collective had haunted him, but with some exceptions,
11:42these had simmered well under control.
11:45He battles the Borg aboard the Enterprise-E in what seems like a hopeless fight.
11:49They lose deck after deck, continually having to retreat.
11:52He advocates euthanizing any crew member who'd been assimilated.
11:55He fires without regard, unwilling to pause to mourn.
11:58The Borg are an evil entity, a plague and disease.
12:01He becomes more and more resolute to stop them, no matter the cost.
12:05So when he almost comes to blows with Worf on the bridge, it seems as though he can't
12:08be saved.
12:09He didn't reckon, of course, with Lily Sloane.
12:11With no regard for his position or his reaction, she corners him in the observation lounge
12:16and calls him out as only she can.
12:18He begins calmly, trying to make her see that his viewpoint is the only viewpoint,
12:23while she simply calls it revenge.
12:24He disagrees.
12:25She shouts at him to evacuate and destroy the ship.
12:28In a scene that has become infamous, he roars that he won't and, just to channel his anger,
12:32swings his rifle in an arc, shattering the glass of the display cabinet and breaking
12:36apart several of the models.
12:38He finally voices his deepest intention.
12:41He will stop the Borg.
12:431.
12:44Sisko Poisons a Planet
12:46Sisko seems to have had the least control over his temper out of all of the Star Trek
12:49captains.
12:50While it's true that Kirk was quite expressive of his emotions, and Picard, Janeway and Archer
12:55slipped along the way, none of them poisoned an entire planet in pursuit of one man.
12:59Sisko's obsession with Michael Eddington could very well have led to his undoing in
13:03the fifth season of Deep Space Nine.
13:05Eddington's betrayal stung him bitterly, dominating his thoughts.
13:09It grows to a point where Starfleet actually takes him off the hunt for the Marquee Leader,
13:13owing to several failed attempts at capture.
13:16However, he puts himself back on the case once Eddington makes the mistake of attacking
13:20another Starfleet ship.
13:21Things devolve quickly.
13:23Sisko threatens to poison the atmosphere of a Marquee colony, mimicking the same action
13:27that the Marquee themselves had pulled against a Cardassian colony.
13:31Eddington naturally thinks he's bluffing, as do, for the most part, the crew of the
13:34USS Defiant.
13:36Even Worf has to ask for clarification once Sisko gives the order to fire.
13:40The explosives ensure that the planet will not be able to sustain life for 50 years,
13:44with much of the Marquee already at refugee status.
13:47In his hunt for Eddington, Sisko has racked up a high price.
13:51Added to this, this was not cleared by Starfleet in advance.
13:54For the Uniform leaves the viewer with the question, do the ends justify the means?
13:59Considering what happens to the Marquee later in the season, that becomes an even more difficult
14:03question to answer.
14:04And that concludes our list.
14:06If you can think of any other examples, then do let us know in the comments below.
14:09And while you're there, don't forget to like and subscribe and tap that notification
14:13bell.
14:14Also, head over to Twitter and follow us there, and I can be found across various social medias
14:17just by searching Ellie Littlechild.
14:19I've been Ellie with Trek Culture, I hope you have a wonderful day, and remember to
14:23boldly go where no one has gone before.