Thirty Days of Star Trek: Favorite Captain
Day 4 - Favorite Captain
I’m sure everyone who has been following this journal will be stunned with surprise, but yes, it’s still Jean-Luc Picard. Not that I don’t hold other captains in affection, too, including the newest bunch – I really liked what little we saw of Primeverse Georgiou, and Disco’s take on Pike joins Reboot Pike in me loving him -, but Picard just unites so many things I enjoy. He’s a good person, but not flawless. He is a stoic, and not given to emotional outbursts, which means that if scriptwriters and fate conspire to get him suffering (or embarassed, also fun), these scenes are all the more powerful and memorable. He’s a believable geek in his zest for archaelogy and annoyance for being constantly interrupted when reading on his holidays because people won’t just believe that he enjoys reading his goddam book. (I relate, Jean-Luc, I so relate.) He doesn’t believe rules are for suckers – if ethics demand it, he’ll go against them, but he’ll really think long and hard before that and often come up with something that honors both the law and the spirit of the law (not always the same thing). He values the input of his officers – those conferences in the ready room were a new thing back in the day – while not shirking responsibility for hard decisions.
And lastly, let’s be honest: he’s got the best voice. No offense to Avery Brooks, whose voice is also terrific, but Patrick Stewart wins here for me. Nothing is certain, and in the nightmare world we live in, it’s of course possible that the scriptwriters of the new Picard show will make me lose my affection, but other than that, I think it’s a good bet Picard will remain the Once and Future Captain for me. In 2003, I even wrote the song to prove it.
( The Other Days )
I’m sure everyone who has been following this journal will be stunned with surprise, but yes, it’s still Jean-Luc Picard. Not that I don’t hold other captains in affection, too, including the newest bunch – I really liked what little we saw of Primeverse Georgiou, and Disco’s take on Pike joins Reboot Pike in me loving him -, but Picard just unites so many things I enjoy. He’s a good person, but not flawless. He is a stoic, and not given to emotional outbursts, which means that if scriptwriters and fate conspire to get him suffering (or embarassed, also fun), these scenes are all the more powerful and memorable. He’s a believable geek in his zest for archaelogy and annoyance for being constantly interrupted when reading on his holidays because people won’t just believe that he enjoys reading his goddam book. (I relate, Jean-Luc, I so relate.) He doesn’t believe rules are for suckers – if ethics demand it, he’ll go against them, but he’ll really think long and hard before that and often come up with something that honors both the law and the spirit of the law (not always the same thing). He values the input of his officers – those conferences in the ready room were a new thing back in the day – while not shirking responsibility for hard decisions.
And lastly, let’s be honest: he’s got the best voice. No offense to Avery Brooks, whose voice is also terrific, but Patrick Stewart wins here for me. Nothing is certain, and in the nightmare world we live in, it’s of course possible that the scriptwriters of the new Picard show will make me lose my affection, but other than that, I think it’s a good bet Picard will remain the Once and Future Captain for me. In 2003, I even wrote the song to prove it.
( The Other Days )
