Glad I wasn't the only one that felt Bariel.... seemed stale. It took me by part way through my second viewing going.. wait. Is the character written wooden? Or is there something I am missing
My favourite thing about Kira's command style is the way she adjusts her tone and bearing when Sisko isn't around and she's acting as station commander. When Sisko is there, she's fast, sharp, and efficient. When he's not around and she is left in charge, she becomes quieter, more deliberate, and more authoritative. As first officer she is a dependable soldier, tense and ready to spring. As commander she is the firm, steady hand at the wheel, inspiring confidence and tolerating no nonsense.
@@joanmoriarity8738 Watching Saru be in charge is magnificent, first in his original state where he must use reason training and duty to go against his natural drives then after his change when he can take all that and back it up with some serious predatory intensity. All without losing his core self that is a fundamentally kind and moral person.
At first I genuinely though, "Oh man, where's Tuvok gonna go on this list?!" And then I actually stirred some part of my brain that remembered Chakotay is a character in Voyager, which....yeah says something about his presence in the series.
@@sarahkinsey5434 Kinda says something about the writing quality in Voyager when the man who intentionally represses his emotions has more wit, charm, energy and is generally actually quite funny when compared to Chakotay who's big thing is- [Rolls dice] Boxing? And [Spins wheel] Giving status reports. He really was a glorified conn officer at some points.
@@mecha_moira6443 the boxing thing was so random and I never like the relationship with Seven. It was too random too. There wasn’t really much build up. Vulcans may not have emotions but they have lots of sass.
That is so funny. I had the same thought for a minute and then...forehead slap. Shows you how un-memorable Chakotay was! Really the whole issue with Voyager and Enterprise is that a high percentage of the major characters are relatively weak. The Doctors are the notable exceptions. On the other hand, DS9 has many strong characters and the Doctor is relatively weak one. It's all about the characters. DS9 proves that.
Add me to the list who thought the same thing, and was expecting him to be near the top of the list. I do think Chakotay was hampered by the fact that: 1) The integration between the Maquis and the other crew was just way too easy, would have given him more of a character arc to have more adjustment if not outright conflict happen, 2) Like too many shows, they seemed to be starting on a 'will they/won't they' have a relationship between Janeway and Chakotay, and I for one would have been happier if they would have made the choice to go down a definite path-either have them say "hey, you know what, we're taking about generations to get back to our home space, maybe the usual rules don't apply and we can try to have a relatioinship", or "I'm really attracted to you, but this just is something we can't do". In the end, it was just another arc that was started and then abandoned. 3) Ironically, I thought some of his best development was his opposition to the Borg alliance, and his distrust of Seven of Nine, which added to the stupidity of the last minute 4) Chakotay/Seven...HUHHHHHHHHHHHHHH??? Unfortunately, the thing I ultimately most enjoyed about the whole Chakotay character/storyline was seeing Henry Darrow play his father.
Just watched the Columbo episode where Leonard Nimoy plays the surgeon suspect. They actually had a brain prominently displayed on his desk; even had a cleaning lady come in to dust it off. All it lacked was arrows and glaring lights pointing to the in-joke.
I remember Nimoy talking about that episode and how he thought was so stupid, but couldn't say anything because if he did then they'd rewrite the episode and he'd have to do more work.
@@marsrock316 Shame Columbo wasn't very smart in that episode either. The jury is never going to buy "The evidence was in my pocket all along!" routine.
Chakotay got some stuff in the first two seasons of Voyager, then he starts to fall off. Beltran was annoyed because the writers forgot about his character. It gets worse after Jeri Ryan joins. It's unfortunate because his character was set up with a cool premise: former Starfleet officer, turned Maquis, turned Starfleet again out of insane circumstances.
I agree. Kira wins. That episode where Sisko is injured on the Defiant and she keeps him going by telling him a story and properly opening up to him is exceptional
Kira easily should have a show Star Trek: Bajor Resistance her early years as a fighter or even her life post season 7 on bajor the United federation of planets accepting bajor the militia having to join Starfeet the politics of new bajor the emissary missing all those years is she command of the station is she a politician odo is gone is she still waiting on him does she assist w the rebuilding of cardarissa ? The books of DS9 dealt w some of it till they went off the rails but Kira is a great character maybe the best written female character in Star Trek
Kira won!! That’s awesome, I would love a video game spinoff as Kira during the occupation. Favorite character on my favor Trek (granted Quark could be argued for haha)
I can understand Burnham not being on the list but I'm sorry Saru didn't make the cut. He is the only character to have a first officer arc. Whom we got to see grow into becoming a captain (a good or bad captain is up for discussion) during the course of their main series.
Think the only change I'd make its swapping Riker and T'pol. I feel Riker is just sort of the iconic "Federation First Officer" character, and when an episode nails how to write him, he is incredibly cool. Kira though. You just can't beat Kira.
Kira was great. But I always had a problem with her being first officer since she wasn't a member of Starfleet. That's fine on the station (since its a Bajorian station & Sisko wanted her). But on the Defiant ? Not so much.
@@richard77231 chakotay could have been just as good as Kira, they have similar character setups, insurgents who now have to work in a structured environment. We saw those growing pains with Kira and the Bajoran crew but not the same really with Chakotay and the Marquis crew
@@jacksonheathen2092 Wasn't Worf technically the first officer of the Defiant? I feel like the hierarchy of that ship was sort of wonky. Some episodes Kira is clearly in command, others Worf is.
Spock would be my 1st. The guy was reliable and when he says:"this is Enterprise, Spock here" you can feel assured that everything is well in hand! I like Kira, too... mostly because my siblings and I laughed at the way she would say Dukats name with such contempt ( "That's right, Doo-khat!")😛
Agreed. Spock is by far the better 1st officer just based on how he acted throughout the series. There was never a time where I thought spock acting like an unlikable idiot was within his character for an episode. Kira on the other-hand acted on emotion whenever she got the chance. Just that entire episode where she steals a prophet of time (Potentially altering history) because dukat did the equivalent of saying "I fucked your mom" is enough to disqualify her as being the best anything. I understood her character, and there were plenty of episodes I really, really liked her in. But there were **Plenty** of episodes where Kira acted like a complete nonce, and her doing so was always in character.
@@bonghunezhou5051 I really really wish they would have killed Dukat during the episode where he was stranded on the planet with sisko. It would have been the perfect capend to his character.
Watching the episode "Second Chances" I always think it would have been kind of cool if, at the end, Riker left the Enterprise to be the Captain of his own ship, and Jonathan Frakes played Thomas Riker for the rest of the show. Maybe he sees his younger self and how ambitious he used to be, and that changes his perspective on how his career has gone My problem with Will is that his character kinda stagnates after "Best of Both Worlds." They make such a big deal about him becoming the captain of his own ship ASAP in those episodes, yet he doesn't get one until the last movie.
YES, thank you! I thought I was the only one that noticed Riker's perceived arc being dropped. Should have pulled the trigger on him being captain sooner
@@garethbowen3813 It was poor writing. He should have either been given the Enterprise after saving the Federation from the Borg or been given an equally important ship.
Yeh boiii. Ds9 number one! Always my fav Trek :) Kira was a fantastic character, no cookie cutter stuff there, just a gritty character with both optimistic traits and war trauma lending her some darkness too. Great portrayal by Nana Visitor.
#1 Chakotay, easily. Challenged Janeway when he needed to, backed her always, never flustered, no ego, supported each member of the crew privately & kept the chain of command solid. He's what a mature, experienced officer should be. Spock prioritized his search for meaning & logic failed him in command (in _TOS_ ). Kira prioritized her Bajoran stuff. Riker prioritized his libido. Chakotay prioritized his duty to the safety of the crew & was always on point in command. _Voyager_ is criminally underrated.
That's an interesting perspective. I wonder if he's such a good first officer BECAUSE he's actually not that interesting of a character. Maybe it's the traits that make them a bad first officer that make them an interesting character.
@@LasherTimora Yeah, I understand the "Chakotay is dull" opinion - when the show first aired, that was an opinion I shared. But watching it today, 20 years older, I see a character rich in mature nuance. Chakotay behaves like a well-rounded, experienced adult & the way a good officer would in real life - that grounds the show further in a relevant, broader emotional reality for me.
You have it reversed. Spock will always be #1. Kira is quite a bit lower. And I would put Riker as #2. As for Chakotay: I like Chakotay. I believe that the main problem with him was the fact that he was underutilized, therefore we never really got to know him. Of course, the focus rightly was on Janeway. But they could have used Spock as an example of how you can use a supporting character in a way that you still get to know him while maintaining the spotlight on the Captain.
"I can't really think of a time when Spock was used poorly or where he didn't have great material to sink his teeth into." Spock's Brain has entered the chat.
Completely agree about Burnham. She's a really interesting character and Sonequa brings her to life so well, but man, is she a really poor first officer. Hell, she's not a great Starfleet officer in general; she's all over the damn place.
They'd need to hire an American Indian consultant to /approach/ making Chakotay a passable character though. From indigenous friends I've heard "Tonto in Space" is generous for how inaccurate his portrayal is. Is Beltran even American Indian?
@@dante6985 No he’s Mexican-American. Personally I think they should have hired Adam Beach for the role. He’s Native-Canadian and he was quite a popular choice in the 90s for Native American characters on both TV and film. He played pretty realistic native characters since he grew up on the Canadian equivalent of a Reservation and was very knowledgeable about native culture since he lived it.
I think a strong argument could be made that no Spock, no Star Trek franchises. He created the First Officer position, an absolute icon, and all the rest were left trying to emulate him in one way or another. Kira was great in many ways, but ask yourself the question: could she have been replaced? I think it's entirely possible they could have created an entirely different character who may have been great in their own way. But there was no replacing Spock, period.
For me I found T'Pol was more loyal to Captain Archer than any of the 1st officers to thier captains. I agree with your list and everything you said about them. I think I may put T'Pol above Spock though because of her loyalty to her captain.
I mean Sisko was literally a religious figure to Kira. She and her entire culture would've done anything he asked if he'd asked as the emissary. I'm not trying to devalue T'Pol giving up basically her entire life to stay at her post but you just can't beat die-hard religious fanatics for pure loyalty
I agree mostly. T'Pol might not be as high on my list, but she was a good first officer. And I absolutely hated the... fan service they tried to do with her. She deserved more. Granted it took my third viewing of Enterprise to really see how good a character she was.
Enterprise was when I knew Star Trek & I had parted ways. The first episode I saw, she and captain archer are in an airlock and he has to grease her up with some kind of special space lotion...and I was like "Oh it's gonna be _that_ kind of show..." and never watched again.
This is a tough one. If you rank them by 'who is the best 1st officer' it gives you a different list than if you rank 'who is the most interesting character', lol, or at least it does with me :D If we go by 1st Officer then my ranking would be (and I don't count Lower Decks as Trek so ignoring that trash): 1: Spock - Solid, in control, logical and you always felt that when Kirk left him in charge that everything would work out ok, or if not Spock could find the solution) 2: Riker - A lot of people found him boring, but as a 1st officer he always had his captains back and was solid and dependable. 3: T'Pol - Oddly, for a Vulcan, she sometimes found friction with the human crew in places she really shouldn't of. They used her way to much just to cause an argument, but solid when in command. 4: Chakotay - Suffers a little from being to emotional, his Marquis background, and got himself into hot water a few times from letting his heart make the choices rather than his head. 5: Kira - Why is she bottom? She let her emotions way to often dictate what she did, even in critical moments. Not a good trait for a 1st Officer. If we go by most interesting character though: 1: Spock - Sorry, but he just is:) 2: Kira - I really enjoyed watching her and how she stood up to anyone if she thought she was right ... even if she was wrong, lol. 3: Riker - He was pretty bland at times, I'll give you, but he had a ton of incredible episodes where Frakes got to shine as an actor, and throughout the seven years I never disliked the character. 4: T'Pol - An odd mix of Vulcan cold logic mixed with emotions ... which never made any sense to me as she showed more emotion than Spock ever did, and he was only half Vulcan!! 5: Chakotay - If people thought Riker bland, this guy takes that title hands down. Whether Beltran wanted out or not and that filtered into his acting I don't know, but I never liked the character.
I sort of agree with all the reasoning except Spock in the Kelvin timeline. Spock there are not a good officer in any way. Romantically involved with a subordinate (Uhura), arguing with her on away missions with the captain present (!), pushed into an emotional outburst by Kirk. No, a bad officer and a badly written Spock.
The one role I saw Frakes in where he wasn’t likable was in the Criminal Minds episode “The Uncanny Valley.” He plays the unsub’s (the show’s term for the person they’re after) molesting father who is just a really bad guy, so bad that in a forum discussion, I had to correct someone who called him the episode’s unsub. BTW, if you watch only one CM ep, that’s not a bad one to choose, even though it’s from Season 5.
T'Pol is my girl. She's the best first officer, so I hope you've put her near the top of the list! ... Also she was my first crush. So I may be biased.
@@gabrielluciano6429 Perhaps so. In fact I think Robert Beltran is actually Mexican American and not Native American. But that's typical for actors to play different races than their character.
In order, Spock, Kira, T'Pol, Data, Worf, Geordi, Alan Rickman's character from Galaxy Quest, Barclay, Chakotay, Wesley, Q, that one time Spot jumped up on Riker's chair, Thomas Riker literally anybody else to ever be featured in Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5 or the Orville, and then William T. Riker.
@@InfernosReaper eh i guess that's a potential role. But really a first officer is there to disseminate the captains orders and manage the crew. Saru doesn't do executive officer functions, he's either in charge, or waiting to be in charge.
@@Socrates3141 To be real, the "disseminate the captains orders" role isn't necessarily the *first* duty of the first officer. They're the 2nd in command. Riker is about the only one who ever made a big deal about being the order relay guy. Normally, the captain gives an order and everyone else follows it. The don't need the first officer relaying everything the captain says like he's a sergeant
Yes, though kemosite was later used as a substance Quark smuggled into ds9 as well as a part in the Xindi weapon so I could see him getting it confused
While Leonard Nimoy defined the role of a Vulcan First Officer, for obvious reasons, there hasn't been a single performer who has managed to upstage Jolene Blalock in that role. Even Tim Russ (I know, not Number One) with his brilliant performance in Voyager is upstaged by Blalock, although that may be solely due to STE being more fresh in my mind than Voyager (which was my first ST show). Although I don't see how being a model helped, if it did, it's a wonderful thing. The nuances of her performance, the subtle facial ticks that convey more than some actors are able to do with freely expressing their emotions (here's looking at you Discovery), her eyes dancing left and right when she has to say something "uncomfortable" or the way she would press her lips when she had to fight herself not to say something. Maybe it's just me being a STE fan, but she redefined the way Vulcans should be played in future ST shows.
3:35 The problem with The Problem with Riker is that Spacedock is unfair to the character by misrepresenting what is happening in that episode. My comment to the Spacedock video was: You got some facts wrong about the two parter episode “Chain of Command”. 1.) Jellico did not promote Data. Data is still Lt. Cmdr. What he did do is make Data his second in command after he suspended Riker. That is why Data has a red uniform. He is acting commander, his rank is still Lt. Cmdr. as you can tell by he is rank insignias. 2.) As I understand 4 shift rotation means a shift is shorter than on 3 shift rotation. It improves readiness by increasing down times but hampers productivity by introducing more handovers. It is in fact not getting more work done… You withhold that Jordi is in fact not complaining about a crunch time but that Jellico reposted a large part of his crew to security while demanding a crunch time and introducing 4 shift rotation at the same time. He laments that has no manpower due missing crew and the 4 shift rotation. Jellico did put him in a rather unreasonable position. 3.) You also ignore that Jellico is micro-managing the ship. All officer aboard the Enterprise are used to Picards style of command which gives them a lot of control over their own departments. Jellico does not. For example Jordi complains that he has to do several reports to Jellico about the state of the requested modifications. He wastes his time by doing so. Jordi knows his job he does not need nor want a commanding officer breath down his neck for no reason other than showcasing that he is in control. This is also true for Riker. Jellico asks Riker to launch a probe for Picards away team. Riker does so but Riker is not used to report back to the captain that he has completed every minor task so he does not report the launch of the probe to Jellico because the probe was for Picard and not the Enterprise anyway. He took unnecessary information off the shoulders of the captain. He is used to his captain trusting him to complete the tasks given to him. However Jellico wants these meaningless minor reports and he exhorts Riker for not having informed him about the launch of the probe lamenting he is a poor commander. The same happens with the change to 4 shift rotation. The departments chiefs have reservations and Riker wanted to discuss the necessity but Jellico didn’t want to hear any of it. 4.) You wilfully forget to mention that Jellico suspends Riker in the episode. Riker is under no obligation to go to the captain to volunteer for a mission he actually is not supposed to know about. He knows about it because duh… it is confined space craft, he was command crew and people talk. Riker did not demand Jellico come to his quarter and ask, he was in his quarter because he had not better place to be because Jellico suspended him prior! Jellico going to him is a way of avoiding having a rather unfriendly discussion in sight of other people. That way both can save face in front of the rest of the crew. 5.) Riker got suspended by Jellico because Riker disagreed with Jellicos decision to not grand Picard PoW status therefore delivering him to torture. I think Riker was within his rights to criticise Jellicos decision. The only people this happened in front of was Jellico, Riker and Troy who is the counsellor and adviser in this case. So I think he did not undermine the authority of Jellico as a captain. But Jellico wanted a more submissive commander which follows order to the letter and has no head of his own. He gets that with Data. So yes I think you are unfair to Riker.
Chakotay is the best first officer. Interesting is subjective, but in terms of being able to do the job, he is by FAR the best character. The character, was a Marquis captain. Then the crews merged, he didn't say "We should be co-captains", he didn't say, "You run your people, I'll run mine", he didn't support the attempted overthrow of the ship when his people planned one, he stood up for B'Elanna Torres when it came time to pick a chief engineer, despite Janeway showing favoritism to her own people, and he did it in a way that was not insubordinate, hell he was even able to do the job despite having to deal with Tuvok having been a spy among his own crew. I did not see the performance as Robert Beltran not wanting to be on the show, because I didn't realize that was an issue. I saw it as Chakotay being stuck in a subordinate position after having his ship destroyed and pushing through it despite how much that situation sucks.
I object. Tpol came out of the gate at warp 9. She was amazing, and her attempt to find her footing on a chaotic human ship and bring logic to it was amazing story. I don't think she's better than Kira,, but definitely better than spock
My computer is messed up and the videos keep keep stopping. Just as he said, "The worst first officer is..." and it stopped. I wonder if it's delibrate?
Well, my list is very different from yours. This was a toughie because after Spock it really becomes a struggle to rank for me. 5. Riker- Listen I love NextGen but Riker just comes off a little too Kirk for me. The most interesting part about him is his past relationships. He had a good commaderie with Picard but did little to add to his strengths. So, he is last for me. 4. Kira- In the beginning, their was some adversarial tension between Sisko and Kira but it faded away pretty quickly in the series. I couldn't tell if Kira respected Siska professionally or religiously. 3. T'Pol- Jolene Blalock is an underrated actor. Her character got more interesting as the series went on. This ranking might change in the future for me. 2. Chakotay- His background was interesting to me. A Maquis leader of Native American descent. But, the producers rarely played into that Beyond the second season. The reason he is high on my list is because of the instances that would be up to him to save Voyager. He also would not be afraid to challenge Janeway but would come to respect her over the course of the series. 1. Spock- An emotionless alien on a human starship. That's interesting. Nimoy played his part so well that I don't think it's revealed until midway thru the second season that Spock is indeed half human.
I agree Kira is the best. Kira is one of the most passionate characters in fiction, never mind Star Trek. And that passion both enhances and challenges her role as first officer.
i agree jolene blalock's acting performance was phenomenal.....people acted like she was just some model they threw in there but i always bought in 100% and when she got stories that stretched her abilities she kicked their asses (i'm thinking of the pon farr infection episode and when she's on the dormant vulcan ship in season 3) she is an awesome actress and i'm really surprised she didn't become a huge movie star after enterprise
I enjoyed the "problem with Riker" video a lot. I have no issues with Riker opposing Jellico in places, because the latter's obsession with four shifts would have put the Enterprise at severe risk if that hastily cobbled together fourth shift had had to actually fight. And, while Jellico was right to not acknowledge Picard, it was still Riker's job to point out actions he saw as mistakes. The fact that Riker was wrong in this instance didn't change that. But I won't go too hard on Jellico because he finally got Deanna to dress like an officer on the bridge. The big problem with Riker is just that... we saw in Best of Both Worlds that he was a darn good captain, and he spent most of the episode showing that he belonged in the big chair. And Data rocked it as first officer under Jellico, so I think if Riker had moved on, he would have done the same for Picard.
DS9 characters just have an advantage in these lists because, well, the DS9 characters are all well written, deep, and done in shades of grey - that said, no complaints with the list and I look forward to future lists with DS9 characters at the top 😁
Bingo. Really IMO for each of their roles you dont get better than the DS9 versions. Sisko is THE CAPTAIN, Kira is best, FO. Odo yeah sorry Tuvok, Worf no one beats Odo. Now you can kind of start arguing with the remaining two main role slots, Doctor and Chief Engineer. Engineer wise Id actually say it is a run for their money with Chief Miles Obrien and Chief Bellana Tores. Tores episodes and character where really good, and Obriens where as well. Then you have Doctor wise of good old Julian Bashir and imo very competing Doctor Flox from Enterprise. Dont get me wrong the Doctor, played to amazing points by Robert Picardo, is really damn good but I think its either Bashir or Flox.
@@memnarch129 Bashir was my least fav character on DS9. Arrogant, unlikeable and unwittingly rapey early on. I think Picardo's 'the doctor' would be my choice of best medical.
I liked Chakotay, although I might be a little biased. I can not argue him being boring as a first officer though to some degree. He was usually a "Yes Ma'am" type of guy. He was great when he was playing the Masque though and I wish we had some more of that. I know the actor had complained that he and others were over shadowed by the character 7 of 9. I did not know he was asking for higher raises each season though. Good on him, at least he got something out of it. What really annoyed me was he was fooled three times. Once by Tuvok, once by Seska and once by Paris. Apparently Tom was trying to infiltrate rogue Masque personnel, and was purposely being a douche bag to Chakotay. Coming in late for work. Talking back, etc. And even punching Chakotay when he had had enough of the young officer and questioned him. But then Chakotay was told most of the command crew was aware of the charade, but left Chakotay out of the loop. That really annoyed me. Loved Robert Beltran in Night of the Comet though!
I almost always agree with your take on Star Trek, but Will Riker would be much higher on my list, second only to Spock. His scenes in Picard were literally the only ones I enjoyed. My ranking would be: Spock Riker T'Pol Kira Chakotay EOM
Star Trek has always had some eye candy. TOS &JJvesre-Uhura, TNG-Troi, DS9-Kira & Leeta (and Jadzia in a couple episodes), VOY-Seven & B'elanna, ENT-T'Pol (and Hoshi in a few episodes). Necessary? Not really, but in years past sci-fi was largely a male audience and when writing falls flat, at least there's something to keep your interest.
The only ones that could challenge that are all from DS9 imo. Garak is my favourite, but Sisco is amazing as well, and Quark is fantastic too. I think they only non DS9 character in the conversation is Picard for me.
Agreed. Kira is my favourite not least because she's an "imperfect" character. She's a pretty damn hero in my book, but not that TNG-type shiny white armour kind of role model hero. There are a lot of grey areas, I disagree with some of her ideas, but still I'd trust her with my life. She's so complex, so human (in lack of a better term). Clearly one of my favourite Trek characters. What I found interesting is that I think she's best in the early seasons, she becomes a little more passive/less prominent during the seasons that are widely considered DS9's best. Duet is a S1 episode. I see some parallel here to the Odo/Quark relationship which I think also peaked in the early days of DS9. Just saying that DS9 didn't just start in S3 or whatever, much of its brilliance can be found as early as S1. About T'Pol... I really liked her and could relate to her, and let's be honest, she's the adult in the room for most of ENT. The way she was often treated by her crewmates and even her superior (come on, don't be a Vulcan bitch, be more human...) as well as by the showrunners (I need you to massage my neck, let me just put my bra off) was appalling.
Why, oh why does everyone forget Whorf????? Not only was he first officer under Martok, he was First Officer on the Defiant when Sisko was Captain. Technically it could be said he was First Officer on Deep Space Nine concerning just Star Fleet matters, why he ran the Defiant and not Kira when Sisko wasn't. "WE FIGHT!!!"
Oh, man! :) The first officer I would want to work for is Chakotay. I really envision (outside what was[n't] written) an interesting character. Then, second choice to work for is Riker. I love Riker's mentoring of Wesley.
Chakotay was done a total injustice. I actually respect Robert Beltran for persisting with the series and giving it his best. Sure he was very outspoken, and sure he was demanding pay rises but I imagine I would be too if my character was so flat and directionless. His relationship with Janeway was all he had. It’s also very very obvious that the Native American part of his character was basically bullshit, even to me, an English guy who unfortunately doesn’t hold a great deal of knowledge about Native American culture.
OK so here’s my opinion on this I think that the quality of the first officer is going to depend on the qualities of the captain and if they counter each other well so I think it’s kind of hard to judge them just by themselves because each first officer is good based on how they fit with everyone else
My rank is this: 1 - Spock (yea, he is the best) 2 - Kyra (annoying of not, she did push every one to the limit) 3 - Riker (i'll be honest, i never liked him nor find him too competent) 4 - Chekotay (you said it better than i could and i agree).
I liked Chakotay, the dynamic between him and Janeway when he expresses his concerns or viewpoints that differ from the Captains were always what made him more of a compelling first officer than the others, as well as Kira.
I wonder why the producers kept meeting the actor of Chitokay demands to be paid more? There were plenty of other characters that they could have made first officer with hurting the story.
Paramount was attached to making Voyager syndication friendly in any order. Hence why the reset button was hit so often, even though the writers often proposed lasting changes.
I would rank Riker at the top. But, it’s probably for a reason that wasn’t taken into consideration/wasn’t really visited in other shows. If you watch TNG, there are times they make it very clear that his management of staff is extremely efficient. Whenever Picard would ask him in passing about scheduling, staffing, training, etc. it would be very clear that he wouldn’t even worry about it, Riker was just on top of it. Kira is a great choice too, though; as is Spock. I did not watch Enterprise.
Easily, the top spot belongs to Will Decker. He's the only one to really challenge Kirk in the motion picture and he makes a point of raising alternatives for the captain to consider. He also wasn't shy about countermanding Kirk's phaser order to save the ship.
Riker is a buffoon. He was written to be the best first office in the fleet. Begged to be a captain. Twice when he had command of both Enterprises he failed. He somehow couldn't beat a old clunker Bird of Prey with a Galaxy class in Generations but can beat a Borg cube before Starfleet knew anything about them. And couldn't fight two Son'a vessels with a Dominion War upgraded Sovereign class.
I would like to see you rank the Captains of Star Trek. As for my ranking of the first officers... 1)Spock (TOS, Discovery, SNW) 2)Will Riker (TNG, LD, Picard) 3)T'Pol (Enterprise) 4)Kira Nerys (DS9) 5)Chikotay (Voyage) 6)Saru (Discovery) 7)Jack Ransom (LD) What do you think of the list?
While I liked Spock and Leonard Nimoy definitely set the tone for Vulcans, I think T’Pol was the best first officer. The writers of Enterprise unnecessarily relied too much on Jolene Blalock’s beauty. She was an excellent actress and added significant depth to portrayal of Vulcans.
#1 Spock we aren't still talking about Star Trek if Spock didn't knock it out of the park. # 2Kira I liked her right away #3 Riker no one can mount a chair like Will #4 Tpol drop dead gorgeous and can act some too
Thank you for saying that about T'Pol, I actually hate all the scenes where she is dressed down its degrading to watch let alone act. And Jolene is such a smart and strong person that it just compounds! I also felt the same way about 7 in voyager because that's pretty much exactly what it was! Views were low so the brought on a skintight catsuit to say nothing but technogibberish, it totally ruined any chance of her and Kate Mulgrew getting along. Soooo disappointing! When you said Ransome the first thing I thought of was that scene 😂
I love Chakotay. The writers did really bork the attempt to write his Native American aspect with sensitivity, but in their defense they were trying, it was their advisor who was full of shit. I actually would say he's easily my favorite Voyager character. I guess some things are just very subjective. I do agree that Kira Nerys is an amazing character.
1:09 I find this rather difficult to believe that Berman & Co. chose not to show him the door the way they did with Jen Lien (shame what happened to her afterwards, though not sure all that was solely or mainly due to her dismissal). As well, methinks they merely regarded his part as decorative, just part of the scenery, not worthy of greater exposition like "The (EMH-Mark 1) Doctor" or Annika Hansen or Tom Paris. In retrospect TPTB could have shaken things up by killing off both Commander Chakotay and Ensign Kim (Garrett Wang came far closer to being let go than Beltran ever was, apparently) as casualties of the arduous journey from the "Delta" to the "Alpha" Quadrant. Depending on how their exits were written, that story arc would have been quite compelling. 🤔🎬
I want a buddy cop drama with Chakotay and Vedek Bareil, where they just bore criminals into giving themselves up.
😂
🔥😂🔥
Still would watch two seasons of it...
Hey all power to Robert Beltran, I mean at least he got paid cha-ching$$!!😛
Glad I wasn't the only one that felt Bariel.... seemed stale. It took me by part way through my second viewing going.. wait. Is the character written wooden? Or is there something I am missing
My favourite thing about Kira's command style is the way she adjusts her tone and bearing when Sisko isn't around and she's acting as station commander. When Sisko is there, she's fast, sharp, and efficient. When he's not around and she is left in charge, she becomes quieter, more deliberate, and more authoritative. As first officer she is a dependable soldier, tense and ready to spring. As commander she is the firm, steady hand at the wheel, inspiring confidence and tolerating no nonsense.
Well said!! 👏👏👏👏
So would ANY second-in-command; it would be obtuse if one did not adjust her style with change of her status/role ~
@@bonghunezhou5051 Ideally yes, but they don't all do it. Spock, Riker and Chakotay don't. Saru and Kira do.
@@joanmoriarity8738 Watching Saru be in charge is magnificent, first in his original state where he must use reason training and duty to go against his natural drives then after his change when he can take all that and back it up with some serious predatory intensity. All without losing his core self that is a fundamentally kind and moral person.
You said this so well!
At first I genuinely though, "Oh man, where's Tuvok gonna go on this list?!" And then I actually stirred some part of my brain that remembered Chakotay is a character in Voyager, which....yeah says something about his presence in the series.
That is hilarious!
@@sarahkinsey5434 Kinda says something about the writing quality in Voyager when the man who intentionally represses his emotions has more wit, charm, energy and is generally actually quite funny when compared to Chakotay who's big thing is-
[Rolls dice] Boxing? And [Spins wheel] Giving status reports. He really was a glorified conn officer at some points.
@@mecha_moira6443 the boxing thing was so random and I never like the relationship with Seven. It was too random too. There wasn’t really much build up. Vulcans may not have emotions but they have lots of sass.
That is so funny. I had the same thought for a minute and then...forehead slap. Shows you how un-memorable Chakotay was! Really the whole issue with Voyager and Enterprise is that a high percentage of the major characters are relatively weak. The Doctors are the notable exceptions. On the other hand, DS9 has many strong characters and the Doctor is relatively weak one. It's all about the characters. DS9 proves that.
Add me to the list who thought the same thing, and was expecting him to be near the top of the list. I do think Chakotay was hampered by the fact that: 1) The integration between the Maquis and the other crew was just way too easy, would have given him more of a character arc to have more adjustment if not outright conflict happen, 2) Like too many shows, they seemed to be starting on a 'will they/won't they' have a relationship between Janeway and Chakotay, and I for one would have been happier if they would have made the choice to go down a definite path-either have them say "hey, you know what, we're taking about generations to get back to our home space, maybe the usual rules don't apply and we can try to have a relatioinship", or "I'm really attracted to you, but this just is something we can't do". In the end, it was just another arc that was started and then abandoned. 3) Ironically, I thought some of his best development was his opposition to the Borg alliance, and his distrust of Seven of Nine, which added to the stupidity of the last minute 4) Chakotay/Seven...HUHHHHHHHHHHHHHH??? Unfortunately, the thing I ultimately most enjoyed about the whole Chakotay character/storyline was seeing Henry Darrow play his father.
"I can't really think of a time when Spock was used poorly..."
*Spock's Brain has entered the chat*
Brain and brain! What is brain?
Just watched the Columbo episode where Leonard Nimoy plays the surgeon suspect. They actually had a brain prominently displayed on his desk; even had a cleaning lady come in to dust it off. All it lacked was arrows and glaring lights pointing to the in-joke.
I thought the same thing.
I remember Nimoy talking about that episode and how he thought was so stupid, but couldn't say anything because if he did then they'd rewrite the episode and he'd have to do more work.
@@marsrock316 Shame Columbo wasn't very smart in that episode either. The jury is never going to buy "The evidence was in my pocket all along!" routine.
Will Reiker just for the one leg up leaning on his knee posed alone.
Chakotay got some stuff in the first two seasons of Voyager, then he starts to fall off. Beltran was annoyed because the writers forgot about his character. It gets worse after Jeri Ryan joins. It's unfortunate because his character was set up with a cool premise: former Starfleet officer, turned Maquis, turned Starfleet again out of insane circumstances.
I agree. Kira wins. That episode where Sisko is injured on the Defiant and she keeps him going by telling him a story and properly opening up to him is exceptional
OK, I watch Enterprise too much, but T'Pols addiction was to Trellium-D, not Kemosite.
Maybe you're addicted to trellium, I just need to hold on to some. why, do you have a hookup?
Ha! I scrolled through the comments just to find who the first person was to point that out. Irked me when I heard that too. lol
Best first officer. Best female character. Most fully formed right out the gate. Kira is just the best.
Kira easily should have a show Star Trek: Bajor Resistance her early years as a fighter or even her life post season 7 on bajor the United federation of planets accepting bajor the militia having to join Starfeet the politics of new bajor the emissary missing all those years is she command of the station is she a politician odo is gone is she still waiting on him does she assist w the rebuilding of cardarissa ?
The books of DS9 dealt w some of it till they went off the rails but Kira is a great character maybe the best written female character in Star Trek
100%
Jolene Blalock was in a couple of episodes of Stargate SG1, and I really wish she had done more there.
She was way more interesting than Teal'C's twice cast wife, and Teal'C's twice cast wife was in at least what...4 episodes?
@@killwalker In the words of the great gold Alien, "indeed."
And yea, I know he wasn't Gold throughout, but he was gold at first.
Yeah. She actually had hair and was attractive.
@@johnv6806 Teal'c's wife had hair, both times.
I too thought she was talking about Teal'c at first.
Agreed underrated actor.
Kira’s smile is the very definition of infectious. Just need to make sure that was mentioned here.
Kira won!! That’s awesome, I would love a video game spinoff as Kira during the occupation. Favorite character on my favor Trek (granted Quark could be argued for haha)
I can understand Burnham not being on the list but I'm sorry Saru didn't make the cut. He is the only character to have a first officer arc. Whom we got to see grow into becoming a captain (a good or bad captain is up for discussion) during the course of their main series.
I was thinking the same thing. Also you could make an argument for a spot on the list for "Number One".
Ultimately I think he was good - flawed, but constantly learning and improving. In a weird sort of way he was the most relatable character.
We rather nkt discuss discovery....
Think the only change I'd make its swapping Riker and T'pol. I feel Riker is just sort of the iconic "Federation First Officer" character, and when an episode nails how to write him, he is incredibly cool. Kira though. You just can't beat Kira.
Kira was great. But I always had a problem with her being first officer since she wasn't a member of Starfleet. That's fine on the station (since its a Bajorian station & Sisko wanted her). But on the Defiant ? Not so much.
The same reason Kira is great is same reason Chakotay is last. Well defined, fleshed out character vs....not.
@@richard77231 chakotay could have been just as good as Kira, they have similar character setups, insurgents who now have to work in a structured environment. We saw those growing pains with Kira and the Bajoran crew but not the same really with Chakotay and the Marquis crew
@@jacksonheathen2092 Wasn't Worf technically the first officer of the Defiant? I feel like the hierarchy of that ship was sort of wonky. Some episodes Kira is clearly in command, others Worf is.
I also thought Riker was much better as a first officer than T'pol.
Spock would be my 1st. The guy was reliable and when he says:"this is Enterprise, Spock here" you can feel assured that everything is well in hand! I like Kira, too... mostly because my siblings and I laughed at the way she would say Dukats name with such contempt ( "That's right, Doo-khat!")😛
Agreed. Spock is by far the better 1st officer just based on how he acted throughout the series. There was never a time where I thought spock acting like an unlikable idiot was within his character for an episode.
Kira on the other-hand acted on emotion whenever she got the chance. Just that entire episode where she steals a prophet of time (Potentially altering history) because dukat did the equivalent of saying "I fucked your mom" is enough to disqualify her as being the best anything.
I understood her character, and there were plenty of episodes I really, really liked her in. But there were **Plenty** of episodes where Kira acted like a complete nonce, and her doing so was always in character.
@@0why That episode w/ Kira's mum dragged the series into 'daytime soap' territory 😞☹
@@bonghunezhou5051 I really really wish they would have killed Dukat during the episode where he was stranded on the planet with sisko. It would have been the perfect capend to his character.
@@0why uhh, I'm... assuming nonce means something different where you are from?
Cause where I'm from "nonce" means pedophile
Putting T'Pol on top of Riker?
Yeah that fits.
Only if you mean sexually.
@@johnv6806 😂😂
"... we are once again returning to the well of ranking some random bullshit from the Star Trek franchise" HAHAHA great intro.
Watching the episode "Second Chances" I always think it would have been kind of cool if, at the end, Riker left the Enterprise to be the Captain of his own ship, and Jonathan Frakes played Thomas Riker for the rest of the show. Maybe he sees his younger self and how ambitious he used to be, and that changes his perspective on how his career has gone
My problem with Will is that his character kinda stagnates after "Best of Both Worlds." They make such a big deal about him becoming the captain of his own ship ASAP in those episodes, yet he doesn't get one until the last movie.
YES, thank you! I thought I was the only one that noticed Riker's perceived arc being dropped. Should have pulled the trigger on him being captain sooner
Well first officer on the enterprise is almost as good as captain.
@@garethbowen3813 It was poor writing. He should have either been given the Enterprise after saving the Federation from the Borg or been given an equally important ship.
Yeh boiii. Ds9 number one! Always my fav Trek :) Kira was a fantastic character, no cookie cutter stuff there, just a gritty character with both optimistic traits and war trauma lending her some darkness too. Great portrayal by Nana Visitor.
Wow, your list matches mine exactly. It's nice not to see Riker in first or second place for a change.
#1 Chakotay, easily.
Challenged Janeway when he needed to, backed her always, never flustered, no ego, supported each member of the crew privately & kept the chain of command solid. He's what a mature, experienced officer should be.
Spock prioritized his search for meaning & logic failed him in command (in _TOS_ ).
Kira prioritized her Bajoran stuff.
Riker prioritized his libido.
Chakotay prioritized his duty to the safety of the crew & was always on point in command.
_Voyager_ is criminally underrated.
I think for practical reasons yes he was a great first officer. His on-screen presence was just kind of "meh."
I like how he’s soft when he’s the second in command but he’s tough when he’s actually in charge. It’s like he wakes up.
Chakotay your number 1 nice, he wouldn't be mine but to me he would be higher than Kira
That's an interesting perspective. I wonder if he's such a good first officer BECAUSE he's actually not that interesting of a character. Maybe it's the traits that make them a bad first officer that make them an interesting character.
@@LasherTimora Yeah, I understand the "Chakotay is dull" opinion - when the show first aired, that was an opinion I shared. But watching it today, 20 years older, I see a character rich in mature nuance. Chakotay behaves like a well-rounded, experienced adult & the way a good officer would in real life - that grounds the show further in a relevant, broader emotional reality for me.
You have it reversed. Spock will always be #1. Kira is quite a bit lower. And I would put Riker as #2.
As for Chakotay: I like Chakotay. I believe that the main problem with him was the fact that he was underutilized, therefore we never really got to know him. Of course, the focus rightly was on Janeway. But they could have used Spock as an example of how you can use a supporting character in a way that you still get to know him while maintaining the spotlight on the Captain.
I personally adore riker I love his character he’s just really fun
"I can't really think of a time when Spock was used poorly or where he didn't have great material to sink his teeth into."
Spock's Brain has entered the chat.
Completely agree about Burnham.
She's a really interesting character and Sonequa brings her to life so well, but man, is she a really poor first officer. Hell, she's not a great Starfleet officer in general; she's all over the damn place.
Chakotay was a lost opportunity. Solid actor, could’ve been an interesting character.
They'd need to hire an American Indian consultant to /approach/ making Chakotay a passable character though. From indigenous friends I've heard "Tonto in Space" is generous for how inaccurate his portrayal is. Is Beltran even American Indian?
@@dante6985
No he’s Mexican-American.
Personally I think they should have hired Adam Beach for the role. He’s Native-Canadian and he was quite a popular choice in the 90s for Native American characters on both TV and film. He played pretty realistic native characters since he grew up on the Canadian equivalent of a Reservation and was very knowledgeable about native culture since he lived it.
I think a strong argument could be made that no Spock, no Star Trek franchises. He created the First Officer position, an absolute icon, and all the rest were left trying to emulate him in one way or another. Kira was great in many ways, but ask yourself the question: could she have been replaced? I think it's entirely possible they could have created an entirely different character who may have been great in their own way. But there was no replacing Spock, period.
Good rankings! Although no Saru was interesting! We got your reasoning for not having Michael, but why not include Saru?
8:10 I can think of one, but I'm not surprised you forgot this one. It is an episode best forgotten: Spock's Brain.
I would love to have seen a series following Thomas Riker joining the Marquis
Or the unaired S5 of Enterprise where Shran joins the crew... And they don't have the WTF holodeck ending.
For me I found T'Pol was more loyal to Captain Archer than any of the 1st officers to thier captains. I agree with your list and everything you said about them. I think I may put T'Pol above Spock though because of her loyalty to her captain.
I mean Sisko was literally a religious figure to Kira. She and her entire culture would've done anything he asked if he'd asked as the emissary. I'm not trying to devalue T'Pol giving up basically her entire life to stay at her post but you just can't beat die-hard religious fanatics for pure loyalty
@@Fawkes42 True.
I loved Kira and Nana was extraordinarily powerful in that role. Her character is so loved but also amazingly respected.
I agree mostly. T'Pol might not be as high on my list, but she was a good first officer. And I absolutely hated the... fan service they tried to do with her. She deserved more.
Granted it took my third viewing of Enterprise to really see how good a character she was.
Enterprise was when I knew Star Trek & I had parted ways. The first episode I saw, she and captain archer are in an airlock and he has to grease her up with some kind of special space lotion...and I was like "Oh it's gonna be _that_ kind of show..." and never watched again.
This is a tough one. If you rank them by 'who is the best 1st officer' it gives you a different list than if you rank 'who is the most interesting character', lol, or at least it does with me :D
If we go by 1st Officer then my ranking would be (and I don't count Lower Decks as Trek so ignoring that trash):
1: Spock - Solid, in control, logical and you always felt that when Kirk left him in charge that everything would work out ok, or if not Spock could find the solution)
2: Riker - A lot of people found him boring, but as a 1st officer he always had his captains back and was solid and dependable.
3: T'Pol - Oddly, for a Vulcan, she sometimes found friction with the human crew in places she really shouldn't of. They used her way to much just to cause an argument, but solid when in command.
4: Chakotay - Suffers a little from being to emotional, his Marquis background, and got himself into hot water a few times from letting his heart make the choices rather than his head.
5: Kira - Why is she bottom? She let her emotions way to often dictate what she did, even in critical moments. Not a good trait for a 1st Officer.
If we go by most interesting character though:
1: Spock - Sorry, but he just is:)
2: Kira - I really enjoyed watching her and how she stood up to anyone if she thought she was right ... even if she was wrong, lol.
3: Riker - He was pretty bland at times, I'll give you, but he had a ton of incredible episodes where Frakes got to shine as an actor, and throughout the seven years I never disliked the character.
4: T'Pol - An odd mix of Vulcan cold logic mixed with emotions ... which never made any sense to me as she showed more emotion than Spock ever did, and he was only half Vulcan!!
5: Chakotay - If people thought Riker bland, this guy takes that title hands down. Whether Beltran wanted out or not and that filtered into his acting I don't know, but I never liked the character.
I sort of agree with all the reasoning except Spock in the Kelvin timeline. Spock there are not a good officer in any way. Romantically involved with a subordinate (Uhura), arguing with her on away missions with the captain present (!), pushed into an emotional outburst by Kirk. No, a bad officer and a badly written Spock.
I don't care what Universe Spock is in, he'd never get romantically involved with a subordinate, let alone a student.
The Kelvin timeline is not good in any way
The one role I saw Frakes in where he wasn’t likable was in the Criminal Minds episode “The Uncanny Valley.” He plays the unsub’s (the show’s term for the person they’re after) molesting father who is just a really bad guy, so bad that in a forum discussion, I had to correct someone who called him the episode’s unsub. BTW, if you watch only one CM ep, that’s not a bad one to choose, even though it’s from Season 5.
The writers did Chakotay wrong. Maybe if they gave him good storylines he might have put a better effort into his performances
I found Chakotay…boring.
T'Pol is my girl.
She's the best first officer, so I hope you've put her near the top of the list!
...
Also she was my first crush.
So I may be biased.
You are biased, yes.
Agreed. And she is beautiful
I agree T’Pol should top the list.
Right…hear me out…Kira Nerys…best first officer in general
Wow. Chakotay is last! Personally, he was featured in one of my favorite Voyager episodes.
Chakotay was a great first officer. He should have played the captain.
Kind of taints the character to know his culture was all BS made up by a fake Native American consultant.
Is it the boxing one? (I legitimately think that’s underrated)
He's a great officer, but was never written to be very interesting, unfortunately
@@gabrielluciano6429 Perhaps so. In fact I think Robert Beltran is actually Mexican American and not Native American. But that's typical for actors to play different races than their character.
In order, Spock, Kira, T'Pol, Data, Worf, Geordi, Alan Rickman's character from Galaxy Quest, Barclay, Chakotay, Wesley, Q, that one time Spot jumped up on Riker's chair, Thomas Riker literally anybody else to ever be featured in Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5 or the Orville, and then William T. Riker.
Hold up, did I blink or did Saru not even get a mention?
That's cause saru isnt a first officer. He's either the captain, or the back up captain 😜
@@Socrates3141 Isn't that what a first officer is, though? A backup captain
@@InfernosReaper eh i guess that's a potential role. But really a first officer is there to disseminate the captains orders and manage the crew. Saru doesn't do executive officer functions, he's either in charge, or waiting to be in charge.
@@Socrates3141 To be real, the "disseminate the captains orders" role isn't necessarily the *first* duty of the first officer. They're the 2nd in command. Riker is about the only one who ever made a big deal about being the order relay guy.
Normally, the captain gives an order and everyone else follows it. The don't need the first officer relaying everything the captain says like he's a sergeant
What about my boy Saru??
This! Saru is such a great character
T'Pol was addicted to Trellium-D, right? (not Kemosite)
Great video! :)
Yes, though kemosite was later used as a substance Quark smuggled into ds9 as well as a part in the Xindi weapon so I could see him getting it confused
While Leonard Nimoy defined the role of a Vulcan First Officer, for obvious reasons, there hasn't been a single performer who has managed to upstage Jolene Blalock in that role. Even Tim Russ (I know, not Number One) with his brilliant performance in Voyager is upstaged by Blalock, although that may be solely due to STE being more fresh in my mind than Voyager (which was my first ST show).
Although I don't see how being a model helped, if it did, it's a wonderful thing. The nuances of her performance, the subtle facial ticks that convey more than some actors are able to do with freely expressing their emotions (here's looking at you Discovery), her eyes dancing left and right when she has to say something "uncomfortable" or the way she would press her lips when she had to fight herself not to say something. Maybe it's just me being a STE fan, but she redefined the way Vulcans should be played in future ST shows.
T'Pol is so good because the other leaders in Enterprise were so naively reckless. They needed her as a guard-rail. And that's why she was good.
Spock was definitely the best 1st officer!!
T'Pol is an amazingly well performed and evetually well written. Kira is Kira and aggresively magnificent; the best!
3:35 The problem with The Problem with Riker is that Spacedock is unfair to the character by misrepresenting what is happening in that episode.
My comment to the Spacedock video was:
You got some facts wrong about the two parter episode “Chain of Command”.
1.)
Jellico did not promote Data. Data is still Lt. Cmdr.
What he did do is make Data his second in command after he suspended Riker. That is why Data has a red uniform. He is acting commander, his rank is still Lt. Cmdr. as you can tell by he is rank insignias.
2.)
As I understand 4 shift rotation means a shift is shorter than on 3 shift rotation. It improves readiness by increasing down times but hampers productivity by introducing more handovers.
It is in fact not getting more work done…
You withhold that Jordi is in fact not complaining about a crunch time but that Jellico reposted a large part of his crew to security while demanding a crunch time and introducing 4 shift rotation at the same time.
He laments that has no manpower due missing crew and the 4 shift rotation. Jellico did put him in a rather unreasonable position.
3.)
You also ignore that Jellico is micro-managing the ship.
All officer aboard the Enterprise are used to Picards style of command which gives them a lot of control over their own departments.
Jellico does not. For example Jordi complains that he has to do several reports to Jellico about the state of the requested modifications. He wastes his time by doing so. Jordi knows his job he does not need nor want a commanding officer breath down his neck for no reason other than showcasing that he is in control.
This is also true for Riker. Jellico asks Riker to launch a probe for Picards away team. Riker does so but Riker is not used to report back to the captain that he has completed every minor task so he does not report the launch of the probe to Jellico because the probe was for Picard and not the Enterprise anyway. He took unnecessary information off the shoulders of the captain. He is used to his captain trusting him to complete the tasks given to him.
However Jellico wants these meaningless minor reports and he exhorts Riker for not having informed him about the launch of the probe lamenting he is a poor commander.
The same happens with the change to 4 shift rotation. The departments chiefs have reservations and Riker wanted to discuss the necessity but Jellico didn’t want to hear any of it.
4.)
You wilfully forget to mention that Jellico suspends Riker in the episode.
Riker is under no obligation to go to the captain to volunteer for a mission he actually is not supposed to know about.
He knows about it because duh… it is confined space craft, he was command crew and people talk.
Riker did not demand Jellico come to his quarter and ask, he was in his quarter because he had not better place to be because Jellico suspended him prior!
Jellico going to him is a way of avoiding having a rather unfriendly discussion in sight of other people. That way both can save face in front of the rest of the crew.
5.)
Riker got suspended by Jellico because Riker disagreed with Jellicos decision to not grand Picard PoW status therefore delivering him to torture.
I think Riker was within his rights to criticise Jellicos decision. The only people this happened in front of was Jellico, Riker and Troy who is the counsellor and adviser in this case.
So I think he did not undermine the authority of Jellico as a captain.
But Jellico wanted a more submissive commander which follows order to the letter and has no head of his own. He gets that with Data.
So yes I think you are unfair to Riker.
K
Chakotay is the best first officer.
Interesting is subjective, but in terms of being able to do the job, he is by FAR the best character.
The character, was a Marquis captain.
Then the crews merged, he didn't say "We should be co-captains", he didn't say, "You run your people, I'll run mine", he didn't support the attempted overthrow of the ship when his people planned one, he stood up for B'Elanna Torres when it came time to pick a chief engineer, despite Janeway showing favoritism to her own people, and he did it in a way that was not insubordinate, hell he was even able to do the job despite having to deal with Tuvok having been a spy among his own crew.
I did not see the performance as Robert Beltran not wanting to be on the show, because I didn't realize that was an issue.
I saw it as Chakotay being stuck in a subordinate position after having his ship destroyed and pushing through it despite how much that situation sucks.
I object. Tpol came out of the gate at warp 9. She was amazing, and her attempt to find her footing on a chaotic human ship and bring logic to it was amazing story. I don't think she's better than Kira,, but definitely better than spock
My computer is messed up and the videos keep keep stopping. Just as he said, "The worst first officer is..." and it stopped. I wonder if it's delibrate?
Well, my list is very different from yours. This was a toughie because after Spock it really becomes a struggle to rank for me.
5. Riker- Listen I love NextGen but Riker just comes off a little too Kirk for me. The most interesting part about him is his past relationships. He had a good commaderie with Picard but did little to add to his strengths. So, he is last for me.
4. Kira- In the beginning, their was some adversarial tension between Sisko and Kira but it faded away pretty quickly in the series. I couldn't tell if Kira respected Siska professionally or religiously.
3. T'Pol- Jolene Blalock is an underrated actor. Her character got more interesting as the series went on. This ranking might change in the future for me.
2. Chakotay- His background was interesting to me. A Maquis leader of Native American descent. But, the producers rarely played into that Beyond the second season. The reason he is high on my list is because of the instances that would be up to him to save Voyager. He also would not be afraid to challenge Janeway but would come to respect her over the course of the series.
1. Spock- An emotionless alien on a human starship. That's interesting. Nimoy played his part so well that I don't think it's revealed until midway thru the second season that Spock is indeed half human.
I agree Kira is the best. Kira is one of the most passionate characters in fiction, never mind Star Trek. And that passion both enhances and challenges her role as first officer.
i agree jolene blalock's acting performance was phenomenal.....people acted like she was just some model they threw in there but i always bought in 100% and when she got stories that stretched her abilities she kicked their asses (i'm thinking of the pon farr infection episode and when she's on the dormant vulcan ship in season 3) she is an awesome actress and i'm really surprised she didn't become a huge movie star after enterprise
I enjoyed the "problem with Riker" video a lot. I have no issues with Riker opposing Jellico in places, because the latter's obsession with four shifts would have put the Enterprise at severe risk if that hastily cobbled together fourth shift had had to actually fight. And, while Jellico was right to not acknowledge Picard, it was still Riker's job to point out actions he saw as mistakes. The fact that Riker was wrong in this instance didn't change that. But I won't go too hard on Jellico because he finally got Deanna to dress like an officer on the bridge.
The big problem with Riker is just that... we saw in Best of Both Worlds that he was a darn good captain, and he spent most of the episode showing that he belonged in the big chair. And Data rocked it as first officer under Jellico, so I think if Riker had moved on, he would have done the same for Picard.
DS9 characters just have an advantage in these lists because, well, the DS9 characters are all well written, deep, and done in shades of grey - that said, no complaints with the list and I look forward to future lists with DS9 characters at the top 😁
Bingo. Really IMO for each of their roles you dont get better than the DS9 versions. Sisko is THE CAPTAIN, Kira is best, FO. Odo yeah sorry Tuvok, Worf no one beats Odo. Now you can kind of start arguing with the remaining two main role slots, Doctor and Chief Engineer. Engineer wise Id actually say it is a run for their money with Chief Miles Obrien and Chief Bellana Tores. Tores episodes and character where really good, and Obriens where as well. Then you have Doctor wise of good old Julian Bashir and imo very competing Doctor Flox from Enterprise. Dont get me wrong the Doctor, played to amazing points by Robert Picardo, is really damn good but I think its either Bashir or Flox.
@@memnarch129 Bashir was my least fav character on DS9. Arrogant, unlikeable and unwittingly rapey early on. I think Picardo's 'the doctor' would be my choice of best medical.
I liked Chakotay, although I might be a little biased. I can not argue him being boring as a first officer though to some degree. He was usually a "Yes Ma'am" type of guy. He was great when he was playing the Masque though and I wish we had some more of that.
I know the actor had complained that he and others were over shadowed by the character 7 of 9. I did not know he was asking for higher raises each season though. Good on him, at least he got something out of it.
What really annoyed me was he was fooled three times. Once by Tuvok, once by Seska and once by Paris. Apparently Tom was trying to infiltrate rogue Masque personnel, and was purposely being a douche bag to Chakotay. Coming in late for work. Talking back, etc. And even punching Chakotay when he had had enough of the young officer and questioned him. But then Chakotay was told most of the command crew was aware of the charade, but left Chakotay out of the loop. That really annoyed me. Loved Robert Beltran in Night of the Comet though!
Medical officers next
Could be ranked by who killed less. hehe
EMH number 1, and it's not even close.
Personally, I wouldn't have Kira above Spock... you could convince me she edges out Riker, but not Spock.
1. Spock
2. Kira
3. Riker
ETC
I almost always agree with your take on Star Trek, but Will Riker would be much higher on my list, second only to Spock. His scenes in Picard were literally the only ones I enjoyed.
My ranking would be:
Spock
Riker
T'Pol
Kira
Chakotay
EOM
Before we start: If Riker isn’t at least second, I’m gonna lose my shit here. 🤞
Shit lost? Kira leaves him in the dust mate.
@@fatalshore5068 I‘m still recovering. Damn…
Star Trek has always had some eye candy. TOS &JJvesre-Uhura, TNG-Troi, DS9-Kira & Leeta (and Jadzia in a couple episodes), VOY-Seven & B'elanna, ENT-T'Pol (and Hoshi in a few episodes). Necessary? Not really, but in years past sci-fi was largely a male audience and when writing falls flat, at least there's something to keep your interest.
Good stuff. Yep Chakotay is beige. I can't really disagree with your list. Cool :)
Never seen Lower Decks, so can't say, but I'm right there with you with all the rest of the rankings.
Lower decks is a cartoon. Personally, I don't know why it fits into these conversations.
@@jacksonheathen2092 I only mentioned it because he did, but it's still technically Star Trek and still has a first officer, so, logic, I suppose?
@@stevesoldwedel Yes. I suppose so. 😁
Kira Nerys is the BEST character of all Trek. That is a hill I will die on.
Elim Garak Former Cardassian Oppressor might give her a run for her money.
Eh. Shes way deep into her own personal feelings.
The only ones that could challenge that are all from DS9 imo. Garak is my favourite, but Sisco is amazing as well, and Quark is fantastic too. I think they only non DS9 character in the conversation is Picard for me.
Agreed. Kira is my favourite not least because she's an "imperfect" character. She's a pretty damn hero in my book, but not that TNG-type shiny white armour kind of role model hero. There are a lot of grey areas, I disagree with some of her ideas, but still I'd trust her with my life. She's so complex, so human (in lack of a better term). Clearly one of my favourite Trek characters.
What I found interesting is that I think she's best in the early seasons, she becomes a little more passive/less prominent during the seasons that are widely considered DS9's best. Duet is a S1 episode. I see some parallel here to the Odo/Quark relationship which I think also peaked in the early days of DS9. Just saying that DS9 didn't just start in S3 or whatever, much of its brilliance can be found as early as S1.
About T'Pol... I really liked her and could relate to her, and let's be honest, she's the adult in the room for most of ENT. The way she was often treated by her crewmates and even her superior (come on, don't be a Vulcan bitch, be more human...) as well as by the showrunners (I need you to massage my neck, let me just put my bra off) was appalling.
Why, oh why does everyone forget Whorf????? Not only was he first officer under Martok, he was First Officer on the Defiant when Sisko was Captain. Technically it could be said he was First Officer on Deep Space Nine concerning just Star Fleet matters, why he ran the Defiant and not Kira when Sisko wasn't. "WE FIGHT!!!"
Oh, man! :) The first officer I would want to work for is Chakotay. I really envision (outside what was[n't] written) an interesting character. Then, second choice to work for is Riker. I love Riker's mentoring of Wesley.
Chakotay was done a total injustice. I actually respect Robert Beltran for persisting with the series and giving it his best. Sure he was very outspoken, and sure he was demanding pay rises but I imagine I would be too if my character was so flat and directionless. His relationship with Janeway was all he had. It’s also very very obvious that the Native American part of his character was basically bullshit, even to me, an English guy who unfortunately doesn’t hold a great deal of knowledge about Native American culture.
T’Pol was actually addicted to Trellium D not Kemocite. She was a great first officer who identified with humans and joined Starfleet.
Heck yeah, my girl Kira!
OK so here’s my opinion on this I think that the quality of the first officer is going to depend on the qualities of the captain and if they counter each other well so I think it’s kind of hard to judge them just by themselves because each first officer is good based on how they fit with everyone else
Sooo glad you are with me kira being the best first officer.
Love your ranking videos
Not really. But to each their own. 😁
My rank is this:
1 - Spock (yea, he is the best)
2 - Kyra (annoying of not, she did push every one to the limit)
3 - Riker (i'll be honest, i never liked him nor find him too competent)
4 - Chekotay (you said it better than i could and i agree).
I agree with everything you said
I liked Chakotay, the dynamic between him and Janeway when he expresses his concerns or viewpoints that differ from the Captains were always what made him more of a compelling first officer than the others, as well as Kira.
I wonder why the producers kept meeting the actor of Chitokay demands to be paid more? There were plenty of other characters that they could have made first officer with hurting the story.
Paramount was attached to making Voyager syndication friendly in any order. Hence why the reset button was hit so often, even though the writers often proposed lasting changes.
@@kaitlyn__L which I find strange because they a character become a star child early on. Also they add Seven of Nine later in the shows run.
@@michaellewis1545 to be fair, executive meddling isn’t well known for its consistency!
5. Chakotay
4. Kira
3. T'Pol
2. Riker
1. Spock
I agree. Kira was the best, she always spoke her mind, confronted her trauma and challenges head on and grew the most over the course of the series.
I think Frakes was REALLY hopeful Stewart would bale out by Season 4.
I would rank Riker at the top. But, it’s probably for a reason that wasn’t taken into consideration/wasn’t really visited in other shows. If you watch TNG, there are times they make it very clear that his management of staff is extremely efficient. Whenever Picard would ask him in passing about scheduling, staffing, training, etc. it would be very clear that he wouldn’t even worry about it, Riker was just on top of it.
Kira is a great choice too, though; as is Spock. I did not watch Enterprise.
Easily, the top spot belongs to Will Decker. He's the only one to really challenge Kirk in the motion picture and he makes a point of raising alternatives for the captain to consider. He also wasn't shy about countermanding Kirk's phaser order to save the ship.
Riker is a buffoon. He was written to be the best first office in the fleet. Begged to be a captain. Twice when he had command of both Enterprises he failed. He somehow couldn't beat a old clunker Bird of Prey with a Galaxy class in Generations but can beat a Borg cube before Starfleet knew anything about them. And couldn't fight two Son'a vessels with a Dominion War upgraded Sovereign class.
Has Jolene ever spoken out against the sexual portrayals with the benefit of hindsight?
Yes she has.
Yes, she has-even while on the series.
Wait why didn't Saru make the list?
Before I’ve heard you’d thoughts, here’s my guess…
5. Chakotay
4.T’Pol
3. Riker
2. Spock
1. Kira
Hey! I’m pretty close to you. I just find T’Pol more boring than Riker, which gave him the edge
I would like to see you rank the Captains of Star Trek.
As for my ranking of the first officers...
1)Spock (TOS, Discovery, SNW)
2)Will Riker (TNG, LD, Picard)
3)T'Pol (Enterprise)
4)Kira Nerys (DS9)
5)Chikotay (Voyage)
6)Saru (Discovery)
7)Jack Ransom (LD)
What do you think of the list?
Chakotay that bad, aye? Lol 😜
@Anton Smith Oops forgot to add him.
While I liked Spock and Leonard Nimoy definitely set the tone for Vulcans, I think T’Pol was the best first officer. The writers of Enterprise unnecessarily relied too much on Jolene Blalock’s beauty. She was an excellent actress and added significant depth to portrayal of Vulcans.
Spot on.
#1 Spock we aren't still talking about Star Trek if Spock didn't knock it out of the park. # 2Kira I liked her right away #3 Riker no one can mount a chair like Will #4 Tpol drop dead gorgeous and can act some too
Thank you for saying that about T'Pol, I actually hate all the scenes where she is dressed down its degrading to watch let alone act. And Jolene is such a smart and strong person that it just compounds! I also felt the same way about 7 in voyager because that's pretty much exactly what it was! Views were low so the brought on a skintight catsuit to say nothing but technogibberish, it totally ruined any chance of her and Kate Mulgrew getting along. Soooo disappointing!
When you said Ransome the first thing I thought of was that scene 😂
Brilliant!
I have an idea for a supplemental in the future. BEST Mirror Universe episode. Or BEST Mirror Universe crews.
Best mirror universe episode: In a mirror, darkly. For the intro alone :D
I love Chakotay. The writers did really bork the attempt to write his Native American aspect with sensitivity, but in their defense they were trying, it was their advisor who was full of shit.
I actually would say he's easily my favorite Voyager character. I guess some things are just very subjective.
I do agree that Kira Nerys is an amazing character.
Riker's above the Vulcans for crying out loud! lol
1:09 I find this rather difficult to believe that Berman & Co. chose not to show him the door the way they did with Jen Lien (shame what happened to her afterwards, though not sure all that was solely or mainly due to her dismissal). As well, methinks they merely regarded his part as decorative, just part of the scenery, not worthy of greater exposition like "The (EMH-Mark 1) Doctor" or Annika Hansen or Tom Paris.
In retrospect TPTB could have shaken things up by killing off both Commander Chakotay and Ensign Kim (Garrett Wang came far closer to being let go than Beltran ever was, apparently) as casualties of the arduous journey from the "Delta" to the "Alpha" Quadrant. Depending on how their exits were written, that story arc would have been quite compelling. 🤔🎬
Riker IS Number 1, period. The rest are debatable for other spots...
Michael Burnham a great character...what are you on about?
I cringed at that to.