Best Star Trek Captain

Kepping with our recent discussions of Star Trek past, present, and future, here’s another opinion poll. Who was the best Starfleet captain?

In my opinion, it’s got to be Jean-Luc Picard. He had the confidence a captain needs while still respecting the crew. I’d rank the four most prominent Starfleet captains as follows:
Jean-Luc Picard
James T. Kirk
Benjamin Sisko
Katherine Janeway

Picard is the person I’d be most likely to follow orders from. I find James Kirk to be more arrogant than confident, and I don’t think I’d trust my life to someone who didn’t have a healthy respect for the dangers we were facing.

Captain Sisko is the best character of the bunch, in my opinion. However, he still wasn’t a great leader. As captain, he was required to make fast decisions, but some of the decisions he made would have gone over better had he shared his reasoning with the crew. I wouldn’t like blindly following orders, even if they did turn out to be the correct ones in the end.

Janeway is the captain that I wouldn’t follow. When I say that, I’m usually accused of sexism. That’s not it. One of the greatest captains in Star Trek was the captain of the Enterprise C from the Next Generation episode Yesterday’s Enterprise. Even while lying on her death bed in sickbay, this woman commanded more respect and seemed to have more authority than I’ve ever seen from Janeway. She seemed like a captain, but Janeway doesn’t. Janeway seems to patronize any crew member who questions her orders, using psychology to make them back off instead of reason. Perhaps my opinion would be different if I’d seen more than a dozen episodes of Voyager, but this is my opinion now.

What’s your opinion?

6 replies on “Best Star Trek Captain”

  1. Make it so…
    Even though DS9 was my pick for best series, my vote for best captain would undoubtedly go to Capt. Picard. No captain really commanded a ship and crew like he did. By sheer force of character we would all hang on his every word and obey his orders without question. A perfect example is the events that transpire in ‘First Contact.’

    I’d follow Sisko next. Sure he’s conflicted, but he has the sort personality I’d want to help serve.

    Janeway’s an odd cookie. She’s trying to get her people home, and at the same time, trying not to violate every other moral rule in the book. The problem I have with her is her inconsistancies. There’s no way to predict how she’ll behave. If I were her crew, I’d be paranoid.

    Kirk is dead last. “Phasers on Stun” is not a solution, but a problem in and of itself.

  2. picard :)
    one word…

    well, two.



    jean-luc picard.



    he’s the main reason TNG was my fav series.



    his character was developed in such a way that you could absolutely fall in love with him. ok, i’m being a girl, and most of you are probably males. he was authoratative, but yet slightly vulnerable in times. made me wanna melt :)

  3. Kirk commands respect
    I’d pick Kirk on the basis of his ability to command

    respect. Would you feel comfortable taking orders from

    Picard? Not me. See this link

    http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Rampart/4537/krkbest.html

    for a long list of reasons why Kirk is superior. As

    for Janeway, I think the other poster described her

    accurately as patronizing. There is a big difference

    between confidence that leads to strength, and an

    inferiority complex that leads to presumptiousness. The

    Janeway character is the latter. She tries to be

    strong, but deep down she has a profound lack of

    confidence. That’s not a character flaw, but it is not

    a quality you want in a captain.

  4. DEFINITELY Picard. . . .
    First things first: I’m a former USAF officer, with an additional 7 years in the Pentagon as a Beltway Bandit.

    That being said….

    In my professional opinion, Picard is by far the best Captain seen so far. In fact, he reminded me of all my better commanders in the past. I know for a fact, from some of my Navy pals, that Picard was used as a model of a ship commander in some US Navy leadership discussions (this was at the 0-3/O-4 level, Lieutenant/Lieutenant Commander for those of you who don’t speak Military….).

    After Picard, I’d place Sisko. While Picard was destined for several stars and an Admiral’s Flag, Sisko was one step down the quality chain. In the Navy, he would have made Commander or perhaps even Captain, but likely to never have a major command at sea. He’d retire with a Shore Command, a very good run in the Navy, but not at the “Tip of the Spear” level.

    Next is Janeway. In the Real World, she’d make Lt Commander, maybe Commander, run a major department of a ship, or a major organization on a shore command, but pretty much level out there. In other words, not bad, but at the level of 90% of career military officers….

    And then, there’s Kirk. Sorry, but with his attitude and style, he’d never have made it out of the Academy, much less any section. Kirk is the quintisential fighter pilot, and likely an ROTC type at that. He’d fly a jet until they retired him, but he’d NEVER make it past Commander, and would NEVER be seriously considered for any command. . .

    My 2 cents: your milage may vary….

  5. My pick would have to be Sisko
    closely followed by Picard, then Kirk and Janeway way back somewhere.

    I say Sisko cause 1) he comands respect but most do anyway but his character its self is much more complex than Picard. He doesn’t get stuck behind very rule by bending or even breaking them but isn’t reckless about it. 2) he is a religous leader to a whole race. This addes another level to his character, he is a Star Fleet captain that has to do whats best for starflet but is also a religous leader, not by choice and also tries to help them in there matters. Plus he commands what i say is the coolest starfleet ship there is and intimidate a kinglon.

    But hey thats just my opinoin.

  6. Captain Babe.
    I WOuld Be Remiss If I Didn’t Say How Much Janeway As A Great Captain. She Had The Most Balls Of Any Of the Captains (Save Worf, But He’s A Klingon). She Could Give An Order To Take Her Ship And Run It Into Her Enemy On The Hunch That It Would Reverse Time. She Would Risk Her Entire Crew For One Memeber, And Could Do It All While Remaining A Woman, Just One Who Could Face Down The Borg.

    Picard Was Great As Well, But Janeway Did What Picard Did, And Had Breasts, And Quite Frankly, Was Able To Stand Up To More Than I think He Could Have. He Was Strong, Yes, But I Think Janeway Could Hold Up To More Presure.

    In Otherwords, Janeway Was More Of A Man Than Picard.

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