Star Trek: Generations Confirms Kirk is Better Than Picard - MCE Notices | California State Portal

As Star Trek celebrates its 60^th anniversary, its longevity can be attributed more to things fans debate rather than to what they agree. One of the most common disagreements centers on which captain is the best in Gene Roddenberry’s universe. Of them, James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard are the top contenders, and one film may definitely settle this contest.

When fans talk about Star Trek: Generations, typically, they all tend to be mad about the controversial death of Captain Kirk. The film was meant to serve as the passing of the proverbial torch from The Original Series cast to The Next Generation. Yet by pairing James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard together in a few crucial scenes, it serves to prove the latter is forever in the shadow of the former.

Star Trek: Generations Underscores How Kirk Defies the Idea of a No-Win Scenario

Looking back at all the captains who commanded the USS Enterprise, Star Trek: Generations features one of the worst. The story begins with Kirk passing the torch, but not to Picard, but to John Harriman of the USS Enterprise-B. What was meant to be a simple shakedown flight for publicity’s sake turned into a deadly rescue mission. The hapless Harriman turns to Kirk for help, which ends up “killing” Starfleet’s greatest hero. Still, asking Kirk for help to cheat a no-win scenario was the best thing Harriman did as captain of the Enterprise.

Of course, the real centerpiece is also the most important movie moment for Picard, when he does the same thing. One could argue that the debate is settled because he goes to Kirk for help at all. Only that would be, at best, unfair. One of Star Trek‘s central themes is that it takes a crew to save the day or the galaxy. Whether he asks for it or merely inspires others to take action, many of Kirk’s greatest victories only happen because he gets help from others. In fact, were it not for Picard, Kirk would have spent eternity in the Nexus, which, according to Generations, would have been like hell for him.

Interestingly, Generations adds a moving twist to Kirk’s dark, powerful line in The Final Frontier. Given that he was alone on Deck 15 of the Enterprise-B when the Nexus struck the hull, he was almost right that he would “die alone.” Instead, when that time does come for him, Picard is with him and, arguably, a comfort. Throughout their time together, Kirk shows Picard great respect, even admiration. Nonetheless, whenever they shared a scene, it was almost painfully clear that Picard could not escape the grand shadow of his predecessor.

Generations Makes It Clear That Kirk Had a Kind of Wisdom Picard Never Quite Achieved

Image via Paramount

Many of the greatest Picard lines in The Next Generation showcase his wisdom, from defending Data in “The Measure of a Man” all the way to solving the time-slipping problem in the series finale. Of course, many episodes of The Original Series also do the same for Kirk, who more often saves the day with a rousing speech than a shirt-tearing tussle. Still, the specific situations created by their team-up in Generations highlight Picard’s uncertainty and Kirk’s confident conviction.

This distinction is most clear in how each captain approaches their entry into the Nexus. In fact, the author of the post-Generations comic series, James Lanzing, identified that quality in a CBR interview. “If you know James Kirk,” he said, “you know he is going into action.” When Picard enters the Nexus, he’s literally blindfolded and then led around by his imaginary wife and children. It’s not until Guinan shows up to explain what’s happening and what he needs to do that he takes any progressive steps at all. In contrast, when Picard finds Kirk, he’s chopping wood with an axe, even though there is surely an easier way to do that in Star Trek‘s timeline.

Picard tries to solicit help by explaining what’s happening to them, but before he can finish, Kirk begins to figure it out on his own. He recognizes that the house, the unseen Antonia, and even the Great Dane Butler all existed years before his last memory on the Enterprise-B. Once he’s sussed out that the Nexus gives him a second chance “to do things right from day one,” he jumps onto horseback to chase down the woman of his dreams. Then, before Picard can catch up to him, Kirk realizes that “nothing here matters” because there is no danger and therefore no real stakes. This time, Generations confirms one of Kirk’s lines from The Final Frontier. He truly does “need” his “pain.”

Lastly, Generations highlights Kirk’s wisdom in a way writers Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga couldn’t have possibly known. Just before agreeing to leave the Nexus with Picard, Kirk asks him about the Enterprise and if he’s “close to retirement.” Both men went on to become Starfleet Admirals, but Kirk was demoted back to captain. That was in Kirk’s past, while Picard’s eventual promotion and retirement were in the future. He not only tells Picard not to retire, but he also advises him not to “let” Starfleet promote him, because the only way to “make a difference” is from the center seat of a starship, especially the USS Enterprise. Each season of Picard proved Kirk right.

Kirk and Picard Were Both Thoughtful Men of Action Who Inspired the Other

While perhaps not among the best action scenes in Star Trek’s film canon, the fight on Viridian III is still illuminating. Kirk sends Picard to stop the sci-fi doohickey Soran wants to use to destroy the system’s star, while he fights the bad guy. He chooses the most active and dangerous mission. Even after Picard saves him twice, Kirk continues to chase the villain. Both captains are frequently depicted pursuing peaceful resolution over violence, but Kirk is indeed quicker to fight than Picard.

In fairness, Picard’s hardest The Next Generation line almost makes Kirk seem tame, especially since he says it to a Klingon. (Though, for what it’s worth, when the Klingons do test the assumption that Starfleet didn’t teach him to fight, his life was saved by an elderly Klingon woman.) Yet it’s fair to infer that Kirk would hope his successor commanding the Enterprise 80 years later would end up fighting less often than he did. Otherwise, what he suffered to make the galaxy more peaceful, including the death of his son David, would be for nothing. This is the final element that gives Kirk the edge over Picard in Generations.

At no point in their time together does Kirk treat Picard like he did Harriman, specifically that he is a “lesser” captain. In fact, he does just the opposite. He twice says he was proud to help “the captain of the Enterprise” and remarks that the mission that led to his death was “fun.” One could even infer that sending Picard to stop Soran’s machine was the ultimate gesture of trust. As he said before agreeing to come along, this fight was likely to be a fatal one. He was willing to make that sacrifice to give Picard a chance to save people’s lives. Again, there is no true answer to which of the two is the “better” captain. Yet it’s fair to suspect that if Picard himself could weigh in, he’d not hesitate for a moment to say it was James Tiberus Kirk.