Yeah OK, so it’s that age-old fandom question: who’s the better Captain?
Except, traditionally, the question is centered around a Kirk versus Picard debate. It’s Kirk, for the record.
But I just wanted to highlight that Picard doesn’t even win 2nd prize after Shatner’s original – no, the all-too-often-overlooked Captain of Deep Space Nine gets that honor!
Portrayed for seven years by the one and only Avery Brooks, Captain Benjamin Sisko is the 24th century’s real top-dog Captain; while ‘Jean Luc’ was sitting sipping Earl Grey, it was Ben Sisko who was doing the business, walking with gods, fighting interstellar wars, taking scheming Cardassians, Klingons and Romulans in his stride, and determining the course of galactic affairs.
And at the end of it all, he even sacrificed his life, throwing himself into the very fires of hell for the sake of the galaxy – one last heroic act from the true Starfleet hero of 24th century.
Shit, he even dealt with 1950’s racism while he was at it.
And through it all, he could still crack a good joke and lob out a good one-liner while he was at it (Jean-Luc certainly couldn’t).
Admittedly, I have a love for Captain Sisko as a character that far exceeds my fondness for Picard: so I’m a little biased here. Nevertheless, I believe I can demonstrate the supporting evidence here in an objective manner.
Give me Sisko over Picard any day. Here are 10 reasons why…
1. Sisko is half god; Picard is merely French.
2. Sisko designed and helped build the Defiant. Picard doesn’t know his way around the engine room.
3. Sisko led the key battles in the war against the Dominion, including the final campaign, and thus saved the Alpha Quadrant from the Founders; Picard allowed the Borg to assimilate him and almost helped them assimilate Earth.
4. Sisko’s arch-nemesis was the greatest villain (only Khan Singh could compete for that title) in Star Trek history – Gul Dukat. Picard’s nemesis was a Ferengi named Daimon Bok.
5. Sisko managed to raise a son and get married while commanding one of the most difficult posts in all of Starfleet and being at the forefront of a galaxy-spanning war. Picard had a goldfish.
6. Sisko’s best friend was Jadzia Dax. Picard didn’t have a best friend; only his First Officer, whose name he couldn’t even remember, which was why he merely referred to him as “Number One”.
7. Sisko played darts with O’Brien. Picard probably didn’t even know who O’Brien was.
8. Sisko punched Q in the face. Picard put up with Q’s shenanigans for seven years.
9. Sisko unfortunately lost the Defiant in a vast battle against the Dominion-Breen fleet, in which new, unheard-of energy weapons were used against them. Picard lost the Enterprise-D to a single Bird of Prey under the command of two sisters.
10. Sisko has a solid, space-soldier name – Benjamin! Good old Ben. Hey, how’s it hanging, Benny? Nice to meet you, Benjie. Picard, on the other hand, has the name of a French avant-garde hairdresser; Jean-Luc. Who would you rather take orders from – a Benjamin or a Jean-Luc…?
And that, I believe, settles the matter once and for all: it’s Sisko all the way. What…? Janeway… who’s that?
Sisko vs Picard, a hands down no-contest affair – Sisko wins. But why not better than Kirk? Out of interest I’d like to see your list with respect to that.
Also this, just because: http://gfycat.com/JaggedGloomyBluewhale
I’m glad you agree 🙂 It’s just that Kirk (Shatner) is just the boss, man; the original, the one with the most charisma, the most enjoyable to watch. But it’s a very close-call between him and Sisko, hard to choose.