star trek enterprise captain timeline

Star Trek’s USS Enterprise – every version of the starship explained

From Kirk's adventures to horizons new with Seven of Nine, the USS Enterprise has a long story. The best Star Trek starship, we've compiled its timeline below.

James Osborne

Published: Aug 20, 2023

The history and timeline of Star Trek’s USS Enterprise, explained. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise… you know the rest.

Since it began in 1966, Star Trek has been tracking the adventures of the USS Enterprise right the way through the Star Trek timeline . Some spin-off Star Trek series , like DS9, Voyager, Discovery, and Lower Decks, have directed their focus elsewhere on other ships (or stations), but the USS Enterprise is still synonymous with the franchise.

The USS Enterprise is undoubtedly the best Star Trek starship to ever grace our screens. And the beauty of it is whether you’re still in love with Kirk’s original ship, or if you have a soft spot for Picard’s Enterprise-D, the USS Enterprise’s long history has something for everyone. We’re now on to the Enterprise-G , introduced in the recent Star Trek Picard season 3, and it can be hard to keep track of the evolution of Starfleet’s flagship. No longer! Here’s the complete timeline of Star Trek’s USS Enterprise , showing its aesthetic evolution, important dates, and captains.

Enterprise (NX-01)

• Active between: 2151-2161
• Captains: Jonathan Archer
• Class: NX-class

The first starship Enterprise, and the only version not to bear the prefix ‘USS’. The beautiful NX-01 established United Earth as an inter-planetary power to be taken seriously, exploring the Alpha and Beta quadrants, and paving the way for the creation of the Federation.

Led by Captain Jonathan Archer and manned by a small and specialized crew, the Enterprise was vital in beginning diplomatic relations with the Tellarites, Andorians, Klingons, and more. The ship’s missions also included the search for the Xindi, who posed a great threat to Earth. After the ship was finally recalled, its crew members were hailed as legendary heroes.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

• Active between: 2245-2285
• Captains: Robert April, Christopher Pike, James T. Kirk, Will Decker, Spock
• Class: Constitution class; Constitution-II class (refit)

The pioneering adventures of the USS Enterprise began under the command of Captain Robert April with its launch in 2245. After April accepted a promotion to the rank of Admiral, he transferred command to Christopher Pike who led the ship on exploratory and diplomatic missions across the galaxy.

After over a decade in the captain’s chair, Pike stepped aside. James T. Kirk transferred from the USS Farragut in order to take command of the flagship alongside his first officer Spock . They led the crew on a five-year mission of exploration, during which Kirk made first contact with a record number of alien species.

Following on from the success of his period as a captain, Kirk was promoted and chose Will Decker as his successor. Along with Scotty , who remained the ship’s chief engineer, Decker oversaw a huge refit of the USS Enterprise, which was completed as the V’Ger incident began.

After V’ger, Spock assumed command of the USS Enterprise as its captain, and the ship became a training vessel for cadets. Kirk stepped into the chair once again during the battle with Khan, and took the USS Enterprise back to drydock after Spock’s death. As the ship was being repaired, Kirk stole the USS Enterprise with the help of his crew in order to resurrect Spock, but during this mission the USS Enterprise was destroyed in a confrontation with the Klingon Kruge.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A)

• Active between: 2286-2293
• Captains: James T. Kirk
• Class: Constitution-II class

Following on from the destruction of the Enterprise and the demotion of Admiral Kirk, a new Enterprise was constructed for the now-captain to command. The Enterprise-A had a short service history, with only seven years worth of missions.

These included the journey to Sha Ka Ree and, most importantly, its final mission to negotiate peace with Klingon Chancellor Gorkon. After internal sabotage, the USS Enterprise-A became embroiled in a plot to wreck the peace process, though played a vital role in the eventual signing of the Khitomer Accords prior to being decommissioned.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B)

• Active between: 2293-unconfirmed
• Captains: John Harriman
• Class: Excelsior class

Only a year after the Enterprise-A was decommissioned, the Enterprise-B was launched before technical work had been completed, with Captain John Harriman leading the new ship. Its early launch was primarily for the sake of publicity, however the ship was quickly drawn into an energy distortion field called the Nexus while responding to an emergency distress call.

This led to massive damage on the ship, and the presumed death of James T. Kirk who was aboard the Enterprise-B for its launch. The history of Harriman’s command, and of the ship following on from the Nexus incident, is largely unknown.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)

• Active between: unconfirmed-2344
• Captains: Rachel Garrett
• Class: Ambassador class

The USS Enterprise-C is one of the most significant ships in Starfleet history. Not only is it the first version of the Enterprise to be permanently captained by a woman, Rachel Garrett (one of the best Star Trek captains ), it’s also the ship which prevented the outbreak of a new Federation-Klingon war through brave self-sacrifice.

While responding to a distress call from the Klingon outpost Narendra III (which was under attack by Romulans), the Enterprise-C was sucked into a temporal rift which brought it into the future. However, in this future, the Klingons and the Federation were locked in a desperate and bloody battle which had claimed 40 billion lives.

To prevent the war and correct the timeline, the Enterprise-C was sent back through the temporal rift. It sacrificed itself at Narendra III defending the outpost against Romulan aggressors, which the Klingons saw as a pivotal act of bravery. The ship was completely destroyed, however, along with its crew.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

• Active between: 2363-2371; 2401
• Captains: Jean-Luc Picard, Edward Jellico
• Class: Galaxy class

20 years after the sacrifice of the Enterprise-C, the Galaxy class Enterprise-D was launched as Starfleet’s flagship. The ship was under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard for the vast majority of its service history (barring a brief period of command by Captain Jellico during Picard’s mission to Celtris III), during which time first contact was made with numerous powerful alien species including the Q Continuum, the Borg, and the Cytherians.

Decades after its destruction, the Enterprise-D was rebuilt by Geordi La Forge at Starfleet museum, and in 2401 the reconstructed ship was vital in the final battle with the Borg.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)

• Active between: 2372-unconfirmed
• Captains: Jean-Luc Picard, Worf son of Mogh
• Class: Sovereign class

Captain Jean-Luc Picard was assigned command of the USS Enterprise-E, a state-of-the-art Sovereign class ship, after the destruction of the D. The Enterprise-E led many significant missions, with the time-travel to Earth’s past to prevent interference from the Borg being (arguably) the most pivotal.

In Star Trek Picard season 3, it’s confirmed that Worf was promoted to the rank of captain and took command of the USS Enterprise-E at some point after Picard became an Admiral in 2381. However, Worf was also blamed for the ship’s destruction, indicating that the USS Enterprise-E’s service history came to an end under his command at an unspecified date.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-F)

• Active between: Unconfirmed-2401
• Captains: Elizabeth Shelby
• Class: Odyssey class

The service history of the USS Enterprise-F, an Odyssey class ship, remains the most ambiguous to date. The ship is only seen just before it is decommissioned in Picard season 3 under the command of Fleet Admiral Shelby prior to the Borg attack Sol Station. This attack led to the death of Shelby, and the F was decommissioned as planned in 2401.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)

• Active between: 2402-unconfirmed
• Captains: Seven of Nine
• Class: Neo-Constitution class

In 2402, the USS Titan-A was rechristened as the Enterprise-G and command was handed to the newly promoted Seven of Nine. Previously, while still the Titan, the ship had been commanded by Captain Liam Shaw .

What’s next for the USS Enterprise?

The adventures of the USS Enterprise look set to continue into the 25th century, with Captain Seven of Nine at the helm and Commander Raffi by her side. Should we ever get a Star Trek Legacy release date , we’ll see what these adventures look like, and the continuing voyages of the USS Enterprise.

The history and legacy of the USS Enterprise looks set to continue as long as there are new letters in the alphabet.

For more on Star Trek, take a look at our picks for the best Star Trek characters , and check out our guide tp watching the Star Trek movies in order . You can also learn all about the Strange New Worlds season 3 release date  and the Star Trek 4 release date , before seeing what’s new on Paramount Plus .

Or, find out why Leonard Nimoy said The Voyage Home was inspired by the best TOS episode , and check out our feature on why Data isn’t Starfleet’s best artificial officer .

James Osborne After graduating from the University of York with a degree in archaeology (inspired by Captain Picard), James worked with the news team at Screen Rant while contributing features to Vulture, The AV Club, Digital Spy, FANDOM, and the official Star Trek website. Now, he writes about all things sci-fi and fantasy at The Digital Fix with an 'Enterprise-D ambiance' playlist on loop. He's a seasoned expert on all things Star Trek , Lord of the Rings , Star Wars , and Yellowstone , and is more than willing to share his hot takes on TNG which he believes is the greatest series ever made.

The Enterprise's First Captain: Admiral Robert April Explained

No show has mined more canonical information from unused material than "Star Trek." Case in point: The new series " Star Trek: Strange New Worlds " is based on characters and events from the two-part original series episode "The Menagerie," wherein a non-verbal and wheelchair-using Captain Pike (Sean Kenney) hijacked the Enterprise (with Spock's help) to return to the planet Talos IV where he had gone on a mission a few years prior to his injuries. In "The Menagerie," audiences saw — in turn — repurposed footage from " The Cage ," the original "Star Trek" pilot wherein Spock ( Leonard Nimoy ) was still on board, and the Enterprise was captained by Pike (Jeffrey Hunter). The ship had a completely different crew besides, different uniforms, and a slightly more aggressive tone, but "The Cage" was now a mere additional episode of "Star Trek."

"The Cage" was no longer an unseen first draft, but a recording of events that the show's producers slipped cleverly into the "Trek" timeline immediately before the adventures of Captain Kirk (William Shatner). This was done for economic reasons, of course (two episodes with only a little original footage? Yes, that will save the network some money), but, thanks to the bloody-minded adherence to canon intrinsic to Trekkies, it was now part of the show's fictional history as well. "Strange New Worlds" has begat an entire TV series from the characters and events of "The Cage" and "The Menagerie." 

This expansion of production notes and discarded ideas also includes the character of Robert April, who was commander of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 prior to Captain Pike ... and has a role to play in "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds." For Trekkie sticklers who take exception to the headline: Yes, technically Capt. Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) from " Star Trek: Enterprise " was the first captain of the Enterprise NX-01. But if you want to get really technical about it — and you're Trekkies, so I know you do – the first captain of the Enterprise was Commander John Paul, RN, who took command of the HMS Enterprise in 1705.

Here's a brief rundown on Robert April.

Roddenberry's Robert April

In the 1950s, future "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry was working as a TV journeyman, writing for high-profile TV shows like "West Point," "Highway Patrol," and "Whiplash." For the better part of a decade, Roddenberry honed his TV story writing skills on these programs, getting a sense for what makes a good hour-long TV story, and what makes good TV characters tick. In 1957, Roddenberry was hired as the head writer on the TV Western "Have Gun – Will Travel" for which he wrote 24 episodes. The series followed a freelance vigilante calling himself only Paladin (Richard Boone) as he traversed the 1870s Old West solving problems for $1,000 a pop. The title comes from the phrase printed on Paladin's business card: He has a gun, and he's willing to travel.

Two episodes of "Have Gun" featured a prison chaplain named, you guessed it, Robert April. The name stuck in Roddenberry's mind, and he carried it with him into his original pitch for "Star Trek" only a few years later. 

In a memo from March 11, 1964 , Roddenberry laid out his original idea for "Star Trek" to the executives at CBS. In it, Roddenberry wrote that "Star Trek" is:

"A one-hour dramatic television series. Action-Adventure-Science Fiction. The first such concept with strong central lead characters plus other continuing regulars."

The pitch also included episode titles like "To Skin a Tyrannosaurus," "100 A.B.," "A Question of Cannibalism," "President Capone," and "The Day Charlie Became God." Many of these episodes would be re-written or repurposed into future "Star Trek" and "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episodes. The lead character of "Star Trek" was to be Capt. Robert M. April, described in the memo as the 34-year-old "skipper" of the U.S.S. Yorktown (not the Enterprise) and was meant to be a compassionate version of Horatio Hornblower.

The Counter-Clock Incident

Captain April was considered a kind of loose version of canon among Trek fans who had managed to get their hands on the March 11 memo, and April was — like Pike before him — folded into the canon of the show. Captain April was the real first captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701, and not Pike. 

In an episode of " Star Trek: The Animated Series " called "The Counter-Clock Incident," first aired in October of 1974, Robert April made his first on-screen appearance. In the episode, April is an elderly Commodore who is visiting the Enterprise as it encounters a colossal negative space wedgie that caused the crew to age in reverse. By the end of the episode, most of the crew are infants. It's up to the old April and his wife, now de-aged into a couple in their early 20s, to save the ship. "The Counter-Clock Incident" is very much an "old guys still got it" story, giving value to a character on the cusp of retirement and facing the notion that he will no longer be useful. The "Star Trek" franchise, incidentally, has lasted so long as to see this same story happen in real time for both William Shatner and Patrick Stewart. 

Robert April was voiced by James Doohan, who played Montgomery Scott in live-action and voiced many ancillary aliens in "The Animated Series."

Jonathan Archer

• View history

Jonathan Archer was a 22nd century Human Starfleet officer and captain of Enterprise NX-01 , United Earth 's first full-fledged starship . In that role, he was responsible for greatly expanding United Earth's presence in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants and making first contact with more than a dozen species , among them Klingons , Andorians , and Xindi .

Considered by historian John Gill , as the " greatest explorer of the 22nd century, " Archer is widely credited with saving Earth from the Xindi and paving the way for the founding of the United Federation of Planets . He went on to become one of the Federation's earliest presidents . ( ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ")

• 1 Early life
• 2.1 Before Enterprise
• 2.2.1 First mission
• 2.2.2 Year one: into the unknown
• 2.2.3 Year two: first contact
• 2.2.4 Year three: the Xindi attack
• 2.2.5.1 Returning home
• 2.2.5.2 Augment crisis
• 2.2.5.3 Seeking out the Kir'Shara
• 2.2.5.4 First contact with the Organians
• 2.2.5.5 Babel crisis
• 2.2.5.6 Klingon virus
• 2.2.5.7 Stopping Terra Prime
• 2.2.6 Final mission
• 2.3 Signing the Federation charter
• 2.4 Serving in the Federation
• 4 Moral conflicts
• 5.1.1 Henry Archer
• 5.1.2 Sally Archer
• 5.2.1 A.G. Robinson
• 5.2.2 Charles "Trip" Tucker III
• 5.2.3 T'Pol
• 5.2.4 Thy'lek Shran
• 5.2.5 Malcolm Reed
• 5.2.6 Phlox
• 5.2.7 Hoshi Sato
• 5.2.8 Maxwell Forrest
• 5.2.9 Travis Mayweather
• 5.2.10 Danica Erickson
• 5.3.1 T'Pol
• 5.3.2 Margaret Mullin
• 5.3.3 Caroline
• 5.3.4 Erika Hernandez
• 5.3.5 Riaan
• 5.4 Porthos
• 6 Alternate realities and timelines
• 7 Awards and honors
• 8 Memorable quotes
• 9 Key dates
• 10.1 Appearances
• 10.2.1 Reception
• 10.3 Apocrypha
• 10.4 External links

Early life [ ]

Jonathan Archer was born in 2112 to renowned warp scientist Henry Archer and his wife Sally . Despite being born in Upstate New York , ( ENT : " North Star ", " Storm Front ") Archer variously claimed to have lived "all" or "most" of his life prior to 2151 in San Francisco . ( ENT : " Broken Bow ", " North Star ")

Jonathan Archer as a boy in 2121

One of Jonathan's earliest inspirations for space sciences was a copy of The Cosmos A to Z , which he got on his eighth birthday , in 2120 , from his father. Jonathan spent hours staring at its front cover depicting the Arachnid Nebula . ( ENT : " Fusion ") His fascination for space led to him wanting to serve in what became the United Earth Starfleet from an early age, so, in at least one astronomy book he owned as a child, he styled his name on the ex libris as "Admiral Jonny Archer". ( ENT : " First Flight ") In 2121 , while he and his father built and flew a remote-controlled starship model, Jonathan eagerly asked his dad when " his new starship " would be ready to fly. Henry responded that it would take many more years, but that Jonathan should not distrust the Vulcans for having held back Humanity's technical progress, as they probably had their reasons. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

Prior to Zefram Cochrane 's disappearance in 2119 , Henry took Jonathan on a tour of the Warp Five Complex , where he met Cochrane, Tasaki , and other scientists working at the facility. Jonathan later revealed he was not aware of the significance of his father's work at the time. ( ENT : " Singularity ")

Also in his youth, Jonathan achieved the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts . During his time there, he earned twenty-six merit badges , including a Wilderness badge which he received in a rain forest in New Zealand . ( ENT : " Rogue Planet ") In school, Jonathan was called to the principal 's office only once, for passing notes to Katy Bentley . ( ENT : " The Council ") On the day before he entered flight training, Jonathan asked his father what would happen if he failed. The elder Archer's response was, " Don't fail. " ( ENT : " Daedalus ")

Tragically, in 2122 , his father started suffering from frequent hallucinations and pain for years, sometimes not even recognizing his own son, the result of Clarke's Disease , dying two years later . However, the relationship that Jonathan shared with Henry's friend, Emory Erickson , strengthened, and Emory became like a surrogate father to him. ( ENT : " Cold Station 12 ", " Daedalus ")

While in ninth grade , around 2127 , Archer was chided by his teacher for waiting until the last minute to finish writing a speech, so he would have had more time to memorize it. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ") As an undergraduate in California , Jonathan was an accomplished athlete in the sport of water polo .

During his senior year , he participated in the 2134 North American Water Polo Regionals . The match featured a come-from-behind victory for his team, who were down by two goals in the last minute of play. The nature of the rally became a mantra that Archer carried forward into later life, such that he always believed he could win, no matter the odds. Following the victory in the regionals, he and his team went on to participate in the championship round of the tournament that year. ( ENT : " Vox Sola ")

During his early 20s, Archer was on a trip to East Africa where he witnessed a gazelle giving birth. He remembered his surprise at seeing how fast the newborn managed to stand up on its feet and run along with the herd. ( ENT : " Shockwave, Part II ")

A few years before Starfleet was chartered , Jonathan gave serious thought to serving on a cargo ship , but decided against it. ( ENT : " Horizon ")

Starfleet career [ ]

Before enterprise [ ].

Commanders Archer and A.G. Robinson in 2143

Commander Archer in 2143 , observing Starfleet 's first warp 2 flight

At some point in his career, Archer had a commanding officer who didn't believe that the captain ought to befriend his crew. ( ENT : " Minefield ")

As a commander , Archer was one of four test pilots in the NX Program in the 2140s . In 2143 , he and A.G. Robinson became not-so-friendly rivals in wanting to be the first to fly the NX-Alpha . Though Commodore Maxwell Forrest ultimately gave the assignment to Robinson, Archer had spent the most time in the flight simulations and got the engines to a ninety-two-percent efficiency. Robinson, however, was determined to break warp two . He did, with Archer serving as the flight director in NX-Control , but the NX-Alpha was destroyed; Robinson managed to get out just in time via an escape pod . The incident led Starfleet to suspend the NX program at the urging of the Vulcans.

Robinson blamed the destruction of the craft on flaws in the engine Archer's late father had designed, which eventually led to the two of them coming to blows. Eventually, however, Archer reviewed the data and conceded that Robinson had been right. After devising engine modifications to compensate for the flaws, Archer and Robinson, with the help of Lieutenant Charles Tucker III , took the NX-Beta on an unauthorized field test. With Archer at the controls, the craft achieved a new speed record of warp 2.5 . Archer and Robinson were grounded for three months for their actions, but were successful in convincing Starfleet to resume the program. ( ENT : " First Flight ")

Later in the 2140s, Archer was on Titan as part of the Omega training mission , along with Tucker. When Tucker's environmental suit malfunctioned, Archer saved Tucker's life by preventing him from taking off his helmet on Titan's surface. ( ENT : " Strange New World ")

A few years prior to the launch of Enterprise NX-01, Archer was a guest aboard a Vulcan Maymora -class ship, the Yarahla , which made a run to a dark matter nebula . He helped set up the graviton telescope , and also spacewalked in a Vulcan EV suit . ( ENT : " Breaking the Ice ")

In 2150 , the final selection for the captaincy of Enterprise took place between Captains Robinson and Archer. Vice Admiral Maxwell Forrest gave the post to the latter, although Captain Gardner was originally considered the most suitable choice by Ambassador Soval . ( ENT : " First Flight ", " Shadows of P'Jem ") Archer's quarters aboard Enterprise were located on E Deck . ( ENT : " Unexpected ")

Commanding Enterprise [ ]

First mission [ ].

Captain Archer and Commander Tucker inspect Enterprise just before its launch in 2151

Jonathan Archer's mission as captain of Enterprise began in April 2151 , after a Klingon officer named Klaang was attacked on Earth by Suliban who, under the leadership of Silik , were trying to start a Klingon civil war as part of the Temporal Cold War . Enterprise 's historic launch coincided with the Klingon incident, and Vulcan Ambassador Soval believed the launch should be pushed off until the matter with the Klingons had been resolved.

Archer was not happy about the prospects of waiting around once again to launch the much anticipated warp five project and in fact believed that the Vulcan's suggestion to delay the launch was just another way to impede humanity's space exploration and expansion into the galaxy. Not wanting any further delays or interferences by the Vulcans, he suggested taking Klaang back to Qo'noS himself. Despite objections from the Vulcans, who believed Humans were too volatile and provincial to take on such a matter, Archer's proposal was fully supported by Admiral Maxwell Forrest , who gave Archer three days to assemble his crew and begin the mission. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

Archer recruited Denobulan physician Doctor Phlox as the ship's chief medical officer , Commander Charles "Trip" Tucker as chief engineer , and Lieutenant Malcolm Reed was assigned as the ship's armory officer . For the position of communications officer , Archer traveled to Brazil to recruit Hoshi Sato , who was an exolinguist and had a special aptitude with alien languages. It was not easy getting Sato, who was teaching at the time, on board but the prospects of being the first Human to decipher the Klingon language were very tempting. Finally, as a concession to the Vulcans, and to have access to their star charts , Archer had to agree to have a Vulcan science officer with the name of T'Pol on board. It was expected that her assignment was temporary and that she would leave after the Klingon had been returned to his homeworld . T'Pol herself looked forward to the end of her assignment on board Enterprise .

Even though halfway through it looked like the mission was not going to be accomplished, Archer was known for finishing what he had started. Moreover, he did not believe in giving up and returning home, as that would represent failure to the Vulcans and reaffirmation of their long-held beliefs that Humans were not ready for space exploration and should never have embarked on such a "foolish mission." After Klaang was returned to Qo'nos and war averted, Archer received word from Starfleet to "keep going" instead of returning to Earth.

Realizing the mission would have failed without T'Pol's help, he offered to have her on board as his science officer and second-in-command . He admitted that, ever since he could remember, he had seen Vulcans as an obstacle which had been keeping Humans from standing on their own two feet. However, having been given the opportunity to finally begin Enterprise 's missions, he realized he had to leave misgivings about Vulcans behind. T'Pol accepted his offer and made the request to her superiors personally.

Remembering his father and the dream he had envisioned, Archer gave the orders for Enterprise to finally set sail into the unknown. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

Archer's mission to Qo'Nos would be the last time a Earth starship would visit the planet until 2257 when the USS Discovery would visit it as an attempt to end the Federation-Klingon War . ( DIS : " The War Without, The War Within ")

Year one: into the unknown [ ]

Archer and his crew on their first away mission on a new M-class planet (later named Archer IV)

Archer and Enterprise made first contact with the Andorians at the ancient Vulcan monastery at P'Jem . Even though the Andorians were initially suspicious of Humans because of their alliance with the Vulcans, they gained some measure of trust , particularly in Archer, when he assisted them in exposing a Vulcan listening post hidden beneath the sanctuary . Even though the decision resulted in the destruction of the ancient monastery, it was the beginning of a close relationship with the Andorians, in particular with Thy'lek Shran , which later proved invaluable when the Andorians came to the assistance of Enterprise during the Xindi mission in the Delphic Expanse . ( ENT : " The Andorian Incident ")

Archer's next venture concerned the discovery of a pre-industrial society populated by the Akaali . A plague was ravaging the planet , and a woman named Riaan , an apothecary , was attempting to determine the cause. Archer helped her, and found that a hidden antimatter reactor in a curio shop owned by a man named Garos had contaminated the water supply. Garos was really an alien who was mining the resources of the planet. Archer exposed him, and when Enterprise disabled his ship , Garos was forced to leave. Archer had come close to Riaan during the events and became briefly romantically involved with her. ( ENT : " Civilization ")

Archer, with Daniels, in the Temporal Observatory

Archer again encountered Silik when Silik, in the disguise of a pilgrim invited on Enterprise , tried to disable the ship. He also met Daniels , who he thought was a crewmember, but was in reality a temporal agent from the future. Daniels informed Archer that Silik was trying to change the future, but Silik denied this and said it was Daniels who was the culprit. When Silik was found in engineering and confronted, he escaped; it was apparent he was the saboteur. ( ENT : " Cold Front ")

Archer helped rescue a Klingon ship that was losing orbit and falling into a gas giant . Bu'kaH , a survivor of the accident, was convinced to cooperate with Archer in a rescue attempt after he convinced her that she would be letting her crew die a dishonorable death. Bu'kaH reluctantly let Archer take her on a reinforced shuttlepod toward her ship, along with an antidote to a neurotoxin which had rendered the crew unconscious. The Klingon crew was rescued along with Hoshi Sato , T'Pol , and Malcolm Reed , who had become marooned on the ship in a previous rescue attempt. ( ENT : " Sleeping Dogs ")

Archer and T'Pol were captured on an away mission on Coridanite by rebels backed by the Andorians against the government supported by the Vulcans. Shran, along with Reed and Tucker, rescued them. ( ENT : " Shadows of P'Jem ")

Archer visited a planet where Eska engaged in hunting sentient beings, telepathic shapeshifters. When they were afraid, they emitted a chemical that gave away their location and made them easy targets. On Archer's orders, Phlox came up with a plan to mask the chemical, which shielded them from the hunter's scans. The hunters left when they could no longer use their scans, and the beings were safe. ( ENT : " Rogue Planet ")

Archer shackled to the bulkhead by the Ferengi

Archer made first contact with the Ferengi later that year, although the aliens in question remained anonymous; official first contact was eventually made by Jean-Luc Picard . The Ferengi captured Enterprise by rendering the crew unconscious, robbing the ship of all valuables. When Archer woke, he, along with Tucker and T'Pol, was able to play the Ferengi off against each other and retake the ship. ( ENT : " Acquisition ")

Archer accompanied an away team to a barren planet to salvage an abandoned ship. They had been told by D'Marr , an alien they met, about the ship and also that it was haunted. Arriving on the planet, the party found that a group of Kantare had inhabited the planet. Their behavior seemed strange, though, especially when Archer offered to transport them back to their homeworld. They learned that all but two of the Kantare were holograms created by Ezral , who blamed himself for the crash and the death of his friends. He had created the holograms to keep his daughter, Liana , company. Enterprise returned both to their homeworld. ( ENT : " Oasis ")

Archer, along with Travis Mayweather , was imprisoned in a Tandaran prison camp. The Tandarans were at war against the Cabal , and had interned innocent Suliban in the camp. Archer learned of the plight of innocent Suliban, who weren't involved with the Cabal but still suffered the wrath of the Tandarans by being imprisoned for years in these camps. Archer and Mayweather, along with Enterprise , escaped and released the Suliban. ( ENT : " Detained ")

Archer was captured by a symbiotic creature who had stowed away on Enterprise . The creature assimilated Archer's nervous system, along with others it had captured. When Enterprise offered to take it back to its home so it could be attached to its large host, it released Archer and the others. ( ENT : " Vox Sola ")

In February of 2152 , while fleeing from two hostile Mazarite ships , Archer gave the order to increase speed to Warp 5, the first time the NX-class ship's Warp 5 engine was pushed to its theoretical limit. The ship eventually reached a top speed of warp 5.2, faster than any other Earth vessel had traveled at that point. ( ENT : " Fallen Hero ")

During a visit to Zobral 's village, Archer and Tucker got caught up in a civil war , and after an attack, they became stranded in a vast desert. With Zobral's help, Enterprise rescued them. ( ENT : " Desert Crossing ")

While on shore leave on Risa , Archer met a Tandaran named Keyla , who, in the disguise of a Human, tried to obtain information about the Suliban from him. ( ENT : " Two Days and Two Nights ")

Archer and Daniels in the 31st century

In March of 2152 , after it appeared his ship's mission was over because due to destruction of a mining colony on Paraagan II , Archer was transported to April 9 , 2151 by Daniels, who revealed the Suliban were responsible for what had happened. Returning to the present, Archer used knowledge given to him by Daniels, including the technical skill to construct a quantum beacon , to board a Suliban stealth cruiser and prove what they had done.

As a result, Silik demanded Archer be captured. To save Archer, Daniels transported him to the 31st century , causing a major disruption in the timeline that apparently destroyed Earth. Fortunately, Archer and Daniels were able to repair the timeline, though not before Archer managed to learn that he was vital to the creation of the future United Federation of Planets . ( ENT : " Shockwave ", " Shockwave, Part II ")

Year two: first contact [ ]

Archer and Lieutenant Malcolm Reed on the hull of Enterprise

Archer made a regrettable first contact with the Romulan Star Empire . When Reed tried to disarm a mine attached to the hull , a spike thrust out of the mine and through Reed's leg, pinning him to the ship's hull. Archer, with Reed's instructions, was able to disarm the mine and save Reed. ( ENT : " Minefield ") This led to a stop at an automated repair station that was just as dangerous as the minefield. The station used humanoid brains as co-processors in its computer by physically connecting the captive's nervous system to its network. The crew escaped, but not before Mayweather became one of the station's adjuncts and had to be saved. ( ENT : " Dead Stop ")

After insulting the Kreetassans during an away mission, Archer's dog , Porthos , was infected with a deadly disease. Phlox cured him, but not before Archer spent a whole night worrying about the relations with the Kreetassans and comforting his dog. Phlox not only saved Porthos, but provided Archer with advice that solved the diplomatic problem. ( ENT : " A Night in Sickbay ")

Archer led a team of crewmen in teaching a mining colony to defend itself against Klingons. The crewmen stayed with the miners while they drove off the Klingons. ( ENT : " Marauders ")

Archer helped T'Pol track down Menos , a rogue Vulcan agent who had become a weapons smuggler. When Menos played on T'Pol's guilt concerning an earlier incident in capturing another rogue agent, Archer was able to help her put her guilt aside and do the right thing. ( ENT : " The Seventh ")

Archer considers that he may have to die to avoid contaminating Gosis ' pre-warp civilization

Archer and Reed were sentenced to death when exploring a planet. Reed had accidentally left behind a communicator , and when he and Archer tried to retrieve it, they were captured. Their captors believed they were super-soldiers sent by their enemies. Heeding T'Pol's long-offered advice on inter-species contact, Archer decided that he and Reed would have to be hanged in order to avoid contaminating the pre-warp civilization . This early, solemn consequence of the as-yet-uncodified Prime Directive was averted, however, when the crew of Enterprise saved Archer and Reed using a captured, cloaked Suliban cell ship . ( ENT : " The Communicator ")

Later that year, Archer granted asylum to Takret refugees. During a radiation storm, they had to take refuge in Enterprise 's catwalk . The military , pursuing the refugees, boarded Enterprise and almost destroyed it when they tried to start the warp engines. ( ENT : " The Catwalk ")

Enterprise investigated a black hole that was part of a trinary star system . However, the radiation from the trinary system affected the crew, causing odd behavior and rendering them comatose. Though the exposure would otherwise have killed the crew, Archer was woken by T'Pol and was able to pilot the ship away from danger. ( ENT : " Singularity ")

Archer was once again drawn into a dispute between Vulcans and Andorians. He avoided a war when he mediated a territorial dispute between the two species. ( ENT : " Cease Fire ")

Archer and Tucker were arrested and sentenced to Canamar for false crimes. A fellow prisoner was able to hijack the ship with their help, but when they found out the prisoner was going to beam off the ship and crash it, killing the rest of the prisoners and guard, they foiled his plot and were rescued by Enterprise . ( ENT : " Canamar ")

When Enterprise discovered a futuristic vessel adrift in space, Archer ordered it brought on board for further investigation, and a Human body was found in the ship. The Suliban and the Tholians claimed that the ship belonged to them, and demanded that Archer turn it over immediately. Archer was worried that the course of the Temporal Cold War could be affected. During the battle, as they tried to activate the ship, it vanished, and the Suliban and Tholians left. ( ENT : " Future Tense ")

Archer fights the Borg

Archer and his crew fought against the Borg two centuries before the USS Enterprise -D 's encounter with them. ( ENT : " Regeneration "; TNG : " Q Who ") Two Borg drones had been found in Earth's Arctic Circle and thawed out by a team of scientists that they then assimilated . These drones were from an unsuccessful attempt by the Borg in the 24th century to stop the flight of Earth's first warp-capable vessel via time travel. ( Star Trek: First Contact ) The drones, old and new, left Earth on an arctic transport which had belonged to the scientists. Enterprise intercepted and destroyed the ship, with Archer and Reed boarding it and setting explosives to make this possible. In the course of doing this, they fought and killed several of the drones. ( ENT : " Regeneration ")

During first contact with the Vissians , Archer became close with their captain, Drennik . Drennik invited Archer to join him when he took a Vissian strato-pod deep into a hyper-giant. This first contact ended tragically when Tucker interfered with a cogenitor , a third gender of the Vissians who were second-class citizens. Archer was asked by the cogenitor to grant asylum, which he denied after a meeting with the Vissians. Drennik contacted Archer and told him that the cogenitor had committed suicide . ( ENT : " Cogenitor ")

Archer's Klingon " tribunal "

In late 2152 , Archer was captured by the Klingons after assisting Raatooras rebels. Put on trial on Narendra III , he was spared the death sentence through the efforts of his lawyer , Kolos . Archer was sentenced to labor in the dilithium mines on Rura Penthe , but managed to escape. He was hunted by the Klingons for this offense, at first through bounty hunters such as the Tellarite Skalaar , resulting indirectly in Archer making Human first contact with the Tellarites. Skalaar believed the Klingons would return his ship to him, but when he found out they had scrapped it, he helped Archer escape. ( ENT : " Judgment ", " Bounty ")

During the expedition to the Delphic Expanse , Archer was hunted by Duras , who had been dishonored when Archer saved the Raatooras rebels from him. Archer destroyed Duras' ship and its crew with it. ( ENT : " The Expanse ")

Year three: the Xindi attack [ ]

Archer considers his new mission in the wake of the Xindi attack

After a Xindi probe attacked Earth in 2153 , Archer was given a new mission: search for the Xindi weapon, which required entering a dangerous region of space known as the Delphic Expanse, in order to find the ones responsible for the attack and prevent them from launching their weapon to destroy Earth. It took nearly six weeks before Enterprise came into contact with an actual Xindi , and even then he proved to be of little help, directing Archer to coordinates that contained nothing but a field of debris which used to be the planet Xindus . ( ENT : " The Expanse ", " The Xindi ")

In September of 2153, while investigating an abandoned Xindi vessel on a planet, Archer, Hoshi Sato, and Malcolm Reed succumbed to a virus that mutated them into Loque'eque , a primal lifeform. Tret , the leader of an alien race, attempted to kill Archer in order to eradicate the virus. Even after being cured by Phlox , Archer continued to suffer strange dreams of the Loque'eque city. Phlox kept a sample of the virus as per Archer's instructions, as destroying it would effectively make the Loque'eque completely extinct. ( ENT : " Extinction ")

Archer in the Delphic Expanse

While visiting a planet to obtain trellium-D , a substance that would protect Enterprise from the anomalies of the Expanse, Archer helped rescue a woman, Rajiin , from slavers . However, Rajiin was really an agent of the Xindi, sent to obtain information about the Humans. Thus, the first battle between Enterprise and the Xindi occurred. Xindi-Reptilians boarded the ship and took Rajiin so they could retrieve the information she had obtained. ( ENT : " Rajiin ")

Enterprise encountered a Vulcan ship in the Expanse. When Archer and T'Pol boarded the ship to see if there were survivors, they found that the crew had gone insane. The Vulcans were intent on killing them and, after they escaped, Archer's only choice was to destroy the ship. ( ENT : " Impulse ")

Archer spied on a Xindi research facility, and convinced a Xindi-Arboreal , Gralik , that the Humans were not a threat. Gralik gave Archer a canister of kemocite , fuel for the weapon, to analyze. ( ENT : " The Shipment ")

In October of 2153 , Archer suffered a mild concussion from an encounter with a spatial anomaly. He eventually recovered. ( ENT : " Twilight ")

Archer tries to blend into a Human population in the Delphic Expanse

Archer encountered a Human colony populated by descendants of 19th century Americans . He helped them reconcile with the Skagarans , who had originally kidnapped them from Earth to work as slaves on their planet. The descendants of the Humans had revolted and taken over the planet, relegating the Skagarans to slaves. Archer, following a gunfight with some local cowboys, helped convince sheriff and town leader MacReady to make changes to the area. When the Humans expressed a desire to be reconnected with Earth, Archer was forced to explain that his ship could not accommodate them. Nevertheless, he promised that Starfleet would eventually recover them. As a stopgap measure, he at least provided them with the current history of Earth to help them reintegrate with the main Human population. ( ENT : " North Star ")

Archer and T'Pol went back in time with the help of Daniels to stop the Xindi from producing a bio-weapon that would destroy Earth in the past. He killed the Xindi and returned to the present. ( ENT : " Carpenter Street ")

Archer dealt with a group of religious zealots who hijacked Enterprise , planning to use it in a religious war. When the lead zealot demanded that a crewmember be put to death for the "blasphemy" of taking scans of the "sacred realms", Archer tricked them into using the transporter on Archer himself; allegedly, it would disperse his atoms, but really he was just teleported to another part of the ship. After the ship was retaken, he returned the zealots to their homeworld, where he revealed their planet had been practically destroyed already, asking them before he left to consider if the "truth" really was that important. ( ENT : " Chosen Realm ")

An Andorian starship commanded by Shran helped Archer and Enterprise track down the Xindi weapon by following a signal from one of several kemocite canisters that Archer had planted when he visited a research facility earlier in the year. The Andorians captured the prototype of the weapon, but Shran was under orders to return it to Andoria . Before Shran could leave with the weapon, Archer activated it, and Shran was forced to jettison it before it exploded. Despite the conflict, Shran transmitted details of the weapon to Archer. ( ENT : " Proving Ground ")

In an attempt to gather the whereabouts of the weapon, Archer captured Degra and, using mind control, attempted to convince him that both had been in a Xindi prison. He tried to gain Degra's trust so Degra would give them the location of the weapon. Archer told Degra that the weapon had been used and Earth had been destroyed, but that a civil war had broken out among the Xindi, resulting in a great loss of life. Degra discovered the ruse, but not before he let slip that the weapon was on Azati Prime . ( ENT : " Stratagem ")

Archer caring for the Xindi-Insectoid young

On the way to Azati Prime, Enterprise discovered a damaged Xindi-Insectoid vessel with no life signs on board. There, Archer discovered a hatchery containing Xindi eggs, some of which were still viable. He was suddenly spattered by a strange liquid that spewed from one of the egg sacs, and Phlox determined that Archer had been hit by a mild neurotoxin that made him believe he was the eggs' caretaker, and his actions began to jeopardize their mission. ( ENT : " Hatchery ")

On the way to Azati Prime, Enterprise found a damaged ship containing an injured male alien. It was determined that the alien was a test subject and he threatened that his people, who were from another dimension, would take over the quadrant when Earth was destroyed. They were the Sphere-Builders , who had been manipulating certain Xindi species into destroying Earth. ( ENT : " Harbinger ")

Daniels pleads with Archer to make peace with the Xindi

Arriving at Azati Prime, a fierce firefight began. Archer discovered that the weapon was hidden in an ocean. At that point, he declared he was not going to order any more deaths, instead choosing to personally destroy the Xindi weapon, despite attempts by T'Pol and Daniels to talk him out of it. However, the Xindi intercepted and captured him, though they released him after a lengthy interrogation. Degra was starting to believe the war was being motivated by aliens. ( ENT : " Azati Prime ")

Archer forges an alliance with Degra

In February 2154 , Archer went before the Xindi Council to convince them not to launch the Xindi weapon at Earth. He had a hard time attempting to persuade them, but quickly made an ally of Degra. The other Xindi-Primate councilor , Jannar , and Kiaphet Amman'sor soon came around to Archer's side as well, but Commander Dolim betrayed the Council, stole the weapon, and killed Degra. ( ENT : " The Council ")

In a final battle to save Earth, Enterprise was joined by the Xindi-Aquatics and Xindi-Primates. As the fleet of Reptilian and Insectoid ships were destroyed, the Sphere-Builders, the aliens behind the plot, tried to intervene. Sato was captured by Dolim to decode the weapon's software so it could be activated. The MACOs , under the leadership of Major J. Hayes , rescued her, but Hayes was killed. Archer, along with Reed and the MACOs, used Degra's ship to intercept the weapon. Enterprise proceeded to destroy the spheres in the Expanse.

Boarding the weapon, Archer, with Sato's help, was able to cause a reversal overload that would destroy the weapon. As the away team beamed out, Archer was left behind and confronted Dolim, whom he killed. Enterprise destroyed all the spheres and ended the alien interference. Archer was believed to have been killed, having been aboard the Xindi weapon as it exploded while approaching Earth. ( ENT : " Countdown ", " Zero Hour ")

Archer trapped by Nazis in an alternate 1944

After the destruction of the Xindi weapon, Archer was saved when he was thrown back in time to World War II of an alternate timeline . He found that, as part of the Temporal Cold War, the Na'kuhl were helping the Nazis win the war by conquering America . Archer managed to destroy a Na'kuhl time conduit and end the war. ( ENT : " Storm Front ", " Storm Front, Part II ")

Year four: making friends… and enemies [ ]

Returning home [ ].

Archer back home on Earth in 2154

Following his return to Earth, Archer was dealing with the aftermath of the Xindi mission . He had a heated argument with Ambassador Soval during his debriefing which caused him to take some time off and rekindled his relationship with fellow starship captain Hernandez . ( ENT : " Home ")

Augment crisis [ ]

In May 2154, Archer was sent on a mission to stop a group of rogue Augments , relics of the Eugenics Wars who had been resurrected by Dr. Arik Soong . They had attacked and stolen a Klingon ship, and the Klingons threatened war unless the Augments were brought to justice. Archer, along with Soong, tried to find them. After Soong escaped and joined the Augments, Archer found them at Cold Station 12 , a Starfleet facility where other Augment embryos were stored. He was captured and left to die when the Augments triggered a self-destruct procedure. Archer disarmed the self-destruct, and was able to defeat the Augments, recapture Soong, and preserve the peace with the Klingons. ( ENT : " Borderland ", " Cold Station 12 ", " The Augments ")

Seeking out the Kir'Shara [ ]

The United Earth Embassy on Vulcan was bombed, resulting in the death of Archer's friend and mentor Admiral Maxwell Forrest . Although a Vulcan splinter group, the Syrrannites , was blamed, Ambassador Soval urged Archer to travel to their hideout in Vulcan's Forge and find the truth. Accompanied by T'Pol, he met their leader, Syrran , there. Syrran was secretly carrying the katra of Surak , and prior to his death by wounds from a sandfire storm , he transferred Surak's katra to Archer. Archer, guided by Surak's katra , met with the remaining Syrrannites led by Syrran's lieutenant, T'Pau , and found the long-lost Kir'Shara , a record of Surak's original teachings.

Archer activates the Kir'Shara

Archer and T'Pau headed to the Vulcan capital to confront the Vulcan High Command . It was discovered by Soval, Tucker, and Reed that the bombing had been the work of V'Las , the leader of the Vulcan High Command, who wished to wipe out the Syrranites and start a war of conquest against Andoria. Archer and T'Pau, after presenting the Kir'Shara to the Vulcan High Command, averted a war between Vulcan and Andoria.

In the process, the Vulcan High Command was dissolved, beginning a new era in the development of Vulcan society. No longer would the Vulcans hold back Humanity's advancement into space; for Archer, it was a lifelong dream fulfilled. The event was mutually beneficial: Vulcan society reverted to the more altruistic and logical path Surak had originally intended, and Archer gained a greater insight into Vulcans than ever before as a result of having carried the katra of Surak. ( ENT : " The Forge ", " Awakening ", " Kir'Shara ")

First contact with the Organians [ ]

Archer later made first contact with the Organians , though his memories of the event were completely erased. ( ENT : " Observer Effect ")

Babel crisis [ ]

He then become embroiled in high-level galactic intrigue when he rescued Commander Shran from the destruction of the Kumari , which Shran blamed on the Tellarites . However, Archer discovered the truth that the Romulan Star Empire , using a Romulan drone ship in attempts to manipulate other galactic powers into fighting one another, was trying to destabilize the entire region. Discovering the ruse, he organized a landmark combined fleet effort of Humans, Vulcans, Andorians, and Tellarites to search for the Romulan vessel, beginning the first steps in uniting these disparate races against a common enemy. ( ENT : " Babel One ", " United ", " The Aenar ")

Klingon virus [ ]

Archer again came into conflict with the Klingons. They were using Human Augment DNA in attempts to genetically engineer their own Augments, unleashing a virus that threatened the Klingon race with extinction. They kidnapped Phlox so he could help find a cure. Archer was able to rescue Phlox, but not before helping him find a cure for the virus. ( ENT : " Affliction ", " Divergence ")

Stopping Terra Prime [ ]

Archer addresses the proposed Coalition .

Archer foiled a plot attempted by John Frederick Paxton , leader of Terra Prime , a xenophobic terrorist group, who threatened to attack all alien ships and Starfleet Command with the verteron array on Mars . Archer fought Paxton and knocked him unconscious but was unable to stop the verteron array firing at Earth. After the array fired on San Francisco Bay without resulting in any humanoid casualties, Archer was instrumental in Paxton's arrest. Afterward, he was influential in restarting negotiations for the formation of a Coalition of Planets , giving a speech which persuaded delegates from various alien worlds to continue the steps towards an alliance with Earth. ( ENT : " Demons ", " Terra Prime ")

Final mission [ ]

Archer's final mission as captain of the Enterprise would be to Rigel X where he assisted in the rescue of Thy'lek Shran's daughter Talla . It was the last world Archer visited before the Enterprise was decommissioned , which he considered to be "poetic justice. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Signing the Federation charter [ ]

A holographic representation of Jonathan Archer at the signing of the Federation Charter in 2161

Archer's command of Enterprise ended in 2161 , after which he signed the charter ratifying the Coalition of Planets, which ultimately lead to the formation of the United Federation of Planets.

At the time of the signing, Sato had already heard rumors that he had been "tapped for admiral," but Mayweather and Reed agreed that "they'll never keep him behind a desk ." ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Serving in the Federation [ ]

After the founding of the Federation, Archer went on to serve in the Federation Starfleet. At his retirement from Starfleet, he was Chief of Staff at Starfleet Command with the rank of admiral . Archer became an honorary member of the Andorian Imperial Guard in 2164 , Federation ambassador to Andoria in 2169 , served as Federation Councilman from 2175 to 2183 , and was ultimately elected President of the United Federation of Planets in 2184 , a post which he held for eight years until 2192 . ( ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ")

In January 2155 of the Mirror universe , Commander Jonathan Archer learned about his counterpart aboard the USS Defiant . At first, he protested that his counterpart was not a great man but weak and foolish for his efforts in helping to form the United Federation of Planets (which he dismissed as a "Federation of Fools"), noting that great men should conquer other species rather than work together with them. ( ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ")

Secretly, however, Archer resented his counterpart and was insanely jealous of his success, particularly when he learned that the other Archer had a long, respected career as a starship captain, diplomat, and statesman; had two planets named for him; and was noted as the "greatest explorer of the 22nd century." His preoccupation with his counterpart's success eventually drove him to have a mental breakdown, taking the form of hallucinations of the other Archer, who mercilessly taunted him about his own inadequacies. ( ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ")

When Ensigns Brad Boimler and Beckett Mariner time traveled from 2381 to 2259 , Captain Pike informed the duo he tried to think how he would've felt setting foot on Archer's Enterprise . ( SNW : " Those Old Scientists ")

Moral conflicts [ ]

Captain Archer aboard Enterprise in 2154

As one of the first Starfleet captains to explore the galaxy , Archer was sometimes faced with moral decisions. Consequently, he was at times forced to bend the morals to which he once strictly adhered, especially during his time in the Delphic Expanse, though he told T'Pol he could not save Humanity if he lost what made him Human. ( ENT : " Damage ")

During Enterprise 's first year in space, the ship visited the Valakians , who were being killed off by an unknown epidemic; they would be extinct in less than two centuries. The other species on the planet, the Menk , who were a second-class species, were unaffected. Archer wanted to know if a cure was possible. Phlox told him that he had found a cure, but that what was happening was natural evolution and that the Menk showed evidence of an awakening and had the potential to become the dominant species on the planet, which wouldn't happen as long as the Valakians were around. Archer's decision to withhold a cure and let nature take its course was against all his principles, but he realized that he had no right to interfere in another culture and play god ; this could be used as an example of an early Prime Directive . ( ENT : " Dear Doctor ")

Enterprise was ordered to evacuate a group of Denobulan geologists from Xantoras , a world that had been taken over by the military. One of the evacuees was an Antaran named Hudak . Hudak was dying, but refused to be treated by Phlox, because the Antarans and the Denobulans were mortal enemies. Phlox wouldn't treat patients against their wishes even when Archer threatened to order Phlox to do so. Archer could not understand Phlox's attitude, but honored his wishes. Phlox was able to convince Hudak to be treated. ( ENT : " The Breach ")

When the Vissians informed him that their cogenitor had committed suicide due, in part, to Commander Tucker's actions, Archer told Tucker that he wasn't in the position to judge the rightness of the Vissian culture and that he hoped Tucker had learned his lesson about interfering in other cultures. ( ENT : " Cogenitor ")

Archer tortures Orgoth

Archer once went so far as to torture an Osaarian pirate named Orgoth in order to find his ship that had stolen weapons, food, and precious supplies. Orgoth's final words to Archer, who was adamant about retaining his own humanity in the Delphic Expanse, were to warn him that mercy wouldn't serve him well in the Expanse, which Enterprise had recently entered. ( ENT : " Anomaly (ENT) ")

Archer authorized Phlox to create a clone of Trip Tucker, Sim , so its neural tissues could be used to save Tucker, who had been hurt in an accident and was dying. This transplant would have ended Sim's life (although in Archer's defense, when Phlox proposed the procedure he believed that he could harvest the necessary tissue and leave Sim alive afterwards). Phlox refused to perform the operation until Sim agreed to it. ( ENT : " Similitude ")

Archer once ordered the destruction of a Xindi monitoring station to prevent it revealing Enterprise 's position to the Xindi. The facility's destruction killed three Xindi in the process. ( ENT : " Azati Prime ")

Archer was so obsessed with accomplishing the Xindi mission that he stole a warp coil from an Illyrian vessel; Enterprise needed the warp coil to be able to stop the Xindi weapon from destroying Earth. The theft left the Illyrian vessel with three years added onto its voyage home. Though he did leave them trellium , food, and supplies, Archer couldn't help but come into a conflict with what he believed was right and wrong. ( ENT : " Damage ")

Relationships [ ]

Henry archer [ ].

Young Jonathan and his father, Henry Archer, in 2121

As a boy, Jonathan often built model spaceships with his father. The two also spent time together flying the models.

On Jonathan's eighth birthday, his father gave him his first astronomy book, The Cosmos A to Z . Archer spent hours staring at the cover of this book, which featured an image of the Arachnid Nebula . Shortly thereafter, his father gave him a tour of the Warp Five Complex . ( ENT : " Fusion ", " Singularity ")

Sadly, Henry died from Clarke's Disease when Jonathan was twelve, leaving his mother to raise him. During the last two years of his life, Henry had difficulty recognizing Jonathan or his mother as a result of the disease. ( ENT : " Cold Station 12 ")

When Jonathan was on his way to sign the Federation Charter , he and his close friend Charles Tucker would share a drink from a bottle of whiskey that was given to Henry by Zefram Cochrane the day the two broke ground at the Warp Five Complex. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Sally Archer [ ]

Often, when Jonathan had trouble sleeping as a child, he would ask his mother to recite a poem for him. One poem he frequently requested from her was " The Song of the Wandering Aengus ". While listening, Jonathan imagined how the woman in the poem would appear, creating her image in his mind. He did not learn until years later that the poem was written by William Butler Yeats . ( ENT : " Rogue Planet ")

Friendships [ ]

A.g. robinson [ ].

Archer was close friends with fellow pilot Commander A.G. Robinson despite the two competing to become the first pilot to test the NX-Alpha . ( ENT : " First Flight ")

In March of 2153 , Robinson was killed while climbing Mount McKinley on Earth, a death Archer thought was senseless considering Robinson's close calls flying Warp trials. ( ENT : " First Flight ")

Charles "Trip" Tucker III [ ]

Archer helps Tucker on the Torothan homeworld in 2151

Archer met Charles Tucker III, or "Trip", during the NX Project. Archer was a pilot and Tucker was a lieutenant on Captain Jefferies' engineering team. After the NX-Alpha was destroyed and the project was going to be canceled, Tucker and Archer teamed up with A.G. Robinson to save the program. They launched the NX-Beta without permission, and were ultimately successful. ( ENT : " First Flight ")

Archer and Tucker's friendship continued to grow when both were assigned to the Australian Outback for survival training. Archer saved Tucker's life on a number of occasions. On Titan in 2147 , Tucker's EV pack froze up and he got nitrogen narcosis . Archer stopped him when he tried to remove his helmet. Archer later saved a delirious Tucker from heatstroke when they were stranded on a desert planet. ( ENT : " Strange New World ", " Unexpected ", " Desert Crossing ")

On Enterprise , Tucker became Archer's right arm. They had their meals together and shared many interests. Archer never got tired of listening to Tucker's Southern home-spun stories. Tucker, for his part, knew how to relieve Archer's stress. When Archer was upset about a first contact with the Kreetassans, Tucker gave him a data module of the Stanford versus Texas water polo match. ( ENT : " Vox Sola ")

No matter what kind of a jam he was in, Archer always knew he could count on Tucker, both professionally and personally as his friend. When in 2152 , Archer and Malcolm Reed – who had been trying to find a communicator left behind on a pre-warp alien planet – were sentenced to death, it was Tucker and his efforts that rescued them from execution by the natives. ( ENT : " The Communicator ") He also rescued Archer from bounty hunters who wished to turn Archer over to the Klingons . ( ENT : " Bounty ")

Tucker and Archer watching water polo

Archer and Tucker's relationship was not always stress-free. During first contact with a race known as the Vissians , who used a third gender called a cogenitor for reproduction , Tucker – who was upset at how it was treated – took it aside in an attempt to open its eyes. The cogenitor didn't have a name and was not allowed to leave its room or receive education. It was even treated somewhat lower than a second-class citizen, which was evidenced by Tucker pointing out, " Even Porthos has a name. "

Tucker had the cogenitor's DNA sampled and in a side-by-side comparison, Doctor Phlox discovered the cogenitor was intellectually on the same level as its counterparts, thus neither superior nor inferior to them. Tucker used this as an opportunity to take on the cogenitor, teaching it how to read and telling it that it had the same rights as everyone else and that it should stand up for itself, asserting its freedom and rights as an individual. When the cogenitor asked for asylum on Enterprise and Archer denied it, it committed suicide rather than keep living as it had.

Archer was both disappointed and furious that Tucker had jeopardized not only their first contact with the Vissians but had also indirectly caused the death of the cogenitor. Tucker told Archer that he had done exactly what Archer would do; a statement which left the captain even more upset, as he himself often had to wrestle with the fine line of doing what he thought was right and interfering with other species . Archer told Tucker it was not his place to judge the fairness of another culture and that he should never have interfered. While Tucker was shocked at how the situation had unfolded, as he never foresaw this going so far, Archer held him responsible for the cogenitor's death and asked him to weigh the repercussions of his actions. Archer did not formally discipline Trip, but made it clear how disappointed he was in him for having acted so impulsively and irresponsibly. ( ENT : " Cogenitor ")

" Whatever it takes "

After the first Xindi attack on Earth in 2153 , Archer was the one to break the news to the Enterprise crew. This was of particular significance to Tucker as his younger sister, Elizabeth , was an architect who lived in Florida – part of the area that had been destroyed by the Xindi weapon.

Even though Archer did not know whether Trip's sister was among the casualties, he comforted Tucker anyway, suggesting she may have been visiting elsewhere when the attack took place. When it turned out that his sister was among the victims killed, Trip's reaction was naturally one of anger towards the Xindi; he and Archer agreed that they would find the people responsible and hold them to account for their actions. " Whatever it takes, " Archer said. ( ENT : " The Expanse ")

During the Xindi mission, Tucker became seriously injured when an explosion on top of the warp core flung him to the lower engineering deck. Upon arriving in sickbay , he had lapsed into a coma, due to extensive neural damage he had sustained. Dr. Phlox insisted the only way to treat him was to use a Lyssarian Desert Larvae to create a clone of Tucker and then use that to harvest the required neural tissue.

Archer, aware of the moral implications, gave the order to proceed, thereby saving Tucker's life. Even though it was not an easy decision and he was aware that the clone would have to be sacrificed, Archer still bonded with him. Phlox gave him the name " Sim ", as he was an exact facsimile of Trip, including all of his memories and experiences. When the time finally came, Archer held a funeral service for Sim who he said was "one of [their] own." ( ENT : " Similitude ")

Later that year, Archer was infected with a Xindi-Insectoid neurotoxin causing him to act irrationally. He lost all sense of self and became obsessed with protecting a Xindi-Insectoid hatchery the crew had found. Archer went to great lengths to protect them, such as relieving senior officers of their duties and assigning MACO units to all decks of the ship. It was only due to Tucker's stubbornness that he became aware something was controlling the captain's behavior and, with the help of Phlox and T'Pol , they managed to incapacitate him and cure him of the neurotoxin. ( ENT : " Hatchery ")

As they grew closer to finding the Xindi weapon, Archer managed to convince the weapon's creator, Degra , to help them in their cause. This resulted in him coming aboard Enterprise , where he and Tucker came to blows over the death of Elizabeth. Tucker, out of respect for Archer, calmed down, eventually coming to realize that the whole situation wasn't Degra's fault, for he had simply been acting on what he had been told about Humans . ( ENT : " Azati Prime ", " The Forgotten ", " The Council ")

Sato comforts Tucker upon learning of Archer's supposed fate

The Xindi weapon finally reached Earth in February of 2154 , where it was destroyed by a strike team led by Archer. Even though they were successful in their mission, Archer was believed to have been killed in the explosion. This had a noticeable effect on Tucker, who couldn't seem to grasp what had happened.

However, he didn't have much time to grieve when it soon became apparent that the ship had been transported into the 20th century , right amid the events of World War II . Upon investigation, it was discovered that a Temporal Cold War faction was trying to alter the timeline on Earth so the allies never won the war. During an attempt to stop them, Tucker became reunited with Archer, who had survived the explosion and had been transported back in time like the rest of the crew, much to Tucker's relief. ( ENT : " Zero Hour ", " Storm Front ")

Later that year, Tucker became infected with a silicon-based virus , as part of an experiment by the Organians . While Tucker was under quarantine in the decon chamber and his health was continuing to deteriorate, Archer visited him periodically to check how he was. When one of the Organians revealed itself and their "experiment", a plea by Archer convinced the aliens to cure both Trip and Hoshi Sato . ( ENT : " Observer Effect ")

After a somewhat awkward courtship with T'Pol and the feelings he had developed for her, which she could not reciprocate at the moment, Trip requested a transfer to Columbia NX-02 , citing the new ship needed experienced crew. Realizing this was just an excuse, Archer asked Tucker for the real reason, but Tucker did not want to reveal his true motivation for leaving. Instead, he solemnly asked that Archer grant his request as his friend, to which Archer replied, " I'm asking you to stay… as a friend. " Despite this, Tucker still left Enterprise , which put somewhat of a strain on their friendship. ( ENT : " The Aenar ")

Trip eventually decided to return to Enterprise permanently, when he and T'Pol could no longer deny their feelings for one another. Archer and Tucker's friendship remained stable from this point on. ( ENT : " Divergence ", " Bound ", " Demons ")

In 2161 , Tucker died, saving the ship and crew. As he was placed into the medical imaging chamber , he gave one last smile to Archer, as if to reassure him that everything would be fine. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Archer with T'Pol in 2153

Archer and T'Pol together in sickbay in 2154

Archer's first encounter with T'Pol was not very pleasant for either one of them. Archer had just found out that the Vulcans wanted to delay Enterprise 's much anticipated launch due to the Klingon incident and to make matters worse, T'Pol interjected, berating Archer and humanity for their volatile and provincial nature that she believed rendered them unfit for space exploration. Archer was angered and his response to her was that he was restraining himself a great deal as he really wanted to just "knock [her] on [her] ass."

When she was later assigned to his ship as his first officer and science officer or as Archer called it "a chaperon", he was looking forward to her leaving after the mission was over as he found T'Pol cold, uncaring, cynical, and humorless. To make matters worse, T'Pol was not particularly fond of Archer's pet dog, Porthos , whose smell bothered her. She insisted on cutting vegetables with a knife as Vulcans do not touch their food and she did not find Archer's initial attempts at humor and breaking-the-ice worth entertaining.

In turn, Archer made it clear to her that she was not to disclose anything they discussed to her superiors on Vulcan. As the mission progressed, however, Archer and T'Pol found common ground. He was wounded saving her life in a fire-fight, and T'Pol assumed command and led Enterprise in pursuit of Suliban who had kidnapped Klaang. As the acting captain, she could have easily turned around and left but she chose to continue the mission, knowing that it was what Archer wanted.

This gave him a new-found respect for her, as he was surprised at the loyalty she exhibited after the initial cold reception. The mission was a success and when T'Pol was scheduled to leave Enterprise as agreed, Archer asked her to join his crew, as he no longer wanted to hold grudges and was instead eager to start freshly with the Vulcans. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

Archer and T'Pol sharing a blanket while being held hostage at the monastery

Archer began to trust T'Pol when she didn't turn a blind eye when the secret Vulcan surveillance listening post beneath the monastery at P'Jem was revealed and she helped Archer expose it to the Andorian Imperial Guard . ( ENT : " The Andorian Incident ")

When Ambassador V'Lar came aboard Enterprise in 2152 , she sensed a great bond between Archer and T'Pol, of "trust… and friendship." ( ENT : " Fallen Hero ")

T'Pol took meals in the captain's mess, and once drank wine and entertained Archer with a story of an ancestor who visited Earth before first contact. Archer convinced T'Pol to interact with the crew. She went to movie night with them, and actually liked a movie called Frankenstein . ( ENT : " Carbon Creek ", " Horizon ")

Archer lent T'Pol support when she was sent on a troubling mission for the Vulcans: She was to apprehend a former Vulcan agent who had become an arms dealer . Archer assisted her and reassured her self-doubts during the mission. The incident solidified the trust between the duo. ( ENT : " The Seventh ")

Archer opened up to T'Pol when his good friend and former rival, A.G. Robinson , died. T'Pol listened to Archer's story about the two of them and offered him a shoulder to lean on. ( ENT : " First Flight ")

Archer hugs T'Pol

In the end, it was T'Pol who was with Archer before he gave a speech at the signing of the Federation Charter . Overcome with emotion, T'Pol and Archer embraced before his speech. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Increased friction between Archer and T'Pol in 2152 lead Dr. Phlox, who also had a degree in psychiatry , to believe that Archer was sexually attracted to T'Pol but was frustrated; Archer believed a romantic relationship between him and his first officer would be inappropriate. Phlox believed that Archer's inordinate anger toward T'Pol's opinions on him and other unexpected behavior he exhibited stemmed from Archer subconsciously knowing that his attraction to her was inappropriate.

At first, Archer denied that there was any sexual attraction but after an erotic dream with T'Pol in it, he opened up to the doctor, wondering what to do. Phlox told him that simply being aware of it would be the best course of action, as talking to her about it would make matters worse. In a later discussion with T'Pol, Archer told her that he would like to minimize the friction between the two of them, a type of friction which could especially develop between people of the opposite sex .

Archer spoke to T'Pol, apologizing for the friction. T'Pol replied that she was also attracted to him, but pointed out that they were " not in a position to allow [themselves] to become attracted to one another. " ( ENT : " A Night in Sickbay ")

In the alternate timeline in which Archer was afflicted with anterograde amnesia, T'Pol resigned the captaincy and spent twelve years caring for Archer on Ceti Alpha V . Over the years, she learned more about Archer while he continuously forgot everything past the day he became ill. It became apparent, however, that T'Pol had begun harboring romantic feelings for Archer. In 2165 , a way had been found to eradicate the interspatial parasites that were preventing Archer from forming new memories. Phlox suggested to T'Pol that, if the treatment worked, everything between Archer and T'Pol might be different. ( ENT : " Twilight ")

Thy'lek Shran [ ]

Thy'lek Shran

Shran during his first encounter with Archer at P'Jem

Shortly after taking command of Enterprise , Archer encountered the Andorian Commander Thy'lek Shran . In their first confrontation, at the Vulcan monastery at P'Jem , Shran believed Archer's crew were there to help the Vulcans spy on the Andorians. While being kept hostage , Archer managed to contact Enterprise , which sent a rescue team . During a firefight inside the monastery's reliquary , one of the Vulcans accidentally destroyed a tapestry , which was covering the entrance to the Vulcans' listening post . Archer asked T'Pol to give Shran all the data she had collected, to which Shran said that he owed a debt to Archer. ( ENT : " The Andorian Incident ")

In 2152, Shran met with Enterprise crewmembers attempting to rescue Archer and T'Pol from the rebels on the planet Coridanite . He told them he had "lost sleep" over the fact that he owed a favor to Archer, and so wanted to help rescue him to write off his "debt". ( ENT : " Shadows of P'Jem ")

Later that year, Shran insisted to Vulcan ambassador Soval that Archer be the mediator at talks between their two species, because on their previous encounters, Archer had been "objective". The Vulcans were initially annoyed at the request, due to their disdain with Humans, but eventually agreed, and the negotiations were completed successfully. ( ENT : " Cease Fire ")

In late 2153 , Shran's ship, the Kumari , was dispatched to the Delphic Expanse to secure the prototype Xindi weapon, to use in their conflict with the Vulcans. Shran arrived in the Expanse and aided Enterprise , claiming (under false pretenses) that the Vulcans had only spared one officer to help Enterprise during their mission. The Kumari and Enterprise were able to effect a joint mission to steal the prototype, which was stored in the Kumari 's cargo bay.

However, Shran then informed Archer of the Imperial Guard 's plan, and gave Archer an escape pod so he could return to Enterprise . When encountering spatial anomalies, Enterprise caught up with the Kumari , and Archer told Shran that he would detonate the weapon in the Andorian ship's cargo bay if necessary. Shran thought he was bluffing, but Archer proceeded with his plan and, although jettisoned, the resulting explosion severely damaged the Kumari . Later, Shran covertly sent Archer invaluable information on the weapon. ( ENT : " Proving Ground ")

As the Xindi weapon approached Earth, the Kumari provided assistance, destroying Xindi Commander Dolim 's ship, telling Archer that now the Human was in his debt. ( ENT : " Zero Hour ")

In 2154 , Shran led a group of Andorian ships attempting to stop a Vulcan fleet launching a preemptive strike against them. As the Vulcans were ordered to destroy Enterprise , Shran went to their assistance again, claiming that Archer now owed him two favors. ( ENT : " Kir'Shara ")

The two met again in November of 2154, when the Kumari was attacked and destroyed by a Romulan drone ship posing as a Tellarite cruiser. Shran was very bitter about the loss of his ship, and openly blamed the Tellarites. However the Romulan plot was eventually revealed by Archer, who was attempting to keep an already fragile alliance between the Andorians, Tellarites and the Vulcans. ( ENT : " Babel One ", " United ", " The Aenar ")

In 2158 , Shran went into hiding. Three years later , he enlisted Archer's help in looking for his daughter, Talla , who had been abducted. The pair were able to initiate a rescue, with the help of the Enterprise 's crew. ( ENT : " These Are the Voyages... ")

Malcolm Reed [ ]

Reed and Archer in a tense moment in 2154

Early in Enterprise 's mission, Archer took steps toward forging a relationship with his senior staff , including his armory officer , Malcolm Reed. During the first year of their voyage together, Archer and Hoshi Sato took great pains to learn more about Reed, even going so far as to contact members of his family to discover his likes and dislikes. While the effort culminated in a friendly birthday celebration for Reed, the relationship between Archer and Reed failed to develop substantially. ( ENT : " Silent Enemy ")

Archer, with Reed, after they survived a Romulan mine blast

It wasn't until a full year after the launch of Enterprise that Archer and Reed were able to plan a private breakfast in the captain's mess . While Reed mistook the meal for a more professional meeting, Archer was able to coax the armory officer into a personal, though somewhat awkward conversation. Speaking freely, Reed revealed that he felt Archer was too lax a commanding officer. These sentiments were later repeated when Archer chose to risk his own life in an attempt to save Reed when he became trapped on the hull of Enterprise during the Romulan minefield crisis. Though both men survived and some level of trust was achieved between Archer and Reed, a closer relationship failed to materialize and Reed continued to doubt Archer's resolve as an effective commander. ( ENT : " Minefield ", " Singularity ")

In 2154 , following the Xindi mission, Archer and Reed clashed when Reed's loyalty to Section 31 put him in direct conflict with Archer. Performing a minor act of sabotage against the investigation into the disappearance of Dr. Phlox, Reed was subsequently thrown into the brig . Though several heated conversations took place, Archer was able to get through to Reed and the mission ultimately proved successful. ( ENT : " Affliction ", " Divergence ")

Phlox reassures Archer in 2161

Archer initially met Dr. Phlox in San Francisco upon learning of the incident involving the Klingon Klaang in Broken Bow, Oklahoma. Phlox was treating Klaang and saved his life; this impressed Archer, who recruited Phlox soon after to serve as chief medical officer aboard Enterprise . Phlox was one of only two aliens among the crew, and became one of its most valuable members. He became one of Archer's most trusted advisers and on many occasions, his counselor. Phlox also played devil's advocate for Archer. There were a few issues that they came into conflict over, but this only strengthened their friendship. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

Early in the mission, Archer and Phlox argued over a cure for an epidemic on the planet Valakis , whose population had two species, the Valakians and the Menk . Phlox discovered that the illness was genetic, and that the Menk were evolving and would become the dominant species, while the Valakians would become extinct. Archer wanted to give them a cure, but Phlox believed that it was not ethical, because such a cure would interfere with nature. Archer was eventually convinced that they had no right to play God , and gained a new respect for Phlox and his counsel. ( ENT : " Dear Doctor ")

Archer looked to Phlox for advice on how to deal with various races, since Phlox had experience in such matters. He sought advice on how to deal with the Klingon Bu'kaH , in order to persuade her to help with a rescue attempt. Archer was convinced by Phlox to apologize to the Kreetassans and avoided a diplomatic incident. He even told Phlox about his attraction to T'Pol. Phlox endeared himself to Archer when he saved Archer's dog, Porthos. ( ENT : " Sleeping Dogs ", " A Night in Sickbay ")

Archer returned the favor when an Antaran refused to be treated by Phlox because the Denobulans and the Antarans were mortal enemies. He convinced Phlox to set aside his preconceptions, and attempt to persuade the Antaran to accept treatment. Phlox's attempts were successful, and the Antaran gave his consent. ( ENT : " The Breach ")

Phlox and Archer continued their friendship for the rest of Enterprise 's mission, depending on each other for not only friendship, but counseling.

Hoshi Sato [ ]

Archer and Hoshi Sato work to diffuse the Axanar situation in 2151

A white-knuckled explorer from the beginning, communications officer Hoshi Sato was at first hesitant to reveal her misgivings to her captain. Not long after the discovery of a derelict Axanar vessel in 2151 , Archer was able to coax Sato into describing her fears.

While Archer was sympathetic, he nevertheless expected Sato to perform her duties and placed confidence in her abilities in diffusing a situation involving an attacking Axanar vessel. Taking strides to overcome her difficulties, Sato later made it a point to volunteer for missions, offering to join T'Pol and Malcolm Reed on a severely damaged Klingon starship, and later opting to stay alone with the alien Tarquin for a short time in 2153 . ( ENT : " Fight or Flight ", " Sleeping Dogs ", " Exile ")

Hoshi was Archer's choice for looking after Porthos before surrendering himself to the Cabal in 2152 . ( ENT : " Shockwave ")

By the end of the Xindi mission, Sato had become one of Archer's most valued officers, ultimately aiding him in disarming the Xindi weapon despite having been injured by Xindi-Reptilians . ( ENT : " Zero Hour ")

Maxwell Forrest [ ]

Admiral Maxwell Forrest was Archer's mentor and fully trusted him as a capable starship captain devoted to the mission. When the Vulcans, and in particular Ambassador Soval , objected to Archer returning Klaang back to Qo'noS , Forrest backed Archer up and gave him the Enterprise assignment, asking him to "[not] screw this up". After the success of the mission, he was so pleased that Enterprise got the green light to continue its mission of exploration and first contact. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ")

In 2154, when the Enterprise returned home from the Delphic Expanse, he forced Archer to apologize to Soval after an emotional outburst in debriefing, maintaining the respect Forrest had for Archer. ( ENT : " Home ")

He and Admiral Forrest remained close friends until the Admiral's death on Vulcan when the United Earth Embassy was bombed by what was assumed to be Syrrannite terrorists. ( ENT : " The Forge ")

Travis Mayweather [ ]

Archer comforts Travis Mayweather in the " sweet spot "

In many ways, Archer was a role model for his young helmsman , Travis Mayweather . Following the death of Mayweather's father in 2152 , Archer personally comforted Mayweather, and granted him permission to visit his family aboard the ECS Horizon . ( ENT : " Horizon ")

During their time in the Delphic Expanse , Mayweather was one of the few officers to whom Archer opened up. As the Enterprise neared Azati Prime , Archer refused to allow Mayweather to go on what amounted to a suicide mission, choosing to go himself. He confided in Mayweather that he had asked for too many sacrifices already, opting to pay what Mayweather described as a penance. ( ENT : " Azati Prime ")

Danica Erickson [ ]

Danica and Jonathan met when they were both children as Jonathan's father, Henry was a good friend and co-worker with Danica's father, Emory. During this time, Archer would constantly chase Danica around her backyard with a plastic laser pistol. ( ENT : " Daedalus ")

Romances [ ]

Archer's dream that helps him realize he is sexually attracted to his first officer, T'Pol

In 2152, Archer took Porthos on a mission to get plasma injectors. During that visit to the Kreetassans homeworld, Porthos urinated on a sacred tree – offending the Kreetassans – and acquired a pathogen. While Porthos was sick, Archer realized – thanks to Phlox – that he was sexually attracted to his first officer. He knew that sexual attraction was inappropriate and Phlox coached him to be aware of it. He and T'Pol discussed it. ( ENT : " A Night in Sickbay ")

During the Xindi mission, Archer and T'Pol discussed Rosemary's Baby when Enterprise was hit by an anomaly. Archer saved T'Pol from the anomaly, but became infected with parasites that kept him from creating long-term memories. T'Pol was subsequently made Captain, but she resigned her commission to become Archer's caregiver. She fell in love with him. Archer's parasites were eventually removed, and when that happened, the years T'Pol was his caregiver never happened. It's unclear if their relationship had ever become romantic in this timeline, but she stated at one point that their relationship was much deeper than it had been previously. ( ENT : " Twilight ")

Margaret Mullin [ ]

In 2136 , when Archer was 24 years old and in flight school in San Francisco , he met Margaret Mullin , with whom he became romantically involved. The night before he graduated, he asked her to marry him. Margaret turned him down as she did not want to become "a Starfleet widow." ( ENT : " Twilight ")

Caroline [ ]

Some time prior to 2143 , Archer had a relationship with Caroline . When she moved to New Berlin , however, he decided to get drunk in the 602 Club . ( ENT : " First Flight ")

Erika Hernandez [ ]

Later in the 2140s, Archer was romantically involved with Hernandez . However, he discontinued the relationship when he became Erika's superior officer. In 2154 , after Erika became captain of the Columbia NX-02 , they briefly rekindled their romance. ( ENT : " Home ")

Riaan and Archer

In 2151 Archer had a brief romantic relationship with Riaan , an Akaali female apothecary he met when they made first contact with their species . He introduced himself as " Jon " to her and told her he was from another city. When his translator malfunctioned and he was in danger of being exposed as an alien , Archer quickly kissed her to prevent her from asking questions. When later on they got to know each other better and came closer and he was about to leave the planet, he kissed her again while she joked that the translator must have malfunctioned again. ( ENT : " Civilization ")

Porthos [ ]

Porthos was Archer's pet beagle – his "buddy" as he once called him – and he had him since he was six weeks old. Archer's girlfriend 's mother had a beagle that he was particularly crazy about. Even after Archer and her daughter broke up, he stayed in touch with the mother. When the dog got pregnant, he was the first one she called. There were four males in the litter, the four Musketeers as they were called. ( ENT : " A Night in Sickbay ") Porthos lived with Archer on Earth in mid- 2150 before moving to Enterprise in April of 2151. ( ENT : " Broken Bow ", " Shockwave ")

On Enterprise , Porthos had a dog basket in Archer's quarters as well as a mat he could lie down on in the captain's ready room. Archer also kept a small supply of cheese in a cupboard, something he gave Porthos as a treat now and then, until he realized the "treat" was causing him mild gastrointestinal distress . ( ENT : " Broken Bow ", " Dear Doctor ")

Aware that Porthos needed to get off the ship from time to time, Archer occasionally allowed him to visit habitable planets and took him on certain away missions . It was on one such visit to the Kreetassan homeworld that Porthos picked up a deadly pathogen . Archer was incredibly upset that his "best friend" was at risk of death, and stayed at his side until Doctor Phlox could develop a cure. Porthos eventually made a full recovery. ( ENT : " Fight or Flight ", " A Night in Sickbay ")

In 2153, Archer allowed Porthos to accompany Enterprise to the Delphic Expanse in search of the Xindi weapon to the objection of Commander Tucker who believed the Expanse may have unknown properties which could affect him. Early on during the Xindi mission, it became evident that Porthos could sense the anomalies present in the Expanse. He had attempted to alert Archer to one, however, the captain did not understand the warning until after the anomaly had passed through his desk. ( ENT : " The Expanse ", " Anomaly (ENT) ")

Alternate realities and timelines [ ]

Archer in an alternate timeline

In 2153, an anomaly infected Archer's hippocampus with interspatial parasites , causing anterograde amnesia by impairing the synaptic pathways that allowed him to form new long-term memories. Though the crew tried to keep Archer up to date so he could function as captain, Starfleet Command eventually relieved him of command; he spent most of his time in his quarters. Earth was destroyed in 2154, but Archer remained on board until 2156 , when Enterprise reached Ceti Alpha V. T'Pol took care of him for nine years (she apparently developed feelings for him as time went on, although Archer naturally could not reciprocate them, as he would never remember having done so the next morning). In 2165 , Phlox arrived from Denobula with a cure. Destroying one of the clusters of parasites, Phlox and T'Pol discovered that destroying them now also destroyed their existence in the past as well, and realized that, by destroying the parasites in the present, they could completely change the outcome of Enterprise 's original mission in the Delphic Expanse. As Enterprise was boarded by Xindi forces, Archer initiated a subspace implosion, eradicating the remaining parasites and thus preventing himself from ever having been infected in 2153. ( ENT : " Twilight ")

In 2154, Enterprise was flung to the year 2037 while en route to the Xindi Council planet . Archer decided that the ship would become a generation ship, and that the crew's descendants would be the ones to complete the ship's mission and stop the Xindi weapon . Archer eventually married an Ikaaran woman named Esilia . One of his descendants was Karyn Archer . ( ENT : " E² ")

In 2258 of the alternate reality created by Nero 's attack on the USS Kelvin , Archer was still an admiral in Starfleet . Montgomery Scott attempted to prove his theories about transwarp beaming by beaming Admiral Archer's prized beagle . The dog was never seen again, and when Scott was transferred to a small, cold, and almost forgotten research outpost on Delta Vega , he believed that his blunder was the reason he ended up there. ( Star Trek )

Awards and honors [ ]

Starfleet biography of Jonathan Archer, circa 2268

In 2154 , several dozen North American schools were renamed for Jonathan Archer following the successful resolution of the Xindi crisis , including the former high school of Hernandez . ( ENT : " Home ")

Archer earned an impressive list of commendations during his career, including the Starfleet Medal of Valor with clusters, the Star Cross , the Preantares Ribbon of Commendation , and the Federation Citation of Honor . ( ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ", biographical display )

Listed among Starfleet's finest captains during the 2250s .

In the 23rd century , historian John Gill hailed Archer as "the greatest explorer of the 22nd century ." ( Biographical display in ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ")

In 2256 , Archer was one of Starfleet's most decorated captains, ranked among other legends such as Robert April , Matt Decker , Philippa Georgiou , and Christopher Pike . ( DIS : " Choose Your Pain ")

Two planets were named for the former captain: Archer's Planet in the Gamma Trianguli sector , and Archer IV , the first M-class planet explored by Enterprise . ( Biographical display in ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ") Archer's Comet was also named in his honor. ( ENT : " Breaking the Ice ")

There have been at least three Federation starships named the USS Archer , with the registry numbers NCC-627 , NCC-44278 , and NCC-76725 , respectively. ( SNW : " Strange New Worlds "; Star Trek Nemesis ; PIC : " Võx ") In 3190 , Archer Spacedock was named in his honor when the Federation began retro-fitting their existing fleet in order to carry out Starfleet's original mission of exploration. ( DIS : " Kobayashi Maru ")

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Volatile? You have no idea how much I'm restraining myself from knocking you on your ass. "

" We can't be afraid of the wind, ensign. "

" Human beings have a code of behavior that applies whether they're Starfleet officers or space boomers, and it isn't driven by revenge. Just because someone isn't born on Earth doesn't make him any less human. "

" Someday … my people are going to come up with some sort of a doctrine, something that tells us what we can and can't do out here, should and shouldn't do. But until somebody tells me that they've drafted that directive … I'm going to have to remind myself every day … that we didn't come out here to play God. "

" Once you give up, the game's over. "

" An old girlfriend's mother had … this beagle I was crazy about. Even after her daughter and I broke up, we stayed in touch. When the dog got pregnant, I was the first one she called. Four males in the litter – the Four Musketeers. I've had Porthos since he was six weeks old. "

" I don't like bullies, Trip. Not on Earth, and not out here. "

" I need what was taken from me. There's too much at stake to let my morality get in the way. "

" I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to find your ship. And if that ends up causing me remorse, then it's something I'm willing to live with. "

" We'll find a way through this. But I won't leave anyone behind, not if I can help it. I can't try to save Humanity without holding on to what makes me Human. "

" I need Trip. Trip . I'll take whatever steps necessary to save him. " " Even if it means killing me? " " Even if it means killing you! " " You're not a murderer. " " Don't make me one. "

" You did the right thing. " " It seems the longer we're out here, the more I have to keep telling myself that. "

" We're in bad shape – I can't deny that, but we're still in one piece. Enterprise is a tough ship. She took more than anyone could ask her to and then some. And so have all of you. I wanted to say thank you. I only wish I could thank the eighteen crewmen who were lost. Like you, they understood how important our mission is, and they accepted the risks. We came into the Expanse not knowing what we'd find, with no one to rely on but ourselves. We're going to succeed – to accomplish our mission – for everyone on Earth who's relying on us, and for the eighteen. "

" You've changed, captain. " " And not at all for the better! "

" I've been told that people are calling us heroes. When it comes to my crew, you won't get any argument from me. But I think it's important that we remember the heroes who aren't with us – the twenty-seven crewmen who didn't make it back. Without their sacrifice, I wouldn't be standing here right now. None of us would. But I'm sure I speak on behalf of my entire crew when I say … it's good to be home. "

" Up until about a hundred years ago … there was one question that burned in every Human – that made us study the stars and dream of traveling to them: "Are we alone?" Our generation is privileged to know the answer to that question. We are all explorers, driven to know what's over the horizon, what's beyond our own shores. And yet … the more I've experienced, the more I've learned … that no matter how far we travel, or how fast we get there … the most profound discoveries are not necessarily beyond that next star. They're within us – woven into the threads that bind us – all of us – to each other. The final frontier begins in this hall. Let's explore it together. "

" Here's to the next generation. "

" Just beyond the next planet, just beyond the next star … "

Key dates [ ]

Archer performing a Vulcan salute

• 2112 : Born in Upstate New York on Earth to Henry and Sally Archer
• 2124 : Henry Archer dies of Clarke's Disease
• 2143 : Along with A.G. Robinson , becomes the first Human to achieve warp 2.5
• 2150 : Becomes commanding officer of the starship Enterprise NX-01
• Becomes one of the first Humans to set foot on Qo'noS
• Makes first contact with the Suliban
• Makes first contact with the Xyrillians
• Makes first contact with the Andorians
• Initiates first Human-initiated first contact with a sentient species, the Akaali
• Makes first contact with the Kreetassans
• Orders Enterprise to exceed Warp 5 for the first time.
• Travels to the 31st century and learns he will become an important part of the formation of the United Federation of Planets
• Makes First contact with the Arkonians
• Makes first contact with the Tholians
• Put on trial on Narendra III by the Klingons
• Makes first contact with the Tellarites
• Transformed into a Loque'eque
• Travels back in time to the year 2004

Archer transformed into a Klingon hybrid in 2154

• Travels to the mid- 20th century
• Holds the katra of Surak for a short time
• Makes first contact with the Organians
• Transformed into a Klingon hybrid
• 2155 : Attends the opening ceremony of the Coalition of Planets
• Helps rescue the daughter of Shran
• Signs the Federation Charter
• 2169 : Becomes Federation Ambassador to Andoria
• 2175 : Serves as Federation Councilor
• 2184 : Is elected Federation President
• 2192 : Steps down as Federation President

Appendices [ ]

Appearances [ ].

• " Broken Bow "
• " Fight or Flight "
• " Strange New World "
• " Unexpected "
• " Terra Nova "
• " The Andorian Incident "
• " Breaking the Ice "
• " Civilization "
• " Fortunate Son "
• " Cold Front "
• " Silent Enemy "
• " Dear Doctor "
• " Sleeping Dogs "
• " Shadows of P'Jem "
• " Shuttlepod One "
• " Rogue Planet "
• " Acquisition "
• " Detained "
• " Vox Sola "
• " Fallen Hero "
• " Desert Crossing "
• " Two Days and Two Nights "
• " Shockwave "
• " Shockwave, Part II "
• " Carbon Creek "
• " Minefield "
• " Dead Stop "
• " A Night in Sickbay "
• " Marauders "
• " The Seventh "
• " The Communicator "
• " Singularity "
• " Vanishing Point "
• " Precious Cargo "
• " The Catwalk "
• " Cease Fire "
• " Future Tense "
• " Canamar "
• " The Crossing "
• " Judgment "
• " Horizon "
• " The Breach "
• " Cogenitor "
• " Regeneration "
• " First Flight "
• " The Expanse "
• " The Xindi "
• " Anomaly (ENT) "
• " Extinction "
• " Impulse "
• " The Shipment "
• " Twilight "
• " North Star "
• " Similitude "
• " Carpenter Street "
• " Chosen Realm "
• " Proving Ground "
• " Stratagem "
• " Harbinger "
• " Doctor's Orders "
• " Hatchery "
• " Azati Prime "
• " The Forgotten "
• " The Council "
• " Countdown "
• " Zero Hour "
• " Storm Front "
• " Storm Front, Part II "
• " Borderland "
• " Cold Station 12 "
• " The Augments "
• " The Forge "
• " Awakening "
• " Kir'Shara "
• " Daedalus "
• " Observer Effect "
• " Babel One "
• " The Aenar "
• " Affliction "
• " Divergence "
• " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II " (file photo and hallucination only)
• " Terra Prime "
• " These Are the Voyages... " (hologram)

Background information [ ]

Jonathan Archer was played by Scott Bakula in all episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise set in the prime universe and the 22nd century, with the only non-appearance of the prime Archer being " In a Mirror, Darkly ", which still include Bakula playing a version of the character. Prior to playing Archer, Bakula never considered that he might like to play a captain in Star Trek . ( The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years , p. 36) The young version of Archer in "Broken Bow" was portrayed by Marty Davis .

The character of Captain Archer was initially conceived by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga . They originally imagined the character as " a captain who was an adventurer and who was lighthearted, " said Berman. " A little bit of Captain Kirk and a little bit of Chuck Yeager . " ( Broken Bow , paperback ed., p. 248) Braga noted, " We knew we wanted our captain to be a down-to-earth, Harrison Ford kind of guy. " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 9 , p. 21)

Archer's first name was originally to have been "Jackson". ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 33, No. 5, p. 21) He was to have been called "Jack" colloquially. [5] While having the first name "Jackson", a character description of Captain Archer was written in the ENT series bible. It described him as " Early 40's. Physical. Intensely curious. Born and raised an explorer by his father, an engineer who worked on the warp 5 project. Unlike the Captains in centuries to come, Archer exhibits a sense of wonder and excitement, as well as a little trepidation about the strange things he will encounter. He holds a grudge against the Vulcans, who he blames for impeding humanity’s progress. But his Science Officer is Vulcan, and he's struggling to reconsider those preconceptions. Although he has a strong sense of duty, he's a bit of a renegade – he's not afraid to question orders or even disobey them, if he feels in his gut that he's right. Archer was there when the first girders on the Enterprise were put into place. And when the Vulcans tried to suspend the maiden launch after the Broken Bow Incident, claiming humans weren't ready for interstellar travel, Archer helped persuade Starfleet to press on […] The Kirks and Picards and Janeways will one day have the benefit of the Captains who preceded them. But Jackson Archer is the prototype. He's making history with every light year. Because he knows his Captain's Logs will be studied for years to come, he keeps especially detailed reports. "

While Archer was still planned to have the first name "Jackson", a character breakdown sheet sent from Paramount to talent agents, upon seeking an actor to play the role, described the character thus; " Early 40s. Physical. Bold personality. Intensely curious. Born and raised an explorer. Unlike the Starfleet captains in centuries to come, he exhibits a sense of wonder and excitement, as well as a little trepidation about the strange things he will encounter. He holds a grudge against the Vulcans, who he blames for impeding humanity's progress. But his science officer is Vulcan, and he's struggling to reconsider those preconceptions. Although he has a strong sense of duty, he's a bit of a renegade – he's not afraid to question orders or even disobey them if he feels in his gut that he's right. " [6]

Rick Berman and Brannon Braga definitely had a certain type of actor in mind for the role of Archer. Berman explained, " We were looking for a little Han Solo quality. We were looking for a little boyishness. We were looking for somebody who had a sense of excitement and awe and was his own man, someone who was young and fit, someone who embodied those heroic qualities that haven't really existed since Captain Kirk. " ( Broken Bow , paperback ed., p. 254) Berman commented further, " We sort of thought of a Han Solo type, a younger Harrison Ford. Somebody with a sense of humor, and somebody who […] was very human and very accessible. " (" Broken Bow " audio commentary , ENT Season 1 DVD / Blu-ray )

Archer's first name was eventually switched to "Jonathan". This was because research turned up exactly one person in the United States of America with the name of "Jackson Archer". ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 33, No. 5, p. 21) The change was listed as one of six revisions of character names in a one-page "script note" at the start of the final draft script of " Broken Bow " (the page was dated 1 May 2001 ).

The revised final draft script for "Broken Bow" established that Archer was nine years old in the very first scene of Enterprise , set in 2121 , and thirty-nine in 2151 . [7] However, a "Behind the Scenes of Enterprise " section in the novelization of Broken Bow (paperback ed., p. 251) states that he was created as "a man in his mid-forties." When the adult version of Archer was introduced in the script, the teleplay quoted a section from the series bible and character breakdown, stating, " Unlike the Starfleet Captains in centuries to come, he exhibits a sense of wonder and excitement. " [8]

British actor Simon MacCorkindale claimed he was offered the role of Captain Archer, but turned it down. [9] Brannon Braga, however, once stated that Scott Bakula was the only actor seriously considered to play Archer. (" Broken Bow " audio commentary , ENT Season 1 Blu-ray ) Rick Berman reminisced about the option of casting Bakula, " When his name was brought up to us by the studio, we jumped for it. " ( Broken Bow , paperback ed., p. 254) Braga noted, " Scott Bakula was an actor who was pretty much the actor who we had in mind all along for the role […] We actually had a meeting with Scott, to discuss the […] character, and he just seemed so perfect. He seemed like he really was Jonathan Archer. He was not your typical spit-and-polish captain. He was more of an everyday guy, with some extraordinary abilities, who… was perfect. And people kinda knew […] Scott Bakula, so you felt like you kinda knew the guy already. So, in every regard, Scott was just perfect in the role. " Berman believed the phrase "a very intelligent and very gracious man" could be applied to both Archer and Bakula. (" Broken Bow " audio commentary , ENT Season 1 DVD / Blu-ray ) Shortly after Bakula was cast, Berman enthused, " “Scott personifies the charm and intelligence that the role calls for. " [10] When first asked to play Captain Archer, though, Bakula was uninterested in the offer. " I may have even said, 'I'm not interested in, you know, the next captain [after Janeway].' " When Bakula was informed he would be playing "the first captain," about 100 years before Kirk, Bakula accepted the part. ( The Captains ) " They had him pretty much on the page when I got the pilot script, " Bakula reflected. " It was exciting to read him because he's a lot like Kirk: very emotional and very given to being angry, and, sometimes, acting before he thinks. I thought that was a great way to go, and I thought it would be an exciting kind of character to create. " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 7 , p. 14) Berman reminisced, " When we found out that Scott was interested, it was very exciting for all of us. " (" Broken Bow " audio commentary , ENT Season 1 DVD / Blu-ray ) The fact that the role of Captain Archer went to Bakula partly made him the most widely known actor to be hired to play the lead role of a captain in a Star Trek series. " As a recognized actor he brings a little validity to the show, " Berman remarked. " It doesn't hurt to have someone who is recognizable […] I cannot think of a single soul I would rather have playing that role. " ( Broken Bow , paperback ed., pp. 253-254) Bakula was forty-six when he began appearing as Archer.

The call sheets throughout Star Trek: Enterprise consistently omitted Scott Bakula's name, referring to him as "Archer", whereas the other key cast members were actually referred to by their own names on those same call sheets.

Scott Bakula found the ENT producers allowed him "a fair amount of input" in shaping the persona of Jonathan Archer. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 7 , p. 14) " We didn't realize how likeable and down-to-earth Scott would be, " Brannon Braga divulged, shortly after ENT Season 1 began, " so we're giving him more moments that are a little bit more laid back. " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 9 , p. 22)

Following the casting of Scott Bakula as Jonathan Archer, Brannon Braga observed about the captain, " He's a bit of a Davy Crockett-type character in that he's got the flair for frontier diplomacy, but there are no protocols. " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 7 , p. 16)

Brannon Braga and Rick Berman wanted Archer's command style to initially be indecisive (such as in the second installment of ENT, " Fight or Flight "). " That [indecisiveness] was planned, " remarked Braga, following the first season. " We wanted a captain who was gung-ho to get out there and explore, and then realizes the galaxy's not quite what he expected […] You could say he's indecisive, but to me, that's part of the fun. We want to see him frustrated. Gradually he does start to get his space legs. But that's something you want to see depicted, because it's good character drama. " ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 139 , p. 23)

Archer was altered for the third season , as a reaction to Earth being threatened by the Xindi. " We set up a harder-edged Archer, who's willing to kill or torture a man if he has to. It's a loss of innocence, " Braga explained. " Archer went out into space wide-eyed and all-embracing. And here he is now, realizing that maybe the Vulcans were right – maybe we weren't ready […] He has to take a different view of what it's like to be out there on a ship. It's no longer about exploring. It's about saving his people. So there's definitely a corruption of his character. " ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 151 , p. 28) The change in Archer's personality was noted in the final draft script of " Chosen Realm ", with a scene description referring to Archer as having "judicious caution borne of time spent in the Expanse."

Archer's hairstyle changed, during the course of the series, from a classic comb-over to a shorter, straight-banged haircut that he ended up sporting by the conclusion of the show's third season. Between production of that season and the fourth one , Hair Designer Michael Moore commented, " The short hair on him was a good move. When we first started, they went with the traditional cut kind of longer, part to the side and all. It kind of morphed into what it is now. We just blow it dry really quickly with a little product in there to give it a little texture so it doesn't lay down flat or anything. That's the extent of his look – pretty no-nonsense. " ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 152 , p. 30)

In the final draft script of ENT's penultimate episode, " Terra Prime ", Archer was regarded as "the man who summoned the future."

In November 2012 , Brannon Braga stated on his Twitter account that the show's fifth season would have revealed the mysterious Humanoid Figure (aka Future Guy) in the Temporal Cold War to be Jonathan Archer, "trying to correct history." [11]

Reception [ ]

Some fans were at first hopeful that, due to the retro approach of Enterprise , Archer would be very similar to Kirk. When it was revealed that Archer was to originally be depicted as indecisive, however, some of those fans were initially unsure what to make of the new captain. ( Star Trek: Communicator  issue 139 , p. 23)

Paramount was initially noncomittal to confirm repeated claims that Scott Bakula had been cast as Jonathan Archer. On 25 April 2001 , Daily Variety reported, " Meanwhile, Paramount Network TV declined comment on ongoing reports that Scott Bakula has been tapped to lead the next Star Trek series, subtitled Enterprise." [12] However, by the time filming was actually about to start, there was a formal announcement that Bakula had indeed been selected; with filming set to begin on the following Monday, a Daily Variety report on Friday 11 May 2001 declared, " The Enterprise has a new captain: After weeks of negotiations, Scott Bakula is officially on board the next Star Trek series. " [13]

Early in the run of Star Trek: Enterprise , Malcolm Reed actor Dominic Keating remarked, " The fact that they've got Scott Bakula as the captain is just terrific. " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 7 , p. 26) At about the same time in the making of the series, Maxwell Forrest actor and veteran Star Trek performer Vaughn Armstrong referred to Bakula as having "a volatile undercurrent that will make his character pretty exciting." ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 9 , p. 47)

UPN , the network that aired Enterprise , did not share the enthusiasm of Keating and Armstrong, however, as they were of an opinion that Bakula's performance was one of the reasons for the poor performance of the series; Brannon Braga has revealed that, by the end of Season 3, UPN had decreed that if the series was to be renewed for a fourth season – the network actually already of a mind not to do so – a necessary step would be ridding the series of Bakula (who was, in effect, already looking for a new job, as he too was led to believe that Enterprise would not be renewed). Rick Berman fought UPN's decree tooth and nail, successfully as it turned out. That the series was renewed for a last season, and thus allowed for an encore of Jonathan Archer, was in no small part due to the fact that strong backing was received from an unexpected corner, as Bakula has unequivocally cited Garry Hart – a former UPN head and Star Trek supporter, who had just been promoted to another position within the conglomerate – as the driving force behind the renewal, thereby thwarting the cancellation intents of the person or people who succeeded him at UPN. ("Before Her Time: Decommissioning Enterprise ", ENT Season 4 Blu-ray special features)

In 2003 , Mark Jones and Lance Parkin , writers of the review reference book Beyond the Final Frontier (p. 357), commented about Archer therein, " Scott Bakula often appears surprisingly stiff, given the warmth, intelligence and humour he demonstrated on Quantum Leap – you get the sense he's not being given the freedom and creative control he had on that show. However, even on low power, he dominates the show. "

Apocrypha [ ]

The novel Beneath the Raptor's Wing gives Archer's middle name as "Beckett", a nod to Sam Beckett (also portrayed by Scott Bakula) in Quantum Leap .

In the Star Trek: Myriad Universes novel, A Less Perfect Union , John Frederick Paxton destroys Starfleet Command and ends the talks for the Coalition of Planets. Archer continues to work toward creating a political alliance between Vulcan, Andoria, Tellar, and other worlds, with the belief Earth would eventually join as well. His actions are opposed by the Isolationist Party, who has taken control of the Parliament and recalls him for court martial. In this novel, he also performs the marriage between Trip Tucker and T'Pol. He also married Erika Hernandez sometime prior to 2199 and died sometime after 2244 .

At the very end of the novelization of Star Trek , "Archer's prized beagle" rematerialized on the Enterprise transporter pads, moments before the ship jumped to warp on its new voyage. A similar scene is depicted at the end of IDW's " The Truth About Tribbles, Part 2 ", but in this version, the beagle rematerializes months after the events of the film rather than during it and occurs as a result of various attempts at continued experimentation with Transwarp by Montgomery Scott in his desire to save the beagle.

External links [ ]

• Jonathan Archer at Wikipedia
• Jonathan Archer at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Jonathan Archer at the Star Trek Online Wiki
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Star Trek's Enterprise Captains, Ranked From Worst To Best

With over a dozen movies and a growing number of television series, the  Star Trek  franchise boasts an impressive list of captains . And we're pretty confident that there isn't a single captain that at least one  Trek  fan doesn't call their favorite. After all, there are plenty of debates about whether Picard is better than Kirk, whether Janeway is better than Sisko, and so on and so forth. It's all subjective, and for the most part, it's all in good fun. 

But with so many captains now a part of the  Trek  universe, we thought we'd narrow in on a more specific question. Who are the best and worst captains of the many ships with the name of the vessel that started it all, the  Enterprise ? After all, we've been introduced to quite a few of them over the years, even beyond the more recognizable leads of Kirk, Picard, and Archer.

In order to answer this question, we're sticking to Enterprise  captains of the Prime  Star Trek timeline. That's not meant as disrespect to fans of the Kelvin timeline , but if we consider those captains, then we open it up to all the other alternate timeline  Enterprise  captains, like those from the Mirror Universe , from non-canonical media, and even that shaggy-bearded Will Riker from the Borg-ruled timeline in  The Next Generation 's ( TNG ) "Parallels." And since we don't have as much bandwidth as your average Starfleet supercomputer, we've got to make tough choices. 

John Harriman isn't ready for the challenge

In the opening scene of 1994's  Star Trek: Generations , we meet the bottom captain on our list — Captain John Harriman (Alan Ruck) of the Enterprise -B. The ship's maiden voyage is meant as little more than an opportunity to show off for the press, and to celebrate the occasion, James Kirk (William Shatner) and some of his retired officers are welcomed aboard as honored guests. Harriman only has a quick trip around Earth's solar system planned, but things get more complicated when they pick up a distress call from ships caught in a severe gravimetric distortion. 

Initially, Harriman tries to get another ship to answer the call, giving the excuse that this new Enterprise  lacks the crew and the outfitting. Pressured by the presence of the legendary Kirk and by the press, Harriman decides to get involved. Once arriving at the distortion causing all the trouble, Harriman is hesitant to get too close. Eventually, he swallows his pride and asks Kirk for his suggestions.

Now, we need to be fair to Harriman. Ultimately, he rises to the occasion, and it seems likely the experience will make him a better captain. Also, canonically speaking, this is the only scene in which we get the chance to judge him. Still, even with these considerations, it's impossible to imagine some of the more well-known  Enterprise  captains acting quite so skittish or indecisive, even during their first time in the big chair.

Edward Jellico is too narrow-minded to captain the Enterprise

Ronny Cox has the distinction of not only appearing on one of Star Trek: The Next Generation 's most beloved two-parters — season 6's "Chain of Command" — but of playing one of the franchise's most hated captains. Captain Edward Jellico transfers from the USS Cairo  to the  Enterprise  in order to replace Jean-Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) indefinitely. The change is made so Jellico can conduct negotiations with the Cardassians while Picard is sent on what some believe is a suicide mission.

A lot of the fan hatred for Jellico can be boiled down to the fact that he's the new guy. For example, two moments that irk fans are when he orders Livingston, Picard's pet fish , removed from the Ready Room and when he insists Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) start wearing her uniform on the bridge. While, yes, these are big changes, they aren't unreasonable ones. Honestly, it makes you wonder why Troi has gotten a pass as far as uniforms are concerned all this time.

Where Jellico really does deserve some of the fan rejection is his unwillingness to listen to his officers, particularly when it comes to Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes). It's part of the first officer's job to discreetly express any concerns to the captain about their orders. But Jellico treats any questioning from Riker like a full-blown mutiny. Thankfully, Picard survives his mission and resumes command of the Enterprise . 

Will Decker is a good man who doesn't get much of a chance

Will Decker (Stephen Collins) gets a raw deal in 1979's  Star Trek: The Motion Picture . After James Kirk completes his five-year mission, he recommends Decker to be his successor as captain of the  Enterprise . But Decker doesn't get very long to enjoy his promotion. Instead, he oversees the refit of the  Enterprise , only to have his rank abruptly taken away from him.

In the beginning of the film, Kirk — now an admiral — gets himself back in the  Enterprise 's chair when a powerful space-borne "intruder" is detected heading toward Earth. While it's clear that there's some validity to Kirk's experience making him the best choice for this particular job, it's just as obvious that he's unhappy behind a desk and is using the situation as an opportunity to get himself back in the thick of things. 

While we never get to see much of Decker as a captain, he takes his demotion just about as well as anyone could. He still serves aboard the ship and even saves it a couple of times during the journey to intercept the intruder, which eventually turns out to be an evolved Voyager probe originally sent from Earth in the 20th century. Decker volunteers to become one with the intruder — which calls itself V'ger. Clearly heroic and willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good, Decker would probably have a higher spot on this list if he'd had more time in the captain's chair.

Robert April deserves his accolades

Perhaps one of the lesser-known  Enterprise  captains is Robert April ( voiced by James Doohan ), who precedes both Kirk and Christopher Pike as captain of the  Enterprise . He only has one canonical appearance — in the  Star Trek: The Animated Series  season 2 episode "The Counter-Clock Incident" – and it's set long after most of his  Enterprise  missions. Regardless, the story gives us a good idea of what kind of captain April must've been.

In "The Counter-Clock Incident," April and his wife, Sarah, are in their 70s and aboard the Kirk-commanded  Enterprise  as passengers on their way to the planet Babel, where April is meant to be honored on the occasion of his mandatory retirement. On the way there, the ship is caught in a negative universe, and in order to escape, the ship needs to travel to a dead star ... which causes everyone on the ship to age backwards. Eventually the entire regular crew is so young that completing or even understanding their tasks aboard the Enterprise  is impossible. It's only because of the younger but still adult April and his wife that the  Enterprise  escapes the negative universe intact. 

April's relatively low spot on our list is mainly because we don't get much time to see him. Considering it's said he's one of the most decorated officers in Starfleet, he'd probably rate a higher spot if we had the chance to watch his canonical adventures.

Rachel Garrett gives everything for the Federation

In the season 3  TNG  episode "Yesterday's Enterprise," we meet the only woman to be appointed captain of the  Enterprise who's been revealed thus far. Tricia O'Neil plays Rachel Garrett, captain of the  Enterprise -C, who finds herself and her ship transported to a bleak future. Responding to a distress call from a Klingon outpost, Captain Garrett faces off against four Romulan warbirds. The exchange of fire causes a temporal rift, sending the  Enterprise -C over 20 years into the future, where Starfleet is fighting a losing war against the Klingon Empire. 

While we only get this one episode to see Garrett's leadership, it doesn't take long before her quality as a captain is obvious. While she's just as shocked as anyone would be about being hurled decades into the future, she doesn't let it interfere with her duty. She immediately sets to repairing the  Enterprise -C to help with the war effort, including refusing Dr. Crusher's (Gates McFadden) insistence that she rest in Enterprise -D's sick bay. 

Once Captain Picard makes it clear the best way Garrett can help is to return to her time — something that will almost certainly mean the death of her and her crew, considering the Romulan firepower waiting for them — she accepts her fate and that of her ship. Unfortunately, Garrett doesn't make it back to the past. She's killed during a Klingon attack, forcing her first officer to step in.

Christopher Pike is one of the Enterprise's best

Captain Christopher Pike has been played by more actors on TV than any other Enterprise captain. The first actor to play him was Jeffrey Hunter in the  Star Trek: The Original Series  pilot episode, "The Cage," and in flashbacks in the two-parter "The Menagerie." Sean Kenney plays the chair-bound version of Pike in "The Menagerie," and Anson Mount plays him in the second season of  Star Trek: Discovery .

Ironically, in spite of so many actors playing him, we actually haven't seen him as an Enterprise  captain much. There's his time as captain in "The Cage," but for most of  Discovery 's second season, he's captaining the titular ship rather than the  Enterprise . However, he does return to the  Enterprise  in  Discovery 's two-part season 2 finale, and he'll reportedly reprise the role in the upcoming  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .

However, we still have a good idea of what kind of  Enterprise  captain Pike was. He performs just as well or better than most captains in "The Cage," and while it may not be the  Enterprise  he's captaining for most of his time on  Discovery , it's a good bet he's just as solid and courageous in the face of danger and mind-bending discoveries on the bridge of the  Enterprise . Not to mention that — as is revealed in "The Menagerie" — we know the crippling injuries he eventually suffers are the result of Pike sacrificing his own safety to save a ship full of Starfleet cadets. 

Will Riker defeats the Federation's worst enemy

There are plenty of moments in both the  TNG  TV series and the  TNG  era of films in which Will Riker takes over the bridge from Captain Picard. For example, Riker is in charge during the battle that ultimately destroys the Enterprise -D in Star Trek: Generations , and he also takes command when the Enterprise -E races to warn the Federation of the villains' plans in 1998's Star Trek: Insurrection . But no single story more clearly proves Riker's worth as an Enterprise captain than the events of one of the best  TNG two-parters, "The Best of Both Worlds," which bridges the series' third and fourth seasons. 

Ironically, Riker is wrestling with why he keeps turning down promotions when one is thrust upon him. When Captain Picard is kidnapped by the Borg and assimilated into their collective, Riker is given a field promotion to captain and names Commander Shelby (Elizabeth Dennehy) as his first officer. In spite of the assimilated Picard — now calling himself "Locutus of Borg" — having intimate knowledge of Riker's personality and tactics, Riker manages to outmaneuver the Borg, catch them off balance, and save both Picard and the Federation from assimilation.

"The Best of Both Worlds" makes it clear that — while no one would want to see Picard taken away from the Enterprise  – Riker could've taken his mentor's place permanently, if necessary.

Spock becomes a better captain over time

Along with multiple instances of Spock (Leonard Nimoy) taking charge of the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Original Series , he takes the reins completely a couple of times in the films. Spock is the captain of an  Enterprise  mostly full of trainees between the events of  Star Trek: The Motion Picture  and 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan . He also takes command in 1991's  Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country after Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) are arrested by the Klingons. 

We don't get to see much of Spock as a captain in between the first two Trek movies, but the fact that his trainees manage to help the Enterprise  survive what proves to be one of their deadliest duels in Wrath of Khan  is evidence of his worth as a teacher. And it's difficult to imagine anyone else being able to prove Kirk and McCoy's innocence as Spock does in  Star Trek VI . 

If it weren't for Spock's evolution as a character, he might find himself a bit lower on our list. In early commands Spock enjoys during the original series — such as his time trying to save his shuttle crew in "The Galileo Seven" — Spock's overreliance on logic makes it difficult for him to serve as an effective leader. But by  Star Trek VI ,   he's learned, as he tells Kim Cattrall's Lt. Valeris, that "logic is the beginning of wisdom" and "not the end."

Jonathan Archer was a trailblazer

By the time Star Trek: Enterprise started showing us the adventures of Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula), there had been five other  Star Trek  series and nine movies, all taking place chronologically  after  the events of  Enterprise . So most fans watching  Enterprise  for the first time had already seen the experiences of captains like Kirk, Picard, Janeway, etc., and as such, some of the decisions Archer makes can seem insane .

For example, take the episode "Strange New World." When T'Pol (Jolene Blalock) warns caution before sending crew members to explore a planet that no human has set foot on before, Archer and some of the other bridge officers laugh at her concerns. When you see something like that, it's tough to ignore about a million and a half situations in Star Trek  that would make Archer want to punch himself for laughing. 

In light of this, Archer sometimes comes off as less than his future counterparts, but you have to remember that while the idea of going where "no one has gone before" is often (but not always) hyperbole in the case of future captains, it's much more literal in Archer's case. Until the very end of Enterprise , the United Federation of Planets doesn't even exist. Archer makes long lists of mistakes, but he does it because he goes down paths no other human has trod before. And like the best captains of  Trek , he does it with passion and stubborn idealism.

James T. Kirk is the Enterprise captain all others are judged against

For those more used to later captains like Picard and Janeway, James T. Kirk makes some decisions that are mind-boggling. For example, while later captains would take great pains to protect the integrity of the timeline, when Kirk beams a 20th-century fighter pilot aboard the  Enterprise in "Tomorrow is Yesterday," you practically expect him to give the guy a tour of the ship. And you would rarely expect the kind of vengeance in other captains that you see in Kirk as he pursues the Gorn in "Arena." And no Starfleet captain makes quite as many mistakes due to the "feminine wiles" of antagonists as Kirk does.

But then, there are the great moments in  Trek  that no other captain could've achieved. Kirk makes it possible for peace to be made with the Klingons in  Star Trek VI , which has far-reaching consequences in the franchise's continuing narrative. Plus, he stops the Romulans from seeing the Federation as easy prey and gives them a couple bloody noses in the meantime. 

At heart, Kirk is more of a pure adventurer than just about any other captain in the franchise, but he doesn't shirk his duty. And sometimes, his less civilized side makes him a better captain. Whether you like him or not, you have to admit that when he tells Picard in Generations , "I was out saving the galaxy when your grandfather was in diapers," there isn't a single lie in his mouth.

Jean-Luc Picard is the best the Enterprise has ever known

Probably no two  Star Trek captains are weighed against each other more often than Kirk and Picard. Picard is often treated as a more timid, snootier answer to his predecessor, but those comparisons aren't fair. Yes, Picard certainly is older than Kirk was when he took over the  Enterprise , and his overall affect feels more intellectual. But when you actually consider his actions, Picard is no diplomatic shadow of Kirk. 

Sure, he's not quite as brash, but that doesn't stop him from going against Starfleet's orders when he feels it's necessary, like when he ignores their insistence that he stay out of the fight with the Borg in  First Contact  or when he disobeys Admiral Dougherty's (Anthony Zerbe) orders in  Insurrection . He's just as passionate about meeting the unknown as Kirk, but that passion is tempered with experience. While he's often portrayed as being more academic, that isn't a weakness. It's in part Picard's education that makes him the only captain who could defend Data as well as he does in "The Measure of a Man" — or, for that matter, himself in "The Drumhead." And it also helps him to keep saying no when more quick-tempered crew members like Worf want to arm photon torpedoes every time they meet someone new. 

Overall, no other  Enterprise  captain has matched the perfect balance of sophistication, intellect, passion, and unmovable idealism as Sir Patrick Stewart's portrayal of Captain Jean-Luc Picard. That's why there can be no other choice for the top spot of  Star Trek 's  Enterprise  captains.

• U.S.S. Enterprise
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U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC-1701 Kelvin Timeline)

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The U.S.S. Enterprise was a Constitution -class Cruiser launched in 2258 of the Kelvin Timeline , an alternate reality created by the actions of Nero and Spock .

• 2 Former Crew Members
• 3 Missions involved
• 4 Missions mentioned
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History [ | ]

The Enterprise was launched in 2258 under Captain Pike. Command rapidly passed to Kirk before the ship was destroyed in 2263.

Former Crew Members [ | ]

• Science Officer 0718

Missions involved [ | ]

Missions mentioned [ | ]

Notes [ | ].

• The design of the Kelvin Enterprise in “The Measure of Morality (Part 2)” was based off its appearance in Star Trek (2009) , not the modified version from Star Trek Beyond (in game as the Kelvin Constitution Legendary Intel Battlecruiser ).

External Links [ | ]

• USS Enterprise (NCC-1701 alternate reality) at Memory Alpha , the Star Trek Wiki.
• USS Enterprise (Kelvin timeline NCC-1701) at Memory Beta , the non-canon Star Trek Wiki.
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Published May 2, 2024

It's The (Other) Enterprise! How Discovery's I.S.S. Enterprise Connects Three Eras of Star Trek

The Mirror Enterprise had a long road getting from there to here.

SPOILER WARNING: This article contains story details and plot points for Star Trek: Discovery's "Mirrors."

StarTrek.com

In the classic 1967 episode, " Mirror, Mirror ," when Kirk, Bones, Scotty, and Uhura accidentally beamed across dimensions, and onto another version of the Enterprise , the first clue that this was a parallel universe was the fact that the ship was orbiting around the Halkan homeworld from right-to-left, rather than left-to-right. So, the first glimpse of the I.S.S. Enterprise was simply that it was taking a different path, literally, zagging when it should have been zigging.

Ever since the debut of "Mirror, Mirror," the idea of an evil Enterprise grew in our imaginations, even if we didn't get to actually see it on-screen again. Even as the Mirror Universe expanded in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Star Trek: Enterprise , and Star Trek: Discovery , an on-screen glimpse of the I.S.S. Enterprise — traveling on a very different path from the U.S.S. Enterprise — remained elusive. That is, until now.

In the Discovery episode " Mirrors ," the final destination of this version of the Enterprise has been revealed, and in that revelation, the entire timeline of the Star Trek universe has been traversed. Unlike the classic 1701 of the Prime Universe, the I.S.S. Enterprise 's journey has lasted centuries. Here's how that journey unites at least three different aspects of the larger Star Trek story.

How Discovery Brings Back the Mirror Enterprise

"Mirrors"

In "Mirrors," the fifth episode of Discovery 's fifth season, Book and Burnham take a shuttlecraft into an unstable wormhole, hoping to find a trace of Moll and L'ak and the next piece of the puzzle that can lead them to the Progenitor 's elusive technology. But instead, adrift and displaced by nine centuries, and an entirely different dimension, they find the I.S.S. Enterprise , a ship Burnham never actually encountered while she was in the Mirror Universe in Discovery 's first season, but is nonetheless instantly familiar with.

While aboard, we learn that while this ship was part of the Terran Starfleet. At some point after the events of "Mirror, Mirror," a group of rebellious reformers commandeered this Enterprise , turning it into a ship of hope. Book finds a plaque on the ship which commemorates the ship's journey, pointing out that "The Terran High Chancellor was killed for trying to make reforms." This could reference Mirror Spock, though Burnham and Book would have no way of knowing that.

In "Mirror, Mirror," Kirk challenged Mirror Spock to be better, and try to reform the Empire which, we learned, actually did happen. But, interestingly, Burnham and Book only have one piece of the puzzle, the audience of all of the Star Trek franchise, has the rest.

The Deep Space Nine Connection

"Crossover"

In the 1994  Deep Space Nine episode " Crossover ," Kira and Bashir find themselves in the Mirror Universe after a warp bubble kerfuffle spits them out the Bajorian wormhole and into very unfamiliar territory. They’re in the Mirror Universe all right, but this is the 24th Century version of the Mirror Universe, not the 23rd Century time frame from "Mirror, Mirror." Kira comes face to face with her Mirror self, Intendant Kira, who tells her all about how Spock became the leader of the Empire, and began "preaching reforms" and "peace."

This neatly parallels what Book says in "Mirrors," but now, we learn that some Terrans who believed in peace escaped on the I.S.S. Enterprise . While the DS9 future of the Mirror Universe was bleak for Terrans, we now learn that some survived, and even made it to the Prime Universe thanks to the Enterprise . 

The Story of Another Wayward, Vintage Starship

"In A Mirror Darkly, Part 2"

The Constitution -class I.S.S. Enterprise 's journey from the Mirror Universe of the 23rd Century to the 32nd Century is also reminiscent of another TOS Mirror Universe starship crossover. Back in Discovery 's first season, the crew learns everything they need to know about the Mirror Universe thanks to information about the U.S.S. Defiant , a ship, which like the I.S.S. Enterprise , eventually moved across universes and time, as well.

In the 1968 Original Series episode " The Tholian Web ," the U.S.S. Defiant vanishes, only to reappear in the 2005 Enterprise two-parter, " In a Mirror, Darkly ." As Burnham puts it in "Despite Yourself," this journey is unorthodox, "Data suggests that in the future, the Defiant will encounter a phenomenon that'll bring it into this alternative universe's past." This means that not only did the Defiant cross universes, but time-traveled too, from the 23rd Century setting of The Original Series , to the 22nd Century setting of Star Trek: Enterprise . 

The I.S.S. Enterprise didn't travel from the 23rd century Mirror Universe straight to the 32nd century Prime Universe. As we learned in Discovery 's third season, crossing over directly between these universes at this point in time is impossible. But, it did crossover sometime before the end of the 24th Century; one of the mysterious 24th Century scientists, Dr. Cho, was Terran. And, that detail, brings the journey of the I.S.S. Enterprise , all the way back to the story of Discovery .

Discovery 's Hopeful Mirror Universe Tale

Book reads the journey of the I.S.S. Enterprise to Burnham, mentioning that this crew escaped all thanks to the help of a "Keplian slave turned rebel leader." Instantly, Book and Burnham know this can only mean "Action Saru" himself, from the Mirror Universe.

This detail ties into Season 3's two-parter, " Terra Firma ," in which Georgiou re-entered the Mirror Universe in the 23rd Century, at a point in time prior to Burnham's crossover in Season 1. But, in this version of the Mirror Universe, Georgiou, like Mirror Spock, tried to affect some positive change, which had dire consequences for her. But, at the same time, in this Mirror Universe, Georgiou had also freed Saru, and we did see him leading a rebellion toward the end of the episode. As the Guardian of Forever told Georgiou in " Terra Firma, Part 2 ," her actions in at least one version of the Mirror Universe had a big, positive impact, "You saved a Kelpien. And you didn't have to do that. And he'll save others. A lot of them."

So, thanks to Georgiou, Mirror Spock, and Action Saru, the story of the Mirror Universe in Star Trek: Discovery 's final season has become an optimistic one. Like the idealistic Terran rebels in Deep Space Nine 's " Through the Looking Glass ," not all stories about the darkest dimension in Star Trek have to end in despair. And thanks to crossover between dimensions, the I.S.S. Enterprise has now become a beacon of hope in not one universe, but two.

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Ryan Britt is the author of the nonfiction books Phasers on Stun! How the Making and Remaking of Star Trek Changed the World (2022), The Spice Must Flow: The Journey of Dune from Cult Novels to Visionary Sci-Fi Movies (2023), and the essay collection Luke Skywalker Can’t Read (2015). He is a longtime contributor to Star Trek.com and his writing regularly appears with Inverse, Den of Geek!, Esquire and elsewhere. He lives in Portland, Maine with his family.

Star Trek: Discovery Seasons 1-4 are streaming exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S., the UK, Canada, Switzerland, South Korea, Latin America, Germany, France, Italy, Australia and Austria. Seasons 2 and 3 also are available on the Pluto TV “Star Trek” channel in Switzerland, Germany and Austria. The series streams on Super Drama in Japan, TVNZ in New Zealand, and SkyShowtime in Spain, Portugal, Poland, The Nordics, The Netherlands, and Central and Eastern Europe and also airs on Cosmote TV in Greece. The series is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

Stay tuned to StarTrek.com for more details! And be sure to follow @StarTrek on TikTok , Instagram , Facebook , YouTube , and Twitter .

Star Trek: DS9 Revealed Captain Kirk Broke The Mirror Universe

• Kirk's influence in the Mirror Universe led to the downfall of the Terran Empire, creating a harsh dystopia.
• DS9 explored the aftermath of Mirror Spock's failed attempt to reform the Terran Empire based on Kirk's suggestions.
• Michael Piller's curiosity and the impact of Kirk's character drove the return of the Mirror Universe in DS9.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine revealed the prime timeline Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) broke the Mirror Universe during his one and only visit. At the end of Star Trek: The Original Series season 2, episode 10, "Mirror, Mirror," Kirk suggests to Mirror Universe Spock (Leonard Nimoy) that the future of the Terran Empire could be more peaceful, like the Federation in Star Trek 's prime timeline . Star Trek didn't return to the Mirror Universe for another 27 years, in DS9 season 2, episode 23, "Crossover", which aired in 1994, and revealed a number of details about how Kirk impacted the Terran Empire .

Having rejected multiple Mirror Universe storylines for Star Trek: The Next Generation , producer Michael Piller eventually gave into his curiosity in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Various Star Trek: DS9 characters crossed over into the Mirror Universe between seasons 2 and 7, beginning with "Crossover". DS9 's first Mirror Universe episode established what happened after Mirror Spock attempted to implement the changes suggested by Prime Kirk. Spock's attempts to reform the Terran Empire were a disaster, and created an even harsher dystopia than before .

Star Trek: The Mirror Universe's History Explained

Ds9s mirror universe episode revealed captain kirk broke the alternate timeline.

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 2, episode 23, "Crossover", Dr. Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) and Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) are transported to the Mirror Universe following an accident in the Bajoran wormhole . In the 24th century Mirror Universe, there is no Deep Space Nine, but there's a Terok Nor, which is overseen by the Intendant, the Mirror version of Kira. As with its prime universe counterpart, the Cardassian space station Terok Nor is an ore processing plant populated with Terran slaves.

Future Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Mirror Universe episodes featured an adapted transporter that could cross between universes.

It's revealed that Kirk had a " profound influence " on Mirror Spock, who rose to commander in chief of the Terran Empire with promises of more peaceful reform. This substantially weakened the Terran Empire so that it was unable to defend itself against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance. The Terran Empire fell, and the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance became the dominant force, meaning that Kirk ultimately seeded the downfall of the Mirror Universe. Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5, "Mirrors" revealed that Mirror Spock was executed for introducing his Kirk-influenced reforms , presumably when it was realized the Terrans could not defend themselves against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance.

Why DS9 Brought Back Star Treks Mirror Universe

Star Trek: TNG didn't do the Mirror Universe , largely because its pulpy idea wasn't in-keeping with TNG 's more serious tone. In the book Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages by Edward Gross and Mark A. Altman, Michael Piller revealed his thinking behind bringing back the Mirror Universe in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , and it was all because of Captain Kirk:

I couldn't get away from the fact that it would be interesting to know what happened after "Mirror, Mirror" finished. I couldn't escape the idea that Kirk's influence in the world that he left might have been profound and changed history. What would be more of a gross violation of the Prime Directive?

Robert Hewitt Wolfe, who contributed the idea of the fall of the Terran Empire told the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion that he wanted to explore why the Terrans were so brutal in Star Trek: The Original Series. Hewitt Wolfe's belief was that the Terrans had made themselves harsh and brutal to protect against the " barbarians at the gate "; the Klingons and Cardassians . Star Trek: Enterprise would later dismiss this idea, by revealing that the Terrans were cruel and brutal long before First Contact with the Vulcans. However, without Star Trek: Deep Space Nine revitalizing the concept, it's possible that Enterprise 's Mirror Universe two-parter may never have happened.

All episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: The Original Series are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, Ren Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

Star Trek: The Original Series

Star Trek: The Original Series follows the exploits of the crew of the USS Enterprise. On a five-year mission to explore uncharted space, Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) must trust his crew - Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (Forest DeKelley), Montgomery "Scotty" Scott (James Doohan), Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Chekov (Walter Koenig) and Sulu (George Takei) - with his life. Facing previously undiscovered life forms and civilizations and representing humanity among the stars on behalf of Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets, the Enterprise regularly comes up against impossible odds and diplomatic dilemmas.

Why Does Spock Never Talk About His Long-Lost Sister, Michael Burnham?

Star Trek: Discovery introduced a big retcon to Spock's history by revealing an adopted sister; here is why he never mentioned Michael Burnham before.

• Spock made a tough decision to keep his adopted sister a secret to protect the galaxy in "Star Trek: Discovery."
• Spock's history of keeping personal matters private helps explain why he never mentioned Michael Burnham.
• The addition of Michael Burnham to the Star Trek timeline has interesting implications for the Kelvin timeline.

When it comes to Star Trek , there is arguably no character more associated with the franchise than Spock. The Vulcan First Officer became the breakout character of the series and remained a fixture in pop culture. He is one of the few characters to make it past the original pilot for the series and then be a major character on not just Star Trek: The Original Series but original actor Leonard Nimoy returned to play a role in all six live-action films, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and the two J.J. Abrams-directed reboots where he passed the baton on to actor Zachary Quinto. In addition, actor Ethan Peck plays a young Spock on both Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , making him the character to appear in the most entries in the franchise.

As Spock's popularity grew, creators decided to expand on his backstory. One of the most controversial decisions was the revelation of Michael Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green in the series Star Trek: Discovery . The series established her as the adopted sister of Spock, a human who was raised alongside Spock by his parents, Sarek and Amanda Grayson. This was a major shock to fans as it was a huge retcon to the franchise. Plus, with Star Trek: Discovery originally being a prequel series, the character was never mentioned by Spock or anyone else in the rest of the franchise.

While the obvious answer was the character was not created then, the writers of Star Trek: Discovery came up with an answer that fits within the established Star Trek timeline to explain why she was never brought up again despite her close connection to Spock. This is why Spock never mentioned his adopted sister, Michael Burnham, before.

Spock Vowed Never To Speak of Her or the Crew of the Enterprise to Save the Galaxy

Star Trek: Discovery season one firmly established that Michael Burnham was adopted by Sarek and his wife, Amanda Grayson, following the disappearance of her parents at a young age. Then, in Season 2, she introduced characters like Captain Pike and Number One, who debuted in the original pilot for Star Trek alongside Spock . This raised many more concerns about how nobody ever mentioned Spock's adopted sister. The series provides an explanation in the season two finale, “Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2.” The Crew of the USS Discovery is able to take the rouge AI villain Control into the 31st century, which prevented itself from establishing.

The USS Discovery is reported to have been destroyed in action. To prevent another rouge AI like Control from emerging and risking Discovery's sacrifice being in vain, Spock proposed to the surviving members of the USS Enterprise and allies of Discovery to never speak of the ship or its crew again, wiping it from history essentially. This takes place in the year 2258, about eight years before the events of Star Trek: The Original Series . This was also years before Spock met many members of the crew he was closely associated with, like James Kirk, Leonard "Bones" McCoy, or Uhura, so they never met Michael Burnham or knew of her existence.

This development creates a new context for viewing Star Trek: The Original Series and all subsequent stories featuring Spock after Star Trek: Discovery . He is keeping the pain of losing his adopted sister, Michael Burnham, to himself, but he also theorizes that the crew of Discovery survived and will emerge alive in the future, which he is proven correct. While Spock does not live to see it, Michael Burnham does get to see Spock's impact on the galaxy in her absence and looks to preserve the Federation her brother defined.

Spock Is Known For Keeping Things From His Friends Before

Spock, being half-human and half-Vulcan, has been known to keep things from his closest friends until it is time to inform them of an important piece of news. This is best summed up in his younger Kelvin timeline, when in Star Trek Into Darkness he informs Captain Kirk that their new science officer is, in fact, Carol Marcus, the daughter of Admiral Marcus. When Kirk asks him when he is going to tell him, Spock replies, "When it became relevant, as it just did."

This is clear many times in Star Trek: The Original Serie s. The first was in the season two premiere, "Amok Time," where Kirk discovers that Spock is bothered to T'Pring and set to be married. Later in that season, in episode ten, “Journey to Babel,” audiences are introduced to Spock’s father, Sarek, for the first time. Kirk was surprised at the announced familial connection between them as it was clear Spock never revealed much about his family to Kirk, and the Captain only gets details from talking to Spock's mother, Amanda. These two incidents show that Spock was never one to talk about himself to Kirk, so it is not out of the realm of possibility to believe that Spock would never mention Michael Burnham in public to anyone.

Star Trek: 10 Facts About Spock You Probably Didn’t Know (Or Forgot)

This also is not the first time that Star Trek has introduced a long-lost, never-before-mentioned sibling of Spock's to the franchise and used his not being the most open with his friends as a way to explain the retcon. The main villain of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier is Sybok, who is revealed to be the half-brother of Spock, who is fully Vulcan and has a different mother. This means that Spock had two siblings: an adopted human sister and a half-brother who was fully Vulcan.

When Spock reveals to Kirk that Sybok is his brother, he is left in disbelief and thinks that Spock is lying. Kirk cites he would know if Spock had a brother, and Spock reveals that Sybok and he were raised together after Sybok's mother died. When Kirk asks why he had never mentioned it before, Spock plainly says, "I was not disposed to discuss matters of personal nature." showing that Spock only reveals information when it is absolutely important, even to those closest to him like Kirk. It certainly helps provide an explanation as to why Spock never mentioned Michael before.

Does Michael Burnham Exist in the Kelvin Timeline?

The addition of Michael Burnham to the main Star Trek timeline also creates a new wrinkle for the franchise in terms of the alternate reality created in J.J. Abrams's 2009 reboot, Star Trek . That film features a younger Spock and Kirk meeting at an earlier point in their lives, but no mention is made of Michael Burnham, despite Spock's parents being prominently featured in the first film. In fact, in the Kelvin timeline of films, it seems that the divergent event is what led to her never needing to be adopted.

The USS Kelvin is attacked and destroyed, resulting in the creation of a new timeline in 2233. In the original Star Trek timeline, Michael Burnham's parents did not go missing until 2236, which led to her being adopted and raised by Sarek. Since this is three years after the event of the Kelvin timeline's divergent origin point, it stands to reason the ripple effect in the galaxy meant that Michael Burnham's parents never went missing, and therefore, she was never adopted and raised alongside Spock. In the Kelvin timeline, Spock never had a sister, and Michael Burnham had to live and grow up with her birth parents.

Star Trek 4: Development History & Why It's Taken So Long

This might be an intentional choice by the creators as the showrunner of Star Trek: Discovery is Alex Kurtzman, who also was the co-writer of 2009's Star Trek , which created the Kelvin timeline and established the rules of how the universe works from branching off from the point of Nero's ship coming through the black hole. When writing Star Trek: Discovery , he likely picked the year that Michael Burnham's parents went missing to be set after that stardate, so it could be implied in the Kelvin timeline it altered events to where she would never need to be adopted.

It appears the creators have done a good job providing plenty of in-universe explanations for why Spock never mentioned his adopted sister in the original Star Trek series or in the Kelvin timeline movies.

Check out our interview with Michael Burnham herself, Sonequa Martin-Green, on the final season of Star Trek: Discovery below.

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Long-lost first model of the USS Enterprise from ‘Star Trek’ boldly goes home after twisting voyage

The first model of the USS Enterprise is displayed at Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

Joe Maddalena, executive vice president of Heritage Auctions, left, and Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, shake hands over the recently recovered first model of the USS Enterprise at the Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

Joe Maddalena, executive vice president of Heritage Auctions, left, and Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, the son of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry, view the recently recovered first model of the USS Enterprise at Heritage Auctions in Los Angeles, April 13, 2024. The model — used in the original “Star Trek” television series — has been returned to Eugene, decades after it went missing in the 1970s. (Josh David Jordan/Heritage Auctions via AP)

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DALLAS (AP) — The first model of the USS Enterprise — used in the opening credits of the original “Star Trek” television series — has boldly gone back home, returning to creator Gene Roddenberry’s son decades after it went missing.

The model’s disappearance sometime in the 1970s had become the subject of lore, so it caused a stir when it popped up on eBay last fall. The sellers quickly took it down, and then contacted Dallas-based Heritage Auctions to authenticate it. Last weekend, the auction house facilitated the model’s return.

Eugene “Rod” Roddenberry, CEO of Roddenberry Entertainment, said he’s thrilled to have the model that had graced the desk of his father, who died in 1991 at age 70.

“This is not going home to adorn my shelves,” Roddenberry said. “This is going to get restored and we’re working on ways to get it out so the public can see it and my hope is that it will land in a museum somewhere.”

AP AUDIO: Long-lost first model of the USS Enterprise from ‘Star Trek’ boldly goes home after twisting voyage.

AP correspondent Margie Szaroleta reports on the return of the original model of the USS Enterprise from the TV show “Star Trek.”

Heritage’s executive vice president, Joe Maddalena, said the auction house was contacted by people who said they’d discovered it a storage unit, and when it was brought into their Beverly Hills office, he and a colleague “instantly knew that it was the real thing.”

They reached out to Roddenberry, who said he appreciates that everyone involved agreed returning the model was the right thing to do. He wouldn’t go into details on the agreement reached but said “I felt it important to reward that and show appreciation for that.”

Maddalena said the model vanished in the 1970s after Gene Roddenberry loaned it to makers of “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” which was released in 1979.

“No one knew what happened to it,” Rod Roddenberry said.

The 3-foot (0.91-meter) model of the USS Enterprise was used in the show’s original pilot episode as well as the opening credits of the resulting TV series, and was the prototype for the 11-foot (3-meter) version featured in the series’ episodes. The larger model is on display at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.

The original “Star Trek” television series, which aired in the late 1960s, kicked off an ever-expanding multiverse of cultural phenomena, with TV and movie spinoffs and conventions where a fanbase of zealous and devoted Trekkies can’t get enough of memorabilia.

This USS Enterprise model would easily sell for more than $1 million at auction, but really “it’s priceless,” Maddalena said.

“It could sell for any amount and I wouldn’t be surprised because of what it is,” he said. “It is truly a cultural icon.”

Roddenberry, who was just a young boy when the model went missing, said he has spotty memories of it, “almost a deja vu.” He said it wasn’t something he’d thought much about until people began contacting him after it appeared on eBay.

“I don’t think I really, fully comprehended at first that this was the first Enterprise ever created,” he said.

He said he has no idea if there was something nefarious behind the disappearance all those decades ago or if it was just mistakenly lost, but it would be interesting to find out more about what happened.

“This piece is incredibly important and it has its own story and this would be a great piece of the story,” Roddenberry said.

Thankfully, he said, the discovery has cleared up one rumor: That it was destroyed because as a young boy, he’d thrown it into a pool.

“Finally I’m vindicated after all these years,” he said with a laugh.

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Historic Timeline: Star Trek’s LGBTQ History

Published by Erica Leff on April 17, 2024 April 17, 2024

Star Trek’s LGBTQ History

I chose to make a timeline regarding one of my favorite things,  Star Trek . It has a messy but increasingly positive history with LGBTQ issues. I would break  Star Trek ‘s LGBTQ history into 3 “eras”:

• The Original Series Era (1966-1987), where there’s no real depictions onscreen of LGBTQ issues, although fans in the late ’60s started writing Kirk/Spock fan fiction because of the characters’ relationship subtext. This is the start of the “slashfic” subgenre of fan fiction, depicting male/male relationships.
• The Reboot Era (1987-2016), where the shows  The Next Generation ,  Deep Space Nine ,  Voyager , and  Enterprise  are released, as well as the TOS reboot movies Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). During this time,  Star Trek occasionally touched on issues of gender and sexuality and were usually slightly ahead of the times on these issues. There is a lot of gay subtext in this era, as well as the controversial first female/female kiss in 1995.
• The Second Reboot Era (2016-present), starting with Star Trek Beyond , the third reboot movie, where this version of Hikaru Sulu is revealed to be gay. After this, we get the shows  Discovery ,  Picard ,  Lower Decks ,  Prodigy , and  Strange New Worlds . Here we get explicitly LGBTQ characters and stories.

It should be noted that for decades, actors playing  Star Trek  captains and other characters voiced their desire for more representation. Scott Bakula, who played Captain Jonathan Archer on  Enterprise , said “I haven’t heard anything coming down the pipeline, but I would be in favor of it. … It would be wonderful … if it was not such a huge issue, but was just there” (Starr, 2002). Fifteen years later, LGBTQ characters became a regular part of the  Star Trek  universe. While  Star Trek  is known for always having been a progressive franchise, the lack of true LGBTQ representation until after  the legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States is troubling.

Initially, when making this timeline, I simply found photos of the most important scenes. I realized that images on Imgur don’t upload very well into TimelineJS, so I decided to find videos on YouTube, which also made more sense, since a video can tell more of a story than a still image. I included the Original Series Era to make it visually clear where the eras begin and end, despite not including any points in time from that era. The timeline’s large gaps speak volumes about how afraid  Star Trek  and its owner, Paramount, were about including LGBTQ representation. I had a little trouble getting my timeline to work because I misunderstood the “publish to web” step. I thought I had to click out of window and copy the URL from the published version, not the spreadsheet itself. Once I figured out what I was doing wrong, it worked perfectly.

Starr, M. (2002, January 17). Starr report.  New York Post .

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Screen Rant

5 ways star trek: discovery’s mirror enterprise is different from uss enterprise.

The ISS Enterprise made a surprising return in Star Trek: Discovery, but what makes the Mirror Universe's starship different from the USS Enterprise?

WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery, season 5, episode 5, "Mirrors"

• ISS Enterprise from Mirror Universe makes a surprising return in Star Trek: Discovery, revealing its history and role as a refugee ship.
• Star Trek: Discovery used sets from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to recreate the ISS Enterprise, showcasing its damaged state.
• The ISS Enterprise survived until the 32nd century, becoming a beacon of hope like the USS Enterprise in both the Prime and Mirror Universes.

The Mirror Universe ISS Enterprise made a surprising return in Star Trek: Discovery , and the starship differs from the USS Enterprise of Star Trek 's Prime Timeline in several ways. Previously, the ISS Enterprise made its first and only appearance in the classic Star Trek: The Original Series episode, "Mirror, Mirror," which saw Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and some of his crew members travel to the Mirror Universe. The ISS Enterprise was the Mirror Universe's doppelganger of the Constitution Class USS Enterprise, and Star Trek: The Original Series simply redressed the Enterprise's sets to evoke the darker alternate reality.

In Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5 , "Mirrors," Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the USS Discovery continue their search for the powerful technology of the Progenitors. Their next clue leads them into a strange wormhole, where they encounter the ISS Enterprise in a pocket of interdimensional space. As Burnham and Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) face off against determined couriers Moll (Eve Harlow) and L'ak (Elias Toufexis), they uncover more about the history of the ISS Enterprise. Directed by Jen McGowan and written by Johanna Lee and Carlos Cisco, "Mirrors" reveals several differences between the USS Enterprise and her Mirror Universe counterpart.

Kirk’s Starship Enterprise Returns In Star Trek: Discovery - With A Big Twist

5 the iss enterprise used star trek: strange new worlds' sets, captain pike's enterprise sets were redressed to be its mirror universe counterpart..

To bring the ISS Enterprise to life, Star Trek: Discovery made use of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' USS Enterprise sets. With different lighting, significant damage, and some logos for the Terran Empire, Captain Christopher Pike's (Anson Mount) Enterprise became the ISS Enterprise first seen in Star Trek: The Original Series' "Mirror, Mirror." Discovery season 5 was filmed in late 2022 during the gap between filming for Strange New Worlds seasons 2 and 3, and they made great use of the bridge, sickbay, transporter room, and hallway sets.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has also filmed on Star Trek: Discovery sets, such as turning Federatiion headquarters into the chambers for Number One's (Rebecca Romijn) trial in Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 2, "Ad Astra Per Aspera."

Throughout Star Trek's long history , the franchise has found different ways to depict old ships and other settings. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's "Trials and Tribble-ations," for example, used footage from the classic TOS episode "The Trouble With Tribbles" combined with new footage of DS9's cast. While parts of the original Enterprise bridge set were recreated for "Trials and Tribble-ations," a full bridge set of a Constitution Class starship was not recreated until the two-part Mirror Universe episode of Star Trek: Enterprise , "In a Mirror, Darkly."

Star Trek: Picard season 3 also completely rebuilt a starship bridge set, this time the bridge of the USS Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation.

4 The Plaque On The ISS Enterprise Differs From The USS Enterprise

The passengers on the iss enterprise left a plaque telling their story..

As Captain Burnham and Booker explore the ISS Enterprise, they find a plaque on the wall that details some of the derelict starship's history. While almost every version of the Enterprise has had a plaque of some kind, they have never given a description of the ship's history in this way. Star Trek 's starship plaques are often in the background and thus hard to decipher. They typically give the name of the ship, the date and location where the ship was built, and sometimes a list of names of real-life production people who built the sets.

The plaque on the ISS Enterprise reveals that Mirror Universe Spock made significant reforms in the Terran Empire, but was killed by those who disagreed with him. However, those who believed in his ideals stole the ISS Enterprise and found a way to the Prime Universe, with help from Mirror Universe Saru (Doug Jones) - turns out he's "Action Saru in any universe." The crew and refugees aboard this ship likely left the plaque as a way to share the ship's story with whoever happened to find her.

3 Refugees Used The ISS Enterprise To Flee The Mirror Universe

The iss enterprise became a lifeboat for refugees seeking a better life..

After Spock's reforms changed the way the Terran Empire was run, the Empire was not as well equipped to defend itself from the Klingon/Cardassian Alliance. This Alliance eventually conquered the Empire, forcing the Terrans and Vulcans into slavery, and violently quashing any attempts at rebellion. Some rebels, however, managed to successfully stand against the Empire, at least long enough to gather a ship full of refugees and escape to the Prime Universe.

The Mirror Universe's Spock (Leonard Nimoy) became the High Chancellor who reformed the Terran Empire but was later assasinated.

While the crew of the original USS Enterprise often helped refugees and others in need, this was not the ship's main purpose. The ISS Enterprise was originally a warship used by the Terran Empire, before its crew mutinied and fled the brutal Mirror Universe. For this undoubtedly dangerous journey, the ISS Enterprise became a refugee ship, giving those who had believed in Spock's reforms the chance for a new life in a brighter universe.

What Happened To Mirror Universe Captain Kirk In Star Trek?

2 the iss enterprise survived until the 32nd century, no other enterprise has survived as long as the iss enterprise..

After the ISS Enterprise traveled to the Prime Universe, it ended up inside interdimensional space, where it remained undetected for centuries. Although the ship had sustained significant damage, it was salvageable and able to be sent back to Starfleet after Captain Burnham and Book used it to escape through the wormhole. While the technology on the ISS Enterprise is very outdated, the Federation will likely be interested in a 23rd-century starship from the Mirror Universe, particularly one as important as the Enterprise.

By the 32nd century, travel between the Mirror Universe and the Prime Universe had already "been impossible for centuries," according to Captain Burnham.

As Star Trek has a habit of destroying the Starship Enterprise , the ISS Enterprise is likely the longest-surviving ship of that name . The original USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), as commanded by Captain Pike and Captain Kirk, was destroyed in 2285 when Kirk was forced to initiate self-destruct to thwart a Klingon boarding party in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock . Several different ships have taken the name Enterprise over the years, but none have survived for as long as the ISS Enterprise.

1 One Surprising Thing The Mirror Universe Ship & USS Enterprise Have In Common

The starship enterprise is a beacon of hope in every universe..

The Mirror Universe's ISS Enterprise may have several noticeable differences from its Prime Universe counterpart, but both ships became a beacon of hope for the people aboard. Throughout the journeys of Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , the USS Enterprise has come to represent hope for numerous peoples and civilizations all over the galaxy. Countless lives would have been lost (and the galaxy destroyed multiple times over) if not for ships named Enterprise . While the ISS Enterprise caused a lot of harm during its time as a Terran warship, in the end, it became a lifeboat for the people who wanted to leave the Mirror Universe.

Star Trek: Discovery has proven that, no matter the universe, the Starship Enterprise remains a beacon of hope and a spark of light in the darkness.

Wanting to escape the violence and darkness of their own universe, the refugees risked their lives for a chance at peace and freedom. When Captain Kirk and his crew first visited the ISS Enterprise, most of its crew members were just as ruthless as every other Terran. But Kirk took a chance on Mirror Universe Spock, and while Spock's reforms ultimately failed, he inspired some Terrans to seek out a better life. If nothing else, Star Trek: Discovery has proven that, no matter the universe, the Starship Enterprise remains a beacon of hope and a spark of light in the darkness.

New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery stream Thursdays on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Discovery

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Star Trek: Movies & TV Shows In Chronological Timeline Order

These are the Movies, TV Shows, From Star Trek in Chronological Timeline Order.

• Instant Watch Options
• Movies or TV
• IMDb Rating
• In Theaters
• Release Year

1. Star Trek: Enterprise (2001–2005)

TV-PG | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

A century before Captain Kirk's five-year mission, Jonathan Archer captains the United Earth ship Enterprise during the early years of Starfleet, leading up to the Earth-Romulan War and the formation of the Federation.

Stars: Scott Bakula , John Billingsley , Jolene Blalock , Dominic Keating

Votes: 59,138

Year: 2151-2155; 2373 (Season 1-4)

2. Star Trek: Short Treks (2018–2020)

TV-PG | 10 min | Short, Action, Adventure

A series of stand-alone short films featuring characters and storylines from Star Trek: Discovery (2017).

Stars: Anson Mount , Rebecca Romijn , Ethan Peck , Jenette Goldstein

Votes: 3,150

Year: 2230's-2385 (Season 1-2)

3. Star Trek: Discovery (2017–2024)

TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

Ten years before Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise, the USS Discovery discovers new worlds and lifeforms as one Starfleet officer learns to understand all things alien.

Stars: Sonequa Martin-Green , Doug Jones , Anthony Rapp , Mary Wiseman

Votes: 135,272

Year: 2256-2257; 3188-3190 (Season 1-4)

4. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022– )

TV-PG | 52 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

A prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series, the show follows the crew of the USS Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike.

Stars: Anson Mount , Ethan Peck , Christina Chong , Melissa Navia

Votes: 58,998

Year: 2259 (Season 1) Year: 2260 (Season 2)

5. Star Trek (1966–1969)

TV-PG | 50 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

In the 23rd Century, Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise explore the galaxy and defend the United Federation of Planets.

Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , Nichelle Nichols

Votes: 92,983

Year: 2265-2269 (Season 1-3)

6. Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973–1975)

TV-Y7 | 30 min | Animation, Action, Adventure

The further adventures of Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise, as they explore the galaxy and defend the United Federation of Planets.

Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , George Takei

Votes: 8,186

Year: 2269-2270 (Season 1-2)

7. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

G | 143 min | Adventure, Mystery, Sci-Fi

When an alien spacecraft of enormous power is spotted approaching Earth, Admiral James T. Kirk resumes command of the overhauled USS Enterprise in order to intercept it.

Director: Robert Wise | Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan

Votes: 96,646 | Gross: $82.26M

8. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

PG | 113 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

With the assistance of the Enterprise crew, Admiral Kirk must stop an old nemesis, Khan Noonien Singh, from using the life-generating Genesis Device as the ultimate weapon.

Director: Nicholas Meyer | Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan

Votes: 129,255 | Gross: $78.91M

9. Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)

PG | 105 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

Admiral Kirk and his bridge crew risk their careers stealing the decommissioned U.S.S. Enterprise to return to the restricted Genesis Planet to recover Spock's body.

Director: Leonard Nimoy | Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan

Votes: 86,192 | Gross: $76.47M

Year: 2285 (After the events of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

10. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

PG | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy

To save Earth from an alien probe, Admiral James T. Kirk and his fugitive crew go back in time to San Francisco in 1986 to retrieve the only beings who can communicate with it: humpback whales.

Votes: 91,509 | Gross: $109.71M

11. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)

PG | 107 min | Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Captain Kirk and his crew must deal with Mr. Spock's long-lost half-brother who hijacks the Enterprise for an obsessive search for God at the center of the galaxy.

Director: William Shatner | Stars: William Shatner , Leonard Nimoy , DeForest Kelley , James Doohan

Votes: 64,224 | Gross: $52.21M

12. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

PG | 110 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

On the eve of retirement, Kirk and McCoy are charged with assassinating the Klingon High Chancellor and imprisoned. The Enterprise crew must help them escape to thwart a conspiracy aimed at sabotaging the last best hope for peace.

Votes: 80,917 | Gross: $74.89M

13. Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994)

TV-PG | 45 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

Set almost 100 years after Captain Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers sets off in the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on its own mission to go where no one has gone before.

Stars: Patrick Stewart , Brent Spiner , Jonathan Frakes , LeVar Burton

Votes: 136,168

Year: 2364-2370 (Season 1-7)

14. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999)

In the vicinity of the liberated planet of Bajor, the Federation space station Deep Space Nine guards the opening of a stable wormhole to the far side of the galaxy.

Stars: Avery Brooks , Rene Auberjonois , Cirroc Lofton , Alexander Siddig

Votes: 70,841

Year: 2369-2375 (Season 1-7)

15. Star Trek: Voyager (1995–2001)

TV-PG | 44 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

Pulled to the far side of the galaxy, where the Federation is seventy-five years away at maximum warp speed, a Starfleet ship must cooperate with Maquis rebels to find a way home.

Stars: Kate Mulgrew , Robert Beltran , Roxann Dawson , Robert Duncan McNeill

Votes: 77,386

Year: 2371-2378; 3074 (Season 1-7)

16. Star Trek: Generations (1994)

PG | 118 min | Action, Adventure, Mystery

With the help of long presumed dead Captain Kirk, Captain Picard must stop a deranged scientist willing to murder on a planetary scale in order to enter a space matrix.

Director: David Carson | Stars: Patrick Stewart , William Shatner , Malcolm McDowell , Jonathan Frakes

Votes: 87,070 | Gross: $75.67M

17. Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

PG-13 | 111 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

The Borg travel back in time intent on preventing Earth's first contact with an alien species. Captain Picard and his crew pursue them to ensure that Zefram Cochrane makes his maiden flight reaching warp speed.

Director: Jonathan Frakes | Stars: Patrick Stewart , Jonathan Frakes , Brent Spiner , LeVar Burton

Votes: 132,103 | Gross: $92.00M

18. Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)

PG | 103 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

When the crew of the Enterprise learn of a Federation conspiracy against the inhabitants of a unique planet, Captain Picard begins an open rebellion.

Votes: 79,485 | Gross: $70.12M

19. Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)

PG-13 | 116 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

The Enterprise is diverted to the Romulan homeworld Romulus, supposedly because they want to negotiate a peace treaty. Captain Picard and his crew discover a serious threat to the Federation once Praetor Shinzon plans to attack Earth.

Director: Stuart Baird | Stars: Patrick Stewart , Jonathan Frakes , Brent Spiner , LeVar Burton

Votes: 83,948 | Gross: $43.25M

20. Star Trek: Lower Decks (2020–2024)

TV-14 | 25 min | Animation, Action, Adventure

The support crew serving on one of Starfleet's least important ships, the U.S.S. Cerritos, have to keep up with their duties, often while the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies.

Stars: Tawny Newsome , Jack Quaid , Noël Wells , Eugene Cordero

Votes: 25,006

Year: 2380-2381 (Season 1-4)

21. Star Trek: Prodigy (2021–2024)

TV-Y7 | 24 min | Animation, Action, Adventure

A group of enslaved teenagers steal a derelict Starfleet vessel to escape and explore the galaxy.

Stars: Rylee Alazraqui , Dee Bradley Baker , Brett Gray , Angus Imrie

Votes: 5,598

Year: 2383 (Season 1-2)

22. Star Trek: Picard (2020–2023)

TV-MA | 46 min | Action, Adventure, Drama

Follow-up series to Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987) and Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) that centers on Jean-Luc Picard in the next chapter of his life.

Stars: Patrick Stewart , Michelle Hurd , Jeri Ryan , Alison Pill

Votes: 94,765

Year: 2399-2402 (Season 1-3)

23. Star Trek: Section 31 (2025)

Action, Adventure, Drama | Filming

In Star Trek: Section 31, Emperor Philippa Georgiou, joins a secret division of Starfleet tasked with protecting the United Federation of Planets and faces the sins of her past.

Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi | Stars: Michelle Yeoh , Sam Richardson , Kacey Rohl , Avaah Blackwell

24. Untitled Star Trek expand

Adventure, Drama | Pre-production

Plot under wraps.

Director: Toby Haynes

Year: 2208 (50-years before the events of the Star Trek Franchise in the Kelvinverse)

25. Star Trek (2009)

PG-13 | 127 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

The brash James T. Kirk tries to live up to his father's legacy with Mr. Spock keeping him in check as a vengeful Romulan from the future creates black holes to destroy the Federation one planet at a time.

Director: J.J. Abrams | Stars: Chris Pine , Zachary Quinto , Simon Pegg , Leonard Nimoy

Votes: 620,377 | Gross: $257.73M

Year: 2258 (Kelvinverse)

26. Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

PG-13 | 132 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

After the crew of the Enterprise find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one-man weapon of mass destruction.

Director: J.J. Abrams | Stars: Chris Pine , Zachary Quinto , Zoe Saldana , Benedict Cumberbatch

Votes: 497,145 | Gross: $228.78M

Year: 2259 (1-year after the events of Star Trek (2009) in the Kelvinverse)

27. Star Trek Beyond (2016)

PG-13 | 122 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

The crew of the USS Enterprise explores the furthest reaches of uncharted space, where they encounter a new ruthless enemy, who puts them, and everything the Federation stands for, to the test.

Director: Justin Lin | Stars: Chris Pine , Zachary Quinto , Karl Urban , Zoe Saldana

Votes: 258,572 | Gross: $158.85M

Year: 2263 (4-years after the events of Star Trek Into Darkness in the Kelvinverse)

28. Untitled Star Trek: Beyond Sequel

Action, Adventure, Mystery | Pre-production

Plot kept under wraps. The follow-up to Star Trek Beyond (2016).

Stars: Chris Pine , Karl Urban , Zoe Saldana , Simon Pegg

Year: 2266 (3-years after the events of Star Trek Beyond in the Kelvinverse)

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