| Admiral (star Trek) |
Article Index for Admiral |
Website Links For Admiral |
Information AboutAdmiral (star Trek) |
Admiral is the second highest commissioned Starfleet Rank in the Star Trek Fictional Universe . This Flag Rank is analogous to the actual Rank of Admiral , the second highest Military Rank – below Fleet Admiral and above Vice Admiral – in many Navies , particularly the United States Navy after which the rank system in Starfleet is largely based. Admiral was a rare rank in the early days of '''' (''TOS''), in particular since the nature of the first season ''TOS'' plots did not have the crew of the Starship '' Enterprise'' coming into frequent contact with senior officers of the Starfleet Admiralty. The first such instance was in the episode " The Menagerie " with the introduction of " Commodore Mendez". A full Admiral, however, was not seen on camera until the second season of ''Star Trek'' during the episode " Amok Time ". The Admiral in question, Admiral Komack , was then only visible via long range communications on a viewscreen and at such an angle where sleeve Insignia on his Uniform were not visible. It is for this reason that, during the time frame of ''TOS'', all insignia above the rank of Commodore remain unknown. In all of ''TOS'', a grand total of four Admirals appeared on camera, those being:
With the exception of a very brief shot in "'' that an actual Admiral's insignia was seen clearly on camera, that being the insignia for Rear Admiral James T. Kirk . In the film, Kirk speaks of meeting with a more senior Admiral (a character named Fleet Admiral Nogura ), but this person is never seen, thereby leaving speculation as to how a senior Admiral's insignia may appear. In the next feature film, '''', Kirk is the ''only'' Admiral seen in the entire film. Kirk's actual rank in the film is also questionable, as he is addressed simply as "Admiral", however based on '' The Star Trek Encyclopedia '' Kirk may have been a Vice Admiral or perhaps even still a Rear Admiral . It was not until later feature films that additional Admirals were seen on camera and the full scope of the ' Movie Rank Pins ' was established. The first season of '''' (''TNG'') was slow to introduce Admirals. With the exception of a cameo appearance by Leonard McCoy , in the pilot episode " Encounter At Farpoint "(and then, not even in uniform), an Admiral was not seen in the ''TNG'' series until Q impersonated one in the episode " Hide And Q ". It should be noted that Q's false Admiral uniform was never again seen in any subsequent Star Trek production. In the first season ''TNG'' episode " Too Short A Season ", a 24th century Starfleet Admiral is at last seen on camera, in the person of Rear Admiral Mark Jameson. Jameson's appearance introduces viewers to an unusual form of insignia and uniform (with gold trim) that did not last past the show's first season. In the second season of ''TNG'', as well as all subsequent productions, Admirals appear much more frequently with a simpler system of pip insignia worn within 'rank boxes' on both collars of revamped uniforms with gold trim. The later Star Trek series – '''' – used the same insignia as in ''TNG'' with little variance but with different uniforms. When '''' debuted, the pilot episode " Broken Bow " established how 22nd century Admiral insignia appears thanks to the character of Vice Admiral Forrest . Later episodes of ''Star Trek: Enterprise'' established the complete system of Admiralty ranks in use during that time to appear as grey pips similar to the Admiral pips used in the 'later era' series such as ''TNG'' and ''DS9''. FOOTNOTES |
|
|