| Lieutenant Commander (star Trek) |
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Information AboutLieutenant Commander (star Trek) |
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned Rank of the Starfleet in the fictional universe of Star Trek . Lieutenant Commander is one of the oldest ranks in ''Star Trek'' tracing its origins to the character of Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell seen in the Original Series pilot episode " Where No Man Has Gone Before ". The Original Series characters of Montgomery Scott, Leonard McCoy, and Mr. Spock also held the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Guest star Lieutenant Commanders can be seen in the Original Series episodes " The Alternative Factor " (unnamed Navigator), " Return To Tomorrow " (Doctor Ann Mulhull), and " The Tholian Web " (several Lieutenant Commanders at Kirk’s eulogy). In ''Star Trek: The Motion Picture'', although not referred to in the dialogue, the characters of Uhura and Sulu become Lieutenant Commanders as is evidenced by an examination of the Motion Picture era sleeve stripes. A Lieutenant Commander does not appear again until '''', with the appearance of the character of Valeris . Valeris is referred throughout the film as a Lieutenant, but post production references indicate that Valeris was a Lieutenant Commander and can be seen wearing the appropriate rank pin. Valeris’s rank insignia is the only instance where the film era rank of Lieutenant Commander is seen on camera. ''''. In the Next Generation episode " The Best Of Both Worlds ", Lieutenant Commander Shelby appears as a guest role yet is referred to in several instances as a Lieutenant. This may have been a protocol of Starfleet whereby the rank of Lieutenant Commander may be verbally shortened to Lieutenant. This would also explain the nomenclature of Valeris during the time frame of ''Star Trek VI''. Alternatively, accidentally calling a Lieutenant Commander “Lieutenant” may simply have been a script error. In ''Star Trek Voyager'', the character of Tuvok is seen as a Lieutenant Commander in the first episodes of the series yet is also referred to as a Lieutenant. Tuvok later begins wearing Lieutenant insignia, without explanation, and is subsequently promoted back to Lieutenant Commander later in the series. Producers of the Voyager series have admitted in recent years that Tuvok’s rank in the early episodes was simply the result of a costume error. Another oddity with the rank of Lieutenant Commander occurred in the Next Generation episode " Man Of The People " when Geordi La Forge is seen wearing an insignia consisting of one solid pip and two hollow (essentially "backwards" from the established Lieutenant Commander insignia). While simply a costume error, Star Trek fans have speculated the existence of a new rank known as "Second Lieutenant Commander", senior to a Lieutenant yet junior to a regular Lieutenant Commander. Such a rank has never been mentioned or declared in any official Star Trek work, and therefore is considered pure theory. ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' was slow to introduce Lieutenant Commanders, but the character of Jadzia Dax would obtain the rank in later seasons. Lieutenant Commander Worf would also later join Deep Space Nine from the Next Generation series. In the most recent Star Trek series, ''Star Trek Enterprise'', Lieutenant Commander does not exist as a rank and has never been seen on camera. The fourth season episode " In A Mirror, Darkly ", however, mentions that Hoshi Sato will one day retire from Starfleet with the rank of Lieutenant Commander. FOOTNOTES |
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