Like basically every current Star Trek fan, I love the character of Captain Pike as Anson Mount portrays him. I wonder, though, to what extent he is actually the same guy from āThe Cage.ā If we had only that episode to work from (which the Discovery and SNW writers initially did), we would know that he is broody, that he struggles with the responsibility he bears for the lives of others, and that he is remarkably able to conjure up emotions like anger and hate on command. Does any of that fit with Pike as we know him now?
One way to answer this question would be to imagine a very literal remake of the original pilot recast with the current actors. Everyone else would basically make sense, but I think seeing the current Pike act out his scenes would be jarring and even a little upsetting.
Iām sure we can come up with in-universe explanations ā he was having a particularly bad day, heās grown as a person, etc., etc. ā but it does seem like the current-day writers are departing pretty abruptly from the ostensible basis for the character. What do you think?
Yeah, I think heās absolutely the same person.
Firstly, āThe Cageā portrays him at what I think is pretty unquestionably a low point - it wouldnāt be fair to assume heās normally that angst-ridden.
BOYCE: Chris, you set standards for yourself no one could meet. You treat everyone on board like a human being except yourself, and now youāre tired and you-
PIKE: You bet Iām tired. You bet. Iām tired of being responsible for two hundred and three lives. Iām tired of deciding which mission is too risky and which isnāt, and whoās going on the landing party and who doesnāt, and who lives and who dies. Boy, Iāve had it, Phil.
The Pike we meet in āDiscoveryā is a couple of years removed from the mission on Rigel VII, and has been able to bounce back a bit. All the same, his character is practically defined by his faith in Starfleetās mission, and his willingness to make sacrifices in the pursuit of that mission, while also being acutely aware of the toll that takesā¦
The Pike we meet in āDiscoveryā is a couple of years removed from the mission on Rigel VII, and has been able to bounce back a bit. All the same, his character is practically defined by his faith in Starfleetās mission, and his willingness to make sacrifices in the pursuit of that mission, while also being acutely aware of the toll that takesā¦
We also know that by Strange New Worlds, heās effectively retired to a small farm out in some snowy place, and decided to put his Starfleet career behind him.
It took an admiral effectively kidnapping him for him to even consider getting back in the Captainās Chair.
Iāve always preferred to skip āThe Cageā and considered āThe Menagerieā the definitive view of Pikeās enterprise. It may appear to be a subtle distinction, but I think viewed through this lens the answer to your question becomes a much stronger āYesā.
Could you elaborate?
āThe Cageā shows us a brief glimpse at a gruff, no-nonsense Pike who appears closed off if not straight-up unfriendly. āThe Menagerieā shows us the same person but presented through the framing of not only a very well respected starfleet captain, but someone Spock would personally risk his entire career for. In this context TOS Pikeās rough edges get considerably softened, which brings what we see of the character much more in line with what weāve come to expect in SNW.
āThe Cageā also technically isnāt part of continuity while āThe Menagerieā definitely is. Also helps to smooth out some other stuff, like Pike making sexist comments in āThe Cageā; that isnāt part of āThe Menagerieā so it didnāt happen in continuity.
Didnāt they literally use clips from āThe Cageā in a previously on in Discovery? Iād say that cononised it.
When James Bond was no longer portrayed exclusively by Sean Connery it was pretty jarring. But I got used to it, and after a while I didnāt really think much of it.
Jeffrey Hunter is pretty wooden in the role (as are almost all the actors in The Cage). He comes across as a flat, somewhat listless characters with issues with women. Anson Mount plays the role with a much better sense of the humanity of Pike.
Iād love to see a literal remake but there are scenes that just wouldnāt work (eg. the creepy scene where the young female ensign speaks to him).
Exhibit A would be the Pike that we see in SNW: āAmong the Lotus Eatersā who damn nearly killed Zac Nguyen while a blank slate, before his memories and restraint were restored.
So yes, that Pike from 5 years ago is still under there. He grew as a person.
