Skip to main content

star trek - Why would Worf be First Officer of the Enterprise?



I'm specifically referring to the episode(s) Gambit. In the absence of Riker and Picard, Data takes command of the Enterprise and Worf is second in command.


This seems wrong however, because he is not the next highest ranking officer on the ship. While he was outranked by both Dr. Crusher and Counselor Troi, neither of them would be considered for a command position unless it was absolutely necessary because they were needed elsewhere and had limited bridge experience.


More notably, Geordi would seem to be a more logical choice. He had outranked Worf for around 5 years as he was apparently promoted to full Lieutenant at the beginning of season 2 and Lt. Commander at the beginning of season 3. Worf remained a Lieutenant Junior Grade until Season 3 and made Lt. Commander at the beginning of Generations.


Also, LaForge had commanded the Enterprise on at least one occasion prior to this incident.


Why not have Geordi as first officer? I'm looking for an in universe reason.



Answer



There's a few things going on here;


The position of First Officer is at the gift of the captain and doesn't necessarily go to either the next highest ranking person on the ship, nor the person who current holds the next chain-of-command rank down (hence why Data was passed over in TNG: Best of Both Worlds, Part II). This means that Data can choose whoever he wants.


In the absence of both Picard and Riker he selects the ship's current Third Officer, his direct subordinate Worf, to be his First Officer over LaForge. Geordi theoretically holds a higher rank but he's evidently more useful remaining as Chief Engineer.


In TNG: Gambit, Part II Data makes it abundantly clear that he has the power to give the role and take it away as he sees fit.




DATA: If you feel that you are not capable of carrying out this role, I can assign it to Commander La Forge and return you to Tactical. I would not enter it as a reprimand on your record... simply as a transfer.


WORF: I would... prefer to remain at my current post.



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

harry potter - How could Expelliarmus beat Avada Kedavra?

I want to be very careful about how I ask this question – I am not asking How did Voldemort die? [CLOSED] Below the text is the relevant passages from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows if anyone wants to review them (I'm sorry for the amount of text). How did Expelliarmus beat Avada Kedavra and kill Voldemort? I feel the reason Harry's Expelliarmus overpowered Voldemort's Avada Kedavra curse has to do with who was master of the Elder Wand and how the Elder Wand works. I've always had trouble understanding fully how the Elder Wand works, though. How much did the fact that Voldemort never truly won or mastered the Elder Wand factor into how Expelliarmus reacted to Avada Kedavra and caused Avada Kedavra to rebound and kill Voldemort? An answer based in book canon would be especially welcome, but any canon source really is fine. Harry heard the high voice shriek as he, too, yelled his best hope to the heavens, pointing Draco’s wand: ‘ Avada Kedavra !’ ‘ Expelliarmus !...
Post a Comment
Read more

game of thrones - Is Syrio Forel dead?

In the episode 'The Pointy End' (Season 1 Episode 8) when Arya runs from the Lannister guards you hear the sound of a sword being dropped (around 4:56): [embedded content] After that neither Syrio or Ser Meryn Trant is never mentioned or seen in the show again, except when Arya mentions to the Hound that Ser Meryn Trant killed Syrio. Is there any mention in the books that Syrio actually dies?
Post a Comment
Read more

tolkiens legendarium - Difference between elves and dwarves blacksmithing in the Lord of the Rings

Both the elves and the dwarves were famous for their metal work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but what is the difference between what they made, and which one had the better skill of making amours and swords? Answer James Christopher's answer sums up the second part of your question well, but as to the difference in what they made, a little more detail is needed. Once the Elves learned to forge with steel, the shape of the sword changed, now being able to take on the form of a great broadsword or a light and agile curved sword. Additionally, they took great pride in decorating their swords. As we see in the Lord of the Rings , some swords like Sting had magical properties such as glowing blue when orcs are near. As far as the use of Mithril, lotr.wikia has two contradictory passages: Thus, Elven blades became renowned as great weapons, capable of performing deeds beyond the skill of their handlers and were even more glorious when the use of Mithril was allowed to the Elves. ...
Post a Comment
Read more