O?Neil As Garrett: A Badge Of Honor

[TrekToday]

For Tricia O’Neil, playing the first Star Trek female captain of the Enterprise in TNG’s Yesterday’s Enterprise was something special. O’Neil had not been trying to get the role of Rachel Garrett when she got the call to come in and audition for it. “I’d auditioned for other roles on the show. I didn’t get [...]

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[Mutai Sho-Rin]

She also had a major part in a Babylon 5 ep, Believers. A very good actress.

[Vanyel]

She made history with the part of Captain Garrett: The first, and so far only, female Captain of a Federation Starship Enterprise.

In my opinion Garrett is also the ballsiest Captain of ANY Federation Starship. She took on 4 Romulan Warbirds, and was ready to go back on the chance that by taking her damaged ship back into a hopeless fight she might change history and save the Federation.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Vanyel wrote:

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She made history with the part of Captain Garrett: The first, and so far only, female Captain of a Federation Starship Enterprise.

Maybe onscreen, but in the novels I believe Demora Sulu took over command of the Ent-B when Harriman retired.

As for Garrett: We should have known what was coming when we first met her: her entire bridge smashed, she herself critically wounded, yet when Riker comes over and won't say what ship he's from, she says "You'll explain NOW, Commander!"

[tomalak301]

Wasn't Demora an ensign? What is this, JJ Abrams Star Trek? I thought you actually had to work to be promoted, and somethings even hard work didn't pay off. Just ask Harry Kim.

[CorporalClegg]

Loved O'neil as Garrett. It's really too bad there wasn't more of her in the episode. I think there's a lot of untapped potential there.

A retelling of the Enterprise-C incident would make for an excellent film and is second on my Trek wish list after a film version of "Balance of Terror." Though, Garrett's story is quickly gaining likability, especially with the potential it has within the nuVerse.

tomalak301 wrote:

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Wasn't Demora an ensign? What is this, JJ Abrams Star Trek? I thought you actually had to work to be promoted, and somethings even hard work didn't pay off. Just ask Harry Kim.

This was like 20 years after Generations.

Sulu had worked her way up the ranks and become Harriman's XO in the meantime.

At least I believe so. Haven't read much of that era.

[Mark_Nguyen]

Memory Beta confirms this pretty much. Personally I don't think anyone would spend their entire career on one ship from Ensign to CO...

And Garrett was awesome as a CO. Cool, controled, full of hidden badassery. AND her hair was friggin ROCK HARD after she left sickbay. They must have sprayed a transparent cast onto her head.

Rachel Garrett - thematic precursor to Kathryn Janeway? Discuss.

Mark

[tomalak301]

CorporalClegg wrote:

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This was like 20 years after Generations.

Sulu had worked her way up the ranks and become Harriman's XO in the meantime.

At least I believe so. Haven't read much of that era.

How long was Harriman captain? I'm glad post Tuesday he ended up being a good one if it was 20 years because those first few days didn't start out well.

[Mark_Nguyen]

Few YEARS, really. In the novels, he quickly traded command inexperience for some serious daddy issues. Got over them eventually, but following that there wasn't much else to explore with him IMO. However, you could argue that per the novels he was the Captain with the longest unbroken command of any Enterprise CO in history, being in charge of the Enterprise-B from 2293 to 2311 (Kirk had two Enterprises over 28 years, but with various breaks in between). Garrett may be second in line per the novels, if she was indeed the Enterprise-C's only CO between 2332 and 2344.

Mark

[Bry_Sinclair]

Rachel Garrett was a badass Captain, who deserved the E-C. Its just such a shame she was KIA, I would have loved to seen more of her. She is definately the kind of CO I would have followed into a hopeless battle.

Luckily though Tricia O'Neil returned twice more to Trek as a Klingon scientist (Kurak?) and then as Korinas in DS9 (who is another character I would have loved to have seen return).

[misskorya]

I love Rachel Garrett. I have the Well of Souls from the Lost Era novel series. This just adds to her, and yes she is a badass and this largely unexplored era can still be explored.

Since we only have timelines. I'd love to see at least a mini-series on the ENT-C right before she entered battle. We know her fate, and we know what happened before but to see her in battle and before would be great.

Tricia Helifer? Correct my spelling on her name, she was in Battlestar? I think she'd be a good pick.

[Vanyel]

Mr. Laser Beam wrote:

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Maybe onscreen, but in the novels I believe Demora Sulu took over command of the Ent-B when Harriman retired.

As for Garrett: We should have known what was coming when we first met her: her entire bridge smashed, she herself critically wounded, yet when Riker comes over and won't say what ship he's from, she says "You'll explain NOW, Commander!"

In canon, she is the first and only, female Captain of a Federation Starship Enterprise.

Her bad assery is also shown in her scene with Picard in Sickbay.

Garrett: You must have heard it. From the Klingon outpost Narendra Three. But you didn't. Did you? This sickbay, I've never seen anything like it, even on a starbase. And your uniform. What ship is this, Captain?

Crusher: Please try to be still.

Garrett: I must insist. What ship?

She stood up to Picard while still laying injured in sickbay.

And in Sickbay, she was also bad ass.

Garrett: Concentrate on the weapon systems. From what Captain Picard told me, the Federation can use all the help it can get.

Tasha: And soon. Our sensors have picked up Klingon warships in this sector, Captain.

Garrett begins to sit up.
Garrett: Why wasn't I informed Mister Castillo?

Castillo: Captain, you shouldn't...

Garrett: As senior officer, I want you to be my liaison to the Enterprise-D. Coordinate with Tactical.

Tasha: That's me, Captain.

Crusher walks over to Garrett.
Crusher: Where do you think you're going?

Garrett: I'm resuming my duties, Doctor.

Crusher: Captain, you need at least another twenty four hours.

Garrett: Nonsense, doctors always over-protect their patients.

Crusher: And captains always push themselves too hard.

Garrett: Doctor, my ship and crew need me now. Twenty-four hours might as well be twenty-four years.

She did have a lot of good lines.

[t_smitts]

Mutai Sho-Rin wrote:

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She also had a major part in a Babylon 5 ep, Believers. A very good actress.

She played two roles on B5. The first was in "Believers" (which was written by David Gerrold, BTW) where she played an the female half of an alien couple who won't let Dr. Franklin operate on their boy because of cultural beliefs against surgery (cutting him open will allow his soul to escape or something like that). It's an interesting, thought provoking episode, but it's such a downer ending that it's not one I care to rewatch.

The second was the President of the Earth Alliance in the movie "In the Beginning". She just has one scene appealing to ANY Earth ship, military or civilian, to join in the Battle of the Line (the final, seemingly hopeless, confrontation against the Minbari fleet over Earth, for anyone who, for whatever reason, hasn't seen B5), acknowledging that no ship has a hope of surviving, but every minute buys more time for civilians to escape.

It's a moving scene, but I read in an interview that she still rates playing Captain Garrett above being the President of Earth!

Mark_Nguyen wrote:

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Memory Beta confirms this pretty much. Personally I don't think anyone would spend their entire career on one ship from Ensign to CO...

And Garrett was awesome as a CO. Cool, controled, full of hidden badassery. AND her hair was friggin ROCK HARD after she left sickbay. They must have sprayed a transparent cast onto her head.

Rachel Garrett - thematic precursor to Kathryn Janeway? Discuss.

Mark

I actually found Garrett infinitely more likeable, but it's hard to compare a one-shot character to a seven-season one. A lot of that is writing too.

She was really the first female captain of any substance in Star Trek. The Saratoga captain in ST4 really didn't do much, and Trylla Scott warned Picard to watch out for those parasites in "Conspiracy", but didn't even follow her own advice.

Most of the ones who came after her weren't much more memorable: Captain Zaheva of the Brattain was only seen in recordings getting progressively more paranoid without REM sleep. We didn't really get to see what Geordi's mom was like as a captain.

Captain Benteen, the only female captain on DS9. had an impressive battle with the Defiant, but we only saw it from the Defiant crew's POV. Ironically, Janaway, IIRC was the ONLY female Starfleet captain on Voyager. Captain Hernandez did pretty well for herself. I wouldn't have minded if she had continued to show up and help out in the occasional episode, kind of like Sulu did in ST6.

Bry_Sinclair wrote:

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Rachel Garrett was a badass Captain, who deserved the E-C. Its just such a shame she was KIA, I would have loved to seen more of her. She is definately the kind of CO I would have followed into a hopeless battle.

Luckily though Tricia O'Neil returned twice more to Trek as a Klingon scientist (Kurak?) and then as Korinas in DS9 (who is another character I would have loved to have seen return).

Kurak's turned up as an engineer on the IKS Gorkon in the novels.

The first time I saw the episode "Defiant", I remember wanting to wipe that smug grin off Korinas' face. Not since Duras, I think, has a character been so wonderfully easy to hate. Pity we didn't see her with the Obsidian Order / Tal Shiar fleet, getting a well-deserved comeuppance a few episodes later.

All three roles were good, but Garrett, unquestionably, is the best one.

[Lance]

t_smitts wrote:

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Trylla Scott warned Picard to watch out for those parasites in "Conspiracy", but didn't even follow her own advice.

My impression was that she was supposed to have been suspect all along, ie. that she was a mole in the initial "meeting of Captains" at the start of the episode, and that it was her who sold all of the others up the river (resulting in the destruction of Walker Keel's ship). Maybe she hadn't actually been "got at" by that stage, but I'd assumed maybe she was following orders from Admirals who had become compromised by the parasites.

[t_smitts]

Lance wrote:

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My impression was that she was supposed to have been suspect all along, ie. that she was a mole in the initial "meeting of Captains" at the start of the episode, and that it was her who sold all of the others up the river (resulting in the destruction of Walker Keel's ship). Maybe she hadn't actually been "got at" by that stage, but I'd assumed maybe she was following orders from Admirals who had become compromised by the parasites.

There's no way to be sure, though one would think Keel would've grilled her as hard as he did Picard shortly thereafter.