Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Captain?

[USS Triumphant]

Rewatching Star Trek tonight, and two things have occurred to me:

1. (And this isn't related to the topic question) Was the cadet punching Kirk in the face over and over in the bar supposed to be Finnegan?

2. Since Pike promoted Kirk to first officer right before sending him on a suicide drop to the drill platform, is it possible that the promotion was intended more in the way of a "this will look better on your headstone" sort of thing?

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

2. I assumed it was because the primary fleet was in the whatever system and this being a legitimate distress call mission all cadets who were close to graduation were given field promotions. Kirk studying for command position and would've graduated with a rank of Lieutenant. Pike had followed Kirk's test scores before he entered Star Fleet and probably continued to follow them through Kirk's tenure through the academy. Says a lot about Kirk that Pike had such confidence in him instead of the other officers assigned to the Enterprise's chain of command.

Or just a dictation of the writers and director to het Kirk in place faster by the end of the movie.

 

[Enterprise is Great]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

Rewatching Star Trek tonight, and two things have occurred to me:

1. (And this isn't related to the topic question) Was the cadet punching Kirk in the face over and over in the bar supposed to be Finnegan?

That's the guy Kirk called Capcake? He's not Finnegan but he's supposed to be Hendorf a red shirted security guard from the TOS episode "The Apple".

 

[Melakon]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

(2) I think Pike was fully aware that naming Kirk as first officer put him second-in-command. Remember that Kirk was Pike's pet project, he specifically sought him out to persuade Kirk to enter Starfleet. The first officer assignment was intended for Kirk to gain more command experience.

It's debatable whether Pike anticipated Spock having an emotional breakdown, as Vulcan was in jeopardy but no one yet knew the planet would be destroyed. Pike knew exactly what he was doing in giving Kirk the assignment, based on the information then available (the task force obliterated and Vulcan in danger).

A fourth year command track cadet, however, might disagree with Pike's decision.

(Though it does seem a bit odd there were apparently few senior officers aboard.)

 

[Pondslider]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

Yeah. I think Pike just a lot of confidence in Kirk and the way he took the evidence he was presented with to tell they were going into a trap. I don't think he anticipated Kirk becoming Captain, but he knew that Kirk would rise to the challenge when the ship needed him.

 

[Mage]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

Yeah. I think Pike just a lot of confidence in Kirk and the way he took the evidence he was presented with to tell they were going into a trap. I don't think he anticipated Kirk becoming Captain, but he knew that Kirk would rise to the challenge when the ship needed him.

THIS. Pike was a captain, a millitary officer. They don't have little plans like that, where they put someone in a certain position but secrectly hope that that person will actually take control, thus showing that person his own potential. If that backfired, you endanger an entire mission.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

1. Nope. Finnegan was Irish and skinny and had hair.

2. He didn't expect Kirk to become captain, but he did think he could give Spock a unique viewpoint and alternatives that the Vulcan wouldn't consider himself (see: bar scene). He also knew Kirk had read made himself an expert on the Narada, and had just saved everyone's lives by warning them that Vulcan was an ambush.

 

[USS Triumphant]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

1. "Cupcake" was the one that started the fight. The one beating him in the face on the table wasn't Cupcake. He was another cadet that, while not wiry like Finnegan, was more square-headed and had hair, and looked to be of Irish descent.

As to the responses to 2, you all make some good points.

(Except, AllStarEntprise, when you went meta with that last sentence - we ALWAYS *know* the REAL answer is "because the showrunners say so", but it isn't helpful to those of us who want to immerse in the fantasy for people to point that out. )

 

[M'Sharak]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

1. "Cupcake" was the one that started the fight. The one beating him in the face on the table wasn't Cupcake. He was another cadet that, while not wiry like Finnegan, was more square-headed and had hair, and looked to be of Irish descent.

The guy seen in the last image at lower right here:
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=441&page=5
second pic in third row here:
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=441&page=6
also second pic, third row here:
http://movies.trekcore.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=441&page=7

http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Unnamed_Shipyard_Bar_visitors#Burly_cadets

 

[Drago-Kazov]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

The Archon comic hinted at the real reason...

 

[DEWLine]

Re: Did Pike REALLY intend to put Kirk into a position to become Capta

Looking forward to seeing Herndorf get a full name before the next movie, by the by...