Pike in Discovery: The "Before" Thread

[Lord Garth]

On-screen there's not a whole lot to go on with Pike's character. Just "The Cage", the first two Abrams films, and whatever image we have of what an arch-typical 1960s TV hero would be.

There are also novels and comics, which the writers might've taken some inspiration from to fill in the gaps. Then there are the needs of whatever story they're telling in S2 and probably the need to contrast him to Lorca. Have him zig where Lorca would zag.

Maybe even contrast him to Kirk. It would be too easy to write Captain Pike as Just Another Kirk.... although in the early first season of TOS, Kirk might've been more Pike-like because Gene was writing or editing other writers' work based on what his image of The Captain was, which went from April to Pike to Kirk. Before they started tailoring the writing to William Shatner and Kirk became more definitively Kirk.

What do you think Pike will be like?

 

[F. King Daniel]

He had me at "Hit it!"

Entirely unverified rumour from the least trustworthy corners of Facebook have it that Discovery's version of Pike is a God fearing man who prays before making decisions. This sounds so utterly insane I kinda hope it's true.

 

[Greg Cox]

He had me at "Hit it!"

Entirely unverified rumour from the least trustworthy corners of Facebook have it that Discovery's version of Pike is a God fearing man who prays before making decisions. This sounds so utterly insane I kinda hope it's true.

Not sure what I think of that, but the Talosians did pluck a vision of Hell from Pike's mind--"from a fable you once heard in childhood." So it's possible Pike attended Sunday School as a kid or whatever.

 

[pst]

What do you think Pike will be like?

just going by the trailers, he seems a lot less stoic than hunter's pike, with a bit more of the humor and swagger of greenwood's pike. but i'm thinking anson mount will do a nice blend of the two and throw in his own ingredients to boot.

 

[Vger23]

It would certainly be an interesting take on the character...and unique for Star Trek. I think it could be good if done right.

He had me at "Hit it!"

Entirely unverified rumour from the least trustworthy corners of Facebook have it that Discovery's version of Pike is a God fearing man who prays before making decisions. This sounds so utterly insane I kinda hope it's true.

 

[Greg Cox]

just going by the trailers, he seems a lot less stoic than hunter's pike, with a bit more of the humor and swagger of greenwood's pike. but i'm thinking anson mount will do a nice blend of the two and throw in his own ingredients to boot.

And we have no idea how stoic Hunter's Pike was going to be, since "The Cage" begins with him in a funk and thinking about quitting Starfleet. That may not have been his usual personality.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

And we have no idea how stoic Hunter's Pike was going to be, since "The Cage" begins with him in a funk and thinking about quitting Starfleet. That may not have been his usual personality.

Indeed. The disaster at Rigel VII (which resulted in several injuries and deaths) was fresh on Pike's mind when The Cage took place. So that's most likely why he was so depressed. He feels responsible for the whole thing.

By the time DSC happens, he would have gotten over it. Back to the Pike he's supposed to be.

He had me at "Hit it!"

Burnham: It's a hundred light years to Starbase 1, we've got a full tank of dilithium crystals, half a pack of Starfleet field rations, it's dark on the bridge, and we're wearing Starfleet uniforms.
Pike: Hit it.

 

[fireproof78]

And we have no idea how stoic Hunter's Pike was going to be, since "The Cage" begins with him in a funk and thinking about quitting Starfleet. That may not have been his usual personality.

Perhaps the experience on Talos allowed him to work through some of that angst.

 

[Timo]

It's his "Tapestry" moment. Without the violation by the Talosians, he would still be wearing but a single braid on his sleeve in 2257 and beaming to the Discovery full of self-doubt and dark fantasies about how to end it all.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Agony_Boothb]

It would certainly be an interesting take on the character...and unique for Star Trek. I think it could be good if done right.

I want him to pray to the bajoran prophets just to completely make the haters heads explode

 

[Michael]

The potential religious aspects aside, from the trailers alone it sure looks like Anson Mount's version of Pike is shaping up to be a highlight of season two. I loved both Hunter's and Greenwood's portrayal of the character and I'm looking forward to what they'll do with him. Here's hoping he'll be as good as it looks right now and they find a way to bring him back in future episodes.

 

[Dukhat]

He had me at "Hit it!"

Entirely unverified rumour from the least trustworthy corners of Facebook have it that Discovery's version of Pike is a God fearing man who prays before making decisions. This sounds so utterly insane I kinda hope it's true.

You mean he prays to that Big Giant Head on Sha Ka Ree?

 

[DaveyNY]

You mean he prays to that Big Giant Head on Sha Ka Ree?

... or possibly a Giant Blue Hand that floats in space?

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

And we have no idea how stoic Hunter's Pike was going to be, since "The Cage" begins with him in a funk and thinking about quitting Starfleet. That may not have been his usual personality.

Nope! The Cage showed him moody and angsty -- so damn it, that's how he must be portrayed forever!
We never saw Pike act any other way, so that means he never acted any other way.

 

[DaveyNY]

Nope! The Cage showed him moody and angsty -- so damn it, that's how he must be portrayed forever!
We never saw Pike act any other way, so that means he never acted any other way.

Weellll ...
Technically, he acted like a Mute in "The Menagerie".

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

Weellll ...
Technically, he acted like a Mute in "The Menagerie".

A moody and angsty one! Beep this, and beep that, and I don't give a beep.

 

[Tim Thomason]

I hope he realized his dreams and keeps an assortment of sex slaves on the side. I can't wait for the inevitable Harry Mudd sequel. "Any good deals, Mr. Mudd?"

 

[F. King Daniel]

I hope he realized his dreams and keeps an assortment of sex slaves on the side. I can't wait for the inevitable Harry Mudd sequel. "Any good deals, Mr. Mudd?"

According to Bob Orci, Bruce Greenwood's Pike has a backstory which never made it to screen where he was part of an underground railroad getting Orion women out of slavery. Cadet Gaila was one of his rescues. I wonder if any of that will be carried over to Disco, since showrunner Alex Kurtzman co-wrote the movie with him.

 

[Timo]

...One wonders where such a backstory would fall with respect to the Talosian adventure.

We know when that one happened to Hunter's Pike. We don't know whether it happened to Greenwood's Pike at all. And we seem to be getting hints a Talosian adventure will happen to Mount's Pike several times, or at least that one will happen in S2 of DSC. So, why do green women enter Pike's dreams? Are we looking at a cause or an effect?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[DaveyNY]

According to Bob Orci, Bruce Greenwood's Pike has a backstory which never made it to screen where he was part of an underground railroad getting Orion women out of slavery. Cadet Gaila was one of his rescues. I wonder if any of that will be carried over to Disco, since show-runner Alex Kurtzman co-wrote the movie with him.

Didn't ENTERPRISE show that the Orion women were actually pretty much in control most of the time due to their pheromones?
They just let the Orion Males do all the dirty work and let them 'think' they were in charge.

Wouldn't surprise me any if one of them was manipulating Greenwood's Pike as well.
Perhaps a sneaky Orion way to infiltrate Star Fleet in the Kelvin Universe?