question about P8 Blue

[CGren123]

This might seem ridiculous, but does Patty wear a uniform? I've been re-reading the SCE books and it occurred to me when I was reading "Balance of Nature" that I couldn't remember one way or the other. So I was hoping someone on here could answer.

And while I'm posting, can anyone recall if there are any Starfleet characters who are specifically stated as not wearing a uniform, for one reason or another. Thanks!

 

[John Clark]

Naraht didn't wear a uniform in the (TOS) novels as I recall due to being a Horta. He did have a vocoder with rank stripes on I think?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Naraht's vocoder had a Starfleet logo but no rank pips/stripes that I'm aware of.

 

[Tirius]

I seem to recall Patty only wearing a commbadge - that's the way she appears on the covers at least.

I've just been re-reading Titan's Taking Wing, and Doctor Cethete's description also does not include a uniform. So another non-humanoid - wouldn't clothing be of use to lifeforms shaped differently as well? Or do humanoids just not come with tough enough skins?

 

[Christopher]

^Cethente is a crystalline organism, basically, and thus is hard-shelled enough not to need clothing. Cethente looks basically like this:

 

[vegaslover62]

Seven of Nine isn't technically in Starfleet, but nobody has described what she does wear post-Destiny, if it's the same catsuits or something else.

 

[Bibliomike]

Doesn't Harb Tanzer, Diane Duane's erstwhile Enterprise chief of recreation, wear "civvies"? Or am I just making that up? (he asked, too slothful to go to the bookshelf and pull down his copy of Spock's World).

That would be a nifty crew position to see in a series someday (although generally speaking, I think one of TNG's faults was showing us too much of the crew at play -- but, in principle, I like the overt acknowledgment that play and rest are essential to the human condition). Sorry, I digress.

 

[Leto_II]

There was that one Ten Forward waiter-dude in an episode of TNG ("Lower Decks," maybe?) who was established onscreen as a definite civilian working in the Starfleet recreation-industry (also: Guinan, obviously), so we've seen a bit of it already. Agreed that it would be an interesting thing to see more of, though.

 

[Christopher]

There was that one Ten Forward waiter-dude in an episode of TNG ("Lower Decks," maybe?) who was established onscreen as a definite civilian working in the Starfleet recreation-industry (also: Guinan, obviously), so we've seen a bit of it already. Agreed that it would be an interesting thing to see more of, though.

The Enterprise-D was originally meant to have a bunch of civilian scientists aboard, but later producers lost sight of this, with rare exceptions like Keiko.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

^ I always found it a little odd seeing uniformed Starfleet officers as teacher on the E-D, especially when you also saw civilian educators onboard as well.

I love Pattie, she is definitely my favourite on the da Vinci's crew. I always envision her as not needing a uniform, at most wearing a harness for tools, tricorder, etc (also Em/3/Green wasn't wearing anything in his TAS episode).

 

[DS9Continuing]

Her shell was hard enough to survive briefly in a vacuum and deflect Androssi weapons shots, so I'm sure she wouldn't need clothes for protective purposes. That doesn't rule out cultural or modesty purposes of course, but I don't remember any reference either way there.

It's not just a matter of being non-humanoid either. While some non-humanoids - the already mentioned P8 Blue, Naraht or Cethente - don't wear uniforms, other non-humanoids such as Torvig or Ree do wear a uniform variation specific to their physiology. And it's not just about physical resilience either, since Zak Kebron, who while mostly humanoid-shaped is pretty much made of rock, does wear a uniform. So presumably Starfleet has some kind of regulation whereby members can wear a uniform variant that most suits their cultural standards, within reason.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Doesn't Harb Tanzer, Diane Duane's erstwhile Enterprise chief of recreation, wear "civvies"?

No, Tanzer is in Starfleet.

 

[Idran]

No, Tanzer is in Starfleet.

Mike was asking if Tanzer wore civvies despite being in Starfleet.

 

[Avro Arrow]

I honestly can't remember how it was described in the novels, but in the comic he appeared in, he was depicted wearing a standard uniform.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Mike was asking if Tanzer wore civvies despite being in Starfleet.

Why would he do that?

 

[Avro Arrow]

^ Similar reasons to why Troi did for five years?

 

[KRAD]

Pattie only wore a combadge, no uniform.