Voyager's Rank Structure
- Thread starter ThatsMrCaptaintoyou
- Start date
I'm not convinced Neelix even has a rank (in the main timeline). Wasn't he listed as a civilian?
I'm pretty sure he didn't have a rank at all.
That's an interesting find, that holopicture with caption Neelix (crewman).
Perhaps he got assigned a rank because he mentions his security training with Tuvok in Extreme Risk (5x03), which would mean he would have to fit within the rank system somehow.
Also, I have wondered how Janeway could give him the disciplinary measure of scrubbing the warp coils Fair Trade if he were a civilian.
Then again, perhaps the captioning is meant as a subtle clue that the Doctor's memories aren't 100% foolproof (he set up the holo-imaging database after all), as we find out in this episode. Much like Tom still being a Lt. in Course: Oblivion was one of the first clues something was off.
Last edited:
Voyager is probably the worst offender of “the characters in the credits are the only ones who matter” - Seven of Nine never even HAD a rank, but I find myself more surprised she WASN’T left in charge of the ship at some point.
In practical terms, I think that the official chain of command, for whatever that’s worth, went along the lines of Janeway -> Chakotay -> Tuvok -> Paris -> Kim, giving precedence to officers pulling regular bridge duty (re: In a crisis, B’Elanna or the Doctor would serve better in their standard rotation in Engineering/Sickbay, respectively).
I won’t go off on having an ensign as the Operations Officer, a senior officer position, but I feel like, given Voyager’s situation and circumstances, giving Tom Paris that place in the chain of command is reasonable, as while he might not have the rank, given his family history, he would likely have the knowledge of the rules and regs enough to be able to perform the duties of an acting first officer or even acting captain. Obviously, something has gone wrong if he’s in a position to have to take on those regular duties, but that doesn’t mean he’s unsuited for the role.
In practical terms, I think that the official chain of command, for whatever that’s worth, went along the lines of Janeway -> Chakotay -> Tuvok -> Paris -> Kim, giving precedence to officers pulling regular bridge duty (re: In a crisis, B’Elanna or the Doctor would serve better in their standard rotation in Engineering/Sickbay, respectively).
I won’t go off on having an ensign as the Operations Officer, a senior officer position, but I feel like, given Voyager’s situation and circumstances, giving Tom Paris that place in the chain of command is reasonable, as while he might not have the rank, given his family history, he would likely have the knowledge of the rules and regs enough to be able to perform the duties of an acting first officer or even acting captain. Obviously, something has gone wrong if he’s in a position to have to take on those regular duties, but that doesn’t mean he’s unsuited for the role.
The EMH is still a problem. As far as I know he doesn't have a rank, and at least initially was viewed as merely a part of Voyager's inventory.
Nearing the end of the series, Janeway authorises a research project exploring his command abilities.
We know that as CMO he has the authority to order anyone off duty (including the captain) if he considers that necessary for medical reasons - even as early as season two and probably right from the beginning when he became CMO-, and I would expect him to have command over the medical department, if there really were one (beyond Kes and Paris).
Nevertheless, I wouldn't expect him to have a position in the more general chain of command (taking ship command over at some point if Janeway, Chakotay, Tuvok, <etc> have been disabled), until Janeway formally grants him command authority.
Nearing the end of the series, Janeway authorises a research project exploring his command abilities.
We know that as CMO he has the authority to order anyone off duty (including the captain) if he considers that necessary for medical reasons - even as early as season two and probably right from the beginning when he became CMO-, and I would expect him to have command over the medical department, if there really were one (beyond Kes and Paris).
Nevertheless, I wouldn't expect him to have a position in the more general chain of command (taking ship command over at some point if Janeway, Chakotay, Tuvok, <etc> have been disabled), until Janeway formally grants him command authority.
If Voyager had picked up a physician early on, either from the Maquis or from the natives (the way they did Kes and Neelix), they probably would have been CMO. The EMH would have remained in his indicated role, an emergency backup.
In general, the CMO is supposed to have a solute authority in medical matters, as seen when Bashir orders Kira off duty in "Defiant". Even if Sisko had called down and said he needed Kira working, he could not have overruled Bashir's judgment as CMO.
We see the same in "Year of Hell", but Janeway refuses to respect the Doctor's judgment. Had the YoH actually happened, she could have been called on the carpet for this.
In general, the CMO is supposed to have a solute authority in medical matters, as seen when Bashir orders Kira off duty in "Defiant". Even if Sisko had called down and said he needed Kira working, he could not have overruled Bashir's judgment as CMO.
We see the same in "Year of Hell", but Janeway refuses to respect the Doctor's judgment. Had the YoH actually happened, she could have been called on the carpet for this.
If there was a Maquis at the start who was a doctor, you might be right. But as the show went on, particularly after he got the mobile emitter, I don't see Janeway taking away the CMO title from The Doctor. Not only did he prove himself by that point, but he already had all the Starfleet medical regulations in his program.
I agree. Hence my "early on" caveat. Once the EMH had evolved from program to person, I think he would have retained his status.
He gave himself the rank "Morale Officer"!
Anyway, what surprises me when it comes to Voyager ranks are those weird "Maquis ranks" which obviously Janeway came up with and how they were used.
First of all it was decided that the maquis should become a part of the Starfleet crew and the whole crew should be a Starfleet crew. Then they (Janeway?) came up with thise "Maquis ranks" for the former Maquis which had at least one strange contradiction: Chakotay and Paris.
Before becoming a Maquis, Chakotay had been a Commander on a Federation Starship. He resigned his commission to join the Maquis after his parents being killed when the Cardassians attacked his homeworld Trebus.
Paris on the other hand was a Lieutenant Junior Grade on the ship USS Exeter when he had a vision of the dead crewmates of the accident he caused and thereafter lied about. After going back to Starfleet Headquarters and telling the truth about the accident, he was kicked out from Starfleet, joined the Maquis, was captured and ended up in jail before Janeway got him released to help them track the lost Maquis ship with Tuvok on board.
Obviously Chakotay had a longer service in Starfleet and a higher rank. Still, Chakotay had to wear the "provisional Maquis rank" for Commander while Paris got the "real" Starfleet pips as Lieutenant on Voyager.
Shouldn't Chakotay and Paris have had the same ranking since Chakotay obviously had a longer career in Starfleet?
Personally I think that Chakotay and the other maquis on the shop should have had the "real" Starfleet pips since they all obviously had become members of Starfleet.
Or the Maquis (including Paris and maybe Kes and Neelix as well) should have been regarded as a special force on the ship with, let's say all black uniforms with Maquis ranks in the same way as the uniforms the Bajorans on station Deep Space Nine was wearing.
He gave himself the rank "Morale Officer"!
Anyway, what surprises me when it comes to Voyager ranks are those weird "Maquis ranks" which obviously Janeway came up with and how they were used.
First of all it was decided that the maquis should become a part of the Starfleet crew and the whole crew should be a Starfleet crew. Then they (Janeway?) came up with thise "Maquis ranks" for the former Maquis which had at least one strange contradiction: Chakotay and Paris.
Before becoming a Maquis, Chakotay had been a Commander on a Federation Starship. He resigned his commission to join the Maquis after his parents being killed when the Cardassians attacked his homeworld Trebus.
Paris on the other hand was a Lieutenant Junior Grade on the ship USS Exeter when he had a vision of the dead crewmates of the accident he caused and thereafter lied about. After going back to Starfleet Headquarters and telling the truth about the accident, he was kicked out from Starfleet, joined the Maquis, was captured and ended up in jail before Janeway got him released to help them track the lost Maquis ship with Tuvok on board.
Obviously Chakotay had a longer service in Starfleet and a higher rank. Still, Chakotay had to wear the "provisional Maquis rank" for Commander while Paris got the "real" Starfleet pips as Lieutenant on Voyager.
Shouldn't Chakotay and Paris have had the same ranking since Chakotay obviously had a longer career in Starfleet?
Personally I think that Chakotay and the other maquis on the shop should have had the "real" Starfleet pips since they all obviously had become members of Starfleet.
Or the Maquis (including Paris and maybe Kes and Neelix as well) should have been regarded as a special force on the ship with, let's say all black uniforms with Maquis ranks in the same way as the uniforms the Bajorans on station Deep Space Nine was wearing.
Morale officer is a position, not a rank.
Regarding the Maquis pips, I agree everyone should have used the Starfleet ones. It was clearly an out-of-universe way to tell the audience 'these are the Maquis crewmen'. In-universe, the only thing I can think of is that since none of them graduated from the Academy, it would be 'improper' for them to wear actual pips.
Which brings me to Chakotay and Tom.
Since he did graduate and he was booted as a lieutenant, Janeway simply restored his status. Another reason... Paris was the only former Maquis who was not on Chakotay's ship.
Chakotay is a harder one to figure out. By all rights, he did the honorable thing and resigned and then joined the Maquis, which means he still had good standing in Starfleet, since he didn't go the traitor route that Eddington and Hudson did. (Despite being labeled a criminal and Tuvok being tasked with bringing him in.) Resignations can be overturned, as we've seen it done in the past. (Picard granting Worf his commission back in "Redemption II".) Maybe it was a request by Chakotay himself... a way of showing his Maquis people, at least at first, that while he has adopted the Starfleet way again, he still will represent the interests of the Maquis crew.
Eventually, everyone should have had regular pips. Unless Janeway felt that unless she got full authority from Starfleet pardoning each Maquis crewman, she couldn't give them the full status of a Starfleet officer.
But that could have been a nice side story in late season 6 or in season 7... with regular contact being made monthly with Starfleet, Janeway could have fought for those rights and pardons to be given.
Voyager had problems with handling progressions of any sort.
B'Elanna could have slowly progressed from violent Maquis renegade to valued crew member. Didn't happen, she just got from point A to point B in pretty much one episode.
Harry could have gone from Starfleet noob who was out of his depth to seasoned and capable spacefarer. He was stuck in limbo between the two.
By extension, the Maquis could have gone from wearing leathers and agreeing to an uneasy alliance, to wearing uniforms with normal insignia... didn't happen either.
Voyager has a nice "comfort food" aspect to it, but it's not the show you watch if you want character growth.
B'Elanna could have slowly progressed from violent Maquis renegade to valued crew member. Didn't happen, she just got from point A to point B in pretty much one episode.
Harry could have gone from Starfleet noob who was out of his depth to seasoned and capable spacefarer. He was stuck in limbo between the two.
By extension, the Maquis could have gone from wearing leathers and agreeing to an uneasy alliance, to wearing uniforms with normal insignia... didn't happen either.
Voyager has a nice "comfort food" aspect to it, but it's not the show you watch if you want character growth.
Which is only the real justification that I can think of when dealing with this pips. Basically, it's a "field/brevet" commission, but not fully authorized until verified with Starfleet Command. But, it still creates an issue of who gets what, especially with Tom Paris, as he was still technically a prisoner, just released to help Janeway with her mission.
That could very well be the reason for Tom... he was released to Janeway for the mission. He was an 'observer' for the mission. Maybe, legally speaking, it was enough wiggle room for her to give him the full reinstatement, complete with actual pips.
Well, Neelix and Kes were civilians whose people were not part of the Federation, so they couldn't technically wear it unless they got a letter of recommendation from a command level officer. (Nog in DS9.)
Having said that, Janeway could have done it herself. Though maybe legalities got in the way, too.
Having said that, Janeway could have done it herself. Though maybe legalities got in the way, too.
Similar threads
- Sticky
- Locked
