star trek test captain kirk

How James Kirk Beat the Kobayashi Maru

By: Author Brad Burnie

Posted on Published: October 29, 2020  - Last updated: September 23, 2022

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In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Lieutenant Saavik took the Kobayashi Maru test that tested a captain’s ability to face death and fear while still maintaining control. It is a no-win scenario, and every captain that takes the test fails. But James Kirk was the only person who beat the no-win scenario.

James Kirk beat the Kobayashi Maru by reprogramming the conditions of the test. He programmed the test so that when the Klingon battle cruisers attacked his ship, they would recognize his name, stop firing, and help him rescue the ship. No one died, and no interstellar incident happened.  

While that answer may seem like the final say in the matter, there is a lot more to the story. Come on in and enjoy the ride!

What Is the Kobayashi Maru?

In the fourth year of Starfleet Academy, all cadets who want to sit in the captain’s chair need to take the Kobayashi Maru test before graduating. It is a simulation with a no-win scenario where a heavily damaged freighter is in the neutral zone near Klingon space and sends out a distress call. But going into the neutral zone is an act of war, and the Klingons attack any ship going into the neutral zone.

As the test progresses, the one taking the test must choose between ignoring the distress call or taking a chance to rescue the freighter survivors. But rescuing the survivors would mean violating several treaties and would risk an interstellar war, as well as risking the ship and their lives.

Every time a cadet tries taking the test, either choice they make results in failing the test and “killing” everyone in the testing room. A cadet could not possibly rescue the survivors, escape the neutral zone, and fight off the Klingons simultaneously, which is why it is a no-win scenario. 

Later, after the peace treaty with the Klingons, the test was changed to include the Romulans rather than the Klingons. 

No one ever won this test except for James Kirk; later, David Forester and Peter Kirk did the same thing as James did and won the scenario.

What Is the Purpose of the Kobayashi Maru?

Cadets who want to be captains must be prepared for any no-win scenario they encounter during their missions. In a real-life situation, a captain must maintain control over their fears and the fears of their crew and passengers. They also must be ready to face death the same way they face life and come to terms with their ethical boundaries. 

It was used to test the character and morals of a cadet to make sure they were suited for the captain’s chair. If they chose to ignore the distress call, they might not make suitable captains. 

However, a cadet could argue that they were trying to avoid an interstellar war and obey the treaties. But if they tried rescuing the survivors of the Kobayashi Maru, and everyone died, then they might look favorably to the board because they were willing to go above and beyond to rescue those in need regardless of personal dangers. 

No one can know what the test is like until the simulation begins. If they did, they would be able to prepare for the test. In a real-life scenario, they wouldn’t be able to prepare for what comes at them, so the test is there to test what kind of person the cadet is.

Regardless of what choice the cadet made, it would have disastrous consequences for someone. After failing the simulation twice, only one cadet figured a way around this no-win scenario–James Tiberius Kirk.

After James changed the test conditions, he faced a court-martial as it appeared that he cheated. However, he showed that he was willing to do whatever it took to save others, even if it means deception. Because of that point, it was respected because it showed Starfleet potential and values. 

How Many Captains Took the Test?

Since the test was a requirement for all who wanted to be captains, almost all captains took the test. Passing or failing the simulation didn’t automatically disqualify a cadet from being a captain. What the cadet faces is the no-win scenario is what passes or fails a cadet for the captain’s chair. 

Two captains didn’t take the simulated test, and that was Captain Spock and Leonard McCoy. But at the end of the second Star Trek movie, Spock knew that there was no way out of the situation they were in. After thinking about how James Kirk beat the no-win scenario, Spock took matters into his own hands and saved the ship. 

When he was talking with Kirk, he asked, “I’ve never taken the Kobayashi Maru. What do you think of my solution?” Spock sacrificed himself for the good of the ship when it seemed like a no-win scenario. 

Lieutenant Saavik tried taking the test, but failed and all but destroyed the simulation room. She was confused about how Kirk beat the test, and when she found out he reprogrammed the test, she thought he cheated.

When Mr. Scott took the test , he used engineering solutions to destroy the waves of Klingon attacks. At the end of the test, to destroy the Klingon ships’ final wave, he used the Parera Field Theory, which was a physical impossibility. However, the computer was satisfied, and he passed the simulation. Once the authorities realized how he beat the no-win scenario, they moved Scotty from command school to engineering school.

Chekov evacuated his crew and rammed his ship into the Klingons, creating a “suicide mission” of sorts. However, this solution did not rescue the crew of Kobayashi Maru and, therefore, was not a viable solution.

After James Kirk reprogrammed the simulation, two other cadets attempted the same thing. 

• David Forester –A character in a Star Trek game followed Kirk’s example and reprogrammed the simulation so he could pass. Though it is not clear how he programmed it, it seems that he did the same thing James Kirk did.
• Peter Kirk –James’ nephew, later entered Starfleet Academy and took the Kobayashi Maru test. He challenged the other captain to a duel to the death. While they were fighting, he told the rest of the crew to rescue the freighter ship and warp away. He was the other Kirk to beat the no-win scenario.

When trying for a promotion, Counselor Troi took the simulation test after it was changed to Romulan space. She failed the test several times, then realized that the point was to accept the consequences of a no-win scenario. She was not inventive enough, like Kirk, to reprogram the simulation. However, she more than likely got more out of it and understood what the test tried to teach cadets.

James Failed the Test Twice Before He Passed It

James Kirk took the test three times but failed it the first two times , which didn’t sit too well with him. Failing the test made him realize that he didn’t like to lose and started thinking about changing the test’s conditions. Together with his friend, Ted Horner, changed the conditions of the test.

The simulation was the pivotal point in his life that sent him on the path of being fearless and courageous no matter what the circumstance was. 

However, in the Kelvin timeline, Kirk was a rebel and constantly in trouble because his father died while he was a child. He did everything to benefit him, regardless of the consequences. So when he faced a no-win scenario, it would be logical that he would “cheat.”

He Developed the Mindset for Not Losing

After he failed the test a couple of times, Kirk decided that he would not lose ever again, even if he must take matters into his own hands. Whenever he faced situations that looked hopeless or grim, he always looked at them with the idea that there are always possibilities. He thought out of the box and came up with unique solutions. 

One of his unique solutions was seen in the movie Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. When they were at the Genesis planet, and the Klingon ship severely disabled the Enterprise, Kirk and his skeleton crew beamed off the ship to the planet below while the Klingons beamed to the Enterprise. Before they left, however, they set it to self-destruct and kill the Klingons. 

When on the planet, they watched part of the ship fall into the atmosphere. Kirk said, “My god Bones, what have I done?”

Bones replied in his usual calm and witty manner, “You’ve done what you’ve always done–given us a fighting chance to live.”

Kirk always took charge of a situation and had original thinking throughout his career, making him one of the best captains in the fleet. 

James Kirk Programmed His Name as Respectful to Klingons

Before taking the Kobayashi Maru the third time, James Kirk reprogrammed the simulation so that the Klingons would recognize his name when they came to attack the ship. He thought that if the Klingons knew who was coming and that he was only there to rescue a damaged freighter, he could avoid a fight and leave the area without anyone needing to die.

But in real-life scenarios, Kirk’s name was anything but respectful to Klingons. They hated him because of how many times he thwarted their conquests. On the planet where Klingons gave one side weapons without doing the same for the other side. Kirk interfered with their plans by giving the other side weapons, which balanced each side to develop at the same rate.

The Klingons were angry with Kirk because they wanted to claim that planet in the name of the Empire. 

They had a deep hatred for him that spanned several decades, and when it came time for the peace talks, they framed him for the murder of Chancellor Gorkon and sentenced him to life on the penal asteroid Rura Penthe.

When Klingon Cruisers Attacked, They Knew His Name

During the simulation, after he reprogrammed the test, he chose to rescue the freighter survivors. Right on cue, the Klingon ships appeared out of nowhere. Before they fired on the ship, Kirk hailed them to identify himself and his mission. They recognized his name and asked if they could offer him and his crew a hand.

In the simulation, he programmed it to contact the lead battle cruiser and talk with the commander. When the Klingons heard his name, they believed that he was a legendary hero . Kozor let them go and escorted them to the freighter.  

Ironically, later in his career, the Klingons knew his name alright, but not in the way they did in the simulation. He was known as a renegade, a dictator, and a murderer to the Klingon Empire.  

Kirk Rescued the Kobayashi Maru With the Help of Klingons

The Klingons helped Kirk rescue the Kobayashi Maru and prevented other Klingons from firing on them during the rescue. Because Kirk programmed the simulation where it was possible to win, he avoided facing death head-on. He didn’t like losing and refused to lose. 

They only helped him because they thought he was a legendary hero, which was the reprogramming topic.

His superiors were angry and almost kicked him out of the Academy, with 99 demerits. After all of the criticism, he was given a commendation for original thinking, and he became the youngest Starfleet ever to become a captain of a starship.

An Interstellar Incident Was Avoided

Since the Klingons assisted Kirk to rescue the survivors, an interstellar incident was avoided, and any war that could have happened didn’t because of how the simulation was programmed. 

During many of the real missions that the Enterprise encountered, Kirk had much of the same mentality. When they encountered the Romulans for the first time in a century, they managed to escape unharmed due to Kirk’s unique fighting style. Spock assisted in many of Kirk’s solutions by adding the scientific element needed to get out of tricky situations. Together, they avoided many interstellar wars.

Kirk’s answer to the simulation mirrors many of his adventures in the series and the movies. When faced with unwinnable situations, he thought outside of the box and saved everyone.

The Klingons Respected James T. Kirk in the Simulation

In the simulation, the Klingons respected James T. Kirk because they thought he was a hero and helped rescue the freighter’s crew. Once he got past the Klingon patrol, he warped away, giving him time to rescue the crew.

But in the Star Trek universe, the Klingons despised Captain Kirk so much that they often sought him to kill him. In “The Trouble With Tribbles,” Kirk was instantly despised and distrusted, even as he investigated the grain issues. It turned out that the Klingons poisoned the grain to conquer the planet it was going to. Scotty transported the tribbles to the Klingon ship, which made them respect Kirk even less.

Another instance that angered the Klingons was in the episode “A Private Little War,” where they gave weapons to one group of people on a pre-warp planet but not the other group. Kirk balanced the war by giving the other group the same weapons, which the Klingons got angry about. 

The Alternate Kirk Inserted a Subroutine and a Virus Into the Simulation

An alternate James Kirk from the Kelvin timeline actually did cheat in this simulation by installing different subroutines to the test. During this alternative timeline, Kirk made it possible to lower the Klingons’ shields and destroy them with one torpedo strike. The way he won this scenario was unacceptable to the top brass and was brought up on disciplinary charges.

During the hearing, there was a distress call from Vulcan. Nero, from the Prime timeline, was attacking the planet. Starfleet sent the Enterprise with Kirk on board to save the planet. Once it was done, the academic council dismissed charges and got a commendation for original thinking. 

A deleted scene from one of the Kelvin timeline movies showed that Kirk was dating Uhura’s roommate simply because she was a technician. He wanted access to the simulator so he could place different subroutines in the test. He emailed her during the simulation that implanted a virus in the simulation, which made it possible for him to reprogram the test and beat the no-win scenario.

Regardless of the timeline, James Kirk was a renegade thinker with unique solutions to problems that would make most people run the opposite direction. He never liked losing any scenario, but he was afraid of death. 

When Spock died in the second Star Trek movie, he had a very difficult time accepting that one of his best friends sacrificed himself for the ship’s good. His son David reminded him that “how we face death is at least as important in how we face death.” Kirk finally realized that death is a part of life, and when situations require a life or death scenario, it’s okay to lose for the greater good.

• Forbes: The Philosophy of Star Trek: Kobayashi Maru, No-Win Scenarios, and Ethical Leadership
• Wikipedia: Kobayashi Maru
• Wikipedia: The Kobayashi Maru (Star Trek Novel)
• Birth Movies Death: James T. Kirk Did Not Cheat On the Kobayashi Maru Test
• Memory Alpha: Kobayashi Maru Scenario
• Memory Beta: James T. Kirk
• Memory Beta: Kobayashi Maru Scenario
• Memory Beta: Peter Kirk
• Memory Beta: David Forester

Brad Burnie is the founder of Starships.com. He loves all video game genres. In his spare time, he loves reading, watching movies, and gaming

James T. Kirk

• View history

James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk was a male Human Starfleet officer who lived during the 23rd century . His time in Starfleet made Kirk arguably one of the most famous and sometimes infamous starship captains in Starfleet history . The highly decorated Kirk served as the commanding officer of the Constitution -class starship USS Enterprise and the Constitution II -class starship USS Enterprise -A , where he served Federation interests as an explorer , soldier , diplomat , and time traveler . ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", " Court Martial ", " Errand of Mercy "; Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home ; Star Trek Generations ; DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations "; VOY : " Q2 ", " Friendship One ", et al.)

• 1.1 Origins
• 1.2 Childhood
• 2.1 Academy years
• 2.2.1 Service aboard the Republic
• 2.2.2 Academy instructor
• 2.3.1 Mission to Neural
• 2.3.2 First encounter with the cloud creature
• 2.3.3 Pike's interest
• 2.3.4 Contact by La'an Noonien-Singh
• 2.3.5 First officer Kirk
• 2.4.1 Year One
• 2.4.2 Year Two
• 2.4.3 Year Three
• 2.4.4 Year Four
• 2.4.5 Year Five
• 2.5 Chief of Starfleet operations
• 2.6 The V'ger crisis
• 2.7 First retirement
• 2.8.1 Inspection tour
• 2.8.2 Stealing the Enterprise
• 2.8.3 Saving Earth
• 2.9.1 Sybok and Sha Ka Ree
• 2.9.2 Final mission
• 2.10.1 Maiden voyage of the Enterprise -B
• 2.10.2 The Nexus and death
• 4.1 Skills and hobbies
• 4.2 Personal combat
• 5.1.1 Baby Kirok
• 5.1.2 George Kirk, Sr.
• 5.1.3 Sam Kirk
• 5.1.4 David Marcus
• 5.2.1 Nyota Uhura
• 5.2.2 Spock
• 5.2.3 Leonard McCoy
• 5.2.4 Montgomery Scott
• 5.2.5 Hikaru Sulu
• 5.2.6 Janice Rand
• 5.2.7 Ben Finney
• 5.2.8 Jean-Luc Picard
• 5.3.2 Janice Lester
• 5.3.3 La'an Noonien-Singh
• 5.3.4 Carol Marcus
• 5.3.5 Janet Wallace
• 5.3.6 Areel Shaw
• 5.3.7 Helen Noel
• 5.3.8 Janice Rand
• 5.3.10 Lenore Karidian
• 5.3.11 Edith Keeler
• 5.3.12 Sylvia
• 5.3.13 Marlena Moreau
• 5.3.14 Drusilla
• 5.3.15 Kelinda
• 5.3.16 Elaan
• 5.3.17 Miramanee
• 5.3.18 Shahna
• 5.3.19 Deela
• 5.3.20 Marta
• 5.3.21 Odona
• 5.3.22 Rayna Kapec
• 5.3.23 Antonia
• 5.3.24 Martia
• 5.4.1 Khan Noonien Singh
• 6.1 Earth's 20th century
• 6.2 Other temporal events
• 7.1 Captain of the UEF Enterprise
• 7.2 Captain of the USS Farragut
• 7.3 Thelin's commanding officer
• 8 Awards and honors
• 9 Key dates
• 10.1 Existential Kirk
• 10.2 Kirk on death
• 10.3 In Harm's Way
• 10.4 Kirk on women
• 10.5 Kirk and Spock
• 10.6 Opinions of Kirk
• 11.1 Appearances
• 11.2.1 Casting Kirk
• 11.2.2 Naming Kirk
• 11.2.3 Character development
• 11.2.4 Kirk's demise
• 11.3 Ambiguities
• 11.4 Reiteration
• 11.5 Apocrypha
• 11.6 External links

Early history

Kirk (lower right) appearing as he did as a toddler

James Tiberius Kirk was born on March 22nd , 2233 in Riverside , Iowa on Earth . ( TOS : " The Deadly Years "; Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home ; Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ; ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II " production resource ; SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow ") He was the son of George and Winona Kirk ; their other son, his brother , was George Samuel . ( Star Trek ; TOS : " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ", " Operation -- Annihilate! ")

His parents named him after his maternal grandfather , James , and his paternal grandfather, Tiberius . ( TAS : " Bem "; Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ; Star Trek ) Furthermore, Kirk was a descendant of late 19th century American frontier pioneers . ( TOS : " Spectre of the Gun ") Kirk embraced the culture and history of his homeland , especially western lore and the life of his hero Abraham Lincoln , and later even recognized the document mirrored on the planet Omega IV , he could recite the preamble of the United States Constitution from memory. ( TOS : " Spectre of the Gun ", " The Savage Curtain ", " The Omega Glory ")

Kirk, along with Winona and Sam, spent the majority of Kirk's childhood chasing George Kirk, Sr. from one posting to another, to the point that Kirk barely saw the man. When Kirk asked Winona why they never saw George Sr., she told James that "he's helping people who really need it." ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

Kirk sang around a campfire sometimes was when he was a boy in Iowa, something he would later recall not having done since that time, as of 2287 . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

At some point early in his life, Kirk contracted and nearly died from Vegan choriomeningitis . Although he was cured, the organisms of the disease continued to be carried in his blood. ( TOS : " The Mark of Gideon ")

Governor Kodos in 2246

By 2246 , he was living on Tarsus IV , as his father George moved there. During his time on Tarsus IV, the planet was undergoing a food crisis that was starving the colony , which consisted of eight thousand people. Governor Kodos , sympathetic to old eugenics philosophies and unaware that supply ships were imminent, tried to save a portion of the colony by killing four thousand colonists he deemed least desirable or able to survive. The thirteen-year-old Jim Kirk was one of only nine eyewitnesses to the massacre. ( TOS : " The Conscience of the King "; SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

Starfleet career

Academy years.

In 2252 , Kirk entered Starfleet Academy, with help of Mallory , whose son later served under Kirk. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ", " The Apple ") He also often spoke of his father as being his inspiration for joining Starfleet. ( Star Trek )

Finnegan as he appeared in 2252

As a plebe , Kirk soon caught the attention of a boisterous and bullying Irishman named Finnegan . The upperclassman evidently hazed "Jimmy-boy" mercilessly throughout their shared time at the Academy. Fifteen years later , the Shore Leave Planet sensed Kirk's antipathy for Finnegan and produced a simulacrum that Kirk could pummel for satisfaction. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ")

As a cadet , Kirk participated in a successful peace mission to Axanar , for which Starfleet Command awarded him with the Palm Leaf of Axanar Peace Mission . ( TOS : " Court Martial ", " Whom Gods Destroy ")

When he was a midshipman , Kirk began a friendship with his instructor , Lieutenant Benjamin Finney . Their relationship was so important to the two men that Finney named his daughter , Jame , after Kirk. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Kirk's physical training included tests he had to pass for working in an oxygen -deficient atmosphere , as well as hand-to-hand combat . ( TOS : " Tomorrow is Yesterday "; TAS : " The Pirates of Orion ") He was also trained in hyper-power circuits . ( TOS : " Dagger of the Mind ")

His academic studies introduced him to several men that he encountered later in his career. Among them was John Gill , a noted history professor and cultural observer . ( TOS : " Patterns of Force ") Kirk studied the exploits of Garth of Izar , a famous captain who joined Kirk's pantheon of heroes. ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ") The " Pasteur of archaeological medicine ", Dr. Roger Korby , became a man Kirk wanted to meet. ( TOS : " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ") Kirk also studied the military strategies of Klingon General Korrd . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ) He also attended lectures at the Academy on the Nomad space probe. ( TOS : " The Changeling ")

During his time in the Command Training Program , Kirk confronted the Kobayashi Maru scenario . He refused to accept his first two defeats. Before making a third attempt, he secretly reprogrammed the simulation computer , consequently becoming the only cadet in Academy history to beat the "no-win" scenario and earning a commendation for original thinking. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk's graduating class was represented with such future officers as Corrigan , Mike , Teller , and Timothy . ( TOS : " Court Martial ") One of his former classmates, R.M. Merik , was dropped in his fifth year for failing the psychosimulator test . ( TOS : " Bread and Circuses ")

Early postings and assignments

The personnel file for James T. Kirk, 2259

Kirk was commissioned as a Starfleet officer with the rank of ensign and the serial number SC937-0176CEC. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Among his early missions was the Vulcanian expedition , along with former classmate Timothy. ( TOS : " Court Martial ") He had also, at one point, visited Alpha Majoris I , where he had personally witnessed the native mellitus . ( TOS : " Wolf in the Fold ")

Also early in Kirk's career, he became quite familiar with the work of Doctor Tristan Adams . He even had the opportunity to visit penal colonies that had been revolutionized by Adams, later describing what he saw as " clean, decent hospitals for sick minds , " even describing them as " resort colonies ", as opposed to " cages ". ( TOS : " Dagger of the Mind ")

Service aboard the Republic

During the 2250s , "some years" after being a midshipman, Ensign Kirk rejoined his friend and former instructor, Lieutenant Finney, aboard the USS Republic . After Finney made a mistake nearly catastrophic to the ship, Kirk logged the incident, which resulted in his friend being reprimanded and put to the bottom of the promotion list . ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Academy instructor

During the same period, Kirk was promoted to Lieutenant and worked as an instructor at the Academy. It was around this time he first met Cadet Gary Mitchell , who was a student in his class where, according to an upperclassman , "you either think or sink". Mitchell later remembered Kirk as "a stack of books with legs ." In an attempt to divert his friend's attention and make the class easier to get through, Mitchell set Kirk up with a " little blonde lab technician " whom Kirk almost married . ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

Kirk's early career included a year alongside Janice Lester , during which time the two became romantically involved. The perceived lack of opportunities for a woman to command a starship struck them both as unfair, but she became embittered by the supposed career barrier. Their relationship soured to a point where Kirk felt she punished and tortured him for her circumstances. Years later, Kirk said that he never stopped her from going on with her "space work", but ultimately felt that "we'd have killed each other" if they had stayed together. Lester recalled that Kirk walked out on her "when it became serious." ( TOS : " Turnabout Intruder ")

Service aboard the Farragut

Kirk served aboard the USS Farragut in the late 2250s.

Upon graduating from Starfleet Academy, Kirk began his service under Captain Garrovick . His first deep space assignment was as a lieutenant aboard Garrovick's USS Farragut , as a member of the phaser gun crew , where he was assigned to a phaser station . ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ", " Obsession ")

After joining the crew of the Farragut , Kirk quickly made a name for himself and "put in some legwork to beat" the record of becoming both the youngest active and all-time first officer in all of Starfleet; a record previously held by his father. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

Mission to Neural

Lt. Kirk visited Neural in 2255 on his first planetary survey.

In 2255 , the young lieutenant visited Neural on his first planetary survey mission. He befriended one of the planet's natives, the Hill man Tyree . Kirk's report described a primitive but promising culture , and Starfleet endorsed him recommending a policy of non-interference . ( TOS : " A Private Little War ")

First encounter with the cloud creature

In 2257 , the Farragut engaged the dikironium cloud creature at Tycho IV . The creature killed Garrovick and two hundred of the ship's crew . Farragut 's record tapes of the event included Kirk insisting upon blaming himself for the disaster, citing his delay in firing the ship's phaser banks at the creature as he lost consciousness. The ship's executive officer disagreed, stating, " Lieutenant Kirk is a fine young officer who performed with uncommon bravery. " ( TOS : " Obsession ")

Pike's interest

In 2259 , Captain Christopher Pike took an interest in Kirk and looked up his file after witnessing Kirk in action as the captain of the Farragut in an alternate timeline , recognizing that Kirk had the potential to make a good captain for the USS Enterprise and sensing that Kirk was meant to be in command during the coming Neutral Zone Incursion in 2266 . ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

Contact by La'an Noonien-Singh

Lieutenant Kirk, 2259

Later that year, Lieutenant Kirk was contacted by La'an Noonien-Singh , on the pretense of confirming his brother's place of birth, after her adventures with another alternate timeline version of Kirk. He later invited her for drinks if they were ever to meet at starbase . ( SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow ")

First officer Kirk

Lt. Kirk meeting Fleet Captain Christopher Pike

Shortly after, Kirk was promoted to first officer of the Farragut , breaking his father's record as the youngest first officer in Starfleet history. However, Kirk had a few months before he would actually assume the post as Kirk needed to train his replacement for his current duties first. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

During this time, under Fleet Captain Pike, the Enterprise and the Farragut were assigned to bring a deuterium mining station online. During the mission, clashed with his brother Sam, the ship's xenoanthropologist , several times over his promotion.

Kirk helped Nyota Uhura to figure out the signals that she was receiving from aliens in the Bannon's Nebula . During his time with Uhura, he suffered a broken nose inflicted by her during one of her hallucinations , initially believed to be associated with lack of sleep and deuterium poisoning . He admitted to her that he had previously gone days without sleep and experienced a case of deuterium poisoning himself, but that he had never punched a superior officer before.

Nonetheless, Kirk continued to believe in Uhura, and helped her find the true cause of the hallucinations. With help of his brother Sam, they focused on the possibility that she was being contacted by an extradimensional lifeform that was located in the nebula. After figuring out what the lifeform was trying to communicate, Pike had the Enterprise destroy the mining station. Following the mission, Kirk attended a celebration on the Enterprise where he met his future first officer and best friend Spock for the first time. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

Lt. Kirk spent some time on the Enterprise shadowing Lt. Cmdr. Chin-Riley prior to him assuming his position as first officer about the Farragut

Kirk later returned to the Enterprise on a short-term posting; his commanding officer felt Kirk would benefit from shadowing Enterprise 's first officer, Una Chin-Riley before he assumed the same position on the Farragut . During this time, La'an revealed her history with his alternate self, but Kirk revealed to her he was in a relationship with Carol Marcus who was pregnant with their son . ( SNW : " Subspace Rhapsody ")

Commanding the USS Enterprise

The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

By 2265 , at the age of thirty-two, Kirk assumed command of the Constitution -class USS Enterprise from Fleet Captain Pike. ( TOS : " The Menagerie, Part I ") Kirk's father lived long enough to see his son earn his first captaincy. ( Star Trek )

Along with the Enterprise , Kirk also acquired a number of Pike's old crewmates as well as science officer Spock, as his first officer. For his first command, he also requested to have Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell along with him. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ") Also under his command was his former instructor, Ben Finney. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Kirk was initially quartered on Deck 12 in 2266 , before moving to Deck 5, room "3F 121". ( TOS : " Mudd's Women ", " Journey to Babel ")

Kirk and Spock graffiti

At some point during the 2260s, Kirk and "his pointy-eared pal" attempted to "crash" the Command Conference afterparty on Starbase 25 , but struck out and settled to end the night in a nearby dive bar . Over a century later , two other Starfleet officers – Beckett Mariner and Brad Boimler – also struck out, before ending up in the same bar.

In recollecting the incident, the alien bartender , who coincidentally was the same who served Kirk and Spock years before, added to her story that " [t]he blonde one did most of the drinking. " Before they left, "Kirk + Spock" was left behind, scrawled into the bar's countertop. Likewise, before Mariner and Boimler left, they too scrawled their names alongside those of their heroes. ( LD : " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ")

USS Enterprise in 2265

For five years , Kirk commanded the Enterprise , which made him a legend in space exploration. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; VOY : " Q2 ") In addition to his primary mission statement – "to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life, and new civilizations" – Kirk received standing orders to investigate all quasars and quasar-like phenomena. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ", " The Galileo Seven ", " Return to Tomorrow ")

On more than one occasion, Kirk and Mitchell took part in missions together, including one on Dimorus , where they encountered rodent-like creatures that shot poisonous darts . Mitchell took one of the darts meant for Kirk, saving Kirk's life but nearly dying himself. The two later visited Deneb IV where, in at least three cases, Mitchell was capable of carrying long telepathic conversations with the natives , scoring 80% or higher on comprehension. One night, a telepathic conversation with a female native had a deleterious effect on Mitchell. Kirk later stated that he'd been worried about Mitchell ever since that night. As a pun, Mitchell referred to the girl as a nova . ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

Kirk faces the unknown

Following a stopover at the Aldebaron colony , the Enterprise attempted to determine the whereabouts of the missing SS Valiant . After discovering the Valiant 's disaster recorder which described a catastrophic disaster following that early vessel's visit to the galaxy 's edge, Kirk pushed on and encountered the galactic barrier for his first time. The Enterprise failed to breach the barrier and barely escaped destruction. With its warp engines badly damaged, the Enterprise limped under impulse power towards the Delta Vega lithium cracking station .

The barrier triggered a transformation in Mitchell who began developing psychic powers that progressed rapidly, with a commensurate loss of his humanity. Ignoring Spock advising him to destroy Mitchell immediately, Kirk hesitated until after Mitchell killed navigator Lee Kelso . On the surface of Delta Vega, he hunted Mitchell and managed to kill him only with the help of another officer undergoing the same transformation as Mitchell, Dr. Elizabeth Dehner . ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

Following the tragedy, Kirk shuffled the Enterprise 's command crew. Lieutenant Commander Spock remained science officer and Kirk acknowledged him as first officer. A new chief medical officer , Dr. Leonard McCoy , replaced Dr. Mark Piper . Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott remained chief engineer . Lieutenant Nyota Uhura became communications officer and Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu was transferred from astrosciences to the helm . Kirk did not settle on a regular navigator for another two years. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ", " Catspaw ", " Amok Time ", " Who Mourns for Adonais? ")

On stardate 1512.2, Kirk made first contact with the First Federation , when the Enterprise was detained by Captain Balok and a massive spaceship under Balok's command, the Fesarius . Both captains bluffed ferociously, but Kirk's poker face held. Balok proved to be quite friendly, eager to begin a cultural exchange. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

The darker half of Kirk rages in frustration, 2266

Kirk learned something about his own nature after a transporter malfunction in 2266. Kirk was split into two physical duplicates, one intuitive and passive, the other violent and passionate. While separated, the survival of both personalities were threatened, and a way was eventually found to recombine the two.

After his personality was split due to a transporter accident in 2266 , Kirk was forcibly introduced to the competing elements in his personality, described most roughly as passive and aggressive. ( TOS : " The Enemy Within ")

McCoy curing Kirk of polywater intoxication

Succumbing to the effects of polywater intoxication in 2266, Kirk contemplated aloud the heavy responsibility of command, and the price the Enterprise exacted from his personal life: " this vessel... I give, she takes... She won't permit me my life; I've got to live hers." Ultimately, he gathered himself, speaking directly to the Enterprise, " Never lose you... never. " ( TOS : " The Naked Time ")

On stardate 1533.6, Kirk and his crew made a brief first contact with the Thasians , an uncanny group of aliens . While interacting with Charlie Evans , a temporary visitor to the Enterprise , Kirk demonstrated prowess with judo , and deep-rooted compassion when Charlie's "teachers" wanted to return him to an isolated existence. ( TOS : " Charlie X ")

The Romulan commander

Kirk repelled the first Romulan incursion into Federation space in over a century, on stardate 1709.2. A Romulan Bird-of-Prey equipped with a cloak and a powerful plasma torpedo system destroyed four Earth Outpost Stations along the Romulan Neutral Zone . Kirk engaged and pursued the Romulan ship in a drawn-out cat-and-mouse chase against a Romulan commander in whom Kirk found an instinctual rapport. Both captains used ruses that simulated more damage than actually received. Kirk was able to briefly track the Romulan, by mirroring its movements to simulate a sensor ghost. Finally, emerging from the camouflage of a comet 's tail, Kirk was able to disable the Romulan vessel. Before ordering his vessel's self-destruction , the Romulan captain remarked that under different circumstances he and Kirk might have been allies. ( TOS : " Balance of Terror ")

Kirk encountering Miri

The Enterprise reached Exo III on stardate 2712.4, where Dr. Roger Korby was found after years of silence, exploring and exploiting a sophisticated android manufacturing technology – the legacy of a long- dead civilization . Korby had replaced his own damaged body, transplanting his personality into an android replica, and built himself a beautiful companion, Andrea . Against Kirk's wishes, an android duplicate of Kirk was created too. However, the android Korby, after exhibiting madness , destroyed himself. ( TOS : " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ")

Kirk is tortured in 2266

At the Tantalus Penal Colony in 2266, Doctor Tristan Adams used his neural neutralizer device as an instrument torture on Kirk. The device emptied a victims mind of thought, leaving it vulnerable to suggestion. Adams included conditioning that made him feel love for Dr. Helen Noel , including deep pain at the idea of her loss. Kirk was able to resist long-term damage from the device. ( TOS : " Dagger of the Mind ")

On stardate 2817.6, Kirk responded to a call from Dr. Thomas Leighton , a fellow survivor and witness to the horror of Tarsus IV. Leighton suspected the leader of a traveling theater troupe , actor Anton Karidian , of being Kodos "the Executioner," a man long thought dead. After Leighton was murdered and other witnesses's deaths were revealed, Kirk convinced Anton Karidian's daughter, Lenore , to bring the acting troupe aboard the Enterprise. Attempted murders of Kirk and Enterprise crewmember Kevin Riley (another survivor) led Kirk to confront Karidian (who was indeed Kodos), discovering the recent killings were the acts of his mad daughter, trying to protect her tormented aging father. ( TOS : " The Conscience of the King ")

Kirk's court martial proceedings

Kirk became the first Federation starship captain to ever face a court martial , after he was accused of causing the death of Lt. Commander Benjamin Finney, the Enterprise records officer . Kirk employed Defense Attorney Samuel T. Cogley , and Kirk's former flame Areel Shaw acted as prosecutor at his trial , which was held on Starbase 11 , convened by Commodore Stone . Kirk was exonerated after Finney was discovered alive, having faked his death and the evidence implicating Kirk. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

When Spock kidnapped his former commander, Fleet Captain Christopher Pike, who had been horribly crippled, and commandeered the Enterprise in 2267, he inadvertently jeopardized Kirk's command. After Spock locked the ship on course to Talos IV , Kirk was a member of a tribunal that tried Spock, the other members being Pike himself, and an illusion of Commodore Mendez . Spock's crimes were in violation of General Order 7 and were punishable by death . Once it was revealed that Spock's ultimate goal was to allow Pike, a Starfleet hero, to live a semblance of normality under Talosian illusion, Starfleet declined to prosecute the matter. ( TOS : " The Menagerie, Part I ", " The Menagerie, Part II ")

When the Enterprise passed through the Omicron Delta region , Kirk hoped to arrange for his crew (and himself) to take some badly needed shore leave . While Kirk and his landing party investigated a candidate planet to determine its suitability for that purpose, they were beset with manifestations of hidden desires they had. In fact, they had discovered the Shore Leave Planet, and advanced technologies which an ancient, enigmatic species had left behind. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ")

On stardate 2124.5, a being calling himself " General Trelane ( retired ), the Squire of Gothos " waylaid the Enterprise . Though immensely powerful and troublesome, Trelane was revealed to be nothing more than a child of his species , and a badly behaved one at that. Kirk was put on trial, albeit this time in an illusory court , by Trelane. ( TOS : " The Squire of Gothos ")

Kirk fighting the Gorn captain

Kirk made contact with the Gorn Hegemony and the Metrons on stardate 3045.6. Finding a Federation base on Cestus III destroyed and Gorn forces lying in wait, Kirk ordered the Enterprise to give chase to a Gorn starship that had been responsible for the attack, intending to destroy it. The pursuit took the two belligerents through Metron space. The Metrons, pacifistic but powerful, interrupted the engagement and declared both sides were savages.

Kirk and the Gorn captain were removed from their respective ships by the Metrons and deposited on a desolate planetoid , where the Metrons forced the two captains to fight each other, threatening to destroy the loser's vessel. Kirk was victorious, but refused to kill the Gorn. Kirk's act of mercy impressed the Metrons, who allowed both ships to go free. ( TOS : " Arena ")

On stardate 3192.1, the Enterprise was caught up in a "civilized" interplanetary war between Eminiar VII and Vendikar , whose engagements were fought only by computers, and marked "casualties" among the citizenry dutifully reported to death chambers . After the Enterprise was declared a target and the crew ordered to die, Kirk destroyed the Eminiar computers, forcing them to finally treat with their enemy – or face a war that would destroy their civilization. ( TOS : " A Taste of Armageddon ")

Khan in 2267

The Enterprise discovered the SS Botany Bay , an ancient sleeper ship , on stardate 3141.9. The vessel carried a group of eighty-four genetically-engineered Augments from Earth's Eugenics Wars , kept alive in cryogenic freeze ; twelve of these had died when their stasis capsules failed. Their leader, Khan Noonien Singh , seduced Enterprise historian Lieutenant Marla McGivers , revived his seventy-one surviving comrades, and attempted to steal the starship – before Kirk stopped him. Somewhat respectful of Khan's integrity and abilities, Kirk exiled Khan and his people on planet Ceti Alpha V , where the former tyrant would have a chance to "tame a world" without threatening others. ( TOS : " Space Seed ")

Under the euphoric , enervating influence of pod plants , the entire Enterprise crew mutinied, abandoning the ship for the planet Omicron Ceti III in 2267. Kirk was the last to fall under the influence, but his subconscious anger at the idea of leaving the ship rose to the surface, and broke the pod plant's effect. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

Accompanied by Spock and McCoy, Kirk discovered the first known silicon-based lifeform , a sentient Horta matriarch, on the mining colony Janus VI on stardate 3196.1. ( TOS : " The Devil in the Dark ")

At the start of another war between the Federation and the Klingon Empire , Kirk and Spock met with the Organian Council of Elders personally and attempted to convince the Organians , who were apparently primitive, to accept Federation protection. Shortly after the planet Organia was subsequently occupied by Klingons, Kirk and Spock began conducting a guerrilla war against the Klingon occupation, but Organians abandoned their false humanoid forms and intervened, forcing an end to the interstellar war and imposing the Treaty of Organia . Organians predicted that, in time, the antagonistic powers would eventually become friends. In the end, Kor, frustrated by Organian interference that made battle against Kirk impossible, wistfully surmised, "it would have been glorious". ( TOS : " Errand of Mercy ")

Responding to the Deneva colony having recently gone silent, Kirk found that a hive-mind of marauding flying parasites had killed his brother , George Samuel Kirk, and that the colony's remaining population was under their influence, causing mass insanity . McCoy and Spock were able to develop a method of killing the exotic creatures. ( TOS : " Operation -- Annihilate! ")

By this time in 2267, Kirk had finally settled on Ensign Pavel Chekov as the Enterprise 's regular navigator. ( TOS : " Catspaw ")

Kirk, Spock, and McCoy discovered Zefram Cochrane , the inventor of the warp drive , missing for 150 years, on a planetoid . An energy being Cochrane called "the Companion " had kept him alive and young all those years. At Cochrane's request, Kirk did not log the encounter. ( TOS : " Metamorphosis ")

Kirk diverted the Enterprise from an assigned ceremonial mission on Altair IV to Vulcan on stardate 3372.7, in order to save his first officer from the dangerous effects of his pon farr mating cycle. In the presence of the Vulcan matriarch, T'Pau , Kirk was forced to participate in Spock's marriage ceremony. ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

Making repairs in 2267

A distress call led the Enterprise to the crippled USS Constellation after an ancient machine, deemed a " planet killer ", had nearly destroyed that starship. While stranded aboard the nearly crippled Constellation , he and Chief Engineer Scott worked together to recover enough power and control functions to partially restore ship's functions. After Matt Decker , a Starfleet commodore who was now mentally unbalanced, made a suicide run with a stolen shuttlecraft , Kirk piloted the Constellation inside the machine, detonating the engines and destroying the device. ( TOS : " The Doomsday Machine ")

On the planet Halkan , a transporter malfunction swapped the Enterprise landing party with a corresponding landing party from a parallel " mirror universe " where a savage, oppressive, Terran Empire had replaced the United Federation of Planets. A sadistic alternate version of Captain Kirk captained the ISS Enterprise , whose first officer was a ruthless, bearded Spock . ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror ")

After beaming down to the planet Gamma Hydra IV , Kirk, along with Spock, Dr. McCoy, and Scott were all exposed to a rare form of radiation poisoning from a rogue comet . The radiation caused the party to age very rapidly. Kirk's accelerated dotage forced Commodore Stocker , who was visiting the Enterprise , to relieve Kirk from command of the ship until Dr. McCoy discovered a cure. Standard hyronalin therapy, alone, was ineffective. It was not until Spock, Nurse Chapel , and Dr. Janet Wallace were able to concoct a new type of treatment based on an old-style adrenaline radiation therapy that Kirk and his party could receive an antidote for the poisonous radiation, and just in time for the captain to regain his ability to command and save the Enterprise from a heavy Romulan attack into which Stocker, whom Kirk had earlier dismissed as a "chair-bound paper pusher" but who had relieved him after an extra-ordinary competency hearing, had unwisely led the ship. After Kirk was cured, he managed to maneuver the Enterprise out of the Neutral Zone and away from Romulan ships via a bluff . ( TOS : " The Deadly Years ")

On stardate 4523.6, the Enterprise was dispatched to Deep Space Station K-7 , Koroth , Federation bureaucrats , and myriads of cuddly but prodigious tribbles tested Kirk's patience. ( TOS : " The Trouble with Tribbles "; DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ") Unknown to Kirk, Benjamin Sisko and the crew of the USS Defiant observed and facilitated his actions after a Bajoran Orb : the Orb of Time brought them from the 24th century ; Sisko even got Kirk's autograph (although Kirk thought he was signing a shipping order ) and told Kirk that it had been an honor to serve with him. During the same mission, Lieutenant Commander Jadzia Dax expressed her knowledge that Koloth always regretted not getting the chance to face Kirk in battle. ( DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ")

An Orion spy stabbing Kirk

While the Enterprise was transporting ambassadors to the Babel Conference of 2268, an Orion agent , Thelev , disguised as an Andorian , stabbed Kirk, puncturing his left lung. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ")

On Neural in 2268

Kirk returned to Neural, the site of his first Starfleet assignment, on stardate 4211.4. Klingons had begun supplying the primitive native villagers with firearms , leading them to war on the neighboring Hill People . Kirk decided to supply the Hill People with similar weaponry , escalating the conflict, but putting both sides on equal footing. ( TOS : " A Private Little War ")

Upon his second encounter with the dikironium cloud creature in 2267, Kirk re-experienced the feelings of guilt over his actions in a previous disastrous incident, aboard the USS Farragut . Exhibiting a single-minded fixation on the destruction of the creature, McCoy and Spock questioned Kirk's emotional condition. But as it proved, phasers were ineffective against the cloud creature; thus, Kirk learned that he could not have stopped it in their previous encounter, and hence that he had nothing to regret. With the help of his former captain's son, Ensign Garrovick , Kirk lured the creature to the planet Tycho IV , destroying it with an antimatter bomb. ( TOS : " Obsession ")

Kirk found the contaminated society of Sigma Iotia II , based on 1920s Chicago gang culture, puzzling at first, but he quickly warmed to it. Uniting the world's "gangs" under one "boss", the Iotians became a Federation protectorate . ( TOS : " A Piece of the Action ")

Scouts from the Kelvan Empire in the Andromeda Galaxy hijacked the Enterprise for their return voyage on stardate 4657.5. The Enterprise , modified with Kelvan technology , became the first Federation starship known to cross the galactic barrier, briefly leaving the boundary of the Milky Way Galaxy before Kirk and his senior officers overwhelmed the Kelvans and returned to Federation space. ( TOS : " By Any Other Name ")

Kirk later had his mind displaced into a receptacle in 2268, briefly allowing the ancient being Sargon to live as a corporeal being. ( TOS : " Return to Tomorrow ")

Kirk holding John Gill as he dies

After John Gill failed to report in from a cultural observation mission to Ekos , the Enterprise was assigned to investigate. Kirk found his old professor had developed an idealization of Utopian fascism and had abandoned observation for intervention, creating a Nazi -like world government that overwhelmed Gill's best intentions. Kirk aroused the subverted Gill in time to avert Ekos' impending war with neighboring Zeon , and heard Gill recant his philosophies before he died. ( TOS : " Patterns of Force ")

Kirk being threatened by Kara with a phaser on Sigma Draconis VI

On stardate 4842.6, the Enterprise discovered the Amerind planet, where an ancient race, the " Preservers ", had transplanted elements of Native American cultures that had been endangered in centuries past. When an accident separated Kirk from the landing party and caused him to suffer amnesia , Spock was forced to abandon the search and command the Enterprise in its mission, that of the interception of an asteroid on course to hit the planet. For several months, the inhabitants worshiped Kirk as a god called " Kirok ". During that time, Kirk took a wife . Upon the Enterprise 's return and the restoration of his memories, Kirk was able to activate an ancient planetary defense mechanism the Preservers had left behind, and thereby divert the approaching asteroid. ( TOS : " The Paradise Syndrome ")

In Romulan disguise in 2268

Inexplicably to his crew, Kirk began exhibiting bizarre behavior on stardate 5027.3, and ordered the Enterprise across the Romulan Neutral Zone. Three Romulan starships detained the Enterprise , and Kirk and Spock met the Romulan commander aboard her ship, where Kirk's death was faked. The ruse allowed Kirk, surgically altered to look Romulan, to infiltrate the Romulan vessel and steal its cloaking device. Using the device, the Enterprise cloaked and escaped to Federation space, taking along the captured Romulan commander. The entire operation had been designed to give the Federation plausible deniability in case of the mission's failure, and place the culpability on Kirk in that case. ( TOS : " The Enterprise Incident ")

Near Tholian space , on stardate 5693.2, the Enterprise discovered the USS Defiant adrift, its crew dead, trapped in a spatial interphase . Tholian commander Loskene responded to the trespass of "recently annexed" Tholian space. Kirk was lost in the interphase and presumed dead. The Enterprise exchanged fire with the Tholians, and the unstable region incited madness among the crew. A second Tholian ship joined the engagement, producing a web to ensnare the Enterprise . After various crew members witnessed Kirk's spectral image, he was retrieved from interphase, and the Enterprise used the rift to escape Tholian entrapment. ( TOS : " The Tholian Web ") Many years later, in 2381, a framed photograph of Kirk in an environmental suit during this mission was hanging on the wall of an old bar at Starbase 25 . ( LD : " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ")

Spock attempting to differentiate between two almost identical Kirks in 2269

The Enterprise visited a Federation asylum on Elba II on stardate 5718.3. Kirk's longtime hero, Fleet Captain Garth of Izar , was committed as a patient. Garth, capable of cellular metamorphosis , assumed Kirk's form in an attempt to escape and commandeer the Enterprise . Spock was able to determine which man was truly his captain, and Garth was returned to rehabilitation . ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ")

At the end of that year, the governing council of the planet Gideon attempted to use the Vegan choriomeningitis organisms in Kirk's blood to control their planet's extreme over-population. ( TOS : " The Mark of Gideon ")

A deadly plague struck the crew of the Enterprise before stardate 5843.7. Seeking a cure on Holberg 917G , Kirk encountered Flint , a near- immortal Human. Born as Akharin , during Earth's 4th millennium BC in Mesopotamia , Flint had later been known as Solomon , Alexander the Great , and Leonardo da Vinci , among other famous identities. Kirk fell in love with Rayna Kapec , an android Flint had built to give him company in his final days of seclusion. ( TOS : " Requiem for Methuselah ") A century later, Captain Janeway of the USS Voyager expressed some doubt about this encounter. ( VOY : " Concerning Flight ")

Kirk, with the Excalbian recreation of Abraham Lincoln, and Spock on Excalbia

An incredibly realistic simulacrum of Kirk's hero, the American President Abraham Lincoln , greeted the Enterprise on stardate 5906.4. Following an invitation to the surface of the planet Excalbia , the silicon-based Excalbians re-created the historical figures Surak , Genghis Khan , Phillip Green , Kahless , and Zora . Kirk, Spock, Lincoln, and Surak were pitted against the others as means for the Excalbians to understand the nature and strength of good versus evil . During the battle, Kirk received perhaps on of his most meaningful compliments from the form of Lincoln, who was struck by Kirk's propensity to take the offensive when required, when his he asked of Kirk, " Do you drink whiskey ? " After Kirk responded, " Occasionally; why? " Lincoln answered, " Because you have qualities very much like those of another man I admire greatly, General Grant . " ( TOS : " The Savage Curtain ")

James Kirk's mind, trapped inside Janice Lester's body

After responding to a distress call from his former lover, Janice Lester, on Camus II , Kirk arrived at her bedside, where she appeared to be near death. Not expecting danger, Kirk was easily ensnared. Lester activated the life-entity transfer device and was immediately thrilled by her possession of Kirk's body. The transfer would eventually return the exchanged persona to its original body, as long as both remained alive. Drugged and disoriented within Lester's body, Kirk was easy prey, but Lester's spontaneous gloating monologue prevented her from strangling Kirk before Dr. Leonard McCoy arrived.

Kirk was still a liability as long as he remained alive in sickbay , but the exclusive care of Dr. Coleman kept Kirk isolated from the crew , however, Spock discovered the truth of the situation through a brief mind meld with the imprisoned Kirk in Lester's body, but their attempted escape was halted by security officers ignorant of the captain's strange new behavior.

During Lester's final attempt to kill Kirk, the two touched in a brief struggle, and the misplaced personalities returned to their proper bodies. Broken, incoherent, and sobbing in her complete failure, Kirk couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor, mentally unstable, twisted-minded woman, who was driven mad not only by her ambition of craving the power to command a starship, but also her hatred and jealousy of the captain she once loved, then wanted dead. Kirk felt her life could have been as rich as any woman's, "if only…" ( TOS : " Turnabout Intruder ")

In 2269, Kirk encountered Cyrano Jones and Koloth once again, saving Jones when his vessel, a Federation scout ship , was destroyed by the IKS Devisor . Koloth demanded that Kirk hand Jones over and Kirk defiantly told him that the first Klingon to board the Enterprise would be the last Klingon. ( TAS : " More Tribbles, More Troubles ")

Kirk restrained by a Swooper on Phylos

Kirk, along with Spock, Sulu, and McCoy visited the planet Phylos , where he encountered a clone of Stavos Keniclius , a scientist from the Eugenics Wars. Spock was abducted by Swoopers and cloned, which became known as Spock Two . Kirk later lead a rescue mission to get Spock back, which was successful. Before leaving Phylos, Kirk told Stavos Keniclius 5 that Spock Two could stay with him and together they could attempt to bring the Phylosian civilization back from the dead. ( TAS : " The Infinite Vulcan ")

Kirk wearing a polarized conductor headband

Late the same year, the Enterprise returned to the time planet to once again visit the Guardian of Forever, when he, Spock, and historian Erickson observe the dawn of the Orion civilization . ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

Kirk and his crew were instrumental in stopping a massive matter-energy cloud from consuming the planet Mantilles . Kirk wrestled with the ethical implications of destroying the cloud once it was determined to be a living creature but fortunately, Spock was able to mind meld with it and convinced it to cease its movement toward Mantilles. ( TAS : " One of Our Planets Is Missing ")

Kirk lead a landing party that beamed down to inspect Planet Two of the Taurean system . There, he became affected by the glandular secretion of the female members of Theela's species who inhabited there, who were known for controlling the male mind. This drained Kirk of his "life force," causing him to age at a rate of ten years per day. After an all-female security detachment led by Lieutenant Uhura recovered him and the landing party. By using their molecular pattern stored in the transporter system, Kirk and the others were returned to their previous ages. ( TAS : " The Lorelei Signal ")

Sord and Kirk working together

Kirk, together with Spock, were tasked by the Vedala to recover the Soul of the Skorr , which had been stolen and had triggered a racial fury among the Skorr . As a result, they had prepared for war against the known galaxy. Kirk was specifically chosen for the mission for his leadership and adaptability skills. Together with a team consisting of Spock, Lara , Em/3/Green , Sord , and Tchar , they were transported to a world simply named " mad planet " to recover the Soul of the Skorr. Kirk later determined that the thief was Tchar, and together with Spock, he was able to defeat him and get the Soul of the Skorr back using null-gravity combat exercises . ( TAS : " The Jihad ")

Kirk, shrunken down, assists an injured Sulu, along with Spock, Arex, and Kyle

Kirk and the Enterprise crew later discovered the long-lost Earth colony Terratin after they had sent out a distress signal. However, the only way the colony believed they could get Kirk's attention was to shrink the crew of the Enterprise down to their size. Upon requesting that the colony's inhabitants be saved, Kirk, after being restored to full-size when he transported down to Terra 10 's surface, had the miniature colony beamed aboard the Enterprise and later had it relocated to the planet Verdanis . ( TAS : " The Terratin Incident ")

Kirk attempting to be beamed up from Lactra VII

Kirk, together with Spock and McCoy, beamed down to Lactra VII to locate Lieutenant Commander Tom Markel and other missing officers from the starship USS Ariel after they had been missing for approximately six weeks . While there, Kirk located the missing Ariel officers and encountered the Lactrans . While being held in their " zoo ", Kirk faked being ill in order to regain his confiscated communicator and escape with his crewmembers. Unfortunately, it was taken away by a young Lactran and it was beamed up to the Enterprise instead. Upon witnessing this, the Lactrans tried to destroy Kirk's mind after their "child" had disappeared. After it returned to the surface with Montgomery Scott, it told its fellow Lactrans all it had learned about the Federation and the races it encompassed while on the Enterprise , which led them to free Kirk, Spock, McCoy and the Ariel crew. The Lactrans later requested that Starfleet visit their planet again in about twenty or thirty centuries in their time. When Spock told Kirk that it would take some time to figure out long that would actually be, Kirk responded that, regardless, it would not be their problem. ( TAS : " The Eye of the Beholder ")

Kirk calling Scott after the gravity on the bridge cuts out

In 2270 , Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise fell victim to several practical jokes after the ship passed through an energy field near the Romulan Neutral Zone. Passing through the field caused the Enterprise 's main computer to malfunction and it began erratically playing jokes on the crew. Among the jokes that Kirk had played on him were the computer printing that he was a jerk on the back of his uniform, making him and Spock slip on ice in a corridor, and causing the artificial gravity on the bridge to cut out, making Kirk float to the top of the bridge. ( TAS : " The Practical Joker ")

Kirk in a briefing with Commodore Robert April

Later that year, Kirk welcomed aboard Commodore and Federation Ambassador-at-large , as well as former commanding officer of the Enterprise , Robert April , along with his wife Sarah , on its journey back to Babel, where April was due to be honored before his mandatory retirement . While on the way there, the Enterprise encountered Karla Five and her vessel while it was apparently headed for its destruction at the heart of Beta Niobe supernova. While attempting to save her and her ship, Kirk and his crew were drawn into a reverse universe , where Karla Five was actually from and was intending to return to through the supernova remnant. Kirk, along with his entire crew, began to turn into children while in this universe. Thankfully, due to the efforts of a younger Commodore April taking command of the Enterprise from its captain, Kirk, along with his crew, were all restored to their normal ages when they returned to their own universe. ( TAS : " The Counter-Clock Incident ")

Further exploits of this time included saving the Pelosians from extinction , despite it being a violation of the Prime Directive , such as he had with the Baezians and Chenari years earlier. ( VOY : " Q2 ")

Reaching the end of its five-year deployment in 2270, Kirk ordered the Enterprise set on a course returning the ship to Earth. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

Chief of Starfleet operations

As a rear admiral in the mid-2270s

The USS Enterprise returned to Earth in 2270. Kirk's successful mission resulted in his promotion to rear admiral and a posting as Chief of Starfleet Operations at Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco for the following two and a half years. With Spock leaving Starfleet to return to Vulcan to purge all emotion, Kirk recommended Will Decker to replace him as Enterprise captain while the ship underwent an extensive refit at the San Francisco Fleet Yards , but he told Decker how envious he was and how much he hoped to find a way to get a starship command again. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

The V'ger crisis

Kirk commanded the Enterprise during the V'ger crisis and its official shakedown cruise

In the mid- 2270s , V'ger , an energy cloud assimilating information from (and destroying) objects in its path, threatened Earth. The only starship positioned to intercept it was the Enterprise , her refit nearly complete but still awaiting trial runs. After convincing Admiral Nogura that he was the best man to meet the threat, Kirk rushed the Enterprise into service, assuming the rank of captain for the duration of the mission. Decker regarded Kirk's command as an insult and a mistake and pointed to his recent desk service and unfamiliarity with the ship's new systems, but the younger man fulfilled his duty as first officer.

The entity proved to be the late 20th century NASA space probe Voyager 6 , having amassed great power and self-awareness in its travels. When Kirk and his party discovered the true nature of V'ger and negotiated a visit to the actual probe itself, located at the heart of the 'V'ger' vessel, Decker used the opportunity, with V'ger 's protection, to fulfill his wish to merge with the V'ger entity through the simulacrum of his lover Ilia , thereby uniting V'ger 's mechanical nature with its Human origins. The union resulted in the birth of a radically new, and benign, lifeform. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

Following the success of this mission, Kirk commanded the Enterprise in the mid-to-late 2270s. His quarters were on deck 5.

First retirement

Kirk briefly retired from Starfleet sometime before 2284 to pursue a number of personal goals and affairs, namely his relationship with a woman named Antonia . ( Star Trek Generations )

Return to Starfleet

Inspection tour.

Kirk returned to Starfleet in 2284 and took a position in the admiralty , supervising command-track cadets at Starfleet Academy among his duties. The lack of a center seat gnawed at him until he began to express discontent in his latest posting. Kirk celebrated his fifty-second birthday alone, barring a visit from his friend Dr. McCoy, who gifts him a bottle of 2283 Romulan ale and, as Kirk was allergic to Retinax V , a pair of glasses to adjust for his increasing farsightedness.

The following day, Kirk visited the Enterprise , now commanded by Captain Spock, for an inspection tour and as an observer to a cadet training cruise. Unknown to Kirk at the time, his nemesis, han Noonien Singh had been accidentally released from his exile on Ceti Alpha V , which had lost the inhabitability it had possessed when he and his people were originally left there, by hijacking the USS Reliant , leading to the hunt for the Genesis Device from the Regula I space station . A call from Dr. Carol Marcus alerted the Enterprise , which changed course to investigate even though its crew was largely "a boatload of--children," in Kirk's phrasing. Despite Kirk's (somewhat half-hearted) protests, Spock insisted on deferring his command to Admiral Kirk, quipping that as a Vulcan "he had no ego to bruise."

The subsequent engagement with his old enemy was tumultuous for Kirk, including a near-disastrous blunder disregarding Starfleet regulations quoted by Saavik that nearly doomed his ship and crew. In a textbook example of Kirk's ability to wield the Enterprise against a well-matched opponent was in the encounter with the USS Reliant , where he saved the Enterprise by tricking Khan into believing he was receiving data on Genesis but instead having his shields lowered via the Reliant 's prefix code , allowing the ship to make several retaliatory phaser hits on the Reliant , leading to a temporary withdrawl. Following the immediate success, Kirk admitted, in frustration and fury, to having gotten "caught with my britches down," at first, namely ignoring General Order 12 , which allowed the Enterprise to be crippled by the non-communicative ship's sudden attack.

After arriving at Regula I, Kirk met his estranged son, David Marcus , whom he rescued along with Carol Marcus , and the Enterprise escaped into the Mutara Nebula . A difficult battle with Khan ensued , however, Kirk prevailed after he used his long starship experience and Khan's own egomaniacal psychology to level the playing field and prevail, though it came at a great personal cost, the resulting death of his friend of twenty years, Spock. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Stealing the Enterprise

Kirk in 2285, stealing the Enterprise

Kirk's return to Earth in 2285 was solemn. The loss of Spock affected Kirk deeply, and McCoy began to show signs of mental illness. Planning to return to the Genesis Planet after his battle-damaged starship was fully repaired, Kirk's hopes were dashed when Commander, Starfleet Fleet Admiral Morrow announced that the Enterprise would soon be decommissioned.

Ambassador Sarek approached Kirk, leading to the discovery of Spock's katra surviving in McCoy. Kirk's senior officers rallied to him, conspiring to rescue McCoy and steal the Enterprise from Spacedock One in order to recover Spock's body from the Genesis Planet and to bring it, and his katra , to Mount Seleya on Vulcan.

At the Genesis planet, a Klingon Bird-of-Prey 's attack left the Enterprise disabled. After setting an auto-destruct sequence, Kirk and his crew abandoned the ship for the surface. The Enterprise was destroyed, taking a Klingon boarding party along with it. Finding Spock's body reanimated by Genesis, Kirk took the Bird-of-Prey to Mount Seleya on Vulcan, where Spock's katra and body were reunited. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Saving Earth

Kirk and Spock walking the streets of San Francisco in 1986

After three months of exile on Vulcan, Kirk and his crew departed (aboard the Bird-of-Prey renamed HMS Bounty ) for Earth, to face their charges of violating nine Starfleet regulations . During the voyage, a mysterious probe besieged Earth and communicated only in whale song . After answering the planetary distress signal and determining the probe's objective, Kirk used the slingshot effect to take the Bounty back in time to 1986 San Francisco , 300 years ago.

With the help of cetacean biologist Dr. Gillian Taylor , Kirk successfully obtained the humpback whales George and Gracie and returned with them to 2286 . By providing the whales that could answer the probe's query, Kirk redeemed Humanity's extermination of a sentient species and saved Earth from an environmental catastrophe. ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

Commanding the USS Enterprise -A

Kirk and crew on the bridge of the Enterprise -A

Following the Whale Probe incident, the Federation president declared to Kirk, "we are forever in your debt." In light of their recent heroics, all charges facing his crew were dismissed, but one remained against Admiral Kirk: disobeying the orders of a superior officer. Kirk's punishment was a reduction in rank to captain and a return to the duty that had served the Federation so well, starship command. He was assigned to the Constitution II -class starship, the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A) , in 2286. He commanded the Enterprise -A for the next seven years. ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home ; Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Sybok and Sha Ka Ree

Kirk and the Enterprise -A were hijacked by Sybok and traveled to Sha Ka Ree

In 2287 , after a brief shakedown cruise proved the Enterprise -A not quite to be as fully spaceworthy as it had initially seemed to be, Kirk vacationed in Yosemite National Park with Spock and McCoy, while Montgomery Scott attended to the technical problems. The respite was interrupted after Spock's half-brother, Sybok , raised a small force called the Galactic Army of Light to take over the planet Nimbus III and captured the Federation, Klingon and Romulan representatives.

Kirk and the Enterprise -A responded, as did a Klingon Bird-of-Prey commanded by Klaa , who took on the rescue mission as an opportunity to take on Kirk, as he believed defeating Kirk would make him the greatest warrior in the galaxy.

Following a failed assault on Paradise City , Sybok captured the crew of the Enterprise -A and took over the ship. After most of Kirk's crew fell under Sybok's influence and joined in his quest to meet " God " by taking the starship through the Great Barrier to the legendary Sha Ka Ree . En route, Sybok offered Kirk the chance to "ease his pain," as he had seemingly demonstrated on Spock and McCoy. But Kirk rejected the offer angrily, insisting, " I don't want my pain taken away; I NEED my pain!!! "

Later, the entity they encountered proved to be a malevolent force, imprisoned and looking for release. Sybok joined the entity in combat, sacrificing himself and permitting the Enterprise -A to escape. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Final mission

Kirk and McCoy on trial

Kirk's career culminated in 2293 , when the Enterprise -A was assigned to escort Klingon Chancellor Gorkon to Earth for a peace conference. Kirk opposed the peace initiative Spock covertly negotiated. He especially resented that Starfleet had chosen him to be the Federation's olive branch. A cabal of Federation and Klingon officials instigated an attack on Kronos One that appeared to come from the Enterprise -A, and assassinated Gorkon.

The Klingons arrested Kirk and McCoy, then tried and convicted them for the murder of Gorkon, sentencing them to the Rura Penthe penal asteroid. In violation of orders and treaties, Spock took the Enterprise -A into Klingon space, eluded detection and rescued Kirk and McCoy. Following his victory over General Chang at the Battle of Khitomer , Kirk saved the Federation president from assassination, and the historic Khitomer Conference continued; this led to the successful negotiation, signatures, and ratifications of "The First Khitomer Accords" between the UFP and the Klingon Empire.

After commanding two Starships named Enterprise , Kirk's tenure as captain of the Enterprise ended in 2293.

Kirk, Spock, Scott, Uhura, Chekov, and McCoy see the rest of Sulu's crew onboard the Excelsior -class USS Excelsior on the view screen one last time before parting ways. Kirk ordered Chekov to set the course "second star to the right, and straight on till morning," as the last flight of the Enterprise -A. After that, she was decommissioned, and Kirk retired permanently from Starfleet. ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Second Retirement

Maiden voyage of the enterprise -b.

Kirk briefly taking command of the Enterprise -B

Shortly after retirement, Kirk joined his friends Montgomery Scott and Pavel Chekov as the honored guests of Captain John Harriman on the maiden voyage of the Excelsior -class starship USS Enterprise -B . The event, featuring a media frenzy surrounding Kirk, was little more than a ceremonial cruise, as the Enterprise -B was not yet fully crewed or equipped for regular duty. Soon after departure, the ship received a distress signal from two Whorfin -class ships transporting El Aurian refugees, trapped in an energy distortion called the Nexus .

With the advice of Kirk, and the help of Scott and Chekov, the rescue mission was a partial success, but the Enterprise -B succumbed to the Nexus' gravimetric field. Declining Harriman's offer to take command, Kirk volunteered to modify the ship's deflector relays and successfully enabled the ship's escape, but not before a burst of energy from the Nexus breached the secondary hull . Kirk was lost and presumed dead. ( Star Trek Generations )

The Nexus and death

Kirk, just before jumping over a chasm

Events of 2371 revealed Kirk had entered the Nexus, yet unaware of the passing of 78 years due to the non-linear nature of time in the Nexus. Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise -D discovered Kirk within the Nexus. Kirk agreed to leave his idyllic but unsatisfying existence to help Picard defeat the deranged scientist Tolian Soran , who was going to destroy the Veridian system .

As Kirk explained to Picard, the main reason he always returned to the command chair of the Enterprise was that it was only there that Kirk could truly make a difference. He advised Picard to refuse anything Starfleet offered him that would take him away from the current Enterprise , because he would lose the ability to make a difference in the universe.

" It was... fun. Oh my.... "

Kirk sacrificed his life to save the inhabitants of Veridian IV , as well as the crew of the Enterprise -D, climbing along a precariously-balanced metal bridge in order to grab the control panel necessary to disable the missile that Soran would have used, the bridge subsequently falling down a steep cliff when its support beams broke. His last words, spoken to Picard after being assured that he had made a difference, were to comment that his help was the least he could do for the captain of the Enterprise , as well as to assure Picard that " It was... fun. Oh my.... " ( Star Trek Generations )

Scan of Kirk's remains at Daystrom Station

Captain Picard buried Kirk in a simple stone cairn on a Veridian III mountain top. ( Star Trek Generations )

After Kirk's death, Section 31 retrieved his body for Project Phoenix .

As of 2401 , the remains were stored on Daystrom Station . ( PIC : " The Bounty " okudagram )

Sometime after 2285 , Kirk made a brief appearance in a film called The Tardigrade in Space , which was about the adventures of a female tardigrade and a DOT-7 robot called Dot . His appearance in the film depicted his first encounter with Khan Noonien Singh in sickbay , when he was first awakened from cryosleep in the year 2267 . ( ST : " Ephraim and Dot ")

His missions were read by grade school students and Starfleet Academy cadets alike. ( Star Trek Generations ; VOY : " Q2 ") As a child in grade school , future Enterprise -B Captain Harriman read about Kirk's missions. ( Star Trek Generations ) While nearly a century later, in 2377 , as Icheb began his cadet training aboard Voyager , he recited a report for Early Starfleet History , that described when Kirk concluded his " historic five year mission", that "one of the greatest chapters in Starfleet history came to a close. " ( VOY : " Q2 ")

Captain Kathryn Janeway of the USS Voyager nostalgically recalled Captain Kirk (and his contemporaries) as belonging " to a different breed of Starfleet officer. " She went on to note that, given " the era they lived in, [...] It's not surprising they had to bend the rules a little. They were a little slower to invoke the Prime Directive, and a little quicker to pull their phasers. " She opined, "Of course, the whole bunch of them would be booted out of Starfleet today. But I have to admit, I would have loved to ride shotgun at least once with a group of officers like that." ( VOY : " Flashback ")

Along with Kirk's seventeen separate temporal violations, which gave him the distinction of having the biggest file on record with the Department of Temporal Investigations, Kirk also had a long standing first contact record to his name. ( DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ") It remained untouched until 2378 , when Captain Janeway concluded her seven-year trip across the Delta Quadrant aboard the USS Voyager . ( VOY : " Friendship One ")

During a visit to the 23rd century from 2373 , Lieutenant Commander Worf remarked that it would be an honor to meet Kirk. ( DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ")

The defensive pattern Kirk Epsilon was a battle tactic that was still in use during the late 2370s . ( Star Trek Nemesis )

In 2380 and 2381 , Kirk was mentioned multiple times by various crew members of the USS Cerritos , including Brad Boimler and Beckett Mariner . ( LD : " Second Contact ", " Veritas ", " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ")

Kirk's old bar on Starbase 25 still had his and Spock's names scratched into the counter top as of 2381 . ( LD : " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ")

In 2383 , Kirk was an option for a crewmember in the Kobayashi Maru scenario . Jankom Pog suggested that he and Dal R'El use "this JT Kirk guy," but Dal was uninterested as they already had a captain: himself. ( PRO : " Kobayashi ")

In 2384 , Hologram Janeway noted that both Captains Kirk and Sulu were "Starfleet legends". To the Enderprizians , Kirk was known as " James'T the Warrior ", and he had at least one namesake on Planet 0042692 , James'T . ( PRO : " All the World's a Stage ") Kirk also had at least two others named in his honor during his lifetime, Jame Finney and Leonard James Akaar . ( TOS : " Court Martial ", " Friday's Child ")

Personal interests

Skills and hobbies.

Kirk spent a huge portion of his life aboard starships, and consequently relished the times he could spend outdoors. He was an accomplished equestrian, and kept a horse at a mountain cabin that he owned during his first retirement. Another companion at his mountain cabin was Butler , his Great Dane . He sold the cabin sometime after his return to Starfleet. ( Star Trek Generations )

A personal challenge that nearly cost him his life was free-solo climbing the face of El Capitan mountain in Yosemite National Park on Earth. After Spock rescued Kirk from an accidental free fall, Kirk told the Vulcan and McCoy that while falling he knew he would not die because he had always known that he would die alone, and since he, McCoy, and Spock were present during the incident, he could not die. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ) However, Kirk's prediction eventually proved apparently wrong when he died on Veridian III in the company of Jean-Luc Picard, who was, evidently, an ultimately poor surrogate for Spock and/or McCoy in that particular situation. ( Star Trek Generations )

Beckett Mariner once described herself as a "Kirk-style free spirit ", though her mother, Captain Carol Freeman , retorted that Kirk was confident, whereas Mariner was unwilling to risk dropping her defenses to make allies. ( LD : " First First Contact ")

Personal combat

Kirk's unique fighting style

Kirk incorporated techniques from Judo into his personal combat style

Kirk's command style frequently brought him in close proximity to his enemies, often resulting in hand-to-hand combat. His idiosyncratic martial-arts style used hand chops to the neck, wrestling and judo throws, roundhouse punches, two-fisted swings and open-hand slaps in varying combinations, and even drop kicks. One or two of Kirk's blows overwhelmed a variety of enemy guards and henchmen. In addition, Kirk regularly performed dives and rolls, either to evade phaser fire or to attack an opponent, thereby often jumping off walls and other fixed elements.

A typical example of Kirk's fighting style in a more extended bout occurred in 2265 on the surface of Delta Vega , in the attempt to kill his friend Gary Mitchell. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

While typical examples of his wrestling and Judo abilities were seen when the Orion spy Thelev assaulted him, and when he used a judo throw to disarm the Redjac entity which had taken the form of Hengist . ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ", " Wolf in the Fold ")

At times, a larger, more powerful opponent clearly out-classed Kirk, leaving him to his wits, the aid of his crew, or pure luck to see him through. Pitted against the Gorn captain in 2267, he held his own for a time, until his injuries forced withdrawal and a search for a more efficient weapon. ( TOS : " Arena ")

In 2255 and again in 2268, he wrestled a ferocious Mugato of Neural. When the massive ancient android Ruk attacked Kirk on Exo III in 2266, Kirk could do little but hold on for the ride. ( TOS : " A Private Little War ", " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ")

On the Shore Leave Planet in 2267, Kirk was shocked by the appearance of Finnegan, his Academy nemesis, who had not seemed to age. The two proceeded to slug each other until both were bleeding and exhausted. Perhaps the longest fist-fight of his life, it was clearly the most satisfying. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ")

Kirk fought his friend and first officer Spock on three occasions when the half-Vulcan lost his normal emotional control. A series of slaps delivered to Spock in 2266 resulted in a blow that sent Kirk over a table. In 2267, after necessarily cruel taunts, Spock tossed Kirk back and forth across the transporter room , regaining control just before he crushed his captain's skull. Spock's blood fever during his pon farr of 2267 made him so dangerous in the koon-ut-kal-if-fee ritual fight that Dr. McCoy was forced to falsify Kirk's death before Spock could kill him. ( TOS : " The Naked Time ", " This Side of Paradise ", " Amok Time ")

Kirk was constantly looking to improve his arsenal of combat techniques. Upon witnessing Hikaru Sulu perform a body throw on Agmar on Phylos in 2269, he asked Sulu to teach him the technique sometime, since it might come in handy. ( TAS : " The Infinite Vulcan ")

Relationships

The Kirk family ancestry included settlers who pioneered the American frontier in the 19th century , and the Kirks of the early 23rd century rediscovered the impulse for untamed spaces. After his early childhood on Earth, Kirk lived on Tarsus IV by the age of thirteen, and his brother's family later lived on colonies as well. ( TOS : " Spectre of the Gun ", " The Conscience of the King ", " Operation -- Annihilate! ")

Kirk's brief 2268 marriage to Miramanee produced a child. Though she and the baby died while she was still in the early days of her pregnancy, " Kirok " had welcomed her news of the child. ( TOS : " The Paradise Syndrome ")

George Kirk, Sr.

Kirk's father, Lieutenant Commander George Kirk was serving as first officer of the USS Kelvin during the time of Kirk's birth.

Kirk often credited his father with inspiring him to join Starfleet. His father proudly lived long enough to see his son achieve command. ( Star Trek )

Sam and Jim reuniting in an alternate 2266

George Samuel Kirk (called "Sam" only by his brother) was also, for a time, a Starfleet officer. ( SNW : " Strange New Worlds ", " A Quality of Mercy ")

Their relationship did experience signs of strain at times; Sam expressed feelings of jealousy towards James' quick rise. In 2259 , James had become the first officer on the Farragut , the youngest in Starfleet history, a record previously held by their father. Sam felt James' ambition and brash attitude reflected badly on him. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

Sam later described Una Chin-Riley to James as "the first officer that James thought he should be like." Someone who kept a necessary distance from her crew because she knows she has to make hard decisions. ( SNW : " Subspace Rhapsody ")

Sam, along with his wife Aurelan and three sons, joined his younger brother for a farewell visit before the Enterprise departed for her five-year mission. It was the last time Jim saw Sam alive. ( TOS : " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ") Sam ended up on Deneva, with his wife and son Peter by 2267 . James was too late to save his brother and sister-in-law from the neural parasites that had invaded Deneva that year, and killed the couple, but Peter survived the attack. ( TOS : " Operation -- Annihilate! ")

According to an alternate timeline version of Sam Kirk, he described Jim as a " huge pain in the ass but he's a fine a captain as Starfleet has." ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

David Marcus

David Marcus in 2285

Kirk's romance with Carol Marcus produced a son, David Marcus. At Carol's request, Kirk stayed out of David's early life. David knew something of Kirk, referring to him as "the over-grown Boy Scout " his mother used to know, but not that Kirk was his father. Carol kept David's father's identity a secret, fearing that Kirk's adventurous life would draw David away from her. In spite of the separation, Carol told Kirk that David was "a lot like you, in many ways."

In 2285 , David was working with his mother at the Federation research station Regula I as part of a team developing Project Genesis when Khan Noonien Singh attacked the station. After fleeing to the Regula planetoid , Kirk rescued David and Carol. Kirk did not immediately recognize his son at their awkward meeting, and later became melancholy when considering an alternate life as a father. He observed David's dislike of him, complaining to Carol, "There's a man out there whom I haven't seen in fifteen years, who's trying to kill me. You show me a son who'd be happy to help him." After witnessing Kirk's victory at the Battle of the Mutara Nebula and the funeral for Spock, David consoled his father and admitted he was "proud, very proud, to be [his] son." ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk with David's body on Genesis

Later in 2285, David was an advisor on the starship USS Grissom , researching the Genesis planet he had helped to create. Taken hostage by Klingons , David interrupted an attempted execution of Lieutenant Saavik , wrestling a Klingon warrior briefly before being killed with a stab to the chest. The news of David's death led Kirk to stumble to the deck in grief, spitting at Commander Kruge in his rage, "You Klingon bastard, you've--killed my son!" Kirk subsequently killed Kruge and all but one ( Maltz ) of his crew. As Kirk and his crew made their escape from the collapsing Genesis planet, he somberly and mournfully said goodbye to his son. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Kirk kept David's memory close, with a picture of his son in his quarters aboard the Enterprise -A. Kirk's opinion of Klingons, once enemies he could occasionally respect and even share a laugh with, grew into hatred. In 2293 , during the diplomatic mission to the Klingon Empire instigated by the destruction of Praxis , he logged, "I have never trusted Klingons, and I never will. I've never been able to forgive them for the death of my boy." Acknowledging that he wanted to believe Spock's statements that the mission was historic, he added, "(H)ow on Earth can history get past people like me?" The partial log entry, surreptitiously and illegally recorded by the evil Lieutenant Valeris , was used against him during the trial for the assassination of Chancellor Gorkon, and the incident forced him to come to terms with his hatred for Klingons; Gorkon's daughter and acting successor, Azetbur , realized and admitted just as the Khitomer Conference was getting under way that Kirk had restored her father's faith, to which Kirk responded that Azetbur had in turn restored his son's faith. ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Friendships

An approachable, gregarious individual, Kirk made many friends across a range of worlds and status, from the Hill dweller Tyree to Starfleet Fleet Admiral Morrow. Those that shared his closest, personal confidence appear to be limited to a few, including Spock, Leonard McCoy, and Gary Mitchell. The core group of talented officers that he assembled in his first years aboard the Enterprise followed his call throughout their own careers, and were integral factors to his long success and lasting reputation.

Kirk recognized the impact his life in Starfleet had on his family life. In 2287 , while camping with his friends in Yosemite, he referred to himself, Spock, and McCoy as the only family that men like themselves were likely to have. Presumably, his prediction that he would die alone meant that he would die with neither of them also present at his death. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Nyota Uhura

Lt. Kirk introducing himself to Ensign Uhura

Kirk first met Nyota Uhura at a bar on the Enterprise in 2259. He introduced himself to her and she responded with hostility as she believed he was flirting with her. Over time, the two began to trust to one another and after dealing with the deuterium creatures within Bannon's Nebula , the two shared a drink and Uhura introduced Kirk to Spock. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

After Kirk replaced Pike as captain of the Enterprise , Kirk kept Uhura on as communications officer. The two would work closely together for the next thirty years. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver "; Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Kirk and Spock meeting for the first time

Kirk and Spock officially met in 2259 after Kirk visited the Enterprise for the first time after being tentatively promoted to first officer aboard the Farragut . ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

By 2265, Kirk and Spock were serving together aboard the Enterprise and were familiar enough with each other for Spock to address Kirk as "Jim". After the death of Gary Mitchell, Kirk came to depend on Spock's detached, logical analysis as a supplement to his own intuitive and impulsive nature. Their official relationship deepened into a friendship of mutual respect and love that was without a doubt the most important relationship of both Kirk and Spock's life. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

The inseparable trio (l to r) McCoy, Kirk, and Spock in 2267

As Edith Keeler observed of Spock's place in the world, " You? At his side. As if you've always been there and always will. " ( TOS : " The City on the Edge of Forever ") He once described his Vulcan friend as " the noblest part of myself " and declared that Spock's immortal soul " is my responsibility, as surely as if it were my very own. " Kirk even told Spock's father that he would never realize how important Spock was to him, and declared that, despite losing the Enterprise and his son, had he not tried to rescue his friend, " ...the cost would have been my soul . " ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Kirk with Spock on Earth in 1969

The polywater intoxication that affected the Enterprise crew in 2266 led to a difficult encounter between Kirk and his first officer. Needing Spock at a critical moment, Kirk found him in anguished reflection, regretting his inability to express love even for his mother. Trying to bring the first officer around to the moment, Kirk slapped him. Spock's reaction was flat and revelatory, " Jim, when I feel friendship for you, I'm ashamed. " Struck again, Spock responded in kind, sending Kirk backwards over a table. ( TOS : " The Naked Time ")

Spock was sympathetic to Kirk's plight after the transporter divided the captain's personality into opposite aspects. He referred to his own halves, "submerged...constantly at war with each other," explaining that he survived it because his intelligence won out over both and forced them to coexist. Spock believed that Kirk's own intelligence would also enable him to survive such a contest intact, and urged him to embrace the part of himself that, seemingly ugly, was crucial to his personality and captaincy. ( TOS : " The Enemy Within ")

Kirk holding Spock after he is attacked by a parasite on Deneva

After Kirk discovered emotional rage was the key to nullifying the effect of the pod plants, his first step in retrieving his crew was to taunt Spock into anger. Anticipating the result of a Vulcan's higher strength level pitted against his own, Kirk wielded a pipe for protection. After being called an "elf with a hyperactive thyroid" and told that he belonged "in the circus, right next to the dog-faced boy," Spock indeed lost control, nearly killing Kirk before resuming command of himself. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

In 2267, Spock began his pon farr mating cycle, and behaved bizarrely aboard the Enterprise . Kirk called to Spock " the best first officer in the fleet " and " an enormous asset to me " as he pled with Spock to explain his actions. When told that by taking Spock to Vulcan, against Starfleet orders, Kirk fired back, " I owe him [Spock] my life a dozen times over! Isn't that worth a career? "

Joining him on Vulcan for his marriage ceremony, Kirk was drawn into T'Pring 's scheme to marry another, and forced to fight Spock to the death. McCoy, knowing Kirk was endangered, faked Kirk's death, and the marriage was not consummated. Spock, despondent that he had murdered his captain, thrilled at the sight of Kirk alive, exclaiming, " JIM! ", which McCoy delighted in needling Spock about once he gained his composure. ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

Kirk's understanding of Spock had an enormous impact on the parallel mirror universe, visited after a transporter accident in 2267. As Kirk's party prepared to return to their proper universe, Kirk implored the mirror-Spock to re-examine his role in the fascistic Terran Empire , insisting, "One man can make a difference." Mirror-Spock's consideration of those words led to his rise to dominance and reform of the Empire, with drastic consequences. ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror "; DS9 : " Crossover ")

When Kirk was trapped in spatial interphase during a rescue operation in Tholian space, Spock ordered the Enterprise to maintain her position in an effort to retrieve him, in spite of the danger the Tholians presented and the disruptive nature of the local space. After Kirk's assumed death, Spock and McCoy viewed the "last orders" Kirk had prepared. He urged Spock to use all the Vulcan disciplines at his disposal, tempered with intuitive insight. Kirk believed Spock had the latter qualities, but should they elude him, he was urged to seek out McCoy. ( TOS : " The Tholian Web ")

Kirk once commented to Captain Garth that the dream of the Axanar Peace Mission participants made him and Spock "brothers." Spock only said, " Captain Kirk speaks somewhat figuratively, and with undue emotion, but what he says is logical and I do, in fact, agree with it. " ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ")

When Dr. Janice Lester, a former lover of Kirk's, took over Kirk's body, Spock performed a mind meld on Kirk while he was trapped in Lester's body. Spock believed Kirk was Lester before anyone else, and when Lester as Kirk ordered his execution, he continued to stand by his friend. ( TOS : " Turnabout Intruder ")

Kirk with Spock again in the 2270s

At the end of the Enterprise 's five-year mission, a period marked by his frequent loss of his emotional control, Spock chose to leave Starfleet and his friends, to pursue the Kolinahr discipline of logic on Vulcan . His return to Enterprise during the V'ger threat was a cold event, without acknowledgment of his past friendships. In V'ger 's aftermath, Spock finally achieved equilibrium, able to express his friendship for Kirk without the influence of aliens or illness, and notably lacking any threat of physical violence. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture ) In 2285, Spock was calmly able to tell Kirk, " You are my superior officer. You are also my friend. I have been and always shall be yours. " ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk and Spock, together on Kirk's birthday

Spock's sacrifice of his own life, to save the Enterprise from Khan's detonation of the Genesis Device, deeply affected Kirk. At his funeral, Kirk could only bring himself to say of Spock, " Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... Human... " but he broke off and broke down without being able to continue. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

The revelation that Spock's katra, his "living spirit" (actually his complete brain patterns), survived in the tormented mind of McCoy, led Kirk to risk his career, and in turn, his crew's. He first asked Admiral Morrow for permission to retrieve Spock's body from the Genesis Planet, to bring it, and McCoy, to Vulcan. Kirk insisted that any chance to save Spock's soul was his responsibility, "as surely as if it were my very own." His request declined, he told his crew, "The word...is 'No.' I am therefore going anyway."

With the help of Uhura, Scott, Sulu, and Chekov, Kirk rescued McCoy from confinement and commandeered the Enterprise from Spacedock One . The renegade mission saw the destruction of Kirk's ship and the death of his son. Finding Spock's body re-animated by Genesis, Kirk brought him and McCoy to Vulcan for the fal-tor-pan (re-fusion) ritual. The first person Spock recognized was Kirk: "Jim. Your name...is Jim." ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

During their homecoming from Vulcan, and eventually their trip to 1986 , Kirk tried to remind the resurrected Spock, suffering from memory loss, to their friendship and past adventures together. After Kirk's and the command crew's trial, Spock told his father, Sarek, that his "associates" were his friends. ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

Spock in an attempt to save Kirk's life at Yosemite National Park

In 2287, the trio enjoyed a camping trip together at Yosemite National Park , which abruptly ended when Spock, half-brother Sybok diverted the Enterprise to Nimbus III . After their adventure on Sha Ka Ree and Sybok's death, Kirk referred to Spock once again as his "brother," and told him and McCoy that they were his real family. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

When Spock later entered the alternate reality , he told the James T. Kirk of that reality of their deep friendship, despite the fact that the alternate Spock had marooned Kirk on Delta Vega . During this meeting, Spock called the alternate Kirk "old friend" several times and felt it was good to see a version of James Kirk despite the terrible events of that day . Kirk, who had been accused of cheating on the Kobayashi Maru by the alternate Spock, told Spock Prime that his actions in changing history could be construed as cheating. Spock nostalgically admitted that it was "a trick I learned from an old friend," referencing the prime Kirk.

When meeting with his alternate reality counterpart, Spock Prime admitted to deceiving the alternate Kirk to force him and the alternate Spock to work together to defeat Nero rather than intervening in the situation himself to make both men see the potential of their friendship. Spock Prime explained it as " I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together, of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize. " He then encouraged the alternate Spock to stay in Starfleet and foster that friendship, something Spock ultimately chose to do. ( Star Trek )

In 2263 of the alternate reality, the alternate Spock discovered that even so long after Kirk's death, Spock Prime kept a picture of him and the bridge crew of the Enterprise -A amongst his personal things. ( Star Trek Beyond )

Leonard McCoy

Sharing a drink in 2266

Doctor Leonard McCoy became chief medical officer of the Enterprise after the departure of Dr. Mark Piper in 2265 . Kirk formed an easy rapport with his new doctor, giving him the moniker "Bones" (as in the old-fashioned colloquialism "sawbones" for a doctor or a surgeon). Even after McCoy began a program of exhaustive (and exhausting) quarterly physicals and interfered with Kirk's usual diet, their friendship grew rapidly. McCoy was probably Kirk's closest friend, aside, of course, from Spock. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

The demands of Kirk's career required his best possible health, which Dr. McCoy closely oversaw. Kirk sparred with his crew in the Enterprise gymnasium for exercise. Quarterly physical checks tested his physical fitness as well as general health. In spite of his evident strength and conditioning, Kirk did tend to put on extra weight from time to time. Whenever Dr. McCoy noticed such a gain, he was unafraid to adjust Kirk's diet card , at least once annoying his captain with a plate of dietary salad . ( TOS : " Charlie X ", " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

Kirk could count on McCoy to express exactly what he thought, whenever he thought it, frequently without the courtesy of a question, and the doctor was often the sharpest observer of Kirk's actions and character. An early act of constructive insubordination occurred when the Enterprise faced the ominous spacecraft Fesarius and Kirk seemed to be pushing young Lieutenant Dave Bailey past his breaking point. McCoy let his opinion loose from beside the captain's chair, and Kirk barked an angry reply--but this led Kirk to realize that poker, not chess as Spock had postulated, was the game he and Commander Balok were really playing. Unintimidated by that angered reply to his unrestrained expression of opinion, McCoy continued that behavior throughout their service together, earning a wide latitude with Kirk. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

The first time McCoy saved Kirk's life, however, was not in surgery, but instead when McCoy fired a phaser (which itself was unusual for McCoy) in 2266. When the M-113 creature of planet M-113 attacked Kirk, it appeared to McCoy as Nancy Crater , a past love and a particularly powerful impediment to inflict harm. With Spock's help, McCoy was able to see past the creature's camouflage, killing it before it killed Kirk. ( TOS : " The Man Trap ")

During the original five-year mission, Kirk recorded a tape of last orders Commander Spock and Chief Medical Officer McCoy were to play upon his death. He urged Spock and McCoy to give each other the same trust and loyalty they had each shown him. ( TOS : " The Tholian Web ")

Kirk implores McCoy to rejoin the crew of the Enterprise

McCoy's retirement from Starfleet in 2270 ended abruptly when Kirk, through Admiral Nogura , reactivated McCoy's commission for the Enterprise 's emergency deployment for the V'Ger crisis. Kirk's plea," "Damn it, Bones, I need you-- BADLY," ended McCoy's objection to the unwelcome "draft" and he returned to his frequent duty station, hovering just behind the captain's chair. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

McCoy advises Kirk on the bridge

In 2285 , McCoy advised a melancholic Kirk, while both were surrounded by Kirk's collection of genuine and simulated antiques, on his (Kirk's) birthday, "Get back your command. Get it back before you turn into part of this collection." He gestured to the collection and finished, "Before you really do grow old." ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk holds McCoy in Spock's quarters

Kirk's drastic action taken to save Spock's katra was also an effort to save McCoy from the anguishing burden of bearing Spock's "marbles". After his moonlight requisition of the Enterprise resulted in the ship's destruction, burning through the Genesis planet's atmosphere, Kirk asked, " My God, Bones... what have I done? " McCoy replied, " What you had to do, what you always do: turn death into a fighting chance to live. " ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Kirk and McCoy in 2287

After the assassination of Klingon Chancellor Gorkon , Kirk and McCoy were imprisoned together on Rura Penthe . With the "help" of a shapeshifter named Martia, they were able to escape together and return to the Enterprise . ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Montgomery Scott

Montgomery Scott , the oldest of the Enterprise senior officers, was also the most consistently deferential to Kirk. While not included in Kirk's innermost circle with Spock and McCoy, Kirk had evident faith in Scotty's capabilities as an engineer. Kirk pushed the Enterprise past her known limits many times, and the technical genius of his devoutly loyal "miracle worker" was regularly the key to success.

He later admitted that a big part of his reputation was his exaggeration of repair estimates, so that Kirk could be pleasantly surprised when Scott has them done quicker than he had expected. It became a running joke of sorts between the two later on. Scott and Kirk shared a passion for the Enterprise , but Scotty's was a simpler, less complicated love for his " bairns ". ( TNG : " Relics "; TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", " The Naked Time ", " The Changeling ", " The Paradise Syndrome ", " Elaan of Troyius "; Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

As the ship's second officer , commanding the Enterprise while Kirk led a landing party, Scott's personal loyalty to Kirk served as a bulwark against various ambassadors or potentates who threatened mission success. Usually, Scott refrained from taking the captain's chair and hovered around the conn when left in command, as he always felt more comfortable in engineering than on the bridge in command of the ship. He took the center seat only when the situation was critical: scaring a Klingon ship away from Capella IV , or defiantly facing down three Romulan battle cruisers and demanding his captain's return. ( TOS : " A Taste of Armageddon ", " Bread and Circuses ", " Friday's Child ", " The Enterprise Incident ")

" Aye, captain. " (2267)

When escape from the mirror universe via the transporter meant one of the Enterprise party had to stay behind to operate the controls, Scott stoically volunteered. After Kirk overrode him, Scott's one-word plea " Jim! " was one of the few times he familiarly addressed Kirk. ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror ")

Scott kept his temper throughout Korax 's barrage of taunts and insults thrown at Kirk, but a cross word about the Enterprise led Scott to throw the first punch in the K-7 bar-fight of 2267. When Kirk, a little incredulous that his engineer had failed to defend his honor, confined Scott to quarters as punishment, the engineer beamed at the chance to catch up on technical manuals. ( TOS : " The Trouble with Tribbles ")

Kirk observed Scott's infatuation with two young and attractive lieutenants, Carolyn Palamas and Mira Romaine , with bemused detachment at first, until the "stiff-necked thistle-head" abandoned his usual solid professionalism and required Kirk's stern, but affectionate, scolding. ( TOS : " Who Mourns for Adonais? ", " The Lights of Zetar ")

Kirk with Scott during a power drain crisis in 2269

Kirk's socialization with Scott outside of the call of duty was rare. One exception, a visit to the flesh-pots of Argelius II , was a morale-boosting effort by Kirk on Scott's behalf. If Scott noticed the motivation, he didn't seem to care. Even after the horrific encounter with the Redjac entity, the "old Aberdeen pub-crawler" was eager to join Kirk on a second expedition to the planet. By 2285, Kirk knew enough about Scott's off-duty habits to detect the residue of a "wee bout" of shore leave at first glance. ( TOS : " Wolf in the Fold "; Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

" …she'll be ready. " (2270s)

When the V'Ger threat forced the newly refitted Enterprise into duty, Scott protested with a litany of complaints about the rush and unready state of the starship. After Kirk revealed he had convinced Admiral Nogura to return his command, Scott responded, " Any man, who could manage such a feat... I would'na dare disappoint. She'll launch on time, sir, and she'll be ready. " ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

In 2293 , Scott accompanied Kirk, along with Chekov, to the christening ceremony of the Enterprise -B. Kirk expressed to Scott his surprise over Sulu finding the time to make a family after encountering his daughter Demora . Scott reminded Kirk of a saying he always said, " If something's important, you make the time. " Scott also commented on Kirk's seeming restlessness, asking him if he found retirement to be a little lonely. " You know, I'm glad you're an engineer . With tact like that, you'd make a lousy psychiatrist ", Kirk replied to him. Later, Kirk was believed to be lost in a hull breach in deflector control caused by an energy tendril from the Nexus . Making his way to the heavily damaged area, Scott mourned the loss of his former commanding officer. ( Star Trek Generations )

Upon being rematerialized in 2369 after spending 75 years in the USS Jenolan 's transporter buffer , by the Enterprise -D, to Scott's surprise that he was found by the Enterprise , Scott's immediate response was, " The Enterprise! I should have known! I bet Jim Kirk himself hauled the old girl out of mothballs to come looking for me. " ( TNG : " Relics ")

Hikaru Sulu

Sulu, together with Kirk on the Shore Leave Planet

Though Hikaru Sulu was briefly an Enterprise physicist , he was transferred to the command division under Kirk's command, where Sulu became the ship's senior helmsman throughout the historic five-year mission. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", " The Corbomite Maneuver ") Kirk relied on Sulu as a capable officer he could trust with the Enterprise conn in battle situations ( TOS : " Arena ", " Errand of Mercy ", " The Savage Curtain ") and on away missions as delicate as the timeline-risky visit to the US 498th Airbase Group in Omaha , Nebraska , on Earth in 1969 . ( TOS : " Tomorrow is Yesterday ")

Sulu with Kirk in the 2270s

Sulu risked his career for Kirk on two occasions. Conspiring with his friends, he assaulted a security guard to liberate Dr. McCoy, and piloted the stolen Enterprise out of Earth Spacedock to the Genesis planet in 2285. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock ) As captain of the Excelsior in 2293, he penetrated the Azure Nebula in Klingon territory in an effort to rescue his former captain before he was forced to turn back, ( VOY : " Flashback ") and he later joined Kirk in halting the Khitomer conspiracy . ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Outside of their careers, however, the friendship between Kirk and Sulu was not especially close. Kirk was surprised to discover Sulu had a daughter, Demora , on the maiden voyage of the Enterprise -B. Chekov had to remind him that he had actually met her before, twelve years prior. ( Star Trek Generations )

Janice Rand

Kirk holds Janice close (2266)

Starfleet assigned Janice Rand as Kirk's personal yeoman in 2266. Initially, he complained about the idea of a female yeoman, leading McCoy to ask flatly, "What's the matter, Jim? Don't you trust yourself?" Kirk said he already had a female to worry about, and that the Enterprise was that female. Kirk warmed to Rand, but an undercurrent of sexual attraction between the two became obvious in stressful situations. Suffering from polywater intoxication in 2266, Kirk confided his attraction for Rand to Spock, shouting that he had "a beautiful yeoman!" Kirk later reached out to her hesitantly, longing for her, but he could not approach her on account of his duty. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ", " The Naked Time ")

A transporter malfunction created a duplicate of the captain that contained his negative qualities, such as hostility, lust, and violence. That version of Kirk was consumed with lust and desire for Rand and went "on the prowl" to find her. Eventually, when they both were alone in her quarters, he slowly approached her. Besides being a little startled by his presence, it looked and felt normal for her, until she noticed the captain drinking from a bottle of Saurian brandy.

Obviously drunk, he started telling her that she was "too beautiful to ignore" and "too much woman." As he stalked closer to her, he claimed that they'd both been "pretending too long." Then, he suddenly grabbed her and began kissing her fiercely. The Kirk duplicate tried to pin her to the floor to rape her. But Rand defended herself, leaving a large scratch on her attacker's face, which helped the crew differentiate between the two Kirk "halves." After the situation was resolved, Rand continued as Kirk's yeoman until a reassignment in 2267. She returned to the Enterprise as transporter chief in the 2270s . ( TOS : " The Enemy Within ", " The Conscience of the King "; Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

Kirk and Rand repeatedly felt an attraction for one another, but resisted discussing or acting on their feelings openly. During one mission, Rand, Kirk and other members of a landing party were trapped on a planet where only children survived; adults quickly developed a deadly virus which had been accidentally created by a life prolongation project on the planet. When Rand became upset, Kirk held her close in his arms and comforted her. Miri , a teenage girl whom the team had befriended, witnessed this and became jealous.

She felt that Rand was her "competition" and briefly betrayed the landing party by letting the other children abduct Rand. The captain's love for Rand became obvious when he was under stress from the disease, as he became distraught and obsessed in finding "his Janice," even grabbing Miri and shouting, "Where is she, Miri? Where is she, Miri? Where's Janice? Has something happened to her? Where is she? I've got to find Janice!"

Back aboard the Main Bridge, Kirk admitted, acknowledging that Miri's true age was far older than it appeared to be, " I never get involved with older women, Yeoman. " Rand threw him an "Oh, really?" look in response. ( TOS : " Miri ")

When Kirk was a midshipman , he befriended Academy instructor Lieutenant Ben Finney. Some time later, Ensign Kirk and Finney served together aboard the USS Republic . The two became so close that Finney named his daughter, Jame , after Kirk.

A rift developed between the two friends while aboard the Republic when Kirk logged a mistake that Finney had made which could have caused the destruction of the ship. Because of this, Finney was put on reprimand and his name was sent to the bottom of the promotion list. Finney blamed Kirk for his subsequent inability to gain a command of his own.

Though their friendship was effectively over, Lieutenant Commander Finney served aboard the Enterprise in 2267, as records officer. Kirk was unaware that Finney's old grudge had been growing larger over the years, and Finney had passed into madness. To take his revenge, he staged his own death and manufactured evidence of Kirk's negligence. Finney was successful to a point, and Kirk became the first Federation Starfleet starship commander brought before a court martial . With the help of the eccentric lawyer Samuel T. Cogley and Spock, Finney's deception was revealed and charges against Kirk were lifted. Finney was arrested and faced trial, represented by Cogley. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Jean-Luc Picard

Kirk's body buried by Picard

Although their association was brief, James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard had profound personal effects on one another. Very much like Spock and Leonard McCoy, Picard was instrumental in helping Kirk find meaning in his life after his greatest adventures were essentially over. In fact, it could be argued that Picard was one of the most significant persons in Kirk's entire life, as he embarked on his final adventure with him and passed away knowing that he had "made a difference." Picard laid Kirk to rest on that obscure planet and was his lone mourner. ( Star Trek Generations )

Often described as a ladies' man , Kirk was notably successful in attracting women, and enthusiastic in their pursuit, yet notoriously unsuccessful in establishing any lasting relationships with women – a fact his brother Sam tended to warn women about. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ") By design or coincidence, his most significant affairs were with women fundamentally incompatible with his life in Starfleet. In weighing the balance of starship versus a settled home life, the gross tonnage of the Enterprise usually tipped the scale. ( TOS : " The Naked Time ", " Elaan of Troyius ")

As Kirk became more and more well-known, these exploits became the stuff of legend; when Jadzia Dax , upon seeing Kirk while aboard the Enterprise during the Defiant crew's trip over a hundred years into their past, mentioned how much more handsome "he" was in person, Captain Sisko responded that Kirk had "quite the reputation" in terms of his dealing with women – though Dax then admitted that the "he" to whom she had referred was actually Spock. ( DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ")

While attending the Academy, Kirk was romantically involved with at least two women.

Ruth, as she appeared in 2252

In 2252 , another lover was a woman named Ruth . In 2267, he was greeted by a replica of Ruth that the Shore Leave Planet, in the Omicron Delta region, created. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ")

Janice Lester

Kirk had a year-long relationship with Janice Lester while she also was at the Academy. He professed loving her, but the romance ended badly after " the intense hatred of her own womanhood made life with her impossible. " The two were reunited in a truly bizarre manner in 2269, when Lester, extremely jealous of Kirk's successful career, traded her consciousness with that of Kirk's to take his place as captain of the Enterprise and then exact a double revenge by killing both Kirk and her womanhood. ( TOS : " Shore Leave ", " Turnabout Intruder ")

In the late 2250s , as an instructor at the Academy, Lieutenant Kirk was romantically involved with a " blonde lab technician " whom Gary Mitchell had introduced him to. His relationship with her grew serious, as he almost married her. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

La'an Noonien-Singh

Kirk first met La'an Noonien-Singh in 2259 when Singh contacted Kirk on the pretense of confirming his brother's place of birth, after her adventures with another alternate timeline version of Kirk. He later invited her for drinks if they were ever to meet at starbase. ( SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow ")

They officially met later on when Kirk transported aboard the Enterprise . Kirk revealed to her details of his childhood and reminded La'an that she still owed him a drink. ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

After they worked together trying to eliminate the subspace fold, La'an confessed to Kirk that she had fallen in love with an alternate version of him. She told him that she also liked the way Kirk looked at her now, but he said that while he felt a connection with her as well, he was presently in a relationship with Carol Marcus. ( SNW : " Subspace Rhapsody ")

Carol Marcus

Carol Marcus in 2285

Kirk was involved with Dr. Carol Marcus in the late 2250s . She was stationed at Starbase 1 in 2259 and was pregnant at the time. ( SNW : " Subspace Rhapsody ") She bore his son, David Marcus , but the relationship dissolved as their careers drove them apart. In 2285, the fractured family unit was briefly reunited. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ;)

Janet Wallace

janet Wallace

Kirk was involved with the future Janet Wallace in 2261 ; this relationship was also called off due to their difference in careers. ( TOS : " The Deadly Years ")

In 2263 , Kirk broke off a relationship with Areel Shaw . Kirk was reunited with Shaw four years later, when she was assigned as the prosecutor in his court martial, though Shaw was pleased when she lost the case and Kirk was exonerated of any wrongdoing. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Noel's falsely implanted recollection

During an Enterprise lab's Christmas party in 2265, Kirk met Dr. Helen Noel and danced with her. He used her first name to address her and engaged in brief flirtation with Noel that ended unsatisfactorily for Kirk. He later exhibited irritation when McCoy assigned her to help Kirk investigate Tantalus Penal Colony , and Kirk insisted on using her surname while working with her. Testing the neural neutralizer , Noel conditioned Kirk to believe that their previous encounter had been a sweeping romance. The colony's mad doctor, Tristan Adams , used the suggestion of love and loss of Noel to torture Kirk. ( TOS : " Dagger of the Mind ")

The "evil" Captain Kirk and Yeoman Rand

In 2266, the evil side of Kirk tried to assault and seduce Yeoman Rand. ( TOS : " The Enemy Within ")

Also in 2266, Kirk met a girl called Miri , who was soon about to enter puberty , despite being about 300 years old chronologically speaking. Kirk piqued her interest by calling her "pretty" when they first met, and they went on to develop a close friendship. When the Enterprise left Miri (where Miri lived) shortly thereafter, Janice Rand told Kirk that Miri had really loved him. He accepted that, but said that he never got involved with older women. ( TOS : " Miri ")

Lenore Karidian

Later the same year, while on Planet Q , Kirk met Lenore Karidian at a party and entered into a brief romance with the then-nineteen-year-old blonde girl. As with many of Kirk's love affairs, the two fell in "love at first sight." Kirk was clearly enamored with Lenore, but the true depth of his feelings – and the importance of those feelings relative to his duties as a captain – were conveyed only through insinuation.

When Leonard McCoy directly asked Kirk whether he really cared for the hopelessly insane Lenore, the captain paused pensively, then evaded the question with a navigational order: " Ahead warp factor one, Mr. Leslie . " McCoy's reply, " That's an answer, " presumably indicated that he understood Kirk's unstated position: as captain, Kirk's priority was always the ship, despite his personal feelings for women such as Lenore. ( TOS : " The Conscience of the King ")

Edith Keeler

Edith Keeler in 1930

In 2267 , Kirk and Spock traveled back to the 1930s to repair damage to the timeline Leonard McCoy accidentally caused. While searching for McCoy, Kirk met and fell in love with the compassionate and far-seeing social worker Edith Keeler . Keeler's death was found to be the focal point in history needing repair. As she crossed a street to meet Kirk, he was forced to hold McCoy back while an automobile struck and killed her, thus restoring the timeline. ( TOS : " The City on the Edge of Forever ")

In 2267, the alien Sylvia tried to seduce Kirk into giving her the transmuter . ( TOS : " Catspaw ")

Marlena Moreau

After 2267, Kirk had a near romance with Marlena Moreau . ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror ")

In 2268, while Kirk, Spock, and McCoy were held captive in a 20th century Roman Empire , a slave woman named Drusilla "seduced" Kirk. ( TOS : " Bread and Circuses ") In The Autobiography of James T. Kirk , Drusilla had a son named Eugenio ( β ), whom McCoy believed to be Kirk's son from their intimate time together.}}

In the line of duty, to recover the Enterprise hijacked by Kelvans in 2268 , Kirk seduced Kelinda , in order to arouse jealously in her commander, Rojan . Kelinda recognized Kirk's attempt at seduction, but welcomed his continued efforts. ( TOS : " By Any Other Name ")

Kirk kissing Elaan

On a peace mission to the war-torn Tellun system in 2268, the Enterprise transported Elaan , Dohlman of Elas , to her diplomatically-arranged wedding on Troyius . Kirk's antagonistic relationship with the arrogant and spoiled Dohlman changed sharply after her Elasian tears infected him. Under their powerful biochemical influence, Kirk became instantly and deeply infatuated with Elaan. He ultimately resisted the more compelling effects of the tears and fulfilled his duties, but both Elaan and Kirk experienced a tangible sense of loss at their melancholy final parting. ( TOS : " Elaan of Troyius ")

Miramanee in 2268

In 2268, on the surface of the Amerind planet, an accident induced amnesia in Kirk and separated him from the Enterprise landing party.

For several months, Kirk lived among the Native American inhabitants, worshiped as a god called " Kirok ". His mind at ease from the pressures of command, he took a wife, Miramanee , who became pregnant with his child.

When the tribal worship of Kirok was dispelled, he and Miramanee were stoned – fatally injuring both the young woman and their unborn child. ( TOS : " The Paradise Syndrome ")

Kirk "helps" Shahna

In 2268, when captured for the gladiatorial combats of Triskelion , Kirk was assigned to the tutelage of the drill-thrall Shahna . Kirk introduced Shahna to the wider universe around her, and the Human concept of love. ( TOS : " The Gamesters of Triskelion ")

Queen Deela

Deela was queen of the (infertile) male Scalosians who hijacked the Enterprise in 2268. They planned to use the male members of the ship's crew as a gene pool so her species could continue. Deela choose Kirk as her consort, who, along with the help of Spock, was able to stop her plan. ( TOS : " Wink of an Eye ")

In 2269, the criminally-insane, pathologically-lying Orion inmate of the Elba II penal colony , Marta , became infatuated with Kirk while tending to him after torture . The fact that she loved him meant she had to kill him, but she failed in the attempt. Garth of Izar's jealousy led him to use Marta as a demonstration of a new explosive, killing her. ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ")

Kirk and Odona kissing

Prime Minister Hodin of Gideon , a world greatly suffering from overpopulation, abducted Kirk and forced him to spend time isolated with his daughter, Odona , in 2269. As a carrier of Vegan choriomeningitis , it was hoped Kirk would infect Odona, and the rest of the population. The couple became quite affectionate in their time spent together, though Odona said Kirk "behaved like a perfect gentleman." ( TOS : " The Mark of Gideon ")

Rayna Kapec

Rayna Kapec in 2269

In 2269, Kirk's encounter with the near-immortal Flint led to their competition for the love of the android Rayna Kapec , and resulted in her destruction. Kirk was heartbroken. Spock took an extraordinary liberty with his grieving friend, melding with Kirk without his consent, whispering the word "forget". ( TOS : " Requiem for Methuselah ")

Kirk fell in love with Antonia after his first retirement from Starfleet in 2281 . The two lived together for some time before Kirk decided to rejoin Starfleet. Later in life, he regretted not having proposed to her. He would later be reunited with a life like illusion of Antonia during his 75 years in the Nexus, which was, from a chronological standpoint, his longest-lasting romance. ( Star Trek Generations )

Kirk kissing Martia on Rura Penthe

In 2293 , Martia had a brief romance with Kirk to put him off his guard so he and McCoy could be killed trying to escape. When he expressed his disgust over having kissed her, she, while in his form, quipped, " Must have been your lifelong ambition! " (However, it turned out to be Martia who was ultimately double-crossed and killed.) ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Khan Noonien Singh

Khan and Kirk on the Enterprise in 2267

One of the most violent rivalries of his life was the bitter feud between himself and 20th century Augment dictator Khan Noonien Singh .

In 2267 , the Enterprise discovered Singh and his followers aboard the SS Botany Bay and awakened them. Unaware of Khan's true identity, Khan took advantage of Kirk's hospitality to familiarize himself with the ship and its systems. After identifying Khan, Kirk had him restricted to quarters, prompting Khan to implement his plan to seize control of the Enterprise .

With the help of Lieutenant Marla McGivers , Khan assumed control of the Enterprise . The augments were eventually subdued with anesthetic gas, causing Kirk and Khan to engage in hand-to-hand combat. Realizing he was no match for Khan's augment strength, Kirk subdued him with a heavy flow-control rod. After defeating Khan and his followers, Kirk exiled them to the then habitable world of Ceti Alpha V . ( TOS : " Space Seed ")

Khan later sought revenge against Kirk after McGivers had died in exile. By that time, Ceti Alpha V had lost its ability to support much of the life it had once sustained. To exact his revenge, Khan hijacked the USS Reliant and stole the Genesis terraformation torpedo, whose research and development team included Kirk's old flame Carol Marcus and his bitter, resentful son by Carol, David Marcus. The torpedo's detonation aboard the Reliant, while it was inside the Mutara Nebula , killed Khan and those who were left of his people. But the Enterprise, and Kirk, barely managed to escape the torpedo's blast radius. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk would more than once cross paths with the Klingon officer Kor. They first encountered each other on Organia during the 2267 Federation-Klingon War. Kirk was posing as a native of the planet when Kor declared himself its military governor. Kor was immediately drawn to Kirk, admiring his spirit compared to the passive Organians, and appointed him as his liaison. He would not learn Kirk's real identity until after Kirk and Spock had destroyed his supply depot. Kor noted he would have liked to face Kirk in battle and, even though he planned to have him executed and to use the mind scanner on him, joined him for a drink, where he noted his admiration for Starfleet and claimed they were alike despite their ideological differences.

After Kirk had been freed by the Organians, he again confronted Kor in his office. Kor managed to surreptitiously summon his guards but it was at that point that the Organians intervened, preventing combat between both the troops on the surface and the fleets in orbit. Kirk and Kor found themselves temporarily united in protest against the Organians' interference but Kirk accepted the situation quicker than Kor, restraining him from attempting to attack the non-corporeal beings. ( TOS : " Errand of Mercy ")

They would meet again in 2269, when Kor's ship the IKS Klothos exchanged fire with the Enterprise in the Delta Triangle shortly before both ships were pulled into the alternate dimension known as Elysia . Again, their battle was halted by an outside agency, this time by the ruling council who had forbidden violence in the area. Kirk convinced Kor that their two ships should work together in an attempt to escape the region but Kor planned to destroy the Enterprise afterwards, planting a bomb to detonate when the Enterprise went to warp eight. The attempt failed and Kor quickly left the scene, taking credit for the escape with the Klingons. ( TAS : " The Time Trap ")

Time travel

Several of Kirk's voyages involved travel through time, either personally through time portals or along with the entire starship Enterprise via acceleration through gravity wells . According to the Federation's Department of Temporal Investigations , Kirk, who sometimes ignored regulations when he felt it was for the greater good, amassed seventeen separate temporal violations during his career, more than any other person on file as of 2373 .

His time-travel exploits were well-known enough that, when Sisko, after he and his crew returned to the 24th century, told Dulmur and Lucsly that the vessel they had encountered in the past was the first Enterprise , the two DTI investigators shrugged at the realization that it was "his" ship, which Sisko proudly confirmed. Kirk was regarded by DTI as a "menace". ( DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ")

Earth's 20th century

Kirk and crew visited 20th century Earth on multiple occasions during his captaincy.

The Guardian of Forever

In 2267, after experiencing violent time distortions, the Enterprise discovered the source, the Guardian of Forever . McCoy, delusional from an accidental cordrazine overdose, entered the time portal, altering history to the extent that the Federation and the Enterprise no longer existed. Kirk and Spock followed McCoy, appearing in 1930 New York City on Earth . Kirk found himself and Spock shelter in exchange for work, falling in love with a beautiful, idealistic benefactor, Edith Keeler . After Spock discovered that McCoy had prevented history's recorded death of Keeler, he was forced to restrain the doctor from saving her life again while Kirk watched Keeler die and himself avoid doing anything to save her life, the price for restoring the timeline. ( TOS : " The City on the Edge of Forever ")

When the Enterprise traveled back in time from 2267 to Earth of 1969 but was accidentally observed by the United States Air Force , Kirk, with Sulu, beamed down to a military base in Omaha , Nebraska , to destroy photographic evidence of the Enterprise 's appearance. By warping around the sun 's gravity well in a slingshot maneuver , Kirk and his crew managed to rectify the situation, cause the incident to "unhappen," and return to their own time aboard the Enterprise . ( TOS : " Tomorrow is Yesterday ") While formulating a means of escaping an alternate timeline created by Q 's manipulations of the past, Admiral Jean-Luc Picard referenced Kirk's intentional time travels, using this maneuver, prior to attempting it themselves aboard the CSS La Sirena in visiting the past from 2401 . ( PIC : " Penance ")

Kirk, with Spock in 1968

In 2268 , Kirk was ordered to repeat the recently proven slingshot maneuver, taking the Enterprise back to 1968 on a mission of historical observation. Intercepting enigmatic agent Gary Seven , Kirk attempted to stop his interference but eventually cooperated with Seven's effort to avert a nuclear exchange between the United States of America and the Soviet Union . ( TOS : " Assignment: Earth ") After arriving in 2024 , using the slingshot maneuver, Picard recalled Kirk's encounter with Seven after learning of Tallinns similar credentials as a watcher . ( PIC : " Fly Me to the Moon ")

Other temporal events

A visit to the planet Sarpeidon , doomed by its sun's impending nova , revealed that the Sarpeidans had escaped en masse into their own planet's past via their Atavachron time portal . The harried and ubiquitous Atoz mistook Kirk, Spock, and McCoy for tardy natives, and he thrust them into the planet's past. ( TOS : " All Our Yesterdays ")

In 2269 , Kirk and Spock used the Guardian of Forever a second time, on a mission of historical observation to the dawn of Orion civilization. Upon their return, no-one but Kirk recognized Spock as the Enterprise first officer. Supposedly killed in his childhood, Spock returned to the Vulcan of his youth, playing the role of a nearly forgotten cousin who had saved his life during the kahs-wan , a Vulcan coming-of-age ordeal. ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

Alternate timelines

Captain of the uef enterprise.

United Earth Fleet Captain James T. Kirk in an alternate 2259

In the alternate timeline created where Khan Noonien Singh was killed by the Romulan Sera , Kirk was born on the USS Iowa , and was (still) the brother of George Samuel Kirk, who had died sometime prior to 2259.

Kirk once claimed he spent six months in a Denobulan prison with a Vulcan cellmate. He learned the Vulcan neck pinch from this person, as well as how to make Plomeek soup in a toilet .

Kirk dying of a gunshot wound in 2022

He joined the United Earth Fleet and by 2259, was captain of the UEF Enterprise . After La'an Noonien-Singh was transported aboard his ship from the prime timeline, Kirk was inadvertently brought back in time with her to 2022 Toronto , the point of divergence between their two timelines. Although initially skeptical of her intention to restore her timeline, he was persuaded to help her when he learned that not only was Earth a paradise, but that Sam was still alive. As they attempted to prevent history from being changed, Kirk was killed by the Romulan temporal agent Sera, before La'an succeeded in restoring the original timeline. ( SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow ")

Captain of the USS Farragut

Captain James T. Kirk of the USS Farragut in an alternate 2266

In an alternate timeline where Captain Christopher Pike remained in command of the Enterprise and avoided the accident that exposed him to delta radiation , Kirk became the captain of the Farragut . In 2266 , he responded to the distress call sent by Outpost 4 as it came under Romulan attack. At Kirk's suggestion, the Farragut and the Enterprise shadowed the Romulan Bird-of-Prey responsible, preparing to engage it in a pincer move once it entered the tail of the comet Icarus IV and became temporarily visible through its cloaking device .

James T. Kirk in an alternate 2266.

However, the Romulan Commander had anticipated their plan and positioned his vessel behind the Farragut . Kirk ordered his ship to turn and engage the Bird-of-Prey, but the Farragut was hit by a plasma torpedo at close range and sustained catastrophic damage to its saucer section . With life support failing, the surviving crew were evacuated to the Enterprise , including Kirk. After Pike negotiated a ceasefire, Kirk piloted a shuttlecraft for reinforcements, returning with a fleet of drone ships to bluff the Romulan armada that had appeared.

When the Romulans attacked the Enterprise , Kirk used his drone fleet to cover the Enterprise until its engines could be repaired, beaming back aboard moments before the Enterprise jumped to warp. Pike was impressed by Kirk and told the young captain that he would make a good captain for the Enterprise . Pike got to know Kirk briefly before using a time crystal to return to his own time where he changed the events that led to this timeline. However, the encounter led to Pike taking an interest in Kirk in his own timeline. ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

Thelin's commanding officer

In an alternate timeline created where Spock was killed in 2237 when he was seven years old, Kirk had assumed command of the USS Enterprise by 2265 and chosen the Andorian Thelin as his first officer. ( TAS : " Yesteryear ")

Awards and honors

Kirk in dress uniform 2267

• 2233 : Born to George and Winona Kirk in Riverside , Iowa on March 22nd.
• 2246 : On Tarsus IV , he was one of nine witnesses to a massacre ordered by Governor Kodos .
• 2250 : Began a fifteen-year friendship with Gary Mitchell .
• 2252 : Entered Starfleet Academy as a cadet . Was romantically involved with Ruth and bullied by Finnegan . During his time at the Academy, participated in the Axanar Peace Mission .
• 2252 to 2255 : Befriends Lieutenant Benjamin Finney . Promoted to ensign and was assigned aboard USS Republic , along with Lieutenant Benjamin Finney.
• Promoted to lieutenant. Was on his first planetary survey mission at Neural .
• Graduated from Academy after defeating the "no-win" Kobayashi Maru scenario . Assigned to the USS Farragut under the command of Captain Garrovick
• 2257 : Encounters dikironium cloud creature while serving aboard the Farragut .
• 2259 : Appointed First officer of the Farragut
• Late 2250s/Early 2260s: An instructor at the Academy. Gary Mitchell was one of his students. Relationship with Carol Marcus ends; their son, David Marcus , is born.
• 2261 : Breaks off relationship with Janet Wallace .
• 2263 : Breaks off relationship with Areel Shaw .
• 2265 – 2270 : He assumed command of the USS Enterprise for a historic five-year mission . Specific accomplishments include:
• 2265 : Takes the USS Enterprise to the galactic barrier , the first Earth ship to do so in two hundred years. During the mission, is forced to kill close friend Gary Mitchell .
• 2266 : Achieved first contact with the First Federation . Later that year, repels a Romulan incursion and destroys a Romulan Bird-of-Prey.
• 2267 : Became the first Starfleet captain ever to stand court martial, charged with negligent homicide in the death of Benjamin Finney ; charges dismissed.
• 2268 : Responsible for stealing a Romulan cloaking device during a covert Starfleet intelligence mission. Experiences amnesia and lived among the American Indians on Amerind where he wedded Miramanee .
• 2269 : Diverts the asteroid-ship Yonada from destroying Daran V . Nearly killed by Dr. Janice Lester with whom he'd had a year-long relationship years before. Trapped in a planet's past along with Spock and McCoy on a planet about to go supernova
• 2270 : Promoted to Rear Admiral and assigned as Chief of Starfleet Operations .
• Mid- 2270s : Accepted temporary grade reduction to Captain and assumed command of USS Enterprise to intercept V'ger .
• 2281 : Retires from Starfleet.
• 2282 : Meets Antonia and enjoys a romantic relationship with her until choosing to resume his Starfleet career instead of marrying her – a decision he later regrets.
• 2284 : Returns to Starfleet as an instructor at Starfleet Academy.
• 2285 : Assumes temporary command of the Enterprise during a routine training mission, engages Khan Noonien Singh in the Battle of the Mutara Nebula . Deserts from Starfleet later that year to retrieve body of Captain Spock from the Genesis Planet.
• 2286 : Returns to Earth to face court martial charges. Subsequently, saves the planet in the Whale Probe incident. Demoted to captain for disobeying orders of Starfleet Commander Morrow and assigned to command the USS Enterprise -A.
• 2287 : Takes the Enterprise -A to the center of the galaxy after Vulcan renegade Sybok hijacked the ship.
• 2293 : Along with Captain Hikaru Sulu of the USS Excelsior , was responsible for saving the Khitomer Conference : retired from Starfleet and was presumed killed later that year during the maiden voyage of the USS Enterprise -B.
• 2371 : Jean-Luc Picard finds Kirk alive inside the Nexus . Killed while defeating Tolian Soran 's plans and saving planet Veridian IV .

Memorable quotes

The wit and wisdom of Starfleet Captain James T. Kirk.

Existential Kirk

" Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before. "

"Above all else, a god needs COMPASSION!"

" I wanna live! I wanna live! "

" This vessel... I give, she takes. She won't permit me my life, I've got to live hers. "

" No beach to walk on. "

"Don't tell me that again, Science Officer! It's a theory; it's possible! We may go up in the biggest ball of fire since the last sun in these parts exploded, but we've got to take that one-in-ten-thousand chance!"

" Why me? I look around that bridge, and I see the men waiting for me to make the next move. And Bones...what if I'm wrong? "

" ...Nothing is more important than my ship. "

" You said you wanted freedom. It's time you learned that freedom is never a gift; it has to be earned."

"Death, destruction, disease, horror--that's what war is all about! That's what makes it a thing to be avoided. You've made it neat and painless. So neat and painless you've had no reason to stop it. And you've had it for over five hundred years. Since it seems to be the only way I can save my crew and my ship, I'm gonna end it for you, one way or another."

" All right. [War is] instinctive. But the instinct can be fought. We're Human beings with the blood of a million savage years on our hands, but we can stop it. We can admit that we're killers, but we're not going to kill today. That's all it takes! Knowing that we're not going to kill... today! "

"It's a true Eden, Jim. There's belonging and love. " "No wants...no needs...we weren't meant for that. None of us. Man stagnates if he has no ambition, no desire to be more than he is. "

" Well, that's the second time man's been thrown out of paradise. " "No, no, Bones. This time we walked out on our own. Maybe we weren't meant for paradise. Maybe we were meant to fight our way through...struggle, claw our way up, scratch for every inch of the way. Maybe we can't stroll to the music of the lute--we must march to the sound of drums."

" Excuse me, Gentlemen... I'm a soldier, not a diplomat. I can only tell you the truth. "

" Mankind has no need for gods. We find the one quite adequate. "

" Human flesh against Human flesh. We're the same. We share the same history, the same heritage, the same lives. We're tied together beyond any untying. Man or woman, it makes no difference... We're Human. We couldn't escape from each other even if we wanted to. That's how you do it, lieutenant. By remembering who and what you are. A bit of flesh and blood afloat in a universe without end. The only thing that's truly yours is the rest of Humanity. That's where our duty lies. "

" In every revolution, there's one man with a vision... "

"What is a man but that lofty spirit, that sense of-- enterprise? That devotion to something that cannot be sensed, cannot be realized, but only dreamed, the highest reality?"

" War isn't a good life, but it's life. "

" Do you know the one, 'all I ask is a tall ship...?' " " It's very old. " " 20th century Earth. 'All I ask is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by.' You could feel the wind at your back in those days, the sound of the sea beneath you. And even if you take away the wind and the water, it's still the same... The ship is yours, you can feel her. And the stars are still there, Bones."

" I... am... KIROK! " ( TOS : " The Paradise Syndrome ")

" You could serve as Human sacrifice. " " No I wouldn't enjoy that at all. Besides you seem to need me alive. "

" I don't believe in the no-win scenario. "

" We learn by doing. "

" The needs of the one outweigh the needs of the many. "

" Double dumbass on you! "

"Don't tell me--you're from outer space." "No, I'm from Iowa; I only work in outer space."

"Damn it, Bones, you're a doctor! You know that pain and guilt can't be taken away with the wave of a magic wand! They're the things we carry with us, the things that make us who we are! If we lose them, we lose ourselves! "I don't WANT my pain taken away--I NEED my pain!!!"

" You have restored my father's faith. " " And you have restored my son's. "

"I was out saving the galaxy while your grandfather was in diapers!"

" Don't let them promote you, don't let them transfer you, don't let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship. Because while you're there, you can make a difference. "

Kirk on death

" Look, I could tell you some comforting fairy tale, but we both know the truth. Our job puts us up against death more than is fair. And we might not like it, but we do have to face it. And right now, death is winning. It claimed your family, it claimed your friend. It convinced you to forget them, because it's less painful than holding on to their memories. Now, you can let death win...or you can fight back. Hold on to them. "

" I'm used to the idea of dying. But I have no desire to die for the likes of you. "

" Poor Matt... He gave his life in an attempt to save others... Not the worst way to go "

" What a terrible way to die. " " There are no good ways, Sulu. "

" How we deal with death is at least as important as how we deal with life... "

" Lieutenant Saavik was right... You never have faced death. " " No, not like this. I haven't faced death. I've cheated death. I tricked my way out of death... and patted myself on the back for my ingenuity. I know nothing. "

" My God, Bones... What have I done? " " What you had to do. What you always do. Turn death into a fighting chance to live. "

" I've always known... I'll die alone. "

In Harm's Way

" This is the captain of the Enterprise . Our respect for other lifeforms requires that we give you this... warning. There is one critical item of information that has never been incorporated into the memory banks of any Earth ship. Since the early years of space exploration, Earth vessels have had incorporated into them, a substance known as... corbomite. It is a material and a device which prevents... attack... on us. If any destructive energy touches our vessel, a reverse reaction of equal strength is created, destroying... " " You now have two minutes. " " ...DESTROYING the attacker. It may interest you to know... that since the initial use of corbomite more than two of our centuries ago, no attacking vessel has survived the attempt. Death has... little meaning to us. If it has none to you... then attack us now. We grow annoyed at your foolishness. "

" They used to say if man could fly, he'd have wings... but he did fly. He discovered he had to. Do you wish that the first Apollo mission hadn't reached the moon, or that we hadn't gone on to Mars or the nearest star? That's like saying you wish that you still operated with scalpels and sewed your patients up with catgut like your great-great-great-great-grandfather used to. I'm in command. I could order this. But I'm not... because... Dr. McCoy is right in pointing out the enormous danger potential in any contact with life and intelligence as fantastically advanced as this. But I must point out that the possibilities, the potential for knowledge and advancement is equally great. Risk... risk is our business! That's what this starship is all about... that's why we're aboard her! "

" Khan. How do we know you'll keep your word? " " Oh, I've given you no word to keep, admiral. In my judgment you simply have no alternative. " " I see your point... stand by to receive our transmission... (whispers) Mr. Sulu, lock phasers on target... " " Time's up admiral! " " Here it comes. Now, Mr. Spock. "

" Sir, you did it! " " I did nothing! Except get caught with my britches down. I must be getting senile. "

" Kirk... you're still alive, my old friend. " " Still. Old. Friend! You've managed to kill just about everyone else, but like a poor marksman, you KEEP MISSING the TARGET! "

" KHAAAAAAN!!! " ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

" We tried it once your way Khan, now are you game for a rematch? Khan... I'm LAUGHING at the superior... intellect. "

" Sorry about your crew, but as we say on, Earth, c'est la vie . "

" I... have had... enough of you! "

" SHOOT HIM!!! "

" Excuse me... but what does God need with a starship? "

" Don't believe them! Don't trust them! " " They are dying... " " Let them die. "

" Risk is part of the game, if you want to sit in that chair. "

Kirk on women

" When I get my hands on the headquarters genius who gave me a female yeoman... " " What's the matter Jim, don't you trust yourself? "

" You're too beautiful to ignore. Too much woman. "

" Uh, there are things you can do with a lady, uh, Charlie, that you... Uh, there's no right way to hit a woman. I mean, man to man is one thing, but, um, man and woman, uh, it's, ah... is, uh... Well, it's, ah, another thing. Do you understand? "

" Worlds may change, galaxies disintegrate, but a woman... always remains a woman. "

" You'll learn something about men and women... the way they're supposed to be. Caring for each other, being happy with each other, being good to each other. That's what we call... love. You'll like that too. A lot. "

" Mr. Spock, the women on your planet are logical. That is the only planet in this galaxy that can make that claim. "

" You sleep lightly, captain. " " Yes, duty is a good teacher. I see you've changed your dress-maker. " " Release me! " " So you could attack me again? That would be foolish. " " Call the guards if you're afraid, captain. " " I'm not afraid. In fact... I find this rather enjoyable. "

Kirk and Spock

" Will you try for one moment to feel? At least act like you've got a heart? "

" Spock, I think I'm in love with Edith Keeler. " " Jim, Edith Keeler, must die."

" Alright, you mutinous, disloyal, computerized half-breed, we'll see about you deserting my ship... You're an overgrown jackrabbit. An elf with a hyperactive thyroid... What else would you expect from a simpering devil eared freak whose father was a computer and whose mother was an encyclopedia... Your father was a computer, like his son... from a planet of traitors. A Vulcan never lived who had an ounce of integrity... You're a traitor from a race of traitors. Disloyal to the core; rotten like the rest of your sub-Human race, and you've got the GALL to make love to that girl. Does she know what she's getting, Spock? A carcass full of memory banks who should be squatting on a mushroom, instead of passing himself off as a man. You belong in a circus, Spock, not a starship. RIGHT NEXT TO THE DOG-FACED BOY!

" Mind your own business, Mr. Spock! I'm sick of your half-breed interference, do you hear me? "

" Analysis, Mr. Spock? " " Very bad poetry, captain. "

" No, it was a calculated risk. Still, the Eminians keep a very orderly society and actual war is very messy business. Very, very messy business. I had a feeling they would do anything to avoid it, even talk peace. " " Feeling is not much to go on. " " Sometimes a feeling, Mr. Spock, is all we Humans have to go on. " " Captain, you almost make me believe in luck. " " Why, Mr. Spock, you almost make me believe in miracles. "

" Kill Spock? That's not what we came to Vulcan for. "

" Of my friend, I can only say this: Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... Human. "

" Oh him? He's harmless. Back in the sixties, he was part of the free speech movement at Berkeley. I think he did a little too much LDS. "

" ... either you're with me or you're not! " " I am here, captain. " " That's a little vague, Spock... "

" I lost a brother once... I was lucky... I got him back. "

" You're a great one for logic. I'm a great one for rushing in where angels fear to tread. We're both extremists. Reality is probably somewhere in between. "

" You know, if Spock were here, he'd say I was an irrational, illogical Human being for taking on a mission like that... Sounds like fun! "

Opinions of Kirk

" This officer's record shows him to be an insubordinate, unprincipled, career-minded opportunist with a history of violating the chain of command whenever it suited him. "

Appearances

• " Where No Man Has Gone Before "
• " The Corbomite Maneuver "
• " Mudd's Women "
• " The Enemy Within "
• " The Man Trap "
• " The Naked Time "
• " Charlie X "
• " Balance of Terror "
• " What Are Little Girls Made Of? "
• " Dagger of the Mind "
• " The Conscience of the King "
• " The Galileo Seven "
• " Court Martial "
• " The Menagerie, Part I "
• " The Menagerie, Part II "
• " Shore Leave "
• " The Squire of Gothos "
• " The Alternative Factor "
• " Tomorrow is Yesterday "
• " The Return of the Archons "
• " A Taste of Armageddon "
• " Space Seed "
• " This Side of Paradise "
• " The Devil in the Dark "
• " Errand of Mercy "
• " The City on the Edge of Forever "
• " Operation -- Annihilate! "
• " Catspaw "
• " Metamorphosis "
• " Friday's Child "
• " Who Mourns for Adonais? "
• " Amok Time "
• " The Doomsday Machine "
• " Wolf in the Fold "
• " The Changeling "
• " The Apple "
• " Mirror, Mirror "
• " The Deadly Years "
• " I, Mudd "
• " The Trouble with Tribbles "
• " Bread and Circuses "
• " Journey to Babel "
• " A Private Little War "
• " The Gamesters of Triskelion "
• " Obsession "
• " The Immunity Syndrome "
• " A Piece of the Action "
• " By Any Other Name "
• " Return to Tomorrow "
• " Patterns of Force "
• " The Ultimate Computer "
• " The Omega Glory "
• " Assignment: Earth "
• " Spectre of the Gun "
• " Elaan of Troyius "
• " The Paradise Syndrome "
• " The Enterprise Incident "
• " And the Children Shall Lead "
• " Spock's Brain "
• " Is There in Truth No Beauty? "
• " The Empath "
• " The Tholian Web "
• " For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky "
• " Day of the Dove "
• " Plato's Stepchildren "
• " Wink of an Eye "
• " That Which Survives "
• " Let That Be Your Last Battlefield "
• " Whom Gods Destroy "
• " The Mark of Gideon "
• " The Lights of Zetar "
• " The Cloud Minders "
• " The Way to Eden "
• " Requiem for Methuselah "
• " The Savage Curtain "
• " All Our Yesterdays "
• " Turnabout Intruder "
• " Beyond the Farthest Star "
• " Yesteryear "
• " One of Our Planets Is Missing "
• " The Lorelei Signal "
• " More Tribbles, More Troubles "
• " The Survivor "
• " The Infinite Vulcan "
• " The Magicks of Megas-Tu "
• " Once Upon a Planet "
• " Mudd's Passion "
• " The Terratin Incident "
• " The Time Trap "
• " The Ambergris Element "
• " The Eye of the Beholder "
• " The Jihad "
• " The Pirates of Orion "
• " The Practical Joker "
• " Albatross "
• " How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth "
• " The Counter-Clock Incident "
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture
• Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
• Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
• Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
• Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
• Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
• Star Trek Generations
• Star Trek Beyond (picture only)
• DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations " (archive footage)
• ENT : " These Are the Voyages... " (archive audio)
• ST : " Ephraim and Dot " (archive audio)
• PIC : " The Bounty " (scan of remains)
• " No Small Parts " (picture only)
• " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers " (picture only)
• " A Quality of Mercy "
• " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow "
• " Lost in Translation "
• " Subspace Rhapsody "
• VST : " Walk, Don't Run " (archive footage)

Background information

Casting kirk.

Kirk was played by William Shatner .

Don Eitner served as body double for Shatner as the pair of Kirks in " The Enemy Within ". Actress Sandra Smith also "played" Captain Kirk in Janice Lester 's body in " Turnabout Intruder ", while Shatner "played" Lester in Kirk's body.

Following his introduction in the second pilot, the only non-appearance of Kirk was in the animated episode " The Slaver Weapon ". Archive footage of Shatner was used in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode " Trials and Tribble-ations ", and archive audio of his voice was used in the Star Trek: Enterprise finale, " These Are the Voyages... " and the Star Trek: Short Treks episode " Ephraim and Dot ".

William Shatner was not the first choice to play Kirk. The producers first approached actors Lloyd Bridges and Jack Lord for the role; both turned it down. [5] [6] (X) [7] (X) Both Bridges and Lord have since passed away.

In order to play Kirk, William Shatner attempted to stay physically fit. " I've tried to stay limber, and I've tried to keep myself in shape, " he related. " Not for a little reason. For a great reason, because I'm playing Captain Kirk, and I wanted to be ready for each movie and not act my age. " ("Strange New Worlds: The Valley of Fire", Star Trek Generations (Special Edition) DVD / Blu-ray )

Naming Kirk

The name for Kirk wasn't decided until 1965 . In a memo written by Gene Roddenberry to researcher Kellam de Forest on 18 May 1965 , sixteen names were under consideration. These names were:

• Christopher

This memo was reprinted in The Making of Star Trek [ page number? • edit ] and Inside Star Trek: The Real Story [ page number? • edit ] .

"James Tiberius Kirk" was the final choice of name chosen to adorn the new TV show's hero.

Originally, according to Gene Roddenberry 's novel Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Kirk was named "James" after his mother's "first love instructor" as well as "an uncle" (his "father's beloved brother"), and "Tiberius" because the Roman emperor fascinated his grandfather Samuel.

Gary Mitchell's tombstone for "James R. Kirk"

Kirk's middle name came later, as can be ascertained by the "James R. Kirk" tombstone, created by Gary Mitchell in " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", Kirk's middle initial was R, not T. According to D.C. Fontana in the introduction for Star Trek: The Classic Episodes 1 , when the mistake over the middle initial was discovered, Gene Roddenberry decided that if pressed for an answer on the discrepancy, the response was to be " Gary Mitchell had godlike powers, but at base he was Human. He made a mistake. "

The origin of Kirk's established middle name has several possible, if not potentially conflicting, origins, including the "official" claim that David Gerrold spontaneously blurted out the name in response to a question regarding what Kirk's middle initial stood for at a 1973 Star Trek convention , and subsequently conferred with D.C. Fontana and Gene Roddenberry , who approved the name, and it became forever part of Star Trek lore. ( [8] Maximum PC , November 2010, p. 94; Star Trek: The Official Guide to the Animated Series , 129) In another instance, the name was referenced by Fontana in a Q&A with her and Majel Barrett , in an audio recording dated from a 1972 convention, which suggests that Fontana may have been the first to mention the name to the public. [9] Whereas a third case can be made, and consequently has been by various reference works, that Roddenberry himself was responsible for the name, as his "fondness" for "Tiberius" predates Star Trek , having had already used it in his prior series, The Lieutenant , for that lead character: "Willam Tiberius Rice". ( Star Trek Chronology  (1st ed., p. 40); The Encyclopedia Shatnerica , p. 90; Star Trek Magazine Special 2016 , pp. 23-24)

Character development

Gene Roddenberry , in his original pitch to television producers, described the character (originally named Robert April , then Christopher Pike) that later came to be known, eventually, as Captain Kirk:

The 'skipper' , about thirty-four, Academy graduate, rank of Captain... a shorthand sketch of Robert April might be 'A space-age Captain Horatio Hornblower ', lean and capable both mentally and physically. A colorfully complex personality, he is capable of action and decision that can verge on the heroic – and at the same time lives a continual battle with self-doubt and the loneliness of command. As with similar men in the past (Drake, Cook, Bougainville, and Scott), his primary weakness is a predilection to action over administration, a temptation to take the greatest risks onto himself. But, unlike most early explorers, he has an almost compulsive compassion for the plight of others, alien as well as human, [and] must continually fight the temptation to risk many to save one.

NBC 's early- 1966 sales brochure (reprinted in Inside Star Trek: The Real Story ) described Kirk thus:

A Space Academy graduate, Captain James Kirk has learned to accept the loneliness of command as he has rapidly climbed the ladder of promotion, although he never will learn to like the loneliness his post brings. Starship command is the most important position a man in the Space Service can hold, since he alone can and must make decisions in his contact with the other worlds that can affect the future course of civilization throughout the Universe. So far, James Kirk has proven himself equal to this awesome responsibility. A strong, capable, highly intelligent man in his mid-thirties, Kirk is a born leader, who has trained himself to walk the tightrope between friendship and authority without losing his sense of humor or compassion for others.

William Shatner was to have reprised his role as Captain Kirk on Star Trek: Phase II . The writers/directors guide for that series, written, among others, by Gene Roddenberry and Jon Povill between May and August 1977 , described Kirk as follows:

A shorthand sketch of Kirk might be 'a space-age Captain Horatio Hornblower,' constantly on trial with himself, a strong, complex personality. With the Starship out of communication with Earth and Starfleet bases for long periods of time, a Starship captain has unusual broad powers over both the lives and welfare of his crew, as well as over Earth people and activities encountered during these voyages. He also has broad power as an Earth Ambassador may discover. Kirk feels these responsibilities strongly and is fully capable of letting the worry and frustration lead him into error. He is also capable of fatigue and inclined to push himself beyond Human limits, then condemn himself because he is not superhuman. The crew respects him, some almost to the point of adoration. At the same time, no senior officer aboard is fearful of using his own intelligence in questioning Kirk's orders and can themselves be strongly articulate up to the point where Kirk signifies his decision has been made. Kirk is a veteran of hundreds of planet landings and space emergencies. He has a broad and highly mature perspective on command, fellow crewmen, and even on alien life customs, however strange or repugnant they seem when reassessed against Earth standards. On the other hand, don't play Kirk like the captain of an 1812 frigate in which nothing or no one moves without his command. The Enterprise crew is a finely-trained team, well able to anticipate information and action Kirk needs. Aboard ship, Captain Kirk has only a few opportunities for anything approaching friendship. One exception is with ship's surgeon Dr. McCoy, who has a legitimate professional need to constantly be aware of the state of the Captain's mind and emotions. But on a 'shore leave' away from the confines of self-imposed discipline, Jim Kirk is likely to play pretty hard, almost compulsively so. It is not impossible he will let this drag him at one time or another into an unwise romantic liaison which he will have great difficulty disentangling. He is, in short, a strong man forced by the requirements of his ship and career into the often lonely role of command, even lonelier because Starship command is the most difficult and demanding task of his century.

Kirk's demise

Regarding the death of Kirk, Ronald D. Moore , co-writer of the script in which Kirk died, wrote:

Years later, Moore added:

William Shatner personally found portraying the final appearance of Kirk, in Star Trek Generations , was "kind of strange and sad." ("Uniting Two Legends", Star Trek Generations (Special Edition) DVD / Blu-ray )

Star Trek 's writers, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman , intended the alternate reality Spock to be given a hologram of Kirk Prime by Spock Prime to convince him of their friendship. His message would have bookended the young Kirk's promotion to captain and explained Spock's offer to become his first officer. However, the filmmakers opted to drop the idea without proposing it to Shatner, as the actor was vocal about having a substantial role in the film and not a cameo. Kirk's lines were as follows:

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you... (stops, grins) I know I know, it's illogical to celebrate something you had nothing to do with, but I haven't had the chance to congratulate you on your appointment to the ambassadorship so I thought I'd seize the occasion... Bravo, Spock – they tell me your first mission may take you away for awhile, so I'll be the first to wish you luck... and to say... I miss you, old friend. I suppose I'd always imagined us... outgrowing Starfleet together. Watching life swing us into our Emeritus years... I look around at the new cadets now and can't help thinking... has it really been so long? Wasn't it only yesterday we stepped onto the Enterprise as boys? That I had to prove to the crew I deserved command... and their respect? I know what you'd say – 'It's their turn now, Jim...' And of course you're right... but it got me thinking: Who's to say we can't go one more round? By the last tally, only twenty five percent of the galaxy's been chartered... I'd call that negligent. Criminal even – an invitation. You once said being a starship captain was my first, best destiny... if that's true, then yours is to be by my side. If there's any true logic to the universe... we'll end up on that bridge again someday. Admit it, Spock. For people like us, the journey itself... is home. [11]

Ambiguities

Accepted canon regarding Kirk's early life before the Enterprise , and gaps between events portrayed in films, are scarce and ambiguous. The following notes attempt to reconcile the "mysteries" of Kirk and canon, but these questions may never be satisfactorily answered.

One of the ambiguities was when Lieutenant Kirk was an instructor at the Academy. According to " Coming of Age ", there was an age requirement of 16 years for cadets. Assuming that Gary Mitchell was born in 2242 , the earliest that he could have entered the Academy was in 2258 . Of course, this raised the probability that the blonde lab technician might be Carol Marcus. Speaking of his time at the Academy as an instructor, he said in a line of dialogue from the script of "Where No Man Has Gone Before" that, " I sort of leaned on cadets I liked. "

The producers of Star Trek have stated – including on the audio commentary – that many of the events of the alternate reality could have taken place in the original timeline. Some possible events include:

• a rebellious youth in Iowa
• disciplinary actions for cheating on the Kobayashi Maru
• meeting Spock for the first time because he cheated on his test

Roberto Orci , co-writer of Star Trek , had said that in an early draft of that film, dialogue confirmed that in the prime reality, Kirk was born in Iowa and not aboard the USS Kelvin : " If not for the attack from the Narada , the Kelvin would've reached Earth and Kirk would've been born in Iowa. The attack made Winona Kirk go into labor early. " [12] The dialogue in question was likely Prime Spock's line in which he tells the alternate James T. Kirk that he was born on a farm in Iowa, to which Kirk corrected him, stating he (the alternate Kirk) was born on a starship. This line appears in the novelization of the film , which used an early draft of the screenplay as a basis.

In March 1985, when the town was looking for a theme for its annual town festival, Steve Miller, a member of the Riverside City Council who had read The Making of Star Trek – a book that lists Kirk's year of birth as 2228 rather than the more firmly established 2233 – suggested to the council that Riverside should proclaim itself to be the future birthplace of Kirk. Miller's motion passed unanimously. The council later wrote to Roddenberry for his permission to be designated as the official birthplace of Kirk, and with Roddenberry's consent, the town developed a tourist industry around the idea. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home then established on screen that Kirk was from Iowa.

Reiteration

In 2022 , Paul Wesley appeared in the role of James T. Kirk during the first season finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , serving as the captain of the USS Farragut in an alternate timeline. His casting was announced on 15 March 2022 . He is set to reprise the role in Season 2 of Strange New Worlds . [13]

Outside of filmed canon productions, the character of Kirk had appeared in many novels , comics , games , and collectibles . While Kirk was the hero of nearly every TOS novel, he was notably the star of a series of novels by William Shatner (with Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens ) which starred Kirk, reborn after his 24th century death when the Borg -Romulan alliance resurrected and brainwashed him, intending to use Kirk to kill Picard.

However, surgery performed by Doctor Julian Bashir , aided by Admiral McCoy, removed the implant controlling Kirk's actions, and the residual 'programming' was removed thanks to a mind meld with Spock. After his condition was stabilized and the Borg-Romulan alliance was destroyed, as well as a fatal blow delivered to the Borg Collective , Kirk went on to form a close, albeit sometimes strained, friendship with Picard, as well as once again encounter the mirror universe as his other self returned to kill him. He even goes on to have a child with Teilani, a genetically-engineered Romulan/Klingon hybrid.

According to Star Trek II: Biographies , Kirk was born on July 28th, 2182 on Farside Base, Luna to parents Eugene Claudius Kirk and Marjorie Wimpole. He had a sister named Michele Suzanne Kirk.

According to several novels (such as Final Frontier and Best Destiny , both by Diane Carey ) Kirk's father "George Samuel Kirk, Senior" was a Starfleet commander who was a close friend of Robert April and briefly the Enterprise 's executive officer on its first mission. The novel Collision Course by William Shatner gave James Kirk's father's name as "George Joseph Kirk". The name of Kirk's mother was said to be "Winona Kirk". Crisis on Centaurus stated George died on the planet Hellspawn in 2250, but this was overruled canonically in the 2009 film with Spock stating George Kirk saw James taking command of the Enterprise .

The DS9 novel Original Sin features an Akira -class starship named the USS James T. Kirk (NCC-63719) in honor of Kirk. It had an illustrious service history which included exploration and defensive missions.

Kirk's gravestone

In the third and fourth issues of the IDW Publishing comic Star Trek: Spock: Reflections , Picard sent a message to Spock after the events of Star Trek Generations explaining how Kirk did not die on the Enterprise -B, but was pulled into the Nexus and how he left it to help Picard defeat Soran from killing 200 million people in order to re-enter the Nexus and in the process, Kirk was killed while saving Picard and millions of others. Since Kirk was already thought dead, and explaining the nature of the Nexus to Starfleet would be difficult, Picard decided to bury Kirk on Veridian III where he gave his life to save millions. Nonetheless, Picard felt Spock should know of Kirk's fate. Eventually, Spock traveled to Veridian III and retrieved Kirk's body where he brought him back home to Earth to be reburied at the Kirk family farm in Iowa. Spock explains to Picard how Kirk did the same for him, at a terrible cost , and says he needed to be equal to Kirk's sacrifice.

Kirk and The Doctor

In the third issue of the Doctor Who crossover comic Assimilation² , Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Scott investigate a Federation archaeological team on the planet Aprilia III on Stardate 3368.5, which had lost contact with Starfleet. Upon landing in the shuttlecraft Galileo , they are greeted by project manager Jefferson Whitmore, who assures them that all is well and gives them a tour of the facility, but Kirk finds the staff suspiciously calm. His team later return to the facility after dark where they meet the Fourth Doctor , assuming he's a member of the research team and he helps them break the electronic lock and together, they infiltrated the facility. There, they find the researchers standing catatonically, with small cybernetic devices in their ears. It is discovered they were under the control of the Doctor's enemies, the Cybermen . A battle ensues and Kirk fights the Cyber-Controller , but is proved no match for the cybernetic being. The Doctor then asks Kirk if he has any gold on him as he's had experience with the Cybermen and Kirk hands him his communicator. Kirk distracts the Cyber-Controller while the Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to disintegrate the communicator's gold cover into dust and use it to clog up the Controller's respiration and allowing Spock to destroy it with his phaser. After the Cybermen are defeated and the Doctor slips quietly away, Kirk arranges for a permanent garrison of Starfleet Security personnel to protect the researchers against further Cyberman incursions.

In Star Trek Cats , Kirk is depicted as an orange tabby cat .

External links

• James T. Kirk at StarTrek.com
• James T. Kirk at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• James T. Kirk at the Star Trek Online Wiki
• James T. Kirk at Wikipedia
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Star Trek TOS Test

This Star Trek: The Original Series Test is an unscientific and “just for fun” personality assessment that will determine which of seven characters from Star Trek: The Original Series you resemble the most.

Who is your Star Trek personality match? For each of the following statements, indicate how well it applies to you below.

Question 1 of 35

I am generally comfortable in most social situations.

The IDRlabs Star Trek: TOS Test (IDR-STTOST©) is the property of IDRlabs International. The IDR- STTOST utilizes characters from the Star Trek franchise but is not in any way associated with official Star Trek proprietors or its copyright or trademark holders. No infringement is intended by the present test.

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Captain James T. Kirk

The youngest starship captain in Starfleet’s history, Kirk advanced so rapidly by using any means necessary in his quest (in part, he reprogrammed a combat training simulation rigged to be unwinnable). A cunning and determined tactician, Kirk is a man of action, incapable of accepting the possibility of defeat. He places nothing above the prestige of his vessel, the USS Enterprise, except for the safety of his crew, who would loyally follow him to the end of the world. Equal parts brawler, philosopher, and ladies man, Kirk’s demeanor switches from casual and charming to steely and stern in the blink of an eye. His skills as an interstellar diplomat are nearly on par with his reputation as a fierce warrior and fearsome adversary. Kirk has become a living legend and, indeed, has never met a situation he couldn’t overcome.

Half human, half Vulcan, Spock serves as Captain Kirk’s impartial right-hand man and the ship’s primary Science Officer. Outwardly devoted to logic and reason, the green-blooded Spock constantly struggles with human emotions on the inside – impulses which at times interfere with his objectivity. Undyingly loyal to his captain, Spock is at the same time faithfully obedient to Starfleet regulations – deliberations which Kirk sometimes flaunts. The two men share an amiable friendship reflective of the deep bond of trust they have built between them. Despite (or perhaps because of) his seemingly heartless practicality, Spock is so well-respected that he is one of the few crew members Kirk is willing to defer judgment to. Spock’s mind has been diligently trained over the years to become almost like a computer, able to perform complex mathematical equations “in the background” while engaged with other tasks.

Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy

A self-styled country doctor, Leonard McCoy is the quintessential humanist who puts the morale and health of the Enterprise’s crew above all else. A long-time confidant of Captain Kirk, “Bones” is never shy about sharing his perspectives and reservations with his captain. Usually at odds with the ship’s unemotional Science Officer Mr. Spock, McCoy’s heartfelt convictions and smooth understanding of emotion serve as a necessary counterweight to Spock’s hard logic. Indeed, McCoy and Spock often act as opposing counterweights to sway Kirk’s opinion when life and death decisions are at stake. An old-fashioned physician, McCoy can sometimes be skeptical of technology as he believes more in the power of the human spirit to cure most ills. Despite a sometimes grumpy disposition, McCoy can also lay on the charm when the occasion arises – especially if there’s an attractive member of the opposite sex involved.

The authors of this free online Star Trek: The Original Series character quiz are certified in the use of various personality tests and have worked professionally with psychology and personality typology. Before using our online test, please remember that the results are provided “as-is” and should not be understood as the equivalent of a professional assessment or recommendation of any kind. For more on our free online Star Trek Test, please refer to our Terms of Service .

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3. Statistical controls. Test scores are logged into an anonymized database. Statistical analysis of the test is performed to ensure maximum validity and accuracy of the results.

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10 Reasons Why James T. Kirk Is Best Star Trek Captain

"I’m James T. Kirk, Captain of the Enterprise!’’ he announces in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Bold, smart and king of the fistfights, Kirk has all the qualities of a great leader...

NOT GULLIBLE

Quick thinking, not afraid to get his hands dirty, two steps ahead, turns death into a fighting chance to live, not afraid to be unpopular, blast regulations.

Child of the 80's. Brought up on Star Trek, Video Games and Schwarzenegger, my tastes evolved to encompass all things geeky.

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Star Trek: The most important moments in Captain Kirk's life

Entertainment Geekly: A talk with David A. Goodman, author of 'The Autobiography of James T. Kirk'

Darren is a TV Critic. Follow him on Twitter @DarrenFranich for opinions and recommendations.

It’s been almost half a century since the first appearance of James Tiberius Kirk, the first Star Trek captain and ( in my humble opinion ) still the finest onscreen expression of the franchise’s brash utopian idealism. Played memorably across the decades by William Shatner, Kirk aged onscreen from a bold risk-taking Captain to an older, faintly melancholic Admiral. Along the way, he had a series of intergalactic adventures that boggle the mind — even moreso today, when we’ve become adjusted to a more grounded form of science-fiction adventure.

“Kirk meets Lincoln and has a fistfight with Genghis Khan, in one episode! In another episode, he’s on a planet of the Nazis! On another episode, he meets the Greek God Apollo!” That’s David A. Goodman, a TV writer with a long Trek history as both fan and creator. The longtime Family Guy producer worked on Star Trek: Enterprise and, more importantly, wrote “Where No Fan Has Gone Before,” the Futurama episode that lavishly parodied the original Trek series with meticulous shirt-ripping detail.

Goodman’s encyclopedic knowledge of Trek led him to write the faux-historic Star Trek Federation: The First 150 Years . His new project shifts from macro to (relatively) micro. The Autobiography of James T. Kirk is a first-person perspective on Captain Kirk’s life, with the legendary starship commander narrating his own life story. (The foreword is “written” by Dr. McCoy.)

Of course, attempting to wrangle all the far-flung bits of Trek lore into a genuine chronological retelling of Kirk’s life wasn’t easy. (That’s not to mention the rebooted Trek series with Chris Pine as Kirk — an “alternate universe” that Autobiography sidesteps.) “I was in a box created by other writers,” Goodman laughs. “In at least two of the movies, you find out he got promoted to admiral, and the arc is him finding his way back to being a captain.” In narrative context, it doesn’t make much sense. But, as Goodman points out, “In the context of life, it’s like: ‘Boy, this guy keeps doing the same thing over again.’ We get in ruts. We do the same stupid things over and over again.”

When it came to writing the book, Goodman focused on a few key moments from Kirk’s onscreen life as entryways into Kirk’s psychology:

‘The City on the Edge of Forever’

“A very famous episode , where he goes back to the 1930s and falls in love with Edith Keeler. He has to let her die in order to let history be saved — a wonderful hero’s story. But you start thinking about that realistically, that would be really traumatic! That lasts a long time. That might be what keeps him from getting seriously involved with a woman ever again.”

‘The Ultimate Computer,’ ‘Where No Man Has Gone Before,’ and ‘Shore Leave’

“There’s a scene where a commodore refers to Kirk as ‘Captain Dunsail’ [pronounced ‘dunsel’ and explained as a Starfleet Academy insult]. It said something to me about how Roddenberry or the writers viewed the Academy life: They were kind of bullies. They were hazing lowerclassmen. That was something that, on examining, I had to face the truth of it. Kirk, too, as you examine him and his past, every description of him as a young man in the original series was that he was a nerd. Gary Mitchell, his best friend from the Academy, says he was ‘stack of books with legs.’ He had this bully, Finnegan, who gave him a hard time all the way through school. Kirk, as a character, is a nerd’s wish fulfillment: He used to be a nerd, and now he’s getting laid, kicking ass, flying the fastest spaceship. He’s a different person now than he was then.”

‘The Omega Glory’

“Kirk literally reads the preamble to the United States Constitution. It’s not a favorite episode among the fans, but that whole scene connects Kirk to our era. He had this reverence for America. Here’s this guy in the future, and the American government — which no longer exists in Kirk’s future! — is still this great important thing.”

Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan

“We found out that he had this son, David. If you do the math, as many other geeks besides myself have done, that kid was alive when Kirk was captain of the Enterprise during the original series. So that means Kirk is an absent father. In Star Trek 2 , it’s clear the mom didn’t want him around. And as fans, we like the fact that he’s married to the ship. But when you think about him as a human being, that’s kind of tragic: How does a guy choose his career over home life?”

———————————————

The Autobiography of James T. Kirk by David Goodman is available now. If you want to tell me why Kirk isn’t the best captain, you’re wrong, but you can email me at darren_franich@ew.com, and I’ll respond in next week’s edition of the Geekly Mailbag.

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Star Trek: Best Captain Kirk Quotes, Ranked

Star Trek's Captain Kirk is an iconic character in television history who has delivered some truly quotable lines over the course of his adventures.

Being a captain can't be easy. There are hundreds of people counting on them to make the right decisions that will keep them alive. Being the captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise – the flagship of the United Federation of Planets – must come with even more stress. But fans of Captain James T. Kirk in Star Trek would rarely see that pressure get to him.

Along with his decisive thinking, strategic planning, and sense of humor, Captain Kirk often kept his ship and his crew alive with nothing more than his words. The boy from Iowa lived by the ideals of the future, using his beliefs not only to navigate the universe but to deal with the dangers he and the crew faced. With his confidence and words, Captain Kirk showed us all just how great humanity could be.

Updated on September 13, 2023 by Joshua M. Patton: William Shatner is the iconic originator of Captain James Tiberius Kirk, the first captain of the USS Enterprise that Star Trek fans fell in love with. However, in the nearly 60 years of history behind Gene Roddenberry's created universe, he's not the only actor to portray the character. With Chris Pine donning the signature gold shirt in the film trilogy set in "the Kelvin Timeline," and Paul Welsey taking on the role in Strange New Worlds, Kirk's wit and wisdom continues to expand.

RELATED: A Complete Guide to Scotty From Star Trek

20 “Hang On Tight And Survive. Everybody Does.”

[T]here are a million things in this universe you can have and a million things you can't have. It's no fun facing that, but that's the way things are.... Hang on tight and survive. Everybody does.

The first season episode "Charlie X" saw the Enterprise welcome a young man named Charlie aboard the ship who had spent years surviving alone. Charlie had been modified by aliens to survive their harsh planet, which gave him incredible abilities like telepathy that he used to force the crew into uncomfortable situations.

Charlie struggled with acclimating to his new way of life onboard the Enterprise where he didn't get everything he wanted, and despaired about going on with his life. Kirk was able to make him see that he could push through, surviving one day at a time like the rest of humanity.

19 "Either We're Going Down or They Are"

Attention crew of the Enterprise, this is James Kirk. Mr. Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to acting captain. I know you are all expecting to regroup with the fleet, but I'm ordering a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth. I want all departments at battle stations and ready in ten minutes. Either we're going down... or they are. Kirk out.

The mission of Starfleet is one of peaceful exploration and curiosity, but no matter which actor is playing Captain James T. Kirk, he's always read to fight when its necessary. In 2009's Star Trek when Earth is threatened by the time-traveling Romulan villain Nero, he takes command of the USS Enterprise to save the planet.

The version of Kirk in this film is much different than the one fans know, yet even after living a life of loss and aimlessness, once Kirk ended up where he belonged -- in the Captain's chair -- he became the man fans know and love. He will avoid a fight whenever he can, but if he can't? No one can stop him from saving the day.

18 "Don't Skip Good Hot Dogs"

My advice? Don't skip good hot dogs when you can get them.

Strange New Worlds Season 2 featured another time-travel romp, this time offering an alternate future version of James T. Kirk who wasn't part of Starfleet or the Federation, but rather the United Earth Fleet. His timeline was one of devastation and war. While La'an Noonien Singh, Khan's descendant , and the Enterprise Chief of Security, is trying to puzzle out their mission in the past, Kirk reminds her to take advantage of the good things that come her way.

17 “What Is a Man?"

What is a man but that lofty spirit, that sense of enterprise, that devotion for something that cannot be sensed, cannot be realized, but only dreamed, the highest reality?

The crew of the Enterprise was faced with a heavy decision when they encountered a planet full of androids that wanted to serve humanity by replacing their bodies with artificial ones and granting them eternal life in the second season's "I, Mudd."

However, Kirk was able to talk some of the curious members of his crew out of the decision by pondering exactly what it is that makes them all human – listing many of the reasons that humanity ventured into space in search of the unknown in the first place, which could never be replicated by the artificial androids.

RELATED: 15 Best Star Trek Games, Ranked According To Metacritic

16 “I Need My Pain!”

You know that pain and guilt can’t be taken away with the wave of a magic wand! They’re the things we carry with us, the things that make us who we are. If we lose them, we lose ourselves. I don’t want my pain taken away, I need my pain!

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier explored the ongoing Star Trek search for God that made a number of crew members question their faith and the surrounding reality, especially when members of the crew were "cured" of negative emotions like pain and guilt.

However, Kirk refused to undergo the same process as he felt that those feelings helped shape who we are and who we become, which ultimately allows humanity to make the right decisions. He was right, as the God-like being was later revealed to be an evil being who was trapped and manipulating others to facilitate his escape.

15 "The Prejudices People Feel..."

The prejudices people feel about each other disappear when they get to know each other.

Tasked with ensuring that the arranged marriage of the leaders of two warring planets takes place without interference, Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise find themselves dealing with an angry bride, a nervous groom, and a group of Klingons who plan to sabotage the event.

Kirk's words come from a more mature and evolved version of mankind that has worked past its biases based on skin color, religion, or gender. He knows as all humans in Star Trek do, that the only way to move forward is to work together. To see the things we have in common and celebrate the things that make us different.

14 "Sometimes A Feeling Is All We Humans Have"

Sometimes a feeling is all we humans have to go on.

When the Enterprise finds itself caught up in a centuries-long planetary war where the casualties are decided by a computer program, Captain Kirk knows that the only way to bring about peace is to remind the people of the planet what war really is. By leaving the outcomes of battles to a computer, the people have done away with the lasting scars of war and come to accept the ritual deaths as something of a sacrifice that must be done.

Kirk risks everything by destroying the war computer, forcing the leaders of the world to decide if it is better to continue their war with actual destruction and devastation or if the time has come to talk peace. In his gut, Kirk knows they will make the right choice.

RELATED: The 25 Most Powerful Star Trek Species, Ranked

13 "His Was The Most... Human"

"We are assembled here today to pay final respects to our honored dead. And yet it should be noted that in the midst of our sorrow, this death takes place in the shadow of new life, the sunrise of a new world; a world that our beloved comrade gave his life to protect and nourish. He did not feel this sacrifice a vain or empty one, and we will not debate his profound wisdom at these proceedings. Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... human."

In all fiction, there are few friendships as iconic as that of Captain Kirk and Mister Spock. It is impossible not to think of one when you think of the other. These two men, one an emotional human the other a rational Vulcan, will always be the greatest duo in Star Trek .

When Spock gave his life for the crew of the Enterprise in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , Kirk was left to write a eulogy not only for his Science Officer but his closest friend in all the universe. His words ensured that there wasn't a dry eye in the theater.

12 "Believe In Yourself"

You either believe in yourself, or you don’t.

A captain needs confidence, and that's something Kirk has in spades. He knows that if he doesn't believe in the mission, then his crew won't believe in it either, and if he doesn't believe in himself, they won't be comfortable following him.

Even more important is the knowledge that without believing in oneself, there is no hope for improvement. And if a person can not improve, then what is the purpose of existence? To Captain Kirk, there is no more important thing for a person to have than faith in themself.

RELATED: Star Trek Uses Shields and Deflector Screens Better Than Any Other Sci-Fi Property

11 "If Man Was Meant To Fly, He'd Have Wings..."

They used to say that if man was meant to fly, he’d have wings. But he did fly. He discovered he had to.

From the story of Icarus to the stories of superheroes today, mankind has always been inspired by the idea of flight. The idea of a man soaring through the skies seemed like an impossible task, but in less than 60 decades, humanity went from a 12-second 120-foot flight to sending the first man into space.

What Captain Kirk is saying here is that humanity has always stepped up to the challenge, and we always will. It won't be easy, and we'll fall down often, but in the end, we will succeed because we must.

10 "There's No Such Thing As The Unknown..."

There's no such thing as the unknown, only things temporarily hidden.

The unknown can be scary. The idea that just out of sight, hiding in the darkness is something that can hurt us is what most horror is built around, and for good reason. Be it the monster in the closet or the alien from Venus, we fear that which we do not know.

But if we think like Captain Kirk, the unknown isn't something to be frightened by. The unknown becomes something exciting to discover. The unknown is out there, just waiting to be found. Suddenly, that fear becomes a feeling of optimism.

9 "Genius Doesn’t Work On An Assembly Line Basis."

Genius doesn't work on an assembly line basis. Did Einstein, Kazanga, or Sitar of Vulcan produce new and revolutionary theories on a regular schedule? You can't simply say, today I will be brilliant.

When Captain Kirk and the crew are sent to evaluate a supercomputer that could make their jobs redundant, he quickly sees the flaw in the plan. A computer may be able to react faster than a person, but it can never invent or show discretion.

It can never create or devise a plan that isn't preprogrammed, leaving it open to failure by a lack of improvisation. As Kirk sees it, all great things are created by those who think beyond what is and see what may be. It is the living being who can do this and no computer, no matter how great, will be able to replicate that.

RELATED: Star Trek Fleet Command Celebrates 5 Years With an In-Game Special Event

8 "We're Human, And ... That Best Explains Us."

We prefer to help ourselves. We make mistakes, but we're human, and maybe that's the word that best explains us.

Star Trek captures the strength of the human race better than most other shows. As Kirk says, we make mistakes, but we don't just lay down and give up. We move forward even as we stumble, working to make things better. To make ourselves better, and in turn, make the world better.

Captain Kirk is no stranger to making mistakes, but he knows that each mistake must be learned from, and what was learned must be used to make improvements, all so new mistakes can be made, and new lessons learned.

7 "How We Deal With Life"

How we deal with death is at least as important as how we deal with life.

As the captain of the Enterprise, Kirk knows that he, and any other captain that is to follow him, will be forced to make life and death decisions on a regular basis. In his time, Kirk has seen more death than he would have preferred, and many of those deaths he holds himself responsible for. Still, Kirk knows that he can not let those deaths keep him from moving forward. He knows that if he and his crew were to give in, all those who died for them would have died in vain.

6 "That's What I Was Born Into"

Better to die saving lives... than to live with taking them. That's what I was born into.

This moment from Star Trek: Beyond was something of a full-circle moment for the Kelvin Timeline Captain Kirk. His father died saving his life and the lives of an entire starship crew. When facing off with Balthazar M. Edison, who was trying to destory a massive starbase, he truly became the kind of hero his father was.

Star Trek is about hope and optimism. The big-budget blockbuster needs of the 21st Century movies may have gotten in the way of that message, but in Star Trek: Beyond the audience finally gets to hear a Jim Kirk who sounds familiar.

5 "Sometimes You Can't Avoid a Fight"

Did it ever occur to you that sometimes you can't avoid a fight?

The Season 1 finale of Strange New Worlds was a time-travel adventure showcasing what would happen if Captain Pike stayed on the USS Enterprise. In trying to avoid a fight with the Romulan Star Empire, he ended up starting a devastating war.

This message from Kirk, played by Paul Wesley, shows that even the Prime Timeline version of the character knows when to seek peace and when to give villains the fight they are looking for. It's better to face an enemy than to leave them to harm others because one didn't.

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4 “I Don't Believe In The No-Win Scenario.”

I don't believe in the no-win scenario.... I don't like to lose.

One of the best movies in the long-running franchise, 1982's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan introduced a number of oft-repeated quotes and inspired an altered take on the story in the modern reboot franchise. Kirk's ability to see every angle and find a way to win against all odds was best displayed by his quote about no-win scenarios, as well as the reveal that he was able to beat the training exercise known as the Kobayashi Maru – which was designed to be unbeatable in order to make cadets face their potential death in service to the Federation..

3 "You Can Let Death Win, Or You Can Fight Back"

Our job puts up against death more than is fair, and we may not like it, but we do have to face it. And right now, death is winning. It claimed your family. It claimed your friend. It convinced you to forget them because it is less painful than holding onto their memories. Now you can you let death win, or you can fight back. Hold onto them.

Another Season 2 episode of Strange New Worlds featured an adventure with James T. Kirk and Nyota Uhura , where the latter was experience visions and mental distress. He was the first person to believe what was happening to her was real.

When Uhura began to lose hope, because of the loss of her family a few years earlier, Kirk inspires her the way only the future captain could. Echoing Shatner's "I need my pain," line, he tells her that the memories of those we've lost are not burdens but blessings.

2 "Khaaaaaan!"

Khan, you have Genesis, but you don't have me! You were going to kill me, Khan, it was your sole purpose. You'll have to come down here to do it!

While it isn't the longest or most profound line that Captain Kirk ever delivered, his scream of rage and frustration in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is easily one of the character's most quoted and spoofed lines from Star Trek .

The line comes after Khan successfully takes the Genesis Device while also stranding Kirk and his crew inside a planetoid as revenge for Kirk doing the same to Khan and his crew. Kirk's protest is filled with such raw emotion that it quickly became one of the most memorable scenes from the Star Trek movie franchise and was even reimagined for the reboot trilogy.

1 "To Boldly Go"

This is the final cruise of the Starship Enterprise under my command. This ship and her history will shortly become the care of another crew. To them and their posterity will we commit our future. They will continue the voyages we have begun, and journey to all the undiscovered countries, boldly going where no man... where no one has gone before.

These words have been said by many a Star Trek captain, but Captain Kirk was the first. And while the exact words have changed over the years to be more inclusive, what Kirk said in the opening of every episode of Star Trek over fifty years ago still captures the hearts, minds, and imaginations of millions today.

The idea that humanity will one day travel among the stars, discovering new life and new civilizations, boldly going where no one has gone before is a concept that fills the world with the hope of a better tomorrow. The kind of tomorrow that Captain Kirk was a part of. The final time he said these words, in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country he changed things around, ditching both the gendered language and the idea that the Enterprise crew was Starfleet's only explorers.

Star Trek: What We Know About James T. Kirk Before He Became Captain Of The Enterprise

We do know some things.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds just dropped the mic with its latest casting when it revealed that The Vampire Diaries ' Paul Wesley will join the series in Season 2 as James T. Kirk. Known more commonly as Captain Kirk (and made iconic by modern space traveler and actor William Shatner) when he helmed the Enterprise in the original Star Trek , he's coming to the upcoming Star Trek series, and that’s cause for excitement. It’s even more exciting when considering that this is presumably before Kirk served as Captain of the Enterprise , because Anson Mount is playing his predecessor, Captain Pike. 

The possibility (and likelihood) of seeing a pre- Enterprise Kirk join the cast of characters already involved is exciting, as there isn’t a ton we’ve seen of the iconic captain’s years before Starfleet. However, we do know a few things from the original series that are worth mentioning that could possibly come up when Paul Wesley makes his debut as James T. Kirk. Perhaps some of these moments will directly come into play during his run on the show, however long that may be.

Kirk Witnessed Atrocities Committed On Tarsus IV At A Young Age

While James T. Kirk was born on Earth, he spent some time elsewhere in his youth, Including Tarsus IV. That was especially important for Kirk’s development, as he witnessed a food shortage in his colony and the atrocious way one Governor Kodos hoped to solve it. Kodos, a eugenics sympathizer, decided to kill half of the “least desirable” 8,000 colonists to solve the problem. Kirk recalled in Star Trek ’s “Conscience of the King” that supply ships were close and that those people needn’t have died had Kodos known.

Kirk was one of nine survivors of that incident, and I can’t imagine that’s something that didn’t stick with him for the rest of his life. Of course, it’s a coin toss if it’ll come up in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , as Kirk isn’t the star of the show, and there will only be so many moments where he can recall the past. I’d like to see that traumatizing memory play out in live-action, though, and how it shaped Kirk into the person he became.

He Became The First Cadet To Defeat The Kobayashi Maru

James T. Kirk defeating the Kobayashi Maru is, perhaps, about the most-cited fact I see fans make about the Star Trek captain from his pre- Enterprise days. The Kobayashi Maru, as Star Trek: Discovery and even Prodigy recently reminded fans, is an impossible test to beat by design. The true meaning of the test is to teach cadets that they’ll face no-win scenarios in their careers and must make the best possible choice given the situation. Kirk defeating the test is sometimes cited as an example of his excellence as a captain. 

We’re not here to debate that, but rather to explain how he beat the Kobayashi Maru. Kirk didn’t somehow outmaneuver the no-win scenario as some might assume. He revealed in Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan that he just secretly reprogrammed the test so he could win. That’s an important distinction to make, though it’s worth noting that it’s still impressive Kirk became the first to find a way to win.

Kirk Served Upon The USS Republic And Reported A Friend

Kirk didn’t just step out of Starfleet straight into command of the Enterprise . The future Captain had a few postings before he got to where he was on Star Trek , and one of his first was on the USS Republic . Kirk was still an ensign and joined alongside a former instructor and friend at Starfleet Academy, Lieutenant Benjamin Finney. Unfortunately, the tenure was notable for unfortunate reasons Kirk spoke about later, as he was forced to report a friend and halt his progress to promotion. 

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This is all revealed in the Star Trek episode “Court Marshall,” when Kirk is accused of killing Finney. Kirk revealed that when he served with Finney on the Republic , he nearly caused a catastrophe that would’ve destroyed the ship had Kirk not intervened. Kirk reported Finney, which ultimately sent Finney to the bottom of the promotion list, and Kirk surpassed him. The two ran into each other again, and Kirk didn’t kill him, so I’m unsure of whether or not this specific story will be recounted given the follow-up in the original series.

Kirk Taught At The Academy

Many people celebrate Kirk for his time in command, but there isn’t a lot of celebration for his stint teaching at Starfleet Academy. Kirk taught at the academy while he was a lieutenant in rank, as mentioned in Star Trek ’s “Where No Man Has Gone Before.” Unfortunately, there aren't a ton of details on this period of Kirk’s life, outside of a few romances. 

With that being said, Kirk’s time teaching at Starfleet Academy feels like uncharted territory for a series like Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to flesh out. If Captain Pike is still in charge of the Enterprise in Season 2, then this is definitely a part of Kirk's life that can not only be addressed, but further fleshed out for the lore.

Kirk Almost Got Married, And Had Other Romances

This is likely no surprise to Star Trek fans, but James T. Kirk had a handful of romances during his time at Starfleet Academy. Kirk revealed he nearly married an unnamed blonde lab technician in “Where No Man Has Gone Before.” We also know he had a romance with Janice Lester, a passionate lover he made mention of in “Turnabout Intruder.” 

James T. Kirk’s role in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is unknown, though one has to wonder if love is in the air for Kirk and any of the characters. It’s not like Kirk to not be known as a lover of ladies in Trek canon, so I’d be surprised if he doesn’t get close with at least one or two during his stint. 

Kirk Served Aboard The USS Farragut

Kirk also served aboard the USS Farragut before joining the Enterprise , which came along with its fair share of commendations. It also featured a pretty big event which resulted in Kirk surviving an incident that killed his captain, as well as 200 other crew members. 

Kirk faced off against a dikironium cloud creature (which might be present in the trailer for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds ), and as mentioned above, the encounter with it was a deadly undertaking. Kirk blamed himself for the incident (as mentioned in Star Trek ’s “Obsession"), but the general consensus was that he did the best he could. I’d imagine the encounter haunted him all the same, and we might see that if it happens fairly close to his time on Strange New Worlds . 

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premieres on Paramount+ on Thursday, May 5th. Pick up a Paramount+ subscription to stream it, as well as all of the other upcoming Star Trek shows arriving in 2022 and beyond.  

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.

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The Star Trek Stories That Brought Captain Kirk Back to Life to Fight the Borg

The Shatnerverse saw Captain Kirk live to fight another day.

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We all know the story of Captain James Tiberius Kirk, who for many is Star Trek ’s greatest captain. From a humble upbringing in Iowa, he distinguished himself at Starfleet Academy, even winning the Kobayashi Maru. After serving on the USS Farragut, Kirk took command of the Enterprise, the ship to which he returned time and again, even after being promoted to Admiral. After his presumed death aboard the Enterprise-B, Kirk spent time in the idyllic Nexus before returning with his successor Captain Jean-Luc Picard, who convinced him to come to Veridian III and stop the rogue El-Aurian Dr. Soren. 

Kirk and Picard defeated Soren at the cost of the former’s life. “Oh my…” said the dying legend as he got a glimpse of the great beyond awaiting him, where no man had gone before. 

Honestly, Star Trek: Generations offered a pretty ignoble end for the legendary character, especially after the glorious send-off that was Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . Sure, William Shatner puts in a full charm offensive, making Patrick Stewart look stilted in every scene they share. But still, Kirk deserved a better death than plummeting from a rusty plank on a desert planet to stop one of the more bland baddies in the franchise. 

Unsurprisingly, no one hated Kirk’s last adventure more than Kirk himself, and Shatner took to his typewriter to put things right. Star Trek novels aren’t (usually) canon, but they do help flesh out areas in the universe. Along with Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, Shatner penned nine novels about the further adventures of James T. Kirk. Dubbed “The Shatnerverse,” these nine novels are a treat for anyone who loves Kirk, and especially for those who love William Shatner’s love of Kirk. 

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The second Shatnerverse novel, The Return , captures the egomaniacal glory of the series. Unlike the first Shatnerverse entry Ashes of Eden , which follows a late Kirk adventure that put him against Starfleet, The Return picks up shortly after the events of Generations . 

From the ravages of Veridian III, Kirk comes back to life via the machinations of his greatest enemies, the Romulan Star Empire. The Romulans brainwash the returned Kirk and set him not just against Starfleet, but specifically against Jean-Luc Picard. Why Picard, you ask? For the sake of the Romulans’ new allies, the Borg Collective. 

That audacious combination aside — one that presents the usually crafty Romulans as buffoons easily hoodwinked by the Borg, a race not really known for their strategic acumen — The Return has some fun conceits. The adventure takes the heroes across the galaxy, including a layover on Deep Space Nine with appearances by Dr. Bashir and Quark. Strangely, Sisko doesn’t drop by, despite the man having met Kirk and holding strong opinions about the Borg. Spock’s mind-meld with V’Ger in The Motion Picture plays a surprising role in the story, and Bashir teams up with McCoy for a surgical procedure. 

But really, The Return exists to make sure everyone knows that Jim Kirk is the greatest Starfleet officer who ever Starfleeted. While still in the thrall of the Borg and Romulans, Kirk takes out nearly every member of the Enterprise-D bridge crew, punking Data and Geordi and outfoxing Riker. More importantly, Kirk uses Picard’s knowledge as Locutus to find the central Borg hub and, basically, flip the “off” switch, doing what Picard couldn’t — at least, until Picard season two. 

Indulgent as that story certainly is, it unfolds at a ripping, well-written pace. In fact, that trait holds across all of the Shatnerverse novels, in terms both good and bad. Ashes of Eden puts Kirk and Scotty on a new ship to defend a planet from Starfleet interference, nearly pitting these two venerable officers against their old shipmates. Sequel Avenger finds Kirk and Spock teaming up to avenge the death of Spock’s father Sarek (Sybok and Michael Burnham couldn’t be bothered, apparently). 

In the three-part Mirror Universe saga of the Shatnerverse, Kirk and Picard team up and go to the Mirror Universe to battle with the ruler of the Terran Empire, Emperor Tiberius — Kirk’s own evil counterpart, who has survived into the 24th century. The final three novels in the series insert Kirk into major 24th-century events, including the fallout of the Dominion War and the assassination of Kirk following the attack on the Romulan Senate after Star Trek: Nemesis . Along the way, Kirk interacts with almost every member of the TNG , DS9 , and Voyager crews, while reuniting with his old friends along the way. 

Are the Shatnerverse novels fan fiction? Of course! But Star Trek still exists today thanks to the devotion of its fans, including fans who wrote their own space-faring adventures. Why should William Shatner be any different?  

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Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

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Published Jun 12, 2023

In Defense of Captain James T. Kirk

We're going back to the beginning to take a second look at Star Trek's classic captain.

StarTrek.com

While the new Star Trek series are being celebrated (and rightly so) for their inclusion and progressive ideas, this is, as many old-school fans are happy to point out, nothing new. But often the praise for the new shows has come with a side order of derision towards The Original Series and, in particular, its lead character, Captain James T. Kirk . I’m here to tell you that Star Trek ’s first captain was a lot more progressive than he gets credit for.

Let’s start with some of James T. Kirk’s origin story, for those who only see him as the king of swagger:

• He grew up with horrific tragedy; he lived through a food crisis on Tarsus IV, where Governor Kodos executed 4000 colonists to “save” the rest. Kirk, 13 at the time, was an eyewitness to the massacre.
• He was described by close pal Gary Mitchell as a “stack of books with legs.” Mitchell added that, at Starfleet Academy , “The first thing I ever heard from an upperclassman was, ‘Watch out for Lieutenant Kirk. In his class, you either think or sink.’”
• Also at the Academy, Kirk was relentlessly hazed by a bully named Finnegan.

Is that the guy you think of when you hear “James T. Kirk”?

While Kirk definitely had his fair share of backwards moments — as an adolescent girl, I cringed every time he addressed his entire crew as “gentlemen” — he also proved, over and over again, that he was able to transcend them.

He Didn’t Stand for Bigotry

A famous line still quoted all over social media happened right in Star Trek ’s first season, when the crew saw what Romulans looked like for the very first time. Startled by their striking similarity to Vulcans, navigator Lt. Stiles immediately became suspicious of Mr. Spock . When he suggested they ask Spock to decode Romulan messages, instead of the cryptography team that was already on the case, Kirk put his foot down.

KIRK: I assume you're complimenting Mister Spock on his ability to decode. STILES: I'm not sure, sir. KIRK: Well, here's one thing you can be sure of, Mister. Leave any bigotry in your quarters. There's no room for it on the Bridge. Do I make myself clear? STILES: You do, sir.

He Knew That 'No' Meant 'No'

One of Star Trek ’s earliest episodes, “ Charlie X ,” was about the discovery of an orphan who’d been given extraordinary powers and was struggling to handle them as he went through a turbulent adolescence and exposure to other humans for the first time. It was left to Kirk to teach him about how to behave around women. Granted, there were some clunky moments like this one, where the message was good, but the delivery was a failure —

“There's no right way to hit a woman.I mean, man to man is one thing,but, er, man and woman, er, it's, er, it's, er.Well it's, er, another thing. Do you understand?”

Charlie didn’t really, and Kirk’s mistake was — as someone who had to act like a parent but wasn’t one yet — that he didn’t see how deeply Charlie was struggling until too late. But when Kirk tells Charlie to stop pursuing Yeoman Janice Rand, he’s 100% clear.

“You go slow. You be gentle.I mean, it's not a one-way street,you know, how you feel and that's all.It's how the girl feels, too.Don't press, Charlie.If the girl feels anything for you at all, you'll know it.”

He’s talking about consent. He hammers the point home with this —

“Charlie, there are a million things in this universeyou can have and there are a million things you can't have.It's no fun facing that, but that's the way things are,” advising the lovesick superteen to, “Hang on tight and survive. Everybody does.”

He Put Himself in His Enemy’s Shoes

Unlike too many of the loudest voices today, Kirk wasn’t a dig-his-heels-in kind of guy; he had the ability to see himself through his enemy’s eyes and change his way of thinking — even when threatened.

In “ The Devil in the Dark ,” it’s Kirk who discovers that the creature who’s been killing the miners on Janus VI isn’t a marauding murderer. When he comes face-to-face with the creature Spock describes as a “proven killer,” he ignores Spock’s urging to shoot it. While it’s Spock who connects the dots and realizes the miners have been destroying the Horta’s eggs, it’s Kirk who stopped the killing cycle and connected with the creature before anyone else.

Many viewers think of “ Arena ” as the episode where Kirk builds a gun and fights the Gorn, but what the episode is really about is Kirk listening to the Gorn. When the Gorn captain describes a Federation colony as invaders in Gorn territory, Kirk hears it, loud and clear. As he’s about to win the battle to the death, he stops. “No, I won’t kill you,” he says, “Maybe you thought you were protecting yourself when you attacked the outpost.” (Bonus points to McCoy and Spock, who also consider the Gorn’s perspective even when their captain is threatened.)

In “ By Any Other Name ,” as soon as Kirk conquers the aliens who’ve taken over his ship and are steering it towards another galaxy, his first offer is one of help. Even as they’re physically wrestling and he knows he’s won, he tells the Kelvan (no relation to Kelvin) commander Rojan to bring the problem to the Federation, who can help the Kelvans find a place to live. Rojan is shocked, “You would really do that? You would extend welcome to invaders?” They stop fighting, and Kirk says, “No. But we would welcome friends.”

And in “ Day of the Dove ,” when an alien sets Klingons up against the Enterprise crew in an endless battle, Kirk determines they’re being manipulated and makes peace. “What's happening to us? We've been trained to think in other terms than war. We've been trained to fight its causes, if necessary. Then why are we behaving like a group of savages? Look at me. Look at me. Two forces aboard this ship, each of them equally armed. Has a war been staged for us, complete with weapons and ideology and patriotic drum beating? Even — Spock. Even race hatred?”

He Could Always See A Better Future

In “ Mirror, Mirror ,” Kirk, Uhura , Scotty , and McCoy are thrown into the Mirror Universe — a savage world where officers are promoted by assassinating their superiors and planets are conquered. When they finally figure out how to get back, Kirk stalls his return. He’s not just racing back to safe home territory; he wants the Mirror Universe to be safer, too.

With two minutes and ten seconds left, he decides it’s time to have a one-to-one with Mirror Spock. He appeals to Spock’s logic, calling him out as illogical for going along with the brutality of the Empire. “If change is inevitable, predictable, beneficial, doesn't logic demand that you be a part of it?” he asks, urging Spock to find a logical reason to spare the Halkans (who are about to be destroyed). We learn many years later, on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , that his speech worked, and the Empire fell. (It’s not his fault that the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance took over.)

His Soulmate Was the Most Progressive Person of Her Time

In “ The City on the Edge of Forever ,” Kirk meets Edith Keeler in New York City during the Great Depression. Sure, she’s played by the gorgeous Joan Collins, but he doesn’t fall for her because she’s beautiful or has a delightful accent; he’s immediately hooked by her ideas. She talks about a future with hope and unity to a largely oblivious room, and when another fella tells Kirk, “Not that she's a bad-looking broad, but if she really wanted to help out a fella in need...” Kirk tells him to shut up. Twice. “I want to hear what she has to say,” he says. You can almost hear his heart pounding.

All of Edith and Jim’s conversations as they’re dating are about her views. Her optimism and her belief in a better world are what make him fall for her. When he has to let her die to save Earth’s future, he’s utterly devastated because he knew she was right and could have changed the world, if only she’d been born at a different time. And he loved her.

He Had Humility, and Could Admit When He Was Wrong

Humility is sorely missing from today’s political and social conversations. We’re all sticking our heels in the mud, refusing to acknowledge that anyone who thinks differently from us might have any validity, and refusing to engage in conversation.

And yet Kirk, who’s often described as a macho guy who always thinks he’s right, was able to recognize when he wasn’t — after behaving like a fool for most of the episode. The Organians repeatedly tell him they don’t need his help stopping a Klingon invasion of their planet, but he doesn’t listen at first; he knows what’s what and they don’t, and if they’re not going to defend themselves, he’ll do it for them. The Organians finally put a stop to the fighting, then tell Kirk, Spock, and the Klingons to leave; they’ve put up with their shenanigans long enough. Kirk and Kor (the Klingon commander) are outraged... at first. Later, on the ship, he sings a different song.

“I'm embarrassed.I was furious with the Organiansfor stopping a war I didn't want.We think of ourselvesas the most powerful beings in the universe.It's unsettling to discover that we're wrong.”

When was the last time you heard someone say something like that — or said it yourself?

He Overcame His Own Prejudice

In Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , Kirk’s son David Marcus was killed by Klingons, and it hardened Kirk’s heart. He hated Klingons for it and was furious when Spock set him up (three movies later with Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ) as the escort and emissary for Klingon Chancellor Gorkon .

After Gorkon has been killed, and McCoy and Kirk imprisoned for the crime and then rescued, Kirk confesses, “Gorkon had to die before I understood how prejudiced I was,” and admits that, “people can be frightened of change.”

“Some people think the future means the end of history,” he tells the assembly after saving the Federation President and the Chancellor’s daughter. “But we haven't run out of history just yet.” The message is as relevant now as it was then, if not more so.

So Let’s Boldly Go… As We Always Did

So, next time you compare our new heroes to our old ones, take a closer look because Kirk and his crew were fighting the good fight long before they knew we’d still be talking about them 56 years later. They learned, they grew, and they set the stage for everything that came after with messages of equality, peace, and not just a better future, but a better humanity.

This article was originally published on June 13, 2022.

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Laurie Ulster (she/her) is a freelance writer and a TV producer who somehow survived her very confusing adolescence as the lone female Star Trek fan in middle school. She's co-author of several books about TV and was the Supervising Producer on After Trek. Laurie can be found on Twitter at @floobish.

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Stephanie sparks dies: host of the golf channel’s ‘big break’ reality series was 50, bill maher uncovers the truth behind william shatner’s most famous ‘star trek’ kiss.

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When you have William Shatner , aka Captain James T. Kirk, on your show, you get to ask the Star Trek questions you’ve always wanted answered.

That’s what Bill Maher managed to do on Friday’s Real Time , as he probed one of pop culture’s most interesting moments — the interracial kiss between Captain Kirk and Lt. Uhura.

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Maher also marveled how far Shatner fell from grace after the first run of Star Trek was canceled after three seasons. Shatner talked about watching the actual moon landing from a pasture while in his truck, his base of operations after a divorce and a lull in work.

How did you fall so fast? Maher asked. “With great precision,” Shatner joked, adding that it was just “circumstances of life.”

Of course, those days are gone for Shatner. He is the subject of the new documentary,  You Can Call Me Bill, and the artist behind the upcoming digital album, So Fragile, So Blue, which he recorded live with the National Symphony Orchestra.

He’s also planning a trip to Antarctica, another of his efforts to explore and spotlight his efforts in climate change.

Of the latter, “There’s no way out except through technology,” Shatner said. “There’s a wave coming.” It’s one reason he may consider once again going into space, he said, as a way to “promulgate the idea that there’s so much going on by science and scientists to correct global warming.” He added, “There’s an element of hope I will cling to.”

Maher wrapped up the segment with a mention of Shatner’s age (93) and compliments on how well he looks.

“I don’t mind when you say my age,” Shatner said. “But when they clap…”

After Shatner, Maher had a panel discussion with Piers Morgan ,  New York Post  columnist and host of the YouTube channel’s P iers Morgan Uncensored , and  Gillian Tett , provost of King’s College, Cambridge, and columnist at the  Financial Times .

They also talked about a protest in Dearborn Michigan that featured chants of “Death to America.” Maher pushed back on those at the protest who said, “The entire system has to go.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Maher countered. “I like our system. I’ve always liked America and thought death to it was bad.”

In Maher’s “New Rules” editorial, he pointed out the falsehoods about Canada and some progressive European countries where the idyllic myth doesn’t jibe with reality, resulting in what Maher termed “zombie lies.”

Maher pointed out several ways that these countries are faring worse in housing, health care, and on immigration issues

“I need to cite you as a cautionary tale: yes, you can move too far left, and you push others to the extreme right,” he said. “Calling something racist doesn’t solve the problem,” Maher said. That opens the door to someone conservative who will act, and “Who I promise, you’re not going to like.”

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Captain Kirk should have gone aboard Star Trek: The Next Generation's Enterprise

W illiam Shatner's Captain Kirk made his final appearance on Star Trek: Generations. He, Montgomery Scott (James Doohan) and Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) joined the Enterprise-B for its inaugural adventure, and Kirk saves the ship from a gravimetric field and is presumed dead. From that point forward, Kirk is trapped in the Nexus while the world goes on without him. But, as Screenrant writer Rachel Hulshult points out , Generations missed out on a HUGE opportunity by not bringing Kirk aboard Captain Picard's (Patrick Stewart) Enterprise.

Generations was, essentially, a way to pass the torch from The Original Series movies to The Next Generation movies. It was the final time that Captain Kirk would have an adventure in the universe, and while he was brought back to help save that same universe...again, his presence in the movie, if utilized properly, could have made such a big difference in how it was received.

Having Shatner in this movie should have been one of the major focuses. Pairing him with Captain PIcard aboard the Enterprise would have been more of a torch-passing moment than a fight with Macolm McDowell's character, Dr. Soran. To see the two captains on the bridge of that iconic ship, one who led her and one who currently leads her, would have been a truly classical moment.

Imagine Kirk's face on seeing the differences a hundred years brought to his ship. With Kirk able to see the advancements and Picard's crew in awe of Kirk, this would have made the movie about something other than just leaving The Original Seris in the dust. And I'm wholeheartedly in agreement with Hulshult's statement that "Star Trek: Generations blew it by not having Kirk aboard Picard's Enterprise." By utilizing Kirk, Picard and his crew, and the Enteprise as a team, Generations could have made history for a better reason than the death of Captain Kirk .

This article was originally published on redshirtsalwaysdie.com as Captain Kirk should have gone aboard Star Trek: The Next Generation's Enterprise .

Star Trek: 7 Alien Civilizations Discovered By Captain Kirk

Throughout the Star Trek franchise, Captain Kirk has met a diverse array of alien civilizations, as these examples illustrate.

• Star Trek: The Original Series lays the franchise's foundations by exploring strange new worlds and new civilizations with Captain Kirk.
• Not every episode can be a winner, "Spock's Brain" details the quest to rescue Spock's brain from the Eymorgs, an entirely female alien civilization.
• Star Trek addresses social issues like race through metaphor, as seen with the Cheronians in "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield."

At its core, Star Trek is a franchise about exploring the depths of space and, as a result, exploring various facets of the human condition. Indeed, while later iterations of the franchise, such as Star Trek: Discovery and J.J. Abrams' Kelvinverse chose to prioritize action set-pieces over measured exploration, Star Trek: The Original Series lays the franchise's foundations by depicting the adventures of Captain Kirk's Starship Enterprise .

Star Trek: The Original Series – 8 Alien Civilizations Based On Earth History

The Enterprise 's five-year mission saw the crew of the Federation vessel coming into contact with all manner of strange creatures, from the furry and promiscuous Tribbles to godlike individuals like Trelane. Ultimately, however, nothing distracts Kirk from carrying out the show's mission statement: to explore strange new worlds, and to seek out new life and new civilizations.

1 The Eymorgs

"spock's brain" | season 3, episode 1.

The Star Trek franchise is remembered for many amazing episodes , from "The City on the Edge of Forever" to "The Best of Both Worlds." However, not every episode can be a winner, as evidenced by "Spock's Brain." This much-maligned episode details the Enterprise 's quest to rescue Spock's brain after it is stolen by an entirely female alien civilization, the Eymorgs.

Led by Kara, the Eymorgs inhabit an underground complex on the planet of Sigma Draconis VI. The Enterprise discovers that a life of luxury (all Eymorg desires and needs are handled by a powerful supercomputer) has resulted in intellectual atrophy. Despite possessing powerful technology, few Eymorgs understood how to use it. As such, they felt compelled to replace their vital computer with Spock's brain.

"Return To Tomorrow" | Season 2, Episode 20

The universe of Star Trek is no stranger to disembodied entities, from the Saltah'na in Deep Space Nine 's "Dramatis Personae" to Beverly Crusher's ghostly lover in The Next Generation 's much-maligned "Sub Rosa." A notable early example of the trope can be seen in "Return to Tomorrow," in which the discorporate Sargon, an Arretan, demands that the Enterprise crew construct android bodies for his compatriots.

As a stop-gap measure, Sargon and two other Arretans assume control over several members of the Enterprise crew while their new bodies are under construction. This leads to conflict when one of the Arretans refuses to leave Spock's body. The resulting power struggle sees the Enterprise crew emerge victorious, while the remaining Arretans choose to consign themselves to oblivion rather than cling to life.

3 The Eminian Union

"a taste of armageddon" | season 1, episode 23.

Before Deep Space Nine 's Dominion War, Star Trek avoided depicting open warfare between major powers. However, this is not to say that war stories are absent from the franchise's early days, as evidenced by the novel take on conflict depicted in "A Taste of Armageddon." The Enterprise makes contact with the Eminian Union, a civilization that conducts its wars through computers rather than on the battlefield.

Star Trek: The Fates Of Every Live-Action TV Show's Main Character

Nonetheless, there is a cost to this strategy, as the Eminians allow themselves to be killed if the simulation determines that they are a casualty. Kirk and his comrades point out that this sanitized approach to war robs the conflict of its immediacy, allowing it to drag on for decades with no resolution. Luckily, a classic speech by Kirk causes the Eminian Union to see sense.

4 The Providers

"the gamesters of triskelion" | season 2, episode 16.

The Original Series is not the only entry into the franchise that might be accused of an over-reliance on humanoid aliens with various forehead bumps. As such, the Providers depicted in "The Gamesters of Triskelion" are a welcome break from this norm, even if the show itself has rarely looked cheaper.

Despite being little more than brains in a jar, the powerful Providers are one of the Federation's most worthy opponents. Their advanced transporter technology allows them to ensnare individuals over vast distances, while their control over the planet of Triskelion is absolute. It's perhaps a mercy, then, that they dedicate their time to betting on gladiatorial battles rather than making wider plans against the galaxy.

5 The Cheronians

"let that be your last battlefield" | season 3, episode 15.

Gene Roddenberry did not shy away from using Star Trek 's utopian future to address contemporary social issues. His foregrounding of Nichelle Nichols' Lieutenant Uhura was genuinely groundbreaking , as was the interracial kiss depicted in "Plato's Stepchildren." Nor did the series shy away from discussing issues like race via metaphor, as with the Cheronians in "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield."

The black and white Chellonians are locked in a brutal racial conflict over differences that appear trivial to the enlightened crew of the Starship Enterprise . Lokai, a Cheronian with white skin on the left side of his face, is pursued by Bele, who has white skin on the right. Each possesses historical racial grudges against the other, but the episode suggests that their mutual hatred is ultimately suicidal. Prejudice, as demonstrated by the Cheronians, can only end in disaster.

6 The Kelvan Empire

"by any other name" | season 2, episode 22.

Star Trek 's galaxy is divided into four regions: the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Gamma Quadrants. Many of the franchise's most memorable creations hail from these diverse areas, but some civilizations come from even further afield. For instance, "By Any Other Name" sees the Enterprise make contact with scouts from the Kelvan Empire, a powerful state situated in the distant Andromeda Galaxy.

Star Trek: 8 Best Book-Only Characters, Ranked

The Kelvans are ruthless in the pursuit of their survival, even killing a female redshirt (a rarity for The Original Series ) to demonstrate their power. Additionally, they possess impressive technical knowledge, as they can easily modify the Enterprise to pass the Galactic Barrier. The Kelvans' downfall is the result of their social ineptitude, a flaw that allows the Enterprise crew to regain the upper hand over this domineering race.

7 The Scalosians

"wink of an eye" | season 3, episode 11.

Kirk's Enterprise is no stranger to time travel , as the starship rocks up in the twentieth century on more than one occasion (likely for budgetary reasons). Yet while Star Trek makes time travel seem as easy as just slingshotting around the sun, relatively few temporally active races are discovered throughout the franchise. The usual rarity of time-active civilizations makes the Scalosians, seen in "Wink of an Eye," all the more intriguing.

The Scalosians are unwilling temporal voyagers. A natural disaster caused them to experience time at a far faster rate than the rest of the universe, while also rendering all male Scalosians infertile. As such, the Enterprise 's arrival represents a chance to save their civilization by kidnapping new breeding stock from the starship—a scheme that Kirk is determined to foil.

How Battlestar's Best Cylon Shakes Up Discovery ’s Daring Final Season

Callum Keith Rennie embraces his role as a “space curmudgeon,” in Discovery Season 5.

Callum Keith Rennie is okay with being an outsider. The veteran sci-fi actor — probably best known for his role as the Cylon Leoben in Battlestar Galactica — has crashed the Star Trek: Discovery party in the show’s fifth and final season as Captain Rayner. And for Rennie, his character’s social status and his own feelings about joining the show were uniquely aligned.

“You’re the new kid in school,” Rennie tells Inverse . “You’re uncomfortable. You don’t know who to trust. Rayner is in a place where I am, so I used my own uncomfortability with the experience. He’s got a chip [on his shoulder] and maybe I have a chip at times.”

As Discovery Season 5 heats up, Inverse caught up with Rennie to talk about his Trek experience, his sci-fi career, and which classic Star Trek characters he thinks Captain Rayner is most like.

Mild spoilers ahead for Discovery Season 5, episodes 1-3.

Burnham decides to keep her enemies close, by turning Rayner into her first officer.

Starting with the episode “Red Directive,” the back-talking, seat-of-the-pants Captain Rayner is a Starfleet officer in the long Trek tradition of mean captains. From The Original Series to The Next Generation and Voyager and even the movies, you’ve got your heroic main character captain, and then the bad captain. There’s Decker, the guy who got his entire crew eaten by “The Doomsday Machine,” or Jellico , the bossy captain who took over the Enterprise and told Troi to change her uniform in “Chain of Command.” Usually, these kinds of characters beam out after an episode or two. But in Discovery Season 5, Rayner is around for the long haul.

“It’s really great stuff. I mean, he ran his own ship. He came in to help with a situation and then, the next thing you know, he’s demoted,” Rennie says. “So that’s s**t. That’s not good. At the same time, he’s looking at this past and maybe he’s overstepped boundaries.”

At the end of the second episode, “Under the Twin Moons,” Captain Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) asks Rayner to become her new first officer, now that Saru has departed to become a Federation ambassador. So instead of ditching the rough-around-the-edges officer who caused her trouble, Burnham is embracing the idea of having somebody in the crew who isn’t just going to agree with her all the time. And in the third episode, “Jinaal,” Rayner is confronted with the totally uncomfortable task of getting to know the crew.

And, just like how he got off on the wrong foot with Burnham, Rayner also clashes with the bubbly, upbeat Lt. Tilly (Mary Wiseman). But, in a very optimistic Star Trek-y vibe, it seems that even Rayner and Tilly can find common ground in the end.

Tilly is not having any of Rayner’s bullsh*t.

“I’ve had like had 52 second chances in my real life,” Rennie says. “And those came in many forms, and often by a woman in a position of power. So I get that this is a gift that is offered to this character. I connect with that. “He's already got fired once. What's the worst that can happen?”

Rennie is not the first Battlestar alum to crossover to Discovery. Back in Season 1, fellow Cylon Rekha Sharma played Ellen Landry, Disco’s first security chief. “We haven’t had a chance to talk about that,” Rennie says with a laugh. “But, we of course see each other at conventions all the time.”

From parts in Jessica Jones to The Umbrella Academy , and even the classic X-Files , Rennie clearly knows his way around the sci-fi genre. But, prior to joining Discovery , he admits his Trek fandom was mostly limited to The Original Series .

“I can’t say I’m a Trekkie by any means,” Rennie says “But, as a kid, The Original Series was one of those great shows that offered great hope and examples of how to function in the world as people. One day, you’d be like ‘I’m totally logical like Spock.’ But then, you’d feel like ‘No, I’m Kirk.’ Or ‘I’m flying off the handle like Scotty!’”

Rennie admits that part of his path to discovering how to play Rayner in Discovery was connecting the character’s behavior to Original Series archetypes. “Part of me wanted to say, who can I identify with this guy? So yeah, I guess he’s a bit like Kirk and Bones. He’s a space curmudgeon.”

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 streams new episodes on Paramount+ on Thursdays.

• Science Fiction

Screen Rant

10 unmistakable captain kirk character traits in star trek.

James T. Kirk is the most famous character in all of Star Trek, thanks to a set of particular traits that made him the legendary Captain fans love.

Star Trek is best epitomized by the character of Captain James T. Kirk, a hero and a scoundrel in equal measure. As Captain of the fabled Enterprise, he and his crew waded boldly into the unknown reaches of space and managed to make it out in one piece, thanks largely to his set of distinct character traits.

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Whether it was his passionate sense of dramatic flair, his seemingly reckless penchant for risk-taking, or his rousing speeches, Captain Kirk made a name for himself as one of the most entertaining and loved pop culture characters of all time.

His Exaggerated Melodrama

Perhaps Kirk's best-known character trait was his greatly exaggerated sense of melodrama, courtesy of iconic actor William Shatner. The character has been mocked relentlessly over the years for Shatner's overacting, which stole almost every scene the good Captain was in. Truth be told, this is just harmless fun.

In reality, Trekkers love Kirk's bombastic displays of emotion and drama just as much as they love the character himself. He's the idealized future hero who boldly leads his crew into uncharted new territories, which requires quite a bit of dramatic flair in itself.

He Was A Risk Taker

Kirk was known for taking risks, whether it was with his ship or his personal life. He knew that being a Starship Captain meant taking risks, especially when encountering strange new worlds and incredibly dangerous Star Trek alien races . Playing it safe wasn't just bad, but completely unacceptable.

In his spare time, Kirk enjoyed activities such as rock climbing without any safety gear. He nearly lost his life during one such excursion, but his life was saved by the timely intervention of Spock. For a man who feared dying alone, he seemed eager to rush the scenario.

He Was A Ladies' Man

Of course, Captain Kirk was always portrayed as a ladies' man, beginning way back in the original series. Since that time, the jokes about him romancing a number of beautiful women across a vast array of worlds has become a subject of folklore. In what might seem like a bizarre Captain Kirk fact , the real number was actually quite low.

Kirk also had just as many failures with women as he did successes. Being a Starship Captain, he was in love with his job, which meant that settling down and finding the right partner proved to be a daunting, and altogether fruitless task.

He Showed Strength At All Times

Captain Kirk never wavered when it came to displaying strength, and that was absolutely vital for a Starship Captain. He could be merciful, compassionate, and friendly, but he always did so from a position of great strength.

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This not only boosted the confidence and morale of his crewmates, but it helped him make a name for himself within Starfleet's upper echelon. Had Kirk approached even one situation from a position of weakness, his enemies would surely have taken advantage.

His Speeches

Though Kirk's speeches are relegated mostly to the original TV show, he did have a few memorable soliloquies in the films, as well. Kirk was capable of delivering some of the most riveting and passionate monologues imaginable, whether it was lauding the brilliance of being a Starfleet officer or lamenting the death of a fellow crew member.

His best, and most famous speech to date comes courtesy of season 2's "Return to Tomorrow," where he pounds the desk while talking about the nature of risk. In the films, it's the emotionally gripping moment in Star Trek II , where he almost breaks down in tears after delivering Spock's eulogy on board the Enterprise.

His Rebellious Attitude

Kirk may have been a model Starfleet officer, but his record was littered with instances of insubordination and red flags. In truth, Starfleet probably saw merit in many of these infractions, as they signaled that Kirk was able to think on his own two feet and not blindly follow orders all the time.

His most infamous act of rebellion occurred when he, along with his crew, stole the Enterprise in order to rescue a newly-resurrected Spock from the Genesis planet in the oft-confusing Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , which led to his demotion. Before that, his most laudable act of rebellion was reprogramming Starfleet's training computers, which allowed him to beat the infamous "no-win scenario" imposed on all Starfleet trainees.

His Ingenuity

Kirk displayed his inherent sense of ingenuity when he reprogrammed Starfleet's training computers in order to cheat the system and beat the no-win training scenario. It was a skill he took with him throughout the rest of his career, and it was spurred on by his dislike of losing to his opponents.

Thinking outside of the box was a prerequisite for any Starfleet Captain, but Kirk practically rewrote the entire book. From traveling back in time to save the future to sacrificing the Enterprise itself for a chance at beating his Klingon adversaries, Kirk possessed a remarkably creative mind.

His Relationship With Kirk And McCoy

One of Captain Kirk's strongest character traits was his relationship with Kirk and McCoy, who were, for all intents and purposes, his older brothers. Kirk might have steered the ship, but he was nothing without the voice of logic on one shoulder and the voice of human emotion and gut instinct on the other.

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It's hard to say how far Kirk would have gotten without these two individuals at his side, but they forged a bond broken only in death. Spock and McCoy helped shape Kirk's character, even during his later years when he began rethinking the trajectory of his own life.

His Fear Of Being Alone

Though he'd never admit it openly, Kirk was always afraid of being alone. This was evidenced most strongly during a camping trip with Spock and McCoy, where he revealed that he always knew he would die alone. It was a rare moment of poignancy for this character.

In the end, Kirk did indeed die alone in the bowels of the newly christened Enterprise-B, but it was not the end. Captain Picard convinced him to exit the wondrous Nexus to stop a man from killing millions. In one of Kirk's most tragic moments , he died a second time, only with Picard at his side to nullify his own revelation.

His Unyielding Hope

When the chips were down, most Starfleet officers were ready to throw in the towel, but Kirk staunchly refused. No situation was too extreme or too overwhelming to abandon all hope, and that forced him to keep on fighting to the end.

This is the quality that allowed Kirk to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, time and time again. He and his crew faced some of the most insurmountable obstacles in galactic history, but Kirk always knew that there was a way to beat any supposed "no-win scenario" if he just believed in himself.

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