As for Picard, his best moment is easily the end of Darmok, where in the face of Riker getting the ship nearly destroyed (yet again), Picard waltzes onto the bridge, takes charge and in the space of a few moments gets the Tamarians to stand down.

No In The Pale Of Moonlight? Without the life of one Romulan senator, one criminal and the self-respect of one Starfleet officer, the Alpha and Beta quadrants could have been lost

Picard convincing the Klingon HC to give him a cloaked ship with only his “gratitude” in exchange was brilliant, especially when he told them if he didn’t get the ship, he would get from Garwon’s enemies - and then they would have his “gratitude”.

Star Trek III. Kirk destroys the wounded Enterprise. "You transformed death into a fighting chance." - Leonard "Bones" McCoy

Captain Garrett found her own solution to the Kobiyashi Maru scenario.

Thank you for including a moment from Captain Archer. It's nice to see Star Trek: Enterprise not be thrown under a bus for once.

I think Janeway's decision to combine the crew was the only viable one -- and despite the Maquis disdain for Starfleet, _everybody_ wanted to get home. I don't think it would have gone well if the Maquis tried taking over the ship, either -- if Janeway had just locked them all in the brig, there wouldn't have been much a crew to run the ship. If the Maquis tried to mutiny and failed, then both sides would have probably taken casualties, the Starfleet crew would have been even worse off, and the Maquis would be stuck in the brig anyway. If the Maquis _did_ successfully take over the ship, they would still be low on hands, especially if they killed the remaining Starfleet crew or abandoned them on a planet. The Maquis might have traded tech and such to improve their odds of getting home, and used tactics that Janeway would never allowed, but I don't think they would have done as well as the combined crew did.

Riker’s plan to get Picard, ending the Borg threat in that moment.

Some of these are questionable, BUT, Captain Garrett at #1 is spot on.

Point of order, it's the Yamato, not the Yamamoto. As you were.

One minor teensy addition I would have made to the entry for Captain Garrett was that ultimately through her sacrifice she was able to show The Klingon Empire that, perhaps for the first time, that The Federation was made up of Warriors who understood the need for sacrifice. I say this for a couple of reasons: Throughout the documented timeline of events in the conflict between the Klingons and The Federation whether it was Kirk, or an alternate-timeline Picard, or a Mirror Universe Rebellion at Terok-Nor against their oppressors or a host of other situations there were ample opportunities in which Klingons got to face Terrans as opponents on the field of battle. They even had a number of instances in which various opponents even earned a begrudging respect of the Klingons as formidable warriors. However, there was always this sort of 'reticence' to fully commit to the concept of blatant, unmitigated adherence to self-sacrifice on the field of battle. That is NOT to say that Klingons never saw Terrans die in combat or to show the courage to face death with Honor, that certainly occurred abundantly. I am saying that with Captain Garrett I believe it was the first time they really got to see the mettle of StarFleet in what really, if you think about it, was a true Kobayashi Maru scenario. Why do I mention the Kobayashi Maru (heh, and considering you brought up Kirk's own issues with it)? I mention this because, unlike the Federation, to the Klingons the Kobayashi Maru Scenario is NOT a "Lose/Lose". It's a "Win/Win" and THAT is what I feel was lacking in the fundamental understanding between the Federation and The Klingon Empire. To the Klingons, the concept of a "wasted death" in glorious combat was never a question, so therefore there is no idea of a "Lose" merely in the face of inevitable defeat, in fact its one of their highest moments of Honor to go into battle knowing you will lose but for the sake of your own Honor and your Warrior's Spirit. In viewing, the Federation they would likely have seen ample evidence of a captain or crew no doubt be willing to fight to the death but ultimately with the intent to win some goal even during a rout. While this is certainly honorable to the Klingon Code that is not the Core of their being. I believe in ample situations and lines of evidence the Klingons demonstrated an even higher respect for those demonstrations of honor in which Death was certain, no measurable victory was possible and defeat was inevitable and yet they would go to Sto-vo-kor with a song in their hearts because they chose to die as they lived, as warriors. Captain Garrett KNEW (even before the whole being sucked into an alternate timeline thing gave her even greater insight) that putting herself between the defenseless Klingons and the barbaric Romulans was going to get her killed but she simply couldnt watch it and write a damn report to send back to Starfleet. She saw that her death and the death of her crew was inevitable and the chance that they could save the colony was impossible(she wasnt even thinking about the longterm consequences, thats where the whole alternate timeline in which she got to see The Bigger Picture comes in). She HAD to fight them regardless and she knew going into it they would die but that was the pivotal moment, the acceptance of Death on the terms of a warrior with no hope of any victory other than holding true to one's Honor. THAT is what struck to the Heart of the Klingon Empire, that one of their enemies could be so like themselves when up till then they may have been seen as enemies, worthy of respect surely, but that they still remained "alien" to them. Through her sacrifice to defend an enemy, in a hopeless battle with only the promise of Death to be had she went into the fires of battle and showed that we Terrans were capable of understanding what it meant to be Klingons.

Good job, just as a note: The sister ship is the USS Yamato, not the USS Yamamoto.

i think on this list is Janeway's decision to make a temporary treaty with the Borg. The result was Seven of Nine's release and an addition to the crew. it also provided Janeway the start of the path as the "knower of all" about the Borg (IMHO, at least). In the finale, the future Janeway is highly regarded as the expert on the Borg Collective.

_"The satisfyingly round shape, of James T. Kirk."_ Fucking great line.

There are much better examples in Star Trek lore: May This Be Your Last Battlefield - Kirk activates the Enterprise self destruct sequence to stop rival aliens from hijacking his ship. The Corbomite Maneuver - Kirk bluffs an alien into thinking that attacking the Enterprise would ultimately destroy him. Counterpoint - Janeway outsmarts the Inspector and manages to free a group of telepaths. Favor the Bold - Sisko convinces the Prophets to eradicate the en bound Dominion ships and retakes DS9. Wrath of Khan - Kirk and Spock use an encoded transmission to fool Khan into thinking the Enterprise would be disabled for days. Undiscovered Country - Kirk tricks Lt. Valeris into thinking the assassins were alive to expose herself and reveal her co-conspirators. Year of Hell - Janeway realizes at the last minute that destroying the Krenum weapon ship would restore history. The Defector - Thinking ahead, Picard has a squadron of cloaked Klingon Bird of Preys escort the Enterprise D into the Neutral Zone to investigate Romulan incursions. Picard signals them to de-cloak after they're ambush by the Romulans. The Best of Both Worlds - Captain Riker uses an unorthodox strategy to out maneuver the Borg and kidnap Locutus. Relics - (Just for fun) Captain Scott kept himself alive in a transporter buffer for over 80 years after his ship crashed into the Dyson Sphere.

THERE ARE FOUR LIGHTS!

Sisko's gripe with Eddington was personal. Ben says so himself "he's just a man... and he BEAT ME!" Dude be pissed-off. Willingness to bend the rules kept getting more significant for Sisko, ultimately culminating in his decision to bring a neutral nation into a costly war using deceit, trickery, theft and murder. He can live with it though. Man, I love DS9 and Sisko is definitely GOAT.

The Picard scene is also a throwback to Orwell's "1984" when he gets asked how many lights he sees

"Let history never forget the name Enterprise." Smartest decision? Debatable. Most influential? Indisputably.

What? No love for Kirk's destruction of the war computer that calculates and orders the deaths of civilians on two worlds warring for 500 years? I'd say crashing what was essentially a high stakes game of StarCraft in order to bring the threat of real war between two civilizations unprepared or willing to go to such lengths was a brilliant gamble.

Many people often forget that Chakotay & Torres both were in academy and Chakotay was a CDR in starfleet before joining the Maquis.

Q specifically provokes Picard because it’s a test, His entire arc is about humanity evolving past their baser violent tendencies. He literally held Humanity on trial with Picard as our representative for the entire TNG series. He got his cheap laugh out of Sisko and then went on his merry way because Sisko had nothing more to offer.

Janeway didn't hand over chief engineering to the Maquis. The chief engineer was a federation officer until being killed later on, and Maquis Torres, who was already integrated into the crew was selected afterwards.

So, punching Q in the face is better than defeating him with well thought and articulated arguments? Remember when Picard lectured Q about his supposedly superior morality, or when he discovered Q’s real fears that humanity could one day become even more powerful than Q. That really pissed him off. That´s, my friend, is how you deal with an omnipotent being.

"Janeway making an alliance with the Borg" and "Janeway deciding to be assimilated by the Borg" should have been on this list. Those were some crazy but effective solutions. And if Picard setting the auto-destruct made the list, Janeway destroyed or started to destroy Voyager on soooo many occasions. But Sisko punching Q was brilliant apparently.

"Without even having to punch it in the face." That's brilliant writing.

I would be honored to serve under Picard, but I would be stoked to serve under Sisko.

0:13 remembers the time Rom helped come up with cloaked self replicating mines.

People keep praising Sisko as the best Captain because he once punched Q. Big deal. Long before that, Kirk did bitch slapped Trelane, twice.

Kirk: Not chess, Mr. Spock--poker.

So one liners: 1:26 Kirk: "I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am" 3:34 Foreshadowing much? (knocks Q into submission) 6:14 Come on everyone together: "THERE ARE 4 LIGHTS!" 7:46 Janeway: "How would you like a SWEEET internship on the USS Voyager!"

I'm a Janeway fan. It's probably because I grew up reading "Swiss Family Robinson" and "Robinson Crusoe" and love imagining how to survive while stranded in a remote island. "The Voyager" came decades before the first survivor reality shows were shown on TV and the crews' adventures to try to survive and get back home resonated with me.

Literally most of the decisions made by Katherine Janeway.. I mean she had it the toughest..

"I don't believe in a no-win situation."

"Captain Pike shares his Starfleet Academy statics" Given the reasons why there were trust issues amongst the crewmembers of the Discovery in regards to who their next Captain was going to be, it made perfectly good sense for Pike to display his full record of his service from Starfleet Academy to the day he accepted the commission of commanding the Discovery, both the good and bad, in order to gain the crew's trust

For your next installment, may I suggest 10 Genius Decisions By Star Trek First Officers. And perhaps later on, 10 Genius Decisions By Start Trek Chief Engineers.

Corrections: Enterpise-D's sister ship is the Yamato not Yamamoto, and the Enterprise-C was lost at Narendra III not Neandra III

I've always believed that the most important part of the Enterprise-C's sacrifice at Narendra III was the "sacrifice" part. It may still have earned some respect and gratitude from the Klingons if they'd survived, but Klingon honor simply would not allow them to disrespect the memories of those who fell in battle fighting an immensely superior foe to try to save Klingon lives. I headcanon that the Enterprise-C's crew are among the few non-Klingons to enter Sto-Vo-Kor.

Ok that was interesting what was the 10 worst decision ever made by a captain? that is more interesting. Good job, Stay safe.

Kirks "impeccable" logic convincing NOMAD of its imperfection should be on this list.

Actually, Kirk didn't 'cheat' the test. To cheat you would need to know the question that would be on the test or be able to acquire the answer during test. Since there was no correct solution to the kobayashi maru simulation, there would be no way to cheat to achieve the solution. By reprogramming the simulation he created his own version of the simulation, which, being the writer of the new simulation, he already knew the solution. It's not cheating when you write your own simulation, it's called creative thinking... LOL

I always loved when janeway flew voyager between the binary pulsars to get rid of the aliens in "scientific method" I think is the episode.

In novels, Nog also beat the Kobayashi Maru test, TWICE! Once, when the commander of the enemy ship demanded his surrender, he said "Name your price!" He the proceeded to haggle with the commander until the simulation crashed. The other time, he set the self destruct of the ship after the enemy had boarded and closed in, but set the volume low enough so that only his Ferengi ears could pick it up. He'd also used a tractor beam to nudge the KM towards the correct side of the neutral zone. His ship blew up, taking all the enemy ships with it, and saving the KM in the process.

Q: "You punched me! Picard never punched me." Sisko: "I'm not Picard!" Yeah, Sisko is the best!

Finding out Sisko was a more popular Captain than I originally thought is such a nice surprise. I liked TNG but DS9 made me love Star Trek

And that it why Sisko is the don, the daddy, the god who walks amongst men.

I love that we honor that 'non important captain' who never had her own show, by acknowledging she did the most badass thing to safe others

How in the hell did Harriman ever achieve the rank of Captain? He's clearly incompetent. His indecision is not just a lack of experience - he's a captain, he should have at least 10 years of experience under his belt - he's actually unfit to lead. Edit: I looked it up. Apparently he had rich parents who bought him a commission and pulled some strings to get him a captaincy. The reason he was on the Ent B was because it was a rundown cruise and he was never going to be its permanent captain. According to Alan Ruck, Rick "Asshole" Berman told him: _"Yeah, we figured that Harriman came from a wealthy, politically connected family, and they sort of bought you this job as a stepping stone into a political career."_

"Sisko is the greatest captain" 🤣🤣🤣

Thanks Simon from Whatculture for calling out Sisko as the GOAT 🖖🏽

"Ah yes, speaking of the Kardashians..." XD

I really like "Where Silence Holds Lease." That and "Skin of Evil" are early episodes of TNG that I have sat and rewatched when I've stumbled across them.

Q wasn't omnipresent. That would me he was everywhere at once or at least aware of everywhere at once which he obviously wasn't since he didn't know what was going on outside of the areas he was actively in or observing.

#7...wait...so...Nagilum couldn't just remove the Enterprise's self-destruct mechanism?.......

Fun fact; both Sir Patrick Stewart, and David Warner both were in the Royal Shakespeare company. And Stewart openly said he was inspired by Warner in Hamlet so much it made him join the group. And later Stewart had a role in Hamlet in another production of the show. Just a little trivia fact for those who thought the episode of TNG chain of command might've felt a little more like a Broadway show when Warner and Stewart shared the scene together.

Ah, #6 is a war crime. So much for Sisko being the best.

Good on you sir! While the skills, abilities, and legacies of the captains of the "hero ships" of Trek each speak for themselves, I think none speak quite as powerfully as Captain Rachel Garrett. Kirk and crew saved the Federation countless times, and by the sheer weight of his reputation, convinced their then enemy of the sincerity of the Federation's olive branch. Picard and crew, the reluctant yet resolute warrior and consummate diplomat, not only helped the Federation face down some of her greatest foes, but even managed to keep peace with her allies in time of a civil war. Sisko and crew were the galvanizing force that brought the great powers together to help protect all of us from the machinations of the Dominion. Janeway and crew brought to Starfleet a wealth of information they may have only ever seen a century from now, chief among it the tools to fight off the Borg. Captain Rachel Garrett, and the crew of her Enterprise, by making a single selfless sacrifice, shifted the balance of power this half of the galaxy for decades, and brought two mortal enemies not only to peaceful terms, but to an alliance of powers. God rest ye, Captain Garrett.

satisfyingly round, and head in the same description, brilliant, just brilliant

"Picard never punched me!" "I'm not Picard"

1 hour version please!

And it turned out the Maquis were right all along. I remember watching those early episodes when the Maquis first appeared, and even as a teenager I was like "dude, they're in the right. You don't need to necessarily help them, but just stay out of their way and let them help you!" Fast forward a couple seasons to when the Dominion appeared and struck a deal with the Cardassians, and you can bet a whole bunch of Star Fleet officers were kicking themselves. Regarding the Voyager integration, I don't think both sides despised each other as much as the writers and fans would go on to think. They had far more in common than in difference. I still think Chakotay was a better commanding officer than Janeway, especially in a situation where the ship and crew were on their own and needed to maximize every resource they could get. That's much more in line with how the Maquis had to operate.

Took me a while to realize Kenneth Marshall (Michael Eddington) was Colwyn from the movie Krull.

Janeway should of had so many more. Janeway siding with the borg? Janeway blows up the krenim ship, with everyone else's shields down to hopefully alter time so year of hell didn't happen and all those species' restored. This has to be on the list, was such a gamble to take.

"You may not know John Harriman" Are we Trekkies here or what?!

"We can argue forever for who's the best Star Trek captain, and why it's Benjamin Sisko." If Picard read Sisko's log about how he punched Q, and then Q never returned, would Picard be pretty pissed off? "Why didn't I think of that?.....Merde."

Picard has made much more inspired decisions than a self destruct sequence. He can be crafty and devious when he needs to be.

Let's give herriman a break here, more than likely, he was likely the shakedown cruise capitan, Starfleet has a tendency to take the least experienced captains and put them in the big chair to test the new ship, herriman being inexperienced in a crisis, did the right thing by asking Kirk for help

That "terrorist" crew goes on to become some of her most loyal and best officers for Janeway. An her BEST moment and shoulda been here too I'd said when past AND future her in the series' end totally outsmart and own the Borg. Which is basically her and her crew's specialty at the end of the series

Yesterday's Enterprise was one of the most memorable episodes, but Capt. Garrett died before she could lead the Enterprise C back into battle. Lt. Richard Castillo did the job, along with help from the time-displaced Lt. Tasha Yar. Whoopie Goldberg's exchange with Sir Patrick Stewart will be remembered as long as humans exist. Epic stuff.

Another great video! On "Voyager" Tuvok created a holodeck program to consider a Maquis mutiny.

No honorable mention for Scotty (I believe he was Captain Scott at the time) deciding he could save his life by continually transporting himself through an endless diagnostic loop? If anything, this deserves a nod for being a completely ingenious and credible way for a TOS character to appear in TNG (without needing extreme old age prosthetics or the benefit of being a Vulcan)

2:46 I now believe that was a clue to Sisko's true heritage.

How about the Voyager episode where the ship is trapped in the Void? Janeway cooperates with many other ships that are trapped, in order to escape. Not an easy feat, since most of them were used to fighting each other! But sure, Sisko punching Q is somehow better than that! /s

How can poisoning a planet be a genius move? He went with a "means justify the ends" logic and completely lost track of proportionality here. It might have worked, but at what price? Also, the sister ship is called YAMATO.

sisko's plot armor truly has no limits.

One of the best next gen episodes in wich Picard is tortured and never breaks and even flips the coin on the torturer

Whilst most of it was amusing if not glib, it was spot on with number 1. "Yeah, those are Klingon.... civilians - general quarters, red alert, and engage!" Star Fleet at its best.

Acting abilities and moral compass goes to Picard as the best captain by miles, that, and he got the big pay checks after Trek, Sisko couldn't act when he got angry lol.

Quick note: the Enterprise D's sister ship is the YAMATO, not Yamamoto.

My favorite person commanding the enterprise is Worf.

My favorite thing about Sisko punching Q is that it wasn't out of rage which, since it was Q, would be totally acceptable. The dude literally asked for it repeatedly and Sisko just said "fine, have it your way". [edit] The civilian ship stuck in the neutral zone is on its own. Not gonna risk a war that could kill billions to save a ship that should have been more careful. Heading 180 mark 0 and warp home.

I love how you used Christopher Pike's example in the very first episode of Star Trek Discovery... :)

Godpuncher Sisko meets a playfull god, immediately punches it and survives. Picard meets a homicidal realitywarper, immediately punches himself and wins. Honestly can't say which is more impressive

I would've watched the Hell out of a show with Garret as captain.

“Now we can argue endlessly about who is the greatest Starfleet Captain of all time and why it’s Benjamin Sisko-“ YEP! 🎉

What about the year of hell in Voyager? When Janeway and crew suffered long and heavy, while the ship degenerates more and more, and she finally rams it with all it's remaining force into the time ship. Great moments. I can't forget the scene, after another ally ship hit the Voyager, Janeway had a box seat with a clear view right into space. Though, what a nice plot-device those emergency shields are, still working when basically 90% of the ship is trashed.......

Fun video. A suggestion: You need to get a screen for your mic or change your technique because the pops that come with your Ps and Bs are pretty strong.

I wonder if the Enterprise-B's adventures continued after rescuing the El-Aurians?

Jelico's decision to require Troi to wear a Federation uniform.

I love these lists where they put little to no thought into it and just pull the first 10 things that come to mind. #1: Kirk uses the Corbomite Maneuver to escape the destruction of his ship when everyone, including Spock, has pretty much given up.

That was one of siskos worst decisions and not in keeping with his character or sense of morality.

Your #7 Picard decides to destroy the enterprise is essentially doing the same as Janeway in "Scientific Method" STV s4 e7.

Benjamin Sisko IS the best captain. Such a smooth, buttery voice that I'd follow him into battle with the Dominion.

Rachael Garret I 100% agree there. Best captain.

In Harrimans defense, allowing the vastly more experienced Kirk to take the lead was the correct decision. Yes it was based on not being confident in himself (maybe that was going to be installed on Tuesday) but it showed the ability to know his short comings and bow to the captain who has saved the galaxy tens of dozens of times.

I'm glad you put Garrett and the Enterprise C in I thought there might be a chance that that would have been forgotten

If the plot of DS9 were to be considered from start to finish, the reason Q got punched by Sisko is because Sisko, being affectively a corporeal Profit in Linear Time would have been able to. Following the novels, The Profits were very powerful beings that even the Q had a lot of respect for, and said respect meant they wouldn't interact unless it was necessary. Q's single appearance could be thought of the only time The Profits allowed him to show up, but every action he did had to be approved by them beforehand, to ensure no unwanted deviation from The Sisko's Difficult Path. Q would have known what Sisko was, and maybe he wouldn't have been able to stop the punch regardless.

Can we get a top 10 Worst Decisions by Star Trek Captains? #1 Captain Jelico ordering Troi to wear a Uniform on the Bridge. Thus foiling Picards failsafe system whereby he insured nobody would ever expect her to pilot the ship. #2 Riker's subsequent orders to Troi "Deanna Get us out of orbit!"

His entire personality and ability to command a ship wasn’t installed until Tuesday...

No Picard manoeuvre?