Star Trek: Every Captain Ranked Worst To Best (2023)

Captain Pike was Star Trek's first captain, and a stellar example for all those who would follow.

His character has been developed so much more in Discovery and Strange New Worlds. We learned that Pike was actually warned that he would be disfigured in his future and confined to a wheelchair, but he still chose to go through with it to protect the future. This is a level of commitment to the temporal prime directive that no other captain even approaches.

Pike's style of command was generally friendly. He made nicknames for his crew, spent time with them off-hours, and took an interest in getting to know them. He took his work seriously, but treated the crew more like a family than his subordinates.

Pike was actually so beloved that he had a medal named after him, the Christopher Pike Medal Of Valour, which is considered one of the highest honours celebrating remarkable leadership, meritorious conduct, and acts of personal bravery, all of which were embodied by Pike himself.