Summary

  • Captain Kathryn Janeway paved the way for more female captains in Star Trek, leading to a modern influx of strong female characters in leadership roles.
  • Star Trek: Strange New Worlds breaks stereotypes by featuring a leading man in the captain's chair and portraying Captain Pike's love interest, Captain Batel, as his equal in every way.
  • Thanks to Janeway's legacy, women in the 2020s Star Trek series are not just on the bridge, but they are the captains, representing a true partnership and equal representation.

When Star Trek: Voyager premiered in 1995, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) was the very first female Captain to star as the lead character of a Star Trek television series, and she certainly wouldn't be the last. With so many female captains leading Star Trek series today, it's hard to imagine that Janeway prompted so much uncertainty on of her gender alone. Could she brave the unknown as boldly as Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner)? Could she negotiate as well as Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart)? Could she make the tough decisions that Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) did?

Back in the 1960s, network executives at NBC rejected Number One (Majel Barrett) as part of the first Star Trek pilot "The Cage" because they felt "no one would believe that a woman could hold the position of second-in-command." By the 1990s, however, not only did Star Trek have a show with a woman in that very position with Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, but there had also been other female captains on Star Trek. Star Trek was ready for its first female series lead in Captain Janeway, who could, in fact, do everything the men did.

Janeway Began Star Trek’s Modern Influx Of Female Captains

star trek seven of nine janeway

Captain Kathryn Janeway paved the way for more Star Trek series with female captains in the modern era. Star Trek: Discovery introduced the USS Shenzhou's Captain Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) and First Officer, Commander Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), who became aptain of the USS Discovery in season 4. On Star Trek: Lower Decks Captain Carol Freeman (Dawnn Lewis) commands the USS Cerritos; her daughter Ensign Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) leads the show and the other lower deckers. iral Elizabeth Shelby (Elizabeth Dennehy) returned to command the USS Enterprise-F during Star Trek: Picard season 3, episode 9 "Võx".

Janeway's influence came full circle with Star Trek: Prodigy, which brought back Kate Mulgrew in the dual roles of iral Kathryn Janeway and Hologram Janeway, who served as advisor to the ragtag young crew of the USS Protostar. Star Trek: Picard season 3 confirms Janeway sponsored Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) in Starfleet and her fast-tracked rank of Commander aboard the USS Titan-A; by the end of the season, the Titan was rechristened the USS Enterprise-G, and Captain Seven of Nine was in the center seat of Starfleet's new flagship. There's no greater testament to Kathryn Janeway's legacy than that.

Strange New Worlds’ Captain Pike Is Now What Janeway Was In The 1990s

Star Trek Strange New Worlds Pike Enterprise Bridge

When Star Trek: Voyager became the fourth Star Trek series in the 1990s, Captain Janeway was an outlier as the only female captain, but in the 2020s, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is the only Star Trek series with a leading man in the captain's chair, Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount). Recurring character Captain Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano)'s primary narrative role is as Pike's love interest, but Strange New Worlds doesn't portray this as reductive; in fact, Batel is shown to be Pike's equal in every way who was also in the running to become a Commodore. Their romantic relationship is a true partnership, and her command of the USS Cayuga is represented with equal weight to Pike's of the Enterprise.

The USS Enterprise of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has more women among its main cast than men -- including Commander Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn), the very same Number One who was rejected in the 1960s for being unbelievable. It's almost impossible to imagine Anson Mount's version of Captain Pike stating he "can't get used to a woman on the bridge," like Jeffrey Hunter's Pike did back in the 1960s, unless he's cracking an ironic joke about it. And thanks to Captain Kathryn Janeway blazing the trail in Star Trek: Voyager, women on Star Trek in the 2020s aren't just on the bridge. They're the captains.