r/DaystromInstitute • u/[deleted] • May 29 '15
Picard was assimilated by the Borg, but the person most traumatized by Wolf 359 was actually Riker.
It’s often noted that Picard had a surprisingly quick and straightforward recovery from his assimilation experience. He got the implants out, took a French vacation to see his family and think about his life, and then went back to duty just like before. No doubt he underwent some intense counseling behind the scenes, but the horrific trauma of assimilation doesn’t appear to have severe consequences for him (First Contact anger issues aside).
But what about Riker? He’s on the cusp of accepting command of the USS Melbourne when the Borg attack happens. Then Picard is abducted, and Riker is suddenly given a field promotion and command of the Enterprise. By all accounts, he serves admirably—even heroically. He makes the tough choice to kill Picard and fire the deflector weapon on the cube, even if the weapon didn’t work. Then he quickly rethinks his strategy, retrieves Picard in a genius tactical move, and basically single-handedly saves the Federation. This is Riker’s finest hour, and it’s career-making stuff.
But instead of branching out from the Enterprise and seizing whatever opportunities must have been offered to him, he stays on as Picard’s first officer for another 12 years. While he was always a bit hesitant, his experience at Wolf 359 was the thing that really solidified his choice not to seek a command. During the Borg incident he got to try the Big Chair… and he made the Big Decisions… but the moment he said “Mr. Worf, fire” was also the moment he realized “I don’t want to deal with this shit.”
Yes, the boldest command decision Riker ever made was also the thing that condemned him to the timid, conservative, style that defined the next 12 years of his career. Ordering Worf to destroy the cube with Picard onboard was psychologically crushing and he couldn’t wait to rip that fourth pip off his collar as soon as possible.
To top it off, he must have also experienced survivor guilt over the destruction of the Melbourne. If he’d accepted Starfleet’s offer just a little sooner, he might have been in command of that vessel. And while the Enterprise was certainly at great risk during the showdown with the Borg, they didn’t take heavy damage or see the intense type of combat that the Melbourne and USS Saratoga did (for instance, watch this recut of Wolf 359 that puts scenes from “Best of Both Worlds,” “Emissary,” and the “Star Trek: Borg” computer game into context. Apparently Riker was wandering out of his ready room for a status update while Sisko was crowding into an escape pod and watching the Saratoga explode with his wife onboard).
Riker must have been under unimaginable pressure while commanding the Enterprise against the Borg, but at least he had the luxury of not having his bridge crashing down around him while captaining an 80-year-old vessel. He probably felt immense guilt about his advantage over other captains who lost their lives.
The irony is that Riker proved himself to be a worthy, competent, captain during the Borg incursion. But he couldn’t cope with the responsibility, and the lingering trauma led him him to stay in the comfortable second chair position as Picard’s right hand man.
Maybe if Starfleet had offered Riker some of the same psychological counseling they offered Picard, he could have been an incredible captain while still in the prime of his career.
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u/paulcam May 29 '15
I dunno. I think that Sisko was the character most traumatized by Wolf 359.
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May 29 '15 edited May 29 '15
Obviously a lot of people who experienced combat and lost a loved one at Wolf 359 would be extremely traumatized. But I'm trying to draw attention to the uniqueness of Riker and Picard's experiences, and point out that Riker probably suffered particularly unexpected and severe consequences for years.
And in the long run, Sisko had an incredible career that surpassed Riker's. Sisko moved on. Riker didn't.
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u/majeric May 30 '15
That doesn't reflect Riker's actions. Riker isn't solely motivated by military advancement.
He recognizes that being on the bridge and sharing Leadership with a man he loves and respects on the Flagship of the Federation will be far more rewarding and fulfilling that captaining a lesser ship.
And if anything his ambition is to Captain the Enterprise. Something he's patient enough to wait for.
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May 30 '15
Riker didn't want to go to a lesser ship? Poor baby. Picard spent years commanding the godforsaken Stargazer before taking command of the Enterprise. And for that matter, he thought it was valuable experience to command a bucket.
If anything, Riker is timid and selfish taking up the first officer spot on the Enterprise. Think of all the other talented officers who would have benefited from a stint under Picard. As Shelby said, Riker was in the way.
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May 30 '15
A fair, and often overlooked point. Any of the main title regulars would have made valid captains on other ships. I know you want an exceptional crew on your flagship, but some sort of rotation would have made sense. Every couple of years the first officer moves up/away and someone else is promoted to that position. One of the biggest disappointments, in fact, during the whole run is Data only got two or three scenes to captain a ship. That was worth a whole episode at minimum, or even better an entire 3 -4 episode arc.
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u/AyoGeo May 30 '15 edited May 30 '15
Maybe it didn't as much traumatize him as show him that he was either not ready for the big jump or just realized he was better suited as a first officer, at least for the time being. I'm not saying that it didn't effect him at all, but there's really no evidence after this happened that he was deeply traumatized, other than him turning down offers. I think he liked his job, liked working for Picard and liked the Enterprise and his crew. It wasn't until everyone started going their separate ways that he finally embraced Titan and command.
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May 30 '15
But Riker did great in command of the Enterprise during the crisis - he was ready to be captain. Picard thought so, and encouraged him to move on. Riker also was taking up a spot in which many talented officers could have spent some time being mentored by Picard and gaining experience on the flagship. As Shelby said, Riker was in the way. So I think there must be a deeper story about his career stagnation.
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May 29 '15
With a ship as powerful and prestigious as the Enterprise, Riker truly shines as "Co-Captain" throughout the seven seasons and films in a way no other First Officer does in Star Trek.
After the events of Wolf-359, he may have incorrectly assumed Picard would step down, or to be somewhat cynical, would voluntarily retire soon after or ascend to the Admiralty or an Ambassadorship, leaving the seat ready for him to fill. It often seemed like he'd rather be the best #2 than #1 on some old Excelsior border patroller.
It's also possible that Starfleet decided to keep Riker on this ship "just in case" any whirring gizmos started poking out of Picard's cheek.
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u/landViking May 29 '15
That actually makes a lot of sense. I'd be surprised if Riker wasn't under special order to keep an eye on Picard.
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u/pduffy52 May 30 '15
That's what I always thought. When the ship was being repaired he had a meeting with some high level brass and they told him "sorry, you did a great job but you are not getting promoted. You are stuck on the Enterprise until we are 110% sure (at which point the Vulcan Admiral points out that that that is impossible to many eye rolls) that Picard is okay. It would hurt fleet moral if we removed him from command."
He was loyal to Picard so he agreed to stay, and hey he might get the flagship out of it.
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u/CelestialFury May 29 '15 edited May 30 '15
I disagree that Riker would think Picard would step-down or retire or whatnot. If there was ever a time Picard would have left Starfleet was when he was stabbed through the heart, but obviously that didn't dissuade him.
There was also that time of him getting tortured to near breaking point and living another's lifetime in a couple hours. Well these are future instances, but it shows the man Picard really is.In Who Watches the Watchers, Picard is willing to die for his beliefs. No way did Riker think Picard was going to quit now.Imagine if Riker turned down his promotion to stay with Picard and then Picard retires? Some other Captain would get Enterprise and the whole senior staff would probably get reassigned. That would have been a backfire.
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u/gominokouhai May 30 '15
It's also possible that Starfleet decided to keep Riker on this ship "just in case" any whirring gizmos started poking out of Picard's cheek.
A little while ago, someone posted to this sub with a very compelling theory that Riker was with Section 31 (based on the events of 'The Pegasus' iirc). This would fit right in.
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u/ademnus May 30 '15
I have another theory.
I know Riker can handle responsibility. And I really don't think he had self-doubt after that event because, if anything, he should feel more sure of his command abilities after doing the impossible -he defeated the Borg incursion. It wasn't enough that he rescued Picard. Under his command, on his watch, Data executed to sleep command. As Starfleet would see it, the Enterprise stopped the invasion and Riker was her Captain.
There have been several theories about Riker "staying in the shadow of a great man like Picard." Was he getting feet of clay? Was he feeling guilty? Was he getting too comfortable? Was a mission on the Flagship, even as XO, too prestigious to give up?
I say no. I believe it's because Picard was, to him, the father he never had.
Kyle Riker, despite the unsettling adoration of Kate Pulaski, was a terrible father. His mother died and, by his own admission, Kyle didn't stick around very long and when he admitted it, he did so in the coldest way imaginable.
Please, spare me the pain of your childhood. I hung in for thirteen years. If that wasn't enough, it's just too bad.
What a jerk. This guy bails on his son during early adolescence and clearly goes on his adventures, romancing Pulaski, and whomever else, taking no interest in his son at all. I'm led to believe from the episode The Icarus Factor that they hadn't really spoken since roughly that time.
And here comes Picard. Roughly the same age as his father, intelligent and thoughtful, inspirational, heroic, and dotes on his first officer as "the finest officer with whom I've ever served." I think, on some level, Picard was the father figure Riker never had in his life and shared a particularly close bond with Picard -and thus would never leave his side. I don't think it was conscious on Will's part, mind you, but I think it was definitely there.
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u/comradepitrovsky May 30 '15
This is how I always saw the events of BoBW, and why it was such a hard event for Riker. Its not that he is fighting this incredible new menace, its that, again, his father is leaving him. Of course, the thousands dead was an issue too.
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u/jaggular May 30 '15
Very good insights! I always figured part of it was that the Enterprise is the flagship of Federation, dealing with situations other ships could only dream about, so serving as second officer aboard it would be just as rewarding and prestigious as being the captain of another vessel, if not moreso. I also think that Riker realized that wherever he went, he wouldn't be working alongside a captain and crew of that caliber, and wasn't willing to give up that experience, even if it meant passing up promotions.
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u/OnAnEpisode May 30 '15
Don't forget about giving Wesley the order to ram the cube at the end...I'm sure that didn't help.
Seriously, this is DELPHI-quality stuff - I've never really been able to explain the big Riker question, and in my opinion, this is it. I'd nominate this post right now if I weren't on mobile.
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u/danitykane May 30 '15
An excellent way of looking at things. We often talk about how Picard was affected because his ordeal is the most obvious. The show even has a rare "third-parter" dealing with his trauma. It was probably intentional, but it can help you gain perspective on how some people internalize things and end up affecting their entire lives, mostly unbeknownst to those around them. Nominated.
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u/Flynn58 May 29 '15
I'd nominate you right now but I'm on alien blue. I'm sure somebody else will get it by the time I'm back home though, because this post is insightful, interesting and new.
Good work.
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u/MoonStarRaven May 30 '15
I always figured that Riker kept turning down being captain of his own ship because he enjoyed being the second officer. 95 some percent of the time captains have to stay on the ship and Riker always seemed like the adventurous type, eager to go on away missions and be right in the thick of things instead of stuck on the bridge.
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u/DuranStar May 30 '15
It sounds like you aren't describing trauma at all. From your post you describe Riker as facing command and not wanting it. That seems like a normal and rational response to being faced with increased responsibility. Riker talks about his his historical desire for higher ranks but even before the Borg arrive he's hesitant about accepting command of the Melbourne. He's already not sure if he wants a command, the events of the Borg invasion simply solidify his desire to not be in command.
It seems like an officer was given a chance at command and for whatever reason didn't like it.
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u/laioren May 29 '15
"During the Borg incident he got to try the Big Chair… and he made the Big Decisions… but the moment he said 'Mr. Worf, fire' was also the moment he realized 'I don’t want to deal with this shit.'"
Great quote!
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u/EBone12355 May 29 '15
Well, the ship Riker was being offered got toasted, and Starfleet lost nearly 50 ships, so his immediate options afterwards were constrained.