Picard was equally pivotal to ushering in the franchise’s new frontier when helming the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast, and many “Kirk vs. Picard” debates are really thinly veiled arguments over which did more for the brand. Parker’s still new enough for Gibbs to win that debate, but his NCIS season 23 storyline fuels more relevant Star Trek comparisons.
NCIS Season 23 Raises A Debate Between Parker And Gibbs’ Leadership Styles
The logline for the NCIS season 23 premiere states that the season will open with Parker investigating Carla’s role in his father’s murder, and that his mission to avenge Roman’s death will put the entire MCRT in jeopardy. The implication is that, rather than acting alone as Gibbs did when the murder of Pedro Hernandez came back to haunt him in the flagship, Parker will be working directly alongside his team.
Despite obvious circumstantial differences, like the fact that Gibbs didn’t have a team when he killed Hernandez, this has sparked an argument that Parker’s a superior NCIS leader to Gibbs. At the very least, Alden’s more inclined than Jethro to involve the team in his personal missions. Gibbs hardly shuns teamwork, but he generally plays things closer to the vest.
Just like Parker and Gibbs, the two Starfleet captains differ in far more ways than their approach to teamwork. But Kirk’s unshakable trust in his crew forms his most solid thematic connection with Parker. Meanwhile, Picard’s evolution turned him into more of a Gibbs-like character in a way that one Star Trek movie illustrates better than just about any other.
Star Trek Generations Showed The True Difference Between Captains Kirk And Picard
Put simply, Kirk’s legacy is the story of a chair. For all the time he spends shooting at green things and inviting other green things into his bedroom, many of Kirk’s most iconic moments take place on the bridge. It’s so intrinsic to Jim’s character, there were squeals in the theater when Chris Pine sat down for the first time.
In Star Trek Generations, when offered the chance to helm the Enterprise-B, Kirk takes his place immediately because he’s had enough interactions with both old and new crew members to trust that they’re in the right seats. When he exits to the hull, he knows that he’s not alone as long as Scotty’s on the other side of the door.
But while Kirk’s faith in his comrades is essential to defeating Soran and escaping Salatrel’s control, Star Trek Generations ruins Picard in several ways by turning him into a lone action hero. Picard would have surrendered himself to Soran whether the Klingons killed Geordi or not, and he only seeks help against Soran after his first attempt fails.
Jean-Luc definitely respects his crew, and Kirk’s love for them isn’t necessarily boundless. Jim even ponders in The Return if he ever really knew them at all. But when Jean-Luc shows up unharmed after seemingly being reassimilated by the Borg, his reunion with his crew is presented as a more sentimental moment for Data than for Picard himself.
The most important difference between the captains, however, is the “heavens” they’re given by the Nexus. Picard pictures himself with a family of doll-faced children while Kirk returns to the life he had between Starfleet voyages, in which he has some regrets but still fondly remembers exploring space with friends. And that ties directly back to the NCIS debate.
How Star Trek Generations And The Return Answer The NCIS Parker Vs. Gibbs Debate
The Nexus is vital to understanding the key differences between Jim and Jean-Luc because they belong to a franchise that didn’t exactly win fans by habitually having the good guys lose. In like fashion, the virtues of Gibbs and Parker’s leadership styles can’t be measured by outcomes alone. You’re destined to lead effectively when your name’s first in the credits.
But, as suggested by Jean-Luc’s final takeaway from Kirk’s advice to Picard in Star Trek Generations, a man’s most important legacy is how he lived. Kirk lived in the chair. Parker lives for his team. Picard will continue writing his ending until Paramount stops seeing profits. Meanwhile, Gibbs can’t seem to escape from his never-ending crucible of regret.
This is the sad reality of NCIS episode 200, in which we see the different paths that Gibbs’ life could have taken. Jethro learns in that episode not to waste his future on isolation and remorse, yet the frame narrative of NCIS: Origins implies that Gibbs is still spending retirement thinking about the worst moments of his life.
Resistance is futile, and the Gibbs fandom will one day assimilate us all. But Parker fans shouldn’t worry about being in the minority. If Star Trek truly teaches anything, it’s that Kirk fans and Picard stans all fit into the same convention hall. NCIS doesn’t need to be any different.
