What was the military rank of Christopher Pike (Star Trek) from 2260 to 2261?
Christopher Pike ( Star Trek ) Captain Christopher Chris Pike is a character in the Star Trek science fiction franchise . He is the immediate predecessor to James T . Kirk as captain of the starship . Pike first appeared as the main character of the original unaired pilot episode for , , portrayed by Jeffrey Hunter . When this pilot was rejected , Hunter withdrew from the series , and the character of Pike was replaced with Kirk . The series later established Pike as being Kirks predecessor in the two-part story , which extensively used archive footage from The Cage ; the framing story included an older , scarred and disabled Pike portrayed by Sean Kenney . The films Star Trek ( 2009 ) and Star Trek Into Darkness ( 2013 ) , which take place in an alternate timeline , feature Bruce Greenwood as a version of Christopher Pike who acts as a mentor to the young Kirk . Christopher Pike is a main character in the second season of ( broadcast 2019 ) , portrayed by Anson Mount ; set several years after The Cage , the show has Captain Pike assume temporary command of the USS Discovery . The upcoming television series will be centered around Pikes time as captain of the USS Enterprise , with Mount reprising the role . Depiction . According to dialogue in The Cage , he is from the city of Mojave on Earth and once owned a horse named Tango . Pike is the second captain of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 and the first to be shown in Star Trek canon . reveals that Captain Robert April predated Pike , and printed Star Trek fiction and reference books also identify April as Pikes predecessor . Pike took command of the USS Enterprise in the year 2250 , at the age of 38 , taking over command from Robert April , who commanded the Enterprise for five years . The Cage . At the beginning of , set in the year 2254 , Pike and his crew are recuperating from a mission to Rigel VII during which several members of the landing party were killed by the inhabitants . The incident filled Pike with so much guilt that he is considering resigning his commission . Meanwhile , the Enterprise is en route to Vega Colony to drop off wounded crew members when it receives a distress call from the survey vessel SS Columbia , lost eighteen years previously . Pike initially refuses to investigate , citing that the injured crew members take priority . However , when an abbreviated follow-up message is received , he orders the ship diverted to Talos IV to rescue survivors . Pike soon learns that all but one of the survivors are illusions created by the Talosians in order to lure the Enterprise crew to Talos IV . The Talosians make every effort to provide fantasies that they hope will appeal to Pike , using Vina , the only real Columbia survivor , as the object of desire . After Pike escapes from his prison cell with the aid of his first officer , Number One , and Yeoman J . M . Colt , the Talosians reveal , to Pike , Vinas real appearance as a disfigured older woman . The Talosians saved her life after the Columbia crashed , but they had no guide on how to repair a human body . Pike requests that the Talosians restore her illusion of beauty and the Enterprise leaves Talos IV . The Menagerie . At some point prior to the two-part episode , set in the year 2267 , Pike is promoted to fleet captain . He is severely injured while rescuing several cadets from a baffle plate rupture on board a J-class training vessel , the delta ray radiation leaving him paralyzed , unable to speak , badly scarred , and using a brainwave-operated wheelchair for mobility . His only means of communicating is through a light on the chair : one flash meaning yes and two flashes indicating no . In The Menagerie , the Enterprise , now under the command of Captain James T . Kirk , travels to Starbase 11 . Spock , who had served with Pike for eleven years , four months , and five days , makes clandestine arrangements to take Pike back to Talos IV , despite travel to Talos IV being the only criminal offense still punishable by death in Starfleet . Spock undergoes court-martial , with his evidence presented during the trial being footage from The Cage . At the two-part episodes conclusion , it is revealed that the entire procedure was a Talosian-generated illusion to ensure that the Enterprise reached Talos . The Talosians invite Captain Pike to spend the remainder of his life among them , unfettered by his natural body , which was the entire purpose of Spocks actions . Pike accepts the offer and Spock , now cleared of all charges , sees him off . The Talosians then show Captain Kirk an image of Pike in perfect health and reunited with Vina ( another scene from The Cage ) . Later references . Pike is referenced in the episode . An alternate-universe version of Captain Kirk reportedly assassinated Pike to become captain of the ISS Enterprise ( the Mirror Universe version of the USS Enterprise ) . In the episode The Most Toys , the name Pike can be seen briefly on the side of the shuttlecraft Lt . Commander Data was going to pilot at the beginning of the episode . A citation named for Pike is revealed in the episode Tears of the Prophets ; Captain Benjamin Sisko receives the Christopher Pike Medal of Valor for his actions during the Dominion War . Captain Sisko and his Vulcan rival Captain Solok congratulate each other on receiving Christopher Pike Medal in the Deep Space Nine episode Take Me Out to the Holosuite ( S07E04 ) . Reboot . Captain Pike appears in the 2009 reboot Star Trek , this time portrayed by Bruce Greenwood . In the film , Pike encourages a young , directionless James T . Kirk ( Chris Pine ) to follow in the footsteps of his hero father and enlist in Starfleet . Pike is the first Captain of the USS Enterprise , with Kirk on board as a stowaway . During the Battle of Vulcan , Pike is taken prisoner by Nero ( Eric Bana ) and tortured for information about Earths defenses . He is later rescued by Kirk , whom Pike also manages to save from an attack despite his wounds . At the end of the film , Pike is promoted to the rank of admiral and uses a wheelchair . Unlike his counterpart in The Menagerie , however , Pike still retains the ability to speak and to use his upper body . He proudly yields command of the Enterprise to Kirk while he recovers from his injuries , stating that Kirks father would be proud of his actions . Greenwood reprised his role as Pike in the next film , Star Trek Into Darkness . In the film , Pike has partially recovered from the trauma Nero inflicted , using a cane rather than a wheelchair . After Kirk violates the Prime Directive to rescue Spock ( Zachary Quinto ) , Pike briefly retakes command of the Enterprise and warns Kirk that the Admiralty is threatening to put him back into the Academy . Pike confronts Kirk about his reckless behavior and how his own actions can get those nearest to him killed . Despite his anger at Kirk , however , Pike retains him as his First Officer , sparing him from having to return to the Academy . He later explains to Kirk that he still believes in him and that he also sees a greatness behind his recklessness . During a meeting with the Starfleet commanders , including veteran Admiral Marcus and Captain Kirk , Pike is killed in a terrorist attack on Starfleet by John Harrison . Pikes death incites a desire for revenge in Kirk , who seeks to hunt Harrison down , which nearly brings the Federation into a full-scale war with the Klingons . At the end of the film , a memorial service is held for Pike and all of the other people who died as a result of Admiral Marcuss and Harrisons actions . Star Trek : Discovery and Short Treks . Prior to appearing on as a main character , Pike is referenced twice in the shows first season . The episode Choose Your Pain has Pike listed on the Starfleet Database as one of Starfleets most decorated Captains as of 2256 . ( Also included in the list are Jonathan Archer , Matt Decker , Philippa Georgiou , and Robert April. ) The season finale Will You Take My Hand ? shows the Enterprise on-screen , with Pike sending a distress call to the Discovery . Anson Mount being cast as Captain Pike for the second season was announced on April 9 , 2018 . Captain Christopher Pike was introduced to Star Trek : Discovery in the second season premiere , , which first aired in the U.S . on January 17 , 2019 . Set in the years 2257-2258 , the season-long story arc involves Pike assuming temporary command of the USS Discovery while the Enterprise is disabled , in order to investigate the mysterious red signals – temporal anomalies appearing throughout space that have some connection to the apparent breakdown and disappearance of Spock . The planet Talos IV reappears in the episode If Memory Serves , which also has Pike and Vina once again making mental contact . In the episode Through the Valley of Shadows , Pike receives a premonition of his own future including his injury and disfigurement . Pike departs the show in the season finale Such Sweet Sorrow , Part 2 , first aired 18th April , 2019 , which shows him resuming command of the Enterprise . Anson Mount reprised his role as Pike in the first three episodes of the second season of the anthology series Star Trek : Short Treks . originally airing October 5 to November 14 , 2019 . Star Trek : Strange New Worlds . After Anson Mount left Discovery following the second-season finale , fans of the series began calling for him to reprise his role of Christopher Pike in a spin-off set on the USS Enterprise , alongside Rebecca Romijn as Number One and Ethan Peck as Spock . Alex Kurtzman confirmed that development on such a series had begun in January 2020 . Production began on the series in February 2021 . Appearances in licensed media . Novels and short stories . Pike appears in the Pocket Books novels Enterprise : The First Adventure ( Vonda N . McIntyre , 1986 ) , Final Frontier ( Diane Carey , 1988 ) , Vulcans Glory ( D . C . Fontana , 1989 ) , The Rift ( Peter David , 1991 ) , Burning Dreams ( Margaret Wander Bonanno , 2006 ) , and Child of Two Worlds ( Greg Cox , 2015 ) . A mirror-universe version of Pike ( established in , as having been assassinated by the mirror James T . Kirk. ) He also appears in the novel Dark Victory ( William Shatner , 1999 ) , and the short story The Greater Good ( Margaret Wander Bonanno ) in the anthology Star Trek : Mirror Universe : Shards and Shadows ( 2009 ) . Dave Sterns 2010 original series novel The Children of Kings was set aboard Pikes Enterprise . Captain Pike has his own novel in Captains Table series , Where Sea Meets Sky , written by Jerry Oltion and published in October 1998 . Captain Pike and the Enterprise appear in the first novel Desperate Hours ( David Mack , 2017 ) and feature prominently in the fifth novel The Enterprise War ( John Jackson Miller , 2019 ) , which chronicles the Enterprises activities concurrent with the first season of that series . Comics . Star Trek : Early Voyages . In the Paramount-licensed Star Trek comic book series published by Marvel Comics , chronicled the adventures of the Enterprise under the command of Pike . The earliest issues lead up to the events seen in The Cage , which was retold from Yeoman Colts point of view . Although extremely popular , the comic series ended on a cliffhanger when Marvel lost the Star Trek license rights . Star Trek Annual #2 – The Final Voyage ( DC comics , 1986 ) . In this issue , the Enterprise tries to return home to Earth only to find itself around Talos IV . They discover that the Klingons have gone to the planet reasoning anything that scared the Federation enough to maintain the death penalty could be used as a weapon . While on the surface they also discover two Klingons torturing Pike , who is back in his chair due to the Klingons having partially mastered the Talosians mind powers . One of the Klingons then tortures the crew of the Enterprise by making them live their worst fears . Kirk , forced to relive the death of Edith Keeler , goes berserk with rage and breaks the illusion . Kirk then beats the Klingon tormenting them to death with his bare hands . The crew quickly free the Talosians , who mentally imprison the Klingons in illusions of peaceful , tranquil settings as they purge their memories of Talos IV . The crew returns home with Pike remaining on Talos IV to continue his illusionary life . Starfleet Academy comic series . In the Paramount-licensed Star Trek comic book series published by Marvel Comics , Starfleet Academy , Nog and some fellow cadets encounter a solid image of Pike on Talos IV . Star Trek Captains Log : Pike ( IDW Publishing , 2010 ) . Captains Log : Pike published by IDW details the events leading up to and including Pike becoming disabled from the baffle plate rupture aboard the USS Exeter ( NCC-1788 ) under the watch of Captain Colt , Pikes former yeoman on the Enterprise . The story also reveals Colts unrequited love for her former Captain . Star Trek : The New Voyages . In an episode of the non-canon fan film series , a time-traveling Kirk and Spock attempt to warn Pike not to attempt to rescue the trapped cadets . Pike attempts it , in spite of what future-Kirk and future-Spock say , causing him to be injured by the delta rays and subsequently transition to a life in the wheelchair and its light communication device . Reception . In 2012 , IGN ranked the character Christoper Pike , as depicted in the original series and the 2009 film Star Trek , as the 23rd top character of the Star Trek universe . In 2017 , The Washington Post ranked Pike as the sixth best Captain of Star Trek , including the characters presentations in the Kelvin films ( Bruce Greenwood ) and the Star Trek pilot and original series ( Jeffrey Hunter and Sean Kenney ) . In 2019 , TV Guide called the Captain Pike ( played by Anson Mount ) featured in Star Trek : Discovery a fan favorite , also noting Pikes Number One ( played by Rebecca Romijn ) . In 2019 , due to his inclusion in Star Trek : Discoverys second season , Screen Rant ranked Anson Mounts Pike as the second best Captain in Star Trek , stating This guy saw his future as a disfigured hunk of meat on a wheelchair , and yet he still pressed on . Thats what we call bravery . Due to the popularity of Anson Mount and Ethan Pecks portrayals of Pike and Spock in respectively , fans started a Change.org petition for CBS to commission a Pike spin-off , focusing on Pike and Spocks adventures aboard the Enterprise . As of November 2019 , the petition reached over 29,000 signatures . External links . - Christopher Pike at Memory Beta , for the character in Star Trek novels and comics .