Andy Berner

Jun 30, 2023 | usni.org | Kyle Cregge |Captains Kent Pelot |Wayne Tunick |Andy Berner

They called him Captain Kirk, not Colonel Kirk. Science fiction is littered with spacefaring personnel who follow the naval model—Admiral William Adama (Battlestar Galactica), Captain Ed Mercer (The Orville), and Captain Malcolm Reynolds (Firefly). These are only a few examples of characters retaining naval structure when moving beyond Earth’s atmosphere. Within these stories, there is good reason for adopting a naval model that goes beyond calling spacecraft ships.