| Christopher Pike | |
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Gender: |
Male |
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Height: |
6'0 (1.83 m) |
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Weight: |
180 lbs |
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Hair: |
Brown (graying) |
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Eyes: |
Brown |
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Skin: |
White |
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Species: |
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Homeworld: |
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Birth: |
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Affiliation: |
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| Career | |
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Occupation: |
Flag Officer (2267) |
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Posting: |
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Rank: |
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Status: |
Active (2267) |
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Father: |
Charlie Pike |
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Mother: |
Willa Pike |
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- For Mirror Universe counterpart, see Christopher Pike (mirror).
- For additional meanings of "Pike", please see Pike (disambiguation).
- "Wherever our mission take us, we'll try to have a little fun along the way, too, huh? Make a little noise? Ruffle a few feathers."
- — Christopher Pike to Michael Burnham
Christopher Pike was a 23rd century male Human Federation Starfleet officer. During his early career, he served on three Federation starships before being assigned to the USS Enterprise as Captain Robert April's first officer. (DIS: "Brother")
In 2250, Pike was promoted to captain and was given command of the Enterprise where he would serve as the ship's commanding officer until 2265 where command of the Enterprise was transferred to James T. Kirk. (DIS: "Brother"; TOS: "The Cage", "The Menagerie, Part I")
Following the end of the Federation-Klingon War of 2256-2257 in 2257, Pike was temporarily given command of the USS Discovery when the Enterprise suffered a catastrophic systems failure and was sent to space dock for repair. (DIS: "Brother")
Following his stint as commander of the Enterprise, Pike was promoted to fleet captain and in the late 2260s was aboard an old class J starship when Pike was exposed to delta-particle radiation. The exposure left Pike not only badly scarred but also crippled to the point where he was confined to a wheelchair tuned to his brain waves. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I")
Early life[]
Pike was born circa 2202 in the city of Mojave, California on Earth. As a child, Pike had two horses; Tango and Mary Lou; which he rode through parkland that surrounded the city. (DIS: "Saints of Imperfection", TOS: "The Cage", "The Menagerie, Part I")
Pike's father was a science teacher, and when he wasn't doing that, he would teach comparative religion, and because of that, it led to a very confusing household for Pike and it caused Pike and his father to disagree a lot. (DIS: "New Eden") At one point during his childhood, Pike heard a fable that described Hell-Fire, something that he carried with him into his adulthood. (TOS: "The Cage")
During his childhood, he was diagnosed with asthma. He also suffered from space sickness. (DIS: "Brother")
One of Pike's favorite foods was his mother's chicken tuna sandwiches. (TOS: "The Cage")
Pike suffers from a case of arachnophobia. (DIS: "An Obol for Charon")
Starfleet career[]
Starfleet Academy[]
Sometime after 2220, Pike attended Starfleet Academy where he received top marks in all his classes, with the exception of an "F" in Astrophysics. He was part of the graduating class of 3201.14. (DIS: "Brother") He also met Philippa Georgiou, who during their time at the Academy, was able to drink Pike and their fellow cadets underneath the table. (DIS: "Saints of Imperfection")
Early career[]
Upon graduating from Starfleet Academy, Pike was commissioned as an officer in the Federation, Starfleet where he served on three Federation starships, the USS Antares, the USS Aryabhatta, and the USS Chatelet before being assigned to the USS Enterprise as Captain Robert April's first officer. (DIS: "Brother")
Commanding the USS Enterprise[]
In 2250, Pike was given command of the Enterprise. (DIS: "Brother")
Encounter at Rigel[]
Four years later, Pike led a landing party to Rigel VII. On this mission, the group was attacked by the Kalar, and Pike himself was trapped by one of the warriors in an abandoned fortress. Three crewmen, including Pike's own yeoman, were killed, while an additional seven, including Spock, were injured, some severely. The loss weighed heavily on Pike; with all the strain and overwork that followed, he began to question his own continuance as starship commander. The Enterprise then set out for Vega IX to hospitalize the sick and injured. (TOS: "The Cage")
The Talosian incident[]
En route to the Vega colony, the Enterprise intercepted an old-style radio-interference distress call carrying the call letters of the SS Columbia, a survey expedition from the American Continent Institute which had been lost in the Talos star group in 2236. At Pike's reluctant command, the Enterprise diverted and traced the signal to a crash site on Talos IV. After an initial encounter with supposed survivors, including an out-of-place young beauty named Vina, it was revealed that the native Talosians had used telepathy to create the illusion of an encampment; all the survivors except Vina were dead.
Pike was overpowered and kidnapped, and placed in a Talosian menagerie. There, the Talosians attempted to manipulate him into mating with Vina, to create a population of illusion-controlled Human servants. Due to the Talosians' telepathy, Pike was forced to relive old memories and placed in illusory scenarios of lives he could have, if he abandoned his career as a starship captain. The scenarios included reliving the fight on Rigel VII, a picnic in parkland near Mojave with his two horses, and an illusory day in the life of an Orion slave-trader dealing in Orion slave girls. Pike refused to mate with Vina, so the Talosians began to take steps to convince him to breed with other females of his crew; to this end, Yeoman J.M. Colt and Pike's first officer, Number One, were captured.
Inside his cell, Pike managed to capture and hold captive The Keeper. Pike then threatened to break the Talosian's neck if he resisted, and all the illusions ceased from that point forward. Escaping with the others to the outside of the Talosian complex, Pike had Number One set a laser to overload, in an effort to make a statement to the Talosians about holding Humans captive. Indeed, the Talosians believed this violent reaction made Humans unsuitable for breeding. Vina's true appearance was then revealed, and Pike convinced the Talosians to restore her illusion of health and beauty while letting him and his crew members go free. Although the experience with the illusory worlds restored Pike's confidence in his command, it was recommended that all contact with the Talosians' powers be restricted. General Order 7 was enacted, threatening the death penalty should anyone travel there, for fear of the Federation falling to illusory indulgence. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I", "The Menagerie, Part II")
Five-year mission[]
At the outbreak of the Federation-Klingon War of 2256-2257 in 2256, the Enterprise was engaged in a five-year mission and was ordered to remain on mission by Starfleet, held out of combat in reserve as a last resort. Missing the war took a toll on Pike and the rest of his crew. (DIS: "Brother")
Following the detection of seven red bursts across the galaxy, Starfleet ordered Pike to investigate the location of the only burst which could be traced. When Enterprise suffered a catastrophic systems failure en route, Pike issued a priority one distress call that was picked up by the USS Discovery. (DIS: "Will You Take My Hand?", "Brother")
Commanding the USS Discovery[]
With Enterprise unable to continue its mission, Pike was ordered to assume command of the Discovery from Acting Captain Saru under Starfleet Regulation 19, Section C. (DIS: "Brother")
During the encounter with the interstellar asteroid at the location of the burst, Pike led a landing party to the USS Hiawatha. His landing pod was hit by debris, forcing him to eject using a malfunctioning exo-suit, after which he was rescued by Michael Burnham. When Burnham became trapped aboard the Hiawatha, Pike returned to the stricken starship to get her back to Discovery.
Shortly thereafter, Starfleet temporarily assigned Pike as captain of Discovery due to the Enterprise being damaged far worse than originally thought and tasked the vessel with determining the source of the signals and their intent. (DIS: "Brother")
Later career[]
Following Pike's tenure as commander of the Discovery, he would eventually return to command the Enterprise, and after a long tour as captain of the Enterprise (eleven years, four months, and five days of which were spent with junior science officer Spock as a loyal member of his crew), Pike was promoted to Fleet Captain in the mid-2260s, at which point James T. Kirk took command. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I")
Tragic Fate[]
Only a few years thereafter, Pike was aboard a training vessel, an old class J starship, when a baffle plate ruptured and exposed many helpless trainees and cadets to delta-particle radiation. Pike dragged many cadets from the danger but, in the process, was hopelessly crippled by the rays.
The disfigured Pike was put on a form of advanced life support which sustained his withered body and life functions, but he was too weak and incapacitated to ever move or respond to physical stimuli again. A wheelchair that was tuned to his brain could use blinking light signals to respond to simple queries in the affirmative (one flash) or negative (two flashes), but that was the extent to which he could communicate. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I")
Return to Talos[]
In 2267, after being contacted by the Talosians, Commander Spock devised a plan to use a fake message in an attempt to divert the Enterprise (of which he was now first officer under Captain Kirk) to Starbase 11, where Pike was hospitalized. Spock's intention, risking execution if caught, was to deliver Pike to Talos IV, where the Talosians could tap Pike's mind with telepathy and illusions, providing a hospice of sorts in sparing him from dying helplessly in his lifeless body.
Pike, also contacted beforehand by the Talosians, at first refused Spock's plot to spirit him away to Talos IV. However, on the journey to the forbidden planet, images of Pike's earlier experience on Talos IV – presented during Spock's on-board court-martial (a court-martial later revealed to have been concocted by the Talosians); convinced Pike to accept the Talosians' offer.
On Talos IV, with the help of the Talosians, Pike lived out a life of illusion with Vina, in which his devastating handicap no longer existed. Pike went into retirement from Starfleet active duty and lived on Talos IV permanently, with no further outside contact, since the secrecy of the Talosian power made his fate largely unknown. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I", "The Menagerie, Part II")
Awards and Honours[]
- Starfleet Medal of Valor
- Medal of Excellence
- Order of Tactics
- Legion of Honor
- Star Cross
- Medal of Commendation
- Decoration for Gallantry
- Extended Tour Ribbon
- Starfleet Silver Palm
- Proficient Service Medallion
- Legate's Crest of Valor
- Scientific Legion of Honor
- Carrington Award
- Federation Citation of Honor
- Okuda Award
- Rigel Cup
- Campbell Award
By 2256, Pike was one of Starfleet's most decorated captains, ranked among other legends such as Robert April, Jonathan Archer, Matt Decker, and Philippa Georgiou. (DIS: "Choose Your Pain")
The Christopher Pike Medal of Valor was named in Pike's honor. Benjamin Sisko and Solok received the award in the 24th century. (DS9: "Tears of the Prophets", "Take Me Out to the Holosuite") On the planet Cestus III, Pike City was named after him. (DS9: "Family Business", "The Way of the Warrior") There was also a shuttlecraft shuttlepod carried on board the USS Enterprise-D. (TNG: "The Most Toys")
External Links[]
- Christopher Pike article at Memory Alpha, the canon Star Trek wiki.
- Christopher Pike article at Memory Beta, the non-canon Star Trek wiki.
- Christopher Pike article at Star Trek Expanded Universe.