Appearing out of a time loop, the physics of which confound me to this day, the Enterprise-C makes a terrific appearance on season three of
Star Trek: The next Generation. In "Yesterday's Enterprise", the battered and barely functioning Ambassador Class starship falls through time--appearing twenty-two years after it was supposedly lost in space. At the moment this ship from the past arrives, the future that we all know and love is changed. The Federation is not engaged in benevolent interplanetary exploration. It is fighting for its very existence. The threat--the Klingon Empire! Indeed, the future is not what it used to be.
The differences are clear from the moment the Enterprise C comes through the time loop. The bridge of the Galaxy Class Enterprise-D is darker and more militaristic. The crew is even changed. Worf is nowhere to be found. Tasha Yar is alive and running the weapons console. Wesley Crusher is dashing as ever as a full Ensign. Well, you know the story.
Commanding the Enterprise-C is the tough as nails Captain Rachel Garret--the first women to command a ship named Enterprise. Played brilliantly by Tricia O'Neil, Captain Garret still manages to keep composure amid the chaotic revelation that the Federation is near defeat and that the destruction of her ship all those years ago might have prevented twenty-two years of war.
To create this figure, I took Admiral Kirk from the Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan line and removed the head. I then placed Nurse Chapel's head on the shoulders. Lacking any properly sculpted hair, I used sculply--a great tool. I'm sure the purists out their will argue that the hair isn't perfect. Its not, but it will do for the scale.
Even though she dies a little more than half-way through the episode, Captain Garret stands out as one of the more memorable guest stars.
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