The USS Enterprise is synonymous with Star Trek, named as a vessel of exploration. Captains of the Enterprise are legends in Starfleet’s history; Archer, Pike, Kirk, Picard, and so many more. The Enterprise is typically the Federation flagship, the most advanced vessel, and its crew are the Federation’s best and brightest. Or, at least, all this was true… until IDW’s Star Trek: Lower Decks #18, by Tim Sheridan and Vernon Smith, which introduces a whole new spin on the Enterprise.
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This isn’t the USS Enterprise. It is, as Captain Freeman quickly realizes, the Ferengi Enterprise. No doubt the latinum-loving Ferengi meant something very different when they gave their ship the name; “enterprise,” after all, can also refer to “a company organized for commercial purposes” or a “business firm.” The Ferengi surely intended this as subtle mockery of the Federation too, aware the names would get confused.
The Ferengi Enterprise’s Captain is No Kirk or Picard
The captain (daimon) of the Ferengi ship is hardly a strategic genius on the level of Kirk or Picard. Quog’s actually a former janitor who helped the crew of the USS Cerritos during another mission, and has evidently been promoted as a reward for his services to the Ferengi. In a delightful twist, Lower Decks #18 then sees Quog’s Enterprise team up with the Federation’s on a somewhat wrong-headed mission – and, in the end, it is Quog’s Enterprise that remains active, not Captain Worf’s.
It’s easy to imagine the confusion the Ferengi Enterprise will cause across the galaxy. The Ferengi surely planned for this, aiming to use the Enterprise’s good name as part of a sales pitch or two; enemies would back off when they heard the name “Enterprise,” while other races would potentially welcome the Ferengi ship when they’d otherwise turn it away. The Federation should have really been careful to lodge some sort of galactic copyright.
Thankfully, we do know that nothing the Ferengi do will damage the good name of the Enterprise. There’s even an Enterprise in the 32nd century, a part of the Star Trek timeline visited in Discovery and Starfleet Academy (along with other celebrated names such as Voyager). It’s safe to assume the Ferengi version is only a mere footnote in the galaxy’s history books, if it’s remembered at all. Quog may be a daimon, but he’s surely destined to be forgotten.
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