All over Big name Trek: Voyager‘s seven years within the Delta Quadrant, there have been numerous occasions when Ensign Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) deserved a promotion, however did not get it. Ensign Kim’s elusive 2nd pip has persevered for see you later that it is turn into a working shaggy dog story in Big name Trek fandom, with Wang himself regarding his personality because the “everlasting ensign” as co-host of The Delta Flyers podcast with Big name Trek: Voyager‘s Tom Paris actor Robert Duncan McNeill. Even if Paris is re-promoted in Big name Trek: Voyager‘s season 6 finale, “Unimatrix 0”, Kim issues out being left out for development.
There used to be by no means one singular, concrete explanation why that Harry Kim used to be by no means promoted in Big name Trek: Voyager. One behind-the-scenes rationalization issues to Voyager manufacturer Brannon Braga insisting that “someone’s gotta be the ensign“, equating Ensign Kim with Big name Trek: The Subsequent Technology‘s Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) or Big name Trek: The Unique Sequence‘ Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig). A loss of new officials stored the USS Voyager’s hierarchy slightly static. Nonetheless, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) rewarded Tuvok (Tim Russ) and Tom Paris with promotions, so Harry Kim may have earned a promotion for very good provider, too.
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 1, Episode 7 – “Eye of the Needle”
Ensign Harry Kim’s Academy-fresh optimism is effective to the entire workforce proper after the USS Voyager is transported to the Delta Quadrant, and everyone seems to be in search of simple tactics to get house temporarily. In Big name Trek: Voyager season 1, episode 7, “Eye of the Needle”, Kim discovers a wormhole resulting in the Alpha Quadrant, and stays undeterred via the truth that the wormhole is far too small to be a viable trail house. Ensign Kim’s method to ship a communications sign throughout the wormhole displays promise, and would most likely have labored if cases were not stacked towards him.

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15 Big name Trek Characters Promoted Sooner Than Voyager’s Harry Kim
Harry Kim used to be famously by no means promoted, however quite a lot of different Big name Trek characters had been promoted sooner, making his Starfleet profession glance even worse.
Finally, it is not Kim’s fault that the Harry Kim Wormhole occurs to tunnel thru time in addition to house, or that Voyager’s new Romulan good friend, Telek R’Mor (Vaughn Armstrong), did not are living lengthy sufficient to go their message to Starfleet Command. Narratively talking, it most likely does not make as a lot sense to advertise Ensign Kim so quickly in Big name Trek: Voyager‘s run, so it is alright that Harry’s vibrant concept does not moderately save the day this time. No less than he will get a wormhole named after him.
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 3, Episode 1 – “Fundamentals, Phase II”
Big name Trek: Voyager‘s season 3 premiere, “Fundamentals, Phase II” would had been a really perfect turning level to advertise Harry Kim, because the USS Voyager left Seska and the Kazon at the back of to begin its subsequent bankruptcy. Ensign Kim would not essentially have to perform one specifically exceptional act to get promoted to Lieutenant junior grade, as a result of Kim proved himself with cumulative efforts over the USS Voyager’s first two years within the Delta Quadrant. Harry Kim used to be regularly able with practical and artistic answers, and capably treated the mental pressure of being thus far from house on his first actual post-Academy project.
Two years turns out like an inexpensive period of time to spend as an Ensign in
Big name Trek
, since Tom Paris spent about two years as an Ensign earlier than being re-promoted to Lieutenant j.g. in
Big name Trek: Voyager
, and lots of the USS Cerritos junior officials in
Big name Trek: Decrease Decks
additionally had about two years beneath their belts (apart from Tawny Newsome’s Beckett Mariner, after all).
Giving Harry Kim any other half-pip after a couple of years into Big name Trek: Voyager‘s run do not have been misplaced, nor wouldn’t it have compromised the hierarchy of Voyager’s workforce construction in any important manner. Ensign Kim used to be already on Janeway’s senior body of workers as Voyager’s Leader Operations Officer, so why no longer give Harry the rank to move with the paintings that he is obviously able to doing?
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 3, Episode 3 – “The Chute”
Big name Trek: Voyager season 3, episode 3, “The Chute”, used to be a difficult state of affairs for each Ensign Harry Kim and Lieutenant Tom Paris, with each males trapped in an alien jail and topic to mental torture. In “The Chute”, there is no manner out of the jail they are sentenced to after being falsely accused of terrorism, however Harry Kim nonetheless hangs onto his positive outlook, even if the jail’s neural implants push Harry in opposition to aggression. Harry Kim makes use of talents in engineering, international relations, or even box drugs to stay Tom Paris alive, and springs out of the revel in with extra knowledge.
Each Ensign Kim and Lieutenant Paris would had been misplaced if Harry had succumbed to the jail’s torture strategies; if truth be told, Tom may have even died at Harry’s palms, as an alternative of being stored via him. Kim’s skill to resist mental duress reads like a lighter model of Captain Jean-Luc Picard’s (Patrick Stewart) in Big name Trek: The Subsequent Technology season 6, episodes 10 & 11, “Chain of Command”. That should be price a promotion.
4 Harry Kim May just’ve Been Promoted For Taking Tom Paris’ Position
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 5, Episode 9 – “Thirty Days”
Following the argument that “anyone’s gotta be the ensign“, Tom Paris’ demotion to Ensign all over Big name Trek: Voyager seasons 5 & 6 would had been the very best alternative to advertise Harry Kim to Lieutenant. Assuming {that a} scarcity of officials approach there is a finite selection of slots for every rank, Harry’s blank Starfleet file, historical past of rather just right concepts, and years of provider make him extra worthy of the additional pip than Paris. Finally, Tom Paris used to be re-promoted merely for being on his highest conduct, and Kim’s highest conduct arguably exceeded Paris’ on any given day.
“Thirty Days” is the second one look of Tom Paris’ Captain Proton holodeck program, with Harry Kim enjoying Proton’s sidekick, Buster Kincaid. Being Kincaid is solely differently that Harry attracts the quick straw in
Voyager
, as Ensign Kim later expresses pastime in in need of to play the hero, if handiest at the holodeck.
Swapping Paris and Kim’s ranks midway thru Big name Trek: Voyager‘s run may have posed fascinating demanding situations to considered one of Big name Trek‘s highest friendships. Tom is indisputably worldlier and wiser together with his years of lived reports, in comparison to Harry’s Academy-fresh naïveté, so Kim outranking Paris may have in reality leveled the enjoying box. Chalk up any other overlooked alternative for personality construction in Voyager.
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 5, Episode 25 – “Warhead”
Big name Trek: Voyager season 5, episode 25, “Warhead” is likely one of the few circumstances the place Harry Kim can in reality declare the lion’s percentage of the credit score for saving the day. Ensign Kim is already entrusted with command of the USS Voyager’s night time shift when Voyager encounters a misery name, and Commander Chakotay (Robert Beltran) provides Ensign Kim clearance to guide the project to research. After finding an artificially clever historical weapon programmed to relentlessly break, Harry Kim makes the dangerous name to course the AI throughout the Physician’s program so he can explanation why with it.
Harry Kim deciding to persuade the weapon to turn into a protector of peace is a web page proper out of the Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) playbook. Kirk used logical loops to defeat sentient computer systems like Landru and Nomad in
Big name Trek: The Unique Sequence,
and Kim takes that tactic a step additional via converting the alien warhead’s complete function.
Harry Kim excels when given the chance to display management talents and engineering experience, via taking the lead at the away project, and delegating duties to others like B’Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson). Over midway thru Big name Trek: Voyager‘s run, “Warhead” is a phenomenal portrait of a completely succesful and mature Harry Kim that demonstrates Ensign Kim’s enlargement over Voyager’s time within the Delta Quadrant.
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 7, Episode 8 – “Nightingale”
When Harry Kim takes emergency command of an alien scientific vessel dubbed Nightingale, Harry quickly discovers the project of mercy is in reality a terrorist plot in cover. “Nightingale” juxtaposes Harry Kim’s legitimate revel in towards the much-greener workforce of the Nightingale, appearing simply how a lot self belief Harry has earned. After a temporary setback, Harry Kim steps as much as mentor the Nightingale’s workforce via appearing them Starfleet values, even after the project’s true colours are printed.
At this level in
Big name Trek: Voyager
, it is virtually ridiculous to stay Harry Kim from being promoted.
Stuck between an alien conflict and his eagerness to end up himself, Ensign Kim’s project teaches him classes in regards to the weight of command, the worth of loyalty, and his personal self worth. “Nightingale” tries to justify withholding Harry’s promotion via suggesting that Kim nonetheless is not able for his personal command, however you have to understand that Kim is not looking to skip immediately to Captain. At this level in Big name Trek: Voyager, it is virtually ridiculous to stay Harry Kim from being promoted when he is not handiest received sufficient revel in to be a complete lieutenant, but in addition demonstrated that he merits the rank.
Big name Trek: Voyager Season 7, Episode 25 & 26 – “Endgame”
If Harry Kim’s richly deserved promotion could not occur anyplace else within the collection, Big name Trek: Voyager‘s collection finale, “Endgame”, must have incorporated Lieutenant Kim as a part of an epilogue that in reality confirmed the aftermath of the USS Voyager’s secure go back to Earth. The timeline of Big name Trek: Prodigy unearths that promotions for Captain Kathryn Janeway and Commander Chakotay took place very in a while after Voyager’s go back, with pardons for Voyager’s Maquis-affiliated workforce contributors who sought after to rejoin Starfleet. There is not any explanation why Harry Kim must have needed to wait to any extent further to advance after seven complete years as an ensign.
Again within the Alpha Quadrant, all excuses for no longer selling Harry Kim fall flat. With the USS Voyager made a museum, Lieutenant Kim would serve on any other send, and brand new new junior officials can be to be had to fill the positions beneath Kim. Big name Trek: Decrease Decks‘ fifth season, going down in 2381, guarantees the long-awaited look of Lieutenant Harry Kim, so Harry did finish up getting that promotion inside a couple of years after Voyager’s 2378 go back. With numerous alternatives for Harry Kim’s promotion to happen in Big name Trek: Voyager because it must have, it is virtually too overdue.