How To Identify Alphas and Betas, Star Trek Style
Gonna try something very different today. How you guys react to it will determine if I do something again like it in the future.
For a long time now, I’ve received many emails and comments requesting an article about how to identify Alpha Males and beta males. I never thought of an entertaining or interesting way of doing this, until one day, the idea hit me out of the blue, as they so often do.
I sometimes use the examples of celebrities and fictional characters to illustrate my points. This way, it’s easier for you to instantly recognize the examples. This is often better than me just describing a hypothetical person you’ve never seen or met.
Today, I’m going to take this to the next level and use a TV show that the vast majority of you should know at least reasonably well, and use the characters in that show to demonstrate how to identify types of men (and women) in terms of the categories I discuss on this blog.
Since I’m a huge nerd, I’m a big Star Trek fan. A while back, I decided to write an article laying out the characters from one particular Star Trek show, how they categorize, and why I think they fall into the categories they do. The problem was to determine which Star Trek show to use, since as many of you know, there are five different Star Trek shows (with one or two new ones coming very soon).
The original 1960’s Star Trek didn’t have a large enough cast, and would have been too easy, it being a product of the more black-and-white time. Deep Space Nine is by far the best Star Trek show ever on television, and it’s actually my second favorite TV show of all time (Lost is my first). Deep Space Nine has the deepest, richest, and most interesting characters of any Star Trek show, by far. Yet, I don’t think quite as many people would be as familiar with these characters. The same goes for the shows Voyager and Enterprise.
That leaves Star Trek: The Next Generation. That was a good show, though not my favorite for many reasons, but I think enough of you will know the characters of that show in order to have some commonality for what I’m about to discuss.
So let’s look at the characters of STNG using the criteria that I use, show you where they fall into the Alpha or beta range for the men, and the Dominant, Submissive, and Independent categories I use for women. Since no male characters in the regular cast of STNG were Alpha Male 2.0’s, I’m just going to use the term “Alpha” instead of breaking out 1.0 or 2.0, and you can safely assume that when I say “Alpha,” I mean the original meaning of the word, which is an Alpha Male 1.0.
Note that for you non-nerds, I will be using some Star Trek references in my descriptions, but I’ll try to keep them as light as I can. If this article gets enough traffic / likes / links / reposts, I will do another one of these with some other cool TV show (or movie series) in the future.
Let’s do this…
Picard is an Alpha. He’s tough, courageous, masculine, and an inspiring leader. He doesn’t back down and stands his ground. Even when being humiliated or physically tortured he doesn’t submit. Like most characters in STNG, he has an iron-clad set of principles that he never wavers on, even if it causes him to suffer personally. He regularly gets pissed off, raises his voice, and shuts other people down verbally.
Despite his smaller stature, he’s physically fit (causing younger women in the audience to actually get excited when he wears a tank top, like in the movie Star Trek – First Contact) and moves with a confidence bordering on stiffness. He commands the room simply by entering it.
He has small, steely eyes and fantastic, strong eye contact without it being weird or piercing.
He’s not very sexual, devoting his life and his being to the job of being a Starfleet captain, but on the rare occasions when he gets romantic with a woman, he does so with pure confidence and an impeccable ease.
The character of Jean-Luc Picard is indeed one of the last iconic Alpha Males in American television before Western culture started moving away from raw masculinity in the 1990’s (as I describe in chapter six in my book).
Riker is someone many would consider an Alpha, at least a mild one. They’d be wrong. Instead, Riker is the type of man I’ve called the “confident beta.” He’s confident, attractive, and tough. He’s also a player and a lady’s man, the resident Kirk-like character of STNG.
At the same time, he’s not as masculine or as strong as Picard. Riker has always had a slight feminine quality to him that I can’t put my finger on. Despite the fact that he gets laid, Riker often pussies out with women whenever there’s conflict or the odds are stacked against him.
Despite the fact he’s a leader, he is clearly submissive to Picard, even beyond what you’d expect in a command structure like Starfleet. In the show, Riker is offered his own ship (on more than one occasion, I think), and he turns it down, preferring to be number two on the Enterprise and serving under Picard, which isn’t very Alpha at all.
Therefore, if I had to choose between a mild (low) Alpha and a more confident, charismatic beta, I’d identify Riker as the latter.
Data is a beta, which should be no surprise. As an android, he is 100% submissive by nature. It’s the way he was built. If you want to build a robot, you don’t want an Alpha-bot, you want a beta.
Oh well. It’s not his fault.
Troi is a Submissive. She’s sweet, sensitive, and caring. She’s not very strong, and during the few times she’s placed in a position of leadership, she usually screws it up. She speaks in a quiet tone, smiles a lot, shows a lot of emotion, and always has wide eyes. She is, by far, the most feminine character in the entire show. She’s not an extreme submissive, so it’s not like she lets people walk over her all the time (she can and does stand up for herself when needed) but she’s still a Submissive.
(This is interesting considering that the actress who plays her, Marina Sirtis, is an extreme Dominant.)
Worf is an extreme Alpha, obviously, even more so than Picard. He’s a quintessential Alpha 1.0. He’s a hardcore warrior who craves battle and worships honor. He’s huge, has a loud, booming voice, and a piercing, often disturbing stare. He has a son later in the series, and he’s a tough, often unemotional father. Worf has easily killed more enemies (and gleefully so) than anyone else in the series.
Moreover, despite his ugly Klingon appearance, Worf gets all the chicks. Seriously. Over the series run of STNG and Deep Space Nine, Worf has sex with Troi, Jadiza, Ezri, K’Ehleyr, and various other women, perhaps even outstripping Riker.
In one of my favorite episodes, Conundrum, the entire crew loses their memories and have to work together to figure out what’s going on. It is Worf, not Picard, who immediately takes command and starts bossing everyone around. Even Picard submits to his will. Only when the crew discovers that Picard is actually the captain does Worf relinquish command; the angry look on his face when he finds out is priceless.
Geordi is the beta of the show. He’s the everyday nice guy who never rocks the boat and almost always obeys orders without any question or argument (unlike both Riker and Worf who often stand up to Picard). He has a high voice and lots of spastic, animated movements. Compare how often he moves his face and arms to Picard’s rock-like, steady presence. (This is possibly done by the actor, LeVar Burton, on purpose, to overcompensate for the fact that you can’t ever see Geordi’s eyes.)
Geordi is constantly getting oneitis for women who rebuff him, even in the fucking holodeck. Jesus. What a pussy. He’s the biggest beta on the show with the exception of Wesley. And speaking of pussies…
Wesley is obviously an extreme beta, but you can’t really blame the guy since he’s the kid of the show. You’re not going to have a badass Alpha teenager character. A few years later, he gets a little more balls, but not much. Ugh. Let’s move on.
Dr. Crusher is a mild Dominant. She’s tall with a stronger presence and eye contact. She has no problem whatsoever bossing everyone else around when she feels the need, even Picard. She doesn’t take any crap and often stands up to people whenever she even mildly disagrees about something.
She’s a mild Dominant though. She’s often kind and pleasant despite her more bossy tendencies.
Tasha is a Dominant, far more so than Crusher. She’s strong, tough, and sexually aggressive, with likely a higher level of testosterone than most women, judging from her lower voice, aggressive attitude, and stockier body.
Guinan is an Independent, the only one on the show. She’s quiet and strong at the same time, tough and calm at the same time, and you get the feeling she’s secretly laughing at everything that happens. She’s always operating at a level higher than the other characters, but she doesn’t do it out of malice or a desire for control. She’s just experiencing life and enjoying herself, not really giving a shit. She never gets involved (unless things are very dire) and is happy with her mysterious role on the Enterprise. She’s always calm, cool, collected, and smiling. She almost never gets angry or really happy.
Ro is an extreme Dominant, the strongest one in the series. She’s tough, demanding, argumentative, and is even more masculine than Tasha (even though she’s physically smaller/skinnier). She always looks angry and like she’s ready to murder someone. This is standard stuff for Bajoran women due to their terrorist roots, since the character of Kira on Deep Space Nine is very similar (that role was originally going to be Ro). The entire character constantly radiates a hard edge and a vibe of uneasiness, even when she’s smiling and happy, which is rare.
That’s it for STNG. If I get a lot of guys requesting more posts like this, I’ll do another one, perhaps with Deep Space Nine (which has a bigger and more interesting cast than STNG) or some other mainstream sci-fi or fantasy TV show or movie series.
Want over 35 hours of how-to podcasts on how to improve your woman life and financial life? Want to be able to coach with me twice a month? Want access to hours of technique-based video and audio? The SMIC Program is a monthly podcast and coaching program where you get access to massive amounts of exclusive, members-only Alpha 2.0 content as soon as you sign up, and you can cancel whenever you want. Click here for the details.
Naah, I’m proudly not a Star Trek Fanboy.
The FORCE will destroy it all, though.
BD, you say there are no more alphas/masculine guys in Western fiction. The counter example I can think of is Justified. It’s not on air anymore, but is very recent (aired from 2011 to 2015 I think). Both Raylan Givens and Boyd Crowder are pure, archetypal alphas IMO. You often mention outcome independence as a #1 virtue of an alpha male. I think Raylan Givens is the very definition of OI. The guy doesn’t ever give a shit about anything (actually that’s the raison d’ĂŞtre of the whole show).
Regarding Geordi, you are probably right. I did some theater with masks, and the very first thing you learn is that, when wearing a mask, you must move like crazy. A masked character that does not move seems dead to the audience (because, in the real world, no eye movement + no body movement = dead). Look at Daleks in Dr Who. They are always moving their eye or their head, even when it doesn’t make sense. That’s because they would seem dead otherwise. And Daleks are pretty alpha 1.0, too, if you ask me (although they don’t get laid often).
Shut up Wesley!
Funny article BD. Â If you continue this series you should do Star Wars next.
Ok, i can understand Star Trek a bit, but Star Wars. This is a kid movie, seriously. Why grown up men watch Star Wars or more interestingly – are viewers betas or alphas?
Q – Alpha 1.0 with Alpha 2.0 tendencies?
Cool idea. Do “Friends” next.
Yes, I think this is useful to clarify the different types. Since you like Lost that might be an idea, also GoT.
I like this idea quite a bit. I haven’t watched STNG in years, but I remember the characters well enough so it’s relevant to me.
Ever since I found BD’s works online a few weeks back, I have thought about friends, acquaintances, coworkers, and others I see in my life in a regular basis. I try to categorize each one, both males and females. I tend to think people have a dominant trait but often shades of other traits as well.
Interesting analysis. I agree with @Ramoant that STAR WARS may provide a more useful canvas.
Another thing that would be interesting to explore, is how the ratio of alphas to betas, and dominants change over time.
Never was a fan of Star Trek…who was Sigma in the hierarchy? Who was Han Solo or Boba Fett? Neither leaders of men nor willing to be led. I find these characters the most interesting and relatable.
Very interesting, and I second the above requests to do a similar article about another TV show (ie not another ST series but another show altogether). I’m also interested in the discussion about Hollywood trends and whether there really are much fewer Alphas in cinema today than pre-1990s.
yes definitely DS9. definitely!
Never was a big fan of Star Trek, but I liked this!
That’s not difficult at all. Friends and Seinfeld were the transition point that BD mentioned. There aren’t any alpha guys (maybe some “confident betas” like Riker but that’s it) in either show and nearly all the chicks are dominant. Even when I watched those shows as an adolescent this was painfully obvious to me.
This might be a bit sad on my part but I’ve been re-watching Cheers – some interesting characters there. I wonder if it would be considered politically correct these days.
Also, Star Wars is big kids entertainment!! 🙂 🙂 Plenty for an Alpha to enjoy.
Oddly enough, Wil Wheaton didn’t have to act to pull off that super beta Wesley.
And DS9 IS the best Trek series ever and one of the best TV shows ever.
Future posts like this would probably be more helpful if they include shows or movies with at least one Alpha 2.0 character.
I’ll have to re-watch the episode but its possible that an Alpha 2.0 character in Next Generation would be “the rogue” – Captain Okono from “The Outrageous Okono.”
In other news, and speaking of celebrities, Kevin Hart is apologizing to his wife and kids for an extortion attempt from a girl he fooled around with — another advantage of Alpha 2.0 lifestyle is that you don’t open yourself up to blackmail.
I second the request for Game of Thrones. There’s just so much there to choose from, though it might even be a little too big.
If anyone is interested in some GoT character break downs Charisma on Command on Youtube is actually pretty good to check out.
Interesting post. You make an excellent case for Captain Picard’s admirable alpha qualities and nature — he’s more of a badass than I had realized. A lot of TOS fans put down Picard in comparison to Kirk, as if he’s more of an effete intellectual diplomat rather than a fighter and brawler like Kirk. Had I allowed Societal Programming to influence my view of Picard? I had.
Further, your analysis of Riker is great. You’re right that I wouldn’t have thought of him as a beta at first, but I agree that he is a very successful beta — who I find is proud of himself because of what positive reinforcement he gets from others, rather than because he lives up to his own standards.
I disagree with you about Picard. He’s a 2.0, unlike Kirk who is the traditional 1.0. I don’t know what a guy has to do to be a 2.0 in your eyes. Refuse to join Starfleet and start a location independent intersteller trading business?
Also, have you ever watched the 1990s cartoon Gargoyles? I’m asking because the main villain Xanetos (voiced by Jonathan Frakes) is the quintessential alpha 2.0. If he doesn’t meet your 2.0 standards, no one does!
Yes, do DS9 next!
P.S. Wesley is an omega lifetime virgin.
I’d also be interested in more content about the distinction between, let’s say, “lesser alpha” and “confident beta” and the like.
“P.S. Wesley is an omega lifetime virgin.”
I don’t know, didn’t Wes do Ashley Judd in season 5 episode 6?
To me this post is more like a star wars fan page. I don’t know any of the characters mentioned here. Not very useful to me so I’ll go and read the BD’s posts which I can actually understand. I enjoy reading your posts BD… just not this one
@JOB: A 2.0 is Bronn from GoT. James Bond and Solo from the Man from UNCLE movie. Are these similar to Picard?
Since we’re talking fantasy, why don’t you do one post about a current hit show like GOT, The Walking Dead or Vikings…plenty of stuff to talk about and a way broader audience than Star Trek.
I would hit Ro.
lol I almost forgot about Bronn. He might indeed qualify as a 2.0, though not one to really look up to morally. “-If I ordered you to kill a baby in its mother’s arms, would you do it without question?” “-Without question? No, I’d ask how much.”
Reminds me of this:
My favorite scene with Picard. He is getting grilled by an SJW and gives a pro-Free Speech lecture, only to trigger her into throwing a tantrum and acting like a child. Every SJW should be gagged and force to hear this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smdqe2eluEI
Game of Thrones has very few if any alpha males left — it’s mostly alpha females. Most of the major male characters are now obsequious submissives kissing the asses of dominant women.
BD are you gonna possibly do a article on this Kevin Hart guy? lol
Yeah, the show has taken a turn for worse the past 3 seasons and this is one of the main reasons (but not the only one). It’s all about strong independent women now. I would still like BD to do an article like this on GoT since it did have some awesome characters.
Game of Thrones is a bit too complicated for this analysis, but lets give it a shot:
Khal Drogo – definitely an Alpha 1.0, a bit Beta before he died
Stannis – definitely Alpha 1.0, and an example how such lifestyle makes one miserable
Jaime – cocky Beta who pretends to be Alpha
Ned Stark – definitely Alpha 1.0, and an example how such lifestyle makes one relatively happy, as long as everything goes according to plan
Littlefinger – on the surface, grandmaster level Alpha 2.0, but deep down is a dysfunctional Beta with extreme Oneitis.
Tyrion – too complicated to pin down, oscilates between Beta and broken Alpha 1.0
Tywin – definitely Alpha 1.0, and an example how such lifestyle makes one miserable
Roose Bolton – surprisingly, good example of Alpha 2.0, his downfall was unrelated to Alpha/Beta continuum.
Ramsay – an insane Alpha 1.0 who THINKS he is Alpha 2.0
Jon Snow – Strong Beta with good Alpha qualities, but he mostly reinvents himself as he goes along, with no plan.
Bronn – quintessential Alpha 2.0, though a very amoral one
Theon – super interesting case. Alpha 1.0 who was broken into becoming Beta, but seems to be regaining his Alpha Mojo back. Major example how Alpha 1.0 can be broken with external circumstances.
Euron – possible case of a genuine Alpha 2.0, but its too early to tell
Robb – a case of Beta who desperately tries to be Alpha 1.0 and gets destroyed because of it.
Thormund – SUPERB Alpha 2.0, though he begins to develop Oneitis.
Davos – an example of a Strong Beta doing his best. He knows his Beta status, knows he is too old to change it, and makes the best out of it. Interestingly, might have been an Alpha 2.0 in his younger days.
Hot Pie – another Beta who knows with 100% certainty that he wants to be Beta, is good at it, and can make it work.
The Hound – aimless Strong Beta for most of his life, seems to be becoming an Alpha 1.0 with a Purpose (TM). Good for him.
Varys – a very rare case of a person who is neither Beta or Alpha but perfectly outside the social pyramid.
Jorah Mormont – the KING OF BETAS. The absolute example of how even the strongest, most courageous and badass man can be utterly shattered by his own Beta-ness.
Daario Nahaeris – Alpha 1.0, borderline 2.0 until Daenerys messed him up.
Sam Tarly – an example of a Beta, who knowing he will never be Alpha at least decided to be a strong(ish) and resourceful Beta instead. If life gives you Beta-lemons…
Oberyn Martell – my favourite character, and the best example of Alpha 2.0 in modern fiction. His obsessions notwithstanding, he is a rich and resourceful man, well travelled, well educated, diversified sources of income (lordship, mercenary, duelling), open relationship with an Independent 8/10 MILF, bangs thousands of cute girls and guys on the side, has several kids who liver interesting and rich lives and love him, famous and beloved by his people, well dressed, in great shape despite being in his late 40s, and does not give a fuck about anything except poon and (justified) revenge.
Spot on except Theon and Snow. Theon and Snow are good examples of betas throughout that go from pathetic betas to cool confident betas and inbetween.
Naharis was a 2.0 until he got oneitis for Daenerys(but probably is still a 2.0 at his core). Euron, Thormund and Robert are 1.0s. I can’t imagine Euron having a wife and not treating her like shit.
Oberyn is a great example of a 2.0.
Tyrion is indeed a complicated case but I would say he is a cool beta. He never had 1.0 tendencies. At rare occassions maybe 2.0 tendencies.
Just watched it, and that’s how it usually goes with those types in person. Towards the end, the chick who blew up at Picard just kind of backs off, realizing that she has become what she disliked.
Worf would have just killed her lol
Why should one of the most overrated and unfunny comedians to come down the pike since Dane Cook deserve any attention at all?
He is the definition of a Sigma.
@GoodSense
No point in doing an article on Kevin Hart. It’s the typical story of an Alpha 1.0 who keeps promising monogamy when he knows he can’t do it, then promptly cheats.  This topic has been covered here many times. And he’ll get monogamously married again if this marriage blows up-I’d put money on that.
Game of Thrones would be very interesting! There are a HUGE Variety of Alpha Charterers in different ways and would spark much debate.
Obviously some are hard to Argue with, Tywin Lannister is Extreme Alpha 1.0 while Tyrion would be an Alpha 2.0.
Not sure, I think Ned had some beta tendencies. Look at his relationship with Robert Baratheon and his overall way of judging/deciding, including how he judged Jaime. Then again, there are many Alpha 1.0s who show great deference to authority.
Very interesting take, I think I agree.
Meh. I tend to think Tyrion is just a smart beta with some alpha qualities and flaws. There’s a difference between a witty beta who’s good at retorts/comback lines (any comedian who is is a beta deep down can pull that), and a alpha who occasionally gets beta-ish. Also Tyrion never wastes an opportunity to retell his sob story about how Tywin treated him: even though he’s right and didn’t deserve it, it’s not alpha.
I’d say he looked like a young, still beta-ish Alpha 1.0 in the making in the first couple seasons. Then transitioned toward alpha during his time with the wildlings (watch every exchange he has with that irritating wildling Warg who wants Ygritte) and up to the confrontation with Ramsay. Then the showrunners decided to make him beta again and much more bland because they had to make Dany look powerful or something (and Sansa to some extent). He still has occasional good moments though.
From what I’ve heard, he’s more 2.0 in the books.
Also agree about Oberyn.
To all of you guys asking me to do Game of Thrones: my goal here is to not have a fun discussion about a show everyone is currently enjoying, but instead to analyze a show with a large and rich diversity of male characters to help readers identify betas and Alphas in real life. I like Game of Thrones (the show, not the books) but Game of Thrones is not a good candidate for this, for many reasons (some of which other commenters have already noted), despite the fact that I realize that’s the show everyone is jizzing over at the moment.
A few other comments:
Looks like I probably will.
I watch Star Wars movies when they come out, but I don’t get excited for them like most of my fellow nerds do. It’s part of this.
His character started as a more Alpha 2.0 character, but evolved over time to become an extreme Alpha 1.0. Watch the Voyager episode Death Wish, a great display of the conformist Alpha 1.0ish character he had become, and how another Q had to demonstrate this to him.
I go over all of that in chapter six in my book, in great detail, starting all the way back from the 1960’s to today. Interesting; that was the chapter I was going to remove, but the beta testers for the book all loved it, many of them saying it was their favorite chapter, so I left it in.
These kinds of characters are extremely rare, and when they are around, they’re never a member of a main cast. Hollywood seriously would not know how to portray such a character in a lead role, nor would want to. (Barring rare exceptions of course, particularly in movies instead of ongoing TV shows.)
Picard is in no way an Alpha 2.0. A 2.0 would never choose to be career military, as just one example. I can’t think of a more anti-free lifestyle.
Yes.
Good idea. I’ll add that to my topic list.
What I said above. It’s not about shows people know; it’s about the best mainstream shows (from now or the recent past) with the most diverse casts of male characters (female too).
And you seriously think more people watch Walking Dead or Vikings than watched Star Trek? Wrong.
There’s no point. Just more of the same stupid Alpha 1.0 bullshit. Crab already nailed it above.
I have to disagree about Riker. I’d say he’s a flawed Alpha. But he’s second in command of the flagship, a decorated war hero, and a true ladies man. He also has a pretty bad ass temper.
You use Gene Simmons as an example a lot. Perhaps an analogy of Rock stars would be fun:
Jim Morrison (Crazy, brilliant and clearly didn’t give a fuck. Hated authority, despite having an ADMIRAL as his father! Alpha 2.0?)
Axl Rose (Extreme Alpha. Attacking people in the audience, calling out music journalists by name in his songs. Yet getting bad oneitis for his mono model girlfriends back when he had the pick of the litter.) Did you notice the GNR reunion FINALLY happened after Slash got divorced? lol
Kurt Cobain (Seemed kind of a beta, yet had the Alpha tendency to mock all the LA rockers who’s careers he sent to the chopping block. He also blew his head off at the height of his fame.)
Ozzy ( Godfather of Hard Rock/Metal. Yet Sharron is the obvious Alpha in their relationship. However she does tolerate him cheating… and being a drug addict/alcoholic/abusive and insane.)
All of today’s Rock stars? Betas. Gene says Rock N’ Roll is dead.
P.S. Quark is Alpha as fuck.
I think I might have to nitpick over this comment, as you should know the Enterprise is not really meant to be a military vessel even though it does have strong combat systems, it’s main purpose is exploration, we know this from the opening credits of every episode:
“Space… The final frontier…
These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise.
Its continuing mission:
To explore strange new worlds…
To seek out new life; new civilisations…
To boldly go where no one has gone before!”
This fits in well with concept of having a strong mission that you describe in your book for Alpha 2.0s. What could be more 2.0 than being captain of ship and exploring the galaxy in pursuit of knowledge and better understanding of the universe.
Trouble is, it’s not location independent. 🙂 Even if you can move about at 9 times the speed of light.
The Star Trek team also spends its entire time giving a shit about everything whereas a 2.0 doesn’t care about the evolution of society, be it in far flung galaxies or New Jersey.
With that job, not sure how many women you can have in tow either.
What about Mad Men? Sure they dont have their own location independent business but that was also a different time when it wasnt by far as neccessary as it is today.
Hm. You make some good points.
He’s right.
If it was your ship that you owned, and had 100% control over, then you’d be right. But it’s not his ship, it’s Starfleet’s, and there’s a myriad or rules he has to follow even when he doesn’t (and he often doesn’t).
He doesn’t “have a ship.” He’s a fucking employee. That’s the opposite of 2.0.
Data did manage to fuck Tasha. There was also that episode where he took pleasure in snapping that Borg’s neck, prompting him to embark on the study of anger. Data’s strength is also revered in the Klingon empire. I think you could argue that he could be pretty Alpha despite being programed to be an obedient beta robot.
I think some people are forgetting that these guys are getting all the pussy they can handle in the holodeck. That’s probably perfectly acceptable in the future, not Beta at all. In fact, I remember Captain Janeway getting the captains log from a hologram in an episode of Voyager!
And we all know that Picard was tapping Dr. Crusher. Why else would he tolerate that little pussy Weaselly? ( The Jar Jar Binks of Star Trek).
Tough to find any Alpha males in TV or movies these days-most are very beta or if they are Alpha, are portrayed as a sadistic dark triad villain like Negan on the walking dead.
While not mentioned as often as classic Arnold, Stallone, etc… I always thought Kurt Russell played a couple great badass Alpha 2.0 type guys like:
Snake Plissken – a bit anti-social but not totally amoral, doesn’t take shit even when his hand is forced; gets the last laugh in the end
Jack Burton in Big Trouble in Little China -truck driver who totally blows off Kim Catrall(still in her prime at this point) at the end to hit the open road once more
Kurt Russell also played Captain Ron who was kind of an extremely laid back Alpha 2.0.
1) He was drunk, 2) She initiated, forcefully. She fucked him.
Anger isn’t Alpha or beta.
Physical strength has nothing to do with Alpha. I personally know huge bodybuilder types who are total betas.
Yes! Kurt Russell plays very Alpha 2.0ish characters. He’s actually a little Alpha 2.0ish in real life as well (he never legally married Goldie Hawn; he thought legal marriage was stupid).
I have always looked at Captain Picard as an ideal example of leadership.
Riker’s anger show’s a lack of emotional control. I suppose it could be alpha but in the context of Star Trek, if he were given his own command this would cause lots of problems. I’ve known plenty of guys like Riker and they always seem to be right hand men to actual leaders like Picard.
Troy may be submissive but she really annoys me. I guess I’ve never been a fan of women who show almost all of their emotions.
Dr. Crusher would make a fun FWBÂ or MLTR. She’s too dominant to be a Open Relationship girl though.
I love how on The Next Generation men and women are the best men and women they can be.  They have equal rights and equal opportunity but the men tend towards more masculine pursuits and women tend toward more womanly pursuits. Both are highly valued and it seems to work out great for society as a whole. Too bad its not like that in the English Speaking world.
In 2017? Hell yeah!
Although I can agree that Star Trek has a bigger fanbase overall. But those two shows are more popular than ST in 2017 (and of course have a way younger fanbase).
Also don’t count out things like Netflix and illegal downloads (who don’t show up in “official” TV ratings).
That was a great read.
As a boy I’ve been watching TNG fanatically and collecting merchandise. Brought back lots of memories.
I agree with your analysis that Picard is an example of alpha. I always liked him much more than Kirk. He is more serious and seems very trustworthy. A guy you could follow. Kirk on the other hand, was too cocky for my taste, too much of a joker. I liked Spock and McCoy much more… Spock for his intellect and McCoy for his big heart and guts.
As a boy I did admire Troi because she was so pretty and soft. You are spot on describing her. Your analysis of Riker is good, too… I didn’t fully like him as a child.. something shady about him. Also, he was too much of a pussy. He is no alpha imo.
The only character analysis that I would not fully subscribe to is that of Worf… He is very dominant and aggressive yes. But the only time when he can be a leader is when the shit truly hits the fan. In normal times he is too tense and aggressive, not sociable and lighthearted enough. He is the guy that could step up in a fight to be the alpha’s right hand and replacing Riker.
On the topic of Alpha 2.0 in TV series. For me, few examples would be:
Charlie Harper in Two and a half men… He is self-employed and does whatever he wants, whenever and with whomever he wants.
MacGyver… he was working as a one-man team.. didn’t have to take orders. He had only missions to accomplish. Very much freedom in his job.
A-Team (the 70ies series): They seem like a bunch of Alpha’s 2.0 that work together to enjoy synergies… being held together by Hannibal as the leader of the pack. They are living an unconventional life, working projects with lots of freedom and each of them is some kind of specialist that works in a team as pares inter pares (pretty much).
Do you know a society in the world currently where it is like that?
I am not sure if thats true, depends what kind of ratings. For Game of Thrones at the start it became n.1 show very quickly mainly because of illegal downloads – it was the one time I know of when the producers were actually happy about illegal downloads and it made the show spread around the world and become popular super fast. I remember it was all over the news at that time, so it must have been included in some kind of official ratings.
Thats an interesting insight. This actually is a special type of beta. Perhaps a Beta with a capital B. There are many men like this in society, when you think of this, like they are the alpha with a small a that are in the shadow of some big leader whom they follow and milk him for his fame and position. Its kind of clever in a way – they get lots of free stuff by being in his shadow if they dont mind that they have to follow. Nice idea but it wouldnt work for me, im incapable of following long term, I am too much a lose cannon. I like the idea that BD said that Alpha 2 Picard would be if he actually owned his own ship. Then it makes me think if the captain from Firefly qualifies for Alpha 2?
If you include Ro and Guinan, despite their infrequent appearances, you should also talk about O’Brien and Barclay (we know Barclay is extreme Beta (even more so than Geordi, who bosses him around)), but those would be good additions to your list.
Absolutely. A-Team is an extremely Alpha 2.0ish show. Three of the four of them are 2.0 or 2.0ish (B.A. is a 1.0). Very good observation.
I miss the 80’s.
Barclay didn’t get nearly as much screen time as Ro or Guinan.
O’Brien I consider more of a Deep Space Nine character than a Next Gen character.
Barclay didn’t get nearly as much screen time as Ro or Guinan.
Barclay was in 5 episodes, while Ro was in 8 (as per Memory Alpha), so that is not a huge difference.
O’Brien was in far more (even if you just count his TNG appearances and ignore DS9).
And while everyone knows that Barclay was extreme beta (so perhaps no analysis needed), O’Brien is interesting as he actually got married during TNG. Â Maybe Alpha 1.0.
That scene was one of the best ever. Â Picard really showed Admiral Sluttee what’s what.
Another thing I liked about TNG and DS9 was their willingness to show women as villains on so many different occasions. Â Most other Hollywood productions just do not do that.
Someone mentioned Jar Jar binks and that raises an interesting point. I assume there are ppl here that are up to speed with his character being more than was displayed in theaters, because Lucas came under so much fire. But with the knowledge of him being the ultimate sith, how would you describe that sort of personality?
Love the idea, especially on the women categorization, the one I find most difficult.
House M.D? (Rewatching now and, as an INTJ, loving it ever more.)
And Mad Men? Why restrict to fantasy/sci-fi?
Thats a pretty alpha show, but its set in the 60s. BD even used the example of Don Draper as a typical Alpha in the past. Not sure though if there is any 2.0 there, they all get controlled by their emotions pretty easily and they are all employees or traditional big business owners. Those were different times though.
Master manipulator. Though the personality / lifestyle classification is hard because we dont know almost anything about him, especially if you start to add this level of speculation.
Anyone who is a fan of Picard must see this fan-made music video :
Is it just me or are the Klingons in the new “Star Trek: Discovery” series beta as fuck?