Malcolm Reed
Encyclopedia
- For the Australian rules footballer, see Malcolm Reed (footballer)Malcolm Reed (footballer)Malcolm Reed is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Geelong in the Victorian Football League .Reed, recruited locally, made his VFL debut in 1978 but wasn't a regular member of the side until 1982. In between he enjoyed team success in the reserves, with premierships in 1980 and...
.
Malcolm Reed, played by Dominic Keating
Dominic Keating
Dominic Keating is a British television, film and theatre actor, known for his portrayal as Lt. Malcolm Reed on Star Trek: Enterprise.- Biography :...
, is a fictional character
Character (arts)
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
on the television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise is a science fiction television series. It follows the adventures of humanity's first warp 5 starship, the Enterprise, ten years before the United Federation of Planets shown in previous Star Trek series was formed.Enterprise premiered on September 26, 2001...
. He is often confused with Martin Short, with whom he shares an uncanny appearance.
Reed is English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
, and is, at different times, the tactical officer and armory officer aboard the starship Enterprise
Enterprise (NX-01)
The Enterprise is a fictional starship in the science fiction television series Star Trek: Enterprise. It is commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer.-History:...
. He holds the rank of Lieutenant
Starfleet ranks and insignia
Starfleet ranks and insignia are fictional titles and badges that form the hierarchy of Starfleet in the Star Trek television shows and movies.-Overview:...
. However, in the episode "Twilight" , the alternate timeline Reed holds the rank of Captain - he is in the process of taking over the USS Intrepid.
Character overview
Reed's parents are Stuart and Mary, and he has a sister, Madeline. They appeared on-screen in the episode "Silent Enemy" while communicating with EnterpriseEnterprise (NX-01)
The Enterprise is a fictional starship in the science fiction television series Star Trek: Enterprise. It is commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer.-History:...
. In addition to his parents and sister, other relatives also known are an Uncle Archie and two spinster aunts.
Reed's great-uncle was in the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
on Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, but was killed in action while chief engineer of the HMS Clement (a submarine that struck a mine, a left over from an unmentioned war). Reed has a strong appreciation for his uncle, not only because of the heroics of this relative, but because they both share a common condition: aquaphobia
Aquaphobia
Aquaphobia is an abnormal and persistent fear of water. Aquaphobia is a specific phobia that involves a level of fear that is beyond the patient's control or that may interfere with daily life. People suffer aquaphobia in many ways and may experience it even though they realize the water in an...
, or the fear of drowning. He is one of the few men in his family who did not join the Royal Navy, a fact which led to some friction with his father, who is also a Royal Navy veteran. Reed is also an Eagle Scout
Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts of America)
Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouting program of the Boy Scouts of America . A Scout who attains this rank is called an Eagle Scout or Eagle. Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than 2 million young men...
, obtaining 28 Merit Badge
Merit badge (Boy Scouts of America)
Merit badges are awards earned by youth members of the Boy Scouts of America , based on activities within an area of study by completing a list of periodically updated requirements. The purpose of the merit badge program is to allow Scouts to examine subjects to determine if they would like to...
s, two more than his commanding officer, Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. He is the protagonist of the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, where he is played by Scott Bakula...
.
Reed is allergic
Allergy
An Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid...
to dust mite
House dust mite
The house dust mite is a cosmopolitan guest in human habitation. Dust mites feed on organic detritus such as flakes of shed human skin and flourish in the stable environment of dwellings. House dust mites are a common cause of asthma and allergic symptoms worldwide...
s, oak pollen
Pollen
Pollen is a fine to coarse powder containing the microgametophytes of seed plants, which produce the male gametes . Pollen grains have a hard coat that protects the sperm cells during the process of their movement from the stamens to the pistil of flowering plants or from the male cone to the...
, tropical grasses, and various plant enzymes, including bromelin
Bromelain
Bromelain is a pineapple extract thought to be effective for reducing swelling , especially of the nose and sinuses, after surgery or injury. It may also be used for a variety of other effects that remain scientifically unconfirmed and not authorized by regulatory authorities like the Food and Drug...
, which, ironically, is found in pineapple
Pineapple
Pineapple is the common name for a tropical plant and its edible fruit, which is actually a multiple fruit consisting of coalesced berries. It was given the name pineapple due to its resemblance to a pine cone. The pineapple is by far the most economically important plant in the Bromeliaceae...
, his favorite food. He is also prone to space sickness in some circumstances.
Reed has an almost suicidal sense of self-sacrifice, and can also be consumed at times with regret over paths not followed in his love life; he and Charles Tucker III
Charles Tucker III
Charles "Trip" Tucker III , played by Connor Trinneer, is a fictional character in the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, which is the last generation of the Star Trek seriesTucker was the chief engineer on the Enterprise, and also briefly served as chief engineer aboard...
have at least one ex-girlfriend in common. In one alternate timeline seen during the Xindi mission in which Enterprise becomes a generational ship unable to return to Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
, Reed dies without leaving any heirs, having been unable to find a mate. The episode "Shuttlepod One" revealed that Reed has a crush on T'Pol
T'Pol
Commander T'Pol is a fictional character played by Jolene Blalock in Star Trek: Enterprise. She is a Vulcan who serves as the science officer aboard the starship Enterprise.-Concept and creation:...
, but this was never expanded upon further, he even went as far as to state to Trip that " T'Pol has an awfully nice bum!".
The episode "Divergence" revealed that in 2149, Reed, then an Ensign
Starfleet ranks and insignia
Starfleet ranks and insignia are fictional titles and badges that form the hierarchy of Starfleet in the Star Trek television shows and movies.-Overview:...
, had been recruited as an operative for a mysterious offshoot of Starfleet Intelligence, which in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
would be identified as Section 31
Section 31
In the Star Trek fictional universe, Section 31 is an autonomous intelligence and defense organization. It is presented as a special security operation, manned by Federation citizens, that is not subject to the normal constraints of Starfleet ethical protocols...
. He believed he had left Section 31 behind when he was posted aboard Enterprise in 2151; however, in 2154, he was reactivated as an agent during a mission to recover Phlox
Phlox (Star Trek)
Phlox is a fictional character in the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, played by John Billingsley.Dr. Phlox is the chief medical officer aboard the starship Enterprise.-Overview:...
, who had been kidnapped by a group of Klingon
Klingon
Klingons are a fictional warrior race in the Star Trek universe.Klingons are recurring villains in the 1960s television show Star Trek: The Original Series, and have appeared in all five spin-off series and eight feature films...
s trying to stop a genetically engineered virus running rampant in the Empire. Part of his mission involved sabotaging a piece of evidence that might have assisted Enterprise in tracking down the Klingons faster. For this, Reed was temporarily relieved of duty and incarcerated in the brig by Archer, although Archer later reinstated Reed after determining that he had been placed in what Archer called "an impossible situation" by his Section 31 superior, Harris.
Following the Klingon mission, Reed demanded that Harris never communicate with him again. Harris, however, replied that Reed had committed himself to a cause he could never simply walk away from. Indeed, Reed would later re-establish contact with Harris under orders from Archer during the Terra Prime incident. This storyline confirmed fan speculation dating back to the earliest days of the series that Reed might have been somehow involved in the formation of Section 31.
Mirror Universe
An alternate version of Reed appears in the two-part episode "In a Mirror, Darkly", which takes place in the Mirror UniverseMirror Universe (Star Trek)
The Mirror Universe is a fictional parallel universe in which the plots of several Star Trek television episodes take place...
. Little is known about this version of Reed, except that he is a major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
in the MACO corps (the regular universe's version of Reed was, for a time, considered for such a role by the show's writers), and is the head of all MACOs on the ISS Enterprise.
Reed invented the Agony booth
Mirror Universe (Star Trek)
The Mirror Universe is a fictional parallel universe in which the plots of several Star Trek television episodes take place...
, which is used to torture prisoners. After transferring to the USS Defiant, which had drifted into the Mirror Universe, he leads a team to attempt capture of a Gorn
Gorn
In Star Trek, the Gorn are humanoid reptiles from the Gorn Hegemony.-Fictional history:The Gorn had contact with the Orion Syndicate as early as 2154...
stowaway on the ship. Reed's team is killed when the Gorn detonates a bomb in their path. Badly injured, all Reed says is, "I've failed you, captain," showing he still had a suicidal sense of self-sacrifice in the Mirror Universe. Dr. Phlox
Phlox (Star Trek)
Phlox is a fictional character in the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, played by John Billingsley.Dr. Phlox is the chief medical officer aboard the starship Enterprise.-Overview:...
later said that Reed had a 50/50 chance of recovering, but that he didn't think anyone would really mind if Reed died. It is not revealed whether Reed survives. However, in the Star Trek Mirror Universe book that follows on from the episodes, 'Age of the Empress' it states that he survives.
History of character development
- In light of Star Trek's long history of representing characters of all races, colors, and creeds, fans have petitioned Paramount for years to finally include a gayGayGay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
or bisexualBisexualityBisexuality is sexual behavior or an orientation involving physical or romantic attraction to both males and females, especially with regard to men and women. It is one of the three main classifications of sexual orientation, along with a heterosexual and a homosexual orientation, all a part of the...
person as a regular character. In the development stage of Enterprise, it was reported that producers originally intended for one of the main characters to be the first openly gay character on Star Trek. Many speculate, for different reasons, that Malcolm Reed was the most likely candidate. Any such plans were abandoned as early backstory clearly stated Reed's orientationSexual orientationSexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
(as well as everyone else's) as heterosexual; however, in the final episode of the series, Commander Riker is in the holo-deck portraying the chef on Enterprise, and as he speaks with Malcom, there is a scene shift noted only by a shift in camera angle, and Riker continues, "Did you ever find yourself attracted to him." The scene continues with Hoshi answering Riker's question. This camera scene shift may be a strong insinuation. Actor Dominic Keating, for his part, stated at a science fiction convention that the possibility that his character would be gay was discussed, and rejected, although it is unclear what was the context of this discussion and who made the final decision.
- Originally, LeVar BurtonLeVar BurtonLevardis Robert Martyn Burton, Jr. , professionally known as LeVar Burton, is an American actor, director, producer and author who first came to prominence portraying Kunta Kinte in the 1977 award-winning ABC television miniseries Roots, based on the novel by Alex Haley...
's character in Star Trek: The Next GenerationStar Trek: The Next GenerationStar Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
was written to be both blind and gay (as Gene RoddenberryGene RoddenberryEugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer and futurist, best known for creating the American science fiction series Star Trek. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer...
wanted to symbolize AIDSAIDSAcquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
/the handicapped in the future). This was later hinted at in the novel Q-SquaredQ-SquaredQ-Squared is a non-canon Star Trek novel by acclaimed author Peter David. It spent two weeks on the New York Times bestseller list in 1994....
; which has an alternate-universe Geordi LaForge as a male head nurse, instead of his more familiar post as chief engineer. Also, the backstory for Lieut. Sean HawkNeal McDonoughNeal P. McDonough is an American film, television and voice actor.-Career:In 1991, McDonough won the Best Actor Dramalogue for "Away Alone". McDonough has made many television and film appearances since then, including Band of Brothers, Boomtown, Star Trek: First Contact, Minority Report and The...
in Star Trek: First ContactStar Trek: First ContactStar Trek: First Contact is the eighth feature film in the Star Trek science fiction franchise, released in November 1996, by Paramount Pictures. First Contact is the first film in the franchise to feature no cast members from the original Star Trek television series of the 1960s...
was that he was a secret Section 31 spy infiltrating StarfleetStarfleetIn the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
, whose life partner was a man named Lieutenant Commander Keru.
See also
- List of Star Trek: Enterprise characters