Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) was never going to become an Admiral in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine because he was destined for greater things. The Starfleet admiralty is supposed to be something that Star Trek captains aspire to, but both Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) struggled with their promotions. Kirk wasn’t comfortable being confined to a desk, while Picard bitterly disagreed with Starfleet’s decision to abandon the Romulans. If Sisko had been made Admiral at the end of DS9, it’s likely he would have had a similarly negative experience.

Sisko was destined for greater things than the top of the Starfleet career ladder, however. The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine pilot, “Emissary”, established that Sisko was a very different type of Starfleet officer. Sisko was a committed father, and wasn’t afraid to question the wisdom of Starfleet’s decisions, which is what set him apart from Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The characters in Star Trek: DS9 weren’t purely defined by their roles within Starfleet, but Sisko did once reveal his ambitions to go further within the organization.

Star Trek: DS9 Season 3 Confirmed That Sisko Would Never Make Admiral

“He could never see a set of Admiral’s stars on your collar.”

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 3, episode 1, “The Search, Part 1”, Sisko reveals that he does aspire to become a Starfleet Admiral. DS9 season 3 opens with Sisko returning to the station after he’s briefed Starfleet on the threat posed by the Jem’Hadar and the Dominion. Discussing his return to Earth with Lt. Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell), Sisko reflects on the thrill he gets from stepping inside Starfleet Headquarters, and reveals that he saw himself rising to the position of Admiral one day. However, some wise words from Jadzia, courtesy of Curzon Dax, change Sisko’s perspective.

DAX: What I mean is, he could never see a set of Admiral’s stars on your collar. He thought that just making the decisions would never satisfy you. You had to implement them, see the results, face the consequences. Curzon always thought you were the kind of man who had to be in the thick of things, not behind some desk at Headquarters.

SISKO: He was a smart old man, wasn’t he?

Curzon Dax’s astute assessment basically confirms that Sisko would never become Admiral. Sisko’s “smart old man” comment is a quiet acknowledgment that he knows Curzon Dax was right, and that Admiral Benjamin Sisko would very quickly get bored behind a desk in San Francisco. While Sisko took three seasons to make Captain, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 3, episode 1 makes the tacit admission that he’d be happier with the Captain’s four pips rather than the Admiral’s stars.

Sisko Not Being Admiral Made Him More Like Kirk

“Don’t let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship”

In Star Trek Generations, Captain James T. Kirk famously tells Captain Picard to turn down a promotion, or anything that takes him off the bridge of the Enterprise. It was advice that Picard would later ignore, but Kirk was speaking from experience. Kirk also tells Picard that it’s only on a starship that he can make a difference, something that chimes with Curzon Dax’s assessment of Sisko in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Sisko was revealed to be a bit of a fan of Kirk in DS9 season 5, so it’s fitting that the two Starfleet legends share similarities.

As a Star Trek captain, Sisko was more like Kirk than Picard, as he was willing to bend the rules of Starfleet’s Prime Directive in service of the greater good. Like Kirk, Sisko didn’t believe in a no-win scenario either, and doggedly pursued a positive outcome even when the odds were supremely stacked against him during DS9‘s Dominion War. To further emphasize their similarities, both Sisko and Kirk end up in heavenly realms after heroic acts of sacrifice. Sisko and Kirk’s rejection of the Admiralty was perfectly fitting for both characters, as they worked best when not rigidly tied to Starfleet’s rules and regulations.

Sisko Became More Powerful Than Any Starfleet Admiral In DS9

“I’m their Emissary and they still have a great deal for me to do.”

At the end of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Captain Sisko brings the Dominion War to an end, and locks the Pah wraiths in the Bajoran Fire Caves. Sisko’s reward is not a promotion to Starfleet Admiral, but something far more powerful. Sisko gets a celestial promotion to work alongside the Bajoran Prophets as their Emissary and learn from the gods. By the end of DS9, Sisko is a literal demi-god, which is a considerable step up from Starfleet Admiral, and also presumably allows him to make a greater difference.

It’s a role with a substantial amount of responsibility that far exceeds the powers of a Starfleet Admiral, and presumably gives him a chance to “see the results” of his work. However, it’s also possible that from the lofty, detached position of the Celestial Temple, Sisko could become just as bored as he would in Starfleet Headquarters. Bored gods are a long-running Star Trek trope, and a man like Sisko definitely can’t be satisfied merely observing everything from on-high, even if his work for the Prophets makes a difference.

The current run of Star Trek comics reveals that Sisko has grown weary of his time in the Celestial Temple, relishing the chance to command a crew again. It’s unlikely that Avery Brooks will return for a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine revival, meaning that these comics may be the closest Sisko fans get to finding out how he got on in the Celestial Temple. However, as a devoted son, father, husband, friend, Emissary to the gods, and Starfleet war hero, Benjamin Sisko made a far bigger difference than any Admiral ever could have.

All episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine are available to stream on Paramount+.