Valiant isn’t just manned by young people they're a select crop of advanced cadets who have clearly internalized how often they’ve been told how unique and capable they are. Kirk, Picard, Sisko - these are all captains who take risks but with every risk comes the consideration of ethics, and with every captain comes a crew of adults. Would they have sanctioned Watters' dangerous attack on the Dominion cruiser? Watters certainly thinks his courage and initiative would be commended, but it’s very convenient no higher authority is present to question him. Running the Valiant is like doing the Kobayashi Maru and never being told to stop.

Watters commands like he’s giving a performance of Star Trek leadership without the experience to back it up he’s clearly emulating the ghosts from his training with his former captain. Seeing the Red Squad conduct themselves like the pristine crew of the Defiant or Enterprise has an uncanny effect. They act with a confidence and conviction that’s only earned from working through Starfleet ranks, yet they’re only in charge because they’ve been totally separated from that network. “Valiant” is an episode about duty - the ways it can poison people eager for authority, and how difficult it is to resist cultish leadership, especially without contact to the outside world. The only one skeptical of the Valiant’s situation is Jake, who’s able to see through the unreasonable demands placed on a young crew. Their mission is to gather intel on a new enemy battlecruiser, and Watters is willing to die trying to complete it. Nog quickly idolizes him, even more so after Watters makes him chief engineering officer. He commands strong respect from his young crew, some of whom are only 17 years old. Watters is made of classic Star Trek captain stuff - charm, discipline, a confidence that stays on the right side of arrogance. The new acting captain, Tim Watters, has been leading the cadet-only crew for months behind enemy lines. The cadets are all that’s left of its crew their captain and the rest of the adult officers were killed in a Cardassian encounter that severely weakened their warp capabilities. Valiant, a Defiant-class ship used to train elite cadets. After a violent skirmish with the Jem’Hadar, they’re beamed aboard the U.S.S.

While Jake has a tenuous reason for joining, Nog is trying to resist the boyish energy that colors their runabout trip. Nog and Jake Sisko are on a diplomatic mission to Ferenginar.

Crew in a runabout star trek