Star Trek: Why Kirk Wore A Wrap-Around Uniform (And Sideways Badge)
Captain Kirk typically wore his iconic Command uniform in Star Trek: The Original Series, but during a few episodes of the first and second series, he instead wore a wrap-around uniform and a sideways badge, and there was a reason for this. Starfleet’s uniforms have changed many times over the course of the Star Trek franchise. Oftentimes, the uniforms have even had subtle changes made to them during the course of a single television series, and so of course fans are driven to wonder why such artistic choices are made and what that could mean for the greater Star Trek canon. Perhaps one of the most noticeable changes ever made within a single series was when The Next Generation’s season 3 uniforms were redesigned.
In Star Trek: The Original Series, season 1, episode 4, “The Enemy Within,” Kirk is seen sporting a wrap-around-style version of his Command uniform, and his badge is fastened sideways on the cloth belt that wraps around his waist. It’s the first time the wrap-around uniform makes an appearance in the series, but it also makes an appearance several times thereafter. Probably the most memorable time the wrap-around uniform was later seen was during the fan-favorite premiere of The Original Series, season 2, episode 13, “The Trouble with Tribbles.” Fans love those furry little critters, and so it was only natural to associate the wrap-around uniform with this episode, even though it had been seen much earlier. Even recently, it appeared that there were tribbles in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, and that did not go unnoticed by audiences.
The theory that has circulated around the web for some time as to why Captain Kirk was wearing a wrap-around uniform, was that the actor, William Shatner, was supposedly putting on weight and the costume department was trying to outfit him with something more flattering. But this theory doesn’t hold up; the episode in which the uniform was debuted was when Kirk and his “evil clone” take center stage, and so audiences needed something to visually delineate the two “Kirks” from each other. When Kirk wore the uniform in future episodes, like in the classic TOS tribbles episode, it was probably a matter of trying to get more mileage out of the costume. The badge placement is an interesting change, but it looks as if the badge is almost pinned to help hold the wrap in place.
One-off redesigns of the typical Starfleet uniform was not unheard of in later series. For example, Picard’s jacket was designed simply because Patrick Stewart thought it might help distinguish him more from the crew, and he didn’t wear it all the time even. It makes sense, however, that a separate uniform would be created for Kirk for the particular “evil clone” episode because it helped the audience to understand that these were two different incarnations of the Captain of Star Trek’s famous U.S.S. Enterprise.
There have been so many decisions over the years that the creators of Star Trek have changed or tried to subtly adjust that eagle-eyed fans have picked up on immediately. It’s tempting to come up with canon-based theories to justify the changes, but sometimes there are more practical, real-life reasons for why certain decisions were made. Kirk’s wrap-around uniform and sideways badge have mystified viewers for decades, but the explanation for the design was clear right from its first appearance back in The Original Series season 1.