Rachel Garrett: From Section 31 to the Enterprise

's legacy is cemented in Starfleet history as a red bronze statue of her is unveiled during a dedication ceremony at the Starfleet Recruiting Center ahead of (as seen in Season 3's "").

With the events of and the fan-favorite episode, "," the glimpses we see of the young Lt. Rachel Garrett and the alternate timeline Captain Rachel Garrett of the U.S.S. Enterprise-C give us an understanding of the decorated officer she becomes.

In Section 31, Philippa Georgiou quips, "Who did you piss off to get stuck in black ops?" However, Garrett's time spent detailing the team's mission is critical to her growth, as she's promoted to Lieutenant Commander by the end of the film.

Speaking to StarTrek.com, Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman gives us insight on the decision to incorporate Garrett into the story, "It was daunting because 'Yesterday's Enterprise' is so beloved, but we credit Craig Sweeny for this. What was interesting was the idea that you're meeting a proto-captain. Rachel Garrett, she's not yet a captain."

"This story and this adventure is something that begins to shift her perspective about sacrifice particularly and what it means to be a captain and what it means to be a leader. She comes in with, I think, a fairly typical Starfleet view. It's very black and white. It's very by-the-book, it's very rules-focused."

"Through the experience of meeting Georgiou and working with the Section 31 team, she begins to understand that truth and the ability to do the right thing often lives in a gray area," explains Kurtzman. "That it isn't always covered by Starfleet. Starfleet represents the best of us. It represents the thing we aspire to be, but it can't always solve the problem. So you need Section 31 and you need people like the team in Section 31 to be able to allow Starfleet to be what it is."

A lifelong Star Trek fan and a member of Alok Sahar's Section 31 crew, Rob Kazinsky tells StarTrek.com, "For me, this is a story about Rachel Garrett. This is the interesting part because Rachel Garrett is the only captain of the Enterprise that hasn't had their own show."

"How does Rachel Garrett go from being our Rachel Garrett to being the captain of the Enterprise," continues Kazinsky, "and how much impact does Philippa Georgiou have on the captain of the Federation starship getting that role? That's the most fascinating."

"And it goes back to that other question, ''" Kazinsky concludes. "Even if you have done evil, terrible things, it doesn't mean you can't, at the same time, do good things. You may not ever clean your slate, but you can always choose to do good. Rachel Garrett has the potential to be the most interesting character that's ever been in Star Trek."

Like Kazinsky, Kacey Rohl sees Garrett's interaction with Philippa Georgiou leading to her future iteration, "It's interesting to me that moment where Georgiou decides to set off the Godsend, and potentially sacrifice herself, connects to where Rachel Garrett ends up in 'Yesterday's Enterprise.' I think that's an interesting line that she carries, in Rachel's connection with Georgiou and having witnessed that [willingness] to the choice that Rachel ultimately makes."

Praising her predecessor, Rohl states, "Obviously Tricia O'Neil did such an incredible job in 'Yesterday's Enterprise.' I've watched that episode probably a bajillion times, and that's a real number. To know that this is where Rachel winds up, it was so fascinating to me to know that she was at some point a part of Section 31. What cool ground to explore with how much of Georgiou she carries forward; how that affects how she does things, how that factors into the ultimate decision she makes, the ultimate sacrifice she makes, and how much chaos she's embraced."