[Fifthrate]

Does anyone know why they switched the red and gold? (I know I'm an idiot and not a true fan for not knowing already. Forgive me. )

[Zardoz]

Originally Posted by Fifthrate

Does anyone know why they switched the red and gold? (I know I'm an idiot and not a true fan for not knowing already. Forgive me. )

because they wanted to get rid of the stigma of TOS and the "red shirts."

[Fifthrate]

And thus I am enlightened.

[Zardoz]

Originally Posted by Fifthrate

And thus I am enlightened.

No worries.

[sir num nums]

Yeah, it from Red Shirt deaths to Ensigns.

[jerhanner]

I never knew why either, and was too embarassed to ask!

[sir num nums]

They never really explained why.

Most would say that Red is more of a commanding color than Gold.

[Botany Bay]

I allways assumed it had to do with the movie uniforms. It seems to have associated red with Starfleet. So, they made red the colour of the command branch.

Whatever the real reasons, I just can speculate it had far more to do with what actor looked good in what colour then with a real reasoning in terms of canonicity and in-universe logic.

Take Data as an example: He performed everything Spock did in TOS. But did they give him a blue uniform? Nope. They invented the OPS-station. Wouldnt it be somewhat logical that operations is a position for the command branch? Nope. Data has to wear gold. He just has to. He is a robot. Robots are somewhat golden. C3PO was golden. You see?

[Commodore]

Originally Posted by Botany Bay

Whatever the real reasons, I just can speculate it had far more to do with what actor looked good in what colour then with a real reasoning in terms of canonicity and in-universe logic.

Actually that was the primary reason why the colors were switched. Like Zardoz said, ending jokes about redshirts was also a reason.

No onscreen explanation was ever given, but Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes looked better in red than in gold in early TNG screen tests, and Brent Spiner looked better to Gene Roddenberry in gold than in any other color.

Otherwise, Data was a science officer and so was essentially Harry Kim who held the same operations officer position in VOY...

[SJM]

the reason data's uniform is golden is because the propsed blue uniform clashed with is makeup, so they made it gold.