Portrait of a Character – Chandler (Chip) Masterson
Chandler Masterson’s name was, perhaps, the easiest part of him to come up with. He’s homage to Star Trek Deep Space Nine actress Chase Masterson.
It wasn’t until Together that I established that Chip’s real first name is Chandler and, yes, that’s a connection to the show Friends.
However, I didn’t see Matthew Perry in the role. Instead, I see Jason Bateman, mainly because of his work on Arrested Development, where he is the level-headed person amidst all the crazies.
Chip, in my fanfiction, is sometimes level-headed, but also willingly joins in with the silliness, often as a partner in crime with Aidan MacKenzie. Chip definitely has a silly side and, in Together, he even dreams of doing stand-up in a little club on Risa.
On the NX-01
Chip starts off in Tactical, which is where he gets to know Aidan. However, by the time of Together, he has transferred over to Communications. He acknowledges that he is a natural gabber and better suited at connecting people as opposed to blowing stuff up. Like Aidan, he’s an Ensign.
Movie Night
As the person with probably the best appreciation of the arts on the Enterprise, Chip picks the movies. He has eclectic taste, serving up everything from Stalag 17 to Dirty Dancing. In Broken Seal, he and Aidan, who acts as the projectionist, are even blamed for the problems with The Seventh Seal.
He also conducts a little discussion afterwards. Attendance is spotty at best. In Intolerance, for Dirty Dancing, he talks about the soundtrack, which is a mix of 1960s and 1980s music, and has the attendees try to guess which decade a particular song came from.
Relationships
Chip and Aidan are not only friends, they are also roommates. Chip also appreciates Hoshi Sato as his boss. In the E2 stories I am currently writing, he also helps to train and accommodate the newest member of the Communications team, Crewman Maryam Haroun. Because Maryam is a Muslim and needs to pray several times per day, Chip’s night shift sometimes starts early or can end late, so that he can cover when Maryam is praying.
In Together, Chandler helps Deborah Haddon pick up the pieces and they begin dating. By the time of Temper, she’s proposed to him, and they are married by the time of Fortune. During the initial celebration of the first child born to a crew member becoming a parent, he begins to thank the captain who corrects him and instead tells him that the celebration is for Malcolm.
Quote
“So this Klingon, an Andorian and a Vulcan walk into a bar. And the Klingon’s a male, super-tall. And he’s completely buck naked, except for a strategically placed piece of string to which there’s attached this note. So the bartender gets curious and he reads the note, which says …”
I’ve never finished the joke. Have at it in the Comments section if you’d like to write a punch line for Chip’s joke.
Mirror Universe
Chip in the MU has a lot more on his mind, and has no time for antics. He never switches over to Communications, and instead is promoted to run Tactical at the end of Reversal (his start in Tactical is shown in Paving Stones Made From Good Intentions). He also runs Game Night, intended to be the counterpart to Movie Night. Chandler takes bets like a bookie (betting in the MU is canon) and collects like a loan shark.
Because he loses Deborah, he ends up, eventually, as one of the Empress’s conquests. Chandler fathers her twins, Takara (the only girl) and Takeo. All of the Empress’s children have meaningful names. Takara means treasure while Takeo means warrior. These are her fourth and fifth eldest of the six total children, and are being raised to be as bratty as the others, as is shown in Coveted Commodity. In Temper, with its three separate alternative timelines, Chip’s fate differs. The only constants are Science Officer Lucy Stone, and his two children with the Empress. Fortune follows Chip to his later life, and He Stays a Stranger to a much later time in his life. As one of the only halfway decent people in the Mirror Universe, Chip represents a bit of hope in that wasted landscape.
Upshot
Jason Bateman (mirror Chip)
Traveling the stars is serious business, and the Xindi and Romulan Wars were no laughing matter. But the crew always needed a release from unrelenting problems. Without someone like Chip, life on the NX-01 would be so much tougher. Even the crew of the Enterprise needs a little whimsy in their lives, and for that, Chandler is your man.
[…] Together is finished, Deb is approached by someone she might not have expected to be interested, Chip Masterson. This relationship continues through to Fortune, where it is revealed that it has resulted in a […]
[…] Movie Night, and Chip Masterson has been touting The Seventh Seal all week. It’s going to be a celebration of highbrow […]
[…] mine it for backstory tales of Lili and her fellow and their many supporting cast members, like Chip Masterson, Leonora Digiorno, Melissa Madden, Pamela Hudson, Andrew Miller, Brian Delacroix and Jun Daniels […]
[…] the MACOs on the Defiant. Instead, Doug is placed into direct competition with Aidan MacKenzie and Chip Masterson. As is true in my fanon, the Defiant is a confusing mess, and Doug must figure things out quickly. […]
[…] Reversal, the betting is taken and supervised, and the point spread is covered, by Chip Masterson, who at that point in time is a Tactical Ensign. By the time Temper‘s time frame rolls […]
[…] the start of Day of the Dead, Chip Masterson in particular is checking her out, until Tripp Tucker reminds him that he (Chip) is now married to […]
[…] and change her up. I like that she brings a little art and culture to the NX-01 (much like Chip Masterson does) and the USS Bluebird (like Declan Reed’s drawings do, too). I’m also enjoying […]
[…] no one is an actual professional, Chip Masterson dreams of his moment of performing stand up in a little comedy club on Risa, where the audience is […]
[…] Mirror Universe timeline, he is falsely accused (as is Tristan Curtis) and is executed for helping Chip and Lucy get away with the Empress’s twin children, Takara and […]
[…] the first alternate timeline, he keeps the books for Chip‘s Game Night wagers. His youngest brother, Izo, does the strong arm collecting, but Arashi […]
[…] All she wants is for the mice to be gone, and they just seem to be multiplying. For Aidan and Chip, shown here a little bit like two partners in crime – which is a role they often fall into in […]
[…] When dreaming up Empress Hoshi’s children, I wanted her to have fraternal twins, a boy and the only girl. Takeo is the younger of the two. All of the Empress’s children have meaningful names; Takeo means warrior. Takeo is a child of the Empress and Chip Masterson. […]
[…] Possibly my best-realized friendship is that between Aidan MacKenzie and Chip Masterson. […]
[…] Chip and Aidan show the film Dirty Dancing and the discussion that ensues is a small plot point. It also introduces some of the music, such as Mickey and Sylvia’s Love is Strange and The Ronettes’ Be My Baby. But Pamela herself has her own music – Amy Winehouse’s You Know I’m No Good. […]
[…] as a story is told, is in Where No Gerbil Has Gone Before. But all is not right, and the reason why Chip and Deb are alone in his quarters at all is because Aidan has been injured enough that Phlox keeps […]
[…] the USS Bluebird. When the prime timeline is restored, they are executed for failing to prevent Chip Masterson from escaping to the surface of Lafa II with Lucy Stone and his children with the Empress, Takara […]
[…] it had to be before Doug became a Lieutenant Commander, running Tactical (after defeating Chip Masterson and Aidan MacKenzie in a competition). Ian (Malcolm‘s counterpart) and T’Pol had to […]
[…] of Tucker’s life, although of course he doesn’t know that – Tripp arranges with Chip Masterson to have a number of classic horror films shown. On the actual day, John Carpenter’s Halloween […]
[…] It’s to be a disco party, and the sound system has to be tested. Every now and then, Chip Masterson‘s tests come through, loud and clear, on the intercom (originally, I had Travis doing this). […]
[…] and Chip are alone in his quarters; it’s her first time staying overnight. Aidan is in Sick Bay, but […]
[…] In Together, the paper book is given as a belated wedding gift to Lili and Doug, by Hoshi and Chip. The book even has an inscription – “One good love story deserves another.” – Hoshi […]
[…] Paving Stones Made From Good Intentions, the first time we see Brian, he is just itching to throw Chip Masterson and Aidan MacKenzie into the agony booth. For him, getting rid of those two means that not only can […]
[…] Aidan has a much tougher life. In Paving Stones Made From Good Intentions, he vies with Doug and Chip Masterson for the Tactical Officer role left vacant at the Mirror Malcolm’s (Ian’s) […]
[…] and Chip host the event, which is broadcast throughout the ship. The secret ingredient, almonds, must be […]
[…] while his Mom, Deb Haddon Masterson, was doing something with my Mom in our kitchen, and his Dad, Chip Masterson, was out back playing horseshoes and drinking beers with my Dad. And, like, Ken was asking if a boy […]
[…] Temper and The Conspiracy, he is a part of the plot to get Chip, Lucy, and Chip’s two children off the […]
[…] Miller, José Torres, and Brian Delacroix join her current followers, who include Doug Hayes, Chip Masterson and Aidan MacKenzie, along with her lover, Travis […]
[…] weekends so that it can be the centerpiece of date night. I have also added a Master of Ceremonies, Chip Masterson, and a projectionist, Aidan MacKenzie. Chip even holds a discussion of the film afterwards if […]
[…] the time of Fortune, he realizes that he misses, if not her (she is already married to Chip Masterson by that time), then he at least misses the idea of having someone in his […]
[…] examinations. Seen again in Fortune, Miva helps by setting Lucy Stone‘s broken leg and offers Chip, Tripp and Beth various odd jobs so that they can pay […]
[…] secondary characters in the mix are Chip Masterson, Deb Haddon, Brian Delacroix, Craig Willets, Jenny Crossman, Aidan MacKenzie, Quartermaster Sekar […]
[…] left in Fortune, and to bring in the bench characters and give them great roles, people like Aidan, Chip, Deb, José, and Jennifer. The story acts as a bridge to the deeper future and continues the […]
[…] the amusing title, to its start as Chip Masterson is busted by Deb Haddon for keeping Tripp‘s stuffed gerbil toy, Stella, to their romance, […]
[…] Cartography. But she’s gifted, and Hoshi needs help with Communications. Therefore, she and Chip handle the other shifts, during and after the Xindi War, and even during the E2 kick backs in […]
[…] and Takeo were born. Takara was to be the elder of the two. These would be the children fathered by Chip Masterson. The only child younger than them is Izo. Jun, Kira, and Arashi are […]
[…] Day of 2161. A few people meet, furtively. They are: Josh Rosen, Aidan MacKenzie, Andrew Miller, Chip Masterson, and Lucy Stone. There’s one more member of the cabal, Francisco Ramirez, but he […]
[…] this is going on, Ethan is talking about asking Karin to Movie Night, where Chip will be showing Night of the Living Dead, as it’s almost […]
[…] to leave, telling her that he’s quitting. As the Ready Room door opens, Shelby Pike, Chip Masterson, and Lucy Stone give him quick sympathetic glances, but Travis Mayweather and Gary Hodgkins do not. […]
[…] night has been held on the NX-01 prior to its being decommissioned, and that the film chosen by Chip was the first James Bond movie, Dr. […]
[…] the post-Fortune time period, on acting Captain Malcolm Reed‘s ship, the Zefram Cochrane. Chip comes over to Deb and tells her that Kelsey killed himself. Shocked, Deb and Chip realize that she […]
[…] I realized I had really hurt the character, and I kind of liked him, particularly as a pal to Chip Masterson in both universes. Hence babysitter Aidan, disgraced in Reversal, eventually gets his due in He […]
[…] Chip is wasted in Security and moves over to Communications. This isn’t possible in the Mirror, so he stays in Tactical. In the prime timeline, he escapes the Empress, but in one of the alternates, he rises to become captain of the Defiant. […]
[…] at least a descendant of Lili and Malcolm, but he’s apparently also at least a descendant of Chip and Deb, as his mother’s maiden name is […]
[…] up is Brown, where Hoshi is pregnant for a second time (by Aidan), and Chip holds back while José and Frank sniff around […]
[…] the film that inspired me to cast Mariel Hemingway as Eriecho. Because of the mentionings of films, Chip shows up. Hoshi also announces the revival of the book club, a feature of the E2 […]