Too Cool To Live: 10 Star Trek Characters Whose Memories Live On (Part 2)

Previously in this 2-part feature, I talked about some awesome, intriguing Star Trek characters we were lucky to meet in the brief time we knew them. The main cast is the core of every show, of course, but it’s often the fascinating side characters that make #StarTrek shine, and some of them seem to have a lot more left to do in their universes. It raises the question, what would it have been like if they’d stuck around? Could we really have it all?

So here we go, Part 2! Here are five more super cool (and sadly, doomed) characters we knew, loved, and remember!

6. Weyoun 6 - Deep Space Nine

Too Cool To Live Because: We know Weyoun as the smooth, snarky but unquestioningly loyal and adoring diplomat servant to the Dominion and its Changeling Founders. Or that’s how we know most of them, anyway. In the middle of Season 7 of DS9, Odo receives a distress call, from Weyoun of all people… a new one, that is. The Vorta are clones; the Founders create them as needed, and they all have their predecessors’ personalities and memories, including worshipping the Founders. Until the 6th Weyoun. Thanks to a “cloning defect,” he starts to question the Dominion’s dogma. He has free will. And he runs away, telling Odo he wants to defect from his creators’ evil empire, and help Odo and the Federation win the war. And survive.

But Unfortunately: The "new-and-improved" Weyoun 7 really seemed to take all this personally. Not only is his predecessor basically a glitch undermining the Founders’ entire empire, but he's a defective Weyoun, making him and every other Weyoun look bad. 6 had to die. Luckily, every Vorta is outfitted with basically an ostensibly-painless suicide implant, for use if they’re ever captured. And 7 pushes 6 into activating that implant the only way possible: threatening to destroy Odo’s craft. 6 sacrifices himself to save Odo, and dies in his Founder’s arms. (It’s not painless after all, he says. It isn’t for viewers either. It hurts to watch.)

We Could Have Had It All: Oh. Wow. If Weyoun 6 had actually accomplished his goal of getting to DS9 with Odo and helping the Federation? It would have changed the tide of the war. He could have revealed so much about the Dominion, not only in strategic and practical ways, but everything else. I just want to see him interact with everyone on the station, learning about them and their different cultures—and, unlike his predecessors, not wanting to either destroy or basically assimilate them into the Dominion collective.

Weyoun 6 wanted to learn. While they’re traveling, he samples every single variety of food in the replicator. (At one point he goes to town on what’s definitely a slice of pizza. It’s adorable.) And he wanted to find out his real purpose in life. If not to serve the Founders, or worship Odo as a god—what’s left? We’ll never find out, and it’s a serious shame. Seeing 6 come into his own, learn and grow and become who he was meant to be, not “defective,” but a unique and self-determined person? While navigating not only a galaxy full of new faces, but his relationship with Odo. If not worshipping him, what’s left? They could have actually been friends. That dynamic would have been fascinating to watch, and incredibly… good. 6 was good. That’s all.

7. Dr. Reyga - The Next Generation

Too Cool To Live Because: We don't see too many atypical members of Star Trek races: Klingons that aren't warriors, Ferengi who aren't businessmen or at least profit-oriented. So it was cool to meet Dr. Reyga, a brilliant Ferengi scientist who seems to be driven purely by curiosity and altruism: pretty un-stereotypical-Ferengi reasons for what he does. He's trying to develop a new kind of shielding, strong enough to withstand the pressure and heat of a star's corona. It's an amazing proposition, and we see that he's tenacious and determined to make this new technology a reality, for the benefit of the galaxy.

But Unfortunately: Not everybody shares his vision. In fact, not everybody even believes in him, or his project. The other scientists visiting the Enterprise don't seem convinced it's possible, or that he's the man for the job. The skepticism around a ferengi scientist (shouldn't he be chasing profit?) and doubt about his project put his resolve to the test... but, sadly, he doesn't get to see his dream realized. He's murdered by one of his co-scientists, prompting Dr. Beverly Crusher, one of the only people to express faith in his invention, to solve the crime and prove his shielding is a viable possibility. It works (as she finds out the hard way, fighting off the killer in the center of a star), but at a pretty high, and avoidable, cost.

We Could Have Had It All: What did Reyga's death add to the plot? It gives urgency and incentive for Dr. Crusher to find the culprit, sure, but it still seems like a sad waste of an intriguing and rare character. He could have easily been in a coma or something similar, and eventually actually gotten to see his life's work realized. Even more, he would have been a really cool recurring character, going on to create more technological wonders - which would have come in really handy in upcoming Federation conflicts, like, say, the Dominion war. We never really even see his shielding in action after this episode. And the only other time we see a Ferengi whose life doesn't revolve around profit is Rom (who still ends up Nagus) and Nog, joining Starfleet. Come to think of it, they could have had some good conversations. There's so much Dr. Reyga could have done in the Trek universe, whether TNG or DS9, besides make a cool thing that's never mentioned again, and die. And I have to think it would've been fun to see.

8. Kurn - The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine

Too Cool To Live Because: Like Worf, we first meet his brother Kurn on The Next Generation, so we’re already acquainted with him and his Klingon swagger when he appears on DS9. We saw him team up with Worf to combat Duras’ conniving attempt to crush their family. After Worf faces discommendation, Kurn helps his brother overturn Duras’ machinations, and is rewarded with a seat on the High Council. Sadly, he’s in a much worse place by the time we see him on DS9.

Off-screen, Kurn expresses his disapproval (the Klingon way: loudly) for Gowron and “General Martok’s” plan to invade Cardassia and end the long-standing alliance with the Federation. Except that this “Martok” is in fact, a changeling trying to destroy the Klingon Union from the inside out, and Kurn’s dissent is unacceptable. So Gowron—the same Gowron who granted him a High Council spot for rooting out Duros—has confiscated his lands, his titles, and booted him from the council. Why? Because Gowron might not be a changeling in disguise, but he is an honorless targ, and he can.

But Unfortunately: Having your memory wiped, your DNA resequenced, and leaving your entire old life and remaining family behind isn’t exactly death, but it counts enough for this list. And that’s exactly what happened. After several suicide attempts and traumatic injuries, Worf realizes that his brother is going to just keep trying to kill himself to restore his family’s honor. Worf finds the idea of Kurn living and not remembering him more appealing than Kurn being dead, though the actual effect is pretty much the same. Worf loses his brother forever. It’s kind of a downer episode.

We Could Have Had It All: Honor is everything to (most) Klingons. We know that. And Kurn is in a real bind here. This is a really deep-rooted cultural dilemma—one to which he thinks there’s only one solution. Maybe it’s too much to ask of anyone with that kind of history and what feels like a personal imperative, but I would have loved to see Kurn slowly, painfully, naturally come around to the idea that suicide wasn’t the only answer. There are many kinds of honor. As long as Kurn was alive, I have to believe he’d find a a way to regain it… primarily because this is all Gowron’s fault.

He’s the one who stripped Kurn of his house and title, and if viewers don’t know yet what a weaselly coward Gowron is, they soon will. Like Damar’s murder of Ziyal, Gowron wrecking Kurn’s life never carries any real consequences. Kurn is never even mentioned after this episode, and Gowron goes on to become the freaking Chancellor. Sure, Worf takes him down after he screws over the much-more-honorable General Martok… but nothing more is said about this whole awful business.

Think about it. Kurn managing to hang on long enough to join his brother in taking out Gowron, ending his treachery, and regaining the family honor… that would have been a good day to live.

9. Data - The Next Generation, TNG Movies

Too Cool To Live Because: Data has always been a fan favorite. He could easily have been a one-dimensional, robot-like character, no more a part of the crew than a tricorder. But the development the writers gave him, and Brent Spiner's nuanced performance, gave us an android whose personality and growth added up to far more than the sum of his parts. We got to see him expand his programming to individual preferences, likes and dislikes, making friends (human and feline), and having fun on the holodeck. He looks great in a Sherlock Holmes costume. Eventually he even experiences genuine emotion, maybe the closest a synthetic being can come to understanding the humanoid condition. It's not that being human is a goal, or better than any other life, but we got to see Data explore humanity and himself, learning every day.

But Unfortunately: The TNG movie Nemesis is controversial for a number of reasons: it's an unexpected story about Picard's evil-ish clone, that seemed out of place with the rest of the Star Trek films. But just as baffling is the discovery of what appeared to be a Data clone, or android replica in this case. We've seen our share of duplicate Data weirdness, with his power-hungry 'brother' Lore, and that time everybody went back in time to meet Mark Twain after finding Data's head in a cave - long story. But at the climax of Nemesis, Data sacrifices himself to save the crew, leaving behind the strange, prototype-seeming version, named "B-4." (A time travel joke? We just don't know.)

We Could Have Had It All: Really, what is the deal with B-4? At the very end, he whistles "Blue Skies," a song Data liked in the preceding movie. That seems to hint at... something. But we still don't know where he came from (creator Dr. Soong, presumably?) or why he's here, just that Data isn't. It seems like an unfinished story, setting up a future resolution, but we never got that far. As it stands, this whole arc ends on a weird, kind of unsatisfying note... and we miss Data, dammit. It's unlikely we'll get another TNG movie, since the reboots seem to be the new film flagship series, but it would have been nice to know where this was going, particularly with the Data/B4 missing resolution. I don't really have a solid suggestion here, just that we need to know more. Whatever the writers had in store, it's bound to be better than the way it's left.

10. Basically The Entire Alternate Universe, Especially The Ferengi

Too Cool To Live Because: The Mirror Universe is cool. Beyond its first appearance involving a campy 60s split-screen and Evil Beards ("Mirror, Mirror," TOS), we get to see the Mirror - or Alternate - universe a few more times in TNG, and particularly in Deep Space Nine. It's not so much an evil place (dystopian, maybe), but a really interesting look at how the universe would have developed in another, 'alternate' timeline. If things had gone just slightly different, we could have ended up with this familiar-but-alien place where Terrans (that's us Earthlings) are basically slaves to the oppressive Alliance between Bajorans, Klingons and Cardassians. DS9 shows us several of our heroes fighting against this evil empire in a brave but battered Resistance - while several other familiar faces (Intendant Kira! Regent Worf!) make up the evil Alliance itself. The Alternate Universe episodes themselves tend to be dramatic and sometimes campy, sometimes devastating. All in all, it feels a lot like Star Wars, a fun deviation from our usual Trek flavor. It also has a lot of black leather, intriguing alternate-character portrayals, and onscreen lady-kisses. There's a lot to enjoy here.

But Unfortunately: It's a brutal place, and a lot of our faves are doomed. Especially the Ferengi - I don't know if this was intentional, but a Mirror Ferengi dies in every single DS9 AU episode. Mirror Quark seems like an incredibly brave, decent, and self-sacrificing guy, dedicated to smuggling Terrans off the occupied station. For free. (He doesn't know what Latinum is! It's incredible to see the person he'd be - and maybe still is - without Ferenginar's deep-ingrained, cutthroat financial baggage.) And he's the first to go, after Intendant Kira has him beaten and interrogated. It's rough to watch. And, sadly, brave resistance fighters Rom and Brunt (yes, that Brunt, without the FCA), and accomplished businessman Nog are unceremoniously killed, once an episode, like a weird tradition. Sure, Nog made a Very Unwise Deal with Intendant Kira, but it still sucks to see. We don't get a lot of the AU in Voyager or Enterprise either, which is a shame because it's quite literally an entire universe of potential stories. It may be dark, but there's so much left to explore.

We Could Have Had It All: Seeing more of this universe would have been incredible. Maybe even a miniseries entirely set there. I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see Mirror Ezri and Leeta hook up (as they seem to be headed, in multiple ways) and fight evil together. Also, I'm super curious about Mirror Julian Bashir - or would his name be Jules here? It's unlikely he would've received the same genetic enhancements as the Julian we know, and exploring this alternate-history version could be incredible. He'd likely be determined to prove he's his own man, worth something on his own, enhancements be damned. That's something I'd love to see. Maybe the upcoming Star Trek: Discovery will spend some time on the other side of the looking glass. If we do get more AU, though, I do hope they break with one recurring theme: enough doomed Ferengi. There's so much more to explore here, and I'd like them to stick around.

So there you go! That's my 10 picks for cool Star Trek characters (and universes) with unfinished business, and a lot more potential than they were able to live up to on-screen. I might come up with more (like Lal!), so look out for more on this!