The answer is none other than William T. Riker, who appeared in a tantalizingly strange 5.5 different Star Trek shows. Riker first graced screens during the very first episode of The Next Generation (though without his iconic beard), and became a staple of the show from start to finish. While his relationship with Picard may have started out rocky, the two are heralded as possibly the best combination of Captain and second officer, the perfect combination of strict and stoic, as well as passionate yet caring. Their dynamic duo nature is almost as memorable as Kirk and Spock. And much like the famous Vulcan, Riker’s abilities had a much further reach than the bridge of the iconic Enterprise D.
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The second show to feature Riker (and his fan favorite Riker maneuver) was Voyager. In this show, he was brought across the universe all the way to the lost USS Voyager to stand trial in a stunt orchestrated by the nefarious Q. Though the show itself often receives untoward criticisms, this episode, titled “Death Wish,” was great. It revolved around a new Q, one nicknamed Quinn, who had grown tired of immortality and tries to take his own life. He fails, bringing the other familiar face and series-jumping Q (played by John de Lancie) to appear in an attempt to imprison him. However, the morally ambiguous Captain Janeway steps in and demands a hearing to decide Quinn’s fate fairly.
It is during this trail that de Lancie’s Q teleports Riker on board. Riker acts as ‘evidence’ to show how influential Quinn’s presence has been, and how his existence was necessary for Riker to be alive (and consequently save the galaxy multiple times). After his testimony, Riker is whisked away, losing all memory of being aboard the ship. While his cameo was fairly, brief it was memorable.
Riker also appeared, fairly spectacularly despite the poor reviews, in the series finale of Enterprise. The episode “These Are The Voyages…” paid direct homage to the shows that chronologically came after. The episode starts with Riker appearing in full 22nd Century Starfleet uniform, aboard the original Enterprise, sitting at the ship’s engineering station. This reveal came out of nowhere, and shocked a lot of audiences as his presence here in the distant past makes no sense. All is revealed, however, as he stands and commands the computer to “freeze program,” revealing the whole thing to have been a holodeck simulation. He exits, and fans are treated to familiar, yet very strange considering context, USS Enterprise D of the TNG era. The episode continues, centered around the idea of Riker in his modern day using the holodeck to watch the historic events play out to help him with a personal dilemma. The episode, other than being massive fan service, was not well received. It is still classed as the worst finale to any Star Trek show, but it did, however misplaced, feature a lot of great Riker content.
Riker continues jumping series ship, appearing in both Lower Decks and both seasons of Picard. The latter of these only makes sense, considering his deep and meaningful relationship with the Captain. This brings the character’s appearances up to 5, but he also appeared briefly in Deep Space 9 — almost.
It is technically not William Riker, but rather his transporter clone Thomas Riker (still played by Johnathan Frakes) who makes an appearance, reminding audiences yet again of the dangers of transporters. He proceeds to pose at the actual William Riker to access the Defiant. While Frakes made a great appearance, this can only count as a half appearance for the character, as it’s technically not the original Will.
With more and more Star Trek shows being added to the ever-expanding list, it might just be a matter of time until Riker appears once again. His presence within Picard shows his willingness, and he continues to deeply immerse himself in the franchise he loves dearly. While his physical presence is never shown, he does still to have his fingers in the Trek pie. Frakes has directed 7 episodes to date of Discovery and 4 episodes of Picard. He has even lent his directorial skills and Star Trek knowledge to the homage show The Orville. Fans are excited to see him return as Riker for the new season of Picard, where he seems to be playing a much more pivotal role, alongside the rest of the much loved TNG crew.
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