Over the years there have been many additions made to theStar Trekuniverse. The franchise now includes a plethora of old and new TV shows,movies of varying successes, and a near countless amount of (technically not canon) books and video games. All this world building, character development, andamazing real world influencing technologyall stemmed fromThe Original Seriescreated in the late 1960s by Gene Roddenberry, a space sitcom with a very low budget but big dreams.
Each proceeding show owes their very existence toTOS.They occasionally pay homage to it within the fictional universe, including some great character crossovers between different shows. Among the sequel series, no show did this more thanThe Next Generation,the show that was made next afterTOS.Here are the top reappearing characters inTNG.
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Spock
Potentially the most iconic of allStar Trekcharacters, the original pointy-eared,meme magnet Vulcanplayed a big part in creating the wonderful and often wacky world ofTOS.Spock was one of the main characters in the old show, and his importance within the fictional world was just as influential
Spock played a pivotal role in theTNGepisodes “Unification 1” and “2,” a two-part story in Season 5. Spock at this time has left his iconic role within Starfleet and spends his time as a Federation Ambassador, working hard to try andreunite his people with their long-lost cousins the Romulans. The episode is praised not only for the nostalgia of seeing a friendly, if stoic, face of Spock, but for introducing a duality to the previously one-dimensional villain Romulans. The episode features a peaceful Romulan faction, something not seen before.
Sarek
Leading on from Spock was his father Sarek, who appeared as a much younger Vulcan in theTOSepisode “Journey to Babel.” Mark Lenard, who played the character, returned in the “Sarek”TNGepisode, but did also make a short appearance in “Unification 1.”
His appearance within the newer show is a memorable one, as it shows the Vulcans in an entirely new light. Sarek issuffering from Bendii Syndrome, a degenerative illness that affects the Vulcans' ability to control their emotions. Sarek is shown barely managing to control these feelings, projecting them onto others aboard the ship. It’s one of the best episodes ofTNG.Seeing a familiar face not only sprinkles some nostalgia over audiences, but adds level of emotional depth not often seen within the Vulcan characters.
Dr. McCoy
DeForest Kelley came back to play a much older version of his wisecracking, no-funny-business Dr McCoy in the very first episode ofTNG,“Encounter at Farpoint.” While all the familiar faces on this list can be linked heavily with fan service, this one was potentially the most overt and intended. It brought back a beloved and iconic character to be part of the new show, kickstarting it into a whole new narrative.
The episode featured many of the fictional characters swooning over McCoy’s presence, much like many long time fans would have been. His involvement in the show was kept quiet until it aired, happily surprising audiences.
Scotty
One of the more memorable appearances comesfrom surviving redshirt,TOSchief of engineering Montgomery Scott. His return to the franchise was also a canonical return to the world of the living after 75 years of being presumed dead. The crew of the new Enterprise, captained by Picard, discover him trapped within a transporter buffer onboard the previously missing USS Jenolan, a transport ship that went missing years ago with Scotty on board.Disability icon and new Enterprise chief of engineering Geordi LaForgefinds a way to extract Scotty’s pattern from the transporter and restores the man to physical form. In his appearance,
Scotty has no idea how many years have passed. His appearance is a great one, and connects the vastly different worlds ofTOSandTNG.Scotty is amazed by all the developments over the years. It’s a great way of empathizing the differences between the two shows in an organic way. Plus, it’s always great to see the charming Scotsman back.
Kirk
Kirk’s appearance is a bit of a stretch. While he does make a lengthy appearance, it’s within the movieGenerations, which is technically aTNGcentric movie. While McCoy showed visually how many years had passed, Scotty and Kirk were able to maintain some of their youthful vigor.
In the film, Kirk has been trapped within the ‘Nexus’ for 78 years. His ‘death,’ shown at the start of the film, happened during the inaugural flight of his iconic ship’s replacement,the USS Enterprise-B. They were damaged by an energy blast from the nexus that breached the hull and seemingly killed Kirk, evaporating his body in the process. In reality he was trapped, rather peacefully as it turns out, within the Nexus. He was there until Picard came along and persuaded him to leave, which, ironically, led to his actual death at the end of the film.
