Best of the Best

[Trek Writers Room]

Who is your favorite "quirky" or "fun" character from any of the series?
I will go first.
My favorite is Pelia introduced in SNW and played by the indomitable Carol Kane.
Not only is the character incredibly intelligent, with an extremely long memory, but she is somewhat mischievous and likes to bend the rules.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Garak.

The truth is dull, and obfuscation is sport. And he has an eye for fashion, the Tim Gunn of the future.

He should have been in the movies.

 

[Lord Garth]

Who is your favorite "quirky" or "fun" character from any of the series?

Tilly. That's easy.

 

[Oddish]

Dr. T'Ana. Meerrrow!

 

[FredH]

Sam Cogley. Man should have got a series of his own.

 

[Michael]

Well, you’re all wrong, because the correct answer is of course the best bad influence Lieutenant Junior Grade Beckett Mariner. [/thread]

 

[Oddish]

Well, LD is just full of high-quirk characters.

Some non-LD ones from me...
Kate Pulaski, TNG.
Reg Barclay, TNG/VOY.
Ortegas, SNW.
Rok-Tahk, PRO.

 

[at Quark's]

In a certain way, Q. Even if some of his 'pranks' were rather cruel, you can't deny that he did 'bring a little excitement, a little spice' to the sometimes rather stuffy attitudes of the ENT-D crew (most notably early Picard).

It became a tired trope later due to overuse, but still.

 

[Rahul]

I find "fun & quirky" characters usually problematic. Too often they go into the Jar Jar Binks / Neelix / Rom territory, where they're just childish or stupid.

I do however love it when serious characters are funny. Quark, Garak, McCoy, Shran, ... But that usually is based on snarky commentary or situation based comedy. Both harder to write.

I also like quirky, or socially unaware characters - Barclay, Tilly, Stamets, Data to a degree. They're sometimes difficult to watch, but if written well their stories can be meaningful in a way "perfect" characters' rarely are.

However - to answer the OPs question, my one and favourite "quirky" AND "funny" character is:

The Doctor.

He's just one of the absolute best.

 

[flandry84]

The crystalline entity...what a pip!

 

[Kilana2]

Grand Nagus Zek

 

[Jack Wolfe]

Berlinghoff Rasmussen

 

[Uhura's Song]

Some good ones so far. I will try to be different.

First off, the easy one. Favorite "Fun" (not necessarily funny) character: Jadzia Dax.

Favorite Quirky: Boimler.

 

[Trek Writers Room]

Excellent work people!

My second choice... Now that the thread has legs, is Janeway as Aracnia(possible so)

 

[Frontis]

The Ferengi in DS9 for making me laugh among all the war and terror.

 

[90sTrekGuy]

Quark. Always makes me smile.

 

[B.J.]

In a certain way, Q.

Along the same lines, Trelane.

 

[ananta]

The original = Haaaaarcoooooouuuurrrt Fenton Mudd.

Q also fits the bill. With a nicely malevolent/unpredictable edge.

Quark! One of the best characters in the entirety of the franchise and I’ll fight anyone who disagrees.

I also have a soft spot from Rom, Moogie and Zek.

Tilly on Discovery. She brought a lot of heart and humanity to the show.

 

[Qonundrum]

My top three:

Q. Easily a no-brainer. Based in part on Trelane, Q has a much greater (and better*) origin and brings in an unpredictable edge all while predictably teaching John-Luck Pickhard a foible or two.

Garak being a close runner-up, who is pretty much Q but without the abilities to bend space and time. Garak is a terrific example of how to ground a character trope that was being used in the progenitor show by some ultradimensional being.

Quark, as DS9 (thanks to Armin Shimerman and starting in the underrated story "Move Along Home" setting the stage) gave the Ferengi much-needed gravitas as the show they were borne from used them hamfistedly then discarded them. All that was needed was time, and an actor who embraced the role.


* until Voyager, his realm was untouched, and - even better, shocking but true: He didn't have mommy and daddy calling him in for supper at the end of the story

 

[BillJ]

Trelane and Harry Mudd (TOS).