Keeping Tasha

[Uncle Sock]

You have some great ideas. I'm all for getting Picard out as a regular and shifting things around. It's established early on that Picard has had a very full career as a captain, IIRC, twenty-two years. He then spent nine years on special missions before the Enterprise-D. I could see Picard finally accepting a promotion in season one or two and promoting Riker to captain. Both of them would actually have true character development in this way which was, of course, anathema to the writers/producers.

I like the idea of Yar as XO, too. She and Riker would have been an interesting command duo.

Interesting. I would’ve kicked out Riker, but I can definitely see Picard getting reassigned. And honestly, that might’ve worked out way better. Having Riker in command of another ship could’ve created all sorts of story problems. But if Picard had been promoted to admiral, he could’ve still shown up occasionally—maybe even as the occasional "Badmiral." He could’ve stuck around, if that’s what Patrick Stewart wanted.

Now that Riker’s the new captain, I’m getting some Riker-Shelby vibes from this setup. Except Riker actually trusts Yar, and she’s probably nothing like Shelby. But she could have been.

 

[Shamrock Holmes]

...although making Worf the new CMO could have worked to both hilarious and possibly profound effect (the most obvious problem being he likely has no real experience with medicine).

Well, he is the only non-"blue shirt" cast member that we know has any kind of medical training (roughly to EMT level, including emergency childbirth!), so there's that.

You have some great ideas. I'm all for getting Picard out as a regular and shifting things around. It's established early on that Picard has had a very full career as a captain, IIRC, twenty-two years. He then spent nine years on special missions before the Enterprise-D.

Pretty much. We know that he spend between 2333 and 2355 in command of the Stargazer (which means he was a Captain by title and rank), and that he took command of the E-D in '64. His activities during the timeskip are largely unknown canonically and highly inconsistent in tie-in media but we know that he spent the bulk of it not on a starship (per a comment in Rascals he has spent roughly thirty years of a forty-two year career on starships to that date).

I like the idea of Yar as XO, too. She and Riker would have been an interesting command duo.

Now that Riker’s the new captain, I’m getting some Riker-Shelby vibes from this setup. Except Riker actually trusts Yar, and she’s probably nothing like Shelby. But she could have been.

Shelby does seem to be another bite at that apple (I've sometimes commented that Yar seems like the Second Officer at least as often if not more than Data does in S1), but IMO Yar would've had an easier time of because of the trust factor as you suggest.

 

[Riley]

I'll disagree that 20 episode seasons still work.
There's a lot of women that binge Grey's anatomy, and there's a lot of men that Binge House.
Also, Odo may not have pop culture appeal...but Worf does, and a good chunk of Worf's arc is on DS9.
Also, James Gunn isn't creatively bankrupt, I enjoy the hell out of James Gunn and Troma.
Suicide Squad and Superman were more fun than the depression in movies I've seen in a movie theater in 10 years.

That’s pretty sad, but true. Kirk wasn’t an essential part of the story at all and for me that’s kind of unforgivable. He should have been integral and not a cherry on top. Such a disservice to a truly iconic character.



Am I misremembering or did the actress who played Picard’s wife in the Nexus play the crew member who had lost her husband (and who had to endure Troi’s insufferable histrionics) in “The Loss”? Maybe she was still on board and they could have made a new life together?

Seeing how utterly toxic the Picard/Crusher relationship was in PIC completely soured me on that pairing. Retrospectively and forever!

Interesting. I would’ve kicked out Riker, but I can definitely see Picard getting reassigned. And honestly, that might’ve worked out way better. Having Riker in command of another ship could’ve created all sorts of story problems. But if Picard had been promoted to admiral, he could’ve still shown up occasionally—maybe even as the occasional "Badmiral." He could’ve stuck around, if that’s what Patrick Stewart wanted.

Now that Riker’s the new captain, I’m getting some Riker-Shelby vibes from this setup. Except Riker actually trusts Yar, and she’s probably nothing like Shelby. But she could have been.

She definitely could have developed some Shelby-like traits...of course, with Berman involved, you couldn't have too much conflict between the Starfleet crewmembers. All the tension Riker and Shelby had went out the airlock once she stuck around longer than one episode. The tension between Riker and Ro went the same route. Yar wouldn't have been much different.

Well, he is the only non-"blue shirt" cast member that we know has any kind of medical training (roughly to EMT level, including emergency childbirth!), so there's that.

Shelby does seem to be another bite at that apple (I've sometimes commented that Yar seems like the Second Officer at least as often if not more than Data does in S1), but IMO Yar would've had an easier time of because of the trust factor as you suggest.

Agreed. I think Data was seen as a capable science and Ops officer but his role as second officer was not given much attention early on. He was often on away team missions in the early seasons and command went to LaForge if Picard and Riker were gone. "Measure of A Man" changed all of that in a sterling example of the kind of rich character development the series should have mainted throughout its seven years.

 

[Mojochi]

I really like the suggestion in this thread that La Forge still could’ve become chief engineer while Worf stepped in as the permanent helmsman. That’s not something I would’ve thought of myself. The downside is that Worf probably wouldn’t have gotten much character growth in that role.

I'm not sure that's true. I get the sense the writers were quite eager to explore Klingons, even putting Worf at the center of Heart of Glory in S1. They were the one legacy alien species from TOS that hadn't been deliberately shunned, because its latest incarnation was now associated with the film franchise. It was that movie momentum they were trying to build on, & in some ways, distance themselves from what was seen as the hokey 60s show aesthetic. Its the main reason Worf was put in there at all. It was recognizably Modern Star Trek

I think it was inevitable that Worf would get development, wherever he landed, due to the alienness appeal. It was mandated that Wesley would (due to Roddenberry) & it was inescapable that fan favorites Data & Picard would. TBH, Crosby was probably right about her character, potentially falling off in presence, after she'd turned out to be the least interesting of everybody there in season one imho, except maybe Beverly. (who was also dropped) I think Sirtis (who reportedly was also on the chopping block) only survived by being gorgeous, exotic, & doing weirdly alien things. (Plus Majel was playing her mom)

I really can't see the writing team wanting Worf in engineering. Geordi was virtually a walking advertisement for techno-plot, wearing that visor around. He, more than anyone but Data, represented the science aesthetic of the cast. Worf was a shoe-in for some kind of bridge duty IMHO. It showcased the progressiveness of modern Starfleet, a Klingon now being there.

They really overcrowded that main cast, up front. Riker mostly got placed as a young leading man type, to Picard's elder statesman, archetype, a holdover from Phase II's Decker/ Kirk planned dynamic. There was way more overlap there than I think they figured on, because Stewart surprisingly turned out to have unexpected sex appeal with the audience.

I really think Tasha was the obvious poor fit. It wouldn't be until Ro Laren, until they'd figure out the right way to write the strong woman archetype. Tasha, in that dynamic, always fell flat, played campy, or looked phony. I think she could see the writing on the wall. Most of the other ensemble players were way more interesting. Heck, even Yesterday's Enterprise, as interesting a plot as it was, couldn't find much for her, throughout its run-time, except a lame romance, & figuring out her fate from Guinan, factors which IMHO held even that episode back some.

If she's stayed, she'd have likely been the one who went underdeveloped, & maybe Worf would've moved up to helm & Wes would've gotten his tutelage from Geordi in engineering, with input from Riker, or at the bridge work stations, upstage. He could've easily did science things back there, in his silly jumper lol