Killing off Will Riker

[trothmaster]

I agree that Riker should have been given a new command in the Movies. Killing off Riker during the time period when TNG aired would have been super ahead of their time. DS9 could have gotten away with that (sort of did killing off dax!)!

 

[CaptainMatt]

As to to the episode in question ("Second Chances") I was suprised Tom Riker was not killed off. I never knew about the other plans for having him replace the Will Riker we all know and love.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

I think in a hindsight, fanwanking kind of way it's a good idea. In reality, it would have been a cheap gimmick. Kind of like the whole B4 thing was. To me that just screamed "Ok, we'll kill off Data but we'll keep this B4 guy in our pocket just in case this movie makes a lot of money and we can get Brent Spiner to agree to another one."

And, why would Tom Riker automatically go to the Enterprise? Heck, I'd think that would be the last place Starfleet would assign him if Will Riker was killed.

 

[doubleohfive]

you want real character development without much effort? every few episodes after BoBW have riker get a priority 1 communication from earth. each time we see a little more of the message and/or interaction with a secretive admiral. keep it vague but then later on we find out that riker is the mole for starfleet keeping an eye on the former borg/reformed JLP.

explains why riker doesnt leave, sets up the beginning of FC and gives character development all in one fell swoop. hell even make the "admiral" part of section 31.

of course this is hindsight...

Theory subscribed to by myself.

That was a cool idea. You also could have done something like "the Pegasus" a lot earlier in TNG, thereby creating a disciplinary scenario where Riker CAN'T become a captain for a long time and so must remain an XO on the Enterprise. That way it doesn't look absurd for him staying so long considering his ambition, plus it gives the character some bitterness.

No.

That might have worked on DS9 or even possibly somehow on Voyager or Enterprise, but not TNG. And, as I said before, it flies in the face of and contradicts what TNG was about. Dislike.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

That was a cool idea. You also could have done something like "the Pegasus" a lot earlier in TNG, thereby creating a disciplinary scenario where Riker CAN'T become a captain for a long time and so must remain an XO on the Enterprise. That way it doesn't look absurd for him staying so long considering his ambition, plus it gives the character some bitterness.

This idea I like. And later on both DS9 (Worf) and VOY (Paris) do similar "you're in trouble and now you can't be promoted" storylines. I doubt TNG would have had the guts to sully one of their regulars like that, though, even though I think Riker would have played it well. Could have given him lots of reasons to go sit on Troi's couch

 

[BruntFCA]

I wish they had gone this route, would have been an interesting shake up for a rather run of the mill season.

 

[Dr. Crusher]

I think one of the primary things that TNG lacked was character change and development. Episodes in certain characters' lives should have affected them for more than one show. Worf could have been compromised for a longer time by his spinal injury in "Ethics," for example. Geordi's Starfleet-oriented family only comes up in one, very late, episode. Lal's appearance as Data's "daughter" has no effect on anything or anyone after her one feature.

Killing off Will Riker would have been a very interesting change, and changes like this were definitely lacking during the series. One of the most unrealistic things was the fact that the show, over seven seasons, really was without major character shifts and life-changing events. Granted, Picard's experience with the Borg regularly returned to haunt him, and that made for some very interesting, personal, character development. I just wish that the writers had taken the same approach with any one of a number of other, similiar opportunities with other cast members.

 

[sonak]

I think one of the primary things that TNG lacked was character change and development. Episodes in certain characters' lives should have affected them for more than one show. Worf could have been compromised for a longer time by his spinal injury in "Ethics," for example. Geordi's Starfleet-oriented family only comes up in one, very late, episode. Lal's appearance as Data's "daughter" has no effect on anything or anyone after her one feature.

Killing off Will Riker would have been a very interesting change, and changes like this were definitely lacking during the series. One of the most unrealistic things was the fact that the show, over seven seasons, really was without major character shifts and life-changing events. Granted, Picard's experience with the Borg regularly returned to haunt him, and that made for some very interesting, personal, character development. I just wish that the writers had taken the same approach with any one of a number of other, similiar opportunities with other cast members.

TNG wasn't that kind of show, and television in general hadn't gotten to that point yet, other than exceptions like soap operas or "LA Law." TOS didn't do continuing storylines either.

 

[Uxi]

At first, professional advancement was his main purpose in life. But after awhile, his crew mates became his family and he didn't want to leave them, especially Troi, of course, who he was still in love with.


What *should* have happened is that Riker should have been given his own command during TNG's movie run.

If he was really as ambitious as we were told, he SHOULD have taken a command sometime after Best of Both Worlds when it was first being offered. Replace him with Shelby and have him back for the oddball guest star role.

I still like the idea of Paramount calling Steward's bluff and having Picard die as Locutus the best, though.

 

[Tina Lawton]

I think Picard should have actually still been under the influence of the Borg in the episode I Borg when he said "I am Locutus of Borg". That would have been cool.