Maybe have her as a love interest for Harry two shoes. A guy that is gung ho starfleet rah rah, and a girl that has a low opinion of it, and showing its not all sunshine and lolipops, but it also isn't all dour and leaving behind people. Explain that they thought she was dead, so didn't look for her. Show her overcomming her distrust/disdain for starfleet. I can say stuff like this for almost any character.. The "reset" at the end of every episode really killed the possibility of growth and character building..
Lieutenant Barclay He did end up showing up after Projections, teaming up with Counselor Troi, but I remember seeing trailers for Projections, showing him walking around Voyager. I thought, "That's cool!" I loved the idea that Lt. Barclay was a member of Voyager's crew and showed up, just like on TNG, when the plot called for him. Imagine my disappointment when he was just a hallucination on The Doctor's part
Barclay was such a great character. Most TNG characters were like the people we wished we were. Barclay was a guy who didn't have everything together. He struggled at work, had trouble with relationships, and needed fantasies to get through the day.
I wondered about Sito too initially but I thought it might cheapen her death. But if they had brought her on Voyager I wonder how they'd play the Sito and Tom Paris stuff since her former squad member Nick Locarno was also played by Robbie McNeill. Do you just ignore it, or change Tom to Nick, or do you recast Shannon Fill as some new Bajoran character with a similar backstory, in the same way Nick was changed to Tom but had a similar backstory? I think there would be some cool dramatic potential if both Nick and Sito had turned up on Voyager and how their prior relationship would affect things going forward.
For me, Keiko O'Brien. I thought a botanist would've been a nice addition to Voyager especially where the ship ended up. I'd like to see another TNG character, a supporting character, had a larger role in a spin-off series. DS9 didn't have much for her to do when the kids all grew up. I would have her video a journal of her findings, misfortunes, and love messages to Miles and her daughter Molly, although she would be lost in space and no determining she'll ever see her family again but her spirit would not allow her to accept defeat. I've already written some indie stories of Keiko leaving Miles and going on her adventures with a small crew along with her daughter and son exploring the Gamma Quadrant, I believe there would be room on Voyager to produce a greenhouse and have stories about alien plants and micro-lifeforms which could cause some trouble in and off the ship. I also think with Keiko added to the crew it would only help the development of Kes, a character I thought was never utilized correctly. The connection would be Keiko may put Kes under her wing as a surrogate mother and help her along the way of figuring out what she is as a life form. Keiko is a go getter, in the first season of DS9 she would push ideas to be more involved within confines of the station and was successful and I wouldn't doubt she could organize her own botanist team to assist with alternative organic foods to help Neelix or other sciences to assist the tasks driven by the EMH. I'm a big fan of the character and the actress, plus she would be important to the crew if written appropriately. What do you think, Bry_Sinclair?
I'd love to see Keiko on VOY, it would be great to see her as an individual without just being defined as a wife and mother. Of course there will be the "Keiko is a bitch" brigade who'd hate her, but she's an intelligent and forthright woman who fights her corner, she'd definitely teach Kes a lot and be a far bigger influence on her young life than the EMH.
I don't see them ever divorcing, but like when she left to go to Bajor for that expedition I could see her taking a posting on Voyager for a short-term mission only to find herself stranded in the DQ. It would be a great way to show the strains of separation between the crew and their loved ones, as this is a family we know whilst Tuvok, Wildman, Carey, Ayala, etc we weren't invested in what their loved ones were going through.
Keiko being separated from Miles and the kids would be especially tragic, because this was a family we saw grow: marriage, Molly's birth, transition to DS9, Keiko's departure and return, Yoshi's pregnancy, and assorted sorrows along the way.
Okay, I was thinking that as a possibility. Wasn't sure that was the intent. It would definitely be a heartbreaker for the audience, because we saw their relationship from the beginning of the marriage on up.
When I mention leaving Miles, I didn't mean her being separated, but not just being a STAY AT HOME wife - cooking odd Asian meals, but be somebody unlike Jake Sisko and that's being useful. What are you reading where you were NOT sure that was the intent??? Ridiculous.
When you had Keiko with the kids out exploring, it seemed like she left him. It's one thing for Keiko to go to Bajor, a relatively safe planet, but it's quite another to go out in deep space, particularly in the Gamma Quadrant where you have the Dominion. (Since you mentioned you had stories along that line.) That made it seem like the old trope of the mother having full custody of the kids and leaving.
You need to read my post more carefully because I mentioned Keiko was on Voyager WITHOUT the kids and she would send messages back to her family as a way of not giving up, and my mentioning of fan story was totally separate. Your comment was ridiculous.
Somehow I like the idea of O'Brien on board (not necessarily to actually see him himself), going from one assignment where all the action is to the next; the poor guy doesn't seem to be able to catch a break! Or how dynamics would have been with a less known Vorta on board (let's say Kilana). (How she'd end up there would of course be a challenge for the writers). As there is probably nothing worth to really fight over for the next 70 years, would they have some kind of armistice, gradually developing into some limited form of trust? Also (although offtopic, I suppose because a character introduced on Voyager) I'm curious how Lt. Stadi would have been as a recurring character.
Mot the barber instead of Neelix. Maybe the hair salon is the place everyone goes instead of the Messhall. lol