10 Star Trek Characters Who Have Appeared In The Most Shows
Seeking out new life, new civilisations, and the same old familiar faces.
Whether they sit in the captain's chair or clear out the Jeffries tubes, Star Trek is a series that is built upon its characters.
Whether you're a staunch advocate of The Original Series, a Delta Quadrant aficionado, or desperately trying to get your fill of tea, earl grey, hot, everyone has their favourite Trek. It's not necessarily the fantastical worlds or the...ambitious...special effects that lead people to gravitate to a certain series though. What people take to their hearts most often is the characters. Watching them succeed, stumble, quip or rage, for every single member of Starfleet and their supporting players there is at least one member of the public out there who will call that one their favourite.
Yes, even Wesley Crusher.
It's no surprise then, that the creators and show runners will often take the opportunity to use an old character and bring them back in a follow up series. This can be in the form of a cameo, an extended arc or, in the case of some on this list, a full blown revival as a member of the main cast. Some may be fleeting, some may be more, but these are the faces we love to watch time and time again.
10. Miles O'Brien - 3
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Lower Decks
We kick off the list with perennial fan favourite and long suffering everyman Chief Miles Edward O'Brien.
Introduced to fans in a supporting role onboard the Enterprise in The Next Generation, standing patiently at the transporter console awaiting instructions, O'Brien proved to be a favourite among both fans and writers, largely thanks to a wonderfully understated performance by Colm Meaney.
O'Brien would go on to marry Keiko Ishikawa and have a daughter, Molly, before being posted to DS9 to serve as Chief of Operations/Chief Engineer throughout the show's seven years. Now promoted to the opening credits, O'Brien served as the empathetic working man amongst the fantastical officers, and would routinely go through a traditional 'O'Brien must suffer' episode each season as writers put him through the ringer of emotional traumas.
Although this would be the last in-person appearance of the Irish Chief, he would get his name check as ‘the most important man in the history of Starfleet, complete with a golden hologram of him at his transporter console, in Lower Decks. As far as the Star Trek fandom, whose Facebook group ‘The Same Photo of Chief O’Brien Everyday’ has amassed half a million likes, this assessment is bang on the mark.