Star Trek: 20 Supporting Characters That Deserved More

20. Thomas Riker

Thomas Riker became everyone's favourite transporter clone after his discovery in Second Chances. No citations needed; it's just common knowledge. The result of a transporter accident that beamed one Riker safely back to his ship and left another stranded on an abandoned outpost, he later chose to go by his middle name, Thomas (and for our sanity, that's what we'll call him from here on out).

Thomas got off to a rough start, spending eight years marooned alone, struggling to survive. And his reward? Butting heads with his other self when he was finally rescued.

We can't blame Thomas for being a little bitter. While Thomas was trying to scrape a meal together without a replicator and presumably making small talk with a face drawn onto a ball, Will was given a promotion, became the first officer of the Federation flagship, and ended their relationship with Deanna Troi.

While we did get to enjoy a brief flirtation between Thomas and Deanna, he ultimately decided to forge a new path for himself elsewhere in the fleet. The next time we see him, he's hijacking the Defiant from Deep Space Nine as part of a cunning Maquis plot. Unfortunately, his new life as a freedom fighter was cut short when he was taken prisoner by the Cardassians.

And then Thomas sort of just disappears.

We know he's still out there, somewhere, and we would love to see another chapter for this troubled doppelgänger. The character deserves better than to have a Cardassian prison sentence be his last hurrah. Maybe Thomas escaped prison, perhaps Kira busted him out...either way, we love this roguish Riker, and we definitely want to see more.