10 Best Ever Romulan Stories In Star Trek

The Next Generation's third season offered a number of Romulan-centric episodes but none stands out more than The Defector. The episode centers on a fiercely patriotic Romulan Admiral named Jarok, who is chased through the neutral zone by a Warbird in a stunning opening scene.

He rushes to make contact with the Federation to warn them of an imminent Romulan offensive, evidenced by the sudden movement of troops and the establishment of a military base close to the Federation side of the border. He is grilled by the Starfleet crew, ensuring that they know he is no traitor - he is merely tired of constant warfare.

However, it is all a ruse to draw out the disloyal factions of the Romulan military and the Enterprise is pulled into a trap by the charismatic Commander Tomalok. As he gloats over the Enterprise's defeat, he offers Captain Picard the chance to surrender and spare the lives of the crew. Romulan episodes have a tendency to have fantastic, stand out scenes. Picard smiles, nods to Worf and suddenly the three cloaked Klingon Birds of Prey that had been protecting the Enterprise de-cloak, thwarting Tomalok's plans. The Warbirds slink off to scheme another day.

The episode ends with the suicide of Admiral Jarok, despondent that his defection was for nothing. Picard and Data muse that, while Starfleet and the Romulan Empire may currently be enemies, a day may come in the future when they can set down arms and begin to trust each other.

The episode shows us both the loyal and honest Romulan side, along with the duplicitous and conniving side. While the latter would be the trait most often connected with the Empire, this episode and others like it went a long way to giving the Romulans a greater depth than they had enjoyed on TOS.