10 Most Unexpected Star Trek Moments
1. The Defiant Is Destroyed
Star Trek had sacrificed main 'hero' ships before, yet usually it came at the end of their long careers. The original Enterprise self-destructs after twenty years of service, burning in the atmosphere of the Genesis Planet (it would have been really nice if that hadn't been spoiled!). The Enterprise-D was destroyed in Star Trek Generations, which again felt like an organic, if sad, ending for the vessel - going out in spectacular style.
The loss of the USS Defiant was something else entirely.
Coming as the Dominion War was reaching its final days, the producers knew that they had to do something to prove to the audience that the Federation wasn't out of the water yet. They knew that this close to the end, they weren't going to kill off a main character, so instead the USS Defiant was put on the block.
The scene is startling and upsetting, as the tough little ship that had weathered so many disasters along the way was taken out in the opening moments of the, admittedly brief, battle with the Breen-Dominion Alliance. It is hard to believe that this happened, even if Starfleet replaced her soon after with the USS Sao Paolo.
This scene stands as one of the biggest shocks in all of Star Trek, hitting the viewer right in the heart each and every time.
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