10 Most Unexpected Star Trek Moments
4. Tasha Yar Is Killed
Poor Denise Crosby. In the first season of Star Trek The Next Generation, Tasha Yar was introduced as the no-nonsense security chief, ready and willing to go into battle to protect the ship at all costs.
However, despite some very small scenes from time to time, nothing was particularly done with the character to give her more of a reason to exist, other than to push buttons and open hailing frequencies. So, deciding she had had enough, Crosby threw in the towel and told Roddenberry that she wanted to leave the show. He in turn felt that killing off the character would have the greatest impact on the audience.
In a way, it did. Yar is killed by Armus, the oily slick who is a manifestation of evil, for no reason. It is a sudden and ignoble ending to her character. That, of course, was the point - but it still came as too much of a gut punch for the audience. Thankfully, it would not be the last time that Denise Crosby appeared in the show...