10 PERFECT Scenes In Hated Star Trek Episodes
4. Riker's Last Chat With Trip - These Are The Voyages
This is an episode that divided fans upon release and has only continued to inspire grumbles in the years that have followed. As a finale, These Are The Voyages does everything wrong, centering the action and the narrative on characters who distract from our main cast. The coup de grâce is, of course, the needless death of Trip Tucker.
When one accepts the presence of Riker on the NX-01, it’s actually quite a fun idea to have him serve as the chef. This chef adopts much the same role as Philip Boyce’s doctor aboard the Enterprise - that is, he is a confidant as much as anything else. As Riker is experiencing events from history somewhat out of order on the holodeck, we the audience see Trip die, which is later followed by a final conversation between the engineer and Riker’s chef.
It’s short and poignant, full of the life that Conner Trinneer brought to the role for four years. Here, Trip stands in for the show as a whole. It is not simply Trip who has died or will die, but it is Enterprise itself. In true Star Trek fashion, this death is overshadowed by the hope for a new life. Watching the scene on first release, the gloomy air of events may have taken away from this, but these elements have only strengthened in the decades that have passed. The franchise faded, then returned with a bang, having gone from strength to strength ever since.
Cheers to you, Trip.