Ensemble Dark Horse / Star Trek

• Star Trek: The Original Series:
  • Hikaru Sulu's popularity has gone way up in recent years, in no small part due to George Takei's newfound prominence as a civil rights activist. Having an insane number of followers on Facebook and Twitter doesn't hurt either.
  • Harcourt Fenton "Harry" Mudd was so popular after the episode "Mudd's Women" that he was brought back for a rematch with the crew in "I, Mudd". This was a huge deal at the time, as TV shows were expected to maintain strict Status Quo Is God with every episode being completely understandable on its own (remember that this was before the invention of any way to record off a television, meaning literally the only way to see an episode was to turn on the TV right as it aired, and if you happened to miss one you could only pray that it showed up in reruns). He also came back in an episode of the animated series, and was even going to be brought forward in time in The Next Generation before Roger C. Carmel's untimely death. And then he was brought back on Discovery, played by Rainn Wilson.
  • Dr. M'Benga only appeared in two episodes, but he remains a very popular character in part because he was one of the few Black characters in the show. He appeared in major roles in several non-canon novels and would go on to be one of the main characters of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation:
  • Both Data and Worf came to share the spotlight with Picard among fans. Originally the series focused more on Picard, Riker and Dr. Crusher.
  • Then, there's Miles O'Brien, a completely minor character, but got so much fan attention, he became a main character in Deep Space Nine.
  • Q seems to have a good fanbase despite him appearing in only eight episodes on TNG and then four episodes outside of it. Because of his popularity Q also made more appearances in Star Trek Lower Decks and Star Trek Picard season 2.
  • Lore, Data's psychopathic "twin brother". Only appeared in four episodes, but he's beloved by the fans both for allowing Brent Spiner to show off the sheer range of his acting talent and because the character is so damn fun to watch.
  • Reg Barclay, who was initially written as a one-shot character but then kept coming back, ended up featuring briefly in Star Trek: First Contact, and played a significant recurring role in Voyager.
  • Ro Laren, big time. She made such an impact that both Deep Space Nine and Voyager used the Bajor/Cardassia/Maquis political situation as jumping-off points, and Kira Nerys and B'Elanna Torres were both Suspiciously Similar Substitutes for her when Michelle Forbes twice turned down the opportunity to reprise the character. Ro appeared in all of eight episodes. However, she has since become a more Base-Breaking Character for the exact thing that made her initially famous - her brash personality. Turning traitor and joining the Maquis didn't help her image, either.
  • The Borg as far as alien species go. Talk about the famous aliens in the franchise, they're bound to be among them, rivaling the popularity of the Klingons and Romulans (and arguably more well known than the latter), and they only appear in four episodes in this series and one movie. They got featured more prominently in Voyager, though in that they suffered from massive Villain Decay.
  • For specific Borg, there's Hugh, who, in a time on television where one-off characters were rare, was popular enough to be brought back for two episodes afterwards and then reappears in Picard, almost thirty years later.
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine:
  • Morn. We nearly always saw him sitting silently at the bar having a drink, but his popularity was immense. Lampshaded in one episode where Morn was away from the station on business and Quark installed a hologram of him because people didn't come to the bar as much when Morn was absent. He never speaks on screen. He is frequently described as talking Quark's ear off every chance he gets, we learn that he has troubles with his mother, and an episode dedicated to his seeming death reveals that he practiced bat'leth with Worf and used to be a successful bank robber. He also has a lovely singing voice.
    • On his way to Parody Sue, it's also revealed in this episode that Dax wanted to start an intimate relationship with him but he wasn't interested. In Dax.
    • To drive it home, when Star Trek Online launched Morn wasn't there. Massive whining ensued until Cryptic added him.
    • He ends up saving the day in the Dominion Occupation arc by smuggling out a message (in a present for his mother no less).
  • Garak. His impeccable sense of sarcasm, flippant cynicism and contrast with the Starfleets, combined with his Mysterious Past and excellent focus episodes, make him a favorite among Niners.
  • There's also Weyoun, a secondary villain whose great acting and great lines have caused no small amount of gushing even on This Very Wiki.
    • Jeffrey Combs' first job as Weyoun was so impressive, the producers came up with the idea of Vorta cloning for the sole reason of bringing him back.
  • The same goes for J. G. Hertzler, who played Martok. He did such a good job in "The Way of the Warrior" that he was brought back for "Apocalypse Rising" and, instead of having him be disposed of by the Changeling impersonator who died at the end of the episode, the writers and producers decided to have the real Martok show up later on in the season; he went on to become a fairly important supporting character.
  • Damar. Initially little more than a generic Cardassian bad guy who even his own actor thought was just an extra, the character's sense of honor and quiet charisma earned him some of the most radical Character Development in all of Star Trek, going from simply being Dukat's lapdog to eventually leading the Cardassian rebellion against the Dominion.
  • Grilka, Quark's Klingon love interest, has quite a fandom despite only appearing twice.
  • The 'Jack Pack' were pretty well liked as well.
  • Lenara Kahn appeared only in "Rejoined", but she's well-remembered to this day, especially on Tumblr and other fan sites, for being one of the first LGBT character in Star Trek (okay, kind of) and her sweet relationship with Dax.
  • In spite of only appearing in one episode and dying at the end of it, Marritza is rather popular for being one of the most complex and tragic one-off Star Trek characters, and the episode he appeared in is widely cited as the pint where DS9 started Growing the Beard.
  • Senator Vreenak, despite only appearing in one episode and dying at the end of it, is one of the most popular one-shot characters in the series for his glorious hamminess.
    It's a faaaaaake.
• Star Trek: Voyager:
  • A case can be made for the holographic Doctor. He had some of the most consistent writing, compared to, say, Janeway (whose actress had serious trouble figuring out her motivations episode by episode), and Robert Picardo actually enjoyed his role while most of the others were at best staying on for the cheque.
    • The Doctor is this trope In-Universe, as he's originally just an emergency supplement for regular medical staff but ends up the CMO and generally well-liked by the crew.
  • Seven of Nine. Which is impressive, since at first glance, she looks like Ms. Fanservice incarnate — but lucky for her character, Jeri Ryan can act.
  • It may surprise some of you to know that Harry Kim has a not-insignificant fandom. For as much as Trekkies tease or lament his static portrayal, it's because he's such a lovable loser that some fans flock to him, to say nothing of his Undying Loyalty.
  • Lieutenant Ayala. His character article on Memory Alpha is lengthy, spanning all seven seasons, but most of the images of him are of a blurry guy in the background... which is exactly why he's got his own fanbase now, and makes frequent appearances in fanfic. He's the longest-running extra in Star Trek only speaking in four of the 123 episodes he appeared in, and the feat of surviving all seven seasons of Voyager as a bit character has made him popular.
• Star Trek: Enterprise:
  • Recurring Andorian character Shran, who, had there been a 5th season, would have been promoted to main cast member status due largely to his popularity. It helped that he was played by Trek veteran actor Jeffrey Combs.
  • Charles "Trip" Tucker III — so much so that when his character dies in the Series Finale "These Are the Voyages", it was retconned in the Expanded Universe novel, "The Good That Men Do".
  • Despite the (not-unjustified) hate surrounding the Temporal Cold War arc, Silik was generally agreed to be an effective villain. His unnamed boss, on the other hand...
  • Archer's dog, Porthos, doesn't figure into plots too much, and maybe that's a good thing considering "A Night In Sickbay," but who cares because he's a good lil' doggo! Yes he is! So good!
• Star Trek: Discovery:
  • Captain Philippa Georgiou. More than one viewer was disappointed that she was killed in the second episode instead of being a series regular, and many were delighted when she returned as the incredibly badass and well-dressed Terran Emperor.
  • Lieutenant Commander Airiam, the Robot Girl who subverts the Bridge Bunny trope by virtue of her insistence on being addressed by rank.
  • Anson Mount's take on Captain Pike was so popular that fans even petitioned CBS for a spinoff detailing Pike and Spock's adventures on the Enterprise before the former handed it over to Captain Kirk. On May 15, 2020, CBS announced it had given the green light to such a spinoff, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
• Star Trek: Picard:
  • Hugh, a recurring character, is so beloved by the fandom that he not only beat 30 other characters to make it to the final round of the Star Trek World Cup Twitter poll, but he emerged as the victor because he earned more votes than Jean-Luc Picard (an icon of the franchise, no less!). His actor Jonathan Del Arco wants to know when he'll receive his crown.
  • The appearances of Picard's Romulan housekeeper Laris in the first season made her popular enough that she got bumped up to being his love interest in the second season.
• Star Trek: Lower Decks:
  • Dr. T'Ana quickly became a fan-favorite thanks to her hilariously grouchy demeanor and memorable one-liners. Her being an alien cat lady doesn't hurt either.
  • Jennifer the Andorian became popular in season 1, despite having no lines, due to her human-sounding name and implied rivalry with Mariner, neither of which got any explanation. She ascends to Mauve Shirt status in Season 2 with a regular voice actor, a snarky personality, and a Ship Tease with Mariner after saving the latter's life in the season finale.
  • AGIMUS, both thanks to being voiced by Trek veteran Jeffrey Combs and being a hilariously hammy spoof of the franchise's frequent use of evil AIs as villains.