Ooft. It’s a bleak week indeed when we lose not just one, but two of the Enterprise crew. Following a quiet couple of weeks, October finishes in an absolute bloodbath, with eleven confirmed hits this week, six coming on the 28th alone. But these two stand out the most, so they’re getting special mention before I summarize the rest.
Walter Koenig was the first to go, who was best known as TOS navigator Ensign Pavel Chekov. He was introduced in the second season in part to address the lack of a Russian character among the international ideals the series was aiming for, but also in part to Walter’s resemblance to The Monkees pop band heartthrob Davy Jones. It sadly didn’t lead to much of an uptake in the ratings amongst teenage girls but Koenig absolutely won the hearts of the emerging Trek fandom with his unabashed charm, charisma and exaggerated but oh-so-adorable accent. He reprised the role in all six of the TOS movies, getting a promotion to Commander and being one of the bridge crew to mournfully set the OG Enterprise on it’s sacrificial last journey. Koenig also appeared at the start of the first TNG movie Generations, handing over the big screen torch alongside Shatner and Doohan.
His television roles after Trek ended were few and far between with the highlight being a recurring role on Babylon 5. He also went into both script and book writing alongside teaching in acting and directing, all while rocking a fedora even better than Harrison Ford can. He scored five for as many teams with the biggest benefactor Cardavers reaching tenth place on the theme board. Koenig’s death leaves only the seemingly immortal William Shatner and the sadly far more ailing George Takei alive from the principal TOS cast.
While the remaining stars from that pioneering original series dwindle, it’s also sadly time to say goodbye to the first major cast member from sequel series The Next Generation. Completely out of the blue, Sir Patrick Stewart aka Captain Jean-Luc Picard has passed away at the age of 86 and led to a deluge of tributes from his long, long career across television, film and theatre. Drama was always his dream, holding a lifelong love of Shakespeare and theatre alongside his move to the small screen with well regarded roles in I Claudius and Tinker Taylor Solder Spy in the 70’s.
But it was Trek where he would ultimately find the most well known of his many roles. Cast as the shiny-headed captain of the shiny new Enterprise-D in 1987 for Paramount’s bold attempt to bring the show back, TNG had a notoriously rocky start and Patrick himself was so convinced the show was doomed he never bothered booking out of his hotel for the first year. The gravitas he brought to the role would become one of the key lifelines that managed to keep it going until the show found consistent critical and commercial success in Season 3. Even those early days had their highlights with The Measure of a Man frequently cited as a masterclass. But for me, it’ll always be Darmok that comes to mind when I think of Trek. Does the inability of the Federation cracking the language barrier make much sense when you think of it? No, not really. But the message of opening your mind and finding common ground with people who have such a different mindset from you is the real point, and about as inspiring as you can get in my book.
He reprised the part for all four TNG movies and came back for the three-season run of Picard in 2020, though both were very hit and miss. His Hollywood career was of course also dominated by his other most well known role, Professor Charles Xavier of Fox’s X-Men movie adaptations, starting in 2000 and finishing posthumously in the upcoming MCU’s Doomsday, which will serve as his final role. Safe to say it’s likely opening with a dedication now! Not on the radar of many at all, following a brief and undisclosed battle with both Alzheimer’s and Lewy Body Dementia, the bald titan of drama scores six points for eight teams in total.
Both actors appeared in Trek for the last time in Picard’s finale, with Walter having a vocal cameo as President Anton Chekov in what would serve as the far better send off for the TNG cast than they got with 2002’s Nemesis. Long-running science fiction has always had the ability to reach across the generations and hearing a Chekov give a rallying cry of hope against the darkness before our final goodbye with the D’s bridge crew playing cards can easily feel more like family than fandom. So goodbye chaps. And thanks for all the adventures!
“I know if my father were here, he’d remind us all that hope is never lost. There are always possibilites. Until then, I implore you: Save Yourselves. Farewell”
Walter Koenig
September 14 1936 – October 25 2026
5 Teams 💀💀💀💀💀 = 5 Points
“The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably…”
Sir Patrick Stewart
July 13 1940 – October 28 2026
8 Teams 💀💀💀💀💀💀 = 6 Points