Kai Winn not only never got a visit from the prophets and never spoke to them, it gets hilarious when you realize Quark did get to 😂

The Soong family Y chromosome is magical. Every single male in that family, even over the course of centuries, looks exactly like Brent Spiner. Insane.

Another thing regarding Sisko and the Borg- It's never addressed directly, but one time I was looking at a Star Trek galactic map and realized one of the reasons he took the DS9 job was it put him and Jake about as far from Borg space as it was possible to be and still be in the Federation. I'm not saying he was running from the Borg, but it sure seems like S1 Sisko who had all this unresolved trauma was running from the Borg. PS- wow thanks for mentioning my comment! I wasn't expecting that. Very kind, and you hit on the point I was trying to make without letting myself get into the weeds, that the writers laid solid groundwork there whether intentional or not and that's one of the great things about how consistent DS9 characterization can be when it nails it.

Pike in Strange New Worlds is a case study in how you write a paragon. He is a pure hero, but still a complex person. The people making the next Superman movie need to take notes. A "Great Man" who is also a good man.

With Susie, she looks SO different in her roles, it's not surprising to overlook her. That's how versatile she is!

Borgified Lilipop was both my highschool wrestling name and my highschool garage band name.

You also missed the amazing Patricia Tallman who was in dozens of episodes in TNG, DS9 and Voyager though many of those were as background crew or very often as the stunt woman for actors like Gates McFadden, Nana Visitor and others. Though of coarse her best role was on Babylon 5 as Lita

I think the lesson here is we need a part 2 for most versatile star trek actors. I'd like to hear about these actors in the same format as part 1, with pictures.

Sounds like you need to do a "Versatile Star Trek Actors" part 2.

I regret to inform you that the hyper dimensional koala is not an original joke in Lower Decks but is instead a deeper cut easter egg for the genre of space opera as a whole. It is referencing the Schlock Mercenary webcomic where a near omniscient AI with the avatar of a koala, Petey, is a major character. Apparently one of the directors of lower decks, Meg Lloyd, is a friend of the comic's artist.

Now I've got the image in my head of Lilly saying "blow up the damn ship" and Sisko yelling "No!" and breaking the fishbowl and it's just so perfect because of Sisko's capacity to ham it up.

W. Morgan Sheppard was also in the Voyager episode "Bliss" as the guy who helped Voyager escape the pitcher plant!!!

Perhaps the most relatable Steve has ever been is referring to Hi-Res images as “Big Resolution” 😂

Paul Winfield was also Steven Franklin's dad in Babylon 5, did a great job with that role!

Complete side note: I love Quinto's delivery of, "Live Long and prosper," in that scene. I also really liked Ben Cross' (Sarek) reaction; it conveyed a mix of both disappointment at his son's choice, and admiration for sticking up for his mother and against those prejudiced assholes.

I've never noticed any issues with the upscaling, and I apologize that I had no idea how much extra work you go to to make a more visually-intersting video. I really appreciate the effort!

Re: versatile actors, shout out to Carolyn Seymour who played 3 (at least) roles in TNG - two of which she was the stand-out guest actor: a wide-eyed scientist in "First Contact" (episode, not movie), and the Romulan Commander in that episode where Troi is temporarily a Romulan.

Steve, I always enjoy these videos as much as the scripted content. It's fun, it's entertaining, and you were cracking me up when you kept reading the comments of who was forgotten. Then again, this is a franchise that has been around longer than I've been alive, so I think missing a few actors is to be expected. LLAP

From what I remember, Sisko was actually supposed to be in First Contact as a cameo, similar to how they integrated the EMH, Captain Janeway and Ethan Phillips from Voyager into the TNG movies. There was a scene being planned in his office on DS9 where he would've given Worf the order to take the Defiant and engage the Borg. It was cut out of the script, similarly to how Max Grodénchik's cameo was cut from Insurrection or Worf's explanation why he showed up on the Enterprise in Nemesis after how his character arc was resolved in DS9

22:00 What if Sisko got captured and began to get assimilated like Picard had been? Imagine getting an entirely new perspective and even some empathy for Picard's previous plight, allowing him to finally forgive the man and work with him to stop the threat.

W Morgan Shepherd was also the guy hunting the beast in Voyager's episode "Bliss" which is a really creepy Moby-Dick inspired episode.

Kind of surprised to hear that you don't think highly (not disliking, just not stanning) of "Living Witness." It's a very high episode both of _Voyager_ specifically and _Trek_ in general for me for both of the reasons you listed: the scenery-chewing villainous Mirror Universe-esque take on the crew but also the actual message of it. All while being a fairly good, if not groundbreaking, story as a whole.

I loved how the first half of Prodigy's first season functioned as a Trek primer for kids. Each episode focused on one aspect of Trek lore: the transporter, the Prime Directive, the Kobyashi Maru, etc. I wish it had come about ten years sooner so I could have used it to indoctrinate my kids. Six kids and I've only produced one decently hardcore Trekkie.

I like that Discovery has essentially written the Mirror Universe out of its continuity in Season 3 by saying the Universes are too far away now to really be able to have interactions between the two universes. This, of course coupled with the show sending Empress Georgiou back to the past pretty much wiped out any chance of another Mirror Universe from Disco without using some real gymnastics from the writers.

You got the moving on story in “All Good Things”. Worf and Riker had their own ships as did Dr, Crusher, whose ship was a special medical vessel. Picard was retired. Data was at Oxford. There were others I don’t remember specifically.

0:30 ... There have been a couple of cases of tainted Halloween candy, but they were done by people who knew the kids, usually family members, not strangers. However, when I was a kid, my dad used to 'test' the candy to make sure it was safe. We called it the Dad Tax. "You have a job. You can buy your own candy. Stop eating ours."

I forget if you included her in the original, but Diana Muldaur played Miranda Jones and Ann Mulhall on the original series, the latter of which gets possessed as well. Also Pulaski of course.

"Kirking out" verb 1. Creating turmoil or disturbing the status-quo in a group or community, then leaving, never to return. 2. Disrupting socio-political norms of a nation or culture, with the intent of improving things, then abandoning that nation or culture to develop on its own. 3. Stopping in for samples or hors d'oeuvre, then bouncing.

You should just make a pt2 or a redux...so many missed that it would make for a very good 2nd take...still think the top2 or 3 will not change, but still would make a great video!

WHY IS THE KOALA SMILING? WHAT DOES IT KNOW!?

I couldn't agree more with you and the comment about ST:SNW "Lift us Where Suffering Cannot Reach". I think there is another aspect to it though. Pike is portrayed as very much the classic Hero or Boy Scout type. That is fine, but there are only so many ways to portray that. The brilliance of that episode is that it reminds you that the result isn't everything. Your actions and motivations are important. That is what this episode is about. Pike does everything he can to help. He wants to save the First Servant but can't. As you pointed out, he is crushed by it. That IS the definition of a hero. We have the Medal of Honor. It has been awarded posthumously most of the time. Sometimes in battles and actions where the participant "lost". Being a hero isn't about swooping in to save the day. This episode in some small way explores that, and to me, that makes it powerful.

You forgot that W. Morgan Sheppard was also the "Captain Ahab" character who was hunting the Telepathic Pitcher Plant in Voyager.

This is why we love you, Steve. I knew fans would bring up other actors when I saw your most versatile actors episode. Lesser reviewers would have gotten defensive. You handled it with grace and humor

You know who was really good at characterization? Early sitcoms! The first time my father showed me an episode of "The Jack Benny Show," it was an episode where Jack Benny was going Christmas shopping. It didn't take long for my sister and me to realize where things were going, and it was still funny! The clerk in the episode was played by Mel Blanc, the original voice of Bugs Bunny, and watching it was so much fun! Modern show writers need to watch those old shows. They really knew how to give people a sense of what kind of people their characters were within minutes of them being introduced.

Regarding Sisko in First Contact... Sisko's conflict with the Borg was resolved with his interactions with the prophets. Once they helped him to move beyond his resentment for the loss of Jennifer, he seemed to be in a better place.

John Fleck has always been my favorite guest actor in Trek. Featured in significant speaking roles in every Trek series between TNG and Enterprise, he also turned up as a Krill on The Orville. His largest role was as the Suliban agent Silik across 8 episodes of Enterprise (even going undercover as a human in one outing to assist Archer on a mission). His finest hour was as the head of the Tal'Shiar, Koval in the DS9 Section 31 classic "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges". Oh, and he was the jerk in the shoe store in the 80's ZZ Top video for "Legs". 🤣

Living Witness is my favorite Voyager episode, and absolutely worth revisiting because of the moral stakes it presented, and how its resolution is the pure essence of what makes great Trek stories.

So the conclusion of the first part of this video might be that most, if not all, actors in Star Trek could be considered great, versatile actors.🤔😉

Having Sisko and O'Brien cameo on the movie would be nice, but anything more would clutter it too much, I agree here.

Only two roles (TNG and ENT), but I want to add the late Andreas Katsulas, since he was in so many other genre series (Babylon 5, Alien Nation, Millennium, etc).

damn! I was sure that the "forgotten actors" segment would end with the trolly responses about how Lucarno and Tom Paris were "very different" characters and a huge rant at the audience.

Always enjoys these Steve. I also remember Marc Alaimo playing the despicable officer Ryan in far beyond the stars as well as Jeffrey combs playing officer mulkahey. They were not nice characters.

Sounds like you need a part two.

Well, being up in the middle of the night has its perks - first!! 🤣

There obviously must be a cutoff for the amount of versatile actors who appeared in Star Trek, but another one that just came to mind is Lawrence Pressman. Lawrence Pressman plays one of my favorite characters, the Cardassian Tekeny Ghemor, who plays an amazing foil to Kira creating a realistic moment where she could come to respect a Cardassian. "Second Skin" is such a great and underappreciated episode. Lawrence also played Ambassador Krajensky in DS9 "The Adversary" who turns out to be a challenging (thus giving him a third role) in a solid action episode even though it is a lackluster season finale. I like how Pressman plays both a "villain" who turns out to be a kind, good man in Ghemor and an ambassador who turns out to be villainous.

I firmly believe that Louise Fletcher's acting gave the character of Kai Winn the impact that it had. She genuinely made you sick at times, BUT at the same time, there was a level of real humanity and inner conflict that almost redeemed her at times, and effectively conveyed the Winn religious hypocrisy, fanaticism, and conflict elements.

You still missed Brian Thompson! I may just always think of him because he's one of the few actors I can spot 100% of the time, no matter how much makeup.

An interesting (albeit slightly off-topic) thought I had while watching this and seeing your take on the idea of Sisko being on the Defiant in First Contact... I would like to see either a one-off special, or even a series exploring the What-if scenario (apologies to Marvel) whereby the Borg successfully defeat and assimilate the Federation, and so when the Dominion start to try to expand through the Bajoran Wormhole, they find an assimilated DS9 waiting for them...

My Favourite W Morgan Sheppard character is his role as the Soul Hunter in Babylon 5's first season. He completely *DEVOURS* the scenery in that role. So underrated.

Whoa I made the comment and response video! I just achieved a ‘before I turn 40 goal’ (4 weeks from today) I didn’t even know I had.

I think a Mirror universe movie would be fantastic, however I think there needs to be some rules put in place. Most importantly, it needs to take place 100% in the mirror universe, with nothing from the main universe. It needs to be a one off movie, that can stand alone, and never HAS to be visited again. It needs to have no impact on any of the main universe shows, movies, etc.

Jack Shearer: played a Bolian, a Romulan, and put on the admiral's uniform three times. Also Trigorin in _The Seagull._

"That just doesn't interest me" It's not all about you Steve ;P

I DEFINITELY agree with your comment on "who are the bridge crew of the Discovery". That's been my only complaint really (well, aside from the pacing issues) about Disco.

Ok now I want a movie where the Trek crew save the Lollipop guild from the Borg. Just to see the Enterprise invaded by little Borg.

Clint Howard also played the omnipotent child on that episode of the original series… he might have the record for being on the most actual Star Trek series

The re-write video got me thinking, and probably because it's nearing Halloween; what would one of the "ancient space object rtransforms the enterprise" episodes have been like if Tim Burton had done one? How cool would have the one with the temple have been? Or for that matter, what a about Phantasm's? Am I right?

@6:29 I'm so glad I finally know James Sloyan's name - I always referred to him as "Squinty"

Morgan Sheppard is one of my favorite "that guy" actors, he pops up all over the friggin place. I always think of him as the smoky computer man from SeaQuest DSV.

About Spiner, most people know if him as Data or relatives. He also played the first Borg in "Q-Who".

I wanted to make a comment about something you said in reference to "Lower Decks", and the "Easter eggs" they have within that are verging on the edge of insanity.... I don't know if I can articulate this properly, so bare with me.... I think "Lower Decks" has become a casualty of not only Star Trek's longevity, but it's ability to make call-backs as well. In the beginning- the 60s- no one knew from one moment to the next if the show was even going to be on next week, let alone next year, and so at the point where they were able to make some call backs/inside jokes, it was almost like this really cool thing to be a part of. If you had been there from the beginning, you were being rewarded with this tacit acknowledgement that the writer's see you, they appreciate you, and they're able to build a fuller, deeper lore because folks like you are watching, and invested. Then with the movies, spin-offs, video games, etc. the call-backs became these neat little "Easter eggs" that the fans were able to find and share, then find and gate-keep, then ultimately use to measure how much of a "fan" a person was by how many "Easter eggs" they could find. Now with "Lower Decks", I get the feeling that the writer's know that the Easter eggs have become out of hand across the franchise, and that so many "fans" are gate-keeping with whether or not someone knows what that title of that book on the second shelf behind the captain's desk in their Ready Room is referring to, so they are then lampooning the entire "Easter egg" premise and use, by including just an obnoxious amount, as well as quite a few recycled ideas, thus showing that there really is nothing exceptionally special within these Easter eggs and call-backs, and to build a show entirely on the premise is ridiculous.... there by coming full circle and showing in "Lower Decks" that to point out every single reference every single time is exhausting and not enjoyable when taken to the Nth degree.

Kirk leaving totally works! When he's gone, Spock has only himself and the thoughts they shared to guide him. Just like when a Trek fan finishes an episode and goes out into the world.

I liked the way you apologized to various commenters. Keep up the great work you do Steve. Take care everyone.

W. Morgan Shepherd was also in Voyager as the Ahab hunting the white whale, with that huge alien that tried to digest Voyager and the crew

Still no love for Andreas Katsulas? 😭

around 4:55 W. Morgan Sheppard he also played the older version of a character played by his son Mark that was met by Dr. Who .... both when he was younger then older though in the episode you meet the older version first (In the first and second episode of the 6th season of Dr Who in case anyone was wondering)

You still missed Barbara Babcock who on TOS had two onscreen roles (Mea 3, Philana) and 5 voice-over roles (Trelane's mother, The Beta 5 computer and Isis the Cat on the same episode, Tholian Commander Loskene, and the voice of the Zetarians).

Gotta keep in mind that all of Brent Spiner's Soongs are all basically the same person. The look, act, and sound the same. Not disparaging the actor of course, he did a great job making the androids more distinct. Also I don't think this was intended at the time, but it's since been explained in expanded universe materials that Macet is Dukat's cousin (explaining the resemblance). It's also explained that Macet is a much more honorable man and doesn't much care for his cousin. I know W. Morgan Sheppard from Doctor Who (along with his son Mark Sheppard).

I have always felt that Benjamin Sisko's tragic introduction with the Borg in episode one of DS9 was cool but didn't really impact the character going forward. It would have served the series better if Jennifer Sisko was lost in a terrible battle with the Cardassians during the conflict eluded to in TNG's The Wounded. We could have seen just how costly that war was to the Federation, and how Sisko's mistrust and anger towards the Cardassians colored his relations with them moving forward on DS9. His reluctance to accept that posting would made a lot of sense.

Shepherd also played in an episode on Babylon 5's first season. And did voice-over (with Charleston Heston) in episodes of War Stories, I believe from History Channel (also on KZfaq).

In addition to all the Soongs, Brent Spiner also played an entire panthoen of gods in the bizarre last season episode, "Masks." That episode doesn't get nearly enough hate :D

Brent Spiner could get a whole video on his own. ("The Soong Remains the Same"?)

You can add: Carolyn Seymour William Campbell Michelle Forbes Charles Napier

Your Pike failure explanation is spot on. After writing the TOS novel I always wanted to write, I found that always tying things off so no one dies and things work out justly, is boring. Now I'm working on rewrites and it's harder than I think it would have been if I had made a more realistic investment in my characters and arcs.

I dont think the problem is the mirror universe but at this point it only being the other universe they find.

Paul Winfield played the magic mirror in an ABC 80s sitcom called the Charmings! I don’t know why I didn’t realize that he was also Darmok! Possibly because those rolls probably couldn’t be any more opposite!

I've been enjoying Lower Decks but Steve is right about the Easter eggs . It makes the characters seem less like actual Star Trek Character and more like star trek fans who are living in the star trek universe.

Morgan Sheppard also played 2 characters on Babylon 5 (a Soul Hunter, and G'Sten, G'Kar's uncle)

Fun fact I didn't know until I watched st:tng inner light again... The theme song to Picard has parts of the song that young Batai plays in the background of a scene between Kamin and his wife. To me that's obscure, but also cool.

Hi Steve! I've been a long time fan, however this is my 1st time making a comment. I don't want to beat a dead horse, but I think you missed a key point in Sisko being in 1st contact. Sisko and Picard never had a chance to truly reconcile their relationship. Sisko could embody the Federation's feeling of Picard with the Borg - They don't trust him. So let's cut Lt Hawk and Ensign Lynch. Riker still commands Earth side, but Picard, Data, Worf, and Ben remain on the ship. Sisko and battle harden officer second guess Picard's every move. The 4 pair up, Picard and Data, Ben and Worf. Worf is trying to be diplomatic but Sisko isn't having it. Avery Brooks has never been scared to go dark or play the villain, so Sisko would be an "anti antagonist." At the end, It's Sisko, Picard and Data who fights the Borg Queen. But instead of Data, she wants Sisko - A war time Captain who knows how to defeat an enemy. It takes Picard and Worf to save him. This is how they build their relationship. How do I get you to do a commission? I would love you to hear you do a re-write on a season 1 episode that would change almost everything in TNG. Thank you for being awesome Steve

O'brien on the defiant would have been nice. Have him beam down to the planet and help out there, show him in the background. Since he was part of TNG. Makes sense he would be on the defiant.

Since your video was about the Most versatile, I didn't expect that video to be exhaustive. I don't consider Spiner among the most diverse because his roles were all related to Data.

J. G. Hertzler, Marc Leonard (Spock's Father, Romulan Commander that Kirk chases)

WRT the mirror universe, it's somewhat interesting that South Park already played the, "better version" variant of the mirror universe in their parody episode. For me, personally, I've not really liked any of the MU episodes aside from the original. I guess I'll give In A Mirror Darkly some props for trying a bit creative with it, but aside from that non have really worked for me, especially the DS9 ones.

I think a mention in first contact that Ryker and troi would be leaving for the lollipop soon but postponed by the borgs latest attack and Picard saying well William once we get back time for you to get the big chair and ryker with a big smile on his face as it pans away from the whole crew

Say it with me, the Borgipop.

If you don’t have Lily Sloane (which I don’t want for any reason, because Alfre Woodard is brilliant), Sisko slots perfectly into her role as the voice of reason. Picard seeking war with the Borg, but Sisko dressing him down for it would be amazing to see.

I would recommend, if you would like to see an actually interesting Mirror Universe story (because they did have diminishing returns I'll agree with you there), the novel Sorrows of Empire. It sees how Mirror Spock changed the Terran Empire after the events of Mirror, Mirror, starting right after that episode ends before covering the entire timeline of the TOS movies. Your mileage may vary of some of the elements it incorporates from other Trek novel series at the time, but the actual solid story is very good, and the internal wrangling Spock goes through is an interesting read.

Enterprise was filmed in HD, I have the Bluray set. I think it was the first Star Trek shot in digital if I remember correctly.

I have a great idea for re-imagining Generations, but I'm saving it for when you re-open commissions.

We all totally forgot about the actor who portrayed Thomas Riker.....

I did notice the upscaling, but it's rare that it distracts me from the videos. That may be praise for Steve's ability to hold my attention, so accidental compliment, I guess!

@23:30 oh man you must love the idea for the new Worf comic and the new Sisko comic. They both seem to be very “let’s grab a bunch of random unrelated characters and stick them in a blender”

Speaking of Ortega and her ability as a helmsman/pilot, what are some of the best flight scenes in Trek that you like? (Include some other shows other then DS9, we know its awesome lol) I like the Picard asteroid drift episode. Ortega flying in the comet show is the best in Trek on the small screen.

If we're considering versatility in other franchises, then where was Walter Koenig? Not only did he play Pavel Chekov in ToS, but he was brilliant as Alfred Bester in Babylon 5 (and B5 should count anyway, given how DS9 was... ahem... influenced by it.).

Paul Winfield was also Lieutenant Traxler in The Terminator

The ending of the SNW's episode that involved The First Servant was such a downer for me, although saying that, it'll NEVER come close to the downer that is Avengers: infinity war.

i had assumed Brent Spiner wasnt there intentionally, as the characters are all connected, so possibly not showing versatility. the argument could be made that the personalities are so different, but then would you include any split personality, swapped body, or mirror universe versions?

I think you just made it necessary to get another video of versatile actors done, because man, you gotta talk about Paul Winfield.

Jeffrey Combs as Turin, Brunt, Weyoun, Penk, Shran, Krem, AGIMUS. As Weyoun I was so glad to see him permanently disintegrated by Garak.