TF01 3,Riker - A Profile 4,by Sven Harvey William T Riker - A Profile ----------------------------- by Sven Harvey ---------------- William Thomas Riker (played by Jonathan Frakes in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Generations) was born in March 2335 in Valdez, Alaska on the planet Earth, the son of Kyle Riker. William's mother died in 2337 when he was only 2 years old and Kyle was left to bring up his only son. The two of them shared many fishing trips and William was made responsible, in the small family, of cooking until 2350 when Kyle abandoned his son. During the wilderness years between his abandonment and his entry to Starfleet Academy (on his first try, aged 18 in 2353) the young "wannabe" developed a passion for jazz music from Earth's 20th century and a determined ambition to be a Captain in Starfleet. He graduated from Starfleet, after the standard 4 year course, 8th in his class in 2357. Fresh out of the Academy Ensign Riker was assigned to the new experimental USS Pegasus. Due to the illegal and immoral experimentation on a Federation cloaking device the crew mutinied against the Captain. Riker however looked up to the Captain and not realising the moral implications of the unknown (to him at the time) experiment and hence came to the Captain's defence (an action which he has regretted ever since). The whole incident was covered up by certain less-than-ethical Starfleet Admirals and Captains. Soon after a newly promoted and promising captaincy candidate, Lieutenant Riker, was stationed on the planet Betazed. While serving on the planet Betazed, William Riker became romantically involved with a University student studying psychology named Deanna Troi. However the young Lieutenant decided that his first priority was his career and left to serve aboard the USS Potemkin in 2362. Under six weeks into his tour of duty aboard the USS Potemkin a mission to Nervala IV went awry. William Riker was supervising the evacuation and information transfer from the Federation science outpost on the planet. He was the last to beam out and during transport the transporter chief encountered signal problems. His unique solution resulted in an exact duplicate of the Lieutenant being created. One Lt. Riker made it back to the Potemkin and the other signal bounced back to the planet's surface and formed into the other Lt. Riker (later to be known as Lieutenant Thomas Riker). Due to the events on Nervala IV the Lieutenant was commended (for "exceptional valour") and soon became a Lieutenant Commander serving aboard the USS Hood. In the following two years William gained a further promotion to Commander and became the first officer to Captain DeSoto aboard the USS Hood. During his time as first officer aboard the starship, during a crisis mission where the away team may have been under serious threat Commander Riker refused to allow Captain DeSoto to beam down. Fortunately this action stood out on his record and in 2364 when assembling his crew for his new command, the brand new Galaxy class USS Enterprise, Captain Jean-Luc Picard chose Commander Riker as his first officer, his "number one". However at the same time Commander Riker was offered his own command, the USS Drake. Upon serious consideration Commander Riker realised that serving aboard the flagship of Starfleet was the better choice and his Academy classmate Paul Rice took the Command. On stardate 41154 Cmdr. Riker (First Officer) and his Hood shipmates Lt (J.G.) Geordi LaForge (conn officer), Cmdr. Beverly Crusher (Chief Medical Officer) and her son Wesley Crusher completed their transfers to the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D while orbiting the planet Deneb IV. During his first year aboard the Enterprise Riker met many new challenges such as making the first person-to-person contact with the Ferengi, refusing the offer of being made a member of the Q continuum, dealing with the theft of the USS Enterprise by a race known as the Bynars (along with Captain Picard), being swallowed by the Armus creature which killed his friend and crew mate Tasha Yar and helping Captain Picard end the slow takeover of Starfleet by the "Blue-Gills". Will (as he then preferred to be called by shipmate Deanna Troi and Captain Picard) became the first Starfleet officer to serve aboard a Klingon vessel (the Pagh - a Bird Of Prey) during an officer exchange programme. Soon after his time on board the Pagh, Will was forced to try and prove that his friend and shipmate Lieutenant Commander Data was not a sentient being, and just a machine, another memory he tries to forget. Riker was again offered his own command, the USS Aries on stardate 42686.5, when his estranged father, Starfleet civilian advisor Kyle Riker was sent to brief him. The father and son resolved their differences but Riker remained as the first officer on the Enterprise. Toward the end of 2365 Riker took temporary command of the USS Hathaway, a dilapidated old Constellation class starship for a battle exercise which pitted the Hathaway against the Enterprise in a simulation. Due to the cunning of Riker's chosen crew (Lt. Worf mainly) the Hathaway soundly beat the Enterprise before a Ferengi vessel interrupted the exercise. Later during a mission to Surata IV Will was seriously injured and almost died after being attacked by a carniverous animal-plant lifeform. During his third year on the Enterprise Will was surgically altered to look like a Mintakan to solve a problem on Mintaka III. Also Riker had to kill a woman he was romantically involved with when she tried to kill the leader of a group called the Gatherers during a peace conference. At the end of 2366 Riker was offered another ship, the Excelsior class USS Melbourne. Again he turned down the promotion to continue serving aboard the USS Enterprise. The beginning of 2367 was the date of the Borg attack on the United Federation of Planets. After the abduction of Captain Picard, William Riker was given a field promotion to Captain and given command of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D by the late Admiral Hanson (who was killed at the Wolf 359 battle with the Borg). The new Enterprise captain devised some new battle moves and with them managed to capture Locutus (the altered Picard) from the Borg. Luckily Lt.Cmdr. Data was able to link with Locutus and with help from Capt. Picard the Borg vessel was destroyed. As Captain Picard re-assumed command of the USS Enterprise, Riker's rank returned to Commander and he remained as first officer aboard the Starfleet flagship. However Riker's role on the Enterprise changed a little as it was clear that from then on Picard was more likely to leave Riker in command of the Enterprise for long periods of time. Also Riker started going on more undercover operations, most notably in 2367 on the planet of the Malcorians. The Malcorian culture was about to perfect the warp drive and hence, under the directives and rules of Starfleet and the United Federation Of Planets (UFP), were contactable and could enter the UFP. Unfortunately Riker was badly injured on the planet and while he was in hospital he was discovered to be an alien. Certain people on the planet however were less than enthusiastic and while trying to retrieve Riker the Malcorian leader decided that his people were not ready to meet the rest of the galaxy. The Enterprise left the planet with the Malcorians warp scientist on board and warp drive development shelved by the Malcorians. After a short time playing the role of Little John in one of Q's fantasies, Riker became the first human to be host to a symbiont when a Trill ambassador died and his symbiont needed a temporary host. Riker held up well to this procedure though it caused him a lot of physical pain. The symbiont had to be removed from Riker prematurely because his human body could not deal with the demands of the symbiont for an extended period. During 2368 the Enterprise was attacked by a race known as the Sulteraans which resulted in a ship wide loss of memory (including Lt Cmdr. Data). Also due to computer corruption the crew were led to believe that their first officer was a Sulteraan called Cmdr. McDuff and Cmdr. Riker was just an executive officer. Though the crew eventually worked out the problem Riker particularly explored interesting facets of his personality while his past was unknown. Ensign Ro Laren was hardly Riker's favourite officer on the Enterprise, but with no memory of past events the two found each other a lot more interesting, with Ro even thinking they were married! This event did serve to teach Riker a lesson (as during the incident both Ro and Lt. Cmdr. Deanna Troi were "involved" with the Commander). During a mission to locate a missing shuttlecraft belonging to a race known as the J'naii, Will got involved with a member of the androgenous race, due to "her" female qualities. However being even slightly non-androgenous is a crime on the J'naii homeworld and Riker's new friend was put on trial and convicted of being female! Riker tried to rescue her but the brainwashing technique to "cure" her of her sexual difference had done its damage. The effect on Riker of this event cannot have been pleasant. Another interesting event for Riker was his and some of his crew mates transportation to 19th century Earth after Data's head was found beneath San Fransisco. The Commander assumed the role of a police officer and observed first hand life in that century along with Cpt. Picard, Lt.Cmdr. Data and other major bridge crew members (with the notable exception of Worf). 2369 was probably the greatest test for Will Riker. During that year Captain Picard was relieved of command of the Enterprise and sent on an undercover mission with Dr. Crusher and Lt. Worf into Cardassian space. Riker was NOT given command of the Enterprise much to Picard's and the Enterprise crew's disgust. Instead the unpopular Captain Edward Jellico took command and almost got the Enterprise destroyed in the process. During that incident Riker was relieved of his position and Data took his place. The personality clash between Riker and Jellico produced a great deal of tension on board the Enterprise. However Jellico had to ask Riker to help him to get the Enterprise out of the trouble he had caused. Captain Picard meanwhile was a prisoner of the Cardassians and was tortured almost to death. Both the effect on Picard and the reaction to Jellico must have left a mental scar on Riker as Jellico refused to allow Riker to get Picard released. Soon after those events Riker was captured while on an away mission. He had a procedure performed on him to read his memory which almost resulted in him going insane. During the procedure his mind became "unhinged" and it created images and scenarios to keep Riker sane. The mental scars left behind after that mission may have made him more mentally stable or it may have had the opposite effect. Only time will tell. The Enterprise was ordered to the Nervala system later in 2369 to recover the data that had not been transferred to the USS Potemkin 8 years earlier from Nervala IV. This resulted in Will Riker finally meeting his double. Both Will Rikers found it very difficult to get used to the idea of there being two of them and a lot of antagonism built up between them. Lt. Riker was resentful of Commander Riker's position and accomplishments while Cmdr. Riker realised that Deanna and Lt. Riker were becoming re-involved. It wasn't until Lt Riker nearly died in an accident that the two Rikers learned to live with each other. Lt Riker, after taking their middle name, Thomas, as his first name, left the Enterprise to join the crew of the USS Ghandi. Capt. Picard was presumed dead after he went missing during leave early in 2370 and Will Riker became Captain of the Enterprise once again. During the investigation of Picard's death, Riker was captured by those who were supposed to have killed Jean-Luc. However upon waking on the ship of a mercenary gang Riker found Picard posing as a member of the mercenary group and through Riker's and Picard's story telling Riker was also accepted as a member of the mercenary group. After a staged battle where Riker was seemingly killed when the mercenaries attacked the Enterprise, Riker and Picard managed to reveal the first officer aboard the mercenary vessel to be a Vulcan purist who wanted to retrieve an ancient Vulcan weapon. Unfortunately for Will his former Captain of the Pegasus, Capt. Pressman, had been made an Admiral by 2370 and had many friends higher up in Starfleet. This resulted in Pressman and his fellow conspirators to try and use the Enterprise to find the USS Pegasus which was seemingly lost. It was discovered that Pressman and many other Starfleet officers were secretly developing a phase cloaking device for Federation vessels directly contravening a treaty that had kept peace in this part of the galaxy for decades. Riker unfortunately was caught up in the conspiracy and after Picard discovered the truth Pressman and others were relieved of duty and an investigation into Riker's part in the conspiracy and Court Martials for the conspirators were instigated by Starfleet Command. Riker was cleared of all charges and continued to serve aboard the USS Enterprise as first officer with no mention of the Pegasus incident appearing on his record and his rank of Commander intact. In conclusion it seems that Commander William Riker is one of the best officers Starfleet has ever had and comparisons of the USS Enterprises first officer and the best known of the Enterprise captains, James T Kirk are unavoidable. It is thought that Will Riker will make an excellent captain IF he ever accepts a command. Of course no-one can blame him for staying as a Commander as it means him staying aboard the USS Enterprise - the best known of all of the Federation starships. His destiny seems to be to become Captain of the USS Enterprise as he will accept no less. However the mental state of Commander Riker may need to be checked due to his experiences on board the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D before he does assume command. However it is thought that these experiences are more likely to have strengthened him. Of course it would be best to check as the Captain Benjamin Maxwell case clearly shows. The effect of his "brother", Thomas Riker becoming a captain ahead of William may cause problems. William Riker is probably the best captain material that Starfleet has. It just getting him to leave a Galaxy class starship that will prove a problem. =================================================================== Okay that's the profile as Starfleet would have put it. I have included small synopses of some key episodes in the character development of Will Riker because of course these will have changed the way he reacted in later episodes (if writers had taken them in to account that is!). It is long, basically because Riker has been though a hell of a lot over the seven years he has served aboard the Enterprise in the Star Trek: The Next Generation scenario. It is clear now that William T Riker is essentially a very more developed and up to date version of James T Kirk. However Will Riker has a lot more depth than Captain Kirk. This is probably because Gene was able to take more time over creating Riker than he did Kirk, due to NBC's not liking the original version of Star Trek and Gene not having time to fully flesh out Kirk's past and character as he would have liked. Riker is the result of Kirk being developed further and provides the action element Star Trek: The Next Generation needed to hold onto the Star Trek fans who enjoyed the action and Kirk's character in the original series. Riker and Picard worked together very well with Picard fulfilling the ambassadorial role needed in ST:TNG that Classic Trek really never had. When faced with a problem Kirk would, more often than not, fight. Riker I feel has learnt from Picard and is, at the end of season 7, more of a Kirk/Picard mix. This means that Riker would make a very good Captain for the Star Trek: The Next Generation film series if Picard became an Admiral. I think that a new command structure aboard the Enterprise would make sense with Riker as the Captain and Cmdr. Data as the first officer and Lt. Cmdr. Worf as the second officer (and head of security). There are a couple of things I would like to see happen with the Will Riker character. In the episode "The Host" Will actually joined with a Trill symbiont. As a result he must have had access to all the information about the Trills hat Starfleet would have needed and must share a bond with other joined Trills that no other human has. As a result of this I would love to see Will Riker on Deep Space Nine as any relationship between him and Jadzia Dax would be far more interesting than any normal relationship. Or would Jadzia resent him? There are so many things that Jadzia and Will have in common and just having the two of them talking in Quarks would be interesting but a developing relationship between Will and Jadzia would be very interesting. That is a story I would like to see in DS9. I would also like to see the relationship between Thomas Riker and Will develop a lot further. It is reasonable to assume that the two of them have been in contact with each other since "Second Chances". Finally Riker has a lot of Klingon qualities and could easily hold his own among that race (just look at "A Matter Of Honour"). So further exploration of Riker's Klingon features and his relationship with Klingons and their rituals. Scenes such as Riker and Worf fighting side by side in the Holodeck from season 2 of TNG do suggest further explorations of this theme and Riker's relationship with Worf especially needs more development now that Troi and Worf are becoming more and more intimate. Hopefully we should see Riker's character developed even further in the ST:TNG movies but even this most important core part of Star Trek is under threat as all those who worked on Trek and followed Gene Roddenberry's vision have been sacked from Star Trek's team. And that includes the writers of such excellent stories as ST:DS9's "Duet", Peter Allan Fields, Lisa Rich and Jeanne Carrigan-Fauci. I am not really sure why I like Riker. I feel that Jonathan Frakes has been picked on a lot over the years and I feel his acting ability is better than a lot of the other people on Star Trek: The Next Generation as episodes such as "Frame Of Mind" and "Second Chances" show. The character of Riker is really the kind of active and dynamic person that a lot of us, even if it is only subconciously, want to be. Riker gets the job done and has a very ordered, well rounded and full life which we would all like to lead to some degree. Will has many qualities that the other characters possess but merges more of them together than anyone else. He started off in season one as a quite shallow character with only the link to Troi as any indication to his past and he has developed from a loyal young action man into someone with more depth and a different outlook on life and had absorbed a lot of qualities, not just from Picard but from the other main characters too. But I feel that he shouldn't stay as a first officer now. He must become a captain soon or his character will degenerate. He has done everything a first officer can do and needs fresh challenges to develop the character further. I am very glad that Cmdr. Will Riker was not killed off in "Second Chances" as I feel that Will and Thomas are quite different and there are a lot of things that writers could do with the characters.