The Best One-Off Characters In Star Trek: Voyager
Across its seven seasons, "Star Trek: Voyager" followed the crew of the titular Starfleet vessel as it traversed the faraway Delta Quadrant to return home to Federation space. Led by Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway, "Star Trek: Voyager" featured a memorable ensemble cast as the starship braved dangerous territory throughout its long journey. However, as beloved as the principal cast is, there are plenty of one-off guest stars on"Voyager" that helped elevate the show to new heights.
From formidable adversaries and villains to supporting characters that brought new dimensions to "Star Trek: Voyager," there is no shortage of excellent guest roles. Featuring a mix of prolific character actors and big-name stars, these characters not only enhanced their respective episodes but brought out the best in the main cast. With all that in mind, we've narrowed it down to the 12 best one-off characters from "Star Trek: Voyager's" 172-episode run,
Telek R'Mor (Vaughn Armstrong) — Eye of the Needle
Stranded in the Delta Quadrant, Voyager often turned to help from unlikely sources, including the Romulans in the first season episode "Eye of the Needle." Finding a wormhole capable of relaying messages back to the Alpha Quadrant, Voyager is surprised when the first presence they make contact with is Romulan Captain Telek R'Mor (Vaughn Armstrong). Janeway strikes a rapport with Telek, and the two captains overcome their mutual distrust for one another in a gesture of cooperation and good faith.
At this point in "Star Trek" history, the Romulans hadn't enjoyed the evolution into allies of the Federation that the Klingons had, and Telek brings a heightened level of tension and paranoia to the proceedings. However, this gives way to a touching chemistry between Telek and Janeway, a rare foil for the seasoned, no-nonsense Starfleet officer that makes Telek stand far above most guest stars on the show. As with most things "Voyager," this budding dynamic would take a bittersweet turn, but Telek is one of the more memorable one-off characters in the series early years that would help set the overarching tone.
Quinn (Gerrit Graham) — Death Wish
The second season episode, "Death Wish," as the title would suggest, is oddly morbid but also fits in the exploration of the human condition that "Star Trek" is known for. The Voyager is visited by Quinn (Gerrit Graham), one of the omnipotent Q Continuum, who pleads for the right to end his life after his long cosmic existence. As Q (John de Lancie) arrives to bring Quinn back to the Continuum to ensure this doesn't happen, Janeway becomes an arbiter between the two demigods.
As a god who has grown tired of his existence after witnessing untold eons pass, Graham brings immense world-weariness and end-of-life serenity to Quinn. Quinn's argument to be allowed to die before in an impromptu trial overseen by Janeway on a moral question with no easy answer is a standout scene. Juxtaposed against de Lancie's mischievously manic Q, Quinn's old soul performance is elevated all the more, balancing determination with melancholia in equal measure.
Henry Starling (Ed Begley, Jr.) — Future's End
The Voyager managed to arrive on Earth in the two-part Season 3 episode "Future's End," albeit with a time-bending twist. The crew is transported to Earth in 1996 rather than the 24th century. A time traveler that had been pursuing Voyager accidentally opens a temporal rift, with unscrupulous businessman Henry Starling (Ed Begley Jr.) harvesting technology from the time-traveler's ship and passing it off as his invention. As the Voyager moves to stop Starling from disrupting history further, they must contend with their presence threatening to upend the timeline.
Begley is a beloved character actor who has played numerous kindly, paternal figures throughout his extensive career and effectively plays against type as Starling. Starling is one the most conniving and manipulative antagonists in "Star Trek: Voyager," playing on the crew's sympathies to his advantage. In an age filled with egotistical technocrats with delusions of grandeur, Starling is one "Star Trek: Voyager" character that has aged particularly well and is certainly a worthy enemy for the crew.
Rain Robinson (Sarah Silverman) — Future's End
Ed Begley, Jr. isn't the only memorable guest star to appear in "Future's End," with comedian and actor Sarah Silverman getting in on the two-part time-travel action. Silverman plays Rain Robinson, an astronomer hired by Starling to keep an eye out for any additional starships passing near Earth. However, after making contact with the Voyager crew, Robinson finds herself targeted by an assassin hired by Starling to maintain the secret behind his ill-gotten technology empire.
What makes Silverman's performance as Robinson so enjoyable is her character's on-screen chemistry with Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill) and Tuvok (Tim Russ). More than just providing comic relief, Silverman lights up the proceedings whenever she's on the screen. She plays particularly well off McNeill. If Begley is playing against type as the villainous Starling, Silverman, quirky and funny without overstaying her welcome, leans into her natural strengths as Robinson's world is completely turned upside-down.
Belle (Lindsey Haun) — Real Life
Throughout the entire run of "Voyager," the Doctor (Robert Picardo) developed a burgeoning sense of humanity as he became more autonomous from his base emergency medical hologram programming. Perpetually curious about the human experience, the Doctor programs an elaborate holodeck program that gives him a suburban family to come home to in the episode "Real Life." This descends into outright tragedy as the Doctor's programmed daughter, Belle (Lindsey Haun), has an accident that leaves the Doctor to discover the pain of enduring death.
"Real Life" could've very easily been one of the more distractingly melodramatic episodes of "Star Trek: Voyager" if it wasn't for Picardo and Haun giving this familial relationship a firm emotional foundation. If there was ever a character to remind audiences of the genuine human stakes behind the virtual realities on the Holodeck, the Doctor is the best suited to make that argument. Haun stands out from the rest of the guest cast to underscore the sense of heartbreak that the Doctor suffers as he faces the most traumatizing aspect of his newfound fatherhood.
Annorax (Kurtwood Smith) — Year of Hell
The Season 4 two-part episode "Year of Hell" perfectly captures the stranded premise and occasionally desperate tone of "Voyager." After taking a detour, Voyager is dogged by constant attacks for a year, incurring heavy damage and casualties to the starship. Leading the hunt is a maddened scientist named Annorax (Kurtwood Smith), who obsessively believes that destroying Voyager will undo fluctuations in the timeline and restore his deceased wife.
As Annorax, Smith pulls off the tricky feat of playing a pursuer as single-mindedly driven as Captain Ahab but with enough sympathy that we feel for the guy, even as he plots to destroy Voyager. "Year of Hell" is easily one of the best episodes in the entirety of "Star Trek: Voyager," and much of that elevated quality comes from the earnest intensity of Smith's performance. While Voyager may still be far from home by the episode's ending, Annorax has the best possible happy ending, giving the show a surprisingly heartfelt and hopeful note.
Quarren (Henry Woronicz) — Living Witness
"Star Trek: Voyager" has the benefit of largely taking place in a quadrant of the galaxy unfamiliar with Starfleet and the Federation, making the starship and its crew strangers in a strange land. "Living Witness" from Season 4 flips the perspective on Voyager's exploits through a museum exhibit approximately seven centuries in the future. The museum activates a backup copy of the Doctor, who is appalled by how Voyager is depicted and recounts to museum curator Quarren (Henry Woronicz) how history truly unfolded.
In Quarren, "Star Trek: Voyager" receives a somewhat impartial observer who puts the starship crew under scrutiny, with the Doctor serving as his friends' defender. With established history challenged, Quarren has to choose whether he stands with his people and what they've grown up to believe about Voyager or side with the Doctor's account. "Living Witness" is a unique transposition of Voyager's place in the Delta Quadrant in the eyes of those affected centuries later, with Quarren providing a point of view for the audience that is elevated by Woronicz's dynamic with Picardo.
One (J. Paul Boehmer) — Drone
"Star Trek: Voyager" continues themes of looking at trauma inflicted by the Borg Collective introduced in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" while humanizing the relentless enemy. These themes are primarily explored by Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), who finds a surprising kinship with a newly formed Borg drone, played by J. Paul Boehmer in the fifth season episode "Drone." Known simply as One, the drone is formed by nanobots from Seven interfacing with the Doctor's 29th-century technology during a transporter accident, with the Borg Collective hunting him to assimilate this advanced tech.
One helps Seven of Nine understand her status as a former drone liberated from the Collective, making their own observations about the Borg and humanity. Although the Borg are among the most menacing races in "Star Trek," Boehmer brings a sense of innocence to One as a drone naive to their nature and place in the galaxy. Innocence quickly gives way to tragedy when One, recognizing his entire existence poses a threat, must destroy the pursuing Borg. The moment is a beautiful full-circle scene, as a drone partially born of Seven reminds her of her resilience as he makes the ultimate sacrifice.
Kashyk (Mark Harelik) — Counterpoint
From the start of "Star Trek: Voyager," Capt. Janeway faces crisis after crisis as she maintains command over a composite crew and ship stranded without support from Starfleet. The fifth season episode, "Counterpoint," shows just how keenly strategic Janeway is as a commander. As Voyager passes through a sector with a ban on telepaths while secretly transporting refugees to safety, they are dogged by Inspector Kashyk (Mark Harelik), who takes a strong interest in human culture — and Janeway.
Janeway rarely gets an overt romantic foil, and Kate Mulgrew's dynamic with guest star Harelik makes for a gripping game of cat-and-mouse as both characters size each other up. More than just making eyes at each other, Janeway and Kashyk are playing mental chess with lives hanging in the balance. As Kashyk thinks he has finally tricked Janeway into lowering her guard, the captain reveals she has been playing him all along. This interplay is only made possible by Harelik being a credible opponent and love interest for Janeway, and the two actors take full advantage of this.
Noss (Lori Petty) — Gravity
Virtually every actor portraying a Vulcan in "Star Trek" has to convey the bulk of their character's repressed emotions through subtext and nuance. Tim Russ mastered this as Tuvok in seven seasons of "Star Trek: Voyager." The fifth season episode, "Gravity," gives Tuvok a love interest in Noss (Lori Petty). When Tuvok, Paris, and the Doctor are stranded on a remote planet (with the added wrinkle of their universal translators being broken), they struggle to find a way to contact Voyager. Tuvok keeps his emotions in check rather than admit his mutual attraction to Noss. This is made all the more complicated by the language barrier between them.
Having to speak primarily in an alien language and pretend to learn English is a thankless task for any actor and carries the risk of venturing into outright camp. In addition to deftly pulling off this daunting assignment, Petty creates a character charming enough for us to believe that Noss could compromise Tuvok's typically unflappable facade. Petty brings a steely resilience to Noss that cuts through her usual higher-pitched vocal delivery and demeanor, blending vulnerability with a determination that plays superbly opposite Russ.
Hirogen (J.G. Hertzler) — Tsunkatse
This might be a hot take, but while Dwayne Johnson's guest-starring appearance in the sixth season episode, "Tsunkatse," is the show's most memorable, it's not the best guest performance in the episode. This isn't a slight to Johnson so much as it is a compliment to the other guest stars appearing in "Tsunkatse," one of whom is "Star Trek" veteran J.G. Hertzler, whose character is simply credited as a Hirogen hunter. Of the two opponents that Seven of Nine takes on in the episode's central gladiatorial spectacle, Hirogen outshines the Champion (Johnson) because of the complexity Hertzler brings to the role.
When Seven of Nine is forced to fight in a series of mixed martial arts fights, she is mentored and healed by the Hirogen, who offers his sage wisdom to the new combatant. Of course, the Hirogen ends up being the final opponent Seven of Nine faces, with Hertzler displaying the quiet turmoil his character endures during the brutal duel. Hertzler excelled as noble Klingon leader Gen. Martok in "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and brings a more understated sense of honor as the Hirogen as a grizzled teacher and a tragic pugilist.
Penk (Jeffrey Combs) — Tsunkatse
J.G. Hertzler isn't the only "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" alum to appear as a different character in "Tsunkatse," with fan-favorite Jeffrey Combs playing the conniving fight coordinator Penk in the episode. Penk captures Seven of Nine and Tuvok, coercing Seven of Nine to fight in the eponymous mixed-martial arts competition in exchange for life-saving medical treatment for Tuvok. Manipulative and sadistic, Penk revels in his dark side in contrast to Combs' more stoic antagonist Weyoun in "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine."
Like Hertzler, Combs is heavily made up for his "Voyager" role and scarcely recognizable. He clearly relishes the chance to play a much more gleeful villain. The sense of fun Combs' performance brings carries through the entire episode. Penk is as calculating as he is vicious. The Champion and the Hirogen may provide "Tsunkatse" with its physical opponents, but Penk stands out as the primary adversary.