Played with spine-chilling condescension by the great Louise Fletcher, who puts a warmer and crueler spin on her signature Nurse Ratched character, Kai Winn serves as a counterpoint to Sisko. Where exposure to the Prophets gives Sisko an insight that no one in Starfleet or on Bajor can understand, Kai Winn shows how that confidence can turn cruel, self-serving, and, in the end, self-destructive.
5. Kor
With apologies to Worf, Kor might be the greatest Klingon in Star Trek history. After all, Kor alone properly bridges the two generations of Klingons (we’re all still ignoring the Discovery redesigns, right?), making the two different takes feel of a piece. Kor first debuted as a glowering opponent to Captain Kirk in TOS. There, the boisterous figure prided himself on his ability to match wits and outsmart Starfleet’s finest.
Although he ascended to Dahar Master, he and his associates Kang and Koloth were shells of themselves when they returned to the screen on Deep Space Nine. It was only through his friendship with Jadzia Dax that Kor regained his honor, eventually sacrificing himself in the Dominion War. With every version of Kor, actor John Colicos met the moment (except for the version from The Animated Series, in which James Doohan voiced Kor), the first to show the depths within the Klingon hearts.
4. The Borg
The terrifying part of the Borg is right there in their name. There isn’t one Borg, nor is there properly plural Borgs. There is just the Borg. The Borg are the dark mirror of the Federation, who likes to believe that they recruit new planets and civilizations with a hand of welcome and allow for difference. The Borg labor under no such delusions, understanding that they force other cultures to assimilate, taking in their knowledge and leaving nothing else behind.
While it is true that concepts such as the Borg Queen and overexposure have dulled some of the Borg’s power, those early appearances still send a chill down this viewer’s spine. The sight of Picard revealed as Locutus, or even the way Q hurls the Enterprise into deep space to meet the Borg, still carries a power that no bad seasons of Picard can change.
3. Q
Then there’s Q. Like Mirror Universe or Holodeck episodes, Q is an acquired taste. He brings the many god-like characters from TOS into the TNG-era, and their silliness along with them. After all, for all of his power, Q prefers pranks over actual menace, making the Enterprise crew act out a Robin Hood story or battling Sisko as an old-timey pugilist.
