10 best Star Trek characters (and the worst one that everyone loves to hate)
4. Captain Benjamin Sisko
Captain Sisko shook up the Star Trek universe in Deep Space Nine. He starts off as a grieving husband and single parent trying to make sense of life and ends up as this monumental figure who’s essential to the Alpha Quadrant. How often do you see a character juggle being a dad, a commanding officer, and basically a religious icon all at once? I felt like I was looking at myself while watching him in Deep Space Nine, minus the whole “religious icon” thing.
Sisko’s journey isn’t just some side plot in the scheme of Deep Space Nine – it’s a genuinely gripping and uplifting main character arc that we all love to watch. He takes all his different roles in stride, dealing with political issues one moment and playing the tricky role of parent the next. Sisko is a living, breathing lesson in growth and adaptability, bringing a flavor to Star Trek that you just can’t get enough of.
3. Captain James T. Kirk
If you’re talking most incredibly handsome Starfleet captains, you’ve got to start with the one and only Captain James T. Kirk but especially the ones played by Chris Pine and Anson Mount. Captain Kirk may be an iconic figure in TV and film history, but he is also the entire package – charismatic, daring, and more than willing to bend a rule or two (as long as it gets the job done, of course). Kirk’s got that kind of leadership that makes you want to follow him into battle and kick some serious alien butt while you’re at it.
That’s not to mention the OG dream team —Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. The friendship among these three gives the original series its heart and soul and some of the most unforgettable moments. Whether they’re debating logic and emotion or just doing what Starfleet officers do, their chemistry is the secret sauce that makes the original series still enjoyable to this day, decades after its debut.
Kirk’s not just a great character – he’s the one of a trio that turned Star Trek into the legendary saga that it is today and he is also a very relatable character who tip-toes the line between recklessness and loyalty.