Celebrate ‘Star Trek: Discovery’s’ Farewell With the Franchise’s Best Black Characters

Any examination of “Star Trek’s” Black characters must begin and end with Nyoto Uhura. Nichelle Nichols literally changed the course of history, inspiring generations of Black scientists and astronauts.

What’s great about Capt. Sisko is that he was never afraid to take chances. His chief concern was doing what’s right and protecting people, not following regulations.

This brilliant scientist is the literal architect of the Federation’s future. He created the computer program that ran all Starfleet’s ships. He made the future possible.

When Book and Burnham are together on a mission they give off “03 Bonnie & Clyde” vibes. Even when they’re being the good guys, it feels like they’re going rogue.

Michelle Hurd is fantastic at playing complex, authentic characters. In “Picard,” Raffi is a brilliant, badass, compassionate, flawed, fully humanized woman, which makes her fascinating to watch.

Capt. Michael Burnham is logical, courageous, loyal, clever and not afraid to occasionally play dirty. Nothing is more important to her than her crew, making her one of the franchise’s best leaders.

A brilliant engineer, Geordi is one “Star Trek’s” rare scientists who’s led more by his heart than his exceptional brains.

She’s a mystery wrapped in an enigma that we’ll never really figure out and we love every minute of it. No one else but Whoopi Goldberg could’ve played Guinan.

We never spent enough time with “Enterprise’s” Lt. Mayweather. We knew he was an expert pilot who basically grew up in space, giving him a perspective the rest of the crew would never understand. He’s the kind of character we could definitely see rising through the ranks of Starfleet, but never gives up on the action.

It’s truly captivating to watch “Strange New Worlds’” Celia Rose Gooding take a character like Uhura and effortlessly combine all the familar elements of her origin with brand new stories and developments. She simultaneously honors Uhura’s legacy while also making the character feel new.

The balance between M’Benga the healer and M’Benga the warrior is fascinating to watch. No offense to Dr. McCoy, but we don’t want to see him leave the Enterprise.

“First Contact” is one of the best films in the franchise and big part of that is because of Alfre Woodard. The way she deftly puts Picard in his place while evading the Borg is something every Black woman has had to do to co-worker. Plus you know she really did all the work on Cochrane’s warp flight.

As the inventor of the transporter, there would be no “Star Trek” without Emory Erickson. We need whoever is working on this technology in the real world to speed things along, as traffic is out of control.

As Number One’s lawyer in the heartbreaking “Strange New Worlds” episode “Ad Astra per Aspera,” Yetide Badaki is the foundation for one of the franchise’s most unforgettable stories. She brings a regal authority to the courtroom, providing authenticity to the futuristic outing.

Tuvok’s Vulcan logic was always at the forefront, but “Voyager’s” Delta Quadrant setting away from the main universe gave him a chance to showcase the character’s emotional influence from his human friends. He was a relatable Vulcan.

Zoë Saldaña made Uhura into a fiercely independent action hero in the new “Star Trek” film trilogy. We always knew that Nichelle Nichols’ Uhura was more than she was allowed to be, so it was thrilling to see this version of the character in the thick of the action.