Unveiling the Truth: Star Trek's Revelation on the Fate of Riker's Clone

WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Star Trek: Lower Decks, season 4, episode 9, "The Inner Fight."

Summary

"Star Trek: Lower Decks" uncovers the fate of Thomas Riker, the cloned version of Commander William T. Riker from "Star Trek: The Next Generation." In "Lower Decks" Season 4, Thomas Riker, who had defected to the Maquis, finds himself among the former Starfleet civilians being hunted down by the antagonist, Nick Locarno.

In a surprising twist, Star Trek: Lower Decks has uncovered the fate of Thomas Riker, the duplicate created by the transporter malfunction from Star Trek: The Next Generation. This revelation not only sheds light on his survival but also hints at a possible partnership with Nick Locarno, adding to his significance in the season's culmination and laying the groundwork for potential future storylines. In the episode "The Inner Fight," Starfleet launches an investigation to locate former officers who may be targeted by the mysterious antagonist of Lower Decks' fourth season. The USS Cerritos is assigned the task of finding Nick Locarno, a disgraced dropout from Starfleet Academy and Wesley Crusher's former fellow student. The list of ex-Starfleet personnel also includes Seven of Nine from Star Trek: Voyager and Dr. Beverly Crusher from The Next Generation.

When Nick Locarno is exposed as the main antagonist in Star Trek: Lower Decks, it implies that the former Cadet is enlisting former Starfleet officers for a mysterious mission. Out of the four "at risk" civilians listed in Lower Decks, it seems unlikely that Dr. Crusher and Seven of Nine would align themselves with Nick Locarno. Another name on the list is Thomas Riker, who betrayed Starfleet to join the Maquis in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Defiant." Whether Thomas Riker teams up with Nick Locarno remains to be seen, but his inclusion on Lower Decks subtly reveals the fate of Will Riker's clone after DS9.

Star Trek Finally Reveals What Happened To Thomas Riker After DS9

Following the abduction of Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) and the hijacking of the USS Defiant, Thomas Riker launched an assault on a Cardassian outpost, aiming to expose their covert activities in the Orias system. Eventually, he voluntarily surrendered himself to the authorities and was sentenced to serve time in a Cardassian prison. Nevertheless, Thomas Riker mysteriously vanished without any further sightings. Jonathan Frakes had envisioned the character's revival during the final season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, envisioning his assistance to Kira in liberating Cardassia from Dominion control. However, this concept never materialized on screen, leaving Thomas Riker's ultimate fate as an enduring enigma within the Star Trek universe for countless years.

Will Thomas Riker Appear In Star Trek: Lower Decks?

Star Trek: Lower Decks offers a partial explanation for the enigma surrounding Riker's duplicated transporter incident. According to Captain Carol Freeman (Dawnn Lewis) and Commander Jack Ransom (Jerry O'Connell), the four individuals mentioned in the list are categorized as civilians. This implies that Thomas Riker managed to survive his time in the Cardassian prison as well as the purges carried out during the Dominion War on the Maquis. The confirmation that he is still alive and leading a civilian life introduces an intriguing possibility of revisiting the character in the future.

The possibility of Thomas Riker's return arose when Lt. JG Bradward Boimler (Jack Quaid) encountered his transporter clone, William, while serving on the USS Titan under Riker's command. In Star Trek: Lower Decks season 3, William Boimler was declared deceased but is, in fact, a Section 31 operative. Initially, it was anticipated that a face-off between Brad and William would occur in Lower Decks season 4. However, the storyline has taken a different turn with the reappearance of Nick Locarno. It is conceivable that Locarno has been actively recruiting former Starfleet officers, which may explain the recruitment of Thomas Riker prior to the season 4 finale.

Thomas Riker from Star Trek: The Next Generation is the ideal character to be introduced in the season 4 finale to strengthen Locarno's team of renegade agents. With his previous betrayal of Starfleet to join the Maquis, Thomas Riker brings personal vendetta into play. Another possibility is to tease Thomas Riker after the credits, setting up the appearance of the two Boimlers in season 5 of Star Trek: Lower Decks. Following the season 3 finale's hint of Badgey's return, it is highly probable that a similar occurrence will happen once Nick Locarno's storyline has concluded.

Stream the season 4 finale of Star Trek: Lower Decks on Paramount+ on Thursday, November 2nd.