Star Trek: Top 10 Riker Romances, Ranked

A lot of people know Kirk as the Casanova of Star Trek, but many forget that he's not the only one. There are a few other serious contenders. For example, Commander Riker of the Enterprise is one serious flirt. He has had so many one night stands and quick flings throughout the franchise. While few of those relationships get serious, it doesn't mean he doesn't take romance seriously. It's one of his favorite things.

But instead of talking about how much Riker loves the ladies, let's just talk about the best ones.

Here are the Top 10 Riker Romances, Ranked.

10 Etana Jol

The episode "The Game" starts with a very steamy situation. Riker and his new lover, a beautiful Ktarian named Etana, are chasing each other around Risan room. They're making out, laughing, having fun. This sexy scene ends in Etana encouraging Riker to play a mind game. At first, it just seems like Riker had a great time at Risa: beautiful girl and a fun brain teaser.

Later, though, Wesley Crusher discovers that the game was given to the crew because it's addictive. It spread like wildfire across the ship and her people used it as mind control. Etana gave it to Riker to take over the Enterprise.

Yeah, a pretty face doesn't make up for a romance that almost compromised the safety of the whole crew.

9 Yuta

Riker doesn't always make the best choices in romance. However, sometimes his bad choices make for good results. When an Acamarian delegation came on the Enterprise, he started a relationship with the ambassador's assistant, Yuta. On the down low, though, Yuta was planning to end the life of the leader the Acamarians were meeting with.

If it wasn't for Riker, Yuta wouldn't have hesitated when she went to shoot the guy. Her feelings for him changed her heart, if only a little bit.

Downside is that, uh, he shot her instead. Not all romances end well.

8 Brenna Odell

Possibly the most infamous of all Riker relationships, Brenna Odell was a member of an Irish-heritage group that chose to live like their past ancestors instead of like their future-tech contemporaries.

While on the Enterprise, Brenna and Riker start flirting. Their romance heats up until they meet in his quarters for some feet-washing fun times. Sure, fans can meme on this romance all they want, but it's not the worst one. Though, it doesn't make how their dialogue any less weird and cringey. Best to forget this one, eh?

7 Lanel

It's pretty conventional for Riker's romances to be unconventional. While Riker was doing months of recon on a pre-warp planet, he was injured and ended up in a hospital. Of course, the longer doctors looked at him the more their medicine found inconsistencies. He may look like them, but not on the inside. His cosmetic alterations were only skin deep.

One instrumental part of Riker's escape was an intelligent nurse named Lanel. She figured out that he was an alien and was more than happy to help him. That is, because she was attracted to him. After a steamy make out session (or more) Lanel saves him from intense scientific study.

They would be an interesting pair, if only he could ever see her again.

6 Beata

While Riker is normally the one chasing girls, Angel One's leader, Beata, changed up the game. The second she saw Riker, she was infatuated by him. And considering Riker's past with women, it's no surprise that he was more than happy to oblige. Wearing tradition Angel One garb (say hello to Will's nipples) he spent time with the beautiful leader while everyone else dealt with the political issues.

Maybe Beata was a bit sexist, but she and Riker seemed to enjoy their time together. Even a one-night stand, especially between two beautiful people, can be a pretty great romance.

5 Carmen Davila

The Crystalline Entity was a rare enemy, but when it showed up it wreaked chaos and destruction. Unfortunately, one of the times the Enterprise faces it is on a new human colony that's run by Carmen Davila. While helping the colony set up, Riker and Carmen ended up having quite the adorable fling. They may not have expected much out of it, but they cared for each other.

When it swallowed her whole, Riker had to tell her family what happened to her. What a horrible way for a sweet, adorable romance to end. The galaxy is better off for how the Enterprise banished the Entity.

4 Ro Laren

While it's questionable how much of a romance this really is, Riker and Ro Laren did have some sexual tension and a brief moment of connection before it all crashed down. When all their memories were wiped, Riker and Ro followed their attraction and assumed they were in a relationship. They spent the night together and seemed to really enjoy each other's company (in a very passionate, "can't keep my hands off you" kind of way).

Of course, without a memory Riker was a horn-dog about it. Because Deanna also felt a connection with him and he hooked up with her, too.

Ro and Riker seemed like they could be an interesting couple, and then he had to ruin it.

3 Soren

Arguably Riker's most fascinating romance was with the androgynous Soren. From a planet of genderless people, Soren worked with Riker on a project together while some of their people visited the Enterprise. However, over time an attraction grows between them and Soren reveals that she feels more like a woman than she feels genderless. That's a problem considering people on her planet get jailed for that sort of thing.

No matter her gender, though, the pair fall in love. Considering Riker is normally aggressively attracted to classically feminine women, it's awesome to see how he still dotes on Soren and finds her attractive as an androgynous woman. If only she wasn't "re-assimilated" into the status quo. It was really a dark and heartbreaking moment.

2 Minuet

It's easy to see that Riker is a bit of an oddball when one of his best romances was with a hologram. Not to say loving sentient holograms is bad (sorry, Voyager's Doctor), but Riker's hologram romance was very short-lived and it still had such an impact on him. After all, that's the woman his memories implied he would marry, when Barash invaded his mind.

Maybe it's weird to want to marry a hologram he only knew for a day or two. Just maybe.

To give Riker credit, though, Minuet was a bombshell. She was gorgeous, witty, intelligent, and fun to be around. Even if it was painfully short-lived, they were good together.

1 Deanna Troi

Of course, no one that Riker has ever dated can beat the beautiful Deanna Troi. Not only do the pair have a long-term connection, but they've always understood each other so well. Whether they were dating or not, they supported each other's ambitions, romances, life changes. Even if they never took the leap to falling back in love (which was always easy for them), they were the best of friends.

Loving Deanna was like breathing. Where so many other romances were complicated, being with her was simple. For two high-flying Starfleet officers, romance is fun. But marriage? They were always meant to be that person in each other's lives.

It's no surprise they ended up together in the end, like they were always meant to do.

Source: screenrant.com