STAR TREK Writers Almost Killed Off Riker and Replaced Him With His Transporter Clone

Yesterday we talked about the dangers of transporters and how they could silently be killing anyone and everyone who may be walking into them. Today we learn that the transporter almost took away one of Star Trek TNG's most beloved characters!

Remember "Second Chances"? For those who don't, it's the episode where the transporter creates two separate but equal Rikers. In the series, the two parted ways with "Tom Riker" taking a position on the USS Gandhi, but that wasn't the original plan. Read the writers initial plan according to their wiki below...

According to the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion, the TNG writing staff toyed with the idea of killing off Will Riker in "Second Chances," permanently replacing him with Thomas Riker as the new ops officer and moving Data to the first officer position.

Man, I love Data, but I don't think I could handle his nonsense in the first officer position. Crazy to think someone as integral to the series as Riker could've been nixed from the story...even if his exact replica would take his place in a lesser capacity.