# Let's talk about great one-off characters on fictional TV series with continuing casts **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 8, 2010, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599 "2010-08-08T14:33:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/21 "2010-08-08T15:59:18Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > OK, during the two-part Borg episode from Next Generation (where Picard was Borgified), Brian Denahey’s daughter Elizabeth played Riker’s temporary second-in-command, Commander Shelby. When Picard resumed command of the Enterprise, she disappeared, never to be seen again. > > However, she was, as far as I know, the first truly command-level female officer seen in the series. She wasn’t nearly as memorable (no doubt why you didn’t remember her :)), but there was a [Captain Tryla Scott](http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Tryla_Scott) in _Conspiracy_. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/22 "2010-08-08T16:01:35Z")
Hugh Laurie as the nameless airplane passenger on _Friends_. “You are a horrible, \*horrible \*person.” ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/23 "2010-08-08T16:05:06Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > She wasn’t nearly as memorable (no doubt why you didn’t remember her :)), but there was a [Captain Tryla Scott](http://memory-alpha.org/wiki/Tryla_Scott) in _Conspiracy_. I could quibble, I suppose, and claim that she was only in the episode as a token villain, not a fully realized character, but that would be small-minded of me. ---
**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/24 "2010-08-08T16:46:33Z")
Dr. Simon Finch-Royce on _Cheers_. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/25 "2010-08-08T17:16:56Z")
> [@Telperion](#): > > Dr. Simon Finch-Royce on _Cheers_. Can we trouble you for a tad more info? ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/26 "2010-08-08T17:24:05Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > However, she was, as far as I know, the first truly command-level female officer seen in the series. Captain Rachel Garrett in _[Yesterday’s Enterprise!](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708845/)_ ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/27 "2010-08-08T17:30:22Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > > [@Telperion](#): > > > > Dr. Simon Finch-Royce on _Cheers_. > > Can we trouble you for a tad more info? Was that John Cleese’s character? If so, I agree. If not, then I nominate John Cleese’s character. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/28 "2010-08-08T17:35:24Z")
> [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](#): > > Captain Rachel Garrett in _[Yesterday’s Enterprise!](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708845/)_ [Conspiracy](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708691/) aired first. 2 years before Yesterday’s Enterprise, in fact. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/29 "2010-08-08T17:38:36Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > > [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](#): > > > > Captain Rachel Garrett in _[Yesterday’s Enterprise!](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708845/)_ > > [Conspiracy](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708691/) aired first. 2 years before Yesterday’s Enterprise, in fact. Yes, but Capt. Garrett was a starship captain 20 years before the events of _Yesterday’s Enterprise_. Time rift, remember? ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/30 "2010-08-08T17:47:00Z")
But the claim isn’t that she was the first female captain in Starfleet, just the first to be shown on the show. Garret was (possibly\*) the earliest shown, within the series timeline, but it took them two years longer to show her. - I wouldn’t place a bet on either side of a discussion of if we’ve seen any female officers from before her in flashbacks (or spin-off novels/comics). I can’t think of any, but that’s a lot of material one could have appeared in, and I may be forgetting. ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/31 "2010-08-08T17:50:34Z")
I always loved the single episode that Wolfgang Puck appeared in _Frasier_ - the one where Niles sets up an elaborate engagement scenario with Daphne which backfires due to her getting sick. Same series - but Michael Keaton’s one-off character of Lilith’s brother was very memorable as well. Heck, _Frasier_ had a ton of great one-episode characters. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/32 "2010-08-08T17:52:27Z")
> [@BrotherCadfael](#): > > OK, during the two-part Borg episode from Next Generation (where Picard was Borgified), Brian Denahey’s daughter Elizabeth played Riker’s temporary second-in-command, Commander Shelby. When Picard resumed command of the Enterprise, she disappeared, never to be seen again. > > However, she was, as far as I know, the first truly command-level female officer seen in the series. As has been pointed out, Shelby’s not even the first _Starfleet_ command-level female officer. In addition to Joanne Linville from the already-mentioned TOS episode _The Enterprise Incident_ (the first female commanding a starship, albeit a Romulan one), there was Tryla Scott (a full-rank Captain) in the earlier TNG episode _Conspiracy_ but even before that, Uhura took command of the TOS _Enterprise_ in the animated episode _The Lorelei Signal._ On a semi-related note, Patrick Stewart’s guest shot as Number One in the “Stonecutters” episode of _The Simpsons_ always kills me. “Now let’s get drunk and play ping-pong!” ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/33 "2010-08-08T17:57:54Z")
Patrick Stewart played Number One?! I never knew that. Wonderful on several levels. Lord Flashheart on Blackadder–does he count? I know he came back for the fourth one, and the movie, but he was only in one episode of the second series and he was nothing if not memorable. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/34 "2010-08-08T18:03:00Z")
If we’re going to be playing games with Blackadder characters, there’s Bob. I can’t pronounce the name normally because of her. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/35 "2010-08-08T18:05:17Z")
Ha. I just found myself doing the Blackadder pronunciation in my head when I read Bob. ---
**Author:** ![JoelUpchurch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@JoelUpchurch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoelUpchurch)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/36 "2010-08-08T18:11:52Z")
The Big Bang Theory **Lewis Black** _Professor Crawley_ He was hilarious as the laid off Entomologist The Big Bang Theory **Riki Lindhome** _Ramona Nowitzki_ She was great as a grad student with an obsession with Sheldon The Big Bang Theory **Mayim Bialik** _Amy Farrah Fowler_ Dating service finds female Sheldon. I figure I better mention her now, since she is supposed to be back next month. They also had some other great guests in Laurie Metcalf, Christine Baranski and Wil Wheaton, but they have already been back for encores. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/37 "2010-08-08T18:18:42Z")
Speaking of Christine Baranski, her character of Dr. Nora only appeared on Frasier once but she was pretty epic. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/38 "2010-08-08T18:32:25Z")
> [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](#): > > Same series - but Michael Keaton’s one-off character of Lilith’s brother was very memorable as well. > > Heck, _Frasier_ had a ton of great one-episode characters. Michael Keaton’s one-off shot on Frasier was indeed excellent, and Patrick Stewart also starred in a great episode where he was romantically pursuing Frasier… Tony Shalhoub also did a guest shot on Frasier that was perfect. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/39 "2010-08-08T18:54:28Z")
Peter Boyle’s appearance as Clyde Bruckman on **the X-Files** episode, “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose”. He brought a lot of pathos to his role as a reluctant psychic, and the episode is among the X-Files’ best. ---
**Author:** ![Equipoise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/equipoise/32/151_2.png) [@Equipoise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Equipoise)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2010, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599/40 "2010-08-08T18:54:49Z")
Wow, I’m not even much of a Whovian but the first thing that came to my mind when I saw the Subject line was **Sally Sparrow** on the [Doctor Who episode Blink](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blink_%28Doctor_Who%29), as played by [Carey Mulligan](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1659547/). Here’s [a trailer](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwFIu4Demx8) for the episode. It’s considered by many one of the greatest Doctor Who episodes ever. So where are all the DW fans? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lets-talk-about-great-one-off-characters-on-fictional-tv-series-with-continuing-casts/549599.md?page=3)