Star Trek Just Made One TNG Officer the Most Important Man in Starfleet

Star Trek just proved why one of The Next Generation’s underrated crewmembers is the most important person in Starfleet history. Chief Miles O’Brien was crowned the most important person in the organization’s history and in 1990’s Star Trek: The Next Generation #13, fans get a glimpse into why he was given this honor.

Star Trek: The Next Generation #13, first published by DC Comics, was written by Michael Jan Friedman and drawn by Pablo Marcos. O’Brien has been possessed by a telepathic alien, who plans to use the Chief to assassinate a rival. However, O’Brien still has enough presence of mind to send a very faint cry for help to his crewmates.

Chief O'Brien Rose Through the Star Trek Ranks to Become a Fan Favorite

O'Brien Would Become the Most Important Person in Starfleet History

A group of school kids learn in the shadow of a giant Miles O'Brien statue

Played by acclaimed actor Colm Meaney, Chief Miles Edward O’Brien began as a one-off character in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s pilot episode and would go on to become one of the most well-developed characters in the entire franchise. Starting out at the conn of the Enterprise before moving to the transporter room, O’Brien became a fan favorite.

O’Brien’s career kicked into high gear when he transferred to Deep Space Nine, where he was the station’s head engineer. Now a part of the main cast, O’Brien was allowed to grow even further. Fans learned of O’Brien’s family history and witnessed his deep devotion to his family. O’Brien also found a best friend in Doctor Julian Bashir.

Chief O’Brien’s crowning moment in the Star Trek franchise came courtesy of Lower Decks. In the epilogue of the first season episode “Temporal Edict,” it is revealed that, in the distant future, O’Brien is the most important person in Starfleet history. How exactly O’Brien earned this distinction was never mentioned, but in that century, he had a gold statue.

Chief O'Brien Is Not to be Underestimated

O'Brien Is the Ideal Starfleet Crew Member

Chief Miles O'Brien in Star Trek: DS9 and the USS Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation

Lower Decks anointing O’Brien as Starfleet’s most important person was most likely nothing more than a joke. The show regularly poked gentle fun at the franchise, and making O'Brien an MVP was a refutation to certain segments of Star Trek fandom who viewed the Chief as “useless.” It is worth noting these fans are in the minority.

Yet the gag points to a truth about Chief O’Brien: he is excellent at his job, and people often underestimate him and his abilities. O’Brien’s engineering prowess is unmatched in Starfleet. He is hard-working and resourceful, as well as deeply compassionate, all of which are model qualities in a Starfleet crewmember.

Chief O'Brien's Willpower Saved the Enterprise

It Proves Why Chief O'Brien is One of Starfleet's Best

Collage of Colm Meaney as Miles O'Brien in his Star Trek: TNG uniform and his grey DS9 uniform.

O’Brien’s actions in Star Trek: The Next Generation #13 prove why he is one of Starfleet’s best. The telepathic alien sought to exploit O’Brien’s technical skills to kill someone. Even though the alien was firmly in control, O’Brien somehow fought through the hold that was on him and warned Geordi and the rest.

To do what O’Brien did in this issue takes a great deal of mental fortitude and willpower. O’Brien placed all of his hopes in a desperate gambit to warn his crewmates, and they did not let him down. Thanks to O’Brien, an intergalactic incident, as well as the end of his career, were prevented.

O'Brien's Star Trek Arc Is One of the Franchise's Most Inspiring

O'Brien Is Many Things in the Star Trek Universe, Including a Hero

Colm Meaney as Chief O'Brien in front of an Irish flag

It is this combination of qualities that has taken Chief O’Brien from the transporter room to new heights of greatness in the Star Trek universe. While underappreciated in The Next Generation, O’Brien would rise from obscurity, becoming a family man, a war hero, and the most important person in Starfleet history.