Star Trek's Most Important Character Would Hate How His Fame Is Being Weaponized

Star Trek’s most important character would most certainly hate how his fame is being weaponized. While Captains Kirk and Picard are traditionally viewed as the most prominent characters in the franchise, it is in fact Zefram Cochrane who holds that honor, for without him, there is no Star Trek. Yet as seen in Star Trek #31, Cochrane’s legacy is distorted and corrupted by the evil android Lore.

Star Trek #31 was written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly and drawn by Davide TInto. The issue is part of the larger Lore War crossover event running through IDW’s Star Trek books, and follows the adventures of Captain Sisko in a dark reality created by Lore. The issue’s opening pages show how this world came to be, and it involved Zefram Cochrane. Instead of making first contact with the Vulcans, Lore comes to Cochrane, offering him great technology and knowledge, but it comes at a price as the android subjugates Earth and kills Cochrane.

Zefram Cochrane, Star Trek's Most Important Character, Explained

Zefram Cochrane Was Not Comfortable With His Legacy

The first human to fly faster than light, Zefram Cochrane’s work helped lay the foundation for the United Federation of Planets. Introduced in Star Trek’s second season, Cochrane was a human from the mid-21st century who, after World War III, built Earth’s first warp drive. As recounted in the film Star Trek: First Contact, this event drew the attention of the Vulcans. The Vulcans had previously written Earth off, but Cochrane’s flight changed their minds. This first contact ultimately led humanity down a better path, allowing them to join intergalactic society.

Star Trek established that Cochrane was highly important to galactic history, and First Contact drove this point home. When meeting Cochrane, Geordi La Forge and his Enterprise crewmates were awestruck, thrilled to meet a great hero they had only learned about in school. In a famous scene from that movie, Geordi tells Cochrane that the site of first contact will become a historical landmark, complete with a giant statue of Cochrane reaching to the heavens, ready to inaugurate a new era for humanity. Cochrane’s lionization was swift: he was being venerated by the mid-22nd century, as seen on Enterprise.

However, First Contact established that Cochrane hated his fame and reputation. When told about the statue of himself, Cochrane became visibly upset, eventually sulking off to get some whiskey. Commander Riker also told Cochrane about his legacy as a visionary. When confronted with this knowledge, Cochrane became even more agitated, telling Riker he built the Phoenix, the warp ship, solely for money and fame. It took a good deal of convincing on Geordi and Riker’s part to convince Cochrane to continue his experiments as well. Cochrane was clearly a genius, but one that was very troubled and hurting.

Lore Has Weaponized Zefram Cochrane's Reputation

Did Lore See Zefram Cochrane as a Threat?

As seen in Star Trek #31, Lore has perverted Zefram Cochrane’s legacy, using it as a means of control. Lore murdered Cochrane just a few years after their first meeting, perhaps realizing that in time the scientist could become a threat. The statue of Cochrane is still at the first contact site in Bozeman, Montana, but now a larger one of Lore dwarfs it. Star Trek #31 does not show how humans in Lore’s new reality perceive Cochrane, but the fact there is still a statue of him implies he still occupies an esteemed place in humanity’s history.

Even though Zefram Cochrane was abrasive towards others, he was still a moral person at the end of the day, meaning Lore’s actions would not sit well with him. Cochrane did not like being remembered as a Star Trek hero, and he no doubt would not like being the one who sold humanity out to Lore either. Humans still venerate Cochrane in Lore’s world, but it is on Lore’s terms. Cochrane’s legacy in the 24th century is untouchable, and Lore has weaponized this for his own ends.