Troi & Riker have the most epic love story in Star Trek. The fan-favorite couple’s romance starts in TNG and continues into Star Trek: Picard.

The best love story in Star Trek is the relationship between Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) and William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes). As Ship’s Counselor and First Officer, respectively, Troi and Riker are best known for their tenure on the USS Enterprise-D under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), where they were just close friends. Will and Deanna had previously been Imzadi (beloved) to each other but they had broken up before serving together on the Enterprise. Riker and Troi’s will they/won’t they energy throughout Star Trek: The Next Generation is legendary, and audiences have been pleased to see it resolved happily in Star Trek: Picard.

Will Riker and Deanna Troi’s love story is realistic, aspirational, and, therefore, the best love story Star Trek offers. The romance between Troi and Riker spans the Star Trek: The Next Generation TV series and TNG movies through Star Trek: Picard. It has occurred on and off-screen, in and outside of official Star Trek canon. Troi and Riker’s Star Trek love story is as epic as any adventure had by the crew of the USS Enterprise. The believability of Will and Deanna’s romance is due to the acting chops of Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis. Their onscreen chemistry is believable and enjoyable. Their accomplishments are celebrated together, and their disappointments are endured together. As Riker and Troi, Frakes and Sirtis convince audiences that they really do connect empathically.

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Troi & Riker’s Love Story Spans Decades Of Star Trek

Will and Deanna went from lovers, to friends, to husband and wife

Deanna Troi and Will Riker’s love story is epic not just in chemistry but in its span of time. When Riker and Troi are first introduced to viewers in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s series premiere, “Encounter at Farpoint”, they had been lovers years before on Troi’s homeworld of Betazed, but Riker’s Starfleet career aspirations took him away from Troi. Reunited on the USS Enterprise-D, Commander Riker and Counselor Troi remained platonic and served together as friends for seven years in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Although Riker and Troi had different love interests on TNG – including Deanna coupling with Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn) – their stars always seemed destined to realign.

Star Trek: The Next Generation jumped to feature films where Commander Riker and Counselor Troi finally rekindled their romance for good during the third TNG movie, Star Trek: Insurrection. Four years later, in Star Trek: Nemesis, Will and Deanna got married before they both left the USS Enterprise-E. Promoted to Captain, Will took command of the USS Titan with Troi transferring to become ship’s counselor. Some of Riker and Troi’s exploits aboard the Titan are seen in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1’s finale. In Star Trek: Picard season 1, Troi and Riker are retired from Starfleet and raising their teenage daughter, Kestra (Lulu Wilson), on the planet Nepenthe. Tragically, Will and Deanna lost their son, Thad, to a terminal disease a few years before the events of Star Trek: Picard.

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Reaffirmed Troi & Riker’s Love Story

The stars will always be in Will and Deanna’s favor

Star Trek: Picard season 3 placed Will Riker and Deanna Troi’s marriage in a crisis, revealing that the USS Enterprise-D’s first couple were estranged and living apart. Riker was unable to reconcile his son Thad’s death and he returned to Starfleet to lose himself to the stars, leaving Deanna behind feeling abandoned. Troi and Riker reunited when both were captured by Changelings led by Captain Vadic (Amanda Plummer). Together, Will and Deanna joined the rest of Enterprise-D’s crew to save the galaxy from the Borg, which Troi piloting the Enterprise to rescue Riker, Admiral Picard, and Captain Worf. Reaching a new understanding, Will and Deanna’s marriage seems rock solid. and they planned a romantic second honeymoon at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 3.

What’s Next For Troi & Riker’s Romance In Star Trek?

Will we see Riker and Troi again?

Star Trek: Picard season 3 may be the last hurrah for Star Trek‘s first couple. Outside of voicing their characters in the animated Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Prodigy, the continuing forward progress of Riker and Troi’s romance is halted by the fact that there is no movement by Paramount toward developing Picard’s proposed spinoff series, Star Trek: Legacy. Riker and Troi’s future in live-action Star Trek is dependent on Star Trek: Legacy happening, and Picard season 3’s happy ending may turn out to be Will and Deanna’s happy ending as well.

Troi and Riker are considered the best couple in Star Trek because their relationship feels real. Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis share a real-life chemistry from their 35+ years of friendship, and they translate it on-screen to create something unique and palpable. Riker and Troi also have an arc people can relate to. They met, fell in love, and then broke up because they wanted different things. Years later, they meet again in Star Trek: The Next Generation, work out their issues and live together happily ever after. After so many years of watching the beloved couple remain apart, Will Riker and Deanna Troi’s love story is one of the joys of Star Trek: Picard season 3.