A Damn Hard Week
Those of us who are fans of Star Trek have been rocked by the loss of two of the
franchise's greatest icons in a single week. On October 25th, 2026, Walter
Koenig, who rose to fame as Ens. Pavel Chekov on The Original Series, passed
away at the age of 90. Then, just three days later, came word that Sir Patrick
Stewart, The Next Generation's Captain Jean-Luc Picard himself, had died
following a brief battle with Alzheimer's and Lewy Body Dementia. He was 86.
It would be easy, perhaps even expected, to simply recap the
careers of these men, and to examine the paths they took to stardom. It would
not be wrong to do so, and others have accomplished that task far more ably than
I. However, the Unimonster’s talent, if I possess any, is to approach a topic
from an ‘unconventional’ angle, a view that others might miss.
As a lifelong fan of Star Trek, I would rather speak to what the loss of these men means to Star Trek Fandom in general, and to myself in particular. The passing of Mr. Koenig reduces to just two the surviving members of the main cast of the original series—William Shatner, who is 95, and George Takei, who is 89. While both men seem to be healthy, for those of us who have cherished them for more than 60 years now, it is as though we were watching an older generation of our own family slowly fading away. With each loss, we are reminded that there are fewer days in front of us. In the freshness of our memories, Pavel Chekov remains always the eager, bright young Ensign, proud of his native Russia to the point of chauvinism and dedicated to his career in Starfleet. In reality, that Chekov lies six decades in the past.
While Mr. Koenig's death is the most recent to befall the original crew of the Starship Enterprise, the death of Sir Patrick Stewart was the first among the cast of The Next Generation. As such, we cannot help but be emotionally affected by it. While it has been nearly forty years since Star Trek: The Next Generation first aired, it feels as though it was much more recent. Surely we can’t be losing them already?
To mark the passing of one such icon would be painful, painful and noteworthy, but two, and in such close proximity to each other, is staggering for those of us who count themselves as fans of their work. We fans of Star Trek, Babylon 5, and the X-Men films are in mourning, and the knowledge that more loss lies in our futures, as it does in everyone’s future, only deepens our sadness.
Goodbye, Pavel Andreyevich. Goodbye, Jean-Luc. May the Great Bird of the Galaxy welcome you home.
I invite you to explore the Unimonster's other Crypt, which you'll find HERE!
Creature Feature © D. Dyszel 2026
Sponsored by