Denise Crosby has continued acting over the years, landing recurring roles in shows like “The Walking Dead,” “Ray Donovan,” and “General Hospital.” However, just because Tasha Yar was killed off early in the run of “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” that didn’t mean she was done with the Enterprise D crew. She returned to reprise the character of Yar in Season 3’s “Yesterday’s Enterprise.” Due to a temporal anomaly, the main timeline of “TNG” gets altered, and as a result, the crew meets a variant of Yar who seeks to sacrifice herself to prevent an all-out war from taking place. The goal with this was seemingly to give the character’s death a bit more meaning.
Crosby was also a part of Seasons 4 and 5, but this time as a new character — Sela, the daughter of the alt-timeline Yar and a general of the Romulan army. Sela was a ruthless antagonist, giving Crosby the opportunity to play a very different character from Yar while continuing to make a mark on the “Star Trek” mythos. Crosby also lent her voice to various “Star Trek” video games, like “Star Trek: Armada” and “Star Trek Online.” She may not have had the most time onscreen as other “TNG” actors, but fans hold her in high regard all the same.
And even the despised Armus has continued influencing “Star Trek” in interesting ways. “Star Trek: Lower Decks” contained an Armus reference where characters refer to a creature that looks like a bunch of trash bags. Even mistakes are part of a franchise’s legacy, so all it can do going forward is make the best of such controversial decisions.
