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Potential Lower Decker, EMH inspiration, and cat lover.
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00:00Played by The A-Team's Dwight Schultz, Reginald Barkley III, or Reg for short,
00:05is one of Star Trek's fan-favorite characters. Schultz puts this down to the fact that he's
00:09not the shining example of Starfleet perfection that makes up the majority of 90s Star Trek
00:14crews. He's shy, a bit nerdy, and struggles to form social connections with people. He prefers
00:19to escape into the fictional world rather than confront the real one, all of which are things
00:24I feel a lot of us can relate to. Barkley proved so popular after his first appearance that he
00:29appeared in four subsequent episodes of Star Trek The Next Generation, and later played an
00:33integral part in getting the Voyager crew back to the Alpha Quadrant. He appeared in six episodes
00:38of Voyager, and also got to meet one of his heroes when he shook hands with Zephyrm Cochran in Star
00:43Trek First Contact. All of this is widely known, but there are small character moments that are
00:48easy to forget, or behind-the-scenes stories that shed more light on the creation of the beloved
00:53Enterprise crew member. So, with all that in mind, I'm Bree from Trek Culture, and here are 10 things
00:58that you didn't know about Lieutenant Barkley. Number 10. He has something in common with Seven
01:04of Nine. Reg Barkley suffered a few physical and mental ailments in his time on the Enterprise.
01:10One of these was an addiction to the holodeck, dubbed holoaddiction or holodiction. Given the
01:15opportunities presented in Star Trek's holographic technology, it's surprising that this wasn't a more
01:20common affliction in the 24th century. Struggling to form connections with other members of the crew,
01:25Barkley retreated into a fantasy world where he could be the charming, romantic hero he wanted to
01:30be. Barkley is helped with his addiction by Geordi LaForge and Deanna Troi, who help him form real-life
01:35connections with his crewmates. His obsession with finding the missing USS Voyager leads to a relapse
01:41in the Season 6 episode, Pathfinder, when his obsession leads him to create a fully functional
01:46replica of the ship and its crew. In Voyager Season 7, holoaddiction grips Seven of Nine when she,
01:52too, becomes obsessed with a holographic representation of Voyager and its crew.
01:56In Human Error, Seven attempts to improve her social skills but becomes increasingly overwhelmed
02:01by the emotions that these new connections stir up. Seven's obsession alerts the attention of Janeway,
02:06who chastises her for spending too much time on the holodeck instead of fulfilling her duties.
02:11That's a bit rich from a woman who once deleted a handsome hologram's wife.
02:15Number 9. He Loved The Three Musketeers
02:18Reg Barkley's love for The Three Musketeers is, of course, well documented in the TNG episode,
02:23Hollow Pursuits. When he confronts his hollow addiction, Reg deletes The Three Musketeers
02:28simulation, but that clearly wasn't the end of his connection to the classic novel by
02:32Alexandre Dumont. In the DS9 episode, Image in the Sand, Worf and O'Brien reminisce about their
02:37time on the Enterprise, in an attempt by the latter to comfort his friend over the death of his wife,
02:42Dax. In this, the subject of Barkley and his Three Musketeers program comes up, but surely
02:48this is impossible. While the simulation may have entered legend aboard the Enterprise,
02:52the pair's assertion that Barkley often asked crewmates to join him in the Three Musketeers
02:56program suggests that he resurrected it, though he probably did so by removing the problematic
03:03representation of Deanna Troi and his fellow crewmates. It's heartwarming to imagine Reg Barkley
03:08sharing his hollow programs with the Enterprise crew instead of hiding out in them. It's also
03:14funny to imagine the likes of Worf and O'Brien attempting to duck invitations to Barkley's
03:19swashbuckling adventure game nights. Number eight, he has an unfortunate nickname.
03:25To prove the old adage about the weak picking on those who are weaker, Wesley Crusher coined an
03:29unfortunate nickname for poor, shy Reg Barkley. While Reg struggled to fit into the Enterprise crew,
03:35Wesley Crusher dubbed him Lieutenant Brockley. When you're being bullied by Wesley Crusher,
03:41then you know that something has to change. Barkley's nervousness and poor service record
03:46were all symptoms of his hollow addiction, but the nickname followed him around for quite a bit.
03:51In a neat bit of karma, the very fandom that rejected Wesley Crusher embraced the nerdy,
03:57socially awkward Reg Barkley, leading to four subsequent appearances in TNG. So take that, Wesley.
04:03The bullying of Reg is something that's not always seen in the utopian future of Star Trek,
04:08with most people respecting their colleagues and not resorting to cruel name-calling. In hollow
04:14pursuits, Will even considers having Barkley removed from the ship for not meeting standards demanded by
04:19the Federation flagship. It's a refreshing take on the structure of Starfleet that shows that not
04:24every officer is an unflappable expert in their chosen field. Thankfully, Captain Picard gave Barkley
04:30another chance, as he would do with Wesley Crusher, and the character went on to great heights.
04:357. The TNG writers struggled to bring him back
04:39Reg Barkley was an instant hit, due both to the writing of this relatable realistic character
04:44and to the great performance by Dwight Schultz. Plans were immediately set in motion to bring Barkley
04:50back for another episode of TNG, but there was a problem. So wonderful was the character that the
04:56writers didn't want to bring him back just for the sake of it. Instead, they agonized over how to
05:01bring him back. They wanted the character to develop rather than be stuck in the mold of a
05:05nervous Starfleet officer with a holodeck addiction. It took the writers room the better
05:10part of a year to find the perfect Reg Barkley story. Season four is the Nth Degree. This was a
05:16favorite episode of Dwight Schultz and Barkley fans alike. In it, Barkley's intelligence is subsequently
05:21improved by an alien force attempting to make contact with the Enterprise. It was the perfect
05:26evolution for the character, who had moved past his anxieties by becoming an actor and
05:31super-intelligent Starfleet officer. At the end of the Nth Degree, Barkley is disappointed at being
05:37returned to his usual self, but he's reassured by Troy and Geordi in a touching scene that hints that
05:42he still has some residual intelligence left from his encounter.
05:466. He has a cat called Neelix
05:49When Barkley created his Voyager replica, he may have experienced a relap of his holo addiction,
05:55but the Voyager crew similarly impacted his real life. Barkley's work on the Pathfinder project was
06:00abruptly halted when his unauthorized holodeck replica was discovered, but his obsessive use of
06:06it did eventually pay off when he used it to prove the best way to contact Voyager in the Delta
06:11Quadrant.
06:12Barkley's Voyager obsession was channeled into his home life as well. He has an affinity for cats,
06:17having once looked after Data's pet spot, and ends up adopting his own cat during Voyager. He calls the
06:23Silver Persian cat Neelix after Voyager's Talaxian crew member. The cat ends up influencing the
06:28simulation of the actual Neelix, who audibly purrs to the surprise of the Doctor. When he realized that
06:34Barkley has named his cat after Neelix, the Doctor tells Barkley that the Talaxian would be proud to have
06:39had such an impact on Reg. It's unsurprising that Barkley has an affinity with cats, as he struggles
06:45forming social connections. While cats are definitely aloof, they don't crave the affection in the same
06:51way. Something for him to aspire to, perhaps. Number 5. The character was the brainchild of Gene Roddenberry.
06:59The origins of Reg Barkley can be traced back to the Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, who,
07:04according to actor Dwight Schultz, felt like such a character was missing from Star Trek. The character
07:09of Reg is genuinely groundbreaking. In the utopian future of Roddenberry's Star Trek, everyone seems
07:15incredibly self-confident and they're all excellent at their jobs. This can often make it hard for
07:20audiences to identify with the characters on an emotional level. Reg, on the other hand, he felt the
07:25pressures that many of us would have felt serving aboard a starship. The Federation flagship is incredibly
07:30overwhelming. Not only are you constantly at the forefront of space exploration and potential
07:35conflict, but there are also hundreds of people aboard whose names you have to remember. It's a
07:40daunting prospect for anyone, let alone someone who clearly suffers from imposter syndrome and social
07:45anxiety the way that Reg Barkley clearly does. It was an inspired move by Roddenberry to bring
07:51someone more realistic and grounded into the Star Trek universe, but much of the credit should also go to
07:56writer Sally Caves, who wrote Reg's first episode, as well as actor Dwight Schultz, for making the
08:01character such a hit with fans. Number four, he has an illness named after him. Reg Barkley has quite
08:08the medical history, hollow addiction, transporter phobia, and hypochondria. The latter led him to
08:14self-diagnose with transporter psychosis and Torellian death syndrome. He of course had neither of these
08:20conditions, but does have the questionable honor of having one particular illness named after him.
08:25Barkley's protomorphosis syndrome. It's something of a misnomer given that the disease was
08:31accidentally created by Beverly Crusher. What is it with the Crusher family holding grudges against Reg?
08:37The reason that protomorphosis syndrome was named after Barkley isn't that Dr. Crusher was avoiding
08:42blame, it's because it was intrinsically linked to a genetic abnormality in Barkley's body. This
08:48abnormality meant that when he was given a hypospray to activate dormant cells that could fight the flu,
08:52all of his dormant cells were activated. This caused a nightmarish transformation into a
08:58prehistoric creature which soon affected everyone else on the ship. Barkley blamed himself for the
09:03bizarre transformations of his crewmates, but Crusher reassured him that it was all down to her,
09:08before then offering to name the condition after him. Beverly really needs to learn to read the room.
09:14Number three, Barkley was almost in TNG's Lower Decks. Reg Barkley would be such a great guest star on an
09:20episode of Lower Decks that it's surprising it hasn't happened yet. However, Barkley did almost
09:26feature in the Next Generation episode which inspired Mike McMahon's animated Star Trek comedy.
09:31Lower Decks was a well-regarded episode of TNG's final season, which portrayed the events of the
09:37average Star Trek episode as seen through the eyes of junior officers. Originally, Barkley was considered
09:43to join the team of lowly Star Trek officers serving aboard the Enterprise D. It would certainly be
09:48interesting to see how Barkley interacted with those who weren't senior staff, but the writers decided
09:53wisely to remove him from the final script. Ultimately, Reg Barkley was so well-known by the
09:58time of TNG's final season that he would have stolen the limelight from the other characters.
10:03Given that Lower Decks was a fresh take on the regular cast through the eyes of unseen characters,
10:08it would have lessened the appeal of the episode's unique hook if Barkley had joined them.
10:13Oh, but he should definitely still show up on Lower Decks. Pretty please, Mike.
10:17Number 2. Dwight Schultz lobbied for the role of Reg.
10:21As a character actor previously best known for playing Howling Mad Murdoch in The A-Team,
10:26Dwight Schultz had worked with a number of people related to Star Trek The Next Generation prior to
10:31being cast as Reg Barkley. He had worked with Worf actor Michael Dorn in an episode of Chips and knew
10:37Whoopi Goldberg from their time filming The Long Walk Home. As a huge sci-fi fan, Schultz was keen to
10:43take
10:43on a role in Star Trek The Next Generation and expressed his interest to TNG's executive producer,
10:49Rick Berman. However, it was his friendship with Whoopi Goldberg that was instrumental in getting
10:53him the role of Barkley. She saw how great a fit Schultz was for the show and said as much
10:58to Star
10:58Trek producers. Schultz swiftly received a phone call from his agent about the role of Reg Barkley.
11:04As a Star Trek fan who gets to take his place on the USS Enterprise, Schultz reflected that he was
11:09the
11:09lucky one chosen in an interview with TV Zone. It's that love of Star Trek and Reg's own self-conscious
11:16and nervous personality that resonated so well with fans who got to live their own Star Trek fantasies
11:22vicariously through him. Number one, he was almost Voyager's doctor. Reg Barkley would eventually play
11:29an integral part in bringing the Voyager crew back to the Alpha Quadrant but he almost had an even larger
11:34role in the Star Trek spinoff. When Voyager was in development, an outline suggested that the show's
11:39holographic doctor could actually be based on Reg Barkley and could be played by Dwight Schultz.
11:45In this version of Voyager, Barkley would have left the Enterprise in TNG Season 7 to complete
11:51work on the emergency medical hologram program. Sadly, Barkley never got his proper send-off in
11:56TNG's final season. It's unclear if this was due to actor availability or just the absence of a solid
12:02story with which they could say goodbye to him. In the end, they decided to create a completely new
12:07character for Voyager, however, Barkley would eventually have links to the EMH. A Barkley
12:13hologram was a built-in failsafe for the Doctor in the episode Projections, and the real Barkley
12:18requested the EMH's help later in the series. In the episode Lifeline, Barkley teams up with the
12:23Voyager's Doctor to cure the EMH's creator, Lewis Zimmerman, of a terminal illness. Given Barkley's
12:29reclusive nature, it's hardly surprising that the bedside manner of Voyager's Doctor left a lot to be
12:34desired. And those were 10 things that you hopefully didn't already know about Reg Barkley.
12:40Let me know in the comments anything else about Reg that you think we should know.
12:44You can also subscribe to the channel to never miss a new video. If you want to find us on
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12:48social medias, you can do so at either TrekCulture or TrekCultureYT. And if you want to find me on
12:55social media, you can do so by simply searching TrekkieBrie. But with all that being said,
12:59I hope you all have a great rest of your day, and don't forget to live long and prosper.
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