Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 3, Episode 8 - "Crisis Point 2: Paradoxus"Tragedy strikes Ensign Bradward Boimler (Jack Quaid) in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 3, episode 8, and it gives the saga of his identical double a shocking twist better than what Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine did. When Brad served on the USS Titan in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2, he was caught in a transporter accident that created a doppelganger who took the name William Boimler. Captain Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) hilariously quipped, "I've heard this tune before!" because the exact same thing happened to him when Thomas Riker was created in TNG.
In Star Trek: Lower Decks season 3, episode 8, "Crisis Point 2: Paradoxus," Brad Boimler's holodeck sequel to Ensign Beckett Mariner's (Tawny Newsome) previous 'film' is interrupted when he gets the horrible news that William Boimler died on the Titan. A freak accident flooded William's quarters with deadly gas, and he died in his sleep. Naturally, the news that his exact double suddenly died took the wind out of Brad's sails, especially since he was envious of his transporter twin for being the one chosen to stay on the Titan. But Star Trek: Lower Decks' delivered a stunning epilogue where William Boimler isn't dead at all. Instead, William faked his death so that he could join Section 31! This adds a new dimension to the tale of two Boimlers, and it's far more than Will and Thomas Riker got.
What Happened To Will's Double, Thomas Riker
Will Riker's doppelganger, Lieutenant Thomas Riker, was created in the Star Trek: The Next Generation season 6 episode "Second Chances" thanks to a transporter malfunction. The Riker clone came aboard the USS Enterprise-D and took on his middle name, Thomas. He also wanted to reignite his romance with Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), who reciprocated Thomas' feelings and was interested in resuming their stalled love affair. But instead, Thomas transferred to the USS Gandhi. Interestingly, TNG's producers had the idea to permanently kill off Will and replace him with Thomas, but that plan was jettisoned to maintain the status quo.
Thomas Riker made his final appearance in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 3 episode, "Defiant." Thomas posed as Will Riker and stole the USS Defiant with Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) aboard. Tom Riker was revealed to be a Maquis sympathizer who betrayed Starfleet. Riker was captured and sent to a Cardassian prison, yet Thomas' final fate was never revealed. Similarly, Star Trek never addressed whether Will is aware of what happened to Thomas, and there's never been closure for the story of Riker's doppelganger.
Why Lower Decks' William Boimler Twist Is Brilliant
The sudden death of William Boimler was certainly an unexpected shock to Brad. In Star Trek: Lower Decks season 3, Bradward embraced a new philosophy as "Bold Boimler," and he decided to take more risks as a means to advance his Starfleet career. The knowledge that his exact double was serving on a cooler starship, the USS Titan, while he was relegated back to the Lower Decks of the USS Cerritos, is partly what drove Brad to embrace being Bold Boimler.
William Boimler's unexpected turn into joining Section 31 sets up all kinds of story potential for Star Trek: Lower Decks. It delineates William as the villainous Boimler of the duo while also providing a dark mirror to Brad's ambitions for his Starfleet career. It's also a clever spin on how Thomas betrayed Starfleet to join the Maquis and even stole a Federation starship. Best of all, it brings Section 31 back into play in Star Trek since the black badge agency hasn't been utilized since Star Trek: Discovery season 2.
A Boimlers And Rikers Team-Up Can Still Happen On Lower Decks
The fact there were two identical Boimlers in the Star Trek universe is rife with comedic possibilities, and Star Trek: Lower Decks is poised to take even greater advantage of the Boimlers by placing them on opposite sides. This is especially gratifying compared to how Star Trek: The Next Generation didn't fully explore the existence of two Rikers and the potential for stories that could have been generated from it. It's understandable that Thomas was written off due to the technical challenges of having Jonathan Frakes portray both Rikers on-screen simultaneously, but there are no limits to Star Trek: Lower Decks in animation.
Best of all, a team-up between the two Boimlers and the two Rikers may still be something to look forward to in Star Trek: Lower Decks. William Boimler in Section 31 opens up the possibility that Lower Decks will one day reintroduce Thomas Riker and finally resolve what happened to him ever since the Cardassians arrested him on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It's even possible Thomas Riker is also part of Section 31, and the secret organization recruited both Riker and Boimler doppelgängers. Whether the Rikers team up with the Boimlers or Will and Bradward potentially oppose Thomas and William, it could make for an epic future episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks.
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 3 streams Thursdays on Paramount+.