That time when Tim Russ was a Star Trek villain

Tim Russ didn’t always play a good guy on Star Trek.

Tim Russ is well-known for having played the chief of security, Tuvok, a Vulcan, on Star Trek: Voyager. He had some outstanding episodes on the series, especially the series finale, Endgame, when he becomes mentally unstable due to a neurological condition. But before he took on the role that made him famous in Star Trek, he appeared in one episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation which brought out the Jack Reacher in Captain Picard.

In the sixth season episode, Starship Mine, Tim Russ portrays a technician named Devor who is supposedly performing final maintenance to the Enterprise’s systems before the baryon sweep begins. But Devor isn’t actually a technician at all, at least, not in the sense of being there to be helpful. He’s with a band of thieves intent on stealing trilithium from the ship. And his first encounter is with Captain Picard who knows something is up the minute he sees an open ODN junction with a severed ODN line.

Tim Russ doesn’t have a big role in Starship Mine but it’s memorable.

Devor tries to take out Picard with his laser welder, but the captain brought a saddle to the fight and swings it to take out Russ’ character. And, making the episode really memorable, Picard brings Devor to his knees with a Vulcan nerve pinch he apparently learned from his mind meld with Sarek. Devor is out like a light. It’s the one and only time Captain Picard used a nerve pinch.

Russ has another scene when Picard drags him to sickbay and demands to know what’s going on. Devor refuses to talk and doesn’t believe the captain will kill him because he’s a Starfleet officer. Picard injects him with a hypospray that renders Devor unconscious then agrees with the villain, telling him he was right.

Again, Russ’ time aboard the Enterprise is short as are his interactions with Picard, but playing a villain who’d been taken out by a Vulcan nerve pinch only to end up portraying a Vulcan who can perform a nerve pinch is classic.