William Riker quotes from Star Trek: The Next Generation

William Riker

"Fear is the true enemy, the only enemy."

Riker

Of course a Marshall outranks an Admiral!

[regarding Data] The Commander is a physical representation of a dream. An idea conceived of by the mind of a man, its purpose to serve human needs and interests. It's a collection of neural nets and heuristic algorithms, its responses dictated by an elaborate software written by a man, its hardware built by a man, and now... and now a man will shut it off. [Riker deactivates Data in front of Picard and Louvois.] Pinocchio is broken; its strings have been cut.

Fate. It protects fools, little children, and ships named Enterprise.

If it should become necessary to fight, can you arrange to find me some rocks to throw at them? [This line references the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode "More Tribbles, More Troubles," in which Lt. Uhura says, "We could always throw rocks at them."]

William Riker

[reading Richie's diary entry] "I write this in the hope that it will someday be read by human eyes. I can only surmise at this point but, apparently, our exploratory shuttle was contaminated by an alien life form which infected and killed all personnel except myself. I awakened to find myself here in the Royale Hotel precisely as described in the novel I found in my room. And for the last 38 years, I have survived here. I have come to understand that the alien contaminators created this place for me out of some sense of guilt, presuming that the novel we had on board the shuttle about the Hotel Royale was, in fact, a guide to our preferred lifestyle and social habits. Obviously, they thought this was the world from which I came. I hold no malice toward my benefactors; they could not possibly know the hell they have put me through, for it was such a badly written book, filled with endless cliché and shallow characters. I shall welcome death when it comes."

William Riker

That's how we're getting out. We're buying this place!

William Riker

Flair is what marks the difference between artistry and mere competence.

William Riker

The game's not big enough unless it scares you a little.

Riker

If you drop a hammer on your foot, it's hardly useful to get mad at the hammer.

Riker

Deanna, facing death is the ultimate test of character. I don't want to die but if I have to do, I'd like to do it with a little pride.

William Riker

Maybe if we felt any human loss as keenly as we feel one of those close to us, human history would be far less bloody.

Riker

Yuta, you're an excellent chef but you speak in riddles.

Riker

Fifty-three years...and she hasn't aged in a day.

William Riker

For an android with no feelings, he sure managed to evoke them in others.