One of the traits Star Trek is best known for is its penchant to creatively and profusely kill off characters to strange new alien threats and other dangers; it’s how “redshirts” entered the pop culture lexicon as s synonym for sci-fi cannon fodder, after all. But it’s not just redshirts who die in Trek, and all Trek deaths are not created equal – both the TV series and the movies have occasionally offed its characters, main and otherwise, in ways totally vindictive and joyfully cruel, generally with a sharp stab of irony. These are the 15 cruelest deaths from many, many Star Trek episodes and movies that we can think of.
Wait a sec. What about Captain Terrell? He turned his phaser on himself. That was pretty gruesome.
Um, not killing the messenger.
Darmok and Jalaad at Tenagra. His arms wide. 
Um, not killing the messenger.
Just wounding him a bit. 
Of the 15 shown, I’d say Edith Keeler’s death was the cruelest.
Yeah. Some of them were just weird occurrences.
“Jim, do you know what you just did?”
“He knows, Doctor. He knows.”
heart pain
Geez 'Talos, I’m away from the Forum for awhile and your posts jump to 30K plus. Holy crap, awesome.
How does that happen? They just keep piling up. A few of 'em actually make sense. 
I have to agree with #1 because it’s prolly one of the first movies I remember seeing. As a kid, that scene scared and scarred the frak outta me… And, the shrieks!! Oh man…
Data should be in there some where. Honorable mention like the other two.
The gruesomeness of Remmick’s death caught me off guard though.
I totally agree with #4 and #3. Yeoman Leslie Thompson (crumbled up by the Kelvans) shocked me as a kid, and was awesome. Lt. J.G. Van Mayter’s (fell partway through the deck) interrupted scream also. Commander Sonak’s transporter accident was also masterful. I gotta say, they nailed the top ones.
What about the crew of the Uss Pegasus? After an explosion they drifted in ‘cloaked/phased’ form and then materialized inside an asteroid… nasty.
And all of those poor souls who were mentally tortured and toyed with by the malevolent clown AI in that virtual world on Voyager…