Rhenium tricarbonyl complexes with three N-heterocyclic ligands (N-alkylimidazoles or pyridines) undergo deprotonation with KN(SiMe3)2 and then oxidation with AgOTf to afford complexes with pyridylimidazole or bipyridine bidentate ligands resulting from deprotonation, C鈥揅 coupling and rearomatization.