{"id":6698,"date":"2017-06-05T06:08:42","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T06:08:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/721-Firstborn"},"modified":"2017-06-05T06:08:42","modified_gmt":"2017-06-05T06:08:42","slug":"721-firstborn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relivethemajesty.com\/index.php\/2017\/06\/05\/721-firstborn\/","title":{"rendered":"7.21 — \u201cFirstborn\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n \n

7.21 — \u201cFirstborn\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Plot:<\/strong> Worf argues with his son Alexander about whether Alexander should train to be a warrior. A visiting retainer from the House of Mogh, who identifies himself as K\u2019Mtar, arrives to weigh in on Worf\u2019s side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Thoughts:<\/strong> I feel like this episode is fairly toothless, but at least avoids the excesses of suckitude of some recent TNG installments. The twist relating to K\u2019Mtar\u2019s identity, and the spectacle of Klingons singing operatically during the Kot\u2019baval festival, are at least interesting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“Firstborn” presents a quite different view of Klingons from the one we see when Riker serves about the Klingon ship in TNG 2.8 \u201cA Matter of Honor,\u201d or the raucous belligerence of the tavern revels that Worf\u2019s brother gets drawn into in (I think) either TNG 4.26 \u201cRedemption Part I,\u201d or TNG 5.1 \u201cRedemption Part II.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Worf just has no dignity left in this series. It used to be a running joke how the warrior would lose every fight he was in. Now ritual humiliation seems to be a part of every Worf scene. He is shown to be ridiculously inept and nervous talking to Alexander in the opening, and gets soaked with a water balloon to boot. He is inattentive at a staff briefing, and it seems his interactions with the other crew consist only of them patronizing him for his limitations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Meanwhile, it\u2019s hard to see the meaning of the warrior ritual as significant to Worf. Is he still interested in his heritage? His Klingon songs are powerful enough to overthrow a village in \u201cBirthright, Part II,\u201d but they make no impression on Alexander. Worf\u2019s worry, such as it is, seems directed only towards Alexander\u2019s future welfare, and is not complicated by any struggle with his own cultural identity. Maybe a mention of how hard he worked to get in touch with his Klingon heritage after being raised by human foster parents? Let\u2019s hope the producers improve their assessment of the character as he transitions to the movie series and eventually DS9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I\u2019m confused about the House of Mogh. I thought the existence of the House was metaphorical. It\u2019s just Worf and his brother since Khitomer, right? They talk in this episode like there\u2019s property to defend, and a group of retainers, not just a sense of family honor. This is confusing. I suppose as long as Kurn is in politics Worf could be drawn into an honor battle situation or be subject to attack, but this could be far more clear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Quark’s cameo falls flat, because William Frakes smirks his whole way through the scene (gah!). To be truthful, Armin Shimerman isn\u2019t much better. Where is Quark standing on the other end of the viewscreen, and why is there a Starfleet officer standing behind him? The filler scene with Gorta (\u201cMining? Is that what all this equipment is for?\u201d) is at least funnier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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According to Memory Alpha, there was a thought to bring K\u2019Ehleyr back, but Suzie Plakson declined due to other acting commitments. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Time travel is treated very cavalierly in this script. \u201cI met a man in the Cambra system. He gave me a chance to change the past. He had the ability to send me here, to this time.\u201c That’s the whole explanation. It\u2019s a big twist, but if you’re going to ring the time travel bell, I feel like you should get a lot more for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2 out of 5 participatory Klingon outdoor operas.<\/p>\n\n\n

http:\/\/memory-alpha.wikia.com\/wiki\/Firstborn<\/a>