Star Trek: The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine star Michael Dorn made his return to the franchise at the end of the second episode of Picard season 3, and we learned a lot more in Thursday’s episode 3 (“Seventeen Seconds“). TrekMovie had a chance to talk to the actor about his return to Trek, Worf’s arc in season 3, and his hopes to continue playing the role in the future, maybe even in his own show.
Your entrance in episode two was quite dramatic, even violent. How did you feel about this as your reintroduction to Star Trek?
I thought it was brilliant. I really did. Because Worf has always been a mass of contradictions. So, I think him being as violent as he is, it worked great for his entrance. But I think of it as just another facet of him and we will see other facets as the season progresses.
The trailers have teased Worf preferring pacifism, so is that balance part of his arc for season 3?
Well, I think his arc is not so much about that. I think they put that in because it was actually a very, very funny moment. When I saw it edited together, I laughed out loud, because I thought it was very funny, but not because he was funny, it was Jonathan [Frakes]’s line that was hilarious. But I think Worf’s arc is less about that and more about his journey of learning and teaching each other with Raffaela, Michelle Hurd’s character,
Speaking of humor, Terry Matalas told me how you as Worf are delivering a lot of that in season 3. We saw some of that in episode three, and of course we saw it on TNG and DS9—but for Picard, was it important for you for Worf to be in on the joke?
Well, no. And that’s always been his charm. On Next Generation they got it, and it was very understandable and I didn’t have to say too much about that. On Deep Space Nine I really had to corral them a lot, because if he’s in on the joke, he just becomes just another one of the characters. He doesn’t stand out at all. And it was easy, because all they had to do was just write a line, and everybody else gets the joke and they make a joke, and they’re funny. And Worf is just looking around going, “Okay, I wasn’t trying to be funny. I don’t know why people are laughing.” And that has always been his charm. And in Picard not so much. I’ve always kept him straight. Always very much—if they give me a line, I say the line, as serious as I can.
So beheadings are actually on Wednesdays, is what you’re saying?
Oh, yeah. He’s not joking.
Michael Dorn as Worf in Picard
You mentioned working with Michelle Hurd. We see the other familiar faces coming together in the Titan storyline. How did you feel about Worf off on his own in a non-Starfleet setting with, from your point of view, a whole new character? Did you like starting off with Worf in this whole different environment?
Oh yeah. The one thing about the business in itself is I’ve always loved it because every day you walk in, it’s a different deal. Every day is a different experience. Who you work with is a different experience. What you’re going to get from that other person is a different experience. And so, to me, that’s really exciting. I had known Michelle from just what I had seen on the screen. So I didn’t know what they had in mind or how we were going to interact. And so it was very exciting and it got even more exciting because of the kind of actor she is and the kind of actor I am. And so it became a very easy transition and a very easy thing to do, especially with the characters because our characters are so defined. And so we were able to take that, from the base of what our characters are, and sort of grow with that. And it worked out beautifully. I thought.
Like her, are you doing your own stunts?
You know, what I do a lot of them, but not the kind of dangerous stuff. I leave that to the stunt guys, I’ve done a lot of stunts over the years, and you learn from experience, there are some things that you just say no to, at the consternation of stunt people and producers. They go, “Well, why not?” and you go, “Look, I don’t want to get hurt.” I got hurt before and so I just say “No, I’m not going to do that.” I don’t have an ego about it. I have no ego about going, “Okay, stunt guy…” [laughs]
Michael Dorn as Worf, Michelle Hurd as Raffi Musiker, and Thomas Dekker as Titus in “Seventeen Seconds”
Ahead of the season, Terry worked with each of the TNG cast to first convince you, and to and then craft your characters. So firstly, did it take a lot of convincing for you? And what did you want to bring to the character now, 20 years later?
It didn’t take convincing, or it wasn’t a lot of convincing. What it was, they told us we want this to happen. And Terry and Akiva [Goldsman] want to have a meeting to explain where they’re coming from or what they are looking to do. And we said, “Okay.” And it was just one meeting, or the initial phone where they explained what they wanted. I explained where I thought the character is at this point in his career and what he’s been through. And they said, “Okay.” There was a bunch of business stuff that you got to go through, contracts and all that stuff, but it had nothing to do with the character. And when I got the first script, I said, “Oh, okay,” because I wasn’t in the first script, but they explained what the character was doing. And then in the second script, we saw his entrance and I said, “That’s one of the best entrances I’ve ever seen, on any show.” And then I saw the third script and I went, “Okay, fine, I’m good. I can see there’s no problem.”
Were there any specific inputs you had that you wanted to be sure were part of the character?
There is only one specific thing I said, which is that I thought that he had gone back to this Klingon planet Boreth, that’s a like a monastery. And he had progressed on to the next level. There are always more levels, but he has progressed to the next level of his training. And when he comes back, he is the same Worf, but very different. He has a different attitude, and I think you’ll see a lot of that in terms of his journey. I mean, he still is loyal and honorable and all of that. And the one thing I did say also was just an aside to them, I just realized after watching all the shows in the movies, is that this guy has no fear. He literally has no fear. If they say, “Well, we want somebody to go in there and kill a bunch of people and die in the process,” he’s “Okay, I’ll do that.” But he’s not like a terrorist. He’s not like somebody that is going to take a bunch of people because of some ideology. It’s just that this is what honorable people do. He’s going to try not to die. [laughs] I mean, he doesn’t want to die, but if it happens in the process, then so be it.
In episode three, his role is a bit ambiguous. So is Worf in Starfleet as part of Starfleet Intelligence? Or is just freelancing for Starfleet Intelligence?
That is a spoiler. I think that’s probably something that they need to figure out.
Michael Dorn as Worf and Thomas Dekker as Titus in “Seventeen Seconds”
I have spoken to many of your costars and seen this in other interviews, they’re all saying how they are excited about continuing on with their characters, possibly in a spin-off with Terry. So if there is a kind of Titan spinoff show, would you want to be involved in that in any way?
Once again, it just depends on what’s written. I mean, doing the Worf and doing the makeup has gotten easier. The tough part was figuring out the makeup and that sort of stuff. But it’s just a matter of what they envision for the character. I don’t need to be the star, if it’s a Next Generation thing, I don’t need to be the star. But I want whatever he does to be really interesting. If that is the case, then I am all in.
Years ago, you and I talked about how you were pitching a Worf show, even before streaming was a thing. You had a pilot written and everything. Have you moved on from that or do you still want to see some kind of “Star Trek: Worf” show?
Interestingly enough, what I envisioned was quite different than what we have seen [on Picard]. And so I would have to go back and really rework that whole pilot that I pitched. But I think the smart money would be to take what they’ve done so far with the character, and expand on that. It’s funny, the only thing that I think would be their beginning point or their jumping-off point, is that Worf has gray hair. You start there, and then you go from there.
Of course, we can’t talk about the rest of the season, but if you were to do anything, they would have to throw out my idea, or my script, and sort of like go off of what they have written so far. But I always felt that Worf has a place. Not just one of the characters, but there is a Worf show out there. And if they have the will to do it, I think they would be totally shocked at how popular the character is. Jesus, I have done almost 300 Worfs. I think the character is pretty popular.
[Makeup designer] James McKinnon told me one of the things he was most excited about was to do Worf again, updating him and using the latest techniques. So was the process a lot easier now, and faster?
Yeah. There’s some parts of it that had been consistent over the years. But the one thing they did, which I never thought of, which is they had two people working on me at the same time. And so the process only took about an hour. It was an hour for the makeup and about another ten minutes for the hair. I mean, they really got it down to where it wasn’t like two or three hours, which was great. And I loved it because I gave the makeup people so much crap. I’d always say [mocking] “Hey, this side looks better than the other side.” And we laughed, it was pretty fun. But they did a very nice job. They made it much easier. And the thing is, if they say “Oh Michael, we want you to come back and do it,” then the makeup is not going to be as much of a sticking point as it was before.
The third and final season of Picard premiered on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023, exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S., and Latin America, and on February 17 Paramount+ in Europe and elsewhere, with new episodes of the 10-episode-long season available to stream weekly. It also debuted on Friday, Feb. 17 internationally on Amazon Prime Video in more than 200 countries and territories. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave.
Keep up with news about the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.
His introducing himself to Raffi was one of the best scenes.
I’m so getting a Klingon to rewrite my resume.
That moment was… perfect.
Yep, absolutely loved it!!!!
Couldn’t agree more. It had me rolling.
I thought Worf was the best thing about Episode 3; Michael Dorn has always been excellent. But then, I’m apparently in the minority because I dislike the entire “Picard has a son and has now abandoned all of his ideals and ethics in favor of that son” plotline.
I’m not delighted they’ve gone down this route with the secret son, but what do you mean by “Picard has a son and has now abandoned all of his ideals and ethics in favor of that son” plotline?
What ideals and ethics has he abandoned?
I’ve seen some criticizing Picard’s choices to “stand and fight” and endanger the crew of the Titan. But at least from my perspective, he’s been shown to do that from time to time on TNG too, engaging in confrontations with various species with families aboard.
At least the Titan is a crew of Starfleet officers, who ideally, would also be willing to put their lives on the line to protect a person from injustice, and fight back against tyranny. That’s honestly one of the minor issues I have with the show. These officers shouldn’t be that bitter. This is their job, these ideals are why they joined in the first place, supposedly.
Yeah I agree. For me it was just his way of dealing with the situation at hand. It wasn’t out of character because we’ve seen Picard ask his crew to fight back before. It was just a tactical play that he thought would be best for this scenario, which was in opposition to Riker’s and Shaw’s method. Fight or retreat, they’re just options of survival. I don’t see how that plays into him losing any of his ideals.
And I’m really glad you brought that up about the Titan crews bitterness. The belaboured shots of Jack getting dirty looks was eye rolling stuff, but not uncommon for modern Trek as I remember them doing similar things with Michael on DISC. As you said this is their jobs. Do they act like this with everyone who come’s onboard who’s gotten them into dangerous situations? Refugees? Victims of war? Starfleet enemies who come onboard for peace talks? Like…come on! Can you imagine this level of unprofessionalism on DS9? Everyone would be walking around scowling at everyone else, perpetually.
It kind of makes me think that if one of these not-so-boldly-going Starfleeters were to write his/her memoirs and/or a so-learned paper on the 23rd Century, it would be called ‘RISK WAS THEIR BUSINESS’ — as in, I’m not risking my ass for nothin’ .
😂
While its a gripe, it’s a minor one, I wouldn’t go so far as to hazard an eye roll. At the end of the day, I can accept that perhaps not everyone signed up for Starfleet for the same reasons, not everyone may agree with every principle, and in a heated situation emotions can boil.
That said, I think a few sideways glances would have been enough, such as in the scene with Riker in the hallway. That was a good use of that element.
I just rewatched that scene, there’s two officers in a row who look give him the death stare, and the first one looks like he’s about to jump him. INTENSE.
It’s actually hilarious on second viewing. Extra’s really working for that paycheck 😅.
But that’s fine by me. That’s how it should have been used, and it totally works. It’s them saying “these officers are pissed but they know they shouldn’t be, so they’ll give a death stare, but they won’t say anything.”
That’s perfect, and should have been left there. The scene in sickbay went overboard. I wouldn’t even have minded it as much if it had been Jack apologizing, saying “I didn’t ask for this” and the officer responding with a “this is our job but we don’t have to like it” sort of thing.
The issue I took with Picard wasn’t that he chose to fight for his son, rather that it was always in his character to fight for anyone. Granted, he was arguing with Shaw to stand before that, but it’s when he confirms that Jack is his son that suddenly he takes charge, giving orders as an admiral.
That didn’t sit right with me. Seems like Picard should be that forceful to stand up for people’s rights no matter who they are. This is, after all, the man who risked his career defending Lal, Simon Tarses, that colony of people in Insurrection, and the synths in the first season of Picard, to name a few. None of which were blood related.
But I think it’s a little different here. From the examples you gave, none of them resisted being helped. But Jack did.
As you said, Picard was already arguing with Shaw about protecting him, regardless of if he was a criminal or not. So was Riker; “Since when did Starfleet give in to hostile demands?”.
However, Jack has other ideas and wants by turn himself over if it means it “buys my mother a future”. But Picard says “Whatever your circumstances may be you deserve the justice of court, not criminals. To turn you over is to acquiesce”.
Picard maintains his stance of not handing him over throughout, but Jack escapes, goes to the transporter room, phaser in hand, and demands that the controls be unlocked so he can turn himself over. Picard here is stuck between a rock and a hard place and has to content with his own desire to help Jack, which was never in question regardless of who he was, and respect Jack’s own agency and right to make his own decision to go onboard the Shrike.
With the clock almost up. Bev comes in and signals to Picard that he is their son and then Picard takes direct action. This was a moment to make the decisions; stick with his own intentions to protect or to let Jack go. He chose to stand and fight.
I’d tend to agree with you if he hadn’t been so steadfast throughout the episode of protecting Jack, even if Jack didn’t want to be protected, and maintained that before it was confirmed that he was his son. There was no “Suddenly” for me involved.
I think Jack’s wishes are irrelevant. (When you’re a wanted criminal your agency doesn’t matter quite as much). It’s pretty simple. It’s the Federation that has custody of him then and, as Picard said, they don’t negotiate with bounty hunters. So it’s up to them to protect him as a Federation citizen, then hand him over to the proper authorities for possible extradition.
The way the scene played out made it look like Jack was suddenly Star Trek royalty. Fire all weapons and take evasive, we’ve got the ‘next generation’ of canon here! But they should have been doing this all along, no matter who Jack is.
I agree that they should’ve been protecting him from the word go, but I don’t agree that the scene played out like Jack was suddenly treated as Star Trek royalty once his heritage was confirmed.
It was Shaw’s orders that he be handed over once he finds out about his criminal past and uses the excuse that they’re outside Federation space and don’t have to comply with Federation law, so to protect the crew in this situation. Picard asks for time as he wants to talk to him because he believes there has to be more to the story. As Vadic gave them an hour to decide, Shaw gives him time to do that, but also to prepare him for departure. Shaw never reneges on this, despite whatever Picard or Riker says, and at one minute to go he gives the orders to unlock the transporters for Jack to beam his way onto the shrike. In walks Bev, confirmation of son stuff, then Picard takes control of the ship. Yes you can say that he was reacting because it’s now officially his son, but it was his stance anyhow before he knew that.
Shaw is still not onboard with any of this as he says “well, whatever happens next Admiral, that’s on you”. It’s not like everyone just gets to work immediately based solely on this revelation. Shaw is just following Picard’s orders and tells his people to follow suit, but he’s not happy about it. His hands are tied by the rule of order.
“I agree that they should’ve been protecting him from the word go, but I don’t agree that the scene played out like Jack was suddenly treated as Star Trek royalty once his heritage was confirmed.”
My feeling as well. Though I do wonder if him being the son of a Starfleet officer could have changed the protocol.
We got a flashback where Riker told Picard, “You’d burn the world to save them.” That was obviously intended to set up the later scene where Picard is ready to burn the Titan to save his son. Running away — which is what Riker wants to do — would save Jack from Vadic in the moment but would still leave her alive to hunt him. And evidently that’s enough to make Picard decide that the crippled Titan should take on a ship that has many times its power, in a fight they’re doomed to lose.
Starfleet officers do fight for the little guy. But they don’t waste hundreds of lives to fight for someone who could RUN AWAY. Picard’s judgment and ethics are compromised by the mere fact of his having a son? That’s not the Picard I saw in TNG!
You’re right. It’s not.
But that’s what’s funny to me: fans whine and complain about fan service, that it’s all just “memberberries.” But at the end of the day those same fans don’t want their favorite characters to grow and change. They want characters to stay the same as they were from when they ‘member them from days gone by.
Producers, actors, writers, have all said repeatedly that the Picard and Riker in this series have been changed by the passage of time and the experiences of the last 25 years. This is that in action.
Upvoted (if that were a thing here)
For me Picard’s actions have nothing to do with compromising anything. Picard’s stance, and Riker’s too if you remember, was always about protecting Jack and not letting him be handed over once they were on the Titan. This stance was firmly in place before it was confirmed that Jack was his son, Jack just complicated things by trying to give himself over. Their argument for this was that he should be tried in a court as a criminal, not handed over to the criminals. Pretty ethical if you ask me.
And in terms of Picard’s choice to stand and fight the Shrike, to me that was just his choice of tactics for the situation at hand in this cat and mouse chase. There are only two options in this scenario; retreat or fight. Picard was on team fight, Riker and Shaw were team retreat. They’re just two ways of survival, and we’ve seen Picard ask his crew to fight back many times before. Again, don’t really see a connection to compromising any ideals that we havn’t seen him expressing before.
And I’ll say it again for those who are so quick to forget how this whole scenario was set up. Episode One; Picard meets Riker for help with the coded language in Bev’s message. Picard says he needs a ship, Riker says “We need a ship”. Picard says he doesn’t want to ask Riker to join, it’s too dangerous. Riker insists. Then it is Riker who gets them on board the Titan under the guise of an inspection. And ultimately it is Riker who gives the orders to fire on the Shrike resulting in the final, possibly fatal blow.
This is Riker’s mess, as much as it is Picard’s. And Picard cannot be ultimately held responsible for Riker actually listening to him and taking his advice. I actually HATE that final line of dialogue; “Remove yourself form the bridge. You’ve just killed us all.”. It’s Riker just gaslighting Picard and re-writing history and left the episode on such a sour note for me. If you want to talk about compromised ideals and ethics this line is the only one I’d have an actual argument for.
The last line is taken from ‘The Hunt for Red October.’
In that movie, it’s delivered by a Russian Executive Officer to a his captain when they see their own torpedos turn and lock on them when they are beyond the point of evasion.
“You’ve just got us all killed” is in that classic movie scene prefaced by “You arrogant *%€^.”
To me, the implication is that this scene is showing Riker’s despair at Picard’s arrogance in getting the Titan and its crew into this situation.
I can also say that Riker wasn’t getting what he needed from Picard when Picard was filling in as first officer.
Picard wasn’t trying to give a captain tactical options for the best interest of the ship given the strategic direction that Riker had set. He didn’t himself or with the input of the other bridge officers work to figure out thr tactical implications of the portal device and adapt to those.
Instead Picard was continuing to argue against the Captain’s strategic direction of getting the ship and its complement back to safety and implicitly carrying the report of Vadic and her ship’s capabilities.
Picard was a negative on that bridge. Without him there, the other officers might have been able to offer up other options that could have actually allowed Riker as captain to fulfill the strategy he and Shaw had set.
Lastly, I don’t think that Picard’s arrogant behaviour in this is at all out of character.
It’s been his strength and weakness throughout TNG, the movies and Picard.
He’s long lost the ability to support, to partner or to follow.
It’s really doubtful how he would have been able to restrain himself from sticking an oar into Laris’ work had he followed her.
And it’s really clear why Beverly couldn’t trust him not to try to override her in decisions about her unborn child’s safety and wellbeing.
I agree however that Riker’s fundamental error was to have delivered a ship on which Picard could command his strategy, as he did for decades.
The thing is, that when Shaw confronted him with the risk he put the Titan in, and then made him captain pro tem, Riker took on the strategic leadership of Titan, and Picard fought him every inch.
Excellent post with excellent points!
I know it has been a long time since you posted this, and will probably miss this but I just wanted to say that while I disagree with you on the Riker/Picard thing I do really love how you caught the Hunt For Red October reference, which I completely missed. That film in itself plays with the idea duplicitousness, people’s true motivations; red-herrings, which side characters fall on etc. – a lot of parallels for a story that we now know involves the changelings who can appear as anyone and I’m sure will lead to some surprising revelations going forward. Nice catch!
But Picard’s advice hinged mostly on the idea that Vadic was toying with them in the nebula/anomaly, then on the idea that they could make up for their tactical disadvantage because they discovered how she was tracking them. He witnessed her threat to take them apart piece by piece, Riker didn’t.
Picard never considered that the Portal weapons required new tactics.
He never asked the bridge crew to, including the science and tactical officers, to work up what the tactical threats and risks might be.
He was too busy asserting his belief that he knew best.
Picard does make split second decisions in the heat of the moment without calling for the usual conference room chinwag, certainly. He blew up the FC Borg Cube based solely on his connection to the Borg. The Picard Maneuver wasn’t something he solicited opinions about. To this day I still don’t get the point of crashing the Enterprise into the Scimitar (besides that John Logan thought it would be cool), but it was not a decision that was up for debate.
In the moment, when they saw the Shrike had already turned, they should have changed tactics, but in that situation with warp engines suddenly gone and few options left, surely a lot of commanders would have done the same Hail Mary. And Riker still gave the order, so his barking at Picard is an expression of his anger towards himself as much as his friend.
It’s hard to see the man be so fallible in this series, but it’s realistic. We’re so used to the likes of him, Kirk and Janeway never being wrong, it’s at least refreshing to see some holes poked in that. Star Trek: Picard has been pretty merciless about it though.
Agreed on Worf and Raffi being the stronger/more enjoyable plot (there’s really nothing that’s going to sell me on the secret lovechild storyline), not so much on Picard abandoning his ideals. He’s emotionally compromised atm; there’s no way they’re not going to put him back on an even keel before the end of the season.
Quote: “I think they would be totally shocked at how popular the character is.” My own experience: I didn’t think/feel much of/for Worf for most of TNG, though I admired him in a couple of episodes, but after the character had been added to DS9, I grew *really* fond of him. Of all the TNG characters, Worf is probably the only one I really have an emotional connection to. (Except maybe Reg & season 1 Troi.) Needless to say, Dorn is a key ingredient here.
I will echo this, but with the one note that he was often my favorite in TNG too. But he really shined even more in DS9.
(I totally agree with you about Worf — this is just a pet-peeve, so please humor me: “He really shone even more in DS9.” The past tense of shine is “shined” when something “was made shiny,” as in “He shined his shoes,” whereas the past tense is “shone” if something “was shining,” as in “today, the sun shone brightly.” Hope this grammar lesson from a non-native English speaker will help a person or two in the future… 🤞😬)
Not sure where your native English is from but the language seems to be evolving everywhere.
I hate to say it but ‘shined’ seems to be American English now. Not in the UK or Canada though.
Americans seem to have a dislike of past tenses like dove. I cringe inwardly at ‘dived’ but there it is whenever I read American editions of books.
As a Canadian, we often have only an option between British and American English both in word processing and in book editions (although Canadian versions of grammar spellchecks exist). So, the spelling and grammar differences are being called out to me pretty much every day. I just have to roll with it.
I’m not a native English speaker, but was educated in both British and American English throughout my school life in both countries, now working in linguistics and education. Of course, you’re correct in that language is an ever evolving (“living”) construct (hello, Star Trek: Prodigy! 😉), and that the issue at hand has (d)evolved in American English. But all signs point to this (d)evolution to have occurred due to the United States’ poor standards in education…
Which is why I’m trying to keep the distinction alive. Sorry to have pestered you (I probably should’ve just kept my mouth shut/fingers from typing), but like you, I cringe at “dived,” and at “shined” as well when used as described. 😬
Below, I couldn’t help myself from correcting “should of,” so it’s just one of those days… I’ll see myself out now, and try to practice more restraint! 🖖😅
(My apology was meant for AlphaPredator, and for anybody who feels like the correction was unnecessary. 🫣)
I always appreciate a good grammar correction. I do agree with TG47 that language evolves, but we shouldn’t be pushing it any faster than it’s already going.
For this case, I think my natural inclination is to say “shone” when it involves a literal shine, “shined” (like the sun) when it’s figurative (like an actor’s talent). But that too is incorrect.
Glad the makeup process has become so streamlined in the years since he had to sit in the chair for hours, that must have been some relief for him!
Also not only for him. also for the Others.
I would like to see a series with worf. but not outside of starfleet. Starfleet’s first Klingon belongs in the captains chair and Seven should be his XO
Worf did the impossible–he made Rafi a character who isn’t entirely unenjoyable. Thank you, Michael Dorn, for (sort of, a little) redeeming one of Star Trek’s weakest characters.
This should serve as a lesson, that even so-called “weak” characters can become compelling when given the right story and characters around them.
Raffi needed a stern mentor type. Ironically, she needed a TNG-era Picard, but that’s not who JP is anymore. He’s a kinder, gentler, more compassionate and patient older man. Raffi needs the stern, impatient, take-no-s*** type like Worf.
Yeah it’s a perfect pairing, and a really smart move. Raffi never really cut the mustard for me as fully fledged three-dimensional character before. And there was definitely some merit to those that felt her characterisation fell into the “angry black woman” racial trope.
However, seen in the context of existing beside a Klingon, Worf, her traits become something which the show can directly explore and explain, and where those traits have some history within the franchise itself. I never really connected the dots until her scenes with Worf, but she’s very similar to B’Lanna Torres in ways. She’s combative, temperamental, never afraid to give her opinion, but also extremely capable, loyal and at times brilliant. We may not have ever seen a human character like her before in Trek, but we’ve definitely seen Klingon characters like her, which has made me consider her in a more kind light.
I’m excited to see how this mentor type relationship continues to highlight her traits, and see how she evolves as a character from it.
It’s a brilliant pairing as mentor/sage and student.
All the squandered potential that the character and the actor had from the first season finally has an appropriate foil to bounce off.
More, Worf in this role and life phase needs a difficult, challenging even tortured student not a young apprentice.
Exactly, couldn’t agree more.
I keep seeing Raffi deliver those lines, then in my head I see Rios doing them…it should of been him!
I don’t agree. The dynamic between Rios and Worf would’ve been completely different. Worf sees Raffi as a “warrior”, and as someone in need of help. During the interrogation scene he says he was once like her; “irrational, violent…” and he looks directly at her when he says “And take it from someone who has fought many, your anger is your enemy”. He sees her, and understands her in a really personal way.
The reason this dynamic works so well is because they get to highlight elements of Raffi’s character that so many people had issue with, literally discuss it on screen and take it apart. Raffi’s angry, tortured soul, self-sabotaging ways are what gives these characters such an interesting jumping off point and I can’t wait to see where it goes.
How could Rios inhabit any of these lines that are designed for Raffi? The last time we saw him in relation to Starfleet, before all the timey-wimey BS of season two’s “plot”, he was the captain of the Stargazer swaggering around the bridge and literally smoking a cigar. He seemed to be doing pretty well by all accounts. Where is that level of inner turmoil that Raffi’s lines are laced with? How would it make sense that he was the one in her position instead? And what would the link to Worf be, where is the commonality between the two?
I totally agreed, but didn’t know quite how to express why. You did, and said it well. Great analysis.
It “should of” or “should have” been him?
Sorry to be THAT guy today (I’ll try to not go overboard), but one makes sense, and the other one doesn’t. (And as Trekutopia reasons, in a non-grammatical sense, neither one really computes… 😉)
The more Worf we get, the better Worf gets (let’s ignore INSURRECTION here). The expansion of his character, when done thoughtfully, is a real delight. One Worf scene that always sticks out to me is when he stands up for religious tolerance in a scene from DS9 on the Ops deck. He and Kira both felt on the outs at times when their beliefs were questioned by others. In any case, as Worf matured, so did the shows he was on. He’s an outstanding character.
This.
Mike Dorn and his love of the character of Worf will always be endearing to me.
As he said himself it was a miracle that this series happened and they all got brought back in. He has been pimping his Captain Worf show for ages, he forgets he had 11 seasons of TV appearances behind him, I personally think we have seen enough of him and as much as I like his character it’s time to bottle up Dorn and the TNG cast and use them for the odd cameo appearance in future iterations of Trek. It needs to move forward, new ideas, new people, new adventures.
It’s hard for some fans to swallow and let go of something so precious but it’s gotta be done.
Hmmmm maybe we see Worf, genetically advanced Bashir, Raffi and Georgiou all in Starfleet Security…. or dare I say…. Section 31!
After DS9, Section 31 was pretty much a known entity!
That would make a great show, these characters could really play off each other.
Throw in Garak and Quark, and you have a winner!
When that show was first teased, my dream was for a time jumping series that allowed for the return of other characters (from different time periods like Archer, etc), while also getting a chance to explore eras we’ve never seen much of, if at all.
Whether it’s the guardian of forever sending them around, Wesley/The Traveler, or a 32nd century Kovich.. just imagine the possibilities.
I know the expense of such a show would be high, but it could be done, and it’s a concept that would set the show apart from everything else the franchise has going.
Yeah, maybe they would eventually form the temporal prime directive and this would be an origin story. We shall see wwhat happens!
One of the things I kept seeing repeated months ago by some of the people who watched the season said that Riker and Worf were the the two biggest stand outs. And based on what we got in the first three episodes, that has certainly proven true.
But Worf entrance in episode 2 and every scene in episode 3 was just fantastic. It felt like old Worf in all the best ways possible and Dorn hasn’t lost a step. I’m so excited to see where the character goes and just more proof why it was smart to bring all these characters back in season 3. They’ve all been great.
I’m really hoping this isn’t the last we see of Worf and if there is another show, I hope he’s on it in some form, even if just reoccurring.
What surprised me the most was how good Frakes is (I don’t think anyone is surprised by Dorn for whatever reason).
But Frakes isn’t just good, he’s better than ever. And he’s 70 acting circles around everyone else, despite not really having done much acting in decades (other than some one-off appearances and voice work).
I attributed this to the material, the reunion element, and to how good Matalas is as a showrunner and writer. All combined, it seems to have invigorated everyone.
Yeah that’s what is SO amazing about this season and these characters because they are all older and some of them like McFadden and Dorn hasn’t played their characters in 20 years and yet, they are better than ever! It’s really surprising just how good they all been and yes especially Frakes.
He’s always said he never considered himself a great actor but I thought from season 3 on in TNG, he was always great. A little more wooden in the first two seasons but once he got comfortable Riker has always shined and why he’s still a huge fan favorite. He’s just knocking it out of the park. And I forgot he directed this episode as well.
And of course you have to give Matalas the credit for all of this. He’s made Picard, both show and character, so much better this season as well and I liked Picard in the first two seasons, but here he feels closer to the captain I grew up with. But Matalas clearly understands both Star Trek and specifically TNG. He’s not just passionate about Star Trek, he’s also an amazing writer as well. It would be a crime we don’t get a continuation of this in some form when this season is over.
When I was a kid, Dorn played a recurring CHP officer on the show CHiPS! I am glad he got to play unique regular on DS9 and his character became less 1 dimensional after leaving TNG.
Totally agree.
Hard to believe that the guy thought he’d never act in a significant role again, and he’s carrying as much of a load as Stewart this season.
Frakes seems more comfortable in the role, and it seems that the writing is building on elements from His performance in TNG that seem to have been lost to some extent in the movies.
I must say that I did like him in North and South, and didn’t find him wooden in that. So I have to wonder if the expectations and fairly toxic environment of the early TNG years took their toll.
I think JF knows the fans, he knows the series and genuinely does not want them to be disappointed. He directed two of my favorite episodes of TNG (Drumhead and Cause & Effect) plus of course First Contact.
Insurrection was..yeah it was kind of a miss, but First Contact is a *hard* act to follow.
In terms of Frakes acting I consider him to be similar to Shatner. When given very good material they can act very well but with lesser material they tend to cheese up the place. I remember the episode “Frame of Mind” from TNG. That was Frakes best acting in TNG and I recently rewatched his appearance on the DS9 episode “Defiant” and he was very good in that episode too.
You’re not wrong, but that’s actually a LOT of actors. Even look at Harrison Ford. Given good material he’s one of the best thespians on the planet, but even mediocre material makes him look bad.
It takes a rare talent to be able to elevate bad material to even watchable, and only the most special actors can make bad material good.
If/when the 25th Century spin-off everyone wants materializes, I would love to see Michael Dorn as a recurring regular. Of course I want to continue to see everyone else, but Dorn has proven himself. That said, I do not want a Worf-centric show.
If there are still plans to resolve the Georgiou character, I could absolutely get behind a little mini-series starring Worf, Raffi, and Georgiou, but if P+ had to cancel DSC to tighten the purse, I don’t think any new Trek they green light would include the budget to hire Michelle Yeoh.
Dorn is incredible as part of an ensemble.
I’m kind of with you. Of all the returning Trek cast, the only one I can see carrying a series is Jeri Ryan/Seven. Riker, Worf, Picard, they probably would work best as recurring characters after this season.
I don’t think it’s her younger age either, because Frakes has been phenomenal too, but I have to wonder if he could sustain that as a lead, mostly because his character isn’t nearly as compelling. But as a recurring admiral/captain who serves an advisory function? Yes.
As for Dorn, I think he could be part of a main cast as long as it were the classic ensemble, where he isn’t the focus in most episodes.
This is part of why Picard may not have worked as well in S1-2. Because TNG was always an ensemble. Picard wasn’t really that deep of a character, so when you make him the focus of his own series, you kind of HAVE to reinvent the character, and that rubbed a lot of people the wrong way.
Worf really needs a show of his own, but he needs to be in a proper cast setting, like TNG was a proper cast setting. In the original series there was a star, co-stars, and supporting players. the whole thing fell apart because that format, IMO, is a total missed opportunity to really delve deep into the universe. They did try in a very limited way to round up certain characters but never more than incidentally, which again is a missed opportunity to reel in viewers and expand the universe. TNG succeeded because it was a ‘family’ show. I’m convinced that that is what people really want from shows like Star Trek and the reason Star Trek is not doing as well with audiences today.
Worf is usually the best thing in any of the Star Trek shows to be honest. His character is the freest and can explore every direction you can think of from comic to violent. I wouldn’t be surprised if he appeared in a musical number. He’s tailor made for a show of his own.