The final act of Worf, the Star Trek legend who deserved one most of all

March 3, 2023 9:56 AM

What Worf Really Meant to Star Trek Legend Michael Dorn [Polygon]

““They really didn’t have a bible for Worf at all,” says Dorn of those early episodes. “In fact, one of the first things I did was, I asked the producers, ‘What do you want from this guy? You’ve just handed me a piece of paper that says Worf on it.’” With Roddenberry’s blessing, Dorn set out making the character his own, giving Worf the kind of personal investment and attachment that only an actor can provide. “I decided to make the guy the opposite of everybody else on the show. You know, everyone else, their attitudes were great, and they’re out there in space, relationships are forming. And after every mission they were like, Wasn’t that fantastic? I didn’t say anything to anybody, I just made him this gruff and surly character on the bridge. No smiles, no joking around.””

Dorn has swapped his mek’leth for a kur’leth and glued on his bumpy prosthetic forehead once more to reprise the role of Worf in the final season of Star Trek: Picard, which reunites the Next Gen cast for one last adventure. It’s the chance to give one of sci-fi’s most beloved supporting characters something that’s usually reserved only for Captains and Admirals: a glorious third act.
posted by Fizz (44 comments total)

“It's an earth-drink, prune juice.” ... “A WARRIOR'S DRINK!!”
posted by Fizz at 9:59 AM on March 3, 2023 [19 favorites]

I only recently started watching Picard, I am a moderate fan of the ST universe, but no fanatic.

that said, Worf was my fav character on TNG so woo!! I look forward to enjoying his gruff final act.
posted by supermedusa at 10:00 AM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

A Worf appreciation thread? A sound suggestion, Mr. Dorn, but no.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 10:08 AM on March 3, 2023 [13 favorites]

@parasite unseen, I both LOVE and HATE that video montage. It's funny but it also shows how often they go to that well for the same trick, to make Picard the renegade/loose cannon who does whatever he needs to do to get the job done b/c damnit!! HE'S MOTHER FUCKING PICARD!!?

But I hate how this comes at the expense of a really interesting character that I wish they had spent more time with. I know we have a fair bit and there are some lovely two-part episodes from TNG that really give Worf more complexity and depth but it always felt like he was being underserved. Though maybe thats me just wanting more WORF in my Trek.
posted by Fizz at 10:12 AM on March 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

Good tea. Nice house.
posted by mhoye at 10:14 AM on March 3, 2023 [38 favorites]

Worf and Dax and Worf+Dax are possibly the best thing about DS9. I am sure we screamed at the screen more frequently when they were on it than any other characters. Especially seasons 6 and 7. OMG. Dorn's performances make it all work.
posted by seanmpuckett at 10:27 AM on March 3, 2023 [21 favorites]

Rewatches of TNG had me noticing how Worf has one foe he cannot conquer. Doors. He always tries to force open doors and can't... then Data is like here, I'll try, and it just slides right open.
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 10:28 AM on March 3, 2023 [10 favorites]

I'm happy we finally got Worf's full name: "I am Worf, son of Mogh, House of Martok. Son of Sergey, House of Rozhenko. Bane to the Duras family, slayer of Gowron."
posted by jmauro at 10:39 AM on March 3, 2023 [40 favorites]

Worf! Eat any good books lately?

I'm pretty stoked that Worf is back in 'Picard'. It was a pretty nice feeling to see Gates McFadden doctoring again too. I'm pretty much the exact right target audience for this show. It's like seeing old friends again.
posted by signsofrain at 10:46 AM on March 3, 2023 [15 favorites]

Worf and the Klingon episodes gave ST:TNG a boost -- people would talk about them. Otherwise it would just be beige conference rooms.
posted by credulous at 10:50 AM on March 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

Final act, you say? Maybe not!
posted by mstokes650 at 10:51 AM on March 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

But I hate how this comes at the expense of a really interesting character that I wish they had spent more time with.

Between TNG and DS9, Worf has had more appearances in the Trek franchise than any other character.
posted by Halloween Jack at 10:56 AM on March 3, 2023 [9 favorites]

It's not like that's mentioned in the first sentence of the article, to be fair.
posted by bonehead at 10:59 AM on March 3, 2023

You're right, that is mentioned in the article. I guess what I'm really saying is, I wish we had a whole ass show devoted to him and the Klingon people. All that being said, I'm glad he's had the career he's had and I hope it continues to flourish in whatever way he wants. :)
posted by Fizz at 11:06 AM on March 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

A good read - and revealed more than I knew about Worf based on my watching TNG but opting out of DS9. And I really appreciate that he is both proud and at peace with his characterization of an iconic character.

Also: Dorn's voice always has been amazing.
posted by davidmsc at 11:09 AM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

“It's an earth-drink, prune juice.” ... “A WARRIOR'S DRINK!!”

I learned to like prune juice just so I could partake of a warrior's drink.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 11:09 AM on March 3, 2023 [14 favorites]

I love how this post about Michael Dorn and Worf comes right after a post about a Levar Burton project.
posted by technodelic at 11:15 AM on March 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

I was happy to see in Picard they finally let him be an honest to goodness head lopping off badass.
posted by Justin Case at 11:24 AM on March 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

I fell in love from the minute he did the Klingon death howl. And when they let his hair go long? Unf.

Anyway, other Klingons are ok, but in my preteen heart, none could hold a candle to my angsty, beardy, misunderstood, badass TV boyfriend Worf.
posted by emjaybee at 11:32 AM on March 3, 2023 [12 favorites]

"I am Worf, son of Mogh, House of Martok. Son of Sergey, House of Rozhenko. Bane to the Duras family, slayer of Gowron."

"I have made chamomile tea."
posted by nubs at 11:34 AM on March 3, 2023 [14 favorites]

I haven't lived with a TV since I left my parents' home, so I watched TNG primarily with theater friends. When DS9 was happening, I still saw some of those people occasionally, and one of them loved the shows as much as I did. I used to ask him for recaps.

I always asked about Worf particularly, and the stories (told by an engineer-actor friend, so probably told well) were always amazing. When my friend told me about him taking up with Dax, and then various details of that relationship, I just got more and more amazed -- I'm sure the whole thing was much more believable when you saw Dorn playing the part! I actually verified the stories through other sources, but it was still hard to imagine...until I finally saw all the episodes for myself, on YouTube or some other outlet, years later.

I'm always a fan of emotionally reserved characters; I think Worf was TNG's Spock (because Data sure wasn't - he was a little too unfeeling, I think, or maybe I'm just very affected by voice pitch).
posted by amtho at 11:58 AM on March 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

I can't stand Star Trek: Picard, but it sure is nice to see Dorn back in the makeup. Although it's funny they had to glue on that silver facial hair. Dude doesn't look like he's aged in the past two decades.
posted by brundlefly at 12:59 PM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Worf resonated so hard with me as a kid who was half "vaguely European" and half "intense post-ethnic-cleansing diaspora culture". Feeling like I wanted to be able to access and belong to this culture that I had only limited windows into, while not looking the part to people who'd really grown up in that culture, was something I never saw on 90s TV except in Worf's character. That intense need for ritual, rules, and tradition that could be almost self-destructive! The disappointment of not having the community take things as seriously as you do! Star Trek does such an amazing job portraying the struggles of different kinds of biracial people.
posted by potrzebie at 1:09 PM on March 3, 2023 [16 favorites]

Worf is definitely the most fun thing so far in the new season of Picard. As I said in our fanfare discussion, Dorn seems to have fully embraced the brief of "bring back the old characters but amp it up by half, don't be afraid to be campy". Polygon does a good job explaining the straight man humor that Worf delivers in these shows. In the early days Dorn was fully committed to the deadpan. Now you can see the eyes of the actor, and maybe the character, glinting as he says he says ridiculous things that he knows are going to get a laugh. He's the perfect lagniappe for what's shaping up to be a ridiculous but entertaining season of Star Trek fan service.
posted by Nelson at 1:24 PM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

I will never not love the line, "Good tea. Nice house."

Worf always struck me as the kind of kid who would courtmartial his own GI Joes for disobeying a lawful order to sacrifice themselves for the greater good. The kind of guy who would arrest himself and demand punishment duty for failing to keep his sock drawer organized. A sort of Klingon Clouseau if you will. I. loved. him.

That said, I miss K'Ehleyr. The actress and her character rudely reminded me that I do have a type.
posted by zaixfeep at 1:25 PM on March 3, 2023 [5 favorites]

Previously on MetaFilter! It has not escaped my attention that this was posted only two days before the 9th anniversary of Worf Day, a day when a suspiciously high number of FPP's seemed to reference Worf.
posted by Strange Interlude at 2:01 PM on March 3, 2023 [5 favorites]

I think Worf was TNG's Spock

He definitely had the caught-between-two-worlds thing down pat. And could be amazingly shy and awkward for someone who aspired to bold warriordom. One of the best parts of "Let He Who Is Without Sin...", otherwise one of the most dire DS9 episodes, is when Worf, who is on the let-it-all-hang-out-and-I-do-mean-all planet Risa, looks with dismay at a relatively modest set of swimming trunks that he's expected to put on.
posted by Halloween Jack at 2:03 PM on March 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

I was inspired to make a Worf sound sample techno mix, but because the internet of course it already exists.
posted by roue at 2:07 PM on March 3, 2023

Mr. Woof!
posted by The Underpants Monster at 2:30 PM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Worf Day!

"And when the two hearts began to beat together, they filled the heavens with a terrible sound. For the first time, the gods knew fear. They tried to flee, but it was too late. The Klingon hearts destroyed the gods who created them, and turned the heavens to ashes. To this very day, no one can oppose the beating of two Klingon hearts - not even me."

-Lady Sirella, Daughter of Linkasa, Grand daughter of Karana, Mistress of the house of Martok.
posted by clavdivs at 2:45 PM on March 3, 2023 [5 favorites]

Orbital’s Time Becomes will forever be the king of techno songs based on Worf samples — and we’re about to hit its 30th anniversary in May!
posted by mubba at 3:37 PM on March 3, 2023 [3 favorites]

What a great article. Worf is a really neat character and it was fascinating to learn a little more about the development!
posted by obfuscation at 3:54 PM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

TNG was an excellent prequel for Worf's time on DS9.

There is a TNG novel where Q convinces everyone (except Worf) that his time as a human and mortal left him searching for true love, and that he has fallen in love with Lwaxana Troi. Shenanigans ensue, and when Q ends the charade, the rest of the Q Continuum allows Lwaxana to keep the power of the Q long enough to teach Q another lesson in humility.

Lwaxana has just shrunk Q to the size of a racquetball, and then backhanded him through a bulkhead. The bridge crew are sort of standing around, unsure what they should or even can do. Someone (I think Geordi) says, "So what do we do?"

"Sell tickets," said Worf.
posted by BeeDo at 4:43 PM on March 3, 2023 [10 favorites]

I actually dislike Worf a lot. Yeah he’s amusing, but he’s also a terrible father, completely interpersonally rigid, violently jealous, and controlling. His relationship with Dax was like watching a kitchen sink drama about abusive husbands.
posted by rhymedirective at 5:23 PM on March 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

Halloween Jack, but the very best part of “Let He Who Is Without Sin…” is

“Do not hug me.”
posted by Jon_Evil at 5:24 PM on March 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Worf kinda has the same problem as Ron Swanson, in that he’s a right-wing guy who’s written to have a bunch of toxic masculinity traits but with a sense of honor, a moral code and badassery that earn them respect, what is the article says, people in the real world aren’t like that. Unfortunately, he grew up to believe such people do exist, because we get so much of our information about the world from stories.
posted by Jon_Evil at 5:37 PM on March 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

"Sir. I protest! I am not a merry man."
posted by kirkaracha at 7:16 PM on March 3, 2023 [14 favorites]

I had the opportunity to see Dorn perform Shakespeare just before the pandemic. The man can act. I'm glad to see him back as Worf.

"And when the two hearts began to beat together, they filled the heavens with a terrible sound. For the first time, the gods knew fear. They tried to flee, but it was too late. The Klingon hearts destroyed the gods who created them, and turned the heavens to ashes. To this very day, no one can oppose the beating of two Klingon hearts - not even me."

My wife and I incorporated this tale into our wedding ceremony. We also had a recording of a reading of a sonnet from Patrick Stewart. Yes, our wedding was awesome.
posted by Servo5678 at 8:01 PM on March 3, 2023 [11 favorites]

"Sir. I protest! I am not a merry man."

This is one of my favorite TNG moments, ever.
posted by Fleebnork at 5:59 AM on March 4, 2023 [2 favorites]

Final act, you say? Maybe not!

Ugh, no, please no Worf/Raffi buddy-cop, secret agent spin-off show from Picard. The only way Worf works is as a supporting character.
posted by LooseFilter at 7:29 AM on March 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

The Louise Erdrich novel The Round House features three young boys growing up on a tribal reservation. They love TNG and there's a long passage describing their admiration for their favorite character, Worf. It's great.
posted by emd3737 at 7:35 AM on March 4, 2023 [5 favorites]

Here's the Worf sequel I want to see:

CLOSE UP: Comm panel
SFX: Incoming message signal
WORF VO: You've reached the office of Worf. If you are looking for justice, you have reached the right place. Leave a message with your name and the nature of your case, and I will promptly return your call. And remember, justice does not always come easy, but it is always worth fighting for. Qapla'!
SFX: Beep
KLINGON VO: Worf son of Mogh, this is your final warning! You have dishonored our agreement by failing to make timely payments for your matter replicator. As a consequence, your replicator has been disabled. We do not tolerate such dishonorable behavior and expect immediate payment to resolve this matter. You will also be charged additional fees for the inconvenience and the insult to our honor. Contact us at once to make amends, or face the consequences of your actions. You would do well to remember, a Klingon always pays his debts on time!
(beat)
MUSIC: Intro to The RockfordWorf Files
posted by zaixfeep at 4:26 PM on March 4, 2023 [12 favorites]

Worf was always a stand alone, individual, between two cultures, perfectly worthy as a leading character. I viewed the Klingon warrior culture as valid since both men and women were portrayed as warriors. That they set him up to do a tea ceremony in this timeline, is a fabulous take on warriorship, and the idea of a warrior not balking at doing a simple service for another, adds an element of grace, aside from the grace of dying in battle for one's people.
posted by Oyéah at 7:08 PM on March 5, 2023 [2 favorites]

I guess it says something about my brain that I had long imagined Klingon exotic dancers but no Klingon debt collectors.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 10:25 AM on March 6, 2023