just watched "sword of kahless"... about worf

[Sybok]

little background first time watching this episode (born in 1988, grew up on tng, never got into ds9 since as a kid it was above my head, and when watching the series straight through couple years back I must of somehow skipped this one surprisingly)


to the point, i was really surprised how into himself worf got about the sword, thinking that it was his destiny to bring it back to the emperor and lead the empire as the new chancellor... to me i seemed really out of character for worf to get such a power trip, to me he always had a noble humbleness, any thoughts?

did enjoy the power struggle though between him and kor, made for an interesting episode for a first time viewing and not quite knowing how it was going to turn out

[indolover]

I don't think it's out of character. The way I see it is that Kahless is a divine figure for Klingons, kind of like a Klingon equivalent to Jesus. As Worf is in his heart a Klingon, despite living with humans for most of his life, how can he not get crazed with power when holding the sword his God (in a sense) once held?

[heavylids]

He also mentioned having a dream or vision that said he would do something no other Klingon has. He originally thought it was joining Starfleet, but finding the sword would be more profound in the eyes of his people. I could see how he got a little carried away.

[Mygaffer]

It did feel really out of character for Worf. Worf has always been about honor, both personal and professional. Yet here is basically tries to murder his companion and boyhood idol by telling him there was a ledge when Jadzia confirms that it would never have held Kor's weight and that Worf knew it.
I understand the writers were trying to make a point, that the Sword of Kahless has so much allure to a Klingon that even someone like Worf will be corrupted by it, kind of like the one ring, but it still bugs me when they allow a central character to act SOO out of character.

[IntrepidMan]

Yes, Worf's powertrip over the sword is out of character, but like others have said that is the whole point of the episode. The writers wanted to show what a corrupted influence the sword can have on those who are not ready to wield it. Worf, to his credit, realizes this, and thus his decision to throw the sword away.

[heavylids]

^ Good point. The sword is equivalent to the holy grail. Worf definitely has a messiah complex in this episode.

[Worf'sParmach]

Mygaffer wrote:

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It did feel really out of character for Worf. Worf has always been about honor, both personal and professional. Yet here is basically tries to murder his companion and boyhood idol by telling him there was a ledge when Jadzia confirms that it would never have held Kor's weight and that Worf knew it.
I understand the writers were trying to make a point, that the Sword of Kahless has so much allure to a Klingon that even someone like Worf will be corrupted by it, kind of like the one ring, but it still bugs me when they allow a central character to act SOO out of character.

I agree. I thought it was too far out of characters. I chalked it up to the DS9 writers not quite having a handle on Worf yet.

[BennyRussel]

Without giving spoilers, in Season 7, someone gives Worf a nice lecture about how all the Klingons' talk about honor is a little hollow. I think the way Kor and Worf act in this episode proves that to an extent. They both show pettiness, selfishness and childish behavior. Either the writers got it way wrong or they did a great job of showing us a different side of Worf and the Klingons in general.

[Worf'sParmach]

BennyRussel wrote:

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Without giving spoilers, in Season 7, someone gives Worf a nice lecture about how all the Klingons' talk about honor is a little hollow.

That was when I decided that I really liked that character.

[TheLobes]

That episode always stands out to me as one of the most awful pieces of DS9. Yes, it was very out of character. Of course, out of character isnt necessarily a bad thing. Loads of characters do things which seem out of touch with their nature, this can be really good storytelling.

The problem with 'sword of kahless' isnt as much that Worf acts out of character as much as that the writing just isnt very good. You can see very quickly whats going to happen, and the change seems to come about very quickly, with no kind of resistance from Worf. It wasnt subtle or believable, and such a change seemed out of place in a story that was of such little consequence. Even the sword itself didnt seem very important. I mean, sure, we're told it is, but I never really got the feeling it was because I knew the sword was just going to be part of this one episode.

Heres a bit of background from Memory Alpha:

"This episode was not a popular one amongst the fans, something which disappointed writer Hans Beimler and producer René Echevarria. What particularly disappointed them was the fact that many viewers were unable to accept the notion that the bat'leth itself had no actual power. According to Echevarria, "A lot of fan reaction was that there must be a tech explanation, that the sword must be emitting something. I was astonished." Beimler explains Echevarria's astonishment when he says, "the sword itself doesn't have any magic. It's the concept of the sword that has the power. We wanted to explore the notion that there were some dark streaks to be revealed within these characters. The minute anyone starts talking about the sword it starts infecting them, so Worf gets caught up from the very beginning." Both men were disappointed that many fans missed this point, instead assuming that the Sword of Kahless had some mysterious power that simply wasn't revealed in the episode."

Yeah, sorry, it wasnt the fans, it was the writing. The 'notion that there were some dark streaks' in the characters wasnt really 'explored', it was just shoved in our faces. It wasnt explored, it was declared, and it wasnt at all engaging.

[DonIago]

While I can't say I'd be a fan of a longer version of the episode, a more gradual transformation of the characters might have helped matters. The comparison to Frodo and the Ring was apt.

[IntrepidMan]

^Unfortunately, 45 minutes of episode time does not leave a lot of room for gradual transformations.

Look, Worf isn't perfect. Why do fans insist on idolizing him? He is overall a very honorable person, but he has a darker side just like everyone else. This makes him a much more believable and interesting character. I think the DS9 writers did a good job of exploring this darker side--he could be overwhelmed with jealousy around Jadzia and Ezri, he was overly strict with engineering crewmembers on the Defiant, and he selfishly covets the sword of Kahless. This is no ordinary sword--it can reunite his people and lead them to greatness. Of course he lets it go to his head! Anyone would.

[DonIago]

(blinks) I'm not sure whether that last was in any way aimed at me, but I most certainly don't think Worf is perfect.

[Eric Cheung]

This episode is pretty much in line with how DS9 characterized Worf. They took him to some pretty dark places throughout his time on the station, far more so than they did on TNG. And as with the rest of the series, Dax is Worf's voice of reason in this episode.

[IntrepidMan]

Eric Cheung wrote:

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This episode is pretty much in line with how DS9 characterized Worf. They took him to some pretty dark places throughout his time on the station, far more so than they did on TNG.

Exactly.

DonIago, the last part of my post was not directed at you, but was a response to the OP and to those fans who think that Worf is always noble and honorable and that whenever he acts otherwise he is somehow "out of character."