Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!
The fact that Kor, Koloth and Kang were still active in DS9's "Blood Oath" was our first canonical indication that Klingons were long-lived, especially since the popular novel "The Final Reflection" had speculated that Klingons were so agressive because they were very short-lived and had to squeeze a lot of honourable acts into their short lives.
The fact that Kor, Koloth and Kang were still active in DS9's "Blood Oath" was our first canonical indication that Klingons were long-lived, especially since the popular novel "The Final Reflection" had speculated that Klingons were so agressive because they were very short-lived and had to squeeze a lot of honourable acts into their short lives.
Technically, yes; however, the Klingons' great longevity is a somewhat logical extrapolation from their great durability established in TNG's "Ethics." With their great robustness and multiply redundant organs, it makes sense that they'd live significantly longer than humans (barring violence), because if age brought organ failures, they'd still have backups to keep them going when a human would've died. Also because redundant organs would share the load and not wear out as quickly.
I thought Forged In Fire started out like gangbusters; I loved the switching back and forth between time periods.
I loved the scenes taking place on the heels of the animated Tribbles episode. I personally loved all the stuff exploring the forehead change, and the connection between the glommer and the doctor's career.
I liked the depiction of the Klingons during the early negotations - even though they're good guys in the story, they're portrayed as very much the TOS-era Klingons, disagreeable as hell.
I appreciated that since I was investing my time in this 400+ page book, things of importance to the Trek universe took place (the final appearance of several characters)
I found the middle of the book to slow down as the story clearly becomes about the 3 Klingons, while the authors seem obligated to try to keep making it a Sulu story. The scenes of Sulu yammering at the viewscreen got old after awhile.
And there were what seemed like glaring mistakes in the pacing: we'd get an unimportant scene that drags on and on, followed by a scene where A, B, C, D, and E happens in one paragraph. The change would be so abrupt that I'd actually stop and try to figure out what was happening to the author that day.
The action scenes were usually exciting, but suffered on believability. The manuevering required for these characters to keep running into each other in each others' strongholds, but continually managing to part ways without gutting each other were pretty farfetched.
I enjoyed the nods to other Trek works, screen and text, going all the way back to Entropy Effect. I loved the selection of characters in the book - probably the best lineup of beloved 'second-stringers' together I've run across.
Overall, a good book, very readable and impressively continuity-waxed (Sulu's rank even manage to avoid conflicting with the Starfleet Academy video game and Sulu's exchanges with Kang in 'Flashback'). The downsides for me were that sections could have used some tightening/editing and a little more thought put into the second half plot development
I should add that the book's ending was not at all what I would have predicted and kept me guessing
A really astounding job on matching up continuity with other Trek stories, (although you wouldn't be lost without having read the previous pieces). It does kind of assume you've seen the Enterprise Klingon 4th season 2-parter, though
That reminds me of problem I had with the book. At the end of that ENT 2 parter, that Klingon doctor seemed quite content with keeping his QuchHa' brow as a reminder. But in the book he seems to have made it his life's work to reverse it.
The actual dialogue from that final scene of "Divergence," courtesy of Chakoteya's transcript site:
ANTAAK: I suppose this is what I deserve. Millions of my people will have to live with this disfigurement. It'll be passed on to our children. Life won't be easy for us.
PHLOX: You did your best to correct your mistakes. That's all we can ask of ourselves.
ANTAAK: I doubt my superiors will allow me to remain in my position. I'll need to find a new specialty. Perhaps cranial reconstruction.
PHLOX: I have a feeling that's about to become very popular.
"I suppose this is what I deserve" isn't being content, just being repentant and resigned. And his comment about going into cranial reconstruction sets up his interest in reversing the process.
I really enjoyed the book, from first page to last. The fact that I knew how it was going to end didn't spoil it, but made me wonder how they would lead in from one to the other. I thought it was well executed and even that one particular cliche about the computer voice was better sounded than it has been in the past. 8/10
I shall watch Blood Oath tonight, if only to see Terry Farrell wielding a bat'leth.
I'm looking forward to Kobayashi Maru and hoping that I am able to pick up The Sundered at some stage.
^ I've rewatched "Blood Oath" a number of times recently, and it still holds up as one of the finest DS9 episodes. All three Klingons are wonderful (though it would've been nice if there was at least some similarity between the Koloth of "Tribbles" and the Koloth of "Blood Oath," but never mind), Farrell gives one of her best performances, and while their scenes are brief, Visitor, Auberjonois, and Shimerman are simply fantastic. (The conversation about killing between Dax and Kira is one of the series' high points, IMO.)
I did watch Blood Oath last night, and I gotta say, it worked as the epilogue to Forged in Fire. Yes, I noticed the few details that the episode gave, including the epilogue of the book, but I do actually have a problem with the wandering genome of his. In the book he was always on the verge of dying and had a warrior's heart, but in the episode he came off as a weak JeQpu'wI (sp?).
Gotta agree that it was overall an enjoyable read. Loved the TAS references and the sly explanation for the different look of the Trill in TNG. I'm normally not a friend of cameos, but the inclusion of Nogura, Paris and Capt. Hunter worked pretty well for me. I also liked the way how Sulu was included in the story of the 3 Klingons and Dax. Certainly explains Kang's respect for Sulu in "Flashback".
The albino being Kor's cousin was a bit over the top IMO and the description of the Federation logo coming up on the comm screen almost every time a subspace channel was closed was a bit annoying.
Found 2 goofs: On page 411 Sulu thinks about the shuttle which was launched when he and the Klingons were aboard Qagh's vessel, but actually it was Curzon who was aboard the ship. And on page 432 a female ensign with a bosun's whistle and a male lieutenant with a legal tricorder attend the hearing, but on p 435 the ensign with the whistle was suddenly male and the clerk was female and demoted to ensign.
Hopefully, we'll get to read more about the adventures of Excelsior in the near future.
Really enjoyed this. Not a huge TOS fan but I picked it up because I like Blood Oath and Dax (any host). The book enhances the episode and watching it again Dax fighting for her godson and now in my mind the children Curzon could never have adds a more poignant touch.
I was lost on the most of the Klingon ridge/non-ridge plot which cropped up plenty of times. However I really enjoyed Curzon in this. I liked how his outward appearance was of rash young man but inwards he was pure Dax. In DS9 I always wanted to know how Curzon became repected by the Klingons so the cliche of the "non-Klingon winning the Klingons over" didn't bother me.
Good stuff and I'll pick up the Art of the Impossible now.
I was kind of disappointed by the book. It's decent, but after a five year development phase I would have awaited a less formulaic book. And it would have been nice if the very first Excelsior book actually would have been an Excelsior novel.
If anyone is interested there's a link to a longer review in my sig.
(P.S.: What? Reading the posts of the authors and editors for years teaches you one or two tricks about cheap plugs. )
Well, after three months of reading I'm finally mostly done with FiF, I have 30 pages left, so I think I've read enough to judge it's quality, and it was an enjoyable read. First off the good, which I would say is definitely the characters, their interactions, and the development that they were given. The one thing that I think really stand out would have to be Qagh, the Albino, in the course of this book he went from a nameless one time villain, to a very memorable character.
I thought that he had an interesting backstory, and I enjoyed the way that it tied into the Klingon forehead issues."]and I enjoyed the way that it tied into the Klingon forhead issues. I thought that it was actually done in a believable manner that really worked well with what we know about the Klingons and did a good job of explaining and resolving said issues. I also thought that the whole thing with him being sick was a good motivation, and it was almost enought to make you feel sorry for him. The whole thing with him being sick was a really good motivation for the character, and it was almost enought to make you feel a little sorry for him, almost but not quite
. As for the characterisations of the other characters, I thought that they were just as good, especially Curzon Dax, who is on his way to becoming another one of my favorite cross-series characters. I've always wondered how he managed to become so close with the Klingons, and overall I thought this book did a really good job of showing us a believable begining to that relationship. The book also did a good job of showing us how it was that Sulu became Captain of the Excelsior, and I have to say that I was not expecting it to be tied Blood Oath story, so that was another great suprise (well it wasn't a suprise when I was reading the book, but it was a suprise when I learned about the book's story several months ago). I also liked the way that the Klingon Trio was portrayed in this book, I can't really come up with any specific elements that stood out, it was just well done overall.
Although, I did like the twist with Kor and the Albino being kinsman. Oh, and I'm also pretty happy with the way that it dealt with the Klingon forehead issues in general.
My only real issue I had with the book was that I didn't think that Qagh's plots were really anything to impressive, just a general revenge plot, but luckily everything thing else about the book was able to cancel that out.
Overall I would give it an 8/10.
ETA: Spoiler code, and finished a half sentence.
Just highlight all of your text and then use the spoiler button. Then you just write Forged in Fire in the box that pops up and then it should work. (it worked for me with your text when I tried.)
See:
Heavy spoilers
Well, after three months of reading I'm finally mostly done with FiF, I have 30 pages left, so I think I've read enough to judge it's quality, and it was an enjoyable read. First off the good, which I would say is definitely the characters, their interactions, and the development that they were given. The one thing that I think really stand out would have to be Qagh, the Albino, in the course of this book he went from a nameless one time villain, to a very memorable character. I thought that he had an interesting backstory, and I enjoyed the way that it tied into the Klingon forehead issues."]and I enjoyed the way that it tied into the Klingon forhead issues. I thought that it was actually done in a believable manner that really worked well with what we know about the Klingons and did a good job of explaining and resolving said issues. I also thought that the whole thing with him being sick was a good motivation, and it was almost enought to make you feel sorry for him. The whole thing with him being sick was a really good motivation for the character, and it was almost enought to make you feel a little sorry for him, almost but not quite. As for the characterisations of the other characters, I thought that they were just as good, especially Curzon Dax, who is on his way to becoming another one of my favorite cross-series characters. I've always wondered how he managed to become so close with the Klingons, and overall I thought this book did a really good job of showing us a believable begging to that relationship. The book also did a good job of showing us how it was that Sulu became Captain of the Excelsior, and I have to say that I was not expecting it to be tied Blood Oath story, so that was another great suprise (well it wasn't a suprise when I was reading the book, but it was a suprise when I learned about the book's story several months ago). I also liked the way that the Klingon Trio was portrayed in this book, I can't really come up with any specific elements that stood out, it was just well done overall. Although, I did like the twist with one of the Captains. Oh, and I'm also pretty happy with the way that it My only real issue I had with the book was that I didn't think that Qagh's plots were really anything to impressive, just a general revenge plot, but luckily everything thing else about the book was able to cancel that out. Overall I would give it an 8/10.
)
