Been going through Season 1...

[Eckauskas]

And last night I watced Skin Of Evil, which made me wonder what the general feeling towards Yars death at the time was?

Did people expect her to be brought back to life later in the episode? Or in a later episode (no cracks about Yesterdays Enterprise, that was a one off!)?

Were people shocked to see her die? Was it common knowledge that she was leaving before the end of Season 1?

I just find it a bit odd to see a main character die in any TV seres. And forgive my ignorance on the subject, I was only about 4 months old when the original episode was broadcast.

 

[BillJ]

I was spoiled on her death a few weeks earlier by TV Guide. As underutilized as the character was, I understand why Crosby wanted to leave and I don't think it hurt the show.

 

[Eckauskas]

I agree. Worf was one of my favourite characters and I thought he was a bit pointless up until Yar died.

A Klingon science officer? Hmmmmm

A Klingon tactical officer? Now that's a bit more believeable.

 

[BillJ]

I agree. Worf was one of my favourite characters and I thought he was a bit pointless up until Yar died.

A Klingon science officer? Hmmmmm

A Klingon tactical officer? Now that's a bit more believeable.

I actually think it hurt Worf because the writers began using the Klingon stereotype.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Worf wasn't a science officer though (he wasn't in blue for a start). I always saw his role as more of a deck officer, he is seen filling in at each station, as well as commanding the Saucer Secion in "Encounter at Farpoint".

Don't see how Worf being the Science Officer would be a bad thing either, it would be an interesting spin on a 'warrior race'.

Anyways, back to your question. I never watched TNG first time round (I was 4/5 when it started) and when I did start it wasn't at the beginning, so I knew she died before I saw it. I too understand why Ms Crosby would want to leave, her character development was pretty terrible (such as the painful "just say 'no' to drugs kids" speech in "Symbiosis"). But I really liked Yar and think it would have been nice to see where she went (a 'friends with benefits' relationship with Worf perhaps?).

Had she survived, Worf could have become the Chief Conn Officer after Geordi goes down to Engineering in Season 2. Though not my favourite character in TNG, he was a strong one. Seeing as how most of his storylines were around being Klingon rather than Security Chief, the position really wasn't what made him who he was. Also as Conn Officer, he could still go on away missions where some extra muscle was needed. Wesley would then inhabit the science console, so he wasn't always right in your face (in the god awful blue jumpsuit thing).

But that's just my thoughts.

 

[Eckauskas]

I agree. Worf was one of my favourite characters and I thought he was a bit pointless up until Yar died.

A Klingon science officer? Hmmmmm

A Klingon tactical officer? Now that's a bit more believeable.

I actually think it hurt Worf because the writers began using the Klingon stereotype.

I dunno, I just felt it was a better fit for him. He had enough of a chance to show a softer side when Alexander was introduced, something that was done well, imo.

Worf wasn't a science officer though (he wasn't in blue for a start). I always saw his role as more of a deck officer, he is seen filling in at each station, as well as commanding the Saucer Secion in "Encounter at Farpoint".

Don't see how Worf being the Science Officer would be a bad thing either, it would be an interesting spin on a 'warrior race'.

Anyways, back to your question. I never watched TNG first time round (I was 4/5 when it started) and when I did start it wasn't at the beginning, so I knew she died before I saw it. I too understand why Ms Crosby would want to leave, her character development was pretty terrible (such as the painful "just say 'no' to drugs kids" speech in "Symbiosis"). But I really liked Yar and think it would have been nice to see where she went (a 'friends with benefits' relationship with Worf perhaps?).

Had she survived, Worf could have become the Chief Conn Officer after Geordi goes down to Engineering in Season 2. Though not my favourite character in TNG, he was a strong one. Seeing as how most of his storylines were around being Klingon rather than Security Chief, the position really wasn't what made him who he was. Also as Conn Officer, he could still go on away missions where some extra muscle was needed. Wesley would then inhabit the science console, so he wasn't always right in your face (in the god awful blue jumpsuit thing).

But that's just my thoughts.

Seemed to spend the majority of his time at the Science station behind Tactical, so that brought my thinking to him being primarily a science officer.

We're digressing here, a tad. I also knew she was dead, as the BBC had an erratic schedule for episodes when I first started watching. They'd go from something like The Neutral Zone, to BOBW, to Times Arrow, back to The Naked Now. So I knew she was already dead, but just wasn't sure what the general consensus was when she died.

 

[T'Girl]

Lt. Yar was a might-have-been, if she had stayed, and if the writers had put as much effort and backstory into her as they eventual did with Worf, Yar could have been one of the shows better characters.

And prior to Yar's death I believe Worf was a "General Bridge Officer."

 

[spooky spice]

I'd had it spoilered for me by Starlog so it wasn't a shock, and I knew she wouldn't be coming back.

I wasn't really pushed about the character leaving TBH

 

[Borjis]

I was thrilled that a main cast member was actually getting killed and not making a comeback.

That made TNG really stand out from other shows.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

I was only 7 when it aired but my Dad watched it first run and he said somehow he knew before it happened so he wasn't surprised (but he can't quite remember how he knew). He said he kind of took it as no big deal because it was so early in the show. At that point, pretty much everyone except Picard was still an expendable "red shirt" you know? I think she's had only the one episode that was hers at that point anyway.

And as far as Worf goes, I think Denise Crosby did Michael Dorn a huge favor. Had she not died I think he would have been like Chief O'Brien (TNG, not DS9). A charcter everyone knows but not at all as central as he became. Worf ended up appearing in more episodes and movies than any other Star Trek character ever has.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

And as far as Worf goes, I think Denise Crosby did Michael Dorn a huge favor. Had she not died I think he would have been like Chief O'Brien (TNG, not DS9). A charcter everyone knows but not at all as central as he became. Worf ended up appearing in more episodes and movies than any other Star Trek character ever has.

I would have to say that aside from his uniform staying red there is little that would have changed about Worf's character. Even without a specific role he was a character you noticed by his very presence on the Bridge, so had Yar stayed I think he would have gotten just as much development as he did.

As for him going over to DS9, that would probably still have happened as well, seeing as how they had to start dealing with the Klingons in S4. Therefore still making him the most featured character.

When Roddenberry, et al, created him I doubt they planned to make him Security Chief by the end of S1, which means they had faith in the writers and actor to make the character stand out and distinguish himself as much as Data and the others. As I said before his episodes were about the character not the job description.

But that's my thoughts.

 

[AFEK ESLCAFE W]

And as far as Worf goes, I think Denise Crosby did Michael Dorn a huge favor.

The size of his residual checks from the 2 Star Trek syndicated shows pretty much speak for themselves.

 

[Captrek]

I too knew ahead of time that she was going to be killed off.

Good riddance too, as far as I’m concerned. Her acting was terrible, and her departure created room for Worf to grow as a character.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

I would have to say that aside from his uniform staying red there is little that would have changed about Worf's character. Even without a specific role he was a character you noticed by his very presence on the Bridge, so had Yar stayed I think he would have gotten just as much development as he did.

As for him going over to DS9, that would probably still have happened as well, seeing as how they had to start dealing with the Klingons in S4. Therefore still making him the most featured character.

When Roddenberry, et al, created him I doubt they planned to make him Security Chief by the end of S1, which means they had faith in the writers and actor to make the character stand out and distinguish himself as much as Data and the others. As I said before his episodes were about the character not the job description.

But that's my thoughts.

It's not that I think being security chief is what gave his character "legs" per se, it's that having one less regular to compete with for screen time allowed him to flourish. I agree with you, Worf is definitely more about the character than the position (he had a great run on DS9 and he completely switched shirt colors there). But with Yar's departure, he got pushed to the forefront, and not just figuratively speaking. When she was there he literally stood behind her. I don't think he would have gotten the character development that he did with Yar there.

I wonder if they contemplated whether or not to replace Crosby with someone else (as in, another regular cast member). I'm drawing a blank right now, did Worf replace her as security in the very next episode or was it later on? It it was later on, I think that makes my point- though he was a regular, he wasn't meant to be one of the central characters until the opportunity presented itself.

I also recall reading somewhere that Rodenberry didn't even want a Klingon on the show, he wanted all new aliens and didn't want any repeats of TOS (which is why there are no Vulcans and why the crew is so different). He was convinced to add Worf to give it some sense of connection to TOS, but as a result didn't want him to be a "major" character. But don't hold me to any of that because I can't remember the source

 

[RandyS]

I was spoiled on her death a few weeks earlier by TV Guide. As underutilized as the character was, I understand why Crosby wanted to leave and I don't think it hurt the show.

I had the same reaction more or less, although by the next season when Pulaski was inflicted on us and we had lost Crusher too, I found myself wishing that Yar had stayed. But then, I spent that year wanting Crusher back.

Oh well, at least I got one of my wishes.

 

[milo bloom]

I wonder if they contemplated whether or not to replace Crosby with someone else (as in, another regular cast member). I'm drawing a blank right now, did Worf replace her as security in the very next episode or was it later on? It it was later on, I think that makes my point- though he was a regular, he wasn't meant to be one of the central characters until the opportunity presented itself.

It was the very same episode. Picard makes him "acting" chief of security/tactical before her body is even cold, and I'm fairly sure he stays in red for the rest of S1 (only a few eps). At the beginning of S2 he was in yellow.

Worf wasn't a science officer though (he wasn't in blue for a start). I always saw his role as more of a deck officer, he is seen filling in at each station, as well as commanding the Saucer Secion in "Encounter at Farpoint".



.

Watching the show again, this is something that Trek could have used more of: a second tier character that could fill in at any station and lend the show a little more "military" correctness. VOY kinda did it with Ayala IIRC.

Had she survived, Worf could have become the Chief Conn Officer after Geordi goes down to Engineering in Season 2. Though not my favourite character in TNG, he was a strong one. Seeing as how most of his storylines were around being Klingon rather than Security Chief, the position really wasn't what made him who he was. Also as Conn Officer, he could still go on away missions where some extra muscle was needed. Wesley would then inhabit the science console, so he wasn't always right in your face (in the god awful blue jumpsuit thing).

But that's just my thoughts.

I've actually wondered about what it would have been like if Crosby would have been able to flourish better by taking that Chief CONN officer position after Geordie rotated down to Engineering, with Worf moving to TAC. I've become a bit of a Tasha fan over the years, and I sometimes wish they could have used Yesterday's Enterprise to bring Yar back to the main timeline or something to give her a second chance.

[

Seemed to spend the majority of his time at the Science station behind Tactical, so that brought my thinking to him being primarily a science officer.

If you're facing the stations at the back of the bridge, from left to right they are Science 1, Science 2, Mission Ops, Environmental and Engineering. I seem to recall Worf was usually directly behind Tasha at the middle station, which would be Mission Ops, a sort of generic bridge station that would be for whatever the plot of the week would call for (sorry, nitpicking again, but thought it might help the understanding of Worf's S1 bridge position).

 

[BrownShatner]

I also recall reading somewhere that Rodenberry didn't even want a Klingon on the show, he wanted all new aliens and didn't want any repeats of TOS (which is why there are no Vulcans and why the crew is so different). He was convinced to add Worf to give it some sense of connection to TOS, but as a result didn't want him to be a "major" character. But don't hold me to any of that because I can't remember the source

I'm not sure what Roddenberry thought, but Worf was certainly one of the most hyped characters of TNG -- it was a really big deal to have a 'former bad guy' Klingon on the bridge. And it did seem odd that they went to all the effort with the makeup but didn't really utilize the Worf character much at first.

In my memory, Tasha Yar was considered hard-edged and unlikable, so her death was mostly a non-event as far as fans were concerned at the time. (I could speculate that people didn't like a younger woman character that was so un-feminine, but that's probably a broader topic.)

 

[WillsBabe]

Y'know I can't remember if I knew that she was to be killed or not. I think that I did know - probably picked the info up at a con or something. I can't really remember the general feeling at the time on the matter. I don't think people were shocked, but I do think it caused some conversations.

 

[Sindatur]

I wasn't involved in Fandom outside of watching episodes and reading TV Guide synopses, so, I had no clue she was going to be killed, and it shocked me. Because I haven't/didn't go to Cons or read the magazines (And there was no big time Internet yet) I have no clue what the popular opinion was, and actually, I've never thought about how it was received by Fandom, until reading this thread.

 

[Alrik]

I was totally shocked. As it was pre internet, and I was in college at the time, I had no prior knowledge of Crosby leaving. All episode I figured somehow Armus would be swayed to restore her because Star Trek had never killed a main character and left them dead. At the end, during her memorial, I remember thinking wow she really is gone.

I do remember that by writing her out that way, it gave TNG a sort of edge. All of a sudden no character was safe. It certainly helped to make the summer between seasons 3 & 4 a long one wondering if Stewart was coming back.