I Hate The Klingon Race

[Gul Bones]

Just realised how even though it's a fictional race how racist the thread title sounds

Anyways, I can't stand Klingons. Every episode featuring a Klingon 98% of the time shows them as drunken thugs spouting about honour, victory and glory. They happily threaten people with violence all the time even when it's uncalled for and brandish knifes and weapons like it's a new ipod.

What makes it worse is that episode after episode show that they are as hypocritical a species as you can get. Their 'honour' is laughable as they have been shown to be as devious and politicking as the best Romulan. And why the hell does everything come down to honour? I mean I wouldn't be suprised if it would be considered a dishonour to the host if you left gagh on your plate.

What I'm trying to get at here is Klingons are flat out boring. They have so many episodes dedicated to them and yet most feature cliche after cliche being spouted from dislikable morons who I'm suprised as a species even managed to discover warp travel. The only Klingons I ever really warmed to were General Martok, Worf, and Gowron. All at least acted more than a walking parody.

This is came off as one big rant and it may be an unpopular opinion but the sooner trek stops being so obsessed about Klingons and focuses on infinitly more interesting races like say the Romulans, the better.

 

[Captain April]

I don't hate the Klingons, especially the TOS version, but I do agree they were used far too often in the TNG+ series'.

And I whole heartedly agree that I would have liked to see more of the Romulans. I always felt they were under utilized, but then no one asked me what I wanted to see in the shows. Shame that.

 

[MacLeod]

Ah but is a race more interesting because we know less about them?

 

[Ghrakh]

Keep in mind we generally only saw one component of them. It would be like judging humans by only encountering military people. I forget the episode but there's a Klingon scientist who tells of how the warrior class took over iirc.

Their 'honour' is laughable as they have been shown to be as devious and politicking as the best Romulan.

Yeah, but with Romulans that's accepted by society at large, while in Klingon society those are bad apples.

 

[C.E. Evans]

Just realised how even though it's a fictional race how racist the thread title sounds.

There are different kinds of Klingons out there, but most of the ones we see are the warrior types, who often are the ones our heroes encounter. But we know there are Klingon scientists and artists (Klingon opera?), and presumably other types of Klingons that aren't warriors. But as their primary role is presumably to support the warrior caste, we tend not to see them very much.

As warriors, Klingon honor mostly is in regards to their combat ability and/or their loyalty to the Empire, IMO.

 

[Dukhat]

And if the only time you saw Vulcans was in how they were depicted in ENT, you'd probably hate them too.

My point is that because they are fictional, any new Star Trek production can and will depict any particular alien race in whatever way the script calls for them to be.

Granted I agree with you somewhat that TNG/DS9/VOY/ENT Klingons are a direct descandant of Kruge's crew in Star Trek III, who were simply a bunch of thugs, at least Ron Moore had the good sense to throw in the idea of an honorable culture he picked up from the fantastic TOS novel "The Final Reflection." Unfortunately, that culture doesn't actually reflect what we saw in TOS, where almost every Klingon we saw was just a cardboard Snively Wiplash-like villain with some dastardly, completely dishonorable sneaky plot. And yet they weren't depicted as head-butting, bloodwine-drinking thugs like in TNG. In their own way, Kor, Kang and Mara were actually fairly well-acted adversaries, even if the rest of the TOS Klingons weren't.

I think that the Klingons as depicted in the cut scenes of Star Trek '09 were probably the best of all, especially the interrogator scene. If there are nuKlingons in the next movie, I think JJ will treat them better than they've been in the past.

 

[You_Will_Fail]

I agree with the OP as well. I can't imagine me living in the 24th century and actually liking the Klingons and not harboring bad feeling towards them. I especially hated them after they declared war on the Federation in DS9 and were so brutal.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

And if the only time you saw Vulcans was in how they were depicted in ENT, you'd probably hate them too.

But that usually IS how they are depicted.

at least Ron Moore had the good sense to throw in the idea of an honorable culture he picked up from the fantastic TOS novel "The Final Reflection." Unfortunately, that culture doesn't actually reflect what we saw in TOS,

Or the book for that matter.

In their own way, Kor, Kang and Mara were actually fairly well-acted adversaries,

Yeah they actually came off as able to give Kirk a run for his money.

 

[bbailey861]

It's not that I can't stand Klingons, but that I am disappointed that we didn't get to see all aspects of the race. Television depiction was rather one-sided. I think Trek lit has done a better job at giving us a fuller perspective.

 

[Dukhat]

It's not that I can't stand Klingons, but that I am disappointed that we didn't get to see all aspects of the race. Television depiction was rather one-sided. I think Trek lit has done a better job at giving us a fuller perspective.

But that's the inherent problem with almost any sci-fi show: the alien races are depicted as being pretty much homogeneous and singular of culture, as opposed to the real-life human race.

 

[sonak]

TOS Klingons are pretty cool. TNG and after turned the Klingons into caricatures. No society like theirs could advance to the point where they did if realism were a factor.

 

[Herkimer Jitty]

You humans are all racist.

 

[Shawnster]

It's not that I can't stand Klingons, but that I am disappointed that we didn't get to see all aspects of the race. Television depiction was rather one-sided. I think Trek lit has done a better job at giving us a fuller perspective.

But that's the inherent problem with almost any sci-fi show: the alien races are depicted as being pretty much homogeneous and singular of culture, as opposed to the real-life human race.

You said it. Non-human races only have one language and one culture. Klingons all dress this way, Romulans all dress that way. This is Klingon art, etc...

Whereas Humans have over 200 languages (well, really well into the thousands), none of us dress the same and none of our cultural works are diverse.

Of course, when you look at using alien races as allegorically representing human cultures, then the sameness makes a little more sense. Russians speak Russian, they have a unique style of dress, art, etc... that is identifiably Russian, etc...

 

[C.E. Evans]

It's not that I can't stand Klingons, but that I am disappointed that we didn't get to see all aspects of the race. Television depiction was rather one-sided. I think Trek lit has done a better job at giving us a fuller perspective.

But that's the inherent problem with almost any sci-fi show: the alien races are depicted as being pretty much homogeneous and singular of culture, as opposed to the real-life human race.

You said it. Non-human races only have one language and one culture. Klingons all dress this way, Romulans all dress that way. This is Klingon art, etc...

Whereas Humans have over 200 languages (well, really well into the thousands), none of us dress the same and none of our cultural works are diverse.

On the other hand, to many Klingons, the Federation may seem to consist of only homogeneous Humans in Starfleet uniforms because that's all they see when dealing with the Federation.

 

[Anwar]

TOS Klingons are pretty cool. TNG and after turned the Klingons into caricatures. No society like theirs could advance to the point where they did if realism were a factor.

The only good TOS Klingons were Kor and Kang, and that was more because of Jon Colicos and Michael Ansara's acting skills than anything else.

We saw other Klingons that weren't warriors in DS9, they came off as pretty normal.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I'm pretty bloody bored with them, especially house politics.

That said I do have a soft spot for Lursa and B'etor, could have seen a lot more of them IMHO.

 

[Brolan]

I don't know where this came from, but I remember in the board game Star Fleet Battles the Klingons were described as using races they had conquered to do the non-fighting work on their ships as slaves. Engineering jobs and the like were considered beneath true warriors. The game even had security stations on Klingon ships, that if they were knocked out might cause a mutiny in the slave crew.

I don't know if there is any source material to back this up, or the game designers were making this up.

 

[T'Girl]

The old FASA games had the Klingon slave thing, and the novel Final Reflection (one f my top ten Star Trek novels).

There nothing that I can recall about slaves on Starships in canon, it's an interesting concept, that the Klingon wouldn't know how to maintain their own ships.

Which might partially explain the way they look inside.

 

[sevenstars]

What I'm trying to get at here is Klingons are flat out boring.

Seconded.

I think with the invention of pain sticks, we pretty much jumped over the cliff of taking them seriously.

That said I do have a soft spot for Lursa and B'etor, could have seen a lot more of them IMHO.

Seconded.

 

[Ian Keldon]

Keep in mind we generally only saw one component of them. It would be like judging humans by only encountering military people. I forget the episode but there's a Klingon scientist who tells of how the warrior class took over iirc.

Their 'honour' is laughable as they have been shown to be as devious and politicking as the best Romulan.

Yeah, but with Romulans that's accepted by society at large, while in Klingon society those are bad apples.

Are they? Gowron (and K'mpec before him), the High Council most of the time, etc...

I like what Ezri said to Worf in S7:

Lieutenant Ezri Dax: I think that the situation with Gowron is a symptom of a bigger problem. The Klingon Empire is dying; and I think it deserves to die.

Lieutenant Ezri Dax: I tend to look at the Empire with a little more skepticism than Curzon and Jadzia did. I see a society that is in deep denial about itself. We're talking about a warrior culture that prides itself on maintaining centuries-old traditions of honor and integrity. But in reality, it's willing to accept corruption at the highest levels.

Lt. Commander Worf: You are overstating your case.

Lieutenant Ezri Dax: Am I? Who was the last leader of the High Council that you respected? Has there even been one? And how many times have you had to cover up the crimes of Klingon leaders because you were told that it was for the good of the Empire? I... I know this sounds harsh, but the truth is, you have been willing to accept a government that you know is corrupt. Gowron's just the latest example. Worf, you are the most honorable and decent man that I've ever met. And if *you* are willing to tolerate men like Gowron, then what hope is there for the Empire?

I agree the Romulans have gotten short shrift from televised/filmed Trek. If you want good Romulan development, you have to go outside canon to Diane Duane's "Rihannsu" series.