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Son'a Solidarity post ST: Insurrection

Herbert1

Herbert1

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Has official Trek literature mentioned the Son'a Solidarity since the events of Star Trek: Insurrection? Has Trek literature assumed that all the Son'a returned home to Ba'ku and so the Solidarity was dissolved after the events of Star Trek: Insurrection? Or did they remain allies of the Dominion until the end of the Dominion War and the Son'a Solidarity still exists as a political entity? Is it hostile to the United Federation of Planets? Are the Ellora and the Tarlac still indentured servants to the Son'a?

Unfortunately, Star Trek: Insurrection has no Star Date reference, but it was released on December 11, 1998. The Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Penumbra" mentions a ketracel-white facility on Devos II operated by the Son'a that was broadcast on April 7, 1999. Due to the later airing date of "Penumbra" is it safe to assume that these events happened after Star Trek: Insurrection? Thoughts?
 
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It's been suggested (on MA, among other places) that Insurrection overlaps with "It's Only a Paper Moon"-- Worf could be gone for a long time during that episode.
 
Steve Mollmann said:
It's been suggested (on MA, among other places) that Insurrection overlaps with "It's Only a Paper Moon"-- Worf could be gone for a long time during that episode.
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Thanks for the information. If that is the case, then the Son'a are still producing ketrecel white for the Dominion and not all of them have returned home to Ba'ku.
 
Actually, I think it more likely that Insurrection is concurrent with "What You Leave Behind", between the Battle of Cardassia and the treaty signing on the station. The key thing is the Dominion negotiations Picard references. There weren't exactly any negotiations going on before Cardassia, and that would likely take weeks. Plenty of time for Worf to drop in.
 
elaithin said:
Actually, I think it more likely that Insurrection is concurrent with "What You Leave Behind", between the Battle of Cardassia and the treaty signing on the station. The key thing is the Dominion negotiations Picard references. There weren't exactly any negotiations going on before Cardassia, and that would likely take weeks. Plenty of time for Worf to drop in.
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The exact line by Riker is:

"The Diplomatic Corps is busy with Dominion negotiations."

That could work. Worf could still be Strategic Operations Officer wearing the red uniform before his assignment as Federation Ambassador to the Klingon Empire.

The chit chat during the reception scene also talks about an "archaeological expedition to Hanoran Two being delayed." Doesn't seem like Star Fleet would be spending time and resources on an archaeological expedition during a time of open hostilities with the Dominion.

Any time period we choose won't be ideal considering that Michael Piller and Rick Berman wrote the script before the resolution of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The final draft of the shooting script has Picard asking Worf about his bride which I presume is a reference to Jadzia Dax.

I understand that the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion by Larry Nemecek speculates that the events of Star Trek: Insurrection occur before "Penumbra".

I presume because there has been a lack of response from the writers that the Son'a have not been mentioned since the novelization of Star Trek: Insurrection.
 
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elaithin said:
Actually, I think it more likely that Insurrection is concurrent with "What You Leave Behind", between the Battle of Cardassia and the treaty signing on the station. The key thing is the Dominion negotiations Picard references. There weren't exactly any negotiations going on before Cardassia, and that would likely take weeks. Plenty of time for Worf to drop in.
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Possible, but "The diplomatic corps is busy with Dominion negotiations" could mean various things. For instance, it could refer to negotiations to sign up allies against the Dominion, as opposed to negotiations with the Dominion. Or it could mean putting out diplomatic feelers to Dominion allies to try to see if there was a way to bring the Dominion to the table.
 
Christopher said:
elaithin said:
Actually, I think it more likely that Insurrection is concurrent with "What You Leave Behind", between the Battle of Cardassia and the treaty signing on the station. The key thing is the Dominion negotiations Picard references. There weren't exactly any negotiations going on before Cardassia, and that would likely take weeks. Plenty of time for Worf to drop in.
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Possible, but "The diplomatic corps is busy with Dominion negotiations" could mean various things. For instance, it could refer to negotiations to sign up allies against the Dominion, as opposed to negotiations with the Dominion. Or it could mean putting out diplomatic feelers to Dominion allies to try to see if there was a way to bring the Dominion to the table.
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That would be another way to interpret the dialogue. In the absence of a Star Date do you tend to interpret the events by production or release/broadcast order?

Considering Michael Dorn's appearances as Commander Worf in episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, we can place the movie any time after "Covenant" and before "Field of Fire."

What about the Son'a? Have they been used in Trek fic since the novelization of Star Trek: Insurrection? As a writer, do you believe that they have all returned to Ba'ku?
 
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Personally, I tend to think the Son'a were the original race, and the Ba'ku were the offshoot. The Ba'ku youths who had left the planet joined up with the mother civilization and managed to get some ships and crews from them, but they weren't the entirety of the species. I mean, come on. There were only 600 Ba'ku. Realistically, there's no way there could've been more than a couple hundred Son'a who came from there. And yet they were able to construct at least three starships, a planet-irradiating space station, many fighters, a White factory and, oh, yes, enslave two species.
 
^More like they enslaved two species who were then used to build the space station, fighters, etc. Maybe they initially bought ships and hired mercenaries to help them conquer the other two races, or maybe they made alliances with rebellious factions on the Tarlac and Ellora homeworlds to conquer those planets and sell their enemies into slavery.
 
The Battle of Betazed places Insurrection in the gap between DS9 season 6 & 7. So there's very little consistency in placing it.
 
The Son'a are mentioned very briefly in Articles of the Federation as an example of a culture the Federation had to forge an alliance or trade relationship with during the Dominion War. That's the only Trek Lit mention I can think of.
 
Is it just me being cynical, or does anybody else just *know* that every Trek writer on this board is now sticking a throwaway Son'a reference into whatever Trek pitch or project they're currently working on, and all thinking "nobody else has, so I may as well..."?
 
^ I hope so. Though Insurrection was kind of crap, I'd be interested to learn what came of the Ba'ku and the returned Son'a. Was Dougherty working with others in Starfleet? Was there any further contact between Picard and Anij? Etc...
 
^They have cool looking horseshoe-shaped starships created by John Eaves.

They have conquered two cool-looking alien races--the Tarlac and the Ellora.

A writer, who had the interest, could pretty much create the cultures of the Son'a, the Tarlac, and the Ellora from scratch and it would be highly unlikely that their invention would be modified or invalidated by canon.

They could be the guest annoyance in Star Trek story or novel.
 
^I understand. I also doubt that there is sufficient fan interest in a sequel to Star Trek: Insurrection or the further misadventures of the Son'a, Tarlac, and Ellora for Pocket Books to be interested in a novel pitch dealing with them.

Star Trek: Insurrection would have made a good two-part episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, but as a motion picture follow-up of Star Trek: First Contact it was a disappointment.

My question has been answered, that Trek literature hasn't dealt further with the Son'a.
 
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