Spoilers Star Trek: Picard 1x05 - "Stardust City Rag"

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"Sir, Worf just disemboweled another Klingon ambassador in the men's room."

"But it was culturally correct for him to do so."
That's definitely not how things like that went down. Worf got a ready room lecture for going over to a Klingon ship and taking care of legitimate Klingon personal/cultural business (killing Duras).

ETA: In case you missed it previously...
Picard: Mr. Worf, you will not go into hiding every time a Klingon ship decloaks.
Worf: Very well, sir. May I seek mortal revenge against my enemies then?
Picard: Absolutely out of the question! That would be a disgrace to the uniform!
Worf: Well you want me to hang out with the other Klingons, that's what we do!
 
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Right. Worf didn't violate any Klingon rules or customs, and he was on a Klingon ship. Whether his action violates Federation laws or customs should be irrelevant.

It's funny. Overall that was a solid episode, but it mostly comes up as an example of Picard being wrong about something these days.
 
Right. Worf didn't violate any Klingon rules or customs, and he was on a Klingon ship. Whether his action violates Federation laws or customs should be irrelevant.
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Should it? But where would they draw the line?
Picard: So, how wasyour vacation?
Crewmember: Fine. Killed a few jews, raped a woman, enslaved a child. You know, the usual within my culture.
P: I don't personally approve, but hey, whatevs.
 
Regardless of whether or not Picard decided to overlook what Worf did, surely Starfleet has some sort of UCMJ that would prevail over the exigencies of local law and custom?
 
Regardless of whether or not Picard decided to overlook what Worf did, surely Starfleet has some sort of UCMJ that would prevail over the exigencies of local law and custom?
Starfleet laws are shadowy at best, inexistent and/or stupid at worst.

When Worf fired on that freighter they were perfectly prepared to send him to the Klingons to get judged there by them, regardless of the fact that they were at war with the Klingons. It would be like Kim Jong hun demanding and obtaining the extradition of an American citizen for the sole reason that his parents were once Korean. Talk about stupid, barbaric and racist!!!
 
That never crossed my mind when watching it, and I never heard anyone mention it in the pre-Internet Age. What I actually remember is that they were always falling all over themselves to be accepting of any culture that they encountered.

"Sir, Worf just disemboweled another Klingon ambassador in the men's room."

"But it was culturally correct for him to do so."
^^^
And then Picard would pull Worf into his Ready Room and give him a dressing down and a reprimand for acting Klingon. And that happened all the time on the show.

ETA:
I see "The Old Mixer" beat me to it. :rommie:
 
Should it? But where would they draw the line?
Picard: So, how wasyour vacation?
Crewmember: Fine. Killed a few jews, raped a woman, enslaved a child. You know, the usual within my culture.
P: I don't personally approve, but hey, whatevs.

That might be...stretching things just a tad.

Worf killed Duras in a duel. A legal, state-sanctioned duel. He didn't commit any atrocities like what you just mentioned.

Was Picard entitled to reprimand him? ... Maybe. I think Picard just wanted to make it clear that the Federation was not interfering in the selection of the next Klingon Chancellor (since Duras was one of the contenders) and just put down the reprimand as a formality.
 
It makes one wonder if Starfleet would have convened a hearing had Kirk not only defeated Ron Tracey in hand-to-hand combat but been forced to kill him on Omega IV. Common sense tells you that it would have been self-defense and justified but given Starfleet's rules regarding even a commanding officer losing his ship in the line of duty and hearings being called to determine the facts involved I could see Kirk being hauled into a Starbase and facing a hearing on whether or not Tracey - a Starfleet Captain with his own impressive record as well as a fellow Federation citizen who'd have been subject to Starfleet regulations and laws in court for his crimes and violation of the Prime Directive - could have been taken alive and delivered into the hands of authorities at the earliest convenience for the Enterprise.
 
Hmm. One wonders: If Ambassador Sarek HAD killed that Tellarite ambassador in "Journey to Babel," could he have claimed diplomatic immunity? Or demanded that any trial be conducted under Vulcan rules, including possibly trial by combat?

I mean, if it's good enough for wedding ceremonies . . . :)
 
Hmm. One wonders: If Ambassador Sarek HAD killed that Tellarite ambassador in "Journey to Babel," could he have claimed diplomatic immunity? Or demanded that any trial be conducted under Vulcan rules, including possibly trial by combat?

I mean, if it's good enough for wedding ceremonies . . . :)

"Trial by combat"? Someone has been watching "Game Of Thrones" lately...
 
Hmm. One wonders: If Ambassador Sarek HAD killed that Tellarite ambassador in "Journey to Babel," could he have claimed diplomatic immunity? Or demanded that any trial be conducted under Vulcan rules, including possibly trial by combat?
Probably not, as they both were Federation citizens.
 
Should it? But where would they draw the line?
Picard: So, how wasyour vacation?
Crewmember: Fine. Killed a few jews, raped a woman, enslaved a child. You know, the usual within my culture.
P: I don't personally approve, but hey, whatevs.

It's an interesting thought experiment. It's never been quite clear how seriously the Feferation takes its commitment to cultural diversity. Often it comes across as rank hypocrisy; cultures can be different, but only about trivial stuff. It's more useful to think of this as two different values which are sometimes in tension. Sort of like the contemporary USA, which values both religious freedom and equality. Works great until a sexist homphobic church comes along.

Where the line gets drawn... beats me.
 
Most Vulcan customs seem to have only been known to Vulcans.
I just realized something. The Vulcans are almost as secretive as the Romulans.


This thread has really slowed down. Good thing the next episode airs in several hours. Hopefully that episode thread stays nice like this one did (lack of angry, circular arguments ruining it).
 
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