Worf's decision in "Change of Heart"

[Charles Phipps]

I feel this was one of the best decisions Worf could have made because the fact that there IS a limit to his honor and that he cares about his loved ones more than a nebulous cause is deeply humanizing.

Mind you, I'm one of those people who absolutely believed Joel made the right decision in The Last of Us.

Since Terri was leaving anyway, I would have been DOUBLY awful and Worf betrays his honor to save her....and she dies anyway.

 

[DonIago]

How many people have to die because Worf didn't rescue the informant before you second-guess this?

I don't recall Ezri doing anything pivotal to the war effort in S7 either, so it could be argued that even saving the Dax symbiont was ultimately irrelevant.

Mind you, I'm not saying Worf made the wrong decision...it was a no-win scenario, and he certainly made the human decision. I'm not sure how honor is a factor here...but if it is, isn't it more honorable to carry out your orders and potentially prevent many deaths than it is to save your wife while betraying your orders and possibly be indirectly responsible for the deaths of many?

I'm not sure why you're conflating the character decisions with the out-of-universe circumstances either, though if one considers that Terry was going to be leaving the show in any case, then this would have been a natural place to have Worf opt to carry out the mission rather than turn around to save her.

 

[NewHeavensNewEarth]

It's a nice decision because Jadzia survived and the Federation won the war despite this setback of losing key intelligence from a rare informant. But if she had died and the war had been lost, well...

Ultimately it mirrors the decisions of Odo, which the producers have talked about, in which the big picture of galactic proportions (or half-galactic) can still come down to very basic decisions of individuals influenced by such things as love. We see that in all kinds of epic tales from classical times, and up through Star Wars, etc., and the producers/writers were intentionally building on that idea (again, going by interviews with them).

But while it's admirable when the outcome lands in our favor, the opposite can feel otherwise. (For example, if Odo had developed a genuine love for the female changeling and gladly handed her the Alpha Quadrant...)

 

[Legate Duhmar]

I don't recall Ezri doing anything pivotal to the war effort in S7 either, so it could be argued that even saving the Dax symbiont was ultimately irrelevant.

Mind you, I'm not saying Worf made the wrong decision...it was a no-win scenario, and he certainly made the human decision. I'm not sure how honor is a factor here...but if it is, isn't it more honorable to carry out your orders and potentially prevent many deaths than it is to save your wife while betraying your orders and possibly be indirectly responsible for the deaths of many?

Saving the Dax symbiote was largely irrelevant to the war effort but that wasn't the point. Worf abandoning his mission was a gesture of love and duty from a husband to a wife over all other considerations and really solidified the bond between the two characters. I liked it as it's relatable and human and typical of DS9s writing and the decision ultimately reinforces what we already knew about Worf, that his duty to his mate supercedes his duty to Starfleet or the High council and is one of the characters more heroic qualities.

Its too bad Terry got dumped as marrying Worf actually made Dax interesting again. While Ezri was well played it was a of a forced move to integrate her into the crew and build the first half of the final season attempting to develop her character.

 

[DonIago]

I'm not sure 'heroic' is really the proper term for a scenario in which you place the welfare of one person over the welfare of many. I know the point you're trying to make, but I question the word choice.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Sometimes,

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[Locutus of Bored]

I don't blame Worf so much as he should have never been put in a situation where he had to choose between the mission or his loved one when other personnel could have been sent instead.

Obviously in long term multi-year assignments like tours of duty on deep space starships or space stations, you're going to want to live with your family, so in some cases the potential for unintentionally having to make such a choice is unavoidable. But this was a specific mission where either Worf or Jadzia could have been replaced with someone who didn't have a personal attachment to the only other member of the team on this life or death assignment of critical importance to the war effort.

You can claim to be as compartmentalized with your emotions as you like and say you can make the hard choice to place the mission above the well-being of a loved one as long as it remains a hypothetical, but until you're staring their likely death in the eye for real you don't know how you're going to react. Some people can make that hard choice, like Sisko choosing not to go back to rescue Jake after they abandoned DS9 to Dominion forces (although Jake's death was not certain, nor was the Defiant's ability to mount a rescue a certainty as well, in fact it was a long shot given how they were under fire as they left), but suddenly finding out that you can't live up to your convictions when your wife's life is on the line in the heat of the moment is not an indication of a lack of courage or honor or loyalty, it's basic humanity.

Even if it's humanity via adoption in Worf's case, because if he was as purely Klingon as he likes to think he is, Jadzia dying for the glory of doing one's duty is the highest honor possible.

 

[DonIago]

Agreed that pairing Worf and Jadzia on this mission was a bad idea to begin with, and I'd hope someone was taken to task over that.

I don't recall the set-up for the scenario, but it seems as though they could have easily had Worf and Jadzia on a runabout together and needing to be diverted due to the urgency of this mission and made the scenario more plausible.

 

[Charles Phipps]

How many people have to die because Worf didn't rescue the informant before you second-guess this?

I don't recall Ezri doing anything pivotal to the war effort in S7 either, so it could be argued that even saving the Dax symbiont was ultimately irrelevant.

Mind you, I'm not saying Worf made the wrong decision...it was a no-win scenario, and he certainly made the human decision. I'm not sure how honor is a factor here...but if it is, isn't it more honorable to carry out your orders and potentially prevent many deaths than it is to save your wife while betraying your orders and possibly be indirectly responsible for the deaths of many?

I'm not sure why you're conflating the character decisions with the out-of-universe circumstances either, though if one considers that Terry was going to be leaving the show in any case, then this would have been a natural place to have Worf opt to carry out the mission rather than turn around to save her.

I'm commenting on the writing decision rather than attempt to unpack the characters' actions in-universe. The story is stronger for the fact Worf chose his wife over duty. And I feel if he's chosen duty, despite it being "the right thing", I'd never look at him as a hero again because it'd have required an inhuman and calculating mind to do it.

I'm definitely the McCoy in this.

I'm not sure 'heroic' is really the proper term for a scenario in which you place the welfare of one person over the welfare of many. I know the point you're trying to make, but I question the word choice.

You mean like....Star Trek III?

 

[dupersuper]

You mean like....Star Trek III?

Well, the many in question in SFS were really Spock's friends and crewmate who voluntarily risked themselves and their careers, not untold innocent bystanders likely to be caught up in a war not of their making.

Not that I'm faulting Worf: leaving your wife to die isn't something I expect some one to be able to do.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

I'm definitely the McCoy in this.

Indeed, like in ST:V, where McCoy went from his usual adversarial stance with Spock to calling out Kirk for expecting Spock to shoot his (half-)brother Sybok in order to prevent the ship from being hijacked. Spock's (and McCoy's) humanity won out in that particular decision whereas Spock's cold calculating Vulcan half would have told him that pulling the trigger was the logical decision.

 

[Empok Nor Station Manager]

Agreed that pairing Worf and Jadzia on this mission was a bad idea to begin with, and I'd hope someone was taken to task over that.

Sisko lays all the blame at Worf's feet, but I agree with your point 100%.... why isn't Sisko held accountable for making such a terrible decision to put husband and wife together on a mission where there is risk of something like this happening?? As the commanding office, he owns the final decision on who goes on the mission... especially since the this mission is assigned to his senior staff... Sisko owns a part of this blame.

 

[DonIago]

^Hell, as far as I'm aware many contemporary militaries and places of business have strict regulations to prevent exactly this kind of scenario. I know if my partner worked for the same company I do then they couldn't work in my department or in another area that could create a conflict of interest problem.

 

[Captrek]

Sisko lays all the blame at Worf's feet, but I agree with your point 100%.... why isn't Sisko held accountable for making such a terrible decision to put husband and wife together on a mission where there is risk of something like this happening??

Sisko seems to be away from the station at the start of the episode. Kira is using his office, and it is she who sends Worf and Dax on the mission.

 

[Empok Nor Station Manager]

Sisko seems to be away from the station at the start of the episode. Kira is using his office, and it is she who sends Worf and Dax on the mission.

Point taken... it doesn't negate my point in that the officer who assigned them both to this mission has culpability... who was that, and why were they not reprimanded??

 

[DonIago]

If it's the last time we see Kira do that, then perhaps she was reprimanded?

 

[Empok Nor Station Manager]

Have we talked about Sisko's comment at the end of the episode.... you won't be offered your own command.... yada yada.... Hello, hypocritical Starfleet... Will & Deanna Riker??? So maybe it is okay, but only when it's someone everyone really loves.... pfff....

 

[DonIago]

When were Will & Deanna sent on a mission alone together?

 

[Captrek]

When were Will & Deanna sent on a mission alone together?

They were sort of on a mission together in Ménage a Troi, but it wasn’t planned.

 

[Farscape One]

They were on leave in "Menage a Troi".

Plus, they weren't married.