Who Is Your Favorite Klingon Couple?

[Kesvirit]

posted on 3-23-2003 at 10:43 AM

Reconstructed "Who Is Your Favorite Klingon Couple" Poll

Angilla posted a poll asking members to chose their favorite Trek couple. The poll and its attendant responses have disappeared into the void, so it is being re-posted with an appropriately Klingon twist. Due to the ten-item limit I have reluctantly restrained myself to on-screen couples. If you think of any that I've missed, let me know and I will see if I can modify the poll to include them (there's one slot left).

Be sure to mark your ballot! (Forget the Alamo... remember Florida?) Then add any commentary you may have to the thread.

[Klythe]

posted on 3-23-2003 at 07:08 PM

Well, I missed Martoq and Sirella, so other than that I gotta stickwith the only other Klingon/Klingon age appropriate couple. Kang and Mara.

What are Worf/Troi and Worf/Dax doing on the list anyway? I thought at least one of them had to be Klingon!
 

[tmk1000]

posted on 3-23-2003 at 07:41 PM

i chose worf and dax i think that they had a better story behind them
 

[Kesvirit]

posted on 3-24-2003 at 01:24 AM

"The new Kirk"?

quoth Klythe Well, I missed Martoq and Sirella, so other than that I gotta stickwith the only other Klingon/Klingon age appropriate couple. Kang and Mara.

Theirs was a true parnership of love as well as power.

What are Worf/Troi and Worf/Dax doing on the list anyway? I thought at least one of them had to be Klingon!

(snickering in agreement) Indeed. Why is it that the worst excuse for a Klingon in the entire franchise gets the most action and the most...action? When TNG first came out Riker was widely touted as "the new Kirk". The publicists' rationale for this escapes me. The "new Coke" was still fresh on most of the viewing public's minds and palates, and sure as Duras gnashes his teeth in ghe''or neither the campaign nor the product were accepted by the target demographic. The whole episode was as near as an example I can think of to violate the Human philosopher Menken's dictum: "No one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people."

I propose that it is Worf who is "the new Kirk", or at least "the Klingon Kirk." Not the subtle, interesting Kirk of S1, but the latter-half-of-the-run, at-his-worst Kirk who strutted about, slugged people at random, snogged nubile young females of questionable age, and gave pompous, empty speeches on other's behavior without bothering to examine his own.

The "romance" between Worf and Ba'el particularly made my livers squirm. I still want to get TIIC into the agonizer booth for that one. I have yet to determine whether that was statutory or creche-thieving, but it was certainly inapprporiate.

Perhaps this poll should have been: "Who is your favorite amongst Worf's "'conquests'"? K'Ehleyr, Troi, Ba'el, JDax... My viewing was erratic at best, and I haven't bothered with most of the novels. Who am I missing?

quoth tmk1000 i chose worf and dax i think that they had a better story behind them

I missed much of that, but the rationale behind the marriage appeared to be: "Well, uh, okay. Like, you're a Klingon, I used to hang out with Klingons, I'm bored, we need some sort of stunt to boost sagging ratings, the storyline is in a rut... so let's get hitched." (Am I the only one who sees JDax as a toned-down 24th century valley girl?)

None of these strikes me as a good reason for something as serious as a marriage, and it seemed a bit out of character for both halves of the happy if clueless couple. At the very least it should have been better built up to. If I am missing a key development or factor in the relationship, I hope someone will enlighten me.

- Kesvirit
 

[tmk1000]

posted on 3-24-2003 at 03:59 PM

well i should say that they stuck with worf/dax longer than the others like worf Troi one show . K'Ehleyr and Worf were on two shows . so just liked how they showed so much back ground with worf/dax
 

[Klythe]

posted on 3-25-2003 at 01:32 PM

(Am I the only one who sees JDax as a toned-down 24th century valley girl?)

She has yet to show the bearing of an experienced high-ranking Starfleet Officer, I will grant you. I wonder if she was scripted that way or if Terry McFerrin(don't worry, be happy) is incapable of playing a serious character without sounding whiney or timid...

well i should say that they stuck with worf/dax longer than the others like worf Troi one show . K'Ehleyr and Worf were on two shows . so just liked how they showed so much back ground with worf/dax

Ah, you like it for no other reason other than they needed you to like it more... That is intensely unfortunate.

I thought that Vixis was much more than Klaa's second officer... They might be candidates to add to the list. I'm not sure though...

[Kesvirit]

posted on 4-18-2003 at 01:47 AM

quoth Klythe I wonder if she was scripted that way or if Terry McFerrin(don't worry, be happy) is incapable of playing a serious character without sounding whiney or timid...

I share your sentiments and then some. I have seen McFerrin in several roles and have concluded that she is little more than a mannequin with a pleasant appearance and demeanor.

When asked his advice on the acting craft, Spencer Tracy replied: "Know your lines and don't bump into the furniture." McFerrin has followed this advice to the letter.

I thought that Vixis was much more than Klaa's second officer... They might be candidates to add to the list. I'm not sure though...

I had considered them but could not recall any evidence of more than a professional working relationship. Due the on-screen requirement of the poll, verifying them as candidates would require re-viewing ST5. Of all the things I have seen during my travels ST5 was by far one of the most disgusting. I leave this particular challenge to those with stronger livers -- and stomachs. Anyone willing to undertake such a distasteful task is encouraged to do so and report back to the Embassy with their findings.

As to modifying an existing poll, initial evidence indicates that this cannot be done without invalidating current results. I am investigating further.

- Kesvirit
 

[Tedra_deArr]

K'Ehleyr and Worf of course 2nd Martoc and Sirella. It's just a pitty that she had to die. I liked her humor

mfg

Tedra

[qoSagh]

Somehow I managed to miss this topic in my whirlwind forum tour. I voted for Worf and Ba'el, but for a reason. Since most of the couples that were on the poll had worf and someone, I had to go with one of his conquests. I chose Ba'el because somehow it is fitting that the eternal wanna be Klingon Mr. Woof once again proved he couldn't handle a full blooded Klingon woman. He had to fall for the young inexperienced half Romulan, daughter of those who survived thier own captivity. I should point out that her desirability can be gauged by the fact that none of the Klingons, even her own peers wanted her, she had to throw herself at the outsider.

As for those couples that didn't make the poll I think the best is Worf and the Klingon female Riker-Q granted him. If we had only known that this was a sign of things to come, he pushed her away, because he was affraid to be with a Klingon woman, much in the same way that a five year old boy thinks girls are icky.

As for the Ba'el situation being statutory....well technically it was not because no local statute forbid it. As for distasteful it was certainly that and not just because of the age thing. Anytime we have to see Worf kiss this one is repulsed and reviled.

[Kesvirit]

qoSagh: Since most of the couples that were on the poll had worf and someone, I had to go with one of his conquests.

Four out of nine is not most. It is in fact less than half. G'daya New Math... But is not as if there were no other more appropriate options. Granted, for some unfathomable reason is was Wart's love-life that got all the screen time. Most viewers refuse to aknowledge that the entire canon concept of Klingon "love", sex, and marriage is the result of this one individual's pathetic attempts at both.

I chose Ba'el because somehow it is fitting that the eternal wanna be Klingon Mr. Woof once again proved he couldn't handle a full blooded Klingon woman. He had to fall for the young inexperienced half Romulan, daughter of those who survived thier own captivity.

And this makes them your favorite couple?  They are neither an exemplary couple nor exemplary individuals. Though she may yet grow out of the latter...

I should point out that her [Ba'el's] desirability can be gauged by the fact that none of the Klingons, even her own peers wanted her, she had to throw herself at the outsider.

Perhaps it was not her perceived lack of worthiness that kept suitors at bay. Perhaps it was because she was a mere adolescent, and her more honorable admirers had standards of behavior that involved waiting for her to mature.

Has it occurred to anyone that potential suitors may have been put off by the fact that her father was the camp commandant and their captor?

I think the best is Worf and the Klingon female Riker-Q granted him. If we had only known that this was a sign of things to come, he pushed her away, because he was affraid to be with a Klingon woman, much in the same way that a five year old boy thinks girls are icky.

That was your favorite couple? (That makes three favorite couples.  Even I can add that high.) That was no couple, and she was a Klingon in form only. That was the temporarily omnipotent Riker trying to force his closet fantasy of alien women on another -- Pike's "Orion animal women" with a twist. Wart was right to refuse to play along in performing for an opportunistic voyeur's entertainment.

As for distasteful it was certainly that and not just because of the age thing. Anytime we have to see Worf kiss this one is repulsed and reviled.

On that, we agree. ::shudders, scratches side:: I feel an inexplicable need to bathe...

-=- Kesvirit

[qoSagh]

I had to go back and re-read my own post to confirm this, but I only listed two couples, not the three that were attributed. Furthermore when I listed the second one, I prefaced it with the phrase: As for those couples that didn't make the pole....

Those facts not withstanding, I still think that one can have a favorite couple that was not chosen for a good or happy reason, but for an illustrative reason. My very reasons, as stated for dislieing Worf & Ba'el and choosing them as my favorite couple was that thier pairing serves as one of the finner attempts to document Worf's multi-failed love life. I mean he couldn't even steal a girl from Riker, what does that say for Klingon romantic prowess?

I should have hadded to the second couple the phrase: I think the best illustration of my point is as opposed to I think the best is, but I did not.
As for the Klingon female being Klingon in appearence only, I disagree. With no real evidence rither way, I had always assumed that she was a real live Klingon that Riker-Q had grabbed from somewhere else in the universe and transported to the Enterprise. I suppose that if she were a fake Klingon then Worf would have been justified in turniong her away, but then again how would Worf know what a real Klingon woman looked like in the first place?
 

[Kesvirit]

quoth Klythe many years ago: I thought that Vixis was much more than Klaa's second officer... They might be candidates to add to the list. I'm not sure though...

My reply:

I had considered them but could not recall any evidence of more than a professional working relationship. Due the on-screen requirement of the poll, verifying them as candidates would require re-viewing ST5. Of all the things I have seen during my travels ST5 was by far one of the most disgusting. I leave this particular challenge to those with stronger livers -- and stomachs. Anyone willing to undertake such a distasteful task is encouraged to do so and report back to the Embassy with their findings.

We all make sacrifices for the Empire, for our families, and for superiors and allies we deem worthy. This evening I had the unexpected opportunity, if you can call it that, to make such a sacrifice for my fellow posters.

I watched “Star Trek V: The Search For God” to try to get to the bottom of the Vixis-Klaa relationship. However, not being an enthusiast of recreational pain rituals, I did the sensible thing and watched the RiffTraxed version. (I prefer Mike and Kevin’s voiceover commentary to Shat’s any day, any era, any quadrant.)

What I saw were two intense individuals pursuing a similar goal who formed an alliance when an opportunity for glory and achievement fell into their collective lap. Unusual for Klingons as portrayed by Federates, their alliance became a true friendship buoyed by similar goals and mutual support. After they failed to capture Kirk or the Enterprise and Koord pulled himself out of the bottle far enough to take the upstart Klaa to task, Vixis went to stand by his side. I suspect her motivations were twofold: to demonstrate her loyalty to Klaa, and to deter Sulu and Chekov, who were following her like hounds on a scent.

So while their relationship was an intense one, I saw no indication of a romantic or sexual aspect to it. This is a film not known for its subtleties. Had they been banging boots, it would have been emphasized with a heavy hand.

Also, though she was clearly one of the highest ranking officers aboard Klaa’s ship, I saw no definitive indications that Vixis was Klaa’s second officer. That she was is an assumption based on context in a film not known for nuance. On the contrary, successful Klingon military careers tend to be bright and brief: behind every captain is a first officer seeking promotion, and most promotions come from within a given ship’s or unit’s compliment. If Klaa had the brains to keep his position for any length of time before having them splattered all over the deck, and actually both liked and trusted Vixis, he’s have had a network of operatives to spy on her and report their findings in order to protect his own interests, like his job, his reputation, and his life, so that he could rid himself of those tasks and be free to enjoy her friendship. Such an indulgence requires vast resources.



[Edit -- cleaned up atrocious spelling for coherence's sake.]