Worf on DS9.... A good decision, or a mistake?

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Consider Worf's arrival on DS9 in season 4. The producers had to reroute their storyline with the Dominion, in order to include the Klingons to the whole theme of upcoming war.

Was Worf's arrival on the show a good decision, a decision that benefited both the show and the character, or was it a mistake?

What do you think?

 

[Anthony Sabre]

I always loved Worf on DS9. My only complaint, as has been mentioned by others, was that his presence seemed to weaken Kira's position as the station's foremost soldier. Not to mention that Worf was elevated to a near godly level, becoming a greater warrior than even Kahless. There should have been an episode of just Worf and Kira kicking Jem'Hadar butt and bonding as warriors.

 

[Moocey]

I didn't like Worf/Dax, but I did like him in the Klingon episodes, especially TITW. Overall, I think it was a good move.

My only complaint, as has been mentioned by others, was that his presence seemed to weaken Kira's position as the station's foremost soldier.

I disagree. Kira was a guerilla(sp?) warfare specialist. Worf was muscle. Either one could have topped the other at their respective specialty.

 

[Navaros]

Not really a mistake or benefit IMO. Worf was okay. His confrontational scenes with Odo were outstanding, but other than that he didn't really add or detract from the show much. Although all of the scenes of his relationship with Jadzia were terrible, but I blame Jadzia for that. She was gonna be dragging the show down in useless scenes due to her regular status, regardless of Worf being in those scenes or not. So I do not factor that in when judging the value or lack thereof of the Worf character.

 

[Natural]

I thought it was a good move. The series was sort of wandering before season 4, and seemed to pick up the pace in the following seasons. Whether Worf was a big factor in it is open to discussion I guess, since a lot of Trek series seem to hit their stride in season 4 anyway. Still, I felt Way of the Warrior was the turning point for DS9, and it couldn't have been done without Worf, so...

I did feel they could have done a few things differently. I was really hoping for a heroic death scene in the DS9 finale. Given the whole Jadzia thing, I thought it would have made sense. I didn't like Worf's character at all in season 7, and I think this would have given him some purpose.

 

[Hikaru_Ichijo]

Worf's addition to DS9 was fantastic. He not only had a much cooler job, but he got to participate in cooler missions. Plus, it was perfect that he was an outcast among outcasts

 

[CorporalClegg]

I hated the idea when it first happened. But, because of the way the character changed and progressed I almost see it as "Worf was a DS9 character who also starred on TNG" and not vise versa.

 

[Sci]

I always thought Worf fit in better on DS9 than TNG in a lot of ways, actually. And of course, the really ironic thing was that Worf, the outsider who questioned Federation methods in TNG, became the guy who defended the Federation whilst surrounded by those who questioned its methods in DS9.

 

[Jono]

I enjoyed having Worf on DS9 and while it wasn't perfect it made his character much more interest for me.

 

[Tralah]

I really liked Worf on DS9, but I think the show would have been just fine without him too.

 

[DS9forever]

I really liked Worf on DS9 but it was really Martok who was the best Klingon in the series.

 

[Sean Aaron]

I really thought he was a good addition; it made his appearances in the TNG films all the more painful because they ignored the character and his development in DS9 completely.

The main thing I liked about it was the idea that the characters aren't static; unfortunately the TNG films failed to live up to this and played it safe and boring consistently to my disappointment.

 

[NKemp3]

Consider Worf's arrival on DS9 in season 4. The producers had to reroute their storyline with the Dominion, in order to include the Klingons to the whole theme of upcoming war.

Was Worf's arrival on the show a good decision, a decision that benefited both the show and the character, or was it a mistake?

What do you think?

Ahhh. This old question arises again. Frankly I didn't mind Worf that much. But making Martok a regular instead and not wasting too much time on the Klingon war in the 4th season would have been a better choice IMO. The dynamic between Martok and Sisko was better than the one between Sisko and Worf IMO. And JG is just such a hell of an actor, having him as a regular would have been another boost to the show. Plus he was the most fascinating and well-drawn Klingon of modern Trek. Can you tell I'm a Martok fan?

 

[Pegaritaville]

When I first heard they were bringing Worf aboard, I hated the idea. I never cared for 24th century Klingons in the first place, and I thought his addition would disrupt the wonderful balance that the existing characters had on the show. But it bacame clear early on that my initial misgivings were unfounded. While I never did warm to the character, Worf's addition didn't weaken the show as I had feared.

 

[Maniarek]

While I was never a big fan of the Klingons, I thought Worf's addition to the cast was a great idea.

He was much better utilised in DS9 than TNG I think.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

I really liked Worf on DS9 but it was really Martok who was the best Klingon in the series.

This is exactly how I feel.

I don't think DS9 needed Worf - Martok was a much better Klingon and was the more interesting character in the DS9 environment. Plus, the Martok/Sisko dynamic was really interesting and just 'clicked', while the Worf/Sisko dynamic was pretty dull, actually. Martok provided an 'equal' to Sisko - a Klingon he had to work with closely but who he was not in command of. Worf was just another Starfleet officer in his command. Nuthin' to see there.

However, I think Worf needed DS9. DS9 made him into a much more 3-dimensional character: not being able to really fit in on TNG because he wasn't Starfleet enough...and not being able to really fit in on DS9 because he was TOO Starfleet.

That was the main purpose Worf served on DS9, in fact - he was a walking, talking illustration of just how far away from the Enterprise we really were!

 

[number6]

I was annoyed at first, because DS9 never got much of a chance to shine on its own, and the producers brought Worf in to pull in the TNG fans who were already conditioned to hate the show because it was "dark and gritty." Frakes and Sirtis were dissing the show on their convention appearances and I thought bringing in Worf was a ratings ploy.
Fortunately it worked in spades!! Worf's character not only fit better in the DS9 universe, his character got much deeper development. He fit in perfectly on all counts. You can thank Rick "Thank God he kept his filthy hands off DS9"Berman for that one.

DS9 would have been cancelled in season 4 if it didn't happen.

 

[NKemp3]

Well, I don't know if DS9 would have been cancelled if Worf hadn't joined. The rating slide continued after all and the buzz of Worf joining the crew died off after awhile too (and two years later VOY's ratings in its 4th season may have been even worse and yet that show went on for another three years) . Paramount simply wanted a shakeup and Worf's presence and the addition of the Klingon (familiar foe) conflict was what they used as bait for TNG fans who were no longer watching.

What annoyed some DS9 fans was Michael Dorn talking about how the TNG characters were going to be making all of these guest appearances and indicating tha the show was going to revolve more around Worf (I still have those old articles but probably haven't read them in over a decade).

 

[Garth Rockett]

He was much better utilised in DS9 than TNG I think.

I agree, and I thought he was pretty well used in TNG. I don't credit Worf's arrival as marking a turning point in the quality of the show (I think it's great from Emissary on, barring a weak episode here and there throughout the run) but I do think he helped add a bit to the tapestry.

 

[PKTrekGirl]

What annoyed some DS9 fans was Michael Dorn talking about how the TNG characters were going to be making all of these guest appearances and indicating tha the show was going to revolve more around Worf (I still have those old articles but probably haven't read them in over a decade).

ACK! I didn't know this as I never read articles and stuff back then. I watched every episode...but didn't keep up on any behind the scenes stuff.

Glad this didn't turn out as he hoped it would.

WAY glad.