Star Trek: The Next Generation/Recap/S1/E19 Heart of Glory

The Enterprise gets an order to investigate a disturbance Starfleet detected in the Neutral Zone. Upon arriving they find a damaged transport ship adrift with 3 Klingons aboard, one of them badly wounded. Yar beams them over just before the damaged ship explodes and takes them to sickbay where Dr. Crusher starts treatment on the wounded Klingon.

Captain Picard questions the other two about what happened and the leader a fierce-looking fellow called Korris tells him that they were attacked by a Ferengi vessel Worf insists that the weapons used on the transport ship were not Ferengi and Korris says that the vessel was Ferengi but the weapons were Klingon. They excuse further questions by saying that they were tired and hungry and Picard tells Worf to escort them to their quarters. At their quarters Korris, and his Number Two Komnel test Worf to see if he has grown soft among humans when they receive word that their comrade is dying. They arrive at sickbay and perform the Klingon death ritual which involves staring into the dying warrior's eyes, see the life leave it, and then roar at the ceiling. The crew is surprised when Worf also takes part.

Later, Korris asks Worf how he came to serve on a Human Starfleet ship and Worf tells him of his back story about being rescued from Khitomer by Starfleet and being raised by human parents. They admire him for his ability to control his instincts to fight and attack and complain that this peace is a living death to them. Korris reveals that they indeed stole the freighter and were pursued by a Klingon battle cruiser which they destroyed. Worf is not happy but agrees to show them around the ship.

Meanwhile on the bridge, Data detects a Klingon cruiser approaching. They are hailed and the captain of the cruiser, K'Nera tells them that Korris and the others were fugitives who had destroyed a Klingon cruiser he even offers to send a team down to collect them but Picard says that Tasha can handle it. When the security team arrives Korris appeals to Worf for help but Worf refuses and they are packed off to the brig. Worf then tries to intercede for Korris' and Komnel's lives with Commander K'Nera, asking him to allow them to die with honor on a remote planet and not bound and helpless. K'Nera says he feels the same way but he must follow his orders to bring them for a trial.

Back at the brig Korris and Komnel assemble a disruptor from bits of their uniforms and bust their way out of the brig. Komnel dies trying to escape but Korris manages Curb Stomp his way to the warp core where he threatens to blow it up unless Picard grants him access to the battle bridge and allow him to go off with it. Worf and Picard get their butts down to engineering where worf again tries to reason with Korris. In a rare Crowning Moment of Awesome for Worf he zaps Korris with his phaser after Korris tells him that he is no Klingon.

On the bridge Picard tells K'Nera how Korris and Komnel died. K'Nera tells Worf that once his tenure on board the Enterprise is over he must consider joining them as they can learn from each other.

This episode contains examples of:


 * Patrick Stewart Speech: Delivered by Worf to Korris
 * Human Shield: Averted. "Cowards take hostages, Klingons do not."
 * Early Installment Weirdness: Klingons show themselves to be perfectly capable of taking hostages later on in the series. But then, these were outcast Klingons who felt the Empire had gone awry.
 * Bond One-Liner: Given by Worf. "Perhaps not" ZAP
 * The Worf Effect: One of the few episodes where it does not affect Worf
 * Blood Knight: Peace does not sit well with Korris and his pals though Worf does tell him that the challenge is to learn to live in peace is the biggest to face the fears within