Title: A Matter of Honor
Airdate: 02/06/1989
Plot Summary
Riker takes part in an exchange program by serving as first officer on the Klingon ship Pagh. Unbeknownst to the klingons, they were carrying a metal parasite that ate at the hull. Another crewman participating in the exchange scanned the ship but unfortunately didn’t say anything right away, mistaking Benzite rules being the same as Starfleets. This creates a misunderstanding as the Klingons discover the parasite and assume the scan made by the Enterprise was what caused it. The captain decides to attack putting Riker in the middle of a delicate situation that tests his loyalties.
Make It So
Picard talks with Riker on the phaser range about the exchange program with the Klingons and Riker quickly volunteers. Wasn’t sure if Picard was just informing him or was using a little sly psychology to get Riker to volunteer.
He also doesn’t like Memdon but is patient with him and doesn’t overdue it in chastising Memdon when he doesn’t follow procedures. Worf might have though.
Number 1
This is Riker’s episode, learning how to adjust to Klingon ways, willing to beat the crap out of his second officer, learning to eat gagh, and getting to know the crew. He gives playful insults just as good he gets. He does a great job in diffusing the situation and taking over the ship, but then allowing Kargan to get some dignity back when he returns it by taking a backhand across the face. Klag was impressed.
Fully Functional
Data takes over as first officer while Riker is off-ship. He’s pretty good at it too.
Today Is A Good Day To Die
Worf gives Riker some good advice on what to expect, not to mention a transponder. He also is quick draw McGraw when Kargan goes for his weapon after getting beamed onto the bridge, to Kargan’s surprise.
Phase Inducers
I had to double check but LaForge isn’t in this episode.
Counselor Cleavage
Troi is also absent from this episode, which is weird as you’d think they’d use her to be worried about Riker being on that Klingon ship. But nope, she’s taking a powder.
Doctor Not Bones
Pulaski is not tempted by all the Klingon food Riker is sampling before he heads to the ship.
Shut Up, Wesley
Wesley is pleased to see Mordok and is embarrased that he didn’t realize it was a different person. He continues to be nice to Memdon and helps him get his confidence back.
Guinan?!
No Guinan, I think cause she was in the kitchen putting out all that Klingon food for Riker.
Canon Maker
Klingons! This is the first time we really see Klingons in their normal routine. We see they are a big on honor, with Klag having a father who is in dishonor and he no longer talks with him. Not dying in captivity or dying in battle is a big deal. We see the challenge for rank, something that will be a thing throughout the rest of Trek. Riker does a good job defending his job.
Benzites seem to be almost clones. How do they tell each other apart? They just do. I kinda loved Memdon’s answer.
The phaser range makes its first appearance. It would show up at least one more time.
Canon Breaker
Riker is pretty shocked that Klag would simply disown his own father. In a few episodes we’ll find out he should’ve been a lot more sympathetic to Klag’s attitude.
A Little Bloody Nose
No one dies, though not for lack of trying by Kargan.
Technobabble
You can tunnel your neutrinos. So that’s helpful and makes a good bug spray.
Transporters have a range of about 40,000 kilometers. That tracks with what we’ve seen in general.
Please Repeat Your Communication
“That might’ve been one of the shortest assignments in the history of Starfleet.”
“Wrong, Number One. It was almost the longest. Well done.”
“Thank you. Actually, I learned quite a bit.”
[referring to Riker’s battered face] “Apparently not when to duck.”
“When *not* to duck would be more accurate.”
Riker coming back to the Enterprise with a fresh shiner and Picard taking note.
Library Computer
Thompson wanted to be on Trek as a fan but was informed he couldn’t be because he couldn’t fit into the costume, the same one Christopher Lloyd wore. He volunteered to make whatever alterations himself. Later on he mentioned the situation to his agent.
“I phoned Herb Tobias, who was the head of the agency at the time, and told him what happened. I said, ‘Herb, would you mind calling the Star Trek office and figuring out a tactful way of asking them, “Who casts this program? The directors and producers or the wardrobe department?”
I loved the direction on this episode. Tons of camera angles are done from a rear bridge station, peering over the arch or keeping it close to the terminal. It gives the viewer Memdon’s point of view, rather than a more typical putting the camera in front of everyone and doing a lot of standard wide shots. Because of that, we see Data turn the first officers chair completely around to speak to Memdon, something I didn’t realize it could do.
The Pagh is mostly reused shots of the Bird of Prey from Star Trek III and IV.
I Know That Guy:
John Putch returns as Morkok… I mean Mendon. He played in last season’s Coming of Age and even though it could’ve been a carbon copy performance, it wasn’t. He made it different enough that you can see them being different people.
Christopher Collins plays Captain Kargan. He would return later to play a packled later in the season. He did a lot of voice work including Cobra Commander and Starscream in GI JOE and Transformers respectively. He would return to Trek in DS9 for a couple of episodes but sadly passed away in 1994.
Laura Drake plays Vekma. She didn’t do a lot but oddly was the waitress murdered by Brian Thompson in Cobra.
Speaking of whom, Brian Thompson plays Klag. His thuggish face would be a big guest star in tons of these shows in 80s and 90s. I remember him best as the serial killer in Stallone’s Cobra. He was also in the first season of Buffy The Vampire Slayer. He would return several times to Trek, twice in DS9, once in Enterprise, and even as a Klingon in Star Trek Generations. Despite his … unique.. face that typically gives him roles of scary serial killer types, I hear he’s a true professional and a stand up guy.
What It Means To Be Human – Review
I love this episode as we really have the first episode to flesh out what the Klingons are like and how they’ll be for the rest of various series run. The last time really didn’t work because it was three Klingon extremists. Here we get regular run of the mill Klingons in their natural state. We finally get a peek into their day to day life, at least in the military.
My only gripe is their Captain who has to be cartoonishly bull-headed and stupid to create the conflict. Granted, if the Enterprise had said something immediately when Memdon scanned them, it probably would’ve avoided the whole thing but Kargan makes a helluva leap in logic in assuming the Enterprise did this to them on-purpose.
Still I appreciated that even Klag tried to tell the captain he was skeptical. Riker’s bonding with the crew in the mess hall was pretty great and Frakes does a great job with the story. Riker dives in enthusiastically head first and comports himself well when his loyalty to starfleet and his loyalty to his current crew seemingly come into conflict. Even Kargan has to begrudgingly show him respect.
After it’s all said and done and Riker allows Kargan to backhand him to save face, Klag is quite impressed with how Riker really understands their ways after such a short time. Interestingly though, there are many things that surprise Riker, not the least of which is their humor. This begins laying the groundwork for Worf as a character. He’s a textbook Klingon, but real life isn’t always what’s in the textbook. For instance, he lacks a sense of humor, or at least not the kind of humor Klingons have. He would long for acceptance with his people and yet never really feel a part of them.
When Riker realizes that Klingons laugh and make all kinds of jokes, he even mentions that they aren’t what he expected, partially because of how Worf carries himself. This will continue thoughout TNG and DS9. Worf wants to be a model Klingon but we’ll see as we go, they don’t exist.
This episode really lays down what we’ll see of the Klingons across the series. Up until now, they were simply antagonists without a lot of depth. Even the episode in the first season didn’t really examine what Klingons really are as those guys were fugitive extremists. This does and it’s contribution to making the Klingons what they were really can’t be understated.
