episode #20: Heart of Glory

HEART OF GLORY episode #20; 1st season / Air Date: 3/21/88
written by Maurice Hurley; Directed by Rob Bowman

This was the first of several TNG episodes concentrating on the Klingon culture (and updating it from the time of TOS and even the films). The Enterprise is signaled about a battle taking place between a couple of ships. They find a nearly-destroyed freighter and 3 Klingons inside. One of these dies soon after. Here we see the Klingon custom of screaming a warning at the after-life. These Klingons turn out to be renegades: they are too enamored of glorious battle for even the average Klingon of this time (The Klingon Empire has a peace treaty with the Federation). A Klingon ship soon appears, in pursuit of the criminals.
There is an early, lengthy sequence here when we see though the visor of LaForge, giving everyone a glimpse of how he sees things; Picard states that now he is beginning to understand LaForge. I'm not sure why this was included. This is a sample of 'touchy-feely' stuff that grates on Trek purists during these early episodes - it's supposed to be insightful or perhaps wonderful, but is merely sugary. Otherwise, it's an interesting thriller; a couple of aggressive Klingons still prove to be a danger to the entire ship and this episode probably influenced the later ones which focused on Worf and Klingons, usually fan favorites. There's more action & tension here than the usual first season episode.
The goals of these Klingons, however, were a bit vague (of course, long term goals & Klingons rarely jell - that's how their empire got into trouble in the first place). It would have been more understandable if there was an entire sect of these Klingons or several hundred of them; as it is, I fail to see how just these two Klingons were plausibly going to change the face of the galaxy with the old ways; they would have been eliminated in the next excursion even if they escaped the Enterprise. This was more of a parable - a glimpse into the contradictions of the Klingon culture during the 24th century, as compared to the one-note depiction of the 23rd.
This was the early one which allowed actor Michael Dorn to expand on his usually limited Worf character. Denise Crosby as Yar was also finally pretty good here in her role as security chief. Worf is caught between his family on the Enterprise and his ties to traditional Klingon virtues. I especially liked the performance of actor David Froman as the captain of the Klingon ship who speaks with Worf a couple of times via the viewscreen. These were great little scenes, especially towards the end when he offered Worf a possible other future and, to the consternation of the bridge crew, Worf seemed to accept. "I was just being polite" Worf later tells them - great stuff. BoG's Score: 7 out of 10.