Sons of Mogh

With Worfs refusal to side with Gowron in the changeling infused war with the Romulans and the breaking of the khitomer treaty, once again the house of Mogh is on the outs with the Klingon empire. Kurn arrives, looking to die to erase his dishonor. As usual with DS9, unlike most of the other Star Treks, there is no easy answer. Klingons have their way, the federation has theirs, and rarely do they meet. Each person who watches this episode has to make up their own minds about it. For me, it's a ten across the board.

Life for Worf has not been easy. He was orphaned at a young age and was raised by humans--and he longs to fit in better with his fellow Klingons. However, his path on his quest to be an uber-Klingon has been very bumpy to say the least. For a while, he was ostracized by the Klingons when his father was accused after his death of begin a traitor. When Worf FINALLY redeems his father's good name and becomes a trusted friend with the new Klingon leader, this wonderful period is very short-lived. When the Cardassian-Klingon war occurred, he refused to fight for the Klingons--siding with the Federation. And, as a result he was once again ostracized! Now in "Sons of Mogh", you realize just how bad things are for Worf's brother--who, according to Klingon tradition, is equally to blame for Worf's actions! Life sucks to be a son of Mogh--and as a result of this, the brother, Kurn, wishes to die. How will this problem be solved without Worf helping his brother to kill himself?!

Tony Todd, a fine actor who ALSO played Jake Sisko as an adult makes his final performance as Kurn. But he doesn't die AND he manages to salvage his honor. How?! See the show.

This is a good and sad episode--one that further illustrates the lonely path Worf must travel in life. Well written and worth seeing.

When Worf's brother show up on the space station, Worf soon finds out that Kurn is in desperate straits. He has lost his honor because of Worf's actions against the Cardassians. His home is gone, his title is gone, and his family is now a pariah. He expects Worf to kill him in an ancient rite. Of course, in doing so, Worf throws his own life away; but he tries anyway. Worf must find a way to try to keep his brother alive. Meanwhile, the Empire is up to no good, leaving cloaked mines near Bajor, a cowardly act, certainly. The conclusion is quite touching.

Worf's brother visits DS9.

This is a solid Klingon episode with strong character moments.

If you enjoy episodes about Klingon honour and the related politics, this is a good one that focuses on the repercussions of events in 'The Way of the Warrior' and the relationship between the brothers.

Tony Todd is excellent as usual in his guest performance as Kurn, whilst Michael Dorn's grouchy, deadpan portrayal of Worf is always great value for screen time.

The weakest aspect is the ending, which feels very ill conceived to me, particularly with the lack of consent offered to the character in question.

It's a 7.5/10 for me but I round upwards.