WARNING: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picard season 3, episode 2 – “Disengage”The Klingon warrior Worf (Michael Dorn) has finally made his triumphant return in Star Trek: Picard season 3, but many questions still linger about the son of Mogh. A cornerstone of Star Trek: The Next Generation over seven seasons, Worf is by far the most iconic Klingon in all of Star Trek. The first Klingon in Starfleet, Worf was constantly torn between his Klingon heritage and the humans that would become his friends and family. After TNG ended, Worf joined the cast of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, where he became an even richer and more interesting character.
Like most of the TNG cast, Worf was not a part of the first two seasons of Star Trek: Picard. His last canonical appearance before Picard season 3 was in Star Trek: Nemesis, the failed final TNG film, where he was manning the tactical station on the Enterprise-E and drinking too much Romulan Ale at the wedding of Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis). In Star Trek: Picard season 3’s second episode “Disengage,” Worf revealed himself to be Raffi Musiker’s (Michelle Hurd) handler, rescuing her from an ambush on M’talas Prime. But there’s still much to be learned about what Worf’s been up to all these years.
6 Why Is Worf In Starfleet Intelligence?
Worf and Raffi are investigating the theft of experimental weapons from Daystrom Station on behalf of Starfleet Intelligence as Star Trek: Picard season 3 begins. They were unable to stop an attack on a Starfleet recruitment center on M’talas Prime using one of those weapons, which resulted in the deaths of over a hundred people. While the troubled, isolated Raffi is slowly unraveling, the newly pacifist Worf has preached caution and patience, which are not attributes traditionally associated with the temperamental Klingon.
Worf had a varied Starfleet career, starting as a utility player on the USS Enterprise-D before being promoted to Chief of Security after the death of Lieutenant Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby). Worf became a Strategic Operations Officer on DS9 and was the First Officer of the USS Defiant under Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks). After a brief stint as a Federation Ambassador, Worf returned to Starfleet to serve as Captain Jean-Luc Picard’s (Patrick Stewart) Tactical Officer on the Enterprise-E. It makes sense that an officer with such a wide breadth of experience would eventually take on a role in Starfleet Intelligence.
5 When Did Worf Leave The Enterprise-E?
Worf was one of the few members of Captain Picard’s senior staff to remain on the Enterprise-E at the end of Star Trek: Nemesis. Two years after Nemesis, Picard was promoted to Admiral and left the Enterprise-E to oversee the evacuation of the Romulan homeworld. Worf was eventually promoted to Captain, though it’s unclear if he served as the Enterprise-E’s commanding officer before it was decommissioned. Worf’s association with covert operations for Starfleet Command seemingly started shortly after he and Picard were promoted in the 2380s. The ultimate fate of the Enterprise-E remains unclear, though it’s no longer an active Starfleet vessel by the time of Star Trek: Picard season 3.
4 What Happened To Worf’s Family?
After Worf’s biological parents were killed in a Romulan attack when he was a young child, he was adopted by the human couple Sergey (Theodore Bikel) and Helena Rozhenko (Georgia Brown). Despite his personal struggles over reconciling his Klingon and human heritage, Worf had nothing but affection for the Rozhenkos, who visited him on the Enterprise-D in the classic TNG episode “Family.” The Rozhenkos were elderly by the time of TNG, and it seems unlikely they’d still be alive in 2401.
Worf also had a son with the late Klingon Ambassador K’Ehleyr (Suzie Plakson) named Alexander. Worf struggled to raise Alexander after K’Ehleyr’s death, and the two had become estranged by the time Worf transferred to DS9. As an adult, Alexander (Jon Steuer) joined the Klingon Defense Forces during the Dominion War to prove himself to his father, and the two managed to largely patch up their relationship. That said, if Worf has spent the last two decades in covert operations, it’s possible he and Alexander have drifted apart again.
3 Does Worf Still Talk To His DS9 Friends?
Worf formed some important relationships during his time on DS9. The most crucial was Jadzia Dax (Terry Ferrell), whom he fell in love with and eventually married. Jadzia Dax was tragically killed by the crazed Cardassian Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo), and Worf had an uneasy relationship with her Trill successor, Ezri Dax (Nicole de Boer).
Worf formed a strong bond with Chief Miles O’Brien (Colm Meaney), his old comrade from the Enterprise-D, and thought of Captain Sisko as a mentor in the same vein as Captain Picard. Worf also became a close confidante of the Klingon General Martok (J.G. Hertzler), eventually joining the House of Martok. Worf’s baldric suggests he’s still a member of the House of Martok, though his continued association with other DS9 alumni remains unclear.
2 Why Did Worf Choose Raffi For Star Trek: Picard Season 3’s Mission?
In many ways, Raffi resembles the tortured, rage-fueled version of Worf from years past. This older, wiser version of Worf likely chose her to pursue this mission with him because he recognized traits in her that used to hold him back and is eager to offer her the sort of mentorship that Captain Picard and Captain Sisko offered him on his journey to self-acceptance. He also clearly chose Raffi because she’s smart, determined, and brave. The thought of Worf and Raffi teaming up in a more direct way for the rest of Picard season 3 is exciting, and a surefire way to enrich Star Trek: Picard season 1’s sole remaining original character.
1 If Worf Is A Pacifist, Why Is He Killing People?
Promotional materials and trailers for Star Trek: Picard season 3 have all mentioned that Worf now considers himself a pacifist, yet the first thing audiences see him do in the episode “Disengage” is brutally dispatch a group of gangsters who are about to kill Raffi; he even decapitates their duplicitous Ferengi leader Sneed (Aaron Stanford) with one swipe of his impressive new sword. The contradiction is pretty hilarious, and yet it feels exactly like something Worf would do, espousing a peaceful way of life until it becomes necessary to kill the bad guys. Star Trek: Picard season 3 is just getting started, but it’s already great to have Worf back.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 streams Thursdays on Paramount+.