TWITrek Character Insight No. 49: Solok

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, we begin a month dedicated to our closest allies in the Federation, the Vulcans. Our subject to begin Vulcan Month is Captain Solok from DS9.
 
 

Captain Solok is one of the few Vulcans to appear on Deep Space Nine, the only series that fails to include even regular recurring characters of the logical pointy-eared race. Solok does appear in the one Deep Space Nine episode that included the most Vulcans, that being "Take Me Out to the Holosuite."

Solok is the commanding officer aboard the U.S.S. T'Kumbra around the era of the Dominion War. That ship includes an all-Vulcan crew and that fits Solok just fine, as he revels in pointing out flaws in human performance in many realms compared to Vulcans. This includes a healthy rivalry with Benjamin Sisko, who was a classmate of Solok's at the Academy.

As a result of this distaste and competition between the men, Solok challenges Sisko to a game of baseball with their crews when he puts in for repairs at the station during the Dominion War. Sisko gladly accepts although the Deep Space Nine crew is no match for any baseball team. Although Sisko's team gets annihilated, they celebrate wildly when Rom scores the team's only run and that causes Solok to go a little crazy, grabbing the umpire and getting ejected.

This leads to Sisko and the others poking fun at Solok for being too emotional. It is a fitting twist of fate for a stuck up Vulcan who won't let a little thing like a wrestling match victory over Sisko in their Academy days die. Solok is featured in one of Deep Space Nine's silly stories, but his character brings a fun look at Vulcans as a respite in the middle of the long and trying Dominion War.

Insert Song - One, Two, Three Strikes You're Out...

Actor: Gregory Wagrowski played Solok, and he appeared again in Star Trek Enterprise as Ceris in an episode entitled Chosen Realm. He's also appeared in Days of Our Lives and Mad Men.

Until next time, live long and prosper...

TWITrek Character Insight No. 48: Locutus of Borg

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, to celebrate the theatrical release of The Best of Both Worlds in a special event on Thursday, our subject is Locutus of Borg from TNG.
 
 

From the moment that the Borg were introduced in TNG by the Q character during season 2, fans and writers alike were fascinated with this potential super-nemesis for the Federation. This led to Best of Both Worlds, a crowning achievement in the first two-part season cliffhanger episode that straddles the end of season 3 and the beginning of season 4.

The show writers wanted the Borg to have a spokesman. Initially they believed some hybrid assimilation of Picard and Data would be the best story, but this was too complex. In addition, the writers were instructed to have an out for Patrick Stewart in view of the ongoing tough negotiations on whether he would return for a fourth season of the show. However, we all know that negotiation ended well considering the ending to Best of Both Worlds.

Thus, we end up with the captain himself losing his humanity and becoming the symbol of the Borg. Locutus is latin for "having spoken," which makes a fitting name for a Borg spokesman.

When Picard is assimilated, his familiarity with the human race does not end up helping the process of assimilating the whole race as expected by the Borg. His intimate knowledge of Starfleet ships does allow the Borg to destroy much of the fleet at the battle of Wolf 359, and this carries over into DS9 because Sisko's wife was killed in this battle by the Locutus-led Borg.

His link to the Borg has unintended foul consequences for the Borg, though, as Riker boldly leads a rescue mission and gets the captain back, then uses the link to Starfleet's advantage. Remnants of the Borg link and Locutus remain with Picard for the rest of his life, and it brings more depth to his character as he learns to deal with the advantage and the curse of the residual link to the Borg.

The Borg did end up starring in arguably the best TNG movie of all, but this two-part episode feels more epic and dramatic than even that movie. It will be interesting to see how it looks on the remastered version for the big screen.

Our notable quote this week comes from Best of Both Worlds: "I am Locutus - of Borg. Resistance - is futile. Your life, as it has been - is over. From this time forward, you will service - us"

Patrick Stewart played Locutus, and he only appeared in the heavy suit and make-up for this character six times total in all of Star Trek.

Until next time, live long and prosper...

TWITrek Character Insight No. 47: Spot (the cat)

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, as requested by Violet a.k.a. Southern Trekkie on Twitter, our subject is Spot from TNG.
 
 

(Enterprise Theme)...wait, no no no, this is Spot's segment, not Porthos. Although those are two of the only four recurring pet characters in Star Trek history. Porthos had his segment first, but Spot takes the cake because the feline stars in two of the Star Trek movies alongside Data and B4.

Unlike Porthos, Spot did not play much of a role other than being a side story in nine of the ten episodes the cat appears in. The one exception to this rule was the episode Genesis, where the cat devolved into an iguana but her recently-born kittens did not, leading Data to the conclusion that amniotic fluid from a pregnant crewmember could save the crew.

Spot proves to have a distaste for many things, including most of the 221 different formulas of food that Data makes for her. Spot proves to be too much to handle for Riker, Worf, and Geordi, each of whom try to watch the cat in various different episodes. Yep, Spot is a cat alright. (Spock quote)

Spot is also one of only eight supporting characters to appear in multiple Star Trek films. The others in the TNG movies include Lieutenant Daniels and Guinan. Spot appeared in her first episode as a male long-haired Somali cat, but then becomes a female short-hair tabby in all other appearances.

In lieu of a quote this week, I'd like to note that this is the 47th installment of Character Insight, and it also comes during the 47th anniversary of this great franchise. I'd like to thank Darrell and Mike for continuing to play this little segment, which would normally start around the 47th minute of every episode if Darrell didn't pull 47 clips for Episode Insight. Speaking of the number 47,...(Darrell's 47 Explosion Clip)

Alright, time to get serious. Thanks to Violet for the suggestion. Play us out, Data: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0mw2X7S3kE

Until next time, live long and prosper...

TWITrek Character Insight No. 46: Elim Garak

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, as requested by Renee a.k.a. Mrees_1701 on Twitter, our subject is Elim Garak from Deep Space Nine.
 


Garak is a tailor and shopkeeper who runs the Garak's Clothiers store on the Deep Space Nine station. Garak had previously been an operative in the Cardassian Obsidian Order, and that leads many to believe he is still acting as a spy. However, nobody can ever be too sure as Garak keeps a veil of lies and secrecy around him that adds intrigue and mystery to the character.

While serving in the Obsidian Order, Garak had a cranial implant installed that helped him survive torture.  This implant begins malfunctioning due to overuse when Garak is exiled to the Bajoran station after a dispute with the Cardassians.  This leads Dr. Bashir to deactivate the implant, forcing Garak to learn to live without it.

Although Garak is mistrusted by most aboard the station, Dr. Bashir begins having weekly lunches with Garak and the two become friends as a result. This leads Garak to reveal more of his true character to Bashir than anyone else on board. We learn interesting bits from these interactions, such as Garak being chronically claustrophobic.

Despite being mistrusted, Garak turns out to be a valuable asset to Starfleet due to his many connections. His biggest story moment came when he went behind Commander Sisko's back and had Romulan Senator Vreenak killed to force the Romulans into the Dominion War and turn the tide in favor of the Federation.

Our notable quote this week comes from the episode Cardassians:

"Truth is in the eye of the beholder, Doctor. I never tell the truth because I don't believe there is such a thing. That is why I prefer the straight line simplicity of cutting cloth."
 
Actor: Andrew Robinson played Garak, and he was deeply involved in the development of the character with the show's writers.  Robinson intended Garak to have an ambiguous sexual orientation, but that was deemed too racy by the writers and was unfortunately cut.

Robinson took his notes from this process and published them as a Deep Space Nine novel called A Stitch in Time, which is unique in that it is the only autobiography Star Trek novel written by the actor who played the character in the series. Renee, who recommended this segment, highly recommends this book as the best Star Trek book she's ever read!

You can also find Robinson in starring roles in great movies such as Dirty Harry and Hellraiser.

Until next time, live long and prosper...

TWITrek Character Insight No. 45: Engineer Alex

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, our subject is Engineer Alex from Enterprise.
 


Alex served multiple background roles on board the Enterprise under Captain Archer. More often than not, Alex can be seen working on the warp engines or sharing a meal with crewmates in the mess hall. Alex is often seen multiple times as one of the crew members hanging out at movie night, such as when he sat by the Captain during Frankenstein.

When not working in engineering, Alex helped out as a tactical officer or as an armory officer. That led poor Alex into many dangerous situations, and he was one of the most injury-prone personnel on board the ship.

There were the first degree burns from a nitrogen valve blowing in his face, the time he was knocked unconscious by a Ferengi gas canister, the time he was adversely affected by a black hole, the dealing with fellow crewmembers being possessed by the wisps, burns from Xindi weapons, and being affected by Orion female pheromones. Quite a list for a poor background character!

Alex showed up in 35 episodes, which makes him one of the most prominent non-speaking roles in Star Trek history. From installing the phase cannons on the Enterprise to helping out with various first contact missions, Alex likely could have been a much bigger player in the Enterprise story had the show gone on longer.
 
Actor: Mark Correy played Alex, although he is never credited for it during the show. He also played several aliens during the Enterprise series and also appears in the soap The Young and The Restless and comedy movies Fun with Dick and Jane and Christmas With The Kranks. It's moderately surprising this hunk of a dude has not had more starring roles!

Until next time, live long and prosper...

TWITrek Character Insight No. 44: Lieutenant Ayala

This is the latest installment in a series of "Character Insight" articles regarding the rich history of characters in the Star Trek universe.  An audio version will appear on the This Week in Trek podcast, available for direct download here.
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Welcome back to Character Insight!  This week, our subject is Lieutenant Ayala from Voyager.
 


Ayala was another of the crew members who joined Voyager after serving as a Maquis officer on Chakotay's ship the Val Jean. While Ayala was the commander's right hand man in the Maquis, he remains a Lieutenant Junior Grade during his long service as a security officer aboard Voyager.

Ayala actually served in many roles during his time on Voyager, acting in pinch hitting roles in various fields such as tactical officer, engineering, the conn, and operations. Although not the major contributor that Chakotay and Torres became, Ayala was one of many important personnel who filled out the crew of Voyager and made the ship work in the Delta Quadrant.

Ayala was one of many crew members totally desperate to regain contact with his loved ones in the Alpha Quadrant. In particular, he had two young sons that he left behind and felt terrible that he could not watch them grow up.

Despite appearing regularly in the series for 120 episodes, he only speaks in four of the episodes. As a result, the information we know about the character is severely limited and mostly seen by circumstance rather than by dialogue. The 120 episodes he shows up in is the highest number for a recurring character that is not a major character in a Star Trek series.

Our notable quote this week comes from the episode The Gift:
Ayala: "Ensign Ayala to the bridge."
Kathryn Janeway: "Go ahead, ensign."
Ayala: "You'd better come down to the brig, ma'am."
 
Actor: Tarik Ergin played Ayala, and this was his biggest role in a short acting career. Ergin also played in Indecent Behavior II and Improper Conduct. He is now a high school lacrosse coach in California after a professional lacrosse career.

Until next time, live long and prosper...