10 Star Trek Burns That Still Sting

8. You May Test That Assumption At Your Convenience

Star Trek Picard And Duras
CBS

Captain Jean-Luc Picard is the master of oration in Star Trek, hands down. There are so many compilation videos of his speeches on YouTube alone that it is obvious that his voice can carry any situation or make any threat seem a little more suave.

In the third season episode of The Next Generation, Sins of the Father, Worf is summoned back to Quo'nos to answer charges against his father, Mogh. Duras alleges that Mogh betrayed the Klingon Empire at Khitomer, leading to the deaths of thousands of their countrymen. Worf stands with Kurn, his brother, though they don't reveal his true identity at that time.

Duras arranges an assassination attempt on Kurn. Though it is unsuccessful, it does put the man out of commission, which leads Captain Picard to stand beside Worf instead. The council are wary but Duras openly scoffs at this.

You must be ready to fight! Something Starfleet doesn't teach you.
You may test that assumption at your convenience.

Duras immediately backs away, shamed by the human officer who didn't blink. While Duras would continue to be a thorn in both Picard and Worf's sides for some time to come, he would never again attempt to square up to the captain.

In this post: 
Star Trek
 
Posted On: 
Contributor
Contributor

Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"