Star Trek: 10 Best Klingon Episodes

3. Deep Space Nine - Soldiers Of The Empire

star trek best klingon episodes
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Most Star Trek series have been defined by science and exploration. Deep Space Nine did have those elements but it was primarily defined by the Dominion War.

When the Klingons came to deal with a rumored Dominion invasion of the Cardassian Empire, a new character named General Martok was introduced. He stood beside Chancellor Gowron, who migrated to DS9 from The Next Generation. Martok was the leader of the Klingon forces invading Cardassia.

He was also a Changeling infiltrator.

It was eventually discovered that Martok was a Dominion shapeshifter who was manipulating Gowron and the Klingon Empire. The real Martok was rescued from a Dominion prison and returned to combat. He was given a Bird of Prey called the IKS Rotarran, a ship with low moral and few victories. The new captain didn't help the situation at first.

Martok's time as a prisoner of war left its scars on him. He was nervous, trepidatious and avoided combat. These are not qualities one would normally ascribe to a Klingon warrior. With the help of Worf and Jadzia, Martok overcame his issues and became the Klingon warrior he was meant to be, bringing honor to the Rotarran.

This episode showed a more vulnerable side of Klingons, specifically the impact being honorless has on their psyche. In its own way, "Soldiers of the Empire" even demonstrated the darker side of war as Martok was a POW suffering from PTSD.

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Ian Goodwillie is a freelance writer based out of Saskatoon, SK, Canada. He has a BA in English Literature from the University of Saskatchewan and completed the Writing Program at Vancouver Film School. More importantly, Ian is also a wrestling fan, comic book reader, video game player and photographer. He loves to write and writes about what he loves. Ian's also an unrepentant, unapologetic Cougar Town fan, a show he will defend until the day he dies.