Star Trek: 10 Times Worf Was Ignored (But Was Absolutely Right)
3. Samaritan Snare
We've all heard the one about the Good Samaritan, the parable that teaches us to have compassion for strangers. All of us, apart from Worf, it seems, who saw through the Samaritan Snare the moment he laid eyes on the Pakled.
Riker has been left in charge of the Enterprise. Usually, he would be at the top of many a 'Best First Officer' list, however Picard is gone for barely five minutes before things start to go wrong. It begins with a distress signal from a stranded vessel. When the Pakled appear on screen, their overly simplified, repetitive speech patterns disarm the crew. They can't foresee such unassuming people being a risk.
Except for Worf.
When Riker assures the Pakled that he'll beam La Forge across to fix their ship, Worf objects, using his very best 'have you lost your mind' tone. He asks if they truly need to send over their Chief Engineer, to which Riker points out they need help. Worf, undeterred, asks why they don't just send a how-to guide. Riker's response? Do they look like they can handle our technical specifications?
Worf, who clearly understands what assumption is the mother of, maintains that they know nothing about them and need more information.
Nevertheless, Riker sees fit to send La Forge to the Pakled ship alone, without so much as an assistant or escort. And when Troi appears on the bridge, sensing trouble ahead, it's too late. The snare is sprung, the Chief Engineer is taken prisoner, and Worf is grinding 'I told you so' into his back teeth.
For one glorious moment, Riker seems to think he can resolve the situation by shouting 'stop it' at the viewscreen. But in the end, he devises an inexplicably convoluted ruse to retrieve La Forge. None of which would have been necessary if they'd just listened to Worf from the get-go.