Star Trek: The Next Generation (TV Series) Firstborn (1994) User Reviews

Cats in the cradle and silver spoon.

[thevacinstaller · 7/10 · 25 May 2021]

James Sloyan rarely has a bad star trek episode and is as captivating as ever in his as K'mtar.

I like this episode. It's a clever way to dismantle the traditionalist in Worf and help him to see the value in allowing Alexander to choose his own life path.

Worf has not been making great strides towards the Father of the year competition but he put in a excellent showing in this episode. His assertion that he was proud of Alexander pursuing his own path and passion was an excellent heartfelt moment that completely deflated K'mtar's will to continue his attempt to transform himself.

When it comes to time travel explanation this is how you do it. You don't provide any technobattle or fly around the sun ---- it simply happened and that's the end of it.

The time for training

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 25 September 2019]

James Sloyan who is a trusted advisor to Worf's house arrives for a visit in time to prevent an assassination attempt on Worf and more important young Alexander's failure to help his father

Sloyan says as much to Michael Dorn and Dorn promises to get young Brian Bonsall into warrior training and get used to Klingon ways.

As for the attempt, the evidence is gathered and of course it looks like those Douras sisters who played for power and lost earlier in the series.

Seems pretty straightforward enough, But I assure you there's a lot more to the story than that.

Nice performance by Sloyan who is carrying a big secret and is one truly tortured Klingon.

Great Episode

[chefmarty-87249 · 7/10 · 9 January 2019]

Dont understans why this episode got a 6.1, its a good one. James Sloyan is a great actor. Always watch this one.

Alexander's TNG story arc comes to an end.

[russem31 · 4 May 2006]

ST:TNG:173 - "Firstborn" (Stardate: 47779.4) - this is the 21st episode of the 7th and last season of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

As Alexander approaches his First Rite of Ascension, he tells his father he doesn't want to declare himself a warrior as Klingons his age are supposed to. Hoping to help Worf, Picard directs the Enterprise to stop at Maranga IV where Worf and Alexander attend the festival of Kot'baval. There, a mysterious family friend, K'mtar, is there to help and offers to train Alexander to become a warrior.

But, there's something about K'mtar that isn't right . . . and at the same time, VERY familiar. And perhaps K'mtar can help bring the conflict between father and son to an end.

Trivia note: Brian Bonsall returns in his first appearance as Alexander Rozhenko since 1992's "A Fistful Of Datas" and with this episode concludes his story arc on TNG. Also, along for the ride are the familiar Star Trek villains Lursa and B'Etor (where is it also mentioned they were recently on Deep Space Nine). And, James Sloyan who plays K'Mtar in this episode, previously played Sub-Lieutenant Setol/Admiral Alidar Jarok in the 3rd season episode "The Defector".

And special guest star Armin Shimmeran stars as Quark - someone whom Riker knows very well!

Sort of Interesting Klingon Stuff

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 17 October 2014]

Worf seems to never have made a commitment to his role as security officer. He has exhibited great distress over his connection to his son, who looks totally Klington but is pretty much basking in his white genes. He is a resistant little guy and Worf has designs for him to be a warrior. As the episode moves along, Alexander begins to become enthralled with Klingon stuff, but when push comes to shove, he moves back to his less aggressive self. This whole warrior thing and dying with honor seems sort of archaic, almost mythological in scope. A stranger enters the lives of the two and begins to bang the drum for Alexander to embrace his Klingon being, even suggesting that he go to a Klingon prep school (I wonder if they wear blazers). There is much more to this, however, and it ends on an interesting note. We also get to see the tussle between Worf's warrior side and the tender side of his role as father.

Worf's son does not want to become a warrior

[Tweekums · 6/10 · 25 September 2015]

Worf is concerned when his son Alexander tells him he does not wish to take part in the Klingon Rite of Ascension; something that must be done before he is thirteen if he is to become a Klingon warrior; as the Enterprise isn't doing anything urgent Capt. Picard suggests going to a nearby Klingon outpost where a festival is taking place. While there Worf is attacked by a group of Klingons but another warrior comes to his aid. This warrior is K'Mtar; a distant cousin, who offers to help guide Alexander. A weapon dropped by one of the attackers links them to the Duras family; the hunt to find them will require a chat to Deep Space Nine's Quark and a clever ploy against a group of ore smugglers. Once the Duras Sisters are finally found the protest their innocence and suspicion falls closer to home.

Worf is a fine character but episodes that concentrate on the relationship between him and his son tend to be disappointing; and this one is no exception. It isn't that there is anything wrong with the acting; Alexander is just a bit of a tedious character and I just couldn't bring myself to care whether he becomes a warrior or not. On the plus side K'Mtar was a decent character and there was quite a twist regarding his identity at the end. It was also nice to have a cameo from Armin Shimerman as Quark and the Duras Sisters are always entertaining. Overall a comparatively weak episode with no real sense of excitement.

Less talk and big ti....

[snoozejonc · 7/10 · 9 March 2022]

...ps!

With the help of another Klingon, Worf attempts to teach Alexander how to be a warrior.

This is a solid episode with some strong character moments and decent twist.

Worf leads the episode well and this time he has great company with K'mtar who is superbly played by James Sloyan. It features a nice cameo from a DS9 character and the always entertaining Duras Sisters.

I like the twist at the end, but it could have been revealed slightly better than with an uninspired, wordy exchange of exposition dialogue. That being said I do like one part where the character in focus describes a great scene from a previous episode as a memory.

Star Trek stories that focus on Klingon characters and politics are usually good. This one is not up there with the very best, but it's definitely one to watch.

A very good episode

[forcefromabove · 9/10 · 3 January 2017]

It seems that most people who review the episode are put off by it. I thought it was a very good episode that brought Worf and his son closer together and showed what kind of future it might hold for both of them.

When Alexander is hesitant about becoming a warrior, his father takes him to see a Klingon festival, so as to convince him that his culture is rich. They end up being attacked, and a stranger saves them. He is from the same house as Worf and tries to explain to young Alex that he needs to be able to fight to protect himself and those he cares about.

I felt that the entire episode showed how Klingons can be rough and be a warrior race, and yet manage to be kind and affectionate when appropriate.

*spoiler*

They thing that seems to be off-putting for the reviewers is the fact that the stranger that appeared in this episode is Alex from the future. The reason is because Alex decides to grow up not being a warrior, but wanting peace between the households. As a result, Worf dies in his arms in roughly 30 years from now. He wants to force himself to be less foolish and to become a warrior so that his father doesn't die. Worf ends up saying that he is proud of Alex, saying that peace is a worthwhile goal and that now he has come to the future who knows how Worf will die.

The reason for Alex going to the future is a bit, well, not existent. Just that he met a man in some sector that could help. Worf did believe him a little quick, but it wasn't completely unreasonable, I've heard worse excuses from ST:TNG.

PS: I also enjoyed someone *else* time traveling and *we* have to take their acts on faith; too many times has someone gone to the future/past and had to explain themselves to the poor people of that episode, it was fun to see the exact opposite happening.

*end spoiler*

While the execution and development of certain aspects of the episode were somewhat poor, the story was entertaining and something I was very glad to see, especially in the last (and perhaps poorest) season of the show.

REVIEW 2022

[iamirwar · 10/10 · 17 October 2022]

As time passes, a boy inevitably becomes a man... tempered by...

It's an Alexander, son-of-Worf episode. That is apparent from the very outset. Alexander is approaching the Age of Ascension, only Alexander refuses to play ball.

For reasons that aren't made clear, we won't be able to rendezvous with the Kearsarge for another four days which is Star Trek speak for 'we have an unscheduled period of down-time. I advise that each of you use this time to your own advantage.' which is more-or-less what Picard is saying now.

So, we are off to the Festival of Kot'baval thanks to Picard and his meddling in others affairs. Klingon Opera, what could be better?

It's a Klingon matter, and could even be regarded as continuing the arc which started with Season Three's, Sins Of The Father and continued with Reunion and the two-part Redemption.

The Klingon arc is possibly the one and only complete story arc during the run of the entire TNG show, or at least it was the most compelling with all Klingon characters being played by some of the best character actors and most of their culture already being well-known among fans. In this case, James Sloyan makes a wonderful Klingon, although I suspect Worf felt uneasy with the big-hug at the end. His attempts at schooling Alexander in the ways of Klingon was brilliant. Personally, I think this episode is one of the best of Season VII.

This episode also features Quark from Deep Space Nine, who was, at the time of original airing in 1994, one of my favourite characters as far as Star Trek lore and the relatively new DS9 was concerned. B'Etor and Lursa also make yet another long-overdue appearance. Those gals are still scheming.

I was always surprised that the franchise didn't consider making a complete film story based around the entire Klingon culture and experience, there was certainly plenty of scope to do so.

Meanwhile, the Kearsarge are left hanging...???

This Episodes Clue: Jo Ellen

(Answer's to all episode clues will appear in the reviews of season seven, episode 25: All Good Things, Part One.)

One of the weaker Worf episodes.

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 6 December 2014]

I was not thrilled by this episode--and this might be because I am a huge fan of Worf and so I tend to expect more from these shows. I almost always love episodes that focus on him (after all, what other member of the crew murdered someone in revenge and got away with it?!) but this one has a few problems--most likely the crazy twist at the end.

The show begins with Worf at wits end because Alexander is not a demented maniacal warrior like a good Klingon should be. When Picard hears about it, he recommends that Worf take his son to a nearby planet for a Klingon holiday celebration. Once there, Worf is nearly killed and he is saved by a family friend (sort of like Robert Duvall's relationship to the Corleone family). This guy sees Worf is upset about Alexander and tries to help the boy rise above common sense and cling to his berserker-like Klingon roots.

This isn't a bad episode...just the ending. See it...see what this dopey twist is and how quickly Worf just accepts this!

A Senior Trekker writes......................

[celineduchain · 5/10 · 16 March 2022]

The final season of Star Trek, the Next Generation gave us some splendid episodes and also a fair share of stinkers. Everyone knew by this stage that they would not be renewed and attempts were made to wrap up various story lines before they said their final goodbyes. There is still a great deal to be enjoyed.

Another week, another unexpected relative. And this time it's Worf's son's future self, returned in the guise of a trusted family retainer with the intention of killing his childhood self, thus preventing him from being responsible for the future death of his father. Either we give up trying to follow this story or we risk having our brains explode out of our ears.

That said, Firstborn is probably worth watching for the guest actors and some really strong Klingon lore and tradition. Even if it has a whole lot of newly invented names for the ceremonies we are trying to follow.

Star Trek regular, James Sloyen, gives a measured performance as Worf's now middle aged son, and does in fact manage to inject some pathos into the thankless role. Armin Shimerman gives us a cameo as DS9 bartender, Quark and the Duras sisters return for our special delectation. Joel Swetow makes a suitably repellent Yridian (worm creature) and Colin Mitchell keeps the ceremonial Bat'leth tournament going on in the background throughout.

The sets are pretty good too. Shame about the story.

Senior Trekker scores every episode with a 5.