Star Trek the Next Generation Episode Review: "Rightful Heir"

I came across this episode at lunch and, realizing it was one I hadn't seen before, took the time to watch it. At first, I had some doubts about this episode. However, as it turns out, it was actually one of the better ones I've seen from this series.

To be honest, the first thought I had when I saw this episode was "not another Worf/Klingon tradition episode," mostly because I've seen plenty of those recently and just have never seemed to enjoy them all that much. But, after a few minutes, I began to realize this episode had a lot more going for it than I originally expected it to have.

One thing, in particular, I liked about this episode was the mystery. Much like Worf, I had some serious doubts about Kahless being legit, mostly because it seemed awfully coincidental he would appear right after Worf arrived. That, and, as was pointed out early on, he seemed to have gaps in his memory and wasn't as good of a fighter as he should have been.

But, at the same time, there was also plenty of evidence, including DNA evidence, supporting his claims. This did make dismissing him as a fraud much more difficult than I would normally think it would be.

Even when Worf learns the truth about Kahless, the episode managed to still be interesting. This is because his appearance was enough to cause a potential civil war and it wasn't easy to predict what would happen once the truth was revealed to others.

Plus, the fact Kahless was actually somewhat likable made things even more interesting. He wasn't a character that would be fun to see killed off. But, at the same time, once the truth about him was revealed, it did make his future role questionable.

This was actually a very interesting and entertaining episode, mostly because of the mystery surrounding Kahless' return. I enjoyed watching it as a result.

My Grade: A