By Ben “Zombie” Bedgood
(Quick recap, STAH stands for “Star Trek Alien Highlight.”)
The name Q is synonymous with both squeals of joy and groans of frustration from Star Trek fans. For many of us, we both want to party with Q and punch him in the face. He’s like that weird uncle we only see at special family events who your mom kind of hates but your dad loves.
Q is not just the name of a character in the Star Trek universe, it is also the name of a race of beings who are omnipotent and omniscient, being able to change or alter anything at the mere snap of a their fingers. All the indiviuals are known as Q regardless of gender. It can make conversation with a group of Q difficult to follow… to say the least (or is it Qs? Not sure on that one).
We had our first real introduction with Q in Star Trek: Next Generation (there’s talk that Charlie Evans from the Original Series episode “Charlie X” was a member of the Q continuum that can’t be corroborated). During the first episode of the new series “Encounter at Farpoint,” we were formally introduced to the arrogant omnipotent being Q. During this encounter, Q placed humanity on trial. He subjected the crew of the Enterprise to the horrors of humanity’s past. To come out the victors of Q’s kangaroo court, the crew was forced to solve the puzzle of Farpoint station. Upon doing so Q left the crew with a warning that it was not the last we had seen him.
Q has gone on to make many appearances throughout Star Trek: Next Generation, Deep Space 9 and Voyager. In almost every encounter he would present himself in a Starfleet captain’s uniform. Due to his playful yet hostile nature as well as arrogance. Captain Picard went on to brief all Captains and commanders within the Federation. After this initial briefing all new Cadets were trained on how to deal with Q encounters should they occur.
The way each of the three main Captains interacted with Q was different. The means of interaction seems to match each of the Captains personality. Captain Picard took an engaging yet hostile approach. His encounters were standoffish yet Jean-Luc would play Q’s games. Captain Sisko took a much more hostile approach than Captain Picard. On his few encounters, Sisko seemed to just ignore Q as much as possible.
Captain Janeway took a different approach than the rest. Her approach was to engage with Q and play his games. This behavior actually made her a formidable opponent to Q. It was also these factors that led Captain Janeway to be pursued romantically by Q. She was the first Starfleet Captain to be introduced to the rest of the Q continuum. It was during this encounter that Janeway was pulled into a Q civil war that nearly tore the galaxy apart.
One of the most memorable encounters with Q took place in the Delta Quadrant with Captain Janeway. It was in the episode “Death Wish.” Where Captain Janeway unintentionally freed an imprisoned Q from a rouge asteroid. This Q who would adopt the name Quinn. Had been imprisoned for attempting suicide. After growing bored with a lifetime of infinite knowledge and power. Q was sent to Voyager to act as an ambassador for the continuum since Quinn was requesting asylum with the Federation. Janeway acted as an arbiter between the two sides. With Q mounting the argument that Quinn must returned to being imprisoned and cannot be allowed to kill himself. Quinn, with the aid of Tuvok argue the defense that he be allowed to kill himself. Who wouldn’t want a Vulcan as a lawyer? The trial ended when Janeway ruled that Quinn would be stripped of his powers and turned human. With being turned human Quinn was able and allowed to end his life. It was this action that caused the Q continuum civil war.
While nearly every encounter in Star Trek history is met with chaos, it is Q’s playful nature that has branded him “the life of the party,” and one of the most beloved characters in the Star Trek universe. He is like that friend who says “your parents are out of town? Great! I invited everyone from three of the local schools over, the local University, the circus and the top twenty local bands. They will be at your place in 20 minutes…” You love him but want to punch him in the face.
