Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn) committed a crime in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine that Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) was framed for in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Both Star Trek VI and DS9 after Worf joined in season 4 dealt with Klingons and their politics. The mid-24th century Klingon Empire under Chancellor Gowron (Robert O'Reilly) sought to reassert itself as a fearsome galactic power but, at the end of the 23rd century, the Klingons under Chancellor Gorkon (David Warner), sued for peace with the United Federation of Planets after suffering a catastrophe that threatened the Empire's existence.
Worf and Captain Kirk's issues with the Klingons are legendary in Star Trek. Captain James T. Kirk and the USS Enterprise faced down Klingons in Star Trek: The Original Series. But the murder of Admiral Kirk's son, David Marcus (Merritt Butrick), by Kruge (Christopher Lloyd) in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock earned the Klingons Kirk's hatred. Corrupt Klingon politics by the House of Gowron and the House of Duras made Worf's life miserable on Star Trek: The Next Generation, which carried over into Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. But Worf finally did something that Captain Kirk never did, although Jim briefly went to prison for it.
Captain Kirk Was Framed For Assassinating Klingon Chancellor Gorkon In Star Trek VI
Kirk was the victim of a vast conspiracy
Captain Kirk was framed for assassinating Klingon High Chancellor Gorkon in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Of course, Kirk was innocent; he and Gorkon were the victims of a conspiracy led by General Chang (Christopher Plummer) involving Klingons, Romulans, and Federation officials who dreaded peace. Chang's cloaked Klingon Bird-of-Prey fired on Gorkon's flagship, Kronos One, while Starfleet assassins beamed aboard and killed the Chancellor. When Kirk and Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) arrived to help, they were arrested for killing the Chancellor.
Ironically, Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy were defended in a show trial by a Klingon lawyer named Colonel Worf (Michael Dorn), who was Lt. Commander Worf's ancestor.
After Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy were sentenced to life imprisonment in the Klingon penal planet Rura Penthe, Gorkon's true assassins were murdered by one of the conspirators, Lt. Valeris (Kim Cattrall). Still, Kirk and Captain Spock (Leonard Nimoy) pieced the conspiracy together to deduce who really killed Gorkon, and why. The Starship Enterprise crew teamed with Captain Hikaru Sulu's (George Takei) USS Excelsior to fully uncover the conspiracy so peace between Klingons and the Federation prevailed. Kirk also began to move beyond his personal animosity towards Klingons.
Worf Did Murder Klingon Chancellor Gowron In Star Trek: DS9
Worf wasn't Klingon Chancellor for very long
Lt. Commander Worf killed Chancellor Gowron in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 7, episode 22, "Tackling Into The Wind." Gowron's ambition and corruption as he personally led the Klingon Empire during the waning days of the Dominion War pushed Worf too far. Worf, who acted upon instructions from Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) to remove Gowron from power, challenged the Chancellor to one-on-one combat. After Worf dealt Gowron the killing blow, the Starfleet Officer still showed his foe honor by performing the Klingon death ritual.
Worf's defeat of Gowron instantly made him the new Klingon High Chancellor, but Worf immediately passed the rule of the Klingon Empire to General Martok (J.G. Hertzler). Unlike Captain Kirk in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Worf wasn't punished for killing Gowron, and he accepted Martok's appointment as Federation Ambassador to Qo'noS. Interestingly, Worf did follow in Captain Kirk's footsteps after Star Trek: Nemesis when the Klingon became Captain of the USS Enterprise-E, succeeding Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). But, in Star Trek VI, Captain Kirk was falsely found guilty of a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine crime Worf would later commit.
