Review Text
Nutshell: Quite enjoyable, but also wholly forgettable, with characterizations and plot turns that can be predicted a mile away.
Over the years, Morn has become something of a DS9 icon—a "mascot," as Quark even calls him early in the episode, for the promenade bar. He's the resident barfly with an obscure life and past; about all we really know is that he's a guy who sits around, drinks, and talks a lot. At least, we think he talks a lot. He talks a lot off-screen.
It makes one wonder what the always-uncredited Mark Allan Shephard, who "plays" the popular seen-but-never-heard figure, thinks of his own role on the series. He's become almost a legendary figure of the Trekkian mythos, yet he has never spoken a single line. By the rules of the screen actor's guild, the producers are only required to pay him as an "extra."
For a while in DS9's early run, this guy didn't even have a name. He'd loom subtly in the background of shots until he gradually became a familiar, recognizable figure. Finally, the producers gave him a name (many say with the understanding that he is an interstellar version of Cheers' Norm, from whom his name was derived), and then, of course, the single joke that has become the embodiment of who Morn is: a guy who supposedly talks to everybody, yet a guy who's never permitted to say anything while the cameras are present.
I've always found the concept of Morn itself amusing and intriguing. His presence is "fourth-wall breaking"—he exists in that area that separates the self-aware television audience from the fictional DS9 universe. More specifically, Morn has become a running gag of permanence. No matter what is going on, there's Morn, sitting on that bar stool. Years later in the alternate future of "The Visitor," after the station was no longer under Federation control and Quark had moved on to other things, who was still in that bar? Why, Morn, naturally.
The legend of Morn as a piece of this series is what makes "Who Mourns for Morn?" an infectious hour. But what keeps the story grounded in the pedestrian is its surprisingly unimaginative plot—in which Morn is presumed dead when his ship is destroyed, following which Quark inherits Morn's mysterious fortune of gold-pressed latinum.
This episode is really a Quark story surrounding the plot device of Morn's death—and as Quark stories go, it's more or less routine. It's performed with a light hand of amicability, but there's just nothing here worth getting excited about. Quark finds out that Morn had 1,000 bricks of latinum stashed away somewhere (he's not sure where, so the hunt begins), but things get complicated when others show up on the station staking claim to part of the loot.
The plot itself is quite predictable, and so are the various characters' actions. Consider, for example, the first person who comes looking for Quark: Larell (Bridget Ann White), who claims to be Morn's ex-wife. As with all female seductresses, she makes an appeal to Quark's libido, hoping to con him out of a substantial part of the loot. This is a very, very tired slant on the material. In fact, I think just about any other slant would've seemed fresh in comparison. It's pretty obvious that she's lying through her teeth (and even Quark has his suspicions about her)—but he plays along because there's a chance he might get laid. Yipee. Bridget Ann White, alas, didn't impress me much; she fills the stock role capably, but certainly doesn't make it memorable.
The plot makes another predictable turn with the introduction of the two "heavies"—a couple of brothers, Krit (Brad Greenquist) and Nahsk (Cyril O'Reilly), who tell Quark that Morn owed them money, and that Quark has now inherited the debt. These two were substantially more interesting than Larell, mostly because they were portrayed with more amusing quirkiness. I particularly liked Nahsk, the "slower" of the two, who makes Quark "wear" Morn's favorite painting—and then later tells him how "sorry" he was for doing so.
The other guest character, Hain (Gregory Itzin), shows up claiming to be a security officer who intends to seize the latinum in the name of a distant royal government, to which Morn was apparently connected in unfathomable ways.
So what's really going on here with this myriad of characters and their alleged premises? The bottom line is hardly surprising. Really, I don't see how anyone couldn't see that all parties were playing Quark from the first step. It turns out they're all Morn's ex-partners in crime, who were long ago involved in a cooperative heist of—you guessed it—1,000 bricks of gold-pressed latinum.
Their plotting against Quark and each other comprises a series of watchable if not completely engaging cons. Quark plays the role he has played a dozen times before: the guy who has gotten himself in over his head, and just wants to get out while hopefully turning a respectable profit in the meantime. Shimerman plays this personality with his typically likable shtick, but his actions and reactions can nevertheless be predicted far in advance.
"Who Mourns for Morn?" is at its best when ... well, when everyone is mourning for Morn. Early in the episode Quark holds a service in his bar which is good for some affecting, low-key laughs. And the notion that "Morn's bar stool must never be empty" was particularly appropriate and thus reasonably amusing. Quark walking the line between sincere grief and canned melodramatic speeches for the sake of inducing his profits seemed pretty real—and even pretty sincere in a Quark kind of way. Similarly, hearing the bogus stories about Morn's secret lives from his old partners also made for amiable dialog, as the story toys with unlikely premises such as, for example, the notion that Morn was a prince.
Ah, but who watching this episode really believed Morn was dead, anyway? In my mind, the likelihood that Morn had actually been killed was about as probable as the likelihood of Bajor blowing up. You simply don't kill off your resident in-joke symbol of permanence for a comedy plot involving a bunch of greedy people holding out for a treasure. Since Morn is obviously not a guy who just goes away, I knew the plot was a con from the outset. That in itself isn't bad, but the use of Quark and Morn's old pals just wasn't enough to keep me interested. Diverted, yes, but hardly compelled. Ultimately, this episode could've benefited from more analysis of Morn as a symbol (or "mascot" or whatever), and fewer predictable money-grabbing schemes and double-crosses.
(Also, was it me, or did anyone else see elements similar to "The Nagus"? In both instances everyone wants something from Quark, but they also want him dead; and in both cases Quark finds himself alarmed when the supposedly deceased party turns out to be alive. Just a thought.)
So, while "Who Mourns for Morn?" scores points for its likability, there's very little unexpected that comes along with it. The Quark angle is absolutely nothing new, and as for Morn, I wouldn't make this show out to be character development for him, because Morn isn't really a character. He's an icon, or maybe just a mascot.
Next week: Speaking of fourth walls coming down, Sisko is a 1950s writer who invents a place called DS9 ... and then encounters a very un-24th-century evil: racism.
Previous episode: Waltz
Next episode: Far Beyond the Stars
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55 comments on this post
Remco
"In my mind, the likelihood that Morn had actually been killed was about as probable as the likelihood of Bajor blowing up."
It would have been so funny if you had used Vulcan in this comparison instead of Bajor... :D
Nic
The funniest part of the episode is when Quark asks a Bajoran played by Mark Allen Shepherd to fill Morn's seat.
Half-Blood Time Lord
Funny that in "Little Green Men" gold isn't worthless, but here it is.
mike s.
You make a good point review writer. When it all comes down to it, you should know that Quark is blinded by the obvious when it comes to profit, or even aware of the ploys when it comes to someone else trying to get a piece of his action. In the end he still makes out, doesn't he? If you are expecting some new plot twist when it comes to Quark you are sadly mistaken. He only has one goal in life, although hu-mon social encounters may have slightly affected his moral judgment, he still claims to be the only true Ferengi out of his own family. Quark is who he is. So as predictable as the episode may seem, would you expect any less? That sort of thing makes me wonder if you would expect Worf not to uphold his "honor". The Star Trek universe, when it comes to lifeforms other than humans, tend to stick to the stereotypes given with the alien race associated. I still say it's a good episode. "Predictable" or not. (btw I love the antispam answer)
Jay
I prefer "Let He..." to this one. I'll let that speak for itself.
Elnis
I really, really enjoyed this episode!
It's a hoot, a fun joyride with double-crossing scoudrels that had me both very amused and guessing right thorugh to the very end.
No, I didn't find it predictable. According to Jammer's review, that probably paints me as a simpleton - but then again, it might not.
I didn't take anything for granted in this episode. Why not? Because of Morn. Here's a recurring character that we actually hardly now anything about - and the writers used that to full effect. He could easily have been married to a femme fatale, been a crown prince, been a bankrobber. I was entertained by the twists and turns, because I could imagine any, several or none of the lies his former associates told could just have easily been true.
Morn has been a source for much enjoyment for me. The concept of this character is hillarious - he's sort of like the charcter we hear about, but don't ever see, just like Maris in "Frasier" and the neighbour in "Everybody Loves Raymond". Sure, we do SEE Morn, but apparantly we don't ever see him being himself - since we're told that he talks a lot and so on. That always makes me chuckle.
In addition, whenever we see him onscreen, his mere presence is so much fun! The make-up department did great here, making him look like a cute, grey potato, that noone could ever hate. The slightly scraed, uncomfortable expression in his eyes whenever someone wants something from him is fantastic - I just want to reach through the screen and hug this guy!
My favortie Morn moment is in "Doctor Bashir, I Presume" where he's included in the line-up of people interviewed about Bashir - he suddenly appears on the screen, staring into the camera with a blank expression, just as the interviewing doctor says something like "you're just not being any help here". Hahaaaa! Fantastic!
The creators of the show definately succeeded in making Morn a likeable character - a mascot, as Jammer and Quark mentioned - without him ever taking much fokus at all.
And now he's "dead", with everyone in the bar mourning him (great scene!). He leaves everything to Quark ... but who was he really?
This plot was ingenious, well set up and well executed. 3.5 stars from me!
And always remeber: "keep the seet warm for Morn!"
Kotas
I was laughing and smiling the whole time. Best Quark episode so far.
9/10
Nissa
I was bothered more than I should have been by them saying gold is worthless. This seems really stupid to me. Even if it's not a popular jewelry choice (extremely odd, that), the lines on circuit boards are made from pure gold -- there's even businesses out there that scrap computers for the gold. Obviously gold is useful in both machines and for its beauty.
Jons
'You know how he is! He never shuts up!"
Tat really made me laugh. Anything beyond that, yuck. I skipped to the next episode a few minutes afterward...
eastwest101
I found this a nice light diversion and highly entertaining stuff, just enough twists and turns to keep the viewer interested.
Toraya
I'm with Jammer. How many times has the ST franchise given us a female schemer whose tired MO involves prostituting herself for profit? And how many times have we seen Quark get his lobes stroked by young attractive women? Ugh.
I absolutely loved the first five eps of this season - riveting! - but that only makes me extra impatient with boring fluff like this.
Nick P.
@Jammer and Torayo, as to the sexism in DS9 and beyond, the reason there are female schemers using their bodies is because men desire them and women in real life use their bodies. That is life, too bad.
ShastOne
This is a Quark episode, but if you appreciate the subtext, it's also a Morn episode: yes, Quark runs into shady people in the pursuit of latinum as always, but these people are ghosts from Morn's past that Quark inherited from him. Morn is the eternal question mark character of DS9 and we know nothing of his past, so these people are our only clues, each one showcasing an exotic side of Morn's life that we didn't know about.
It's a continuous joke at the shallowness of Morn's character, which is why I laughed whenever they said he was a chattermouth or a James Bond-esque type or a crown prince. Because they were all absurd, yet possible, given his blank history. And all throughout the episode, Morn's spirit lives on as he continues to burden Quark as each layer of his past is brought into the fold. If you love to laugh at Morn's ambiguity and the DS9 crew's mythos surrounding him, then you'll laugh at this episode.
It's not a great episode, but Morn's not a great character: it's about as deep as he is. And at the end of the day, we know little more about him than we did in the first place, except that he ultimately conned Quark (and everyone), effectively showing that there's wile behind that blank-faced visage of his, just as the DS9 crew have been alluding to us all along.
ShastOne
I also thought that Morn was a fitting character to kill off: yes, he was an icon of the bar, but on the grand scale of the show, who better to kill off than someone who everyone likes but has no relevance to the show's ongoing story?
Vylora
A likable episode that gets from point A to point B with just enough pleasant diversion to make it worthwhile. If the only major flaw is its predictability then it's slightly overcome by the inherent lightweight and amusing nature. Good enough for a watch but DS9 has done better.
Not bad.
2.5 stars.
Yanks
It's a funny one and I'm glad Mourn got "an episode".
I would have hated to go the entire 7 years with nothing. He sat on that stool and was the topic of others' conversation many times.
Can't go over 2.5 stars though.
Brian S.
"I was bothered more than I should have been by them saying gold is worthless. This seems really stupid to me. Even if it's not a popular jewelry choice (extremely odd, that), the lines on circuit boards are made from pure gold -- there's even businesses out there that scrap computers for the gold. Obviously gold is useful in both machines and for its beauty."
--------
@Nissa: Copper, Nickel, and Iron are all relatively worthless metals. I mean, yes, they do technically have a value and they are all useful materials for businesses, but if I handed you a 10-lb. brick of iron or copper, you'd probably just use it as a way to tone your biceps. If I handed you a 10-lb. brick of gold, you'd go buy a new house.
"Worth" depends on scarcity, availability, and general acceptance as a currency. I'm sure gold in the Star Trek universe is useful (heck, they use it to encase the latinum), but it's also extremely abundant compared to latinum. When you have the ability to travel to thousands of star systems, the ability to easily extract minerals on a large scale, and even the ability to replicate matter at will, a lump of gold is as "worthless" as a lump of iron.
Personally, I loved the little nod at our own obsession with gold and material wealth, which is what the Ferengi characters are supposed to represent. We care so much about this metal that futuristic alien civilizations regard as worthless, and they prize this liquid latinum as something we view as worthless. The idea of having gold-pressed latinum which both Ferengi and present-day Humans would obsess over but for completely opposite reasons is brilliant, IMO. And I loved Quark's little dig that there are probably some primitive cultures that would value it.
Transformer SWO
From the Ferengi's first appearance on The Last Outpost we know that gold is valuable to them. They were disgusted the use of gold in the combage as a despicable use of the valuable metal. Apart from that, a fun episode and quite a break from the intensity of Waltz.
Nathan B.
I have to say, Worf's reaction to Jadzia's teasing comment that she once had a crush on Morn was hilarious! It was a good self-parody of his usual tendency to jealousy.
Dusty
This one was okay. I couldn't really get into it, though. Morn doesn't do anything for me and while I like Quark a lot, seeing him in "fluff" episodes where he tries to get his hands on a fortune is just getting old.
William B
The thing that mostly sapped the fun out of this episode is how slow Quark ends up being on the uptake -- he genuinely seems to believe each story he gets told, right down to the "Crown Prince" deal. This is part of the problem with "Ferengi Love Songs," too -- Quark can be greedy, but it's fatal for an episode him to be this stupid. That, and the fairly uninspired stock characters attached to Quark for the episode, set something of a ceiling on how high I can go with the rating.
Still, it has pleasures. The episode is based around a belaboured but nevertheless pretty entertaining joke: Morn has this entire complicated life that has happened offscreen, without our seeing it, which nevertheless is "real" even as it becomes more and more absurd. It is to some degree an extratextual joke about the fact that we "know" that none of this Morn backstory had any reality before this episode, and will fade back into nothing after the episode ends, just as we are not ever going to hear Morn speak. It's a weird sort of dramatic irony, where the characters are unaware about the unreality of what they are discussing. But it also has meaning beyond just the meta-games, and the episode is somewhat asking: how well do we *really* know the bit players in our lives? That Morn of all people has this huge, complex existence is the signal that so does everyone we know.
The episode also in some ways spins out from the darkly funny opening idea of Quark 1) replacing Morn with a holo-image of him, with the knowledge that people really do basically feel comfort that Morn exists without any need to talk to him, and 2) immediately searches for the way to make Morn's death benefit him. This greed in exploiting the death of an acquaintance/friend is actually pretty brazen and a little shocking while also being wholly believable and nonmalicious. It is that treatment of Morn-as-prop that makes Quark an easy mark for Morn and what makes the rest of what happens follow fairly naturally. Too naturally, of course, from an entertainment perspective, but hey. That Morn was banking on Quark's greed somewhat normalizes it; Morn, like Quark, is willing to use other people, which does not mean he does not fully care about them. The episode is cynical but mostly forgiving about how we treat our acquaintances -- the feeling of satisfaction that O'Brien gets for keeping Morn's seat warm for him and Dax's remembering how she found Morn so cute are in some senses just as self-absorbed a reaction to the passing of someone they only sort of knew as Quark's direct attempt to profit, but it's just a reality of life that people on the fringes of our lives will not be that vivid to us.
I very genuinely like that Quark essentially tipped off Odo about the plan -- "1600 hours," he says pointedly -- and it marks this period in Odo and Quark's relationship which (while it should have been more seriously impacted by Odo's betrayal during the Occupation arc) shows definite progress post-"The Ascent." Quark and Odo have a sort of understanding now that they did not have all that much before.
I enjoy the somewhat gentle cynicism of the early scenes but find most of the episode pretty tedious. 2 stars.
Diamond Dave
The best thing about this is Morn himself - the running Morn gag is inherently and consistently funny. This is best played out in the memorial scene, which has a variety of genuinely funny bits.
But take that away and what are you left with? Actually a fairly pedestrian caper with a bunch of predictable characters, the gangster brothers being particularly on the nose. It just falls a little bit flat and when compared to the laugh riot that is The Magnificent Ferengi it falls well short.
"What are you doing in my mud?" indeed. 2.5 stars.
Luke
While it's a somewhat enjoyable comedy, "Who Mourns for Morn?" certainly doesn't compare to the heights of "The Magnificent Ferengi".
Writing entire episodes about one-note side characters is an error that a lot of shows make in their later seasons. They can be mildly diverting or downright horrible - they almost never end up being classics. This one works well enough, I suppose. It does have some genuine laughs (mostly between Quark and Odo) but the cost of those jokes is the total over-extension of the Morn joke. Up until now what has made Morn so likeable as a background character was that he was just a normal guy trying to live a normal life in extraordinary circumstances. He was a guy who just liked to hang out in the bar with his friends and every now and then chase some women. But now, we find out that he's really a brilliant, master thief who dates supermodels, is an expert bat'leth swordsman who spars weekly with Worf and is really, really, really, really rich. If you really enjoy the joke that Morn is just DS9's resident barfly, you almost have to pretend that this episode never happened.
Add to that the fact that the plot - so to speak - is stretched remarkably thin. This was, at most, a story that should have taken twenty minutes to tell. Instead, it stretches over the entire forty-five minute run-time. The Hain character adds practically nothing to the mix other than to pad things out and make Quark look like a fool for falling for yet another obvious scam. "Who Mourns for Morn?" is an episode that desperately needed a B-plot of some kind in order to avoid all the padding.
Still, some of the jokes work, it's not offensive in any way and it was nice that Quark got to get a little profit at the end of the day for once (usually in these comedy episodes focusing on his greedy nature he ends up with nothing to show for his troubles or he ends up worse off than when he started). So, it's not a total loss, but it certainly isn't memorable.
6/10
methane
Over the history of Star Trek they've said different things, but I believe they eventually decided that gold was not valuable because it (like just about everything else) can be replicated. That means it's not scarce and, therefore, not valuable.
Latinum cannot be replicated (they don't give a reason why), which allows it to be scarce, which means it can be valuable.
As to the episode itself, I like it a bit more than Jammer, but I agree it's not a classic.
RJ
.Worf revealing that Morn was an excellent sparring partner (that Morn was a fighter good enough for that amount of praise from Worf) is fantastic.
The Dax crush on the other hand was a bit predictable. At some point they really started to make her too sex crazed. (Sex with McCoy, hots for Spock, hots for Morn, hots for that fire dancer at her bachelorette party, hots for Captain Boday). I would have just chosen some other thing that made Morn an important part of her life.
Robert
@RJ - Having the hots for Spock? All she said is "He's so much more handsome in person. And those eyes."
He's a legend. It'd be like going back in time and finding that say... Rasputin is better looking in person than his pictures. I don't think there's anything wrong with such a line.... if a man said it, nobody would blink.
And if she had sex with McCoy then it was Emony!
As to Boday, he's just an ex boyfriend with a transparent skull. I will say the whole fire dancer thing bothered me though.
David Pirtle
Fun and silly. Nothing to brag about. But a solid episode.
SamSimon
I expected half a star for this episode... I usually don't enjoy the Ferengi episodes, and this is no exception. On the other hand, the previous one (the magnificent ferengi) was, so I cannot complain too much, I guess!
Quarkissnyder
This episode was cute.
I hate it when the writers make Quark stupid. He is not. His character deserves better.
Real Ric
This ep was basically a sub plot story stretched out to fill an entire episode - it works though.
Love the nod to Reservoir Dogs near the end.
Iceman
"Who Mourns For Mourn" is a thoroughly well made and entertaining fluff. I wish we got more episodes relevant to the Dominion War storyline instead of fluff, but at least it's good. 3 stars.
RandomThoughts
Hello Everyone!
Years ago, a friend of mine and I went to see Mark Allan Shephard at a, well, it wasn't a convention really, just some time with him up on stage. And I really enjoyed it. It was very personal and cozy, with around 60 or 70 of us there.
While I don't remember the exact things he said any longer, it was nice to get a different perspective on the show from one of the other characters, instead of one of the stars. He seemed a genuinely likable fellow.
I think this show had just aired recently, and I asked him his thoughts about it, especially how it showcased his character, though he was actually in a very small part of it (beginning and end). He said with a smile that he was very happy they'd done a show about Morn, but appreciated the irony that he'd been in the episode for only a few moments.
He'd said he was hoping for a line of dialogue before the series ended, and they had been seeing about that, but his prosthetic was pretty much a single piece, and not made with a mouth intended for talking. He never did get to say anything.
And yes, that was Mark taking Morn's seat, and they didn't let him talk either! :)
Have a great day Everyone... RT
Rahul
Full of cliches, predictable, and kind of an insult to Trek fans -- a tolerable hour of a Quark episode. Have always wondered about Morn and here we find a bit about him -- wonder what the other people on DS9 will say when they realize he faked his death after all the gifts etc...but that's unimportant.
Of course we know Quark isn't going to get 1000 bars to himself and a bunch of cliche characters pop out of the woodwork each spinning their own lies wanting their share. The hot chick routine was dumb and Quark tried playing her back, the 2 heavies was a bit better (you know 1 of them had to be slow in some way) and then a more serious-looking guy shows up. Morn getting into a crime syndicate with these 4 very different characters seems improbable (but then we don't know squat about Morn).
1.5 stars for "Who Mourns for Morn?" -- Quark's character is good for these light-hearted stories although here we don't get any improvement in morals or character development. It's just very superficial entertainment and entirely forgettable with no other main cast member having anything significant to do. There have been better Ferengi episodes.
Tomalak
It would have been a great in joke if Morn had spoken a lot in the Mirror Universe episodes. Maybe in our universe he "never shuts up" but the viewer never heard from him while in the Mirror Universe he's known to be quiet but he gets loads of on screen lines.
Matt
I’m surprised Quark played Tongo with Jadzia so much... I don’t think he ever won a single hand against her.
Matt
I stand corrected. Quark finally won a Tongo game about 4 episodes after this, which apparently was his 207th win in a row.
Which begs the question: Why does everyone else keep playing with Jadzia and Quark? Presumably they’re playing for money, so everyone else must be down a ton.
(Yes, this is all tongue in cheek, and it can be argued that they don’t show the hands where a non-main character wins, because the show isn’t about those people)
Andrew
A bad guy turning against his brother for calling him dim is one of the funniest things I've seen but the ending felt halfhearted and like too much of a copout-Morn isn't really dead (not surprising, OK) but he also didn't just trick Quark to exploit him, well he did but he gives him a reward that satisfies Quark.
RandomThoughts
Hello Everyone!
@Matt
I always figured Quark kept playing with Dax, even it it often showed him losing, because he liked her, she probably brought a different perspective on how to play, and learning how to beat here could only make Quark better at defeating everyone else. I think the rest play because, to be the best, you have to try to beat the best.
Just a thought... RT
Springy
Watching and commenting:
--Oh, no. Morn died in an ion storm.
--Why must we get a "jealous Neelix" vibe from Worf again? It doesn't fit Worf at all.
--Will Quark find the latinum?
--Shady people come after Quark. Not a great scene.
--Not much to say. It's holding my interest, but it's not particularly great. Some decent gags.
--Ok. So Morn is alive. With latinum in his stomach. His second stomach.
The ep seems to be about value - how we assign value, how subjective that is.
Overall, a silly ep. Not horrible, but below average.
Alasdair
@Real Ric (2017) The ending may be an homage to “Reservoir Dogs”, but, when the container filled with gold-pressed latinum is opened, the fact that it is shot from inside the container and we see all the characters looking in is surely an homage to what is called a “trunk shot”, which is used in every Quentin Tarantino movie set in the modern world.
@Elnis (2013) You suggest that Morn is similar to Maris in “Frasier”. Although I have watched this episode on more than one occasion, having just wTched it today, I have only just realised that Morn is the DS9 equivalent of Norm from “Cheers”: like Norm he has the same seat at the bar; like Norm he is heavily built; like Norm he is popular (in “Cheers” everyone shouts ‘Norm’ when Norm enters; in “DS9” whoever enters shouts ‘Morn’). And his name is an anagram of Norm.
Bobbington Mc Bob
Never realised latinum was a liquid bound up in gold dust. Finally makes sense of the pressing and the gold and the latinum and the whatsits whatsyer doodle. "Gold... some primitive cultures consider it quite valuable"
But for pete's sake, just give Morn a bloody line. The entire ep centres around his existence, and they couldn't give the guy a credit? Side note: I have never, ever before noticed the credits that crawl across the opening few minutes of each show, I usually phase them out. God there's a lot of producers. Not as many as on discovery (11) but still, a lot.
HIS NAME IS MARK ALLEN SHEPHERD YOU CHEAP B*ST*RDS
Chrome
@Bob
"But for pete's sake, just give Morn a bloody line."
Europeans might not catch this, but it's a running gag that's also an homage to the tv series, Cheers. You see, both DS9 and Cheers were produced by Paramount Television and Cheers also had a character (Norm's wife, Vera) who was always talked about but never had a line. Cheers' spin-off series, Frasier, also had a character (Maris) who had the same gag. Incidentally, Morn spelled backwards is Norm. :-)
Bobbington Mc Bob
@Chrome
I'm not sure why you would think that about Cheers. Europe had Cheers and Frasier on repeats (re-runs) for years and were massive hit shows, and its written all over the place that Morn is an anagram of Norm. We all get the joke, that much is old news.
However none of that explains why they wouldn't just give the guy a credit, which of course was because of the Actor's Guild rules and a touch of Paramount Quark-level penny pinching. Unlike Vera he did at least appear in the episode. Sure he didn't speak, but the * entire episode was based around his character *. I just think they could have bent the rules a little this time.
Chrome
@Bob
Oh, I didn't know that about Europe and Cheers. Interesting to hear. :-)
Morn not speaking *is* the joke. It's like Mr. Burns not remembering Homer's name. You might say, well, he could remember Homer's name *just one* episode because Homer saved his life and that's super important(!) - but then the joke would be over and a small part of Mr. Burn's character would disappear forever.
Eli
For me, this episode is hilarious. The premise is beguiling and the preposterous plot twists are clever and entertaining.
trill me not
@chrome... he didn't have lines because that's the joke... paramount wasn't being cheap... i knew people who worked there and i can tell you that wasnt the case... you're talking about a show that had like 30 recurring characters... tossing morn a line here and there wouldn't have broken the bank... it was much more charming that he never spoke but you always heard how he never shuts up... plus the makeup was not the best for talking... he just moved his eyes for a reason... he started out as a minor joke in the background then just grew... it was organic and funny and worked perfectly
great fun episode... 3 to 3.5 stars
Chrome
Maybe Morn *did* have lines but we just didn’t hear them as they were muffled by his suit?
Jamie Mann
An entertaining and lightweight episode about DS9's resident and silent in-joke. And part of the joke is that he' s not actually in most of the episode...
There's not really much else to say about it. The idea that gold is completely worthless is mildly entertaining, but odd - after all, it's one of the best conductors of electricity around, and the fact that it's chemically inert is part of the reason (alongside it's scarcity and colour) why it's so valuable in our society.
The ending is also a little too forced; having Morn sit silently while Quark rails at him is entertaining, but goes on a little too long.
Still, at least it's not a full-blown Ferengi episode...
Drew
Decent, entertaining episode.. The highlight definitely was Quark's self serving eulogy for Morn
zanki
A bottle episode that punches above it's weight and yes I agree with Jammer it's almost a copy paste of the season 1 Nagus episode.
Highlight of the episode is probably the adoration towards Morn everyone shows at the makeshift funeral. Also I couldn't hold it when Kira and Odo came to the baffled conclusion that when it mattered, Quark can make it count (the eulogy speech)
Sigh2000
Agreeing wholeheartedly with previous commenters chagrined regarding the complete absence of lines for the Morn character e.g., @ Bobbington Mc Bob (July 29, 2019). Morn took silence to a whole new level. He never said a word and it's understandable because he really couldn't. When one contrasts what Harpo Marx was able to communicate without lines, Morn, while lovable in a way, is pretty embarassing. Of course, I was mystified by the continued use of a character whose mask had no operable mouth.
I must conjecture that this prosthetics failure may have been the real in-joke....like the show runners said: 'let's use that goofy mask that doesn't really work, after all, we spent serious money having it created.' We the viewers then revel at the frustration of the bit player forced to tote that 400 lb. suit around in show after show. Could he really breathe properly in there?
Morn reminds me of little bit of the 'hunter whose head has been shrunken' in the movie Beetlejuice. That guy just looks perplexed by his own sorry state.Then again, some impossibly burdened characters do manage to get something a little like "lines" in other Scifi vehicles. Take for instance that weird co-pilot of Lando in Star Wars whose non-functional mouth can basically only manage gibberish, but who is reverse-translated by Lando, who answers him as if he actually understands the 'blub blib dbl-blubb' sounds spewed out.
LANDO: "I know, I know he's late... but don't worry, Luke won't let us down. He's my friend...." (paraphrase).
Michael
I clocked this walrus-type character right at the start and always wondered about him so I enjoyed this eppy for that reason alone. He's very...endearing. I also liked the plot, cheesy though it was in parts, cartoonish in others. Give me this over a simian-ass Klingon "culture"-centric episode any day of the week!
Three stars, easily three and a half!
P.S. @Sigh2000: If you ever watched Frasier, then you're familiar with the Maris character who not only never spoke but was never even seen, yet, she featured in dozens of episodes, sometimes even as the main focus.
Buckbart
I was on the edge of my seat at the end, only to see if Morn would finally speak. Yes, it's fairly pedestrian, but writers need a break from the heavy stuff too. The side characters were a pleasant distraction, and I always feel that while Quark seems 9blivious to every turn, he's only biding time until he gets the information he wants. A fun distraction.
Bok R'Mor
I thought the two green alien brothers were excellent in this.
JD
I’ll add my voice to the choir on the ex-wife. Tired and outright uncomfortable after what they did to Leeta back in “Doctor Bashir, I Presume?” The other members of Morn’s crew were stock characters. I enjoyed the last outing with Iggy Pop even if it didn’t make in-universe sense. This was a lazy attempt at pastiche.
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