Q is for Q

Two fictional universes have a character known as Q.

The first appears in James Bond, the Quartermaster originally known as Major Boothroyd. He supplies 007 with gadgets, weapons and vehicles of varying plausibility, often irritated by Mr Bond's flippant attitude. Q was played in most of the films by Desmond Llewelyn, who will be synonomous with the character for almost all long-time Bond fans.

The second is from Star Trek, appearing in the first episode of The Next Generation. Played by John DeLancie (who, incidentally, my good lady believes is a dead ringer for the man who lives across the street: I can't see it myself...), this Q is an all-powerful being who can manipluate time and space. Being all-powerful, he uses his abilities to wreak havok and generally annoy people. So annoying, in fact, that a character who ran off with him in TNG appeared in Deep Space Nine (I know, I talk about it a lot because it's on TV every weekday at the moment) attempting to get away from him. Hilarity (sometimes) ensues.

I used to joke about what would happen if the two Q's swapped places. Bond films would be considerably shorter - "007, we have discovered there is a double agent in our midst, we need you to... oh, don't bother. Q's already sorted it." - while Star Trek would be blessed with a kindly, sometimes frustrated, old man - "Pay attention, Captain Picard."

Finally, back on the subject of DS9, Q is also for Quark. He's my second favourite character in the Star Trek universe, after Doctor McCoy. I was going to post extolling his virtues, but I'll save that for another time, as I'm sure I'll go on a bit...

K is for Klingon

The Klingons have come a long way in the Star Trek universe, starting off in the early days of Captain Kirk as sweaty-looking men with fake tan and stuck on goatee beards. The greater budgets and improvement in special effects made them more alien, with lump bumpy foreheads, pointed teeth and lots of hair, beard optional. This carried forward into the later TV series, and the Klingons have looked that way ever since.

But it's not their appearance that shows the best improvement. Klingons have moved from being sly traders to bloodthirsty warriors to beings with deep honour and loyalty. Next Generation brought this to the fore by having a Klingon officer - Worf - on board, allowing for stories where the race took centre stage, revealing their society and moral code, as well as using them  for great plot devices.

For me, the Klingons truly came into their own on Deep Space Nine. Early series portray them as violent and unpredictable, to be approached with caution - on occassion merely for comedy effect. Then Worf arrives to join the crew, and everything changes. Worf was brought in to gain viewer ratings, but it was a masterstroke. The series became darker, grittier, more real (as much as show dealing with a space-station next to a wormhole can be) as war with the Dominion loomed.

More Klingons arrived, becoming regular guest stars as the conflict began, allying themselves with the Federation. Our fearsome warriors were back, but noticeably improved. How? Well, great acting aside, the Klingons were now about who they were, not what they were. Next Generation planted wonderful seeds for this, but it all came to fruition in Deep Space Nine, with sublime results. Stereotypes became characters for the viewer to care about and Worf's shout of "I am a Klingon!" now meant something more than "watch out, I'm big and tough".

Obvious limitations mean that Star Trek's aliens all tend to be bipedal and humanoid in essence - great writing and acting shapes them into people we care about. We'll not only enjoy their company, but mourn their passing when they're gone.

D is for Doctor

Not Doctor Who - I'm sure there'll be plenty of entries to come about my favourite TV show - but rather Doctor Leonard 'Bones' McCoy from Star Trek.

I have fond memories of the original series, shown many times on BBC2, back in the day when there were only the three TV channels that later became four. Most of them come from my early teens, when it was shown as six o-clock on a Thursday night. I'd watch it with my dad (my mum, a part-time nurse, worked evenings on a Thursday), then change the channel for Top of the Pops and Tomorrow's World.

Anyway, of the three main characters in Star Trek, Doctor McCoy was, and remains, my favourite. Captain Kirk is the hero, of course, leading his crew boldly where no man has gone before. He's great, but there's something a bit too larger-than-life about him. Of course, heroes have to be this way to drive a story with their actions, so that's never been a problem. And, as we're talking about interstellar exploration here, it's fitting that Kirk is as such.

I've always felt that Spock and McCoy acted as two sides of Kirk's conscience. In the Vulcan, Kirk has rationality and logic, in McCoy there is compassion - one represents science, the other humanity. There was always an 'everyman' aura about DeForest Kelley's performance; despite being in space, McCoy held on to his down-to-earth values, never losing sight of what he and his profession represented. He was fallible - Spock would blame his emotions for this - but every hero should be.

In the new films, Karl Urban plays Bones with a voice and mannerisms that are a tribute to Kelley's earlier performances, rather than a crass imitation of them. He's still the same McCoy though; a bit gruff and grouchy, but with a heart of gold. McCoy's the hero we all could be, the man who'd rather not be there, but will stand by his friends no matter what..

Star Trek has often been derided, but it's easy to pick apart something that's been going for nigh on 50 years, to laugh at primitive effects and dialogue that can be clunky, but watching it again years later, I can help but have a respect for it. The series worked because it had great characters involved in great stories, the triumvirate of Kirk, Spock and McCoy who were the best of friends.

My favourite quote about Doctor McCoy comes from the Deep Space Nine episode Trials and Tribble-ations. The crew have travelled back to the time of the original series, and Dax recognises him as 'Leonard', recalling with a knowing smile that he 'had the hands of a surgeon'. (Or something along those lines - look it up, watch it if you can.)

And remember. He's a Doctor, not a {insert occupation here}.