Q (Star Trek)
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- This page is about the character Q; for the race, see Q Continuum.
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| Species: | Q |
| Gender: | none (male as chosen form of appearance) |
| Eye color: | green (by Q's preference) |
| Home planet: | N/A; originates from the Q Continuum |
| Portrayed by: | John de Lancie |
Q, played by John de Lancie, is a fictional character in the Star Trek universe who appears in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager. The name "Q" is also shared by other members of the Q Continuum. Gene Roddenberry chose the letter "Q" for the character and race in honor of his friend, Janet Quarton.[citation needed]
Q is a mischievous, seemingly omnipotent being who has taken an interest in humans. Q's power is limited because he cannot overcome others in the Q Continuum. He also has a flair for the dramatic, with a mercurial personality that switches between a joking, camp style and a more ominous and even dangerous manner. While he is boastful, condescending and threatening, he arguably has humanity's best interests at heart, as seen in the series finale, All Good Things..., in which he causes Jean-Luc Picard to shift through time periods, giving him a chance to save humanity. In his portrayal of Q, John de Lancie used as his inspiration a description attributed to Lord Byron: "Mad, bad and dangerous to know."[1]
Beginning with the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Q became a popular recurring character, in large part because of the comedic and dramatic chemistry between de Lancie and Patrick Stewart (who played Captain Jean-Luc Picard).[citation needed] Interestingly enough, de Lancie always felt that each portrayal of Q was the last time he'd take up the role.[citation needed]
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[edit] Overview
Q first appears as a villain, putting Picard on trial for venturing beyond humanity's abilities and threatening all of humanity with annihilation. In later episodes, he becomes more of a trickster. Q evolved into a sympathetic, and sometimes even pitiable character. In "Déjà Q", Q is punished by the Q Continuum by being turned into a mortal; his commission of an uncharacteristically selfless act garners the return of his powers. In the same episode, Q says that Picard is "the closest thing in this universe that I have to a friend." Toward the end of The Next Generation, Q is less antagonistic toward Picard, even in "Tapestry", apparently saving Picard's life and helping the captain better understand himself. In the series finale, "All Good Things...", Q gives Picard a "helping hand" in saving humanity.
Picard often thinks of Q as an annoyance, and Q often is surprised by Picard and the other humans he encounters. In "Q Who?", when Picard argues that humanity is capable of dealing with anything, Q whisks the USS Enterprise to the Delta Quadrant for humanity's first encounter with the Borg. Picard resorts to asking for Q to save the ship. Surprised, Q brings the Enterprise home and tells Picard that most men would rather have died than ask for help.
In Q's later appearances on Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, he is less concerned with humanity as a whole, and is more of a comic relief character. In the DS9 episode "Q-Less", Q at one point goads Commander Benjamin Sisko into a bare-knuckle boxing match, all the while belittling and insulting him. When Sisko loses his temper and knocks Q down, an astonished Q says, "You hit me! Picard never hit me!" Sisko counters frankly that "I'm not Picard." Q responds with a smile, saying "No...you're much easier to provoke."
Q enjoys goading humans, Klingons and other races to display their savage side, and when they refuse he dismisses them as no fun; this seems to be just a game for Q, however, and when characters show genuine compassion or restraint, he will usually admit to being impressed that their "tiny human minds" were capable of such actions.
Later, on Voyager, Q has started a civil war among the continuum in a campaign for personal freedoms. The war goes badly for his side however, and Q comes to the conclusion that the creation, or birth, of a new member of the continuum could revitalize the Q. Q first seeks Captain Janeway to be the mother of his child but she refuses and eventually Q procreates with a female Q he had previously been involved with.
The child is born entirely conscious and with all the powers of any other Q. As could be imagined, such power in the hands of an immature child goes terribly wrong. Q's son causes no end of trouble for the continuum and Q turns to Captain Janeway for help. Eventually they agree that the boy will remain on Voyager, without his powers, and either learn how to be a responsible, productive citizen of the cosmos, or spend eternity as an amoeba. Eventually the young Q comes around but the continuum is not entirely convinced, so in negotiations with Q, they work out an agreement. Q must eternally guard, observe, and accompany the boy to ensure he behaves. The two set out together with a much better relationship, and do Janeway a favor by showing her how to cut a few years off their trip back to Federation space. However, Q will not whisk them home immediately, as it would send a bad message to his son.
[edit] Appearances
Episodes featuring Q often have titles that play on the letter "Q".
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[edit] References
- ^ Star Trek: The Next Generation DVD, disc 7, extras
[edit] External links
- Q article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki.
- Q Continuum article at Memory Alpha, a Star Trek wiki.
| Main Star Trek nations |
|---|
| Bajorans · Borg · Breen |
| Cardassians · Dominion · Ferengi |
| Gorn · Hirogen · Humans · Kazon · Klingons |
| Q · Romulans · Tholians · Trill |
| United Federation of Planets · Vulcans · Xindi |
Categories: Wikipedia articles needing style editing | Articles with unsourced statements since February 2007 | All articles with unsourced statements | Star Trek: Voyager characters | Star Trek: Deep Space Nine characters | Star Trek: The Next Generation characters | Fictional time travelers | Fictional interdimensional travelers
