Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places

Template:ST episode "Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places" is an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the third episode of the fifth season. Par'Mach is the Klingon word for love with aggressive overtones.

The title is a play on the chorus of the popular 1970s Waylon Jennings song "Looking for Love (in All the Wrong Places)," (see also Wookin' Pa Nub).

Plot

Grilka, Quark's Klingon ex-wife, shows up on Deep Space Nine, and while her intentions are unknown, Worf is smitten as soon as he sees her. She comes to Quark and conveniently mentions that her Great House, the House of Grilka, has suffered significant financial losses of late -- but she doesn't ask for help, for Klingons do not dirty themselves with "filthy ledgers and bank accounts."

Taking the hint, Quark "asks" to look at her financial records, and he helps her as she planned. The two of them spend a great deal of time together, and they genuinely seem interested in one another. However Quark is completely unfamiliar with Klingon mating rituals, so he asks Jadzia -- and Worf -- for help. They help him and all goes well until Grilka's bodyguard is fed up with the two of them and declares that he cannot work for a House where a Ferengi is welcome. He challenges Quark to combat.

Now Quark is faced with the prospect of either losing Grilka or dying (for he obviously doesn't stand a chance against a Klingon with a bat'leth). Worf again helps the Ferengi; using a special device, Worf is able to control Quark's body movements and helps him defend himself. Ultimately, Quark hands the bodyguard's bat'leth to Grilka, proving his courage. The two of them are in love, but this leaves Worf alone.

Not as alone as he thinks, however. Jadzia, who until now has pressured Worf about the fact that there is nothing special about Grilka, claims she would be looking for someone more fun and "attainable" if she were him. She finally gives Worf the hint by quoting from the holosuite program they used to train Quark (below) and the two of them begin making out Klingon-style. When the two couples come to the infirmary with broken bones and bruises aplenty, it's enough to convince Doctor Bashir that he is best off not asking how his patients received their wounds.

Dialogue of Lukara and Kahless (Jadzia and Worf):

• Lukara: "MoVas ah-kee rustak!" Today was a good day to die!
• Kahless: "Kosh tomah…ehpaq Lukara kaVeir." The day is not yet over, Lukara.
• Lukara: "Ish-tovee chuCh thling nuq?" Would you kill me too?
• Kahless: "Meklo boh ka Mech!" I smell the burning of your blood.
• Lukara: "Te-doQ roos ka…mech-TOH!" The fire is your doing…

Literary References

The plot is similar to the story of Cyrano de Bergerac, with Worf playing the role of Cyrano, who provides the insight and social graces to another man, to woo the woman he himself desires. Where Cyrano's nose renders him ugly and unattractive to Roxane, Worf's status as a social outcast renders him unsuitable for marriage to Grilka. In both stories, Cyrano (and Worf) do not attain the woman of their desires.

Trivia

This episode is notable for having one of the rare instances of the character Worf laughing (another being in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode Yesterday's Enterprise. It is in response to a comment by Jadzia Dax, and overhearing it Sisko jokes he didn't think Worf knew how to laugh.

External links

• Looking for par'Mach in All the Wrong Places at Memory Alpha
• Template:StarTrekDS9 article