Taylor Sheridan is not wasting much time expanding the world of Tulsa King. The prolific creator’s next Paramount+ series, Frisco King, has officially hit a major production milestone, with filming now set to begin in Fort Worth, Texas. For a Sheridan project, that probably counts as both a practical update and a statement of intent, especially since this series was once expected to take shape somewhere very different. Now, instead of heading to New Orleans, the show is planting itself firmly in North Texas.

According to local production details from The Dallas Morning News, Frisco King is scheduled to begin filming on Friday, March 20, with activity centered around the Tarrant County Courthouse in downtown Fort Worth. Street-use permits tied to the production include multiple lane and sidewalk closures across the area on March 19 and March 20, making this the clearest sign yet that the Tulsa King spin-off is officially moving into production.

The series stars Samuel L. Jackson as Russell Lee Washington Jr., a hitman who crossed paths with Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight Manfredi in Tulsa King Season 3. Paramount+ has also confirmed that Sheridan is personally writing all eight episodes of the first season. Paramount+ recently announced that Asa Germann, Kai Caster, Lilah Pate, and Savanna Gann have joined the series. Sheridan, Jackson, and Stallone are all executive producing, alongside David C. Glasser, Ron Burkle, David Hutkin, Bob Yari, Christina Alexandra Voros, Michael Friedman, and Keith Cox.

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Is ‘Tulsa King’ Worth Watching?

Collider’s review stated that Tulsa King Season 3 wastes absolutely no time getting going, and that’s exactly what the show needed. After a slower, more uneven second season, this new chapter comes in with sharper focus, bigger threats, and a much stronger sense of momentum. It’s easily the most exciting the series has been so far, even if it still has a few rough edges.

“It boasts greater involvement and development of some key, formerly underutilized players, which benefits its storytelling. There’s also a promise of greater mob danger as the narrative plays out, keeping the pressure on Dwight and refusing to let go. While it’s impossible to say how well everything will ultimately come together, Tulsa King Season 3 is a thoroughly tense ride nonetheless — and the best that Sheridan’s series has been so far.”

Frisco King is in production now, while Tulsa King is streaming now on Paramount+.

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Release Date

November 13, 2022

Network

Paramount+

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Showrunner

Dave Erickson, Terence Winter

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Directors

Allen Coulter, Benjamin Semanoff, David Semel, Guy Ferland, Joshua Marston, Kevin Dowling, Lodge Kerrigan, Jim McKay

Writers

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Joseph Riccobene, David Flebotte, William Schmidt, Taylor Elmore, Tom Sierchio, Regina Corrado, Stephen Scaia, Terence Winter

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The internet loves a full-circle moment—especially when receipts, real-life footage, and a little creativity collide. And for Afroman, what started as a shocking situation inside his own home turned into a headline-making legal battle that had everyone watching closely. Now, after years of back-and-forth, the rapper is finally getting the last word.

RELATED: Afroman Officially Files Paperwork To Run For President In 2024: ‘Cannabis Commander-In-Chief’

Afroman Wins Defamation Case Against Ohio Deputies

The Grammy-nominated artist, born Joseph Foreman, just scored a major legal victory after a group of seven Ohio sheriff’s deputies sued him for defamation. The lawsuit stemmed from a series of viral music videos where Afroman used his own home security footage to highlight—and mock—a 2022 raid on his property. The deputies were reportedly seeking nearly $4 million in damages, claiming the videos subjected them to public ridicule. But in the end, the court sided with Afroman, and Judge Jonathan Hein confirmed that none of the plaintiffs’ claims prevailed.

“The whole raid was a mistake. All of this is their fault. If they hadn’t have wrongly raided my house, there would be no lawsuit. I would not know their names,” Foreman revealed. “They wouldn’t be on my home surveillance system, and there would be no songs, nothing.”

Viral Raid Footage Sparks Music, Legal Firestorm

If you’ve seen the clips, then you already know why they went viral. As previously reported, the footage showed armed deputies entering Afroman’s home, searching through personal belongings, and even pausing near a cake on his kitchen counter—moments that later inspired tracks like ‘Lemon Pound Cake.’ He also alleged that $400 went missing after the search, further fueling his frustration and the message behind his music.

During the trial, Afroman leaned heavily on his First Amendment rights, explaining that the music was both commentary and a way to recover financially from damages caused during the raid, including a broken gate and door. He also shared that the incident deeply impacted his family, especially his young children at the time.

Notably, no charges were ever filed against him following the search, which had been tied to a drug and kidnapping investigation. After the verdict was announced, an emotional Afroman celebrated outside the courthouse, declaring it a win not just for himself—but for freedom of speech as a whole.

The Comment Section Reacts To Afroman’s Win

Meanwhile, folks wasted no time running to The Shade Room’s Instagram comment section—and whew, it was lit UP. Some users said they love a full-circle moment, while others pointed out that Black people rarely win lawsuits this big, calling it a victory for the culture as a whole. Plenty of commenters also added that none of this would’ve even gone viral if the deputies hadn’t spoken up in the first place.

One Instagram user @breezylaboy added, “Blacks rarely win lawsuits. I’m happy for him😂😂”

This Instagram user @pretty_brown_round_ said, “He and his lawyers ATE!!! 🔥🔥🔥🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾”

And, Instagram user @chefbae_ wrote, “Now repair that man’s door!!😂😂😂”

Meanwhile, Instagram user @fatbellyjam commented, “‘I just won this lawsuit because I got high’ 😂😂😂”

While Instagram user @ak.grabbers said, “I thought this was Cedric the entertainer at first.”

Lastly, Instagram user @__whatsyourflava__ shared, “And most of us probably wouldn’t have ever seen the videos if they hadn’t sued him. 🤣😭😂”

RELATED: Ohio Police Sue Afroman For Using Footage From Raid On His Home For Commercial Purposes

While Apple TV has become synonymous with its sci-fi programming — the streamer has delivered hits such as Severance, Foundation, and Pluribus — it has released equally respected titles across various genres. The comedy-drama Ted Lasso‘s success cannot be overstated, while the limited series Black Bird remains one of Apple’s best-reviewed titles. In 2022, the streamer debuted the dark comedy series Bad Sisters, which went on to win a Peabody Award as well as several other prestigious honors at the BAFTAs and the Emmys. Bad Sisters revolved around close-knit sisters who band together when they suspect that one of their own has murdered her abusive husband. Now, a year after the series returned with a second season, Netflix has delivered a darker companion piece that has emerged as an instant hit.

Like Bad Sisters — which featured Sharon Horgan, Eve Hewson, Anne-Marie Duff, Sarah Green, and Eva Birthistle — Netflix’s show is based on a book. However, it changes key details from the book, such as the characters’ cultural identity. The Netflix series is in Spanish. It follows three sisters on a vacation to the Dominican Republic, where things take a horrible turn when one of them accidentally kills someone. The show is structured like HBO’s Big Little Lies and presents its central mystery from each sister’s perspective; they’re played by Paula Usero, Claudia Salas, and Clara Galle as the Arbizu sisters.

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Netflix’s New Hit Is Defying Mixed Reviews

We’re talking about the six-part thriller series That Night, created by Jason George, who also developed the Belgian Netflix series Into the Night. The new show opened to mixed reviews and is currently sitting at a 63% score on the aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes. In her review, Collider’s Jasneet Singh wrote, “It may begin as a high-stakes thriller about the consequences of an unwitting kill, but That Night evolves into a far more resonant family drama, one that gorgeously and quite painfully questions the worth of family loyalty.” By comparison, Bad Sisters holds an overall 88% score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the first season perched at a perfect 100%. Despite the mixed response, however, That Night is trouncing the competition. According to FlixPatrol, it was among the most-watched shows on the global Netflix chart this week, behind only One Piece and Virgin River.

That Night is streaming now on Netflix. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

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2026 – 2026-00-00

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Netflix

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Days of Our Lives delivers EJ DiMera (Dan Feuerriegel) reluctantly released by the police department when they didn’t have enough evidence to prove he pulled off a kidnapping in Salem. And District Attorney Belle Brady (Martha Madison) Black was very angry that she had to let her ex go and couldn’t charge him.

But did EJ pull off another epic kidnapping in Alamania where Belle and the Salem PD have no jurisdiction? And it seems that Vivian Alamain (Louise Sorel) and her henchmen went missing and the trail may lead right back to EJ.

Vivian and Ivan Have Vanished on Days of Our Lives

We saw on recent Days of our Lives episodes that Andrew Donovan (Colton Little) just dropped big news to Dimitri von Leuschner DiMera (Peter Porte) and Leo Stark (Greg Rikaart) about Vivian and her loyal sidekick Ivan Marais (Ivan G’Vera). Andrew said that they just vanished.

They were supposed to go to the cemetery and then gone. And if you remember, Leo was wearing a wig and was right there where they were supposed to be. So all of this makes it look like foul play.

But I feel like Leo in that wig and coat, it reminded me in the Harry Potter movies when the kids were imagining that Boggart to look like different people and there was this Professor Snape in a dress thing. That’s exactly what Leo looked like to me.

Anyway, so when EJ was in the interrogation room making a desperate call to Rita instead of dialing a lawyer, you know, EJ might have had a very good reason for that because he might have something more to hide than just his secret lab experiment that he was doing on his sister Lexie Carver (Nikki Crawford).

Was Elvis Jr.’s call with Rita to confirm that Vivian and Yvonne had been successfully snatched from Alamania and dumped somewhere on DiMera property?

EJ Has Multiple Kidnapping Plots in Play on DOOL

You know, EJ has a lot of plates that are spinning right now. Belle grilled him about Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein) and Jeremy Horton’s (Michael Roark) kidnapping. And truly, EJ did not know that Dr. Wilhelm Rolf (Richard Wharton) had hired Owen Kent (Wes Ramsey).

But what Belle doesn’t know is that EJ found out that Rolf saw Stephanie and Jeremy in the storage room. And EJ even told Rolf that they basically needed to be disposed of because he can’t let anyone find out about Lexie yet and can’t risk the research.

And now, of course, EJ’s lab is under more scrutiny because Rafe Hernandez (Galen Gering) found the empty person pod that until very recently was Lexie’s storage space. Plus, Gwen Rizczech (Emily O’Brien) has been scrambling to stay one step ahead of Dimitri, you know, trying to keep him in the dark about his kidnapping that she and EJ pulled off.

So, with this Vivian and Ivan reveal that they’re also missing, this may be the third kidnapping with ties to EJ. I mean, technically four if you count his own kidnapping because there was Dimitri and then the DiMeras and then Stephanie and Jeremy and now we’ve got Ivan and Madam Vivian.

Days of our Lives: Leo Helped Dimitri

And if you recall, Leo helped Dimitri escape to go to Alamania and prove that he wasn’t working with Peter Blake (Dan Gauthier). And Dimitri denied all along that he was involved in kidnapping the DiMeras.

But Vivian and Gwen planted evidence that looked like the CCTV video feed from the crypt was going to Dimitri’s tablet that they planted in a room at Vivian’s mansion along with some of his belongings.

And Madam Vivian claimed that Dimitri was an unwanted guest. But he’s insisted all along he was held elsewhere and had himself been kidnapped. And then we had Ivan trying to poison Leo and Dimitri and presumably also hired a sniper to take a shot at them.

You know, that’s down to the whole Gwen and Vivian thing. So thankfully, ISA super agent Andrew stopped the unknown assassin from killing Leo and Dimitri. However, Andrew had bad news to deliver.

Dimitri Still Looks Guilty on Days

The ISA went to the house Dimitri found on Zillow where he claims that he was held. But Gwen had already alerted the Alamanians and they cleaned up the mess. Somebody went in there and just emptied out the house. But Andrew said they got DNA samples and fingerprints that match Dimitri.

But both Andrew and Dimitri know that’s not enough to prove that Dimitri was held captive there, just that he was there at some point. And Andrew said with Vivian and Ivan missing and foul play presumed, the ISA and the local cops suspect that Dimitri is responsible for this crime.

So, back to square one for Leo and Dimitri because they got to prove that he had nothing to do with the kidnapping of EJ and his siblings and nephew. And also now Vivian and Ivan. And Dimitri is determined.

He wants to prove that Gwen was behind his kidnapping. And now he’s also got to prove who’s behind Vivian and Ivan’s kidnapping. Because he could go down for that.

Did EJ Have Rita Kidnap Vivian and Ivan on Days of Our Lives?

So, with Leo and Dimitri spotted creeping around Vivian’s house several times and Leo at the cemetery, they are obvious culprits. But I suspect that since EJ and Gwen did a bang-up job of keeping Dimitri hidden for a year in Alamania, they probably had local contacts that EJ could use to hire to grab Vivian and Ivan.

I don’t think that Gwen is in on this kidnapping though. Because she had been conspiring with Vivian. So EJ may be going behind the back of his partner in crime, Gwen. You know, EJ wants revenge on Vivian for her role in his family’s kidnappings and planned murders. Obviously, he’s holding a grudge for very good reason.

And Gwen’s plans to get revenge on Dimitri have also made things hard on EJ because it messed up funding for Rolf’s secret lab. EJ is not happy that Gwen pulled this stunt that complicated his sister Lexie’s resurrection. And Gwen just couldn’t help herself. She wanted to make Leo miserable. And now Gwen’s nearly broke. And EJ may be thinking about strangling her, honestly.

Days of our Lives: Rita’s Beyond Loyal to the DiMeras

And it really does serve Vivian right if EJ had Rita make arrangements to snatch her and Ivan. Rita, if you remember, she kills me. She’s so great. She’s been helping the DiMeras get out of scrapes since the Stefano DiMera (Joe Mascolo) heyday. She excels at doing sensitive tasks for EJ and there’s no limits, no low to which Rita will not stoop for the DiMeras. Kind of scary.

And it makes sense that she would agree to help EJ get Vivian and Ivan out of the way. Plus, Rita has undying loyalty to EJ and the DiMeras. And I think she would gleefully punish anybody who tried to hurt them. So she probably is neck deep in this. Rita always supports EJ’s plan. She scolds him now and then.

You know, she’s his trusted adviser and operative for all the secret and juicy DiMera goings on. She even helped EJ convince Johnny DiMera (Carson Boatman) to help out at DiMera while Theo Carver (Cameron Johnson) recovered from the brain injury he got during the kidnapping.

And you know, it was kind of funny, too. Because Theo told JJ Deveraux (Casey Moss) he hoped that another kidnapping wouldn’t happen in Salem for a long time. Little bit of foreshadowing there. You know, they’re not very subtle.

Vivian and Ivan May Be in the DiMera Crypt on DOOL

Even though Vivian and Ivan were taken in Alamania, I think they will be in Salem possibly in the DiMera tunnels or in a more ironically sinister move. Rita may have stuck them in the DiMera crypt right in EJ’s backyard. And Rita might have had it sealed, using the excuse that it’s too traumatic for the DiMeras to go in there after their kidnapping ordeal.

And since Vivian helped conspire with Peter to trap EJ and the others in there to kill them with Sarin gas, I think it’d be karma if Vivian is now stuck in there with Yvonne. It’s not exactly the lap of luxury. But I got to say, I love me some evil EJ. I don’t know about y’all. But his sexy little dimples just do it for me, even when he’s doing bad.

Concerned relatives are now speaking out about missing University of Alabama student James Gracey.

A statement from Gracey’s loved ones in Illinois, obtained by WVUA, read “it is completely out of character for him not to check in with family and friends.”

Gracey, 20, was last seen on March 17 in Barcelona, Spain, where he was visiting with friends who were studying abroad.

Gracey, who is known as Jimmy to friends and family, was last seen outside the popular Shôko nightclub in the Port Olímpic area. He was dressed in a white T-shirt, dark pants, and a gold chain with a rhinestone-encrusted cross.

Gracey, who reportedly stayed behind at the club when his friends decided to call it a night, stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 175 pounds, the family has said.

“We are asking anyone who may have seen Jimmy or has any information — no matter how small — to please contact 224.505.3886,” reads the statement, which called Jimmy “a kind, responsible, and devoted son and brother.”

Related: Missing 4-Year-Old Boy Found Dead After He Disappeared on New Year’s Eve

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A 4-year-old boy was found dead about two miles away from his Alabama home following his disappearance on New Year’s Eve, according to authorities. His father, Jameson Kyle Boley, was arrested on an explosives charge before the discovery of his body, NBC News reported. Walker County Sheriff Nick Smith told reporters that the charge was […]

Added the statement: “We are working closely with local authorities and are incredibly grateful for the support we have received. We ask that you keep Jimmy in your thoughts as we continue to do everything we can to bring him home safely.”

Gracey’s mother, Therese Marren Gracey, previously shared a Facebook post about her missing son.

“My son is a university of Alabama student who is visiting friends in Barcelona who are studying abroad,” reads the missing man’s mother’s post, which was shared to a Students in Barcelona 2026 Facebook group. “They went to Shoko last night. The police have his phone but he didn’t make it back to the air bnb. Has anyone seen him?”

While she claimed in the post the police had recovered his phone. Investigators, investigators have not said one way or the other if they have it.

It is being reported a person was taken into custody on Wednesday, March 18, but Us Weekly could not independently confirm that information. Reports also indicate police recovered Gracey’s wallet from the sea.

David Gracey, Jimmy’s uncle and a senior CNN producer in Washington, D.C., said that his nephew was scheduled to return to the U.S. on Saturday, March 21. Jimmy is a hockey player who helps his parents in caring for his younger siblings, David said.

Related: Missing 18-Year-Old Possibly ‘Lured’ From Philadelphia Is Found: Family

UPDATE — 1/20/26 at 10:55 a.m. ET: The family of Jahmez Cartwright said on Friday, January 16 that the 18-year-old had been located, according to a statement shared by his relatives and provided to Us Weekly by the Philadelphia Police Department. “I would like to thank the Philadelphia media, law enforcement agencies, the Black and […]

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Beth O’Reilly, Jimmy’s aunt, appeared on NewsNation’s Jesse Weber Live on Wednesday, March 18, and said he was seen on security footage leaving a popular Barcelona nightclub with an unidentified person.

“We do believe that the police have the phone, which is part of the reason why it’s been very difficult to track down his location,” said O’Reilly said. “We don’t know whether it was lost, stolen, whatever, but we do have that, but beyond that, we don’t have a lot of additional information right now. Obviously, it’s an ongoing investigation, and my brother-in-law is there now in Barcelona trying to work with the authorities directly there.”

Anyone who may have any information regarding Gracey’s disappearance is asked to call (224) 505-3886.

By Jonathan Klotz
| Published 32 seconds ago

Netflix’s smash hit One Piece live-action adaptation was always going to be compared to the record-setting anime series, but in some ways, it’s improved on the anime. The most obvious improvement is in the pacing, which has been all killer, and no filler. Less obvious is that going live-action provides a sense of weight and realism to even the most absurd action scenes. Then there was Season 2, Episode 5, “Wax On, Wax Off,” when the murderous Mr. 3 took the spotlight and went from an over-the-top supervillain in the original to a disturbing serial killer. Turns out, watching people be encased in wax is a lot more terrifying in live action. 

One Piece’s Villains Steal The Show

Mr. 3 is brought to life by David Dastmalchian, who you might recognize from The Suicide Squad, Late Night with the Devil, Murderbot, or Ant-Man. His casting as the Baroque Works agent powered by the Wax-Wax Devil Fruit, which, as the name implies, gives him the ability to generate wax harder than steel, was an inspired pick by the manga’s creator, Oda. Dastmalchian was on fan’s wish lists for the role, and when given the chance, he owned every single second spent on screen. 

One Piece’s colorful cast of characters revolves around taking a personality trait and amplifying it to a cartoonish level. Mr. 3’s murderous desire to turn people into artwork that immortalizes their suffering, anguish, and terror over slowly dying encased in wax is straight out of classic horror movies. In the anime, he’s off-putting, but in the series, Dastmalchian’s line delivery, coupled with his creepy smile, turns the absurdity of a giant wax candle covering Nami, Vivi, and Zoro with hardening wax flakes from cartoonish buffoonery into a nightmare. 

His Baroque Works partner, Miss Golden Week (Sophia Anne Caruso, from The School for Good and Evil), also has a horrifying power, utilizing different colors of paint to force her victims to experience emotions. She uses yellow to force Zoro to be cheerful, and blue to make Luffy feel the saddest he has in his life (to that point). Mind control is a common superpower but, then you think about it in the context of the real world, it’s one of the most terrifying experiences you can think of. Trapped inside your body, acting against your will as you’re forced to move, think, and feel a certain way? That’s pure Hell. 

One Piece Keeps Proving It’s The Best Anime Adaptation

Netflix’s One Piece didn’t bring over Mr. 3’s candle champion ability, but what it does keep intact is that the killer is a complete coward. Mr. 3’s running away at the first sign of an equal fight is a hilarious moment topped only by the very satisfying hammerpunch that Luffy lands on him to put an end to the nightmare. For now, as in the original story, he comes back later with his real name, Galdino, and while he’s not quite an ally to the Straw Hat Pirates, he does recognize when there’s a larger, much more dangerous enemy that needs to be taken down, and Luffy is the only one who can do it. 

Thanks to the inclusion of the manga’s author Oda, Netflix’s One Piece adaptation is not only faithful to the source material, it’s the perfect entry point for those curious about the Straw Hat Pirates but scared to tackle the 1000+ episodes of the anime. And sometimes, it might even be a little bit better.

Kim Kardashian has gone viral after recently taking a lil’ tumble while wearing 8-inch heels.

RELATED: You Good?! The Game Takes A Tumble While Walking Down The Aisle At Recent Wedding (WATCH)

Kim Kardashian Takes A Lil Tumble In 8-Inch Heels

According to Page Six, on Sunday, March 15, Kim Kardashian was on her way to the Vanity Fair Oscars Party when she almost fell into a bush. Per the outlet, Kardashian was wearing a tight Gucci gold gown with 8-inch stiletto heels and blue contacts as she made her way to the event and almost lost her footing.

Earlier this week, Kardashian shared a clip of the moment via TikTok and Instagram.

She Goes Viral As Social Media Reacts

Social media users entered TSR’s comment section to react to the clip of Kim Kardashian taking a lil’ tumble and going viral.

Kim Kardashian Isn’t The Only Celebrity To Go Viral After Taking A Lil’ Tumble…

Kim Kardashian isn’t the only celebrity to go viral after taking a lil’ tumble. As The Shade Room previously reported, in August 2024, The Game made headlines when he took a tumble at a wedding.

Furthermore, in July 2025, Saucy Santana went viral after falling while jumping off a yacht, per The Shade Room.

More recently, in September 2025, footage resurfaced and went viral of Stefon Diggs taking a tumble off a Pilates machine.

RELATED: The Internet Is Crackin’ UP At Resurfaced Footage Of Stefon Diggs Takin’ A Tumble While Exercising On Pilates Machine (WATCH)

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 27 seconds ago

Gene Roddenberry famously didn’t like the idea of conflict between humans, believing that in the far future, everybody would have evolved beyond that. Ironically, however, the Star Trek franchise has always been full of conflict that most fans never see. I’m talking, of course, about the fighting between writers and producers.

More than a few Trek writers (especially in the early days of The Next Generation) have horror stories about how their scripts were changed by leadership; in fact, this happened to Tracy Tormé so often that he began writing under a pen name before fleeing the franchise altogether. By the time Deep Space Nine rolled around, things were usually more copacetic between the creative team and the production team. But for the memorable episode of “Melora,” one forgotten writer secretly called the producers out for ignoring the needs of those in wheelchairs!

Scotty, Ramp Me Up

To understand this bonkers tale, you’ll need to know a bit about “Melora” and the thought process behind making the episode. You see, the title of the episode refers to Melora Pazlar, an alien Starfleet officer who has trouble navigating the gravity of places like Deep Space Nine. Because of this, she uses a special mechanical apparatus to get from Point A to Point B. While characters like Dr. Bashir use plenty of technical jargon to describe the apparatus, all you really need to know is that it’s a futuristic wheelchair.

When Deep Space Nine was still being developed, the producers considered creating a wheelchair-bound officer as the show’s chief science officer, but they worried about the cost involved. That’s why the science officer became Jadzia Dax, an able-bodied Trill with generations of memories. However, then-showrunner Michael Piller really liked the idea of eventually featuring such a character, even if it was just in a one-shot episode. Because of this, the writers were encouraged to create a story featuring such a wheelchair-bound officer, and “Melora” is the fruit of their labors.

The Script Went Downhill First

Evan Carlos Somers was a Writers’ Guild intern at DS9, and he knew about their desire to create such an episode. When he was allowed to pitch episodes for the second season, he pitched “Melora” while pointing out that he could bring some insights into the episode that nobody else could. After all, Somers used a wheelchair, so he would be able to write the titular Melora (not to mention others’ reactions to seeing a handicapped person on the station) more authentically than anyone else.

However, Somers rushed the script, writing “Melora” in about a week and a half. Several people helped rewrite the script, including Michael Piller. While Somers didn’t love all of the rewrites, he did enjoy how the final episode preserved one thing that he secretly wrote into the script: his own difficulty navigating the set!

They See Her Rolling

In the 24th century, you’d expect a character like Melora to have a really fancier set of wheels for getting around. In fact, it wasn’t supposed to have wheels at all. The producers originally intended to re-use the antigravity chair from the TNG episode “Too Short a Season,” but it proved too big to use for the narrow sets of DS9. Therefore, the script handwaved an explanation about how Federation anti-grav technology doesn’t work with Cardassian technology, forcing Dr. Bashir to replicate Melora’s much simpler wheelchair design.

According to the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion, Somers essentially channeled his frustrations of working on the show into his script. While working for Star Trek, he had to regularly get in and out of an ancient office that originally had no wheelchair ramps, and he had to use “one of the world’s smallest elevators.” Things weren’t much better on the actual set, either, but Somers got the last laugh by giving the fictional Melora his own very real struggles. 

“So Bashir has to replicate a much simpler wheelchair for her,” he said, referring to the chair that he helped design. “And she encounters all the problems that I did whenever I went down to the DS9 set to snoop around.” In this way, a relatively unknown writer secretly signalled that the producers of the most progressive franchise in television history weren’t that considerate about the needs of the handicapped.

Infinite Spite In Infinite Combinations

Personally, I love a writer who is motivated by spite, and it turns out that Evan Carlos Somers also used his “Melora” script to call out fellow Star Trek writers. As reported by The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine, Somers hated “Ethics,” the TNG episode where Worf gets paralyzed and, per Klingon cultural tradition, considers killing himself. The writers claimed he “resented the message in ‘Ethics’ that Worf is worthless now that he’s disabled and therefore must kill himself. 

Accordingly, he wrote “Melora” with a more positive message. The title character is offered a cure for her disability, but she refuses, a moment Somers describes as “the real driving force behind my wanting to do this episode.” In this way, the largely forgotten episode remains one of the most progressive Star Trek stories ever written. As for Somers, he proved that no handicap could hold him back. He could, in fact, do all things through spite, which strengthens him, especially when it comes to the producers!