KTR's reflections from another DS9 newbie

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

^Yeah, but it still had arrogant, bigoted Vulcans, a Starfleet captain belittling his crew when they were only trying to help out, and a moronic activity on the holodeck.

And yet, Quark in drag is worse!

The answer to this is so obvious that I'm honestly surprised you didn't think of it. :rasberry:

Now that I think about it - AND NO DON'T TELL ME, NOT ANYONE - it could be Odo, from when he did the hanky-panky with the female Founder. (Talk about your STD!) He has shown he can be ruthless in the past.

BSG tried to replicate the feel but what made the Dominion War so powerful was watching these "perfect" characters dealing with something very tough and terrible. When the ship is filled with assholes, you don't care as much. I stopped watching BSG because even in a dark story, if there's NOBODY to root for, you stop caring.

That's pretty much how I feel too. I don't give a frak about any of the nBSG characters. If I'm rooting for anyone, it's the Cylons!

[CX]

By 'Don't tell me", does that include telling you if you've guessed wrong again?

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

By 'Don't tell me", does that include telling you if you've guessed wrong again?

Yes it does!


And another three episodes...


7-07 Once More Unto the Breach

The Klingon Kor, of TOS fame, makes his third and final appearance in this episode. As before he's barely recognizable as Kirk's old adversary from Errand of Mercy. But he is a sympathetic individual, especially now that he seems to have contracted the Klingon equivalent of Alzheimer's. But he was allowed, if rather predictably, to go out in a blaze of glory.

Martok's hatred for the old aristocrat who once denied his enlistment in the military was nicely conveyed, as was his later reversal when he found that he could take no joy in seeing Kor making the mistakes he made, or the ridicule he then had to suffer from the other Klingons. Old age is obviously nothing for a Klingon warrior to strive for.

I also like the little scene between Ezri and Quark, when the Ferengi had misunderstood her and tried to talk her out of trying to have a go at it with Worf again. Like me he must have a crush on the new Trill. Sigh!

But I feel we got cheated in the end by not showing us Kor's final battle. I suppose they were going for how legends are made, since Davy Crockett and the Alamo had been referenced before. But it didn't work here. Given the build up to his honourable demise, I wanted to actually see it.

This is why I cannot give Once More Unto the Breach more than an average grade of 5- on my 10-graded scale.



*****

7-08 The Siege of AR-558

Like Nor the Battle to the Strong in season five, The Siege of AR-558 is a story about the horrors of war and combat. This episode is even more effective than the previous one. Seldom do we see the ugly side of war on Trek, which often shows it as something antiseptic. Here we are right in dirty trenches with seasoned veterans that have stood their ground against the Jem'Hadar for months, and at terrible losses. I loved seeing a soldier that had collected vials of ketracel white taken from slain Jem'Hadar - creepy but very real. And another one crying over a dead fellow soldier he couldn't stand.

Using Quark as a counter-point was genius. He of all people puts a civilian perspective to this, from how he objected to sending his nephew Nog in harms way, to his observation that when deprived of the ordinary comforts of life, humans can be as nasty as any Klingon. A very true observation about even the supposedly "enlightened" humans of the 24th century.

I really felt for all the characters here, and the guest stars weren't just expendable redshirts. I grieved with Ezri when the nice engineer Lennier… sorry, Kellin (Bill Mumy) died. And Nog doing his duty and pleasing his fellow Starfleet officers lost a leg in the process. I'd be disappointed if this is not followed upon in later episodes. Surprisingly Nog is the one character on DS9 that has really grown on me most over the years. I really hope he survives the war.

Sisko handled himself very well here, deciding to remain and help the besieged ground troops. Ultimately it was that that allowed our side to win, but at a frightful loss. I also thought it was inspired, story-wise, to have people like Ezri, Bashir and Nog there instead of "fighters" like Worf and Kira. While they could handle themselves in battle, they did contrast more sharply against the veterans.

The final battle was excellently shot. It had an eerie quality about it, like hearing Vic Fontaine sing "I'll be seeing you" as the Jem'Hadar approached.

The Siege of AR-558 gets a grade of 9+ from me.



*****

7-09 Covenant

Dukat as a cult leader! Please, give me a break! What more can they do to destroy this once one of the most fascinating of Trek villains? As if Mad Dukat wasn't enough, they now have to turn him into a Jim Jones. I cannot stress how much I deplore this development. And to think of what he could've done had he still kept his marbles and remained on Cardassia.

I admit I know precious little about the psyche of cultists, but I found it much too implausible that Dukat could've gathered so many Bajorans to his little sect in such a short time, even considering that they were pah-wraith worshippers to begin with. Equally implausible was that they all, without a single dissenter, remained so gullible even when obviousness stared them in the face. I'm of course talking about the all too predictable fact that Dukat was the father of the first cult baby. And then by the end they suddenly change their minds just as they're about to take the suicide pills!

I don't know what the writers have in store for Dukat for the rest of the season, but I don't think I'm going to like it. It all feels too contrived, as if they need him to be someone he's not for plot reasons. They even have Kira communicating that Dukat's newfound beliefs makes him "more dangerous than ever." Um, I would think not!

A grade of 2 is what I can give Covenant.

[Linda]

The Siege of AR is one of my DS9 favorites, so I agree with the number of bums this time. And the gallows humor where they 'give back' the enemy their weapons was another memorable ST moment.

[CX]

While good in parts, The Siege of AR-558 has always struck me as somewhat over the top.

[thecursor]

Y'know...that episode would've been a lot different if someone pointed out to Starfleet that somebody should put some actual SOLDIERS on the battlefield!

[CX]

The writers always seemed afraid to do that though. Or even to show enlisted people for that matter. Seriously, for having O'Brien, I bet you could still count the number of enlisted people who showed up on TNG, DS9, and VOY all on the same hand, including O'Brien.

[JadziaKathryn]

That was something nice about ENT, where we did see some enlisted personnel, i.e. Cutler.

[Linda]

Uh, there were "real" soldiers on that battlefield...unfortunately they were on the other side.

[CX]

The only thing with them, was that as bad-ass as the Jem Hadar were supposed to be, when they fought, they had no real tactics - like barbarians rather than Romans.

[Linda]

That probably saved the collective Federation ass, them fighting like barbarians. But someone was using tactics, because weren't fleets of Federation ships wiped out? I might have read that in one of the novels rather than seen it on canon episodes. The battles on the screen seemed to be mostly about individual ships.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

And the reviewing continues...


7-10 It's Only a Paper Moon

Colour me surprised, but for essentially taking place on the dreaded holodeck, It's Only a Paper Moon was a rather tolerable episode. For once the gimmick worked, and that's thanks to the outstanding performances by Aron Eisenberg (Nog) and James Darren (Vic Fontaine). And neither of them are members of the regular cast, yet this is a story about them. In my mind Nog is a better developed character than Jake Sisko, and he's just a recurring character.

I really liked that they addressed the issue of Nog suffering through post-traumatic stress and that what happened to him in The Siege of AR-558 wasn't conveniently swept under the rug. It felt perfectly real that he would try and escape reality into Vic's Las Vegas holosimulation. And Vic made a good counselor, although in the end he did need a prodding by Ezri to realize that Nog had to be kicked out for his own good.

One question left hanging in the air is who Vic is now. Like the Doctor on Voyager and Moriarty on The Next Generation he seems to have outgrown his original programming and have become a sentient being (in a way). And now Nog will let him run for 26 hours a day. I'm hesitant as to what all this will mean. When does a hologram simulation become a "person"? Technology has now effectively created another form of artificial life.

Probably one of the best, if not the best, uses of the holodeck I've seen on Trek, I'll give It's Only a Paper Moon a grade of 6+.



*****

7-11 Prodigal Daughter

Given that we're well into the last season and there's a need to tie up various plot ends, I'm not sure this is a story we needed. Still, Prodigal Daughter is a decent episode and since I'm a big fan of Ezri I shouldn't complain that much about a story centred on her and her backstory.

As per usual in Trek (Ben and Jake Sisko a rare exception) Ezri has family issues. An overbearing mother runs a large enterprise as well as her sons in such a way that it's perfectly understandable why Ezri wanted out. Her acquiring the Dax symbiont hasn't helped matters either. But here she finds herself in a mystery involving the blackmailing Orion Syndicate and a dead widow (from Honour Among Thieves). I can't say I was surprised at the revelation in the end when Ezri's younger brother turned out to have been the murderer.

I do know that there are always liberties taken when different events and persons come together in story-telling, but wasn't it just too much of a coincidence that the widow of Miles O'Brien's mobster friend from earlier just happened to get involved with Ezri's family? It's a big galaxy after all.

Oh well, for Ezri's sake I'm going to be generous and give Prodigal Daughter a grade of 6 on my 10-graded scale. I liked the further insights to her character and it was nice to see her in a civilian outfit.



*****

7-12 The Emperor's New Cloak

The only good thing about The Emperor's New Cloak was Mirror Ezri, especially Mirror Ezri in leather! This was different from the cute and perky Ezri I've come to love in the real DS9-verse, and I found her totally hot anyway. She was also the only mirror character in this episode that seemed to have a genuine personality, with true motivations. Everyone else struck me as cardboard cut-outs.

I'm not that fond of DS9's mirror stories but I realize that they somehow had to wrap them up in this the final season. Too bad that they made such a poor job of it. I really couldn't care about what happened. It wasn't even that entertaining. I won't bother with talking about the nonsensical plot, because it doesn't matter. And the pseudo-lesbian scenes were so overtly titillating and gratuitous that it made me cringe. Oh, and wouldn't Quark and Rom stealing a Klingon cloaking device at a time of war be considered a serious crime? But I suspect we'll hear nothing about it.

And correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the notion that the Mirror Universe doesn't have cloaking devices wrong? I could've sworn that we've seen them before, but I'm too lazy and uninterested to check.

I would give The Emperor's New Cloak a grade of 2 but Mirror Ezri earns the episode one extra grade, and it thus gets a 3 on my 10-graded scale. It's telling that I've graded each consecutive mirror episode lower than the ones preceding it.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

Three more reviews. I'll probably not be able to finish with DS9 before my vacation ends (I go back to work on Monday).


7-13 Field of Fire

I'm actually surprised that they've made so many Ezri-centric episodes. Not that I should complain considering the way I feel about her character. In Field of Fire we get the third one. Granted it's not an extraordinary episode but I still enjoyed it.

I suppose having Odo as the detective would've made more sense, but he's a known quantity by now, and we've seen that before. Ezri, on the other hand, has only this season to make a lasting impact. Given the little evidence they had it makes some sense to use Ezri the counselor as a profiler. Who are they to know that she'd conjure up the repressed memories of Joran Dax (from Equilibrium in season three)?

The scenes with Ezri and Joran where a bit eerie in that she was seen talking to herself. I would've expected it be more of something that played out in her mind. That felt a bit clichéd at times. The co-operation between them did work, however, and it's interesting that even sweet Ezri could harbour some darker feelings.

The technology used by the killer was too convenient and raised a lot of questions. It would allow for remote killings of any enemy and I have to wonder why it's not been used legally. And the special scanning sight would allow for you to spy on anyone. But like with much Treknology they don't take it to its logical conclusions and I expect it to be conveniently forgotten by the next episode.

I liked the fact that the killer was a Vulcan that had snapped as a result from trauma suffered on the battlefield. It does show that it's a vicious war that even affects Vulcans. But the way Ezri narrowed it down to Vulcans was rather unbelievable. That was one huge leap in logic to assume that from the fact that the victims had been smiling in their family photos (doesn't most people do that?).

Field of Fire gets a grade of 6+ from me.



*****

7-14 Chimera

Chimera was an excellent episode that highlighted Odo's ever-present dilemma of being a changeling among humanoids, especially now when they're at war with his fellow shape-shifters. Before it's been easier for Odo to side with the solids since he doesn't agree with the Founders' war. But here comes Laas (and it wasn't until afterwards that I realized he had been played by J.G. Hertzler), another changeling that's not been a part of the Founders, to offer a very tempting alternative. And there are about a hundred more rogue ones out there, once seeded by the Founders. Imagine finding them and creating a new Great Link!

Things are however not so simple. Even if he's not a Founder, Laas exhibits many of the arrogant traits of the Founders. He feels eminently superior and looks down on solids as nothing more than creatures that pollute the "natural order of things." (This in many ways sounds a lot like the more extremist views of some environmentalists and animal rights advocates.) But he does raise the question about identity and how Odo has been repressing his true identity in order to fit in among the humanoids. While that can seem like a compelling argument it is also right for the solids to view Laas with suspicion considering what his views are and what he does, especially after having killed the Klingon officer. I liked that the episode didn't really take definite sides on the issue but instead just put forward the unfortunate facts.

The episode raises questions about the nature of changelings. Even away from the Founders Laas has developed some of their unfortunate characteristics. One has to wonder if that's because of his experiences growing up among humanoids. Odo did too and he turned out better. So had Laas a harder upbringing than Odo? Or is the mere fact that Laas has lived longer the reason why he turned more hostile and arrogant? If the latter, is that a fate Odo will suffer too if he decides to remain with humanoids?

Quark actually had some potent things to say to Odo about how and why we mistrust those that are different. It's a survival instinct, built into us. That's no defence for bigotry and prejudice, but being the cynic I am, I'm forced to agree with him. What makes the difference in humans is our capacity to transcend those traits. Obviously we've often failed in that regard during our history, but thanks to our reasoning and ability for empathy we can strive for it. That's ultimately what the civilization process is about. I'm amazed that an essentially idealistic show like Star Trek had someone say this and not getting chewed out for it.

Chimera is also a love story, and while I've been no fan of the relationship between Odo and Kira it worked here. At the end of the episode it is Odo's love for Kira that makes him stay, and love is apparently not something Laas has experienced, despite having lived longer than Odo and having also had a relationship with a humanoid. The final scene between Odo and Kira could've been very hokey but it was rather beautiful with Odo transforming himself into some light and surrounding his lover.

I am however not convinced that Odo and Kira will remain together. I've suspected before that Odo's ultimate role is to "rebuild" the Great Link and this episode made me even surer of that fact. His ultimate sacrifice will then be to abandon his relationship with Kira.

I'll give Chimera a grade of 9+ on my 10-graded scale.



*****

7-15 Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang

Gosh, not another holodeck episode! I realize that this was the writers last chance to do one and allow us to see Vic Fontaine again, but I'd have preferred it if they hadn't devoted an entire episode to this. Frankly, Sisko was right in the beginning when he thought the whole thing was just crazy. I liked his reply to: "Vic Fontaine's hotel has just been bought by gangsters." "I see. When are you planning on going back to work?" Exactly! Here we have grown men and women, in a time of war, doing this?

Watching it I quickly got impatient and wanted them to finish it. But it just dragged on and on. Sure Ezri dressed up in a skimpy cocktail waitress' outfit was a feast for my eyes, but that wasn't enough. While James Darren is a good actor, and his Vic Fontaine character was put to good use in It's Only a Paper Moon, I really didn't care that much about his plights here.

Speaking of which, the reasons for Vic's plight was terribly contrived. While I appreciate that they avoided the cliché of a "holodeck gone awry and threatening the lives of our real characters" it still was all too convenient that Vic's entire simulation was in jeopardy. For that matter, why design a holo-program where the participants cannot delete characters, let alone shut it off?

Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang gets a grade of 3+ from me. That's one extra grade for Ezri's fishnet stockings. Sue me, I'm shallow sometimes. Now let's go for some serious business!

[JadziaKathryn]

I liked that they made Ezri deal with Joran as another step in accepting her (joined) self. It wasn't as hard for Jadzia, but she had the Initiate training. So while it was sometimes too convenient, I thought the episode had great character development.

"I see. When are you planning on going back to work?"

For all that I thought Avery Brooks was a bit too wooden, I must acknowledge that Sisko was the most able Trek captain in terms of command ability.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

Three more, and I'm sure I won't have time to finish the show today...


7-16 Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges

Now this is the DS9 I really like, and consequently probably the DS9 some of the more idealistic Trek fans out there think is an affront to Roddenberrian Trek. I think it makes for a better and more realistic Trek. After all, how much drama can you get if everyone are behaving like boy scouts? And I may be a cynical bastard for not getting terribly upset at what happened here.

The actions taken in Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges might go against what the Federation supposedly stands for, but since I often don't agree to what the Federation supposedly stands for, I'm not all that worked up about it. These are the realities one has to deal with in a hostile universe where far from everyone is behaving according to Federation manuals. Sloan is right, without people like him and Section 31 good people like Bashir cannot sleep safely in the night. Harsh, but real.

I did greatly enjoy all the twists and turns in this episode, and the revelation at the end that none other than Koval, the head of the Tal Shiar, the Romulan secret police, was in fact a Federation mole was shocking - in a good way. I do feel very sorry for the innocent Senator Cretak, who was made to suffer to boost the credentials of Koval in the eyes of the Romulan Continuing Committee (a body that sounds a lot like a Polit Bureau).

One complaint could be that it worked a little too perfectly for Sloan. How was he to know that Bashir would spill it all to Cretak? I was surprised at that myself. Even though Bashir might have been repulsed by the (fake) plot to kill Koval, that's a far cry from jeopardizing not only Federation-Romulan relations, but possibly the entire war effort as well. Yet he walks right to her and even reveals the existence of Section 31. Why didn't he try and visit Admiral Ross in sickbay, or try and get a message through to Sisko despite the stated difficulties? Even if Section 31 doesn't officially exist, his actions could be viewed as treason. But as it turned out, he was just being played by Sloan and Ross.

I did like the confrontation between Bashir and Ross in the end, but Bashir's pontificating was a little grating. For someone who's been fascinated by espionage (and frequently played a spy on the holodeck) Bashir seems much to naïve about what this business really entails. I found myself agreeing with Admiral Ross here (and if that makes me "Machiavellian" then so be it). I can certainly see things from Ross's perspective - achieving victory over the Dominion so that fewer people can be sent out to die. In fact, I can even picture Sisko and Ross being on the same page here. Sisko's the one who got the Romulans involved in the first place (with some, ehum, help from Garak).

Also, given what we know about the Romulans, I find it prudent to "prepare for the next war" as Bashir put it to Sloan. Sure, they're our allies now, but what about later? It's no different from the alliance with the Soviets during World War 2 that was bound to turn confrontational afterwards. These are the realities and it would irresponsible not to acknowledge and act upon them.

And since I find the Romulans one of the more interesting species in Star Trek (far more than I do the Klingons, who've been done to death), that's another bonus for this episode. I hope we get to see more of them in the few remaining episodes of this show.

I'll give a well deserved grade of 10 to Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges. Excellent stuff!



*****

7-17 Penumbra

It's rather difficult to judge Penumbra, since it's obviously a set-up for the rest of DS9's final stretch of episodes. It's essentially the first of the ten remaining chapters. As such it mostly worked but a lot hinges on how these different plotlines will pan out as the show concludes.

I liked the Sisko scenes. But I have a foreboding that things definitely won't happen the way he at this point wants. He might get to marry Kasidy, despite being told not to by his Prophet mother, but retiring on Bajor is probably not going to happen, if for no other reason that the Prophets said "The Sisko is of Bajor but he will find no rest there" (last season's Sacrifice of Angels). This is the price he'll have to pay for enlisting the aid of the prophets then. His destiny lies elsewhere.

We got a glimpse of how things are on Cardassia, with the Dominion struggling to find a cure for the disease that's spreading among the Great Link. At this point I'm still not certain who or what is responsible. It could very well be the Vorta committing deicide. And while Damar seems useless with his drinking and womanizing, I somehow feel that there's more to him, that it might just be an act. As for Dukat altering himself to look Bajoran, I don't know what to think. His development thus far hasn't met with my approval.

I really didn't like the Ezri and Worf story. I can understand the confusion and their residual feelings, but this was all so sudden and frankly rather cliché-riden, down to them being accidentally stranded on a planet, arguing and then falling into each others' arms. That was just an icky and a cringe-inducing moment, and I'm not even a Trill invested in the notion against "reassociation". I also happen to think that there is no chemistry between them. Ugh!

But then Worf and Ezri got captured by the Breen, and things turned interesting again. I don't know where this will go, but if I hazard a guess, then the alliance against the Dominion might be getting a new member. Or the opposite. We'll see.

For now I'll give Penumbra a grade of 7-, but that's subject for revision once I finish with the series.



*****

7-18 'Til Death Do Us Part

As with the previous episode, 'Til Death Do Us Part is hard to judge, but I found myself not liking as much due to some of the plot developments. That goes especially for Kai Winn and Dukat. Now that was one kiss that almost had me worshipping the great porcelain god. Bleach! But I'll get back to that in a moment.

First I must say I did like the Sisko and Kasidy scenes. He gets cold feet from the Prophets and the wedding is called off, but he decides to go with his heart and they're eventually married. This could easily have been very soap opera-ish, but thanks to what we know about them, the Prophets and everything it didn't feel that. It felt genuine and also bittersweet since these two will undoubtedly not be able to remain together after all is said and done. I also liked that Kira was the one arguing for the Prophets and worried about Sisko defying them. That's perfectly in character. I wonder if she will be so accepting of fate when it concerns Odo, who I think will also leave.

The Breen joining forces with the Dominion was a nice twist. I had expected them to join one side or the other. I suspect that Damar won't be so pleased since it's likely that the Breen will prove to be a much greater ally for the Dominion than Cardassia is. I still think there's more to Damar than meets the eye, and his (final?) conversation with Dukat reinforces that belief.

But, as I said, I didn't like the path taken for Kai Winn. To me it's fairly obvious that she got her vision not from the Prophets but from the pah-wraiths, who are leading her into an alliance with Dukat-in-disguise to reshape Bajor, probably in some twisted evil manner. While she's struck me as a very insecure woman before, this is just too much. And she's stupid for not recognizing Dukat. Sure Marc Alaimo looks different, but not that different. He also has the same voice and most of his mannerisms. I can see where this is heading and I can already say that I don't like it. I think it's really out of character for both of them, but that they're made to do this for plot reasons.

As before, I've said I don't like the Worf and Ezri thing, and now they throw in Ezri having unconscious feelings for Bashir! Please, this was just a convenient substitute for not showing an actual relationship grow between them. I suppose the writers didn't think they had enough time to build one, but then why do it at all? I might get surprised and see it develop better, but somehow I doubt it.

So I'll settle for giving 'Til Death Do Us Part an average grade of 5, with the possibility for revision later.