Pick the 22 most important episodes...

[DigificWriter]

... of DS9 Season 2.

Hi, all. I'm trying to create a 'streamlined' 22-episode version of DS9's second season, but need some help. The reason I want to cut four episodes is that I decided, as an exercise in creativity, to create some uniformity in terms of the amount of episodes in any given season of every one of the Star Trek series, which led me to a pattern of 20-22-26.

Anyway, back to my request for help. I'd like people to give me their picks for the 22 most important episodes of DS9 Season 2 based SOLELY on the following three criteria:
1) Major character moments both short-term and long-term
2) Important story arcs both short-term and long-term
3) Continuity in both the short-term and the long-term (including character references and/or appearances)

I'm already starting to watch the second season, BTW, so quick responses would be greatly appreciated.

[Tosk]

I disagree with your approach, but if I personally had to drop four episodes from season 2 they would be:

Melora
Second Sight
Paradise
Shadowplay

[DigificWriter]

Thanks for the reply. As I said, I only did the streamlining as an exercise in creativity.

In terms of your suggestions, three out of the four have elements in them that fit the criteria I want to emphasize.

[Melakon]

Melora might be historically significant however, as such a character was originally conceived as a main cast member when first developing the series. Then they wised up and realized the potential technical and budgetary problems of pulling it off every week.

[DigificWriter]

Melora's significance, at least based on the criteria I want to emphasize, is that it introduces a character who later appears in Playing God, which can't be cut because it too features important elements that fit the criteria I mentioned.

BTW, do you have any suggestions as to the 22 most important eps of the season based on my criteria?

[Melakon]

l already butted heads with you in another thread, on what I thought of the project, so it's best I stay out of it.

[The Mirrorball Man]

In what way is discarding four episodes an "exercise in creativity", I don't get it.

[DigificWriter]

Melakon: Okay. Admittedly, though, I had the wrong approach in that other thread.

BTW, I was led to the 20-22-26 pattern because of two things, neither of which was arbitrary:
1) DS9's first season having 20 episodes
2) Voyager' s first season having had 20 episodes filmed for it

The Mirrorball Man wrote:

---

In what way is discarding four episodes an "exercise in creativity", I don't get it.

It is/was an exercise in creativity because I applied it to all five series and had to sit down and figure out what episodes were truly important and which weren't. DS9 Season 2 is the only season that I had trouble with, which prompted me to ask for some help.

[Tosk]

DigificWriter wrote:

---

Melora's significance, at least based on the criteria I want to emphasize, is that it introduces a character who later appears in Playing God

Are you talking about the Klingon Chef? Seems like a pretty minor reason to keep the ep in the run, but okay.

I'll be interested to see which four you decide to go with. By which I mean I plan to pick at the reasoning used.

[DigificWriter]

Tosk: As I noted above, I did try to sit down and figure out on my own what four DS9 S2 eps I could cut, and went through a couple of different configurations before realizing that I wasn't entirely happy with the end result and decided to seek outside opinions.

[Tosk]

I gave you three other than Melora. Just need one more....Sanctuary or Rivals.

[DigificWriter]

Tosk: I'd thought about cutting Rivals and at one point did have it cut, but changed my mind because it seemed to be important in terms of the development of Julian and O'Brien' s friendship.

The same thing applies to Sanctuary as well in that it too was an episode that I myself had decided to excise at one point before changing my mind, mainly because of the reference to the Dominion that appears in the episode, although I guess it can be debated whether or not that's a big enough reason to keep the ep.

Re: your previous suggestions, Second Sight was, as I alluded to previously, the only one that didn't fit the criteria I wanted to emphasize and therefore made sense as something I could cut without screwing things up down the line.

Re: Melora, I don't know how prominent of a role the Klingon chef character - which is indeed whom I was referring to earlier - introduced in that ep plays in Playing God and didn't want to end up with a scenario where I cut his introduction and then regretted it later.

[Tosk]

If it helps, the Klingon chef is a ridiculously minor character that you would never know had been in it before or after.

And I almost didn't suggest Rivals due to the Bashir/O'Brien stuff, but if you have to pick four then something's gotta give.

[DigificWriter]

Ok. I'll go with cutting Melora and Second Sight. I'm still on the fence about Sanctuary, though.

Anyone have more suggestions?