Meridian

[Tora Ziyal]

I just watched Meridian for the first time.

Dax's falling in love with the guy (forgotten his name already) wasn't at all credible. I got no sense of who he really was or what was so appealing to someone with eight lifetimes of experience (he seemed pretty boring to me, and I've had only one). There didn't even seem to be any real "chemistry" between them.

So what do others think about this episode?

 

[sonak]

I share your opinion. I think I've only seen it once, and it's not high on my list to re-watch.

 

[DGCatAniSiri]

Meridian? Nope. Never heard of it. No such episode. Does not exist. Lalalalala

 

[Sykonee]

Meridian is the worst episode of DS9. Yes, even worse than the one where Quark is injected with mass quantities of estrogen and is dressed in drag.

 

[trekkiebaggio]

Definitely the worst episode of DS9. It's the only one I skip when I do a re-watch of the series.

 

[Skellington]

Saw it for the first time about two or three months ago. Bordering on dreadful-beyond-belief territory. Weak story, godawful script that feels like it was written by a school kid, acting that ranges from woeful to indifferent. While watching, I began to wonder what the heck was going through the producers' minds when they commissioned this obvious turkey. If it has a saving grace, it's probably the somewhat competent Sisko/Dax scenes.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

Well, that makes me feel better! Misery loves company.

It'll be interesting to see if anyone comes along to defend the episode.

 

[TheGodBen]

The comedy stuff with Quark is top-notch, some of the best in the show.

Sadly, the Jadzia stuff doesn't even qualify for the "so bad it's funny" category, it's just mind-numbingly boring in its awful execution of an awful story.

 

[toughlittleship]

Well, that makes me feel better! Misery loves company.

It'll be interesting to see if anyone comes along to defend the episode.

The sci-fi elements of the sun causing the planet to shift were interesting.

 

[Skellington]

The comedy stuff with Quark is top-notch, some of the best in the show.

Sadly, the Jadzia stuff doesn't even qualify for the "so bad it's funny" category, it's just mind-numbingly boring in its awful execution of an awful story.

I forgot about the Quark scenes, actually.

The rest of your post mirrors my own thoughts pretty much exactly. A little more effort might have elevated the episode to "so bad it's funny" standard with everyone having a laugh, but they probably just saw the script and deemed the episode a lost cause. With 26 episodes a year, a few unfortunate ones are to be expected. Season three does have a pretty decent standard overall, I think.

 

[Shatnertage]

I just watched Meridian for the first time.

Dax's falling in love with the guy (forgotten his name already) wasn't at all credible. I got no sense of who he really was or what was so appealing to someone with eight lifetimes of experience (he seemed pretty boring to me, and I've had only one). There didn't even seem to be any real "chemistry" between them.

So what do others think about this episode?

I think you're absolutely correct.

 

[Sykonee]

For anyone that tries to defend the b-story, here's a likely scenario that played out during story sessions:

"Hey, remember when we did that episode where we put Quark's head on Visitor's body?"
"Yeah, that was funny. Yuk yuk yuk!"
"So how about we do that again, but this time make Quark a full woman! That'll be" so hilarious!! Yuk yuk yuk!"
"Yeah, so hilarious! Yuk yuk yuk!"
"Yuk yuk yuk yuk!!"

 

[SchwEnt]

Frakes directed this one. Does he get any flak for it? Or are the faults only in story/acting/characters/other?

 

[Tora Ziyal]

^Yes, Frakes should get some of the (dis)credit. But the poor guy didn't have much to work with.

 

[Marie1]

Yeah, I thought the B-plot was good (Jeff Combs!!) but the A-story was absurd... if a Trill is responsible for carrying a symbiont, can they go off willie-nilly like that? I mean, I know Jadzia wasn't required to go back to Trill during the war... hosts can risk their lives, but at least she'd be using the knowledge of the slug's experience. Running off for that guy was just silly.

 

[Deranged Nasat]

Yeah, I thought the B-plot was good (Jeff Combs!!) but the A-story was absurd... if a Trill is responsible for carrying a symbiont, can they go off willie-nilly like that?

That's a really good point that I hadn't thought of before. You're right; I can't see a Joined Trill willingly putting themselves in a situation where there's no way to transplant the symbiont or return it to the pools. Being in space and taking the attendant risks for the sake of living a full life is one thing, but running away from your life entirely and severing all ties to Trill seems reckless, and at odds with what we've seen elsewhere. I guess this is another characterization point that rings hollow in this one, quite aside from the troublesome "true love" business...

 

[defiantfan]

It was too much of a TNG story in my opinion. They could have easily put Troi in Jadzia's place.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

if a Trill is responsible for carrying a symbiont, can they go off willie-nilly like that?

Excellent point. I hadn't even thought about that.

It was too much of a TNG story in my opinion. They could have easily put Troi in Jadzia's place.

I can't imagine Troi running off that impulsively, or with that guy.

 

[SchwEnt]

That's a pretty good whole other can of worms.

Could Jadzia have reasonably tooken off with that guy?
What risks can a joined Trill take? Is it subject to the Trill Commission? What risks can a host take with any symbiont?

Evidently, wartime combat situations are permitted. Hard to get riskier than that. So is it anything goes, the damned precious symbiont can be placed in mortal danger at the host's choosing? Isn't that incompatible with the whole Trill symbiont-worshipping society?

 

[Terra Pryme]

Frankly, the B-story was as weak as the main story. That was as predictable as Leah Brahms seeing herself in Geordi's holoprogram in TNG's "Galaxy's Child". Fortunately, that was the last time they did those Kira vs. Quark B-stories (after season 2's "Shadowplay"). Aside from the predictability, it was obviously Quark would never win.