“HOMEFRONT”
Times, they are a-Changeling...
Originally intended as the third season finale, “Homefront” truly has the feel of a season finale, with a slow, simmering sense of tension that gradually builds to a cliff-hanger while successfully interweaving a number of wonderful character moments throughout. Yup, there’s a heck of a lot to like here, and it’s one of several DS9 episodes that seem particularly prescient in retrospect, especially considering it was the product of a pre-911 era.
While the show’s primary focus in the fourth season shifted to the Klingons, I was always relieved when it became clear that the Dominion was far from forgotten, and this is one of the most effective storylines in the Dominion arc yet. The revelation that Changelings have infiltrated the Alpha Quadrant was simply too fascinating not to follow up, and the news that the Founders have orchestrated a terror attack on Earth is a suitably dramatic hook to set events in motion here.
Fortunately, it allows for our first extended trip to 24th century Earth in what seems like…well, forever, actually. While TNG visited Earth a couple of times, we got to see precious little of life on our future-Earth. As nice as it is to spend some time at Starfleet Command, I’ve always found TNG-era Starfleet design and decor frightfully bland and beige, so it’s a relief that we spend some time outside of Starfleet in this two-parter and see that 24th century life isn’t all sterile and characterless. I love that part of these episodes are set at the Sisko family restaurant, which boasts colour and character and shows that people are still people and that life on Earth is nicely diverse rather than homogenised.
One of the crowning achievements of this two-parter is the casting of Brock Peters as Joseph Sisko, and he is magnificently warm, stubborn and feisty in the role (and it’s a testament to his versatility that I never thought of Admiral Cartwright once). It’s simply a delight to see three generations of the Sisko men together, and just as Avery Brooks and Cirroc Lofton share a beautiful chemistry, Peters almost feels as if he could actually BE their dad/grandfather. The family dynamic is plain wonderful to watch, and is something we never got before or again on Star Trek (I know Beverly and Wesley Crusher were mother and son, but they had next to no chemistry in my opinion).
I particularly appreciate the way the writers use the Ben/Joseph relationship to demonstrate the paranoia and hysteria that’s gripping Earth. The kitchen confrontation is perhaps the high point of the episode and works so well because it’s not just
telling us how the Dominion threat is screwing with people’s minds—it
shows us, and it makes for solid drama. Mind you, the writers do throw in a few red herrings designed to make us wonder if Joseph might actually BE a Changeling, and that slight uncertainty makes these scenes all the more powerful. It’s actually unsettling to watch, precisely because we’re already so emotionally invested in the Sisko family.
Of course, this episodes sees Sisko promoted to acting head of security on Earth. He sure gets around, huh? (But, then, this is the guy who would end the series as a literal deity!). This promotion does feel just a little left-field given that Sisko was never a security officer at all, but I can accept it, if only because he’s our series lead and the plot necessitates his involvement. Along with his old friend, the seemingly earnest Admiral Leyton and his forthright adjutant, Commander Benteen (who used to be called Leah Brahms before a mortifying holodeck scandal with a certain Enterprise engineer forced her to change her name and identity), Sisko is determined to protect Earth from the threat imposed by the Changelings.
The real problem is the Federation President, Jaresh Inyo, who is…well, basically, a bit spineless. These scenes made me uneasily think of the onset of the pandemic last year and how certain weak leaders were highly reluctant to take action, resulting in horrific and avoidable death tolls. As a Brit, I’m specifically thinking of Boris Johnson, a man who, due to his own ineptitude and need for approval, wanted to avoid upsetting people or disrupting their lives even when the direness of the crisis was plain to see. President Inyo is far more likeable, however, but he is undeniably weak and clearly lacks the grit or conviction to make the tough calls. Of course, we’re naturally on Sisko and Leyton’s side in this episode, because we’ve seen the chaos that’s been caused and we know what the Dominion is capable of. It’s clearly a dangerous road to go down, however, and reminded me of a fascinating and insightful documentary I watched years ago called “The Politics of Fear”, which was about how fear can be weaponised to gain control over people and generate compliance. I wonder if anyone actually managed to guess the dramatic reversal we’d see in the second part?
While this is an excellent episode all round, I do have some nitpicks, primarily with regard to Earth’s political structure. Basically, I’m confused as to why the Federation President also seems to be doubling as the leader of Earth. Do the writers think Earth is synonymous with the Federation and doesn’t have its own ruling body? Surely when planets join the Federation their autonomous governments aren’t all subsumed into one Federation omni-government? There’s no way in hell that could ever work. I feel the writers really didn’t think that one through at all, and it comes across as lazy, unsatisfying writing. The devil is in the details as they say, and they really failed to put enough consideration into how Earth and the Federation actually work.
Aside from that, if “Homefront” has any real flaw it’s simply that it’s pretty much all set up. That said, when set up is this good, I don’t mind at all. It’s a dramatic, engaging and thought-provoking episode that deftly balances plot and characterisation. The heart of the episode are the scenes with the three Sisko men, and it’s also fantastic to see an exuberant Nog, now a regular at “Sisko’s” as he struggles to fit in at the Academy (although Avery Brooks’ performance somehow makes Sisko seem overly irritated and even a little disdainful of the very boy whose application to Starfleet Academy he sponsored).
It’s nice to see Odo play a larger role (having been generally under-utilised this season), and while they don’t get much screen time, the rest of the cast all get some nice moments, including Kira who wistfully musing that she was hopeful that the Prophets were about to communicate with Bajor and Worf’s hilarious declaration that the Klingons killed their own Gods because they were more trouble than they were worth. The idea that Dax is breaking into Odo’s quarters to move his furniture is…quite frankly head-scratching (not to mention criminal). I get that the writers have been playing up the roguish, teasing side of her nature, but that particular detail is still a little too bizarre. Before leaving the station, we get a fun scene with Bashir and O’Brien dressed up as RAF Squaddies in Quark’s, in what I believe is the first in what would become a regular series of holosuite outings for the two.
All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this episode and considered giving it a 10, but a couple of niggles and an underwhelming cliff-hanger work to its detriment. The declaration of martial law on Earth doesn’t seem nearly as dramatic as it ought to be, particularly when all the budget will stretch to is a couple of armed Starfleet officers beaming onto the street outside Sisko’s restaurant. I also find that my enjoyment of this episode is marred just a tad by the knowledge that the second part would be something of a disappointment. Nevertheless, it’s still an example of the series pretty much firing on all cylinders.
Rating: 9
