“WHAT YOU LEAVE BEHIND”
DS9’s opening credits in some other alternate universe...and I kind of wish I lived there.
“Um, Colonel, I hate to say this, but I think your boyfriend might be a bit of a link pest.”
“Yeah, he never misses an opportunity to get down and linky, does he? Even in situations like this, which, let’s face it, require first degree beer goggles.”
“Maybe there’s some kind of link addicts anonymous group he can join?”
I can’t believe 22 years have passed since this episode aired. I grew up with this show and these characters and, as a result, DS9 has a place in my heart like no other Trek series. I was sad when it ended; far more so than when TNG bade the small screen farewell—I guess partly because it made the immediate transition to the big screen because and, although it was my first entry point of Star Trek, I was never as attached to its characters. DS9’s ending had a sense of finality to it, and that seemed appropriate in many respects. Although I’m still sad that while TNG and VOYAGER characters have been resurrected for certain new Star Trek productions these past couple of years, DS9 has been all but forgotten (aside, alas, for Section 31). That’s in spite of the fact the show has aged far better than ANY of the Trek shows of its era. In many ways, DS9 was one of the frontrunners of a whole new style and era of television, although it rarely gets the credit it deserves.
Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself! I could write a whole essay about DS9’s place in the Trek franchise and television history, but this is simply a review of the series finale. The question here is, after seven years of brilliant storytelling and superb characterisation, how well does the show end?
I have to say that while I do have some issues with “What You Leave Behind”—including some particularly annoying flaws that could easily have been resolved by subtle tweaking—as a whole, this was a solid way for the show to bow out. Expectations were high and there was a LOT to deal with in these ninety minutes, but, for the most part, it’s a satisfying resolution to DS9’s increasingly ambitious long-form storytelling. Most importantly, it provides great closure for the characters, even if some inevitably get lost in the shuffle.
The main storyline hanging over us is, of course, the Dominion War which has, for two years now, ravaged the Alpha Quadrant (and presumably the Beta Quadrant, too, although they rarely get a mention!). This is undoubtedly the most ambitious storyline Star Trek ever attempted and it has generally been a triumph. The build up through seasons three, four and five gave DS9 its peak years, and the six-episode arc that kicked off the sixth season was a triumph and one of the show’s greatest creative accomplishments. Unfortunately, however, it also seemed to burn out the show’s creative staff. Between the early sixth season and late seventh season, the show’s narrative often felt unfocused and fitful, as though the writers didn’t really have a clear plan
what to do with the war storyline once they’d set it up. It’s served as the backdrop for some stunning episodes, but it also meandered at times and it’s only really been the last ten episodes that we again felt a sense of focus and coherent progression.
The climax to the war arc doesn’t contain a whole lot of surprises. We get the expected space battles—which are, unfortunately, a little disappointing due to the copious use of past special effects sequences, (including, most egregiously, a shot of Garak sheltering from an explosion which was taken from the previous episode—and Garak obviously can’t have been on any of those exploding ships!). I get the sense the producers found themselves without the budget they really needed and it does, sadly, show. Not all of the new special effects sequences are as well staged as they could have been (the “GoPro” type shots of the Defiant and Cardassian vessels didn’t really work for me), although there are some spectacular moments, such as the shot of the enemy fleet in orbit of Cardassia. I kind of suspected that the war would be resolved by Odo making the female Founder see sense and resolving to return to the Great Link. I also guessed that Damar would die at some point. You see, even though he had embarked on a remarkable path to redemption, his previous murder of Ziyal meant he had to pay some kind of dramatic retribution.
In spite of a certain degree of predictability, it’s executed with great aplomb. Allan Kroeker again proves why he’s perhaps the show’s most skilled director and he always manages to keep things moving at a brisk pace and really knows how to craft a sense of tension and atmosphere. The script, by showrunner Ira Behr and his writing partner Hans Beimler, is fine, if at times lacking in finesse. The build up to the battle features a few too many lines such as “It’s time we end this war” which is basically writers’ code for saying “we’re running out of time and have to wrap this up quick!” Wars rarely, if ever, end just because we decide to end them. In some ways, I actually wish the writers had ended the war sooner and given us some time to explore the aftermath. Anyway, there are a couple of things that feel just a little too coincidental or easy, such as the way the Cardassians all manage to turn on the Dominion at more or less exactly the same moment. Was someone coordinating that or was it just chance that every Cardassian everywhere happened to switch sides at the same time?
Nevertheless, one of the episode’s greatest triumphs is the way it deals with Cardassia’s fate. Man, do they SUFFER for having betrayed the Alpha Quadrant and aligned themselves with the Dominion! Dukat’s ultimate legacy has nothing to do with the Pah-wraiths, but the desolation of Cardassia after the Dominion rains down hellfire and attempts to slaughter as much of the population as they can. It’s grim viewing and, as the characters note more than once, strangely appropriate given that, when the series started, they had basically just done the same thing to Bajor.
If this final ten episode arc has any one theme, I’d say it’s karma, or cause and effect, both at an individual and collective, societal level. The writers certainly don’t shy away from consequences; and consequences abound throughout this finale. I found the closing exchange between Garak and Bashir one of the highlights of the episode. It’s the first time we’ve really seen the pair together in a couple of seasons, which is sad given the obvious chemistry between Alexander Siddig and Andrew Robinson, but it’s a brilliant and heart-rending farewell to Garak, who has finally ended his exile only to return to a graveyard of a planet. Robinson is stunning in this short, potent scene, and his final words, “We live in uncertain times” are perfect and so true of life in general.
I have to say that Salome Jens deserves high praise as one of the most chilling and ruthless villains Star Trek has ever seen. Indeed, for all that Khan gets the acclaim (and, indeed, the endless imitation in the various latter-day Trek films), the female Founder is a far more complex, fascinating and utterly terrifying villain. Her ice cold order to exterminate the entire planet still freezes my heart all these years later. While some might feel that Odo managed to placate her too easily, it nevertheless works for me, because it’s already been demonstrated that the Link can cause profound changes and shifts in perspective, as we saw with Odo himself back in “Between the Lines”. Furthermore, the Founder herself once told Weyoun that she would give up the entire Alpha Quadrant just to have Odo back, and that’s basically what happens here.
It works, although I do have reservations. I love the fact that Odo is able to cure the Founders, and that his ability to do so is what ends the war. Whereas Section 31 thought they would win the war by doing the unspeakable—committing genocide—Odo proves himself one of the most “human” of all the show’s characters by insisting that it’s by sharing the cure—by healing and cooperation—that peace can be found. For all that DS9 has challenged and dismantled Roddenberry’s Utopianism, how Star Trek is THAT?
It doesn’t come as a surprise to me that Odo ends the series by returning to his people. In fact, it seems like a logical end to his arc. However, the way it’s done doesn’t
quite work for me. The fact is, there’s no real reason why he can’t come back after he’s cured his people. He says that he has to stay with them so they can learn to trust the solids. I suppose that’s fair enough, except for two things.
Firstly, why does that necessitate him staying with them
permanently? As we saw when he linked with the female Founder, Changelings can exchange information and facilitate entire paradigm shifts, as Odo does with her, in mere seconds.
Secondly, how likely is Odo to get the Changelings to “trust” solids when they learn that it was actually the
solids that created and infected them with the disease in the first place—that they were intent on facilitating the genocide of their race? Awkward. This twist would have worked MUCH better for me if the condition of the Founder’s surrender had been that Odo HAD to return to the Link for good. That, in fact, is my head cannon as it makes for a real sacrifice on Odo’s part, rather than him simply deciding that he and Kira had a good run but it was time for him to enjoy sweet luscious
linky long-time. That said, when it does come for Kira and Odo to part, it’s so beautifully performed and shot that it is genuinely heartbreaking. More on that in a bit.
In general, I think the resolution of the war storyline works pretty well. It feels momentous and there’s certainly enough of a sense that it cost both sides substantially. It’s great to see Martok, Sisko and Ross stand in the halls of Cardassia’s Central Command, only for the latter two to find no cause for celebration in the midst of such carnage. Indeed, there are no winners in war, and that is made amply clear. As a side note, I did have to wonder when I saw the female Changeling signing the peace treaty—what the heck did she sign her name as? Most of the Cardassia scenes work well, although the Breen continue to annoy me every single time they have a “speaking” part. I did enjoy the relationship between the Founder and Weyoun, the latter of whom meets a sticky end by unwisely gloating to Garak about the devastation they’ve caused on Cardassia—a diplomatic
faux pas that deservedly costs him his life. Alas, there are a substantial number of secondary characters that bite the dust and there’s no time to dwell on their losses, for the plot immediately moves on each time.
Now I’m going to discuss the episode’s secondary plot: the much lamented pah-wraith showdown in the fire caves. I’m actually a lot less offended by the pah-wraiths than most. Actually, I love the idea of feuding “gods” and the way they’ve manipulated these foolish mortals in a bid to turn the key and be set free from their dimensional prison. It’s given us some fantastically compelling drama so far between Dukat and Winn, although, sadly, the best is behind us.
The resolution here is pretty weak even if it does serve its purpose. The number one problem I have with it, and my biggest complaint about the episode, is
the seriously WONKY sense of timing. Structurally, the scenes in the fire caves should have been kept until later in the episode rather being interwoven from the first act onward. Why? Because the fire cave scenes clearly take place in a matter of hours, whereas the attack on Cardassia and the end of the war obviously takes places over days, if not
weeks. First of all, how long does it even take to travel to Cardassia to begin with? It takes three or four hours just to travel to Bajor, so it must take at least a day or two to get to Cardassia...especially if you’re having to fight through an armada to get there. Yet, by midway through the battle, Winn and Dukat reach their destination, Winn poisons Dukat (which is a wonderful, devilish twist which I always forget about) and then stands chanting...for what evidently must be DAYS!
It makes no sense. The timing is also off when Dukat is resurrected and Sisko has his Jedi-moment where he realises he has to head to the fire caves. Again, it takes three hours for a runabout to reach Bajor, yet it’s clear that only moments have passed in the fire caves by the time Sisko gets there. This would have actually worked better if the Prophets had used some kind of magic to instantaneously transport Sisko to the fire caves. The timing is just horribly off, and it could have been easily avoided. All they needed to do was re-edit the scenes and hold most of the fire cave action until Sisko and crew were at least back on the station. Yes, it would have altered the pace and structure of the episode, but that is a necessary sacrifice for coherence and internal consistency. I’m frankly amazed the producers or director didn’t notice this problem. I recall reading that the writing of the finale was somewhat rushed and it does frankly show at times.
Alas, when Sisko does reach the fire caves, the confrontation with Dukat is an anticlimactic misfire which descends into camp overdrive. While, on one hand, it somewhat recalls Kirk’s duel with Gary Mitchell in the second TOS pilot “Where No Man Has Gone Before”, it’s nowhere near as effective. Indeed, this is just a few notches away from 60’s Batman-type shenanigans. Dukat, who is evidently either an reanimated cadaver or again possessed by the pah-wraiths, is just a moustache-twirling supervillain caricature here with nothing interesting to say other than some cheesy gloating. He and Sisko have a banal shouting match, with Avery Brooks unfortunately briefly slipping into histrionic mode (“Who’s going to stop me?” “I aaaahhhhhmmmmm”)—and accidentally breaking Marc Alaimo’s nose to boot (each time I see and hear that punch I wince!). I do like that Winn
kind of redeemed herself before being burned to a cinder, but, really, the whole sequence felt rushed, half-baked and naff. I get what they were aiming for, but the execution is really not the best.
It is, however, mercifully brief, and leads to the tear-jerking final act. In some ways, it feels only right that Sisko’s arc finished with him basically as a Prophet. It’s been fascinating to watch his spiritual journey these seven years, something Star Trek has never been bold enough to do before or since (and I’m certainly not going to include Chakotay’s “Native American” schtick on VOYAGER). There’s almost a touch of the climax to THE MOTION PICTURE, with Sisko making the leap from mortal to “god” and
boldly going where no one has gone before in a way Kirk or Picard can only dream of.
Unlike TNG, the writers knew they could create a definite ending to DS9 because, sadly, as unloved and under-appreciated as it was, it would never be “going to the movies”. I also stand by my theory that this was Sisko’s penance and that, from the moment he convinced the Prophets to stop the Dominion fleet in “Sacrifice of Angels”, he was destined to die. After all, stopping the Dominion fleet basically shifted the entire timeline. As a result of losing the station, Dukat also lost Ziyal and his MIND—and was eventually, as a direct result, led to the pah-wraiths. Presumably, if the Dominion had never lost their fleet in “Sacrifice of Angels”, Dukat would still be head of Cardassia and would never have embarked on his quest to unleash the pah-wraiths and get revenge on Sisko and Bajor. Sisko was inadvertently responsible for it all, and he had to pay the price by stopping Dukat. When I look at it that way, I actually appreciate this storyline a lot more, even if the execution often got a little cartoony for many people’s taste.
Sisko’s appearance to Kasidy is definitely heart-rending, and is given even more emotional weight by Dennis McCarthy reprising his achingly beautiful theme from arguably the show’s finest episode, “The Visitor”. My only objection is that we don’t see Ben saying goodbye to Jake. Yeah, they had to use Kasidy otherwise the entire wedding storyline was a waste of time, but, for me, the emotional core of this show has always been Sisko and Jake. I really, REALLY wish the writers had at least implied that Sisko sent Jake a vision to say “so long”.
Of course, Sisko was originally meant to be as dead as a dodo and wasn’t coming back. Avery Brooks insisted this was a terrible ending because it played into the unfortunate stereotype of a black man inevitably leaving his family. I think this was probably the right call to make, and I like the ambiguity Sisko’s promise to return adds. I know he does in the novel-verse, but that’s not cannon and I don’t imagine we’ll ever really find out if Sisko ever
did return. I feel that adds a wistful ambiguity to the show’s mythology.
Most of the characters get some kind of closure, or else sent in a new direction. Some of these character resolutions are more successful than others. Bashir, after all these years of pining and lusting,
finally gets a relationship with Dax—it’s just a shame he and Ezri have precisely zero chemistry together. I guess his character peaked around the fourth and fifth seasons, because there’s not really been any sense of progression otherwise this season. I’m afraid, for me, Ezri was mainly an unnecessary diversion this season, although she did play a small but important part in season highlight “Tacking Into the Wind”. O’Brien, I now realise, didn’t have much of an arc on the show at all other than his friendship with Bashir. That reaches a bittersweet end when he leaves to take up a position at Starfleet Academy.
Kira gets command of the station—and her old catsuit back (even though she looked far better and more professional in a “proper” uniform like the Starfleet one). Quark remains where he belongs at the heart of the station, and I loved the final scene between he and Kira which mirrors the argument they had at the very end of the first episode, “Emissary”. “The more things change the more they stay the same” indeed. Jake—well, the writers practically abandoned the character this past season, with poor Cirroc Lofton barely in a handful of scenes of all season. I guess we can conjecture that he went on to become a great novelist and began to look more like Tony Todd with each passing year.
“Minsk.”
The last half hour of the episode features a number of heart-stirring goodbyes. I love the scene in Vic’s with the crew together for the last time (along with a who’s-who of assorted writers, producers and recurring guest stars as extras in the lounge). Vic’s song and the flashbacks are sappy, yes, but nevertheless earned, and never fail to get me emotional. Admittedly, not all of the flashbacks work. Worf’s are conspicuous by the utter absence of Jadzia (the result of a dispute with Terry Farrell and seemingly Paramount’s unwillingness to pay to use her likeness). Knowing they couldn’t use Jadzia, they should have ditched Worf’s flashbacks altogether because it simply makes no sense without her. It also makes no sense that Worf would reminisce being Duchamps in “Our Man Bashir” when he should have no memory of it (for it wasn’t even him). Jake’s flashbacks, however, are by far the best. It’s incredible watching just how much he grew over the course of those seven years. I still felt cheated that we didn’t get to see a final scene between he and his father, but this helped make up for it.
I loved Worf’s promotion to Ambassador between the Federation and Klingon Empire which, in many ways, seems the perfect end point for the character. It’s just a shame that it’s completely undone by NEMESIS a couple of years later. I mean, couldn’t they have simply featured Worf as Klingon ambassador who just happened to be on board the Enterprise at the time? Why did he end up back in Starfleet so soon afterward? But that’s a criticism of NEMESIS, not this. It was a great idea while it lasted.
The farewell between Odo and Kira is perhaps the episode’s emotional peak. Ironically, in spite of the fact that neither were particularly “sold” on the romantic relationship between their characters, Rene Auberjonois and Nana Visitor
sell it beautifully. Their farewell is heartfelt and always makes me cry just a little. Again, I wish they’d better specified why Odo could never come back, but it’s still a really moving moment and beautifully shot and scored. Even better is the final shot of Kira standing by Jake’s side, arm around him as the camera pulls back, away from the station, and allowing us to watch as DS9 disappears among the stars. Again, I never manage to get to the end credits without a tear in my eye. How I miss this show.
Overall, this is a fantastic yet flawed end to an excellent series. There are some fundamental problems that could easily have been resolved by altering the story structure and some judicious editing, yet the good more than outweighs the bad. It’s a hard one to rate. Objectively, it’s certainly not perfect, so I’m going to go for a solid
Rating: 9. It’s DS9, though...and it moves me every time. In my heart it’s kind of a
10. Which is it? I don’t know. It’s not linear.
I’m going to post some final disjointed musings on DS9 in the next day or so, and explain why I probably won’t be writing any more reviews. Until then, did you find the finale?
