Playing God - Proto-Universe?

[Long Syntax]

In the Playing God episode of season 2, a proto-universe is discovered lodged in a runabout's nacelle after passing through the wormhole to the gamma quadrant. Upon returning it is placed in an isolation field but starts expanding. At some point Dax discovers that there is life in the proto-universe causing a dilemma - the expanding proto-universe is an immanent threat to the Bajoran system and their current universe, but their ideals tell them they can't just destroy the proto-universe if they know life exists in it. Sisko decides to return the proto-universe to the gamma quadrant.

Question, how the hell does returning the proto-universe to the gamma quadrant solve anything? If expansion threatens their universe in the alpha quadrant, surely just moving it to another quadrant in the galaxy would solve nothing... or am I missing something here?

 

[Timo]

The idea seemed to be that local conditions in a specific spot of Gamma kept the proto-universe from expanding. After all, Dax said that "we snagged something from the subspace pocket", that is, from outside the regular universe.

Finding that "subspace interphase pocket" again was not said to be problematic, nor flying through it. So that no doubt was their goal: to drop the proto-universe back in that specific hole where it had been existing just fine until very recently.

There might have been similar holes in the Alpha Quadrant, but the heroes didn't know where. They did know the location of the hole in Gamma, so that's where they went for the drop. Or, like Dax said after they reached Gamma: "Now, lets get this thing back where it belongs!".

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Long Syntax]

Thanks Timo! I was missing that context I guess - getting it back to THE subspace pocket at least is plausible in-universe

 

[Timo]

Yeah, it's pretty confusing, as the subspace pocket is never actually mentioned again after the initial discovery of the proto-universe...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Terok Nor]

Sisko decides to return the proto-universe to the gamma quadrant.

Question, how the hell does returning the proto-universe to the gamma quadrant solve anything? If expansion threatens their universe in the alpha quadrant, surely just moving it to another quadrant in the galaxy would solve nothing... or am I missing something here?

So Sisko dumped his trash in the Gamma Quadrant? No wonder The Dominion hated the Alpha Quadrant so much

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Thanks Timo! I was missing that context I guess - getting it back to THE subspace pocket at least is plausible in-universe

At least it's not a subspace HOT POCKET. Those are even more inedible than the real ones.

 

[Tim Thomason]

The Federation weren't able to morally destroy the proto-universe, but I'm sure the Dominion didn't have the same limitation.

 

[at Quark's]

So Sisko dumped his trash in the Gamma Quadrant? No wonder The Dominion hated the Alpha Quadrant so much

Well, it was gamma quadrant trash to begin with, so I'd say they couldn't fault him for bringing back stuff to its original state (hopefully)

Another small mystery: they have to do some precision flying through the wormhole to avoid all those 'verteron nodes', or whatever they are called. They show up as huge spheres with a luminescent center and a dark edge:

and we even get to view exterior shots of the shuttle flying past them. Yet, AFAIK, we never see those nodes again! Now, I could believe that this was a computer enhanced visual from within the shuttle, these nodes normally being invisible, to aid manual piloting, but how would this account for the exterior shots ? Perhaps the presence of the 'proto-universe' made them light up like a christmas tree?

 

[Timo]

Either that, or then the wormhole has "weather" just like the Bajoran system itself does. Those annoying plasma storms ravaging the Denorios belt might result in an upwelling of verteron nodes half a season later...

Funnily enough, this is also the only time AFAIK that a runabout is shown being steered via tiny rocket blasts. And never mind that some of those come from surface greeblies supposed to be phaser emitters rather than rocket nozzles, the very concept of there being visible rocket blasts is odd enough. If this is some sort of a tertiary, if-all-else-fails steering mode (and the same goes for TNG "Booby Trap"), why did everything else fail this once?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[at Quark's]

Funnily enough, this is also the only time AFAIK that a runabout is shown being steered via tiny rocket blasts. And never mind that some of those come from surface greeblies supposed to be phaser emitters rather than rocket nozzles, the very concept of there being visible rocket blasts is odd enough. If this is some sort of a tertiary, if-all-else-fails steering mode (and the same goes for TNG "Booby Trap"), why did everything else fail this once?

Timo Saloniemi

My first reaction would be to chalk it up to the extreme precision flying required and the normal propulsion systems weren't finely-tuned or fast-reacting or nimble enough or something like that, but then again, there's probably a whole slew of episodes in which the same or even a higher degree of precision flying is required, that don't feature this tertiary system ...

 

[publiusr]

Yet, AFAIK, we never see those nodes again!

Well, we had the sphere builders from Enterprise. In V'ger, there are similar structures.

Maybe "the prophets' mastered the tech a bit better.

Just the thing to fix the Barzan wormhole

 

[Curios_Gelatin]

I have to say, the biggest issue with that episode for me was the lack of investigation and theorizing into said universe.

If I recall correctly (and I haven't watched this episode in a while so correct me if I'm wrong) a couple of crew members have some throwaway lines like 'I'm reading life signs!' and someone says something about the sanctity of life because Kira wants to blow it up. I was just kind of watching it thinking '...I feel like no one's fully grasped the fact that they literally have found a MINIATURE UNIVERSE.'

Like come on. Is no one going to try make contact with the tiny aliens and pretend to be their Gods? Quark? Anyone?

 

[Long Syntax]

I have to say, the biggest issue with that episode for me was the lack of investigation and theorizing into said universe.

If I recall correctly (and I haven't watched this episode in a while so correct me if I'm wrong) a couple of crew members have some throwaway lines like 'I'm reading life signs!' and someone says something about the sanctity of life because Kira wants to blow it up. I was just kind of watching it thinking '...I feel like no one's fully grasped the fact that they literally have found a MINIATURE UNIVERSE.'

Like come on. Is no one going to try make contact with the tiny aliens and pretend to be their Gods? Quark? Anyone?

Excellent point! I could totally see Quark scheming a way to profit by proclaiming himself a god

 

[USS Triumphant]

Now, I could believe that this was a computer enhanced visual from within the shuttle, these nodes normally being invisible, to aid manual piloting, but how would this account for the exterior shots ? Perhaps the presence of the 'proto-universe' made them light up like a christmas tree?

There's no conflict here once you accept the truth that their are NO exterior shots anywhere in Star Trek. What you're always seeing is what is on your OWN (cloaked, possibly phased) ship's main screen. This explains why there are sounds in space, and also why you saw the same computer enhanced visual on the "external" shots - they're all enhanced by your ship's computer.