Reviewing DS9

[Sarahjs]

Rules of Acquisition

I want to play Tongo!! It looks fun. Does anyone play it as a real game, or is in only on TV? Anyway, Grand Nagus Zek returns to try do business in the Delta quadrant. Meanwhile, Quark chooses an associate who is a woman posing as a man in order to be able to do business. I think this might be the first episode to mention the Dominion. The red painted face aliens are quite weird and silly looking. I liked the Ferengi story, later DS9 goes onto Ferengi female rights and such and this is probably the beginning of the whole thing. It's also quite amusing, the woman trying to kiss Quark when he thought she was still a man. Quark was really scared. ;D I wonder how Ferengi view homosexuality? Quark seems more cool with it than with the idea of a female making profits, but he does stand up for her in the end I guess. I would not want to be a Ferengi female. A solid episode, Zek's voice is still annoying.

6/10

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Necessary Evil

A Bajoran woman pays Quark to retrieve something from the station, and Odo solves a five year old case. I like Odo's log, it's funny! I like these semi-narrated via log episodes on Star Trek. Interestingly, I usually hate narration in movies and other TV series, it usually seems lazy, out of place and jarring. But it works on most Trek episodes that do it. I like Odo's voice in his log almost as much as I like G'Kar's voice with his speeches on Babylon 5. There is something about it that draws the viewer in, well, at least me, I can't speak for everyone. There is a lot to like about this episode, I was especially enjoyed the flashbacks to the Terok Nor times. We learn what the station was like under Cardassian rule (it looks very dark and dreary) and how Odo came to run security on Terok Nor/DS9. Also, poor Odo, he saved Kira from execution for a crime that he thought she was innocent of, yet it turns out that she was guilty after all. This episode accomplishes many things e.g. gives us background stories on the characters, shows the different atmospheres on Terok Nor and DS9 etc. You know, I have never seen Odo do the "Cardassian neck-trick" - I wonder what on earth it is. If it is what I imagine it to be, it does not seem that interesting or amusing of a party trick. Poor Odo. Also, it's a really good and relevant story in this episode, with great character interactions.

9/10

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Second Sight

The way that Sisko says "Wolf 359", I don't know whether to laugh or cry, he says it with so much hatred. It's sad. Anyway, Jake has a bad dream and Sisko sees a woman who is not really there. Sigh. A boring episode. I swear, Season 2 of DS9 is actually worse than Season 1. I dislike both Melora and Second Sight more than I dislike any Season 1 episode, except, perhaps If Wishes were Horses. The positive is that the terraformer dude is quite a character and annoying, so at least this episode got some sort of reaction out of me, even if it was a negative one. In fact, no, it's not enough and he is too annoying. The whole episode is quite silly and practically unwatchable. Yet, I can't help but feel that perhaps I am being overly harsh on this episode, but it's just so boring.

0/10

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[Kobayshi Maru]

I for one, can't wait to read your take on Sanctuary... also The Alternate, Whispers and Paradise.

 

[Sarahjs]

I for one, can't wait to read your take on Sanctuary... also The Alternate, Whispers and Paradise.

Cool. I'll carry on with some of those on Sunday I'm sure.

In the meantime, good weekend to all!

 

[Sarahjs]

Sanctuary

A bunch of flakey skinned people come through the wormhole looking for Kantana. Also, Jake goes on a date with a Dabo girl and Nog gets into trouble with Odo. The Skreeans are quite annoying and I don't have much sympathy for them unfortunately and neither do many of the people on the station. However, the episode has some interesting political overtones and I fully understand the Bajoran position on this, they do not want to risk having to support an additional three million people. Also, quite an amusing episode with Jake and Nog. The Skreean lady is a complete bitch to Kira and for once, Kira is the rational one. The Dominion is mentioned once again, as a powerful force in the Gamma Quadrant. Also, stupid Skreean child, deserved to be killed quite frankly. Fancy behaving like that. Ugh. And then not listening when told to stop. Quite an average episode, nothing too amazing.

5/10

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Rivals

A conman comes aboard the station and Julian and Miles play squash, or something. The main value of this episode is the Julian/Miles competitiveness, without this substory, it would be complete rubbish. As such, it's really amusing to watch them clash - poor Miles, he just wants to beat Julian and poor Julian, he just wants to prevent Miles from dying of a heart attack. I'm so happy those two become friends eventually. Then there's also this super magic item that causes you to either be really lucky or really unlucky. How silly. Oh, the conman dude is unbelievably dull and does not really have any interesting rival type chemistry with Quark, so that whole story is kind of boring. He is also extremely stupid for not seeing right through the other woman's con. It's really obvious. Quark exploiting the sports rivalry between Julian and Miles in order to turn a profit is great though!

3/10

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The Alternate

The Bajoran scientist who was assigned to Odo comes aboard the station. Chaos ensues. This episode is one that I feel should have been good, but somehow, it falls flat. Finding out more about Odo's history was interesting and the actor who played Dr. Mora was engaging, but the overarching story of Odo going crazy due to "childhood" trauma exacerbated by weird planetary gas was quite dull and a bit silly. Also the mystery surrounding it is not very exciting. "I think, Odo, that you have been placed in the ironic position of tracking down yourself." Lol. Poor Odo is very offended by the thought of committing a crime. The effects in this episode also look quite stupid. I was baffled by the score to give this episode, I like some aspects of it, but dislike others, so I just termed it a bit lacking.

4/10

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Armageddon Game

Julian and Miles help an alien race to destroy their stockpile of destructive biological weapons and their death is faked. These aliens also have really stupid hairstyles. I like this episode to a certain extent. Julian and Miles are put in a situation where they are forced to communicate with each other and try to help one another. I think one can actually see Miles beginning to find Julian less annoying, well, at least after he actually stops being annoying. He talks way too much and does not think before speaking... I also appreciate the fact that when Keiko comes to Sisko, convinced that Miles is alive, he takes her seriously and does not dismiss her as a grieving widow. I remember in a similar situation when Data "died" on TNG in The Most Toys, Geordi was not taken seriously at all for most of the episode as he tried to raise questions about the chain of events. It's also quite amusing that Keiko's suspicions were based on faulty information that Miles does not drink coffee in the afternoon. I feel it adds a little something extra to the story, but I can't really express what it is in words. Oh, I love Quark's eulogy. A very good episode on the character interaction side, but the aliens were stupid and annoying and this let down the episode a lot.

6/10

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Whispers

Miles thinks that everyone on the station is acting suspicious, but he is really the one who is different. The latter becomes clear really quickly, but the first time I watched it, I was not really sure precisely what was going on and I could not have anticipated the ending. It was interesting how the story unfolded and quite a good little mystery story. I was quite tired when watching this episode, but my mom wanted to watch it and this forced me to do so also, so I don't feel like saying too much about it. The ending is quite powerful.

6/10

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[Kobayshi Maru]

Sanctuary

A bunch of flakey skinned people come through the wormhole looking for Kantana. Also, Jake goes on a date with a Dabo girl and Nog gets into trouble with Odo. The Skreeans are quite annoying and I don't have much sympathy for them unfortunately and neither do many of the people on the station. However, the episode has some interesting political overtones and I fully understand the Bajoran position on this, they do not want to risk having to support an additional three million people. Also, quite an amusing episode with Jake and Nog. The Skreean lady is a complete bitch to Kira and for once, Kira is the rational one. The Dominion is mentioned once again, as a powerful force in the Gamma Quadrant. Also, stupid Skreean child, deserved to be killed quite frankly. Fancy behaving like that. Ugh. And then not listening when told to stop. Quite an average episode, nothing too amazing.

5/10

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Rivals

A conman comes aboard the station and Julian and Miles play squash, or something. The main value of this episode is the Julian/Miles competitiveness, without this substory, it would be complete rubbish. As such, it's really amusing to watch them clash - poor Miles, he just wants to beat Julian and poor Julian, he just wants to prevent Miles from dying of a heart attack. I'm so happy those two become friends eventually. Then there's also this super magic item that causes you to either be really lucky or really unlucky. How silly. Oh, the conman dude is unbelievably dull and does not really have any interesting rival type chemistry with Quark, so that whole story is kind of boring. He is also extremely stupid for not seeing right through the other woman's con. It's really obvious. Quark exploiting the sports rivalry between Julian and Miles in order to turn a profit is great though!

3/10

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The Alternate

The Bajoran scientist who was assigned to Odo comes aboard the station. Chaos ensues. This episode is one that I feel should have been good, but somehow, it falls flat. Finding out more about Odo's history was interesting and the actor who played Dr. Mora was engaging, but the overarching story of Odo going crazy due to "childhood" trauma exacerbated by weird planetary gas was quite dull and a bit silly. Also the mystery surrounding it is not very exciting. "I think, Odo, that you have been placed in the ironic position of tracking down yourself." Lol. Poor Odo is very offended by the thought of committing a crime. The effects in this episode also look quite stupid. I was baffled by the score to give this episode, I like some aspects of it, but dislike others, so I just termed it a bit lacking.

4/10

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Armageddon Game

Julian and Miles help an alien race to destroy their stockpile of destructive biological weapons and their death is faked. These aliens also have really stupid hairstyles. I like this episode to a certain extent. Julian and Miles are put in a situation where they are forced to communicate with each other and try to help one another. I think one can actually see Miles beginning to find Julian less annoying, well, at least after he actually stops being annoying. He talks way too much and does not think before speaking... I also appreciate the fact that when Keiko comes to Sisko, convinced that Miles is alive, he takes her seriously and does not dismiss her as a grieving widow. I remember in a similar situation when Data "died" on TNG in The Most Toys, Geordi was not taken seriously at all for most of the episode as he tried to raise questions about the chain of events. It's also quite amusing that Keiko's suspicions were based on faulty information that Miles does not drink coffee in the afternoon. I feel it adds a little something extra to the story, but I can't really express what it is in words. Oh, I love Quark's eulogy. A very good episode on the character interaction side, but the aliens were stupid and annoying and this let down the episode a lot.

6/10

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Whispers

Miles thinks that everyone on the station is acting suspicious, but he is really the one who is different. The latter becomes clear really quickly, but the first time I watched it, I was not really sure precisely what was going on and I could not have anticipated the ending. It was interesting how the story unfolded and quite a good little mystery story. I was quite tired when watching this episode, but my mom wanted to watch it and this forced me to do so also, so I don't feel like saying too much about it. The ending is quite powerful.

6/10

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Armageddon Game: The aliens were really stupid. You don't solve a scientific problem by killing everyone who knows anythng about it. That's something only a dictator would do, like Ivan the terrible who ordered that the architects who made a very beautiful cathedralof his had their eyes gouged so that they could not reproduce it anywhere else. No doubt it's some megalomaniac scientifically ignorant vermin that made that decision. Miles contamination is proof that in spite of their efforts they hadn't completly eradicated the pathologic agent. A "civilization" like that deserves either to die or to undergo some serious revolution.

Whispers: There was the possibility that Miles was right and that this was a simulation of sorts for example (cf: The Inner Light, Hard Time, ( the section 31 episode Inquisition I think it's called.) Anyway, it was always a possibility, up until the very end. It's quite moving that fake Miles' last thought was for Keiko...

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

I've begun my first rewatch since doing a review thread of my own four years ago (sadly it was unfinished, which is one of my great regrets of 2010... which I guess in the broad scheme of things means I probably had a pretty good 2010) and I'm not far behind you. Keep 'em coming, because whereas last time I had a lot of fun posting, this time I'm going to just sit back and enjoy reading.

Excellent score re: Second Sight, by the way. My least favorite episode, I think. :P

Season 2 is really rough in its first half, but most of its second half is actually good. It's the first time the show feels routinely solid, I think, or at least the second time since the "Duet -> In the Hands of the Prophets -> Circle three-parter" portion, all of which I find decent to great. Once you hit that lovely uptick part of Season 2 the show never falters for long for the rest of its run. There are definitely dud episodes afterward, but never so regularly.

 

[Quinton O'Connor]

"Duet" might be one of the best episodes in the entirety of Trek. It shows just how exceptional DS9 was at story telling, thanks to the great characters and the darker setting.

It is also one of the many chances when Kira shines through, solidifying her place in my heart as the best Trek character ever.

Ooh, same, same. My 2010 rewatch was the first time I watched the series as an adult, and up through 1x18 I was thinking, "huh, I remember really liking Kira as a kid... was it simply because she's attractive...?"

And then "Duet" happened, and I choked up hard, and it was never the same going forward. Kira the best.

 

[Sarahjs]

@Kobayshi Maru - Thanks for the feedback. With Armageddon Game, my favourite aspect is the development in the Julian/Miles relationship - I feel it's really the strength of the episode.

@Jeff O'Connor - I think I'm past the worst of Season 2, if I remember correctly. Ugh Second Sight is bad. It's also my least fav of DS9. Pity you did not manage to finish your rewatch thread. Having quite a good time with mine - is adding something to my rewatch having to think about the episodes a bit more!

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Paradise

Sisko laments the speed at which Jake is growing up and a human culture who uses no technology is discovered. This is quite a solid episode in my opinion. I think that this is the first episode where I liked Sisko as a character in his own right, rather than a comparison to Picard's command style. I guess it helped that he was tortured and I felt sorry for him. :| Alixus is crazy. She should just go and live however she wants to and not force other people to do the same. I am sure she could find other people in the Federation who wants to live as she does, e.g., Picard's family... I like the episode, but I hate the ending. Why would all the people she manipulated choose to stay on the planet? I call bullshit. I would be out of there ASAP. Have I mentioned I really like Sisko in this episode? His stubbornness is the stuff of legends. Anyway, I wish Alixus was not so crazy, it would have been much more powerful then, as I may have had more sympathy for her. As such, all my sympathy and respect is with Sisko.

7/10

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Shadowplay

Dax and Odo go to investigate a particle field in the Gamma Quadrant and discover a community of holograms. Meanwhile, Kira has to deal with Quark, and Sisko tries to convince Jake to get a job. Have I mentioned how happy it makes me that Jake is a kid that isn't super keen to join Starfleet? It's so good to see! Also, to my disappointment, the ever-monotonous Vedek Bareil makes an appearance. Ok, I need to try and break this episode down in a logical fashion, as there is a lot going on. First of all, as I mentioned, I like the Jake story and the fact that he does not want to join Starfleet. It seems like a dramatic thing, but Sisko is cool with it I think. I like to believe that most parents would be supportive of their children's decisions in regards to what they choose to their career paths. Second, I like Odo's growing friendship with the little holographic girl, however, I think this part of the episode is a bit of a stretch. Odo and Dax should have realized that these people were holograms a long time before they did, with their tricorders and all. Though, it is a very sweet story, and the Dominion is mentioned as a threatening force. The Vedek Bareil story is crap, though Kira is always watchable, simply because she is a strong female character. Good episode.

7/10

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Playing God

A Trill initiate comes to be mentored by Jadzia Dax. Oh, there is also something about a tiny universe growing in the station. To break it down, the universe story is a bit dull, but enables the Dax story and the Jadzia story is interesting. I sympathize with Jadzia, the trill initiate initially seems very indecisive and unsure of himself. He seems much more promising when he actually stands up to Jadzia. Also, Jadzia is quite torn between guiding him to be a better candidate and not being as mean to him as Curzon was to her. Curzon sounds like a right old bastard, if I'm being honest. From all appearances, Jadzia does do a better job. I suppose the concept of the proto-universe is alright, I am just glad the episode is not dedicated to exploring it or it would be extremely boring. I like that Kira is a proponent of destroying the universe, because, firstly, it fits with her character and secondly, because such a disagreement would not have occurred on another Star Trek series and, let's be honest, it is a valid option. Oh, I almost forgot, Jake is also in love with a Dabo girl. Not the most interesting of story lines. A decent episode all in all.

6/10

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Profit, and Loss

Three renegade Cardassians come aboard the station, Quark is in love with one of them and Garak gets involved. This is another episode into which I felt the need to put a random comma. It just sounds better. Like A Man, Alone. Well, at least it sounds better in my head at any rate. "Maybe, I'm an outcast spy." "How can you be both?" "I never said I was either." Awesome exchange. Garak says the most awesome things. "What would you do? Short-change them at the Dabo Table?" Quark and Garak are among my mom's favourite characters in DS9, so I must assume that she likes this episode. I like this episode. Not overly much, but it is quite good. I am not overly fond, for instance, of the relationship between Quark and the Cardassian lady and it's quite a big part of the episode, but, on the other hand, it's quite interesting to see Quark engaged in something besides profit-making, though it did come out of nowhere. However, Garak generates enough intrigue to keep anyone engaged. The clash between civilians and military on Cardassia interests me a great deal as well, it shows cracks within the Cardassian Union and shows that not all Cardassians support the military. I find it telling that while Garak proclaims loyalty to the state, he chooses to assist the renegades, it shows me that he sees the flaws in the military run state and thinks it would be better off with a change. Also, awesome how he set up his enemy the Gul and this enabled him to kill him. Ah, the exchanges between Odo and Quark are great, as always.

7/10

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[Kobayshi Maru]

...
Paradise

Sisko laments the speed at which Jake is growing up and a human culture who uses no technology is discovered. This is quite a solid episode in my opinion. I think that this is the first episode where I liked Sisko as a character in his own right, rather than a comparison to Picard's command style. I guess it helped that he was tortured and I felt sorry for him. :| Alixus is crazy. She should just go and live however she wants to and not force other people to do the same. I am sure she could find other people in the Federation who wants to live as she does, e.g., Picard's family... I like the episode, but I hate the ending. Why would all the people she manipulated choose to stay on the planet? I call bullshit. I would be out of there ASAP. Have I mentioned I really like Sisko in this episode? His stubbornness is the stuff of legends. Anyway, I wish Alixus was not so crazy, it would have been much more powerful then, as I may have had more sympathy for her. As such, all my sympathy and respect is with Sisko.

7/10

Actually, it's a well-known phenomenon called the Stockholm Syndrome, so I wouldn't dismiss it so lightly if I were you.


Sisko's confrontation with Alixus is obviously inspired by The Bridge Over the River KWAI. A classic.

 

[Sarahjs]

...
Paradise

Sisko laments the speed at which Jake is growing up and a human culture who uses no technology is discovered. This is quite a solid episode in my opinion. I think that this is the first episode where I liked Sisko as a character in his own right, rather than a comparison to Picard's command style. I guess it helped that he was tortured and I felt sorry for him. :| Alixus is crazy. She should just go and live however she wants to and not force other people to do the same. I am sure she could find other people in the Federation who wants to live as she does, e.g., Picard's family... I like the episode, but I hate the ending. Why would all the people she manipulated choose to stay on the planet? I call bullshit. I would be out of there ASAP. Have I mentioned I really like Sisko in this episode? His stubbornness is the stuff of legends. Anyway, I wish Alixus was not so crazy, it would have been much more powerful then, as I may have had more sympathy for her. As such, all my sympathy and respect is with Sisko.

7/10

Actually, it's a well-known phenomenon called the Stockholm Syndrome, so I wouldn't dismiss it so lightly if I were you.


Sisko's confrontation with Alixus is obviously inspired by The Bridge Over the River KWAI. A classic.

Yeah, you could have a point about the Stockholm Syndrome. Something for me to consider for a bit.

Never seen Bridge Over the River Kwai! But it's always cool to find out little facts like this!! Thanks!

 

[Sarahjs]

Blood Oath

Quark has a problem with a Klingon, Odo solves it, and Jadzia runs off to fulfil a blood oath of Curzon's with Koloth, Kor and Kang. It's nice to see the Klingons from TOS. They seem to have quite a long life span though. I really enjoy this episode, the Klingons are funny and Jadzia's uncertainty at killing is well handled. Sisko overreacts to her fulfilling Curzon's blood oath for some inexplicable reason. I thought he understood Trills quite well. I always wondered, is the Albino a Klingon albino? He kind of looks like it but I can't be very certain. An actiony and engaging episode. Though I could have done with more action and humour from this episode and less of Jadzia fighting a moral battle with herself. This is something I can rarely criticize about an episode I guess, but Jadzia's moral dilemma carries on for a bit too long.

7/10

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The Maquis Part 1

Kira comments on Jadzia's odd taste in men and terrorists blow up a Cardassian freighter. Let me get what I really don't like about this episode, well, entire two parter out of the way. I really, really don't like Sisko's friend, I felt he was weird and weirdly acted, I am not sure why. And I felt that there was no friendship-like chemistry between him and Sisko. I don't like the Maquis also, they are very whiney and annoy me, but I don't think I will go into that now. Also, why would a Vulcan join them, it is illogical. I would say this episode is the one when Dukat starts to get really interesting as a character. I also enjoy Gul Evek's appearance here, it's a nice bit of continuity from TNG, which is not overly in my face, unlike Q and Vash visiting DS9, because it makes sense. I think this episode might have worked better for me, had I initially watched it before Pre-Emptive Strike, as there would have been more mystery about whether the Maquis actually existed or not. I like that there is no clear moral high ground, the Cardassians are sneakily attacking Federation citizens and the Maquis are engaging in terrorist activities, but really, if I were a Federation citizen, I would just leave. Honestly. Ok, I won't rant about the Maquis. It's an interesting episode, all in all, a good episode, but I don't find it exceptional. I love the politics of it and I really enjoy the interactions between Dukat and Sisko. I also like Sisko in this episode, he stands out here, he has not yet stood out very much in the series. I see Kira's point of view about the Federation colonist's suffering and understand that she sympathizes because of her experiences with the Cardassians, but she is wrong in this instance. She did not choose to live with the Cardassians, the colonists did, so they must either deal with it, or leave. It's as simple as that. Don't misunderstand, I find the Maquis an interesting storyline and my strong feelings about them are, in fact, a positive thing and not a criticism of the story. I know I am quite harsh on them, but I am sure if they asked the Federation to give them assistance in moving, they would have it. It's not like the Federation is like an earth government of modern times, which lacks the resources to handle people moving.

8/10

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The Maquis Part 2

Ok, I can understand to some degree the actions of the Maquis, but I fail to understand why Starfleet officers would join them. It makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. It made sense in the case of Ro Laren, but everyone else? Why? I think I quite share Sisko's offence at the concept, except I am not as emotionally invested as he is. I like Admiral Nacheyev's appearance, for the same reasons I liked Gul Evek's appearance in the previous episode. I love Sisko's "It's easy to be a saint in paradise" speech. See, the Maquis should just move to earth, where they can be happy. The Cardassian Central Command is no longer a fan of Dukat. The Cardassians are quite capable of being helpful, when it serves their interests, even Dukat. An excellent episode, more great interactions between Sisko and Dukat. Quark is great, he points out to the Vulcan woman that her being a member of the Maquis is illogical. Even he understands that fighting is silly and pointless. I can find very little to dislike about this episode, even Sisko's friend is not as annoying here, but I suspect that this is because he does not take up as much screen time in this one.

9/10

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[Quinton O'Connor]

Loving these! I recall discussion upon my 2010 trek through the wormhole about how "Blood Oath" marks the beginning of an impressive string of higher-quality episodes for how early into the show it still is. I hope you find yourself concurring and I look forward to seeing if I still do as well.

Totally agree with Sisko's friend not being well-actef though. He's just so... wooden and yet aloof as well. It's a problem, and it isn't helped by the fact that Sisko himself still hasn't hit his stride. Brooks needed to carry those scenes for the both of them and if it had been Season 3 or later he would have. But it wasn't, and so they didn't have the proper impact.

His "paradise" speech, however, is delicious. It's the beginning of the clear line between Trek fans, it's been said -- the moment those who adore the cleaner, more "evolved" sentiment TNG claimed turned away in strife, whilst those of us who wanted to see what we consider a more nuanced, realistic depiction of humanity in the 24th century smiled and geared up for where subsequent seasons were destined to take us. It was in a way the antithesis of Picard's earlier speeches, and I love it.

(I like TNG, for the record. I just, well, love DS9.)

 

[suarezguy]

I've also watched through most of season 2 (most episodes for the first time).
My biggest complaint is Dax, the writers and actress seem too inconsistent in how much her past hosts influence her and to be trying too hard too often to make her popular; in "Blood Oath" especially there seemed to be too strong an influence from a past host (and Curzon being active 80 years ago would make him at least around 100 when he died rather than the at most 70-75 he seemed to be in the pilot) and her struggling to join the quest without actually knowing whether she complete it felt contrived.
Sisko as the Emissary seems neglected but he's still had some good episodes as a different kind of lead (especially the end of "In the Hands of the Prophets" where he openly argues against Winn in front of an audience) and "The Maquis" two-parter was the first time he and Dukat were both really well-done. I love how Sisko's perspective on the Maquis changes drastically after he learns Hudson is involved, without his basic attitude and response changing, and Dukat can't resist mocking his captors.
Odo and his relationship with Quark were a little rough in some early episodes but both got much better quickly, really good by early season 2.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

As for why Starfleet officers are willing to join the Maquis, google 'anomie'.

I don't think Sisko overreacted to Dax's request. I think he gave her special treatment by allowing her to go and remain in Starfleet. Murdering somebody out of revenge is directly incompatible with being a Starfleet officer.

Dax definitely had some inconsistent writing, but I can understand the writers' frustration with the actress. You can see it as early as Babel. When Dax started speaking incoherently, she shouldn't have understood that she was speaking incoherently until everybody started reacting to her, because to her she should have been speaking normally. But you can see her reacting shocked as soon as she starts speaking incoherently, before the character should be aware of it.

When I re-watch DS9, I skip maybe 20 episodes over the series. Fewest out of any Trek. Those skip episodes generally consist of Moogie episodes, Vic Fontaine episodes, and Dax episodes.

 

[Sarahjs]

Happy Holidays all!

@Jeff O'Connor - I think I have definitely entered into the great part of DS9 - it's my favourite trek all in all!

@suarezguy - thanks for your comments - hope you are enjoying DS9! I enjoyed reading your take on some of the characters!

@JirinPanthosa - Thanks for your input. Unlike many people, I generally have no problem with the Dax character or either of the actresses that portrayed her! I quite enjoy Dax episodes - inconsistencies and all!

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The Wire

Garak has an addictive wire in his head, and Julian helps him, despite his protests. One of the strengths of DS9, is that every now and then, it dedicates an episode to exploring the past of one of the recurring guest stars and if I am not mistaken, this is the first one and it focuses on my favourite character, Garak. The great thing about this particular episode, is that it explores Garak's past to an extent, but not to the extent that the character loses any of his wonderful intrigue and elusiveness. If anything, it works to make him even more intriguing and elusive, which, I believe, is an important part of the brilliance of the character. The episode gives information, without giving too much of it, which I imagine is quite a hard balance to strike. We are also introduced to the Obsidian Order, an awesome organization if I ever knew one. I think we also get to know the serious side of Julian in this episode. He has, previously, been quite light hearted and humorous in general, but I feel that we get a real sense of his dedication to treating his patients and to his profession here. Even when Garak tells him a terrible story about his past, he is still determined to help him. Also this episode has some great acting from both Andrew Robinson and Alexander Siddig. Tain is also quite interesting, I am glad he returns later. It's quite a brilliant episode, all in all.

10/10

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Crossover

Kira and Julian cross over into the mirror universe via wormhole malfunction. I am not a huge fan of the mirror episodes that DS9 does - I sort of have a love-hate relationship with them, but I do appreciate the continuity from TOS and that they did later continue the arc. Ugh, I don't like Mirror!Garak, he is quite whiney and has pretty much no backbone. He tries to be all plotty and evil and fails miserably. The Garak from the normal universe never would have failed!! And he gets even worse in later episodes. Mirror!Miles is not very different from normal Miles. Mirror!Sisko is obnoxious and I am glad he does not make a second appearance after this episode. Oh, I really enjoyed the banter between the real Bashir and Kira and the beginning of the episode in the runabout. It's quite an entertaining episode and quite amusing.

6/10

_____________________________________________________

The Collaborator

Vedek Bareil once again graces me with his dullness. He proceeds to have a bunch of dull visions. And a Bajoran collaborator returns from Cardassia. Oh, it was high time they elected a new Kai by the way. I am somewhat glad that it was not Bareil. While he would have made a better Kai than Winn, Winn is more interesting and this does a better story make. Ugh, Winn is so disingenuous, she wants to be elected Kai desperately enough to approach Sisko and get an endorsement from him. It's really quite brilliant, she drips with fakeness. She is also extremely condescending to Kira, probably because she is jealous of Kira's true belief in the Prophets, something that she lacks, in my opinion. I don't really like this episode very much, it focuses too much on my least favourite character, Bareil. It does have some redeeming qualities though, and the story is quite interesting. It also baffles me that Bareil's votes would go to Winn, it's not like they are the only two Vedeks running for this position and they seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. Anyway, most of the score this episode got is for the fascinating politics of Bajoran spirituality and for Winn's brilliance.

6/10

_____________________________________________________

 

[Kobayshi Maru]

Happy Holidays all!

....
_____________________________________________________

The Collaborator

Vedek Bareil once again graces me with his dullness. He proceeds to have a bunch of dull visions. And a Bajoran collaborator returns from Cardassia. Oh, it was high time they elected a new Kai by the way. I am somewhat glad that it was not Bareil. While he would have made a better Kai than Winn, Winn is more interesting and this does a better story make. Ugh, Winn is so disingenuous, she wants to be elected Kai desperately enough to approach Sisko and get an endorsement from him. It's really quite brilliant, she drips with fakeness. She is also extremely condescending to Kira, probably because she is jealous of Kira's true belief in the Prophets, something that she lacks, in my opinion. I don't really like this episode very much, it focuses too much on my least favourite character, Bareil. It does have some redeeming qualities though, and the story is quite interesting. It also baffles me that Bareil's votes would go to Winn, it's not like they are the only two Vedeks running for this position and they seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. Anyway, most of the score this episode got is for the fascinating politics of Bajoran spirituality and for Winn's brilliance.

6/10

_____________________________________________________

As I understood it, they only had two candidates. Without Bareil Winn runs unopposed.

I was also surprised that they waited that long to choose a new Kai, on the other hand, Opaka is not dead, she's just incommunicado, but she's likely to outlive even the new born babies on her planet since she will live forever on that horrible moon. I find it very bizarre that they would just leave her there without even trying to help her. Anyway, what Opaka did by betraying her son, is awful and highly objectionable on moral grounds. I don't understand why Bareil decided to take the fall for her. I mean, if what she did is morally wrong, then people should know the kind of person she really was and not worship a lie, if it is somehow justifiable the it better to tell the truth and justify it. Personally I find that the episode makes no sense whatsoever. Kira, once said that collaborators were the kind of people she hated the most. How can't she see that what Opaka did is the worst kind of collaboration there is. With people like Opaka there wouldn't be any resistence, and the Cardassians would have stayed forever. I give a zero to that episode for it's moral and social coherence, or lack thereof.

 

[Sarahjs]

Happy Holidays all!

....
_____________________________________________________

The Collaborator

Vedek Bareil once again graces me with his dullness. He proceeds to have a bunch of dull visions. And a Bajoran collaborator returns from Cardassia. Oh, it was high time they elected a new Kai by the way. I am somewhat glad that it was not Bareil. While he would have made a better Kai than Winn, Winn is more interesting and this does a better story make. Ugh, Winn is so disingenuous, she wants to be elected Kai desperately enough to approach Sisko and get an endorsement from him. It's really quite brilliant, she drips with fakeness. She is also extremely condescending to Kira, probably because she is jealous of Kira's true belief in the Prophets, something that she lacks, in my opinion. I don't really like this episode very much, it focuses too much on my least favourite character, Bareil. It does have some redeeming qualities though, and the story is quite interesting. It also baffles me that Bareil's votes would go to Winn, it's not like they are the only two Vedeks running for this position and they seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum. Anyway, most of the score this episode got is for the fascinating politics of Bajoran spirituality and for Winn's brilliance.

6/10

_____________________________________________________

As I understood it, they only had two candidates. Without Bareil Winn runs unopposed.

I was also surprised that they waited that long to choose a new Kai, on the other hand, Opaka is not dead, she's just incommunicado, but she's likely to outlive even the new born babies on her planet since she will live forever on that horrible moon. I find it very bizarre that they would just leave her there without even trying to help her. Anyway, what Opaka did by betraying her son, is awful and highly objectionable on moral grounds. I don't understand why Bareil decided to take the fall for her. I mean, if what she did is morally wrong, then people should know the kind of person she really was and not worship a lie, if it is somehow justifiable the it better to tell the truth and justify it. Personally I find that the episode makes no sense whatsoever. Kira, once said that collaborators were the kind of people she hated the most. How can't she see that what Opaka did is the worst kind of collaboration there is. With people like Opaka there wouldn't be any resistence, and the Cardassians would have stayed forever. I give a zero to that episode for it's moral and social coherence, or lack thereof.

Wow you really don't like this episode I guess! As always thanks for the input !!

I always had the impression that there were other candidates besides Winn and Bareil, but maybe I am reading into something that isn't actually there. I do that a lot.

The reason Bareil took the fall for Opaka is because the prophets told him to in his visions - that's the way I see it. It's about as exciting a reason as Bareil has for doing anything.

I would agree that what Opaka did was wrong - but somehow this does not offend me so much that I would say "how dare she" and give the episode a zero. I found it quite interesting on the other hand that Opaka was not as perfect as she was viewed to be by many. This gave the whole thing a feeling of realism for me and justified the fact that I had never been fond of Opaka.

 

[Sarahjs]

The Tribunal

Miles tries to go on holiday, but is kidnapped by a bunch of Cardassians wanting to "try" him for a crime. I like how this episode is sort of a follow up on Dukat's comment in The Maquis about the Cardassian justice system, and how everyone is always guilty. The trials are just for show. The first time I watched DS9, I found this comment of Dukat's interesting and I was glad there was an episode dedicated to showing us, though I was not really expecting it. This is such an enjoyable episode! It's a serious topic, but yet it manages to be amusing without detracting from any of the seriousness. I think this might be the first time we see Cardassia Prime as well, well, at least, if we have seen it before, I have not really noticed. I kind of like Cardassian architecture, it's very suitable to the character of the Cardassian Union. It's also quite a creepy sort of planet, with those television screens all over the place and the Cardassians standing around and watching. I think that they seriously need to put better security on the station, if someone can just make a recording of Miles's voice, reconstruct it, and steal a bunch of photon warheads!! Oh, also Julian meets a nefarious type in the dark - not quite waking up to one, but close enough. Further, this episode introduces us to the effectiveness of Cardassian reconstructive surgery, which is relevant in later episodes, such as Second Skin, and the one where Dukat turns himself into a Bajoran.

9/10

_____________________________________________________

The Jem'Hadar

Jake works on a science project - a planetary survey in the Gamma Quadrant. Nog joins him and Quark goes along as well. The first part of this episode is mostly them walking and sitting around on a planet, which is not the most exciting thing ever, but I do enjoy the interactions between Quark and Sisko, which are very amusing. Otherwise, this is an important episode, because it gives us our first substantial introduction to certain elements of the Dominion. Also, it has some humorous elements, like Quark's reaction at being kidnapped by the Jem'Hadar and Nog and Jake attempting to fly a runabout. I wonder if the Jem'Hadar are some sort of unpleasant relations of the Tosk, they can also turn themselves invisible and are scaly as well. I guess both species has been engineered and bred for a specific purpose, so in a way, they are related. I suppose this episode starts the official Dominion arc and this is a good thing! I wonder why Eris has telekinetic powers that no other Vorta has. I am actually looking forward to Weyoun now. Weyoun is awesome and Jeffrey Combs is awesome. Sorry, I know this has nothing to do with this particular episode. I would have given this episode a 7, but I added a point for it's importance in the grand scheme of things.

8/10

_____________________________________________________

 

[Kobayshi Maru]

The Tribunal

Miles tries to go on holiday, but is kidnapped by a bunch of Cardassians wanting to "try" him for a crime. I like how this episode is sort of a follow up on Dukat's comment in The Maquis about the Cardassian justice system, and how everyone is always guilty. The trials are just for show. The first time I watched DS9, I found this comment of Dukat's interesting and I was glad there was an episode dedicated to showing us, though I was not really expecting it. This is such an enjoyable episode! It's a serious topic, but yet it manages to be amusing without detracting from any of the seriousness. I think this might be the first time we see Cardassia Prime as well, well, at least, if we have seen it before, I have not really noticed. I kind of like Cardassian architecture, it's very suitable to the character of the Cardassian Union. It's also quite a creepy sort of planet, with those television screens all over the place and the Cardassians standing around and watching. I think that they seriously need to put better security on the station, if someone can just make a recording of Miles's voice, reconstruct it, and steal a bunch of photon warheads!! Oh, also Julian meets a nefarious type in the dark - not quite waking up to one, but close enough. Further, this episode introduces us to the effectiveness of Cardassian reconstructive surgery, which is relevant in later episodes, such as Second Skin, and the one where Dukat turns himself into a Bajoran.

9/10

_____________________________________________________

The Jem'Hadar

Jake works on a science project - a planetary survey in the Gamma Quadrant. Nog joins him and Quark goes along as well. The first part of this episode is mostly them walking and sitting around on a planet, which is not the most exciting thing ever, but I do enjoy the interactions between Quark and Sisko, which are very amusing. Otherwise, this is an important episode, because it gives us our first substantial introduction to certain elements of the Dominion. Also, it has some humorous elements, like Quark's reaction at being kidnapped by the Jem'Hadar and Nog and Jake attempting to fly a runabout. I wonder if the Jem'Hadar are some sort of unpleasant relations of the Tosk, they can also turn themselves invisible and are scaly as well. I guess both species has been engineered and bred for a specific purpose, so in a way, they are related. I suppose this episode starts the official Dominion arc and this is a good thing! I wonder why Eris has telekinetic powers that no other Vorta has. I am actually looking forward to Weyoun now. Weyoun is awesome and Jeffrey Combs is awesome. Sorry, I know this has nothing to do with this particular episode. I would have given this episode a 7, but I added a point for it's importance in the grand scheme of things.

8/10

_____________________________________________________

Tribunal: The tooth extraction is not only creepy but highly objectionable when they can get pretty much all they need to identify someone from a single cell. It looks like the Cardassians do that just to be unpleasant. The big television screens are inspired by Orwell's 1984. Big Brother and all that.

The Jem'Hadar: We won't meet Weyoun before toward the end of season 4. He'll be killed and then they'll bring him back from the dead, one season and a half later. I suspect that they (the writers) invented the clone thing just to bring back Weyoun, who is by far the best of all the Vortas that we've seen.

 

[kkt]

The Jem'Hadar: We won't meet Weyoun before toward the end of season 4. He'll be killed and then they'll bring him back from the dead, one season and a half later. I suspect that they (the writers) invented the clone thing just to bring back Weyoun, who is by far the best of all the Vortas that we've seen.

Weyoun was great. I also liked Kilana, the Vorta from the episode The Ship. She was interesting in a slimy sort of way and I wouldn't have minded seeing her again.