Shatnertage's Mostly-1st-Time Watch Thread

[Worf'sParmach]

My only fan nitpick about Children of Time... since Worf and Jadzia married, shouldn't Yedrin her other descendents looks just as much Klingon as Trill? And vice versa, shouldn't the "Sons of Mogh" have spots along with their (albeit very slight) ridges and dark skin?

Spoiler: Season 6

It's possible that Worf and Dax had trouble conceiving, and with limited access to 24th medicine, maybe Bashir never found a way for Worf and Dax to have any kids, without using sperm donors or something.

Spoiler: Re: Season 6 Spoiler

I forgot about that... though I think the trouble conceiving thing was a plot device purely designed to make Jadzia's death more emotional and probably wasn't thought up at this point.

The idea of Worf giving the okay for someone else to impregnate Jadzia because he couldn't do it makes me seriously I'd pay money to see that scene.

 

[Admiral Shran]

My only fan nitpick about Children of Time... since Worf and Jadzia married, shouldn't Yedrin her other descendents looks just as much Klingon as Trill? And vice versa, shouldn't the "Sons of Mogh" have spots along with their (albeit very slight) ridges and dark skin?

Spoiler: Season 6

It's possible that Worf and Dax had trouble conceiving, and with limited access to 24th medicine, maybe Bashir never found a way for Worf and Dax to have any kids, without using sperm donors or something.

Spoiler: Re: Season 6 Spoiler

I forgot about that... though I think the trouble conceiving thing was a plot device purely designed to make Jadzia's death more emotional and probably wasn't thought up at this point.

The idea of Worf giving the okay for someone else to impregnate Jadzia because he couldn't do it makes me seriously I'd pay money to see that scene.

Spoiler: another Season 6 spoiler

Maybe it just took a lot of trying for her to conceive.

 

[Shatnertage]

Having some time to write now is definitely...

"In the Cards"

Now that I've got time to procrastinate, I want to talk about this filler comedy episode that I absolutely love.

From the Netflix blurb, I thought this one was going to really, really suck. But before they were through the tease, I knew it was going to be awesome. It was a funny episode, and the actors knew it, and went with it.

Jake and Nog were great, and all the regulars got great stuff to do (Bashir's teddy bear?) but the guy who they were trying to get the baseball card from absolutely stole the show. He played it all so absolutely straight that it was hysterical. As much as I love, say, Jeffery Combs, I couldn't see him playing it that way--he'd be way too over the top. this guy, though, was right on target. I might start using "soulless minions of orthodoxy" as my new catchphrase. It's sure to win me lots of friends.

I knew he was going to be great when he said the thing about not having broken any laws..."except the laws of nature." At first I thought he was going to be into banging horses or some really sick stuff like that, but then they made him into immortality. The cellular entertainment device was great, too.

They also wove a serious B-story, Kai Winn, into this episode, and actually had her intersect the comedy A story. Then it all came together with some Jeffery Combs brilliance at the end.

The last comedy episode that I liked this much was the one where everyone on the station was getting the hots for each other. Thus far, I'd have to say that Voyager's done comedy better, but when they put their minds to it the DS9 crew can handle humor, too.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

Having some time to write now is definitely...

"In the Cards"

Now that I've got time to procrastinate, I want to talk about this filler comedy episode that I absolutely love.

From the Netflix blurb, I thought this one was going to really, really suck. But before they were through the tease, I knew it was going to be awesome. It was a funny episode, and the actors knew it, and went with it.

I'd forgotten about this episode, I remember really liking it but I haven't seen it since it aired. I'm going to put it on my treadmill playlist

 

[Admiral Shran]

I really like this episode as well - especially how they essentially destroy the idea that capitalism is inherently evil without saying that Federation's economy is ridiculous.

The B-plot with Winn and Weyoun is great as well. It really shows that Winn can be a reasonable person, even if at her core she's power hungry in the extreme. But then, from her point of view, if the Dominion takes over Bajor at some future point, all the power she's amassed for herself will be meaningless. So, is it that she's truly concerned for the safety and security of Bajor or just her own power? My guess is that it's a little of both.

 

[intrinsical]

Now comes the 7 episode arc, 8 if you consider You're Cordially Invited as part of the arc.

 

[MacLeod]

Kicking off with "Call to Arms"

 

[Shatnertage]

I've now watched "A Call to Arms," "A Time to Stand" (or whatever it's called) and "Rocks and Shoals." Good stuff, but I don't have the time right now to write it up.

 

[Sykonee]

I've now watched "A Call to Arms," "A Time to Stand" (or whatever it's called) and "Rocks and Shoals." Good stuff, but I don't have the time right now to write it up.

Oh no! You should have watched them properly, like all the rest of us did when it first aired. Yes, you must suffer the 3-month break between Call To Arms and Time To Stand if you want to truly appreciate the Niner experience.

 

[MacLeod]

^It was more like 2 weeks waiting for the next VHS tape to come out (on this side of the pond at least)

 

[JayOwl]

I've now watched "A Call to Arms," "A Time to Stand" (or whatever it's called) and "Rocks and Shoals." Good stuff, but I don't have the time right now to write it up.

Oh no! You should have watched them properly, like all the rest of us did when it first aired. Yes, you must suffer the 3-month break between Call To Arms and Time To Stand if you want to truly appreciate the Niner experience.

Meh, I have all the DVDs, so for me it was 5 minutes while I put the kettle on.

 

[intrinsical]

I've now watched "A Call to Arms," "A Time to Stand" (or whatever it's called) and "Rocks and Shoals." Good stuff, but I don't have the time right now to write it up.

Oh no! You should have watched them properly, like all the rest of us did when it first aired. Yes, you must suffer the 3-month break between Call To Arms and Time To Stand if you want to truly appreciate the Niner experience.

Only three months? You're lucky. I moved from the UK back to Singapore in back in 97(?) when I graduated. I only managed to watch seasons 6 and 7 several years later as DS9 DVDs are incredibly rare to find here in Singapore.

 

[Admiral Shran]

I had to wait a few months as I watched everything for the first time from The Darkness and the Light forward on DVD. I had to wait for the next season to be released. It wasn't fun.

 

[TheGodBen]

I had to wait six months, which was pretty annoying as it's the only Trek finale that beats out BOBW for me. You just knew that the Federation/Klingon fleet was going to kick some serious Dominion arse...

 

[MacLeod]

And of course BOBW was before the internet, so there was a lot of speculation if Patrick Stewart would be returning for S4.

 

[Shatnertage]

Just to get caught up, I'm going to do some quick reactions here. First up is...

"Call to Arms"

Rom and Leeta are getting married! And I'm almost completely apathetic about it! How do others feel? Was this as controversial as Worf and Dax getting together, or just no big deal?

Meanwhile, the Dominion keeps on sending Jem'Hadar convoys through the wormhole. Sisko's going to mine it. Everyone but the Federation is signing non-aggression treaties with the Dominion. Things are getting nicely set up for next season.

What turns out to be a regular bunch of recurring actors shows up here, including the Dominion triad of Dukat, Damar, and Weyoun. This is a good thing.

I'm seriously considering switching my username to "Hedley Damar." I'd be even more tempted if I could photoshop together a picture of Harvey Korman as a Cardassian. He'd have actually have made a good Dukat, if you redid DS9 as a comedy.

We end up with the Feds abandoning the station, leaving Odo, Quark, Kira, and Jake on it. Worf goes off with Martok, because now that the shit's hit the fan, why would Starfleet's strategic operations officer want to be sitting behind a desk at a starbase trying to coordinate the Federation's defenses when he can be having fun with Martok? Everyone else, including Garak, is on the Defiant.

Hey, I only had to wait 24 hours to find out what happened, but I had to wait two days to find out who Elim was, so it all balances out.

 

[intrinsical]

At least for me, Rom and Leeta was a more natural pairing than Worf and Jadzia.

 

[Admiral Shran]

I'm glad Rom and Leeta got married, but then, I'm a big fan of the pairing.

As for Worf leaving with Martok - remember that since Soldiers of the Empire, Worf has been on "detached duty" with the Klingon Defense Forces. He still has Starfleet duties on the station, but his main responsibilities lay with Martok and the Klingons. Plus, now that there is a full scale war on, I'd personally rather have Worf out on the front lines than sitting behind a desk at a starbase. His characterization almost demands it.

Call to Arms is, IMO, an amazing finale for this season and a great lead-in for Season Six. My only compliant is that I would have loved to see Sisko's speech to the Bajoran Chamber of Ministers convincing them to sign the non-aggression pact. Instead it happens entirely off-screen in one cut.

 

[MacLeod]

It also has one of the more memorable closing scenes since BOBW, Part I, The Federation-Klingon task force at the end.

 

[Shatnertage]

Now I've reached...

"A Time to Stand"

Another episode title possibly inspired by Ecclesiastes. Fine with me.

First, let me reflect back on season 5. It was a strong season, with some notable misfires (chiefly "Let He Who is Without Sin" and the Ferengi episodes). I'd say it's one of the stronger overall seasons in Trek history, up there with 3-5 of TNG,, 3-4 of ENT, and 4-6 of VOY. I'd put it close to the top of that list. I'm not throwing TOS into that fight because it's hard to compare that show with latter-day Trek.

Anyway, in "A Time to Stand" the Defiant takes the fight to the Dominion. One note: I find it completely bizarre that I'm able to stream Internet video over my TV with my Roku, but the best engineers of the 24th century can't figure out a way to reroute the video output of the Jem'Hadar ship from the glasses to a viewscreen. Can't they just have the ship's bluetooth discover another screen? Or something like that? I guess not.

The story itself is gripping, and has an unexpected conclusion--they're still stuck in Cardassian space.

On the station, things are heating up between Kira and Dukat. I'm liking Nana Visitor's work more and more here, and I'm liking that things aren't so black and white.