the best ever DS9 episode - not Far Beyond the Stars?

[indolover]

I think Far Beyond the Stars put forward a good message, but i honestly reckon that the Way of the Warrior is the best ever DS9 episode. And not because it introduced Worf, but the acting, writing, plot, battle scenes (better than the Dominion War ones) were all the best IMO in DS9.

I reckon it's to DS9 as Best of Both Worlds was to TNG, or Scorpion was to Voyager.

 

[StarryEyed]

I loved WOTW but I would give the title to, "In the Pale Moonlight."

 

[Joeman]

So many. I could name almost any one of the "torture O'Brien" episodes as a favorite.

But for now I'd have to pick an episode with no big space battles, Dominion war drama, or Bajoran political or religious intrigue, and go with It's Only a Paper Moon. One of my all time favorite episodes of any Trek.

When the series started, I saw Nog as a real throwaway character. By this episode though I had already started to see him as one of the better developed characters on the show. Add in the fact that I tend to love holodeck episodes, and my affinity for the Vic Fontaine character, and this episode was kind of a "perfect storm" for me. I thought the writing was brilliant, and the episode was very moving.

 

[tomalak301]

I think The Visitor is the best episode the Star Trek franchise ever told. It's such an emotional ride and it's the only episode to really make me cry. That's got to count for something.

 

[Jono]

Big fan of "Far Beyond the Stars" but it isn't the best episode of DS9. I'd give it to "The Visitor". I'd sort of be surprised if many people do rate FBtS as the best of DS9, I don't think I've ever seen any of those lists that float around the place that has FBtS as the best episode.

 

[Admiral Shran]

I might be one of the few who think that Far Beyond the Stars is over-rated. For my money, it's easily In The Pale Moonlight.

 

[DevilEyes]

Duet or In the Pale Moonlight. Also a big fan of Necessary Evil, I love me some Trek Noir.

 

[TheGodBen]

My favourite is You Ever Danced With the Devil, it's a pity that Garak was so poorly used in it though.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Way of the Warrior
The Visitor
Pale Moonlight
His Way

 

[Pemmer Harge]

Far Beyond the Stars is good and I enjoyed it, but it didn't have a deep impact on me. As for The Way of the Warrior, it's decent but I like almost all the big Dominion episodes better.

My personal favourites are Second Skin and Necessary Evil.

 

[nick1983]

My own personal favourite is For the Uniform, closely followed by Waltz and then In The Pale Moonlight. Also, Way of the Warrior deserves a mention if just for its action sequences and so does sacrifice of angels.

 

[Mysterion]

Far Beyond the Stars has some very justifiable cred as one of the best in the series, but I wouldn't personally rate as The best. contenders on my list would be:

Duet
The Visitor
In The Pale Moonlight

 

[nick1983]

Yes Duet is also a worthy contender, so is The Visitor.

 

[Eyes]

Nor the Battle to the Strong is my personal favourite, as can be seen from my sig.

I'm sorry, but WOTW doesn't even come close as the best episode of DS9. It's up there, but In the Pale Moonlight, Duet, The Visitor, Improbable Cause, In Purgatory's Shadow, Past Tense, The Siege of AR-558, and many others are better or on a par with WOTW.

 

[Piper]

Best DS9 episode for me is Trials and Tribble-ations. TOS + DS9 = win

 

[nick1983]

Trials and Tribbleations was a great, funny episode that worked for the 30th anniversary. But its not of the same quality, drama wise as other episodes like Pale Moonlight, the Visitor, For the Uniform, etc.

 

[RobertScorpio]

Trials and Tribbleations was a great, funny episode that worked for the 30th anniversary. But its not of the same quality, drama wise as other episodes like Pale Moonlight, the Visitor, For the Uniform, etc.

agreed...It was, IMO, the better of the two tribute episodes (VOYAGER's Star trek 6 inspired tribute being the other)

Rob

 

[DevilEyes]

Nor the Battle to the Strong is my personal favourite, as can be seen from my sig.

I'm sorry, but WOTW doesn't even come close as the best episode of DS9. It's up there, but In the Pale Moonlight, Duet, The Visitor, Improbable Cause, In Purgatory's Shadow, Past Tense, The Siege of AR-558, and many others are better or on a par with WOTW.

I agree, WOTW is OK but it's not that one of DS9's best. Even as action/event episodes go, there are many better ones like Call to Arms and Sacrifice of Angels.

 

[Luther Sloan]

I can't just choose one. However, these episodes are at the very top of my list, though...

It's Only A Paper Moon
Siege of AR-558
The Visitor
Inquisition
In the Pale Moonlight
For The Cause/ For The Uniform
Doctor Bashir, I Presume
Call to Arms
His Way
Tears of the Prophets
Sacrifice of Angels

 

[Too Much Fun]

Every time this question is asked, people always choose the usual suspects: "Duet", "In the Pale Moonlight", and "The Visitor". I like them all, but I think the best DS9 episode should be one that showcase much of the cast. "Duet" and "The Visitor" are above all else great showcases for guest stars. The people guest starring in those episodes give thrilling performances, but one performance does not a classic episode make. "In the Pale Moonlight" deserves a lot of praise for how original and surprising its plot was. It has a hell of an ending too, but again, that's just one thing - a really impressive plot.

I like "Trials and Tribble-ations" most because it has both a very clever plot and wonderfully memorable performances from so many cast members. It pairs off a bunch of characters and has lovely interplay between all of them, and good interaction between characters is what I love best in Star Trek. The pairings of Jadzia and Sisko, Odo and Worf, and Bashir and O'Brien are all tremendous in that episode. Unfortunately it didn't give Kira, Quark, and Jake much to do so it's not perfect, but it certainly used the cast better than those mostly 'one-man show' episodes did.

Some have argued with me that "Trials and Tribble-Ations" shouldn't be considered a possible best DS9 episode because it being an 'anniversary tribute' and pseudo-crossover with the the original series makes it less of a pure DS9 episode and I think that's a fair point. Ira Steven Behr himself said something like that, claiming he'd prefer the most beloved DS9 episode to be one that stands on its own merits, instead of one that partially benefits from feeding off the nostalgia and quality of an old Star Trek episode.

If I had to pick a best 'pure' episode, it would be "To the Death", again because it's one that shows us some of the nicest examples of the family-like interaction between characters that are so endearing about Star Trek, it has really affecting character moments, and it's anchored by an original story (in this case, exploring the Jemhadar culture and how it comes into conflict with Starfleet).

As for the popular choices, I dig "Call to Arms", "Sacrifice of Angels", and "Way of the Warrior" a lot too, because like some of what I consider the best TNG episodes (i.e. "The Best of Both Worlds" and "Yesterday's Enterprise"), they have epic action, but at the same time are down-to-earth and thoughtful enough to include emotionally involving explorations of character relationships. I can't share a lot of the popular opinions, though, because I'm a softie who likes some of the lighter, sweeter episodes like "His Way", "You Are Cordially Invited..." and "Take Me Out to the Holosuite", while so many of you sickos prefer the more violent, morally controversial stuff.