The Best of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine DVD

[DevilEyes]

"Trials and Tribble-Ations"
"The Visitor"
"You Are Cordially Invited..."
"To the Death"

I bet most fans would vote for "Duet" and "In the Pale Moonlight" over my last two choices, but aside from the fact that I have problems with both (although overall I like the latter very much), I think they aren't as good choices because they don't really show off the whole cast.

Neither do your picks. There's barely any screentime for Kira in any of them, same with Quark, Odo's role in T&T is forgettable and I don't even remember if he's in any of the other episodes, and I don't remember Garak or any other recurring character featuring in any of them, apart from Weyoun in TTD. They just show off Dax, Worf, Sisko, Jake, O'Brien and Bashir.

"Duet" is mostly a story between Kira and the imprisoned Cardassian, and "In the Pale Moonlight" is mostly a Sisko and Garak story.

"The Visitor" is a Ben and Jake story, and "You Are Cordially Invited" is a Dax and Worf story. And I happen to think that "Duet" and "In the Pale Moonlight" are better than both. "The Visitor" is a nice story, but although I've included it in my list as it is accessible and standalone, I think it's a bit overrated.

 

[Too Much Fun]

Neither do your picks. There's barely any screentime for Kira in any of them, same with Quark, Odo's role in T&T is forgettable and I don't even remember if he's in any of the other episodes, and I don't remember Garak or any other recurring character featuring in any of them, apart from Weyoun in TTD. They just show off Dax, Worf, Sisko, Jake, O'Brien and Bashir.

"Duet" is mostly a story between Kira and the imprisoned Cardassian, and "In the Pale Moonlight" is mostly a Sisko and Garak story.

"The Visitor" is a Ben and Jake story, and "You Are Cordially Invited" is a Dax and Worf story. And I happen to think that "Duet" and "In the Pale Moonlight" are better than both. "The Visitor" is a nice story, but although I've included it in my list as it is accessible and standalone, I think it's a bit overrated.

I did explain that "The Visitor" is the one episode I picked not for using the whole cast well, but for its emotional impact. I also pointed out that even though "You are Cordially Invited..." is mostly about Worf and Dax, I think it shows off the rest of the cast nicely.

To be more specific, it has Sisko, Bashir, and O'Brien bonding as part of Worf's 'bachelor party', Kira having good conversations with Jake and Dax about career and marriage respectively, and some nice insights from Martok about marriage as well.

There's no use arguing about "Duet". I agree to disagree with everyone on it. I seem to be the only who sees it as a mostly boring episode often consisting of Kira stomping around whining, with the only bright spots being those scenes where the prisoner guest star delivers some truly awesome rants. But one great guest performance does not a classic make.

Odo teases Worf in "Trials and Tribble-Ations", and since I like him more when he's lightening up (instead of being grumpy most of the time), I think that's one of his better appearances. Yes, Quark is marginalized in that episode and "To the Death", but you mentioned yourself how many characters that episode gives screentime to, and most of them get great dialog or moments within.

With such a big cast, it's impossible for most episodes to spotlight all of them and Quark is definitely a presence in "You Are Cordially Invited..." doing one of the things he does best - making snide observational comments about other characters from the side.

I'll admit I'm a little biased. Episodes don't have to feature Quark, Kira, and Odo heavily for me to consider them among the best since they're my least favourite characters. I don't really dislike Quark, I just don't like him as much as many other characters (and I love "Little Green Men" by the way). Oddly enough, despite my lack of affection for Kira and Odo, "His Way" is one of my favourites too.

 

[Aubergine]

I agree that "The Visitor" and "Trials and Tribble-ations" are very solid picks. They're great stand-alone episodes, which is important, because we all know that the real "best" of DS9 is the multi-episode arcs -- whether we're talking the arc about the Circle in the end of the first/beginning of the second season or later two-parters like "In Purgatory's Shadow"/"By Inferno's Light" and, of course, the huge arcs of the sixth and seventh seasons.

"Trials" is an amazing episode -- a true love letter to Trek fans, beautifully executed, and also showcases some of the dynamics between the cast members. Take the banter we get between Bashir and O'Brien in the turbolift, or Sisko yanking Dax away from Spock in the corridor.

"The Visitor" shows the richness of the relationship between Sisko and Jake, and it also has one of my favourite moments of the series -- when Kira goes to Jake as he's standing by the window, their faces silhouetted by starlight, and tries to convince him to leave the station, only to agree to let him stay a little longer. (I admit it, I tear up every time.) The guest performances are wonderful, and, as I said, it's a great stand-alone story.

So my votes are in for those two episodes. That leaves two more, and I'm not sure.

"Necessary Evil" is a nice choice. It showcases the contrast between the condition of the station before and after the Occupation, and is a good piece as far as the Kira and Odo characters and their relationship goes.

I also like "The Wire," but it's a bit too Garak-focussed for my taste as far as an exemplary DS9 episode would go.

What about "The Abandoned"? It showcases some Dominion-related stuff, but is also stand-alone. Though I don't know if I'd really put that episode on a "Best-Of" list.

 

[Eyes]

The Abandoned has some nice scenes, but I think the real strength is in the B-Story, and the A-Story is a little bit shallow. If a Jem'Hadar episode is going to be there, it should be Hippocratic Oath, as that is as standalone as the Abandoned, and shows a great moral dilemma for Bashir.

I wouldn't rule out putting in The Quickening either, it shows off most of the cast at the beginning, and the rest of the episode is really what DS9's about, and a great episode for non-fans to get used to Bashir, who doesn't have any qualities that make him stand out as a character if you haven't seen a Bashir-focused episode.

 

[JayOwl]

Has to be The Visitor as one couldn't leave that out, maybe Duet as well....

My four:
1) The Visitor
2) The Quickening
3) Duet
4) The Magnificant Ferengi

Other good one's would be; Nor the battle to the strong, maybe a mirror episode and Little Green men. I could list plenty others put it's hard to remember them all and it would take too long to type , it's easy to work out I'm a DS9 fan .

 

[DevilEyes]

I'll admit I'm a little biased. Episodes don't have to feature Quark, Kira, and Odo heavily for me to consider them among the best since they're my least favourite characters. I don't really dislike Quark, I just don't like him as much as many other characters (and I love "Little Green Men" by the way). Oddly enough, despite my lack of affection for Kira and Odo, "His Way" is one of my favourites too.

Oddly enough, despite my love for both those characters, "His Way" is not one of my favorites. I consider it a necessary evil, pun not intended (but sadly, it is no "Necessary Evil" - well, I could not resist the pun). It's OK, and it does what it set out to do - get Kira and Odo together - reasonably well, and I'm not sure if I could come up with a better way. But, it was just too romcom for my taste. I guess it's partly because romantic comedies are far from my favorite genre, but also because I think that the Kira/Odo pairing (or either of them paired up with anyone else, for that matter) does not lend itself to the romcom treatment. There were plenty of other pairings that this worked better for, and they should have left it to Worf/Jadzia, Ezri/Bashir, Sisko/Kassidy, and even Rom/Leeta or Quark/Unlikely Love Interest of the Week. My appreciation of the way Kira/Odo romance was dealt with on the show comes from the way it was later treated, from "Tears of the Prophets" with the subtle hint of Odo's apprehensions over what he can't ever give Kira that can be seen from the sadness on his face when Bashir talks about interspecies children, to season 7 episodes like "Chimera" and their goodbye in "What You Leave Behind". It's fortunate that they did not give them a cheesy happy ending.

"You Are Cordially Invited" worked better, but I still certainly wouldn't put it in the top 10, let alone top 4.

But while this is a matter of taste and subjective opinion, it's still a fact that the episode spoils too much. A first time viewer of DS9 should follow Worf and Dax's relationship, wonder if they are going to get together and stay together - not learn about their marriage before even starting to watch the show on a regular basis. The hypothetical Best of disc should be a selection of best episodes that were standalone (more or less) and that can attract a first time viewer, but not spoil too much of the show. Which is why I would not include "In the Pale Moonlight" or many other great episodes that are part of an arc, require context or contain too many spoilers.

 

[Harvey]

Far Beyond the Stars and In The Pale Moonlight would have to be on the set. I'm less sure on the other two. But, to be honest, the whole idea of this kind of set for DS9 doesn't make much sense. It was primarily an arc-based show by the third season, and it just doesn't make sense to pick out a few episodes that are part of an ongoing story like that. Beyond that, it was never as popular as TOS or TNG, which suggests to me that there were fewer casual viewers. Since that's the audience these sets are targeted at, no wonder Paramount hasn't produced one for DS9!

 

[Aubergine]

But, to be honest, the whole idea of this kind of set for DS9 doesn't make much sense.

Which is why it won't actually ever be made. But it's fun to imagine.

"In the Pale Moonlight" is a tough one, since it is one of DS9's best and exemplary of everything that made DS9 different from other Treks and very awesome. I think part of the appeal of that episode for us is the way it transgresses the traditions of Trek and the way its heroes act.

Also, wasn't it voted the best Trek episode of all time on StarTrek.com years back? That surprised me, that it would overtake the TNG faves.

Anyway.

An episode like "Rocks and Shoals" could function reasonably well when viewed on its own...

 

[Harvey]

But why would you want to watch Rocks and Shoals isolated from the other five episodes that open season six (as well as the season five finale)?

 

[Aubergine]

Well, I wouldn't. But since including 6-episode arcs in a 4-disc set is out of the question...

Leaving out arc shows kind of puts a damper on things.

 

[Odo You Didn't!]

I think the answer is, then, if they called and said "Which four episodes will you put on," I would have to say "Er, no, Mr CBS. Call me back when you can have six at least."

It's so hard to choose. I find myself going for something like Trials and Tribble-ations because I know how popular it is, and how it opens up TOS fans to DS9 (my mother loved it - she had the biggest grin whenever Kirk was on the screen). But having said that, it isn't one of my favourite episodes.

I love Far Beyond the Stars, and I think it would make sense outside of the story arc. It may not give people a 'real idea of what the show is about', but I see it as one of those episodes that non-fans can access more easily because it's outside of the normal show paramaters (as it were). My other half got into DS9 on those kinds of episodes, because he used them to learn who the characters were to look at, and they intrigued him enough that he wanted to watch more, even though he knew it was set on a space station, not in 50's America.

I would definitely want to include In the Pale Moonlight, because it's exemplary, and I agree with Bertie, I really like The Siege of AR-558. It's dramatic, gritty and the ending makes you want to find out what happens next, which would be great for enticing people to buy the full series.

I realise I only picked three there, but hey ho

 

[Aike]

I would pick episodes that show a new viewer the range of the series, as well as the different themes and main characters of the show.


1. Little Green Men (probably the most accessible Ferengi episode)
2. Tribunal (A great piece for O´brein and showing the brutality of the Cardassians)
3. Rocks and Shoals (the best action episode as well as the finest moment of the Jem´hadar)
4. Trials and Tribulations (Great fun and featuring the whole cast)

I see that many have included my favorite episode The Visitor. But I don´t think it would be a great choice for the first edition of a "Best of DS9".

Why?

Because you have another actor (Tony Todd) playing Jake. It´s great sci-fi and very touching, but confusing for newbies. Save it for the second edition.

 

[Too Much Fun]

I don't mind the idea of "Rocks and Shoals" being separated from the arc of episodes it's part of. Yes, it does have an ending that leads a little into the next episode, but I think it also works on its own, and I don't like all the episodes in that arc anyways. "Sons and Daughters" particularly, which I think is an episode I don't ever want to see again (I really hated how Worf's son was portrayed in DS9).

 

[Solarbaby]

Way of the warrior as a double episode so that counts as one hehe.

Little green men. Its just so camp, funny, cute interesting take on Roswel and totally untrek like. I'd love to see a spin off series following a Ferengi crew.

In the hands of the prophets. Great take on science vs religion and we get to meet super bitch Vedek Winn

Sacrifice of Angels. The CGI battles are outstanding and bound to grab new viewers

 

[DevilEyes]

Way of the warrior as a double episode so that counts as one hehe.

Little green men. Its just so camp, funny, cute interesting take on Roswel and totally untrek like. I'd love to see a spin off series following a Ferengi crew.

In the hands of the prophets. Great take on science vs religion and we get to meet super bitch Vedek Winn

Sacrifice of Angels. The CGI battles are outstanding and bound to grab new viewers

...and spoil an entire crucial storyarc. Or a few of them. You've just let a new viewer see the end of the Dominion occupation of DS9, Ziyal's death, and Dukat going crazy, with the viewer being mostly unfamiliar with these characters and therefore not even caring much about what happens to them anyway, so any emotional punch is lost as well.

Besides, you've run out of disc space already before you put Sacrifice of Angels on it, since you've put a double episode on it.

 

[nx1701g]

There are a lot of good suggestions in this thread. It's actually made me dust off my DVDs.

 

[omnirad]

In the Hands of the Prophets -that bitch Winn, ethical dilema,Bajoran politics.

The Jem H'dar -starts off light-hearted with with the Sisko/Ferengi camping trip, then kicks you in the nads with the Odyssey's destruction.

Rejoined -good moral quandry, two hot chicks kissing!

Take Me Out to the Holosuite -fun romp with the whole crew.