The Most Disliked Episode of DS9 - Season 7...

[Seven of Five]

When it Rains... is a nice build-up to the release of Tacking into the Wind. Kira going back to being a resistance fighter for the Cardassians was wonderfully full circle for her.

I loved how the war ended. Odo was willing to give everything up to go home and cure his people, which I think was motivation enough for the Female Shapeshifter to end things. She has shown such a desire for Odo to go back to the link, at times saying it is more important than anything else going on.

SHADOWS AND SYMBOLS
AFTERIMAGE
TAKE ME OUT TO THE HOLOSUITE
CHRYSALIS
PRODIGAL DAUGHTER
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
FIELD OF FIRE
'TIL DEATH DO US PART
THE DOGS OF WAR

 

[Bad Thoughts]

I don't buy that.

Let's see. Odo starts out as a formal, distant person who understands people in the most academic manner possible. Indeed, he uses books rather than his relationships in order to study humanity. He tends to be suspicious of concepts of law and government that aren't based around direct action and force, although one's based on those whom he thinks are just. When he confronts the Female Shapeshifter, he isn't able to articulate why the Dominion should stop fighting the Federation. All he can do is say that his friends are dying.

By the time he links with the shapeshifter, he has genuinely intimate relationships. He puts aside his authoritarianism and embraces a more civil society (at least in part). When he learns about the disease that infects him, he criticizes the Federation for not living up to its values: no whataboutisms, just these are the values that are worth upholding. When he talks to Laas, he gives a beautiful speech about what can be learned from people who are different through patience, understanding, and love.

The person who links with the Female Shapeshifter has definitely matured.

QED.

 

[Discofan]

Let's see. Odo starts out as a formal, distant person who understands people in the most academic manner possible. Indeed, he uses books rather than his relationships in order to study humanity. He tends to be suspicious of concepts of law and government that aren't based around direct action and force, although one's based on those whom he thinks are just. When he confronts the Female Shapeshifter, he isn't able to articulate why the Dominion should stop fighting the Federation. All he can do is say that his friends are dying.

By the time he links with the shapeshifter, he has genuinely intimate relationships. He puts aside his authoritarianism and embraces a more civil society (at least in part). When he learns about the disease that infects him, he criticizes the Federation for not living up to its values: no whataboutisms, just these are the values that are worth upholding. When he talks to Laas, he gives a beautiful speech about what can be learned from people who are different through patience, understanding, and love.

The person who links with the Female Shapeshifter has definitely matured.

QED.

He wasn't able to convince Laas of anything or to make him understand anything and it was only a few months before he re-linked with her.
I am not saying that he didn't mature, just that to the FC it wouldn't have made any difference.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

He wasn't able to convince Laas of anything or to make him understand anything and it was only a few months before he re-linked with her.
I am not saying that he didn't mature, just that to the FC it wouldn't have made any difference.

On her death bed, as her race was going extinct, it might.

 

[Discofan]

On her death bed, as her race was going extinct, it might.

I am not buying it, sorry. You don't want me to lie, do you?

Personally, I think that ending is a cheat. They painted themselves in a corner and that's what they came up with.

 

[Terok Nor]

I will save "Field of Fire". I always found Joran fascinating and the killer twist was unexpected.

SHADOWS AND SYMBOLS
AFTERIMAGE
TAKE ME OUT TO THE HOLOSUITE
CHRYSALIS
PRODIGAL DAUGHTER
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
'TIL DEATH DO US PART
THE DOGS OF WAR

 

[Discofan]

"PRODIGAL DAUGHTER" because it's a worthy continuation of "Honor Among Thieves" and an O'Brien story. The Ezri part though... it was ok, I guess.

SHADOWS AND SYMBOLS
AFTERIMAGE
TAKE ME OUT TO THE HOLOSUITE
CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
'TIL DEATH DO US PART
THE DOGS OF WAR

 

[Farscape One]

Saving "THE DOGS OF WAR". We get TWO Combs roles in one episode. That alone is worth saving.

SHADOWS AND SYMBOLS
AFTERIMAGE
TAKE ME OUT TO THE HOLOSUITE
CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
'TIL DEATH DO US PART

 

[Seven of Five]

Take Me Out to the Holosuite is so much fun. Odo is perfect in his umpire role.

SHADOWS AND SYMBOLS
AFTERIMAGE
CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
'TIL DEATH DO US PART

 

[Sakonna]

I moderately enjoy everything in "Shadows And Symbols." Ezri's intro is involving. I wish they'd done more with Cretak & the Romulans.

AFTERIMAGE
CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK
'TIL DEATH DO US PART

 

[Discofan]

"'TIL DEATH DO US PART" is definitely less bad than the three left. I hate these three episodes with a passion. Cloak being the worst, I hope it "wins".

AFTERIMAGE
CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK

 

[Farscape One]

"AFTERIMAGE" is saved. Garak always elevates an episode, and his breakdown to Ezri about him betraying his people was brilliant acting.


CHRYSALIS
THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK

 

[Discofan]

Saving Emperor's New Cloak. It sucks, but it has some jokes.

CHRYSALIS

ETA: Chrysalis is the nadir of the Dukat as anti-Christ story. Dukat was completely evil, but I saw no need to make his evil metaphysical or make his development mirror Sisko's. There were lots of cult tropes that were handled in a rather cliched way, something that I think Paradise handled better.

I think you made a mistake Dukat is not present in Chrysalis, it's mostly a Bashir as a good samaritan story.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Damn, you're right. I was thinking Covenant.

ETA: @Sakonna , how could you!

 

[Discofan]

Damn, you're right. I was thinking Covenant.

Yes, you were and I agree with you, Covenant sucks.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

OK, saving Chrysalis. Singy sing a long is slightly better than Emperor's New Cloak's jokes/

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK

 

[Terok Nor]

They shouldn't have bothered doing a final Mirror Universe episode tbh. They already wore it out with the previous season's offering.

 

[BigDaveX]

They shouldn't have bothered doing a final Mirror Universe episode tbh. They already wore it out with the previous season's offering.

Agreed. Shattered Mirror would have served as a perfect finale to the DS9 Mirror Universe arc, but Resurrection was just pointless, and The Emperor's New Cloak just face-palmingly bad.

 

[Discofan]

TENC has one redeeming quality though. I believe it's the first episode of the franchise to show open gay relationships. It's in the evil universe but still, it's a first step.

 

[Farscape One]

The 'winner' of season 7, no surprise, is "THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOAK".

Thank you all for voting. I'll post the last round at some point within the next couple days... working on a few things at the moment.