4-26. Broken Link.

Odo returns to The Great Link.

THE PLOT

Odo is ill. He is having problems maintaining his form, resulting in debilitating attacks that see him literally reduced to goo. Dr. Bashir doesn't have the knowledge needed to reverse the effect. As Odo's condition worsens, it becomes clear that he has only one hope: A return to the Great Link!  Sisko makes the Defiant ready for a mercy mission to Dominion space. Without its cloaking device, and broadcasting a message to the Dominion about Odo's condition, the ship makes a rendezvous with the enemy. 

Thankfully, Sisko's diplomacy is met with the same. The Founder (salome Jens) who comes aboard promises no aggression, and even agrees to allow the "Solids" to accompany Odo to the shapeshifters' new homeworld. In private, however, she discloses to Odo that his illness is no natural occurrence. He broke the Founders' most sacred rule when he killed a changeling to save his friends. For that, he must face judgment - and punishment!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: When Odo announces that his only hope is to return to his people, Sisko doesn't hesitate. He orders the Defiant prepped and takes the Constable to the Gamma Quadrant with the intention of attracting the Founders' attention. He accedes to every demand made by the Founder, but he stands firm in remaining with Odo, refusing to simply turn him over and withdraw.  This firmness tempered by his diplomatic accommodations seems to earn a level of respect from the Founder - who likely also has heard of his conduct a few episodes earlier, when he teamed with a Jem'Hadar group.

Odo: It's no surprise to see that Odo is a very bad patient, pushing to get out of Medlab as quickly as he's taken there. When Kira brings him a crime report to keep his mind occupied, he finds something that incriminates a smuggler. The sensible thing to do would be to contact his security people to take care of the matter. Instead, he slips out to arrest the criminal himself, making himself far sicker in the process. He refuses to show weakness even at his worst, drawing himself up as he walks through the Promenade to the Defiant, battling his illness for these few minutes with his own indomitable will.

Dr. Bashir: Shows no fear or deference to the Founder when she visits Odo. When she demands he clear the room, he declares that Odo is his patient and only leaves when Odo gives his permission. He argues against Odo's faith in the Founders' "justice," his recent experience with the synthetic plague doubtless at the front of his mind when the topic of Dominion justice comes up.

Klingons: Emboldened by his success against the Cardassians, Chancellor Gowron (Robert O'Reilly) is now provoking the Federation. He is demanding that Starfleet give up all rights to the Archanis Sector, territory the Klingons had voluntarily relinquished 100 years earlier. Federation colonies near the Klingon border are starting to panic, and calls are being made for preemptive action. War has become a likelihood - A war that would leave both Federation and Klingons weakened, easy prey for the Dominion.

Garak: Joins the mission in order to ask about survivors from the Cardassian attack on the Founders' homeworld. He gets his answer, in the episode's most chilling scene, as the Founder reponds to him with absolute coldness:

"There were no Cardassian survivors... They're dead. You're dead. Cardassia is dead. Your people were doomed the moment they attacked us. I believe that answers your question."

He reminds us of how dangerous he is when he processes this in all of two seconds. He then gives a courteous smile and a bow. Had the Founder a stronger sense of self-preservation, she would have killed him right then, as the action he is pushed to take would have likely proved effective (and probably not wrong) had Worf not intervened. 


THOUGHTS

An excellent season ends with a fine finale, one which is very effective in tying together many of this season's threads. For much of the season, the Klingon aggression has seemed like a digression. For the first time since The Way of the Warrior, that arc is tied into the larger Dominion story, in a way that promises much for the future. 

It does this with great economy. The Klingons are only the focus of two scenes, totalling all of about five minutes' screen time. Gowron's declaration at the start of the episode reminds us of that thread, which has lain completely dormant since Rules of Engagement. Then the ending ties the Klingon thread into the Dominon story like a loop closing around a bag, sealing it shut in a single tug.

The rest of the episode is about Odo and his return to the Great Link. This story is a direct consequence of his actions in The Adversary. At the end of a season in which it was intoned as Divine Law that "No changeling has ever harmed another," Odo killed one of his own people. That was already enough to leave him haunted. Now his people have decided to judge him for his crime. Odo reacts as might be expected of a man who clings to the law, any law that applies, with Javert-like devotion: He not only agrees to be judged by the Founders' standards, he actually wants to be.

This isn't just an Odo episode, however. Deep Space 9's ongoing strength of making sure there is good material for several characters continues, and the episode ends up being as much about those who take Odo to the Link as it is about the Constable himself. In The Search, the changelings urged Odo to consider his friendships with Solids as false. Here, his friends prove their loyalty at every turn.

It's easy to talk about moments of high drama, so let me close out this review by noting how well-done and genuine the smaller moments are. There are several semi-comic character bits here: Sisko, Worf, and Dax betting on how many times Kira will sneeze, and Sisko taking a moment to enjoy having made the right guess; O'Brien, feeling outnumbered in a home full of women; Julian, having to stop himself from skipping a stone through the Changeling goo of the Great Link. All of these bits feel rooted in who these characters are, and all of them ring true. 

Which I think is why Deep Space 9 continues to be my favorite Trek series: When the show is at its best, the universe feels textured and lived-in, something that often isn't true of other Trek shows. When the characters are at their best, they feel real. And if they feel real in the little moments, then that makes the big dramatic moments that much more powerful.


Overall Rating: 9/10.

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3-21. The Die Is Cast.

Garak interrogates Odo.

THE PLOT

Garak has joined his old mentor, Enabran Tain (Paul Dooley), as Tain prepares to launch a first strike against the Dominion. Tain's plan is to attack the Founders' home world, eliminating them as a threat. The drug dependency used to control the Jem'Hadar will then neutralize them, as they will die within weeks of the Founders' destruction. This will remove the Dominion threat and, on a more personal level, provide Tain with a path back to power and Garak with an opportunity to take revenge on his old enemies in the Cardassian Empire.

This does, however, leave Odo as a prisoner on Tain's ship. Tain, for his part, requires a show of loyalty from Garak. A vigorous interrogation of Odo, with use of a stasis field to disable his shapeshifting abilities and make him vulnerable to torture!


CHARACTERS

Commander Sisko: Even under orders to stay at the station and take no action regarding the Cardassian/Romulan fleet, he will not simply sit by while one of his officers is taken into a war zone. He disregards orders and takes the Defiant through the wormhole to rescue Odo. When this takes him directly into combat, he is very ready for it - though as soon as the constable and Garak are rescued, he is equally ready to get away as quickly as possible.

Odo: Rene Auberjonois gets a great scene, as Odo is interrogated by Garak. He never displays any fear, even as the Cardassian stasis field keeps him from reverting to his liquid state, leaving him a dried out husk with skin literally peeling away. As Odo stands there, a living wreck, he continues to batter Garak with his observations, recognizing that this is far from the return to glory the Cardassian had dreamt of.

Dr. Bashir: The teaser sees Bashir attempting to have lunch with his other best friend, Chief O'Brien. Bashir expounds on theatre, while O'Brien basically ignores him and eats. The doctor's frustration at his failed attempt to replicate his lunches with Garak is very funny, and this brief interaction shows just how important Bashir's friendship with Garak is to him - as important in its own way as his friendship with O'Brien.

Commander Eddington: I'd completely forgotten about Eddington. I think the writers had, too. Much was made of his introduction, but he's gone not only unseen, but entirely unmentioned in the twenty episodes since. Given that he was placed in charge of Starfleet security on the station, I'd have thought he'd at least receive some mention in some of the intervening episodes. As it stands, it took me a moment to remember who this extra character was. "Odo's my friend, too," he insists - but since these two characters have shared no screen time since Eddington's appointment, we can't even judge this statement as a lie. A rare missed opportunity for this series, as it keeps any of the character's actions in this episode from having any resonance at all.

Garak: "Do you know what the sad part is, Odo? I'm a very good tailor." Back in his old role as Enabran Tain's right hand, Garak finds he has no taste for the job anymore. Some of this is down to Tain, whose orders are immediately too ruthless. He talks of eliminating his housekeeper, the very woman who pleaded with Garak to help Tain just one episode ago. He orders Garak to interrogate Odo, refusing to accept Garak's belief that Odo has nothing to tell. It's no surprise that the episode ends with Garak back at his tailor's shop - but he's emotionally in a very different place, which will hopefully result in further developments down the line.


THOUGHTS

A rare case of Part Two being even better than Part One. The Die Is Cast picks up on the idea of Enabran Tain's first strike against the Dominion. What's interesting is that all of the Alpha Quadrant governments have the same basic idea: To sit back and wait, not dirty their hands on this "rogue operation," but hope for its success just the same. This approach defines not only the Cardassians and the Romulans, but also Starfleet. "I never hope for war," a Starfleet official tells Sisko, "but if it comes, I want the Dominion to be on the losing side."

The Garak scenes are predictably the best in the show. Put back in a position of power, Garak finds that his ability to lie with absolute smoothness only goes so far. It's clear from the start that he's trying to protect Odo - but it's also clear to Tain and the Romulan captain, and Garak is forced to do what he least wants: torture someone he might have considered a friend.

The scene in which Garak interrogates Odo is the episode's strongest, with Rene Auberjonois and Andrew Robinson both outstanding. I particularly like the way writer Ronald D. Moore's script keeps each character determined to betray no sign of weakness. Garak is silky, charming, and utterly terrifying as he presses Odo for answers. Odo, in turn, is defiant, spitting sarcasm back at Garak even under torture. Both characters do give, just a little: Garak, practically whispering in Odo's ear as he begs the shapeshifter to say something - "lie if you have to!" - and Odo confiding his desire to join his people's Great Link. It is only when Garak shuts off the field, though, that they show their weakness: Odo returning to liquid form, Garak allowing himself to bury his head in his hands in exhaustion and self-disgust.

This is an episode which should have far-reaching consequences. The Dominion has been a background threat throughout the season - frequently mentioned, but largely passive save for a single attempt to get Odo to join them. Now they have been officially engaged, which should make them a more active threat. At the same time, this should cause a shift in the Cardassians' internal balance of power, which might be rather interesting to see. Whatever the case, I look forward to seeing the fallout from this - doubtless around the season's end.

The best episode of the season, and one which promises much to come as the series continues.


Overall Rating: 10/10.

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