5-19. Ties of Blood and Water.

Kira and Legate Ghemor (Lawrence Pressman)

THE PLOT

Tekeny Ghemor (Lawrence Pressman), the Cardassian legate who became the leader of the Cardassian dissident movement after Kira was kidnapped and surgically altered to resemble his daughter, visits the station. Kira is excited: not only is Ghemor the Cardassian best suited to lead a political opposition to the Dominion occupation, he is also someone Kira grew close to, close enough to see as a father figure.

Ghemor is terminally ill, however, and declining rapidly. He asks Kira to "be (his) daughter one last time," to perform the Shri-tal, a Cardassian tradition in which a dying man will tell closely-guarded secrets to his family. With his daughter still missing, almost certainly dead, Kira is the closest thing he has to family. For the Federation, it's a remarkable opportunity: A chance to gather an unprecedented amount of intelligence on the Cardassian government. For Kira, it's an ordeal she may not be ready to face.

She braves it as head-on as possible, conducting a series of exhausting interviews discussing various Cardassian Guls, including potentially corruptible political enemies of Gul Dukat. But Dukat is aware of Ghemor's presence on Deep Space 9. He attempts to intimidate Sisko into extraditing the dying man. When Sisko refuses, he makes a dramatic entrance in a Jem'Hadar warship - with weapons locked directly on the station!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: Deals well with Dukat's attempts at intimidation. He doesn't react with fear, nor does he lose his temper. He is firm but steady in rejecting attempts to make him surrender Ghemor. He does not block Dukat from seeing the dying Cardassian - but he does keep a watchful eye, and when Dukat makes an attempt on the old man's life, he responds forcefully.

Major Kira: The episode opens with Kira happy and excited as Ghemor arrives on the station. She reacts to him very much as if he was her father, spilling over with delight at seeing him and enthusiasm at plans that would involve him. When she learns he is dying, and that he wants her to act as his daughter and stay with him as he dies, she flashes back to memories of her actual father (Thomas Kopache)'s death. Her guilt at fleeing his deathbed fuels her rage at Ghemor when she learns of his acts during the Occupation - acts that would fall far short of "war criminal" status, as Odo points out, but which do give her an excuse to flee another father's deathbed. It's a tribute to just how sharp Kira's anger can be and just how much Deep Space 9 has kicked against the usual Star Trek "safeness" that, for just moment, I had doubts as to whether Kira would come back to him.

Weyoun: Why let a little thing like death stop you from bringing back a good guest character? Weyoun (Jeffrey Combs), the ill-fated yet delightfully slimy Vorta seen in To the Death, returns via the magic of cloning. Combs remains wonderful in the role, his flippant manner offsetting Dukat's more immediately imposing presence to entertaining effect. Particularly enjoyable is Weyoun's delight when Sisko confronts him over the attempted assassination of Ghemor. As someone who delights in games of all kinds, the Vorta enjoys the moves and countermoves between Sisko and Dukat - and he loves rendering all of it irrelevant with a dramatic gesture of his own.

Gul Dukat: Has retained the title "Gul," despite claiming rulership of Cardassia, because that title sounds "more hands-on." He takes a moment to savor a little dig at Sisko, observing that his own title is less pretentious than such alternatives as "Emissary." He insists that he is no Dominion puppet, and he is enjoying his newfound power - but he can't be unaware that Weyoun is perpetually attached to his shoulder. His only significant interaction with any DS9 regulars that doesn't include the Vorta is his scene with Kira, in which he knows exactly which buttons to push to spark the major's fiery temper.


THOUGHTS

Ties of Blood and Water is a direct sequel to Season Three's Second Skin. It reunites Kira with Legate Ghemor, and plays on the surrogate father/daughter dynamic of that episode to good effect. Better still, it does so while furthering the narrative arc of the season and while giving Kira yet another excellent character episode.

The Occupation and the things Kira saw, did, and saw done represent the most definitive aspect of her character, and the one most explored by the series. Which doesn't mean that the dramatic well has run dry. After all, the reason the Occupation so defines her is that it was a horrific experience to endure, and every time the show revisits it, we see yet another way in which it left its mark on her.

The flashbacks to the death of Kira's father initially come across as intrusive. They don't remain that way, however. Writer Robert Hewitt Wolfe and director Avery Brooks, both of whom have been consistently reliable behind the camera, let the flashbacks build in such a way that by the midpoint of the episode, we see the past story reverberating against the present. It results in something of a dual climax, with the tag scene nicely tying the two strands together.

The strong emotional scenes between Kira and Ghemor are the heart of the episode, but this is a character episode that also manages to build the background narrative. We get our first strong glimpse of the new Cardassian government. Despite Dukat's protestations, it is clear that he is exactly what Sisko accuses him of being: A Dominion puppet. Weyoun's interactions with Dukat strongly show this. The Vorta is quite open in telling Dukat in front of others that he will need to rehabilitate his image, or interrupting a confrontation between Dukat and Sisko to observe that using something fictitious as propaganda is merely "a small problem." I look forward to seeing more of the Weyoun/Dukat interactions; Dukat may be drunk on power for now, but I have to believe there will come a point when the Vorta will begin to seriously annoy him.

Most interesting is that the Dominion seem just about ready to move from Cold War to hot one. They may still playing at diplomacy for now. But their willingness to show up with weapons locked, all but daring Sisko to fire the first shot of the inevitable conflict, shows that the fragile peace may be about to shatter...


Overall Rating: 8/10.

Previous Episode: Business as Usual
Next Episode: Ferengi Love Songs

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5-11. The Darkness and the Light.

Kira mourns the loss of an old friend.

THE PLOT

Latha Mabrin (Matt Roe) was a violent man, something the Bajoran Resistance greatly valued during the Occupation but which created problems for him after. Latha finally turned his life around, however, becoming a Vedek and embracing the Prophets. He is performing a ceremony involving repentance when suddenly, a disruptor blast fires from a cermonial object, killing him. Back on Deep Space 9, Kira receives a message: Latha's picture and a mechanical voice, telling her, "That's one."

As the message indicates, Latha's death is only the beginning. Someone is targeting those affiliated with the Shakaar Resistance Cell. Kira attempts to get a step ahead by contacting her friends, but is too late at every turn. One by one, the former Resistance members are assassinated. Odo investigates, but has to confess that he has no real suspects.

And with each Bajoran who falls, the killings grow ever closer to their final target: Kira herself!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: Though not heavily spotlighted, we see him making sure to remain informed about Odo's progress (or lack thereof) at every stage. When Kira finally decides to strike out on her own, Sisko orders Worf and Dax to follow her. When they start to point out difficulties, he snaps at them in a tone that brooks neither argument nor excuses "I understand the difficulties! You have your orders - Dismissed!"

Major Kira: Past episodes of Deep Space 9 have had characters, including Kira herself, describe the major as a "terrorist." This episode explores some of the implications of that. As a Resistance fighter, she engaged in attacks that not only killed and injured military targets, but spread the damage among civilians as well. When Odo presents his working theory that the killings are revenge for collateral damage inflicted by the Shakaar Cell, Kira protests that too many of their attacks fit that description for it to be helpful. Nana Visitor is excellent as usual, particularly in showing Kira's mounting frustration at being unable to investigate directly due to her pregnancy, a passivity that goes entirely against her instincts.

Odo: Kira's trust in him is shown throughout, simply in that he is the one she chooses to listen as she reflects on each of her dead friends. In Medlab, where that wonderful monologue is delivered, she waits until Dr. Bashir leaves and she is alone with Odo before she reveals such personal memories. For his part, Odo listens quietly, not speaking until she is done but clearly absorbing all that she says. He insists that he will find the man responsible for the crimes, and he's well on his way to doing so before she decides to take matters into her own hands at the end.


THOUGHTS

THIS ISN'T A MYSTERY

Despite focusing on an investigation into a series of killings, The Darkness and the Light is not a mystery. There are no clues that lead Kira to the killer. The first two-thirds of the episode portrays the killings. Then Odo calls in some old Cardassian favors and delivers up a list of suspects with the technical knowledge and motive to commit the murders. Kira follows up, and the fourth name on the list turns out to be the murderer. There's no real investigation shown.

That would be a significant flaw, if this episode even pretended to be a mystery story. But it doesn't. Odo gives a few status reports on his investigation, simply because otherwise we'd be very justified in wondering exactly what the heck he's doing during all this. Otherwise, the focus is very much on Kira reacting to her friends' deaths and reflecting on her past in the Resistance.

Kira reflects on how the violent Latha turned his life around through religion, or how the perpetually-frightened Fala (Jennifer Savidge) continued to funnel information to the Resistance despite her terror. When two particularly close friends are killed, she recalls her first Resistance mission in a monologue that lasts for almost three minutes. It's pure monologue, no interruptions from any other character. Director Michael Vejar shoots almost all of it in one shot closing steadily on Kira's face, cutting away only once to show Odo listening before going back to his main shot. One person talking, most of the time with the only visual being her face, and thanks to the excellence of both Ronald D. Moore's writing and Nana Visitor's acting it is the best scene in the episode.

SILARAN PRIN

Because this episode is not a mystery, it's not spoiling anything to reveal that the assassin is the mystery to reveal that the assassin is Silaran Prin (Randy Oglesby), a Cardassian living close to Bajor. (Truly, it reveals nothing: Prin is revealed as the killer in the same scene that introduces him.) Prin was a civilian, a servant of a Cardassian Gul targeted by Kira's cell, who was left horribly disfigured by an attack that killed not only the Gul, but twelve Cardassians including servants and the Gul's entire family.

Kira does not respond to these acts with remorse. She insists that Bajor was at war, and that all Cardassians occupying their world were legitimate targets. No exception is made for civilians, spouses, or children, which echoes the statement of the murderer at the end of Duet, who left Kira appalled by his claim that his killing was justified because, "He's a Cardassian. That's reason enough!" Lest it sound like I'm siding with Prin against Kira, I should say that given the situation of the Occupation, her reasoning is correct - In such a situation, mercy simply would not be a viable course to take, while Prin's murders do not have the justification of war.

Vejar's direction during this confrontation is superb, using darkness and light to wonderful effect. Prin, who hisses that Kira is a creature of darkness, imprisons her in a stasis field that puts Kira within a circle of light. Meanwhile, Prin - who presents himself as representing light - stalks around in darkness, only revealing himself fully at the very end. Kira uses his delusions of innocence and a handly plot device (which was neatly planted back in the teaser) to save herself, but she is clearly shaken. She doesn't allow Prin to get away with a claim of innocence, but it's worth noting that she also doesn't she make such a claim about herself.


WHERE'S SHAKAAR?

My last thought of the episode, since this review is already running long. Here we have a show all about a string of killings of members of the Shakaar Resistance Cell. Kira, the woman Shakaar loves, is in enough danger to have a security detail attached to protect her. And Shakaar... is nowhere to be seen.

I understand that Duncan Regehr was a working actor whose availability and expense made it a challenge to regularly feature him. But then, maybe that points to a reason why they should have kept Vedek Bareil around. Bareil's replacement has proved to be a recurring character in name only, not even seen in a episode such as this which practically calls out for an appearance.


OVERALL:

The Shakaar issue in no way detracts from this episode's success. Well-scripted, well-directed, and outstandingly performed by Nana Visitor, The Darkness and the Light is a good episode, and it's an outstanding character spotlight piece for Kira.


Overall Rating: 8/10.

Previous Episode: Rapture
Next Episode: The Begotten

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5-10. Rapture.

Sisko becomes obsessed with a Bajoran lost city.

THE PLOT

The Cardassians have repatriated a painting of B'hala, a Bajoran city lost roughly 20,000 years ago. The painting is the only proof of the city's existence, with partial coordinates inscribed on one of the spires of a building in the painting. This prompts Sisko to try to puzzle out the location. He scans the painting into the station computer and enhances a reflection in the work to find another coordinate on another spire. Then he uploads it to the holosuites to work with it directly.

When he saves the program, the poorly-maintained equipment results in a plasma burst. Sisko is knocked unconscious, and wakes in Medlab with odd neural readings. Dr. Bashir tells him that he expects everything to reset itself in a few days, and to "enjoy the show" of more vivid sights and sounds in the meantime.

Meanwhile, the station receives word from Admiral Charlie Whatley (Ernest Perry, Jr.) that the Federation Council has granted Bajor's petition to join. There will be a signing ceremony, after which Bajor will finally become part of the Federation. But Sisko remains obsessed with the puzzle of the lost city - and when he experiences a vision, then follows it and actually finds B'hala, the entire situation becomes a lot less predictable!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: Avery Brooks' performance as this transformed Sisko is odd. I do think he goes a bit over-the-top in parts of the show. But that very quality actually works for the episode, particularly when there is a real sense of poetry to his delivery of his longer speeches, notably as he describes his first vision to Kira: "I was there. I could smell the burning bateret leaves, taste the incense on the wind. I was standing in front of the Obelisk. And as I looked up, for one moment, I understood it all. B'hala, the Orbs, the occupation, the discovery of the wormhole, the coming war with the Dominion... And for one moment, I could see the pattern that held it all together."

Major Kira: Her friendship with Sisko has converted her from believing that Bajor needs to stand alone to actually wanting her home planet to join the Federation. She is delighted that Bajor's petition has been granted, and looks forward to the signing ceremony. It is appropriate that she is the one to find Sisko in the midst of his first vision, as she is the one member of the command staff who will believe it is real and not a delusion. She defends his right to follow his visions at the risk of his health, believing the Prophets will protect him from harm.

Kasidy Yates: Her first appearance since last season's For the Cause, and it's a welcome return. Kasidy holds no apparent bitterness over her prison time, and once it's clear that Sisko welcomes her back she seems happy to pick back up where they left off. She is taken aback by Sisko's welcome including a trip to Bajor to find a lost city, but she goes along with it. When Sisko's visions put his health in jeopardy, she argues strongly against his refusal of medical help, urging him to think about what he's doing to her and to Jake.

Kai Winn: When Sisko finds the lost city, Winn approaches Kira with an apology for never having truly believed the captain was the Emissary. Kira expresses surprise that Winn would have the courage to admit to ever being wrong. This prompts an angry response from Winn, who reminds Kira that she also suffered during the Occupation: "Perhaps you forget, Major, the Cardassians arrested any Bajoran they found teaching the word of the Prophets. I was in a Cardassian prison camp for five years and I can remember each and every beating I suffered. And while you had your weapons to protect you, all I had was my faith and my courage." Louise Fletcher puts just enough steel into it to let us know that Winn has added Kira's doubts as to her courage to all the other ways in which Kira has thwarted her, and that she's likely planning a suitable reckoning.


THOUGHTS

Bajor-centric episodes have become such a rarity that they are always welcome, and Rapture is a particularly good one. It feels like an important episode. I don't know that events necessarily move forward. It's more, as Sisko says when describing his vision, that it feels as if a pattern is being drawn together. We revisit Bajor and its relationship with the Federation, winn and her relationship with Kira and with Sisko, Kira and her admiration for Sisko.

All of these threads are not only touched on, but elaborated on. Winn may be a villain, but we are reminded that her spirituality is not mere opportunism. Her faith matters to her and has seen her through horrible times - and by detailing how she weathered the Occupation, we are encouraged to have some respect for her as a person, even if she is someone to distrust and even fear.

Season Four's Accession was the last episode to touch on Sisko's role as the Emissary. There, events pushed him to directly claim a title that he had previously tolerated as a burden. Here, we see him really acting in the role. Even before the accident, he shows a strong interest in the lost city of B'hala. After the accident, we see him touring the station, speaking with individual Bajorans about their problems and worries. Even Bashir responds to Admiral Whatley's questioning by stating simply that Sisko is the Emissary.

Hans Beimler's script keeps a potentially static episode moving forward with startling momentum. First, we are worried that Sisko may imperil his position. Later, we see that his life may be in jeopardy if he doesn't give up his visions.  Scenes with Jake and Kasidy, who beg him to turn away from his path, emphasize how Sisko's death would affect those around him. Finally, the future of Bajor seems to hang in the balance, as Sisko gets his final vision and lurches to warn the Bajorans of what he has seen.

Beimler and director Jonathan West don't go the obvious route with this vision. Sisko gazes into the Orb of Prophecy, but we don't see any of what he experiences. There's no light show, no apocalyptic imagery. Instead, we cut to the Federation and Bajoran delegations, and hear from Sisko what he has seen - a garbled account that is probably just a fragment of what he truly experienced. We don't know what it means, but we are encouraged to take the warning seriously.

We end the episode with everything much as it was at the start. Bajor has not joined the Federation, but Sisko still believes it will in the future. Kai Winn still does not trust the Federation, and her doubts have likely been deepened by this experience. Winn and Kira still don't trust each other, though each believes she has the other's measure. Sisko is still the Emissary, now more than ever before. Not a thing has changed - And yet it doesn't feel like time has been wasted. There's a sense that things aren't quite as they were before, or at least that the pattern connecting the disparate strands here is a little clearer than it was before.

That, and the almost surprisingly compelling experience of watching an episode that sounds a bit dull on paper, make this a must see. Another excellent episode of a thus-far very good season.


Overall Rating: 9/10.

Previous Episode: The Ascent
Next Episode: The Darkness and the Light 

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5-5. The Assignment.

O'Brien's family is threatened by an unexpected source.

THE PLOT

O'Brien is waiting with chocolates and a string of excuses for killing the plants when Keiko returns from a trip to the Fire Caves on Bajor. The chocolates are appreciated, the excuses unneeded... because Keiko's body has been taken over by a Pah-wraith, a spirit of Bajoran legend.

After demonstrating its ability to kill or cripple Keiko in a single second, the wraith makes its demands. O'Brien is given thirteen hours to make a series of adjustments to station operations. It's a tight deadline, allowing no room for distractions, deviations, or attempts to warn the command crew. If he finishes the work, he is promised his wife's safe return - but when Dax notices that system specs are "slightly off," O'Brien is trapped with a tight deadline and a search for a saboteur - Himself!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: Though his role is decidedly a supporting one, we do see his trust in O'Brien throughout the episode. Even at the end, he doesn't greet O'Brien with an immediate arrest - He just tells O'Brien that he has "a lot of explaining to do," with evident faith that the engineer will be able to explain his actions.

O'Brien: He gives into the wraith's demands, but he never stops trying to find a way to thwart it. Even as he performs the initial adjustments, he asks the computer to calculate how long it would take to render Keiko unconscious in various ways. He knows that for any method to stop the wraith before it can harm his wife, it has to be effective in less than a second - an interval that even a phaser set on "stun" isn't safely within. As the wraith's deadline gets nearer, O'Brien becomes steadily more desperate, finally abandoning his own hopes of covering his tracks in order to do what is needed to save those he loves.

Keiko: The wraith has access to Keiko's knowledge of O'Brien's personality, and recognizes that the only way to keep him from telling Sisko is to reinforce the threat against his family. There are several instances of this throughout the show, but the most memorable has Keiko contacting him in a meeting to show that she is with their daughter, alone in their quarters. Rosalind Chao, who is often pushed into the fairly thankless "main character's wife" role, seems to enjoy sinking her teeeth into some villainy, and the way she shifts from the cheerful wife to the icy enemy - sometimes with as little as a sideways look - is highly entertaining.

Rom: Last season's Bar Association saw Rom leaving his brother's bar for a position in Engineering. That finally sees some follow-up here. Refreshingly, Rom is where you'd expect somebody new to be: At the bottom, working the night shift in Sanitation. When a member of the swing shift is out, Rom is selected to temporarily replace him and, though the other members of the team show little interest in talking to him, he does his work well enough to catch O'Brien's notice and be enlisted as an ally in meeting the pah-wraith's tight deadline. Rom's technical knowledge is such that he quickly puts together the purpose of the adjustments, something that the wraith has hidden even from O'Brien - leading to O'Brien's own final plan to ensure his family's safety.


THOUGHTS

The Assignment is the annual "put O'Brien through the wringer" episode, something that's been a tradition ever since Season Two's outstanding Whispers. Colm Meaney's ability to be completely relateable and sympathetic in virtually any situation makes him a natural for these episodes and, far from degenerating into tedious formula, these O'Brien episodes are routinely very good-to-great.

On the sliding scale of "O'Brien Must Suffer" episodes, it is closest in quality to Season Three's Visionary. It's a good plot-driven thriller, well-constructed and very entertaining. But it lacks the paranoid edge that made Whispers so memorable even before its ending revelation, nor does it have the emotional punch of Hard Time.

But it is a good episode, nicely anchored by Colm Meaney's Everyman persona. Effective moments include "Keiko's" birthday dinner for O'Brien, in which she invites all of his co-workers and mingles with them effortlessly and charmingly, dashing any hopes that the others will notice anything "off" about her. In fact, they shower her with praise for every aspect of the party, rubbing further salt into the pah-wraith's message that she's in control and no external party is going to rescue O'Brien from completing his assigned sabotage.

The Pah-wraith is defeated a little too easily, with O'Brien concocting a last-minute scheme that works perfectly and with no complications. Still, if the ending isn't great, neither does it fall completely flat. The Assignment remains a satisfying episode, and leaves me looking forward to seeing O'Brien get run through the wringer again next season.


Overall Rating: 7/10.

Previous Episode: Nor the Battle to the Strong
Next Episode: Trials and Tribble-ations 

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Thoughts on Season Four.

Worf has difficulty adjusting to life on Deep Space 9.

Season Four of Deep Space 9 is the best so far. That's enough of a surprise, given how very good Season Three was. It's even more of one when you consider that this is a season which undergoes changes made for purely commercial reasons. Shifting emphasis and adding a new character, both on the record as having been done strictly to boost ratings, are the sorts of actions that usually lead to disaster for series television. Instead, the new elements are used in a way that builds on and ties into what went before.


WHEN A RELAUNCH ISN'T A RELAUNCH: THE CHANGES

Season Four of Deep Space 9 begins with a feature-length episode that, in many respects, seems to act as a second pilot for the show. The Way of the Warrior is designed as a jumping-on point for new viewers, re-establishing the world of Deep Space 9 and resetting its rules. Worf is added as a regular, the Klingons are redefined as adversaries instead of allies, and there is suddenly much more emphasis on action.

Though this shake-up may have been motivated by ratings concerns, real thought has gone into using it to enrich the show. The season premiere may appear to be a "second pilot," but The Way of the Warrior takes care to weave its plot around existing threads. Time is devoted to Worf finding his place on the station, and time is spent on the renewed animosity with the Klingons. By the middle of the season, it becomes clear that the series has not redefined itself around these new elements. The Dominion remains the foremost threat, with an ambitious mid-season two-parter showing how the Dominion presence sparks paranoia even in the heart of the Federation.

In short, what starts out looking like a second start is made part and parcel of the series as it already existed. The action builds as much from events in Seasons Two and Three as from anything created this year. The relaunch isn't actually a relaunch, and both new and old elements come together in a way that makes both more interesting than they would be individually.

Jake Sisko (Tony Todd) nears the end of his life in
The Visitor, the season (maybe series)'s standout episode.

WARRIOR, TAILOR, DOCTOR, SPY: THE CHARACTERS

Deep Space 9 continues to excel in using its ensemble. Sisko, the Star Trek captain who probably least idealizes the Federation self-image ("It's easy to be a saint in Paradise!"), nevertheless proves a strong protector of its ideals when his old mentor prepares to launch a paranoid coup.

He continues to be protective of his son's welfare, emotional as well as physical, whether the situation involves the Mirror Universe's counterpart of his dead wife or an alien muse, feeding off Jake's creative energies. His bond with his son is most evident in the season's standout episode, The Visitor, which may be the most successfully emotional episode of Star Trek ever made.

In the supporting cast, Garak continues to steal every scene he's in and almost every episode that features him. Likely in response to the character's popularity and to Andrew Robinson's wonderful performance, he is featured more and more often. Amazingly, the writers manage this without undermining the qualities that made him so much fun to start with. We still don't know much about him, and what we do know hardly inspires trust - yet he remains impossible to truly dislike. He might slip a knife in your back, but he'll be enormously entertaining company right up until the second before that happens.

Strong material is spread among all the regulars, with Odo having to deal with consequences from killing a changeling; O'Brien, facing the prospect of becoming a father a second time; and Bashir facing tests of not only medical skills, but also of his principles and his character.

On the downside, this is the weakest season yet for Kira, and the only season to date in which she does not end up being a standout character. She still gets good material, particularly when put opposite Marc Alaimo's Gul Dukat (also underused this year), but she has noticeably less to do than in previous seasons.

Season Four is probably best remembered as the season that brought Worf onto the show. His introduction in The Way of the Warrior is exceptionally well-handled, giving him a dynamic first DS9 appearance that makes use of his background from the Klingon episodes of TNG without allowing him to overshadow Sisko and the other regulars. It's an excellent episode, one of the series' best, and an outstanding introduction to Worf.

After The Way of the Warrior, however, comes a run of episodes in which the writers don't seem sure what to do with the new addition. I suspect many of these scripts had already been completed, or at least outlined, before the decision to add him was made, and there are more than a few cases of "a Worf scene" being tacked onto an episode that otherwise has no use for him.

Thankfully, this improves as the season goes along, with Worf gradually receiving strong episodes and subplots. His friendship/budding relationship with Dax has potential to develop both characters, as does his respectful but sometimes strained working relationship with Odo. Even at the season's end, I don't think the show has fully found a place for Worf - but I do think this is likely to be rectified in Season Five.

Akorem Laan (Richard Libertini) takes the title of Emissary
in Accession, one of too few episodes to deal with Bajor.

BAJOR WANING

When I wrote my Season Three overview, I observed how far into the background the Bajor arc had been pushed by the rise of the Dominion threat. Seasons One and Two were heavily centered around Bajor and its political entanglements in the wake of the Cardassian Occupation. Season Three saw that focus reduced, with only a handful of episodes continuing to follow up on Bajor and the machinations of Kai Winn.

Season Three at least continued to develop this thread, though, with the Bajoran/Cardassian peace treaty and the rise of Shakaar, Kira's old resistance cell leader, to First Minister. In Season Four, what few Bajor-centric episodes exist are just placeholders, installments which may entertain, but which don't alter the status quo.

Really, as the show becomes less about Bajor and more about the Dominion, it stands out just how well the series has done at weaving the Klingon, Dominion, and Cardassian stories together with that of the station. All of those threads feel like parts of  single, dynamic whole. Bajor, which was the focus of the series when it began, does not feel like part of that same whole, and in Season Four its situation has ceased to be as dynamic as the rest of the series' elements. Continuing to namecheck Bajor has become an obligation of a series that has moved on to other things.

Odo visits the changeling homeworld. It's not a happy homecoming.

SEASON FIVE WISHLIST

Don't get me wrong when I observe that Bajor has waned in importance at this point. I not only don't foresee a return to a Bajor-centered series, I also don't want that. The central arcs of the series now are genuinely compelling, and the show feels like a richer place than it did in its early days. What I would like is for the Bajoran threads to be woven into the larger story. If this could be done with the Klingon arc - which initially seemed like a colorful digression - then it could certainly be done with Bajor.

Beyond that, the series has gotten so good at this point, it's almost impossible to wish for major changes. I not only would like, but I genuinely do expect, to see better use made of Worf in seasons to come. I also hope to see Kira return to her former prominence.

Past that, I just hope the series continues to do as well as it has in balancing its many characters and stories, and in keeping them feeling like part of the same whole.

Even in Season One, I was impressed by how good this series often was. In Season Four, Deep Space 9 has become genuinely excellent television. My biggest wish is for it to remain such, so that I can continue to enjoy the ride.


Previous Season: Season Three
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4-17. Accession.

Akorem Laan (Richard Libertini), the Emissary of the Prophets.

THE PLOT

When a 300 year old Bajoran lightship comes through the wormhole with one Bajoran aboard, Sisko has the man beamed directly to the infirmary. The man is Akorem Laan (Richard Libertini), a revered poet from Bajor's past who disappeared more than 200 years ago. Akorem was swallowed up by the wormhole, and has only returned to Bajor now. He declares himself to be the Emissary of prophecy - the very role into which Kai Opaka thrust Sisko, and which the captain has reluctantly filled ever since.

Sisko is all too happy to step aside to allow Akorem to be The Emissary... Until the new Emissary's first public appearance, that is. Akorem may be a revered poet, but he is still a man from the distant past. He is shocked that modern Bajorans no longer follow their d'jarras, a strict caste system that was in place in his time. His first speech is almost fanatically devoted to this single topic, insisting that every Bajoran should return to his or her d'jarra - a thought which doesn't rest easy with all Bajorans, and which would disqualify Bajor from admittance into Starfleet!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: "I'm just a Starfleet officer again. All I have to worry about are the Klingons, the Dominion, and the Maquis. I feel like I'm on vacation!" Be careful what you wish for. Sisko doesn't waste a second in relinquishing the "Emissary" title to Akorem. But once he does, he is left as little more than a bystander as Akorem's desire to reinstate the caste system wreaks havoc. When it leads to the murder of a Bajoran Vedek for having been born to the wrong caste, Sisko realizes he must reclaim the title he was so eager to escape. Being the Emissary may not be something he enjoys, but it is his responsibility, a duty he cannot shirk without consequences.

Major Kira: Her religious convictions keep her from questioning Akorem after Sisko steps aside as Emissary. She tries to explain to Odo that having faith means "no explanation is necessary." If the Emissary says something must be done, it is her place as a Bajoran to accept him at his word. In one of the best moments in the episode, one that recalls similar exchanges in last season's Destiny, she tells Sisko just how much the Emissary's word means. "Maybe you never realized this, Captain, but we would have tried to do whatever you asked of us when you were Emissary - no matter how difficult it seemed." Sisko's wordless reaction is the perfect cap to an excellent scene.

O'Brien/Keiko: The "B" plot is about the return of Keiko, and its affect on O'Brien. He is certainly happy to have his family back, but it's been a year and he has developed certain routines for his leisure time that don't include her. At the same time, she's been spending time on her work, something which doesn't include him. O'Brien quickly misses his playtime with Julian, and his constant presence is a distraction for Keiko. The solution is obvious, and more time is devoted to this side plot than is called for, but Colm Meaney plays all of this as authentically as ever.


THOUGHTS

Accession is an early script by Jane Espenson, a writer who would move onto a truly splendid career, writing for series as disparate as  Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Battlestar Galactica, Torchwood, Once Upon a Time, and Game of Thrones. This script isn't up to the very best work she would eventually do, but it shows the attention to characterization, the intelligence, and the thoughtfulness that would make her so successful.

I always appreciate seeing Deep Space 9 return its focus to Bajor, something which has become much less common since the introduction of the Dominion threat. This episode starts out feeling like wheel-spinning. After all, we know that Akorem will not remain as Emissary past this episode, and we know that Sisko will reclaim the title with no lasting consequences. It all seems like a setup for an hour of filler - and insofar as this episode is unlikely to affect later ones, it could probably still be classified as such.

But the details make it richer than it might be otherwise. The d'jarra draws on the caste systems of countries such as India and Pakistan, among others, and just enough information is given about it to make it fit with what we already know about Bajor's past society. That the d'jarras were abandoned only fairly recently, with the Cardassian Occupation, makes it plausible that Akorem could persuade a large percentage of the population to return to this system... something that would be implausible if it had been abandoned centuries ago. The script also namedrops Kai Winn, whose suspicion of Starfleet and previously established fundamentalist tendencies likely make her happy to embrace Akorem as the Emissary.

It's a good episode, but not a great one. The main thing that limits it for me is that we see very little of how this impacts the average Bajoran. We see how it impacts Kira, as she prepares to give up her life and career to follow her d'jarra. I would have liked some other Bajoran characters in this episode, though, to show a variety of reactions. We hear that Shakaar won't give up his position and return to farming, for example. But we don't see him, even though this would have been excellent episode for him to make an appearance. We could see him and Kira in conflict, with the religious Kira accepting of the new Emissary even as Shakaar rebels. I'd be a lot more interested in that as a "B" plot than the issues of the O'Briens.

The O'Brien strand is definitely the episode's weakest element. It doesn't really seem to fit with the "A" plot, and it takes away screen time that the main story could have used to feel more fully developed. It's not really a badly-done plot, though it's given at least two scenes more than it needs to make its point. But it would have been better placed in a different episode, perhaps one with a lighter overall tone.

My issues with the "B" plot and with the lack of really seeing the effect of the new Emissary on the Bajoran population keep this from an excellent score. Still, this is a solid episode with some tantalizing hints for the future. The Prophets inform us that they are "of Bajor." More than that, they pronounce that "the Sisko" is also "of Bajor." This is a statement that I suspect will get followed up in the future.


Overall Rating: 7/10.

Previous Episode: Bar Association
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4-13. Crossfire.

Odo tries to balance work and emotion - unsuccessfully.

THE PLOT

First Minister Shakaar (Duncan Regehr) comes to the station for negotiations, in hopes of speeding Bajor's admittance to the Federation. This seems like a typical diplomatic visit - until Odo receives word that The True Way, a Cardassian terrorist group, plans to assassinate Shakaar.

Odo and Worf coordinate both normal station security and Starfleet personnel to make sure the First Minister is protected around the clock. It isn't long, however, before Odo observes the growing closeness between Shakaar and Kira, causing his own feelings for Kira to flare up again. A distraction he can ill afford, as he discovers when an attempt on Shakaar's life comes too close to success for anyone's comfort...


CHARACTERS

Capt. Sisko: When Odo confesses to his carelessness during the attempt on Shakaar's life, Sisko is stunned at his making such a mistake. Odo tells him he was distracted by "a personal matter" which he would prefer not to discuss, and assures the captain that it will not happen again. Sisko trusts Odo and respects his privacy enough not to push for more information. Fair enough for a first error - though it's a safe bet that Sisko would not let a second one slide.

Major Kira: The wonderfully tough, complex Kira is reduced to a plot device. She is remarkably unconcerned about the threats against Shakaar, and spends most of her time hovering around him, all too happy to be the object of his affections. It's not that I don't buy Kira's interest in Shakaar, but her romantic side is pretty much the only side of her on display. Her shrewdness, sharpness, and overall toughness all but vanish. Nana Visitor does well with what she's given, selling the Kira/Shakaar attraction and Kira's genuine friendship with Odo. It's just a shame to see arguably the series' strongest character reduced to the simple level presented here.

Odo: This is very much Odo's episode, and Rene Auberjonois is as up to the task as ever. He does an excellent job at showing Odo's inner turmoil, while at the same time having Odo keep up his impassive front for others. The Odo makeup has long since been perfected, leaving sufficient makeup to suggest the shapeshifter "look" but not so much as to block Auberjonois' expressiveness. This episode will never be a favorite of mine, but both actor and character make it worth viewing.

Worf: He and Odo are strikingly similar in some ways. They both insist on order in their personal lives, with precisely-arranged quarters and routines. This makes each of them a natural in providing security, and makes them a good team - at least, until Odo becomes too distracted by his personal feelings for Kira. At the same time, we see that the lack of ability to create routines is making it very difficult for Worf to adjust to life on Deep Space 9.

Quark: He knows Odo better than anyone save for the naturally-oblivious Kira, so it is little surprise that he would be the one to recognize Odo's feelings. In the episode's one great scene, Quark goes to the distraught Odo and gives him just the talk he needs to pull himself out of his mire and get back on the job. It isn't a compassionate pep talk, because Odo would never accept that. Instead, Quark finds a way to couch his respect for the constable in entirely self-serving terms. Odo shows his appreciation in similarly unsentimental terms, as their peculiar and unspoken friendship continues to be one of the series' great pleasures.


THOUGHTS

In Season Three, Kira had one love interest written off and another potential love interest created in the form of Shakaar, leader of Kira' old resistance cell and reluctant First Minister for Bajor. Shakaar actually made a strong first impression, with actor Duncan Regehr showing reasonable screen presence and a natural facility in an "action hero" role.

That's one problem with Crossfire. Shakaar worked in the setting of his debut episode, leading a local insurrection against government abuses. He works substantially less well in the diplomatic setting, with nothing to do save to work the crowd and romance Kira. Frankly, Philip Anglim's Vedek Bareil was better suited to this sort of episode than Regehr's Shakaar is, which may be why Regehr seems less at home in Crossfire than he did in Shakaar.

If that were the only issue with this episode, it might still be a good show. The script is one of the series' weaker offerings, though. The threat against Shakaar is ill-defined, and it's resolved in a way that's dramatically unsatisfying. It's there solely to create a crisis for Odo to bungle, with no sense of a larger place within the fabric of the show. A quick glance at Memory Alpha reveals that the episode was subject to major rewrites when the original ending proved problematic, and I'm afraid the seams show.

Finally, I have to confess that this just isn't the type of episode that I'm naturally inclined to enjoy. I will give Rene Auberjonois credit for so ably portraying the pain and helplessness of unrequited love - but that doesn't mean that there's any pleasure in watching his character in that situation, nor is there anything sufficiently compelling within this hour to add extra weight to it.

Despite the problems, Crossfire isn't a bad episode. There are some excellent character bits for Odo, Worf, and Quark, and the episode is made to this show's usual high standards. It's just not one that I expect to voluntarily re-watch at any point.


Overall Rating: 5/10

Previous Episode: Paradise Lost
Next Episode: Return to Grace

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Thoughts on Season Three

Odo finally encounters his own people - and they're the enemy!

PREVIOUSLY ON DEEP SPACE 9...

Season Two took the most promising elements of the series' first season and built on them.

The Bajoran political situation became more tangled. Things became really messy with The Collaborator, as the fanatical Vedek Winn (Louise Fletcher) was anointed as the spiritual leader - effectively ceding control of the planet to the worst possible person. We got more insight into the past of the space station itself, and into the pasts of the various characters (notably Kira and Odo). Two strong recurring characters, the charming but untrustworthy Garak (Andrew Robinson) and the militaristic Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo), were given added depth, making both far more interesting than they previously had been. Meanwhile, the show's regulars were allowed to steadily come into their own as characters. By the end of the season, Deep Space 9 had become a rare ensemble show that had no real weak link.

In the background, we also started to hear about a new threat from the Gamma Quadrant: The Dominion. And in the second season finale, the Dominion showed itself to fully merit that buildup, allowing the year to end on an ominous note.

Sisko continues to struggle with his role as the Emissary,
but the series' focus is drifting away from Bajor.

SEASON THREE: A SHIFT IN FOCUS

The events of The Jem'Hadar demanded followup... something the show's producers recognized. The opening two-parter follows directly on. In a brilliant stroke, the writers make the leaders of the Dominion changelings, tying this entire strand of the series directly to Odo. The Dominion aren't just a physical threat to our heroes - They are an emotional threat to Odo, one that will doubtless reverberate throughout the remainder of the series.

The Search doesn't tie everything up neatly. Though there is a return to "business as usual" as the season progresses, with regular expeditions to the Gamma Quadrant, the Dominion remains a threat. They are mentioned throughout the season, even in episodes that don't involve them. They are left mainly as a background menace in Season Three, a looming conflict which Starfleet is trying to prepare for. But we see just enough of them in action, particularly in The Die is Cast and The Adversary, to recognize that Starfleet is almost certainly outmatched.

The Dominion storyline is wonderfully handled, progressing enough to pave the way for future developments without overshadowing the individual episodes. But it does represent a shift in focus. Previously, the series seemed to turn on Sisko's mission to prepare Bajor for admission to the Federation. Most of the best episodes of Seasons One and Two revolved around Bajor, its messy political situation, and the wounds left over from the (still very recent) Cardassian Occupation.

In Season Three, Bajor often feels like an afterthought. Only three episodes significantly deal with the Bajoran/Cardassian situation: Second Skin, Life Support, and Shakaar. The second of these mainly serves to tie off the Bajoran/Cardassian conflict. The peace agreement offers dramatic opportunities of its own, but so far those haven't been seriously addressed. Shakaar ends up being the only Bajor-centered episode of the season that promises future developments.

Don't get me wrong: I am genuinely enjoying the Dominion arc and look forward to seeing where it goes.  But I would hate to see its development come at the expense of the Bajoran story.

Commander Eddington (Kenneth Marshall) joins the crew - and
is all but forgotten for the rest of the season.

THE CURIOUS PROBLEM OF COMMANDER EDDINGTON

As a series, Deep Space 9 has been pretty good so far about making use of the opportunities its individual episodes provide. Intriguing guest characters become recurring characters who become fixtures, such as Gul Dukat and Garak. Events that should have implications have a tendency to get followed up on - a rarity in other Trek shows, and a delight to see happening in this one.

But this season introduces one missed opportunity, and that is Commander Eddington.

Eddington is introduced at the season's start, in The Search. His addition represents a shake-up for station security, with Starfleet security matters being taken away from Odo - a shift that creates a lot of potential for tension. But after The Search, Eddington is neither seen nor mentioned again until The Die Is Cast, fairly late in the season. To be perfectly honest, I forgot all about the character by the time he reappeared!

We really needed to see more of him, particularly in the first half of the season. In The Search, Odo resents his coming so much that he almost leaves the station. By The Adversary, the two have forged a reasonable working relationship - and done so entirely offscreen. At least one more appearance in the first part of the season, something to show Odo coming to accept and even respect him, would have been welcome - as would have been mentions of him in episodes where things should have concerned Starfleet security, particularly when Odo "adopted" a Jem'Hadar.

Thankfully, the last part of the season indicates that the writers have not only remembered Eddington's existence, but actually might do something with him. The Die Is Cast and, particularly, The Adversary show that both the character and actor Kenneth Marshall have the potential to work well within the fabric of this show. His conversation with Sisko in the finale hints at frustrated career ambitions, and his prominence in that episode gives me hope for some interesting developments for the character next season.

Garak interrogates Odo in The Die Is Cast,
one of the season's best episodes.

SEASON FOUR WISH LIST

It's becoming difficult to come up with much of a "wish list" for Deep Space 9. The series has done such a good job of building on its own successes. Season One was a promising start. Season Two was a huge improvement, cementing this as a quality series. I'd rate Season Three as even stronger, with the best hit rate yet and the strongest sense of events that are building to something more. When a series is so successful at keeping its universe interesting and its overall story moving, it seems almost churlish to impose some list of preferences on it.

Still, I hope (and expect) to see the Dominion start to emerge in the foreground, instead of simply being whispered about in the background. Odo's final line from The Adversary demands follow-up, as do his actions in breaking the changelings' single greatest law. I look forward to seeing how those events will unfold.

I also hope that Bajor is allowed some episodes, maybe even another multi-parter, to keep its story alive. Bajor became an afterthought in Season Three. I really hope better use is made of the Bajoran situation in Season Four. Kai Winn has most recently attempted to take control of the civilian government. She's been rebuffed, but it seems certain that she should attempt to extend her influence in more underhanded ways. With Shakaar, an adversrary of Winn's, becoming the head of the civilian government, there is plenty of potential for good storytelling. I would like to see that explored, and not just through a token episode here or there that amounts to the show saying, "Oh, here's a Bajor episode!"

Maybe the Bajoran story could even be tied in with the Dominion one in some way, so that it all becomes one great narrative?


IN CONCLUSION

Aside from my reservations about the treatment of the Bajoran thread this year, Season Three was yet another fine season of Deep Space 9. At this point, the show is not only my favorite Trek spinoff, it has the potential to topple TOS as my absolute favorite Trek. So above any wish list, I'm currently content just to go wherever the show takes me. Based on the first three seasons, it's bound to be interesting.


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3-24. Shakaar.

Kai Winn (Louise Fletcher), self-styled Voice of the Prophets.

THE PLOT

Kai Winn comes to Kira to help her solve a problem. Some soil reclamators, developed to reverse the toxic effects of the Cardassian occupation and to allow crops to grow again, were loaned to farmers in Kira's home province. Their leader is Shakaar (Duncan Regehr), the head of Kira's old Resistance cell. Now Shakaar is refusing to return the reclamators, which Winn would like to use to plant crops for export and trade.

There's more to the story, though. Shakaar tells Kira that the Provisional Government had loaned his people the reclamators for a full year. They've only had them a few months, and the work of reclaiming their land is far from finished. "This is about feeding our people," Shakaar tells her. He does agree to meet with Winn, in hopes of arranging a compromise. But Winn remains as untrustworthy as ever, and it isn't long before this becomes an armed confrontation!


CHARACTERS

Commander Sisko: As someone who is as capable of leadership as he is experienced in it, he can see that Winn's entire response has been an appalling overreaction. Winn's position actually has some merit, something even Kira acknowledges - but by falling back on force practically right away, she has ceded the high ground. When Sisko refuses to assist her by sending in troops, Winn threatens to withdraw Bajor's application for membership in the Federation, showing that she has not learned a thing from her bungling of the reclamator situation.

Major Kira: Her personal dislike of Winn doesn't stop her from respecting the office of Kai, nor does it keep her from hearing Winn out. In fact, she leaves her meeting with Winn convinced that the Kai is actually right this time. When Winn betrays her, however, sending government forces to arrest Shakaar instead of meeting with him, she decides that "Winn has lied to (her) for the last time" and doesn't hesitate to join Shakaar in open rebellion. She isn't quite willing to cross the line into using force against other Bajorans, however, and at the end is able to find a nonviolent solution to prevent a civil war.

O'Brien: Gets the episode's "B" plot, as he finds himself "in the zone" while playing darts. All he really wants is to enjoy this experience, getting pleasure out of defeating Sisko and Dax. But Quark sees an opportunity in O'Brien's good fortune, and convinces the engineer to go along with it by massaging his ego. After all, if he abandons this streak now, then he'll always wonder how far it might have gone... A harmless "B" plot. It's totally irrelevant to the main story, but it's pleasantly scripted and carefully arranged within the episode so that it's nonintrusive.

Shakaar: The first of what I'm guessing will be several appearances of Duncan Regehr as Shakaar, Kira's former resistance leader and Winn's new political enemy. Regehr, a solid television actor, is a good fit as a rugged rebel leader. Hopefully they won't go down the path of making him a romantic interest for Kira, though. It's too soon after Bareil for a new love interest, and with him already acting as a rival to Winn, it would make him too directly a replacement for Bareil.

Kai Winn: Having achieved popularity as Kai, Winn is now trying to expand her power base by declaring herself head of the Provisional Government. In effect, she wants to be head of both church and state. Her only real enemy in this is herself, as she can't help but overreach. Past episodes have shown that she's cunning when it comes to political manipulation, though Life Support showed that her skills were very limited when it came to actual governance. This episode adds a new ingredient: She's... well, maybe not quite insane, but she is convinced that she is the one true voice of the Prophets, and it would be very easy for her religious mania to take her over the line into true insanity.


THOUGHTS

The complex and fragile political situation of Bajor, which was often made the focus in some of Season Two's strongest episodes, has been marginalized in Season Three. Only Life Support has really addressed the ongoing concerns of the planet Deep Space 9 orbits, and there it was mainly to tie off the Bajoran/Cardassian conflict to make room for mroe focus on the Dominion threat.

This makes Shakaar a very welcome episode. Kai Winn was presented as hapless in Life Support, a woman who had pushed herself passed the boundaries of her own competence. Effectively, the serpent was de-fanged. Now, with the Cardassian peace achieved and the steadying force of Bareil removed, the venom comes back to the surface. Winn sees her world in black and white: Either she gets what she wants out of a given situation, or she loses. There isn't room for compromise in such a worldview. If Shakaar won't give back the reclamators, then he isn't open to reason and force must be used. Sitting down and talking, trying to find a way for everyone to benefit as Kira suggests? That would require being able to see at least a possibility of a third choice. Winn's limited worldview just can't allow her to do that.

I do have issues with the way the story is resolved, which seems just a bit simple and pat. But the ending is at least well-written, and finds a way to defeat Winn without her losing either her standing with the public or her power as Kai. The events of this episode certainly will increase tensions between Winn and the Deep space 9 crew, and will likely see new tension between her and the Provision Government.

I just hope it doesn't take another half-season before any of this material receives a follow-up.


Overall Rating: 7/10

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