Top 5 DS9 episodes

[Captain Amazing]

To all my fellow DS9 fans!

What's your top 5 favourite DS9 episodes. I know it's difficult because there were so many great ones but give it a try!

Here's my top 5:

1) In the Pale Moonlight (I watched this the first time and just went...Wow)

2) Improbable Cause/The Die is Cast (Odo and Garak were my favourite characters and a whole two parter with them as the focus was pure DS9 heaven for me plus a story with political intrique ans awesome space battles. Fantastic!

3) Chimera (beautiful episode about who Odo really is and his love for Kira)

4) Call to Arms (epic episode with an amazing final few minutes)

5) The Wire (Classic episode for Garak. Andrew Robinson was fantastic. Great dialogue too)

[Madeleine]

Pale moonlight - spot on.

trials and tribbleations - silly and mired in TOS, but perfect all the same.

The one where Jake sisko runs away from a battle. Can't remember what it was called, but it was a great ep for Bashir and Jake.

The one where everyone but Rom abandons DS9 and the wormhole mouth is mined. Edge of seat stuff.

Ummm, i'm ashamed to only have four. I know there were dozens of brilliant eps, it was my favourite Trek, but it's so long since i've seen any. I think i'll sit in this thread and wait until someone else's choices jog my memory and then i'll post #5.

[the_cadpig]

Wow, that is tough. I like your choices.

Mine.

1) Necessary Evil (S2) - An attempt on Quark's life leads Odo to reopen an unsolved murder mystery from years ago, rekindling memories from the when the Cardassians controlled the station. (Great Odo and Kira explorations here (back before they were shipped))

(2) Blood Oath (S2) - Dax finds herself in a difficult moral dilemma when torn between Federation values and a loyalty to three Klingons with whom Curzon Dax took an oath of vengeance. (Powerful episode for Dax. And revisiting three of the original Klingons from TOS was great. Awesome scene between Kira and Dax when discussing the consequences of our actions. Good stuff)

(3) The Visitor (S4) - An accident leaves Sisko frozen in time--and Jake with the life-long obsession of rescuing his father from a lost eternity. (Really explores the ties between father and son. And Tony Todd makes an outstanding guest appearance as the adult Jake Sisko. Outstanding.)

(4) Trials & Tribbilations (S5) - Sisko and the Defiant crew are catapulted back in time by a vengeful Klingon to "The Trouble with Tribbles," where they must prevent him from killing Captain Kirk and altering the time line. (Loved this for obvious reasons. The meshing of shows from two different generations was extremely well done. And it was a hoot! Funny, funny, funny)

(5) Hard Time (S4) - After an alien government punishes O'Brien with memories of 20 years of incarceration, he must return to reality and begin the struggle of rebuilding his life. (Great ep for O'Brien. Just wow.)

Honorable mentions (great character eps):

Duet (S1) - Kira hopes to find justice when she arrests a believed Cardassian war criminal responsible for the genocide at a horrific Bajoran labor camp. (Again, Kira just rocks, 'specially when she's pissed.)

Indiscretion (S4) - Kira learns the location of a Cardassian ship lost for years--and must now team up with Gul Dukat in a mission to retrieve it. (Loved the early interplay between Kira and Dukat. There were sparks, man)

Rejoined (S4) - Dax is reunited with a spouse lost several hosts before, and considers breaking a fundamental Trill belief by resuming a relationship which ended lifetimes ago. (Say what you will, but this was an extremely well done and gutsy episode for the normally staid Trek. One of the best.)

The Seige Of AR-588 (S7) - Sisko's crew is diverted to the front lines, where, alongside war-torn Starfleet officers, they must make a stand against a Jem'Hadar assault. (Powerful stuff here. War is hell.)

There are a lot more I know I not thinking of right now. But these I've mentioned really stood out to me.



~cp

[the Fifth Race]

Pale moonlight

Major props on your top pick! I whole heartedly agree with you Madeleine!


Season 1) 'The Foresaken' Lwaxana coming onto to Odo, priceless!

Season 2) 'Armageddon Game'

Season 3) 'The House of Quark' truly fantastic episode!

Season 4) 'Starship Down' & 'Paradise Lost'

Season 5) 'For the Uniform'

Season 6) 'In the Pale Moonlight' simply DS9 at its best!!!!

Season 7) EVERY single episode of season 7 was fantastic!

DS 9 was and still is SciFi at its best!!!....still my favorite series ever!, SG is a close second.

[CeeKay Sheppard]

The one where Jake sisko runs away from a battle. Can't remember what it was called, but it was a great ep for Bashir and Jake.

That's "Nor the Battle to the Strong".

My top 5, in no particular order, are:
"Trials and Tribble-ations"
"Invasive Procedures"
"Take Me Out to the Holosuite"
"Badda-bing, Badda-bang"
"Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"

But I've been absolutely dying to see "In Purgatory's Shadow", "By Inferno's Light", "The Wire", and "Past Pretense".

[Captain Amazing]

That's "Nor the Battle to the Strong".

My top 5, in no particular order, are:
"Trials and Tribble-ations"
"Invasive Procedures"
"Take Me Out to the Holosuite"
"Badda-bing, Badda-bang"
"Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"

But I've been absolutely dying to see "In Purgatory's Shadow", "By Inferno's Light", "The Wire", and "Past Pretense".

Interesting that you chose 3 light hearted, comedy episodes and 2 very serious ones, particularly 'Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges'. Quite a contrast there!

I loved Inter Arma... though. Wish Sloane and Section 31 were introduced earlier in the series so we could have had more episodes with them!

[Piratejenna]

Another Niner here!

(1) Duet - No FX or big battles, just intense intimate drama. I think this was where I fell in love with the show.
(2) Necessary Evil - wonderful character episode, with an ending that would never have been seen in earlier Treks. These were flawed, imperfect characters, which was why I loved them so much.
(3) In the Pale Moonlight - just great, on all levels.
(4) The Visitor - character drama with a really imaginative take on story-telling.
(5) Improbable Cause/The Die is Cast - Odo and Garak, what more do you want?

[Anubis345]

In The Pale Moon Light
Emissary
The Dogs of War
Call to Arms
What You Leave Behind parts one and two
Tears of the Prophets
Sacrafice of Angels

[CeeKay Sheppard]

"What You Leave Behind" was definitely an excellent episode... would've been sixth on my list. And there's a quote from "Sacrifice of Angels" that I really, really like:

"No one is expendable."

–Julian Bashir

It sums up his outlook on life (and mine) in a mere four words. It's a great line, one of the many of its kind that are the hallmark of Deep Space Nine.

[Jonas]

My top 5 in no particular order

1. "Call To Arms"- Probably the best season finale/cliffhanger ever. The minefield around the wormhole, the Dominion/Cardassians takeover of DS9, Jake, Rom, Kira, Quark, and Odo stay behind and the closing scene of the group of Federation/Klingon fleet ready to attack.

2. "The Way of the Warrior"- Great episodes. Worf joins the DS9's crew and fits right in, Gowron breaks the Khitomer Accords and the massive attack on the station by the Klingons is awesome.

3." The Sacrifice of Angels"- A wrap-up of the Dominion's occupation of DS9 is an epic and sad tale with the murder of Ziyal.

4. "Broken Link"- Odo is put on trial for murdering the Changelling and is sentenced to life as a human, while the Founders place suggestions of a Dominion takeover of the Klingon Empire.

5. "What You Leave Behind..."- Awesome culimination of the series that managages to wrap up the Dominion War and pretty much every other plot thread in the series. Also tearful episode with Sisko's "death", Odo leaving Kira and returning to the Founders and O'Brien leaving to teach at the Academy.

[knocknashee]

You know, I don't think I could pick just 5 episodes from DS9. With the exception of SGA, it's probably my favourite SF of all time...

I don't even recall there being that many bad episodes...