Deep Space 9 Superior

[the Fifth Race]

That reveal of Bashir.....I never suspected a thing, they did such a great job misleading us with these hidden changelings, the whole thing with Bashir was great, and I loved that episode where he was in the prison with Martok and Garek.....poor Garek and his claustrophobia.

Being slightly claustrophobic myself I could not only relate with Garek, I was sweating right along with him when I first viewed this episode during it original airing. The scenes where Worf had to fight the Jem'Hadar soliders over and over were also very powerful to watch. I actually thought that the Breen would turn out to be good guys after that Breen prisoner was killed and disinigrated while helping them escape.

I will have to admit the two episodes (in purgatory's shadow and by inferno's light) about the changling substitutions are my favorite episodes in DS9. Seeing garak face his fears, the truth about martok and bashir, and worf's nobility make these two simply exceptional episodes. Garak was a very intriguing character and the actor obviously relished his role! DS9 truly had some great writing.

DS9 was full of truly great episodes, especially II parter's. - In Purgatory's Shadow and By Inferno's Light are no exception!. These two episodes shattered the status quo rather nicely.

To successfully and plausibly resolve the behemoth of a plot that was In Purgatory's Shadow is a tall order, to be sure. By Inferno's Light does it well. Not perfectly, part one of this story is clearly stronger than this half is, both in style and character - but there are so many interesting consequences and developments to come out of By Inferno's Light that the show works very nicely. -

If there's one thing that this episode proves, it's that major storylines on DS9 never simply go away or get resolved. Rather, they undergo metamorphoses and become twisted into labyrinthine webs of political intrigue. In a big way, I like that. It seems that anything is possible, because it's hard to know who will be on whose side from one episode to the next.

[USS Defiant]

DS9 season 1: episode #13
Battle Lines:
Sisko, Kira, and Bashir take Kai Opaka (Camille Saviola) through the wormhole for a brief excursion, but their Runabout is shot down by an automated satellite system when investigating a nearby planet. Opaka is killed in the crash in a surprising, tragic twist of fate. Meanwhile, the survivors find themselves in the middle of two warring factions of a penal colony.

The twist: no one on this colony dies; their cells have been re-engineered to keep them fighting a futile battle with no possible victory for either side. Once you accept the implausibility of immortality in this sort of warfare (couldn't you sever your enemy's head to kill him?), this story's premise is intriguing. Ambitious production design stands out, as do some great fight scenes. The episode's relevant theme is the prisoners' error of continuing the pointless violence, neither faction can put aside their hate and think their situation through. When the same condition that gives the prisoners their immortality brings Opaka back from the dead, the episode wisely uses her character as a symbol of non-violence. The most interesting character aspect is the focus on Kira's violent past and how, with the Kai's help, she comes to realize this internal conflict and decides to begin the journey of leaving her violent impulses behind. Opaka's subsequent decision to remain among the prisoners with the hope of helping them end their conflict and beginning their healing uses the foreshadowed idea of "destiny" rather well. It shows a character who has a new mission ahead of her, and it also promises to bring about sweeping changes on Bajor as a result of the important figure's absence. Running alongside the Kira storyline, this makes a lot of sense. The final line of dialog hints that we may see a follow-up to the storyline, which I definitely would welcome (even if it turns out to be five years down the road).

[Starbase]

DS9 season 1: episode #13
Battle Lines:[I]
The most interesting character aspect is the focus on Kira's violent past and how, with the Kai's help, she comes to realize this internal conflict and decides to begin the journey of leaving her violent impulses behind. Opaka's subsequent decision to remain among the prisoners with the hope of helping them end their conflict and beginning their healing uses the foreshadowed idea of "destiny" rather well. It shows a character who has a new mission ahead of her, and it also promises to bring about sweeping changes on Bajor as a result of the important figure's absence. Running alongside the Kira storyline, this makes a lot of sense.

This was the episode where Kira really stepped up her game. The writers gave her great stuff to work with and she delivers - both as the grieving Kira and as the more stoic, sad first officer explaining to her commander what the Kai meant to her and to her people. I found the scenario very moving, but I think that was largely because of the ability of the actress to make me believe in and share Kira's pain. What a miserable life they have given her: family lost in the war, years fighting as a terrorist, now the one Bajoran for whom she seems to have real filial feeling is taken from her.

While the concept of hell being a place where one is doomed to keep repeating the mistakes of one's lifetime is not new, it was made extremely compelling here by the young actors playing the eternal soldiers. I find the Kai a very interesting character and was fascinated by her willingness to accept her imprisonment on the planet as the will of the Prophets.

[Rac80]

DS9 season 1: episode #13
Battle Lines:
Sisko, Kira, and Bashir take Kai Opaka (Camille Saviola) through the wormhole for a brief excursion, but their Runabout is shot down by an automated satellite system when investigating a nearby planet. Opaka is killed in the crash in a surprising, tragic twist of fate. Meanwhile, the survivors find themselves in the middle of two warring factions of a penal colony.

The twist: no one on this colony dies; their cells have been re-engineered to keep them fighting a futile battle with no possible victory for either side. Once you accept the implausibility of immortality in this sort of warfare (couldn't you sever your enemy's head to kill him?), this story's premise is intriguing. Ambitious production design stands out, as do some great fight scenes. The episode's relevant theme is the prisoners' error of continuing the pointless violence, neither faction can put aside their hate and think their situation through. When the same condition that gives the prisoners their immortality brings Opaka back from the dead, the episode wisely uses her character as a symbol of non-violence. The most interesting character aspect is the focus on Kira's violent past and how, with the Kai's help, she comes to realize this internal conflict and decides to begin the journey of leaving her violent impulses behind. Opaka's subsequent decision to remain among the prisoners with the hope of helping them end their conflict and beginning their healing uses the foreshadowed idea of "destiny" rather well. It shows a character who has a new mission ahead of her, and it also promises to bring about sweeping changes on Bajor as a result of the important figure's absence. Running alongside the Kira storyline, this makes a lot of sense. The final line of dialog hints that we may see a follow-up to the storyline, which I definitely would welcome (even if it turns out to be five years down the road).

I felt this episode highlighted the impotance of the Kai to the people of Bajor. Kai Opaka was a very spiritual woman who had the best interests of those around her at heart. She was very supportive of Sisko as the Emissary. Compare this to Kai Winn's desire for power. For Opaka to sacrifice herself to help others find peace was very much in character. Winn would have relished the battles. Kira's respect for Opaka dovetails nicely with her disdain for Winn.

This was the episode where Kira really stepped up her game. The writers gave her great stuff to work with and she delivers - both as the grieving Kira and as the more stoic, sad first officer explaining to her commander what the Kai meant to her and to her people. I found the scenario very moving, but I think that was largely because of the ability of the actress to make me believe in and share Kira's pain. What a miserable life they have given her: family lost in the war, years fighting as a terrorist, now the one Bajoran for whom she seems to have real filial feeling is taken from her.

While the concept of hell being a place where one is doomed to keep repeating the mistakes of one's lifetime is not new, it was made extremely compelling here by the young actors playing the eternal soldiers. I find the Kai a very interesting character and was fascinated by her willingness to accept her imprisonment on the planet as the will of the Prophets.

Kira struck me as the most complex of the characters on DS9. At the beginning she did not trust the Federation and was very wary of having another group be in control of anything in Bajoran space. As the series evolved, she became a staunch supporter of both the Federation and Sisko as the emissary. THe character was well written and the role was well played by Nana Visitor.

[the Fifth Race]

I felt this episode highlighted the impotance of the Kai to the people of Bajor. Kai Opaka was a very spiritual woman who had the best interests of those around her at heart. She was very supportive of Sisko as the Emissary. Compare this to Kai Winn's desire for power. For Opaka to sacrifice herself to help others find peace was very much in character. Winn would have relished the battles. Kira's respect for Opaka dovetails nicely with her disdain for Winn.

After having watched DS9 in its entirety many times, it's interesting to watch this episode knowing who and what Kai Winn was and became. Kai Opaka was the polar opposite, makes you wonder what would have been if she remained on the show throughout the series.

Kira struck me as the most complex of the characters on DS9. At the beginning she did not trust the Federation and was very wary of having another group be in control of anything in Bajoran space. As the series evolved, she became a staunch supporter of both the Federation and Sisko as the emissary. THe character was well written and the role was well played by Nana Visitor.

I wholeheartedly agree - IMHO Nana Visitor was the best actor on a show full of great actors and performances. She a little stiff early on in the series, but once you got to know her back-story, she got better and better with each episode. I truly enjoyed the relationship Kira and Sisko shared, Sisko had to win her over and he knew it.

Battle Lines was very good, definetly one of the better season I episodes.

[Mitchon]

I love DS9 and TNG equally for
- good storytelling
- great ideas and imagination (TNG side mostly)
- fantastic characterizations
- continuity (changing political situation)
- weighty issues
- recurring nemesis (DS9's Dominion were a colorful bunch)
I'm not bashing but I wish their Trek successors took cues and advanced in the ways they did.

[Trek_Girl42]

After having watched DS9 in its entirety many times, it's interesting to watch this episode knowing who and what Kai Winn was and became. Kai Opaka was the polar opposite, makes you wonder what would have been if she remained on the show throughout the series.
I wholeheartedly agree - IMHO Nana Visitor was the best actor on a show full of great actors and performances. She a little stiff early on in the series, but once you got to know her back-story, she got better and better with each episode. I truly enjoyed the relationship Kira and Sisko shared, Sisko had to win her over and he knew it.

Battle Lines was very good, definetly one of the better season I episodes.

Battle Lines was a great ep- I think it was the first ep that I saw that I really thought "Hey, this is going to be a really good show". There was some great conflict, and wonderful stuff from all the actors.

[Missster.Freeman]

I love DS9 and TNG equally for
- good storytelling
- great ideas and imagination (TNG side mostly)
- fantastic characterizations
- continuity (changing political situation)
- weighty issues
- recurring nemesis (DS9's Dominion were a colorful bunch)
I'm not bashing but I wish their Trek successors took cues and advanced in the ways they did.

For the most part, I agree, Mitchon. I would say TNG had much better high-concept science fiction ideas than DS9, whereas DS9 had better recurring villains. TNG did have a few, such as Tomalak (who was underused, imo); the Duras' were okay too, but I found Sela to be rather lame.

If it hadn't been for DS9's seasons five-seven - for me anyway - TNG would still be my favourite of the Trek series. What TNG did best was its self-contained mystery stories. That was when episodic television was at its peak. You know, now that we're awash with series that have over-arching plots, it *is* refreshing to get back to stories that are resolved within a single episode, without resorting to resets, I mean.

[Whitestar]

I come from a military background and every commander I ever encountered (including dear old dad) had a commanding "presence". patrick stewart just doesn't come across as a "commander", he always seemed to be more of a bureaucrat... you know the guys that work in the pentagon . Great at following protocols but never think outside the box. They can talk the talk but are not able to see the big picture. He was never willing to "break rules that needed to be broken" and did not seem to have inner guiding principles beyond the Starfleet rule book. That is just IMHO.

Yes, you do have a point in regards to Picard not "breaking the rules" or thinking out of the box. He had a habit of doing things "by the book", which would explain his excessive discipline, bordering on the extreme. I've always thought Riker would make a better captain for the very reasons you stated.

[Whitestar]

Hmmm, interesting take on Picard Rac80. Most all of the Starfleet Captains we have seen over the entire Trek franchise were polar opposites of Picard. You make a valid arguement. And I would agree for the most part up until Picard became Locutus of Borg, After that ordeal he went through he seemed to become much more hardened and willing "to think outside the box". Picard probably would have made a better Admiral than Captain.

Yes, one wonders how Picard would have turned out if he never became Locutus. Hmmmm....

Vortex was one of the better season I episodes. It was basically Odo's first dedicated episode that went along way into giving and inside into his character. The plot-lines were a little too busy for my tastes and went around in too many circles - Crodin had too many enemies both on and off the station, plus there was a lengthy subplot about potential shady dealings between Quark and the aliens which never amounted to anything. And we got no real resolution to the question of whether Crodin had lied about his suspicions of other changelings, or his real reasons for being a wanted man.

I liked the fact that we never found out if Crodin was really a criminal or not because it created a sense of mystery and ambiguity for that character and it made us thirsty to know more about his past. I just wished that TNG had that kind of writing, instead of the usual clear-cut "good guy, bad guy" scenerio and black and white motivations.

Nonetheless "Vortex" was eerily compelling, and let us see an emotional side of Odo which would seem to be at odds with his usual rational demeanor; I was very surprised that he let Crodon go with so little information about whether he was, in fact, a dangerous criminal, particularly after the man held out as false bait the one thing in the universe Odo really wants. The actor portraying Crodin was skilled and subtle, leading us to believe he wasn't really as lackadaisical as he seemed in jail yet never appearing truly menacing. I liked the dynamic between himself and Odo.

Agreed. It would have been nice to see Crodin again in a future episode.

[Starbase]

Battle Lines was a great ep- I think it was the first ep that I saw that I really thought "Hey, this is going to be a really good show". There was some great conflict, and wonderful stuff from all the actors.

I couldn't agree more. - I have been slowly re-watching season 1 along with brother USS Defiant. A few things have struck me.... 1rst of all - the actors are all still feeling there way with how there characters are going to be (a lot of over-acting and under-acting going on) .... 2nd of all - TPTB seem like they didn't have a clue as to where they want to take the over-all storyline in season 1 (a lot like TNG and TOS) .... 3rd of all - the episodes are much better than I remembered and like you stated Trek Girl, after watching Vortex and Battle Lines, "Hey, this is going to be a really good show".

I just finished watching your feisty Canucks take out the Dallas (Hee Haw) Star's. That's got to feel sweet! and congratulations ^5. It looks like if we are going to meet in the playoffs it will be in the next round. We (the Sharks) play the Red Wings and you guy's play the Ducks next.

See you in the semi's.

[Trek_Girl42]

I couldn't agree more. - I have been slowly re-watching season 1 along with brother USS Defiant. A few things have struck me.... 1rst of all - the actors are all still feeling there way with how there characters are going to be (a lot of over-acting and under-acting going on) .... 2nd of all - TPTB seem like they didn't have a clue as to where they want to take the over-all storyline in season 1 (a lot like TNG and TOS) .... 3rd of all - the episodes are much better than I remembered and like you stated Trek Girl, after watching Vortex and Battle Lines, "Hey, this is going to be a really good show".

I just finished watching your feisty Canucks take out the Dallas (Hee Haw) Star's. That's got to feel sweet! and congratulations ^5. It looks like if we are going to meet in the playoffs it will be in the next round. We (the Sharks) play the Red Wings and you guy's play the Ducks next.

See you in the semi's.

Still on a high after that. What a turnaround in the second period.....those last two periods are probably the best we've played the whole series. And Trevor Linden again proves why he's been my, well, lifetime-long hero. Good luck against those Wings eh.....anyone who plays them is going to need some. Definitely cheering you guys on, am bitter about them beating Calgary of course. Of course hopeing you beat each other up real good in a loooooong seven-game series.


The first season of DS9 was really uneven, but it did pick up in the second half/towards the end to make it a first season much better than TNG and certainly leaps and bounds better than Voyager, I think Enterprise's fisrt season was a bit better than DS9's though- it picked up after some mediocre episodes a lot quicker, but I have to say DS9's first season didn't have any really miserable stinkers that I can think of, so it was definitely a decent start to the show. Reminds me of SG-1's first season- some of those eps in the first half were really weak/bad, but it picked up round the midpoint and steadily improved.

[the Fifth Race]

Still on a high after that. What a turnaround in the second period.....those last two periods are probably the best we've played the whole series. And Trevor Linden again proves why he's been my, well, lifetime-long hero. Good luck against those Wings eh.....anyone who plays them is going to need some. Definitely cheering you guys on, am bitter about them beating Calgary of course. Of course hopeing you beat each other up real good in a loooooong seven-game series.

Congrats Lady trek on your Canucks beating dem cow kissing Dallas Stars.

I am glad we got the Red Wings instead of the Ducks, we finished the season 4-0 against the Red Wings (dominated every game we played them) while we finished 4-4 against the Ducks. I like our chances against Detroit, I like our chances to win it all this year.

The first season of DS9 was really uneven, but it did pick up in the second half/towards the end to make it a first season much better than TNG and certainly leaps and bounds better than Voyager, I think Enterprise's fisrt season was a bit better than DS9's though- it picked up after some mediocre episodes a lot quicker, but I have to say DS9's first season didn't have any really miserable stinkers that I can think of, so it was definitely a decent start to the show. Reminds me of SG-1's first season- some of those eps in the first half were really weak/bad, but it picked up round the midpoint and steadily improved.

I agree for the most part with what you say Lady Trek, I think most scifi shows start off rather slowly until they find a niche with the audience. Since I was a huge TNG fan when DS9 first aired, my expectations were rather high. I didn't find DS9 bad over-all in that first season, but some of the episodes were rather blase - A Man Alone, Move Along Home and If Wishes Were Horses stand out as the ones I least enjoyed. That being said, I always find season 1 better than I remembered each time I re-watch it.

[markaudette]

Deep Space 9 was Star Trek's very finest hour.

I don't know how to say that with any more passion.

[Rac80]

I loved (adored, etc...) Avery Brooks as Sisko. I felt he gave the trek franchise what it needed... a family man (ok a single father) as a MAJOR character. You KNEW that he took the posting for Jake. To keep Jake with him and away from the starship life that in the end killed his wife, Jennifer. Sisko's unashamed affection towards his son was very refreshing as was his grieving for Jennifer. No more robotic captains (some were rather emotionless). Avery Brooks had long been one of my favorite actors for the passion he brought to his roles. Once he became benjamin sisko, he surpassed my expectations. Sisko was protrayed as very commanding, wise, wiley, and also very REAL... with emotions and conflicts the average person could relate to. How often does a parent worry about their child's friends (nog), wonder at the changes in an old friend (Dax), have a relationship (Kassidy), and deal with resentful underlings (Kira at first)? Brooks showed that even though the times may change, people will still be people. I could relate more to Sisko than any of the other captains. Having a child, friends, and a job seemed more like what he dealt with when the fantasy aspect of trek was stripped away.
I was pleased with the entire concept of DS9 and I feel it allowed the characters to become more real because we saw them in a variety of situations in their "everyday" lives. We didn't have to deal with a changing setting every episode which gave the series excellent continuity.