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| Reflections from another DS9 newbie; From the Beginning... | |
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| Topic Started: 25 Jun 2007, 19:24 (1,995 Views) | |
| Kevin Thomas Riley | 2 Sep 2008, 14:23 Post #241 |
High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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Two more... 7-22 Tacking Into the Wind Now this is what the final episodes should all be like (it helps that they took a break from the Winn and Dukat storyline). Tacking Into the Wind was a really great episode for the most part. It's too bad that they've not all been like this. I especially liked the story about Kira and Damar's resistance organization. Utilizing the plot of stealing a Jem'Hadar vessel had Damar confronting his beliefs. It was especially poignant when he reacted to the news that the Dominion had killed his family as punishment: "What kind of state tolerates the murder of innocent women and children? What kind of people gives those orders?" To which Kira replied: "Yeah, Damar! What kind of people gives those orders?" You could almost see the wheels starting to turn in his head. So it came as no surprise that Damar was the one to kill Gul Neroon… sorry, Gul Rosot. As Damar said: "He was my friend. But his Cardassia is dead, and it won't be coming back." I really do hope he survives the war. He's the kind of leader that a new Cardassia needs, when it must climb back from the inevitable ashes. It's a pity that we won't see this happen. Another season of DS9 could've shown the aftermath of the war. I liked how they snuck onboard the ship, with Odo disguising himself as the Founder lady, and how the Cardassian guard recognized Damar and wished them good luck. There was some real suspense there, even if their plan worked a bit too perfectly. On DS9 the Klingons, or rather Chancellor Gowron, has become a problem. He's deliberately undermining the war effort in order to discredit his perceived rival General Martok. As I predicted, one of them has to go. But it's not Martok who challenges him but Worf, and the outcome is a foregone conclusion. This was both tiring and interesting. Tiring because it was yet another one of those Klingon stories with challenges, growling and honour. Interesting because it did raise the issue of what is wrong with the Klingon Empire (by none other than Ezri Dax). Much like Cardassia, the Klingons are in decline and something new must come if they're to be saved. I'm just not sure if a warrior like Martok is the one to herald that. As a soldier he can become another Napoleon. I don't think he has the same grasp as Damar, who is also a soldier, about the faults of his world. Lastly there were the continuing efforts of Bashir to cure Odo. This is a set-up for a plan he hatches with O'Brien to lure Section 31 to the station so they can find a cure from them. Doesn't sound like that will be very successful - getting the cure from them I mean. That the Section will turn up is a certainty. Since there was no inane Winn and Dukat plot here, I'll give Tacking Into the Wind a grade of 9 on my 10-graded scale. :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: ***** 7-23 Extreme Measures Dammit, Extreme Measures could've been a great episode. In fact it should have been, but they really, really botched it here, and this at a time when the show is almost done. It was about Section 31 and big, no, huge moral issues involved… and we got this! Bashir and O'Brien wandering around in Sloan's dying mind for an hour! Sheesh! We have the whole genocide issue, and it was just mentioned once - in passing - by Sisko. It felt as if they didn't dare talk in more length about it, since at least I feel it's not so cut-and-dried. The Founders are essentially en enemy that you have to exterminate in order to be assured of victory. They're like the Borg in that respect. The Next Generation ducked the issue when Picard refused to use Hugh (I, Borg) and I had hoped DS9 would be better. We'll see, there are a couple of episodes left. But this is really where this discussion should've taken place. Another aspect they ducked from was the extreme measures that Bashir took. For all his pontificating about how wrong the Section is, he himself didn't live up to any lofty ideals either. He tricked a person into coming to him, took him captive and subjected him to an illegal and possibly lethal Romulan mind probe. Yet, there wasn't much reflection from anyone on that. I found myself tapping impatiently with my foot, wishing that they'd just get on with it. As nice as buddy episodes with Bashir and O'Brien can be, this felt really out of place, especially when there was such a meatier story screaming to be told. The episode even managed to destroy some of the buddy dynamic by actually having them talk about it and how much the like each other. Please, most guys just don't that! And this might make me sound sexist, but it felt like a woman had written that part. Bashir and O'Brien have never struck me as belonging in the quite small minority of guys that would actually say these things to each other. I realize that this is the "evolved humanity" crap of the 24th century, but come on! I'll give a really disappointing grade of 3+ to Extreme Measures. :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: |
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| Captain X | 2 Sep 2008, 16:13 Post #242 |
"Vice" Admiral
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Isn't it amazing how well some of these shows set themselves up for something good, only to blow it and miss out on it? Kind of like on BSG when Sharron justified the use of the farms on Caprica, apparently not understanding the concept of rape, then later on she got raped herself. |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 8 Sep 2008, 15:35 Post #243 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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Next to last... 7-24 The Dogs of War The Dogs of War is the next-to-last episode of DS9, so why on God's green Earth did they have to devote a sizeable portion of it to the damn Ferengis? Was there really a need to bring that stupid and ill-informed caricature of capitalism to a closure? I think not. Quark as a character is another matter, and from the looks of it he will remain a barkeep on the station for the foreseeable future, long after most of the others have left. While I don't exactly applaud how Ferengi civilization has been portrayed, I find it utterly inconceivable that they'd embark on a path to socialism in such a short time, and just because Moogie and Zek has said so. They would have been booted out of the Tower of Commerce before they could say the T-word. I also find it insulting that the only perceived way forward is to embrace some sort of socialism, but I guess that goes with the usual leftist mentality in Hollywood (and 24th century Trek). Fitting that idiot Rom should become the next Grand Nagus. But I must admit to a chuckle at Quark channelling Picard: "The line has to be drawn here! This far, and no further!" Indeed, and I wish the writers had drawn the line on Ferengi stories a long time ago. The other parts of The Dogs of War were much, much better, if not downright excellent. Watching the situation on Cardassia develop was very compelling. I'm not surprised that Damar's little resistance was crushed, given the limited resources and manpower at hand. But he certainly managed to rise to the occasion, inciting the civilian population into open rebellion against the dominion. Who'd have guessed merely a season ago that Damar of all people would turn out to become this legendary hero figure among the Cardassians? And I bet that Mila, in whose basement Damar, Garak and Kira are hiding, is actually more than Enabran Tain's old housekeeper, and in fact Garak's mother. This episode also saw Bashir and Ezri Dax hook up after some awkwardness. It was bound to happen, given all previous signals on the show. Too bad it never came off as right to me. There was never that much interaction between them, and their attraction towards each other was communicated through intermediaries - Ezri talking to Worf and Bashir talking to O'Brien. Would it have killed the writers to actually show the attraction develop between them? But Bashir is one damn lucky fellow! The previous destruction of the Defiant (The Changing Face of Evil) was in my view cheapened with the sudden introduction of a new ship that's almost the same. I know they have done it with the Enterprise on Star Trek before, but even back then it was something of a cheat. The Dogs of War was an uneven episode, and I felt there was a real disconnect between the supposedly "humorous" Ferengi segment and the seriousness of the main plot. Just the latter would've garnered a grade of 9 or perhaps even a 10, but the Ferengis drag this one down to a grade of 6+ on my 10-graded scale. I contemplated giving it a 7 but the Ferengis just take up so much damn time. :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: |
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| Jedikatie | 8 Sep 2008, 15:59 Post #244 |
Moderate you, I will...
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^ Are you feeling like listening to Enterprise's theme yet, KTR... specifically the part where it goes, "It's been a long road, getting from there to here..." considering how long it's taken you to get to the end of these episodes? :P But seriously, just one last episode to go. Not sure if you're going to like it or not. There were bits that I didn't like in it, and I loved DS9. |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 8 Sep 2008, 16:11 Post #245 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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You mean picking up my ENT reviewing again? We'll see. At any rate I usually fast-forward through the theme song! :P |
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| Jedikatie | 8 Sep 2008, 16:21 Post #246 |
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Moderate you, I will...
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^ Actually, I was just thinking of that line of the song when you said that you were on the next-to-last episode of DS9, considering you started reviewing these episodes last year... But yeah, it would be neat to have the rest of your Enterprise reviews too. :) |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 8 Sep 2008, 16:25 Post #247 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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Ah, OK! But I did take a break for a long time. Besides, it was seven years worth of episodes to go through... |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 9 Sep 2008, 16:30 Post #248 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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And Le Grande Final. I'll do a season recap later. And possibly an entire series recap as well. 7-25 What You Leave Behind My, What You Leave Behind was indeed a gut wrenching and emotional episode. It wasn't perfect, but it was surely the best of all the Trek finales (if you don't count Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country as the original series' finale, then that was the best). I actually had a lump in my throat by the end and that is praise indeed. The conclusion to the Dominion War was quite satisfying and poignant. The feelings of Sisko and Ross when they refused a victory toast with Martok in the ruins of Cardassia sums it up nicely. War is hell and now 800 million Cardassians have perished after the desperate Founders levelled Cardassia Prime as punishment for their rebellion. That is maybe poetic justice considering what the Cardassians have done previously, but it's no cause for cheerful celebrations. I liked the scene when Garak contemplated that had finally returned from exile to his home world only to find smoldering ruins. Too bad that Damar was killed. He was the kind of leader that whatever system that will emerge from the ruins would need. But I suppose it was a fitting end to him as well. He was certainly no innocent himself, even if he redeemed himself through his actions in the end. The final battle between the Dominion forces and the Federation alliance was very neat, even if I suspect that some footage from previous battles where re-used. I loved the twist when the Cardassian fleet switched sides at a critical moment and turned the tide of battle. It wasn't really surprising, since by now word of what happened on Cardassia Prime had reached them. It goes to show the arrogance and ignorance of the Founders and their Vorta servants. It could've been seen as a convenient way out, but it didn't play out like that. What was a bit convenient was how Kira and her resistance fighters were able to sneak into Dominion headquarters with so little opposition (although Damar bit the dust). But I loved how Garak just killed Weyoun, and his reply to the female Founder when she told him that that had been the last Weyoun clone. "I was hoping you'd say that." Heh! I can't say I was surprised that it was Odo who eventually made the truce possible. Obviously the deal was that the Dominion surrenders in exchange for Odo curing the Great Link. It might have seemed a sudden turn-around for the female Founder, but who knows how fast shapeshifters communicate when they're linked. And it's not like she had much choice if she did want to save her fellow shape-shifters. This resolution also brings out the interesting notion that it was Section 31 that made peace possible in the end. They infected the Great Link and provided the cure (even if it was forced from them). Had they not done so, who knows what would've happened. That's a pretty dark way to wrap up a major plotline, at least for Star Trek. But I like it! What I didn't like about What You Leave Behind - and this should come as no surprise - was the resolution to the Dukat/Winn/pah-wraith storyline. I haven't liked it from the beginning and I was bound to get disappointed by how it was finished. Given everything else that happened in this episode, what transpired in the Fire Caves felt very anti-climactic. It had no real punch and eventually that severely lessened the impact and importance of Sisko's ascension. That's a shame since this is when Sisko is supposed to come full circle from his first encounter with the Prophets in the pilot episode Emissary. Having Dukat return with his eye-sight restored just illustrated that the writers had developed this plotline prematurely and had realized they must put it on hold for a couple of episodes. We never even got to see a poor and begging Dukat on the streets of Bajor. Then there's the prolonged trek to the Fire Caves and Winn's summoning of the pah-wraiths. Exactly how long did this take? The scenes were cross-cut between the final Dominion showdown and the victory celebrations afterwards, so it must have been some days at least. But it didn't feel that long. But my main complaint is the complaint that I've had all along. It just rang false. This wasn't the Kai Winn or Dukat I've gotten to know over the years. Here they were moustache-twirling evil caricatures! All subtlety and grey areas were purged from their characters for inexplicable reasons. Thus the whole plot was lost on me. This whole Prophets/pa-wraiths struggle would also have worked better if it had been related to the Dominion War in some ways. Now it existed entirely separate from the main action and just felt tacked-on. Another thing that bothered me about this was that we never really saw much of Bajor, the planet DS9 has been centred around for so long. Watching this last stretch of episodes you could've guessed that the Bajorans, save for Kai Winn and her ill-fated assistant, had vanished. Winn's actions take place in a vacuum. There is a lot of closure in this finale, but we never learn what happens to Bajor and if they finally becomes a member of the Federation (the very reason why Sisko was appointed to command DS9 in the first place). Otherwise they did a really good job in getting closure for the show. The farewell party at Vic's was extremely touching and this time I didn't mind the use of the holodeck. Vic Fontaine singing "The Way You Look Tonight" and the flashback montage almost had me in tears. But I noted the conspicuous absence of any footage of Jadzia Dax and thought that was a shame. There was also a fitting end to most of the characters, even Benjamin Sisko becoming a Prophet (despite how that happened). But I feel for poor - and pregnant - Kasidy, but at least she got to say goodbye. Jake didn't get to do that, although I like to think that the wormhole opening as he looked at it was his father's way of saying farewell. O'Brien is going back to teach at Starfleet Academy. Odo is back with his people and will hopefully teach them to be les hostile towards solids. Kira is now in command of DS9, and Bashir and Ezri remains, as do Quark. But it's not the same. It's something new and that is as it should be. Nothing lasts forever, not even Deep Space Nine. I'll be generous and give this final episode of DS9 - What You Leave Behind - a grade of 9-. The Dukat/Winn/pah-wraith thing brings it down and if it hadn't been for the other excellent storylines and the sheer emotional impact this finale had on me it would've been lower still. That doesn't change the fact that, as I mentioned before, this is the best Star Trek final episode ever made. :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: :SmallBumKira02: |
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| Jedikatie | 9 Sep 2008, 16:36 Post #249 |
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Moderate you, I will...
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^ Yep, that was the part I thought you wouldn't like about it (I didn't much care for it either)... I didn't much care for it when I originally saw it all those years ago, and I still don't care that much for the whole pah-wraith storyline... |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 10 Sep 2008, 14:29 Post #250 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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And now the overview of the final season: Season Seven Overview Overall, this feels like DS9's strongest season. That's probably because it was the last and they had to kick into high gear and finish all those multiple story arcs that they had been developing over the course of the series' run. And that's what I have appreciated most about DS9 - that it often went away from the tired old stand-alone format and did a large canvas of stories that developed over time. Of course they never went fully into arc-mode, since even this season had a fair share of stand alone episodes. And unfortunately some of them were also the worst of the season. As previously there was no clear pattern, and the worst were sprinkled out among the other episodes. We had too many stories set in the holosuite, including Vulcans playing baseball. The only decent use of that concept was Nog dealing with post-traumatic stress and in the final episode. And the less said about Dukat as a cult leader and the stupid mirror universe episode the better. The early episodes were good. They might also have been helped with the introduction of the new Dax, the adorable Ezri, who lifted some episodes a grade or two. Frankly I liked the focus on her in several stories and although she was only present in this season made a much bigger impact on me than Jadzia ever did. Imagine if Ezri had been introduced earlier on the show! Of course I liked the stories focusing on the Dominion War. But I can't help to feel cheated. It took them way too long to get to it and when it finally arrived, most of it took place off-screen. When all was said and done, the DS9 crew never took that much part in it. Oh well, we still got a lot of excellent storylines from it. And I really applaud the descent into darkness that we saw on DS9, especially about the ultra-secret Section 31 (in episodes like Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges and the fact that they had infected the Founders with a deadly disease). This made for really compelling and interesting drama. What I didn't like was the character assassinations of Dukat and Kai Winn. From being complex villains they were reduced to silly one-dimensional evil characters whose actions didn't ring true. I especially hated what they did to Dukat, perhaps the most interesting villain on DS9 if not all of Star Trek. I liked how Sisko came full circle and finally become a Prophet himself. While I've never cared much for the Trek captains that came after Kirk, I can safely say that I really liked Sisko and he now comes right after the original. Strong, tough, conflicted, loving and a great leader. Odo and Kira turned out to be surprisingly tolerable as a couple this season, and it added depth to Odo's eventual return to his people. O'Brien and Bashir continued being a good buddy pair. Quark was his old self. Of the main cast, I think he'll be the very last one to leave the station. DS9 without his bar just wouldn't be the same. Among the guest cast I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Jeffrey Combs' excellent portrayal of Weyoun - from charming servility to intense menacing in two seconds. Great stuff! And the surprising rise of Damar was very satisfying to watch, especially given the shabby treatment Dukat got. Although I'm not very keen on holodeck stories, I must say James Darren handled himself really well as Vic Fontaine - probably the best developed holo-character after Voyager's doctor. Summing up, it comes as no surprise that this season's average grade is 6.23, or a 6+ on my 10-graded scale, which is also the best score for any DS9 season. That's probably thanks to Ezri, who managed to pull up the grades for some of the episodes, and to the prolonged focus of finishing all the storylines. Things I wish they'd done include dealing with the Bajoran political situation and revealing more about the Breen (including how they look). Now the Breen were just some convenient extra muscle to the Dominion. But all things considered, this was a very good wrapping up final season of one of the best Trek shows. |
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| Captain X | 10 Sep 2008, 16:33 Post #251 |
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"Vice" Admiral
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So, are you glad I talked you into watching it? :biggrin: |
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| Kevin Thomas Riley | 10 Sep 2008, 18:28 Post #252 |
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High Acolyte in the Church of T'Pol Worship
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Well, given that it was the only Trek show I hadn't watched, I would eventually have watched it anyway... :rasberry: But yeah, I'm glad I watched it. It seems Trek shows follow the same pattern as the movies do. Every other show is good. TOS good. TNG not so good. DS9 good. VOY not so good. ENT good. |
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| chrisis1033 | 11 Sep 2008, 20:21 Post #253 |
Board Emperor
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Another DS9 Alum to speak to.... All Priase the Sisko! All Praise In a Pale Moonlight |
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