The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From djb on 2009-04-10 at 2:34am:
  Wow. This really ups the ante, doesn't it?
  
  I'm watching DS9 eps in order, so I don't know much about what comes next, except for a few spoilers I've read on Memory Alpha. So I'll try to keep this review from the perspective of someone who knows nothing about what's to come.
  
  First of all, the Defiant. Awesome. A Federation war ship! What a concept! This brings to mind a concern I've long held. I don't know if this is a problem with Roddenberry's vision, or a problem he intended there to be, or what, but basically it's this: the Federation is run by a bunch of bleeding-heart wimps. Now, I usually recoil from the term "bleeding-heart," as it implies things I don't like politically, but this is the best term. This was especially true in TNG. Examples: Season 3's premiere, "Evolution." Nanites become apparently intelligent and become a threat to the ship, and instead of eliminate them (as one character tries to do), they get all weird and act as if it has some kind of right to exist, even though it's threatening everyone on the ship.
  
  Anyway. The federation is all about exploration, but they don't seem to want to be realistic about the fact that very real threats exist out there and they have to be ready. They could be like the Swiss: peaceful yet armed to the teeth. But they're not. They didn't last half an hour against the Borg, with 39 ships (granted, the borg had Picard's knowledge on their side, but still). They start work on a warship, and once the Borg threat recedes, they abandon it? They should have a fleet of a hundred Defiants at the ready!
  
  And now, we're facing the Dominion, whose teeth (the Jem-Hadar) are even more ruthless/efficient/deadly, it would seem, than the Cardassians, who have weapons and transporters that make short work of Federation shields, and have no qualms about a suicide mission to gratuitously destroy a disabled retreating ship. Nothing to sneeze at. If I were the federation, I would re-open the Defiant project, perfect it, start building a ton of them, start training Federation-equivalents of Marines en masse, reopen development on a cloaking device, put a ton of energy in to weapons and defense development, and so on. This is all stuff they should have done long ago, but for whatever reason decided to act as if real threats like the Borg or the Dominion didn't exist out there.
  
  Anyway. I don't know what comes next, so the Federation may very well grow some balls over the next few seasons. I hope they do. But it's nice to see the Defiant and what it's capable of.
  
  Of course, a major highlight of the episode is Odo finding his own kind. I already know (spoilers ahead) that the Changelings are the Founders, but for someone who doesn't know what's to come, it's still a powerful moment. I'm still aching to find out what happens: why did the Changelings form the Dominion? What happened to Sisko and the others? Why does Odo go back to the Alpha quadrant and not stay with his own? If they all seem to occupy the same "lake" on their planet (a rogue planet?), do the Changelings have individual identities the way we do or not? What would they look like if they hadn't just matched Odo's default form? Do they have a default solid form? Why and how do they have genders?
  
  Anyway, I'm looking forward to the rest of the series immensely.
• From rpeh on 2010-07-28 at 7:39pm:
  A magnificent episode that really starts the new season with a bang.
  
  One minor problem: why is it when the Defiant is boarded by the Jem'Hadar that their first instinct is to use their guns as clubs? They were all locked and loaded and could have stunned the crew in an instant.
• From MJ on 2011-08-08 at 9:01pm:
  This episode would seem to establish that the Jem'Hadar cannot instinctively recognize Changelings unless seeing them shapeshift. In DS9: THe Adversary, the Jem'Hadar only recognizes Odo as a "Founder" after passing through him. Here, we see the Jem'Hadar attack Odo with the same ferocity as they did Kira, obviously unaware who or what he is.
  
  There is a minor annoyance in this episode...as in DS9: The Way of the Warrior, I have a very hard time believing that a bunch of humans can defeat Jem'Hadar (and Klingons) in hand to hand combat. In reality, I think the Jem-Hadar, who let's not forget are genetically engineered warriors, would likely have taken over the ship in a matter of seconds, given how accustomed they are to boarding attacks.
  
  That aside, this was one of the better starts to a DS9 season. It's got plenty of action and intrigue. The Odo subplot is very well done; Odo is already very disgruntled because of Starfleet's decision to "augment" him with Eddington, and when he sees the Omarii Nebula, it becomes a singular obsession that will reveal the most stunning discovery of his life!
  
  The Romulan assistant was in character: highly mistrustful, a bit cold, and also possessing one of the most interesting Romulan traits: that is, preferring to avoid brash, direct confrontation in favor of a strategic advantage and saving the fight for a different day. This trait will frustrate Starfleet and the Klingons during the Dominion War.
  
  The Defiant's introduction is brilliant, and it's easy to see why the ship gains the affection of Sisko from the get-go.
  
  Nicely done!
• From * on 2011-09-03 at 9:55pm:
  Dax' hair looks like a spray painted cinder block in this episode. Thank you for reassuring me that it won't last.
• From Jeff Browning on 2011-10-27 at 7:30pm:
  T'Kul was played by Martha Hackett who also plays the (somewhat) major character Seska in ST: Voyager.
  
  Fully agree with comments on the Jem'Hadar. I also noticed in the previous episode (DS9: The Jem'Hadar) that the Jem'Hadar did an astonishingly poor job of subduing Sisko and Quark after they escaped confinement. At the beginning of the altercation, one of the Jem'Hadar attacked Sisko with a phaser rifle he was using as a club, similar to the Jem'Hadar attack not the Defiant in this episode. Possible explanation in that episode was that the entire escape was designed as a ploy to allow one of the Vorta to infiltrate DS9 as a spy. Still, Sisko reasonably should have noticed that the Jem'Hadar did not simply shoot him.
  
  Also agree that Dax's hair in this episode (as well as part 2) was not that nice.
• From peterwolf on 2013-11-08 at 11:07pm:
  I like this episode very much, in particular Odo´s quest for his origins and his altered behaviour. However, some inconsistencies concerning his shape-shifter abilites were never really resolved: He could perfectly imitate the feathers of a bird or the fur and the ears of a rat, but not human ears!?!
  I take it that these imperfect ears are simply symbols indicating that Odo or the female shapeshifter belong to a different species.
  Also, my only other dislike in this great episode is that the Defiant was to easily defaeted by the Jem Hadar. After failure of the cloaking device the defiant should have had enough firepower to take out more than one Jem Hadar ship. Her shields and armour (I am not quite sure when the ablative armour was introduced?) should made her more resilient than we saw it. Whatsoever, we may blame it to the quite unexperienced crew, like Dr. Bashir being abused as weapons officer ...

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From JJ on 2010-08-06 at 9:27pm:
  There's not really a problem in that they are able to destroy the wormhole with photons as it's not real but part of the illusion.
  
  The pillar in the background when the female shapeshifter is explaining Odo's history to him is the same as in the previous episode where the DS9 crew collects some shape shifting matter from a planet and bring is to the station!
• From John on 2011-01-09 at 2:20am:
  I enjoyed this episode a lot, with the exception of the scene where Kira is talking to the "arboretum" about her plans to send a disguised message from the runabout. She knows that the Changelings don't like or trust her, and she has no idea if one of them could be one of the forms in the garden, listening to what she's saying.
  
  She's normally a lot more cautious than that when dealing with anyone who isn't a Bajoran.
• From Lt. Fitz on 2012-06-24 at 1:59pm:
  Yeah, this episode was a real downer. Here I thought they were going to get really bold with the collapsing of the wormhole (I thought they would find some Star Trek Magic way of opening it back up again, perhaps “spiritual” communication with the prophets from Bajor or something), but then it became this silly Matrix thing which took all the suspense out of it. The founders needed to see how far the federation would go to defend themselves? The fact that they lost an entire starship rescuing TWO people from the nearby planet the last time you met them didn’t convince you that they were gutsy? And then to top the whole thing off, the founders just LET THEM ALL GO. This following the dominion showing that they are willing to fly their own ships into starfleet vessels to prove their ruthlessness! This made no sense! Why let them go? So they can just go and prepare to defeat the Dominion when they finally get around to invading, which I assume is coming in the future? Kill them while you have them! Destroy what’s left of the Defiant! They kill the entire crew of the USS Odyssey (in the most edge-of-the-seat scene of the series so far – I literally shouted “WHOA!” in my living room), but then they are all, “OK! Take ’er easy! We’ll kill you… I mean see you later!” It totally reminded me of the James Bond cliché of the bad guy having Bond for dinner, giving him a comfortable room, and letting him walk freely around the moon base or whatever. I mean there’s evil arrogance and then there is plot convenience. I know that they couldn't kill off the cast of the show, but they needed some other ending that had some level of plausibility. I even thought that maybe the admiral lady and the fed security guy might have been replaced with replicants or something and perhaps Dax and Obrien also, which would explain the sudden and easy return to the station and the hidden and quick pro-Dominion result to negotiations. At least then there could have been some sort of more realistic ending in which the non-replicants fight back on the station and truly prove the tenacity of the federation-bajoran alliance, pushing the first intrusion of the dominion back into the Gamma quadrant. But, no. They were never at the station, any of the good writing during those scenes is simply gone. Reset button time. Total bummer of an ending to such a stellar season opener!

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From JRPoole on 2009-01-09 at 9:25pm:
  I gave this one a ten because it's DS9 hitting its stride. Here we have a well-crafted little humor episode that actually made me laugh out loud a few times. It's a good stand-alone episode on the heels of the Dominion saga story arc, and even though this episode isn't linked to that story, the mood on the station has changed because of it.
  
  
• From onlinebroker on 2009-10-31 at 7:20am:
  I really loved this episode and gave it a 10,too. Quark is fantastic and I had to laugh out loud when the klingon kissed him and the spit it out!
  Also a very refreshing breather from the terrible overacting of bashir,sisko and dax.
• From JJ on 2010-08-07 at 6:35pm:
  I loved this! The humor is great, as is the acting by Quark!
  Quark shows that he has character. He could have walked away but didn't.
  Makes one wonder whether he was always like this or that he has become like this under the gradual influence of Odo, Kyra, Circo etc.
• From Gul Ranek on 2012-12-19 at 10:01am:
  A very strong and fun episode, I also gave it a 10.
  
  I love the way Armin Shimerman uses nuances of his voice - "I am Quark, son of Keldar! I have come to answer the challenge of D'Gor, son of... whatever."
• From Harrison on 2013-01-13 at 4:58am:
  An under-rated episode that's close to DS9 perfection. While most Ferengi-centred episodes are a chore & sometimes serve to triviliase the series, this one offers masterful, imaginative insight, generating a wealth of plausible and memorable cultural basics that help underpin the Star Trek universe. It's literature-class story-crafting, championing essential precepts like dignity and honour, and leaving the viewer with a lasting sense of what it means to be Klingon, and a grudging sense of respect for the Ferengi.
• From peterwolf on 2013-11-09 at 3:35pm:
  Although the humour in this episode is really wonderful, mainly caused by the cultural clash of Ferengi and Klingons, I see more serious themes in the story. The different versions of Kozak´s death remind me of the famous movie "Rashomon". It is nice to see that Quark is not always a greedy Ferengi, but shows some good parts of his character, too. Strange enough, he is "a brave Ferengi" as Gowron tells us. The final scene with Rom and Quark is just brilliant and proves how great the actors and writers of Deep Space 9 are.
• From Ravenlord on 2015-09-16 at 6:11am:
  I enjoyed this episode tremendously, but something always bothered me about it and I finally think I've grasped what it is. Bajor and Qo'Nos are quite a distance away from each other. From what I can gather, they're essentially on opposite sides of Federation space. Granted, Trek canon often plays fast and loose with distances for story convenience, but it would take at least three weeks of travel at high warp to get from Bajor to the Klingon homeworld. I find it unlikely they would keep Quark sedated the entire trip, and in any case the episode implies that everything takes place in a handful of days.
  
  Classic Trekkie nitpick, I admit. Ignoring that detail, this is still a very fine episode, one of my favorites in fact.
• From JB on 2020-07-16 at 7:38am:
  Great writing, great acting, great episode. Ferengi values and Klingon values in conflict, with understandable tensions and smart resolutions. Genuinely humorous while maintaining diligence to both plot and character--characters that are complex and believable! Even the side plot with O'Brien and Keiko is well done. And the wrap-up is perfect. This is Trek at its best. One of my personal favorites. 10/10

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From David on 2008-08-07 at 10:37pm:
  I was wondering the same thing about the Defiant - the first thing that came to mind was that since Trill is 36 hours away even in the Defiant (which can go quite fast if I recall correctly), maybe they figured the risk of permanently losing a key staff officer + losing 2 other key staff officers for many days (or even weeks) in a slower runabout was worth losing the Defiant for a few days.
• From JRPoole on 2009-01-10 at 10:37pm:
  This is decent. The flashbacks are genuinely creepy, the Trill trivia is cool for the most part, and it all goes down fairly easily.
  
  I don't read Star Trek novels, but it occurs to me that there's probably a DS9 novel out there that goes into all this business with the symbionts and how their relationship with the Trill evolved, which would probably be interesting. If anybody knows of such a novel, let me know.
• From rpeh on 2010-07-28 at 9:20pm:
  Total borefest. It's as if the writers realised that they had enough material for 20 minutes so added everything they could think of to pad it out.
  
  I don't agree it's even good Dax development - it doesn't depend on anything that goes before, doesn't add anything very important, and doesn't create anything new for the future. Pure padding.
• From peterwolf on 2013-11-09 at 9:34pm:
  Not a very outstanding episode, but the beginning with the cooking and party preparations shows why I like Sisko more than all the other Star Trek captains (except Kirk, because he is the first one and a totally unique character). Sisko as played by Avery Brooks appears to be a credible human being with weaknesses, true emotions, and what I like best, more humour than the other captains. The Dax conspiracy story is not too bad, I only wish that the painted Trill city, like Cardassia or Kronos capitals depictions, would be replaced by some appropriate graphics in future, augmented versions, similar to enhanced TOS.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From martin on 2007-09-26 at 8:21pm:
  I think the Defiant did not cloak because of their deal with the Romulans about not being permitted to use it outside the Gamma quadrant.
• From Pemmer Harge on 2010-06-19 at 9:51pm:
  The best episode of Deep Space Nine
• From McCoy on 2017-01-04 at 8:30pm:
  You've rated this only 5? Same as previous, boring Dax story? I really don't understand. This episode is absolute 10 for me. Intiguing mystery, solid emotions, great development of Kira-Cardassians relationships. Truly, one of best DS9 episodes!

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Pete Miller on 2006-06-22 at 4:32pm:
  I agree with the problem about the Jem'Hadar's rapid growth. Bashir tells us that his cells have an extremely high metabolic rate. All that means is that his body processes almost 100% of the food it intakes and his cells divide accordingly. Metabolism should mean nothing if the body is not taking in any food. If his body was somehow altered to still maintain the high metabolic rate even when no food was consumed, he would simply die. His cells would start to break down his body's own proteins and muscle tissue in the absence of food. The only way to achieve growth like this Jem'Hadar has would be to have him on an I.V. of pure sugar water 24/7. And even then, the rate at which he grows is simply absurd. To go from an infant to a young boy in a matter of days is like watering a plant once and it blooming in two seconds. It's just absurd growth that defies the laws of nature.
  
  That's just a Biology major's point of view. I can certainly suspend my disbelief so the Dominion can be cooler! :)
• From JRPoole on 2009-01-14 at 12:21am:
  I have similar problems to the ones listed here, but they don't take away from the episode too much in the end. This is a bit of a rehash of "I, Hugh" from TNG, but it's well done, and we needed to more about the Jem Ha'dar.
• From MJ on 2011-02-08 at 6:06pm:
  Two episodes in a row that have hints of TNG in them, eh? First DS9: Second Skin (also known as TNG: Face of the Enemy) and now DS9: The Abandoned, also known as TNG: I, Borg. The writers must have been watching a TNG marathon back in October '94!
  
  I'm just ribbing, of course. There were quite a few TNG episodes (especially in Season One) with hints of TOS in them.
  
  In my review I'm kind of incorporating DS9: Chimera from Season Seven, in case anybody reads this and would prefer a spoiler alert.
  
  In both episodes, Odo fails to convince a Dominion race to accept the people around him as he has done. This Jem'Hadar (and Laas the Changeling) not only fail to share Odo's tolerance for the DS9 humanoids, they actually scorn him for the life he has chosen. I like both of these episodes, in this case because it doesn't have the "happily ever after" ending where the Jem'Hadar learns to love the Federation and settles down to a peaceful life. Also, as in DS9: Chimera, the people on DS9 do not warm up to this Dominion life form; instead, they are terrified of him, and want nothing to do with him.
  
  What this does is add dimension to the Odo character. In both episodes, Odo is really the only one who sympathizes with the visiting alien. Also, in both episodes, we actually see Odo is willing to leave his life on DS9 for them. In Chimera, it's to find the rest of the Hundred and link with them. Here, it's to reform a Jem'Hadar and prevent him from rejoining the ranks of the others. These episodes show that Odo is not firmly in the Federation camp. He has grown to love Kira and admire several of the humanoids, but he is not so invested in his life on DS9 that he doesn't consider leaving if a suitable alternative presents itself. DS9 almost loses Odo several times, and it shows how torn Odo must feel, and how isolated. He seems desperate for someone else from the Dominion to choose, and therefore, perhaps, to validate, the same life he has chosen. Not only is he isolated and torn, he is unsure. He is in a state of disorder, the ultimately unacceptable feeling for a Changeling.
  
  On another note, how mad must Admiral Nechayev be after this episode? First, Picard helps a young Borg become healthy and then leave, and now Sisko does the same for a Jem'Hadar. After this, I'm sure Nechayev made a new rule that any abandoned kids from Federation enemies are to be turned over to her pronto!
  
  The subplot had potential but didn't really take up enough screen time to get interesting. It was really overshadowed by the much more fascinating issue of having a Jem'Hadar on board. Still, Jake would seem to have a thing for Bajoran women!
• From zex on 2011-09-07 at 2:43pm:
  I actually thought this was quite a poor episode, largely because the Jem'Hadar "child" was portrayed unconvincingly. I think if that role could've been written, cast and performed a lot better.
  
  There were other problems too... The idea of a rapidly developing humanoid could've been interesting... But this was never really explored. Instead the boy's mind just somehow matured "without external stimulus," which makes about zero sense, advanced genetic engineering or no advanced genetic engineering.
  
  Another missed opportunity was the weird cloaking capability they seem to have. It would've been interesting to get into that.
  
  Instead of anything really intriguing, we get some lame, lazily choreographed fight scene in a holosuite.
  
  The "enzyme addiction" thing is kind of interesting, but doesn't really make too much sense. I could see how genetically engineering a species to be dependent on a unique substance could be useful, but not so much in the way it's portrayed here. How would making your well-honed killing machine irritable, anxious, and with an elevated heart beat help you control it? Wouldn't that just make it desperate, angry, and even more violent than usual? That's just about what we see here when "the child" starts going into withdrawal. Really doesn't make much sense.
  
  Here's another thing that doesn't make sense: DS9 security can't apprehend a lone Jem'Hadar without killing him? I understand that Sisko was under pressure from Odo and his own conscience, but that conflict and its resolution just wasn't portrayed very well. He comes out with a team, his phaser ready, then suddenly does an about face and agrees with Odo that they have to let him go in order to avoid bloodshed. Isn't that what the stun settings are for? Again, I get that he probably didn't really want to apprehend the guy, but that part wasn't really conveyed very well on screen.
  
  So, this wasn't much of an episode, IMHO. Mostly because the Jem'Hadar child just wasn't a very convincing or sympathetic character. That topped by some problems with the plot.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Shernand on 2006-11-24 at 7:20pm:
  One of the best DS9 episodes, watched it 3 times and it's still fun to see dukat showing up and the computer replicating phasers and firing ;)
• From szycag on 2008-07-28 at 6:40am:
  This feels like it should be a season one episode... I thought it was kind of predictable. I knew Dukat would find out what was going on, just like I knew they'd find some way to get him stuck on the station afterwards. I thought they'd redeem it with a subplot about Kira coming to grips with her prejudice of cardassians like with Duet or Second Skin, but it was just going through the motions really. I just can't believe they'd be having problems like this after three years on the ship. Feels like a TOS plot, even has red shirts getting fried.
• From djb on 2009-04-27 at 8:10pm:
  Neat episode! A Cardassian easter egg, if you will. No doubt Dukat planned it from the beginning. "I just happened to be taking a stroll around the demilitarized zone, when, imagine my surprise..."
  
  Reminds me of TNG: Disaster. Controls and systems disabled, people stuck in different parts of the ship/station attempting to get a hold on their situation, and a collaborative effort eventually (and barely) saving everyone.
  
  I also like how when Dax's hands get burned, and she can't get them treated right away, she continues to be extremely useful, offering one idea after another.
  
  Dukat is a great character, and it's great to a) see him come aboard all cocky, and b) change his attitude once he realizes he's as hosed as everyone else! Apparently he didn't count on someone laying a trap for him.
• From Popescu on 2010-08-22 at 1:19pm:
  djb, I think you are wrong when saying that Dukat planned this. The program was triggered by accident when working in the ore processing section.
• From peterwolf on 2013-11-10 at 2:30am:
  Not a bad episode, but I vote for 6 points, mainly because the final sequence is incomplete. We see Garak, Kira and Dukat fighting against the self-destruct program while the clock is ticking and then the focus is only on Sisko preventing the fusion reactor to explode. The people in OPS are forgotten ... Dax is injured (she needs some bandages on her hands), Garak, Kira and Dukat are in the middle of a fight that is not resolved, aso. So the two story lines never really fit together, only the third one provides a nice, appropriate ending on the promenade, when Odo suggests to Quark, which Ferengis might be more devious than him ...
  I like how Garak criticized Gul Dukat for his attempts to get involved with Kira (although it is not too obvious). In later episodes Dukat´s speeches addressing Kira with the same intention get extremely annoying and are a horrible waste of time. If the writers had been wise, they would have taken Garak´s advice and never tried to let Dukat go on with that rubbish.
• From dronkit on 2014-03-28 at 5:42pm:
  Oh, O'Brien, every engineer should know these rules:
  
  1- when you buy used electronics, first thing you do is full memory wipe
  
  2- if it ain't broke, don't fix it

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Matt on 2008-03-19 at 11:14pm:
  This episode is a tribute to the musical "Brigadoon". Which might help to explain the way Dax acts. Much of the main plot points are similar. Also, like the original play, it kinda sucks.
• From JRPoole on 2009-01-14 at 2:33am:
  The A plot love story is one of the most embarrassingly bad moments in all of Trek, and that's saying something. The dialogue is lame,and Jadzia's decision is ridiculous and way out of character, as is Sisko's reaction, though Avery Brooks acts it well.
  
  The B plot is uproariously funny, if a bit cheap. It's the only thing this episode has going for it, so I gave it a 1 just for that.
• From djb on 2009-05-01 at 6:31am:
  I agree, Dax's behavior in this episode is way out of character. After 7 lifetimes, anyone is going to be smart enough not to confuse infatuation with love. All Jadzia and her new boyfriend have is infatuation; they know practically nothing about each other, what to speak of them being different species. And she's ready to leave everything and everyone she knows behind on a whim? Silly.
  
  I like it when different plots in a single episode somehow tie together or are related; unfortunately plot A and plot B had nothing to do with each other, even though plot b was indeed rather humorous.
• From rpeh on 2010-07-29 at 9:38am:
  This episode is so crammed with technobabble it's almost leaking at the seams. Intersecting dimensions, singularities in the quantum matrix.... give me strength! It didn't help that I kept thinking of Deral as the bible-thumping Vice-Presidential candidate from the West Wing.
  
  The B-plot is funny, though, and the end scene just priceless!

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Pete Miller on 2006-06-22 at 8:11pm:
  I think your review was much too nitpicky. I mean, who really cares about the uniforms? It's Jonathan Frakes. He doesn't wear ds9 uniforms! ;) And all that with the airing schedule.... honestly who cares again. Most people watch these out of sequence with the movies anyway.
  
  I think it was absolutely AWESOME continuity to bring back Riker's double and not just abandon that interesting plot line from TNG. The whole Cardassia Prime thing was really cool, too. The only problem I had was not getting to see all the Defiant's information on the shipyard being discussed at the end. Wonderful episode, and great way to bring in Jonathan Frakes!
• From omex@omex on 2011-09-11 at 1:01am:
  I thought the politics in this episode were portrayed very well. I don't have first hand experience, but I understand that the final resolution is very realistic. This is how things get done in both international and domestic politics. There are multiple interests involved, there's duplicity, there's inter-agency secrecy and strife (like the Obsidian Order's secret machinations in the Orion Sector), and conflicts are resolved through bargaining, with a special role for the fall guy, or the sacrificial lamb (Tom Riker).
  
  I love how Dukat is set in opposition to the Obsidian Order, which is encroaching on his authority. Also love how in the end, even though he wants the information from the Defiant, he recognizes that, "Someone has to pay for the damage that's been done, and I don't want that someone to be me." Again, the politics are great.
  
  Probs: I'm not sure I'm crazy about how Kira was portrayed in this episode. It seems like she should've been a little more sympathetic to Riker given her history. I mean, she's certainly been very sympathetic to the Maquis in previous episodes, so she seems just a little out of character.
  
• From Wes on 2012-12-10 at 7:59pm:
  Memory-alpha says: "Although this episode was screened three days after the release of Star Trek Generations, the stardates indicate that it takes place shortly before. This makes sense, as Riker and Sisko's conversation would seem to indicate the Enterprise is still active."
• From AW on 2015-12-04 at 7:32am:
  Another great RDM episode.
• From Zorak on 2016-05-15 at 3:22pm:
  Of all the time's I've ever had to suspend my disbelief at something in Star Trek, the thing Tom Riker does once he makes off with the Defiant might be the hardest to accept. I'm talking about him ripping off his false sideburns. Are you telling me that he loved his goatee look so much that he was willing to risk this super important Defiant heist by wearing a disguise instead of simply growing out his beard a little for real and then shaving it later? That's completely insane.
• From tigertooth on 2016-09-26 at 3:20am:
  Good point, Zorak!
  
  As to the "problem" of Kira being back on duty, I believe that's because she took her mandated day off and presumably enjoyed at least two of the things Bashir ordered her to enjoy.
  
  I wish the Cardassia Prime set looked bigger. Or somehow different -- it looked too much like a starship bridge to me.
  
  Anyway, this was great. Tom Riker was fun, all the Dukat stuff was great, the various interplays between Cardassia-Starfleet, Central Command-Obsidian Order, Sisko-Dukat, Starfleet-Maquis, Kira's relationship to the Maquis... really well put together and executed.
• From JB on 2020-07-17 at 10:02am:
  Problem:
  
  Riker said he was "passing through" DS9 on his way to Risa. Isn't DS9 on the outskirts of Federation space? Sloppy writing.
• From Gaius Gracchus on 2021-08-15 at 2:47pm:
  Great use of Frakes, and all episodes where Alaimo gets to play off Brooks as an ally of necessity are can't-miss.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Popescu on 2010-08-22 at 2:45pm:
  Completely agree about Keiko and O'Brien's problems.
  
  About the telepathic influence affecting only the senior staff... At the party there were other personnel who were kissing and/or hugging in the background... Were they also senior officers? If they were, shouldn't we know something about them?
  
  With all the bunch of characters in DS9, it's quite hard in an episode like this to focus on more non-essential ones, maybe just showing them in the background is enough. Also, Bareil is not an senior officer, neither is Jake or Quark :)
  
  I don't think this is a problem... The episode just focuses on the most important characters, many of them being part of the senior staff.
• From Ry-Fi on 2011-02-06 at 6:08am:
  Great episode. I LOVE the directing/cinematography of this one! Way to go, Avery Brooks! There are so many long, moving shots, and the DS9 set is really shown off far better than in any other episode that's come before. This one must've been a hoot to make, and I'm sure somewhat challenging for the actors.
  
  As always, Majel Barrett is a pleasure to see (I love that woman, and her portrayal of Lwaxana is divine).
  
  Finally, this episode really adds credence to the fact that Keiko O'Brien can be a real bitch. Her way of talking with Miles and resolving issues sure rubs me the wrong way. I'm not entirely fond of her, and sure don't understand what Miles sees in her. Their relationship does come across as fairly realistic - it's just too bad it doesn't seem like a great one...
• From Gul Ranek on 2012-12-23 at 9:58pm:
  I guess this is DS9's version of The Naked Time/The Naked Now, although a bit more fun. When I read the recap, I thought it was going to be a disaster, but turned out not to be all that bad. The only problem for me is the almost-cartoonish scene when Bareil punched Sisko who responded by blocking his subsequent punches like Neo in the Matrix, after which Dax knocked Bareil out. As for the question why only the senior staff was affected, I guess it could be argued that Lwaxana had her outbursts only when she was present around them.
  
  P.S. How come you stopped doing the filler count halfway through the second season? This episode, for example, could be marked as the starting point for the Kira/Odo romance.
• From Kethinov on 2012-12-24 at 3:27am:
  I'm currently doing a DS9 rewatch and slowly altering my reviews to tweak things and add the filler quotients. You'll see more added in the coming months. I expect the project to be completed by June.
• From tigertooth on 2016-09-27 at 4:15am:
  Respectfully, I disagree completely with Gul Ranek. The "fight" between Sisko and Bareil was my favorite part! It was indeed slapstick, but it also makes sense: Bareil could never go toe-to-toe with Sisko. And it's a silly episode, so they should have gotten silly in the final scene. If anything, the problem is there wasn't *more* ridiculousness.
  
  Does anybody have a gif of Sisko's reaction to Bareil's punches?
• From C on 2017-04-19 at 2:19am:
  Avery Brooks' acting when Dax is seducing Sikso is so perfectly genuine. I enjoy this one overall.
• From Gaius Gracchus on 2021-08-16 at 9:04pm:
  A fun romp in the vein of The Naked Time/The Naked Now. Works better than the TNG variant because it comes along after the characters and relationships are established.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-11-29 at 10:13am:
  I could have done without O'Brien being a jealous jerk to his wife... again. They really get lazy with O'Brien sometimes. They just make him suffer and/or super moody. I was completely with Keiko in this one (as I usually am). It was touching he was willing to resign for her, though perhaps a bit over-the-top. At least he came around. (And apparently he's a pretty good lay.)
  
  I would have been more sold if the "love vibes" affected different people differently, depending on their self-awareness and maturity. One redeeming aspect of The Naked Now was that some of the more "serious" officers were more in control than the others.
  
  I feel Dax has been sloppily written recently. She falls in love with a stranger in Meridian and is ready to throw her life away for him. Then two episodes later she's under this amorous influence toward Sisko seemingly without any self-awareness or sense that something is amiss. But normally she should be one of the most self-aware and self-controlled people on the station, what with eight lifetimes' worth of memories. It also seems Bareil, who is supposedly a contemplative holy dude, completely loses himself. I did like how Kira and Bashir, though they couldn't stop making out, kept saying they needed to stop, but couldn't stop!
  
  Agreed with the commenter above who said the bit with Sisko deflecting Bareil's blows was their favorite scene. Mine too. Bariel is not a fighting man! Sisko didn't even get mad, he just got exasperated.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Remco on 2008-11-21 at 4:03pm:
  Holy crap, they predicted the financial crisis! :D Let's hope this doesn't come true either. I don't particularly like the prospect of a 16 year long depression.
• From Sean Freeburn on 2009-07-15 at 10:32am:
  I was pleasantly suprised with the time travel in this episode - too often when sci-fi shows travel back in time, they end up in modern day Earth or some pivotal moment in Earth's past (TOS: The City on the Edge of Forever, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, VOY: Future's End, etc.) in an attempt to be trendy. Past Tense had a nice break on this cliche, by setting it in our not-too-distant future, yet still in DS9's past.
• From Phillip on 2009-08-06 at 6:38pm:
  As a non-American Star Trek fan I have a serious problem with this episode a lot of the 'reforms' were already in existence in European countries at the end of the 21st Century. The throwaway line 'Europe is a mess' doesn't cut it.
  
• From tigertooth on 2016-10-02 at 5:05pm:
  One nitpick: both in this two-parter and in The Search, the entire senior staff leaves the station -- taking the Defiant with them. Who is back at DS9 keeping things together? Especially in this episode, given the Dominion threat, how can they justify leaving the station without any senior officers *and* without their greatest weapon?
  
  Obviously they did it in order to get all the main characters (except Quark) onto the shows without adding a station-based B-plot. So I get it from a real world perspective. Just kind of ridiculous from the fictional world perspective.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Popescu on 2010-08-22 at 4:25pm:
  When O'Brien and Kira transported to the '60s there was Hey Joe by Jimi Hendrix playing so loud that they had to shout to hear each other. That was sooo awesome! :D
• From Zorak on 2016-05-16 at 11:31am:
  I enjoyed this 2 part-er quite a bit. It was an interesting story and I really enjoyed the guest characters. The social worker, the security guards, the residents of the sanctuary, even the mogul.. all played well and convincing. I tend to really like these time travel outings. I think I find Star Trek the most interesting when characters are out of their element. Also Bashir and Dax are becoming less annoying characters and starting to come into their own (well Bashir at least.. Dax still has a long way to go).
• From Gaius Gracchus on 2021-08-15 at 7:07pm:
  A very enjoyable two-parter that gives good commentary on social issues that indeed do plague the 21st century, albeit a bit stylized. Trek has always had this social consciousness and it is indeed better for it.
• From Steven Wrieden on 2023-08-29 at 7:24am:
  Interesting to me that the older guard says: "best ball club I ever saw,'99 Yankees, no doubt about it". In fact, they won the World Series in 1999. The episode aired in 1995, the Trek writers called it.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From EKH on 2008-01-12 at 10:53pm:
  I think we can assume that Star Trek has been "re-dubbed" for a modern audience, and that Bashir actually uses a term we wouldn't recognize. Otherwise, the language of the future represents a huge break of realism.
• From Benjamin Baxter on 2008-07-13 at 4:15am:
  There are also several occurrences of "man" in the series that could be explained away with the above explanation.
• From JRPoole on 2009-02-08 at 8:16pm:
  I hate to see Bareil die in such a seemingly pointless way, but the character had to be killed off. He's just too humble, too pure, to be interesting.
  
• From A. Rust on 2009-04-18 at 3:43pm:
  I find Bareil's decision neither meaningless nor foolish. His people were constantly haunted by the shadow of Cardassian Occupation and the only way to totally move forward was through a process of forgiveness of the enemy. Though Bashir may have been right in his analysis of Winn's less than noble motivations, I think Bareil would have been in sympathy with her statement that one man's life meant little in comparison to what could be gained. Having not gotten further in the series, I don't know if his sacrifice is in fact meaningful in the long term, but as Kira observes at the end, he was comfortable with his confusion and made the best choice he could for his people under the circumstances. While I think the episode could have had more scenes of drama at the negotiating table to reinforce what he was fighting for, I found Bareil's sacrifice both noble and totally consistent with is character.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-06 at 4:58pm:
  I don't think Bareil was being foolish. Some things are worth dying for. He couldn't live with himself knowing he didn't do everything he could, especially if the talks had failed in his absence. In his own way, he went out fighting. Kira would have died for her cause as a freedom fighter too. I also think Bashir was being rather bullheaded, stubbornly and myopically trying to prolong Bareil's life and ignoring the various reasons it's not so simple.
  
  I really think the original writers of the Ferengi painted themselves into a corner with the Ferengis' over-the-top misogyny. In a different episode, Quark protests that the Ferengi have never had slavery, but that's false on its face: they continue to treat half their population as slaves/livestock when we know full well that female Ferengi have equivalent mental abilities to the men. I can't exactly blame Nog for being the product of his culture, but I can't entirely let him off the hook, either. The writers were right to point this out in the dialogue, of course; it just seems half-hearted. It's treated as an annoyance rather than a moral emergency. It's like nobody really cares too much that this species is keeping half its population in a state of abject bondage and degradation for no logical reason. It's almost played for laughs here. Yeah, sexism is absurd, but it's not all that funny. At least, it's not funny to those of us who experience it as a fact of life. (Thanks, Rick Berman.)
  
  Winn seemed unusually not-evil in this episode to me. She really seemed sincere! It added some character depth. One reason for that might be that, according to Memory Alpha, Louise Fletcher was rather ill during filming and couldn't quite bring herself to act the nasty and conniving overtones usually present with Winn. It's quite telling how useless Winn is in this situation, though. She managed to become Kai but can't handle the heat. Whoops! Bad luck, Adami! Gosh, I hope she doesn't freak out and do anything reckless later.
  
  The "humanity" thing bothered me too; I suppose I'll have to assume he meant something like "humanoid-ity." Lazy writing in an otherwise quite interesting and important episode. Good call in killing off Bareil, too. He became sort-of interesting, but he became even more interesting as a quasi-martyr. Bareil would have been a great Kai for Bajor, but Winn is a much better Kai for storytelling. :)

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Pete Miller on 2006-06-23 at 1:11am:
  I'd give this episode an 8. It is at the pinnacle of character development episodes. Before now, Nog has been seen as the annoying little ferengi friend of Jake's, not to be taken seriously. In this episode, he truly opens up his feelings to Sisko. I really liked getting to see that he has interests other than profit. I also liked how Rom expresses his pride for Nog and overrides Quark. I haven't seen further on in DS9, so I'll come back and edit this when I have, but I swear to God I'm going to be furious if I don't get to see Nog in a Starfleet uniform at some point....
• From Lt. Fitz on 2012-06-25 at 5:12pm:
  If the changeling can perfectly impersonate Kira, including the features of her face, why in the freak does she have to have an Odo-like featureless face when she transforms into a changeling attempt at humanoid form? And why is she female with the shape of breasts? None of this makes any sense. She could have just transformed into a talking monkey. Or stayed as Kira and dropped the crystal part of the form. I just don't get why they need an actress in Odo face at all. Perhaps they are limited by special effect budget or something. The way they handle changelings boggles my mind.
• From Dubhan on 2014-07-04 at 7:11am:
  I'm a big ol' softie and both of the story-lines in this episode made me tear up. That makes it a top-tier (tear?) episode by my standards.
• From Abigail on 2019-10-30 at 9:52pm:
  All through this episode, I was thinking it was ridiculous. I thought Kira was actually stuck in a crystal, and that she would magically and quickly get out at the end. And the interactions between Sisko and Nog were really annoying (with Sisko being pretty rude and just mean by the final scene).
  
  Then the ending totally redeemed it! There was an actual point to the episode! And character development ensued! Hooray!
• From Gaius Gracchus on 2021-08-16 at 11:33am:
  "Just a slip of the tongue" was a tear-jerking line, and this episode does a good job building on Odo/Kira. Taking Nog seriously, a character who has mostly been comic relief so far (though a good insight into the Ferengi through his relationship with Jake) shows a level of maturity in this show's writing.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-06 at 7:16pm:
  @ Lt. Fitz - I noticed all this as well. Regarding the changeling's impersonation of Kira, my guess is that much older and experienced changelings have developed their humanoid impersonation skills to an advanced stage. (See: alternate Odo in Children of Time.) Odo is quite young, relatively inexperienced, has barely linked, and has not been in the Great Link; the other changeling is probably one of the oldest and most experienced. It's very possible that changelings have already infiltrated DS9 and have observed all the people there. Whoever did that could return to the great link and share that information with everyone.
  
  I agree this whole show handled the changelings very weirdly. "Female changeling" makes no goddamn sense. Are we supposed to believe that freaking shape-shifters evolved sexes like humans did? She should have been called the "head changeling" or something if she was the leader.
  
  So far as I know, the other changelings adopt humanoid forms similar to Odo's out of affection and/or convention. They probably don't have a default solid state, but it might be useful to have a "look" for when they want to identify themselves as shapeshifters. Why not that look, since everyone in the Alpha quadrant already associates that look with shapeshifters? That's my guess.
• From G. Host on 2022-05-17 at 11:35pm:
  IMO the primary story (Kira/Odo) was far less satisfying than the Nog one.
  
  Nog proves he can be extremely focused in episode like his father Rom where he needs help O'Brien when Keiko is taken over by Pah-wraith. Aron Eisenberg ended up being guest star with most episodes.
• From fL0reign on 2022-09-08 at 6:57am:
  Someone needs to make an episode about lowering the bar for Starfleet Academy admission between TNG and DS9.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From JRPoole on 2009-02-09 at 5:36pm:
  I find this episode interesting because it signifies a change in Trek's philosophies to a certain degree.
  
  TOS and (especially) TNG were both very anti-religion. The show's philosophies about science and rationality over religion and faith are clearly evident in many, many episodes. That starts to change a little on DS9. Sisko has always been uncomfortable with the role of Emissary, but here he begins to grow into it a little, and the plot of this episode suggests that there is something to the Bajoran faith beyond ancient mumbo jumbo. But even before this, Sisko has a more balanced view of such things than Picard ever did. For example, the episode in which then-Vedek Winn threatens Keiko's school makes it clear that while Sisko doesn't believe in the prophets as such, he understands their importance to the Bajoran people.
  
  Even if the "prophets" are explained in scientific terms as non-corporeal beings who live in the wormhole and exist outside of linear time, this episode makes it abundantly clear that their fate is tied to that of Bajor and that the ancient texts are in some ways "true," and that the Prophets are somehow (perhaps without their knowledge) guiding Bajoran society through their interactions with the orbs.
  
  This is an interesting wrinkle, and DS9 is definitely the most fully-realized series in the franchise, but I have to wonder if Gene Roddenberry would have approved of the new direction.
• From djb on 2009-05-22 at 8:27pm:
  I agree that DS9's exploration of religion is interesting. But in a sense, it's not a religion. Not to get off on a spiritual/religious rant here, but in my mind, the very definition of "spiritual" (despite its Latin roots meaning "breath") refers to that which is non-material, and which is not subject to scientific/empirical verification (for better or for worse).
  
  The Prophets, AKA Wormhole aliens, are non-coporeal, but still exist in the material universe, and are observable. In other words, there is nothing sacred or holy about the wormhole aliens; they simply are very, very different from humanoids.
  
  The fact that ancient Bajorans didn't understand the true nature of the wormhole and its inhabitants, and decided to worship them as gods, to me, seems nothing more than superstition, even idol worship. Primitive people often deify, and therefore worship, that which they cannot understand, so arguably the Bajoran religion is nothing more than a vestige of pre-scientific ignorance.
  
  The way the "prophecy" in this episode fulfills itself reminds me of the ancient Greek story of Oedipus Rex. The prophecy was fulfilled by Oedipus' very act of trying to avoid it.
  
  Similarly, Vedek Yarka foolishly tries to avert a prophecy given by the Prophets, and of course, in doing so, helps to fulfill, or at the very least is completely ineffective in stopping, the prophecy he set out to thwart. This was because he did not take into account that if the Prophets can see past, present, and future, they would have seen his efforts to avoid the inevitable, and then THAT would be the prophecy itself. Fascinating.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Mike on 2016-11-19 at 3:53am:
  It was interesting to see Quark launch on another passionate defense of his people's ways to those who seem to look down their noses at the Ferengi. In DS9: The Jem'Hadar, he does this with Sisko/humans, pointing out that the Ferengi never engaged in genocide, slavery, or nuclear war. Here, he tries to convince the skeptical, slightly annoyed "Prophets" that there are good reasons for Ferengi avarice.
  
  Overall the episode was okay. I enjoyed seeing Quark figure out what happened to Zek. And it's always a bit boring to me when Sisko or others interact with the Prophets. Seeing Quark interact with them was a nice change of pace, both funny and intriguing.
  
  The Bashir award subplot had some funny scenes, especially when Odo takes interest.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From BlueLabel on 2010-06-25 at 4:07am:
  Problem: at the very beginning, when Sisko runs into Odo and the troublesome Klingon, Sisko claims he "didn't know there were any Klingons on the station". What about the guy who runs the Klingon restaurant?
• From Hugo on 2012-01-22 at 6:56pm:
  Whoa! The best in a long while. Excellent pacing ,good drama and suspense and awesome sci-fi!

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Kyle on 2015-05-19 at 4:56pm:
  Actually, bio-memetic gel, was mentioned before in the TNG episode Firstborn.
  It didn't seem to be tightly controlled then as Riker used 1/2 gram of it to trade for some ore from a Yridian.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-12 at 4:32pm:
  Hey, it's "Remember Me" but this time it's for Dr. Bashir instead of Dr. Crusher, and half as interesting!
  
  I do like the exchange at the end, when Garak essentially commends Bashir for continuing not to trust him.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Krs321 on 2011-03-07 at 1:20pm:
  Fun episdoe but opens huge plot holes. So now the Mirror Universe people can just jump dimensions whenever they want? Uh, what?
  
  Why didnt Mirror O'Brien ask Sisko if they could have 50 photon torpedoes, phasers, or medical supplies, replicators, etc.
  
  Did Sisko give Mirror Kira the code or did he let Terok Nor blow up? If not, why wouldn't he?
• From John on 2011-09-13 at 4:27am:
  I hate Mirror Universe episodes -- they are the ultimate contrived filler nonsense. The only reason this one gets a 3 from me instead of a 1 is because of Tuvok.
• From Lt. Fitz on 2012-06-25 at 9:24pm:
  Sisko didn't bring her back because she was needed to help the Terrans in the alternate universe. That would be a totally selfish move on his part and totally out of character.
  
  Also, I don't understand the hatred for "filler" episodes that so many people demonstrate. Trek has always had episodes that are self-contained and episodes that involve more continuity. Some episodes focus more on sci fi, and others seem to be done just for fun. To me, the mirror episodes are fun as heck because it gives the actors a chance to have fun playing twisted personalities. I didn't care if it made no sense from a sci fi angle that Kirk and his double were able to switch back to their proper universes by simply beaming back somehow in "Mirror, Mirror." It was just fun to see Spock in a goatee and Chekhov try to kill off Kirk. Yeah, my mind was smarter than the sci fi in that episode, but I easily put that aside and enjoyed the spectacle of it.
  
  This episode was just plain fun. (Sometimes I think that Nana Visitor is better at playing the evil version of Kira than the good one.) And, yeah, Tuvok being there was great. I loved him in Voyager.
• From Kenneth on 2014-04-12 at 5:28am:
  No commentary on sisko taking down dax ??
• From tigertooth on 2016-10-08 at 4:18pm:
  I'm a little surprised by the positive reaction to the inclusion of Tuvok. Yeah, it was a cool moment when he appears but then... he never really does anything.
  
  I liked mirror-Rom's arc during the episode. But as others have noted, this episode had way too many questions that have no clear, good answers.
  
  And I agree about the general dislike of the mirror universe. You can't even make any connections between the standard and mirror versions of the characters since sometimes they're totally different. While I didn't like Distant Voices, at least you can glean some connection regarding how Bashir views his colleagues by how he portrays them in his mind. But in the mirror universe, you get nothing - just two totally different characters that look similar. I'd prefer it if they used the mirror episodes as comedy.

No fan commentary yet.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Marissa on 2012-08-02 at 1:45am:
  I absolutely love the final scene of this episode, where we only see Odo's reflection in the mirror. It kind of makes the whole thing feel surreal. Odo's offer of friendship there is a beautiful moment for both of my two favorite characters of DS9, and the choice of camera angle was just perfect. Too bad I can't seem to find the proper words to describe exactly why I love this scene.
• From Dubhan on 2014-07-16 at 5:41am:
  This episode is pretty jam-packed. It's got action, subterfuge, sabotage, willful disobeyance of orders, a substantial space battle (!), and - the best part - great dramatic scenes between Garak and Odo to hit you in the feels. This is some of the best Trek has to offer.
• From Mike D. on 2017-01-25 at 6:50am:
  I've heard season 4 is when this series really takes off, and I hope this awesome two-parter is a taste of what's to come. Garak's wide-eyed stare is so effective, he really is a great character. I loved the special effects in this episode, both the peeling Odo and the big ship battle.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From JRPoole on 2009-02-24 at 4:38am:
  This episode should have won an Emmy or a Hugo for art direction; the ship is a cool idea and it's rendered beautifully. It's done so well I don't really mind the technical problems.
  
  
• From JRPoole on 2009-02-25 at 4:58pm:
  I wanted to add that the only problem I have with this episode is timing. The proverbial shit just hit the fan in the Delta Quadrant and the dominion pretty much destroyed the Tal Shi'ar (sp?) and the Obsidian Order. They alsod made it clear that the Federation and the Klingons were next. I find it a little hard to believe that Sisko would make a journey like this one with all this going on.
  
  The ship itself is awesome. I don't really mind the technical problems. We can rationalize that the lumber was for unexposed parts of the ship, and it might even be that the ship itself wasn't blasted into space or designed to return to Bajor through the atmosphere. Sisko seems obsesses with recreating it exactly, and it seems that the ship is already in space when he boards it. Perhaps the ancient Bajorans had rocket technology and assembled the ship in orbit somehow. Regardless, this is still a good episode, one of the most memorable stand-alone episodes in DS9, perhaps in all of Trek.
• From djb on 2009-10-28 at 6:59am:
  I liked this episode too, though it seems strange that an "ancient" Bajoran solar sailing ship would be sophisticated enough to be ... IN SPACE, yet not have an onboard computer navigation system. Kind of backwards.
  
  Anyway, I'm mainly commenting to complain about the spoiler you put in your review, about the future between Sisko and Yates. I did not know about this, as I am watching the episodes in order and have not seen much of DS9 at all before watching it now. I prefer to let the show unfold at its own pace and not know what happens later. Naturally a few spoilers are almost inevitable, but this was a big one and was unnecessary in my opinion. I enjoy reading reviews on your site, but will stop if you continue to put spoilers like that in.
• From Kethinov on 2009-10-28 at 10:40am:
  Sorry. :(
  
  You will see a few more here and there but they are rare and accidental. I've been working to strip them out.
  
  Be advised that comments posted on reviews will not be held to the same standard.
• From rpeh on 2010-07-29 at 8:30pm:
  The first time I watched this episode it really annoyed me. Second time around.... it annoys me a bit less.
  
  The technical problems with the solar sail make the whole idea cringe-worthy. Rigging? Rigging was for sailors to climb, not to adjust sails with! The sail is nowhere near large enough and far too complex. Compare to the more sensible description of a sail used for manned transport in The Mote in God's Eye (book) where the sail is roughly as large as a moon. More, you don't just gain propulsion from light, you gain it from the solar wind - and you can't tack against it. It's like this whole script was written by somebody who had heard the phrase but never got beyond that. You can even hear the "wind" rippling the sails in the exterior shots, and the "fireworks" in space at the end. Good grief!
  
  On the sail ship, they consult paper charts. This is in a series where huge storms appear with no warning just about anywhere, yet the charts are treated as accurate. Jake refers to losing the "jib and port mailsail". Just.... look that up so I don't have to describe how wrong it is. I could honestly write about another 1000 words about the technical problems here.
  
  The timing, as another poster mentioned, is just awful! From full-on, 100% action we get to an episode where the characters have to fill time by mentioning there's no sound, not even an engine! You can almost hear the gears on the DS9 engine grinding as the change-down occurs.
  
  Second time around, the timing issue didn't matter as much, but it made me watch the B-plot more, and... it doesn't really exist. A few scenes with no real character development.
  
  The technical issues are almost inexcusable! We *know* how to make solar sails, so the details can be accurate for once! The other plot details are inconsequential. But... somehow I quite like this episode. If this had been a TNG show, there'd have been loads of preaching nonsense. In this show, it just happened. I'll give it a 5.
  
  Okay... I'll stop ranting now.
• From Popescu on 2010-08-24 at 11:03pm:
  People, please stop whining about this episode, especially about the science behind it.
  
  I've just watched the special features released for each season of DS9 and the guy who created the solar sailing ship described these issues and why he choose to make it that way. He was aware of the things you are posting about here.
• From John on 2011-09-13 at 11:13pm:
  blah blah blah the science is all wrong blah blah blah WHO CARES!?
  
  This is a delightful and very well-done character-driven episode focusing on Ben and Jake Sisko. I have always loved the way the writers dealt with the Sisko family relationships, and the way Avery Brooks and Cirroc Lofton (and later Brock Peters too) portrayed it. I realize that some folks don't particularly care for the Jake character, but I've always liked him. His presence helps add depth to the otherwise straight-up badass Sisko. Don't get me wrong -- I love badass Sisko -- but it's nice to know that's not all that he is.
  
  This episode isn't about the science of solar sailing, it's about bonding between father and son. If you can watch it with that in mind, and ignore the "bad science", you'll actually enjoy it quite a bit.
• From Shaa on 2012-04-07 at 9:18pm:
  But, and please bear with me, what about the freaking sails? Why were they necessary? According to Newton, without friction, that ship would go just fine without a need for sails. Also, when they jumped into Warp, they should've stayed at that speed. The sails wouldn't have slowed them down, there would be no friction causing resistance in the sails to slow the ship down. They should've flown forever. Also, how would the ancient Bajorins have taken off??? No motor, just sails, how would they achieve any sort of upward motion? I am so confused! Am I not understanding some underlying concept here. Because based on my high school knowledge of physics, this doesn't make sense.
• From Lt. Fitz on 2012-06-26 at 12:10am:
  I've noticed a few times in Trek when an engine goes out or power is lost, space vehicles slow down. It's hard for my mind get past this, but I just have to accept that it's the physics in the Trek universe. Space has friction.
  
  I really loved this episode. I said to myself as soon as it was over, "This was a great character-driven episode, not a great sci fi episode."
• From Gul Ranek on 2012-12-26 at 11:17am:
  The solar sail is actually based in real world science - the Sun emits a stream of particles (mostly electrons and protons) which could actually propel a craft. See more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_sail
  
  This was a decent character episode, and I agree that it was a bit out of place compared to the events of the previous two episodes, but so are the next three episodes before the season finale, I guess.
  
  While I love every appearance of Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo is simply brilliant in the role), I was surprised when the Cardassian government threw a firework display and so openly congratulated Bajor on their accomplishment. I expected for Dukat to have the lightship towed back to DS9, saying that it violated Cardassian space, or something to that extent.
• From Dstyle on 2013-10-24 at 6:32pm:
  I don't want to jump on the "bad science" bandwagon, but... the solar ship jumps to warp, faster than the speed of light, and somehow Jake and Sisko DON'T end up splattered to bits all over the back of the ship? So I guess the ancient Bajorans didn't have the technology to create an artificial gravity net, but they somehow had inertial dampeners?
• From Dubhan on 2014-07-20 at 4:55am:
  What? No mention of the fact that this is the episode where Sisko "grew the beard!?"

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From rpeh on 2010-07-29 at 9:08pm:
  Decent episode, but one problem. When Quark is blocking his ears, his skull visibly compresses. I don't recall any information about Ferengi skulls being made of rubber... Apart from that it's a good episode for background on the Ferengi.
• From Lt. Fitz on 2012-06-26 at 1:40am:
  Best line: Rom about his father, "He couldn't hold on to latinum if you sewed it into his pants!"
  
  I liked this one.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-17 at 9:23am:
  This episode, if any so far, puts the lie to Quark's protestations that the Ferengi have never practiced slavery. How their society treats women is, no two ways about it, abject slavery and utter degradation. It's completely inexcusable, given the glaringly obvious evidence from both Ishka and Pel that Ferengi women are just as capable as men -- and in many cases, more so. I know it's portrayed in the show as backward and wrong, but it's still kinda hard to watch. It might be funny if it didn't resemble the way many women are still treated right now in the real world. I try not to judge individual Ferengi characters too harshly -- after all, the sexism is systemic and deeply conditioned.
  
  From a practical economic perspective, these male-dominated races like the Ferengi, Jem'Hadar, Pakleds, etc. are unfortunate, simply by the fact that they end up employing way more male actors. Give us a recurring race of women, already! (Like the Gems in Steven Universe. It is doable, has been done, and is very refreshing!)
  
  I do have to hand it to the DS9 writers for developing the Ferengi, though, after the joke they were on TNG. As problematic as they are in-universe, they've certainly become much more multi-dimensional since they were first introduced. A fine salvage operation.
  
  OK, I changed my mind on one point. The way the men look utterly scandalized when they see a woman NOT naked -- that's fucking hilarious. My dudes, get over yourselves.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Tallifer on 2011-03-26 at 4:37am:
  Two problems for me with this episode:
  
  1. Are a few soil reclamators used by a handful of farmers actually supposed to reclaim enough soil elsewhere to support an interstellar trade in foodstuffs? Why not build a couple new reclamators?
  
  Furthermore these reclamators are very ineffective. There is a tiny community of farmers, and yet one of them has not even benefited from the machines yet, but must wait her turn.
  
  2. The politics are startlingly naive. To me it was obvious from the beginning that Kai Wynn was engaged in corrupt relations with a huge corporate agribusiness which intended to exploit Bajoran government funding for profit. The reclamators were intended for the feeding of Bajorans, not the profits of a food-export corporation.
• From Mike on 2016-11-01 at 7:51pm:
  I liked this episode a lot. The Bajorans, like so many real-world peoples, are dealing with internal turmoil and conflict after throwing off their occupiers. In this case, it's driven by an aspiring despot who hopes that boosting her planet's economy will also aid her own personal ambitions. It pushes her to risk civil war, something few others have the appetite for given the issue is the use of farm equipment. It's a well-written, well-acted episode.
  
  Why not build more reclamators? Well, I'm guessing they are sophisticated pieces of machinery that rely on several industries to build. Bajor, still wartorn and relying on aid and loans, can probably only afford to build a couple of them. Plus, they probably have to wait a while because it takes time to detoxify large amounts of land. Real-world soil detoxification takes months or years and requires lots of composting and solarization. Even in sci-fi world, this process probably takes a while. I think the reclamators make a good plot device in this episode for the premise that the writers were going for.
• From Kevin on 2020-08-02 at 3:58am:
  The B plot in this episode is so strange. I know it was just to pad out some runtime in the episode, But maybe I wasn't paying attention to it enough- I don't recall the Chief making plans with Bashir to fake the injury - as i'm pretty sure that is what happened. Bashir played along, and because of it, ended up stuck with Quark at the end instead. That would've made for at least a more logical side story.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-15 at 8:02pm:
  Ah, I love Winn. Love to hate her, anyway. Louise Fletcher is amazing. Seeing her go from calm to livid with the most subtle of facial expressions is amazing. Anyway, I recall from early season 2 that Winn was associated with the Circle, and thus seems to be an isolationist and/or a complete opportunist. Thus her flowery language of joining the Federation is probably all a ruse. It's been so long since I saw the whole series last, I don't even remember! But by now it's basically established that if Winn is breathing, she's up to something, and if her lips are moving, she's lying. And she knows Kira is onto her, but can't let it slip that she knows. Visitor and Fletcher play off each other wonderfully.
  
  I just love the character development in this series, especially compared to my bae TNG. All these events in Kira's life are changing her and affecting her and keeping her interesting. Her covert/overt antagonism toward Winn is always shifting. I like the accumulating backstory of her as a freedom fighter, and how her relationships with other fighters has changed. It's also fun to see Bashir and O'Brien become bros.
  
  Watching this I thought O'Brien and Bashir faked the injury together so O'Brien could get out of the spotlight. I like how they left it open to interpretation.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From Remco on 2008-12-01 at 9:16pm:
  This was a fantastic episode throughout. I really liked Odo and Jadzia at the end talking about what happened that day. Jadzia and Odo now have a real bond. Odo knows what it is to be a humanoid (and probably kept some of that love from Curzon), and Jadzia remembers being liquid and the joy of pestering Quark. :)
  
  One minor quibble I have is that it wasn't two hours long. Some of those host scenes were way too short. But this isn't the kind of story that lends itself to a cliffhanger, which seems to be a prerequisite for two-hour shows.
• From Shamin Asaikar on 2012-04-16 at 6:17pm:
  Just a question. Considering Joran's memories are allowed to re-surface in Equilibrium (Season 3, ep4), shouldn't he have found a personification too?
  
• From Kenneth on 2014-04-12 at 7:35pm:
  Great episode but leeta being involved in the ceremony as one of jadzias closest friends felt really forced. Quark steals the show again. Shimerman may be the best actor on the show.
• From Dubhan on 2014-07-26 at 5:49am:
  And of course, one of the great things about this episode is, as usual, Rene Auberjonois. He's always great as Odo, but as Curzon Odo he really gets to shine in a more emotive role than usual. His performances are always so fluid (pun intended) that you never see him "acting". I wish you could say the same about Nana Visitor.
• From Shani on 2014-09-27 at 4:01am:
  Why did Jadzia not remember that Curzon was in love with her? I understand that she didn't have his memories when he was joined to Odo but prior to that shouldn't she have known the real reason she was dismissed from the program?
• From Ravenlord on 2015-09-26 at 6:27am:
  Rom losing his shit at Quark is one of my favorite moments for that character.
• From Azalea Jane on 2021-12-16 at 3:24pm:
  "Magnificent scoundrel" -- perhaps foreshadowing for the later episode "The Magnificent Ferengi"?
  
  Curzodo was something to behold! It's always fun to see the actors get to act out of character. It was fascinating watching Sisko coach Jadzia on how to stand up to Curzon. It's interesting thinking about Dax's former hosts as metaphors for a person's different "sides," so to speak.
  
  Rom standing up to Quark was wonderful. Such a payoff after seeing him be such a doormat for nearly three seasons now.

The following are comments submitted by my readers.

• From MJ on 2011-07-30 at 4:12pm:
  "newest and best captain in Starfleet". Well, this explains the awkward goodbye between O'Brien and Picard in the pilot. Maybe the Chief just didn't enjoy his time under Picard. It could just be an effort by the writers to cement O'Brien as a DS9 main character, which he wasn't in TNG.
  
  The episode certainly had plenty of suspense and illustrated the main problem Starfleet would have in dealing with the Founders. The main problem with this story, though, is that it seems hard to believe that an ambassador would have the power to assign a mission to a Starfleet ship without anyone at Starfleet Command knowing about it. I realize that some routine missions and actions could be decided at the station level, but something like this seems like it would've needed more communication between DS9 and Starfleet, not just an ambassador showing up and giving the green light. I guess one reasonable workaround is that Changelings infiltrating Starfleet made it possible on that end.
  
  Anyway, the episode was pretty good and I even enjoy watching it a second time despite knowing the outcome, so I give it a 6.
• From Gaius Gracchus on 2021-08-26 at 10:14pm:
  "No changeling has ever harmed another" has been repeated so much this season, it deserved this level of payoff.