![]() ![]() Deep Space Nine often made the bold decision to eschew allegory and instead tackle race, poverty, and identity with a more gimlet-eyed approach, which gave us episodes like the season three two-parter, “Past Tense.” In it, Sisko, science officer Lieutenant Jadzia Dax (a luminescent Terry Farrell), and Dr. The Star Trek universe reflects this history, but in doing so, sometimes the complexity and tangled nature of certain social concerns get lost in translation. Since its beginnings, science fiction has used all manner of ghouls, aliens, monsters, and madmen as allegory to interrogate real-world concerns. “Past Tense Part 1 & 2” Season 3, Episode 11 & 12 In honor of its 25th anniversary, here are the top 15 episodes of Deep Space Nine, all available on Hulu. Rewatching Deep Space Nine in 2018 has shown me that its artistry feels more relevant than ever today, which makes a list like this difficult to write. It is a beautifully acted, impactfully directed, and resolutely gritty show. The show favored long-form arcs, which allowed its stories to be as emotionally resonant as they were politically profound. (If you want more details, take a look at my guide to every Star Trek show.)ĭeep Space Nine isn’t only notable for its diversity though. The series introduced the franchise’s first black lead in the form of Commander (and later Captain) Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), a widow, single father, and religious icon to the Bajoran people who is tasked with bringing the newly freed people of Bajor into the Federation while heading a space station at the edge of a previously undiscovered wormhole. No incarnation of Star Trek before or since has lived up the ideals of diversity quite the way Deep Space Nine did over the course of its seven seasons. If previous incarnations saw their story lines born from a place of peace and exploration, Deep Space Nine was born of the fires of war. ![]() Almost immediately, Deep Space Nine set itself apart from its predecessors. Before O'Brien transports Sisko, Bashir, and Kira to the runabout, Opaka tells Sisko that her work is there now, but reassures him that their paths will cross again.When Star Trek: Deep Space Nine premiered 25 years ago, it was entering into a storied science-fiction enterprise that prized camaraderie and intellectual curiosity. Meanwhile, the Ennis and Nol-Ennis resume fighting. She says it is time for them to begin their healing process just as Kira has begun hers. O'Brien and Dax find Sisko, and Opaka informs him that she will stay with the Ennis and Nol-Ennis. The groups are revived once more and return to their respective camps, but by this time Bashir has discovered that the technology prevents those it revives (including Opaka) from leaving the planet. However, while Kira is reconciling her problems, the Ennis and Nol-Ennis refuse to fix theirs and resume fighting. Meanwhile, the conflict between the groups reminds Kira of her own trauma, which she discusses with Opaka: years of fighting the Cardassians on Bajor have taken their toll on her and she has known nothing but violence since she was a child. The same technology revives the Ennis and Nol-Ennis, but rather than a blessing it is a curse both groups were sent to the planet as punishment for centuries of conflict, doomed to die over and over.Īs Deep Space Nine officers Dax and O'Brien search for the group, Sisko gets the Ennis and Nol-Ennis to agree to meet in an effort to negotiate peace. Many of the Ennis are killed fending off the attack, but after the battle Kai Opaka enters the cave, resuscitated by some form of nanotechnology that pervades the planet. They take Sisko, Bashir, and Kira to a cavelike dwelling, and as predicted the Nol-Ennis attack within minutes. The Ennis explain that they are at war with a group called the Nol-Ennis, who could attack at any minute. Opaka dies in the landing, which devastates Kira however, her mourning is interrupted by a group of people called the Ennis, led by Golin Shel-la (Jonathan Banks). The runabout approaches the planet and one of the satellites attacks it, forcing them to crash-land. They find a planet with a network of satellites, one of which is malfunctioning. Opaka tells Sisko not to hold back on her account, so the group goes to investigate. There they receive a distress signal from an unknown source. Bashir, Bajoran liaison officer Kira, and Opaka travel to the Gamma Quadrant. Against his better judgment he complies, and he, Dr. During the tour, she subtly asks him to take her through the wormhole. Kai Opaka, the spiritual leader of the Bajorans, requests a tour of Deep Space Nine from Commander Sisko.
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