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[skygiants]

Deep Space Nine, Season 2, Part 2! A somewhat mediocre crop of episodes with some entertaining highlights, but, you know, mid-season-ish, so I guess that's not unexpected.


9. Second Sight

This is the one where Sisko starts dating a lady who turns out to be the split personality astral projection of somebody else, who has no clue. Sadly, Astral Projection Girlfriend is not really given any personality (although a fabulous fashion sense) which makes it difficult to care about their star-crossed love, as highlighted in the final conversation between Sisko and the non-astral projection version of his girlfriend, with whom he has exchanged approximately two sentences.

ASTRAL PROJECTION WOMAN: So . . . my alternate personality that you dated . . . what was she like?
SISKO: *casts around desperately for something to say other than 'hot'* Um . . . She was exactly like you!

SISKO: . . . nailed it.

10. Sanctuary

The Bajorans are temporarily displaced from their position as the local Space Jews when Kira meets another, even more Jewish set of Space Jews who come through the wormhole and decide Bajor is their prophesied homeland (the prophesy is basically "you will find a sad planet, then live there and make it happy!") HIJINKS ENSUE, by which I mean sad pragmatic politics ensue. Nobody ends up happy.

As a sidenote, the Space Jews are a matriarchy, which Dax gets really excited about. I think Dax is just generally really excited to be female and to have an excuse to get excited about things like matriarchies.

11. Rivals

The A-plot of this episode involves some random guy coming onto the station and setting up a rival casino and BS probability laws and nobody cares. The B-plot involves O'Brien and Bashir having an EPIC TENNIS RIVALRY and is HILARIOUS.

12. The Alternate

YESSS this is the backstory I wanted about Odo the bucket baby! I was simultaneously really happy with and really disappointed in this episode about the scientist who found Odo visiting the station.

Things that delighted me:
- the open in which Quark hilariously tries to impress Odo's scientist dad, and scientist dad is like "well, son, he seems nice!" and Odo is like "HE'S NOT MY BOYFRIEND AND YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD"
- in fact, every time Odo either shouts or implies, "YOU'RE NOT MY REAL DAD!"
- alllll of Odo's backstory. ALL OF IT

Things that are disturbing but well-done:
- the fact that Odo's science dad appears basically to be Mother Gothel? Like, it's all friendly dad time and then suddenly it's "come back to the tower, Odo! Humans will never understand you! FATHER KNOWS BEST."
- and like, he is in fact right about the Odo-being-the-monster thing (although both Debi and I were convinced at first he was lying) but that doesn't change the underlying problems with their relationship, and the terrible-but-fascinating "my son/my experiment and ticket to tenure" relationship

Things that disappointed me:
- the climax of the episode, which I really wanted to involve some of the emotional connections that Odo has made on the station so far
- the fact that Starfleet has apparently NO QUARANTINE PROCEDURES on weird biology it picks up from alien random planets, JESUS CHRIST, STARFLEET, what the hell kind of scientists are you?

DEBI: The reason Quark doesn't appear in the rest of this episode is because he's too disgusted. The 147th Rule of Acquisition clearly states that you ALWAYS quarantine potentially hazardous alien merchandise for at least a week!

13. Armageddon Game

Bashir and O'Brien have an ADVENTURE during which O'Brien gets contaminated with a deadly disease, because such is O'Brien's life. This is the episode when I decided that O'Brien is Charlie the Unicorn, and Bashir is the pink unicorn. "We're going on an adventure, O'Brien! :D!" I await the day when O'Brien ends one of these adventures without a kidney. (demagogol suggests that Jadzia is the blue unicorn, which is hilariously accurate for DS9 in general, but Jadzia just kind of seems bored by O'Brien as a person, though perhaps this will change in time.)

Bashir also spends this episode earnestly attempting to get O'Brien to confess to having marital problems and confide in him about his sex life, for reasons that seem inexplicable unless you assume that Keiko and Miles are like two of the five people on the station that Bashir has not yet slept with and he is trying to either pry them apart or achieve a threesome.

OH! AND! we also find out, because of the misunderstanding where everyone thinks O'Brien and Bashir are dead, that Bashir keeps LENGTHY ANGSTY DIARY ENTRIES about his PERSONAL FEELINGS and gives them to Dax to read, which of course she never has because she has zero interest, and continues to have zero interest even after she thinks he's dead. THIS IS THE FUNNIEST THING. OF COURSE HE DID. This is basically the Starfleet version of exchange diaries. No one cares about Bashir's lonely soul.

14. Whispers

At the beginning of this episode, when O'Brien wakes up paranoid and feeling like everybody is weirdly avoiding him for some reason, Debi said, "It's one of the Clo'Brien and nobody's told him he's a clone!"

As it turns out this is the one instance where our Clo'Brien headcanon turns out to be THE ACTUAL PLOT. That's really the only entertaining thing about the episode, which is otherwise pretty boring.

(Well, that and the scene where Bashir tries to get O'Brien to come to his office for a physical, and the Clo'Brien is like, "I'M NOT FALLING FOR YOUR WILES, DOCTOR 'LET'S ASK PERSONAL QUESTIONS ABOUT MY SEX LIFE.' I REMAIN A MARRIED MAN. WHO HATES YOU.")

15. Paradise

Sisko and O'Brien get stranded on a cult planet led by the most hipster antagonist of any Star Trek show; not only was she a vehement believer in going all-natural before it was cool, she also blogs extensively about EVERYTHING. Hipster Cult Leader is really, really determined to get Sisko into their hipster agrarian cult and out of his uniform. Like, really determined. Sisko spends the rest of the episode making a firm martyred stand for dignity, personal freedom, and his refusal to be objectified. O'Brien is also there, doing useful but less attractive things.

This ended up being one of those episodes where I like the episode itself fine but think the ending is ridiculous. Seriously, no one wanted to leave Hipster Cult Planet? Nobody had family they were worried about when they got hijacked into experimental hipster cultism? I CALL BS.

16. Shadowplay

This episode was charming! Dax and Odo go on a FIELD TRIP which goes exactly how I hoped an Odo and Dax field trip would go, namely: Dax has a great time gossiping and trying to hook Odo up, and Odo curses his life almost as much as O'Brien does whenever he's trapped on a field trip with Bashir.

Then they are held in custody for a while on a planet as suspects in a MYSTERY and you can almost see Odo's little plastic face light up as he tries to solve it. ODO LOVES DETECTING SO MUCH. Then he bonds with a little girl and it's adorable. Also, holograms are people. This is a nice lesson that I hope everyone will remember later down the line, but suspect NOBODY WILL.

In the B-plot, Quark hooks Kira up with her local rabbi love interest. What a mensch! Bajoran Rabbi always looks evil to me, even though it appears he isn't, and they suck face for an uncomfortably long time. In the C-plot, Jake Sisko doesn't want to go to Starfleet, and dresses as atrociously as ever, made all the more unfortunate by the contrast of Sisko's eternally beautiful dressing gowns.

Comments

[jinian]

I have never really watched this show, since it started after I quit watching TV with my mom very much, but I al thrilled to see more recaps!

[skygiants]

Hee! I'm glad you're enjoying them - though they're less 'recaps' and more 'random thoughts that happen to occur to me and Debi while watching . . .'

[jinian]

I made a typo (what was I even trying to say) AND I was inaccurate, oh noes. Anyway, random-thought commentary is the best kind. :)

[nextian]

I watched about half of these, which means I missed the dang exchange diaries, which means Gogol left out a really important thing I should've caught a damn highlight of. I'm very disappointed in her.

[skygiants]

What! Gogol has let you down, IT'S THE BEST SCENE IN THAT EPISODE BY FAR. Kira and Jadzia are sitting around trying to be sad about Bashir's death and . . . . doing their level best?

[nextian]

Wait, I totally fucking watched that episode. I did. I watched it. I just have absolutely no memory of the actual events of that episode. I... I should probably go back and reexperience s2 at some point, shouldn't I?

[skygiants]

I don't know, will it look different in hindsight? I haven't gotten to a hindsight to have yet! :O

I will tell you though, you really don't need to experience "Whispers." Or re-experience "Whispers." Whichever.

[gogollescent]

I WOULD NEVER HAVE CHEATED YOU OF EXCHANGE DIARIES

[gogollescent]

p.s. you aren't allowed to rewatch s2 until you have sampled every pleasure seasons... 4? through 7 have to offer. then you may return at leisure.

[kd7sov]

- the fact that Starfleet has apparently NO QUARANTINE PROCEDURES on weird biology it picks up from alien random planets, JESUS CHRIST, STARFLEET, what the hell kind of scientists are you?

The problem, I think, is that Starfleet tries to be all things (and that the writers don't care enough to do all the research on all things). It's military, it's exploration, it's emergency services, it's science...

[skygiants]

. . . but ALL OF THOSE THINGS should have quarantine procedures!

[kd7sov]

Well, yes. But it's a problem of... crippling underspecialization, perhaps? Jack-of-all-trades syndrome: you do a lot of things, but you can't really do any of them well.

And, as I said, lazy writing.

...And, it just occurred to me, it may have something to do with the transporter's biofilter. If you're used to all the dangerous microbes getting filtered out, you may get pretty lax in other areas of safety, too.

[skygiants]

I calm my frustration by imagining that all the non-Starfleet-trained personnel are politely horrified by Starfleet's incredibly lax procedures, but feel like it would be rude to say anything.

[thirdblindmouse]

Out of the Treks, DS9 has the most mild relationship with the personhood of holograms -- probably because it has the fewest hologram episodes. But where I want to stab to death everyone on the Enterprise and Voyager for their monstrosity towards holograms, I just want to take Bashir and Sisko and the others aside and have a Very Serious Chat with them about the implications of how they are treating these people. And I shouldn't spoil you for the episode with Nog five seasons down the line, but let's just leave it at the words "I ship it".

[skygiants]

I am really curious how it's gonna play out in future! I mean, this is really the first DS9 episode that's dealt with holograms at all -- the holodeck has been tossed around a few times, but not really utilized as an element yet. And this one just pretty much accepts the hologram-ness of the people on the planet as just another weird alien thing about this particular weird alien planet, which is sort of a pleasant surprise!

[thirdblindmouse]

This is my pet topic, so I have a lot of thoughts and feelings about how the Treks treat holograms (abominably, with occasional but inconsistent flashes of decency). The other DS9 episodes with sentient holographic characters don't come until seasons six and seven, and they were horrifying to me because DS9 had given me no warning about Star Trek's track record with holograms. Between now and the introduction of the S6 holosuite program holograms only show up in combat training programs and one or two instances of a tightly-plotted recreational program. Since in neither of the latter set of cases were there any signs of character sentience, this episode led me to assume that AIs would be respected and treated like any other life form.

[skygiants]

This episode really does give that impression! I am going to CLING TO IT for as long as possible until I am forced to be angry and/or horrified. :(

. . . fortunately, at our current rate of progression, it seems likely it'll take several years to get there, so . . .

[oracne]

I continue to love these recaps!

[skygiants]

I am glad to entertain! :D

[katta]

unless you assume that Keiko and Miles are like two of the five people on the station that Bashir has not yet slept with and he is trying to either pry them apart or achieve a threesome.

A lot of Bashir/O'Brien interactions come off to me as Bashir trying to flirt and not understanding why O'Brien doesn't seem to pick up on it. "By this point in the conversation, Garak would have me pressed up against the wall. Why isn't it working on Miles?"

And Odo's interactions with everyone are top-class, always.

ETA: Oh, and having Armageddon Games / Whispers / Paradise in a row was what made me start to feel that I wasn't very interested in O'Brien, which was then confirmed with a later episode.

[thirdblindmouse]

"By this point in the conversation, Garak would have me pressed up against the wall. Why isn't it working on Miles?"

And the adorable thing is, Bashir keeps trying through to the end of season 7.

I'm fairly sure Keiko would be okay with it if he did. 110% okay.

[skygiants]

Yeah, I think Keiko would be down! As long as they didn't have to keep him afterwards.

[thirdblindmouse]

[Spoiler], on the other hand, she is 100% down with keeping. Probably because [spoiler] is less likely to chew up the rug or pee on the furniture.

[katta]

Keiko seems like she has a more relaxed attitude in general than Miles does. :-)

[skygiants]

I think O'Brien is fully aware of it, he is also just IGNORING IT THROUGH GRITTED TEETH. Debi and I were like "if this were any other character than O'Brien, this would be a really shippy episode! BUT O'BRIEN REFUSES UTTERLY."

I think I'd just seen "Armageddon Games" when you made your post; after "Whispers" I was like "OH NOW I SEE WHAT SHE MEANS." "Whispers" is just an intrinsically boring episode. Sorry, "Whispers."

[katta]

I think O'Brien is fully aware of it, he is also just IGNORING IT THROUGH GRITTED TEETH.

That is entirely possible! There are moments where Bashir's flirting reaches levels that even O'Brien must realize.

I was like "OH NOW I SEE WHAT SHE MEANS."

Yeah, that's just not a good episode. Though I still amuse myself with thinking maybe the wrong O'Brien got shot. (Quoting Colonel X: "You're talking rather oddly. Not unlike my mother did before I discovered that she had been replaced with an exact robot replica. I still pray I blew up the right one!")