In the fifth episode of the fifth season of\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>, I am finished. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n
Trigger Warning: For extreme consent issues.<\/b><\/p>\n
My god, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m\u00c2\u00a0exhausted<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0after that episode. This is an experience, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so much more than that. Look, I love a good horror flick, and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Assignment\u00e2\u20ac\u009d veers about as close to flat-out horror as we might ever get from\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a classic trope, of course: possession forms a significant portion of the horror genre, from the religious to the alien. Yet this episode combines the two in the Pah-wraiths, the beings kicked out of the wormhole by the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153true\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Prophets. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure if this is the first time they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re mentioned (I recall hearing about the fire caves prior to this), but regardless, the show\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s writers have come up with something that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s creepy all by itself. The Pah-wraiths are non-corporeal, but they can possess a person so completely that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s impossible to tell they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve done so unless they admit it to you.<\/p>\n
But this story isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t about Pah-wraiths per se. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the device that allows the writers to unleash one of the most stressful and terrifying things ever onto us. The power of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Assignment\u00e2\u20ac\u009d comes in the mundane. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that scene during Miles\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s birthday party where I was absolutely losing my shit. Every word out of Keiko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s mouth was laced with threats. Was a way for the Pah-wraith to toy with Miles. Was a reminder of the violence that it was capable of. And I thought to myself, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153What if my boyfriend comes into the room? What if he sees me shrieking at a birthday party?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d And there is the brilliance: the most pedestrian, everyday conversation becomes a lance in this episode.<\/p>\n
I would be a fool to not acknowledge that Rosalind Chao is the prime reason this works so well. Yes, the story is amazing, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll touch on that in a second. But\u00c2\u00a0this had to be sold to us through acting. Chao kills it. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so cool to see the range that she was able to convey here, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m now sad that the showrunners haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t given her more. LOOK WHAT SHE CAN DO!!! DON\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T MESS THIS UP.<\/p>\n
Other than this, I honestly have the same praises. This episode is\u00c2\u00a0relentless<\/i>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s constructed in a way that, for the most part, deliberately prevents Miles from reaching out to anyone around him. In terms of characterization, we have to accept that he loves Keiko so much that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d do anything to save her. And I believed that! Yet the fact that he never quite knows what he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s building also plays a part. Without Rom (I HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY ABOUT ROM), he most likely would not have figured out what was happening until it was too late. But since the Pah-wraith can do anything it wants while in Keiko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s body, Miles can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t devise a method to keep her unconscious. Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all,\u00c2\u00a00.9 seconds is too long<\/i>. THAT ONE DETAIL DESTROYED ME. Because in 0.9 seconds, the wraith could have murdered Keiko.<\/p>\n
So what can Miles do aside from obey the instructions given to him? Sure, he could have looped in any other member of the crew, but that wraith would know. THAT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S THE WORST PART. I kept asking, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Why hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t he written down a message asking for help?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Because that wraith had access to TWO ENTIRE MINDS: their own and Keiko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why the scene on the Promenade is so horrifying. The wraith had Keiko\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s knowledge of the station and Miles\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s habits. I bet that it would have known the\u00c2\u00a0instant\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>that Miles had told anyone else. And then what? Keiko would be killed, and it would probably move on to someone else. It would have been a sloppier option, but the wraith was non-corporeal. It would have been fine!<\/p>\n
Amidst all of this, though, the writers still find time to give us something\u00c2\u00a0other<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0than pure horror. I am just so endlessly pleased with Rom\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s growth over the course of this show. And here, we find out he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s quit Quark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and has now signed up to be on the engineering staff. He is so sincere and genuine about it! He wants to fit in so badly! He does that by trying human food, attempting to engage in small talk with his crew mates, and offering himself to O\u00e2\u20ac\u2122Brien whenever an assignment comes up. Unfortunately, the timing of this is awful, since he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s drafted into the wraith\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s plan to destroy the wormhole aliens. But through this, Rom\u00c2\u00a0still<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0shines. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s loyal. Efficient. Dutiful. Respectful. AND HE GETS A PROMOTION FROM MILES AT THE END OF THE EPISODE.<\/p>\n
SO: this episode rules because it scared the hell out of me. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s masterfully acted and constructed, and THERE IS STILL ROOM FOR CHARACTER GROWTH.<\/p>\n
Bravo,\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>.<\/p>\n
The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Assignment\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded\u00c2\u00a0here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n – I am now on Patreon<\/a>! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards.<\/b> In the fifth episode of the fifth season of\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine, I am finished. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[640,614],"tags":[615],"class_list":["post-5782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deep-space-nine","category-star-trek","tag-mark-watches-star-trek"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5782","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5782\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n– I\u00c2\u00a0will be at numerous conventions in 2016! Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches have been announced here.<\/a>
\n<\/b>-\u00c2\u00a0Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"