{"id":5661,"date":"2016-06-20T13:00:38","date_gmt":"2016-06-20T20:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=5661"},"modified":"2016-06-13T22:29:12","modified_gmt":"2016-06-14T05:29:12","slug":"mark-watches-deep-space-nine-s04e07-starship-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2016\/06\/mark-watches-deep-space-nine-s04e07-starship-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Deep Space Nine’: S04E07 – Starship Down"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the seventh episode of the fourth season of\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>, EVERYTHING IS MESSED UP. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is such an odd episode, but goddamn, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s executed so well that I must admire\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0for experimenting with their own show. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Starship Down\u00e2\u20ac\u009d chronicles a single problem that branches into multiple smaller problem, and the entertainment and emotion comes from watching these characters come to a solution. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not like most episodes in the\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>canon because there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not this big story here. A small mission morphs into a need for survival, and\u00c2\u00a0that<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0is what the story becomes.<\/p>\n

How do these people survive?<\/p>\n

Quark<\/b><\/p>\n

The impetus for this entire episode lies in Hanok, the representative for the Karemma people, who is trying to negotiate better trading costs. Surprise: Quark is the reason they pay so much. Spoiler: No one is surprised that Quark is responsible for this. Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the thing: I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m generally uninterested in Ferengi culture at this point because there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no real nuance to it anymore. Yet I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t deny that Quark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s philosophy is\u00c2\u00a0charming<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Starship Down.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Once he moves away from his irritating dedication to working in the Gamma Quadrant and begins to explain to Hanok why he loves being a risky person, I thought the show managed to find an angle to Quark that was intriguing.<\/p>\n

How so? Because Quark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ridiculous behavior feels so much more understandable when we learn that he is obsessed with the thrill of negotiation.\u00c2\u00a0Now<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0he makes more sense to me as a character! And in those scenes with Hanok, he shares that excitement with someone whose entire culture values the safest option. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not to say that the Karemma are suddenly going to change their entire system. However, Hanok learned something about himself through the events in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Starship Down.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d At the very least, Quark changed his life.<\/p>\n

Julian \/ Jadzia<\/b><\/p>\n

While their story is the briefest one here, I appreciated that it centered around honesty. Truthfully, Julian has changed a lot since the show began, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m glad the writers abandoned his pursuit of Jadzia. Thus, I saw their scenes as a chance for them to talk openly about how they once felt about each other. Not only that, but I think the lift sequence solidified the fact that these two are just going to remain platonic friends.<\/p>\n

Worf \/ O<\/b>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122Brien<\/b><\/p>\n

Like \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Hippocratic Oath,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d this episode further demonstrates the difficulty Worf has in adapting to life working for DS9. Hell, even\u00c2\u00a0I\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>had to remind myself that there are non-Starfleet characters in this show! (It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard when they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re wearing Starfleet uniforms, admittedly.) Worf is used to a more rigid style, so I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t blame him. As I watched him order the engineers around and demand things of them without any sympathy for the situation, it was easy for me to see him on the\u00c2\u00a0Enterprise<\/i>. Not that Picard had the same style as him! But they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re similar enough that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easy to see why Worf held these men to the same standard.<\/p>\n

I JUST LOVE WATCHING HIM ADAPT, Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL. IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S SO SATISFYING.<\/p>\n

Kira \/ Sisko<\/b><\/p>\n

But this episode\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s crowning achievement is the touching set of scenes between Kira and Sisko, which do SO MANY THINGS. So many! First of all, it accomplishes the realization that these two characters really haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t had much\u00c2\u00a0personal\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>time together. Indeed, both of them speak about work at work. And when they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re off-duty. And EVERY SCENE THEY\u00e2\u20ac\u2122RE IN. While that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s certainly common for people who work together in this kind of context, the writers expand this to a more emotional story: Kira knows that Sisko is uncomfortable with being the Emissary.<\/p>\n

Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why I like this so much: there is very little religion in the previous two\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0shows, at least not from any of the main characters. Kira\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s beliefs matter to her character, though, and the detailed focus on the Bajoran religion has been a strong suit for\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine.<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0In this specific episode, though, Kira must admit how awkward it is that she views her captain as a significant religious figure. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s odd! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s unprecedented! And it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not like she got a handbook at the start of her job to help her navigate such a weird arrangement.<\/p>\n

Thus, when Sisko suffers a concussion during the Jem\u00e2\u20ac\u2122Hadar attack, she finds it bizarre to have to talk to Sisko about something that isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t work. While they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve definitely had a number of personal conversations over the years, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the same as what transpires here. And goddamn, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so beautiful. I love seeing their friendship blossom even more because of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Starship Down.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I love how raw and vulnerable Kira is in this episode, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s even better that Sisko responds with\u00c2\u00a0kindness<\/i>. He doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t criticize her for what she did; he appreciates.<\/p>\n

I LOVE FRIENDSHIP.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Starship Down\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>
\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\u00a0 Mark 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":"