{"id":5680,"date":"2016-07-11T13:01:23","date_gmt":"2016-07-11T20:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=5680"},"modified":"2016-07-11T13:10:31","modified_gmt":"2016-07-11T20:10:31","slug":"mark-watches-deep-space-nine-s04e14-return-to-grace","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2016\/07\/mark-watches-deep-space-nine-s04e14-return-to-grace\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Deep Space Nine’: S04E14 – Return to Grace"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the fourteenth episode of the fourth season of\u00c2\u00a0Deep Space Nine,\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>Kira is sent on a bizarre mission that morphs into something even more bizarre. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For discussion of warfare and genocide.<\/b><\/p>\n

I love when this show takes me on a journey, and y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, this was a\u00c2\u00a0journey<\/i>. Remember when it was just about the awkward diplomatic mission that Kira had to go on??? WHEW, THAT IS CERTAINLY NOT WHERE THIS ENDS UP. I expected that\u00c2\u00a0maybe<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0Dukat would end up being a distracting force for Kira while she negotiated with the Cardassians and the Bajorans concerning the war with the Klingon Empire. Here he is, a disgraced former military leader, forced to work as nothing more than the captain of a freighter vessel. So I thought that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what the show was setting up: Kira would keep trying to do her job, and Dukat would keep butting in and making it hard for her to do so.<\/p>\n

Yeah, that theory didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t last at all because the show kills off LITERALLY EVERY SINGLE PERSON AT THE CONFERENCE OFF-SCREEN. Just like that! So, in an instant, as the Klingon Bird of Prey\u00c2\u00a0doesn<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even bother to destroy Dukat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s freighter<\/i>, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Return to Grace\u00e2\u20ac\u009d transforms into a much different story. Admittedly, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so surreal to watch Dukat do ANYTHING he does in this episode because, like Kira, I view him as a slightly charming mass murderer. So I started to worry as I watched Dukat hit on Kira and try to charm her. Or when the show gave us multiple scenes where he spoke highly and lovingly of his daughter. Or when he APOLOGIZED TO KIRA FOR SNAPPING AT HER. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s got an ulterior motive, sure, but I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m really not a fan of the whole \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I used to oppress your people, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s date now\u00e2\u20ac\u009d trope. AT ALL. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one of my least favorite relationship dynamics.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Return to Grace\u00e2\u20ac\u009d finds a balance between each of these things, building a portrait of Dukat that is more sad and pathetic than anything else. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t doubt that he loves his daughter, nor do I doubt his attraction to Kira. (I CAN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T BELIEVE I HAVE TO TYPE THAT.) But everything he does is layered, and there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a slippery self-interest that guides his behavior. When Kira suggests modifying one of the disruptor guns on the planet, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not long before Dukat frames this possible success in terms of his return to grace. When they go after the Klingon ship that briefly attacked them, Dukat starts planning out his future after he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been re-instated.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, I get it. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in disgrace. Pulling off a maneuver like the one Kira organizes is going to make him look good. But note that\u00c2\u00a0Kira<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0is the one who does the vast majority of planning and work throughout this episode. She never does it for glory or attention, and hell, she doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even care about getting credit. She just wants to get the job done. So yeah, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear which one of the two has experience being the underdog. That kind of thinking doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t come natural to Dukat because he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s never\u00c2\u00a0been<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0anywhere but at the top!<\/p>\n

But he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just so\u00c2\u00a0creepy<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0and ruthless about the whole thing. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the polar opposite of both Kira\u00c2\u00a0and<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0his daughter, Ziyal. (Especially his daughter, but more on that at the end.) He doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really understand boundaries; he views the world as his personal playground; murder and genocide is just part of an \u00e2\u20ac\u0153uncomfortable\u00e2\u20ac\u009d past. So as he pushes Kira joyously towards that confrontation with the Klingon ship, he can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t\u00c2\u00a0stop<\/i>. It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t matter that Kira found a way to cleverly swap ships with the Klingons, leaving them stranded on the very freighter they nearly destroyed. Dukat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s desires trump all, so he BLOWS UP THE KLINGON SHIP ANYWAY. I think that single scene is proof that no amount of charm or niceness or awareness has changed Dukat. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still the power-hungry asshole who doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t respect the life of others.<\/p>\n

Thus, I was shocked by the ending of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Return to Grace\u00e2\u20ac\u009d for a number of reasons. First of all, I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t anticipate the Cardassian government deciding to pursue a diplomatic option with the Klingons. Obviously, Dukat didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t either, so what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s his response? To lead an attack on the Klingon Empire.\u00c2\u00a0By himself<\/i>. Did he\u00c2\u00a0really<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0think Kira would go for that???\u00c2\u00a0 Apparently so, but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a sign of how misguided he is. Again, Dukat has never lost; he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s never been on the bottom; he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s never had to fight for respect.<\/p>\n

But you know who\u00c2\u00a0has<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0fought for a great deal of her life? Kira. Kira, who joined a resistance movement to survive, to protect her people, to dream of a Bajor free from Cardassian occupation. Thus, her relationship with Ziyal makes a\u00c2\u00a0lot<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0of sense. Of course, the show doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ignore the fact that these two women view Dukat very differently. God, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m so appreciative that the writers didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t back away from how DEEPLY UNCOMFORTABLE that conversation needed to be. Throughout this episode, though, we never get the sense that Kira\u00c2\u00a0has<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to be nice to Dukat or that she needs to forgive him. Even though his daughter loves him and doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand how others can view him negatively, that doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean Kira should suddenly capitulate and treat Dukat differently.<\/p>\n

Still, she decides to take Ziyal under her wing because she doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want her to live life in war. NOW IF THAT DOESN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T FILL YOU WITH EMOTIONS, I DON\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T KNOW WHAT ELSE DOES. My god, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a satisfying twist! I mean, booooo to Dukat being SO CREEPY in this episode, but I would totally be down to have Ziyal in another episode of the show. GIVE IT TO ME.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Return to Grace\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":"