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Season seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine sees the
Dominion war builds to a crescendo. Although, thankfully the
writers don't over play this and there are still plenty of
wonderful character based episodes. By
the conclusion everything is wrapped up neatly - no storyline
is left unfinished. And there are more than a few surprises
in the closing episodes. The death count, when it comes to
supporting characters, has to be one of the highest in a sci-fi
series.
From
the start of this season Benjamin Sisko is on a quest to determine
his true purpose. Is he just a Starfleet captain? Or do the
prophets have a far greater purpose mapped out for him?
There
is also the matter of replacing one of the principal cast
members with a new actress, due to the fact that the shows
creators had to introduce a new Dax host in the form of Ezri.
As this was to be the final season for DS9, her introduction
could have been a disaster. The writers could have focussed
on her too much in a bid to ensure that the fans warmed to
her quickly, or they could have ignored her altogether and
used her in the background to help move other storylines along.
In the end, the balance the writers struck is spot on. She
is given just the right amount of exposure to ensure that
fans warm to her, but not at the expense of the other characters.
What
would a season of DS9 be without a parallel universe story?
Fear not, The Emperor's New Cloak keeps up the tradition
of the annually thrilling alternative DS9 and all the horrors
that come with it.
Another
episode which returns to familiar characters is Chrysalis.
This episode sees Bashir believe he has met the love of his
life, Sarina, who was the catatonic fourth genetically enhanced
misfit (along with Jack, Patrick and Lauren) that appeared
in last seasons Statistical Probabilities.
Bill
Mummy (Lost in Space and Babylon 5) makes a
guest appearance in The Siege of AR-558. This episode
examines the indiscriminate nature of war, it also sees Nog
badly injured and his inability to adjust to his situation.
The following episode, It's Only a Paper Moon, gives
actor Aron Eisenberg (Nog) the chance to move into unfamiliar
territory. Most Ferengi based episodes are used as light relief,
but this episode sees Nog depressed and frightened of facing
the real world.
This
season also sees Dukat and Kai Winn jumping into bed together
to seize power. This story arc is interesting, because it
shows the true Winn in all her hypocrisy. These episodes are
made even more powerful by the fact that Dukat appears as
a Bajoran - so Winn has no idea that she is in league with
the Devil. But
fear not, as they get their comeuppance in the final episode,
the 2-parter What You Leave Behind.
Extras
include: Ending An Era; Crew Dossier: Benjamin Sisko; Crew
Dossier: Jake Sisko; The Last Goodbye; Photo gallery; Special
Crew Dossier: Ezri Dax; Morn Speaks; and DS9 Sketchbook:
John Eaves. There are also a number of hidden (but not very
well) files which take brief looks at a number of regular
guest characters (including Nog, Rom, Dukat, Vic Fontaine,
Kai Winn, Gowron and Martok. The extras on this collection
seem to be a little more polished than in previous box sets,
although for some reason in the Ezri Dax Crew Dossier there
is a clip of Worf and Ezri kissing which is repeat for some
unknown reason - maybe the Editor was asleep that day.
While
not the best season of Deep Space Nine's seven year
run, it is certainly the most moving. The conclusion, to my
mind, is the best Trek has offered so far. The poor
episodes, over the show's entire run, were few and far between.
DS9 is by far the best written, acted and produced
in the franchise so far.
Darren
Rea
 
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