Plot – The previous episode dropped an almighty bombshell on
the audience that I think is supposed to rock the war to its very foundations…the
Dominion are allying themselves with the Breen. Now I’m terribly sorry if I show
just how little I pay attention but I don’t recall ever hearing the name Breen
before in Trek, even though I am reliably informed that is the case. So, I can
remember at the time looking at my mother (we watched DS9 through together) and
being completely baffled as to what the implications were. Of course,
throughout the next handful of episode we get a terrific amount of context
(especially in the previously review The Changing Face of Evil). So where other
people went into this episode with huge expectations about the mighty Breen
taking on the Federation, I was watching hoping for some kind of explanation of
who they were and why it mattered.
Character – The most interesting character reaction to the
Breen is Damar’s, who comes to realise very quickly that with their new buddies
providing heavy artillery that the Dominion is no longer interested in cosying
up to the Cardassians and openly considers them something of a disposable
resource. Telling this end of the war story through the eyes of somebody like
Damar was a stroke of genius because he is a character who has previously
displayed the worst tendencies of the Cardassian people and somebody that the
audience has hissed at when he was wicked and cheered whenever he received his
comeuppance. Now the stakes have changed. We are about to see the systematic
destruction of his entire people through his eyes and it takes him on an
incredible journey from villain to redemptive hero in just a handful of episodes.
It is impossible not to care as he cajoled and belittled by Weyoun and
completely dismissed by the Female Changeling and I cheered with glee in the
next episode where he finally made his move against them. This is the
transitory piece where he struggles with his identity, the weight of the
responsibility of his entire race on his shoulders and where he realises that
for some time he has been leaning on alcohol to get through the day. He has
sold his people out and become a prisoner in his own home. It is strikingly sophisticated
characterisation and precisely the sort of material that Casey Biggs was
promised when he took on what looked like a minor role. Besides being belittled
and emasculated, Damar is being asked to sign territorial concessions over the
Breen and to allow millions of his countrymen to be wiped out in a tactical move
to drain Federation resources. No wonder he throws that glass of Kanar at the
mirror., I wouldn’t be able to look at myself either.
Performance – ‘Go. Crawl back to your Prophets. Beg their
forgiveness. Live the rest of your life in Sisko’s shadow!’ Sometimes I think
the writers on DS9 cannot win. If they write long, laborious episodes about
Bajor they are declared the most boring thing ever and yet if they try and turn
the magnificently performed Kai Winn into a true supervillain over the course
of a single episode then things are moving a little too quickly. When it comes
to Winn (and Fletcher’s meteoric performance) I think we can all agree that political
gain and power have always been her primary motive and so for her to turn her
back on one set of Gods to ally up with another to achieve her aim doesn’t seem
at all out of character to me. Her descent into hell is emotionally documented
and played. At first Winn rejects the idea of giving her love to the Pah
Wraiths. Then she realises by sleeping with Anhjol she is already in bed with
them. Finally, she realises that they are offering her mastery over her people,
absolute power. It’s all she has ever dreamed of. When the devil whispers in
your ear that you can have everything you ever wanted…would you really tell him
to move onto the next person? Fletcher spits poison at Alaimo in some riveting scenes,
before being completely seduced by him. The scene that sells all of this is at
the end where Winn admits that the Prophets had never spoken to her before. Of
course, they haven’t. Time has no meaning to them and they know that she is
going to betray them. That’s a delicious realisation.
Great Dialogue – ‘They’ll be erased from the face of the
galaxy’ says the Female Shapeshifter about the Federation. DS9 wasn’t shy of
grandstanding lines like this (the Female Shapeshifter had all the best lines
in the Final Chapter) and the joy of it is they get superb actors to deliver
those lines so they really count.
Production - The last episode of DS9 directed by Rene Auberjonois and he shows just how much he has learnt during his education on the show. The blocking, lighting and framing of the scenes is excellent. Often intimate (this is a character drama after all) but always vivid. Just look at the moment where Dukat swaggers through the station after leaving Winn a blubbering mess. It's a few seconds long but the music swells, the light catches his sadistic smile but the rest of him is shrouded in shadow. It captures perfectly this Machiavellian war criminals plan coming to fruition and it is entirely wordless.
Best moment – Strangely, my favourite moment comes not from
any of the main storylines but from the Sisko subplot that sees him entering
negotiations with Kassidy for the first time over something they disagree on.
Early on, he has a gloriously scripted scene with (the ever wonderful) Martok
who advises the Captain that war has broken out, ‘a long, gruelling, intoxicating
war.’ The dialogue is fantastic, and the performances sunny and delightful. Kassidy
does not disappoint.
We’ve also got to the point where one of our heroes can snap
somebody’s neck and it is both satisfying and hilarious. Weyoun pushes a little
too far and Worf snaps (literally), and whilst you might imagine Damar would be
appalled, instead he laughs his head off at the overconfidence of his ally as
he lays splayed before him. Just glorious.
I felt like I had fallen into a brilliant Steven Moffat
sitcom when Worf and Ezri, trapped together in enemy territory after making an
understandable but awkward sexual faux pas. Hearing Worf say ‘I was seduced and
betrayed!’ is enough to justify the existence of Deep Space Nine, but the back
and forth between them is hilarious. ‘You have biggest ego of any man I have
ever known!’ ‘Considering how many men you have known, that is quite a
statement!’
In one of the most understated and perfect scenes in DS9, Winn calls upon her greatest critic and spiritual rival, Kira, to beg her for forgiveness for turning her backs on the Prophets. It looks like Winn is going to finally, and in the face of Kira no less, do the right thing and step down as Kai. When Winn realises that that is what it is going to take to regain the Prophets favour, relinquishing her prominent role in Bajoran society, she makes her choice to turn her back on them. The look of quiet disappointment on Kira’s face speaks volumes. More incredible acting.
I wish they hadn’t done that – Just because it is grim
against all the laws of nature AND because Marc Alaimo and Louise Fletcher have
incredible chemistry, the post-coital sequence of Dukat and Winn in bed with
her feeding him fruit. He’s the war criminal that executed millions of her
people, and she’s being tricked into feeding him fruit in bed. The power shifts
between these characters are awesome, and you just know whatever is happening in
this scene that Winn was on top. Your brain will rebel that what you are seeing
is truly loathsome, whilst it is secretly a ridiculous pleasure to watch. Dukat
masterfully teases Winn with power and sex, and pushes her ever closer to
making the decision of abandoning her faith and getting in bed with the enemy.
A reason to watch this episode again – This is the sitcom
episode of the final arc of DS9 where there is a fascinating and amusing tug of
war between Weyoun, Damar and the Breen Leader, where Worf and Ezri have to
deal with the unfortunate consequences of making love in the previous episode
by throwing all manner of suggestive insults at each other, where Winn and
Dukat go from shagging like rabbits to throwing slaps at each other and where
Sisko learns that marrying a strong successful woman means that whilst he might
win the odd battle, SHE will win the war. Okay so the entire Alpha Quadrant is
hanging in the balance and the Breen have added an extra element of threat to
the conflict but essentially this is a character piece that moves the smartly
written cast around on the chess board to where they need to be. If that sounds
like a placeholder then all you need to know is it written by the best dialogue
man on staff at the time (Ronald D. Moore) and that every scene is filled with
zingers that are being brought to life by skilled actors. We’re talking about
Louise Fletcher, Marc Alaimo, Jeffrey Combs, Casey Biggs, Nicole de Boer and Michael
Dorn. The chemistry in each of the storylines is palpable and there is a sense
of momentum in the episode not in the form of action but in how the characters
are being tested and the decisions they ultimately make. Winn and Damar make huge
realisations and Sisko and Kira threaten to steal the show with a pair of
memorable character scenes. This is so well written and played, I found myself
quoting so much of the dialogue as I was watching. I haven’t seen this episode
in years and the exchanges are lodged in my brain. Trek can be talky and
tedious. This is talky and triumphant.
****1/2 out of *****
1 comment:
The Breen are mentioned as far back as TNG's "The Loss" and on and off in the series after that...but they don't appear in the flesh until DS9 and "Indiscretion".
Post a Comment