DS9 – Strange Bedfellows

 

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 *****