Day 74: DS9, Hippocratic Oath

Show: Star Trek; Deep Space Nine

Episode Particulars: S4EP3, “Hippocratic Oath”

 Summary: While Worf grumbles at Quark’s illicit activities and Odo’s blasé attitude towards it, O’Brien and Bashir are dealing with a bigger problem. Checking an unusual reading in the Gamma Quadrant, their runabout is pulled to the surface and they’re confronted by Jem’Hadar. But instead of killing them immediately, Bashir is pulled aside by the leader, Goran’Agar (Scott MacDonald), and given a demand. It seems that Goran’Agar crashed on this planet three years ago, yet managed to survive without the addictive drug (known as Ketracel White) that the founders use to keep the Jem’Hadar obedient. He’s brought his men back to the planet to try to help cure them as well, and now that Bashir’s here, he might be able to make a cure. Bashir agrees, seeing this as an opportunity to rid the Dominion of one of their strongest forces, but O’Brien hates the idea, since in his mind, doing this will just make the Jem’Hadar wild cards. Since they’ve only got five days until the Jem’Hadar’s supply of Ketracel White runs out, they’re going to have to figure out where they stand pretty quickly.

Standalone Thoughts: I’d say this story has a great plot and a mediocre subplot. Having Worf stuck in the mindset of a security officer and slowly learning the ways of the station is reasonable. The way this episode goes about it is a little more shaky. Most of it is fine, but the very end is a bit of a cop-out. The main conflict centers around Odo and Worf’s differing ways of doing their jobs, with Odo saying several variations of “I don’t have to report to you, let me do things my own way”. Which is fine as far as it goes…but when Worf is new to the station and will be doing things in his way, maybe it would be wise to tell Worf how Odo does things, so the two of them can at least understand where the other is coming from. Instead, the situation plays out in a clichéd manner, which is particularly annoying because for once, things didn’t have to go that way.

The main plot, however, is much stronger. The whole thing centers around a moral dilemma which, while not as universal as the one we saw in “Life Support” is one that the audience can understand. Namely, should a doctor help people in need, even if they’re classified as the enemy? Both Bashir and O’Brien argue their case well, so well in fact that I honestly don’t know who’s side I’m ultimately on. It helps that MacDonald gives a great performance as Goran’Agar, as dangerous and driven but also reasonable and with a sense of honor, thus allowing O’Brien and Bashir to see him in different ways. Even though there’s only a few action scenes, the whole plot has an air of suspense to it, as you wonder how things will play out, and ultimately, who’s going to be in the right. And what’s really refreshing is that there isn’t a clear answer to that second part. Some people might have a problem with that, but for me, it’s very well-handled.

How it Relates to the Whole: While there was some interesting potential here, there’s no direct follow-up to the events of this episode. Mostly it serves to give us more of a glimpse into how the Jem’Hadar work (including identifying the drug they’re addicted to as Ketracel White), and to help Worf acclimatize to the station. I would have been on board with them exploring the idea of getting the Jem’Hadar off the drug (or at the very least, to change the character dynamic between Bashir and O’Brien), but what we’ve got is ok too.

Other: *While I can handle the jumping between the two plots for the most part (the editing does a good job of resolving the scene in one plot before moving to the other), the very first jump in the teaser is very awkward. We just suddenly wind up on a runabout, with Bashir dictating a medical log. I feel like they could have had a slightly smoother transition, especially since the other transitions are fine.

*We get yet another conversation between Bashir and O’Brien that a) continues to make me wonder why O’Brien and Keiko are still married, and b) highly suggests that at least one of the men has feelings for the other, if you’re inclined to read it that way. It’s starting to feel like one writer was pushing things as far as he dared.

*There’s some decent continuity in this episode. Not only does Bashir bring up the experience in “The Abandoned” twice, but near the end of the episode, Sisko is seen tinkering with the clock he built in “Dramatis Personae”, which both reminds of that episode and his interest in building things that we saw in “Explorers”. One is more plot relevant in the other, but both examples are welcome.

*The episode bookends itself nicely with Bashir and O’Brien sitting and talking in the runabout. It even opens with Bashir getting a drink from the replicators both times. Nice job, crew.

Best Line/Exchange: This comes near the end of the episode, but it really could be slotted in almost any episode, with just a slight change of context or character;

Sisko: Word gets around in a place like this. It’s one of the things you have to get used to.

Worf: One of many things, it seems.

Sisko: Starfleet officers often have trouble learning the unofficial rules of the station. There’s no manual to study. You have to learn things as you go. A little different than life on a starship.

(Sisko stands up and starts pouring drinks)

Worf: When I served aboard the Enterprise, I always knew who were my allies and who were my enemies.

Sisko: Let’s just say DS9 has more shades of grey, and Quark definitely is a shade of…grey. He has his own set of rules, and he follows them diligently. Once you understand them, you understand Quark. I’d say that’s true for everyone here. (Carries over the drinks and hands one to Worf) You’ll fit in, Commander. (Worf takes the drink and looks up at Sisko. Sisko smiles faintly) Just give it time.

Never has a show so bald-facedly laid out its mission statement before. I’ve cited similar examples in other Best Exchanges, but this is something else entirely. It openly announces that it’s a show about shades of grey (the main plot of this episode only reinforcing that), while also acknowledging that it does things differently to other Trek shows and that each character has their own loyalties and quirks. If you wanted to explain DS9 to someone, showing them this clip would be a decent starting point. Hopefully, it would be enough to make them want to see more.

After the Fact Update: Nothing too important to this episode, but the reason this episode was swapped with “The Visitor” had to do with Colm Meaney leaving the show temporarily to do a movie, so they had to swap the schedule to accommodate him. Since I mentioned the swap yesterday, I figured I should probably also mention the reason for it.