Day 118: DS9, Children of Time

Show: Star Trek; Deep Space Nine

Episode Particulars: S5EP22, “Children of Time”

 Summary: On their way back from a mission in the Gamma Quadrant, Dax spots a planet with an unusual energy barrier and convinces the crew to stop and check it out. The minute they fly through the barrier, the ship is damaged and Kira is hit by an energy blast, although she insists she feels fine. Scanning the surface, they discover colonies of people who turn out to be the descendants of the crew of the Defiant; when they attempt to leave the planet, they’ll be thrown back in time two hundred years and will be forced to make a home here (except for Kira, who will wind up dying from her injury). Some of the crew is horrified by this, while others are fascinated by this mini-civilization and feel somewhat obligated to let things come full-circle. Cue serious discussions, lots of pastoral shots, and the lingering question of time-travel paradoxes for the audience…

Standalone Thoughts: While I know one member of my family hates this episode, I’m overall indifferent to it. While it’s not a plot that appeals to everyone, the writer (especially the fanfiction writer) in me has a soft spot for the whole “meet the descendants of the characters” plot, mostly because it’s fun to try to figure out which traits the future kids picked up from their ancestors. Unfortunately, that’s not really explored in this episode, so they waste the hook they could have grabbed me with.

What does happen in this episode is a lot of celebrating an idyllic rural life, mixed with angst about whether or not our crew should allow themselves to be stranded so all their descendants can live. They’re clearly attempting the moral grey area thing (whose futures should we sacrifice?), but they just don’t quite pull it off this time around. And assuming the dilemma isn’t one that gets under your skin (as in the case of my family member), what you’re left with is an episode that’s basically pure padding, something to give us a break between more serious stories. The long “planting season” montage alone proves that.

There’s also the matter of the way they handle future Odo. He comes across as kind of off-putting, just blurting out that he’s always loved Kira and other beats that suggest he’s grown into a kind of unpleasant person. It’s a development that makes a certain amount of sense—after two hundred years of growing and changing, Kira comes back into his life and he doesn’t want to have any incarnation of himself go through that heartbreak again—but that doesn’t necessarily mean it feels right. That, on top of the dilemma, can make for some awkward viewing at best.

Still, it was an episode I watched with mild interest rather than any sort of irritation. I’ll credit the episode for acknowledging Dax’s screw up and allowing a little character development to creep in, but that’s just a few minutes of a mostly bland episode. Given that I’ve had similar reactions to other episodes that involve a lot of farming (“Progress” and “Paradise” come to mind), perhaps it just means that there’s an episode type that doesn’t do it for me. Or maybe it means that DS9 should stop trying to be a folksy soap opera and focus on the whole spaceships thing.

How it Relates to the Whole: Due to the nature of this episode, it’s not surprising that it doesn’t have much in the way of long term effects. About the only thing it does influence is breaking up Kira and Shakaar and therefore opening up more potential for the development of Kira and Odo’s relationship. Though I don’t think we’re going to see much of that for a while, if my memory serves me right…

Other: *Speaking of Kira breaking up with Shakaar, I feel like the fact that it happened offscreen and we’re only told about it after the fact is kind of emblematic of their relationship as a whole. After getting together in “Crossfire”, we very rarely saw them together, and although Kira would occasionally mention doing things with him, those references were few and far between. I don’t know if Visitor’s pregnancy threw a wrench in the works or if the writers realized the relationship wasn’t working out, but while I appreciate them dealing with the situation quickly instead of dragging it out, just having Kira casually mention that it’s over doesn’t seem like it was the best way to handle it either. I’m not sure how I would have done it, but I think Shakaar needed more of a sendoff than this. Bareil got one, after all.

*I have to shake my head when Kira waves off Sisko calling Bashir to come look at her, insisting that she’s fine. She was just shot in the chest with electricity; even if she feels fine and her clothes aren’t singed, one would think it would be prudent to get looked over just in case. I think this says something about Starfleet, though I can’t exactly put my finger on what. All I know is that it’s nothing good.

Best Line/Exchange: Very little stood out to me today, so I guess I’ll go with the line that actually provoked a reaction from me;

(A young boy, Gabriel [Jesse Littlejohn], approaches the crew shortly after they’ve beamed down to the planet for the first time)

Gabriel: Are you the son of Mogh?

Worf: Yes, I am.

Gabriel: Is it true you can kill someone just by looking at them?

Worf (considers for a moment, glancing at the others): Only when I am angry.

(Gabriel looks at him wide-eyed and backs away slowly as the adults chuckle softly)

I snorted when I heard this, mostly because it was funny but also because Worf handled that pretty well. If there’s one thing rewatching this series has done, it’s shown me that Worf has a well-hidden sense of humor that comes out in unexpected circumstances and winds up surprising me in a good way every time. It’s popped up in Best Exchanges before, but this is the first time the thought has consciously occurred to me. Now’s as good a time as any to acknowledge it, I suppose.