Show: Star Trek; Deep Space Nine
Episode
Particulars: S5EP26, “Call to Arms”
By sheer coincidence, we end the fifth season just as I
hit the 1/3rd mark on this project. I have to say, it’s a good
matchup this time around.
Standalone
Thoughts: This is it. This is the
episode where everything clicks into place and the show becomes focused. There
will still be standalone episodes (including Ferengi and mirror universe
episodes), but there’s a direction now, and the majority of the episodes will
focus on the Dominion War. And may I say, this was an excellent start to that.
Pretty much everything about this episode is great. The
building tension, the action scenes in the last act, the callbacks to previous
episodes (I saw references to “Progress”, “Children of Time”, and “Nor the
Battle to the Strong”)…it’s all fantastically handled, and the ending is all
but guaranteed to make you want to come back next season to see what’s going to
happen. Above all, though the character work is stellar. Not just that of the
main characters, but nearly all the major supporting characters we’ve been
introduced to play a role in this episode, and make us care. Dukat and Weyoun
make great bad guys (in different ways), Rom and Nog prove that Ferengi can be
taken seriously, Garak remains as sly as ever, Martok shows his warrior’s
spirit…it’s beautiful and just drives home how good DS9 was with its supporting characters when they put their minds to
it.
I don’t know if there’s much more I can add to that. It’s
a great episode brimming with potential, and I think really needs to be seen to
be fully appreciated. Perhaps then other people will join me in singing its
praises.
How it Relates to
the Whole: Well, it kicks off the Dominion War, so that’s a pretty big
thing. Joking aside, the episode’s definitely going to have long-term
consequences, both in terms of plot and character development. I can’t go into
details for fear of spoilers, but this is unquestionably a must-see. Oh, brave
new world that has such stories in it!
Other: *Zyial
suggests that Garak make Leeta’s wedding dress, saying that it would unquestionably
be beautiful. My immediate reaction was “Are you mad?” because I continue to
maintain that Garak’s outfits are deliberately ugly. That being said, I am
slightly curious to see what he would have come up with…
*Odo’s way of handling the awkwardness between him and
Kira after the revelation of his feelings in “Children of Time” is both very in
character for him and incredibly sweet. It’s no wonder he and Kira have become
two of my favorite characters this time around.
*Weyoun tries to prey on Sisko’s sympathies by basically
pulling the “children are dying in Africa” card, and I absolutely love the blatant
manipulation on display. In that moment, you understand the phrase “a villain
you love to hate”.
*First The Wizard
of Oz, now Casablanca gets
quoted. I don’t think this homage works quite as well, but given that “Profit
and Loss” was originally inspired by Casablanca,
I’m more amused by it if I see it as a form of revenge by the writers for not
being able to be so blatant about it the first time around.
*Season wrap-up: Despite how much I love this episode,
the season as a whole is…ok. Sure, the episodes are generally well executed, but
there just weren’t as many standouts as there were in Season Four (the two
exceptions are this episode and “By Inferno’s Light). Plus, the episodes I’d
call good aren’t quite the same quality of “good” as other seasons; if they’d
been in Seasons Three or Four I’d probably have classified them as “upper
middle” quality. I’ve still mostly enjoyed myself, and there definitely weren’t
any horrible episodes, but I had been expecting a slightly higher quality from
this season that wasn’t quite there. We’ll see if my memory is similarly faulty
with Seasons Six and Seven, though of course I hope that’s not the case. At
least this episode seems to be offering a lot of promise…
Best Line/Exchange:
I may love the character moments, but I liked one of the profound moments
best this time around;
Odo: If we try
to stop those convoys, it may very well start a war.
Sisko: Maybe
so. But one thing is certain, we’re losing the peace. Which means a war could
be our only hope.
It mimics the Latin/Roman quote “If you want peace,
prepare for war”, but it somehow sounds much more meaningful and dark the way
Sisko phrases it. And given the tone of the episode, that’s entirely
appropriate.
End of Season
Fashion Roundup: Here we go again…
(Apocalypse Rising)
Different shots of this outfit suggest that what we have
here is a pair of pants and a vest that are the same color, but in this shot,
Jake looks like he’s wearing overalls. Combined with the striped shirt, and he
winds up looking like a farmer. I’m pretty sure that wasn’t what the costumers
were going for.
(The Ship)
The amount of skin on display in this particular
Jem’Hadar landing party is kind of alarming. Combine that with the weird
accessories on the Jem’Hadar and the shortness of the Vorta’s skirt (you can’t
see it here, but a later shot reveals it barely covers her butt), and you have
to wonder what exactly their primary mission is. If I didn’t know better, I’d
say they were some sort of Dominion equivalent of the USO. As it is, though, I
have no idea.
(Looking for par'Mach in all the Wrong Places)
Quark’s outfit definitely doesn’t suit him, but I
actually like Dax’s outfit here. I’m a sucker for anything cat patterned (the
sleeves look a little like the spots of a snow leopard), and the gold armor on
the bodice is a nice accent. I’m not sure when it would be appropriate to wear
in my everyday life, but I’d wear it nevertheless.
(Looking for par'Mach in all the Wrong Places)
I mean, this is actually pretty flattering as far as
maternity wear goes, but it a) seems too short, b) looks just a little too
shiny, and c) is a weird mustard yellow color. It’s not that I hate it, but
something seems off about it at the same time. But maybe that’s just me.
(Nor the Battle to the Strong)
Once you get past the fact that Jake’s shirt is pink, the
shirt and vest he wears throughout the episode is fine. That jacket, on the
other hand, not only looks slightly too big for him but looks more like
something his grandfather should be wearing. Then again, if we interpret it as
Jake wearing it because he thinks it makes him look like a serious writer (the
whole “tweed jacket” thing), then at least we can provide a clever explanation
for it.
(The Assignment)
Say what you will about evil Keiko, but at least she’s
got a decent fashion sense. I’d probably wear all of those outfits, and they
look like something you could buy in a store to boot.
(Let He Who is Without Sin...)
I’ve already said my piece on Bashir’s choice of
beachwear, but seeing him in a group shot makes it all the more glaring. Leeta
and Quark are wearing bright colors that are a little gaudy, but fit the beach
setting perfectly. Dax is more understated, but looks good. Bashir’s colors
aren’t bright enough, nor does it actually look like something you’d wear to
the beach (long pants made out of some sort of velvet?), so even if he’s not
the first thing your eye is drawn to, it’s the one that winds up looking the
worst. Seriously, Bashir, just…stick to your uniform from now on if this is the
sort of casual wear we could expect from you.
(Things Past)
I’ve never seen Garak wear that belt before, and
it’s…weird. It’s basically a strip of cloth, except then it has random cuts in
it that are too big to be practical and therefore must be decorative. Sure, it
matches the purple highlights in the shoulders, but otherwise, it’s too big and
clunky to work as part of the outfit. Further proof (along with a cuff that’s
too big) that tailoring isn’t actually Garak’s strong suit.
I was going to post a picture from "The Begotten" here, but (I swear this is true) Blogger refused to post it, even though it had no trouble with any of the other pictures. Even I didn't think it was that ugly. Here's a picture I got from the internet instead. My commentary: Green on one side, plaid on the other…other than fitting a lumberjack motif, why would anybody think this is a good idea?
(In Purgatory's Shadow)
The blue of Garak’s outfit here isn’t terrible, but
something seems off about the arms. They just seem like they’ve been inflated
or padded. Trying to make it look like you’ve got more muscle than you actually
do, Garak?
(In Purgatory's Shadow)
I actually don’t think this is too bad. Maybe not the
color I’d choose, but I like the design of the chest. Wonder if that’s more of
a Cardassian or a Bajoran design.
(In Purgatory's Shadow)
I like this one too. The splash of color in the center
mixed with the colored highlights in an otherwise dark dress is very striking.
Tone down the shoulders a bit, and I could see that being an excellent dress to
use in both formal and casual situations.
(A Simple Investigation)
On the one hand, this dress is very simple and kind of
boring. But when you look at the little accent ribbons around the dress, and
you see they’re asymmetrical and give one shoulder a different style than the
other. Even the simple dresses can’t be left untouched by insane 24th
century fashion designers, can they?
(Business as Usual)
First off, I love the fact that Hagath is cut out of the
image so that our attention goes straight to his much more attractive looking
companion. As for her outfit, well, it seems to have taken the idea of “leather
and lace” a bit literally, but if the goal was to be eye-catching, then they
succeeded.
(Business as Usual)
Shocking as it is, I’m going to kind of defend Quark’s
coat here. It’s still too much of a muchness, but the pattern reminds me of
stained glass windows, and so I’m inclined to be somewhat charitable towards
it.
(Ties of Blood and Water)
Apparently comfy knitwear is very popular among older
Cardassians (Tain wore something similar in “The Wire”). Don’t get me wrong, it
looks very soft and might be nice to wear, but it’s just not a look I’d
associate with Cardassians. Though it does say something that I’d wear this
over any of the outfits Garak’s modeled for us…
(Soldiers of the Empire)
This is the first time I ever remember seeing Klingon
armor that lacked sleeves. It’s jarring on the one hand, but very appropriate
for Klingons on the other. So let’s just call this a wash and move on.
(In the Cards)
Half leather, half mismatched fabrics (the arm is a
noticeably different color and pattern than the body)…the Founders clearly didn’t
bring up the clones with any sort of fashion sense.
(Call to Arms)
I almost liked this outfit. It looked like a cocktail dress
that I’d be happy to wear. Unfortunately, she then turned around;
The low back, I can accept. The fact that one buttcheek
is practically on full display, not so much.
Conclusion: A few good choices, some odd choices, and
several choices that pretty much exemplify why I hate 24th century
fashion. Even if not many of the episodes themselves were standouts, the
outfits certainly were.
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