Show: Star Trek; Deep Space Nine
Episode
Particulars: S4EP19, “Shattered Mirror”
Standalone
Thoughts: While we sorely needed an episode like this after the dark
content of “Hard Time”, I think the execution of this episode left something to
be desired. Part of the problem is that there’s a little too much going on.
Because we’ve glossed over the rebels retaking Terok Nor, we have to establish
what everyone’s been up to, made doubly difficult because the Intendant and
Garak have fallen from power and we need to make that clear. Then you add in the
“working to fix the Defiant” plot and
the Jake, Jennifer, and Sisko material, and it starts feeling overstuffed. Really,
the stuff revolving around Sisko’s family should have been one episode, and the
Defiant plot should have been a
separate story. It makes sense why they’d intersect, since the rebels needed to
find a way to bring Sisko over, but in practice, the family plot isn’t sufficiently
explored.
I also have some issues with the characterization of the
rebels. Again, I appreciate what they were going for, which is to show that the
humans of the Mirror Universe aren’t as nice as in “our” world, but resorting
to trickery and/or kidnapping and then not really seeming sorry for it leaves a
bit of a bad taste in my mouth, even if it’s in character for that universe. It
just feels like everyone in that universe is a jerk now, and that makes it
harder to root for them. Some of that also carries over into “our” universe,
because while Sisko keeps trying to stop Jennifer from getting too close to him
or Jake, the one thing he never brings up is the fact that he’s dating Kasidy
Yates. I know he’s got other things on his mind and tensions are running high
throughout the episode, but the episode started with him and Jennifer casually
sitting close to each other, having a drink, and that just felt wrong. As a
result, most of the “good guys” don’t actually appeal much to me in this
episode, which in turn diminishes my enjoyment of the material.
Which isn’t to say there’s no fun to be had. The action scenes are good, though the special
effects fluctuate between good and obvious CGI. Mostly, though, the best parts
come whenever we focus on the villains, specifically Worf and Garak. Somehow,
the two of them bounce off each other in amusing ways, especially one scene
that is like something out of a sitcom, only with more violence and bloodshed. In
my case, that leaves enough goodwill for me to consider this episode decent, if
not spectacular. This may not be the case for a lot of you, though, so, as is
probably wise advice when it comes to the Mirror Universe, proceed with caution.
How it Relates to
the Whole: As before, this episode barely relates to the main plot, so
there’s not much to report there. As part of the “Mirror Universe” story arc, the
tide is starting to turn in the rebels’ favor, though they’ve got an uphill
battle. I’ll be curious to see where they go from here, because things really
could go either way at this point.
Other: *Why
exactly did “Smiley” O’Brien decide to only beam over Sisko and not our O’Brien?
Our O’Brien was coming over voluntarily; it took more work to stop him from coming. Smiley says he
only wants Sisko, but the reason for it is because they need to figure out how
to make their version of the Defiant work
better. Yes, Sisko designed the ship, but wouldn’t an engineer who has
experience with the Defiant be an
asset here? Granted, he might not have known it was O’Brien trying to come
through, but even so, this seems like poor planning. Maybe that’s why the
rebels are making slow progress.
*In the DS9
Companion entry for “Crossover”, we learned that Worf was originally
supposed to be in the episode, but Michael Dorn’s unavailability meant Garak
basically took his role. Now, Worf finally makes an appearance in the Mirror
Universe…and he appears to be the leader of the entire Alliance. Talk about an
upgrade in position.
*Speaking of Worf, I notice that he sounds a little
different in his first scene, as though he was a little less stiff. It makes a
lot of sense for the character, but unfortunately, he mostly sounds like the
Worf we’re familiar with for the rest of the episode. Too bad; it would have
been a good way to differentiate between the two Worfs in a subtle way.
*One bizarre thing that this episode did for me was
realize how long it’s been since we’ve seen some of the supporting characters. Garak
hasn’t shown up since Our Man Bashir,
nine episodes ago, Eddington has been missing for a similar length of time, and
Kasidy Yates has been gone for fifteen episodes. Characters like Nog, I
understand, since he’s now on an entirely different planet, but those three are
supposed to be living on or near the station. Were those three actors all busy
at the time? I don’t know, but now that I’m aware of their absence, I’m
wondering when we’ll see them again. Especially Garak, as you can guess.
*I don’t think the writers/cinematographers will admit
it, but there’s no question that they cribbed from Star Wars; A New Hope at one point during the big action scene. I’m
not complaining, but it did make me raise an eyebrow. Though now it’s also
making me imagine Worf saying some of Darth Vader’s lines, and it’s amusing how
well that would work.
Best
Line/Exchange: Like I said, the best parts of the episode are the ones Garak
is in, so it’s no surprise that, when no particular line jumped out at me, I
went back to look at his scenes, and finally chose this;
Worf: You are
attempting to shift the blame away from yourself!
Garak: Am I
succeeding?
Oh, Garak. It’s an entirely different universe, but your
sly line deliveries and irreverence always stay the same. Hopefully I’ll see
you around the main universe soon.
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