Day 104: DS9, Things Past

Show: Star Trek; Deep Space Nine

Episode Particulars: S5EP8, “Things Past”

 Summary: As Sisko, Odo, Dax, and Garak are returning from a talk about the Cardassian Occupation, they suddenly find themselves transported back the old Terok Nor, wearing different clothes and being treated like Bajorans. A little investigation reveals that they’ve taken the form of people who existed seven years ago, and were executed for a crime they didn’t commit. They do their best to try to figure out a way to escape, but history seems determined to repeat itself. To make matters worse, there are increasing hints that there’s something off about this situation, besides the whole transported back in time thing. Granted, that’s a big thing to have to overlook, but…

Standalone Thoughts: Although there’s a lot about this episode that works, I’m a little too distracted by some of the choices the crew made to fully appreciate it. Namely, that they tip their hand way too early about what’s really going on. You’ll have an inkling of the truth within the first ten minutes, and you’ll probably have put all the pieces together by the halfway mark, meaning you have to wait about twenty minutes for the characters to catch up to you. If that was intentional, then it backfires, because you’ll feel more impatient than clever. The plot may be interesting, but the reveal should have come earlier and therefore taken things in a slightly different direction.

There’s also an abrupt moment right at the beginning that inadvertently sets the tone for the rest of the episode. We’re in the runabout, watching the four main characters talk, and then we cut to the station, which is normal for this sort of scene. What isn’t normal is that the runabout doesn’t answer hails and the lifesigns are described as “very faint”. Since we didn’t get the usual cues that something bad was going to happen, like dangerous music or a warning beep from the runabout, this comes out of nowhere and is actually even more jarring than cutting to our heroes waking up on Terok Nor.

That being said, there’s still material that’s good. The idea itself is worth exploring, and the plot plays around a bit with familiar characters. Most notably, they add another shade of grey to Dukat, and we see a darker side of Quark (not much darker, but he’s definitely not the comic relief here). There was also some potential to have Garak develop a bit more, now that he was experiencing things from the Bajoran perspective, but they don’t dig into this as much as they could have, alas. On the whole, though, I’d have to say that this episode, while decent, could have been much, much stronger.

How it Relates to the Whole: While you can try to make the argument that the events of this episode lead to later developments (I’m thinking specifically of something that happens four episodes from now and, if you stretch it, something in a later Kira episode), I don’t think this episode has any impact other than developing characters a bit further. I don’t mind this too much, though; it’s doing world-building as well, so at least we’re getting more out of it than we did in yesterday’s episode.

Other: *This is the first time we’ve seen Garak all season, but for once, there’s an in-universe reason for it; thanks to his actions in “Broken Link”, Garak was sent to jail for six months. I’m still completely unfamiliar with how stardates work, but I must assume his sentence finally expired. No mention is made of this in the episode itself, but those who remember the detail from “Broken Link” have actual canonical evidence to explain things for once.

*I like the fact that we spend a good minute assuming it’s just Dax, Sisko, and Garak in the runabout, before suddenly mentioning Odo and pulling back to reveal he’s also in the runabout with them. It’s a good use of camerawork, and winds up being more clever than you think once you have time to process everything.

*When the three men finally meet with the Bajoran Resistance, their contact tells them to make it quick, because he hates soup and doesn’t want to have to finish the bowl he brought to their table to keep his cover. Given the circumstances, one would think he’d be a little less picky. Were there really going to be other food choices in a Cardassian labor camp? Even if you have access to other food because of the Resistance, it just seems prudent to eat what you can get, since you don’t know for sure if you’ll get the chance to get more. But perhaps I’m overthinking it.

*I don’t know if it was intentional, but this episode seems to be a callback or a follow up to “Necessary Evil”, especially the ending. It’s not as strong at that episode, but it’s still interesting, and I do appreciate the similar endings, regardless of intent.

Best Line/Exchange: As is often the case when he shows up, Garak gets the honor today;

(Garak has stolen a Cardassian data padd/complink to figure out who they really are)

Garak: I…took the liberty of borrowing this from the gentleman who thought my nose needed adjustment.

Odo: I see I’m going to have to add the word “pickpocket” to your resume.

Garak: It’s only a hobby.

Odo: Interesting that a simple tailor should just happen to have a high-level security code.

Garak: Yes, isn’t it? And if my nose didn’t hurt so much, I’d tell you a fascinating story about how I came to possess it.

While Odo’s last line is a bit forced (after the events of “Improbable Cause/The Die is Cast”, he is very much aware of Garak’s Obsidian Order background), the rest of the material is great. Garak’s slyness and obvious deflection are in fine form, and as a bonus, you can draw a parallel between this and the main material if you choose to. But like I said, it’s Garak, so my reasons for choosing it are more for personal entertainment this time around.