Deep Space Nine 7x22 "Tacking Into the Wind"

rating: ****

the story: Worf must confront Gowron over his approach to the war, which seems aimed at bringing the Klingon Empire to ruin...

what it's all about: This is arguably the most accessible episode of the ten-hour final arc of the series, not only because it features a well-known franchise character (Gowron, who first appeared in Next Generation) but his final fate as well, finally elevating a well-established Deep Space Nine character (Martok) to succeed him. 

It's also the most focused and self-contained, in a truly rewarding sense, episode of the arc. "Extreme Measures," which follows "Tacking Into the Wind," handles a similarly episodic moment, but in a less satisfying way.  I mean, it's really hard to compete with Klingon politics, which arguably provided some of the best material of the franchise across several series and movies. 

And it finally gives Worf that truly definitive moment in Deep Space Nine.  Until this point he'd been completely out of place, even managing to retain that status when he found true love with Jadzia Dax, which is somewhat hugely impressive.  This began to change when he bonded with Martok, but until one was in the position to truly affect the fortunes of the other, they remained in a holding pattern. 

That changes in "Wind."  Martok is the source of Gowron's rage, a politician jealous of a warrior, and willing to destroy everything in order to exact revenge against his honor.  The Klingons never really had that full-blown war, either, just like the Federation, just like Star Trek, and so to see how things turn out even for a character like Gowron who had always been a fan-favorite, is to see just how significant the Dominion War really is.  You can ignore, if you like, everything else the war accomplishes, but when even Gowron isn't safe, it changes everything.

Anyway, the episode also has Kira and Damar very pointedly grappling with the irony of their present circumstances, Kira helping the Cardassians mount a resistance movement, and Damar grappling with breaking faith with his people, realizing that he isn't merely defecting from the Dominion but rejecting all the old ways that had once defined him.  With all due apologies to Garak, this completes Damar's transformation into the most sympathetic Cardassian ever.  It's the culmination of everything the series had tried to do with Bajorans and Cardassians from the very start.

Since the start of the war in the sixth season, the series had struggled to find moments like these, always playing it safe, knowing the box had to be replaced more or less exactly as it had always been.  But, with only a few episodes left, finally it was time to break some eggs.  And "Wind" does it in spectacular fashion.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Classic high Klingon drama!
• series - The defining moment of the final arc, in some ways.
• character - Martok and Damar both make permanent marks.
• essential - The final fate of a franchise icon (Gowron).

notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
J.G. Hertzler (Martok)
Casey Biggs (Damar)
Andrew Robinson (Garak)
Jeffrey Combs (Weyoun)
Salome Jens (Female Founder)
J. Paul Boehmer

Deep Space Nine 7x21 "When It Rains..."

rating: ***

the story: Kira is assigned to help the Cardassians mount a resistance movement.

what it's all about: The final arc continues to heat up as the most ironic development of the series finally happens.  Kira is Bajoran.  Before the series began she was a member of the Bajoran resistance to Cardassian occupation.  Do you begin to grasp the irony?  Between Garak, who was always presented as sympathetic, and Dukat, who when he wasn't being a scoundrel or worse flirted with being a good guy, and not to mention experiences like "Duet" and "Second Skin," Kira spent a lot of time around Cardassians who contradicted the ugly history between their peoples.  So in a lot of ways, this development was almost inevitable.  All it needed was for the Cardassians as a whole to find themselves in a situation where they matched the unique circumstances Kira kept finding.  And this being the Cardassians, it was definitely inevitable.

Which still makes this a powerful moment, and one of the defining stories of the final arc.  The way the arc developed is something I haven't always appreciated.  You may remember me complaining about the somewhat arbitrary opening acts.  At this point everything seems justified.  It becomes clear how the arc presents every member of the sprawling cast with situations that push them to their limits, things they never thought would happen in a million years.

Also in this episode: Winn catches Dukat spying on the Pah Wraith book she's been guarding jealously, and laughs at the irony of his being struck blind for it.  Bashir realizes that Odo (and the other Founders) were infected by Section 31, which will lead to him finally getting his revenge against an organization that has crossed paths with him one too many times.

And, Gowron comes back into the picture.  This is the big one, at least at accessibility goes.  Gowron was one of the reasons why Next Generation's Klingons redefined the signature Star Trek aliens.  He'd made a few Deep Space Nine appearances, but he never really seemed like a fabric of the series.  That changes starting with "When It Rains..." (and if you don't know how it ends...).

All these arcs continue and get bigger in the episodes that follow, and that's how you know the arc has really begun to click.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Gowron begins his most significant appearances in this series.
• series - The final arc continues to sizzle.
• character - Kira comes full circle in the way she least expected.
• essential - Everything that happens here really pays off in other episodes, one of the drawbacks of heavy serialization.

notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
Louise Fletcher (Winn)
Marc Alaimo (Dukat)
Andrew Robinson (Garak)
J.G. Hertzler (Martok)
Barry Jenner (Admiral Ross)
Jeffrey Combs (Weyoun)
Salome Jens (Female Founder)
Vaughn Armstrong

Deep Space Nine 7x15 "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang"

rating: ****

the story: The crew has to come to Vic Fontaine's rescue.

what it's all about: Pretty much the ultimate holodeck episode.  Holodeck episodes became notorious in the franchise because they so often involved some convoluted malfunction that changed the rules holodecks were supposed to follow. Deep Space Nine technically didn't feature a holodeck but rather a holosuite (just as Voyager tried to change the term to holonovel), but all the same, its characters were always going into the holodeck and even had classic holodeck malfunction episodes ("Our Man Bashir").  "Badda-Bing" shares heritage with the classic "A Piece of the Action" and Voyager's "Worst Case Scenario," where insane things had to been seen through to the end (actually, that goes for "Our Man Bashir," too, and even Next Generation's "A Fistful of Datas").

What sets "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang" apart is that it's such a celebratory moment, the last opportunity for Deep Space Nine to have a little fun before things get really dark as the series wound down to its final episodes.  Unlike "Take Me out to the Holosuite" before it, "Badda-Bing" plays itself straight, but it's just such a fun concept, a heist story (years before the rebooted Ocean's Eleven, I might add), and such an unexpected one, that it becomes easy to enjoy on just about every level. 

Let's start with Vic.  This was the lounge singer introduced last season in "His Way," but who took on much greater significance earlier in the seventh season, thanks to "It's Only a Paper Moon."  I wouldn't be surprised if "Badda-Bing" was envisioned while the producers were working on "Paper Moon," as a thank-you.  Vic was a character who should never have worked as well as he did, much less deserve so many spotlights, as the series was coming to an end.  I mean, Deep Space Nine was never exactly hurting for supporting characters, and of all of them, Vic doesn't seem like he warrants so much special attention.  I mean, he's a hologram who admits he's happy living in his holoworld!  And "Badda-Bing" is all about the crew saving that world for him!  I mean, what's the point? 

It's about family.  Vic quickly became symbolic of the family Deep Space Nine cobbled together, a voice who could bring everything into perspective.  And so helping him out is really about putting the emphasis on that family, seeing everyone come together, because in the episodes ahead, they all get flung in opposite directions.  When he and Sisko duet at the end of the episode, it sends chills down your spine.  Next time they're all together, it's the final hour of the series...

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Classic change of pace, light material.
• series - Everyone comes together for this one.
• character - It's Vic's spotlight!
• essential - Classic romp.

notable guest-stars:
James Darren (Vic Fontaine)
Penny Johnson (Kasidy Yates)
Aron Eisenberg (Nog)
Robert O'Reilly

Deep Space Nine 5x15 "By Inferno's Light"

rating: ****

the story: The Federation mends fences with the Klingons as the Dominion threat comes into focus.

what it's all about: Basically, "By Inferno's Light" completes the reclamation of what Deep Space Nine was originally about with what the studio attempted to make it with the insertion of Klingons into the fourth season in an ill-fated effort to ramp up its popularity and/or accessibility.   With Dukat finally assuming full authority over the Cardassians and completing his journey to becoming the definitive Cardassian in the process (it's shocking to think it really did take this long to achieve, with considerable work done during the third and fourth seasons to set it up), the original premise of the series, that Starfleet was coming to Bajor to help it recover from Cardassian oppression, becomes an integral component of the Dominion arc that had at times seemed sidelined by the Klingons.

Yet, at no point in franchise lore had the Klingons truly become such ready allies with the Federation as they do by the end of this episode.  Picard seemed to have special sway in Next Generation, but that translated to one man, a limited scope that kept relations at a distance.  Gowron, the Klingon leader whose debut in Next Generation helped set the tone of the warrior culture moving forward, passes the torch to Martok here, Martok whose earlier appearances couldn't really give an indication of his later significance.

That begins to change in "Inferno."  His relationship with Worf deepens as they grow to depend on each other in a Dominion prison camp.  This is also, primarily, Worf's best Deep Space Nine moment, by the way.  He becomes forced to compete in a series of fights with Jem'Hadar soldiers, persisting even when he begins to break down because of his famous pride.  He's never been pushed like this before, never been forced to demonstrate just how far he's willing to go.  As a Klingon, he'd always represented his people well, but he was more often than not constrained by the oath he took to Starfleet.  Too often, even in Deep Space Nine, his Klingon loyalties ended up seeming like a weakness.  There's no such hesitation here.  His prowess in combat, only hinted at elsewhere, becomes as much a focus of his arc in the episode as his legendary resolve.  While Martok is there to support him, this is totally Worf's show.

There's also Garak finding out that Dukat has singled him out in his efforts to reclaim Cardassian honor, but by making it clear he thinks Garak has no honor, and no place in the new Cardassia.  This is much as Garak had experienced in recent years anyway, but he also went to extreme lengths, in this two-part episode, to prove his loyalty to his people.  Shows what integrity gets you.  Somewhat surprising is that for the first and only time, he and Bashir share an adventure together ("Our Man Bashir" doesn't count), but it's not an experience that's particularly relevant to their bond.  Increasingly, Bashir moves off in his own direction (see the next episode, "Doctor Bashir, I Presume?" as well as "Inquisition," which ironically integrates him into the world of spies, which he'd only previously known about from his suspicions about Garak's past). 

This is a big, big moment in the series, where the war becomes positively inevitable.  It ends somewhat tidily, but by the end of the season, everyone knows such developments won't be possible anymore, which makes this somewhat the last of the happy endings in Deep Space Nine...

criteria analysis:

• franchise - A big moment in Federation/Klingon relations.
• series - A big moment in Dominion relations.  And Cardassian relations!
• character - Arguably Worf's finest moment.
• essential - This is self-explanatory, given the above statements.

notable guest-stars:
Andrew Robinson (Garak)
Marc Alaimo (Dukat)
James Horan
Melanie Smith (Ziyal)
J.G. Hertzler (Martok)
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)

Deep Space Nine 5x1 "Apocalypse Rising"

rating: ***

the story: Sisko and a select crew set out to expose Gowron as a Founder.

what it's all about: This at last is a truly Deep Space Nine entry in the Klingon saga that became so integral an element to Next Generation.  Following the start of new conflict between Klingons and the Federation, thanks to the Dominion, in the fourth season premiere, "Way of the Warrior," the series seemed at a loss as to what to do with them.  Klingons had appeared in it before, but the studio wanted them in the spotlight, and so they were thrust into it, with vague echoes of previous stories.  But the truth was, having Gowron and Worf butt heads again only went so far in justifying the concept, so it was high time introducing a new wrinkle.

Which is what the fourth season finale ("Broken Link") did, in an entirely offhand way: it's suggested that Gowron has been replaced by a Founder, the shapeshifting leaders of the Dominion.  This at least explained why Gowron was willing to throw away all the progress the Empire had made toward finally concluding a lasting peace with the Federation.  "Apocalypse Rising" curves the curveball, however, explaining that it isn't Gowron who was compromised at all, but Martok, who first appeared in "Way" and apparently makes his final one here, exposed as a Founder after all.

That would have been the end of that, right?  Except it wasn't.  Halfway through the season we meet the real Martok ("In Purgatory's Shadow"/"By Inferno's Light"), who's been kept in a Dominion prison camp this whole time, and from that point he's well on his way to becoming one of the defining recurring characters of the series, a major new Klingon who would finally bring balance to Worf's life.

Just not yet.  "Apocalypse" proceeds in fits and starts, one of those Star Trek stories with an intricate sequence of events that needs to unfold just right, so of course it doesn't.  What this episode needed more than anything was for the right mix of characters in it, and that mix just isn't there.  In Odo's first spotlight as a "solid," having been stripped of his shapeshifting abilities in "Broken Link," he spends most of the time...shifted into a new look.  O'Brien is also pretty much useless.  The character who most needed to be there was Dax.  Bashir, second most, or perhaps first.  Dax first of all because out of anyone, she probably knows more about Klingons than even Worf.  Bashir because at this point, although because of clumsy serialized storytelling (the reverse of how Martok is handled) we don't get any indication of this until the big reveal later, has already been replaced by a Founder.  There is literally no foreshadowing of this until the reveal (the same two-part episode where we meet the real Martok), which is incredibly unusual for a series that was usually smarter than that.

So it's a curious mix of storytelling that feels better than previous work in this particular arc, but also inferior to later work.  If there's a real problem, it's that this is the first season premiere of the series, the only one, that's one episode long.  Pretty darn odd when you think about it, and the lack of developed plot is very evident once you analyze it.  If you want just the quick shot, which rarely happens in this series, maybe it's a good thing.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - A good old-fashioned Klingon plot! Mostly!
• series - With a good bit of Dominion finagling thrown in for good measure.
• character - Here I will either put the emphasis on Gowron or Martok.
• essential - Which is because the episode misses two big opportunities for regular characters, and bungles the one they did use, Odo.

notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
J.G. Hertzler (Martok)
Marc Alaimo (Dukat)
Casey Biggs (Damar)

Deep Space Nine 4x26 "Broken Link"

rating: ***

the story: Odo finally faces the repercussions from "The Adversary."

what it's all about: This episode marks one of the most questionable creative decisions of the series: stripping Odo's shapeshifting abilities away from him (for about half a season).  It's such an odd thing to do: on the one hand, does this character really need to feel more isolated? on the other, it's sort of a vital component of how the series eventually ends.  But it's still a tough decision to embrace.

"Broken Link" is kind of like Next Generation's "Sins of the Father," the pivotal episode where Worf finally rejoins Klingon society, only to be completely rejected by it.  What makes "Link" all the more odd is that it's literally a sequel to the third season finale, "The Adversary," so that a whole season happened without anyone really realizing that this probably should have been something that happened far, far sooner.  And thus we find the real loser of the creative shakeup at the start of the fourth season, where the studio wanted the Klingons, despite the producers already knowing what they wanted to do, which is why "The Adversay" happened at all, delaying "Homefront"/"Paradise Lost" and introducing, well, the Klingons...

Actually, the best timing found in the episode is Garak's role, where he gets a chance to find out what happened to the Cardassian/Romulan invasion fleet from "Improbable Cause"/"The Die is Cast" in the third season, although the response turns out to be a lie (as revealed during "In Purgatory's Shadow"/"By Inferno's Light" mid-fifth season)...You can see the serialization represented in all of that, the continuity, how the series artfully rolls it out.  Unlike Odo's plight.

That plight began in "The Search" at the start of the third season, and was somewhat reluctantly followed-up in a few scattered later episodes.  "The Adversary" finds Odo breaking a sacred rule of the people he still barely knows: "No Founder has ever hurt another."  And yet he's forced to, after once again choosing the "solids" over his people, killing one of them, and bringing on the judgment of "Link."  Eventually.

When looked at in the context of the whole series, it just comes off as clumsy.  Later, when Section 31 has introduced a virus into the Great Link (the Founders as a collective), it's clearly something inspired by this experience, a vulnerability the leaders of the Dominion never anticipated (arrogance, alas).  But that's another strange layer of the episode, too: the fact that the Dominion, in a season finale no less, is no closer to instigating a war, and in fact even allows Odo to revisit.  To teach him a lesson???  It just seems incomprehensible in hindsight, like the producers really had no idea what they were doing at this point. 

I'd dock it to less than three stars, but I don't want to force my impressions, but rather make them known.  Generally if it can reasonably be interpreted another way, I'll let it slide.  After all, there's redemption to the ideas of the episode, and one great payoff ("The Begotten") looming. 

Also included, even though strangely the Klingon war introduced in that status-shifting season premiere "Way of the Warrior" isn't otherwise relevant (goes to show how little the producers cared about it), is an appearance by Gowron, and an apparent revelation that also ties a lot of plots together (all the doubt the Founders sought to spread), but plays out differently than you might expect in the fifth season premiere, "Apocalypse Rising."

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Sort of like "Sins of the Father."
• series - Links (heh) a lot of moments together.
• character - A crucial moment for Odo.
• essential - Creatively, I just don't happen to agree with it.

notable guest-stars:
Salome Jens (Female Founder)
Andrew Robinson (Garak)
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)

Deep Space Nine 4x1/4x2 "The Way of the Warrior"

rating: ****

the story: The Klingon Empire readies for war against the Dominion, which causes Sisko to request Worf's assistance.

what it's all about: People tend to have a bad habit of assuming that when story elements are mandated, this inevitably results in a story that can't possibly work.  Look, this is all a part of the creative process.  If you can't figure out to make someone else's idea work, then quit frankly you're not very creative.  It's as simple as that. 

This is relevant to "Way of the Warrior" because Paramount, in the interests of shoring up flagging ratings for Deep Space Nine, requested the show's producers insert the Klingons, and Worf, into the series.  This wasn't what the producers had been planning for the fourth season, something they'd already been denied to do at the end of the third season (relax, though; it'd finally materialize in the two-part "Homefront"/"Paradise Lost" near the middle of the season).  And in a lot of ways, "Warrior" is a rephrasing of not only the third season finale, "The Adversary," but the two-part "Improbable Cause"/"The Die is Cast" from earlier that season, plus the ambitious three-part "The Homecoming"/"The Circle"/"The Siege" that started out the second season.  But does all this mean "Warrior" is worthless rehash and creatively bankrupt?  Far from it!

The fourth season begins with a bang.  Introducing the Klingons turned out to be one of the best things the series ever did.  Klingons were involved in the first-ever sustained serialized storytelling Star Trek, during the middle of Next Generation, which is probably why Deep Space Nine happened to begin with, a whole series that would eventually embrace serialized storytelling as its mandate, so in that sense, formally introducing Klingons into the mix (they'd appeared sporadically before this) was at the very least a nod to Deep Space Nine's origins.  It was also the first time the Klingons really got to return to the epic nature of their Next Generation heyday, complete with Gowron pleading with Worf to once again consider what was in the best interests of the Empire, an echo of exactly how it all began, resonance that's the key to all great storytelling.

That General Martok makes his debut in "Warrior" is also one of the best things that happened in the story, especially the way he does.  He doesn't appear again until "Apocalypse Rising," the fifth season premiere, which eventually leads into one of the most pivotal recurring roles of the series.  So all that begins here.  As does Michael Dorn's addition to the regular cast, making him the only Star Trek actor to be a regular in two series.  Worf's solitary nature became prominent in his appearances throughout the rest of Deep Space Nine, putting him in an entirely new light, as a character who belonged in this series.  "Warrior" not only picks up the Klingon thread from Next Generation, but Worf's role in it, and out of it.  This was a series full of outcasts, and that's exactly what Worf always was.  That he had a family among Picard's crew, where fans will always remember him best, is also a fact of the franchise, but it cannot be discounted how well Worf fits in with his second family.

The siege of the station, once fighting breaks out, is one of the most thrilling sequences of the whole series, more than making up for its predecessor in "The Siege," which ended a three-part affair with more of a whimper than a bang.  This is what the series needed to give credibility to its Dominion ambitions, a preview of the war that was to come.  It neatly outlines the stakes of the conflict, and how things would work from then on. 

But for anyone coming merely for Klingon drama, it fills its quota of that, too, amply contributing to a fine Star Trek tradition.  Plus, you get to hear Quark compare the Federation to root beer.  If you never love a Ferengi in any other scene, I think you'll agree how well this one works.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - The grand Klingon opera continues!
• series - Although it's just beginning in Deep Space Nine!
• character - Enter: Worf!
• essential - Puts everything in new perspective.

notable guest-stars:
J.G. Hertzler (Martok)
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
Penny Johnson (Kasidy Yates)
Marc Alaimo (Dukat)
Andrew Robinson (Garak)
Patricia Tallman

Deep Space Nine 3x3 "The House of Quark"

rating: ****

the story: After Quark accidentally kills a Klingon patron at his bar, he is forced to settle matters for the dead warrior's family.

what it's all about: As the MVP, the most consistent presence, the glue of the second season, Quark could hardly have expected to follow that up with something so awesome the next season, but here it is, arguably the best Quark episode to this point in the series.  It's all about those pesky unexpected contrasts that the character was built to represent, not just against Starfleet norms, which of course he had in spades, but against Klingons norms, which are so obvious it almost seems unnecessary to dedicate a whole episode to exploring them.  Yet the results are brilliant.

After "Blood Oath" last season, it hardly seemed likely there'd be much cause for another Klingon episode in this series (the call to introduce Worf into the fourth season hadn't been made yet), and since Next Generation had already done the iconic aliens so well it probably seemed downright unnecessary.  And yet, "House of Quark" stands right up there with the best of Next Generation's efforts as one of the best Klingon episodes ever, one that revisits the matter of honor and rival clans previously mined in "Sins of the Father" in such a unique way that it hardly seems possible to work so well, especially since even fans of Deep Space Nine still tended to groan about "Ferengi episodes."  Which not only does a disservice both to one of the best continuing threads of the series, but the incredibly rich and diverse storytelling it represented, a direct reflection of the series itself.

All of which means, "House of Quark" is a lot of fun.  Seeing Quark get into trouble is always fun, because he's one of the cockiest characters in Star Trek and so it's always interesting to see him thrown for a loop.  Yet he recovers brilliantly, and never sacrifices his scruples, and still comes out looking better than he has any right to, coming up with one clever solution after another to the mounting series of complications from the premise roughly outlined above, not the least of which is another unlikely romance, which works better here than in the previous "Profit and Loss," which may in the end have tried too hard to subvert character expectations.  There are no such problems here, and the season is just getting started with Quark!

The B-story involves Keiko's continuing troubles in fitting in at the station.  She was never comfortable with O'Brien's assignment there, feeling every bit as isolated as Sisko did.  It was only fitting, then, that she take Sisko's place, now that the new season had finally helped him feel at home.  This was always a difficult and courageous thing for the series to explore, Keiko's discontent, because there was always the risk of her being dismissed as a nagging shrew, and yet instead just the opposite happens: she ends up joining the proud Deep Space Nine tradition of strong women.  As a character who first appeared in Next Generation, which tended to keep women in supporting, nurturing roles, Keiko's development in Deep Space Nine was a crucial sign that it really was a bold new era for the franchise, and this is yet another thing the third season took great strides at correcting.

(Those looking for parallels with later developments would note the synergy of the two stories, as Quark helps a woman claim head of household, which is something he'll struggle with later when it comes to his mother...)

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Fans of Klingon episodes in general shouldn't miss this one.
• series - Fans of Ferengi episodes shouldn't, either.
• character - Nor fans of Quark, nor of Keiko.
• essential - Just go ahead and watch it already!

notable guest-stars:
Rosalind Chao (Keiko)
Max Grodenchik (Rom)
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
Mary Kay Adams

The Next Generation 6x23 "Rightful Heir"

rating: ****

the story: The clone of the legendary Klingon warrior Kahless causes considerable political turmoil among his people.

similar to: "Way of the Warrior" (Deep Space Nine), "Barge of the Dead" (Voyager)

my thoughts: After the intensity of the series Klingon arc begun in "Sins of the Father" three seasons earlier, the "Redemption" climax made it look like not only had it become difficult to continue ("Rightful Heir" arrives nearly two seasons later), anything that tried to had to do something truly out of the ordinary to justify itself.

"Rightful Heir" does exactly that.  The legendary Kahless is second only to Vulcan's Surak as a great historical figure in Star Trek's aliens mythology, said to have, like Surak, set his people on their present course.  Both of them debuted in the original series episode "The Savage Curtain" (Surak would have to wait ten more years, in an Enterprise three-part episode, to have his return engagement).  The idea of cloning comes up surprisingly sparsely in franchise lore (Deep Space Nine's Vorta are big proponents; Next Generation's "Up the Long Ladder" makes the Dominion's Vorta program look virtuous by comparison), but that's how Kahless ends up in this episode.  Cloning itself isn't even the issue (somewhat surprisingly), but what to do with Kahless now that he's, for all intents and purposes, back.

As a standalone Klingon episode (unlike every other Next Generation effort, following "Sins"), "Rightful Heir" thusly has a unique position.  If you somehow don't have the time to sift through the whole preceding arc, in which we eventually meet Gowron and see how he becomes Chancellor of the High Council, you can still enjoy his predicament in a different kind of power struggle (the Dominion War in Deep Space Nine eventually gives him another, don't worry!).  Caught in the middle, as always, is Worf.

This is another Next Generation preview of Deep Space Nine, in a way.  The importance of spiritual beliefs would become an increasingly important part of Deep Space Nine mythology.  Worf's struggles here are similar to the ones Kira and Sisko continually face.  Again, if you somehow don't have time to parse through a whole series, "Rightful Heir" fits the bill for that, too.

As far as exploring Klingon mythology goes, Voyager later features the Klingon afterlife in "Barge of the Dead."  Worf is caught in an equally tricky situation, in a crossroads of his career, in his Deep Space Nine debut, "Way of the Warrior."

But I don't mean to bog you down in a lot of references you either will or won't track down.  "Rightful Heir" works in its own right, which is mainly why I'm classifying it as a classic.  The bottom line is, this is a story about the messiness of actually confronting a legend, and whether or not they can live up to their reputation.  It does the idea justice.

criteria analysis: franchise - series - character - essential (all criteria met)

notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)

The Next Generation 5x1 "Redemption, Part 2"

rating: ****

the story: The end of the Klingon civil war sees scrambling on all sides to effect their best possible result.

similar to: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part 2" (Next Generation), "The Search" (Deep Space Nine), "Kir'Shara" (Enterprise)

my thoughts: A true Next Generation classic concludes, perhaps the defining story of the series, as various strands come together, some touched on in the preceding entry, others newly introduced.

The operatic nature of Klingon politics kind of speaks for itself at this point.  More compelling are the matters of Sela and Data in command of a starship.  In Sela is a peculiar legacy of the series, the re-introduction of Denise Crosby into series lore after her departure in the first season and subsequent return in the landmark "Yesterday's Enterprise," the events of which are herein recounted to notable skepticism until Guinan steps in to try and make sense of them.  The results are almost more compelling for the character of Guinan than Sela.  Sela returns in "Unification," while Guinan's past is finally explored in "Time's Arrow," both within this season, so clearly "Redemption" necessarily set up as well as concluded storylines for the series, another mark of its crucial nature.

And yet, the big confrontation between Picard and Sela is almost academic.  Less so is Data's arc in the episode, in which he requests field command in the task force assigned to curb the fighting.  It's a direct reflection of how Starfleet is still coming back from the devastation of the Borg crisis in "Best of Both Worlds," and a unique further examination of how Starfleet as a whole views Data.  Those unfamiliar with him, it seems, still underestimate him.  His rebellious first officer believes Data, an android, to view everything in cold terms, neglecting the human element, the sacrifices that may result from his strategies.  Never mind that in other episodes we're reminded that this is precisely makes command material.  In Data it's seen as a flaw.  So he must once again demonstrate his brilliance in order to be accepted.  Although one aspect of the episode, it's worth remembering in its impact on Data as a whole.

Of course, there's also the matter of how Worf finally resolves his relationships with the Klingons and Starfleet.  That's the essence of "Redemption," how it all reflects around this character.  Both Data and Sela only serve to reflect what happens to Worf, after all.  And the end of the episode is a direct answer to "Sins of the Father," in which he made a difficult decision that led to "Redemption" in the first place.

It's one of the most significant moments in the series, and in the franchise, and largely defines what makes Star Trek what it is, more interested in the personal moments than in the greater ramifications, the ability to turn away from the drama rather than be defined by it.  If this had been Star Wars, Worf would never have even considered rejoining Starfleet, much less letting slip his opportunity for revenge.  If you ever wanted to explain the differences between the two franchises to someone, "Redemption" is exactly the story to use as your example.  Star Trek features space exploration, but it's about the exploration of self first and foremost.  Even if the self is an alien from a warrior culture who ended up joining a different family entirely.

And yet, of course, the Klingon saga in Star Trek only grew larger.  That's the beauty of "Redemption."

criteria analysis: franchise - series - character -essential (all criteria meta)

notable guest-stars:
Denise Crosby (Sela)
Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan)
Tony Todd (Kurn)
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
Barbara March (Lursa)
Gwynyth Walsh (B'Etor)
Colm Meaney (O'Brien)

The Next Generation 4x26 "Redemption"

rating: ****

the story: Klingon civil war breaks out thanks in no small part to Romulan instigation, leading Worf to make a difficult decision.

similar to: "Way of the Warrior" (Deep Space Nine), "The Expanse" (Enterprise)

my thoughts: In many ways, "Redemption" is far more important to Next Generation's legacy than "The Best of Both Worlds."  Where the latter is plenty iconic, "Redemption" defined in large part the show's legacy, which can be felt in each subsequent Star Trek series and in television generally.  It's the point where serialized storytelling became more important than serialization, not because of soap opera qualities or some general goal, but because the mythology of a concept became the most important aspect of the storytelling.

I'm incredibly tempted to write a whole article on the predecessors and successors to "Redemption," from Next Generation itself, from other series, other movies.  It's a legacy that quickly eclipses "Best of Both Worlds."  It's really that important. 

For starters, it introduces the Duras Sisters, Lursa and B'Etor, who end up impacting the franchise in ways the far more limited and utilitarian Duras himself ever could.  They appear throughout the remainder of the series, in Deep Space Nine, and join Khan and the Borg as familiar figures to appear in the movies when they meet their demise in Generations, always scheming but in increasingly unpredictable ways.  In a lot of ways, they're the true legacy of Harry Mudd, and they're a lot harder to forget.

If you start only from "Sins of the Father" and "Reunion," in which Worf enters the Klingon fray more directly than at any other point in his life, "Redemption" expands those developments and builds on them.  In Star Trek lore, Klingons have opera.  In the episodes themselves, this is the Klingon opera, a crescendo of all the best work the series had done to this point, and in a lot of ways, the rest of it was kind of a letdown, never really trying something this ambitious again (there's the realm of Deep Space Nine).

This is the meat and potatoes of the franchise mandate, coming to terms with an alien culture, in ways the original series and Spock could only play at, even in the movies.  Worf's conflicts are indeed epic.  Although he does return to Starfleet, the fact that he leaves at the end of this episode and season is completely unprecedented, and prove the depth of his character and the series around him.

This is a culmination, besides, of the rich character work that was the season at the peak of its creativity, and it successfully and artfully weaves high drama around a main character and significant guest stars around him, something that had heretofore eluded both the season and series so far, so often with one or the other dominating, but never both at the same time.

And the story only gets better...

criteria analysis: franchise - series - character - essential (all criteria met)

notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly (Gowron)
Tony Todd (Kurn)
Barbara March (Lursa)
Gwynyth Walsh (B'Etor)
Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan)
Denise Crosby (Sela)

The Next Generation 4x7 "Reunion"

rating: ****

Memory Alpha summary

Not pictured: Gowron
(even though he's the best
Klingon ever!)

There's a lot to know about this episode:

1) It's the return, and death, of K'Ehleyr.
2) Alexander officially becomes a fixture of Next Generation.
3) Duras makes his second and final appearance, but with hugely lasting ramifications.
4) The debut of Gowron!

Besides that, it's the Klingons are their politically operatic best.  For a series that was reluctant to use the Klingons at all, some of Next Generation's best work involved them, not merely because of Worf's presence, but because the series discovered in the classic aliens a rich source of storytelling potential, using them less as villains and more as the springboard for high drama which might otherwise have forever eluded the franchise.  More than in the several film appearances, including the climactic Undiscovered Country, with which "Reunion" shares some blood, this episode was the moment everything came together.

Thus, very easily, a classic.  Both K'Ehleyr and Duras had made impactful appearances before, but seeing them converge, and not even necessarily over their mutual acquaintance Worf, was the catalyst the episode needed.  Alexander, Worf's son with K'Ehleyr, could be even more polarizing than Wesley Crusher before him in later appearances, but here he represents the great tragedy of what unfolds.

And it might indeed be called great tragedy.  When Klingon fan culture began linking them with Shakespeare, it wasn't just Undiscovered Country that brought the Bard to mind, but "Reunion" as well, perhaps more grandly.  Thrust into the mix is the would-be king Gowron, making the first of many welcome appearances in Next Generation and then Deep Space Nine.  I don't often talk about the actors in these reviews, but Robert O'Reilly is absolutely essential in how "Reunion" takes shape and makes history.  He may be the first great Klingon actor, and at times he achieves this distinction merely with his bulging eyes!  It takes considerable talent to produce something under that heavy prosthetic forehead.  O'Reilly was born for the task.

While Worf takes his rightful place in the course of events, it's Picard who truly rises to the occasion.  Long groomed as the true ambassador of Starfleet's peaceful potential, here he's given the unlikely role of mediating in the midst of Klingon egos, which he takes in stride.  With so many moving parts, the captain still finds his chance to shine and is the secret heart of the episode.  It's a defining moment for all involved, including the series and franchise as a whole.

Can you watch it and appreciate "Reunion" on its own?  Sure?  But remember, too, that without it the more serialized nature of Star Trek in the years ahead might never have happened.

four quarter analysis
franchise * series * character * essential

notable guest-stars:
Suzie Plakson
Robert O'Reilly

The Next Generation 2x19 "Manhunt"

rating: ****

Memory Alpha summary

via The Viewscreen
"And then, sir?"
"Then we eat them."

We first meet Lwaxana Troi in the first season episode "Haven."  But this is her proper introduction.  It is an out-and-out classic, and every subsequent appearance, whether in Next Generation or Deep Space Nine, is an effort to recapture exactly this magic.  Only in her DS9 appearances, actually, does Lwaxana get to do much that's substantially different, thanks to her odd relationship with Odo (though Next Generation's "Half a Life" serves as something of a preview for that).

In short, she drives everyone crazy.  Usually you need Q to accomplish that, but then, maybe Lwaxana always was Q without all the omnipotence.  She's just omnipresent.  Yay!

In fact, let's take that a step further.  Q episodes before "Manhunt" feature Q in the role of a challenger.  Q episodes after "Manhunt" feature Q in the role of a trickster.  Is this a coincidence?  I think not.  Now, just imagine an episode with Q and Lwaxana...Thankfully this never, ever happened.  Everyone would've gone insane...

"Manhunt" also features the prism of Picard and Riker contrasting against each other, which "Peak Performance" two episodes later also does (not to mention the preview from "The Measure of a Man").  In that sense, it's the culmination of a season's worth efforts to distinguish the two and make it less of a competition, perhaps the tipping of the scales away from Riker and back toward Picard, as the second season had clearly flirted with early on.  The show's creators knew there was a problem.  They didn't necessarily know what the problem was, but they did considerable work trying to figure it out.  Again, as I've stated previously, the revelation that was the third season would not have been possible without all the work from the second.  "Manhunt" is so casual about it you probably wouldn't even expect that kind of effort behind it.  

But then, like Q, Lwaxana was a character designed to find stress points.  She just happened to be the first of the two to actually push the series to its best all on her own.  

four quarter analysis

franchise * series * essential * character

notable guest-stars:

Majel Roddenberry

Diana Muldaur

Robert O'Reilly

Carel Struycken

Colm Meaney

Enterprise 2x25 "Bounty"

***

The Klingon arc begun in "Judgment" continues in "Bounty," in which Archer's escape from the penal colony of Rura Penthe finally comes back to haunt him.  If that's not interesting enough for you, the episode also features Enterprise's first use of Tellarites, another species first seen in the original series but unused since.

Ah, and if that's not enough for you, T'Pol suffers from pon farr, the Vulcan mating drive famously depicted in "Amok Time" (and Voyager's "Blood Fever").  Like other points where the series depicts something later generations are only just supposed to be learning about, the episode leaves the topic unnamed, and since only Phlox is made aware of her condition, the secret remains pretty safe.  In fact, this whole aspect of the episode is better viewed for the sake of Phlox than T'Pol, even though it's about as uncomfortably atypical as "The Breach."  This is probably the only time the good doctor would ever be reduced (nearly) completely to comic relief, though some fans thought he reached that point (wrongly) in "A Night in Sickbay" still earlier in the season.  It's safe to say that the second season saw a lot of weird things attempted with the character.

Getting back to the main story, it's a lot like "Canamar," which as you'll remember was originally conceived as the ending of "Judgment."  This time Archer doesn't attempt to hide his identity, however.  It's Archer as he'd come to be known in the Xindi arc of the following season, actually.  Like the next (and final) episode of the season, "The Expanse," "Bounty" functions well as a preview of things to come.  Tellarites return in the fourth season, so that's another thing you might take away from this episode.  They never reach the level of Andorians in the series, but this is a fine starting point for what's done.

Don't think I've overlooked the Klingons!  The relevance Klingon element doesn't have to do with Klingons themselves, but rather another actor famous for portraying one making an appearance this season.  This time it's Robert O'Reilly, playing a rival to the Tellarite.  You know O'Reilly, right?  He played Gowron.  You'd know his eyes anywhere.

franchise * series * essential * character

Notable guest-stars:
Robert O'Reilly

Memory Alpha summary.