Misdirected Mark Forums

I picked this episode for two reasons...

GARAK!
I love this character so much, and I suspect many of you will as well, as the series goes on. Garak's introduction is so good. This show was made at a time where there was not going to be a gay relationship on the show, but Garak's coming onto Bashir is wonderful, as is how flustered Julian gets. Trust me, a few google searches and you will see volumes of these two being shipped. Even the actors admit that if it had been permitted they would have likely had some kind of relationship.

The other reason I picked this episode, is that it gives us some insight to Kira. Kira is a complex character, having spent most of her adult life as a freedom fighter (or terrorist), and now she has backed the provincial government, and trying to give up as well as live with the things she has done in her past. For frame of reference, I believe that Kira is 26 at the time of season 1.

The arrival of an old comrade brings about a great conflict in her as well as with her comrade as she has to deal with the fact that she is now "mainstream" and not as radical as she was in the past.

As TNG is still helping DS9 get off the ground, we get a surprise when the Duras sisters come aboard the station, once again giving a little boost to the show. It won't be the only time a TNG character shows up, we have a few more cameo appearances coming...

The story I think flows well and while the conflict about the terrorist is pretty straightforward, the story is really about Kira making a decision or at least re-affirming her commitment to the provincial government and being legitimate rather than a terrorist.

It’s really strange how my memory reassembles things from this season. I don’t remember Garak and Bashir interacting this quickly in the series.

The discussion on terrorism and former terrorists reintegrating into a society once active hostilities had subsided feels so different looking at the timeframe in which this story was told. It was timely for the changing political picture in Ireland and Palestine, and it’s really sad to think that the situation between Israel and Palestine once felt like it was truly stabilizing (this episode was the same year as the Oslo Accords, and the Downing Street Declaration, although this episode was in production and aired before either of these events).

Hey, look at that, some of our recurring Klingons from TNG. This does make me wonder about allies and extradition treaties.

Arguments like the one between Kira and Sisko feel like they have higher stakes, because this isn’t a regular crew member putting heads with Picard or Riker, this is young political alliance with officers from two different organizations having a conflict over what needs to be done on the station.

One thing to note here, for the historical perspective of when this episode and much of DS9 aired, is that Ireland was still going through The Troubles. The Good Friday Agreement wouldn't happen until '98, as the final season of DS9 was being written. The Kohn-Ma are a pretty direct analog for the IRA. Especially, I think, since Tahna Los is effectively building a car bomb.