PATRON TAKES - DS9 S1E6

The first really excellent DS9 episode IMO. A tier for me.

I never loved this episode. It's... boring for a long portion of it. That being said, it's better on a rewatch and there are some good moments for the Chief.

Chief O'Brien focused episode, ehhhhhh!.... I mean A! That is all.

The guest stars MADE this rather slow-moving episode so much more enjoyable to me. MemoryAlpha: "Captive Pursuit" is Colm Meaney's favorite episode from the first season..."Scott MacDonald who played Tosk, was tremendous. He gave a great performance. We had a lot of fun doing it. We were on the edge there. Were we interfering with these people, their philosophy, their society? At the same time, what has happening there wasn't fair. It was a classic Star Trek story.""

One of the better episodes of early DS9 imo, explores interesting ideas, and has some genuine emotional moments. The makeup on the aliens was great. Cool to see Chief taking center stage also, though not as good as later when it turns out he was actually secretly a Jedi the whole time and recruits Odo to destroy the Sith once and for all (sorry for spoilers). Jk of course. 7.5/10, Really Good, B Tier.

It's just a small background moment, but I think Quark saying "I will return your currency" after kicking that person out of his bar is actually a somewhat defining character moment. A "typical Ferengi" would absolutely never willingly return someone's money once they have it. I guess it says something about the episode that that's what I feel most compelled to talk about. 5/10 (C). Good premise, but just average in execution

O’Brien showing he’s so much more now then his transporter room days, here’s to seeing more of the goat in the future in storytelling, Also like how Sisko was happy to let the prime directive slip at the end himself, showing how he is possibly open to interpreting his own version of the prime directive

I think this one is a miss. It's too bad, too, because as the first episode that focuses on O'Brien I think it's just sort of... odd for his character. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me as to why they gave this story to O'Brien. Given what we have seen in the short series so far I feel like maybe Kira would have made more sense. I think it also tries to cash checks that the series hasn't yet earned in terms of character dynamics. It is not the worst episode, but it's one I'd normally skip if I came across it on television somewhere.

Season 1 DS9 is like looking at a beautiful painting in the reflection of a fun house mirror. The bits that look right contrast heavily with the twisting and warping.

You know how everyone is always saying “ DS9 is darker “? Yeah. I really love Sisko here and, I know I already said this but… why is everyone just acting their asses off on a season 1?!

If I'm not mistaken, this episode won an award of some kind for makeup design. I destinctly remember seeing tosk as a kid and thinking.... wow DS9 "looks" better than TNG

Typical TNG style wholesome drivel. Nothing happens for 35 minutes, and instead at approx minute 10 Chief tells his group "I know he's hiding something I don't know what, but I like him!", and then for a little variety 20 minutes later after no plot advancement, lets have a scene where Chief says "I know he's hiding something, I don't know what, but I like him!"

O'Brien, standing up for the little guy! Good episode, solid B, with Colm Meany giving a great performance as always.

This was definitely an episode. DS9 still finding it's feet, it is an OK story, best part is the focus on THE CHIEF.

An intriguing concept. Never realized that Tosk and Hunters are the same species (Hunters just have hair). Colm Meaney gets some great moments here. Real star of the episode is Scott McDonald as Tosk. A for “A little slower, Odo….even slower….slooooooowwer.”

Me, struggling to keep my "Emissary" thoughts brief: 4 paragraphs vs. Me trying to write anything about this one: It wasn't a Tosk to watch. -_-

This one does well on a rewatch. All the stuff in the first few scenes where Tosk is answering all O'Brien's questions with "I am Tosk" actually makes sense when you know what the hell a Tosk is.

This was a favorite one of my early on, but it pales compared to later episodes this season.

This kind of fun never happened on the Enterprise. Like the idea of a Starfleet Officer having the epiphany the rules are different outside of paradise.

Good Spotlight episode for the Chief!

The Bimmy Rolfe alien who has no time! Love this one.

I think it's funny, ironically, that the first decision they make in this episode is, "throw away the first contact procedures". TNG What?

enjoyable , I like how O'brien helps Tosk and befriends him.

First contact in reverse. Being the first thing anyone coming from the gamma quadrant sees means they really ought to have experienced ambassadors on board, but they don't. How would the Enterprise crew have handled this?

The Chief = GOAT

Not very... Captivating. Pursuing that silly Power Rangers-look makes these hunters almost comical. The episode itself is ok. Colm Meaney's acting is great as always. C.

Tosk made for an interesting character. I think he was used to help develope O'Brian character.

No no, you see the slave we hunt for sport isn't a slave because it WANTS to be hunted. Uhhhhhhhhmmmm. Surely we've violated the Prime Directive for less?

What do you do when someone is genetically engineered and raised to be a victim? Better analysis here than Harry Potter offered for house elves.

Tosk is an example of what DS9 is doing well, create an intriguing character. A strong O’Brien episode and love the downer ending.

This is a fairly good episode. Tosk is a pretty likeable character, so pairing him up with O'Brien works well. It was also a good indication that they didn't just bring O'Brien over from TNG as a token link to that series. He got the main character treatment here. Solid B.

I think there's a consensus that the first two seasons of DS9 are bad or mediocre, I firmly think they are strong and would point to this episode and others as one of the reasons I think so. I really loved Tosk and O'Brien in this, but weirdly I also love this for Sisko. It's tough to establish a new Commander/Captain and how he "disciplines" O'Brien at the end while silently encouraging him I thought really helped solidify what kind of character he is and how he leads.

I wonder how much you big your guys reactions will be to Odo morphing and whether you'll see it coming. I definitely thought "Why the hell is there a random painting in the middle of the hallway" when I watched that scene

Love this one. Our first look beyond the Wormhole, and what a story for The Chief - completing his transition from side-character in TNG to full cast in DS9.

Definitely one of the best of the season. O'Brien once again cements himself as the best character in all of Trek. And it feels good when a character is rewarded for doing something good.