PATRON TAKES - DS9 S1E15

My personal opinion only, obvs, but second best episode of the season.

I love that the people we are supposed to cheer for - the Federation, the Bajorans, are not coming out squeaky clean on the other side of this one. Did you guys like Brian Keith as Mulibok? I'm going out on a limb, officially saying you'll like this guest actor.

This was very very depressing, and almost an anti trek episode. Kirk would have found a solution.

Kira probably went back to her quarters at the end of this episode and yelled "FASCIST" at her reflection in the mirror.

I always look forward to this episode in particular when I rewatch DS9, and it's easily one of the top two episodes of the season—a solid S—for me. I love the sympathetic and nuanced exploration of one of the most painful realities of large scale civilizations: how no matter which faction has power, so much centralized power means a normal person can have everything they've sacrificed for—everything they cherish—taken away from them without a care, and have no recourse. And, for Kira, how you can fight to be freed from oppression only to become someone else's oppressor once you've succeeded. And I enjoy the enterprising kids, too.

Always enjoyed this one. I sympathize with the old man, being a victim of what is essentially eminent domain, and being forced off of the land he had tamed. From his prospective, the new government can't be any better than the old one under the Cardassians. As for the Noh-Jay Consortium story, being from Iowa, where an acre of farmland can cost between $11,000 to $12,000, and generally increases yearly, I agree with Jake, land is a good investment.

Good progress, bad progress, consent, and the 'greater good' This is a simple case where every player has nose ridges -- imagine how hard to untangle the ethics a situation like this becomes when suddenly some of the players have neck ridges instead

If you wanna get a feel for how Major Kira stories are going to play out, here's your first of several main courses. I imagine if I was much, much younger I would hate this episode for being "boring." I personally think it's a great character study and has lots of balls for how it ends. Still not the best that S1 has to offer. Just wait for it~

The ending’s a gut punch but it drags in the middle. Love the look of the Lissepian though.

ah, "The Great Material Continuum" in full effect here. We're not quite out of the woods as far as bad episodes go (the first half of the season was a bit top-heavy with bangers), but delving more into Kira's psyche is always fun

Probably the second best episode of the season, and the first one that is really playing to the strengths of the show. It also teaches a lesson all too few people are willing to learn: Fighting an unfair system is tough, but building a better one from the inside is on a whole other level and a lot less satisfying.

I have always loved this episode. This is one of those episodes that I'll seek out if I'm just looking for some Star Trek happiness. Both plots are equally enjoyable. Kira begins to shine as something more compelling; Jake and Nog's trading journey is one of my favorite bits in all of Star Trek. Kira's story is both deep and bittersweet, while Jake and Nog's tale is whimsical and so satisfying.

I had forgetten about this episode, but watching it now it is one of the better ones of season 1.

A Kira Episode! Yay! What would you do with 100 Gross of Self-Sealing Stem Bolts?

I gotta admit, when I first watched this 30 years ago, I really didn't care for it. With age, it hits differently. Good episode.

Until now, I had found DS9 interesting because it was "new." This was the first episode that was really good and showed the show's potential. I was thrilled 30 years ago.

"You're on the other side now" is a lesson a lot of people could learn. You can't keep acting like you're the rebels when you're actually the ones in authority.

I think this episode is what Star Trek is all about, and on top of that it gives a great to opportunity to flesh out Kira's character. I still don't know who was "right" in this episode, and that's the point.

Good Kira episode, and one where you see her character arc developing. She’s not a rebel anymore, she’s a bureaucrat, and it’s beginning to sink in for her.

This episode shows how series makes rapid progress to "being good" compared to how long it took tng

Give me a million "boring" episodes like this rather than more "sci-fi action" episodes like Babel or The Passenger. D-S-9! D-S-9!

Welcome to the enigma of Self-Sealing Stem Bolts! How are you feeling about the kids on DS9?

Burn it down! What an ending! How would the TNG crew have handled the situation?

A real character building episode for Kira. What happens when a dyed-in-the-wool resistance fighter becomes 'the Man'? I thought Brian Keith put in a really good performance for a guest part here, and Visitor was top class. And let's not forget the self-sealing stem bolts!

Great Character episode. you get to see Kira deal with her internal conflict and learn how brutal the Cardassians must have been.

With this episode we have the "bad" part of the first season in the rear-view mirror (IMO). Nana Visitor is excellent here, and I think her conversations with the old man are the character focused stuff you guys are looking for. A first taste of what you can expect later on and how good the series will become from this moment forward.

Dull I'm afraid. Brian Keith is an old pro who always turned in a decent performance, but not enough was happening this episode. She found him endearing and charming at the start, and 3/4 of the way through all that happened was nothing except she still found him endearing and charming.

This is peak Star Trek and peak Sci-Fi. Exploring challenging moral dilemmas by wrapping it in fanciful fiction. It makes you think, it doesn't tell you what to think. It presents both sides, and allows the audience to make a determination. Add stellar acting and direction, and we have a banger.

Best episode of the season to this point. It's got pretty much everything going right for it. No problems at all with this episode.

A fantastic first season episodes, the way she show is giving this deep insight to Bajor and the Bajorans show why having a show set on a space station that doesn't move was a fantastic idea.

A beautiful and tragic episode that made me cry a few tears at the conclusion of the A plot with Kira. The B plot with Jake and Nog is good fun too, and no mere filler. A for the A plot, C for the B plot.

This is a really good episode for delving into Kira’s character and the way she has to adapt to changes in the world around her.

I think this is a great episode and Kira really shines here. All her life, she's been the plucky resistance fighter battling the oppressive system. Now she is an agent of the oppresive system. And that is a bitter pill for her to swallow. No good guys here. No bad guys either. Just people trying to do what they need to do. Top tier episode for me.

This episode is great for showing DS9s strengths. TNG typically has characters do what’s right despite the rules, but Kira is compelled to do the opposite: something she feels terrible about but must do because of her duty.

Here we go. One worthy of attention and our prime focus this time is Kira and we get a nice glimpse of her character here. The moral dilemma weighing the rights of 1 person over the benefit to a whole society. This puts Kira in turmoil of finding her place in this new Bajor. She has always been the underdog fighting with other underdogs. Wonderful guest star performance. Jake/Nog storyline is fun and offsets the heavy Kira plot with a little light hearted fun. Just how the kids should be used. I'd take a Jake/Nog story over a Wesley story any day of the week lol. While very good, this is still not my favorite episode this season, still waiting for that one.

Interested to see how you feel about this one. I think its a good precursor for DS9's eventual "voice" and some specific later episodes. I love the debate here and think Kira really shines playing off an excellent guest actor, but I can also see how some would find it all too "over the top" to fully enjoy. For me, this is a high B Banger that walks so some future As and Ss can run. If you like this one, I think you're really going to enjoy some future episodes, even in Season 1 still.

Bruh, I follow the episodes from netflix and s01e15 on netflix is a different one! This makes me question now if I've been writing takes on mismatched episodes xD

Why not just beam his whole cottage down to Bajor? If it worked for the whales? But then that would rob us of some fantastic character development for Kira.

What Star Trek does best: takes something more familiar, like resettlement (Native Americans? Palestinian refugees?), and wraps it in a sci fi setting. I have to say, the ending surprised me. Also like the B-story with Nog and Jake.

Mullibok should have had the right to choose. Yes, he could have chosen to make a personal sacrifice for the benefit of those other Bajorans, and that would have been a very nice and generous thing for him to do. On the other hand, he also should have had the right to choose to stay put and peacefully live out the rest of his life at his home. The Bajoran government took his choice away from him... violently. They showed up, pretended for a while that he actually had a choice, when he really didn't, and then ultimately the masks dropped and they blew up his kiln, set his house on fire, and forcefully relocated him. I have a very hard time seeing that kind of violence as so-called "progress". I don't hate Kira, but I hate what she ultimately decided to do. Great performances by Nana Visitor and Brian Keith.

I think this is the episode that DS9 finds its voice. The show is at its best when it doesn't offer the audience an easy answer and showcases the grey morality of a complicated situation. Plus I think this is where they figured out how to use Kira. Second best s1 episode (the best is still yet to come)

Nice story Good performances Nice character development Great Kira/Sisko stuff Sadly I miss it all being asleep! All the ingredients of a great episode but, BORING! 🥱

Classic moral dilemma, a stubborn old man rooted in his ways and his home (I'd be much like him if I was in his position), and more character development for Kira (you wanted it, you got it). Very solid episode.

I love this episode, understanding that all that you might have hated, when the tables turn, might be your only option, the kids plot is also cute enough!

Solid episode. I thought it was boring when I was younger but it grew on me over time.

After some duds, we’re back to quality Trek imo. Rating: A

This is definitely a, deliberately paced episode. But it's really showing Kira's growth. In the past she'd fight against forced relocation and the burning down of people's homes for resouces. Now she gets the "luxury" of concern for the greater good. Interesting dynamic, just wish I wouldn't keep nodding off during rewatches.

Brian Keith was pretty good in this. It was one of his last performances before he passed. Have fond memories of him playing uncle Bill on Family Affair.

This was a good Kira episode, but this felt like a retread of “The Ensigns of Command” from TNG season 3.

No easy answers here. We get an episode that really revolves around the guest star, and he almost does too good of a job. It's hard not to take his side over Kira's. I think Kira's line of thought that it was better coming from her than someone who might end up in a fight and kill him, but tough tough stuff. Nana Visitor's first real powerhouse actor moments in this one. I think you'll find there's more to come.

You said at the end of the Nagus that it seemed like Kira was benched. Now after Battle Lines and this one how do you feel? This is the kind of storytelling I love DS9 for.

After a long mid-season run of episodes that were just treading water or didn't quite hit the mark, the show starts coming back into its own with this episode, a very strong showcase for Nana Visitor and a big building block, following up on "Past Prologue" and "Battle Lines," in developing Kira's character. I don't really like the tonal whiplash between the A and B plots, though on its own terms the B story is quite fun.

This is my second favorite episode of the season, my favorite is yet to come. Love Kira's arc throughout this episode, and thoroughly enjoy the Jake/Nog subplot and how it ties in at the end. S tier.

DS9 has the best guest stars! What a great Kira episode! I love the way Sisko let's her decide what the right thing to do is. It shows the trust building between the 2. Better guest stars and better Kira eps on the way soon!

A constructive use of Kira’s hot-headed judgement. It’s been done before with Data and the aqueduct / Shelliac though. She didn’t even let him get his shit out of the house.

A necessary story for the evolution of Kira. Love the dynamic between her and Mullibok, made ever more so fun to watch thanks to the acting of Brian Keith. I know it wasn’t what the writer wanted, but it worked for me. Jake/Nog story is fun…the necessary comic relief needed to leaven an episode that gets a little flat sometimes. B for “burnin it all down”

You will like this. We discover more of who Kira is, and the kids are having their own adventure.

This is a great first true view into who Kira was and how far she's come. The ending is so uncomfortable, destroying everything he has to save him, despite him making it clear he didn't want to go on without it. That wrong thing done for the right reasons or "greater good" is something DS9 excels at. Plus, the B plot probably seems harmless fun but I think the friendship building between Jake and Nog is great to see in real time.

Now This is the Deep Space 9 we were talking about! Well Kira's main plot, the Jake & Nog subplot still a little goofy in the wrong way, also I thought it was leading to where they would buy the land needed for the "Energy Thing" with the Space Bolts, but that subplot kinda just ends

This is another episode that I find really strong that many consider dull. I just enjoy how much more realistic it is than TNG. TNG is the West Wing; DS9 is The Wire. Each approach has its merits, but tough choices and no easy answers will reel me in every time.

This episode continues the theme from Past Prologue so well. Kira isn't the rebel anymore, but now it isn't a terrorist that she's fighting, it's an old man that just wants to live somewhere the government has decided he shouldn't. Obviously there's a good reason for it, but I have to imagine Kira was thinking about her old friend calling her a traitor when she phasered that oldman's grill.

Peter Allan Fields wasn't happy with how sympathetic Mullibok came off as. He had written Mullibok to subvert expectations and be the nasty old man who DOESN'T turn out to be a big softy. Which version do you guys think works better here?

"Buckle up for wrenching Kira development" should be a promo line for many great DS9 episodes, and I feel this is the first strong entry. Watching someone grow out of lifelong occupation PTSD into a Federation-conpatible administrator/diplomat/leader is a brave and incredible story arc choice, imho.

This was the first episode. in which i really liked major Kira. The sense of the future steamrolling the past is really prevalent in this episode and the use of a actor who was prominent in my childhood, but not so common at that point in time helped illustrate the ongoing March of “progress” There’s a lot of depth in this episode

I i feel like this episode plays differently when you learn a little bit more about Kira's backstory.

An interesting episode, one of the first playing with the ideas of what not moving away every Episode means, that you need to pay attention to the local area, and people in it. I think the B plot is more memorable, especially with the introduction of one of their favorite running gags.

Good episode! Kira is not on the underdog side anymore and we see how she struggles with this realisation.

I think I enjoy this episode more than most. Besides Emissary, its the first episode of DS9 that really utilizes the series premise to its fullest. Also bonus points for the introduction of self-sealing stem bolts, the most important resource in Star Trek history.

Bajoran drama episode. World building.

Kira was caught between her duty and her sympathy for Mullibok’s plight. What do you think of her final solution? It seems a little harsh but destroying his house and kiln seemed like the only way to get him to let go.