DS9 Flashback: Prophet Motive

Though all incarnations of Star Trek have been primarily dramatic, some weren't afraid of staging largely comedic episodes. Deep Space Nine was the most willing to try of the "second age" Star Trek shows, usually focusing on the Ferengi when they wanted to play for laughs. So it was with "Prophet Motive."

Grand Nagus Zek arrives on the station, but he isn't acting like himself. He's generous, philanthropic, and honest -- and he has a vision that all Ferengi will follow his example. Quark initially suspects an elaborate scheme, but soon decides there's actually something very wrong that he's determined to uncover. Meanwhile, Dr. Bashir finds himself nominated for a prestigious award he thinks he has no chance of winning -- but the enthusiasm of his friends and colleagues is infectious, and he begins to get his hopes up.

This episode sprang from two unusual sources of inspiration. One was an unsold script that show runner Ira Steven Behr had written years earlier when he was first trying to break into the business -- an episode of the sitcom Taxi. The story, about a caddish character shocked to learn than the womanizing uncle he idolized has changed his ways, formed the loose outline of Quark's story here.

Bashir's story line was inspired by real life. As this season of Deep Space Nine was kicking off, the final season of The Next Generation was nominated for an Emmy for Best Dramatic Series. Knowing that science fiction never really got award love outside of technical categories -- and being up against the red hot new NYPD Blue -- everyone involved with the Star Trek knew they had no chance. Unless... what if they did? As the Emmy ceremony drew closer, many of the people who'd worked on the now departed Next Generation talked themselves into believing that just maybe it wouldn't be "an honor just to be nominated." But in the end, as expected, they lost. (Not as expected, they lost to Picket Fences.)

This B story actually shows that Deep Space Nine didn't have to turn to the Ferengi when it wanted to be funny. The banter between O'Brien (giving the doctor grief about his chances) and Bashir (needling the chief about how much longer his wife will be living off station) is great fun. Odo catching Bashir working on a speech he's sworn he won't need is amusing too. That said, it is an odd little story line. Bashir tells us at the beginning exactly what's going to happen, and that's exactly what happens in the end. It's not exactly the most engaging narrative -- though it is enough to hold some humor.

The A plot is carrying most of the weight, though. From fun silent acting by Tiny Ron as Zek's servant Maihar'du, to a splash of "The Odd Couple" when fussy Quark and slovenly Rom have to live together, to big sight gags surrounding the book of the "New Rules of Acquisition," and even an audio gag as a kidnapped Zek hums happily inside his sack -- the light touch works. It's broad, for sure, but it works. Particularly fun, I think, is how this episode leans into the "Rom isn't as dumb as everyone thinks he is" gag that only been flirted with before this. In the course of this episode, we learn Rom has been stealing from the Quark's bar for years to furnish his quarters, and that's he's both brave and clever enough to embezzle from the Grand Nagus himself.

The serious elements of the episode are interesting, though. Ultimately, we learn that Zek has met the wormhole aliens, who have altered him to behave this way. We see the Prophets again for the first time since the pilot, with Quark now an unlikely substitute for Sisko. It winds up being an intriguing subversion of lofty Star Trek principles: the same noble drive for self-improvement that humans praise is attributed by Quark to ambition and greed.

This episode is the first of eight to be directed by Rene Auberjonois -- following in the footsteps of Avery Brooks and several Next Generation actors before him to take the reins of a Star Trek episode. He had directed many plays before this, but never an hour of dramatic television. At the time, he said of the job that one "has to make so many decisions and I'm not a person who particularly likes to make decisions." Much more recently, he confessed in an interview that he probably didn't really want to direct for Star Trek that much in the first place, but sort of felt an obligation to do so. He didn't think too highly of his own work in many episodes, though he said he grew more comfortable with directing over time.

You can see his theatrical background in this episode. The work with the actors is very good. Auberjonois gets solid performances from all of them, particularly Armin Shimerman as Quark and Max Grodénchik as Rom. Actors are blocked in interesting ways throughout, particular highlights being Rom sitting in the window as he reads the New Rules of Acquisition, and a row of intimidating Prophets that Quark encounters in the wormhole. But the camera placement is quite pedestrian throughout. It is often treated like the proscenium of a stage, with the actors playing right to it. Auberjonois was correct: he would get better over time.

Other observations:

• The opening moments of the episode remind us about oo-mox, and how molesting a Ferengi is a gross (but effective) way to get what you want. But this makes it more noticeable when, later in the episode, Zek grabs Quark's ear playfully.

• Fun acting from people as wormhole aliens in this episode. Nana Visitor plays "Prophet Kira" with particularly stilted and clipped speech. And Tiny Ron, who never once on the series speaks as Maihar'du, does have dialogue here as a Prophet.

• The game of darts makes its debut as O'Brien and Bashir's new down-time diversion. It was much cheaper to show than the racquetball court.

• Armin Shimerman invents a Ferengi gesture of promise here, pinching his ring finger and thumb together. Fun, but not as enduring as Leonard Nimoy's "live long and prosper."

A fun little lark, I give "Prophet Motive" a B. It may not be one of the greats, but I think Rene Auberjonois was being too hard on himself in evaluating the finished product.