DS9 Flashback: Homefront

The story that ultimately became Deep Space Nine's two-part episode "Homefront" and "Paradise Lost" was originally conceived of for the third-season finale, then shelved when the studio asked they not do an explicit cliffhanger. Then it was postponed from opening season four when the decision was made to introduce Worf to the series, necessitating a big, Klingon-centered story. Finally, just over a third of the way into the season, the time for "Homefront" finally arrived.

When a changeling infiltrator stages a terrorist attack on Earth, Sisko and Odo are summoned to Starfleet headquarters to discuss increased security measures. It's also an opportunity for Jake to see family (his grandfather Joseph) and friends (Nog, in his first year at Starfleet Academy). The hawkish Admiral Leyton installs Sisko as Chief of Starfleet Security, and pushes the reluctant Federation president Jaresh-Inyo for sweeping changes that affect even civilian life on the planet.

"Homefront" is a solid story idea that stumbles in execution in a few important ways. One is a lack of money to convey the necessary scope. This story puts all of Earth in jeopardy, but we don't see much of Earth beyond tiny offices (not befitting the status of the people working there), the sparsely populated grounds of Starfleet Academy, and Joseph Sisko's restaurant (both tiny and sparsely populated). Had this story been a season finale or opener as originally conceived, there might have been money in the budget to convey the right sense of scope here. As it stands, planet Earth feels strangely almost more claustrophobic than Deep Space Nine.

The other key shortcoming is one of tone. Simply put, I don't think the episode's writers (Ira Steven Behr and Robert Hewitt Wolfe) truly understood terrorism at the time they wrote this. It was nearly six years before 9/11; really, did any of us fully appreciate what terrorism could look like or how it could make us feel? The conference bombing that opens this episode is supposed to be the first thing like this to happen on Earth in a century. But O'Brien and Bashir's supposedly shocked reaction is played for comedy opposite an atypically empathetic Quark. Worf, rather than contacting his family on Earth, is cracking jokes about Klingon mythology. Joseph Sisko is oddly light about the situation. Even Leyton feels off the mark; I'd expect his anger about how he could have prevented this to ride closer to the surface.

All that said, even if this story isn't being told as convincingly as I'd hope, they are at least trying to tell the right story. The balance between security and freedom is very much at the heart of this episode. Joseph Sisko makes an impassioned speech against the evils of totalitarianism, standing up in defiance much sooner than I think most people would. We get to see warhawks and pacifists clash in their philosophies, and see Benjamin Sisko slide along that continuum throughout the story. (That's "Benjamin Lafayette Sisko," we learn, when his father gets particularly riled up.)

The episode also presents the ugliness of xenophobia, from the racism Odo expects to face when he goes to Earth to the casual way Leyton claims an alien president can't care about Earth the way humans do. And for good measure, there's an authentic look at the struggles of trying to get an older family member to take their health seriously. In all these moments where the episode really does treat its subject matter more seriously, it's excellent.

There's great guest casting too. Besides first-time Trek guest Robert Foxworth (who'd reportedly been "saved" for a bigger role when he auditioned earlier in the season), we get two actors doing something truly rare in Star Trek: playing a second human character when they'd played one previously. Susan Gibney had memorably played Leah Brahms on The Next Generation (twice!), while Brock Peters played Admiral Cartwright twice in the classic Star Trek motion pictures. Both get to show their range in these new roles; Gibney has none of the warmth she projected as Brahms, while Peters as Joseph Sisko gets to rail again exactly the sort of person he played as Cartwright!

It's also nice to see Nog continue on the series, something you wouldn't necessarily have expected after he was sent to Starfleet Academy. Unfortunately, his part in this episode contributes more to the jarring tonal clash -- in the aftermath of a terrorist attack on Earth, his greatest concern is not fitting in with the cool kids at school. At least this subplot would be revealed to have hidden significance in part two.

Other observations:

• Up until this point, any mention of Ben Sisko's father has strongly implied he was dead. Not only is he shown to be alive here, we also learn Ben has a sister, Judith, who lives in Portland.

• In speaking of family on Earth, Bashir somewhat pointedly doesn't have anyone he wants Odo to relay a message to. Next season, the writers would pick up on this apparent tension between Bashir and his parents, providing an intriguing explanation.

• In the midst of his defiant rant, Joseph Sisko suggests that a clever changeling could beat a blood screening test, and even suggests how. He's probably right, too, as I can think of one specific character who is tested at one point in the series, then revealed to be a changeling at a later point. It'll take a while, but we'll get to that eventually.

This episode may not be action-packed, but it's quite on point with its look at paranoia. Still, it's an especially incomplete tale without its second half. I give the setup, "Homefront," a B.