DS9 Flashback: The Nagus

The Ferengi were conceived in the earliest days of Star Trek: The Next Generation, intended to be that series' ongoing "Big Bad." But their first appearance was such a bust, and followed up by more lackluster outings, that they quickly became the laughing stock of the Star Trek universe. I don't know if the writers of Deep Space Nine made a specific mission out of rehabilitating them, but step one of that process began with making Quark a regular character. Step two came with "The Nagus."

Grand Nagus Zek, leader of the Ferengi Alliance, comes to Deep Space Nine, sending Quark into a panic that his bar is about to be bought out. But the news isn't bad: the Nagus wants Quark to host a conference of Ferengi business leaders, where a grand strategy for the Gamma Quadrant will be hammered out. What's more, Zek is announcing his retirement, and he's selected Quark to be his successor.

Over on The Next Generation, writer Ronald D. Moore developed a reputation for Klingon episodes, writing nearly all of them and charting the creative direction for the race. Though he didn't know it here, writer Ira Steven Behr would eventually fill the same role for the Ferengi. He took the original idea here (from episode director David Livingston) for a meeting of multiple alien races looking to establish a new crime syndicate, and refocused it on just the Ferengi. He also ran with a suggestion from Rick Berman (and/or Michael Piller, according to some sources) to do a Godfather homage.

Behr's script for this episode introduced many of the elements that would define the Ferengi for the entire run of Deep Space Nine. This episode introduces the Rules of Acquisition (starting with the very first one), the Grand Nagus, the idea that Ferengi sell their vacuum-desiccated remains after death, and more. It's also the first Deep Space Nine that succeeds at being genuinely funny (on purpose, anyway) -- and according to actor Armin Shimerman, that convinced the producers that the series could have comedic episodes alongside more serious ones.

The jokes really do land all throughout the episode. There's Quark delegating grunt work to Rom, who in turn delegates it to Nog. There's the best use yet of barfly Morn. Nog gives us the future's version of "the dog ate my homework" in "Vulcans stole my ethics essay." (Why? "Because they don't have ethics?") Quark goes full Don Corleone, with Armin Shimerman mimicking Marlon Brando's performance and the set department even installing blinds on a window of the station just for the visual.

Fun work is born in the fun atmosphere. Composer John Debney delivers a noticeably light and entertaining score. (This was his first time working on Star Trek, and the first of only three episodes he'd do before finding steady work in film.) Actor Max Grodénchik dials in his performance of Rom, for the first time adopting the voice and behavior he'd use for the rest of the series. Even the actors with only a scene or two deliver the goods; Colm Meaney returns after a three-episode absence to show O'Brien struggling to fill in for his wife at school, while Terry Farrell is great in a scene where Dax recalls her failings as a parent over multiple past lives. But no one is doing better work than Wallace Shawn, who gets slathered in the entire makeup budget for most television series and still serves up a hilarious and indelible performance as Grand Nagus Zek. ("You failed! Miserably!")

Another strength of the episode is that it isn't all just lightweight fun. A solid and more emotional B-story revolves around Jake Sisko sneaking around to teach his friend Nog to read. A really honest relationship between Jake and his father is presented, with Benjamin being smart enough to know what will happen if he tries to force himself between a teenager and his best friend. The series isn't using Jake in every episode, but when it does, it's to present something more realistic and relatable that we ever saw written for the Crushers on The Next Generation.

Other observations:

• A recent episode, "The Passenger," did a terrible job in presenting red herrings to fool the audience. This episode does much better, giving us some credible suspects who might be after Quark before revealing that it's his own brother who's looking to kill him.

• Zek really is the only Ferengi we've ever seen who seems to be looking more than one step ahead, at the consequences his actions might bring. He may be the only example that proves the reputation of the Ferengi as cunning businessmen.

I'll readily admit that this isn't top shelf Deep Space Nine. Still, I think it's the strongest episode of the series to this point. And pulling that off in a story focused on the Ferengi is no mean feat. I give "The Nagus" a B+.