The Sisko family heads to the desert planet Tyree in search of the Orb of the Emissary, bringing along newly joined Trill Ezri Dax. Martok and Worf seek to destroy a Dominion shipyard in Jadzia's name, with Bashir, O'Brien, and Quark along for support. And Kira mounts a blockade against a Romulan armada with Odo at her side.
There is a lot packed into this single episode, yet nothing feels rushed and there's plenty of room for interesting character arcs. Most significant, of course, is the full-fledged introduction of Ezri Dax. It's handled quite nimbly, giving you a strong sense of the new character without letting her overwhelm the episode.
That character did not come easily, though. Staff writer René Echevarria says the only thing they knew for certain was that the new Dax host would be a woman, as they knew Kira could not be the only female main character on the show. Casting efforts reportedly came up empty until Echevarria suggested mapping their struggles finding an actress to the struggle of being a new host. What if this Dax was a host only by circumstance, unprepared for joining? Show runner Ira Steven Behr embraced this and expanded on it, conceiving Ezri as a neurotic character hearing voices in her head.
It's fun and quite different to see a Starfleet officer who isn't completely put together. Ezri gets space sick thanks to her joining. She can be impulsive. Still, she's also positive, even bubbly -- she's not haunted by the strange memories now in her head, though she easily could have been. Indeed, if you really think about it (and later episodes do dig into this), her plan for her life has been completely disrupted. She can't even trust that any given urge she feels is her own and not those of a former host.
The one thing she can trust is her friend in two lives and now a third, Benjamin Sisko. It says a lot that for all Ezri's uncertainty, she can put faith in that friendship. It says even more about him that he's instantly welcoming, with a big smile and with no reservation. The "family" of Deep Space Nine, people that in a way Ezri has never even met, is stronger than the family she's related to. (This will also be explored in later episodes.)
But Ezri's not the only one hearing voices. Indeed, Benjamin is experiencing this more literally as he's drawn into a revisit of his Benny Russell vision from the previous season. Last time was said to be a vision from the Prophets, while this time is said to come from the Pah-wraiths. Common to both is the appearance of Trek actors without their alien makeup; the fact that Casey Biggs wasn't available last time works out here as he gets to play the villainous Dr. Wykoff. Also common to both is a needle-pegging performance from Avery Brooks. Because no profound message about civil rights underpins this story, his crazed laughter as Benny Russell comes off a bit like "yeah, maybe he is a broken man in an asylum." Maybe it is a little over the top.
Then again, the ideas at play here are getting pretty big. This major revelation of this episode is that Sisko is quite literally part "god," in that his birth was arranged by the Prophets and his mother had been possessed by one. Sisko has been a messianic figure from the very beginning of this show, but this is still a pretty big leap for a science fiction show, especially one as traditionally secular as Star Trek, to take. But I think it works. And it puts a concrete answer on "why Sisko is the Emissary."
If this big idea isn't your thing, maybe some big visuals are. The Worf story line features some impressive images of the Dominion shipyard, Martok's ship flying dangerously near a star, and spectacular destruction. But there are nice character moments leading up to this. I'm not entirely sure Worf is in the wrong when he snaps at Bashir, O'Brien, and Quark for coming along -- two of the three of them have pretty much told us they're there because they were in love with Jadzia and wished she'd picked them over her husband. But there's always fun in watching Quark clash against Klingon culture, and in seeing the friendship between Martok and Worf -- two Klingons that actually smooth each other's rough edges rather than sharpen them.
Kira may be a Colonel now, but her story line represents some major growth (yeah, I did that) when you really stop to think about it. Her actions here amount to a sit-in, a non-violent protest. This is such a dramatic shift in strategy from her Resistance fighter days that one imagines her past self couldn't even have conceived of it. Along the way, she draws strength from Odo, and from a timely and inspirational return of the wormhole.
Other observations:
- I feel like there's a nice rapport between Ezri and Jake. I could imagine the world where they ended up as a romantic pairing. (Maybe the Dax part of Ezri Dax makes that too awkward?)
- Damar is trying to drown his frustrations not only with drink, but with women. The quick scene where he's trying to impress a date by bringing her into "HQ" is fun, especially Weyoun's casual threats that bring down the mood.
- Don't touch a Bajoran artifact without permission. They'll throw you 20 feet. It's just what they do.
- Part of me wishes that Quark had been able to contribute in some small way at the end to drive home that it was good having him along after all. But most of me appreciates that it would have been far too convenient for it to play out that way.
- To fill the walls of Benny Russell's room with writing, the production reportedly took episode synopses from a working draft of the Deep Space Nine Companion book and had everyone in the art department take turns transcribing it by hand, with a pencil. Authenticity!
I give "Shadows and Symbols" a B+. It completes the solid opening to the final season.
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