Whoosh goes the runabout to start the episode containing Kira and Bashir. We have a conversation regarding some medical miracle that Bashir performed, and Kira was amazed by it. However, Bashir is graceless and amazes even himself. I kinda remember liking this guy after a point so hopefully he levels out. Then a distress signal is received.
They find a ship and start to rescue the occupants, but it’s apparently a prison transport ship with one prisoner and they attempt and fail to save him. In the prisoner’s death throes, he grabs Bashir by the neck and says “Make. Me. Live,” before expiring.
I now remember this episode. I don’t remember it fully, but I recall that the prisoner has transferred himself into Bashir somehow, and the plot of the episode deals with that. It’s a often used trope in sci-fi, but let’s see if the episode has any merits despite that, and how good my memory is.
The prisoner guard obsessively demands multiple proofs of the prisoner’s death as Bashir shows her the body, stating that he’s faked his death many times, that his intention was to get to DS9, and she has been chasing him for 20 years. I shall call her Javert.
Oh a chunky ceramic mug shaped like a flask, I kind of remember these being in fashion in the early-to-mid 90s. There have been several chunky mugs so far in the series.
Another lovely philosophical bar conversation between Quark and Odo, touched off by Jadzia’s presence. Why do writers write so many philosophical scenes in bars? Also why is the sound always so good for recording in these bars?
So, Odo mentions a Diridium shipment[1] to Quark during the conversation, and man in Federation uniform perks his ears up. The conversation and the ambiance of the scene flows nicely to stage the next bit.
Quark walks off to sit next to Jadzea after she smiles at him and the Federation security official walks over to Odo and starts giving him a dressing down about mentioning the shipment directly to Quark, while Quark is still in earshot. I think this was a subplot to discredit Odo and get him relieved of his job, but it turns out that it was a lame attempt to create tension and throw suspicion on the new character. They walk off to discuss it further. Odo says to discuss it in his office at a later time, 1700.
This security guy is giving off a strong gamma vibe.
Cut to Bashir, Kira, Sisko, and Dax discussing the dead prisoner’s autopsy. The race is called the Kobliat and they need this Diridium to survive. So the prisoner was here to hijack the shipment.
I just talked to Phill and he’s watched a bit more than I have of the episode, and he let slip that this is a heist episode. I may be wrong about Bashir. It could be that someone else was meant to revive the prisoner somehow as part of the heist. Perhaps Javert herself. I suspect that the Federation security officer may be in on it too.
Lieutenant security guy and Sisko have a chat, basically laying out character motivation. Security guy sees Odo as a country bumpkin, unable to handle the situation. Sisko disagrees.
Lieutenant security guy meets up with Odo, and is surprisingly apologetic, they shake hands and are ready to look at Odo’s plans when the DB comes up empty. The entire station DB has been wiped, which Odo says is impossible![2] Inspector Javert says that the Fugative did this on Rigel VII.
Commercial break
Interesting discussion of how the entire system was scanned, with apparently some misunderstanding on the part of the writers about how computer systems work, but it’s not completely unbelievable. Meeting concludes under the assumption that the Fugitive is alive.
Now a Odo and Sisko discussion. “I like where a man stands. There’s never been any question of that with you.” Odo’s unhappy about the Federation assistance. But Sisko decrees that Odo’s in charge.
Someone tried to break into the prison ship’s cargo bay, perhaps for a map of the humanoid brain.[3]
Strange scene with Quark complaining about his employees not doing a good job he sends them off and continues working alone, he’s then assaulted by someone who is apparently the Fugitive, but they disguise him so that you do not recognize his form and he whispers to disguise his voice. Quark had a deal with him. I do think that it’s Bashir here.
So, Javert missed a meeting with Bashir last night, perhaps when the Fugitive was meeting Quark. Could it be her that he’s invaded, or is this to throw us off? Medical report indicates that the Fugitive is dead. Dax calls Bashir to come to provide some medical advice. Now we get down to the Fugitive’s plan to hide in another person’s brain, and we hear Bashir relate the popular myth that a humanoid only uses a small portion of his brain, and they hypothosize that another entity could hide in the “unused portion” of Javert’s brain she being the same species makes it more compatible. So they leave her out of the security preparations, and surveil her, but only using the computer, which they know is compromised. I still think it’s Bashir. Javert comes to Odo complain about being locked out, and he explains that access is limited to 4 people, himself, Kira, Sisko, and the Federation security guy.
Cut to an after hours meeting in Quark’s bar.[4] Planning the heist of the shipment. Javert is spying on them and falls – what? why? how? In medical, she claims she was pushed by the Fugitive. They are looking for the method of transfer. For some reason that’s important to know to be able to find him in someone else. Now Dax has found the method.
Odo meets with Kira and is looking for the Federation security guy, who was meant to meet with Kira but hasn’t shown up. Maybe the security guy is in on it overt wink.
Back to Quark working on the heist… And we find that my memory was right, because Bashir is waiting for them. Dramatic cut to commercial.
Dax is looking for Bashir who has left his communicator in the infirmary.
Odo finds the Federation security guy who seems to be on the right track with the security situation, and has prevented a device from causing an hour-long shutdown of station systems.
The shipment is coming in and they redirect the ship to an alternate bay, but send security to both the original bay and newly designated one.
A runabout is going out to meet the shipment. Dramatic irony because we know full well what it’s doing, of course the crew has a good idea as well. Dax comes in saying Bashir is missing, and we are told by the computer that he authorized the launch of the run about.
Cut to heist action. The station locks a tractor beam on them. The Fugitive decides to engage the engines to prevent the tractor beam from pulling them in, and threatens to take the ship to warp, killing everyone on board, though presumably he has a plan for he himself to survive. They can’t use transporters as the cargo ship’s shields are up, they can’t risk firing on it because it could release diridum, which would require evacuation of the system.[5] Also the cargo ship going to warp while caught in a tractor beam would do that, which they neglect to mention until later. The actor who plays Bashir does a very good job of sounding weird, speaking in a strange, halting cadence. Now they try to find a way to release Bashir, with some techno babble about resonating with the shields. This works as expected due to the episode almost being over, and they beam the doctor out after he lowers the shields.
They beam the Fugitive’s special brain cells into a containment device which they return to Javert who destroys it and all is well, apparently.[6]
Final grade: B
All in all, this was a good and fun episode, I really enjoyed it despite some quirks, and it was fun not knowing it was Bashir the first time I watched it. As it was, I saw it so long ago that I had some doubts. They didn’t cheat the mystery by hiding what you needed to know. I’d say it was more of a mystery episode rather than a heist episode, and mystery episodes are something I like about Star Trek, and Doctor Who.
1. Why would there be shipments of anything, or anything resembling this kind of commerce in a post-scarcity society? If this really was a post scarcity society, this episode would make no sense. Why can’t they just replicate it? I don’t think they even when with the plot convenience that this substance was difficult to replicate.
2. Having DB admin knowledge, this is totally possible, it’s just unlikely that someone who has access would do it, and that someone who would do it has access.
3. I realize now that in Star Trek, “humanoid” is stand in for “human,” so that’s why things like diseases are “cross-compatible” among different species.
4. The fact that it has after hours and isn’t open 24/7 is interesting.
5. What? Why? It’s essential for these people but it’s like toxic or something? How come every shipment of everything is somehow dangerous?
6. This is odd, what really was left of the Prisoner? They leave it relatively open ended but are somehow okay with this destruction of whatever it is, when she was transporting him alive previously.