Past Tense: Part 1 (2 Jan. 1995)

Sisko, Bashir and Dax are accidentally sent to San Francisco in the 21st century due to a transporter malfunction, and must figure out how to get back to return without changing the time line.

Director:

Reza Badiyi

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (creator), Rick Berman (creator),

Stars:

Avery Brooks, Rene Auberjonois, Alexander Siddig

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Avery Brooks	...	Commander Sisko
Rene Auberjonois	...	Odo
Alexander Siddig	...	Doctor Bashir (as Siddig El Fadil)
Terry Farrell	...	Lieutenant Jadzia Dax
Cirroc Lofton	...	Jake Sisko (credit only)
Colm Meaney	...	Chief O'Brien
Armin Shimerman	...	Quark
Nana Visitor	...	Major Kira
Jim Metzler	...	Chris Brynner
Frank Military	...	B.C.
Dick Miller	...	Vin
Al Rodrigo	...	Bernardo
Tina Lifford	...	Lee
Bill Smitrovich	...	Webb
Henry Hayashi	...	Male Guest

Storyline

The Defiant has arrived at Earth and Sisko, Bashir and Dax are beamed to the surface, where they will address the Starfleet Symposium in San Francisco on the situation in the Gamma Quadrant. But they never arrive. O'Brien has no clue what happened: the logs show that he definitely arrived. Meanwhile the three find themselves in San Francisco in the year 2024. They have no ID and Bashir and Sisko are arrested and put in a concentration camp-like Sanctuary District. While the two try to find a way back, Sisko notices it's only days before major riots break out in the District, a pivotal moment in Earth's history. Meanwhile Dax is picked up Chris Brynner, a business man. He takes her to his home, where she starts searching for Bashir and Sisko.

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Plot Keywords:

21st century | 24th century | 2020s | transamerica pyramid | time travel

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Sci-Fi

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 January 1995 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

On the clock on the wall of the Processing Center, the date reads: Friday, 8/30/24. August 30, 2024, will in fact, be a Friday!

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Quotes

Commander Sisko: Is there something wrong?
Lee: Well, according to these forms, you're supposed to be dims. But you're not, are you?
Commander Sisko: I hope you're not disappointed.

User Reviews

Stuck in the year 2024

When Sisko, Bashir and Dax beam down from the Defiant to San Francisco they think the worst thing that will happen is that they may have to listen to a few boring after dinner speeches at Star Fleet headquarters, however due to a problem involving chronoton particles they end up in the year 2024. Sisko and Bashir are promptly picked up by the police and because they have no ID or money they are taken to an area called Sanctuary which is a closed off area of the city where the homeless, jobless and mentally ill are dumped out of the way. Dax has rather more luck as she was found my a wealthy computer engineer who helps her get new ID. Sisko realises they have a problem when he sees that the date is a few days before a famous riot takes place in the Sanctuary District.. a riot that will lead to changes in US policy and ultimately the formation of Star Fleet. Things get worse when a sanctuary resident is killed while trying to protect Dr Bashir... a resident who's actions during the riot should have prevented a bloodbath. His death has repercussions in time as the Defiant loses contact with Earth and scans show no sign of Star Fleet.

Usually when Star Trek episodes send people to Earth's past the either end up in our present or into an interesting time before the episode was made, having them stranded in our near future made a nice change. The story itself was fairly gripping and I liked the way they dealt with the problems of Dax's spots. I look forward to discovering how they will correct the time line and return to their own time in the conclusion to the story.