There's a lot yet to do in this epic two episode length conclusion. Perhaps a little too much actually. The Federation hasn't defeated the Dominion you see. And Cardassia actually doesn't want to become slaves of the Founders and resist their own genocide, so we'll need to fix that too. Oh and we've got to fix up everybody's final relationship status and send characters off to their next careers. And let's not forget the reason we're all here, those wacky Wormhole Aliens and their enemies the Pah-Wraith aliens.
I'll state up front it's actually a shame they couldn't have a custom adventure to show them off like TNG did. Because this was much inferior.
Kira, Damar, and Garak spend way too much time trying to retake an entire planet by themselves with maybe up to three other helpers, on tiny, tiny, tiny sets. Hey, those work well on Worf episodes from TNG, where we know we're wasting time. But it sure doesn't feel like an epic conclusion from those 10' x 10' city sets piled with junk.
The biggest crescendo of the episode is a big space battle, where the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans attack to press their advantage now that the Dominion is weak. Except, oh wait! They're losing the battle. Uhhh, it's not really a wartime advantage if you pursue the retreating enemy and they beat the crap out of you. Forget understanding the military, one episode of the History Channel makes you too educated to enjoy most of DS9's military storylines. And so we see A LOT of reused footage of digital space ships exploding. Well, back then episodes were spaced out pretty far, so it probably wasn't as noticeable. And I do appreciate them not over-doing the whole, "the Defiant (A?) is in trouble!" during the battle. They've played that out pretty completely.
Thanks to the Cardassian fleet changing sides mid-battle (Why not before? Because they got the comms up just then and had time to listen to reports about Lankmar City getting 'sploded during combat?) the good guys win! Yay! And back on the very budget conscious Cardassia Prime the strike team led by Kira takes the central government building and captures the Founder. There's going to be another big battle, but fortunately Odo steps in and gets the Founder to stand down in exchange for the magical cure Bashir gave him, which now just spreads by touch. So the genocide of the genocidal aliens is averted!
With the battle won Sisko and Admiral Ross pout as Chancellor Martok tries to get them to celebrate with a little blood wine, as foreshadowed. But standing in the middle of a wrecked set, and walking over Cardassian extras' bodies as the actors try not to call out in pain, Sisko lets Martok know, "War am bad," and pours out his wine like a 40. Actually Sisko's right, war am bad, maybe the Federation as presented solely in DS9 should have been better prepared for it and took it more seriously, instead of treating it a bit like a game for so many seasons, and sending scientists in Starfleet to fight it. But then I'm remembering this show has no moral legs to stand on and spoiling the message, so I'll quit that.
There's also a weird scene between Garak and Bashir that doesn't work and serves as our send-off for the show's best character. I'd describe the scene, but I have no idea what happened.
With the war won Odo has to go back to his people, not just to give them the cure, but also to teach them, "Genocide am bad." He can't stay with Kira, she'll be long dead before they understand the message. Also Chief O'Brien has to leave because he's a professor now, and Worf too because he's the Klingon ambassador. This is actually the happiest outcome of all, Worf will finally get to be around Klingons all the time, but also be representing humans and civilization in general, so he doesn't have to feel like a jerk for not being a drunken barbarian. Easily the best part of the episode.
But as I mentioned at the top, we can't forget about the Prophets and their emissary. That was like the whole point of the series! Dukat and Kai Winn have been continuing their boring adventures in the Caves of Fire and they finally come to a head when the Kai releases the Pah Wraiths, or one of them, I don't know, and then it inhabits Dukat, who she at least tried to betray and kill, so points to her. When that happens Sisko can feel it using the Force, leaves the party he's attending and flies to Bajor in a shuttlecraft, landing approximately 15 seconds later. I mean that, Dukat gets possessed, we cut to Sisko feeling it, we see a shuttlecraft in space, and then we cut to Sisko walking into the cave to watch Dukat stand back up now that he's possessed. Dukat does us all a favor by burning Kai Winn alive, but she helps out by telling Sisko the evil book she brought with her is the key to all of this. In the end in turns out Sisko's big task was tackling Gul Dukat so he'd fall off a cliff.
That was it, that was the great path the Emissary had to tread, an entire television show foreshadowing events for seven seasons, he had to tackle Dukat. That was the grand mission. A Prophet shadow out of timed some random women, made her start a family she didn't want, have a child she didn't intend to have, heck they've got a centuries old religion here, all for this. Literally all for this. The Prophets could have hired a couple bouncers, but no, they have their ways, and their ways are mysterious.
So Sisko and Dukat fall into fire and Sisko is pulled out by his Prophet mother. It turns out his wacky adventures with the Prophets have only truly begun, which he tells Cassidy in a vision.
And so we end with Kira taking over the station, Bashir and Dax together, Quark and Morn still the best of friends, and all is right again with the Alpha Quadrant. The end.
I'll state up front it's actually a shame they couldn't have a custom adventure to show them off like TNG did. Because this was much inferior.
Kira, Damar, and Garak spend way too much time trying to retake an entire planet by themselves with maybe up to three other helpers, on tiny, tiny, tiny sets. Hey, those work well on Worf episodes from TNG, where we know we're wasting time. But it sure doesn't feel like an epic conclusion from those 10' x 10' city sets piled with junk.
The biggest crescendo of the episode is a big space battle, where the Federation, Klingons, and Romulans attack to press their advantage now that the Dominion is weak. Except, oh wait! They're losing the battle. Uhhh, it's not really a wartime advantage if you pursue the retreating enemy and they beat the crap out of you. Forget understanding the military, one episode of the History Channel makes you too educated to enjoy most of DS9's military storylines. And so we see A LOT of reused footage of digital space ships exploding. Well, back then episodes were spaced out pretty far, so it probably wasn't as noticeable. And I do appreciate them not over-doing the whole, "the Defiant (A?) is in trouble!" during the battle. They've played that out pretty completely.
Thanks to the Cardassian fleet changing sides mid-battle (Why not before? Because they got the comms up just then and had time to listen to reports about Lankmar City getting 'sploded during combat?) the good guys win! Yay! And back on the very budget conscious Cardassia Prime the strike team led by Kira takes the central government building and captures the Founder. There's going to be another big battle, but fortunately Odo steps in and gets the Founder to stand down in exchange for the magical cure Bashir gave him, which now just spreads by touch. So the genocide of the genocidal aliens is averted!
With the battle won Sisko and Admiral Ross pout as Chancellor Martok tries to get them to celebrate with a little blood wine, as foreshadowed. But standing in the middle of a wrecked set, and walking over Cardassian extras' bodies as the actors try not to call out in pain, Sisko lets Martok know, "War am bad," and pours out his wine like a 40. Actually Sisko's right, war am bad, maybe the Federation as presented solely in DS9 should have been better prepared for it and took it more seriously, instead of treating it a bit like a game for so many seasons, and sending scientists in Starfleet to fight it. But then I'm remembering this show has no moral legs to stand on and spoiling the message, so I'll quit that.
There's also a weird scene between Garak and Bashir that doesn't work and serves as our send-off for the show's best character. I'd describe the scene, but I have no idea what happened.
With the war won Odo has to go back to his people, not just to give them the cure, but also to teach them, "Genocide am bad." He can't stay with Kira, she'll be long dead before they understand the message. Also Chief O'Brien has to leave because he's a professor now, and Worf too because he's the Klingon ambassador. This is actually the happiest outcome of all, Worf will finally get to be around Klingons all the time, but also be representing humans and civilization in general, so he doesn't have to feel like a jerk for not being a drunken barbarian. Easily the best part of the episode.
But as I mentioned at the top, we can't forget about the Prophets and their emissary. That was like the whole point of the series! Dukat and Kai Winn have been continuing their boring adventures in the Caves of Fire and they finally come to a head when the Kai releases the Pah Wraiths, or one of them, I don't know, and then it inhabits Dukat, who she at least tried to betray and kill, so points to her. When that happens Sisko can feel it using the Force, leaves the party he's attending and flies to Bajor in a shuttlecraft, landing approximately 15 seconds later. I mean that, Dukat gets possessed, we cut to Sisko feeling it, we see a shuttlecraft in space, and then we cut to Sisko walking into the cave to watch Dukat stand back up now that he's possessed. Dukat does us all a favor by burning Kai Winn alive, but she helps out by telling Sisko the evil book she brought with her is the key to all of this. In the end in turns out Sisko's big task was tackling Gul Dukat so he'd fall off a cliff.
That was it, that was the great path the Emissary had to tread, an entire television show foreshadowing events for seven seasons, he had to tackle Dukat. That was the grand mission. A Prophet shadow out of timed some random women, made her start a family she didn't want, have a child she didn't intend to have, heck they've got a centuries old religion here, all for this. Literally all for this. The Prophets could have hired a couple bouncers, but no, they have their ways, and their ways are mysterious.
So Sisko and Dukat fall into fire and Sisko is pulled out by his Prophet mother. It turns out his wacky adventures with the Prophets have only truly begun, which he tells Cassidy in a vision.
And so we end with Kira taking over the station, Bashir and Dax together, Quark and Morn still the best of friends, and all is right again with the Alpha Quadrant. The end.