Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV Series) When It Rains... (1999) User Reviews

Training the Cardassians

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 26 January 2010]

Now that the Cardassians are fighting a guerilla war against the Dominion they need an expert in the field to teach them how to fight in a way they are not familiar; the person they get is Col. Kira who is not very happy to be working with her old enemies, not that all of the Cardassians are that happy to be working with her. On this mission she is accompanied by Garak and Odo. Odo has other worries as Dr Bashir has discovered that he is infected with the same disease that has affected the other Founders, initially it is assumed that he contracted the disease when he linked with a Founder however Bashir's investigations lead to a much more disturbing conclusion. On Bajor Kai Winn continues to try to find a way to free the Pah Wraiths, Dukat tries too but as soon as he tries to read the book he is struck blind. In a fourth storyline Klingon Chancellor Gowron arrives on DS9 ostensibly to bestow an honour on Martok but after making the award he announces that he personally will take over the leadership of the Klingon campaign even though he is a politician with no military skills.

This episode may have had four major story lines but it shouldn't be confusing to anybody who has been watching the series for long, in fact I found it kept the story exciting as no one story dominated. It is also nice to see Star Fleet being shown in a way that suggests it is far from perfect.

More of the same.

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 28 January 2015]

As with the final ten or so episodes of "Star Trek: Deep Space 9", this particular episode is part of a HUGE arc--sort of like a 10- part series instead of the usual self-contained episodes. And, because of this, rating these episodes individually is NOT easy.

The show begins with Colonel Kira being offered an unenviable mission--to travel to the Cardassian underground and teach them how to be resistance fighters. To assist her is Garak and Odo. However, Odo soon begins to show signs of the same disease that is effecting the Founders and his effectiveness is compromised. At the same time, Bashir is working on discovering a cure for the illness and he realizes that the medical records provided to him by Starfleet are fake. Further, there are indications that Odo might have been the first infected...and the dreaded Section 31 could be behind it.

Chancellor Gowron arrives on the station to give Martok the Empire's highest honor. However, this is a ruse--he's actually there because he fears Martok's power and he intends to take over control of the fleet--even if it costs many more lives.

Finally, Dukat is blinded when he tries to read the sacred and evil texts. Interestingly, Kai Winn has him cast out into the streets and seems to have no further need of him in learning how to unleash the Pah-Wraiths.

Overall, a lot happens in this show and the quality, like the rest of these later shows, is excellent--making them well worth seeing.

Strong episode that lays more good foundations

[snoozejonc · 8/10 · 22 October 2023]

Starfleet provides the Cardassian uprising with support, as Bashir makes a shocking discovery.

It is hard to go into too much detail without spoiling, but I think the various plot threads all develop nicely but are of varying quality.

My favourite storyline involves Bashir and O'Brien, particularly the dark plot reveal during the medical investigations. I think this is compulsive viewing considering how much it makes me want to find out what happens next.

I enjoyed the scenes on Cardassia, as there are great interactions between characters and they generate further interest in what is to come. The writers do however miss an opportunity to resolve issues between characters from previous episodes.

The weakest aspect is the Klingon plot as the conflict feels somewhat contrived to setup certain dramatic elements yet to be seen. If you apply a liberal amount of suspension of disbelief to how moronic a certain character behaves it still just about works.

All actors are on great for with Alexander Siddig and Nana Visitor standing out for me.

The Disease

[Hitchcoc · 10/10 · 12 November 2018]

There are a couple focuses in this episode. As we know, the Founders are suffering from a horrifying disease that has contaminated the link. Unfortunately, Dr Bashir finds in his investigations that Odo has the disease. When he begins to try to get assistance from Star Fleet Medical, he is buried in bureaucracy. Kira is sent to aid the Cardassians in guerrilla warfare and is not very well respected. The doctor and O'Brien come up with a theory that they must keep to themselves.