Sci-Fi Retro: DS9 Series Finale Revisited
June 2nd will mark the 12-year anniversary since the series finale of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Having recently re-watched all seven seasons in sequential order over the last few months, primarily while working at my computer, I am left with quite a mixed reaction to the series finale. Whether you think the Bajorans were a proud people bravely recovering from Cardassian occupation or whiny religious zealots, the finale left me with five very distinct impressions ranging from being uplifted to being downright appalled.
Ben Sisko is selfish!
Okay, being an emissary to the prophets was not something he chose. I get that. However, my jaw dropped to the floor when he was whisked away to live in the wormhole leaving behind his pregnant wife. While he’s off on some Chakotay-esque vision quest, Kasidy is left behind to bear his child and provide step-mothering to Jake as a single parent. When the prophets tell him this, he doesn’t offer a word of resistance concerning his wife and unborn child.
While I understand that Federation citizens don’t starve or go without necessities, telling (not asking) Kasidy to single parent both of his children until he returns is just appalling. Although Jake is nearly an adult, he will require emotional support and guidance. Factor in that the prophets had warned him not to marry her in the first place, and it seems like Kasidy is the one left holding the baseball until the prophets decide to let Ben come home. Considering he really didn’t try to resist, I hope she’s lining up a nanny.
Miles is an awesome guy. Hail to the Chief!
Despite being separated from his family frequently, having Kira carry his baby in a bizarre twist of events, and constantly having to patch up inferior alien technology at all hours, the Chief finally gets an offer to teach at the Academy and raise his family on the relative peace of Earth. Good for him and for Keiko! May they raise more beautiful children, fix things, and have gorgeous houseplants and gardens until the end of their days. Cheers!
Thank Goodness Kai Winn is dead.
I could never stand Kai Winn or her love affair with calling everyone ‘child’ in that condescending tone. All of the flowery, gag-worthy references to sex she spouts when she finds out she’s been sleeping with Gul Dukat just reek. Her repeated shrieks in the Fire Cave in a stilted enunciation distracted me to the point that I asked myself “hasn’t she supposedly been speaking Bajoran her whole life?” I was overjoyed that she was killed by the Pah-wraiths. Child, indeed.
Odo is a total player.
I had three huge problems with Odo going back to the Great Link.
- If Changelings are basically immortal if they don’t have that flaking virus and Kira is a mortal solid, why is he squandering the precious few years he could have with her? He could have gone to The Link, healed his people, and promised to return later. His time is unlimited. Kira’s is not. He also has the ability to fly through space independently, Laas proved that. No promises to even visit?
- By abandoning the one person he loves, he proves he never really ‘got’ the whole idea of love in the first place. He wasted Kira’s time.
- Even for 1999, saying that someone can only be happy ‘among their own kind’ is kind of racist. Okay, in the case of DS9, I guess it would be species-ist, but you get my point. If different species of solids can marry and be happy after making adjustments, so could have Odo and Kira. The writer who thought this up should be ashamed. Kids watched this show! What a horrible thing to say.
Kira has a bigger heart than most people.
While the normal reaction to being abandoned by one’s lover is usually rage, crying, throwing objects, or other histrionics, Kira handles Odo’s dubious decision with dignified grace and aplomb. She takes him back to The Link, says her misty-eyed goodbye, and then goes back to DS9 to take over the big desk. Kira came a long way from the hot-tempered, distrustful woman we met in season one.
While I can say that my impression of the series finale has mellowed over time, I’m still left wanting more. Does Sisko ever return? Most people tend to believe he died, but he said he would return ‘in a year, or yesterday’. What happens to Kasidy’s baby? Does Odo ever bother to reunite with Kira? Do Julian and Dax work out? So many questions left unanswered. What did you think?
I love Star Trek and all the spin-offs – except this one. I never could connect with the characters.
The whole Dax symbiont thing was pretty interesting, although little Ms Perky at the end ruined that. But you are right, the story and characters weren’t as impressive as Voyager or even Enterprise.