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Major Kira, Captain Sisko, and Jadzia Dax during a tense
moment at Ops. |
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (DS9) premiered in 1993, and was
the third
incarnation within the Star Trek franchise. DS9
is the only Star Trek series who's primary setting took place on a
stationary object rather than a starship, and is often referred
to as the darkest and most dramatic of all other incarnations.
Throughout its run, DS9 dove deeply into varying issues from
warfare to religion to politics. Because of its central
location, the series was able to incorporate a large list of
recurring characters, many of which made appearances in all
seven seasons.
The series opens just
following the Cardassian withdrawal of Bajor, after a violent
occupation that lasted for over forty years. The Bajoran Provisional
Government, put in place following the Cardassian withdrawal,
seeks out the Federation for protection and guidance, fearing
that the Cardassians would soon return. Starfleet Command
assembles a crew to command the former Terok Nor station, now
named station Deep Space Nine, orbiting Bajor.
Against his
better judgment, Commander Benjamin Sisko accepts his difficult
assignment as Deep Space Nine's commanding officer, who's main
mission is to provide whatever assistance he can to the Bajorans,
while attempting to prepare them for Federation membership.
Major Kira Nerys is the Bajoran
liaison officer to Deep Space
Nine, and the station's first officer. A former member of the
Shakaar Resistance, Kira is audacious and contemptuous - an
outspoken proponent of Starfleet's arrival. It won't be easy,
but Kira and Sisko will have to learn to overcome their
diversity and learn to work together before the weak Bajoran government
collapses, and the planet slips into a civil war.
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Benjamin Sisko confronts Vedek Winn following acts of
terrorism on the station. |
During the
premier episode, "The Emissary", we learn from
Kai Opaka,
spiritual leader of Bajor, that the Bajorans have deep spiritual
beliefs. Over the past ten thousands years, their gods, known as
the Prophets, have sent the Bajorans various orbs in an attempt
to make contact and help shape Bajoran evolvement. Opaka reaches
out to Sisko, believing he has been sent by the Prophets as
their emissary, and gives him the Orb of Prophecy and Change,
firmly believing he can unite the Bajorans.
Deep Space
Nine's Trill science officer, Lieutenant Jadzia Dax, the eighth
host to the Dax symbiont, begins an analysis of the orb, hoping
to determine its origin and purpose. Dax plots coordinates of
known orb activities and determines that most of the orbs were
found within the nearby Denorios belt. Sisko and Dax take a
Runabout to set out for
the belt to begin a closer examination of the area, only to
stumble upon a hidden wormhole into the Gamma Quadrant.
Within the
wormhole, Sisko is contacted by the Bajoran Prophets. He
concludes that the Prophets are not gods after all, but actually
non-corporeal life-forms who reside within the Bajoran wormhole,
known to the Bajorans as the Celestial Temple.
In an
effort to protect the newly discovered wormhole from the
Cardassians, Deep Space Nine is relocated to the mouth of the
wormhole, where it remains throughout the series.
CARDASSIANS
& BAJORANS
The original premise of the
series revolved around the unstable and fragile Bajorans
following a violent forty-year occupation by the neighboring
Cardassians. The first three seasons deal heavily with these
issues, and the series continues to deal with the internal issues on Bajor
throughout its run. The Cardassians are identified as the
chief villains in the series premier, and remain as such
throughout the series.
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Benjamin
Sisko in contact with the Bajoran Prophets. |
THE
WORMHOLE & PROPHETS
The wormhole is discovered in
the premier episode, and provides quick transportation into the
Gamma Quadrant. Because of its importance and value, Deep Space
Nine is repositioned at the mouth of the wormhole, often making
it a prime target. Living within the wormhole is a species of
non-corporeal beings, known as the Bajoran Prophets. The Bajoran
people belief that the wormhole is the gateway and Celestial
Temple to the prophets, who were responsible for the creation of
the wormhole.
THE MAQUIS
Star Trek Voyager's
foundation is laid out in Deep Space Nine's second season, with
the introduction of the Maquis. The Maquis are revisited
frequently within the series, until the rebellion ends in the
fifth season episode "Blaze of Glory".
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Weyoun and
the Female Changeling were critical players in the
Dominion War. |
THE
DOMINION
The Dominon are first
mentioned in "Rules of Acquisition"
and again in the compassionate episode
"Shadowplay". They are
officially introduced in the Season Two finale,
"The Jem'Hadar" - a story that
is picked up in the two-part Season Three premier. From that
point onward, the Dominion slowly become the guiding force
throughout the remainder of the series. Although dealt with
slightly in the third season, it is not until
Season Four that
the Dominion become an integrate part of the series. The
Dominion War slowly evolves until escalating at the end of the
fifth season, leading to one of the most exciting season finales
of all time, "A Call to Arms".
FERENGI
Due mostly to the fact that
the station's bartender was the conniving Ferengi,
Quark, the series has many
episodes that has significant Ferengi involvement. These
episodes are usually intended to provide a humorous antidote to
the often dark and dramatic episodes of the series.
WORF,
O'BRIEN, AND THE NEXT GENERATION CONNECTION
The success of Deep Space
Nine was reliant on that of the prior Star Trek series, most
notably Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG). In fact, Chief of
Operations Miles O'Brien was a recurring character on TNG,
appearing in both its premier and finale episodes. Captain
Jean-Luc Picard makes a cameo appearance in DS9's premier, which
involved a tense conversation between him and Benjamin Sisko,
who blames Picard for his wife's death following his Borg
involvement. Two other first season episodes had direct ties to TNG;
"Past Prologue" and
"Q-Less". Lwaxanna Troi, mother
of the Betazoid ship counselor in TNG, also makes her first DS9
appearance in "The Forsaken".
Lieutenant Commander Worf
joins the Deep Space Nine crew in the Season Four premier,
"Way
of the Warrior".
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Admiral
Ross marries Benjamin Sisko and Kassidy Yates. |
FAMILY &
PERSONAL ISSUES
Deep Space Nine has a far
bigger involvement in personal struggles than any other series.
Although families were seen in TNG, it was never dealt with on
nearly as large of scale as on DS9. Benjamin Sisko himself had
numerous interactions with his son, Jake Sisko, who made
frequent appearances throughout the series. The series tackles
Sisko's struggle to move on with his life following the sudden death of his wife.
Sisko is introduced to freighter captain
Kassidy Yates in
"Family Business" and later
marries her in the seventh season episode
"'Til Death Do Us Part". Miles
O'Brien has many stories involving marital problems with his
wife, Keiko. The young daughter of Miles and Keiko, Molly, also
makes several appearances in the series, in addition to their
son, Kirayoshi, who was born in the fifth season episode
"The Begotten". Jadzia Dax and
Worf marry in the sixth season episode
"You Are Cordially Invited...".
Upon Jadzia's death ("Tears of
the Prophets"), and subsequent replacement by
Ezri Tigan Dax, we explore
the implications of Trill symbiont involvement in past
relationships.
SEE ALSO:
Ships & Characters |
Episode Synopses & Images
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