[DS9] Lynch's Spoiler Review: "Indiscretion"
Timothy W. Lynch
you wish to avoid spoilers, then keep a discreet distance.
In brief: A little on the predictable side, but most of it was nicely
executed.
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Brief summary: Kira finds herself joined with Dukat on a mission
searching for survivors of a prison ship -- and finds a secret Dukat has
kept hidden for years.
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Most of "Indiscretion" worked for me pretty well. Although the
ending of the main story was about as surprising as seeing the sun rise
in the east, Kira and Dukat are two characters that work together
almost as well as Sisko and Dukat have in episodes past -- and as a
result, the execution of the story made it worth watching despite some
relatively tired elements to it.
One element that was *not* particularly tired and that I liked involved
Kira's search for the Ravenock. The search itself wasn't a big
surprise -- but given the call out of the blue she got from Razka to start
the search, it felt in many ways like a setup. Most times we've seen a
case like this, it's actually been one, so it's nice to see a situation
where mysterious offers are actually legit.
However, the interesting parts of "Indiscretion" weren't really in the
story -- they were in the character interactions and the insight we got
into those characters. Dukat in particular made for some interesting
observations; might his lost daughter help account for his interest in
orphans, as we saw starting about two years ago? Does he honestly
believe that the Cardassian occupation of Bajor was a net help for the
latter world, or was he just trying to tweak Kira a bit? Is Dukat
veering towards an openly pro-Bajor stance on Cardassia? None of
the answers is particularly clear, but just having the questions more
brightly illuminated is an interesting view in itself, and one that's
appreciated. (It's also a credit to the way Dukat's been written and
acted up to this point that despite the episode very clearly setting us up
for Dukat to change his mind and not kill Ziyal, part of me almost
wondered at the very end if he was going to kill her after embracing
her. The Dukat of three years ago well might have.)
In many other cases, it was simple snippets of dialogue that helped
outline things. I think the worries about Kira losing her edge are a
trifle unfounded at this point; although the "if you hurt that girl, I'll
kill you" threat was a bit on the dull side, her sharpness was in full
flower earlier when Dukat started going on about the occupation
helping Bajor. ("Which part? The massacres or the strip-mining?")
Her tone may have been a little quieter than we've seen in the past, but
the anger and the venom was still there. (Between that and Razka's
"*almost* ... makes you forget [about Dukat's atrocities]", Dukat
must not have been feeling very popular that week.) Other points, like
Kira's claim that Dukat *wanted* to be stopped or he wouldn't have
told her about Ziyal, and her terrifically tossed-off note to Dukat that
she got the Cardassian military codes for the Ravenock from Bajoran
intelligence before she left, both helped immensely as well. "Very
good, Major" -- very good indeed.
It's also nice to see <tech> that is decently presented, though.
Primarily, that's because it was kept to a minimum. We didn't
particularly *care* why they couldn't transport down, or how Kira
would be able to trace paths of possible survivors -- and neither did
the episode. A sentence or two of "well, there's this interference/these
radioactive tracers from the resistance" was all that was needed to get
the story moving along. That strikes me as a positive step -- let's
hope it's not an isolated one.
There were two elements that brought the story downhill a bit,
however. One was isolated, but still hurt -- the "ooh, oww, get it
OUT!" scene with the sandspine had me absolutely cringing from start
to finish. The other, as I've already said, is that the story felt a little
tired, especially at the end. I like the idea of Dukat having a half-
Bajoran daughter -- the result of an "indiscretion" he's determined to
keep secret. However, the "I will kill her"/"I won't let you"/"Too
bad, I'm going to anyway"/"Oh, can't after all" style of the last twenty
minutes was almost totally expected, and that took away from the
power quite a bit, at least where I was sitting.
Dukat's farewells to Kira at the end are interesting, though. When she
asks whether Ziyal will cause him difficulties back home, "I'll let you
know" is a rather ambiguous response. Is he grateful to Kira for her
influence, angered by it, or both at once? In a show that otherwise
ended on some rather unambiguous notes, it was good to see at least
one shade of gray make its way into the close.
That sort of ambiguity shines out even more when one compares it to
the "B" plot of "Indiscretion", the Sisko/Yates interactions. If
elements of the main story felt a little worn around the edges, the side-
story felt downright worn through. I don't think I've met anyone yet
who didn't see the Sisko plot coming as soon as Kasidy started
talking about potentially moving onto the station, and familiarity of
that magnitude really does breed contempt at times. The execution
made up for it somewhat; Dax's and Bashir's casual discussion of
Sisko in the third person while he was sitting right there was pretty
amusing, for instance, and Jake's managing to *totally* ruin Sisko's
breakfast by simply answering "what's new?" was close to priceless.
I also liked Sisko admitting that his worries weren't just generally
about getting into another relationship after Jennifer's death, but that
he was worried about feeling responsible for another lover's death the
way he felt responsible for hers. Despite all those things, though, the
subplot felt like a net drag on the show.
That would seem to cover most of the ground, then. A few smaller
points:
-- Odo's learning. He's finally learned not to bother Kira when she's
on a tear. Good for him. :-)
-- I don't know if it was deliberate or not, but something about the
way Dukat carried himself and the lighting when he first spotted his
daughter made him look *old*, and somewhat tired. Deliberate or
not, it seemed pretty powerful to me.
-- For anyone wondering why Razka looked and sounded so familiar,
we've seen the actor before in Trek. Roy Brocksmith also played
Kolrami, the annoying strategist, *way* back in TNG's second
season "Peak Performance." He's shown up a lot of other places as
well, but that's the connection for those looking for a Trek-related
one.
-- After a few weeks, I've now come to a decision about the new
opening music; the added "rhythm" is damned distracting. The first
half (until the "main" part of the theme) is as good or better than the
original version, but after that I'd definitely prefer the original, hands
down.
That's about it, I think. Like "Hippocratic Oath" before it,
"Indiscretion" wasn't a knockout -- but it was still pretty decent. So
far, DS9's gone four episodes this season without anything that's
really missed the mark -- that's promising!
So, wrapping up:
Writing: A little tired in the basics, but most of the incidentals in the
execution worked quite well.
Directing: Not a whole lot stood out either way, but things seemed to
work well enough.
Acting: Visitor was pretty good, and Alaimo was outstanding.
Brooks did well given what he had to work with.
OVERALL: Hmm. A 7, I think. Pleasant enough.
NEXT WEEK:
Dax's past comes back to haunt her -- past *wife*, that is...
Tim Lynch (Harvard-Westlake School, Science Dept.)
tly...@alumni.caltech.edu
"Well, it could've been worse. He could've said 'it's a VERY big
step.'"
-- Bashir
--
Copyright 1995, Timothy W. Lynch. All rights reserved, but feel free to ask...
This article is explicitly prohibited from being used in any off-net
compilation without due attribution and *express written consent of the
author*. Walnut Creek and other CD-ROM distributors, take note.
Ted McCoy
In article <46s0sq$f...@gap.cco.caltech.edu>,
Timothy W. Lynch <tly...@alumni.caltech.edu> wrote:
>That sort of ambiguity shines out even more when one compares it to
>the "B" plot of "Indiscretion", the Sisko/Yates interactions. If
>elements of the main story felt a little worn around the edges, the side-
>story felt downright worn through. I don't think I've met anyone yet
>who didn't see the Sisko plot coming as soon as Kasidy started
>talking about potentially moving onto the station, and familiarity of
>that magnitude really does breed contempt at times. The execution
>made up for it somewhat; Dax's and Bashir's casual discussion of
>Sisko in the third person while he was sitting right there was pretty
>amusing, for instance, and Jake's managing to *totally* ruin Sisko's
>breakfast by simply answering "what's new?" was close to priceless.
>I also liked Sisko admitting that his worries weren't just generally
>about getting into another relationship after Jennifer's death, but that
>he was worried about feeling responsible for another lover's death the
>way he felt responsible for hers. Despite all those things, though, the
>subplot felt like a net drag on the show.
Just one comment: watch Kasidy's actions again, this time keeping in mind
certain possible suspcicions that she may not be exactly what she appears to
be. (Trying not to spoil a potential plot twist, even though the potential
plot twist may in fact never happen.)
As for the predictability of the Kasidy-Sisko subplot...I'm not so sure.
I wasn't surprised by the outcome, but I *was* a bit surprised by how awkward
the entire situation was for Sisko. Seemed very believable, very real to me.
I'm not entirely happy with Brooks' performance here, but overall I found
the subplot to be quite compelling on an emotional level.
>-- After a few weeks, I've now come to a decision about the new
>opening music; the added "rhythm" is damned distracting. The first
>half (until the "main" part of the theme) is as good or better than the
>original version, but after that I'd definitely prefer the original, hands
>down.
Weird. First time I heard the new opening theme, I hated it. Now, I actually
like it almost as much the original. The new "rhythm" gives it a bit more
momentum, I think. It doesn't entirely fit in with the old music (which I
guess means that I'm agreeing with you that it's distracting), but I do think
that it somehow reflects the mood of the show nicely. Doesn't feel as calm,
tranquil, and uneventful as the old theme.
(Incidentally, Dennis McCarthy's background music for this episode did
nothing for me. It was dull, standard, forgettable background static.)
Ted
Michael Gemmell u
several seasons, I believe.
-Mike
--
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MICHAEL A. GEMMELL - WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY - gemm...@mach1.wlu.ca
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"At least you're still in one piece...Look what happened to me!"
- C3PO, Episode V
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Peronet Despeignes
: WARNING: This article has spoilers for DS9's "Indiscretion". If
: ======
: "Well, it could've been worse. He could've said 'it's a VERY big
: step.'"
: -- Bashir
It's right up there with...
Bashir: "What do you think?"
Dax: "It's a big step."
Bashir: "It's a *very* big step."
and
Sisko: "You discussed this...with *Nog*?"
Perry D.