DS9 Spoiler: IMHO: "Blood Oath"
TED BRENGLE
Spoilers for DS9's "Blood Oath" follow...
Before I get on with my rave review, a note:
For good or ill, we now know what the official party-line is
about The Great Klingon Forehead controversy. I think its a cheap
answer, but, like the answer given for why Star Fleet doesn't use
cloaking devices, its definite and at least the question has finally
been addressed formally. Our long national nightmare is finally
over.
I'm glad that's over with. Now on with the show.
It was just great. It had it all, and what it didn't have wasn't
missed or needed. While not my favorite episode this season, it
certainly is a gem, and makes one grateful for the riches that DS9
has bequeathed us this season.
There were several touches of genius that I want to talk about
here. The first is the story itself and the script by Peter Allan
Fields, who has only proved (if he needed to) that he is THE premier
DS9 writer. Judged alongside "Duet," "The Circle," and "Necessary
Evil", he is rapidly developing a reputation as someone who's name
not only ensures a good episode, but an unqualified home-run.
I suspect that this story started as a challenge. The writing
staff this year has undertaken a mighty quest: To reinvigorate Dax.
In the service of that, many different interpretations have been put
forward and the hard work has started to make a difference. A
character who I originally hated, is getting more and more
interesting. Instead of ignoring her as a failure, the writers seem
intent on making her work, and changing her from a liability to an
asset, as though her initial dull awkwardness was seen only as a
challenge to be meet.
I really like this attitude. It shows positive, can-do spirit.
And I can just see Fields going to his word-processor, intent to do
for Dax what he had previously done for Odo and Kira (I hope and
pray he pens a Sisko story *real* soon). Realizing that he had to
grab people's attention, he came up with a beauty of a hook (one
that rivals fan wish fulfillment fantasies in its intelligent
synergy of old and new). But he didn't stop there. Knowing that the
premise would fall apart without a strong story to back it up, he
came up with a plot that can only be described as "kick-ass". As
Klingon as it can be, while also being a revelatory character piece,
and a adventure/quest in the best tradition. And hanging over it
all, the bittersweet taste of history and that mythic quality which
ties all the best future histories together. This was DS9's first
stab at becoming apart of the larger, overall Trek mythos and it
succeeded wonderfully, as the episode delivered the ineffable sense
of a living, breathing universe with billions of bit-players coming
on and off the stage, and with a limitless history that still haunts
the present occasionally
I have seen some people deride "Blood Oath" for not inserting
specific references to Treks Past in the dialog (allusions to
Orgainians or Tribbles for example), and while they might have been
nice, they would have also been out-of-place. This story was not
about those times, it was about another quest and another adventure
that James T. Kirk had no part in (and Fields did a good job of
tying these three Klingons together in a believable fashion). It is
to the script and the actors credit that they were evocative of the
past without making any specific references to it at all. These
three klingons were bitter old men, seemingly abandoned by time and
their own race, and their baring, behavior and voices (all so
expressive) harkened back to a different time when all three would
have only seen the uniform on Dax's back and stabbed her through the
heart for it. By not spelling it all out, the audience has to fill
in the blanks, and ponder the tides of fate that tossed each Klingon
for those hundred years since we last saw them. The subtlety of the
situation really sold it. We have only two dissonant snap shots of
three lives to work with, separated by gulfs of time and the results
are as poignant as Klingons allow.
The performances by Ansara, Campbell, and especially Colicos can
not be praised enough. Indeed Kor (Colicos), the definitive Klingon,
looking at his progression from "Errand Of Mercy" to "Blood Oath",
can be seen as a microcosm of Klingon society itself. Once ruthless
and mighty, it is now shrunken and obsessed with honor that and
power that was somehow lost along the way. It also makes sense that
the most proud and prototypically Klingon of the three captains
would fall the furthest in these modern times, while Koloth, the
sneakiest and most subtle of them, would adapt the best.
Dax's part was, by far, the best written this season, and she's
done much better this year, anyway. Intricate and conflicted, but
with a substantial inner-strength and wit (which sadly, Farrel still
let fall flat on occasion), her inner-character belies her seemingly
genteel nature. There is a lot going on under the surface here, much
of it a great deal more interesting than the technobabble it is her
duty to mumble. That feeling of depth is in many ways "Blood Oath"'s
greatest achievement. It demonstrates, more than any episode this
season, that a character who once seemed so shallow, has someone
interesting at home. And despite some blown lines, Farrel did good
work for the most part, her best scene being her confrontation with
Sisko. Brooks, also should be praised, as, although he was hardly in
the ep, he knew what he did have was important and he had to really
sell it, which he did. The same goes for Visitor, who really shines
in her scene with Dax, and, even more trickily, at the end of the
episode when the look she gives Dax after she returns from her
odyssey communicates not only that Kira understands *exactly* what
happened, but also welcomes her to the family, so to speak. Indeed,
the ending, where not one word of dialogue is spoken, took a big
chance on just looking dumb, and deserves credit for daring to be
darkly enigmatic.
As for the rest of the cast, both Shimerman and Auberjonois were
their typical wonderful selves, who didn't have to exert themselves
too much this week, as they were only called upon to do their
shtick, but as their shtick is so entertaining, and was just served
up as a yummy side-dish to a rally nourishing main-coarse (as it
should be), I think they still deserve mention.
The other thing that really pushed this ep into over-drive was a
very formidable and inventive directing job by Winrich Kolbe. He
kept the tempo up, while not forgetting to keep the character
moments intimate and intense. He was also very proficient at opening
the action up for major-league battle scenes and location work.
And then there is the the haunting, lyrical image of Dax and Kor
among the heaped bodies of the dead in the Albino's stronghold, with
Kor standing over them, singing...
Such a delicate balancing act between the small-scale character
dynamics of this story, and the larger-than-life adventure aspects
demand recognition.
Only a few things detracted from the episode. One was the silly
technobabble answer to the problem of the guard's phasers. It seems
unrealistically easy to jam them, and since such techniques obvious
exist, they should be known to any warrior worth his or her salt.
Dax's method for disabling the phasers sounds like one of those
great ideas that work *once*. And then, after one bloodbath, weapons
designers around the galaxy are sued, while others make sure that
next years model isn't susceptible to such trickery at all. The
other thing I was disappointed in was that at the last minute,
having built up the entire episode over whether or not Dax would
kill in cold blood (and the script gave the Albino dialogue that
pretty well forced her to make a decision) everyone chickened out by
having Kang kill the Albino, making the episode turn on a
non-decision. That was a pity, especially since they didn't show
that reluctance with Kira earlier. Ultimately, though, when judged
along with the rest of the show, these faults pale by comparison.
DS9 has already accomplished a lot this season. It demonstrated
that it could do heavy-hitter political intrigue, filled with
sub-plots and superb villains (the season opening cycle),
cracker-jack drama that pulled no punches ("Necessary Evil"), and
mind-bending science-fiction puzzleboxes ("Whispers"). And now, with
"Blood Oath", not it has not only forged a formidable link to Trek's
illustrious past, but also put together the best Klingon episode in
ages.
To the Big Board:
The Grade: A (DS9 ties itself even more firmly
into the established Trek universe
in a tightly-written exploration
of Dax, and three Klingons trapped
in a universe that has moved
forward without them. By turns
funny, poignant, and exciting. A
must for Klingon fans, TOS fans,
and just about everyone else that
can appreciate a fine adventure
story, tinged with regret, and
told with heart.)
Next Week: Float on into re-runs with good ol' Melora...
-Ted Brengle
(Cynic who is torn: He wants
Peter Allan Fields to write more
scripts, but, on the other hand,
he doesn't want him to burn
himself out, either)
Copyright (c) 1994, Ted Brengle (IMHO Inc.)
* OLX 2.1 TD * My non-cynical tagline for times of special celebration.
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