Pitched as a companion “Rifleman” analog to the “Wagon Train” comparison for The original series and Next Generation shows, Deep Space Nine had a seven year run that was equally celebrated and disliked when it aired. A lot of Trek fans did not like the show because it had a lot more moral ambiguity on a regular basis in its premise and characters than the other two series did.

It is also the first two really bring in a war with the introduction of the Dominion at the end of the second season. This plot weaves in and out of the series until the end.

I’m only through season 3 in my re-watch and it holds up. It follows the standard approach for genre shows of the period- often a season long plot that sits in the background, popping up here and there for an episode or two surrounded by one offs and character driven pieces. Next Gen, X-Files, Buffy and others successfully planned their shows this way too. I find some of the individual focused shows slow and meandering. For example- Season 3 E4 Equilibrium where Jadzia Dax goes a bit nutty for a bit because- Trill stuff. Or the second season Episode Whispers (S2E14) where O’Brien goes a bit nutty for a bit because- Body Snatcher Shit. It seems a lot of these episodes are “What is happening to Me/Us/Them” stuff. The action the plot is really things happening to a character and reacting. Slowly. They don’t do a whole lot sometimes to wrap up the situation. It just sort of resolves.

But it’s not all bad. The supporting crew is as interesting as any on a Trek show. Morn with almost no words is better than Reginald Barclay ever was. If Barclay was involved in a Next Gen episode, I knew it was time to take a nap. And the premise of a station out there in the wilds, far away from Starfleet support and control is a good one. It was a nice contrast to the two earlier ship bound series. It also introduced or expanded on some of the races in the ST universe- Trills, Klingons, Cardashians, Romulans. I have always wondered how the Trill originally came to be symbionts. Not in the cultural way, but rather, did those big ugly worms originally go up or down one of the humanoids holes to get in? It’s probably explained somewhere but I have a life after all. Let us not forget Bajor as well. And the fact that Sisko is a… well, watch and figure it out,

On Paramount + the shows look good considering there are 35 years old, and shot in a different ratio. The effects updated and look good as well.

I’m excited to get back into the Dominion War and see if it is as good as I remember it to be. Eager to see if Sisko is still able to monologue/lecture with the best of them. The introduction of Worf after Next Gen wraps up. The entire last season. It’s a strong show, dated and specific in a lot of ways to it’s time, but enjoyable. It still holds up 35 years into the future.

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