#ds9 2x09

[walkingstackofbooks]

DS9 2x09 Second Sight thoughts (rewatching, so possible future spoilers)

Jake and Sisko scenes are always wonderful, he's such a lovely dad

Lofton's such a good actor! For a kid!

"Dad, I love you" my FEELS

I kind of do forget how much Jake and Sisko lost, this is one of the times when you remember how big a deal it is to them, when it is such a little part of DS9 to us

OH, IT'S THIS ONE! Always excited when I realise I know an ep XD

I remember when I thought she was going to be Kasidy XD Not knowing the first time I watched this anything about Kasidy apart from her name and her relationship with Sisko

This episode is actually just sad when you already know the outcome of the weird spoopy mystery

Haha, Kira looks SO WORRIED that Sisko is cheerful in the morning XD

Jake just knowing that Sisko is in love

LOVE seeing the everyday working of DS9 - Odo telling his security about a telepath risk we never (?) see

Odo's frustration at Sisko's awful description of the woman he wants Odo to look for XD

Sisko definitely has weird energy this episode, usually when Sisko is like this he's possessed or something

Really not sure how Julian can be enjoying this, does the man not suffer from second-hand embarrassment? (Tbf, this is Julian, it might explain a lot if he just doesn't suffer from embarassment?) Or maybe he's enjoying everyone being annoyed at someone who's not him? XD

LOVE how Dax realises instantly that Sisko's woman is Nidell, barely even a glance needed!

Quark trying to lend a listening ear to Sisko XD Is he just trying to make an easy sale to a sad boi?

"So disappointed Sisko finished his sentence" > I don't for the life of me know what I meant by that, okay past Andi...

Okay, I really hate this "she mates for life and can't leave me" thing - why marry her if you know that? (Yes, he might have told her about his past wives and she may have made an informed choice about marrying him > but I still feel like it was taking advantage of her, seeing as he clearly has the self-awareness to know that he's an ass)

Not really sure how to feel about this guy in the end, but I'm kinda glad he's dead? Well done for being not totally awful I guess?

It's just a bit of a weird episode really, isn't it, although there are some great parts.

[herschelkrustofsky]

so i just finished season 2 of DS9 for the first time and i have so many thoughts about quark and his relationships with the crew; specifically ben, kira, jadzia, and odo. throughout the season, we see quark either trying to connect to these four — albeit in his own grating way — or proving his worth to them after a major fuck-up. (this is the case for jadzia specifically; he inadvertently put her on danger in invasive procedures [2x03] risked his own life trying to save her. we see them hanging out in playing god [2x17], so we know they’re cool and that jadzia forgave him. this should go without mentioning jadzia sticking up for the ferengi more than once throughout the season, specifically to kira, and insisting there’s more to them than their money grubbing ways.)

with ben, quark attempts to connection with him over a drink in second sight [2x09], only for ben to turn him down — presumably because he has too much on his mind and quark is quark, but the way the camera lingers on our favourite bartender, we can see how the rejection ate at him. the rejection sensitivity is dialled up even further in shadowplay [2x16] when quark attempts to get playful with kira, only to be told she utterly despises him for collaborating with the cardassians during the occupation — forcing him to realize that their snark isn’t a game and that she legitimately doesn’t like him, to the point where he says (verbatim) that he wishes he hadn’t brought it up. this comes up again in the jem’hadar [2x26] when he mentions to odo that kira specifically doesn’t like him, showing how much he internalized that conversation and ruminates over it even with the passage of time — and that’s still not all!

in the collaborator [2x24], there’s a specific exchange between odo, kira, and quark that’s very relevant to the theme of quark feeling rejected and isolated by the crew. transcribing it doesn’t quite do it justice, so i’ll just link the scene itself:

TL;DR: these two show up and quark immediately gets defensive and nervous. given his interactions with odo on a regular basis + kira’s recent (and completely understandable) anger, he figures them confronting him together probably spells out trouble for him. and unfortunately, in typical odo fashion, he doesn’t exactly make him feel any better:

quark: you want something from me, don’t you?

kira: how’d you guess?

odo: it’s simple. we’ve been here more than a minute, and we haven’t insulted him, threatened him, or arrested him.

quark: exactly. so what is it?

quark values odo’s opinion a lot. and while i’m sure odo was just playing around and being sarcastic, this is the last thing quark needed to hear in that moment and solidifies in his mind that he’s only of any value to the others when he’s useful, which ultimately culminates in this confrontation with ben after they’ve been captured by the jem’hadar:

i’ve seen this clip before, but it was only last night, after having seen season 2 to completion, that i finally had the full context for it — specifically, for quark’s emotions, and why he went on his little tirade. he isn’t angry at ben specifically; he’s angry at the entire DS9 crew for (in his mind) treating him like an annoyance that’s only worth speaking to when he gives them something in return. i believe he brings up his species as a whole rather than Just Himself for two reasons: 1, it gives him a roundabout way to express his outrage without getting too vulnerable, and 2, he is attempting to rationalize why he’s faced with the indifference and the animosity that he is. chalking it down to speciesism helps him rationalize why this is happening, but the alternative is also pretty devastating: that they just don’t like him as an individual.

but here’s the kicker: they DO like quark! ben lets him come along on the camping trip despite his wishes to spend time with jake and only jake. he engages in conversation with him, feeds him, and is pretty damn amiable towards him despite quark’s incessant complaining. he defends quark to eris when she expresses annoyance over him. meanwhile, odo specifically joins the rescue mission to make sure quark gets home safe (in his own words!!!) and even tells kira she’d miss quark if anything were to happen to him — they ALL would — and she agrees!

the tragedy is that all of these things are discussed when quark is out of earshot (no pun intended) or just not paying enough attention. but despite his growing disillusionment with them, quark is willing to resort to violence (something he’d really rather avoid) to protect his friends; first demonstrated in invasive procedures and then coming full circle when he lethally shoots a jem’hadar trying to hurt ben, who returns the favour by making sure quark isn’t left behind despite eris’ insistence. and this time, quark IS around to hear that someone cares about him; not just anyone, but the station’s commander, which certainly gives him the validation he’s been craving all season long.

while i can’t find the clip, i think quark’s little monologue to the gloomy morn at the beginning of the episode describes it best; he isn’t just their bartender, he’s their confidant and their friend — or desperately wants to be. unfortunately, his learned / cultural behaviours, impulsivity, and selfish tendencies (as demonstrated when he abandons morn to scurry after his boytoy, aka odo) drive a wedge between him and the people he’s come to want the approval of so badly… and despite his glaring flaws and their often flippant treatment of him, they manage to like him anyway. big ears just needs to listen better, it seems — or maybe his friends need to make their affections a little more obvious.

i just. man. it’s such a subtle arc, one you probably don’t notice unless you’ve been watching a bunch of episodes consecutively like i have (not to mention my, ahem, keen eye on a certain ferengi…), but it’s so satisfying. they didn’t have to do all that for him and they did. this show and its attention to character detail is incredible and i can’t wait to see what else it has in store for me. 🖤

[starrybouquet]

yo should i watch star trek? i've been thinking about watching it but there are so many shows and movies and it's verrry overwhelming.

star trek and ncis have both been in my list of shows to watch for a long time, but i never got around to actually watching them. watching u post about them makes me wanna binge watch them but it's SO overwhelming and idk where to start

Okay, first off, you should ABSOLUTELY watch Star Trek. It's GLORIOUS and absolutely bonkers and thoughtful at the same time. You should also definitely watch NCIS because for a show about murder, it is surprisingly comforting 😂

This post got VERY VERY long because I learned I have a LOT of thoughts about how to watch large amounts of television. Uh, sorry 😂I split it up into NCIS and Star Trek, and then....the Star Trek section is still really long. I hope it's not too much rambling, and that it is possibly helpful?? I feel really honored you asked me about this <3

NCIS

NCIS is pretty simple to binge - I just finished watching it for the first time. Pretty much, I'd run straight through NCIS (the original, not NCIS:LA or NCIS:NO) from season 1-13. A few caveats: I enjoyed s1-s2, but I have some friends who were bothered by a few episodes that were transphobic. I mean it's kind of expected, since the show started in 2003 and some of the characters weren't written as the most accepting people, at least at the start But that doesn't make it easier to watch. If you think that will bother you, I'd be happy to give you a list of episodes to watch/skip. :)

From season 3 onward, I'd really just watch in order (you can skip some of the more gruesome ones *glares at two specific season 3 episodes*). I wandered off sometime around season 13/14 but you can conceivably continue on to season 18 which just finished like a week ago, I think?

Oh, and then you can try the spin-offs. Neither have really been able to hold my attention but you might have better luck!

Star Trek

Okay this one is a lot less simple. Yes, there is SO much Star Trek and asking yourself to binge all of it is very very confusing because....this timeline is a good explanation.

Yeah.

Sir, what?

So! There's no right way to binge Trek. I'd definitely start with a TV show. Yes, there are a lot of Star Trek movies and some of them are fabulous, but Star Trek was born on TV and the TV shows are still the bread and butter of the franchise.

There are maybe five good entry points for Star Trek. If you don't like the first one you try, try a different one, since they are similar but every entry in the franchise has a very different feel.

I'd say there are maybe five good entry points for Star Trek:

Star Trek: The Original Series (1966-1969) The classic, very first Star Trek. Kirk, Spock, McCoy. Absolutely ICONIC. Has a few fabulous, classic high-concept sci-fi episodes and a few absolutely HILARIOUS episodes. If you choose this one, be prepared for a show that's VERY 60s in color and style, thinly-veiled Vietnam War allegories, and a lot of William Shatner.

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994) My personal favorite. Episodic, absolutely brilliant acting, and the RANGE! Literally has a cross-dressing Wild West romp one week and a deep, "machines develop a sense of self-preservation" plot the next. Some of the very best television ever made. The only problem with TNG is it starts reallllly slow. Most people don't really enjoy season 1, and it really doesn't get good until halfway thru season 2. So I'd recommend watching the pilot, then maybe skipping through a few s1 episodes as they strike your fancy. There are a few good ones but also many duds. The nice thing is it's entirely episodic so you can skip without worrying about losing the main thread of the story. After the pilot, I think the only season 1 episode that's crucial for plotty reasons is Skin of Evil (1x23)? Then starting with A Measure of a Man (2x09) I'd watch straight through. The rest of the series is EXCELLENT and quality is, on average, fairly high. (Okay, you can skip the last episode of s2 since it's a clip show. A writer's strike happened. XD) If you choose this route, be prepared for the slow start. And the VERY 80s sci-fi costumes. :)

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999) I'm not a huge DS9 fan, but I really, really enjoy their comedic episodes. If season-long arcs and a more gritty, politick-y feel strikes your fancy, this is the show for you. Again, this one has brilliant acting (most Trek does tbh) and a LOT of range. DS9 is set during wartime, so it's definitely got a different feel. I like it but don't love it, but this show has changed the lives of a lot of people, I think, so it's definitely a good option. I think DS9 starts better than TNG, and this is definitely one you want to watch in order. Seasons 1-3 are a little more episodic and then the series-long war arc begins in earnest.

Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001) I have an outsized love for Voyager entirely because of fandom. (J/C fandom has a very large overlap with Sam/Jack fandom!) The premise of Voyager is that it's a ragtag crew (half military officers, half rebel terrorists) trying to get home after being flung 70,000 light years from Earth (which will take roughly 70 years for them to traverse). This is the only show with a female captain and it is TERRIFIC. I'm just saying, if you watch this one, be prepared to ship the captain and the first officer. Because...you will. :) Overall quality of Voyager is, IMHO, not quite as high as TNG. It's again more episodic with some occasional multi-episode plot threads. But the two shows have equally strong captains, and Voyager is definitely a more scrappy ship than TNG's Enterprise. The characters change a LOT over seven seasons, so definitely watch Voyager in order. I think this show actually has one of the better pilot episodes of Star Trek, in a franchise full of notoriously poor pilot episodes.

Star Trek: Discovery (2017-) If you want a "modern" show - y'know, fancy effects and such - I'd roll with Discovery. But it's definitely a controversial entry in the franchise, and one of the less consistent ones, IMHO. But I really like the pilot, and also enjoyed season 2, so you could definitely start here if you're looking for something that's more recent and less, y'know, of whatever era it was made.

For people who love SG-1, I'd probably start with TNG or Voyager? I'm not sure. Discovery is a lot flashier but I think you'll probably enjoy the other four more, if you like SG-1. Totally a matter of personal taste, though.

I hope you got to the end of this, and honestly, if you want to get into either of these shows and are still confused, just message me? I will happily give advice :)

TL;DR

Just binge NCIS from episode 1 onward. If you are very sensitive to transphobia, message me and I'll tell you which season 1 eps to skip.

For Trek: If you love SG-1, I'd start with The Next Generation or Voyager. But honestly, you could start with The Original Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, or Discovery, depending on what you like in your TV.

[racingliners]

Star Trek Comfort Episodes Megalist

Alrighty! So this idea has been in my head for a good few months now. I watch Star Trek a bunch anyway, but I found that when I would be feeling unwell or a little bit down I found myself re-watching the same few episodes over and over, so I decided to make it into a list! 

I've been working on it for a good few weeks, and it's about as finished as I can get it, as I don't know all the Treks equally. So I'm posting it as is, and if anyone who knows some of the shows better, I'm more than happy to take suggestions to add to it!

(Edit 08/11/21: Now includes episodes from Lower Decks)

TOS:

2x15 The Trouble With Tribbles

TNG:

4x11 Data’s Day

4x20 Qpid

5x05 Disaster

6x04 Relics

7x15 Lower Decks

DS9:

3x22 Explorers

4x07 Little Green Men

5x06 Trials and Tribble-ations

6x10 The Magnificent Ferengi

6x14 One Little Ship

7x04 Take Me Out to the Holosuite

7x15 Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang

VOY:

4x14 Message In a Bottle

5x12 Bride of Chaotica!

5x24 Relativity

6x10 Pathfinder

6x11 Fair Haven

6x12 Blink of an Eye

7x18 Q2

ENT:

1x07 Breaking the Ice 

1x18 Acquisition

2x02 Carbon Creek

2x09 Singularity 

2x05 A Night In Sickbay 

2x12 The Catwalk

4x07, 08 & 09 The Forge, Awakening, Kir’Shara

DIS:

1x07 Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad

2x01 Brother

3x07 Unification III

3x13 That Hope Is You (Part 2)

LDS:

1x01 Second Contact

2x03 We’ll Always Have Tom Paris

2x09 wej Duj

Movies:

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Star Trek Beyond

[annakie]

Voyager Post-Show Books Read Order + Rewatch List

I’m lending my Voyager + some TNG books to my mom to read, and I sent her an email with this list that I made.  I thought it might be helpful for other people, (and also it’d be easier for me to find next time) if I posted it online somewhere.

First, it’s also a read order for the major books covering Voyager happenings plus a few TNG books that I also own for the same era.  It’s got all the major Voyager happenings in it, and a few TNG books that are optional, though most play into what’s happening with Voyager.

In reading the books, I found it was helpful to go back and rewatch certain episodes to do things like remember who the minor / guest characters were and their plots when they showed back up, or review some character arcs for the main characters, or just the overarching plots of episodes which the books referenced.  

I also linked to their pages on Memory Alpha for easy referencing, but rewatching is better.  

Unless otherwise marked, suggested episodes below are Voyager episodes.

Any episodes I put a * after I'd say is critical to understanding the book(s), otherwise it's just helpful.  I’m happy to add to this list if anyone has other suggestions.

Voyager - Homecoming - This book deals with the immediate aftermath of Voyager's Endgame (the series finale). This and the next book are a two-parter.  They're good but not great.  The Voyager books get much better starting with the fifth. Rewatch List - Non Sequitur (2x05) Hunters (4x15) Lineage (7x12)   Prophecy (7x14) * Author, Author (7x20) Endgame (the very last episode) *

Voyager - The Farther Shore - Part 2 of the above.

Voyager - Old Wounds - This and the next Voyager book are also a two-parter.  They are... okay.  The Voyager books get a new author after this and then they get really, really, really good. Rewatch List - Tattoo - (2x09) *  Nothing Human (5x08) TNG Journey's End (7x20) (Chakotay's people live on the planet Starfleet is trying to relocate in this TNG episode.)

Voyager - Enemy of My Enemy - Part 2 of the above.

TNG - Death in Winter -  Non-essential for Voyager.  This takes place shortly after the movie Nemesis and deals with Picard having to rebuild the crew.  This is maybe the worst of all the books I've read in this series, but one important thing does happen. Rewatch List - TNG Nemesis (the movie) * Eventually, you're going to want to rewatch the below episodes, I think it'd be useful to watch them before the following books.   TNG - The Best of Both Worlds 1 and 2 (3x26, 4x1) Voyager - The Q and The Grey (3x11) * Voyager - Scorpion Part 1  and 2 (3x26, 4x1)  

TNG - Resistance - Moderately important for future Voyager stuff, skip if you want.  Most rewatch episodes were covered above.

TNG - Q&A -  Honestly, a rewatch list for Q&A would be every single episode with Q in it that hasn’t been touched on.  This is maybe my favorite of the TNG-only books on this list, but it’s not very important for the Voyager list.

Voyager - Full Circle - FIRST HALF ONLY!!! - There's a break in the middle of this book, with a timeskip in between.  ONLY READ THE FIRST HALF at this point if you’re doing an in-order read with TNG books as well.  If you don’t care about anything but explicitly Voyager books, skip down to #12 as Beyer does a good job of explaining what happens in the subsequent books between the two parts of Full Circle. This is also the book where Voyager starts becoming amazing.  The only bad thing about Kirsten Beyer's books is you'll be sad all the rest of the Star Trek books aren't as good as hers.   No watchlist as mostly the first half of the book is wrapping up the storylines from Christine Golden's first four Voyager books. 

TNG - Before Dishonor - This is nearly as much a Voyager book as TNG.  This book is instrumental in understanding everything that happens afterwards.  I won’t get into my opinion about the book itself though because it’s not very flattering.  You probably want to read at least the first and last chapters, the rest is... skippable if you’re not enjoying it. If you haven't rewatched Voyager's The Q and the Grey and Endgame yet, you're really going to want to here.

TNG - Greater Than the Sum - Just started reading this one, I’ll update once I’m done. Yes, I’m reading some of these books very of out of order. :)  *edit* It was an improvement over Before Dishonor, I’d recommend reading as it does bridge into the next books.

TNG/VOY/DS9/More - Destiny Trilogy - (Gods of Night/Mere Mortals/Lost Souls - I bought them all as a collection)  This is a massive crossover event trilogy but next on my to-read list  I do know that characters from TNG, Voyager, DS9, Enterprise, plus Titan (Riker's ship) are all in it. I don't have a rewatch list but I'll make it as I get to reading it. *Edit* OK I’ve finished reading it. My opinion is that you should read this trilogy. Yes, it’s long, but also very worth it.  Probably my favorite non-Voyager books on this list.  There are only a couple of cameos of Voyager characters but they are meaningful, and Seven has a small storyline of her own, as does Tuvok (since he’s on the Titan serving under Riker.) The writing is very good, the story is great, and reading it massively increased my understanding of and investment in a major storyline throughout the rest of the Voyager books.  I also just really, really enjoyed it.  If you don’t want to read anything else not explicitly Voyager, I still rec you read this trilogy. Rewatch List Enterprise: Home (4x03)* Affliction (4x15) & Divergence (4x16)

Okay, now read the second half of Full Circle.  Cry a lot about it. Everything I talk about from here on out is just Voyager.

Unworthy -  The adventure finally re-begins! Rewatch List In The Flesh (5x04) Okay but maybe put off rewatching this episode after the climax of the books. Life Line (6x24) Homestead (7x23) TNG - Darmok (5x02)  (The new Voyager CMO is a Tamarian, though you can put off rewatching this until Acts of Contrition if you really want, the character doesn't get important til then.)

Children of the Storm - No rewatch list.

The Eternal Tide -  My FAVORITE of all the books. Rewatch List- Q2 (7x19) * The Gift (4x02) TNG True Q (6x06)

Protectors -  This and the next two books are their own trilogy, so the below episodes are for all three. Rewatch List - Twisted (2x06) Unity (3x17)   Counterpoint (5x10) Dragon's Teeth (6x07) Unimatrix Zero (6x24) and Part II (7x01) (If you haven't rewatched TNG - Darmok 5x02 yet, do that now)

Acts of Contrition 

Atonement

A Pocket Full of Lies - Watch List - Year of Hell Parts 1 and 2 (4x08 and 09) * Shattered (7x11) *

Architects of Infinity - It’s been a couple of months since my first reads of these two books but I don’t recall any particular episodes jumping out as needed rewatches as I did.  Let me know if you think I’m wrong and I’ll update the list.

To Lose The Earth 

[pouncequick]

When Dax’s tricorder shows that a woman is actively dying in front of you, wouldn’t it make sense to also call a doctor while you try to figure out the relationship between her and the telepathic projection of her?