Trek Thursdays: Trekking Towards Sixty #20 — “Duet” And “In The Hands Of The Prophets”

On September 8th, 1966, an intrepid crew of explorers boldly went where no one had ever gone before on television. At that moment, Star Trek was born. A series that launched a franchise that has kept a firm grip on audiences for decades.

As the sixtieth anniversary approaches, we here at Comicon are ready to celebrate one of the greatest science fiction franchises. While Star Trek has graced the silver screen, most of its life has been on our television screens. So, that’s where our focus shall remain.

Every week through September 8th, we’ll be spotlighting two Star Trek episodes, from any and every iteration, that we feel are some of the greatest. At this point there are over 950 episodes of Trek, so it goes without saying some favorites won’t make the cut for this list of 60.

Hope for a better future.

This is one of the things that Star Trek is best known for. Focused on ideals that are beyond our current human capability. Except, that’s not fully the truth. While humans have far exceeded that limits that we have imposed upon ourselves right now, there are still flaws. Battles are still fought between people, species, and worlds.

Some of the best Trek are the episodes that do not shy away from the harsh reality that is life. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was one that very much stared that darkness in the eye from the beginning and never blinked. Our episodes today are both from the very first season, which on paper was a bit rough in some spaces but absolutely owned in other cases. Just like last week’s entries, they aired back to back to cap off a series’ season.

One of the earliest — and starkest — looks at the after effects of the Cardassian Occupation highlights one episode while the other shows the danger that comes from those who wave religion around like a weapon.

-RED ALERT: SPOILERS FOLLOW-

“Duet”
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Season 1, Episode 19 (06/13/1993)

Synopsis: A Cardassian man arrives on the station with an illness that could only come from being at a particular Bajoran labor camp during the Occupation. Claiming to be one of the worst offenders during the Occupation, Major Kira (Nana Visitor) to determine the absolute truth while wrestling with her own feelings.

This episode, remains one of the most powerful in the initial season of the series.

Harris Yulin and Visitor just absolutely own this whole episode. Their back and forth, the passionate way that Yulin’s Marritza is filled with grief and guilt, and the eventual outcome are all riveting. At this point Cardassians were much like other antagonistic species — mostly we met the bad ones that did terrible things to others. With Marritza and this episode, things were shown to not be as black and white as they might have seemed.

Here was a man who was doing a job, terrified of what was happening but too afraid to do or say anything. Hoping that taking on the sins of another, he’s giving people someone to take their anger out that would somehow heal wounds.

So much of the episode is leaving the viewers just as uncertain about who this man is and what is happening as Kira. We’re in her shoes, feeling this anger and detest for this man, wanting to get to the center of the mystery and unwrap it. Only in the end she finds that what was underneath isn’t what she had been envisioning.

Yulin plays all sides of Marritza brilliantly. There are moments where you want to just hiss and glare at the man, saying such vile things, “What you call genocide, I called a day’s work.” Only for it to change and him to become an object of pity, the truth of how many are unwillingly pulled into the presence of atrocities because that’s how fascism and similar systems work.

“You have no idea that it’s like to be a coward … to see these horrors … and do nothing. Marritza’s dead. He deserves to be dead.”

We see a side of Kira that we get to see more of as time goes on. She was angry, rightfully so, and wants justice. But she doesn’t just want to punish all Cardassians. As she tells Marritza, he was just one man and couldn’t stop all the atrocities. Taking the punishment for crimes he didn’t commit serves no one.

As the episode ending shows, the effects of the occupation are not only still felt but will be felt for a long time. Bodies upon bodies, of various types, are buried while those who benefited the most from the cruelty are in many cases still in positions of power.

“In The Hands Of The Prophets”
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine – Season 1, Episode 20 (06/20/1993)

Synopsis: As many Bajorans begin to object to secular teachings about the wormhole in the station’s school, tensions begin to rise as a figure emerges to stoke the flames even higher. The alliance between Starfleet and Bajor is tested.

Kai Winn.

Just say those words and any fan of the series is sure to have instant feelings. Deep Space Nine had a number of supporting cast that were absolutely antagonistic and villainous. While Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo) was a clear cut one, it was Louise Fletcher’s portrayal of Winn Adami that sticks out for so many reasons. While Dukat embodied “egotistical thinks he’s the hero” villainy for much of his time, Winn is pure calculated evil.

This episode marks her debut and she hits the ground running. Not yet Kai — just a vedek of the Bajoran faith — she arrives in Keiko O’Brien’s (Rosalind Chao) classroom and instantly objects to the teachings about the wormhole in a scientific way. She demands that it be taught that the wormhole is the Celestial Temple and the beings within are the Prophets. When Keiko says she appreciates the Bajorans’ beliefs but she is teaching science and not spiritual beliefs, Winn threatens she will stop Keiko’s blasphemy.

Religion is not a subject that this series shied away from. It couldn’t since the Bajorans and their faith are central to so much, as is Benjamin Sisko’s (Avery Brooks) place as the Emissary.

Sisko’s position also is a whole grinding gears situation to boot. Winn admits that she was bothered that a non-believer was the one called to the role, and not someone like her. Ego mixed with faith is a dangerously potent thing.

The episode also has a murder mystery mixed into it, that actually circles back to the main plot, because it has Winn’s fingerprints. We see how she is willing to use others in order to get her way and force her viewpoint into the mainstream. Sisko rightfully calls out Winn, accusing her of drumming up the school issue to cause this mess because her orthodox sect is hardly ever listened to by the rest of the Vedek Assembly.

Unfortunately, these days we’re still witnessing people making up false issues in order to demonize others and push their agendas. Far too many marginalized people have to deal with the effects on a daily basis. Religion used as the tool which they hammer these false and harmful beliefs forward with.

We also get to meet Vedek Bareil Antos (Philip Anglim), a far more progressive and open-minded member of the assembly. Winn tries to have him assassinated in order to better have a shot at being Kai, since Bareil is the favorite. He survives and begins a path that leads him to Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) and an eventual death.

Come back next week as we dive into two more of Star Trek’s greatest episodes.