This was a dark episode and reminded me of 5th season's "Nor the Battle to the Strong." In fact, in one point in the episode, Quark (who is with the crew on a fact-finding mission from Grand Nagus) and Captain Sisko have a heated argument about Nog going on the front lines to be a look out (and listen for) the Jem'Hadar. Quark tells Sisko he wouldn't send Jake into such a dangerous position and Sisko replies that Jake is not a Starfleet officer. Jake was the one under fire in "Battle" while on a trip with Dr. Bashir to offer aide at the frontlines.
Here, a Starfleet team had been sent to a planet where the Dominion keeps a communications relay. They have seized it and held it while fighting off teams of Jem'Hadar. There are only a few dozen left of the over 100 original crew members that had been sent. They are battle fatigued from being on the same duty for five months, going against Starfleet's protocol of replacing crews every 90 days. Some crew members are suffering from post-traumatic stress and Bashir wants to get them off the duty and replaced.
Unfortunately this isn't possible at the moment because of the area of space, which is fortified with Jem'Hadar. All the Defiant crew can do is leave them supplies but, after another surprise attack, find themselves fortifying the base with reconfigured weapons and hoping to avoid "Houdini" mines---mines that appear out of subspace at any given location.
Nog loses a leg during a watch after Jem'Hadar sneak up and kill the crew's senior commander. In another chilling moment, an injured crewman refuses to allow Dr. Bashir to replace a bandage that a former crewman had placed. The soldier tells Bashir that the guy who bandaged him was a talker and never shut up. He couldn't stand him. The only time he shut up was when he was struck in the back by a phaser blast and lay there dead---and quiet.
The episode highlighted the realities of war and how those that fight on the front lines are often neglected and forgotten and the psychological effects that this neglect causes.
When the casualty list is posted at the end, Kira tells him it's over 1,700 "names." They're more than just names and we need to remember that" he tells Kira.
Quark notices the effects of battle on war fatigued "hew-mons" and has an interesting exchange with his nephew about it.
What does Nog take away from this? "I almost feel sorry for the Jem'Hadar."
No comments:
Post a Comment