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DVD, DS9 S4 (Homefront)

Judging the first part of a two-part story can sometimes seem unfair. It's not the whole picture, it's a setup for What Happens Next. So it seems churlish to criticise this episode as being perhaps the weakest story of the season so far. The caveat is that this was one of the strongest starts to a season ever, so even a relatively weak episode is full to the brim with goodness - all those early scenes may not have been necessary to tell the story, and they do start the episode off slow (from where it never really gains momentum), but they were undeniably delightful. Dax moving Odo's furniture around (is this the first time we see his quarters?), leading his changeling nature to leap to the forefront (he's just like his people in terms of the need for order, but where they idolise domination, he follows the path of justice), is an example of the loosening up of the characters, showing them in the light of a family, albeit a sometimes dysfunctional one compared with the example of 'TNG.'

Quark's there telling a joke to the unresponsive Morn, O'Brien and Bashir let out their stresses at not being able to do anything about the threat on Earth by taking part in the Battle of Britain (the second time in consecutive episodes where Britain has been mentioned!), with Meaney's English accent more real than Siddig's! Sometimes I share the wish to see these holosuite escapades that some express, but they'd have to have really gone all out for it, building an episode around it as they did in 'Our Man Bashir' and it wouldn't have been cost-effective. There's also something to be said for leaving it all to the imagination where Spitfires dogfighting Messerschmitts can break the bounds of TV budgeting. Nowadays I imagine it would be no trouble to have a dogfight or an Alamo recreation, with a few digital artists beavering away, but as all these scenes were only an excuse to have the other crewmembers on camera before Sisko, Odo and Jake took the lion's share of the story, I'm fine with how it turned out.

The feeling of family is exemplified by Odo going to the trouble of asking O'Brien and Bashir if there's anyone on Earth they want him to look up, though I expect he was only being polite - how many humans would want an unknown changeling knocking on their door with a message from a Starfleet relative? It would be embarrassing for anyone to visit a friend's family who doesn't know them, but for Odo I'm sure it would have been ten times worse! Even so, I'd have paid good latinum for a tribute to 'The Quiet Man' in which Odo steps off a transport in Ireland, asks for directions and gets conflicting information from the locals, leading to squabbling amongst themselves. And to see Odo roaming the green hills of that film would have been some image to remember! Bashir noticeably changes the subject after quickly dismissing Odo's polite question saying he doesn't have anyone on Earth he wants to contact. This would bear fruit the following season when we find out about his parents and his shady background, which up to that point could never have been guessed. The most notable change from earlier seasons is the camaraderie the three display. They wish him luck, Odo gruffly rebuffs them saying he doesn't believe in luck, but then softens the rejoinder by noting that he appreciates the sentiment. He's learned to fit in with these strange humans and their ways.

Odo needed all the human skills he'd gathered in this story, seen as an outsider again as he was at the start of the series. Only now there's even more reason for difficulty gaining trust when his people are out there bombing conferences and causing panic among the populace. Panic may be an overstatement as the customers in Joseph Sisko's restaurant look happy and relaxed, and we even see a horse and cart amble by, so the impression of fear isn't palpable. Maybe it's the humans stiff upper lips keeping them steady? All the early scenes could have been dispensed with, the story could even have begun on Earth where Sisko has answered the call home. Or they might have shown some of the journey. I would have settled for seeing the USS Lakota disengage from the station and rubber band it out of there, something to give any impression of leaving DS9 or arriving at Earth would have made the transition more acceptable. It's not like they couldn't afford a ship as we see it in the second part.

I must make a confession. I never really thought much of Robert Foxworth. It's harsh to say that, as I've seen him as Admiral Leyton, a Vulcan in 'Enterprise' and a character on 'Stargate SG-1,' yet none of his appearances filled me with praise or admiration. It could be that he seems like another strict Admiral that could be any of the ones seen on 'TNG.' It could be that he never played sympathetic types (the problem I have with the Vulcans in general on 'Enterprise' is a whole other story!), or that I simply took a dislike to him, but usually if there's one of these actors the producers liked and had back more than once, I too, saw the greatness of them. On the other hand, reportedly, the producers weren't satisfied with Herschel Sparber's performance as President of the Federation. I liked him just from his name, and think they shouldn't have bothered coming up with Jaresh-Inyo's alien moniker and simply given the character the actor's name (as they did in 'Voyager' with Maury Ginsberg)! I really liked the makeup and whole idea of the Grazerite race, but as in the case of the Lethean in 'The Sword of Kahless' they were both in less successful episodes or in the President's case those in charge weren't happy and for whatever reason the race was associated with failure and never appeared again. I wanted to see his horns and find out what others of his people were like, but sadly we never did.

The saving grace of the episode is Brock Peters. In his case I wholeheartedly agree that he was a fantastic artist of the craft and the ideal person to take on the mantle of such an important role as Father to the Emissary. I love what they did with him in later seasons, and though his appearances on the series were few and far between, they were always memorable. He's very realistic in his portrayal of an old man trying to keep his own infirmities from his son, thinking his doctor's an idiot and generally causing trouble because he desperately doesn't want to lose the independence he's always had. But there are also the sweet moments when he laughingly keeps up Jake's childhood story of the alligator being kept in stasis, or when he makes it clear Jake and his Father are to come there for dinner no matter where they stay. That aspect of modern life helps sell the futuristic setting, along with the transparent subway tube or the mix of the beautiful old architecture with horse and cart clopping past, and the technological marvels of Starfleet buildings - people can be anywhere on the planet, and yet beam home for dinner, just as Sisko once related about starting Starfleet Academy, beaming home and coming downstairs as if everything was normal.

The Academy has been seen before, and though it isn't the focus this time, it does give Nog good excuse not to be consigned to a fading memory. How perfect that it should be Sisko's that the young Ferengi has become a regular at, the only place where he can get fresh tube grubs! Maybe Joseph isn't as snooty when it comes to food as he sometimes seems - as long as the customer's happy, he's happy and that seems to be the major part of his purpose and success, talking and relating to the customers so they feel like friends. Personally, I wouldn't want that kind of service, I prefer to eat, if I eat out, not become buddies with the staff, but that doesn't mean it isn't a joy to watch - a professional restaurateur at the top of his game. His son has the weight of the world on him, literally, so it's good they managed to include Nog and eke out some funny moments as he tenaciously, but with as much tact and enthusiasm as he can muster, asks the Captain to sponsor him for Red Squad. It's just at the time when Sisko is least in the mood for enthusiasm and the range of expressions that flit across his face during the ordeal with Nog are priceless.

It isn't just Starfleet security and the potential fate of Earth, or Nog's insistence for his attention, that bothers him most. It's the worry he has over his Father's health and wellbeing. He finds it difficult to stand up to his old Dad because he feels guilty for being so far away and also because Joseph is such a stubborn old man who knows just what buttons to push to get his own way - when Jake shows concern for him he turns it on his head and points out that it's his Dad he should be worried about. The best moment is as strong as anything in the best episodes: when Sisko's paranoia grows far enough that he actually has doubt in his mind over whether his own Father could be a changeling at a refusal to allow his blood to be tested. At first Joseph doesn't notice what's going on inside his son's head when he cuts his finger. He innocently hurries off to bandage it, but is shocked when it dawns on him the doubt in Sisko's eyes.

Brock Peters excels himself, his anger and bitterness coming out in hurt fury in his bared teeth and hooded, glittering eyes that fire daggers, gripping the poles of his kitchen like a prison and letting rip with the likelihood that a changeling could hold blood inside it and let it out on cue. He's so terrifying it's almost as if he's doing everything he can to seem like a changeling. Then he has a stroke, but a stunning performance is undermined slightly by the far too quick transition to the next scene in which Sisko wanders into a room and mentions his Father is going to be fine. There needed to be a few seconds, at least, where the intensity of the scene could sink in, and then we hear that Joseph's going to be okay. Maybe they could have had the camera trained on Ben's worried face as he walks along the corridor before entering the room, or some kind of breather, at the very least.

Joseph's intelligent and considered reasoning shows that he's not just a cranky old man - it's very true that a changeling might be able to circumvent the blood tests, as we know happened in 'The Way of The Warrior' from later revelation, but his real point about freedom being curtailed is the theme of the episode and is very relevant today with an unknown enemy that could at any time blow up, injure or maim us on our streets. That's one of the reasons why 'DS9' is so fresh and poignant for today's audience, as much or even more so than the other series', because it deals with terrorism and the erosion of civil liberty. It starts with blood screenings for families of Starfleet officers, yet they have no obligation to what is to all intents and purposes the army of the Federation. Then it becomes martial law and freedoms are curbed more and more. The crux of the matter is whether it's right to clamp down on people in order to save them, and that's fine if a strong and righteous leader remains in control, but how long can he remain upright before absolute power corrupts absolutely?

The scary thing is that we are drawn into Sisko and Leyton's plan because it is Sisko, the hero of the story, the main man, the one we trust. As he later proved in Season 6, he was willing to do anything it took to keep the Federation safe, and this is the beginning of that realisation, I think, though he wasn't comfortable going all the way, which may have been more to do with his dissatisfaction with Leyton in Part II than his own conscience. We applaud his actions at first because he's the expert that's brought in and we're coming with him, so by taking someone we're on side with and using him as the tool of oppression it seems right until you start to think about it. Should there have been such strict and decisive action? Can even that prevent the enemy from attacking, and even if it can, is the change in society worth the price of freedom? These are the questions that make the episode so mentally stimulating, even though the story is mainly discussion and the anticipation of threats, with character moments sprinkled through that minefield.

On a less cerebral level there are some fun things to point out, not the least being Odo as a seagull! It's quite amusing to think that flocks of seagulls circling above could actually be changelings, though not so funny if you happened to be a recipient of their 'bombs' as you walked beneath. Odo sensing the hatred of the changeling impersonating Leyton is another development in his dealings with his people. This is the first time he's met one since killing the spy at the end of Season 3. Before, his people had always maintained a passivity to him, but now he's committed the terrible sin of being the first changeling to harm another, he's truly a pariah to his people, something that was useful to him in this case. Though Odo is hurt deeply about the status of his race and their ways, I think he'd rather take the burden of pain upon himself if it gave him an advantage in maintaining order and security, as it does here.

The Golden Gate bridge is seen in the background to Sisko's Starfleet HQ office, and the Eiffel Tower of Paris is clearly seen in the backdrop of the President's office, unless it was moved again! It looks like a different view to the one in 'Star Trek VI' so in the century since then it's very possible that new buildings were constructed in a different location. It's this excellent attention to continuity that keeps the Trek world consistent and appearing to be parts of an established whole, and not the piecing together by many hands at different times that it was. If they could manage to do that for forty years why couldn't JJ Abrams' team keep it up instead of resorting to reset button Alternate Universe Land? Laziness, and a mistaken belief it would be easier to do whatever they wanted, that's what! But enough of that side-rant. Another link to continuity and the last century (and the Star Trek films themselves), is the statement that a planet-wide state of emergency hadn't been called for a hundred years. This is likely referring to the events of 'Star Trek IV' when the whale probe caused the globe to experience severe weather as it began to rip itself apart. A great tie-in as Brock Peters first appeared in Trek as Admiral Cartwright in that film (and again in VI).

Something that I love is the brief mention of when Earth was at war at the founding of the Federation, something I really wish had been dealt with on a full-length seven season run of 'Enterprise,' and again in the proposed film that was an early contender for the continuation of Trek before the Abramsverse laid it's ugly, lens-flared paw on the franchise. Any reference to the founding fills me with joy, as do the tying in of other races and events such as the loss of the Romulan/Cardassian fleet, Quark's Andorian joke, the Romulans coming to Earth for a conference and that one of the observers who died was a Tholian - he must have been inside some kind of atmospheric container as they don't breathe oxygen like most common races. You'd think the Romulans would be up in arms about their delegates being killed, and if it wasn't for the footage of a changeling morphing in the conference room they might have been blamed for the attack, probably what the Founders were hoping for.

Susan Gibney returns to the Trek universe after playing Geordi's ideal companion in two 'TNG' episodes. She looks a lot better as Commander Erika Benteen, but has very little to do in Part I, almost a spare limb that is obviously Leyton's right-hand woman until Sisko becomes the man of the moment. There's no tension between them and no repercussions of Sisko's promotion to Head of Starfleet Security, yet this is an important post and whoever was in charge before must have been feeling it badly. Maybe they didn't want to over egg the pudding, with ideas already to undermine Gene Roddenberry's paradise, having dissension and bitterness between Starfleet officers might have gone too far, but would have given the episode more teeth, the main problem over budgetary concerns.

The budget cutbacks weren't very obvious as we're seeing so many locations or hearing about them: Paris, San Francisco, the restaurant in New Orleans, O'Brien's mention of Dublin, even Jake who apparently takes the opportunity to visit the writing school in New Zealand he's been planning to attend. The only time the budget seems small is in the cliffhanger which has little of the portent of other, better examples in previous seasons: a few Starfleet bods beam down into the streets outside Sisko's restaurant with weapons drawn. That's not very scary and doesn't show the planet-wide scale. What keeps it in the 'good episode' bracket are the many character moments, the growing paranoia and the introduction of another great recurring character in Joseph Sisko and his charming restaurant.

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