Paul Merton in China (Episode 2)

DVD, Paul Merton in China (Episode 2)

Livelier than the first episode, this effortlessly glides between the busy, built-up cities and meditative country, with Paul clearly enjoying himself and getting into the spirit of things (aside from wimping out on Kung Fu or eating dog meat), so you can see he'd relaxed into his role of eccentric English tourist and continues his penchant for exhibitionism, whether that's joining in with an outdoor line dancing group to the embarrassment of his guide, letting loose some fighting crickets on a train journey, bemused travellers watching as he crawls along the carriage trying to find them, or dancing again in the middle of a dirt road. In the last case it's fully understandable as he's on a ten hour car journey out into the country to visit nomads and Tibetan monks (could have been the same place Michael Palin visited in 'Himalaya' for all I can remember!). The strange and extreme contrasts between the traditional and the modern are further explored, as is a touch of religion, as these sorts of programmes tend to do: I suppose the spiritual side of other cultures is somewhat exotic to a Western world that has allowed our own to become submerged or ignored. I found it interesting that Paul doesn't believe in going to Heaven, but does have the belief that we become something else. Sadly he doesn't explain where he lost one view or gained another, but so much is packed in that the forty-five minutes fly by.

It's interesting to be reminded how much of a labour Buddhism is, the people having to prostrate themselves on the floor, or turn prayer wheels ten thousand times in their lifetime to help them on their way to a better 'next chance.' It's not for people afraid of hard work, nor is it an easy thing, but then the lives of the nomads, too, is much the same in that regard. It's touching to see that laughter breaks down barriers of culture and taste as Paul's clowning tendencies find free rein, whether his wild jigging on the road or blowing up balloons for nomadic children, he's in his element as an entertainer. He draws the line at being walloped in the stomach at the Kung Fu school, understandably, and his outgoing nature and silliness contrasted with his traditional British reserve at certain things is fascinating to see, like a mirror of Chinese culture's two sides, perhaps one reason why the series works so well. He keeps finding non-Chinese to touch base with for an outsider's insider perspective: one young Westerner who's come to practice the martial art, describes it as a purely physical pursuit that relieves the stress of day to day life by focusing on fighting rather than the minutiae of living. That's in the city, and it's no surprise that the country life is shown to be far from hectic or stressful, though with China's insistence on industrial advance the usual fears of progress encroaching like an unstoppable wave on the simple, traditional ways of life through economic change is ever present and real.

A memorable image is seeing a child's balloon blowing off, with the young boy chasing it, ever just out of reach as Paul is told about plans for an airport over this beautiful green land, poetic in its symbolism. But though people are more reluctant to talk openly than ever thanks to extra government minders who have made warnings about what to say in advance, there's still plenty of opportunity for Paul to get behind the scenes. He's even a little mischievous in his exploits, searching out 'Dog Street,' famed for its restaurants selling dog meat, and after a day of finding out about the new Chinese status symbol of dog ownership, petting neon-coloured poodles, he's reluctant to indulge, though the colour and liveliness of the area at night makes you almost smell the sizzling food and feel the rush of passersby hurrying along - on that occasion they'd given the minders the slip, so there's an element of danger and impropriety that adds to Merton's gung-ho exploring, even when he earns the ire of a resident by filming in front of a shuttered area that looks like a sleeping place for the homeless. Food experiences continue to be mixed for his unadventurous palate, and while dodging dog, he does eat from 'The Pot of Hades' as he names it, a rather hot selection, as well as the ingenious all-in-one use of a sheep as both meal, pot, and oven, hot stones placed in with the meat inside the sheep's own stomach for a traditional cooking experience with the nomads.

The city of Chongqing, said to be the 'fastest growing metropolis on the planet' has always been a name I've remembered, probably because its very name sounds rich (ching-ching!). He may have been mistaken for the Canadian Prime Minister, but the fact that Emma, his Chinese assistant and guide, lets him think the staff of a hotel are pleased to see him, adds some humour between them, and she definitely seems to be hitting it off with him, indulgently treating him like an overzealous son or younger brother, perhaps. But then she has the air of a more Westernised Chinese about her anyway, so is a good fit for his japes. References to Tony and Gordon, as well as David Beckham's mohican, date it somewhat, but this episode is full to the brim of the speed and scale of life and social change in this country, and my only complaint might be that sometimes it would be nice if they slowed down and concentrated on one area or stayed with a person or group a bit longer, but I suspect that had more to with keeping the minders on their toes. Just think if this had been a six- or seven-part series, how much more detail we could have gone into. It's fast and fun food for thought, not much time for digestion, but spicy and enjoyable entertainment all the same.

***

Treachery, Faith and The Great River

DVD, DS9 S7 (Treachery, Faith and The Great River) (2)

On a PADD, in writing, this concept probably looked a tantalising prospect: throw a couple of pairs of characters we don't often see together and let drama/comedy commence. And so we have Odo and Weyoun on a Runabout journey, while on the station O'Brien and Nog are the draw. While I wouldn't say this was a bad episode, and I'd even go as far as calling it good, it doesn't live up to the, admittedly sketchy, proposition above, not delivering the goods you'd expect from these writers, unlike Nog, who was able to deliver the goods for O'Brien. It's not badly written, and we do get some significant biography on the Vorta as a species, but there isn't a lot of emotional investment and curiously I found myself equating it to the first Trek film, 'The Motion Picture,' for its strangely detached presentation and a reliance on fancy CGI at the end rather than deep character stuff that we've come to expect. It features a much better ending than 'TMP' did, but there's the same discomfort with equating clearly un-godlike beings with godhood, and I'm not sure Odo was right to assume the mantle of accepting worship, giving blessing to the errant Weyoun, even if he was only doing it for appearance sake to ease the suicidal Vorta on his dying way, a generous granting of a misguided final wish. I find it strange that Kira, too, would support the Vorta's reading, except in the fact that the Founders are clearly the authority behind the Dominion, they are Odo's people, and he needs to think about playing a part as a (false) 'god' as much as a security officer if this war is going to be won without annihilation.

The question is, would it be right, for hypothetical sake, for Odo to assume the role of a god, if the result was an end of war? Do the ends justify the means? Garak would certainly answer in the affirmative if his devious actions to bring the Romulans in on the Federation's side in 'In The Pale Moonlight' are any judge of character, and they certainly are. And perhaps even Sisko would agree, at this point, considering his seeming lack of, or uncertainty regarding, remorse over his part in Garak's plot, however much he was manipulated. The murky world of 'DS9' would suggest that the greater good is the important thing, but then you see other episodes like 'Inquisition' where Section 31 are introduced and condemned for their pro-Federation actions at any cost, while Bashir and the other genetically enhanced savants of 'Statistical Probabilities' had their beliefs quashed when their projections showed the only way to survive was to surrender to The Dominion, survival at any cost was clearly out of the question. Odo, mainly for his distaste with his people's methods and quest for dominance, has ever been uncomfortable with using the freely given power all Vorta press upon him with their deference and devotion, something even then that has come through unnatural means. It's unclear whether the Vorta's genetic fiddling is responsible (though Weyoun openly admits it), or an intense gratefulness to the Founders for making them who they are is the reason for their loyalty, and this episode both raises the points and tells it from the mouth of a defective Vorta, so maybe we shouldn't take it as, and pardon the pun, gospel.

The Vorta have generally remained as secretive and moderately developed as the famous Romulans, keeping a mystique through their sporadic appearances, and mostly from one source: Weyoun. The mental power exhibited in their first ever appearance has never been expanded upon or even seen again, and the whispers of cloning and their facilitating of the Founders wishes has been largely concealed behind a forced blandness that shows them always bowing to higher authority, genial, diplomatic, except on occasion, such as when Weyoun clamped down hard on Cardassians (mainly Dukat and Damar), to ensure the enforcement of his Founder superiors' commands. So they aren't pushovers, they have a core of steel, but it's hidden beneath flowery devotion and sweet-talking of potential allies. I was unsure how to take the news that they had been originally ape-like, a strange blend of Evolution Theory and Creationism, with the Vorta simple folk elevated to a higher state of being by the ingenuity and command of genetics the Founders had developed. I find it hard to imagine hairy little Hobbitses, scurrying up trees and munching on nuts and berries, who became the middle-management of a vast galactic empire, but it does at least give them some reason for being so receptive to their 'gods.' Even so, such legends and cultural memories about a family hiding a Changeling in distress from pursuers, could just as easily be an implanted memory the Founders gave them as an added incentive to remain loyal, a base to build upon, and we only have the impressions of this damaged version of Weyoun to tell us.

I was going to say he must be damaged since he goes as far as suicide in order to save Odo from being killed by pursuing Jem'Hadar that have been kept safely in the dark about the presence of a Changeling aboard the Federation Runabout. An added dimension might have been included if Odo had been able to get a message to whoever was commanding those ships, the highest ranking Jem'Hadar, or their Vorta handler, to see how that would have changed the situation. Would there have been a conflict of loyalty among the loyal soldiers of The Dominion? We saw in 'The Ship' how far and fanatically (or honourably: debate), these foot-soldiers take their devotion, the whole squad committing suicide when they hear the dying screams of a trapped Changeling that they were unable to rescue. It seems suicide is a very viable option in those that work under Dominion rule, another sign that all these genetically engineered adherents are fully expendable and worthless other than as tools for the Changelings pulling the strings. That the Jem'Hadar are so loyal, we found out previously, was because they revered the life that had been given them by their masters, and have been bred to be so selfless that they consider themselves nothing more than the servants of gods. I don't think there's ever been any talk of an afterlife for them, so it's not like they even care about winning a new stage of existence for their blind obedience, but they do seem to have a kind of honour that lies in total acceptance and a feeling of superiority to all less fortunate races that are there only to be conquered to the Founders' will.

All this would have made more drama for a conflict of interest about how they could kill the Weyoun clone without harming Odo, to follow orders at the expense of their beliefs. We'd already had a taste of this in 'Rocks and Shoals' where even when the Jem'Hadar leader is told of his Vorta, Keevan's, betrayal at agreeing to set a trap for his men so Sisko can mow them down, it changes nothing. Despite his despising of the despicable Vorta, treacherous in the extreme (caring more for his own life than the will of the Founders or the wellbeing of those under him), he shows up in the same manner that he was ordered to and is killed, so perhaps the same would have been true here, the end being that if Odo had been killed, the Jem'Hadar would have accomplished their mission, but would then have killed themselves for the terrible sin of deicide (something ancient Klingons are said to have been only too happy to do), even if the First had been the only one to know that it would be done. That's how I see it playing out, but of course Odo wasn't going to die, his course was mapped out and gets further markers on the journey he began in Season 3 when Garak forced the confession out of him that he wants to go back to his people. It had been a long road since then, but the fitting of Odo for his future role may not have been as precise than in the events of this episode when he sees even the internal of the Dominion is rotten, and that he has the automatic authority since birth of overturning the status quo and changing the empire from the top down if he's only willing to take his place.

It's a place that for the first time on the series, rather than just being possible, is now looking to become inevitable thanks to the first signs of the wasting disease afflicting the Changelings, and which at this point makes Odo assume he could be the last survivor of his race. It puts his life and experiences in perspective, as he's in what has become a relatively comfortable role (even saying to Weyoun, in what could be a reference to the famous quote of Dr. McCoy and all other Starfleet doctors, "I'm a doctor, not a…" - in this case "I'm not a god, I'm a security officer"), having overcome his outsider nature among solids, having overcome Starfleet opposition to him, won the trust of the Bajorans and all the other denizens of DS9, he knows where he is, but there's always that thread, the most important one in his life that it doesn't matter how well integrated he is in station life, he always has a yearning to return to his own kind, an in-built, again genetic, desire that can only be fulfilled in one way, but is an appalling thing to him with the state of his people as they are now. But he knows it's his firm destiny, whatever happens, a guiding instinct, not just a missing piece, but the hole, if a being of liquid can have a hole, to fill. A vast responsibility to take on, but the temptation he can do right is a strong urge that is mental, adding to the instinct, rationalising it. Almost like the temptation of The One Ring in 'The Lord of The Rings' when it comes within the grasp of the great; Gandalf and Galadriel, who would take up the power there before them, to become a new, bright and terrible dictator, only that wasn't their destiny, and they knew it.

Odo doesn't know exactly how he could fit in, and with the news of his people dying, it presents a whole new responsibility to take over and put right what was wrong. Of course, with all this talk of being the last of his kind, aside from the fact that without his knowledge he, too, was infected, he's forgetting about the one hundred, the other infant Changelings sent out like him to explore the galaxy and return with knowledge, something that would have more meaning later in the season. So the episode has importance on its side, even if the drama is fleeting and action-based, with only a touch of the usual warmth at the end when O'Brien finds himself with thumbs up all round thanks to allowing Nog to exercise his Ferengi gifts. With much of the Odo/Weyoun story occurring in the static environment of the Runabout, not even much movement within its bulkheads as the pair sit side by side (ironic that this is the geographically vast story, while in the station-bound one there is more movement), at least with the O'Brien/Nog B-story, there's a little more going on physically, as there's only so much you can do with one deferent character interacting with one who doesn't wish to be an object of deference. I can't remember what it's called, but there's a Japanese word that describes trading one for another thing until happiness has been spread all around and an object has been reached through the services or gifts being traded - it's most obvious in 'The Legend of Zelda' games, but it's no stranger to 'DS9' either, with 'In The Cards' a strong evocation of this philosophy or process, when Jake was the unwilling partner in Nog's escapades to reach an end goal.

It's good of Nog that he uses his profit-making nous to help his friends, and I can only assume there are little side deals at which his Ferengi nature was satisfied along the way, because otherwise he's being incredibly selfless (another version, just as the Jem'Hadar's above), aside from gaining the gratitude of his community. As much as I enjoy the Chief's troubled times, that round, careworn face not making itself, I think this was a missed opportunity for one last Jake and Nog story, since Jake, like Quark, didn't have much of an impact this season, with Nog the breakout recurring character that could be used in a number of ways. The danger there would have been that it could have been seen as merely a throwback to 'In The Cards,' would never (on this episode's evidence), have reached those heady heights, and would have been an active disappointment. But I can't say the story was a roaring success as it was. It did provide the comedy and it is an appreciative nod to Nog's Ferengi upbringing, another chance for him to show the good his people can bring: tenaciousness, sensitivity, bargaining skills, diplomacy, among others, a real tour de force of the positive side of Ferengi values which we rarely see because they're all so focused on their own profits. As shown in this and 'In The Cards,' when used for shared profit it's a powerful addition to the Federation arsenal and an excellent view of alternative cultures integrating with the norm to enhance it, as well as the Ferengi reputation (which was in dire need of enhancement).

Like seeing Rom without his headdress, this episode gives us another unseen sight: Sisko's office without its desk. It's so funny when O'Brien bothers to set up a replacement which has different dimensions, colours and style to the Captain's famous Cardassian worktop, but it's so strange to see the office empty, too. And there hasn't been so much exposed conduit outside Quark's since 'Our Man Bashir' when Rom and Eddington had to save the Defiant crew by beaming them into the Holosuite! It's nice to have these visual throwbacks, whether intended or not, but while this isn't a traditional torture O'Brien episode, it looks to be coming close at the beginning when everyone's down on the Chief, his workload piling up, and intense, miracle-worker deadlines imposed (though when Sisko says he felt ten kilos heavier last time he stepped onto the Defiant's Bridge I couldn't help wondering if his Dad's cooking had more to do with it than the gravity net…). It must be one of those times he wishes he was back on the Enterprise, standing at the Transporter console, idling the day's shift away in daydreams of Keiko… There was a nice little reference to Captain Picard, as Nog borrowed the Captain's desk for a guy that takes holo-photos (like the EMH!), sitting behind such famous workspaces, one of which was Picard's, plus there's a more obscure reference to Captain DeSoto, a name I had to look up, and which proved to be one of Riker's commanding officers from the USS Hood! Nice continuity, but I'd have gone with a more recognisable name such as Jellico or Maxwell… Still, good detail, and a fun fan-type story as you can imagine viewers would love to get pictures in the Captain's Chairs of famous characters!

The idea of a Sector Quartermaster was a new one on me, as we so rarely hear of such a position, what with Replicators providing most of the day's items and necessaries, but it shows that some things are too complex even for that technology, and the requisition and distribution of such is an important position. Though you can't beat the 'who you know' maxim of family connections, since Nog's never previously mentioned cousin Gant, plays an important role in his success - sadly, unlike Quark's cousin, 'The One With The Moon' Gaila, we'd never see him. What we do get more of is Ferengi religious belief, something echoed in Kira's reminder to Odo of her view of The Prophets, and Weyoun's heavy accent on the topic in his interactions with the Constable. We'd heard of The Vault of Eternal Destitution and The Divine Treasury, their death rituals, and seen their love of profit on countless occasions, but now we uncover a whole new aspect, though whether this is part of their main religious strain, or another philosophy they believe, we don't hear. The Great Material Continuum (just off left of the Q Continuum and down the road from subspace, perhaps), is said to be this river that binds the universe together (so they believe in the Force!), of things coming and going, the navigation of which can lead to profit. It's an interesting addition, but I'm not sure how much we get of it and I can imagine more detail being filled in (especially now that Trek breathes again, though I can't imagine 'DSC' doing any Ferengi episodes).

With religious themes being at the centre of the story I would have expected more depth, but with the characters not sparking off each other, the mix not really working that well on the whole, the episode is a little bland - like a Season 1 or 2 story, but out of place because of the heavy, late-series continuity that wraps itself around. In some respects it makes you think: we'd had genetic tinkering at the forefront of previous episode, 'Chrysalis,' and now it raises its head again, only in a different context. The aim of the Jack Pack's programming was enhancement, to give its receivers a better life, however misguided that was, a form of liberation, while the aim of the Founders was enslavement. I wish more had been explored on this subject, but the episode uses up much of its time with the interplay between Odo and Weyoun that doesn't go very far in any direction. It plants the seeds for Odo to see that he's really needed, it shows him more than anything that he should be playing up to his role as a god in the eyes of the enemy, if only for the sake of his friends, but that justice, strong within him, has always baulked at such acceptance at any price. But the dawning realisation of a responsibility he's been groomed for all his life by the existence he's lived among solids cements what he's already had floating around, so it's not as revolutionary as it could have been. He still thinks very much like a Changeling, 'become the ice' was very much a teaching of his people, which he uses to hide from the attacking ships, though not literally, the approach provides useful cover, another tiny nod in the direction his mind has travelled.

Everything perks up at the end, and though I call out the CGI in 'TMP' terms, it was very good and pretty, with all those giant comet fragments spinning around, going a bit 'Star Wars' long before the Jango Fett versus Obi-Wan dogfight among the asteroids of 'Episode II.' But it can't be about dodging Phasers, that's not the Trek we know, as much as we enjoy and respect the beauty of graphics, and it's another, different aesthetic to see ice boulders floating in space when we so often got stars, blackness and little else, so I applaud the efforts in that department, I just question whether the writing and intention was fully realised elsewhere. It's too surface level, with issues such as 'why be a god if there's no one to worship you' being opened, but not properly discussed or examined (a being having a choice over what it is in its nature, how that affects others beneath it, whether God is looked into as opposed to gods, and the distinction between The God who isn't another being, but the Creator, and lesser beings that have been created, but viewed as gods by those without power). Insubstantial is the word I would use to sum up the episode, touching on a few important things, but never in depth. Even the idea of Damar managing to persuade Weyoun 7 that it's possible to have Odo killed, and in his best interest, merited more.

Maybe this Weyoun is also defective, but in a different way, because I can't imagine the loyal Vorta ever being responsible for a Changeling death, it's unthinkable. Did he really believe the Female Changeling would never know - Starfleet, and if not them, Sisko, would have investigated, Odo's fate would have become known, and then what was known to them would have become known to the Founders and the Weyoun model's time would have been up. I always thought the idea of the Vorta's cloning was worth exploration, so I'd have liked the original plan for this story, which was to visit a Jem'Hadar hatchery, or possibly a Vorta cloning facility. They don't fully use the premise they settled on - it's great fun to have two different Weyouns talking over the monitor, but Jeffery Combs is such a good actor that you're not even thinking about them being played by the same guy, they seem like different people, even while wearing the same outfit (maybe each model only gets one form of clothing to wear?), and if only Brunt had made an appearance as well, Combs could go on the exclusive list of actors that have played more than two characters in a single episode (which I think is Brent Spiner's sole record so far, unless I'm forgetting someone). It would have been so much fun to have a fast-paced multi-Weyoun chase through some clone rooms, perhaps multiple versions had malfunctioned in different ways and the machine had been spitting them out left, right and centre, with Odo having to rescue the only sane one he could find amid murderers, clowns and child minds, with the Jem'Hadar on his tail (think a mix of the strange game structure of 'Move Along Home' and the nightmarishness of 'The Thaw').

Actually, I'm surprised Odo never suspected Weyoun of being a disguise of the Female Changeling to get to him since she'd pulled the trick in Season 3 as Kira, but perhaps knowing her better in these years he would have seen through any guise instantly? And what could this Weyoun achieve as a prisoner, aside from an infiltration plot, and surely they could have done that more easily than dragging Odo into it. I wonder if Gul Russol, the informant he goes to meet who's been killed off long before, was the same Cardassian he visited in a cave in Season 3's 'Improbable Cause' (played by Joseph Ruskin in one of many Trek roles). I couldn't remember, and was really hoping they were going to bring back this guy, especially as the cave setting puts a familiar viewer in mind of him, but he was never named back then so it's not confirmed. They should have had Weyoun appear above as the informant did in that episode, that would have been a strong visual suggestion that they were the same. And it's good to see the Rio Grande taken out for a spin by name - you always know she'll get you home in one piece, though this time it took the sacrifice of Weyoun to do it. That's the real reason, it wasn't for Odo, but for the legacy of the only one hundred percent safe Runabout that had been sailed in since the very first episode! I don't remember if it had that large standing console at the back in its other episodes, but I'm sure such a feature could be modular.

It's sad that Weyoun 5, the one that replaced the first version we ever saw (in Season 4's 'To The Death'), and which we knew best through his time on the station, had been killed months ago, even though, being clones, they have the same memories and are essentially the same character, but I do like that we're brought up to date on so many Vorta ideas and where Weyoun has got to in his various incarnations. I can see why they thought this would make a great episode, but it remains resolutely good, not great. It manages to conclude on both an upbeat and a downbeat note, with the Chief's faith rewarded and all his problems sorted thanks to loyal Nog, while Odo is beginning to understand the faith in him of others thanks to the loyal Weyoun, though the biggest millstone round his neck is that whichever way the war blows he'll be the loser, and it's uncharacteristic of Trek to end so down. At least the Chief got his bottle of Bloodwine back that he shared with Worf earlier in the season, a reward from a jovial General Martok for services apparently rendered, though he had nothing to do with it except for that fateful input of his authorisation code that seemed to ruin his day even more at first, until the Ferengi came through for him.

***

Chrysalis

DVD, DS9 S7 (Chrysalis) (2)

Certain stories go well together, episodes that can be watched concurrently, as a pair or a group, linked thematically or by continuity, and this one would work very well viewed as a double bill with 'Statistical Probabilities' from the sixth season which introduced us to the genetically modified 'Jack Pack' of Jack, Lauren, Patrick and Sarina. Problems then for budding genetically enhanced Dr. Bashir, but a new problem, in a different way, this time. You'd think the brilliant young physician would have learned from his past mistakes, but like Kirk in 'Star Trek II' he 'feels young again,' everything old new again, thanks to blossoming heart-shaped eyes at Sarina, his pet project gone right. Because the good Doctor has had plenty of those mistakes, failures that came about because he either wasn't good enough, or was too good. I'm thinking particularly of 'The Quickening' in which he arrogantly believed he could come up with a cure for the Teplan blight laid upon the people by the Dominion. Or the saving of Vedek Bareil's life, only for him to be little more than vegetable. Moments and events that changed Bashir, tempered him, made him warier, less green. But thanks to love he's chattering away like the eager young man he was when we first met him, annoying O'Brien as he did then, but in a different way. This time it's his incessant chatter about his patient, Sarina, and how great she is, to the exclusion of all else. You get the impression O'Brien isn't upset with Bashir, because of such things as him forgetting their darts night, but for his friend because he sees where this is going.

There are a few themes throughout, but most are lightly skipped over: the Federation's policy towards the genetically enhanced, for one, something that is becoming ever more relevant because we can do some of this genetic tinkering and soon could have the power to do even more. In Trek it's generally been a simple matter of such things being bad, Khan Noonien Singh always referenced as the poster boy for its evil (even though, technically, his was eugenics breeding rather than the more specific manipulation of the human genome), because it should be obvious that holding the power to decide how anyone is coded at the most basic level is a further terror to what can be done, regardless of the potential for good. Who knows what the right answer is, but this episode doesn't give it, or attempt to address it. But that's fine, such things were touched on in 'Statistical Probabilities' and 'Dr. Bashir, I Presume,' and as Sisko says, they aren't there to debate policy. Another theme might be the parallel with 'Sleeping Beauty,' the story of a prince rescuing a damsel in distress, trapped in a deep sleep in a tall tower. Julian didn't have to heave himself up Sarina's enchanted locks to reach her, but it was almost as much of a struggle to fight through the 'deep sleep' she was in.

The theme that stands out most for me, is that of parting. Having to break away from the constraints of the family to fulfil a life's potential. This does have some play, and it is the Doctor who acts with double standards: vehement in his request to Sarina's friends to help him reach her, even though it will mean she will no longer be one of them, appealing to their selflessness that it will be better for her. Yet he doesn't see that he's doing the same thing, holding her back from a galaxy of possibilities now that she's free from her catatonic state of consciousness, almost driving her permanently back into her inner shell by his overwhelming affection and desire to be with her as much as possible. He suffocates her, and it's because it's what he wants, but he's at a difficult time, or if not difficult, a lonely time: the loss of Jadzia has affected them all, and Ezri's admission that he might have been her intended if things had worked out differently, did knock him a bit. Then there's the war and the uncertainty of all it brings. And in the immediate, the night he meets the Jack Pack again is when no one else is around to play with, O'Brien sharing time with his family before they go on a trip to Bajor (showing that they are living on the station because they're said to be back before the end of the episode, something I was wondering about), and Kira and Odo off to have fun at Vic Fontaine's, leaving nothing for him to do but go to bed and read, and whenever he does that I associate it with Section 31's Sloan showing up, and he didn't need that kind of excitement!

So he was vulnerable, and the challenge of curing Sarina had been on his mind already, something to focus on, and when his brilliance (with the aid of the enhanced ones' technical excellence to improve the equipment he needed to perform the operation), leads to her coming out of herself, it's a success and a wonder that is as much about his own achievement as it is about how wonderful Sarina turns out to be. She in turn is undyingly grateful and wants to please Bashir, setting off an uneven chain of events that isn't to her best interests. Bashir does things by the book, unlike Melora (in 'Melora'), where he treated her at the same time as being too close, he hands off Sarina's care to another (Dr. Girani), we've never even heard of before, let alone seen, and who wants to be treated by the B-Doctor of DS9 when the best doc is clearly going to be Dr. Brilliant Bashir? So that wasn't in Sarina's interest. He should have chewed a bag of nails and got on with it instead of allowing himself to fall head over heels. Admittedly, the scene where it happens is a wonder, the unsure Sarina suddenly thrust into the excited chatterings of her friends, who show their joy by bursting into song - Trek doesn't often do musical interludes, but when it does they tend to be terrific, whether it's the hippies in 'TOS,' Picard's haunting Ressikan flute recital, or the EMH and Seven of Nine performing a duet, and the Jack Pack didn't fail to live up to the high musical standards (as you'd expect from enhanced people), a beautiful audible image of Sarina's journey from first tentative attempts to break out of her chrysalis, to the emergence of a big, beautiful butterfly of song.

The complicated navigation of the interpersonal is something Bashir has often had to deal with as being the main eligible bachelor of the station he's had his fair share of romance, and still had more to come in this field, so it's hard to blame his eagerness to hold onto the bond between him and Sarina. But it wasn't just the catatonic life that was Sarina's chrysalis, it was her family, the one she's been with for as long as she can remember, and now Bashir becomes part of that last little bit of life necessary for her to discard before she can move on. For once Bashir's House of Horrors came good, and worked in reverse instead of killing or maiming his victim… I mean patient, only it became a horror for him as he saw what he'd walked into. But he's good enough to back out and let her go, the episode allowing a rare shot from an upper pylon as he watches her shuttle leave, something that adds to his sense of loneliness and poignancy, but the important thing was he didn't manipulate her, didn't do all in his power not to lose her, but what was best for her, a true Trek ending. I also like that it didn't go down the route of the treatment failing, or she began reverting back to her old state - it happens, but only in appearance because she wants to remain in the comfortable position she knows, happiest when she could just sit and hear her friends getting on with their latest bonkers scheme, not having to do anything or get involved. Instead it's about realising untapped potential, not choosing to let it be stifled. It may be tragic for Bashir, but it's not the tragedy of death, but voluntary parting.

The story is quite a basic one in some respects, and as such there isn't a lot to broach an opinion on. I'm so glad they brought back the gang again, but I don't feel it was the resounding success their first appearance was, they were a little muted compared to the wackiness of before, more time was apportioned to Sarina and Bashir, though getting to see them all in Starfleet uniform was enjoyable, especially with Patrick, the mentally youngest of the group, acting as a haughty Admiral with the line: "That's a stupid question," the stock response to every enquiry. I did expect more to be made of Lauren's eye on Nog, but after his scene where he asks Bashir to come to the Infirmary he doesn't play any part, something that was a little bit of a waste. O'Brien, too, had much better stuff to do in the first episode (though his line, "I can't break the laws of physics," is an obvious, but fun callback to Scotty!), there more to give a little advice to his friend than take a good sized role in proceedings. You do get a stronger impression of the station's extended familiars this season, and in this episode alone we have Ensign Jones, this background extra that's in so many episodes through the series, actually get a line when he meets the Jack Pack in a corridor; Broik, the Ferengi waiter at Quark's gets a callout, which we pretty much never see; even M'Pella, the tall Dabo girl, is front and centre in the Dabo scene; while Morn is of course still wandering the station at 3am when Bashir's call to come to the Infirmary comes through!

Why did the 'mutants' get given the Cargo Bay again? Were Quarters too good for such deviants, or was it a kind gesture by Sisko so they'd have a familiar place to stay? I did like that they moved the furniture around to recreate how it was before, and it's good to hear of Dr. Loews again, whom we saw in their previous episode, still looking after them at the Institute. I do think genetics should have been dealt with in more detail, perhaps the romantic story could have been dialled back to accommodate more interesting topics. But even though it doesn't hit the highs of 'Statistical Probabilities' (except in the 'Do-Re-Mi' musical scene), it is a joy, perhaps even more because it is so fleeting: the last Bashir would see of the Jack Pack and Sarina, the last we'd see of them on the series, but another small thread tied up neatly in the grand scheme: not every episode has to do with the war, as this and 'Take Me Out To The Holosuite' prove with delight.

****

Fortune

DVD, Smallville S10 (Fortune)

Daft even by 'Smallville' standards, this bachelor party knockabout screwball comedy is like a last-ditch attempt for the characters to enjoy themselves, youth and other things before, presumably, the bad times come. This week's returning guest is, presumably, Zatanna, the magical mystery woman, though it seemed she only had a tiny cameo, and I didn't remember her well enough to be sure it was her, especially with Clark not recognising her, but it must have been, since she was name-checked as the cause of all the mischief with spell-inflected alcohol causing the gang to all be affected, even Clark, and none to remember the incidents of the night before (which we get a sense of at the end thanks to Emil's video record). This turns into a bonkers splitting up of the team into odd situations, Clark waking up to a raccoon on the bed and Chloe sporting a wedding dress in the cupboard, suggesting they got married. Meanwhile, Oliver and Lois wake up in one of the series' favourite filming spots, the abandoned railway line, and have to get back to town, and Dr. Emil Hamilton becomes an instant hit as an Elvis impersonator. The story is as haphazard and meandering as you'd expect of a drunken misadventure, almost as if the writers were imbibing as they wrote it. It's supposed to be charming and silly, but it leans more in the latter direction, the low point being Oliver having to dress up as a showgirl as part of a plan to get Lois' wedding ring back from Fortune, a casino that gives the episode its title.

Hardly an embarrassment of riches, it is nonetheless an embarrassment, complete with 'Looney Tunes' xylophone music, and doesn't find the series at its best, but I can see why they would choose to be so wacky as they wind down the series for the last third, with so much villainy still at large to deal with. The real story happens after all the craziness involving a stolen security van loaded with money that Clark saved from robbers who were actually perpetuating an insurance scam for the boss of Fortune: Chloe's off again. She's only been back for a few episodes and it was nice to have her along for the ride and in the gang again, even though her role had essentially been filled by Tess as the resident Watchtower tech, but she's decided she has to move on, to seek out new heroes and mentor them into being the best they can be. It's rather out of the blue, but I assume Allison Mack only had a few weeks off from other projects, and was open to returning to the series in the break, then they had to find a new reason for her character to leave. I don't know for sure, but that's about the only reason I can think of to have her leave, come back, then go again, and it is sad, because with all these familiar characters coming and going in this final year I was really hoping we'd get Clark, Chloe and Pete together again for one more adventure, like the old days, and that seems unlikely now. I'm still expecting another reappearance for Pete, but whether Chloe will be there is another matter. Surely she'll be back for the last episode?

The bigger deal could be that Oliver Queen might go with her as she's taken a job in his home town of Star City (I love the veiled references to Batman and Wonder Woman she makes to Clark - shame the series never lasted long enough for us to get to such big names as they). I think their marriage may have been genuine, but I'm not sure, so I'm not sure if he's going to leave the series, too? Perhaps not, because he is Clark's buddy, and though the issue of living alongside the perfection of Clark comes up for Lois and Oliver, it's a good balance of friends. The strangest thing about the episode may have been Tess being relaxed and girly even before the enchanted champagne entered the picture, so something was definitely not right there! I'm not sure Emil has really become one of the gang in the way that Lois, Clark, Chloe, Oliver and Tess are, but it's nice that there has been an occasional episode where they've brought together a few people, whether that's Mrs. Kent or Hawkman, the family larger than just the four or five main stars, and this hasn't been as apparent as in this season, which has generally been a cut above the others, bar the ever highly esteemed Seasons 1 and 2.

Again, they manage the small things well rather than dealing with bigger set-pieces, little details like Clark being slightly dizzy from the aftereffects of the alcohol making him misjudge his speed and direction, knocking off a bit of a building's corner in his lurching, which it would have been fun to see more of (like taking the silver LuthorCorp logo!). Or breaking off the vice being used to crush poor Emil's head (such things were out of place in an episode that was much lighter than the average). Or the sunlit conversation between Clark and Chloe in the barn where they talk about the past once again and she admits she's leaving. It's a nice evocation of the series, where it came from, and another reminder that it won't be 'around' for much longer. I can't say this is one of the highlights of the season, and I'd have preferred something better for Chloe if this was to be her final ever episode, but it is different and you can't expect a good story every time when they were banging out twenty-plus a season (those were the days!). But if this is the end for Chloe Sullivan, I salute her, the Queen of Weird, the tech wizard, and one of Clark's greatest friends. Now go and get Batman and Wonder Woman and bring them back with you, please!

**

Take Me Out To The Holosuite

DVD, DS9 S7 (Take Me Out To The Holosuite) (2)

Things you never see on 'DS9': people chewing gum; Odo throwing shapes in his office; Rom without his 'hat'; the crew coming together to bully a Vulcan. Already you can start to see a pattern, this being an episode of many firsts, something to celebrate if you can pull it off in a final season. But first (another one), a potted history of the Vulcans: in 'TOS' Spock is cool, and so is his Dad. In 'TNG' they're largely avoided because we're trying not to be 'TOS.' In 'DS9' we have typically atypical examples (arms dealing, baseball-playing, serial killing). Thanks to Tuvok, in 'Voyager' Vulcans are cool again. Then comes 'Enterprise': Vulcans are so not cool, man. And in the Kelvin films Spock rejects his Vulcan-ness, and is emotional. And not cool. From what I hear of 'Discovery' we're back to the snooty 'Enterprise' variety. But for me, Vulcans are 'the' race, the best, and they may seem superior, but that's because they are. Who wouldn't want to subject their emotions to their will, always have a ready answer, and let's not forget the small matter of three times the strength of a human (as Kasidy affirms), and greater speed. If you ever get a Vulcan who is both master of his nature, but also has enough experience to know when to bend from rigid logic (Spock; Tuvok; Vorik), then you have a formidable ally and a terrific character. But this episode is not about alliance, it's about enmity, specifically a long-time, adolescent rivalry Benjamin Sisko brought upon himself against a Vulcan called Solok.

In the original 'Settlers' computer game Sollok the Joker was 'a sly and repugnant adversary, he will try to stop the supply of raw materials of his enemies right from the beginning of the game' according to the manual, and while the two characters have absolutely nothing to do with each other except a very similar name, I've always thought of them in the same sentence, the key being 'sly and repugnant,' for in keeping with the 'DS9' way of doing things differently at the same time as being the most true series to Trek, this particular Vulcan shows none of the traditionally honourable levelheadedness that we'd usually expect, and comes right into Sisko's office like a fire-breathing Mother-in-law, finding fault in all aspects of their situation, boasting that he has two Christopher Pike Medals of Valour to the Captain's one, calling out the inefficiency of human-run stations, and, in a final backhand to the face of his Academy rival in the way Vulcans are so expert in, he cuts right to the bone by mentioning a baseball program his all-Vulcan crew are looking forward to using on the Holosuite, challenging Sisko at his own game. Why would a Vulcan who is so dismissive of humans show such interest in one of their sports? It can only be to rub Sisko's face in the holographic mud and remind him of his inferiority.

Solok displays displeasure, pride in his species and bragging rights, not to mention claiming his crew are 'eager' (exact word), to resume the baseball program, as well as a goading sense of malicious enjoyment at the humans' irritation, and it sounds as if he was much like a bully when he continually used the impromptu wrestling match which a young Ben instigated, to prove Vulcan superiority, an unresolved thorn in the Captain's life, the afterimage still stinging in his mind to this day. An unresolved rivalry from back in the day, a bullying opponent that needs putting in his place, and a team of no-hopers… it sounds like every good sports film out there, but why shouldn't the series cut loose from all the war stories, both psychological and physical, to take a couple of weeks off on behalf of the crew and do a triumph over adversity sports story. It's late in the series, this is the time to do oddball and use the characters in different ways, and it's an excuse to get on board all those much-loved recurring characters that hadn't yet played any part in a season that began with Sisko's quest to return wrong to right, the others to honour Jadzia, and Ezri's quest to find her place on the station. It was time for some fun. But fun is the last thing on Sisko's mind, he's intent on winning. Not at all costs, not even then, but in every way he can he's going to train up his senior staff (and Nog, and Rom, and Leeta, and Kasidy, and even Quark), and beat those haughty Vulcans at his own game that they've appropriated, tryouts at 1300 (lunchtime on DS9?).

At first it's just a release from the tough times the war has brought, a chance to get out into a green field and play his favourite game, sharing it with his friends and colleagues. What could be better! It's only once Rom has proven he has zero chance of even hitting the ball and gets booted off the team, that we see how seriously he's taking this challenge - a case of those that work the hardest play the hardest, putting all his personality that has been there in his roles as Emissary to the Bajoran Prophets and Starfleet Captain of destiny into the goal. It's funny how he assembles the staff and they all assume it's for some important meeting, but they're quick to jump to the aid of their Captain when he speaks of taking on a crew of Vulcans, but faces fall when baseball's mentioned. For the sake of the Captain and all 'emotionally handicapped' species (though they don't know it at the time), they stoically take on the complicated rulebooks, determined not to let Sisko down in his quest - it was probably a relief from daily life as much as for him, and a challenge is no less a challenge, it's more so when it's a trial that is so outside the familiar. Even Worf, who you'd assume wouldn't be into games, is ready to take on an adversary at any task (exhorting death to the opposition!), and I like that he and Bashir's uniqueness are called out when Sisko says the Vulcans are faster and stronger than us, except for Worf (Klingons being just as tough as Vulcans), and the genetically enhanced Doctor (whose visual acuity and quick reactions are also on par with that of a Vulcan).

The rest of them, this raggle-taggle bunch of humans, Ferengi, Bajoran and Trill, don't have that advantage, hence Rom's dismissal for being unable to hit a ball, catch it, or throw it. True to the sweet Ferengi's nature is that, even in his disappointment and humiliation, and despite doing his best and failing miserably, he doesn't hold it against the Captain, and when the rest of the team rallies round him and voice mutiny, Rom asks them to keep playing. Rom is the heart of the story, Sisko's journey is that of taking this game so seriously that Solok has him in a vice so much that if he loses it would ruin his self-respect, followed by his sending off from the field by Odo (the perfect choice as umpire for his love of rules and minute infractions, his almost fascist tendencies allowed full reign in the realm of the baseball rulebook), when he loses his temper, arguing and laying a finger on him. It gives Sisko time to think, a new perspective, which leads to his substituting Rom for his own son, Jake, to let the Ferengi have his chance in the spotlight. He then accidentally bunts, giving Nog the chance to score a run. In the scope of the game it's only a minor victory, as they ultimately lose to the Logicians, but the Niners don't care about that, they go wild with appreciation that Rom was finally able to achieve something, extra special that it enabled his son, carrying the Ferengi Father off the field in glory!

The team spirit is what it was really all about, Sisko forgetting the tenets of the game he loves in the bitter feuding with Solok, and his realising the value of even the worst player is what matters, not whether non-Vulcans can match up to the physical demands of Vulcans, or whether Sisko can get back at Solok for his unfair and repeated punishing of his ego. It always seems a bit mean to goad and taunt the Vulcan Captain at the end when he can't grasp the Niners' ability to celebrate in defeat, but just as Sisko brought the humiliation of the wrestling match upon himself, Solok's refusal to accept this illogical emotional reaction is his downfall, and the episode ends with a shot that's a real beauty: Sisko has a new baseball to add to his collection, this one signed by his team, and he throws it into the air in joy, the camera holding on it as it spins, revealing the signatures, before dissolving into an external view of the spinning station which holds this special group together. A warm and pleasant image to close on.

I suppose Sisko saw himself in Rom (perhaps his 'naked' look sans rear hood was done to emphasise his vulnerability, as I don't remember any other time we see him like that), it's only a subtext to take from the episode, but the cord connecting the pair was humiliation, and Sisko was in a position to reverse it, even going so far as apologising to the Ferengi for his previous attitude. I don't know the first thing about baseball, well, I know about the hitting, the catching and now the bunting, but I couldn't care less about the complex rules and regulations, the stats and the history, but then those things aren't what the story's about, like all good sports stories it's accessible by being about the reiteration of the crew's togetherness, a team-building exercise that goes off-base slightly, then comes right around before the end. Just as presenting a Vulcan who was different (although even Solok is more restrained and unemotional than those of 'Enterprise'), is the usual course for 'DS9,' it is natural for the series to exceed expectations while also defying them: I couldn't remember if they won or lost, but knowing the style of the series so well I guessed that they wouldn't because usually in a sports film the losers who have no chance have to be the ones to triumph and there's more skill in finding a victory in the midst of failure, so of course they were going to find a way to impress that we hadn't considered. It was a good lesson for Sisko to learn, and if you can be seven years into a TV series and still teach your lead character something, you've got it made!

Now to business. The story's a great one, but as often happens with holographic episodes, it leaves questions, technologically speaking. I may have covered them in previous reviews, but here goes anyway: there were a lot of players in the game, usually not an issue because it tends to be only two or three people in a Holosuite at a time, but here we have all those Niners, Logicians, the odd spectator (sorry Rom), and umpire Odo. We've seen how small Quark's Holosuites are, and I know we're not supposed to be thinking about this, but how did they fit all those people in there, spread out many metres apart, running at speed, and no one hit a wall (with the exception of Ezri, who most spectacularly recalled her gymnastic past by doing a backflip to catch a ball), or bumped into each other? My theory is two-fold: either the holographic simulation is carefully laid right over the eyes of each competitor, so in reality each person is close enough to fit within the space, but far enough away that they can run on the spot (thanks to the Holosuite's ability to move the flooring under them), flail wildly around, and even fall over at full length without touching anyone else. Or, and this could be an addendum, they're spread out amongst all Quark's Holosuites (I was trying to find out how many he has, but even the Technical Manual and Encyclopaedia couldn't tell me, though in this very episode we hear that they're to meet for tryouts in Holosuite 4, so there are at least that many), the program synched so they seamlessly appear to be in the same field. Makes sense to me, anyway…

The cheering crowd was a nice addition, and I wondered why they were dispensed with before the game began, perhaps the budget didn't allow for having so many extras for all scenes, or maybe the intent was to focus down onto the players more acutely, but whatever their reasoning it worked wonders for the roll of the story, bringing the crowd back working magic when it came time for Rom to win his victory, and giving the moment more impact than if the crowd had always been there. Seeing Vulcans playing baseball is something you'd never have expected on Trek, and while I can agree that the dignity of the species over the years has been lessened by the disappointingly emotional portrayal of a formerly superb species, and that Solok probably assisted in the precedent for vengeful, proud, or generally negative representations, as most Vulcans have been in 21st Century productions, I nevertheless love the novelty of it, and any excuse to bring the race into an episode in a major way is something I condone. I would have liked some perspective from the other Vulcans on his crew, showing that not all of them shared in their Captain's desire to belittle humans or any other races, and though we do see them interacting with the opposition in the bar at the end, they don't have any actual lines, probably because of the short duration of an episode preventing opportunities for all the recurring characters and new ones, too.

Vulcans had been largely absent from the season so far, and in general on the series, though we'd heard of a Vulcan ship trying to dock at the Romulan hospital on Derna, and a Vulcan was seen in the background at Ezri's party, so it was nice to have them front and centre again. Something that links this episode to 'TOS' is that Solok's ship, the T'Kumbra (any reference being made by the 'DSC' writers by naming a Klingon T'Kuvma, or is that just a sign that they didn't know what they were doing, using a very Vulcan-styled monicker for a Klingon?), is crewed entirely by Vulcans, a trait we saw in the original - thanks to an 'Enterprise' retcon, we know that, along with their ways being so different, one of the main reasons is their acute sense of smell, meaning they're put off by the odours of other species! That could be the reason they appear to hold their noses in the air so much, but Solok is positively racist in his attacks on human inefficiency, prompting Sisko to tell him if he doesn't like it, he can go to an all-Vulcan station, proving that the race even has facilities other than starships, and that the Federation is very accommodating to its primary non-human founding member, and well it should be. But for the Vulcans keeping watch until we were ready to take the one small step into a big Galaxy, who knows where we'd have been? It doesn't mean there aren't those among them that need taking down a peg or two. Even so, I'd have loved to see some of the adventures the T'Kumbra's crew went on in the Dominion War. Logically, it would be fascinating.

****