DS9: “Crossfire” and “Return to Grace”

Date: July 18, 2020

Season 4, Episodes 12 and 13

Musical Accompaniment: Listening to the albums TKB and Blues Spoken Here by The Don’t Quit Your Day Job Players. I always find bands 20 years after they’ve last played, sigh.

Interstellar News: Today I made a pineapple upside down cake, listened to people geeble about Klingons, watched my backyard become a much more hospitable place, and got to play with two wee tiny kittens. Also, this is my 200th post!

Favorite Quote from “Crossfire”:

Odo: I’ll tell you what else to do. Make sure everyone knows they can’t just drop by your quarters to say hello. If someone does, whatever happens, don’t make them feel welcome.

Worf: Of course not. That would only invite subsequent visits.

Odo: Precisely.

Worf and Odo realizing they have a lot more in common than they thought.

So what had happened in “Crossfire” was…: Odo thinks all is well in the world until First Minister Shakaar comes aboard DS9. Not only is someone trying to assassinate the minister but Shakaar is clearly also in love with Kira. Shakaar, unlike Odo, makes a move and Kira geebles about her new love. Odo hulks out, Quark (of all people) helps him through, and Odo decides to forget about his feelings for Kira. As a thank you to Quark, Odo installs soundproof flooring in his quarters.

“I’ll try to keep my problems more quiet next time.”: Man oh man do I feel this episode. I absolutely know what it’s like to see someone I am very much in love have a certain type of feelings for someone else instead those particular feelings aimed at me. You can’t help but feel for Odo while, at the same time, also yell at him for not having the courage to tell her about it. Odo loves his order but he also loves the moments he gets with Kira and he realizes that he has to choose because it’s affecting his job. The scenes between Quark and Odo are fantastic every damn time and they work so well together regardless of if they’re snarking at each other or having a tender moment (for them).

There are a couple of things that don’t sit with me well here. Kira doesn’t thank Odo for her coffee at their first meeting and later when she comments that the belt suited him and he makes it appear, she barely registers a compliment and then leaves. The thing is, though, that we know Odo is in love with her and Kira has no fucking clue… so it seems harsh to us and I’m still devastated for Odo. I wish he hadn’t chickened out but instead explained he had feelings for her and, if she decided to stay with Shakaar, just continue to be her friend because he wanted her happiness more than anything. Instead this episode reinforces the belief that men and women can’t be just friends, that all of the things Odo does for Kira is because he’s hoping that she’ll love him back and – when she doesn’t – he decides his pain is more important to him. I still stand by my first statement that it is agonizing to not have those feeling returned, and it’s not easy, but you can still choose friendship. In Odo’s case, though, he realized that Kira’s burgeoning relationship caused a critical distraction and that he’s replaceable because he runs a tight ship. This was a wonderful and heartbreaking episode that highlighted just how awesome Rene Auberjonois was as an actor and how amazing Odo’s character is. 8.5 hours of oozing around for Odo.

Favorite Quote from “Return to Grace”:

Dukat: Major, why are you so reluctant to face the obvious? We make an excellent team.

Kika: We are not a team, Dukat, and we have nothing in common. The only reason I’m helping you is because those Klingons killed fifteen Bajoran diplomats.

Dukat spending 80% of the episode hitting on Kira and she is having none of it.

So what had happened in “Return to Grace” was…: Kira is heading to a Cardassian outpost for a conference and is being escorted by Dukat, who is now a lowly freighter captain because of the events of “Indiscretion“, though he’s still smug as ever. Unfortunately Klingons attack Korma before they can get to it and Dukat wants revenge. Kira helps him make alterations to the ship and they set a trap for the Klingons which allow them to swap ships. Dukat blows up his old ship with the Klingons on board, but the new Cardassian government wants a diplomatic solution – though they do offer him his old post back. Dukat wants Kira to join him in the Cardassian Resistance, but Kira isn’t interested. She does, however, take Ziyal back to DS9 to live.

“What is the point of being a Military Advisor to a government that won’t fight?”: Dukat lays it on thick this episode, showing his preference for Bajoran women despite being married and also having his child on board. The beginning of the episode makes such a big deal about the conference that never happens and then everyone forgets about it. Yeah Kira makes mention to it once but why didn’t they alert their governments, tell them they were okay, or at least what happened? I’m really glad Kira is consistently resisting Dukat’s advances, but I noticed something different this time. Yes he’s passionate and creepy and comes on strong, but he’s ultimately the most passionate about Cardassia and what he thinks is best for his planet. He’s not wrong, though, what’s the point of being a military advisor if the government doesn’t want to use the military? I think we see that Cardassia is over-correcting, though, where they are actively trying to not use their military instead of finding a balance. The things I liked most about this episode where the scenes between Kira and Ziyal, because Kira is an excellent big sister type, and then all the times Kira improvised because she lived that life for so long. Dukat is such an interesting character but I don’t want to like him because he’s still mostly out for himself and has done many questionable things. 6 boxes of cargo out the airlock for this episode.

TA Out!