June 4, 1999
"Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" Finale

I meant to write an entry last night, but I sort of didn’t have time. “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” airs on Thursday nights at midnight here in Gainesville, and since last night was the series finale I had to watch. Too bad it was a two-hour episode and I didn’t get to sleep until sometime after 2 AM. That was brutal on my sleep cycle (which has already suffered enough). Anyway, I am not too happy with how the series turned out. If you haven’t seen the episode yet and you want to be surprised, skip this little list.
1) Where did Captain Sisko go? Yes, I know he said he was with the Prophets, but he also left his newly pregnant wife and teenage son to fend for themselves. Way to go, Ben. I thought that was a pretty dumb way to end the show for him. If the writers can think of a way to use that situation in the future I will be thrilled, but somehow I don’t see that being resolved in any way.
2) Where did Worf go? This I can understand. Worf needs to get back to the sphere of Star Trek movies somehow, and this move to the Klingon Homeworld will get him there. This poor guy has been tossed around by the writers from the Enterprise to DS9, back to the Enterprise, back to DS9, and now to his homeworld. Worf is a great character and I will be glad if he is in the new movies, and creative storylines seem to be the way to make sure he is there. We have seen Worf fall in love twice, become a father to his son, Alexander, lose many people who were important to him, and kill lots of high-ranking Klingons. I’d say that entitles us to become attached to the character.
3) Where did O’Brien go? Back to Earth. Why? That is a question I can’t seem to understand. I don’t know if there is a plot reason that Miles went back to Earth to teach at the Academy, but I hope so. He is also a good character that has lasted through two Star Trek series. O’Brien, as well as Worf, has character depth that most roles on television lack. Through the years of watching O’Brien and his family was have seen his marriage to Keiko, the birth of his daughter, Molly, his friendships with Geordi LaForge and Julian Bashir, and his personality changes that make him so interesting.
4) Where did Odo go? To tell you the truth, I was never too fond of Odo because the role wasn’t too interesting, but I must say that Rene Auberjonois is a great actor. I admire what he has done with the character. I certainly never expected him to fall in love with Kira! Why they sent him away I don’t know. Yes, his people needed him, but so did the woman he loved. Perhaps the writers had a reason for this move also. Only time will tell.
5) Julian and Ezri? Kassidy and her new baby? Jake? Quark and Nog? Kira? These are the people who are left on DS9. Let me first say that I HATE the idea of Julian and Ezri! I would love to tell the new Dax host where to stick it. I was extremely upset when Jadzia died because she was my favorite character. Jadzia where have you gone and why didn’t you leave a suitable replacement? The twist of sending the new host, Ezri (*shudder*), to the station was a good one but not well executed. Kassidy is stuck with this baby and no father to help her out. Jake is stuck with his father’s pregnant wife and no way to know how to take care of her. Quark is stuck with a profitable bar and very few friends to act as patrons. Nog is now a lieutenant in Starfleet with an absent but recently wealthy father, Rom. Poor Kira is left in charge of the station without the love of her life. (The second one, since Vedek Bariel died early on in the series. Anyone remember that?)
I guess you can say I am happy every thing turned out OK, even though not everyone turned out happy. Actually, I can’t think of anyone who ended up happy! Wow that changes my opinion completely. What a bad show!

With all of the plot twists that occurred in last night’s now I don’t know what is going to happen in the future for these crew members. Any movies on the horizon for them? I doubt it, at least not as a full cast. Too bad, because I really loved the DS9 cast when they were together. I just read in TV Guide that the new Trek series may be an Academy-based storyline. Maybe that’s why O’Brien went back to Earth. Like I said, only time will tell. For now it is over and I can go to bed earlier on Thursday nights.