Progress

The boys go into business, trading some worthless stuff for more worthless stuff--with interesting results. The main story has to do with a farmer on a planet that is going to be compromised for a valuable substance. Kira goes to the surface and finds he is recalcitrant. He has lived there his whole life an nothing is going to move him. This is a decent episode where Kira must make a decision that will determine her future. It's hard to deal with a man's life that is dedicated to his work. Pretty decent episode.

Sharp critics will recognize the plot from Wild River the Elia Kazan classic about the Tennnesee Valley Authority and Jo Van Fleet's refusal to move off her family farm. That's the situation that Nana Visitor finds with Brian Keith an elderly farmer who is living on one of Bajor's moons and won't leave.

The second part of this episode has Cirroc Lofton and Aron Eisenberg doing their best Tom and Huck imitations as they try to unload Cardassian Yamok sauce. Things Cardassian are not selling well at Quark's and these two decide to enter the Ferrengi commercial world.

Years ago at a science fiction convention I asked Nana Visitor about this episode and she said Brian Keith was one of the finest men she ever worked with and doing this one was a pleasure.

I think you can see it in her performance.

This is an episode with two stories. One of the stories involving a Bajoran character played by actor Brian Keith is about the life and times of a senior citizen toward the end of his life desperately hanging onto his tiny piece of real estate because..... it's his land dang it. He doesn't like the Bajoran use of Eminent Domain (taking private property for the public good) anymore than most Americans like that law in the constitution when it impacts their personal life.

The second story involves the young friends Jake Sisko and (Ferengi) Nog as they, toward the beginning of their lives, try to enter the capitalistic world of wheeling and dealing with the product of self-sealing stembolts (see the trivia section for a humorous event involving Nog, Ferengi mouth prosthetics, a young actor and the words, "self sealing stem bolts").

Some of the reviews of this episode call it "horrible" and a "complete waste of time". Other reviews call it "interesting character development" and "interesting".

No one dies in this episode. Life in the galaxy (or at least on the space station) won't end without a tremendous heroic effort by someone and, disappointedly, O'Brien doesn't don a cape and shout at a space monster. This episode is ok. It is what it is as they say.

Things to Notice: *One of America's most beloved character actors - Brian Keith - has one of his last acting roles before he takes his own life in despair over his daughter's suicide. Keith has been a favorite of my family in the family films and TV he was a part of in the 1960's-1970's. Watching this episode just to watch him is good enough.

*The Bajoran people are a VERY passionate, loyal, religious and temperamental people. These adjectives are just a start in describing this race. They love fighting, flirting, praying, story-telling and eating. Their women are generally gorgeous. I will be on the next space ship to Bajor as soon as Bill Gates builds the ship.

I don't understand this series so far. At least 5 or more of the episodes are slow and boring and the exact opposite of what I came to love about Star Trek. Sci-Fi, Exploration, Adventure and Beautiful Woman (At least DS9 has some of those)

This was a very dull, soap opera episode. Learning more about Major Kira is always nice though.

The episode has the usual two plots. The first is supposed to be humorous and involves Nog and Jake taking some Cardassian Yamok sauce (which Quark didn't want or need) and trading for successive products--all in the hope that eventually it will exchanged for latinum. The second involves Major Kira going to one of Bajor's moons to relocate 50 settlers because the moon is going to be converted for energy production--which will make the place uninhabitable. Unfortunately, an old crank named Mullibok (Brian Keith) and his two mute friends would rather die than leave the place. There is a certain irony about having Brian Keith play a man who is suicidal, as a few years after starring in this show he actually did commit suicide in real life.

While I generally don't like episodes that star Nog and Jake (or any kids), this plot turns out pretty well and is played for laughs. As for the other plot, it is decent enough. Overall, a rather inconsequential but enjoyable episode.