Blood Oath

Three Klingons arrive at DS9 with a plan of revenge in mind.

This is a good character development episode for Jadzia Dax and a nice tribute to the original series.

The plot is simple and engaging with Jadzia placed in a compelling situation due to the history of the symbiont Dax. For me it all boils down whether Terry Ferrell convinces you that her character has the mentality of a Klingon warrior due to Dax's association. For me she just about does it and that is why the episode works.

It is great to see John Colicos, Michael Ansara, and William Campbell back on screen after their memorable guest performances during the sixties.

Star Trek has traditionally been about positive resolution to conflict with the avoidance of violence, however the Klingon cantered stories have been a way for the writers to have their cake and eat it when it comes to these themes. As DS9 goes on it only gets darker in certain episodes, so if you have a problem with this aspect of the show, now is the time to jump off.

Over the course of seven seasons, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine gave Star Trek fans some memorable & heartfelt love letters to Star Trek: The Original Series. One of the very best Star Trek love letters of all time aired on H&I tonight: "Blood Oath". This episode was so much more than a clever & witty ST salute, ala "Trials and Tribble-ations", this episode further fleshed out the already-rich & nuanced backstory of the classic Klingon culture, as well as fleshing out the backstory of Jadzia Dax! On a geeky behind-the-scenes note, this episode was written by veteran television screenwriter Peter Alan Fields, who wrote numerous episodes of ST: DS9, ST: TNG, (including the classic TNG episode: "The Inner Light".) The Six Million Dollar Man, McCloud, and, perhaps the greatest episode of The Man from U. N. C. L. E. Of all time: "The Concrete Overcoat Affair, Parts I & II". ("Look out! It's a pineapple!") Twenty-seven years later, the episode still holds up quite well. It's not just a great television episode, its great Star Trek also ! All in all, this was a most wonderful trip down memory lane tonight!

Let's talk fan-service done right. You want to appeal to old-guard and new fans by pulling in past characters; OK -- but do it with a good story, and with details which develop from the specific nature of the individual characters.

Colicos and Campbell played larger-than-life and comic foil, respectively, while Ansara played a more reticent, even tragic hero. All those roles have been deepened here, and it's not surprising to see three veteran actors still have the stuff to light up a screen. What's more notable is how well Terry Farrell keeps up with them, still firmly in character.

This must have been an awesome episode for the three guests but also Farrell. But also for us, the viewers; this is arguably the best episode of any Trek featuring guest stars from a previous Trek, because it's apparent that the writer(s) paid close attention to the original stories that featured these actors, and included details that show they knew as much as the most rabid of fans, if not more -- and used that info as legitimate part of the story (e.g., Kor's suggestion about the armory is exactly what Kirk did in "Errand of Mercy").

There are plenty of TOS or TNG or DS9 episodes which don't realize their real potential; that's just the nature of grind-em-out weekly TV. But here we have a sequel fully as good as the originals: big characters, believable plot, strong execution. Before this, DS9 had good episodes in its own style. With "Blood Oath" they proved they could also be good Trek in the old style, without losing their own. Highly recommended.

Generally, I tire of the Klingons in the Star Trek canon. But here, three great ones who were betrayed decades previously, return to fulfill a blood oath they took decades previously. The interesting thing about this is that Curzon Dax was part of that oath Jadzia needs to join them. They fight her along the way. This is a neat little story with each of the Klingons having a distinct personality that shines through. Dax is conflicted about actually killing others but the "Albino" is such a despicable creature that it hard to restrain.

Not a huge amount to say about this one. It was fairly paint-by-numbers trek and offers up no big surprises. You follow along and it's not bad, but there are no real mysteries to unfold, and the moral dilemma faced by Dax is played more like an afterthought. Benjamin is Curzon's closest friend and we dedicate, what, three minutes of screen time to his objections?

There's some downright bizarre exchanges between characters, particularly Dax and Kira, and the performances are middling at best.

Also, like the previous episode, there's a really distractingly rubbish scene in the cold open and I'm once again left wondering how the ball was dropped so far in a production of this scale. Odo sitting in his office then getting pranked by Koloth's appearance is so oddly staged and directed that it seems like it's actually missing shots. The risk of doing it as a single, slow panning one-er left the editor with absolutely no ammunition to fix the scene.

It's a real slow burner of an episode - not a bad thing - and by the time we're in the shuttle above the planet there's some good tension built, and the strategising is great. Top marks from Terry here. The reveal of it being a suicide mission doesn't actually impact the story at all, though it does build up the insurmountable odds in a good way. We're cooking with gas now.

Theeeen we're kinda betrayed by technology, scale and budget. The exterior assault on the base is rubbish, although all the choreo in the throne room is pretty cool. Some nice fights, and good commitment from the cast.

I'm rambling because I have so few thoughts about this one. It did not leave an impression.