Yes, I know. It’s been forever.

Still, one couldn’t blame me. I’ve grown a little frustrated with Deep Space Nine. It seems like–at this point in its run–that it kept veering toward greatness, but was afraid attaining that would somehow compromise itself.

If there’s one thing the show needed by now, it was someone to kick the writers in the butt and tell them they needed to get on with it. The Kasidy Yates subplot is a good idea, and keeping up with Gul Dukat’s illegitimate child is important, and Garak lingering around the station will be consequential and the Marquis are bad hombres and that the Bajorans are still upset and…and…

Does it all have to be in one episode? Does each subplot really deserve all the time they get? Having an entire episode built around distractions from what we really want to see–the upcoming Dominion War–feels more like taking the car in for maintenance. It’s The Walking Dead, Season Two, stretched out over four seasons. My Lord, no wonder this show lost viewers from TNG. TNG was never flawless, but it understood pacing. At this point, it feels more like this series was an altar to someone’s assumption that since they were a great writer the audience would be forced to acknowledge that and would choose to stick around.

A lot happens in this episode. None of it is memorable–I’m serious, I know it’s been a while since I watched the episode, but I had to go back to the plot summary on Memory Alpha to remember any of the details. As a forty five minute episode of Any TV, “For the Cause” is decent entertainment, but Trek was never meant to be Any TV.

Rating: 3/5 stars.

Wife Says: “Poor Sisko, he can’t catch a break.”

See the rest of the review series here.

A young couple’s miracle at the last star left in the Universe will lead to a specter from the past returning to confront mankind…and the end will become the beginning. Try Part I of the Beacon Saga Serial, for your choice of ebook platforms.