A Federation ambassador brings newly-promoted Captain Sisko orders to take the Defiant on a patrol of the Tzenkethi border, where a destabilizing coup has just taken place, but everything is not as it seems. (Season finale)
Summary
Sisko receives his promotion
In the wardroom, Commander Sisko is receiving his fourth pip from his son Jake, finally becoming a captain. After being congratulated by his colleagues and as Quarkserves the champagne, Federation Ambassador Krajensky informs Sisko that a coup has taken place on the Tzenkethi homeworld. Sisko is to take the ambassador and the USS Defiant to that sector to remind the Tzenkethi of the Federation's presence on nearby colony worlds.
Chief O'Brien begins checking over the ship systems in case the Defiant ends up in battle and he can't help but feel he isn't alone. Later, he runs into Bashir who says that he is using his engineering extension course from the Academy to tie his new medical console into the main power grid. Not long after departing, the Defiant receives a distress signal from a colony on Barisa Prime, stating they are under attack by the Tzenkethi. When contact is abruptly cut off, Sisko alters course and tries to contact Starfleet Command or the nearby USS Ulysses. However, the ship's communication system malfunctions. Chief O'Brien and Lieutenant Dax discover that strange alien devices have hooked themselves into the ship's systems; their placement is the work of a saboteur. Calling the senior staff and Ambassador Krajensky to the bridge, Dax explains that the person who is responsible for the sabotage would have been exposed to trace amounts of tetryon particles. O'Brien and Dax have already tested positive for the particles as they opened up the panel and Dax begins scanning each member of the crew with her tricorder for signs of the particles despite knowing that if no-one else tests positive she and Chief O'Brien will be the prime suspects. Both Sisko and Bashir test negative, and O'Brien tells the Doctor that he's glad of the fact due to him being in the jefferies tube earlier, however Bashir denies ever having being there. Dax begins scanning Krajensky for the particles and to her shock he turns up positive. Krajensky smiles, realising he's been caught and then suddenly turns into a gelatinous state and escapes through an access hatch to the shock and horror of the crew, as they realise the full extent of the situation. A Changeling is aboard the Defiant!
Suddenly the Defiant cloaks. Captain Sisko immediately orders a full stop, but the ship is no longer under the crew's control. The Defiant arms it's weapons ready for battle and continues on it's course to Tzenkethi space. The crew can do nothing to prevent it from activating the cloaking device and arming the ship's weapons. Meeting in the mess hall, the senior staff discuss the situation. It seems likely that the Dominion is hoping to start a war between the Tzenkethi and the Federation. Kira points out that the Tzenkethi are doing a good job of that on their own, but Sisko points out that the coup, the distress signal, in fact the whole mission could have been setup by the Dominion in the hopes of creating a war that would destabilize the Alpha Quadrant and make it easier for them to move in. Also, neither Krajensky or his remains have been found during a complete search of the ship, meaning that he was impersonated by a Changeling the whole time he was onboard the Defiant, and that he may also have never really come to the station in the first place. With the Defiant primed for battle and just a few short hours from the Tzenkethi border, it is imperative that they locate the Changeling.
They've barely begun their search when O'Brien finds Dax unconscious in the engine room, so he'll have to make the repairs himself. Bashir reports that Dax has neural injuries and that she will take some time to recover. Sisko decides that if O'Brien can't regain control of the ship before they get to the border, he'll have to order the self-destruct of the Defiant.
Because the Changeling can look like anyone, Sisko orders all non-essential personnel confined to quarters with forcefields has his officers pair up, with instructions to keep their partner in sight at all times and anyone caught without a partner should be escorted to the brig. Everyone is armed with phaser rifles and ordered to sweep the ship with phaser fire. But in the course of hunting down the Changeling, Sisko, Odo, Eddington, Kira and a Bolian officer are each separated from their partner and suspicion and paranoia grows among the crew nearly leading to violence. Odo points out that Sisko is not the Changeling as he is bleeding from a minor wound as if any part of a Changeling is removed from the body, then it would revert to it's natural state.
Bashir is discovered locked in a spare set of quarters
Now armed with a way of unmasking the Changeling via simple blood tests, Sisko has Dr. Bashir test everyone. When Eddington's blood seems to morph into orange goo, he is taken into custody despite him pleading his innocence. But moments later, they discover a second Bashir, the real Bashir, and realize they have been tricked by the Changeling. He escapes just as the Defiant enters Tzenkethi space.
Sisko has no other choice but to activate the auto-destruct sequence, giving O'Brien only ten minutes to find a way to regain control of the ship. Luckily O'Brien has found a way to disable the force fields protecting the Changeling's modifications, meaning he should be able to regain control of the ship. Meanwhile Bashir enters the bridge and informs Captain Sisko that Dax was merely tranquilised by the Changling although she would still be unconsious for a few hours. As O'Brien works in engineering, Odo shows up... followed by a second one. Unwilling to be side-tracked by playing "choose the Changeling" O'Brien manages to drop the force fields surrounding the sabotaged systems however this also means that all the force fields across the ship also shut down including the one protecting the warp core. The false Odo changes form and attacks O'Brien and Odo. The Changeling grabs Odo's chest and starts to link with him, telling him he has no place among the solids, and that the two of them can escape the ship together and return to the Great Link. Odo, however, has no intention of doing that and fights the Changeling off, and pushes him against thewarp core, fatally injuring him. Odo is horrified, not only is this the first time in all his years as a security officer he has taken a life but he has also become the first Changeling to ever harm another. He tells the Changeling that he didn't want hurt him, and the Changeling whispers something to Odo before he dies. O'Brien completes his repairs, returning control of the ship to Sisko, who deactivates the self-destruct and orders the Defiant turned around. Back at DS9, Sisko informs the senior staff that Krajensky went missing while on route to Risa, and has presumably been captured or killed by the Dominion. Odo enters the wardroom, weighed down by recent events and relays some very disturbing news, the dying Changeling's last words...
"You are too late. We are everywhere..."
Memorable Quotes
"Why are you protecting these solids? You don't belong with them. You belong with us. Let go. Don't you see? You've lost. It's too late for you to help them, but it's not too late to help yourself. Link with me, Odo. We can escape together."
"I... don't... think... so!!"
- - Changeling saboteur and Odo
Background Information
- The working title of this episode was "Flashpoint". In the Deep Space Nine Chronicles intro, it is stated that the episode was untitled until a contest was held and "The Adversary" was selected.
- The producers had initially planned to do a show that had a cliff-hanger ending involving Changelings on Earth. The story was set to introduce Joseph Sisko and would take place in Starfleet Headquarters, with the end to revolve around Benjamin Sisko saying that the Founders had infiltrated the very heart of...and that was the end of the show. However, for reasons still unknown, Paramount nixed the idea, saying they didn't want a cliff-hanger ending, and so the writers came up with a story about a Changeling wreaking havoc on the Defiant instead. However, the Changelings-on-Earth story later served as the basis for the episodes "Homefront" and "Paradise Lost" the following season. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion)
- Stunt coordinator Dennis Madalone played the Starfleet security officer who got his head bashed against a bulkhead by the Changeling. Madalone also plays the one-eyed Marauder in the Mirror Universe episodes
- This episode marks the last time Alexander Siddig is credited as Siddig El Fadil as an actor. As a director, however, he remains credited as Siddig El Fadil.
- The scene in the Defiant's mess hall where the senior officers are taking blood samples of each other to determine which one of them is the Changeling is very reminiscent of the 1982 film The Thing directed by John Carpenter. This film is based on the 1938 short story 'Who Goes There?' by Joseph W. Campbell (writing under the pseudonym of Don A. Stuart) which contains a very similar scene. Strangely however, the writers cite neither the original story nor the Carpenter film as their primary inspiration for this episode, but rather the 1951 film adaptation directed by Chriatian Nyby, called The Thing From Another World. That film emphasizes the theme of paranoia much more so than either the story or the later film adaptation, and paranoia was something the writers were interested in exploring, as it was something rarely seen in the Star Trek universe. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion)
- The writers decided to use the line "No changeling has ever harmed another" as an important element in this episode. This line had been heard a few times already (in "The Search, Part II", "Heart of Stone" and "The Die is Cast"), and its importance would return in the fourth season finale, "Broken Link", where Odo receives his punishment for killing a fellow Changeling.
- This episode marks the last time Sisko is seen with hair.
- According to Jadzia Dax, there are 47 people on board the Defiant in this episode.
- This episode marks the first appearance of several new sets aboard the Defiant, namely main engineering, the mess hall and the extended corridor set.
- According to the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion, the rifles used in this episode are the first rifles ever seen in Star Trek which actually have a trigger.
- The fight between Odo and the Changeling at the end of the episode was extremely complicated to put together due to all the morphing effects. Producer Steve Oster points out that there are more morphing effects in this short scene than in the entire third season. According to actor Rene Auberjonois, after principal photography was completed, all the cast were allowed to leave except himself and Lawrence Pressman. He explains that during the main shoot, he and Pressman had filmed the scene as normal, but to make sure the effects would work properly, each of them then had to re-enact the scene separately, looking at a monitor and matching their movements exactly. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion) There are actually some clips of both actors shooting the fight without the other present in the Deep Space Nine Chronicles intro to this episode.
- The scene when Krajensky morphs into a Changeling and escapes through the vent is one of visual effects supervisor Glenn Neufeld's favorite shots from the entire seven years of DS9.
Video and DVD releases
- UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 3.13, 25 September 1995.
- As part of the DS9 Season 3 DVD collection.
Links and References
Guest Stars
- Lawrence Pressman as the Krajensky/Changeling saboteur
- Kenneth Marshall as Michael Eddington
- Jeff Austin as a Bolian security officer
Co-Star
- Majel Barrett as the computer voice
Uncredited Co-Stars
- Randy James as Jones
- Dennis Madalone as a Human security officer
- Jeff Cadiente as an operations ensign
References
1964; ambassador; Autarch; blood; Bolian; coup d'etat; duridium; Entebe; Federation-Dominion Cold War; Federation-Tzenkethi border; Federation-Tzenkethi War; Founder; Helaspont Nebula; M'kemas III; ore; Risa; sabotage; Solais V; tetryon; Tzenkethi; Tzenkethi warship; Ulysses, USS; warp plasma conduit; World Series; Kasidy Yates
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