20. In the Hands of the Prophets

Summary

Keiko's school lesson about the nature of the wormhole is interrupted by Vedek Winn, who accuses her of blasphemy and says that she can't let it continue. Keiko takes her case to Sisko, who's been sort of expecting this. Kira sides with Winn, who leads an orthodox order and has some support to be the next Kai. As Winn spews rhetoric on the Promenade and whips the populace into a near-frenzy, Keiko stands her ground that she can't teach religious beliefs in her classroom, just facts and science. Meanwhile, Ensign Aquino, one of the Chief's engineers, has gone missing and taken one of the Chief's tools without asking, which makes him suspicious. When the melted tool and some organic reside are found in a power conduit, the assumption is that Aquino went to repair the conduit which reactivated while he was inside, vaporizing him, but the whole thing doesn't sit right. Sisko tries to enlist the aid of Vedek Bareil, a far more moderate Vedek and the leading candidate to be the next Kai, in the school problem...but Bareil diplomatically declies, the implication being that helping Sisko could hurt him politically. Regarding Aquino's death, Odo and the Chief learn that he was killed not by the conduit but by a phaser blast, and that he took a turbolift to Runabout Pad C where he was killed and put into the conduit. They find a security bypass at Pad A and surmise that someone meant to steal a runabout. The whole situation escalates when the school is bombed. Sisko holds Winn and her anti-Federation rhetoric responsible for the bombing and her vitriol intensifies to the point that she begins to alienate a lot of the DS9 residents. Bareil, motivated by the bombing, comes to the station to try and help rectify the situation. The Chief finds a file hidden in the computer that details an escape route to Pad A from the Promenade and finds that it was planted there by his assistant, Neela, who we've seen plotting something with Winn. As Bareil makes a speech on the Promenade, Neela pulls a phaser and tries to shoot him but is stopped by Sisko. Kira confronts Winn, realizing that all her speechifying about the school was just to get him here so he could be assassinated, leaving the door open for her to become Kai. As the day winds down, Kira and Sisko agree that they've made some progress in reconciling their differences.

Analysis

What a great way to end a very up-and-down season. Suspenseful, momentous, plotted so hard you could sing it, this episode is an intricate blending of murder mystery, political/religious intrigue and personal conflict. The intertwining of secular Federation politics and Bajoran spiritual life begins here and would continue throughout the series, and the episode also introduces two of DS9's best guest stars...Louise Fletcher as Winn, who we love to hate, and Philip Anglim as the otherwordly and serene...and doomed...Vedek Bareil. The issue of Bajoran religious teachings and Keiko's school isn't brought up again, which it really shouldn't be seeing as Winn created the conflict just to draw Bareil out of the monastery. The seemingly unrelated Aquino incident is integrated into the plot in a very realistic manner, gradually revealed as significant to the other events without showing too many cards at the same time. Each character has a significant role to play in this episode, but the underlying subtext between Sisko and Kira is the real driving force here. By the end of the episode they'd begun the process of accepting each other which eventually led to their currently more harmonious relationship. A promise of greater things to come.

Rating: 9.0

Memorable Quote:

O'Brien: What was Aquino doing in a runabout at four in the morning?
Odo: Apparently he was...getting murdered.

"One must never look into the eyes of one's own gods." --Winn

Classic Scene:

I think my favorite scene is when Sisko goes to the monastery to ask Bareil for help with Winn. The entire sequence's dialogue is great and lent a certain gravity by Bareil's calm delivery. Especially meaningful is when Sisko comments that Bareil's philosophy differs significantly from Winn's and that he's the leading candidate to become Kai...Bareil serenly, but firmly, replies "You have been...correctly informed." Just his delivery, laced with subtext, tells you just about everything you need to know about Bareil's real opinion of and relationship with Winn despite his verbal amicability towards her.

Sexually Slanted Line 'O the Episode:

"She's even taught me a thing or two." --O'Brien, re Neela

The O/K Status Report

Eh, nothing much.

Special Alerts

• Shatnerian Sisko Alert