Deep Space 9 is the best Star Trek

When Star Trek first appeared in the sixties it sent a jolt through nerdom. Before man had even landed on the Moon it presented an idea of a united Earth with technology that still inspires writers and engineers today. But rewatching those episodes it plain to see that they were not about the future, they were about the times-- they were about sixties liberalism and secular humanism. The plots, sets and costumes were simple. The writers clearly had little understanding of science or engineering, even compared to most sci-fi writers who of course make stuff up.  They implied a ship could cross interstellar space at sub light speeds, and that a gram of antimatter was stronger than any nuclear weapon.  It is beloved by fans-- and for good reason-- but it’s dated in many ways. 

The first two seasons of Next Generation were horrible, but by the third season the writers and cast started to pull things together. What they produced was a produce that far surpassed the original in terms of design and sophistication. The writing was less heavy handed and more grounded in principles rather than hot button issues of the day. The acting and dialog was a notch above what came before.  It was, for my generation perhaps the definitive Star Trek. 

Later Star Trek entries like Voyager and Enterprise tried without much success to recapture the magic of these two groundbreaking series. They were not completely terrible, but to the general public they are failures. Recycled plots and subpar writing were the theme of the time. 

Sometimes the best parts of a franchise are when they are not simply trying to recapture old magic. Instead of trying to do another starship like The Next Generation, they put the crew on a space station at the cross roads between multiple interstellar nations and the frontier. That means conflict came to them, and not just conflict, but organic world building. We learned about Klingons Cardassians and Bajorians in little bits as story lines unfolded. Relationships and conflict developed organically. In the Next Generation the relationships between crew members were set early on and rarely changed. There was no conflict because Star Fleet officers do not let personal differences get in the way of the Job. But on DS9 there were more than Starfleet officers. There were Bajorian officers, Klingons, Cardassians, and Farengi. Conflict was the norm and the characters were forced to acclimate to ideas and policies that made the generously uncomfortable. The Bajorians had to deal with the completely secular and somewhat arrogant Federation; the Federation had to deal with the hyper religious Bajorans. The proud Cardassians had to their former enemies for help in a time of crisis.

The characters of Deep Space Nine feel more real than other entries in the Star Trek franchise. Captain Sysco wasn’t as consistent as Picard but he felt a lot more like a real person. He had flaws but he was also highly competent and got things done, often at great personal costs. The star fleet cast follows suite. Complementing them is a cast of characters from across the Star Trek universe. Not all the acting is great, but enough of it is. The characters have a complexity lacking in many Star Trek entries. 

The series has its problems to be sure, some overacting, a lot of weak episodes at the beginning, some questionable plot twists, Ezri Dax. But flaws plague any long term TV series, and we mustn’t let then overshadow what was achieved. 

Gene Roddenberry had a certain vision for Star Trek. Deep Space 9 through that out.  While his vision allowed star trek to grow into what it is now it also restrained the writers. By throwing out strict adherence to those rules the writers were able to expand the Star Trek universe, and while there were missteps, Deep Space 9 stands at the pinnacle of their creativity. While later series tried and failed to recapture past magic, Deep Space 9 was unique, yet fit into a previously established universe so well it’s hard for me to think of Star Trek without the world building DS9 introduced. It is the best Star Trek has to offer. 

-Gedaemon