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List Price: $69.98 | | Label: Paramount
Salesrank: 6845
Released: December 2, 2003 |
| Our Price: $49.48 |
| Used Price: $36.95 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Episodes: Image in the Sand, Shadows and Symbols, Afterimage, Take Me Out to the Holosuite, Chrysalis, Treachery Faith and the Great River, Once More Unto the Breach, The Siege of AR-558, Covenant, It's Only a Paper Moon, Prodigal Daughter, The Emperor's New Cloak, Field of Fire, Chimera, Badda-Bing Badda-Bang, Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges, Penumbra, 'Til Death Do Us Part, Strange Bedfellows, The Changing Face of Evil, When It Rains..., Tacking Into the Wind, Extreme Measures, The Dogs of War, What You Leave Behind Parts I and II.
Description of Star Trek Deep Space Nine - The Complete Seventh Season:
Deep Space Nine's seventh and final season came down to loose ends, tying some existing ones together while allowing others to unravel. Symptomatic of the unwillingness to let DS9 go was the immediate arrival of a replacement Dax, though poor Nichole deBoer as Ezri Dax had to have known she'd already missed the boat. Her appearance encouraged last-minute romances to blossom, with Bashir finally getting some action, Odo finally getting together with Kira, and Sisko finally proposing to Kassidy. Another contributing cute factor were numerous trips to the holosuite wherein the all-knowing Vic Fontaine dished out philosophical advice. That was when the crew wasn't in there to play baseball against the Vulcans, or when Nog wasn't commiserating about the loss of a leg.
Oh yes, and don't forget the War! There was an early announcement that the show would attempt a 10-part resolution to the Dominion War, but viewers could be forgiven for forgetting all about it with so much sentimental distraction. When the horrors of war did resurface, they at least injected a few surprises into the mix. Odo and his ambiguously "evil" Founders were hit with a melting disease, prompting a backstabbing race for the power of developing and owning a cure. The original baddie Cardassians finally settled on the Federation's side. Contrary to these interesting twists, however, were the unexpected turns taken by matters relating to Sisko's spiritual destiny. Suddenly the mystery of the wormhole and an entire religious belief system was reduced to the problem of correctly translating the words of a sacred book. The struggle to join with some evil aliens significantly diluted the attempt at resolving what had begun seven years before in the show's pilot episode. Ultimately, Sisko's destiny, as with all those who'd followed him to the open-ended climax, was to be decided elsewhere. In a move that was either bold and daring--or possibly born of desperation for not having thought things through properly--the show's storylines were to be continued in a series of spin-off books. --Paul Tonks
Star Trek Deep Space Nine - The Complete Seventh Season Reviews:
An absolutely splendid end to a great series 
2009-12-20 - About the only complaint that one could make about Season Seven is that they perhaps had too much story for the number of episodes. There were a few standalone episodes, but the majority of episodes in Season Seven were, in the terminology of THE X-FILE, "mythology." The events of the last few episodes felt a tad compressed, but the show did an adequate job of wrapping up the major story arcs. All in all, I consider it one of the more satisfying wrap ups of a series in the past decade or so. From first to last the show was done the way a show should be done.
The season reached a crescendo with all of the varied plotlines that had dominated the show for the previous six years reaching resolution. With the Dominion pushing deeper and deeper into Federation space and bringing in the Breen as allies (and thereby eventually alienating the Cardassians), they did a great job bringing everything to a clash.
One of the more controversial changes in Season Seven was the replacement of Terry Ferrel (Jadzia Dax) with Nicole de Boer (Ezri Dax). You hear various versions of precisely what happened to end Terry Ferrell's involvement with the series, but there is little debate that it involved money. She had signed a six-year contract and upon discussion of renewal my guess is that when the powers that be tried to low ball her, her agent put out feelers for new gigs, which led to her moving to the show BECKER. I did not want to see Ferrell leave the show, but I loved the changes that Ezri Dax brought to the show. In contrast with the supremely confident and assertive Jadzia, Ezri is more introspective, less self-confident, and far less prepared to be a symbiote host. She quickly became one of my favorite characters on the show. Now, this is what gets me. You hear that Nicole de Boer's joining the show was unpopular, but everyone I have talked to loved her. Obviously there must be Ezri Dax haters, but I think it is OK to love both Daxes. I loved the complicated nature of her relations with people who had previously known her as Jadzia.
One of my favorite additions in Season Seven, although he was introduced briefly in Season Six, was James Darren's Vic Fontaine, a Rat Pack style casino singer. Darren was absolutely brilliant in the role and every episode in which he appears is a highpoint in the season. And in a way the series itself ended in Vic's lounge. Although there were scenes that came after it, the final shot involving all of the cast was in the lounge with Vic singing "Just the Way You Look Tonight," with all of the writers and producers sitting as patrons in the tables at the front. It was just a great way to say goodbye to all of the characters.
This was easily my favorite STAR TREK series, in fact the only one I can honestly say that I love. I regret that they didn't take it to Season Eight. I think that there was plenty of gas left in the tank and that they could easily have managed an additional year. But perhaps it is better to go out on top when you haven't run out of ideas, but that is more of a solace to me rather a real conviction. Luckily, this is the STAR TREK series that for me stands up best to reviewings. And the one STAR TREK series that I believe can be considered among the best TV SF series of all time.
Note: In watching the special features, make sure you are thorough in looking about for hidden features. There are lots and lots and lots of short features, so make sure you hit the right and left and up and down arrows on your remote. Just about every important recurring character on DS9 has a small feature, from Gul Dukat to Nog to Rom to Kai Winn Jeffrey Combs many characters, so if you feel like you have missed someone, keep looking.
Good, if rushed, conclusion to the best Trek ever. 
2009-11-05 - Season 7 features two main story arcs running concurrently: The Dominion War and the Pah-Wraiths. One is infinitely more interesting than the other. Can you guess?
There is a invisible war going on between the 'good' Prophets and the 'bad' Pai-Wraiths, led by an incorporeal entity known as Kosst Amojan (awesome name). One expects to be kept in the dark about the Prophets for the majority of the story, but let's be realistic; We're now seven years into it, and the Prophets are just as inscrutable as ever. We're given no clues as to their origin, their connections to Bajor, what caused the split between them and Pai-Wraiths, or who/what is Kosst Amojan. The Prophets appear to Sisko every now and again to drop cryptic warnings, or just to harass him. He's sort of annoyed by it.
The evil alliance between Dukat (Marc Alaimo) and Kai Winn (Louise Fletcher): On the surface, having these two recurring villains get (romantically, eww) involved is ingenious. Sadly, this little subplot interrupts the superior drama and color of the Dominion War. My guess is the writers were shooting for a Shakespearean couple, but what we end up with is Rita Repulsa and Lord Zed, stroking each others' hair and "mwu ha ha"-ing about how their enemies will soon be crushed, No One Will Stand in Their Way, etc. It's not a complete loss, however, since Alaimo seems to be really enjoying his scenes with Winn. He's a magnificent jerk, with or without his prosthetic makeup. Fletcher, too, is satisfyingly twisted in her portrayal of lovestruck Winn: Radiant, playful, vindictive. This is the Winn we need to see more often.
My favorite characters of the season are Weyoun (Jeffrey Combs) and his flunky Damar (Casey Biggs). I didn't think anything could top the Dukat/Weyoun sparring of the previous season, but somehow this show did it. Things get even more hilarious as Damar's patience dwindles, having grown tired of being bossed around by Weyoun and his posse of Master Chief impersonators (the Breen). This season's finest episode, "Faith, Treachery, and the Great River", centers on a "defective" clone of Weyoun who intends to defect to the Federation, forcing Odo to try and deliver him safety to DS9. Combs portrays a Weyoun who is just as slimy as his evil counterpart, yet instilled with a simple belief that the Dominion's war is wrong. The main story of the episode is surprisingly touching, with Odo grappling with feelings of sympathy for a sworn enemy (just like the audience).
The biggest flaw of season 7, by far, is the last-minute addition of Ezri Dax (Nicole de Boer), a successor to Jadzia Dax, who was killed off last season. Ezri joins the crew as the station's Counselor, in the classic tradition of Trek counselors such as, um...Troi and...uh...I'll get back to you on that. Actually, it is not hard to imagine Season 7 without Ezri at all. She is entirely inconsequential. Not only do we waste valuable time following Ezri's arc over the span of several episodes, but she manages to torpedo the male characters as well (even Quark), as they end up competing for her affections. Witness Worf, who was married to Jadzia Dax and risked his life to 'send' her spirit to the Klingon afterlife of Sto-vo-kor: Now he is confronted with a Dax reborn. What happens?
..Well, Worf and Ezri share two whole episodes of incessant sniping/flirting, apparently under the impression that they are in a 60's screwball comedy. Ezri comes off as quite flippant, accusing Worf of being jealous, and becoming irate when he denies it. Ironically, "The Emperor's new Cloak" -- an episode set in the Mirror Universe -- shows us a version of Ezri as she SHOULD have been depicted all along. Awesome jacket, too.
Wanting More Deep Space Nine!
2009-02-03 - Watching the Complete Seventh Season of Star Trek Deep Space Nine is a bittersweet experience for me! This season's episodes keep getting better and better, especially "Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang", and yet it saddens me that this was the final season aired on television! Given that a new Star Trek movie is coming out in the Spring of 2009 makes me desperately wish that the Hollywood moguls would produce a Deep Space Nine movie with all of the original cast members!
The End of the Best Trek Ever
2009-01-26 - I remember hearing Trekies complain how stale the new Star Trek (The Next Generation) was compared to the old Trek. Yeah, they were eventually proven wrong, but their main complaints were valid. Star Trek has always suffered from "paradise" problems. The Federation is just too good to have any real conflict worth having. Where are the wars? Why is everyone always at peace? Where is the human conflict?
I'll tell you where: on Deep Space Nine.
Here is a Star Trek that has everything you really crave. A full scale war that goes on for seasons, a real threat to the federation that proves they have a seedy side just like we always thought. And it's thought provoking in its depth. It covers such weighty matters as the role of faith in our lives (no really, it does!) and what morality really means at war time.
You can skip season 1 of Deep Space Nine all together. Start with Season 2 and watch all the way to Season 7. You won't be disappointed.
The pinacle of modern science fiction
2009-01-23 - Simple brilliant, the vision of a more complex star trek is realized. Complications, realistic reactions, and detailed interpersonal narratives all come together to make this some of the best science fiction you will ever see.
