Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Rewatch
   Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Rewatch: Heart of Stone
   Keith DeCandido
   December 06, 2013 3:00PM

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira, Odo Heart of Stone
   Written by Ira Steven Behr & Robert Hewitt Wolfe
   Directed by Alexander Singer
   Season 3, Episode 14
   Production episode 40512-460
   Original air date: February 6, 1995
   Stardate: 48521.5

   Station log: Odo and Kira are on their way back from Prophets Landing
   in the Mekong when they pick up a distress call from a Lisseppian
   supply ship thats under attack by a one-person Maquis ship. Kira and
   Odo go after the latter, which crash lands on a moon orbiting a gas
   giant in the Badlands.

   Nog informs Sisko that hes had his bar mitzvaher, that is, his
   Ferengi Attainment Ceremony, which means hes now an adult, and he must
   become an apprentice. He chooses Sisko as the person to whom he wishes
   to become apprenticedhe wants to join Starfleet. Sisko points out that
   handing him a bribe (a bag full of latinum) wont cut it. He has to
   apply to Starfleet Academy, get in, and graduate, and before he can do
   any of that, heas a non-Federation citizenhas to get a letter of
   reference from a command-level officer. Like, say, Sisko, who says
   hell think about it. (Sisko tries to give the bribe back, but Nog
   insists on him keeping it.)

   Kira and Odo have checked the wreckage of the Maquis ship, and theres
   no sign of the pilot. Weather conditions on the surface of this
   seismically unstable moon are not survivable for more than a few
   minutes, so they check a series of underground caverns. After the third
   quake, they decide to split up, search for twenty minutes, and then
   abandon the moon before they get killed.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira

   A few minutes after they split up, Kira calls for Odo on his
   combadgeher foot got stuck in something. Tricorders are useless on
   this moon, but from what Odo can see, some kind of crystal has engulfed
   her foot and is spreading. She cant slip her foot out of her boot, and
   Odos attempts to smash it with a rock fail. Kira tries to phaser the
   crystal off, but the weapons fire makes the crystal grow up to her
   knee. Theres too much interference to contact the runabout, so Odo has
   to go on foot. (Kira promises not to go anywhere while hes gone.)

   Rom and Nog are fixing the replicator power supply for the bar. Rom
   warned Quark that it might burn out if he didnt do regular
   maintenance, but Rom quickly wilts under Quarks anger. When Rom goes
   off to get a part, Jake comes in and tells Nog how amused he was by the
   joke Nog played on his Dadbut Nog angrily insists that it wasnt a
   joke. He wants to join Starfleetbut he wont explain why to Jake,
   saying its personal.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Jake

   Odo is unable to get a transporter lock from the Mekong directly,
   either. He sends a communications probe with a distress call, but it
   could be at least two days before theres a reply. On his way back to
   Kira, he hears phaser fire. When he arrives, theres a scorch mark on
   the rock behind her, and Kira says that she saw their Maquis prey
   briefly, and they exchanged weapons fire. The crystal is continuing to
   move up her right leg and is making progress up her left.

   Nog sees Sisko on the Promenade and asks if hes made a decision, and
   Sisko admits that he doesnt consider Nog an ideal candidatenot due to
   his being a Ferengi, but because of his poor grades back when there was
   a school, not to mention his run-ins with the lawbut he all but begs
   for a chance to prove himself. So Sisko has Dax assign him to inventory
   in a cargo bay. It was already inventoried recently, so theyll know
   just how good a job he does.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Dax, Nog

   The crystal is now up to Kiras waist. Odo is frustrated by his
   inability to analyze it with a tricorder. Odo suspects that the Maquis
   terrorist deliberately chose this moon because it neutralizes
   transporters, combadges, and tricorders. Odo comes up with a plan based
   on a criminal activity report from Starfleet Security that he read, but
   it requires him to return to the Mekong, so off he goes, with Kira
   promising to actually read those reports more often.

   Dax assigns Nog to do the inventory, which Sisko wants done by first
   thing in the morning. Nog promises it to have it before he goes
   off-shift today. Sure enough, he does it in under five hours with no
   help, and did as thorough a job as Sisko has ever seen. According to
   Dax, he even found some things they missed on the last inventory.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira, Odo

   A massive quake hits the cavern, forcing Odo to form a canopy to
   protect Kira and the generator hes cobbled together to try to shatter
   the crystalwhich is now up to Kiras chest. Unfortunately, Odo is
   unable to shatter the crystal, even after working through the entire
   harmonic frequency. The crystal gets up to Kiras neck, and shes
   having a hard time talking. Eventually, Kira tells him to take the
   runabout and get off the moon before another tremor kills them both.
   She even makes it an order, but that just gets Odo to resign his
   commission. He wont abandon her no matter what, because hes in love
   with her. Kira shocks Odo by replying that shes in love with him, too.

   Sisko tells Nog that hes not Academy material, and Sisko wont put his
   reputation on the line for someone who wont cut it. Whatever scheme
   hes involved with, Sisko wont be a part of it. He deliberately
   provokes Nog to get him to say why he wants to be in Starfleet. Nog
   finally admits that he doesnt want to become his father. Rom couldve
   been a chief engineer on a starship, but he went into business like a
   good Ferengi, and all it got him was to be Quarks lapdog. Nog wants
   something more for himselfhes got his fathers hands and his uncles
   tenacity and he thinks he can be a good Starfleet officer. Sisko,
   impressed with his speech, agrees to send the letter.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira

   Odo has realized that somethings wrong with the entire scenario. He
   knows that Kira doesnt love him, and that makes him realize that there
   are other problems with the situation. Eventually, Kira reveals her
   true face: the female changeling. She was also the Maquis terrorist,
   and she contrived the entire situation in order to find out why Odo
   stayed with the solids. She figured it had something to do with Kira,
   and the conversation they had while Kira was trapped proved her
   right. She beams away, and Odo finds Kira locked in a box (which
   explains how the female changeling got her hands on a working combadge
   and phaser). As they return to DS9, Odo tells Kira only that he saw
   through it because of a slip of the tonguenothing important.

   Quark tries to forbid Nog from joining Starfleet, but Rom says that,
   while Quark runs the bar, Rom makes the decisions about his sonand he
   wishes Nog good luck. Quark thinks theyre both insane.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Rom, Nog

   Cant we just reverse the polarity?: Rom tells Quark that the
   replicators might break down if he doesnt do regular maintenance. To
   Quark, the might means he doesnt have to actually do regular
   maintenance.

   The Sisko is of Bajor: Sisko is utterly confused by Nogs desire to
   join Starfleet (echoed by Jake and Dax). His reluctance to recommend
   him isnt because hes a Ferrengi, but he plays on the traditional
   prejudice against Ferengi in order to provoke Nog to tell him why he
   wants to join.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira, Odo

   Dont ask my opinion next time: In the teaser, Kira and Odo have an
   amusing kind-of-an-argument in the runabout where Odo is cranky (well,
   crankier) because Kira didnt consult him before turning down a dinner
   invitation. Of course, she knows Odo doesnt eat and hates socializing
   with people he doesnt know, but Odo still wanted to be asked, first.
   The argument is delightful, in part because it becomes so tense, but
   Kira cant help break a smile at Odos outraged curmudgeonliness.

   Preservation of mass and energy is for wimps: We learn the origin of
   Odos name: the Cardassian word for nothing is odoital, which was
   how the sample container he was put in after being found was labeled by
   the Cardassian overseer (Dr. Mora called it unknown sample, but that
   was how the overseer translated it into Cardassian). After he was
   discovered to be sentient, the Cardassians dubbed him Odo Ital, as if
   it were a Bajoran name.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Rom, Nog, Quark

   Rules of Acquisition: Nog states that Rom is a mechanical genius, as
   seen in Necessary Evil, and which will continue to be a theme going
   forward, but he doesnt have the lobes for business, and Nog fears that
   he doesnt either, hence pursuing a career in Starfleet.

   We get Rule #18: A Ferengi without profit is no Ferengi at all.

   Victory is life: A reminder of how awesome the Dominion is: all by
   herself, the female changeling is able to fake a Maquis attack and lure
   Kira and Odo to the moon, subdue Kira and take her combadge and phaser,
   and then beam out from a world whose interference makes it impossible
   for Starfleet transporters to function.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, changeling

   No sex, please, were Starfleet: Odo finally admits out loud that he
   loves Kira, something thats been fairly obvious but never stated
   (except by Lwaxana Troi in Fascination). Of course, he admits it to
   the female changeling rather than the real Kira, but we live in an
   imperfect galaxy...

   What happens on the holosuite stays on the holosuite: OBrien has been
   taking Odo kayaking on the holosuite. Odo enjoys it, though OBrien
   does all the singing (ancient sea shanties such as Louie Louie).

   Keep your ears open: Of course its your fault. Everything that goes
   wrong here is your fault. It says so in your contract.

   Quark blaming Rom and providing eternal justification for same.

   Welcome aboard: Salome Jens establishes herself as a recurring
   character by reappearing as the female changelingthough she agreed not
   to be listed in the opening credits so as not to spoil the surprise of
   her appearance. The only other guests are also recurring regulars, Max
   Grodnchik as Rom and Aron Eisenberg as Nog.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Sisko, Nog

   Trivial matters: One of the inspirations for this episode was the Ken
   Kesey novel Sometimes a Great Notion and its film adaptation. Another
   was Shakespeares Twelfth Night, from whence comes the title.

   In The Search, Part II, the female changeling said that she might
   visit Odo in his world to see what was so appealing about it, which she
   fulfills in this episode (somewhat backhandedly).

   This episode has the first mention of Ensign Vilixpran, who will be
   mentioned again in Apocalypse Rising and Business as Usual, as well
   as the novels Section 31: Abyss by David Weddle & Jeffrey Lang and
   Rising Son by S.D. Perry. However, he is never actually seen (not even
   in the novels).

   OBriens love of kayaking was first seen in TNGs Transfigurations.

   Apparently, non-Federation citizens need a reference from a
   command-level officer in order to be considered for admittance into
   Starfleet Academy. This would apply to any Bajorans in Starfleet also,
   though probably not to Worf (he was adopted by two Federation citizens,
   and so probably is a Federation citizen himself).

   Walk with the Prophets: I would be proud to have a son in Starfleet.
   Earlier this week, we were talking about A plots and B plots, and
   heres a case where they complement each other nicely. Both have
   characters expressing heretofore unexpressed hearts desires (though in
   Odos case, only unexpressed verbally), and both revelations are
   problematic. Nogs admission is met with surprise and suspicion and
   disbeliefto the point where his best friend thinks its a practical
   jokeand Odos remains a secret to everyone except for the female
   changeling precisely because he fears Kiras response.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Sisko, Odo

   Both revelations are of even more import because they will continue to
   have an impact on the series moving forward. Nogs Starfleet career
   will be a delight to behold (though not always a joy, as well see in
   The Siege at AR-558 and Its Only a Paper Moon), and Odos
   relationship with Kira will continue to develop as well. In addition,
   we get a reminder of the Dominion threat as something other than an
   abstract notionits been wholly in the background since The Search,
   Part IIand whats especially notable is that this entire ruse was
   done for the sole purpose of finding out more about Odo. The Founders
   desire for Odo to return to the Great Link is more important than any
   political gain or military conquest for the Dominion, and were
   reminded of that here.

   But its the ostensible B story that has real weight here. Nogs sudden
   desire to join Starfleet seems to come out of nowherethough that is
   made a plot pointbut its made totally believable by two scenes. The
   first is when Quark kicks Rom when hes down, and Roms sole response
   is to say, You missed a rib! which nicely sets up the heart of the
   episode, when Nog finally explains himself. Aron Eisenbergs
   performances on the show up to this point have been hit or misshe
   sometimes overenunciates to the point where it can get in the way of
   his actual actingbut he absolutely nails every scene hes in here,
   from his eagerness with Sisko and Dax to his anger at Jake to his
   frustration with Quark to all of those emotions and more playing out in
   the scene in Siskos office. Eisenberg himself has cited the latter
   scene as his favorite piece of his own acting, and hes right: its a
   tour de force of emotional anguish and self-realization. While Sisko
   and Nog jointly quote Rule of Acquisition #18, its Rule #9 that
   applies here: Opportunity plus instinct equals profit, only in this
   case the profit that Nog gets is a shot at a Starfleet career.

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Sisko, Nog

   Avery Brooks plays it just as well, goading Nog into giving him the
   real answer, and seeing the anguish on Nogs face, the fear in his
   voice, the very real possibility that hell become as beaten-down as
   Rom, and watching as his facial expression modulates slowly to one of
   respect and understanding. Best of all is the effect it has on Rom: for
   the first time that weve seen, Rom defies Quark, giving Nog his
   blessing to attend the Academy.

   Eisenbergs heartfelt anguish is matched by that of Rene Auberjonois
   when he bares his soul to the person he thinks is Kira. I have to admit
   to having never entirely being able to get my arms around the notion of
   Kira and Odo as a couple. For starters, they had such a good, strong,
   sensible friendshipthe two anti-authoritarians surrounded by hidebound
   Starfleet moronsthat adding a romance just felt, I dunno, lazy?
   Obvious? Pointless? Plus, while Im all for interspecies romance, shes
   a humanoid and hes a pile of goo.....

   Star Trek Deep Space 9, Heart of Stone, Kira, Odo

   But the only reason it ever worked is because of how well the actors
   sold it. And in this episode in particular its not only how well
   Auberjonois sells it, but how well Nana Visitor doesntand its just
   the last in a line, as Visitors entire performance is just a little
   off-kilter the entire time that shes really the changeling (which is
   as it should be). Its nothing actively and obviously wrong, but its a
   bunch of little things, which have a cumulative effect on Odo
   (particularly once he gets the bucket of ice-water that is Kiras
   admission of mutual love).


   Warp factor rating: 8
     __________________________________________________________________

   Keith R.A. DeCandido has autographed copies of many of the books and
   comics hes written for sale. They make dandy holiday gifts.
   Information, including several new books dug up in the garage recently,
   can be found here.


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