Emissary

The best Sci-Fi series ever
Star Trek fans, I'm sure, will argue for decades over which of the Trek TV series was the best. But as a stand-alone Sci-Fi TV series, this one was the best I had ever seen. Just to let you know where I'm coming from, my other favorites include Blake's 7, Doctor Who, the original Star Trek series, and most of the Next Generation Series (post 1989).

Deep Space Nine had it all. It was the first Star Trek series to be produced after Gene Rodenbury passed away, and I think he would have been very proud. The series had a grand story arc from the very first episode. It increased the number of primary characters over that of 'The Next Generation.' It featured more female characters in commanding roles (most notably, Major Kira). It mirrored the post Cold War politics and instability of the Balkins / Slovakia / Eastern Europe, with its setup of the dimming Cardassian Empire and the newly-freed Bajorians. It also addressed the legacy of empires past. One only needs to see the bond...

A Trek landmark
Okay, everyone else who wrote a review said that DS9 is the best Trek series ever, so I won't bother saying it again (even though I kinda just did!). Character depth, story arcs, darker premises, great drama...it just rocked. However, this review is for the DVD box of the First Season.

The first season, as with any Trek series, is a bit iffy. There are good shows and bad shows, the characters are still being explored both by the writers and the actors, the massive guest cast that made DS9 such a thick, rich series is mostly not in place yet (although some of them are introduced this season). So go into it keeping this in mind. There are the usual exaggherated "personality" stories as well.

But there are a couple of reasons to get this set. First of all, you get to see the ground work that is laid for later seasons, both in terms of character development and story development. Plus, there are some cool guest appearances, like Q, Lurhsa and B'etor, and...

Deep Space Nine Season One - An incredible beginning!
Late in the fifth season of Star Trek The Next Generation, the producers decided to embark in a new direction with a new, darker and even more character rich show. Having made that decision, they came up with Deep Space Nine, which turned into one of the best of all of the series. What made this series even more intriguing and enriching was its many contrasts to the way in which the other shows were produced. In Gene Roddenberry's vision of the twenty third and later twenty fourth century's human condition, life was not exactly a paradise yet much of the strife and hardships that we contend with today are eliminated. In the other series, there aren't many examples of conflict between the characters however, in DS9 there are plenty of opportunities for conflict between the Starfleet and Bajoran personnel or any other variety of alien species.

In Deep Space Nine we're introduced to Starfleet personnel who are asked to command a space station built and formerly run by Cardassians...

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