Emissary (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
"Emissary" | |
---|---|
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes | |
Episode nos. | Season 1 Episodes 1 and 2 |
Directed by | David Carson |
Story by | |
Teleplay by | Michael Piller |
Featured music | Dennis McCarthy |
Production codes | 721 401 and 402 |
Original air date | January 4, 1993 |
Guest appearances | |
| |
"Emissary" is the series premiere of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It was aired as a single two-hour episode on its initial broadcast,[1] but was divided into two one-hour episodes when it aired in reruns.[2]
Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures on
Plot
Part I
During the
Three years later, Sisko is assigned to command space station
Desperate to unify a Bajoran people whose government is on the verge of collapse, Sisko visits the Bajoran spiritual leader
Sisko receives an unwelcome visit from
Part II
Dax and Sisko investigate the Denorios Belt in a
Kira, recognizing the wormhole's value, orders the station moved to its mouth. Dukat enters the wormhole, but the station's staff are unable to follow, as the wormhole seemingly disappears after Dukat enters it. Cardassian ships arrive to investigate Dukat's disappearance, assuming he has been killed. Disbelieving Kira's claims about the wormhole, they order Kira to surrender DS9 or be destroyed. Kira bluffs that the station is heavily armed.
Sisko encounters entities in the wormhole who have no understanding of corporeal and linear existence. When Dukat's ship attempts to pass through, they close the wormhole, irritated by the presence of corporeal lifeforms. When Sisko attempts to explain linear time, the entities point out that he continually returns to the moment of Jennifer's death. Sisko realizes he is "living in the past" by not moving on from his grief.
The Cardassians attack Deep Space Nine, but as Kira prepares to surrender, the wormhole opens up, with Sisko's runabout towing Dukat's ship from it, and the Cardassians stop their attack. Sisko reveals that he negotiated with the wormhole aliens to allow ships to pass through. Later, Sisko informs Picard that he plans to remain in Starfleet, letting go of his anger and making peace with Picard, who wishes him luck.
Reception
"Emissary" first aired on January 4, 1993. It received a
Tom Bierbaum of Variety called the script a mixed bag, "too complex and ambitious at times but generally admirable in its mix of deft characterization, old-fashioned space opera and sophisticated science-fiction concepts."[5]
In 2012, Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club pointed out there were several significant differences compared to previous Star Trek shows. For instance, he noted the primary protagonist was an "angry man" with a tragic backstory, and commended the fact that the main characters were a more "disparate ensemble" with conflicting viewpoints, neither of which were featured in past installments in the franchise. Handlen reacted positively to the new characters, calling them "fascinating individuals", while complaining of a few instances of poor acting and writing. He disliked the scenes involving the magical orbs and wormhole aliens, finding them unnecessary. Handlen concluded his review by saying that, of the Star Trek pilots, this was "the one most rife with possibility" he had seen.[6]
In 2013,
A 2015 binge-watching guide for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine by Wired recommended not skipping this essential episode.[8]
In 2015, Geek.com recommended this episode as "essential watching" for their abbreviated Star Trek: Deep Space Nine binge-watching guide, along with "Past Prologue", "Vortex", "Battle Lines", "Duet" and "In the Hands of the Prophets" from season one.[9]
In 2016, SyFy ranked "Emissary" as the best out of the six main Star Trek TV show pilots.[10]
In 2016, Vox rated this episode one of the top 25 essential episodes of all Star Trek.[11]
In 2018, CBR ranked the "Emissary" two-part episode as the 19th best multi-episode story of Star Trek overall.[12] The Hollywood Reporter ranked "Emissary" of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine as the fourth best presentation of the series.[13] In 2017, Gamespot ranked this as the second best pilot episode of a Star Trek series.[14]
In 2018, SyFy included this episode on their binge-watching guide for episodes featuring Jadzia Dax.[15]
Space.com ranked "Emissary" the seventh best episode of all Star Trek television.[16]
In 2019,
SciFiNow ranked this one of the top ten episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in 2020, describing it as an "excellent pilot" establishing the character of Benjamin Sisko as "a man with a deep sense of duty and grief".[18]
Accolades
"Emissary" was nominated for four
Broadcast and streaming
It was aired as a two-hour-long pilot in broadcast syndication.[1] On its debut, "Emissary" received a lot of attention, including interviews with cast and production staff and a feature on Entertainment Tonight.[4]
The two-hour-long version of the episode has a production code of 721.[22] It may also be aired as two roughly 45-minute episodes, with production codes 401 and 402.[22] The two-hour-long version was premiered as a television movie, and on later airings it was separated into "Emissary, Part I" and "Emissary, Part II".[2]
On the launch of the
Home video releases
The first home media release of the episode was on
This episode was released in 2017 on DVD with the complete series box set, which had 176 episodes on 48 discs.[26]
"Emissary" parts I and II were released on September 24, 1996 on LaserDisc in the United States.[27] Released by Paramount Home Video, the double sided 12 inch optical disc had a run time of 87 minutes.[27]
On February 8, 1997, this episode was released on LaserDisc in Japan as part of the half-season box set 1st Season Vol. 1.[28] This included episodes from "Emissary" to "Move Along Home" with both English and Japanese audio tracks.[28]
"Emissary" was released on PAL-format LaserDisc in the United Kingdom as part of The Pilots collection, in April 1996.[29] This included the color version of "The Cage", "Where No Man Has Gone Before", "Encounter at Farpoint", "Emissary" and "Caretaker", with a total runtime of 379 minutes.[29]
Notes
- ^ a b c d Edrmann and Block (2000)
- ^ a b Okuda et al.
- ^ "Season 1 Ratings". TrekNation. Archived from the original on October 3, 2000. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
- ^ a b Granshaw, Lisa (2018-01-16). "Firsts: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine cast looks back at its very first episode". SYFY WIRE. Archived from the original on 2021-04-17. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
- ISBN 9780824037970– via Google Books.
- ^ Handlen, Zack (January 19, 2012). "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: "Emissary"". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on June 13, 2015. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
- ^ DeCandido, Keith (April 23, 2013). "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Rewatch: "Emissary"". Tor.com. Archived from the original on January 25, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2019.
- ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2019-07-23.
- ^ Ryan Whitwam (2015-01-19). "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine condensed: How to watch the most story-driven Trek". Geek.com. Archived from the original on 2016-11-20.
- ^ Roth, Dany (2016-01-15). "First Contact: Every Star Trek pilot, ranked". SYFY WIRE. Archived from the original on 2019-06-04. Retrieved 2019-06-30.
- ^ Siede, Caroline (2016-09-06). "Star Trek, explained for non-Trekkies". Vox. Retrieved 2019-08-01.
- ^ Michael Weyer (November 23, 2018). "Star Trek's Greatest Episodic Sagas, Ranked". CBR.
- ^ "'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine' — The 20 Greatest Episodes". The Hollywood Reporter. September 22, 2016.
- ^ Complex, Valerie (2017-10-20). "Every Star Trek Pilot Episode, Ranked From Worst To Best". GameSpot. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
- ^ Lane, Carly (2018-02-05). "A binge-watching guide to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's Jadzia Dax". SYFY WIRE. Archived from the original on 2019-07-23. Retrieved 2019-07-23.
- ^ Elizabeth Howell (2017-09-20). "The 10 Best 'Star Trek' Episodes Ever". Space.com. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
- ^ Lovett, Jamie. "The 10 Best Episodes of 'Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'". Star Trek. Retrieved 2019-07-11.
- ^ "Deep Space Nine: Top Ten Episodes". SciFiNow. 2020-12-31. Retrieved 2021-06-08.
- ^ Lowry, Brian (23 July 1993). "Cable ups the Emmy ante: 76 noms". Variety.
- ^ a b Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
- ^ "Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music Nominees / Winners 1993". Television Academy.
- ^ a b "STAR TREK: DEEP SPACE NINE". synbible.cbstvd.com. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
- ^ a b TrekMovie com Staff. "Paramount+ Launches With Free Episodes, A Star Trek Marathon, And Free Month Offer". TrekMovie.com. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
- ^ Spelling, Ian (August 25, 1996). "Trek Specs". The Washington Times.[dead link]
- ^ Ordway, Holly E. (June 9, 2003). "Star Trek Deep Space Nine - Season 1". DVD Talk. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved January 21, 2016.
- ^ TrekNews net Staff (2017-02-10). "[REVIEW] Deep Space Nine Complete Series DVD Box Set". TrekNews.net. Retrieved 2021-02-19.
- ^ a b "LaserDisc Database - Star Trek DS9 #001/2: the Emissary #1 and 2 [LV 40510-721]". www.lddb.com. Retrieved 2021-02-18.
- ^ a b "LaserDisc Database - Star Trek Deep Space 9: 1st Season vol.1 [PILF-2321]". www.lddb.com. Retrieved 2021-02-22.
- ^ a b "LaserDisc Database - Star Trek: The Pilots [PLTES 34071]". www.lddb.com. Retrieved 2021-02-22.
References
- Okuda, Michael; Okuda, Denise; Mirek, Debbie (2011-05-17). The Star Trek Encyclopedia. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4516-4688-7– via Google Books.
- Erdmann, Terry J.; Block, Paula M. (2000). Deep Space Nine Companion. Simon and Schuster. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-671-50106-8– via Google Books.
- P. Farrand, Nitpicker's Guide for Deep Space Nine Trekkers New York: Dell (1996): 3 - 12 ISBN 978-1852867362
External links
- "Emissary" at IMDb
- "Emissary" at Memory Alpha
- "Emissary Part I" at Wayback Machine (archived from the original at StarTrek.com)
- "Emissary Part II" at Wayback Machine (archived from the original at StarTrek.com)