The Maquis, Part II (S20E21)
Airdate: 1 May 1994
Written by: Ira Steven Behr Directed by: Corey Allen
Running Time: 46 minutes
As many experienced Star Trek aficionados could have predicted, the conclusion of the two-part episode The Maquis fails to meet the high expectations set by its first instalment. Part I ended on a cliffhanger of genuine dramatic force, and the promise of a morally complex confrontation between old friends seemed to set the stage for something truly exceptional. Yet, despite that shortfall, Part II remains a solid, workmanlike episode that functions well on its own terms, sets up plot developments that would echo through the remainder of the series, and, most importantly, contains a single line of dialogue that came to define the general thematic direction of 1990s Star Trek. The worry that the payoff might not match the promise proved well founded; but the episode deserves to be judged on rather more than its failure to be the masterpiece its predecessor hinted at.
The episode opens in the immediate aftermath of the revelation that Lieutenant Commander Calvin Hudson, Sisko's best friend and the Starfleet officer in charge of the Demilitarised Zone, is in fact the leader of the Maquis. What follows is a harsh, emotionally charged debate between the two men. Sisko demands that Hudson cease his activities and hand over the abducted Gul Dukat, while Hudson, in turn, tries unsuccessfully to recruit his old friend to the colonists' cause. The impasse is resolved in typically pragmatic fashion: Hudson stuns Sisko, Major Kira and Dr Bashir, and departs.
Upon his return to Deep Space Nine, Sisko finds that two new high-ranking arrivals are attempting to defuse the crisis according to their own agendas. Admiral Nechayev orders Sisko to bring the Maquis back into the Federation fold, while Legate Parn (John Schuck) arrives from Cardassian Central Command to claim that Gul Dukat was working entirely on his own, supplying weapons to Cardassian colonists in order to foment a proxy war. Sisko is unconvinced, believing that Central Command simply wishes to throw the conveniently absent Dukat under the proverbial bus. Meanwhile, Odo arrests Quark for weapons smuggling, an offence Quark admits to committing unwittingly, and one for which he quickly points the finger at Sakonna.
Sisko and his crew soon discover the location of the Maquis base, where Sakonna has been attempting to apply Vulcan mind-meld techniques to Dukat, an exercise in futility, since he resists her intrusion with ease. The interrogation is interrupted by the arrival of Sisko, Bashir and Odo, who capture the Maquis, all save one, and set Dukat free. Brought back to the station and informed of the accusations levelled against him, Dukat attempts to exonerate himself by helping to capture Daro Afua (Michael Bell), a Xepolite trader who admits to supplying weapons to Cardassian colonists in the Demilitarised Zone, thereby implicating Central Command.
Quark finds himself in the same holding cell as Sakonna and, while conversing with her, discovers that the Maquis are planning a major attack on a Cardassian weapons depot in fifty-two hours. Dukat volunteers to help pinpoint the exact location, while Sisko makes one last-ditch effort to make Hudson see reason. Hudson's response is dramatic: he vaporises his Starfleet uniform, thereby severing the last symbolic link with the institution he once served and with the Federation itself.
Having identified the exact location of the attack, the Deep Space Nine crew lie in wait for the Maquis in their runabouts. What follows is a tense standoff that threatens to escalate into a full space battle, although both sides try hard to incapacitate rather than destroy one another's vessels. When only Sisko's runabout and Hudson's ship remain, Dukat urges Sisko to destroy his former friend's vessel, but Sisko chooses instead to let Hudson escape. Back on the station, discussing the matter with Kira, he wonders aloud whether he has stopped the actual war or merely delayed the inevitable.
Directed by Corey Allen, an experienced director for whom this proved to be his final Star Trek assignment, the episode is notable for its extensive use of special effects. The most memorable moment is the scene in which Odo shapeshifts into a set of hooks to grapple an escaping Maquis vessel; for mid-1990s standards, it remains an impressive display of CGI technology, and it still holds up reasonably well today.
Yet Ira Steven Behr's script lacks the intriguing mystery aspects that made the first part so compelling, and the plot, in the end, lacks the grand resolution the setup demanded. The Federation, the Cardassians and most of the characters end the episode more or less where they began. Sisko, for all his attempts to do the right thing, allows his friend to escape, thereby guaranteeing that Hudson's extremist actions could, in the future, shatter the hard-won peace of the Demilitarised Zone.
The most interesting aspect of the script lies in the way Sisko explains his own ambiguous conduct towards the Maquis and towards Hudson. He observes that Earth has for centuries been free of poverty, war and crime, and that it is easy for Starfleet and Federation politicians to ignore the plight of people on the periphery, such as those in the Demilitarised Zone. The phrase "it's easy to be a saint in paradise" neatly encapsulates how dark and morally ambiguous the world of Deep Space Nine had become. Set on the frontier and exposed to the after-effects of geopolitical intrigues on ordinary people, the series looked profoundly different from Roddenberry's utopian vision.
The script also features a number of great moments. Foremost among them is Quark's political discussion with the imprisoned Sakonna, in which the Ferengi bests her Vulcan logic by noting that the imperfect peace of the Demilitarised Zone is cheaper, and therefore preferable, to conflict. It is a scene that simultaneously deflates Vulcan pretensions and delivers a cynical, yet uncomfortably persuasive, political argument.
Another great moment is provided by Marc Alaimo, whose impressive performance adds considerable ambiguity to Dukat's character. Originally introduced as a despicable villain responsible for atrocities against the Bajorans, here he displays capabilities that could do wonders if turned to good ends, and he even earns the respect of his archenemy Major Kira, even prompting some over-imaginative fans to begin hinting at a previously inconceivable romance between the two.
At the end of the daay, The Maquis, Part II is a somewhat disappointing sequel to a genuinely intriguing first part, but it is by no means a bad episode. It advances the franchise's willingness to engage with moral complexity, introduces the Maquis as a recurring presence whose consequences would be felt for years to come, and delivers one of the defining lines of 1990s Star Trek. One can only regret that the resolution did not quite match the promise, but, as with so much of Deep Space Nine, the journey matters as much as the destination.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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