Visionary (S3E17)
Airdate: 27 February 1995
Written by: John Shirley
Directed by: Reza Baidyi
Running Time: 45 minutes
Time travel has invariably been a magnetic force within the Star Trek franchise, captivating audiences since the very inception of the series. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that this narrative device would feature so prominently during the franchise’s celebrated golden age in the 1990s. Deep Space Nine, while distinct from its siblings in its serialised storytelling, leans heavily into this tradition in Season 3. Less than two months following the ambitious, two-part time-travelling saga Past Tense, the motif reappears in the episode titled "Visionary." It shows the era's fascination with temporal paradoxes, serving as a narrative experiment that attempts to balance high-stakes politics with personal sci-fi horror.
The plot nominally revolves around a high-ranking Romulan delegation arriving at the station to inquire about information Starfleet has gathered regarding the Dominion following their recent expedition to the Gamma Quadrant. The Romulans had leased their cloaking device to the USS Defiant and naturally, they claim entitlement to this intel. The situation, however, becomes complicated by the presence of Klingons at the station, whose generally hostile attitudes toward the Romulans ensure that they will be a source of trouble. This immediate geopolitical friction sets the stage for a typical DS9 conflict, though it eventually takes a backseat to the personal ordeal of the station's Chief of Operations.
This, at first, doesn't seem to concern Chief O'Brien, who has been exposed to radiation while working in a Jeffries tube. Dr. Bashir doesn't seem concerned, because condition is, in his opinion, easily treatable. Yet, Bashir is proven wrong when O'Brien begins to experience inexplicable time jumps during which he sees, and sometimes even interacts with, his future self. One such occasion involves preventing future self from being stabbed by a Klingon in a bar fight; another, much more serious, shows him being killed by an energy beam near Romulan headquarters. After returning to the present, he reports everything to his superiors; the investigation held by Odo discovers that the energy beam has apparently been set up by a team of Klingon covert agents: they are arrested and O'Brien's death in future appear to be prevented. However, this is merely the prologue to a much more complex temporal anomaly.
Dr. Bashir posits that the time shifts were caused by mysterious tetryon beams that affected O'Brien; another time shift puts O'Brien in the future where he witnesses entire station being destroyed. Determined to prevent catastrophe, O'Brien insists that Dr. Bashir gives him extra radiation that he could travel to future earlier and obtain information what caused the explosion. There O'Brien finds out that the explosion was caused by cloaked Romulan ship who attacked the station, the very same cloaking device causing quantum singularity responsible for O'Brien's condition. O'Brien is too sick to travel back in time and dies, and the future O'Brien takes his place; he delivers the warning and Sisko, realising that Romulan plan was to destroy the wormhole and station in order to cover their tracks, confronts Romulan diplomats and threatens destruction of their ship; Romulans are then ejected, and O'Brien, using his limited knowledge of the future goes to bar to annoy Quark at dabo table.
The episode was originally envisioned by freelance writer Ethan H. Calk, and spec script sold to production team before being finished by John Shirley, friend of producer Ira Steven Behr and renowned author of cyberpunk fiction. While producers originally wanted to use script as "bottle" episode, in reality "Visionary" turned very demanding, namely because of the scene of station destruction requiring special effects, with CGI still not being sufficiently developed to avoid practical effects; another difficulty was making O'Brien appear in two different versions, but director Reza Baidiyi nevertheless did a good job. The production challenges highlight the limitations of late 90s television visual effects and the Herculean efforts required to create convincing spectacle on a weekly basis.
Science consultant André Bormanis tried very hard to find somewhat convincing and comprehensible explanation why and how O'Brien shifts in time, but the episode was nevertheless criticised as "technobabble". The explanation of the singularity and the beams often feels like a narrative shortcut rather than genuine scientific discovery. The episode is also notable for actually killing O'Brien and replacing him with alternate/future version; this move was seriously contemplated and ultimately rejected with Will Riker and his doppelganger in TNG episode Second Chances, but here it was added at insistence of Ronald D. Moore. This narrative choice was significant because it proved that DS9 was willing to kill off its beloved regulars, a bold step that differentiated it from the safety of The Next Generation.
The episode uses some of the DS9-specific tropes like "O'Brien must suffer", mixing it with mystery and geopolitical intrigue; attempts at humour, while functional, aren't that impressive; there is, however, great respect for continuity and Odo's unrequited feelings for Kira are addressed in humorous way. Ultimately, Visionary is a solid episode, isn't among the most memorable ones. It is a competent piece of genre television that tries to pack a lot into its forty-five-minute runtime, but it ultimately struggles to find its unique identity amidst the heavy influence of its predecessors.
RATING: 6/10 (++)
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