Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV Series) Prodigal Daughter (1999) User Reviews

Weaker DS9 episode

[Tweekums · 6/10 · 12 January 2010]

I found this stand alone episode to be weaker than most recent episodes despite it being centred on Ezri Dax who is one of my favourite DS9 characters. As the story opens we learn that Chief O'Brien has gone missing while investigating the Orion Syndicate, a Mafia like organisation on New Sydney, a planet outside Federation jurisdiction. As Ezri's family run a large mining operation in the area she is asked to see them and ask her mother if her contacts know anything about the chief's whereabouts. It is rather awkward for her as she hasn't been home for several years and a lot has changed for her since she joined with the Dax symbiont. The chief is soon found but by then Ezri has suspicions that lead her to believe that her family may be involved with the Syndicate in some way.

While I often enjoy character rather than action driven episodes this one didn't really seem that interesting because Ezri's family wasn't particularly likable, I can see why Ezri left home and joined Star Fleet. There was no action to speak of and when we found out what was going on I didn't really care even though we were clearly meant to be sympathetic to the character concerned.

Another Dysfunctional Family

[Hitchcoc · 7/10 · 10 November 2018]

Miles O'Brien has taken it up himself to find the widow of the syndicate guy he got killed in a previous episode. When he finally locates her, she is floating in a river. Sisko, who is furious that Miles is off on his own, sends Ezri Dax to get her mother to use her pull to find Miles. Finding him is not difficult, but we are let in on a sort of Dynasty family with a mother who has pretty much messed up her sons. Ezri escaped long ago, but the boys are stuck running her empire. The problem is the empire is under the thumb of the syndicate and the boys are trapped. One, played by Kevin Rahm, now of Madame Secretary, is an artist who has absolutely no self image. The mother uses her power with little regard for their humanity. Miles senses what is going on and the results are very harsh.

Decent Ezri backstory and family moments

[snoozejonc · 6/10 · 13 September 2023]

Ezri is sent on a mission home to find the missing Chief O'Brien.

I think it is harsh to describe it a bad or uneventful episode as it includes plenty of drama and criminal activities, but for me the storytelling is unremarkable.

The set up feels like a reasonably exciting mission for Ezri, but the writers deliver mostly family melodrama. This is fine, as there are some strong interactions between various central characters. All the scenes involving Leigh Taylor-Young as the matriarch are my favourite as she brings a necessary edge to the dialogue. Some of the dynamics are very recognisable, such as the domineering parent and contrasting attitudes of the siblings.

When the A and B plots (naturally) link in the latter part of the episode, it is the right direction for the story to go, but the predictability (including to certain lines of dialogue) is distracting. Plus the key scene involves a character simply telling you what happened, which is usually an anticlimax on screen.

Mommy dearest...

[planktonrules · 27 January 2015]

Chief O'Brien has disappeared and it looks like Ezri Dax can assist in efforts to locate him. This is because she lived in New Sydney and that's where O'Brien was last seen. Plus, her family is rich and well connected, so they might be able to assist.

When she arrives home, you can see why Ezri has little contact with her family as well as why she is so timid. Her mother is THE boss of the family and she delivers a long series of emotional digs that you can see the effect it has had on her brothers who remained at home. Just how badly this impacted her younger brother becomes obvious at the tragic ending. All in all, watching this particular episode is a bit like watching a fusion of "Star Trek: Deep Space 9" and "Mommy Dearest"! Fascinating.

By the way, the mother is played by Leigh Taylor-Young--of "Soylent Green" fame.

Space mafia

[thevacinstaller · 7/10 · 21 April 2022]

An interesting star trek side quest depicting the road to hell that comes when dealing with the space mafia.

I felt this episode was good at providing me with some backstory as to why Ezri decided to become a counsellor.

Could also be a commentary on how prioritizing economic gain over family developments leads to dysfunction.

I kept an eye on Ezri's performance in this episode and throughout the earlier season 7 episodes. She is quite good! Has a likeable screen presence.

Out of Their Wheelhouse

[frankelee · 4/10 · 23 June 2022]

TV shows have a rule, and that rule is to consistently deliver on their premise. It might sound a little restrictive, but this episode shows why you don't break it. A bad dysfunctional family drama, with fake psychological problems our hero does a bad job solving, then meets a murder mystery that isn't interesting.

Star Trek is about adventures in space. Maybe you get stuck on a desert planet and have to figure out a problem, but that's the overall premise. You leave that, and you get this, and this was poor.

Well written story for Star Trek universe explores people

[TomSunhaus · 8/10 · 10 July 2020]

David Weddle & Bradley Thompson have written a multi-arc story that give Colm Meaney & Nicole de Boer a chance to express their characters. I think the other reviewers underestimate how family dynamics can be destructive. My feelings are that Science Fiction is only interesting when it involves personal stories.

Nicole de Boer did a Outer Limits episode, 'Quality of Mercy', with Robert Patrick that is a tour de force of wrenching personal story at the level of William Shatner's airplane monster episode. An actor takes a risk when being involved in an uncomfortable episode because it may seem 'ugly'. I think it is episodes like this that make the Star Trek universe interesting.

"I hate your hair"...

[tomsly-40015 · 2/10 · 28 November 2023]

...says Ezri's (or should I say "Zee's") mom and roughly summarizes this episode. Ezri is just a boring teenage boy that stumbled into becoming a Trill host as well as into becoming Lt. JG without being qualified for any of them. Even Vic Fontaine, a hologram, is a better counselor than Ezri.

This episode has absolutely zero to do with space, sci-fi or adventure and exploration. It is a constructed family drama combined with an uninteresting murder mystery. And somehow O'Brien is involved as well, because he still feels that he owns mobster boss Bilby a favor for being a nice guy with a fluffy cat - when he wasn't busy killing, blackmailing or threatening any enemy of the Orion syndicate.

If you want to meet Ezri's forgettable brothers, especially Mr "I am a third grade wannabe artist and still live at home with mommy", then you might enjoy a few minutes of this episode. Orher than that such an episode in the last season is just a big waste of episode air time.

90s manic pixie dream girl goes home

[deedee0 · 1/10 · 13 June 2022]

This was awful. A Murder She Wrote episode based on the family of a character no one asked for. The entire episode made me miss Jadzia even more. Ezri is so unlikeable. The only high point of the episode is who turns out to be the murderer.

Underrated Episode

[lorangeproductions · 8/10 · 20 July 2020]

Personally, I love Colm Meaney's dedication to this subplot. The opportunity to meet Ezri's family and build it into the Orion Syndicate is a nice departure from life on DS9. I've seen some negativity around this episode and I don't think it's deserved.

A dreadful episode, best to keep the fast forward button handy, you'll need it.

[davidhiggins-89756 · 3/10 · 28 June 2021]

**Does contain spoilers**. **Does contain spoilers**. Of this episode & the very next.

Just what were the ST writers thinking of. Like no one cares less about this new character Ezri Dax. I could barely stand the last eye candy much who cleared off at end of season 6. Now we have Half-Pint who was introduced far too late into the series.

The reason, well one of the reasons that 7 of 9 did so well in ST Voyager & was popular was that her introduction occurred just before half way in its 7 season series. (By number of episodes).

A new character to add to the almost static Voyager main cast. Giving the series a new freshness to it.

Had tire tracks eye candy 1 cleared off earlier rather than the end of DS9 season 6 this new replacement may have fared better.

To give almost an entire episode to this piffling character and subsequently a whole host of peripheral characters, (her siblings, mother etc), with resulting extended dialogue scenes & hardy any action, just dragged on and on.

About the only time in all the seasons of DS9 I have had to fast forward through tedious parts that were littered throughout this episode.

Like no one was interested in viewing such long tiresome dialogue with Half-Pint and that sibling of hers, (the other one who didn't look similar to Eric Bana). I couldn't stand the irrelevant dialogue padding out this nothing of an episode.

What was almost as unforgivable was having Half-Pint tire tracks in a main prominent role in the VERY NEXT episode as Miss Whiplash mk 2, the mk 1 being leather clad Kira. Both playing alternate universe roles that I found over the top & nauseating.

So even with Chief O'Brian in this episode who is usually a quite compelling character, this episode did nothing for me or did the next one much either.

Maybe, to be fair with the ST writers, perhaps they were appealing more to the female trekkies in this 'Prodigal Daughter' episode and the younger kids. Just not my sort of episode even if it entertained others.

Rated by reviewers on IMDB for DS9 season 7 as the lowest rated episode of the season, I can see why. Barely worth 4 stars, it did nothing & went nowhere.

EDIT: To be more precise to give this episode anything more than 3 stars would be far too much. You shouldn't have to fast forward through a Star Trek episode, (Of cause the WHOLE series of the latest woke ST Discovery can be justifiably avoided), so just 3 stars for the episode 'Prodigal Daughter' and that may come down later on.

Interesting mystery episode that gives us more insight into Ezri

[jules-m · 8/10 · 2 June 2021]

I think this was a nice change-of-pace episode given all the Dominion war-related episodes.

Ezri returns home on a mission to find Miles who is following up on his recent adventures investigating the Orion Syndicate. We find her mom domineering over her adult kids and you obviously think to yourself "No wonder Ezri wanted to get far away from this".

The episode hints at something amiss with the family business and it has a nice twist at the end.