Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (TV Series) Treachery, Faith and the Great River (1998) User Reviews

Defection and acquisition

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 5 January 2010]

After a couple of stand alone episodes we return to the war with the Dominion when one of Odo's contacts get in touch with him requesting a meeting. Even though it was believed this contact had been killed Odo decides to take a chance and meet him. When he gets to the meeting place he learns that it was set up by one of the Weyoun clones who claims that he wishes to defect something another Weyoun and the Cardassians are determined to prevent.

While this is going on we have a more light hearted story taking place back at DS9 where Capt. Sisko has ordered Chief O'Brien to fix the Defiant in three days even though the part they need will take three weeks to acquire from the stores, overhearing these orders Ensign Nog offers to use his natural Ferengi trading skills to get one from another ship that has a spare, these trades involve borrowing the Captain's desk and some Klingon blood wine which causes some distress for the chief who's name is on all the paperwork.

This episode was a nice blend of humour and action, it also gave us insight in to the origins of the Vorta and why the worship the Founders. It introduces the story line about the illness is effecting the Founders.

A Vorta who wishes to defect?!

[planktonrules · 8/10 · 27 January 2015]

The plot to this episode is very surprising. After all, the Vorta are slavishly devoted to their gods, the Founders. However, oddly, one of the Vorta, Weyoun 6, has defected--something you'd never expect from these sycophants. When Odo meets him, the Vorta begs to be given sanctuary--and the rest of the episode is a rush back to Federation space with this strange Vorta. But why? Why defect? And, what secret does he hold about his beloved Founders--one that other Vorta don't even expect?!

In addition to this main plot, there is a minor plot. When Captain Sisko demands that O'Brien does the impossible, Nog intervenes and through a long series of trades, arranges to have spare parts available to O'Brien so that he won't disappoint his commander.

The plot involving Nog and O'Brien is very slight. However I really liked the one involving the Vorta and you learn a lot about them and what makes Weyoun 6 different. A truly interesting episode.

Jeffrey Combs' Masterclass

[Cryptic_constable · 9/10 · 20 January 2022]

This Season 7 episode comes with two very different story lines. On the one hand we are thrown right back into the Dominion war with Odo and Weyoun 6, whereas Nog helps O'Brien to fulfil the captain's demanding requests.

Both storylines are good, but what elevates this story is the Weyoun 6 and 7 relationship with Jeffrey Combs which is so well done, not to mention Casey Bigg's Damar playing the Kanar-loving leader of the Cardassians and Rene Auberjonois really giving the sense of Odo struggling with his innate rationality and the emotional problems he'd rather not face. I don't think it is quite a 10/10 episode (like say "In the Pale Moonlight") but a tour-de-force nonetheless.

Radar O'Nog

[Hitchcoc · 10/10 · 9 November 2018]

There are two plots at work here. One is comedic and one is serious. The funny one involves O'Brien's effort to get a stabilizer for the Defiant. Because of the turnaround time it is beyond O'Brien's ability to fill the need. But Nog, being the Ferengi operator he is, does a Radar O'Reilly, trading one thing for another and then that thing for another, and so on. Sisko is gone for a few days and doesn't realize all the stuff that's going on. Meanwhile, O'Brien, who has given Nog his access code, is having cold sweats. The second, gut wrenching plot has Odo going to meet a Cardassian who has provided him with information in the past. However, when he gets there, he is met by a Vorta. The guy is the sixth in a series of clones and he wants asylum. Unfortunately, the Jem'Hadar show up. But there are huge issues going on. Having to do with the Dominion and the Founders. Odo finds out some really incredible news. Excellent episode.

The most realistic portrayal of Military Supply and Acquisition on TV since MASH

[christopherwesel · 10/10 · 4 October 2020]

The main plot of this episode will be ignored in this review. The side plot with Chief O'Brien and Nog makes this, in my opinion, the best episode of Star Trek: DS9 ever. The throughout the entire episode you see Nog make back door deals and favors to grease all the right wheels to ultimately get the part that Chief O'Brien needs, all the while reassuring Chief that all he needs to do is "trust" the process as he is pulling his hair out over it.

Nog's methods in this episode is exactly how things happen in the military. The established supply processes are so bogged down with bureaucracy that almost nobody gets what they need when they need it, or if an item does arrive in time, it's the wrong part sent because a system code marked it as a "suitable substitute" an example of this would be like ordering a fuel pump for a specific vehicle, and receiving a fuel pump for a different vehicle that would work if used with an adapter part, that you also do not have and can not get. So how do you get what you need? You find who has what you need, see what they want, and work backwards with the promise of "if I get you what you want, you'll give me what I need?" Until you can immediately make good on it, then let the dominoes fall and watch everyone be happy. This is what Nog does, and he executes it exactly as it happens in real life. The US Army would have been crippled by its own red tape ages ago if it weren't for an entire grade of E-4s (known affectionately as the "specialist mafia") who work these deals to get the job done every day.

When people talk about the races in Star Trek and say that Ferengi were based on modern day humans, this is the episode I think about. Props to Philip Kim for writing what I consider to be the most relatable episode in Star Trek.

One of my favorite episodes

[bravesfan35 · 10/10 · 22 June 2014]

I always loved Weyoun's character. This episode is perfect for anyone who also enjoys him. The story begins with Odo informing Kyra that he received a message from a Cardassian informant that was believed to have been executed. Odo takes a runabout to the planet he was told to meet his informant friend but instead, Weyoun is there waiting for him. Weyoun tells Odo that he no longer considers himself part of the Dominion and wishes to defect. Odo becomes irritated how much Weyoun worships him even though that's how the Vorta were programmed. On their way back to DS9, they are contacted by Damar and the new Weyoun clone and tells the other Weyoun to either surrender or kill himself. Damar wants the runabout destroyed but new Weyoun is hesitant because Odo is still considered a Founder despite the fact that Odo is essentially neutral. Damar eventually talks Weyoun into having the runabout destroyed and just not telling the Founder that Odo was on board. Sadly, the defecting Weyoun ends up activating his termination program in order to save Odo. I just didn't understand why Weyoun didn't fake his own death but that would have taken away the moment where we see just how much the Vorta look up to the Founders. He knew Odo didn't want to be looked at as a God but his dying wish was to receive Odo's blessing. The other plot line in this episode is that Chief O'Brien is ordered by Captain Sisko to fix the Defiant in a few days with a part that isn't on DS9. Nog helps O'Brien by doing trade after trade after trade to get the stabilizer. Things start disappearing on the ship like Sisko's desk and Martok's cases of blood wine that his wife sent him. It's discovered that Nog used O'Briens authorization code to make those deals. Just when things seem bleak for him, the Captain's desk is returned on time, Martok ends up getting cases of blood wine that are better quality than the ones his wife sent, and the stabilizer arrives in time for O'Brien to install it. Great episode.

Very dynamic and Well written

[e_goblin · 10/10 · 11 June 2018]

Most has been said above, I just want to emphasize on the Nog v O'Brien thing in this episode that is just hillarious

As Nog promises, the river will provide.

[gritfrombray-1 · 10/10 · 15 June 2023]

I wish I could have enough words to write about how incredible the charater Nog is and how amazing the late Aron Eisenberg really was who moulded and defined one of DS9's best characters ever. This is a little light hearted than the darker tone DS9 usually delivers but with genius, having a nose for wheeling and dealing Nog gets the job done and gets O'Brien the stabiliser he needs and even loans out the Captain's desk to do so, getting back for Sisko returning and all. The side story of Odo and Weyoun was sad and shows how little regard the Dominion have, even for one of their own. A very character driven episode, thouroughly enjoyable.

Surprisingly involved

[skinnybert · 8/10 · 20 May 2021]

Many DS9 episodes have plenty of depth to them -- sometimes too much, and we just have to accept what happens as shown. This episode digs a little deeper, which could easily fail if the actors featured weren't terrific. Jeffrey Coombs has always done well, but here he literally exceeds himself -- and renders a death scene as poignant as any other in all of Star Trek. It really says something to steal a scene when you're opposite Rene Auberjonois.

The subplot is indeed rather slight -- even underwritten -- but so what -- it's enjoyable, and even delightful. Nana Visitor wasn't at all irritating (in fact, she has one of her best scenes), and de Boer was hardly there at all, so probably one of the top 20 episodes of DS9 (along with "The Assignment", thanks to Rosalind Chao playing a pah-wraith).

When the B plot is even better than the A plot

[tomsly-40015 · 10/10 · 26 November 2023]

This is a great episode with a strong A plot involving Odo and Weyoun and a hilarious B plot with O'Brien and Nog.

While the main plot turns around the question what makes a god a god, the secondary plot is a great character study on Nog, helping O'Brien to get hand on a spare part that is needed for urgent repairs.

When DS9 started, Nog and Jake were just some kids that hang around the promenade, watching women or causing trouble (well, Aron Eisenberg was way over 20 already but still played teenage Nog). While Nog evolved into a Starfleet Officer, Jake still primarily is his father's son without any real development made over the last years. Nog instead proves in this episode that he not only is a trustworthy Starfleet ensign but also a true Ferengi with the wits of making a deal.

Because the needed spare part is not available from the quartermaster, Nog puts up a series of trades to eventually get hold on it. Suddenly Sisko's desk is gone as well as several crates of Martok's blood wine. Since Nog confirms all trades with O'Brien's security code, this leads to some very funny discussions between O'Brien and the others as well as to some desperate actions (like when he tries to cover up the missing desk in Sisko's office with another desk that does not look at all like the real thing). In the end though, Nog gets everything fixed and all his trades turned out to be just perfect.

Another funny thing about this episode is the fact, that Nog technically outranks O'Brien. Nog is a commissioned officer, while O'Brien is just enlisted. He is senior chief petty officer though, yet an ensign would outrank all NCO ranks. In fact O'Brien would have to call Nog Sir, which he does not. Of course the seniority of O'Brien still gives him authority, he is in charge of leadership and Nog cannot just ignore the chain of command either. But once they would strand on a planet together after a crash, Nog would be in command. But O'Brien treats Nog more like a student which is ok I guess since Nog, as an engineer, reports to O'Brien.

Gift of the Magi, round 3

[ohroonoko · 9/10 · 27 May 2021]

This episode has a humorous "Gift of Magi" type of subplot involving Nog in his official capacity as Chief O'Brien's assistant engineer, bartering with various Starfleet crews to eventually obtain a gravity stabilizer for the Defiant. A similar plot was used twice on the show before. In season 1, episode 9, "Progress," where Nog and Jake took yamok sauce off of Quark's hands and attempted to trade up for a profit before ending up stuck with a lot of useless stem bolts. In season 5, episode 25, "In the Cards," Nog and Jake trade their services with mangers of the crew in order to eventually acquire a 1951 Willie Mays baseball card (without the original packaging or chewing gum) as a gift for Captain Sisko.

Solid Dominion episode

[snoozejonc · 8/10 · 18 August 2023]

Weyoun makes a surprising announcement.

There are plenty of interesting revelations in regards to the Vorta and Changeling characters that helps maintain intrigue in the overarching series narrative. Plus the likes of Weyoun(s), Damar, and Odo are used well by the writers. All the respective actors do great work with the material, particularly Jeffrey Coombs, whose performance helps put a great new slant on the character(s).

Some of the dialogue is a bit exposition heavy, but this is typical of Star Trek. One bit of backstory dialogue could have been effective if done visually, but I guess the budget would have either prevented it or made it look a bit naff.

I enjoyed the lighter subplot involving the Chief and Nog wheeling and dealing, as it is funny and full of good deadpan performances.

For me it's a 7.5/10 but I round upwards.