Star Trek: The Search, Part II

Episode: "The Search, Part II"

Series: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Season 3, Episode 2

Original Air Date: October 3, 1994

via Memory Alpha

Garack episode!

In this second part of the story begun last week (though in a sense, the third part of a story begun with the Season 2 finale), Odo gets acquainted with his fellow changelings on his home world, as well as the full range of his own shapeshifting abilities.  Meanwhile, the gang back at the station comes to terms with the implications of a negotiated "peace" with the Dominion.  Kira is stuck in limbo, on Odo's world with him yet unwelcome herself and also struggling to establish communication so she can get away.

There's an "it was all just a dream" reveal at the end of the episode which, unfortunately, undercuts the entire narrative on the station including the Garak part of the story.  But Odo's adventure is deeply meaningful.  We see what he has lost and gained being away from his people for so long (for centuries, he's told).  We feel his pain in the difficult decision he must make in the end between protecting his discovered family on DS9 and regaining the deep sense of belonging he has found with the Changelings.  Odo's thread from here on out hinges on making this same choice over and over again.  For now, he makes the choice we would want.  Heartbreak is coming.

In the broader scope, the stage is set for a standoff between the Changelings/Founders and the Federation.  The Female Changeling leader (Salome Jens) makes it clear that there is a limit to the Founders' patience.  They will "create order" in the Alpha Quadrant.  It's just a question of when.

A cold war begins.

Acting Notes

via Wikipedia

Dennis Christopher plays the role of Borath, a Vorta official.  The Vorta serve as the Dominion's diplomatic/administrative arm while the Jem'Hadar fulfill military functions.  Christopher was born Dennis Carrelli in Philadelphia, December 2, 1950.  He attended Temple University but dropped out.  He went to Rome where he had a chance encounter with Federico Fellini, one of the most important directors in the history of cinema.  Fellini put Christopher in a movie, uncredited, and an unlikely success story began.

Christopher's breakthrough came when he scored the lead in one of my family's favorite movies: Breaking Away, for which he won a BAFTA.  I can't see the actor on screen without "Buon giorno, Papa!" ringing in my ear.  Other films include Fade to Black, Chariots of Fire and Django Unchained.  Television work has included recurring roles on Profiler, Angel and Deadwood.