DS9 Stories/News: Memorial Day-Players: A Tribute to TV’s Fallen Heroes

Source: http://www.ugo.com/tv/tv-fallen-heroes?page=4

Remember the honored dead this Memorial Day and celebrate the good old US of A with UGO’s list of some of TV’s Best Fallen Heroes!

By Kevin FitzpatrickMay 30, 2011 Follow

7	Jadzia Dax

Brave Soldier:  Jadzia Dax of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Killed in Action:  By Gul Dukat’s…Pah…Wraith…beam

Lots of great Star Trek deaths to choose from, between Tasha Yar and Christopher Pike (hey, that ain’t livin’) but none so heartbreaking as watching Jadzia Dax struck down by Gul Dukat while the rest of the crew fought off the Cardassians.

Wait, we can just replace her?  And the new Dax is even cuter?  Huzzah!

DS9 Stories/News: Birthday Alert – Colm Meaney’s 3 Day Birthday Special

It’s Colm Meaney’s Birthday

30/May/1953

Colm J. Meaney (Irish: Colm Ó Maonaigh) (born 30 May1953; age 58) is the Irish actor best recognized by Star Trek fans for his portrayal of Chief Miles O’Brien on bothStar Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine from 1987 through 1999. He also played Albert Macklin in the acclaimed episode “Far Beyond the Stars“.

Courtesy of Memory Alpha.org

Here, we’ll concentrate on Mile’s of DS9

O’Brien was a character favorite to DS9 Writers, where they had a recurring motto “O’Brien Must Suffer”

Ira Behr once confessed that while he was persuaded to work on DS9 by Michael Piller, he responded to him that he would only do it if he had a chance to work on O’Brien’s character and have him with a real, true friendship with Julian Bashir.

“The relationship between Bashir and O’Brien is the best relationship… the best friendship in the history of the franchise.”
Ira Steven Behr, Season Six dvd set, Crew Dossier: Julian Bashir”

So, let’s explore those two themes today shall we?

First, The Whole “O’Brien Must Suffer” Thing

…

Luck of the Irish? The Tragedies of Miles O’Brien

by Ryan Britt

It’s Saint Patrick’s Day and that means celebrating the best Irishman in space: Chief Miles Edward O’Brien from The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine! Played by noted Irish actor Colm Meaney, O’Brien always came off as one of the most relatable and down-to-earth (put intended) characters in all of Star Trek. But, this likability and good-heartedness is often rewarded with bad luck and sorrow for poor O’Brien and his family. He certainly has the Irish gift of gab, but not the luck of the Irish. How does he suffer so? Let me count the ways.

John Lennon’s little-known protest song “The Luck of the Irish” points to the irony of this famous phrase by outlining just how incredibly unlucky the people of Ireland have been throughout the years. And when it comes to the 24th century, all the unluckiness of the Emerald Isle seems to be heaped all on the shoulders of Miles. And we’re not just imagining this. According to both the special features on the DS9 DVDs and the book The Deep Space Nine Companion writers of the show actively sought to make sure at least one episode a year would feature an “O’Brien must suffer” plotline.

According to Ira Steven Behr, “If O’Brien went through something torturous and horrible, the audience was going to feel that, in a way they wouldn’t feel it with any of the other characters.”

While this is certainly true, it’s also possible that the tremendous acting chops of Colm Meaney allowed us to really believe that what he was going through was real, as opposed to the stiffer characters in the series. (Or, for that matter, all Star Trek series.) But another important reason why O’Brien’s various plights seem particularly relatable is because there are actual stakes for his character. Unlike a lot of other Trek regulars, O’Brien has a family, and fairly normal”one at that. When things on the Enterprise or Deep Space Nine go pear-shaped, it feels really scary for O’Brien. Sure Sisko has a family too, but his son Jake is a little older and savvier. Miles’s daughter Molly is just a little kid!

In DS9’s “Time’s Orphan” the notion of the O’Brien family getting seriously screwed up by a science fictional premise is particularly heartbreaking. Due to a freak time vortex showing up and ruining a perfectly good picnic, a feral 18 year-old Molly suddenly replaces little kid Molly. Despite their efforts at reintegrating Molly back into civilized society they make no headway and Miles and his wife Keiko eventually send the feral version of Molly back into the vortex in hopes of swapping her for Molly’s younger self. Basically, Miles exiles a version of his daughter. Heavy.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, he’s also been tortured, held captive, betrayed and possessed a whole slew of times. In the TNG episode “Power Play” O’Brien is one of three crewmembers whose body is occupied by malevolent aliens hell-bent on taking over the Enterprise. With bad-O’Brien pointing a phaser at his wife Keiko for pretty much the entire episode, it’s a minor miracle they stayed together. In fact, Keiko must be some kind of saint for putting up with O’Brien. Now, I’m not saying O’Brien isn’t a stand-up guy and good father and good husband. He totally is.

And though she does suggest moving back to Earth a few times, Keiko is a pretty good sport about pretty much everything that happens to her family. Though when she was turned into a little kid in “Rascals” you could really feel O’Brien’s pain in just how weird that relationship was going to be.

However, the whole spouse-possessed by really mean aliens thing gets switched in the DS9 episode “The Assignment. “Here, the Pah-wraiths take over poor Keiko’s body and tell him he has to do what they want or Keiko gets it. This is made even worse by the fact that not only does O’Brien have to try and destroy the wormhole against his will, but also that he rarely even gets to see Keiko. Life-threatening, space station-destroying stakes AND their quality time taken away!

 

Oh no! Somebody stop him!

 

Basically, every member of the O’Brien family has to be put through some kind of time-futzing shenanigans. In “Hard Time” Miles himself experiences 20 years in an alien jail cell, even though almost no time has passed at all. With all the perspective shifts in this guy’s life it’s amazing he keeps it together at all. Which is why he has a drinking buddy: Dr. Bashir. And even though we all love Kirk and Spock, Miles and Julian just might be the best Trek bromance of them all. Actor Alexander Siddig backs me up here by saying “…O’Brien and Bashir are the only real friendship that’s ever happened on Star Trek. Those two are really friends…”

Even in a bizzaro universe, Miles O’Brien can’t escape from being the nice guy who sort of gets screwed over all the time. In the various mirror universe episodes on DS9, “Smiley” might seem more hardcore than our Miles, but he’s still an everyman and stand-up person, despite kidnapping the regular-universe version of Sisko. Notably, the alternate version of drinking buddy Bashir is a total jerk in the bizarro universe.

 

True Love

 

What’s also demonstrated here is how unjudgemental the character of O’Brien is. It’s not that he’s amoral about bizzaro Sikso having a mistress, it’s just that he sort of looks past it. The same goes for O’Brien’s relationship with his former Captain, Benjamin Maxwell in the TNG episode “The Wounded.” Despite the terrible things that Maxwell has done, you really get the sense that O’Brien will be able to separate his fond memories of Maxwell from the crazy person the rogue captain eventually became. It’s not just that O’Brien is crazy loyal, it’s that he gets people. Space station Deep Space Nine didn’t really need a counselor for six years because most of the characters probably just went and got plastered with Miles. (We see Worf do this at least once.)

But despite the massacre on Setlik III, his family being screwed with by time vortices and jerky aliens, getting captured and tortured over and over again and not even having a name in “Encounter at Fairpoint,” Miles O’Brien endured. Did he have the luck of the Irish after all? Whatever the answer is, it’s clear we certainly needed him. And on this St. Patrick’s Day, I’ll be lifting a glass in a toast to the one and only Chief O’Brien!

DS9 Stories/News: USS Defiant – Sisko’s Tough Little Ship (5)

USS Defiant (2375)

The USS Defiant (NX-74205), originally the USS Sao Paulo (NCC-75633), was a Federation Defiant-class escort that was in service with Starfleet in the late 24th century. The Defiant was assigned to Deep Space 9 in the final weeks of the Dominion War. This starship was one of at least three Federation starships to carry the name Defiant, and the second Defiant-class ship to bear the name.

“She’s got some big shoes to fill.“

Captain Benjamin Sisko, 2375

Commissioned as the U.S.S. Sao Paulo in the final month of the Dominion War, the Sao Paulo was assigned to Starbase Deep Space 9 to replace the U.S.S. Defiant (NX-74205) after its destruction at the hands of the Dominion and Breen during the Second Battle of Chin’toka in late 2375, and assigned to the command of Captain Benjamin Sisko. Sisko was subsequently granted special dispensation from Admiral William Ross to change the name from Sao Paulo to Defiant, which pleased Sisko and his crew.

This picture was rendered by Ryan Kent for exclusive use by the Star Trek: Alpha Command Simulation group. Ryan Kent requests that this image not be posted elsewhere without his permission or without credits to the mesh creator and Ryan Kent.

Deck 1: Main Bridge, Captain’s Ready Room, Crew Quarters, Transporter Platform 1, Main Engineering – Level 2, Senior Officers Quarters

Deck 2: Main Engineering – Level 1, Medical Bay, Surgical Suite, Computer Core control room, Mess Hall, Medical Lab, Science Lab, Transporter Bay, Warhead Control Room, Crew Quarters, Cloaking Device, Marine and Security Practice Areas

Deck 3: Impulse Engine Control Room, Shuttlebay 3, Cargobay, Fitness Center, Airlocks 1 and 2, shuttle maintenance

Deck 4: Shuttlebays 1 and 2, Warp nacelle access, Landing struts

Courtesy of http://database.alpha-command.com/index.php?title=USS_Defiant_%28NCC-75633%29

The Defiant’s Engineering Room, located on Decks 1 and 2

The Warp Core’s Dilithium Matrix control panel

The new Defiant had some large shoes to fill, but she aquitted herself well during the final battle of the war that saw the surrender of the Dominion to the Federation Alliance. After the end of the war, the Defiant remained at Deep Space 9 for three years after the war, however after the Dominion and the Federation agreed to a five year armistice in 2382, the Defiant was placed in the mothball fleet until 2387, when it was recalled to active service and assigned a new commanding officer.

The Defiant unleashes its powerful Type-2 Pulse Phasers

The Defiant fires a pair of Quantum Torpedoes

The Ready Room on the Defiant is one of the very few offices on the ship

The Defiants Type-A Crew Quarters

The Defiants Sickbay, located on Deck 2

The Defiants Mess Hall, also located on Deck 2

The Defiant launches her primary shuttlecraft

DS9 Stories/News: USS Defiant – Sisko’s Tough Little Ship (3)

During the planning of the invasion of Cardassia Prime some months later, a new Defiant class starship, the USS Sao Paulo (NCC-75633), is assigned to Deep Space Nine. The Starfleet Chief of Operations grants special dispensation to rename the ship Defiant. Although the USS Sao Paulo commissioning plaque gives a registryof “NCC-75633″, in all exterior shots the new ship has the “NX-74205″ registry. This is because most external shots of the new vessel were reused shots of the old one, and the new CG shots subsequently used the same registry number for consistency.

Ron Moore said in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion that the new ship was intended to be designated “Defiant-A”, but it was prohibitive to redo the CG model for one episode because stock shots from earlier episodes had to be used as well for budgetary reasons. Nevertheless Moore stated that as far as he was concerned, the change did happen.

Courtesy of Wiki

The Sao Paulo dedication plaque used the English spelling, without the tilde, instead of São Paulo

In the DS9 episode Shattered Mirror, a Mirror Universe version of the Defiant is seen, constructed by the Terran Rebellion. A computer readout, barely visible onscreen, gives the ship’s name as the ISS Defiant

Pictures Courtesy of TrekCore.com

The USS Defiant, Moscow, Valiant and São Paulo are selectable on the PC game Star Trek: Legacy in The Next Generation era.

The Defiant class is a playable ship class in the MMORPG Star Trek Online.

The USS Sao Paulo was assigned to DS9 to replace the Defiant after its destruction. Captain Sisko was granted special dispensation by the Chief of Starfleet Operations to rename the Sao Paulo to Defiant. (DS9: “The Dogs of War“)

Courtesy of Memory Alpha.org

Unique Characteristics

Ablative armor

The Maquis attack the Defiant

The Defiant was equipped with an ablative armor coating that was designed to disintegrate under enemy fire at a controlled rate. It dissipated the effects of directed energy weapons, decreasing damage to the main hull of the ship and therefore providing an extra layer of defense. As late as 2372, Starfleet wasn’t informed that the Defiant was equipped in that way. (DS9: “Past Tense, Part I“, “The Way of the Warrior“, “Paradise Lost“, “The Changing Face of Evil“)

Cloaking device

The USS Defiant activating its cloaking device

After the Dominion threat emerged in late-2370, a special amendment made to the Treaty of Algeron allowed the Defiant to be equipped with a Romulan cloaking device. In exchange for providing the cloaking device, the Federation agreed to share all of its Dominion intelligence with the Romulan government.

Additionally, the cloak was only authorized for use in the Gamma Quadrant; although Captain Sisko violated this provision on numerous occasions. Use of the cloaking device was initially supervised by Subcommander T’Rul, although the Romulans later discontinued supervision. (DS9: “The Search, Part I“, “Defiant“, “The Way of the Warrior“)

Because of the amount of power the Defiant used, the cloak did not completely hide the ship from Jem’Hadar sensors during normal operation. (DS9: “The Search, Part I“)

Command Crew

The Defiant’s permanent assignment at Deep Space 9 as a support vessel meant that it had no specific or dedicated crew complement. The vessel was manned by station personnel; its crew complement, as well as their assignments, often varied by mission.

Captain Benjamin Sisko – commanding officer (CO) (2371-2375)
Colonel Kira Nerys – executive officer (XO)/tactical officer (2371-2375)
Lieutenant Commander Worf – executive officer (XO)/tactical officer (2372-2375)
Lieutenant Commander Jadzia Dax – helmsman/science officer – (2371-2374)
Lieutenant Commander Michael Eddington – security chief (2371-2372)
Lieutenant Julian Bashir – chief medical officer (CMO) (2371-2375)
Lieutenant junior grade Ezri Dax – counselor/communications officer (2375)
Ensign Nog – helmsman (2374-2375)
Senior Chief Petty Officer Miles O’Brien – chief engineer (2371-2375)

Although DS9: “Apocalypse Rising” established that Worf was the first officer of the Defiant while Kira was the first officer of the station, there was some inconsistency in this arrangement. Based on DS9: “Sons of Mogh“, DS9: “By Inferno’s Light“, and DS9: “Tears of the Prophets“, it would appear that Kira retained the first officer’s position when the Defiant was operating outside of Federation space, while Worf took the position during operations inside Federation space, although this was not directly clarified on the show so it remains speculation.

The main reason for the creation of the Defiant was that Ira Steven Behr and the writers felt that the Danube-class runabouts would not be able to protect the space station from the Dominion, and that something with more muscle was necessary.

In the second season finale, “The Jem’Hadar“, the Dominion had shown themselves capable of destroying a Galaxy-class starship (the USS Odyssey) and it was felt that viewers would not accept the idea that the Federation‘s first line of defense against such a powerful enemy was three runabouts. As Behr explains, “We had all these plans for this Dominion, not so much the Dominion War yet, but the Dominion as a three-pronged attack, and what were we going to go after them with? Shuttlecrafts? You know, I mean, with the Galileo or whatever the hell those names were? You know, it just seemed ridiculous. So we needed a ship.“

Ira Steven Behr

Similarly, production designer Herman Zimmerman states, “We needed a ship that would give the writers the opportunity to have more direct conflict.” (USS Defiant, DS9 Season 3 DVD special features)

Ronald D. Moore originally wanted to call the Defiant the USS Valiant, but was unable to, as the USS Voyager also began with a “V”. It was three years before Moore was able to name a ship Valiant. The USS Valiant appears in the sixth season episode “Valiant”.

Rick Berman was originally against the idea of the ship having a cloaking device because one of the tenets of Gene Roddenberry’s universe was that Starfleet “did not believe in sneaking around.” However, Behr and Robert Hewitt Wolfe were able to convince Berman that the Defiant was a unique ship in a unique situation and, with the added stipulation that the cloak could only be used in the Gamma Quadrant, Berman agreed. (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion)