‘FAMILY BUSINESS’ (DS9)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
It’s time again for another Ferengi episode in the ‘DS9’ TV series. This episode introduces Quark and Rom’s mother in the series. It’s also the second ‘DS9’ episode to be directed by René Auberjonois. 🙂
In the episode, a Ferengi called Brunt visits Quark’s bar on DS9. Brunt is played by Jeffrey Combs. This marks Jeffrey Combs’ second contribution to ‘DS9’ as he previously played Tiron in ‘Meridian’. 🙂
Brunt is an agent of the Ferengi Commerce Authority – the FCA. This is the Ferengi’s version of the Inland Revenue in the UK and the Internal Revenue Service in the USA. Things aren’t good for Quark.
Quark and Rom receive a red sticker which happens to be a Writ of Accountability for improper supervision of a family member. Apparently, Quark and Rom’s mother has been earning profit lately.
This is seen as a criminal act in the Ferengi’s eyes. As established, Ferengi women aren’t allowed to have jobs. They’re meant to stay at home all day. They’re not to wear any clothes and they’re to be naked.
This is one of the reasons why I’m not exactly a huge fan of the Ferengi as an alien species. They’re pretty backward-thinking in terms of how they treat their Ferengi women. It makes them quite sexist.
In fact, that’s something I’ve never understood about the Ferengi. Quark is happy to do business with other alien women, but Ferengi women aren’t treated that way. It’s pretty discriminate, isn’t it?
Anyway, Quark has to go back home to Ferenginar in order to make his mother confess to the guilt she’s caused. Rom wants to come along too, but Quark isn’t so happy with his brother tagging along.
He knows that Rom will take their mother’s side and he wants this business to be over and done with so that he can return to his bar on DS9. But Rom says that their mother needs to be listened to.
Eventually agreeing, Quark and Rom return to Ferenginar along with Brunt. There they meet Andrea Martin as Ishka – also known as ‘Moogie’ – where she’s wearing clothes instead of being naked here.
Brunt and Quark are embarrassed by Moogie wearing clothes. Rom is happy to see her again. Quite frankly, I’m glad not to see Moogie naked all the way through since it would’ve been uncomfortable.
There are a few scenes where Moogie does take her clothes off, especially to please Max Grodénchik as Rom. But we don’t see her in full form, which is a relief. It wouldn’t have been appropriate for TV. 😀
Brunt tells Quark that he has three days to get his mother to sign a confession. He’s put off by Moogie actually talking to her, causing him to hurriedly leave. I do find some Ferengi to be real jerks.
Actually, life on Ferenginar must be pretty tedious and annoying. As well as the planet being swampy and constantly rainy all the time, you have to pay for everything to get information or see someone.
Quark is pretty set in his Ferengi ways and he and his mother don’t get on well with each other. Moogie refuses to sign any confession despite Quark pleading with her. Quark gets angry about this.
Now I admit; I appreciate this episode addressing that Ferengi ways need to be changed in terms of how women are treated. That’s why Moogie won’t sign the confession as she places her pride highly.
But it’s not changed much by the episode’s end. Moogie still signs the confession in order to please Quark after they’ve made up with each other. Again, I do appreciate that’s what the episode’s about.
As the episode indicates, ‘Family Business’ is about Quark and Moogie making up with each other and Rom being the referee between them. It’s also fascinating to find new aspects to the characters.
Whilst the Ferengi stuff goes on, we’re introduced to Penny Johnson (who was in the ‘TNG’ episode ‘Homeward’) as Kasidy Yates. She is the freighter captain Jake talked about to her dad in ‘Explorers’.
In the episode, Sisko gets to meet Kasidy and the two gradually hit it off well with each other. They even share interests in baseball after having coffee together. Jake is pleased to see the two together.
‘Family Business’ is an enjoyable, insightful episode into the Ferengi culture as well as seeing the family relationships between Quark, Rom and their ‘Moogie’. I do appreciate this episode tackling that.
‘Family Business’ (DS9) rating – 7/10
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