‘VORTEX’ (DS9)
Please feel free to comment on my review.
This was an interesting and enjoyable ‘DS9’ episode. It showcases Odo’s character in an intriguing way and has a hint of his origins as to where he came from. It starts a certain arc for Odo’s character.
In the episode, Odo observes Quark in his bar where he makes a business transaction with a pair of Miradorn twins. The Miradorn are a very unusual alien species that always go as a pair of twins here.
Randy Oglesby plays the Miradorn twins Ah-Kel and Ro-Kel. I didn’t realise that it was Randy Oglesby playing both characters in this episode. I thought it was two actors playing the two characters in this.
The make-up for Michael Westmore on the Miradorn twins is good. It seems the Miradorn are linked together personally and physically. If one Miradorn gets killed, the other Miradorn will take revenge.
That sadly happens when one of the Miradorn gets killed. Cliff DeYoung as Croden, a visitor from the Gamma Quadrant, interrupts Quark’s transaction with the Miradorn when he uses a Ferengi phaser.
Croden attempts to steal a valuable item and kills Ro-Kel in the process. The item seems to be a faberge egg. Though during the transaction, Quark questioned the sincerity of the Miradorn’s trade.
Odo, disguised as one of the ‘five’ glasses on a tray with a bottle of an alcoholic beverage (how come Max Grodénchik as Rom didn’t notice that?), interrupts the struggle. He has everyone arrested in this.
Including Quark! As well as Rom! I found it amusing when Quark tried to back out of the arrest. Croden gets thrown into a cell in Odo’s prison whilst Ah-Kel, the Miradorn survivor, vows vengeance.
During the time Croden is in his prison cell as Sisko and Odo question him, he makes several comments about Odo and saying he’s one of the Changelings. This gets Odo interested at this stage.
Right from the start of the series, Odo was an enigma as his alien species wasn’t identified. Odo doesn’t even know where he came from. The seeds of Odo’s origins are planted here in this episode.
According to Croden, it seems there were once shape-shifters on his homeworld. It’s also interesting how it gets revealed that the Changelings were also persecuted and driven off from his homeworld.
Croden claims to know of a place where the Changelings exist and offers to take Odo to this colony. He even shows Odo a necklace with a stone that can change shape which was very intriguing to see.
Odo of course is dubious about Croden’s claims regarding other shape-shifters like him. But despite his suspicions, he becomes intrigued and even asks Dr. Bashir to examine the necklace for him here.
Bashir does examine the necklace and shares to Odo what its composition is. It could be distantly related to Odo. This is the only time we see the necklace in this episode, but it was intriguing to see.
Meanwhile, Sisko and Dax travel via runabout to visit Croden’s homeworld. The people of that world demand his return. And whoever Sisko was talking to via intercom was pretty rude making demands.
Back at DS9, Sisko sends Odo to return Croden back to his homeworld. Odo avoids Miradorn detectors as he and Croden enter the wormhole, Ah-Kel the Miradorn suspects that Croden has left.
Ah-Kel intimidates Quark, making him reveal that Odo has taken Croden back to the Gamma Quadrant before he pursues him. He seems pretty hell-bent and obsessive about killing Croden here.
As Ah-Kel pursues and attacks Odo and Croden, the two evade his ship by navigating into the Chamra vortex. This happens to be an asteroid field filled with unstable pockets known as toh-maire.
They manage to escape and end up on this planet where Croden claims is the colony of the Changelings. But in actual fact, there aren’t any Changelings as Odo demands the truth from Croden.
It’s then revealed that on the planet there is a stasis chamber containing Croden’s daughter, Leslie Engelberg as Yareth. Croden uses the shape-shifting key to open up the chamber and Yareth is safe.
Odo, Croden and his daughter escape Ah-Kel the Miradorn again whose ship gets destroyed in the vortex. Odo has a Vulcan ship take Croden and his daughter and we see Odo smile for the first time.
‘Vortex’ (DS9) rating – 7/10
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