Political machinations lead to a strong cliffhanger

Matt’s Take on Episode 2.2: “The Circle”

A Politician’s Politician 

I know that I’ve called out a few characters as being terrible, and Minister Jaro is right up there with them. He’s so slimy and reminds me far too much of an actual politician … a few specific names come to mind. He bats away all of Sisko’s attempts to get Kira reinstated to her post, and then Jake alerts Sisko that the Circle has vandalized the door to their quarters. Everything in here, from Jaro’s Machiavellian ways to the acts of terrorism and intimindation being carried out by the Circle is, once again, far too familiar in today’s world.

Kira and Odo and/or Vedic Bareil Sitting in a Tree

I don’t know if I was just completely oblivious on my first watch through the series, but I didn’t really pick up as strongly on the Kira/Odo vibes as one might have expected. This time around though, it’s painfully obvious. Odo doesn’t want Kira to leave, and it’s clear that he’s willing to do basically anything to stop it from happening. This turns into a nice comedy scene as person after person enters Kira’s quarters. 

Eventually, we get down to Bajor where Kira is staying in a monastery, and there are some pretty serious vibes with her and Bareil. This is a potential romance that I did pick up on in the first watch through. Kira’s experience with the Orb of Prophecy is rather spicy, after all. When Vedek Winn appears later on, she manages to be as horrible as one could imagine. Every word she speaks is poisonous and contains a holier-than-thou barb to be hurled at Kira and Bareil. I seriously can’t stand listening to her. She’s just too similar to people in the real world who actually believe these same types of things. It’s extremely uncomfortable to watch.

The Circle Expands

When Sisko meets with a Bajoran military leader, it becomes clear that the soldiers’ loyalty to the Provisional Government over the Circle is not absolute. The Circle is a rather sinister presence, and this scene gives the impression that they could be more powerful than is apparent on the surface. Shortly thereafter, we see Kira being abducted by the Circle, and Jaro reveals his evil plot as the power behind the Circle. Thankfully, Odo had previously stowed aboard a Kressari freighter as a rat and is able to get evidence of collusion between the Circle and the Cardassians.

Meanwhile, Sisko, Li, and Bashir are able to execute a daring rescue and recover Kira from captivity. It is a cool little action scene and a nice touch to this politically heavy episode. We also see that Winn and Jaro are planning to make her kai as Jaro takes full control of the Bajoran government. The combination of Jaro and Winn together in the same scene is almost too much hypocritical villainy to handle!

Sisko’s Resolve

By the end of the episode, Sisko has the evidence from Odo that he shares with Starfleet command. He is told that the Prime Directive means that the power struggle happening on Bajor is purely Bajoran business and not to be meddled with, and as such, he orders Sisko to evacuate the station. 

We are treated to a final moment where O’Brien tells Sisko that the evacuation could take a week, and Sisko declares ominously, “Then I guess some of us won’t be gone by the time they get here …” This last line really gets me. You can see the wheels turning in Sisko’s mind and his resolve to do everything in his power to make sure that the Circle is not handed the station without a fight. It’s a great way to end another fantastic episode. What a cliff-hanger!

Return to Episode 2.2 Guide or Season 2 Episode Logs