Becca’s Take on Episode 5: “Captive Pursuit”
This is probably my favorite episode so far. It helps that O’Brien has quickly become a favorite of mine, and that this is another O’Brien-centric episode.1 Before I get into the actual episode though, I have to take some time to write about contract law and Quark being gross. In the opening of this episode we see a “Dabo girl”2 arguing about her contract with Quark.3 The issue is that her contract provides that she perform certain acts that would be illegal here under laws against prostitution. I know very little about space law, but if it is based on the American legal system then there is probably a similar provision for members of the Federation (or at least on Federation Space Stations). This would make the contract invalid, however, the real lesson here is READ YOUR CONTRACTS. Okay I will step off my soapbox now, and return to the “Tosk” at hand.
This episode we get our first visitor through the wormhole, a lovely (albeit kind of straight-laced) fellow called Tosk.4 O’Brien is sent to visit him and welcome him to the station, largely because O’Brien is less threatening than Sisko. I was immediately charmed5 because O’Brien from the get-go calls Tosk “friend” and was clearly the best and most welcoming choice. We spend a lot of the episode watching Tosk and O’Brien tour the Promenade, sparking some hilarious differences between the alpha and gamma quadrants, namely that “Alpha Quadrant has too much down time.”
It was great to see O’Brien make a friend this episode, and really highlights how qualified he is to be such an important member of Starfleet. Not only is he a fantastic engineer, but he is a good person, and friendly face welcoming people to the Federation. That being said I was both shocked and not at all surprised when he took off his badge to try and help Tosk escape to continue the hunt. I think he really wanted Tosk to live, and not go home to be made fun of by children.6
It was great to watch O’Brien’s struggle with this, wanting to respect all cultures as part of Starfleet, but also disagreeing with the idea of hunting sentient beings for sport. Sisko goes through this as well, but ultimately he has to go with what is best for the station, not Tosk. O’Brien tries to come up with a way to do what is best for Tosk, while also allowing him to live (at least for a bit) and die with honor during the hunt. I don’t think he deserved quite the reaming out that Sisko gave him, especially since Sisko seemed to approve of the result. I am really excited to see more of O’Brien, and see how his character develops!
Signing off – Ensign Becca
1 He was sick most of last episode, so it’s the least they could do for our favorite Chief Operations Officer.
2 Basically, female members of various species hired for their beauty to distract patrons playing Dabo (Ferengi Roulette). (https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Dabo_girl)
3 In my notes I wrote “wow this Ferengi guy sounds like an ass – oh it’s just Quark.”
4 Apparently both his name and his species.
5 I was also thrilled to learn his first name is Miles. He’s adorable.
6 The apparent punishment for living through the hunt.
Return to Episode 5 Guide
Ponderings from the Promenade: A Journey through Star Trek Deep Space Nine 
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