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Change of Heart Change of Pace for Worf/Dax Works File Photo|| File Photo 2|| Mission Log || Poll This Show Airdate: Week of March 2, 1998
Written by: Ronald D Moore
Directed by: David Livingston
In short:A somewhat predictable plot lacking punch in the end,
but a very strong
episode for Worf in particular
Summary: Worf must decide whether to save Dax or a crucial
defector when a mission
goes bad
Review:"Change of Heart" was the dreaded Worf/ Dax show for this
half of the season. Dreaded, I say, because most Worf/Dax shows tend to be
comedies, and many times not very good ones, though "Cordially" was a bit
of an exception. "Change" was serious episode for sure, offering solid
characterizations and written well while entertaining some major plot
threads. However, a standard storyline and a failure to, ironically, take
its subject matter as seriously as it should have been at the end
undermined a still fairly strong show.
"Change" had a great premise mixed with a standard, yet somewhat
implausible, moral dilemma for sure. The issue of the changelings was
finally addressed with the Cardassian defector in need of help. So far, so
good. But pairing Worf and Dax together shouted out trouble, so badly that
Kira should have heard me shouting through the screen and refused to have
let them go. Yes, Moore tried valianty to avoid the problem by giving a
rather innocent mission galactic proportions that Kira couldn't predict...
yet the episode is still hurt by the fact that, once again, we have a
person having to decide between duty and love, and siding with love. Love
may not be the sensible choice, but that makes it all the more obvious,
since we all know Trek moral dilemmas aren't often resolved the logical,
Vulcan-like way. "Change" was hurt by the fact it seemed like an
artificial dilemma created just for the Worf/Dax storyline.
Moore's dialogue was pretty solid all throughout, however, though
it's hard to work through it
when TERRY FARRELL AND MICHAEL DORN ARE THE TWO WORST ACTORS ON THE SHOW.
Kill 'em in the season finale; I don't care. Dorn, for instance, was just
bad when he points and goes "See, that was a joke. It's not funny, but I
get it." The reason Worf is so stuffy, I think, is because that is the
only way Dorn can act. Farrell, to her defense, was better than her "We
will fight until we can fight no more" moment; primarily, I offer, because
all she got was either a)lovey-dovey talk or b)sarcastic talk. Farrell can
do that, making her role as the injured Dax better than expected. However,
I still don't see a great deal of fire between the two characters, thanks
mostly I feel due to the two actors. Moore gave them the dialogue, but
somewhere in translation it lost the fire of attraction it was suppose to
have.
What made the dialogue work, I think, was not that it had flair, but
that it tried to offer insight into the
characters, particularly Worf. The attempt to lighten up work made sense
for him as a character and as a plotline. This paid dividends later in the
show when Worf questioned whether or not that sense of humor led to Dax's
injury. For the first time in awhile, Worf weighed duty and honor with his
own personal feelings, making "Change" quite possibly his strongest episode
since at least "Soldiers of the Empire," and perhaps
the best since his introduction to DS9 in "The Way of the Warrior." I
don't think we can particularly
blame DS9 any more than TNG for this lack of good material for him, since
his last few shows on TNG weren't
particularly spectacular themselves. But "Change" showed that he still has
personal issues within him that need to be explored, largely thanks to the
fact that he has to relate to another person in his marriage with Dax.
Let's not kill Dax yet; Worf at least still has some good stories to do.
I have mixed feelings about the plot resolution. On one hand, Moore did
the gutsy thing and
stated that Worf would never get a command. Sisko's dressing down of him
was great, particularly
with the added touch of having Sisko confess that he might do the same for
Jennifer. And while
Moore covered his butt by saying Worf couldn't get a court martial because
of the sensative nature
of his mission and noting that he could never be alone with Dax on a
mission again, at the same
time it still didn't seem enough. Worf risked the lives of MILLIONS, and
while that is noble, it is
also inexcusable. I just don't buy it, and I hope his decision is
addressed in that future episode where
the Founders do wreak havok on the Quadrant. The show needed two minutes
less banter and two minutes more pondering. It's a typical DS9 problem,
but it wasn't necessary here.
So, "Change" is a mixed bag. The plot worked, but it didn't. Dorn was
bad, but Farrell was fairly good. The episode had consequences, but it
didn't. Overall, "Change" looked good and mostly worked, but it still
seemed just short of being truly good. This is not the kind of ambiguity I
want from my DS9.
Some short takes:
I'm sorry, but the B-plot was pointless. Really pointless. I liked how
we got some mention of
Bashir's love of Dax was made, and Quark was particularly ruthless. But
overall, it wasn't terribly funny and I think everyone but Bashir saw what
Quark was doing from a mile away.
The FX were somewhat gratuitous, but still nice. "You're not going
into that asteroid field, are
you?" "They'd be crazy to follow me."
The locale sure was nice. I wonder, was it the same as the one used for
Nemesis, the Warner
Ranch?
The writers really did dig themselves a hole when they gave Jem'Hadar
the cloaking ability,
didn't they?
Overall: B
Quote: "See, that was a joke. It wasn't funny, but I get it."
- We'll ignore Dorn's bad acting; it was still a good line
Next week: The future favors those who like Favor the Bold. First runs
return in a month.
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