SDS9 – S4E22: "For the Cause" (Patreon)

This episode was recorded on September 1, 2024.

Sam and Scott recap "For the Cause" and discuss how just as Killmonger was right, the Maquis are right. ACAB includes the Federation. We're a different kind of Trek show.

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Transcript

[Note: Transcripts are autogenerated and may contain errors.]

We are back with Southpaw Deep Space Nine Season 4. If you don't know what SDS9 is, it's Southpaw's completionist DS9 watch-along show, where we watch every episode, recap it, and analyze it. We are your hosts, Scott and Sam. Today, we are discussing For the Cause. Keep that title in mind. Scott, can you recap this episode?

Yes, but I also must say that every time I hear for the cause, I think of both the rap group The Coup, which is definitely for the cause, and Outkast, which sometimes is for the cause. Cassidy awakens with Ben in his bed. She has to go meet with the engineer of her ship. Ben wants Cassidy to stay.

He smells her pillow when she leaves. He's smitten. In the war room, Commander Eddington briefs the team on a sensitive Level 7 matter from Starfleet. The civilian Cardassian government has discreetly requested the Federation give them 12 industrial replicators, indicating that the Klingon, the war that they had, may have been worse than reported. Federation has agreed, but they're...

There is some issue and they want it to be surrounded in secrecy and be careful because intel of Starfleet thinks that the McKee might try to grab the replicators. You see, with the Cardassians being distracted by the Klingons, the McKee have been recklessly running around in the DMZ, Demilitarized Zone, making new bases,

threatening to push out Cardassians entirely, doing their thing. And just remember, there's not always good guys, there's not always bad guys. Just saying that. Ben decides to up security on the station until the replicators are safely gotten. And has Worf take on the Defiant to the Badlands to let the Maquis know they're ready for anything that comes.

And if they want trouble, they got it. After the briefing, Odo and Eddington stay behind to talk to Ben. You see, they suspect there may be a McKee smuggler on the station. And they're being very coy, not demure. Ben pushes hard, asks for a name, and they reluctantly give the name. Cassidy? Ben is understandably upset. There is...

Not a ton of proof. And also, smuggling with Intane to aid T-Words is a criminal thing that's highly punishable. Very high level. Cassidy's runs, however, they should take 12 hours, but they've been taking 18. That's enough time for a rendezvous. That's six hours that is uncalled for.

Starfleet Intel thinks that a McKee contact started living on the station pretty much The same time that Cassidy arrived, the timetables are sort of, are sort of there. Ben tells him to find a way to discreetly check her ship. Bashir, Garrick, and Zial, Ducat's illegitimate daughter, are watching spring ball. It's like,

You know, sports ball and Kira's killing it. And Zayal and Garrick trade glances. At Ben's, we see that he's wearing comfy clothes and is making a fusion dish, mixing Bajoran cuisine with Earth cuisine.

Pluralism? What? Assimilation?

Huh? Integration? Think about it. Jake comes in and is asking about the smell of animals for a book. Jake wants to describe what a Kavarian tiger bat is. Smells like. For a story he's writing, Ben uses this conversation as a chance to casually ask some questions about Cassidy's cargo routes, which is near Caveria.

But when he starts prodding and asking, she's like, why are you so interested in the flights? And he changes the subject quickly. In a cargo elevator, Garrick tries to say hi to Zile, asks if she is going to kill him. She says he has no need to fear, and Garrick offers the same.

Just a reminder, Garrick is likely in his 40s or 50s, and Zile is 20 at most. Odo and his people are talking to a crew from Cassidy's ship. When Cassidy approaches, Odo lets her know that they need to do a Class 2 inspection, which...

He says that there's a Temeclean virus outbreak on Bajor, and they need to check for them before leave. Cassidy calls Ben. It's like, I can't wait six hours. I will miss this rendezvous. I'm meeting with a Tholian. Help me out. She promises to flood her cargo hold with baryon science radiation beams as a precaution,

but insists on leaving. Ben asks Eddington, he advised that they can't shorten the time if they want to keep up these pretenses. So Ben decides that If she's in a rush, security won't be able to search, and he lets her go, but orders Worf to follow her in the cloaked Defiant. Aboard the cloaked Defiant,

O'Brien tells Worf that Cassidy's ship, the Zosa, has changed course and is heading for the Badlands. Worf orders them to stay on it, and they discuss their view on the Maquis. O'Brien, seeing them as righteous folks defending their homes. Worf, seeing them as criminals and T-words. And Miles points out, don't say that to Kira.

And when they ask Eddington for his take, he claims to not have one. He claims that he's just there to do his job and that anything else he does is an indulgence. Then we detect a McKee Raiders impulse sig, and the Xosha beams over its cargo, all but confirming Cassidy is working with the McKee.

Sal comes to Garak's tailor shop. They trade pleasantries. She has a Sahalu suite program of a Cardassian sauna that is very hot, invites Garak to join as they're the only Cardassians on the station, and no one else can handle the Cardassian heat, and they agree to hang out.

Jake greets Ben in the morning and has a breakfast that Cassidy has recommended. Ben is acting weird. He didn't get much sleep. And also Ben reminds him that him and Jake's love and bond is impenetrable. In the wardroom, Eddington briefs the team on the surveillance of the Zosia. They've figured out that the cargo seems to be organic.

They believe it to be food and medical supplies. which Jadzia notes, hey, at least it's not weapons. Believe it or not, this doesn't make Ben feel better. Worf tells him that the Zosia will be back soon, so Ben ends the briefing. After everyone else leaves, Jadzia tries to talk to Ben, and Ben's like, dismissed, old man.

Later, Cassidy comes to see Ben, they kiss, and Ben asks more questions about the route. Ben asks so many questions, Cassidy lies and tells Ben they're doing another rendezvous in the evening. Ben is distant. Even when Jake brings a hollow suite of super nerd baseball, he's like, I gotta go.

Ben meets with Odo and Eddington to discuss Cassidy's upcoming run. Since she is set for inspection, they won't find anything before she goes. They agree to have the Defiant track the Zosa. Odo and Eddington suggest that if they spot another meeting, both ships should be seized and people could be arrested.

Eddington asks to speak to Ben and reminds him that he would like to stay on the ship to oversee the replicators arriving the next day. as he can't ensure Cassidy's safety in a confrontation, but Ben could. Ben agrees and takes command of the Defiant himself. Later, Ben catches Cassidy at her ship's airlock and suggests a spontaneous trip.

for them to go to risa without even packing a bag he's like tempting her you can tell that there's all this subtext but she says she can't join him she has to go she boards her ship she offers to meet him there after the delivery but ben

dismisses it as a wild idea he's trying but he's he's really trying to stop her from doing this he's in love On the Defiant, the crew are following Cassidy and go to the coordinates they went to previous, but the McKee is not there. Kira threatens Garak that if he hurts Zyl, she will kill him,

which actually makes Garak think that Zyl might not be trying to kill him. Quark wonders if Garak will go. Garak and Dukat hate each other after all. Back on the Defiant, the crew is growing concerned. It's been five hours and there is no sign of the McKee.

Odo posits that T-Words wouldn't wait this long and thinks that Tidman lured into the Badlands and maybe it's to draw Ben away from the station. They decide to decloak and board the JOSA to investigate. Cassidy feigns innocence, but Ben confronts her about smuggling for the McKee and asks if they're planning to attack the station.

Cassidy explains she was told the medical supplies were urgent and had to be delivered, despite her protests to not do it. Ben realizes that the McKee used this to divert him from Deep Space Nine. I think they're after the replicators. On board, Eddington is being very weird and secretive, takes over, and shoots Kira. What?

Eddington tells a junior officer to take command, and Eddington leaves his comm badge. He's McKee, and did all this to get the McKee replicators. Ben gets back. Eddington has to talk to him, and Eddington says, leave us alone. If you leave us alone, we will leave you alone. Our beef is with Cardassia, not the Federation. Now,

if you've been watching this show, this is not the first time on Deep Space Nine a character from the Federation needs for the Maquis. They're sovereigns. Eddington says everyone acts like they should want to be in the Federation and has an argument about assimilation versus pluralism.

And Eddington says that the Federation is worse than the Borg and giving Cardassia replicators is a bad idea. Ben promises he will find him and put him in jail, and he'll see if it was worth it. At the spa, hollow suite, Zile is comfortable, and Garak asks a question.

Why is he invited as he is a sworn enemy of her father, and maybe killed her grandfather? You never know with Garak. She explains she doesn't care. She is an outcast, and like Garak, they can't go home. She doesn't need friends. She was a prisoner of war for most of her life. She's good at being alone.

But she would like a friend, and Garrick agrees. Ben meets with Cassidy. Cassidy, you know, the ship, they let the ship go, but she came back by herself. She could have left. She could have not faced the music. But Cassidy came back because of the relationship she has with Ben.

She loves Ben and doesn't want to lose it. And despite all this, Ben doesn't either. She's going to be arrested. She is taken in by Starfleet. And Cassidy says she'll be back.

And Ben says he'll be here. Here's looking at you, kid.

And you already alluded to this. Like the last episode, this episode had a subplot involving a younger person, in this case, the owl, and a possible older love interest, Garrick. This is becoming a theme in DS9. Whether it actually becomes a love interest story, I don't know, but this episode definitely flirted with that.

All I can say about this is no comment.

But the scene with him lying on hot rocks made me realize why Andrew J. Robinson's acting always stood out for me. He somewhat behaves like a reptile or a lizard, especially how he uses his eyes. Then when he lied down on the rock to bask, it was absolutely perfect. I was like, oh, snaps.

He was a lizard all along. Made me appreciate the actor even more. Yeah. That whole scene was interesting and complex and how both were prepared to kill each other. When Garrick nonchalantly puts his gun down that he was hiding, that I had no idea he had, it made me laugh because it was so absurd, yet so Garrick,

and surprising, yet not surprising. The writers in this episode really nailed the character of Garrick. Even how he owns up to his past crimes without looking all that tortured. Much better than in past episodes where it felt muddled and confused. I don't know if they nail everything just as well in this episode,

but this episode for me was very interesting. So the main plot about Sisko sleeping with the enemy, in this case the Maquis, kept having me say, oh snaps. It's happening. Long-term storytelling. Even if I don't agree with all the decisions or even think it all makes sense or whether all the writing makes sense or is nailed down,

I appreciate the long-term storytelling. In some previous episodes, I brought up how Cisco has a bias toward Cassidy Yates and how it would be interesting if she turned out to be a spy. And many episodes later, we got the payoff. Now, I have talked about how DS9 indulges in the bad guy with a point trope,

much like Disney slash Marvel movies do. And just as people say Killmonger was right, I was like, the McKee are right. Everything they said was right. Yep. I even brought up how Starfleet is the continuation of Western hegemony, and Eddington essentially says that.

He even says the Maquis are the enemy or the terrorists, quote unquote, for wanting self-determination. They might as well have said to the colonizers, self-determination is terrorism. He even brings up assimilation and talks about how Starfleet is worse than the Borg. It's space colonialism. There's even criticism of rainbow imperialism and how the left talks about how

conservatives just admit to imperialism and just like it. And how liberals, when they do it, they deny it, but then act like they're doing you a favor. In this case, conservatives will be the Borg. Starfleet will be the liberals. Starfleet is Biden-Harris. I'm sure Eddington will turn out to be like Killmonger, a mass murderer or something,

but that's because the writers have to. Eddington is making too many good points and rather than arguing those points away or denying it, they can just turn him into an immoral baddie. In fact, the underlying message later can be, hey, just causes turn people into mass murderers. So be careful because, yeah, they might have a good point.

Be careful of radicals who have a just cause, who make sense sometimes. This episode literally is called for the cause. There's even shades of being woke or the idea of opening your eyes to injustices. That's how Eddington even says it, open your eyes. But even if Eddington turns worse heel, in this episode, Eddington's speech was a banger.

I haven't seen lefty Trek fans, DS9 fans, ever bring up his speech. So let me read it for the audience because this is a different kind of DS9 and Trek show. Quote, Open your eyes, Captain. Why is the Federation so obsessed with the Maquis? We've never harmed you, and yet we're constantly arrested and charged with terrorism.

Starships chase us through the Badlands. And our supporters are harassed and ridiculed. Why? Because we've left the Federation. And that's the one thing you can't accept. Nobody leaves Paradise. Everyone should want to be in the Federation. Hell, you even want the Cardassians to join. You're only sending them replicators because one day they can take their rightful

place on the Federation Council. You know, in some ways, you're even worse than the Borg. At least they tell you about their plans for assimilation. You're more insidious. You assimilate people and they don't even know it. End quote. And that's a nice touch at the end because it's talking about the transparency of the Borgs.

At least they're transparent and they tell you the thing. They don't lie to you. They will kill you, assimilate you. They'll do a lot of things, but they don't lie. Starfleet, not the same. The Federation, not the same. As a counterpoint to that, Sisko in this episode was more cop than any previous episode where he acted like

the top cop. He was more top cop than anything I've seen Odo do so far because Odo can be a cop, but he can't be the top cop. Even the ending with Cassidy coming back to be arrested was some copaganda bullshit. I fell in love with a cop,

so I will honor my duty as a woman in love with a cop as if love has to make you dutiful. It's things I hear from very Christian conservative weddings. But the writers should go back and study the Lwaxana episode on patriarchy. The writers don't actually understand resistance. Their writing actually in this episode was pretty good.

Their long-term storytelling was good, but their political analysis isn't good. Their standpoint isn't good. And so in writing, the resistance and Cassidy is completely incongruent with a freedom fighter. incongruent with resistance, ACAB, or feminism. She's my key, she's all these things, yet she's gonna honor duty. Then Cisco's like, I love you,

but I'm a cop first and foremost, and even if what you're doing is just, I don't care. The woman must obey the man and his laws. You broke our laws that you had no hand in writing or no voice in. So I'll even arrest my own partner if I have to.

He's just straight up cop and a partner who acts like a cop and is a cop who oppresses his own partner. The whole episode, he was a cop. It was only a couple of episodes ago we talked about Cisco as a sexual predator in Shattered Mirror, which was also cop shit, vice cop shit.

Cisco even had the cop paranoia in this episode, which is always their just cause. Their paranoia is the whole cop attitude. They don't care about what's right or wrong, just quote-unquote law and order. And Cisco had his own speech about it. If you break the law or my laws, I will hunt you down. Typical cop threats.

Probably for the writers, actual left arguments are ludicrous nonsense, and that's how they thought Eddington was coming off. Reading some stuff about it and about the writers and their inspiration for this episode, Eddington was supposed to be inspired by the Oklahoma City Bomber. Because the libs,

there is no difference between the Oklahoma City Bomber to the Black Panthers to indigenous people wanting decolonization. And I looked up how some fans reacted to that speech and that's how they took it as ludicrous nonsense. And you look further into these people, and they also think the left are terrorist supporters. Look at their current political views.

So there you go. I have a very different read of DS9 than Lib fans. They were inspired by Cisco in this episode. But the takeaway for me about this episode is nothing is as it seems. In my opinion, and this has been my read from day one, but this show has no good guys, like you mentioned.

Not in my opinion. For fans on social media, it means there's clearly heroes and hero worship. But for me, what I like is that there are no heroes. Everyone is different shades of fucked up, and the so-called baddies aren't even as fucked up as they seem.

Except for the Mirror Universe, which in DS9 is just a hot mess. But let's not talk about that. But Scott, give me your review of this episode, how important it is to mythology, and your rating.

I had to give this episode a four. It's all of it is very important to the story.

It felt important.

Yeah. All the story, all the plot lines, the ABC plot lines.

So like Garrick and Zayel, Cassidy, Eddington, all of that is important.

all the pieces were put into place.

Yeah, this is actually a very important expository episode.

Lots of talking.

Lots of talking. Yeah, it was hard. I had to pause a lot as I was writing down everything and watching it through my new lens where I was like, damn, Garak's like 40 or 50 years old. This is inappropriate. Also, I really think that You know, Garrick is pretty, feels like sexually fluid, like Ellie's headcanon, certainly coded.

I would like to see how his character would have been written 20 years later. And yeah, without giving away too much, I have problems with this storyline. That's all I'm going to say.

Yeah, I actually don't know how much time has passed since the beginning of season four to now. But, you know, last we left off, she was in her teens. She was like a young kid. So I don't know how much time has passed. But yeah, they haven't made it explicit that she's an adult now.

They haven't even really made that explicit with Jake. It just seems like he's like a high school graduate. You know, we're looking at it differently. We're looking at it, what our eyes today and standpoints change. And we know better today than people knew in the 90s, even like people who rewatched the five years ago or so on.

So we can only watch it with our eyes and we can only worry about how we see things. We don't know how other people see things. And this is how we're seeing it now. Yes. Scott, can you tell us about the next episode?

What's Wei Yun up to?

Until then...