To Boldly Sew is a recap of DS9 episodes, with a specific focus on the fashions of the many aliens and other characters that make up the series. Feel free to discuss matters of plot and general Star Trek things in the comments.
I’m getting all these screenshots from trekcore.com, which is the same place as the original TNG fashion blog (http://sttngfashion.tumblr.com/).
Jake is playing cards with Nog.
Nog is wearing one of his favorite outfits – orange-red loose shirt thing over tighter-fitting green shirt.
There are no good images of Jake here (he’s sitting in the dark), but he’s clearly wearing the green on green on teal jumpsuit from the last episode and it still doesn’t look good.
Meanwhile, Quark is upset with another Ferengi about 5,000 wrappages of Cardassian yamok sauce. Apparently the other Ferengi forgot to cancel the order.
Nog listens. He thinks this is an opportunity. Jake is skeptical.
Sisko’s log informs us that Bajor is going to tap the the core of its fifth moon as part of some kind of energy transfer. He’s walking around Ops with a Bajoran representative while Dax and O’Brien call out technobabble and the representative asks nervous questions. They expect everything to go smoothly.
The Minister, who Kira identifies as Minister Toran, is a typical boring government official. He looks like a middle-aged man, and, although you can’t tell from this screenshot, he has a bald spot. He’s wearing a boring outfit made of upholstery which is actually multicolored but looks like it’s just boring brown.
Minister Toran says they’re counting on this energy to heat a few thousand homes that winter. Kira then excuses herself to make the next inspection.
Kira and Dax are on a runabout. Dax is telling a story about Morn inviting her to dinner. Kira is surprised. Dax says she replied that she was busy, but waxes rhapsodic about Morn’s 7 or 8 hairs on his head that make him look kind of cute. Kira does not seem to share the opinion.
They are scanning the moon’s surface for life forms while they talk. Dax notices a life form in one of the sectors and suggests it’s a scientist who is working there, but Dax says it’s not. Kira says the inhabitants were supposed to have been evacuated by now. She decides to beam down and take a look around.
On the surface, Kira appears in the middle of a green garden, somewhat surprised. A woman with a gun approaches her, and a guy with a sharp pointed thing as well.
The guy with the sharp pointed thing is wearing brown pants, a brown and yellow-checked long-sleeved shirt and a vest that looks like it’s trying to be a leather apron but isn’t long enough and has a slit in the middle so it would be ineffective at that anyway. He’s also a middle-aged balding man.
CUE THEME
An old man is in the doorway of a nearby building. He tells Kira that they (the man and woman) don’t like uniforms. Kira says she doesn’t either but it comes with the job. He asks what the job is. Kira says, “Do we talk or do they attack?” so the guy waves his hand and the others stop pointing weapons at her.
The old man is wearing a graying t-shirt under a green long-sleeved shirt with a slit in the front and a popped collar, and a beaded vest thing over the front. Like most Bajorans he is wearing a somewhat ornate shiny earring, and his gray hair looks like it’s pulled back. He’s got a high forehead but isn’t balding.
Kira goes to the house. The old man says that she’s halfway pretty, and Kira asks if that means she can come in. He refuses as he is also afraid of uniforms. Kira says she’s not a Cardassian and he knows he he was supposed to leave.
He says all he knows is his farm, just look at his crop, and calls her a girl. Kira says “I’d rather you didn’t call me ‘girl.” The guy ignores her and just starts talking about his beans. Um, okay? Kira quotes something her dad said about beans. He says she has pretty eyes and she should come in and eat.
Kira says that they need to leave and he says they’ll discuss it over supper.
Jake and Nog talk to a man Nog identifies as the captain of a Lissepian cargo ship who does a lot of trading with the Cardassians, because they pay the bills.
The Liseppian captain’s outfit looks like it’s mostly made of folded rubber at the top, and then maybe beaded rubber from the chest down? It also has some sort of high collar on the back that then extends up the back of the head, so maybe his species has an especially vulnerable neck? His sleeves also extend into gloves which on the one hand looks kind of cool but on the other hand makes me feel trapped just looking at it.
Nog offers to sell the captain the 5,000 wrappages of yamok sauce, which he clarifies is original, and not replicated. Interesting distinction.
The captain is skeptical. Nog asks him if he’d pay 5 bars of gold-pressed latinum. The captain isn’t carrying any latinum but he’s willing to trade. Nog wants to turn down the deal, but Jake asks what he’s offering to trade. 100 gross of self-sealing stem bolts. Someone ordered them from him and he can’t pay.
Nog still doesn’t want to deal, but Jake points out that they don’t have any more use for yamok sauce than stem bolts, which the captain says are top quality merchandise, and the best in the sector. Nog agrees to the deal. The captain says to meet at Cargo Bay 9 at 2100 hours.
Now they have to figure out how to get the yamok sauce from Quark, and what to do with the self-sealing stem bolts.
Back at the farm, Kira gets roped into helping the old man make dinner. The roots I guess he’s planning on serving will take 3 hours to soften. He bangs them on the table to indicate that they’re too hard to eat.
His vest appears to actually be an apron, maybe, but with a belt going through the middle, which confuses me. Also it seems not to be beaded, but woven, with more varied threads going through the middle of it.
Kira calls Dax, who is still on the runabout, and says that a man with a talent for delay has invited her to a farewell supper, so go on without her.
The old man gives Kira a root to wash and peel, and goes about his business.
The other woman comes over to work on the vegetables. Kira notes that she doesn’t talk much, and the old man says that, thanks to the Cardassians, she and the younger man don’t talk at all. They escaped to the moon 18 years prior and met up with the old man, who’s been there 40 years.
The woman’s outfit is in a similar style to the old man’s, with the center of her apron appearing to be hand-woven while the other layers look more processed.
He again calls Kira a girl and tells her to get out the plates and utensils. (If they’re not going to eat for at least 3 hours, why get out the plates already?) Kira doesn’t yell at him, she just gets the dishes and brings them to the table, giving the old man an opportunity to ogle her again, and tell her she looks good from that angle. However, he insults her walking.
Kira is about to tell him off, but sees the old man grin and sees that he’s trying to make her mad, but she’s not mad enough that he can get rid of her. He asks for her name, and then specifies he wants her given name, Nerys. He then introduces himself as Mullibok, so I don’t have to keep calling him “the old man”. He doesn’t bother to introduce his companions, but tells her to have a seat and wait for the roots which really will take 3 hours to cook.
Kira has a seat, and informs him that they’re going to tap the core of the moon in 7 days. He knows. Kira says that the project will benefit thousands of people on Bajor. He is not impressed, and doesn’t want to move to Bajor. He left Bajor when he escaped a Cardassian labor camp and does not want to go back. He says if he leaves the moon he will die, so he’d rather die there, since it’s his home.
Back on DS9, Quark’s is hopping with Dabo players.
The blue-skinned guy in this shot has won a round, which is why the others are applauding. He leaves shortly thereafter, so I guess he knows to quit when he’s ahead.
The Dabo girl is, I think, the alien dressed in shiny, shiny gold. I think we’ve seen her before. The Starfleet officer dressed in blue colors has an impressive hairdo here also. And off to the right is another unidentified alien wearing what reminds me of a green track suit.
Nog goes to talk to Quark, who yells at him for bringing someone who dropped his drink a free new one.
Quark is wearing his paisley style-jacket today instead of one of his upholstery ones. He always sticks with the orange shirt, though.
Nog then says he was trying to find storage space for a shipment of beans coming in; can he stack them on top of the yamok sauce? Quark doesn’t want to hear about yamok sauce. Nog suggests that he get rid of it by bringing it to the matter reclamation unit. Quark says he doesn’t care, just get the yamok sauce out of his sight. He then tells Nog he is a good boy.
Nog gives a victorious gesture to Jake, who is across the bar.
The woman in purple sitting next to Jake is clearly confused.
Back on the moon, Kira is eating dinner with Mullibok, who is telling the story of how he escaped the labor camp and came to the moon, and was the first one to settle there. His story, of overpowering a crew of 6 people on a freighter, is a little unbelievable.
His two silent companions smile at each other, clearly having heard this story a few times before.
He also says that he was able to convince his stomach that it was not shrinking by tightening his belt notches, that he plowed every furrow in the field with his bare hands, and if he came across clay deposits he ground them up in his teeth. He then gestures to the younger man, calling him Baltrim, and asks for some wine.
They commiserate over the Cardassians while they drink wine. Mullibok thinks it must have been fun to fight against them. Kira says it was not fun and they were overpowered. “How did you win?” he asks, and she admits they hung on like fanatics.
He goes out to the yard and talks about finishing the kiln he’s been building. Kira tells him that he cannot stay. Once they start tapping the crust, noxious gasses will come out and the air will be unbreathable. He says that the Cardassians probably told her she didn’t stand a chance and she didn’t surrender, so why does she expect him to act differently. Clearly this guy doesn’t understand science? Mullibok says they can go ahead and crack the moon open but he is staying.
Back on DS9, Nog and Jake are looking at the self-sealing stem bolts. Nog reminds Jake it’s top-grade merchandise.
A day must have passed, as they’re wearing different clothes. Jake has changed into a slightly less offensive blue and purple jumpsuit, and Nog has a loose-fitting yellow shirt over an orange shirt.
O’Brien comes in and asks what the cargo is? Nog says they belong to his Uncle Quark, which I guess is technically true. O’Brien says to pass on that he’s weary of Quark bypassing import procedures. Nog agrees, and says that Quark needs the stem bolts. O’Brien clarifies that they’re self-sealing stem bolts. Yes.
O’Brien asks what Quark needs self-sealing stem bolts for and Nog says “the usual. Why does anybody use self-sealing stem bolts?” and then O’Brien says that he doesn’t know, he’s never used them, nor even seen one before. He leaves.
Nog is disappointed, as he expected that O’Brien would have known what self-sealing stem bolts are used for. Jake thinks they should have asked the freighter captain. Nog then says they need to contact the original Bajoran who ordered them from the captain, as he would undoubtedly know what they were used for. Jake finds a scanner and reads one of the crates and finds the guy’s name is Sirco Ch’ano.
Nog decides they should sell the self-sealing stem bolts to Sirco Ch’ano at a discount, since he couldn’t afford the original price.
In Ops, Kira reappears. Dax says she was worried about her.
Kira goes to talk to Sisko and the Minister from earlier, who are in Sisko’s office.
The Minister doesn’t understand – there were 47 other people on the moon and they all left. Kira points out that we don’t know if they went willingly, all we know is they obeyed the order. The minister says that these people will also.
The minister is wearing the same boring outfit he wore before, so maybe it’s a uniform. The dark color choice makes him seem a little evil, but I suspect it’s just a bureaucratic evil and not an actual evil. Endless paperwork does things to people, sometimes.
Kira doesn’t think so. Sisko asks if there’s anything they can offer to make Mullibok willing to leave. She says no. He asks about a postponement, and she admits that might give them time to work something out.
The minister doesn’t want to postpone, and says they can’t, and if Mullibok stays he’ll die, so they will need to beam him off the surface. Kira says that if they take him that way, they’ll be killing him. The minister says that there’s no other way. Kira says there is and they can use another sort of technobabble called Phased Energy Retrieval.
The minister said he thought they agreed that would take too long. (Also it’s kind of late now, and would be unfair to the other 47 people they had evacuate who it turns out maybe didn’t have to?) They would have to wait a full year before extracting any meaningful amount of energy. He doesn’t think they can be delicate.
Kira describes these actions as like Cardassians. The minister says she’s obviously developed a feeling for the man, and if she’s not comfortable with completing the assignment, he’ll find someone else. Kira backs down and says that’s not necessary.
Back on the moon, Kira beams down with some security people in Bajoran uniforms. She says that the other two people there have a cottage nearby, and reminds the officers that the people are victims of the Cardassians, don’t speak, and are very frightened of uniforms. (Maybe they could have come in plain clothes?)
She tells them if they find them working in the fields to gather their clothes and supplies without permissions, since they’re not going to get permission, just be careful with everything. The men agree and head off to do their jobs. Kira heads to the main house.
Mullibok comes out. He observes she’s wearing a phaser and asks if she’ll use it. She says it’s protocol and offers to help him pack.
He observes that she sent the uniforms after the others – who he names as Baltrim and Keena. She says she’s doing what has to be done. He says, “Me too” and goes inside and closes the door.
Kira bangs on the door and asks him not to make them take him by force. He comes back out with a bucket. She tells him he can bring seeds and plants and whatever else he wants to Bajor. He takes some water and puts it in the bucket. It’s not a very deep bucket, so I thought it was a basket at first.
He gives a long story about talking to a two-headed creature who couldn’t make up his mind on anything because the two heads were always arguing and fighting. Kira decides she’ll pack his things herself.
Before she can, though, one of the security people calls from the field. They’re returning with Baltrim and Keena, leading them along. One of the security men is bleeding. He says that Baltrim stuck him with a farm implement and Keena attacked him from behind. Mullibok’s eyes get wide and he runs forward and starts trying to choke one of the security guys. He succeeds in getting him to the ground.
Meanwhile the other security guard is struggling with Baltrim, but manages to fire his phaser just as Kira shouts “no!” and Mullibok falls to the ground.
He’s wearing red pants and brown boots, and apparently his pants have some kind of woven handmade patches sewn onto the knees. It’s not clear if they’re for extra cushion, fashion, or to repair holes.
Kira runs to Mullibok immediately and barks at the security guy to beam back to the runabout, call the station, and get Dr. Bashir there at once.
Back on DS9, Jake and Nog are messing with a communication device of some sort to talk to Sirco Ch’ano about his self-sealing stem bolts. They’re deliberately messing with the feed so the guy can’t see them.
Nog says that they’re the Noh-Jay consortium, and they have 100 gross of self-sealing stem bolts.
Nog offers to sell them for 5, then 4, then 3 bars of latinum. The guy says he doesn’t have latinum and if he did he’d already have the bolts. Nog agrees to one bar of latinum. The Sirco offers an exchange. Nog doesn’t want more exchanges. The guy offers a piece of land.
Jake says this is good, though Nog is not convinced, and says it’s nothing but dirt. The guy says they can have seven tessipates. I have no idea how much that is and neither, I think, does Jake, but he says this sounds good too. Nog is still unconvinced. First yamok sauce, then stem bolts, now tessipates – none of this means profit in his eyes as none of it is latinum!
Jake says says they are getting closer and he can feel it. He tells the Bajoran that they need to see proof they own the land, and the guy agrees, saying he’ll send a transmission soon. Jake agrees to the exchange. Nog still thinks land is just dirt.
On the moon, Bashir is finishing up with Mullibok. He tells him to rest, as he took a phaser blast that punctured his peritoneum and this is serious, and he shouldn’t move around too much or it will make it worse. Bashir’s tone in this scene is very no-nonsense, like he’s annoyed with Mullibok.
Like most beds on Star Trek, Mullibok’s bed looks not at all comfortable. I’m also interested in the design of his house. Is that a skylight or open area with a shelf above the front door, as seen behind Kira? Are the walls and roof made of natural stone?
Mullibok doesn’t approve of Bashir’s uniform. He tells Kira she’s backwards. She leaves without speaking.
Mullibok points out that Kira could have just taken them all off while he was unconscious. He asks about Baltrim and Keena, and Bahir tells him they’ve been evacuated to Bajor. He also says he’s going to take Mullibok back to the station for medical treatment, but Mullibok cuts him off, and says he’s staying. Bashir doesn’t argue, and heads outside.
Kira is sitting on a stone wall looking at some tiles. Bashir says he’s going to take him without his permission as he needs medical attention. Kira says no. Bashir points out he needs medical supervision. Kira says she is staying. She takes off her jacket. She tells him to leave instructions and medication. She picks up the bucket and starts to work on laying the tiles onto the kiln.
I’m still confused by Kira’s uniform. Why does it have this artsy cutout thing in the front and the back? Why is the waist so high? Why is it sleeveless? Why is Kira okay wearing a sleeveless shirt while Mullibok and his friends wore two or three layers of clothing? What is the temperature on this moon?
Bashir explains the situation to Sisko. Sisko says that now she stands a chance of being out of uniform permanently. He says he’s going to tell the minister that she’s remaining temporarily at her request. Bashir says this isn’t true. Sisko says to make it true, so Bashir says he recommends that Kira stay there for the next day or two.
Back on the moon, Kira is treating Mullibok with some bright light thing. She tells him not to ask how it works, so I won’t either.
He asks what they’re going to do to her for staying and she says she doesn’t know. She’s obviously frustrated. Mullibok asks what she’s angry about and she says she doesn’t know.
(This conversation also confuses me. It’s obvious why she’s angry – because he’s a stubborn old fool and she’s gotten herself manipulated into helping him.)
Kira tells a story about how there was this ugly old tree outside her window when she was a kid. It blocked out the sun and buried its deep into the soil so nothing else could grow. It was a big selfish nasty old tree. Mullibok says it sounds like it had character. She agrees. He asks what happened.
She says she doesn’t know yet.
Sisko calls. He says he’s preparing to beam down. She says she’s not sure that’s a good idea, and he says either he’s coming down or she’s coming up. Mullibok comments that Sisko doesn’t have much faith in her.
Sisko appears in the garden. He knocks on the door. Kira goes to answer it, but Mullibok goes instead, saying it is still his home.
He opens the door and asks, “what do you want,” and Sisko says he is there to see Kira. Mullibok says that Kira doesn’t want to see him and neither does he. Kira says, “don’t speak for me” and appears in the doorway.
Sisko tells Mullibok he is causing a lot of trouble. Mullibok says he’s delighted. He asks how many uniforms will come after him. Sisko doesn’t think it’ll come to that. He says he’s there because he’s concerned about Kira; by staying there, she’s jeopardizing her career.
Kira tells Mullibok to go back to bed. Mullibok doesn’t want to. They argue for a moment. Mullibok starts to tell Sisko the story about the tree but then stops in the middle.
Mullibok goes inside and Kira goes outside. Sisko says he can see why she likes him. Kira asks what she can do for him. Sisko says they have a report to finish by the end of the week.
Ah, bureaucracy. I’m not sure that will win her back. Nope. She says she doesn’t think she’ll be able to help with that. He says it’s part of the liaison officer’s job.
He says he doesn’t like the prospect of having to break in a new one. He says she has a job to do and she’s not doing it. Kira says it’s not that simple. She’s back to working on the tiles for the kiln for some reason. Sisko says he’s not saying it’s simple, he’s saying it can’t wait. He sighs in frustration.
He says he knows she’s used to sympathizing with the underdog; she’s spent her life fighting to overcome impossible odds the way that Mullibok is. But she needs to realize she’s on the other side.
Kira finally turns to face him and looks pained. She agrees it’s awful to be on the other side. Sisko crouches beside her. He says that when he first met her he thought she was hostile and arrogant, but he was wrong. Bajor needs her and he needs her. He likes her and doesn’t want her to be hurt, so, as a friend he’s there to remind her that Mullibok’s fate is decided but hers is not.
Kira says thank you. He says there will be a runabout standing by. He then says “one to beam up” and leaves.
It’s nighttime on the moon, and Mullibok is mumbling and groaning in his sleep. Kira, who was sleeping in a chair, gets up and holds his hands. He says “no!” in his sleep and mumbles something about a woman being hurt. Kira gives him some drugs and then puts a cool cloth on his head and tells him things will be fine.
He moans and says “oh, it’s you.” She says he was having a bad dream. He says it was bad memories and asks if he said anything. She says no and asks if he wants food or drink. He says no, so she tells him to go back to sleep.
She walks away and he asks where she’s going. She says she wants to sleep also, so he says to bring the chair over. She does so. The chair wasn’t that far away, but whatever. He refuses her attempt at further conversation and goes back to sleep.
On DS9, Jake and Nog are playing cards under the stairs at Quark’s again. Nog is distracted, thinking about latinum and how they have none except dirt. Nog says that they should have kept the bolts and Jake says land is better because you can build things on it, but Nog points out you can’t build anything without bolts. (Considering they don’t know what self-sealing stem bolts do, I’m not sure this is accurate, but it seems reasonable.)
Meanwhile, Quark and Odo are having a conversation about the Noh-Jay consortium, as Odo was contacted that day by a government official who wants to build a reclamation facility on a strip of land owned by four different people. Three have agreed to sell but the government doesn’t know how to reach the Noh-Jay Consortium. Quark has never heard of it.
Quark spells it out: the government can’t build without that one piece of land – what a wonderful opportunity for profit. In the background, Nog and Jake are congratulating themselves.
Quark asks Odo if he thinks he’s part of the consortium, and Odo says he thinks very little goes on without his knowledge. Quark admits that someone has failed to include him. Odo clarifies that he’s not involved? Quark says not yet, but that will be remedied, and he’ll be opening negotiations shortly.
Quark goes back to the bar and gets one of his hacking sticks and plugs them into the computer. He starts wondering about who is clever enough.
Behind him, Nog and Jake come up. Quark brushes Nog off, until Nog says he has a business opportunity that will cost him 5 bars of gold pressed latinum. Quark turns around, realizes that “Nog + Jake = Noh-Jay” and is astonished.
Nog is wearing purple now, loose fitting shirt over green tighter fitting shirt. Not a great color choice but it doesn’t look horrible. Jake has the dark and light green jumpsuit, which is his least offensive outfit, perhaps. Quark still has the paisley jacket. There’s nothing else interesting in this scene.
Back on the moon, the sun is rising. Kira wakes up in the chair to find Mullibok is awake. She gets up and looks out the window, where he is putting the final tiles on the roof of the kiln. She puts on her jacket and heads out.
Mullibok sets a tile on the kiln as she approaches. Kira asks if he is in pain, and he admits he is a little sore and says he was starting to think she’d sleep all day. She says it’s because she was taking care of him all night. He says he didn’t ask her to do that.
He says he can handle the tiling, and she should go get something to eat. Kira puts some of whatever they’re using to hold the tiles on (mud, I think is the generic term) to a tile and says there isn’t time. He asks if she’s leaving.
She gives him the tile and says it’s the last one. He takes it and puts it on. He says he didn’t think he’d finish. Now it’s time to fire it up. Kira goes back into the house. Mullibok gets a stick and lights it on fire and then sticks the fire into the lower part of the kiln. A fire is still blazing. He blows out the stick.
Kira comes out of the house carrying bags. Mullibok asks what it is? Kira says he’s finished his work and now she needs to finish hers. He says she doesn’t want to.
Kira says she could use a friend on Bajor and she’d like it to be him. He says that as long as the cottage is standing he will stay.
She takes her phaser and blows the top off the kiln. Mullibok is astonished. “What the hell are you doing?” he asks. “Saving your life,” she replies, and takes a stick and sticks it into the fire, then takes the torch back to the house. She sets parts of it on fire.
Mullibok just stands and watches her in disbelief, and doesn’t try to stop her. Kira throws the burning torch into the building and then goes back to Mullibok.
He says she chose her uniform over him. She says that’s not true. The time they’ve spent together has meant a lot to her but it’s over and they both need to get on with their lives. Mullibok says to shoot him. She says she can’t. He says if he leaves he’ll die. She says she won’t let him.
She signals the runabout waiting and says “two to beam up.”
Ugh, Mullibok is so frustrating. At times he reminds me of my grumpy old grandfather, but mostly I think he’s a manipulative sexist jerk. What do you guys think?
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