Summary for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode
Image in the Sand

Season 7, Episode 1

Cast Changes:
As most DS9 viewers know, Terry Farrell's character (Jadzia Dax) was murdered by a possessed Dukat in the sixth season's finale.

She is replaced by Nicole deBoer who plays the role of the Trill: Ensign Ezri Dax. Ezri is the new host for the Dax symbiont.

The rest of the cast remain unchanged.

Guest Stars:
Jeffrey Combs as "Weyoun"
Casey Biggs as "Damar"
Barry Jenner as "Admiral Ross"
J.G. Hertzler as "Martok"
Megan Cole as "Senator Cretak"
Aron Eisenberg as "Nog"

Special Guest Stars:
James Darren as "Vic Fontaine"
Brock Peters as "Joseph Sisko"

Written by: Ira Steven Behr and Hans Beimler

Events:
As is customary for multi-part Trek episodes, "Image in the Sand" starts with a brief synopsis of events from the sixth season finale.

This includes Captain Sisko receiving orders from Federation Admiral Ross to formulate a battle plan for taking the offensive against the Cardassian/Dominion alliance, scenes of the battle itself (which probably involves more active fighting ships and weapon platforms than has ever been seen in Trek), the possessed Dukat attacking Jadzia Dax with a fiery energy field, followed by Jadzia's collapse to the floor, Dr. Bashir pronouncing that the Dax symbiont was saved but Jadzia was dying, Worf issuing the Klingon Death Roar over the body of Jadzia, the possessed Dukat opening the case for the Orb of Meditation and releasing the Pah Wraith which possessed him against the Orb, the closing of the Bajoran wormhole, an angry Wayoun (the Vorta in charge of the Dominion forces allied with Cardassia) talking to Dukat and announcing that the Federation/Klingon/Romulan combined forces have taken the first Cardassian planet (??) and that the wormhole (and all hope of Dominion reinforcements from the Gamma Quadrant) is gone, Captain Sisko standing alone over the photon torpedo case that bears Jadzia's remains, explaining that something has happened to the wormhole, that the Prophets have turned their backs on Bajor and that he is responsible, and that he doesn't know how to make things right again, and the scene where Captain Sisko turns over command of Deep Space Nine as he and Jake Sisko return home.

Following the synopsis the episode begins with a scene of Bajoran members of the Cult of Pah Wraiths praying outside the temple on Deep Space Nine. Kira is watching from one of the overhead gantries and Odo joins her. He addresses her as "Colonel" and we soon learn that she was promoted one month after the season six finale (two months before this episode begins). She gives us the impression that she isn't totally comfortable with her new rank. We also notice she has a new hairdo (her hair is now parted on her right and most of it is swept over to her left side).

In the conversation between Odo and Kira we learn that the Cult of Pah Wraiths was very small until the closing of the wormhole and that they are now appearing all over Bajor. We also learn that they wear red armbands as a token of their faith. Odo explains that a lot of people feel abandoned by the Prophets and Kira sympathizes. From her we learn that the Cult promotes "hate and fear".

Kira and Odo both express concern and hope that Capt. Sisko will return to DS9, but Kira makes it clear that there has been no word from him since he left.

This segues into a touching discussion of the romance between them (Kira and Odo).

Best lines from this scene (talking about their first kiss in front of Quark's):
Kira: That was some kiss, wasn't it?
Odo: Changed my life.

The scene cuts to a shot of the Defiant, where Worf (commanding), Julian, Miles, and Nog have been escorting a shipment of stem bolts to DS9 for more than ten days.

Nog makes a comment about how convoy duty is safer than being on the front lines. This leads to Worf giving Nog a lecture about how in wartime it is the duty of every warrior to fight the enemy in combat.

Worf then leaves the bridge, leaving a perplexed Nog to seek reassurance from Julian and Miles. They explain to him that Worf is still mourning over the loss of his wife, Jadzia. Both Nog and Miles express a desire for Capt. Sisko's return to DS9.

Best lines from the scene:
Miles: Pretty soon the Defiant will be going into battle. Worf will be happy and the rest of us will be miserable.
Nog: It's not that I'm afraid to fight. I just don't want to die.

The scene cuts to Earth and an exterior shot of Sisko's, the restaurant owned by Capt. Sisko's father. Sisko's is doing a lively business on this evening and Joseph Sisko is charming his clients. Benjamin is playing the piano. Both Joseph and Jake express concern for Benjamin's well-being. Jake explains to us that Benjamin has done virtually nothing since returning from DS9.

While Benjamin plays the piano, his baseball (which sits atop the piano) 'magically' rolls off and hits the floor. The thump attracts Benjamin's attention and as he leans forward to pick it up he receives a vision from the Prophets.

Through later discussion we learn from him that his vision involves him being on the planet Tyree (a name that is, phonetically, the same as Kirk's old friend who was killed in TOS' "A Private Little War"). Benjamin is in a desert, digging in the sand. He uncovers a veil, which when removed shows the face of a woman. The woman's eyes open and the vision ends.

Benjamin explains the vision to Jake, and tells him that he (Benjamin) has never seen this woman before, but that he must find her.

The episode breaks here for the credits and a commercial.

The following scene occurs in DS9's Captain's room where Admiral Ross briefs Kira about the Romulans establishing a military presence on DS9 to help co-ordinate Romulan participation in the war.

Ross explains that Senator Cretak will head the Romulans and that she is very co-operative and a strong supporter of the alliance. She and a few of her officers and a dozen Romulan bodyguards will maintain a presence on DS9 until the end of the war.

Kira expresses serious doubts about the Romulans being on DS9 and Ross explains that the decision has already been made to allow this to happen and that he is only explaining this to her out of courtesy.

Kira expresses a hope that Capt. Sisko will return, which Ross does not respond to.

The scene cuts to Cardassia Prime where Damar and Weyoun are discussing the latest developments in the war. Damar explains that they have halted the Klingon advance on the Dominion shipyards on Monak IV, causing the Klingons to suffer an estimated 30% casualty rate. Weyoun complains that the casualty rate should have been higher but begrudgingly admits that the Fed/Klingon/Romulan alliance's forces are bottled up in the Chetoka system. Even more begrudgingly he admits that Dukat's actions seem to have stalled the alliance's attack against the Cardassian/Dominion forces.

Damar pulls out a bottle of Kanar (a Cardassian liquor) to celebrate. Weyoun scornfully gives us the impression he views this as a sign of Damar having a drinking problem, which Damar good-naturedly sweeps aside.

Damar wonders aloud what it must be like within the wormhole where (he believes) the Pah Wraith and the Prophets are currently battling each other.

Weyoun warns him that too much imagination can be dangerous.

The scene cuts to the back of Sisko's, where Ben is using a new kind of PADD to reconstruct an image of the face he saw in his vision. This Padd is about two feet wide, red, and displays a face in the middle with a selection bar in the right and left margins of the PADD. The selection bars show various images of facial features.

Jake enters to invite his father to join Jake and Joseph who are going to listen to some music in Armstrong Park. Ben declines. Jake asks him what he is doing and Ben explains he is trying to re-create the face he saw in the vision. Jake stares intently at the face and announces he's seen her before. Ben continues to make selections and Jake wanders back into Sisko's to return with a picture he had found in Joseph's storage room the previous week. Neither of them know who the woman is but she is shown in the picture leaning against a young Joseph.

Joseph appears in Sisko's looking for Jake, and Ben shows him the picture and asks who she is. Joseph's demeanour changes radically and he behaves like a man with a serious secret on the verge of being discovered. He insists she isn't anyone and he refuses to discuss it as he quickly heads to the living quarters above the restaurant. He behaves like a man about to panic.

The episode breaks here for a commercial.

The next scene starts with a photograph of Worf and Jadzia in their wedding outfits. Worf is laying on his bed and lifts the picture, looking at it.

That scene cuts to the holosuite, where the program "The Fontaine" is playing. The holo-host, Vic Fontaine, greets Worf warmly and suggests they "hit the craps tables" or play some black jack.

Worf ignores these suggestions and says "Sing the song". Vic hesitates, but Worf strongly insists and so Vic sings "the" song. The song is "All The Way" by Frank Sinatra, a beautiful love ballad which we later learn was Jadzia's favourite song.

As the song progresses Worf starts to clench his fist. A little later in the song he rises and with a Klingon roar brings his fist down on the table, busting it in two.

Vic stops singing and the band stops playing and looks on in horror as Worf proceeds to tear up the place off-camera.

This scene cuts to Senator Cretak's office. The Romulans are settling in and discovering a few minor problems (a monitor is down and the chairs are uncomfortable).

Kira arrives and apologizes for not greeting the Senator when she arrived. She makes an excuse about being busy which the Senator graciously provides. The Senator is quite solicitous towards Kira. At one point Cretak readily explains that "My people have a reputation for arrogance. I'm afraid it's well earned." This polite banter continues and it appears that Kira is having second thoughts about doubting this particular Romulan.

This scene cuts back to "The Fontaine" where Julian and Quark are talking to Vic about Worf. The Fontaine is a wreck and we are told Worf was the person who trashed it.

Vic makes it clear he thinks Worf is having serious problems and needs help soon. Julian points out that Klingons usually have a shorter mourning period than humans. Julian appears to agree with Vic's assessment.

Best lines from the scene:
Vic: The band has threatened to quit.
Quark: They can't quit. They're holograms.
Vic: They don't know that!

The scene cuts to Sisko's, where Joseph is confronted by Benjamin over the face in the picture. Joseph is determined to keep it a secret and Ben is determined to get the truth so that he can understand the vision. This confrontation leads to Ben shaking Joseph by the shoulders yelling "I need to know who she is!".

Joseph gives in and explains the woman's name is Sarah. That he married her within two months of meeting her. And that Sarah is Ben's real mother.

The episode breaks for a commercial.

The scene continues after the commercial. Joseph explains that Sarah seemed very happy, but that she left him and Ben two days after Ben's first birthday. Joseph doesn't know why. He went looking for her and eventually found her three years later in Australia. She had died in a hovercraft accident a month before Joseph found her.

Ben asked his father why he wasn't told this before. His father explained that at first he thought Ben was too young. As Ben grew up his father found it harder to say anything. He felt Ben and Joseph's second wife were so close that mentioning this fact to him might have created a problem for them. Ben assured him that it wouldn't have changed things and complains that he wasn't told about this until now.

Joseph expresses a bit of wisdom:
"Life is full of choices. You make them and hope for the best. Sometimes you're right. Sometimes you're not. I made a mistake."

Ben agrees that Joseph made a mistake.

Ben speculates that learning about his real mother might be the first step the Prophets had in mind when they sent him his vision.

Best lines in the scene:
Ben: Are there any other secrets I should know about?
Joseph: Just my gumbo recipe. But I'm taking that to my grave.
It breaks the ice between them.

The scene cuts to an exterior shot of DS9, showing a Federation cruiser, a Klingon cruiser, and three Romulan warbirds. This shot cuts to the Promenade and Kira. She stops when she notices Cretak eating a Jumja stick (a very sweet confection).

Cretak joins her and they exchange pleasantries, thus developing Kira's trust in Cretak. Cretak suggests Kira try the Romulan confection "Osol Twist" which is "very tart". From Cretak we learn that DS9 is now being used as a Romulan supply point for refitting warbirds. Cretak then asks Kira if the fourth moon of Bajor, Durna, can be used by the Romulans for a hospital. Durna is uninhabited. Kira tells Cretak that she will pass on the request to the Council of Ministers.

The scene cuts to Miles and Julian walking down a hallway towards Worf's quarters. Miles has a bottle of Klingon Blood Wine (aged since 2301 "a very good year for Blood Wine" according to Miles).

Julian advises Miles to get Worf to talk about Jadzia.

Julian leaves Miles at Worf's door. Worf opens the door and Miles offers Worf the Blood Wine and enters uninvited. Asking for glasses Miles learns that none are clean. Uncorking the bottle Miles takes a swig and offers the bottle to Worf, who also takes a swig. At that point Worf escorts Miles back to the door.

Miles manages to convince Worf he just wants to visit and talk about the old days, mentioning Lt. Barclay and his holodeck program "The Three Musketeers".

Best lines from the scene:
Worf (after taking his first swig of Blood Wine): Very smooth. Good night chief.
Miles: Well hold on. Do you call this a visit?
Worf: I enjoyed it.

The scene cuts to Quark's the next morning. Miles is looking mighty hung over. Talking to Quark and Julian, Miles explains that Worf finally explained his problem. He doesn't believe Jadzia waits for him in Sto-vo-kor (Klingon heaven). She has never eaten the heart of an enemy and she didn't die in glorious battle. The only way Worf can ensure Jadzia is allowed into Sto-vo-kor is to win a great battle in her honour. Miles comes up with the idea of asking General Martok for help with Worf.

Best lines in the scene:
Quark: So, what did you find out?
Miles: That you should never try to match drinks with a Klingon.>BR? Quark: I could let him beat me at Tongo.
Miles: Not good enough, unless he has to carve his way through a hundred Jem'Hadar to get to the table.
Quark: Why does everything with Klingons have to involve bloodshed?

The scene cuts to the back of Sisko's, where Ben is polishing clams. Joseph comes to him and gives him a piece of jewellery which once belonged to Sarah. On the back of a medallion is ancient Bajoran script.

The episode breaks for commercials.

The next scene occurs in the Sisko's kitchen. Using a PADD, Ben translates the script and discovers it says "The Orb of the Emissary". Neither Jake nor Ben have ever heard of this Orb. Ben claims there is no mention of it in the ancient Bajoran texts.

Ben speculates about its existence, that it might not have gone dark like all the other orbs. Jake suggests it might be used to contact the Prophets. Ben decides to go to Tyree (the planet in his vision) to try and find this Orb.

The scene cuts to DS9, where Kira and Cretak discuss the establishing of the hospital on Durna. The Romulans have been given permission and Cretak continues ingratiating herself to Kira.

The scene cuts to the Promenade, where Odo is briefing Kira about a Federation ship full of injured soldiers, mostly Vulcans, that was refused permission to send their injured to the new Romulan hospital. This prompted Odo to investigate further, and checking the sensor readings found traces of trilithium around Durna. Kira explains that trilithium is a component used in Romulan plasma torpedoes (and how long have we waited to hear "Romulan plasma torpedoes"?) Kira decides to look into it further.

The scene cuts to the holosuite, where Worf is exercising with his bat'leth. Martok enters the suite with a bat'leth and challenges Worf. While the challenge proceeds Martok explains he needs a first officer for a dangerous mission ("dangerous enough to assure Jadzia a place in Sto-vo-kor" says Martok). Until this point the challenge is rather lacklustre, but upon hearing of this chance to be thrown into the battle, Worf puts on a dazzling performance of skill and disarms Martok and lays him out at Worf's feet. Worf claims the position of first officer for Martok, which Martok had obviously hoped for.

The scene cuts to the back of Sisko's where Ben and Jake are throwing out the trash. Compared to the start of the episode and Ben's sombre mood this scene of Ben shows him laughing, smiling, animated. A weight has been lifted now that he knows what he must do and has hope of finding a way of "making things right".

After joking around together Jake leaves Ben at the back door while Ben tidies the area. Ben stops when he notices a hooded figure in the alleyway. A young Bajoran in a red travelling robe approaches, calling Ben "Emissary" and then proceeds with a chant which we earlier heard on the Promenade from the members of the Cult of Pah Wraiths. Catching Ben off guard the Bajoran slashes at Ben's belly with a dagger and then stabs him in the abdomen. The Bajoran tells the stricken Ben that Ben will never find the Orb of the Emissary.

Jake, who has just appeared at the door with a sack of clams, uses the clams to knock out the Bajoran, and then calls for Joseph to get help.

The episode breaks for commercials.

The next scene occurs within Sisko's. Joseph is obviously distracted when Ben and Jake enter the establishment. Ben has been released from medical care and has spoken to Star Fleet Security. He's discovered they believe the Bajoran is from the Cult of Pah Wraiths, who believe that with the Prophets gone a new era for Bajor is about to begin.

The scene cuts to DS9, where there are several Klingon vessels added to the forces we saw in the earlier scene. Inside Quark's both Miles and Julian drink a toast to Worf's success. We also learn that Julian is going on the same mission as Worf to help him get Jadzia into Sto-vo-kor. Upon hearing this Miles decides he's going as well.

This scene cuts to one where Admiral Ross is meeting with Senator Cretak. Ross is requesting more warbirds for the 3rd fleet and Cretak agrees, when Kira interrupts. She announces her government is demanding the immediate evacuation of Romulan personnel from Durna. It seems that along with the hospital the Romulans also installed 7000 plasma torpedoes "for defence" without telling anyone. Bajor issues an ultimatum that either the Romulans remove them or the Bajorans will. Ross tries to placate Kira without effect. Bajor views the torpedoes as an "immediate threat".

The scene cuts to Cardassia Prime where Weyoun meets with Damar to discuss the news about the Romulan take-over of Durna. Both gloat over what is good news for the Cardassian/Dominion alliance.

Best line in the scene:
Weyoun: Romulans. They're so predictably treacherous.

The scene cuts to a closed Sisko's where Ben descends the stairs to discover Joseph and Jake ready to go. Unable to persuade them to stay, Ben gives in to the inevitable.

But before they leave a young woman knocks at the door, looking through. Joseph learns the woman is there to see Ben. Joseph lets her in and we meet for the first time Star Fleet Ensign Ezri Dax.

End of episode.

Personal reflections:

As noted above there are lots of good lines in this story. Aside from a few problems (see "DS9 SPOILERS (Nits): "Image in the Sand"") I really enjoyed this story. There are obviously a lot of new story lines being started here. The search for the Orb of the Emissary, the Romulan presence in the Bajor system, Worf's mission to secure a place in Sto-vo-kor for Jadzia, and Ezri Dax. The basis for all of these appear in this episode.

I didn't discuss too thoroughly the presence of Ezri Dax, in part because she only appears in the last thirty seconds of the episode. We have very little to consider about her at the moment. She only had three lines. So I'll discuss her appearance since that was all the episode really gave us.

Nicole deBoer is a very lovely young woman. Fans of Kes may notice certain similarities (youthfulness comes to mind). Nicole has chipmunk cheeks and beautiful blue eyes. She has a very pleasant voice, higher pitched I think than any other female Trek regular. I don't think it's too much to say that Nicole is going to be a major heart-breaker for a significant portion of the male audience.

Obviously this is a purely subjective process for each of us. I rate season premieres differently than other episodes mostly because they must bridge the gap between last season and this one. How effectively this is done determines how well I liked the story. "Image in the Sand" handled this very well, in my opinion. It covered all major developments from last season. The cast convinced me each character had grown somewhat over the past three months (Trek time). Odo's awkwardness about his relationship with Kira was not in evidence. Kira seemed more comfortable with her role as commander of DS9. Miles and Julian continue their friendship in a manner I consider consistent with the past. They seem to be including Quark more often as a friend of Jadzia's, which I think is an interesting development and one that doesn't seem inconsistent with their nature. Worf has obviously been brooding and chafing over the assignments he's had. He is certainly mourning the loss of Jadzia more than he mourned K'Ehleyr. And his concern for her presence in Sto-vo-kor is an unexpected yet totally predictable development for the character.

Ben has obviously been waiting for some sign from the Prophets and when he receives it he behaves in a manner very consistent with a man feeling tremendous guilt for his actions who wants to "make things right". Jake and to a lesser extent Joseph show concern for his well-being as you would expect from a loving family.

The only down-side to the story is not getting enough time with Ezri Dax. I think this could have been done at the expense of the time spent identifying the face in the sand. I'd have preferred five more minutes of Ezri and five less of Joseph refusing to talk about the picture.

This is, in my opinion, a minor and perhaps understandable complaint. Putting Ezri in the last thirty seconds creates a huge 'hook' to ensure we watch the next show. Taking that into account I really can't find fault with the cast, production values, character development were all handled remarkably well.

This bodes well for DS9's seventh and final season.

Honourable Mentions:
"Tyree": This can spark lots of speculation about how it got its name. Is it coincidence, or was it named by Kirk, being the first unnamed planet he came across after visiting his friend, Tyree, in TOS' "A Private Little War"?

I prefer the latter explanation.

"Romulan plasma torpedoes": Not since their first appearance in TOS' "Balance of Terror" have those words been spoken by anyone on Trek. The second appearance of Romulans in TOS ("The Enterprise Incident") had Spock reporting the Romulans were using Klingon technology. The images shown of the Romulans firing their weapons at the end of that episode were more consistent with Klingon disruptor bolts. The Romulan weapons used in TNG's "Unification" were more consistent with phasers. That this episode has resurrected the weapon (7000 of them) is, for this old Trekker, wonderful news. They are without doubt the deadliest weapon in any arsenal. My fervent hope is that we get a chance to see a few in action.

Thank you for your attention.



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