10 Best Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Episodes 

I consider "It's Only a Paper Moon" where Nog is struggling with PTSD as one of the great episodes. As a Combat Veteran who has this syndrome, this episode was actually quite therapeutic for me. I imagine it may have helped other veterans as well. Still, this list is quite good!

Honestly, you should just list the episodes that _weren't_ absolutely fantastic. It would be a far shorter list. _DS9_ is simply some of the best _Trek_ has to offer.

That scene when the Defiant joins the Starfleet battle fleet still gives me chills. So well done. This show was best Trek, easlily.

If I'm not mistaken, The Siege of AR-558 is also where Nog was critically injured and ended up loosing his leg. After which, the following Nog-centered episodes dealt with what it's like to live as a veteran amputee and PTSD. Deep Space Nine was ahead of its time and served to push the franchise and the fan base forward...even if it was kicking and screaming.

I don't think anyone's mentioned "Take Me Out to the Holosuite" yet, it's one of my personal favourites even if it's light, fluffy, and entirely inconsequential to the larger plot. I also love "Badda-Bing Badda-Bang", for its sheer style.

What!? No "Hard Time" an episode were o'brien is literally contemplating suicide because of the guilt of killing his best friend. That was an amazing episode about the human mind and kind of insightful into the current prison system, where inmates come out more demented than when they went it.

DS9 has only gotten better with age. Far and away the best Star Trek series ever created.

Wow...finally someone calling out DS9 for the fantastic story arcs, writing and genuine characters of the show.

"In the Pale Moonlight" is the best episode of all the Trek series.

DS9 has so many great episodes that it’s hard to make a top 10. I’m just glad to see DS9 getting some well deserved love.

You could have easily done a top 30 and still left some of the most wonderful episodes out.

One of my favorite episodes was "The sound of her voice" It's a race to save an officer stranded alone and on an inhospitable planet. The final moments reveal a saddening twist. Watch it and you will understand.

Two (highly) hono(u)rable mentions: "Waltz" (Season 6): SUMMARY - Captain Sisko is on board a starship transporting Gul Dukat to a starbase to await trial, and the ship comes under attack from the Jem'Hadar. Dukat manages to escape during the battle and get to an escape pod, taking Sisko with him. They land on a hostile planet, and what unfolds is how unstable Dukat has become. WHY IT'S GREAT - Marc Alaimo's Dukat is one of the greatest villians in all of television, and the chemistry he had with Avery Brooks really shines in this episode, which, like "Duet" before it, takes place almost entirely in one place, and between two people. It is here where we see Dukat, who had previously been rather enigmatic in his motives, truly reveal himself to be the evil man he really is. It is dark, tense, frightening, and very compelling, all at once. "It's Only a Paper Moon" (Season 7): SUMMARY - A recuperating Ensign Nog returns to DS9, and retreats to the Vic Fontaine holosuite program. WHY IT'S GREAT - In "The Siege of AR-558", Nog is severely wounded and loses his left leg. Though he's received a prosthetic and he's been cleared for duty, he still feels ill-prepared to face this new challenge. "AR-558" dealt with the horrors of war. This episode serves as its sequel, addressing the reality that is PTSD straight on, and Aron Eisenberg's performance is among his best work in the series.

I just recently realised that KC Hunter (Kira's character in Far Beyond The Stars) was a Homage to DC Fontana another Woman who was unable to find Work under her true name because she was a Woman

My favorite is the one where Sisko and his son take a voyage in an ancient space sailing ship that Sisco built from archived plans. The two bond during the trip and in addition discover that the ancient ships were capable of light speed travel.

I love DS9! It was dark and gritty with more “realism” than other Star Trek shows.

The real reason why The Way of The Warrior is great is the conversation between Garak and Quark at the bar.

DS9 was extremely well written. Even secondary characters were so fleshed out that they had episodes based around them.

I just watched 'the visitor' for the first time and it genuinely had me in tears at the end. Ben and Jake's father-son relationship is so beautiful in this episode. Honestly it was one of the best episodes I've seen so far.

DS9 has always been my favorite Trek. Great writing, TONS of compelling characters with growth, great acting. Pale Moonlight deserves the top spot I agree...the entire episode really grabs your attention and doesn't let go.

You should totally make a follow up list of the best FUN episodes of DS9: The Magnificent Ferengi, Take Me Out to the Holosuite, Badda Bing Badda Bang, to name a few. Considering how well known/loved DS9 is for its darker themes and excellent storytelling, it's sometimes easy to forget that there are a lot of extremely funny and just plain fun episodes as well!

“Pale Moonlight” is best Trek episode period. That coming from a “Picard is the best captain” fan.

Duet was always my favorite. I’ve always felt that making high school students watch it then discuss it would be a great way to open up communication channels about prejudices, war crimes and forgiveness. A very powerful episode that still moves me no matter how many times I watch it.

as much as I LOVED TNG and the family that it was ....... the DS9 cast EASILY could have taken one of its FOUR big-screen film productions .... for a post-Dominion War storyline. This cast deserved that.

I'm so happy to see "Duet" on the list. It was such a beautiful episode, same with "The Visitor", they both pull at your heartstrings in such a nice way.

Hard time should've been on the list! O'Brian dealing with PTSD, guilt and depression was an amazing portrayal of mental health.

I'm a big fan of Garak's two parters: Improbable Cause and The Die is Cast from season 3, and In Purgatory's Shadow and By Inferno's Light in season 5.

I really like "Once more into the breach" This was the one were the old war hero Klingon has started to outlive his usefulness, but Worf give him one last chance for glory and an honorable death, which he takes when he sacrifices himself so the rest of the crew can live. Always like the Klingon episodes, and I think this is the best one.

DS 9 was the best of them all. Sisko is my favorite captain too. Great actor.

2020 Toxic Fandom: Star Trek should never be dark or too political. DS9: Hold my rootbeer.

I think "In The Pale Moonlight" is the greatest Star Trek Episode of all time.

Why DS9 is so good: They held.

"In the Pale Moonlight" is not only one of the best episode DS9 episodes, but one of all the Trek episodes of all time. Also, it solidifies why Sisko is the most bad ass Captain. (Not the best, but bad ass)

I dare say that "In the pale moonlight" is not only the best episode of DS9... but probably one the best episodes (if not THE best) of Star Trek as a whole. The character development alone was enough make it stand out, but when you add the magnificient performances of Avery Brooks and Andrew Robinson, the extremely well-written scenes and dialogues, the dillemma presented to the audience... and you know what its worst? By the end of the episode, you tend to agree with Sisko... nevertheless, he commited (or condoned) what can be considered an assassination (or going even deeper, an act of terrorism) in the name of a greater good. This really makes you put things in perspective... if even a righteous federation captain like Sisko can be machiavellian if the situtation calls for it, that does make you wonder to what lenghts the likes of Picard or Kirk would've gone to protect the federation. I never watched another Trek episode (and I've watched them all) that made me stop and think about the ST universe and the consequences of the characters actions, their beliefs and the whole universe that they created in the same way as "In the pale moonlight" did.

If "In The Pale Moonlight" wasn't number one you would have had a riot on your hands. I watch that episode every few months by itself because it is so good.

DS9 has always been my all-time favorite Trek series, from the action set pieces to the drama. It had some of the best space-combat in Sci-fi. All of the characters were enjoyable and different. From the fun-filled Fererangi episodes to the heart-wrenching moments like the death of Jadzia Dax. I love the Trials and Tribble-lations episode so much, plus we got to see Jadzia in a TOS uniform. DS9 never shied away from doing things differently. The first one screen kiss between two women, the amazing Mirror universe episodes, plus the fact that Sisko punched Q. It always pained me that we never got a follow up to DS9 in a movie, and now that we've lost several key actors of the series we most likely never will.

I recently went back and rewatched the entire series. I'd forgotten just how great that series was. It's very under appreciated.

Little Green Men easily deserves to be in the top ten. Writing the Ferengi as the aliens in Area 51 is pure comedy.

Best Star Trek Show in my humble opinion.

The only one I would have liked to see is Hard Time. I realize it only focuses on one character, but it's a very emotional episode.

I must have watched "In the pale moonlight" over a 100 times so can't argue with your number 1 choice.

Best Star Trek series! Love it. But I also liked the funny Quark episodes, e.g. when he, his brother and Nog strand on Area 51 in the 1950ies.

DS9 has always been and will always be my favorite Trek series. The characters and their struggles are so relatable. Fun little factoid: a couple of years before his passing, Rene Auberjonois had a little Twitter thread going one day about DS9. I responded to this thread saying "Of all the Treks I have watched in my travels, DS9 was the most...human." He responded with a simple "Ha!" which I, of course, heard in Odo's voice. A silly little memory but one I hold dear.

I was hoping that The Visitor would have been higher on the list, but I'm happy it at least made it

In the Pale Moonlight-Hell yeah. Sometimes the ends do justify the means.

A thoughtful and worthy list, for sure, but my favourite episode has always been 'Explorers', where Sisko and Jake build a ship powered by solar wind. Lovely relationship stuff with father and son, and they get to prove a point to the Cardashians in the gentlest way possible.

To me it's "In Purgatory's Shadow" and "By Inferno's light". So intens, Garak gains just another facet, the bond between Worf and General Martok forms and all before the backdrop of a war like Alpha, Beta and Gamma Quadrants have never seen. Plus, on a much lighter side, I like everything Jadzia Dax and Worf related.

I am currently re-binging DS9 and can't argue with a single episode on this list. If I was going to add any it would probably be more of the season 6 opener arc episodes or What You Leave Behind, the best Trek finale ever and one of the reasons DS9 remains one of my favorite shows ever. Bring on more DS9 content!

When I ever i talk to friends about DS9 and why, in my opinion, it's the best trek series I always reference the episode "In the pale moonlight." It's an episode that left my jaw hitting the floor when I first watched it and gives me goosebumps whenever I watch it again.

In The Pale Moonlight is one of my favourite episodes of anything on TV - glad to see it at the top of this list!

“The Visitor” is only second to “In the Pae Moonlight” when it comes to DS9 episodes

DS9 was an incredibly underrated series. Sisko was the best Federation Captain of all the series. Complex and intense, yet believable and worthy of respect.

If you read the Deep Space Nine companion, the writers and producers thought 'Homefront' and 'Paradise Lost' was one of the worst episodes they made and put posters up around the offices to remind them. When I watch it now, it eerie how much it predicted a post-911 world.

Honestly, "It's Only a Paper Moon" was amazing. While it didn't have to deal with the grand scheme of things, it was amazing to see what Nog had transformed into. This story showcased his much needed recovery and soul searching and was crucial to the development of one of Star Trek's greatest characters.

I have watched the Visitor just once. At the time, my son was a few years younger than Jake Sisko and it just made me so emotional that I can never watch it again.

Probably 30 of Star Trek's 50 best episodes were from DS9. Easily the deepest, most well-written, action-packed, and intelligent series of the whole franchise--maybe on all of Science Fiction

Captain Sisko kissing his son's cheek in greeting ; is always wonderful . I always wonder whose idea that was and imagine it was Avery Brooks' idea.

The entire time I was saying if "in the pale moonlight" wasn't number 1, this list is garbage. I'm glad you didn't disappoint.

I agree with your first place. That is indeed the best of DS9, maybe the whole Trekverse

"The Visitor" still manages to make me cry at the end whenever I see it. I'm not even really the emotional type.

I wholeheartedly agree with your choices, especially number 1. It showed how far Sisko was willing to go and gave me a genuine, 'Oh No', moment.

Choosing what star trek series I like the most is like choosing which of my children I love the most. But DS9 is probably the most underrated of all the series

OH yes! I love watching "In The Pale Moonlight" all the way through! Such an epic story and really great parts played by all. It's a must-watch if you've never seen it.

Ten solid choices. I am especially happy to see Duet (my favorite) crack the top three. I would certainly include Past Tense on a part two. I live in a town with a lot of homeless people, and I’m disappointed when people here suggest things eerily similar to a sanctuary district.

"Thank you for restoring my faith in the 98th rule of acquisition...every man has his price" "That's why you came to me...isn't it Captain? Because you knew I could do those things you weren't capable of doing. Well it worked and you'll get what you want...a war between the Romulans and the Dominion. And if your conscience is bothering you should soothe it with the knowledge that you may have just saved the entire Alpha Quadrant and all it cost was the life of one Romulan Senator...one criminal...and the self respect of one Starfleet Officer. I don't know about you but I would call THAT...a bargain!" Those two bits of dialogue are precisely WHY "In the Pale Moonlight" is THE best Star Trek episode...EVER!

Duet was the season 1 episode that is truly shakespearean

It took me a long time but I finally realized DS9 is by far the best Trek series. My love of TOS and TNG is still strong but they're really kinda silly in comparison.

I enjoyed DS9 more than any other Star Trek series. Thanks for making this video, I may have to binge watch all the episodes again. It's been a while.

I'd have liked to see Children of Time on this list. Really solid character performances from both guest stars and main cast, and an absolutely heart-rending final twist.

"Nor the Battle to the Strong" should have been on there somewhere. I feel that was Cirroc Lofton's best episode of the whole series.

The opening music would send shivers down your spine!

There are so many great episodes of DS9 that this list is too short.

Glad to see you included "Duet" in your list - it is an amazing episode that somehow misses these lists a lot.

Avery Brooks is one of my favorite actors

Far beyond the stars is by far the greatest thing i have ever seen on tv PERIOD. It has never failed to make me cry.

Wow. I can't even begin to say how much you hit all episodes on POINT!!! Well Done!!! I had actually forgotten about some of these. Great job....now a subscriber!!!

Progress makes my top 11. Nana really shows her chops in this one. And Jake and Nog's friendship is great.

DS9 managed to redefine traditional Star Trek, without breaking it (unlike Discovery and Picard). It was a challenging balancing act, but they pulled it off, and showed a lot of respect to what came before. This took talented producers and writers that the current regime does *not* have. 👍👍

Thank you for this video, I really enjoyed walking through each of these episodes again, and hearing your opinion. this was great!

Great video, and well done. Thanks!

I really liked O'Brian Episodes. "Hard time" and "Honor among Thieves" come to mind.

Duet was the first great episode of DS9

This was a fantastic series, with great character-driven storylines. The Trouble with Tribbles time travel episode was one of my favorites...

Nice review! In my opinion, "In the Pale Moonlight" , "City on the Edge of Forever", and "Tapestry" stand as the top 3 episodes of the Trek universe.

Pale Moonlight was a wild ride of an episode.

Far Beyond the Stars is just... perfect. Benny's breakdown at the end is so overacted, and it makes it all the better for it.

What a great list! You've got me wanting to watch it all over again. I'm going to begin the ultimate Star Trek chronological watch next year

So glad Duet made your list. There are many wonderful episodes that might have made this list, but Duet was the first real defining moment for me of this series. The way sci-fi should aspire to be, in my mind: deep, complex, three-dimensional.

“You Are Cordially Invited”. It is just a fun episode.

"The Visitor" was a great stand alone episode. I loved Tony Todd playing old Jake. Personally (although most Startrek fans might disagree) I think he should have been cast as Worf. He just made a better Klingon.

Thank you for this. It is great and points out things I did need to see again. Semper Fidelis

The Visitor never fails to make me cry lmao. I'm an active duty paratrooper with 2 tours under my belt. It's manly to cry.

"It's Only a Paper Moon". How people cope, or don't cope, with post traumatic stress is explored in a unique way in this episode.

As a veteran, I would have put the Siege of AR-58 higher on the list.

Thanks for sharing, enjoyed that more than expected, cheers

very nicely done, Aurie. You did a great job with the narration, and now, I need to revisit this series, it's the one Series in the Star Trek franchise that I did not watch regularly all the way through

I don't remember seeing Past Tense in there, which is probably more relevant then ever considering the times we are living in now.

What is the best thing about DS9 was that you could do an entire episode based on the supporting characters alone.

Bang On with your selections and summaries! Although my list would have been a little bit different, after your summaries, I am 100% with you on your assessments.

We can't forget 'Past Tense', one of the most profound and prophetic social commentaries in Trek. Almost 30 years later, the visions of homelessness, social decay, and the need for radical change ring stunningly true as we approach 2024, the year the episode is set in. No shortage of amazing episodes of DS9!