I skipped my first karate class (which my parents had just shelled out good money for) and snuck back home to watch the premiere of DS9. And that, kids, is why I am watching Star Trek commentary videos and not a navy seal.
One of my favorite parts of the episode is when jennifer's friends were asking if Boimler was single cause it proved 3 things: 1. That Boimler is a ladies man 2. That Boimler has no idea he is a ladies man 3. That Mariner cannot deal with the fact that Boimler is a ladies man
@@todd-bomb9853 having grown up around a lot of liquor bottles and decanters (not a drinker myself) some bottles deceptively hold less “liquid” than you would think while some glasses can hold a surprising amount of “liquid” 😂😂😂
@@timothys5235 That one you could say is cause he is the vineyard's heir so maybe not showing he is a ladies man. The fact that he did not realize the ladies are making overt sexual suggestions shows how obvious Boilmer can be when coming to women.
Boimler's kind of a question mark. When women fawned over him because they thought he was a freak, he was interested. But now we're seeing a bunch of women being attracted to him, but he's just flat out not interested. Add this to his insane luck at Quark's in spite of us all knowing Quark does rig his games if he feels the loss is too close to his bottom line. The idea that his establishment essentially was opperating legitimately is probably the absolute oddest thing about the episode. In other words, something odd is going on with Boimler.
I liked how when The Ceritos was flying around the pylons they played virtually the entire DS9 theme, then they continued flying around and the theme started up again.
So something interesting; Mesk is Worf. No, really. He's an alien raised by humans on Earth, whose primary interaction with his heritage is basically the fictional novel equivelent, and there's a clash when he runs into the real deal. He's an Orion version of Worf
Side note, I never really thought about it until now. But white it’s the 24th century, Worf still grew up in Russia. Interesting, and weird. Imagine Worf insisting on the good parts of The Soviet Union
He was raised on Gault, at least primarily. When he tells Jadzia the story of killing another kid in the soccer game as a teen, he set the story as still being on Gault.
@Tin Watchman There's one big cavaet; when we first saw Worf, he was a LT with some more time/living under his belt. He presumably had more time to actually learn, to spend on the holodeck practicing, etc- as a brash, seemingly just out of the Academy ensign, there's a good chance his skill level would be equivalent to Mesk. (Also, the skills Worf wanted - seemling fighting with a Bat'leth, cuz he sure as shit seemed completely out of his depth when dealing with Klingons otherwise for the first few seasons of TNG - were probably less frowned upon than "pirating it up". Seriously, looking up "how to hijack a starship" would probably throw up a few red flags.)
In an interview I heard, Mike McMahon implied that it is a strain on the budget to bring back legacy characters, so I want to give the producers big thanks for springing for two of them for this episode. It just wouldn't have worked nearly as well with only one.
I love the moment when Kira Nerys was looking out of the commander's office, overlooking the Worm Hole. I like to think that she is thinking (and missing) her friend and Captain, Ben Sisko.
And they convey all this without even saying the name. The show, when it gets the opportunity, can be really good with these little understated moments that still get their meaning across. Ben got namedropped last week, but this week it wasn't even necessary. :)
Armin Shimerman & Nana Visitor just slipped into their characters so perfectly and so immediately. They both seemed to really enjoy the opportunity to become Kira & Quark again. I hope this sets up more opportunities for them, and DS9 as a whole, given it is meant to be an important location & trading hub!
I seriously wish and continue to hope that the Star Trek upper echelon decide to bring back DS9. It'd be so easy to pick up right after "what we leave behind" and see where everyone is and how their lives have changed/stayed the same. I'd love to see O'Brien, Bashir, Kira, and Quark again, all involved with a whole new cast of people on the station. Le sigh...
The thing that I liiked about Armin's performance in this episode was that sometime it sounded a lot like he was recorded his lines while wearing his fake Ferengi teeth. There was just enough slurring and slight distortion in his speech to make think that.
18:05 Related detail: Kira making use of a baseball analogy ("It's not Starfleet command if they don't throw us a few curveballs.") Another nice little detail showing that Kira is taking after Sisko.
@@Gambit2051 I'd agree with that statement, mostly because Wej Duj is just everything I could ever want from Trek and then some wrapped in a neat 22 minute episode.
@@KhaosAdmiral It really is THE Definitive Episode of the show...that does not mean it is the BEST Episode. Definitive does not mean Best...usually just among the best lol
Another Easter egg: when Boimler is about to play Dabo he says “Fortune favors the bold!”, which is probably a nod to the season 6 episode “Favor the Bold”.
@@alhawki99 Sisko mentions "fortune favors the bold" in his speech just before the battle at the end of the episode also called "Favor The Bold". Experiencing Shakespeare in the original Klingon was General Chang's joke in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
Just want to put this on the record: Tendi has all the makings of an extraordinary officer. Despite starting on a comedy show, I bet we'll see her as a Captain someday. That's not to say the other junior officers aren't talented or don't have futures, but Tendi is the most clearly "going places" of the bunch.
Absolutely agree with this 100%. She’s continually following a steady progression forward character wise. The vocal performance matches the same level of confidence she has now. She’s truly impressive as an officer which makes sense as to why she’s getting bridge officer training and various missions. I’m curious to see how this season intends to show Boimlers growth. He’s become more “bold”/ risky and I’m curious to see where he goes. Also Samanthan as well.
@Tin Watchman That might make her a good science ship captain. They don't need to go full command mode most of the time. As Janeway says in Caretaker, "It's not crunch time yet. I'll let you know when it is." I could see Tendi getting into the more familiar and easygoing command style Janeway has when she isn't in danger. Tendi's experiences this season are shaping her into that kind of captain. She's learning how to take a harder line when needed, and all she needs to do to make it into captain material is to do it BEFORE the people around her are panicking or about to die so it looks like she's the one in control rather than reacting to the situation.
Ds9 holds an incredibly special place in my heart. This was MY show as a teenager. Dad had TOS, my sister claimed TNG, and I had Ds9 all to myself. When my kiddos came Of Trek Age, my sons didn't take to it. But my daughter, Kate, fell in love. We've watched all the series and movies from start to finish. And, to my delight, Ds9 is also her favorite for so many reasons. She is Kira and Dax rolled into one, with the raw determination of a 15-year old Jem'Hadar to keep me on my toes. Tonight's episode of Lower Decks hit my heart in a way I could not have possibly expected. There we were, cuddled up on the couch, and when that Ds9 theme started, we both cheered. Kate leaned over and had the biggest smile. We both realized at the same time that THIS was our favorite Star Trek series and characters getting a new story. A brand new, fresh story that would we could both experience and enjoy for the first time, together. It was such an incredible moment as a life long fan and a Trek dad. I wasn't crying, there was just a lot of dust in the the docking bay. It hasn't been used in a while, after all... Thank you, Lower Decks, for this incredible gift to the Ds9 fans that have been waiting so long to catch up with Quark, Kira, and even Morn.
That's so sweet! I really feel your joy 🤗 I've only recently been able to share my ST love with one of my kids (the youngest is about to turn 26, so maybe I shouldn't call them kids anymore. But where did all that time go!?) because they were all too young to take to Voyager even. He's currently been doing watch-throughs with his friends online. They started with TOS and are now about ⅔ through Voyager. I can't really watch it with him (don't want to tread on his toes!) but we do talk about the episodes after. The one thing I was able to have a "mummy/son" bonding thing (we used to joke about it and he really loved being able to switch off from schoolwork and cuddle up with me 💓) over was motorbike racing with my eldest. Even as a teen he'd happily come into my bedroom and we'd sit on the bed watching the various series of racing. Needless to say he became a biker, but he's in it for the love of the bike, it's not a gang thing. Funnily enough, my eldest daughter (#2 lol) has some kids and whenever they come to stay, I try to have some racing (cars & bikes) recorded so we can sit on the bed together and make all the tyre-screeching noises as we "go round corners", lean forward on braking and get pinned back onto the pillows on accelerating! That's not ST sharing, but it's still sharing a passion with the grandkids, so I really get how much joy you both get from your sharing of your ST passion with your darling daughter. Reading your post, I was swept back about 15 years or more in an instant. I'm still glad to have the ability to sort of share ST with my son (he's #3. Just like me lol), especially because he's on the Asperger's spectrum and only shares what _he_ wants to. He's basically been an awkward teenager all his life lol. Our first bond was over music, but now - though "second hand", it's Star Trek. It means a lot to me. I hope you have many, many more happy sharing days with your daughter. You've got a lot of new series to go through! And should you run out, Babylon 5 is your next best bet. There's talk of it being remade! Btw, my youngest daughter is Catherine, aka Kate & Katy when she was little (she then insisted on Cat and it stuck). It's no coincidence that she was born in '96 and got that name ;)
@@y_fam_goeglyd What a fantastic story, thank you for sharing! Regardless of what it is (Star Trek is, of course, at the top of the list...), but finding that passion to share with the kiddos is really the joy of parenting. At least for me, it has been. For our oldest son, it was gaming. For our youngest, it has been Scouts. For middle daughter, Trek. :) So glad you had those adrenaline filled rides on the sofa with them! Nice name choice, by the way! Kate was ALMOST a Kira. Couldn't swing the Jadzia vote, and I think that scarred my (then) non-Trekkie wife off the Trek name theme. We do have a Will(iam T. Riker) for the first born, though! We were huge Lost fans at the time (series finale hadn't happened), so we sci-fi'd Kate in there instead of Kira.
My fav joke was Mariner saying "They call it a saloon, who are they Hemingway?" Its as if a TNG character was displaying their cultured sensibility, but with Lower Decks humour, strong joke.
One more thing - they mentioned that Quark's was a franchised business at that point, which legitimizes the appearance of Quark's Bar on Freecloud, showed during the episode "Stardust City Rag" during S1 of ST:Picard, and I think an earlier episode of Lower Decks.
I did think Armin sounded a tiny bit 'off'. Maybe it's because he's older, but I think it might be because he didn't have Quark's Ferengi teeth in while recording his lines😁. Minuscule niggle aside, this was brilliant! A big hit of nostalgia when DS9 appeared with the theme music!
I thought he was off a bit at times but other times he was spot on. He may have been trying to replicate the voice as much as he could without the fake teeth in place.
Yeah, that struck me as well. I'm wondering if he didn't listen to his old DS9 appearances and just got a bit off. It does happen. I remember learning that Mel Blanc had to sometimes listen to his earlier recordings to get a voice right again.
As an original member of the old BBS-era Cult of Morn, I did find myself doing the traditional Cult activity in this episode--the instant that he first appeared on screen, I just instinctively belted out a "MORN!" greeting like the bar always did for Norm on Cheers (who he was intended as a reference to from day one). And of COURSE Morn had no lines, because as witty as he was, as silver-tongued as he was, we never heard a word of it... because his actor couldn't *speak* while wearing the costume.
No, Morn's facial prosthetics were always designed so he could speak, if the writers ever gave him a line. They just... never did. (Morn's actor mentions it in one of the BTS featurettes on my DS9 DVDs.)
I knew they were going to nail this DS9 episode right at the start when during Kira's introduction the paused on her just staring longingly at the wormhole... that's when I knew. These guys know what they're going.
I thought they exact same thing , it was so unexpected since LD is mostly about laughs , but that stare out the window was just so simple and beautiful
Yeah There were two emotions at that window, one, there's the celestial temple and two, I wonder how SIsko is .. both emotions played so well in animated form... seriously give props to the animation team being able to pull that off!
Tawny Newsome regarding this episode: “Look, I'm not proud of a lot of things in my career, but I am proud of that. Because I was right. Yeah. So [Mike] wrote the DS9 episode and he wrote it with Mariner on like a side mission or like on a different storyline. And I read it and I got really sad for myself, Tawny, because I'm a huge Deep Space Nine fan and I really wanted to play in that world. So he logged on to the Zoom and I gave him some serious shit for it. I was like, "How are you denying me this as a fan?" And he was like, "Tawny, we're making a TV show. This isn't about your wants and dreams." But I think he ultimately heard the wisdom and what I was saying. And then he did rewrite the ending for me." I thought that was neat.
First, Up for Tawny Newsome being badass enough to say all that, second I was totally there for Mariner/Jenny.... Marinny? Side plot. It was so refreshing to see Mariner doing something normal for her Girlfriend and then Jenny just straightup being compats by saying, I brought you along to rip into these fools, get to it, sweetie :) They are a realllly good match :)
@@TheMsLourdes I loved their last bit…Mariner: “Shall we….”. They embraced and she stunned them both. I swear they went down smiling cheek to cheek…!! So refreshing…!!
It was funny, it was a great specific character moment for Shaxs, and it was a great worldbuilding moment, showing us how Bajorans without an intimate connection to DS9 see it.
I was already a huge fan of Lower Decks, but I lost my marbles with this episode. That was the best episode ever. I might have started Star Trek with TNG, but DS9 was always my Star Trek. I always had a huge crush on Nana Visitor, especially those mirror universe episodes. So I was happy for her to return even in voice.
I teared up seeing DS9 on screen again with the theme! Then when Kira and Quark were there, I was laughing, crying happy tears, it was a whole thing! Such a fun episode!
I loved that Broyk, Quark's pit boss, had a decent part in this. Though I must admit there was a lump in my throat when I was watching the episode when I realised we wouldn't be seeing Odo or Nog 😢
You gave a down to the Kobayashi "Maroon" but you laughed so much explaining why that you turned it into an up for me! Way to go Sean! Such a great episode 🙂👍🏼🖖
Latinum up for the return of The Mistress of Winter Constellations. The change of her voice was so great. I love that they got the sound effects of the doors and Kira’s Bajoran combadge correct after all these years.
I was stopped in my tracks by the episode title “Hear all, trust nothing.” Because this rule of acquisition was first spoken on screen & in cannon as a conversation between Sisko & Nog and to have Armin deliver a rule as the closing line of the episode just felt cathartic as heck. Great video folx!
This was an incredible episode, and I say this as someone who was more TNG than DS9 growing up (I preferred the variety of tech and exploration in TNG; the interpersonal and ethical streak to DS9 went over my head when I was younger). I was hoping to see Bashir and Garak being space husbands, but there's still plenty of opportunity for him to appear (not least because What We Left Behind has him in Section 31). And a piece of trivia: Shimerman confirmed that he wore his original prosthetic teeth when he was recording Quark's lines.
I loved the episode, as well! As a DS9 fan, I squeed with joy so many times: Kira's first appearance, the DS9 theme song along with the homage shots of the Ritos circling the starion, Quark's first apearance, Kira's "No you don't!" to Quark's comment about having principles, and Quark's "Nooo!" to Freedman's comment that he should be happy being poor instead of in prison, to name a few. I imagine with the Dominion War over, the Defiant simply got reassigned; but, you are right, it does seem the Bajorans have greater control over the running of the station. Although, it does still seem that Starfleet officers are assigned to the station as you seem them throughout the episode even though there arent any other Federation ships docked. Maybe the Federation opened a consulate or embassy on the station. They might no longer be in control of the station, or operating it for, and at the invitation of, Bajor, but they do seem to have a continued presence. I really liked seeing the all Bajoran militia Ops crew. It shows how Bajor has grown and matured over the years. Kudos for showing its development and evolution instead of just keeping to the previous status quo. It might be just me and my love of puns, but I was willing to forgive the Kobayashi Maru... I mean, the Kobayasbi 'Maroon' and the comment "Theres no wrong way to dance it." At least they did more than just reference the infamous test. Hehehehe. I also loved Jeniffer's 'sadistic' mischevious side. Is it me or does it somehow realistically flesh out the pairing of her with Mariner. At least its interesting to see what it is about the other's personality that they each are attracted to. I mean, I thought that whole B plot was pretty much how Id expect a date with Mariner to go. And the selfie phaser shot of themselves as they embrace, was so cute too. Loved the episode; loved your review. Its always an added joy to watch your reviews after the episode, Sean. To you and to all your team behind the scenes, thank you very much for your hard work to make Ups & Downs possible. Here hoping for alot more love being shown to DS9 in future Trek.
@Tin Watchman I mean, with SPOILERS FOR THE END OF DS9, Odo seemingly either apart of or in charge or relations with the Alpha Quadrant it might have warmed up a little bit.
This for me is why Lower Decks is the best of all the new Treks. It’s the only show that doesn’t crap on the legacy of all the old Treks while still being its own new thing…proving it’s possible to blaze a new trail without disrespecting the old trails. So thanks, Lower Decks creators!
This episode is the stand out episode of the entire series so far. Like DS9 episode "In The Pale Moon Light". This may become one of my favorite episodes of any Star Trek series, truth.
I believe this episode marks the 1st Star Trek show to have actors from more than two different Star Trek shows guest star as their respective characters. For Lower Decks, they've had Riker and Troi from TNG, Tom Paris from Voyager, and Kira and Quark from DS9.
When Mariner and the girls talk about the candles consuming the oxygen in the room, it reminded me of the Enterprise episode "Shuttlepod One," which Tucker lights a candle as their oxygen supply is running out.
When Ransom says go one more time after the credits end, and they do the opening theme ONE MORE TIME, it deserves another UP And Mesk deserves an UP for the Worf upbringing Easter egg. And Boimler with his uniform top unbuttoned is awesome. Like Picard in Tapestry
Since DS9 is my absolute favorite Trek, I was very skeptical. It turned out to be one of my favorite episodes of Lower Decks if not my number one favorite!! The Karema, MORN, the attention to detail was great! Even the reference to Garek’s tailor shop and Nerys having Sisko’s baseball were great little details!! It actually made me tear up. Can’t wait for more DS9 focused shows in the future.
I am not afraid to admit that I as a 48 year old bloke cried happy to see DS9, hear the theme, see Kira & Quark. Such joy. It only made me want more DS9 though. Best episode of Lower Decks imo.
I got you beat! 62 years old and I had a lump in my throat and a tear streaming down my cheek at the sight of the Cerritos circling DS9’s pylons. A big shout out to the animators for rendering not only DS9 but The Cerritos with such amazing attention to detail……us sci-fi nerds notice and appreciate that level of professionalism…..🥲
I personally loved the Kobayashi Maroon, but I just love puns! DS9 is my favorite series as well and I think this episode was a fantastic one! And the fact that Tendi's side-plot and the Mariner/Jennifer side-plot were just as good as the DS9 main plot of the episode made it even better!
The uniforms make more sense when you realize that they come down largely to Captain's discretion. This is why you see multiple uniforms active in an era. Especially in more recent Treks. The Captains have a pool of them to choose from.
My favorite episode so far! Nana Visitor and Armin Shimmerman back as Kira and Quark was so awesome! And by happy coincidence I've been rewatching DS9, And after I watched this "Starship Down" came up. Fun episode!
omg i just JUST realized the quarks gift shop attachment is totally a covert callback to the Star Trek Experience thing, when the hilton los vegas was remodeled and themed to look like DS9, which btw i was lucky enough to visit once, it was so, so cool, i really hope they consider bringing it back, but this time maybe include some actual trek themed games, like dabo, domjot, fizbin, and tongo, and maybe the wadi game... 🎶alamoraine, count to 4, alamoraine, then 3 more...🎶 and now its stuck in your head and you are very welcome
The caricature of Quark is amazing! Just three or four pen strokes to create an unmistakeable face. True artistic talent, that, that I'm sure is under-appreciated.
Huge DS9 fan but I loved Tendi's story. It progressed her character so much. I am kind of sad we got this so early because I was looking forward to the anticipation. It feels like the day after Christmas.
This was the best episode of the season and possibly of the whole show so far. I'm a huge DS9 fan and seeing Kira and Quark just took my breath away. Lower decks takes my two favorite things and puts them together. Star Trek and 1/2 hour animation. 👌👍🏼
This is the episode I was waiting for this season, and I am so happy that it didn't disappoint. Hearing Nana Visitor and Armin Shimerman, the DS9 theme, seeing the station (eyesore of Cardassian fascism aside), all just hit me so hard because DS9 is also *my* Trek. The story was excellent, I could tell everyone put in 100%. Boimler didn't have a lot to do but his role in the epi was perfect. If they tried to squeeze in Ezri, Bashir or even Worf it might have been too much. Kira and Quark were perfectly enough for their appearances. I wish they had a budget to do more stuff like this. I was thinking "did Mariner do a Capt. Jack Harkness and pull that phaser/tricorder... from there?"
I think the Orion guy being an orphaned tryhard raised on Earth who got all of his info about culture from novels seems to be a reference to early TNG Worf. Early TNG Worf was always going on about what Klingons do and don't do.
I would like to propose a down: The fact that we didn’t see Vic Fontaine. It would’ve been possible since James Darren is still alive and kicking. It was especially frustrating since we heard the “casino jazz” while Boimler was playing Dabo.
The way you said "or jenny" at 3:15 instantly reminded me of Rom taking about "RAKtageno" when he was added to the Day shift. 🤣 Also, Kira standing in her (Sisko's former) office staring at the wormhole could be a reference to her friendship with Sisko and her knowledge that's in the wormhole with the Prophets. Her gaze is thoughtful and reflectionary in that moment.
Once again your forensic examination of this episode is fantastic. I am somewhat disapointed that you missed the fact that Mesk was from Cincinnati, Ohio. I am from Cincinnati and it was a real kick to have it mentioned on the show! I just figured that you know where all of your fans are from and live. 😜
I am rewatching Lower Decks, and I find that I also have to rewatch your reviews as well. I am starting to associate your videos with Star Trek so much I can't watch one without following it up with you guys....
Gee Sean. I remember when Star Trek TOS premiered with "The Man Trap", and I was immediately hooked. That was close to 60 years ago! DS9 is a newcomer (but still my favorite Star Trek series).
I admit, I cried watching this episode. DS9 means so much to me, getting to see it back on the screen with actual cast members made me bawl like a baby hit by a hammer.
As a DS9 fan, I loved this ep. So good and agree that the balance was just right. I think I may have also caught another easter egg that wasn't mentioned. Enterprise Bingo from Strange New Worlds.
when I saw the station Deep Space Nine again, my heart was really pounding. I missed that station so much. And all the great angles, how that was shown. Thank you DS9 for giving me so much joy !
The Quark scream and Tendi going all Orion Amazon was what tickled me the most. I mean, that guy in engineering totally committed suicide vs facing Tendi.
I kinda liked the "Kobayashi Maroon" pun. I also like how Shaxs and Kira spent their entire visit fighting over who owes who... because _they both wanted to be the indebted one._
I just watched this the other day. Scotty asks Data what it is and Data responds "It is green". Picard later identifies it to Scotty (on the original Enterprise Bridge), saying "Who do you think gave it to Guinan?"
Best episode of LD so far, and I'm not just saying that because I love DS9. I was a little disappointed that the Karemma wasn't the one played by James Cromwell, especially considering they had him in a booth for earlier this season, but I guess they needed a different one for the story, and the real guest stars were Nana Visitor and Armin Shimerman, anyway. They so perfectly nailed everything about DS9 that I now would love Titmouse to animate a DS9 show. TNG and Voyager both have sequels, the least they could do for DS9 is a cartoon.
The Kobayashi "Maroon" as an interpretive dance because there's no right way to do it was, I thought, a fantastic joke. The reference does gets overused, but this was a really good use and solidly in the "up" category for me.
Did anyone else notice how grey and dingy the baseball in Col. Kira's office now was?? It would appear she tasses it up and down a lot and has allowed it to get dirty. That's something Capt. Sisko never would have let happen. Then again, maybe she just doesn't have time to lovingly keep it in mint condition as Sisko would. That, or maybe the memories of her time with him are more important to her than keeping it clean.
I think that's just the lighting. That baseball was never in mint condition. It was used, it was used on a *real* ballfield and not the Holodeck. Perhaps he wanted to keep it the same as it was recovered from being used in a real game, but there's no evidence Sisko kept it clean. He only made sure it wasn't falling apart.
Or, it might be a random Baseball, that she keeps on her desk to honor her friend, and not The Sisko's baseball... I mean, I was kinda surprised it was there, and would make some sense if Kassidy (or Jake) had claimed Ben's baseball.
@@Sephiroth144 Possibly, either that or its a continuation of when Sisko left the baseball behind when they abandoned the station to the Dominion. Its there waiting for him to come back for it - a sign that he's not truly gone, just currently occupied elsewhere.
@@andromidius Granted; but if your dad died (granted, The Sisko (probably) didn't die, but functionally for Jake, well, he's not coming back for a while at least), and the ball that you played with your old man was sitting on the desk, would you want to bring it "home", or leave it at his work?
My favorite part was when they played the DS9 theme then cut to Ransom and the navigator and he's like 'Keep circling' and they start the DS9 theme again. This was my favorite episode so far, probably because DS9 is my favorite Trek. I was also happy to see Tendi embrace her heritage and be such a badass.
I don't watch spoilers (trailers) so I had no idea they were doing this. DS9 is the best Star Trek show by a country mile (IMO, don't at me) so this was absolute heaven for me. I cried during the opening sequence when we saw the station & heard the theme, the return of Quark & Kira, and I'll even forgive the Kobyashi Maroon gag ("there's no right way to dance it"). Every frame of this episode was absolute perfection. Best episode so far.