Star Trek: Deep Space Nine — 4x11 — Homefront

Aired 1996-01-01

SpaceOpera.com rating:5

Average reader rating:6.5

Synopsis

Evidence that Changelings are targeting Earth sends Sisko back to his home planet, where he and Odo must prevent or prepare for war with the Dominion.

Filler rating: not filler

Numerous major long term plot threads are serviced here.

Remarkable scenes

Odo lamenting about Dax moving his furniture.
The recording of the bombing.
Worf: "I prefer Klingon beliefs." Kira: "I suppose your gods aren't as cryptic as ours." Worf: "Our gods are dead. Ancient Klingon warriors slew them a millennia ago. They were more trouble than they were worth."
Odo lamenting about being the test Changeling for the phaser sweeps.
Odo discovering the Changeling admiral.
Armed Federation security officers beaming down all over Earth.
Morn Appearances; 1. Talking to Quark just before Odo complains to Quark. 2. Enters the bar as Bashir and O'Brien talk to Odo.

Review

So the wormhole is opening and closing at random. Then there's a bombing on Earth caused by a Changeling. Then Odo discovers a Changeling trying to impersonate an admiral on Earth. Yep, it all adds up. Changelings are indeed "everywhere." This story is credibly presented, but I just don't like it on principle. While it's an enjoyable episode, I personally would have rather seen the time spent on something else. I agree entirely with Odo's objections for coming. What's the point? They already submitted very thorough reports. One thing I did like was the alien president of the Federation, something that was featured in TOS as well. I also enjoyed getting a chance to see Sisko's father for the first time, as well as the restaurant he kept talking about. Other than that, it's all fairly average stuff.

7 reader comments

I love how they don't allow those nasty DS9 uniforms on Earth. Cool people wear the TNG uniforms, and that includes everyone on Earth.
by Pete Miller | 06/25/2006 at 9:40 pm

I was surprised to see such a low score for this one. Personally, I find this to be the best two-parter so far on DS9. I love seeing how, despite the near-perfection of the Federation, humans still have some basic flaws. They are unavoidable, since most of them can be good qualities in many situations. The story strikes me as credible and well-executed, and I like seeing some internal Federation politics, which we don't get much of.
by EKH | 05/11/2007 at 9:03 pm

It's pretty rare that I seriously disagree with our host here, but this is one of those times. I think this is one of the best DS9 episodes in existence.
I love seeing Earth. I love Sisko's dad. I love the paranoia about changelings. I even like Nog's struggles at the Academy. I think the tension between the President and the Federation's ideals and Star Fleet's insistence on raising security. It's rare that Trek makes uncomfortable decisions, and it works well here. I haven't seen the conclusion yet (not since the original run, anyway) so I'm hoping this is building up to something special.
by JRPoole | 03/25/2009 at 8:54 pm

People who complain about the mixture of uniforms clearly do not understand that every historical military has had a mixture of uniforms even within the same branch. For example, at some points in Star Trek there appear to be uniforms for stationary assignment and others for naval assignment. For a campaign and for the home front. For Monday and for Tuesday.
by Tallifer | 03/30/2011 at 12:18 am

The thing I can never get my head around when I watch this episode is Joseph Sisko's restaurant - if, as Picard put it in First Contact, there is no money on Earth, what's the point of having a restaurant? Okay, maybe it would be fun for Sisko's dad to have a restaurant and provide free food to people just because he's a nice guy and likes to cook, but why the hell would someone be a busboy or chop onions in the kitchen the entire day without getting paid?
Or maybe he charges latinum…
by Gul Ranek | 12/30/2012 at 11:31 pm

This story line just doesn't quite work for me. We keep hearing this is happening all over the planet, but we don't SEE it. The action is just contained to a few small sets. The scope of this story is too big for the show. They should have set this on maybe another space station, or on DS9, but not the entire planet Earth.
by Mike D | 04/06/2017 at 5:21 am

Admiral Leyton: “What I’d like to know is, why was (the Changeling) imitating me?” Commander Benteen: “Well, sir, you live on a very nice bayfront property with an amazing view. You have a vacation home in the Riviera. You own one of the biggest luxury shuttlecraft in the city, and the rumors are that your wife is excellent in bed.”
SERIOUSLY, Leyton? You’re an admiral in Starfleet Security and you can’t deduce why a Changeling would want to impersonate you?
That boneheaded line aside, Leyton’s an excellent idea for an antagonist. When I saw this two-parter, I didn’t expect they would take the direction it did. The Changelings foment just enough chaos on Earth to plunge the planet into fear which lets paranoid, reckless people like Leyton do the rest for them. It’s as insidious as it was effective, and made for a great story.
For Gul Ranek, there’s a lot out there on the economics of Star Trek. I can’t repeat it all here, but basically Earth and the Federation have a post-scarcity economy. All resources, energy, and necessities of life are either replicated or efficiently mass-produced. In this world, people no longer have to pursue something because they need to make money, they can do what they enjoy. The Picard vineyard isn’t necessary, but is something the family wants to do to give the authentic French wine experience. The Sisko restaurant is similar, offering real Cajun and Creole food as part of New Orleans life. It’s the same desire for personal fulfillment and social betterment that is the basis for Starfleet itself, just a different version. As for the currency, who knows? Maybe it’s an advanced barter system. It just isn’t for profit. I do agree it’s unlikely that in such a world, lowly jobs like busboy or prep cook wouldn’t be appealing…we can only assume “Nathan” works there out of some sense of family loyalty or is compensated in some way.
by Axel | 04/10/2020 at 1:15 am