Star Trek: Deep Space Nine — 7x06 — Treachery, Faith, and the Great River

Aired 1998-11-04

SpaceOpera.com rating:9

Average reader rating:4.54

Synopsis

Odo is lured to a secret meeting site, where he finds himself face to face with Weyoun, the Vorta leader of the enemy Dominion.

Filler rating: not filler

Numerous major long term plot threads are serviced here.

Remarkable scenes

The teaser, O'Brien's swamped with repairs and Weyoun is defecting...
Odo: "Aren't you being a little paranoid?" Weyoun: "Of course I'm paranoid, everyone's trying to kill me."
Odo: "I'm not sure the universe is ready for two Weyouns."
Damar convincing Weyoun to attack Odo's Runabout.
Nog explaining to O'Brien his network of trades.
Weyoun betraying the Jem'Hadar allowing Odo to destroy one of their ships.
Weyoun: "The Vorta used to be quite different from what we are today. We were forest dwellers. Small, timid, ape-like creatures living in hollowed out trees." Odo: "Eating nuts and berries..." Weyoun: "And living in fear of the many predators that would hunt us for food. One day, a wounded Changeling came stumbling through the forest fleeing from a mob of angry solids." Odo: "Why were they chasing him?" Weyoun: "What does it matter? Solids have always feared and mistrusted shapeshifters, you know that. Well, a family of Vorta hid the Changeling from his pursuers. And in exchange for saving his life, the Changeling promised the Vorta that one day we would be transformed into powerful beings. That we would become an important part of a great new empire that would stretch across the galaxy."
Odo's "become the ice" strategy.
The ice battle.
Weyoun 6 committing suicide to save Odo.
O'Brien relieved to see his trust in Nog was not misplaced.
Rules of Acquisition; 168. Whisper your way to success.

Review

Another spectacular episode which skillfully merges several plot threads. Weyoun 5 was murdered, Damar may have killed him. Weyoun 6 is defecting, and Damar and Weyoun 7 are trying to kill him. The founders are all dying from a serious illness, and finally we have the story on DS9 in which Nog is attempting to procure replacement parts for O'Brien. The various plot threads are woven together well, providing a more than sufficiently entertaining episode which has just the right mix between humor, action, danger, and drama. Overall, a brilliant outing.

7 reader comments

This is one of my favourite episodes ever. A 10/10! This episode gives an in depth look at the unwavering devotion of the Vorta to the Founders. The meta exploration into the relationship of the Vorta and the Founders is brilliantly conducted through Weyoun's interaction with Odo, where Weyoun's obvious jubilation of simply being in his presence Odo is depicted. This episode further exceeds my expectations with its unorthodox delivery of insight to one of my favourite antagonist powers, the Dominion, and one of my favourite antagonist characters, Weyoun. To top off this 'magnus opus' of DS9 season 7, 'stubborn old Odo' in the end gives Weyoun what he so desperately wants, his blessing. In the end, Odo's blessing of Weyoun 6 brings meaning to his existence. Bravo! …and the side story is entertaining to boot, offering much needed comic relief to the intrigue and intensity of the Odo Weyoun study.
by Azduel | 03/31/2010 at 2:16 am

I enjoyed everything about this episode.
Jeffrey Combs has the role of a Vorta down so well it makes one wonder if he came up with the concept for the race. The smooth speaking delivery, the cautious, diplomatic language, the ability to feign sincerity in both word and expression, and unflinching devotion to the Founders…he does it all flawlessly.
This episode was an interesting twist for the Weyoun character, exploring whether his (or rather, Weyoun 6) doubt of the Founders is partly due to a cloning flaw, or if, despite their cloning, the Vorta are capable of questioning their gods. It also was a nice continuation of the very complex relationship Odo has with his people.
The subplot was a perfect balance to the main plot. Nog's skillful navigation of the "Great River" was hilarious and very…Ferengi-like. I guess there's a little Ferengi in all of us!
by MJ | 03/03/2011 at 6:33 pm

i understand it as all communication through the wormhole is cut off for the dominiom, including reinforcements.
Then - how do they know that the Great Link is contaminated?
Otherwise a great ep!
by Hugo von Ahlenius | 02/28/2013 at 6:46 pm

Hugo, Wayoun likely got the information from the female changeling that is on Cardassia at this time, who knows of the sickness because she is herself sick, and the extent of it due to information revealed later in the season…
by Spline | 09/10/2013 at 9:45 am

I enjoyed the Nog/O'Brien subplot immensely. Throughout much of TNG and DS9, the Ferengi obsession with profit has been portrayed in a negative light, and given Star Trek values, this is understandable. But here we have a situation where Ferengi skills prove highly useful, and it adds another dimension to their race. It was really imaginative on the part of the writers to add the "Material Continuum" element, giving the Ferengi some cultural depth. And, it's all done in a light and funny way that makes for an enjoyable storyline.
Alongside this, we get a better glimpse of the Vorta in this episode as well. We find out about their background, about their cloning process, and about their utter reverence for the Founders. Jeffrey Combs, who seems to have been born to play the role of a Vorta, again just nails it in this episode and shows his versatility by acting as both Weyoun clones.
by Axel | 05/17/2015 at 7:49 am

This is another episode where I feel like the average rating is rigged. Most of the user ratings are quite high… except for the fact that there's over 100 zero votes.
You might think about dumping those zeros since it seems likely somebody spammed the rating.
by tigertooth | 01/20/2017 at 8:08 pm

There is a big update to the site coming in February and I will be doing exactly that among other things.
by Eric Newport | 01/21/2017 at 7:27 pm