Episode #34: Whispers
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Episode #34: Whispers
WHISPERS (prod. #434; 14th episode of 2nd season)
written by Paul Robert Coyle; Directed by Les Landau
Now this was an intriguing episode - a dark ominous mystery that, if you don't guess the twist before the last minutes, should have you applauding in appreciation at the climax. I did guess the twist halfway through but that's because I did see this once 15 years ago; the revelation kicked into my brain eventually as I watched. The story revolves around O'Brien and seems like a study in paranoia. Since he returned to the DS9 station from a brief trip away, he's noticed slightly odd behavior from all his acquaintances - especially his wife. She seems cold or at least cool to him, while his little daughter doesn't like him for some reason. Even more, Keiko seems set on keeping the little girl away from their quarters. Later, O'Brien determines that Keiko has been fibbing to him about something.
That's the personal side of O'Brien's life; in his work life, he's noticing even more bizarre developments. Sisko seems to be keeping him out of the loop on certain security measures and assigns him to repair a section of the station as if he's trying to keep O'Brien busy there. Odo, who has also been away, returns and O'Brien confides in him, sure that he at least has one ally. But, later... well, the 'conspiracy' spreads, as O'Brien sees it. I think when I first saw this, my first thought was that this involved the 'space parasite' invaders from the old TNG episode, CONSPIRACY; it looked like the DS9 personnel had been taken over, which is why O'Brien regarded them as strangers. But, looks can be deceiving... heh-heh-heh.
This is not an entirely new concept; I remember an old Marvel Comics monster/sci-fi story from around 1960 which was probably derived from a sf short story; these had a very similar premise. There was a sci-fi film from about 8 years ago that played with this plot - but I won't name it so as not to give it all away. This is the rare episode which, once you know the ending, you must watch again from your now 180-degree switch in perspective. This episode could also leave you with a chilly feeling, making you wonder about reality versus the perception of reality, and more specifically, the matter of identity. BoG's Score: 7.5 out of 10
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» Episode #07: Q-Less
» Episode #01 - Where is Everybody?
» Episode #08: Dax
» episode #71 - A Day at the Zoo
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