Captive Pursuit

"Captive Pursuit" is the 6^th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Overview

O'Brien befriends an alien who is the target of a deadly hunt.

Plot

A damaged unidentified vessel from the Gamma Quadrant docks at Deep Space Nine for repairs. Its reptilian pilot, who only identifies himself as "Tosk", requires virtually no "downtime" as he calls sleep and leisure, does not seem to possess a sense of humor, and he has the ability to become invisible. He is the first known life-form from the Gamma Quadrant. Despite their many differences, O'Brien befriends Tosk and tries to help him repair his ship. However, Tosk attempts to steal weapons from DS9 and is put in a holding cell.

Uniformed aliens come through the wormhole, break onto DS9 and cause a major phaser battle. As the uniformed aliens later explain, Tosk was bred to be hunted by them and has spent his entire life preparing. Kira suggests that Tosk ask for Federation asylum but the alien does not do so. As much as he detests this practice, Sisko believes that under the Prime Directive he must release Tosk to the aliens. However, security is noticeably slow in responding when O'Brien helps Tosk "change the rules" of the hunt and escape, a reference to the Kobayashi Maru. Tosk's would-be captors are injured in a trap laid by O'Brien, who redirects Tosk to safety. Although Sisko chastises O'Brien per Starfleet regulations, he too is glad to see Tosk escape.

Notes

• This episode maintains a fan rating of 4.1 out of 5 on the official Star Trek Website.
• The actual name of the Hunter species is not given onscreen. Sketches of the makeup that would be used to create them appear in the book The Making of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, along with a species name: the Drai.

Arc significance

• Odo reveals that he never carries a weapon, something which would stay true for the remainder of the series.
• We get a first hint that ethical standards in the Gamma Quadrant may be very different from those in the Alpha Quadrant.
• The Hunters and Tosk are never seen again in the show. A Hunter was to appear in the later episode "Broken Link" (thus suggesting that the Tosk and Hunters are members of the Dominion) but this was cut shortly before filming of that episode.
• When the Jem'Hadar are introduced in later episodes, their shrouding ability and appearance are very similar to that of Tosk, thus lending further credence to the idea that Tosk and Hunters are part of the Dominion.

References

• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine DVD set, volume 1, disc 2, selection 2.
• P. Farrand, Nitpicker's Guide for Deep space Nine Trekkers New York: Dell (1996): 25 - 28

External links

• Captive Pursuit at the Internet Movie Database
• "Captive Pursuit" at TV.com
• Captive Pursuit at StarTrek.com
• Captive Pursuit at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Tosk at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)