Retro Review: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine—Take Me Out to the Holosuite

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine has one of the best holodeck episodes.

Ever since the holodeck made its first appearance in Star Trek the Next Generation, it has been the setting of some of Trek’s most memorable episodes. It is a truly brilliant story telling device, for no longer is the narrative of any certain episode bound to the confines of space, (I think that’s an oxymoron) but with the introduction of the holodeck, the crew of the Enterprise (or in this case the inhabitants of Deep Space Nine) can go anywhere and do anything.

There have been many episodes featuring a holodeck or holosuite setting as its main plot point, and perhaps I am exercising a bit of my own personal bias here, but one of my favorite episodes by far, is the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “Take me out to the Holosuite” which featured the first ever baseball game to take place in Star Trek.

“Take Me Out to the Holosuite” is one of the best holodeck episodes from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

“Take me out to the Holosuite” brilliantly combines two of my most favorite things in this world or any other, baseball and Trek, and it does so in a way that only Trek can.

Sisko is challenged by his old rival, (a Vulcan called Solok) and his all Vulcan crew to a contest to prove Vulcan superiority over humans. The contest in question is to be a game of baseball. What follows is one of Trek’s most creative “fish out of water” stories, for as common place as baseball is to probably most of the viewers of this episode, it is completely foreign to the crew of Deep Space Nine. And the more the crew learns about it,  the more excited they become, eventually forming a team appropriately calling themselves “The Niners.”

Unfortunately, the first attempt at a team practice results in several members of the team paying a visit to the infirmary with various injuries. But the team does start to improve, all except for Rom, who is kicked off the team due to Sisko’s impatience with his lack of improvement and Sisko’s determination to not lose to Solok.

Throughout the course of the episode, we learn that Sisko’s obsession with defeating Solok is due to losing a wrestling match to him back in their Academy days. Sisko further states that had he just lost, it would have been forgiven, but Solo goes on to use it as an example of how Vulcans are superior to humans and all other “emotionally handicapped species.” He even goes as far as to publish several papers on the subject.

Sisko is determined to prove Solok wrong and wants to do so with a game that Sisko himself is so passionate about. Once the rest of the team finds out about their commander’s true motives behind challenging Solok, this acts as motivation to win the game.

As the game takes place, the best scene in this Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode unfolds as Worf and Sisko are arguing balls and strikes with Odo, and Odo promptly throws Sisko from the game for making physical contact with him during the shouting match.

The Niners go on to lose the game to the Vulcans, but the team celebrates anyway at the wonderful experience the game was, and Sisko is invigorated by his love for the game. While Solok insists they are simply attempting to manufacture triumph where there is none, the Niners are happy to accept that accusation, which provokes an emotional response from the always logical Solo.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine hit this episode out of the park with the holodeck

This episode stands out as one of the best “Holo” episodes of Trek. There are many examples I could cite here to support my claim, but I will save you the time of reading them and just say that many websites dedicated to Trek episodes are in agreement.

This episode takes the crew of DS9 out of their worlds of intergalactic diplomacy and interstellar espionage and places them into a much simpler but at the same time much more foreign experience, giving them all a love and appreciation for America’s greatest pasttime along the way.

It highlights the constant rivalry between humans who are governed by their emotions, and their ever logical counterparts, the Vulcans, and it also shows another side of Sisko, not the commander of a space station, but the passionate baseball fan. Overall, this episode is a home run, for fans of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and of the “holo” episodes.