“The Assignment” is the annual O’Brien Must Suffer episode. This time around, Keiko is possessed by a Bajoran demon on his birthday. She forces him to destroy the wormhole Prophets or face Keiko’s death. The episode has a throwaway feel to it. There is no explanation given for how Keiko is possessed by a pah-Wraith. She just shows up from a trip to the fire Caves on Bajor and announces to o’rien she has been and he is going to destroy the wormhole or else. The bulk of the episode is the creepy act she puts on in front of everyone to convince them nothing is wrong while O’Brien scurries about doing her bidding while trying to figure a way out of this mess.
He eventually does with the help of Rom, whose rise from night shift flunky to full time day shift engineer is chronicled in the B-story. His promotion comes when he serves as the unlikely hero of the story.
This is the first time we meet a pah-Wraith and the only time a possession is so subdued. In subsequent appearances, anyone possessed by one develops glowing eyes and a metallic voice. The only common element is the completely evil demeanor. They will, however, lay a big part in the series finale when Dukat becomes possessed. It is still not a very auspicious introduction.
To me, “The Assignment’ feels like a TNG episode. It sticks out like a sore thumb even with the introduction of the Pah-Wraiths as a key DS0 feature. Part of the problem is that o’Brien himself was possessed in a similar manner in TNG’s “Power Play” wherein he threatened Keiko. So not only are the plots similar, but the same characters are involved. Putting the shoe on the other foot is not enough to make the plot different enough to use again. I will give it two stars because it sets up both the Pah-Wraiths and Rom for bigger things down the road, but otherwise, it is a dud.
Rating; ** (out of 5)
