Past Tense (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
| "Past Tense" | |
|---|---|
| Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 11 & 12 |
| Directed by |
Reza Badiyi (Part I) Jonathan Frakes (Part II) |
| Teleplay by |
Robert Hewitt Wolfe (Part I) Ira Steven Behr (Part II) René Echevarria (Part II) |
| Story by |
Ira Steven Behr Robert Hewitt Wolfe |
| Featured music |
Dennis McCarthy (Part I) David Bell (Part II) |
| Production code | 457 & 458 |
| Original air date | January 8, 1995 January 15, 1995 |
| Guest appearance(s) | |
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| Episode chronology | |
"Past Tense" is a two-part episode from the third season of science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 57th and 58th episodes overall.
The crew of the Defiant is thrown back in time to 2024 on Earth. The United States of America has attempted to solve the problem of homelessness by erecting "Sanctuary Districts" where unemployed and/or mentally ill persons are placed in makeshift ghettos.
When Commander Sisko, Dr. Bashir, and Jadzia Dax attempt to beam down to Earth from the Defiant, an accident occurs and they materialize in San Francisco in the year 2024.
Dax is separated from her crewmates. Offered help by a prominent businessman, Chris Brynner, she manages to get an ID, money, and a place to live.
Meanwhile, Sisko and Bashir are awakened by a pair of police officers, who believe them to be vagrants and warn them to get off the streets. They are escorted to a "Sanctuary District", a fenced-off ghetto that is used to contain the poor, the sick, the mentally disabled, and anyone else who cannot support themselves. Sisko sees the date on the calendar and realizes they have arrived just days before the "Bell Riots", a violent confrontation in the San Francisco Sanctuary District, that Sisko recalls as a watershed moment in human history. Dozens will be killed, including a man named Gabriel Bell, the leader of the demonstration. Bell will become a hero because of his self-sacrifice while protecting hostages. As a result of Bell's heroism, attitudes toward the disadvantaged begin to change. Unable to find a building to sleep in, Sisko and Bashir live in the street.
Attending an affluent party with Brynner, Dax realizes that Sisko and Bashir have been taken into the Sanctuary District, and sets about finding them.
Disaster strikes when a fight breaks out because Sisko and Bashir resist attempts to steal the food cards they have been given. A man who comes to their aid is killed, and Sisko and Bashir discover after the fact that he was Gabriel Bell. Sisko quickly realizes that due to their presence, the course of history stands to be radically changed, since Bell is no longer around to play the prominent role of hostage protection in the historical narrative. Sisko, who bears some resemblance to Bell, assumes his identity to ensure that history is not altered.
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