Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)

Last updated
"Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode
Episode no.Season 7
Episode 16
Directed by David Livingston
Written by Ronald D. Moore
Featured music Dennis McCarthy
Production code565
Original air dateMarch 1, 1999 (1999-03-01)
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Badda-Bing Badda-Bang"		Next →
"Penumbra"
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 7
List of episodes

"Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges" is the 166th episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , the 16th episode of the seventh season. The episode title means "In times of war, the law falls silent" and is paraphrased from Cicero. The episode was written by Ron Moore and directed by David Livingston. [1]

Contents

Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the crew of the Starfleet-managed Bajoran space station Deep Space Nine . The later seasons of the series follow a war between the United Federation of Planets and an expansionist empire known as the Dominion; the Federation maintains a shaky alliance with the devious Romulan empire. In this episode, station physician Julian Bashir is recruited by Section 31, the Federation's shadowy black ops division, to spy on the Romulans during a conference to manipulate Romulan politics to the Federation's benefit. This continues the story of Section 31, which was first introduced in the sixth-season episode "Inquisition".

It had Nielsen ratings of 4.1 points (about 4 million viewers) when it was broadcast on television in 1999. [2]

Plot

As Bashir prepares for a conference on Romulus, Section 31 agent Luther Sloan appears with an assignment for him. Captain Sisko advises him to accept it, in order to learn more about the secretive agency.

Bashir is asked to determine whether Koval, the anti-Federation head of the Romulan Tal Shiar and a candidate for the influential Continuing Committee, suffers from the degenerative Tuvan syndrome. Bashir discusses the issue with Admiral William Ross, who says it would be better for the Federation if Senator Cretak were appointed to the committee instead.

Bashir meets Koval at the conference, and later tells Sloan that he believes Koval does have Tuvan syndrome. Sloan asks how the disease could be accelerated. Bashir, suspecting that Sloan is plotting a covert assassination, informs Admiral Ross, who plans to have Sloan arrested. Ross muses that Sloan could have an accomplice on Romulus.

Before Sloan can be arrested, Bashir overhears that Ross has suffered an aneurysm. With nowhere else to turn, Bashir tells Cretak of his suspicions about Sloan. Cretak agrees to help Bashir identify Sloan's accomplice by giving him classified Tal Shiar information.

The next day, Koval has Bashir arrested and tortured. Bashir and Cretak are brought before the Continuing Committee, and Bashir tells them about the Section 31 plot against Koval. Koval brings in Sloan, badly beaten, and says Section 31 does not exist; Sloan is merely a renegade Starfleet officer obsessed with getting revenge for his mentor's death. The committee convicts Cretak of treason for planning to share Tal Shiar intelligence with Bashir; Sloan is to be held for further interrogation. Enraged, Sloan grabs a guard's weapon; Koval fires first, vaporizing Sloan.

That night, Bashir demands the truth from Admiral Ross. Off the record, Ross reveals that Koval is working for Starfleet. The real mission was to discredit Cretak, who would abandon the Federation alliance if she thought it in the best interest of the Romulans, and get Koval onto the committee. Sloan was transported away just before he was shot. Bashir is disgusted that the Federation would resort to such machinations.

Back aboard Deep Space Nine, Sloan appears in Bashir's quarters, explaining that he needed a man of conscience for the operation—that the Federation needs men of conscience, but it also needs men like Sloan. After he leaves, Bashir calls station security, but catches himself and says it was nothing, as Sloan is already gone.

Production

The episode's title is a paraphrase from Cicero's Pro Milone , Latin for "In times of war, the law falls silent," and is a line spoken in the episode. [3]

The scenes filmed on the Federation starship USS Bellerophon were the sets of the USS Voyager used for Star Trek: Voyager , both ships being Intrepid-class. [4] [5]

Guest star Hal Landon Jr. takes over from Norman Large as Neral, last seen in Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Unification". Adrienne Barbeau plays Cretak, a character previously played by Megan Cole in the episodes "Image in the Sand" and "Shadows and Symbols". [5]

Reception

Keith R. A. DeCandido of Tor.com gave it six out of ten. He was dissatisfied with the ending, but praised the "crackling dialogue" and the scenes with Sadler and Siddig, which he called "a magnificent showcase for both of them". He also praised the Romulans, Adrienne Barbeau for her nuanced performance and John Fleck for his controlled delivery. [5]

io9 rated "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges" as the 35th best of all Star Trek television episodes. [6]

In 2015, Geek.com recommended this episode as "essential watching" for their abbreviated Star Trek: Deep Space Nine binge-watching guide. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romulan</span> Extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek franchise

The Romulans are an extraterrestrial race in the American science fiction franchise Star Trek. Their adopted home world is Romulus, and within the same star system they have settled a sister planet Remus. Their original home world, Vulcan, was renamed Ni'Var later in canon. They first appeared in the series Star Trek (1966–1969). They have appeared in most subsequent Star Trek releases, including The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, Enterprise, Discovery, Picard, Strange New Worlds, and Lower Decks. They appear in the Star Trek feature films Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991), Star Trek: Nemesis (2002) and Star Trek (2009). They also appear in various other spin-off media, including books, comics, toys and games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Sisko</span> Character from TV series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Benjamin Lafayette Sisko is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise portrayed by Avery Brooks. He was the main character of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (DS9), which was originally broadcast between 1993 and 1999. The character has also appeared in various books, comics, and video games within the Star Trek franchise.

Section 31, in the fictional universe of Star Trek, is an autonomous intelligence and defense organization that carries out covert operations for the United Federation of Planets. Created by Ira Steven Behr for the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Inquisition", the organization was intended to act as a counterbalance to the utopian portrayal of the Federation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Bashir</span> Fictional character in the TV series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Julian Subatoi Bashir, MD is a fictional character from the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, portrayed by Alexander Siddig. Bashir is the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of space station Deep Space Nine and the USS Defiant.

The Dominion War is an extended plot concept developed in several story arcs of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, an American science-fiction television series produced by Paramount Pictures. In the fictional Star Trek universe, the Dominion War is a conflict between the forces of the Dominion, the Cardassian Union, and, eventually, the Breen Confederacy against the Alpha Quadrant alliance of the United Federation of Planets, the Klingon Empire and, later, the Romulan Star Empire. The war takes place in the final two seasons of the series, but is gradually built up to over the course of the five preceding seasons.

"The Search" is the 47th and 48th episode of the science fiction television show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

"In the Pale Moonlight" is the 143rd episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 19th of the sixth season. It originally aired on April 15, 1998, in broadcast syndication.

Tuvan or Tuvinian can refer to:

"Penumbra" is the 167th episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 17th episode of the seventh season. It aired on syndicated television the week of April 5, 1999.

"Extreme Measures" is the 173rd episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The episode had over 4.3 million viewers when it first aired on television in May 1999, with a Nielsen rating of 4.3 points.

"Image in the Sand" is the 151st episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the opening episode for the series' seventh and final season. It was first aired the week of September 28, 1998.

"By Inferno's Light" is the 113th episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 15th episode of the fifth season.

<i>Star Trek: Starfleet Command III</i> 2002 video game

Star Trek: Starfleet Command III is a Star Trek video game published in 2002. It was the fourth entry in the Starfleet Command series, and one of the last Star Trek games to be released by Activision. The game involves the a story-driven series of missions for three factions, that is conducted by controlling starships that are developed with RPG elements. The game was released for Windows operating system, and received generally positive reviews.

"Improbable Cause" is the 66th episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 20th episode of the third season. It is the first half of a two-part episode, concluded in the following episode, "The Die is Cast".

"The Die Is Cast" is the 67th episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 21st episode of the third season. It is the second half of a two-part episode, concluding the story begun in the previous episode, "Improbable Cause". This episode was first televised in broadcast syndication in May 1995.

"Shadows and Symbols" is the second episode of the seventh season of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the 152nd overall, premiering the week of October 5, 1998. The episode's premiere received Nielsen ratings of 4.2 points corresponding to over 4.1 million viewers. This episode was written by Ira Steven Behr and Hans Beimler, and directed by Allan Kroeker.

"Inquisition" is the 142nd episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It is the 18th episode of the sixth season. This episode introduces Starfleet's secretive intelligence agency, Section 31, which would go on to be featured in future Star Trek television series and films.

Koval may refer to:

References

  1. ↑ Jamahl Epsicokhan. "[DS9] Jammer's Review: "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"". Jammer's Reviews . Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  2. ↑ "WebTrek - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine * SEASON 7 NIELSEN RATINGS". Users.telenet.be. Archived from the original on 2017-01-24. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  3. ↑ Gonzalez, George A. (2015-12-27). The Politics of Star Trek: Justice, War, and the Future By George A. Gonzalez. Springer. ISBN   9781137546326 . Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  4. ↑ "Cinefantastique - Volume 32, Issues 2-6". 2010-05-12. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  5. 1 2 3 DeCandido, Keith R. A. (2015-01-20). "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Rewatch: "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"". Tor.com .
  6. ↑ "The Top 100 Star Trek Episodes Of All Time!". io9 . 2 October 2014. Archived from the original on 2019-05-30. Retrieved 2019-10-21.
  7. ↑ Whitwam, Ryan (2015-01-19). "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine condensed: How to watch the most story-driven Trek". Geek.com . Archived from the original on 2016-11-20.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.