Starship Down
- FIRST SHOWN (US)
- 13 November 1995
- ON
- First-run syndication
- STARDATE
- 49263.5
- DIRECTED BY
- Alexander Singer
- PRODUCTION NO.
- 479
WRITTEN BYWritten by David Mack & John J. Ordover
Secret trade talks in the Gamma Quadrant turn into a fight for survival when the Defiant is forced deep into the crushing atmosphere of a gas giant.
Red alert: the full plot, ending included. Haven't watched yet?REVEAL SYNOPSIS
The Defiant takes the senior staff into the Gamma Quadrant for secret trade talks with the Karemma, with Quark acting as go-between for their representative, Hanok. When Jem'Hadar ships attack, the Defiant pursues them into the atmosphere of a gas giant, where the pressure and the corrosive gases batter the ship. The damage leaves the crew divided and in trouble. Sisko suffers a serious head injury, and Kira struggles to keep him conscious. Dax and Bashir are trapped in a turbolift shaft as their air runs low. Quark and Hanok must work together to disarm an unexploded torpedo lodged in the hull, while O'Brien and Worf fight to get the engines working again. Against the odds, the crew destroys the two Jem'Hadar ships, rescues the Karemma crew and brings the battered Defiant home to the station.
- 01David Mack drew on the 1981 submarine film Das Boot. The story was first pitched as taking place underwater, before moving to a gas giant.
- 02Co-writer John J. Ordover was then a senior editor at Simon & Schuster, overseeing its Star Trek novels.
- 03Lower Decks season three's “Hear All, Trust Nothing” follows up on this story, with Quark and Kira back at trade talks with the Karemma.