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"Rejoined"
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode
Lenara Kahn (left) and Dax kissing
Episode no.Season 4
Episode 5
Directed byAvery Brooks
Story byRené Echevarria
Teleplay by
Featured musicJay Chattaway
Production code478
Original air dateOctober 30, 1995 (1995-10-30)
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
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"Starship Down"
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 4
List of episodes

"Rejoined" is the 78th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the fifth of the fourth season. It originally aired on October 30, 1995, in broadcast syndication. The episode received a record volume of feedback from viewers for the series, both positive and negative, as it marked one of the first televised lesbian kisses on American television.

Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures on Deep Space Nine, a space station located near a stable wormhole between the Alpha and Gamma quadrants of the Milky Way Galaxy. The plot of "Rejoined" expands on the Trill species, of which DS9 officer Jadzia Dax is a member. They are formed of a host and a symbiont, with the symbiont passed from host to host as the previous one dies. In the episode, Dax is reunited with Lenara Kahn, the widow of one of the symbiont's former hosts. The two struggle with their feelings for one another because of the taboo in their species against reuniting with loved ones of former hosts as they work together to experiment on wormholes.

The episode was the first that writers Ronald D. Moore and René Echevarria wrote together, and it was directed by main cast member Avery Brooks. In the first draft, Dax's former partner was written as male, but after this was changed, the story was cleared through studio executives. The Trill taboo was intended to be an allegory for homosexuality and homophobia. "Rejoined" received a Nielsen rating of seven percent on the first broadcast in syndication. Reviews have been mostly positive towards the episode because of its message, but there was criticism that the plot was not exciting enough and there was a negative reaction from some viewers.

Plot

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Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) notifies Lieutenant Commander Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell) that a group of Trill scientists will be arriving soon at Deep Space Nine to perform experiments related to wormhole physics. The Trill are a species of humanoids, some of whom host a sluglike symbiont implanted into them. The symbionts live far longer than the hosts, and are moved into a new host when the old one dies. Jadzia is the eighth host of the Dax symbiont. Sisko tells Dax that the head scientist is Lenara Kahn (Susanna Thompson), and offers to grant Dax a leave of absence while the Trill scientists are aboard, but she turns it down. Upon Dax and Kahn's first meeting, Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor) notices that they are very familiar with each other; Dax tells her that Kahn used to be her wife. Dr. Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) later explains to Kira that previous hosts of the Dax and Kahn symbionts were married to each other, but Trill are forbidden from reassociating with partners and lovers of past hosts.

At the welcome party for the visiting scientists, Dax and Kahn warm to one another's company once more. Afterward, they begin to socialize as they work together on Kahn's wormhole experiment aboard USS Defiant. They agree to have dinner, but to also bring Bashir along as a chaperone. At dinner, Bashir is effectively ignored by the two Trills as they reminisce about their past hosts. Later, back on the Defiant, Kahn successfully creates an artificial wormhole and Dax hugs her in celebration. Kahn's brother Bejal (Tim Ryan), who is on the science team, speaks to her separately and highlights his concerns regarding her contact with Dax. Despite this, Kahn goes to Dax's quarters and a discussion between the two leads to a kiss; Kahn leaves before it goes any further.

Dax confides in Sisko that she knows she is in love with her former wife. He reminds her that Trill customs mean that if they resumed their relationship, then they would be exiled from their homeworld and their symbionts would never be joined with a new host, but says that she will have his support either way. Kahn and Dax continue to work on the experiment, but it goes wrong and Defiant is severely damaged. Kahn is injured in the explosion, but Dax rigs a force field across a plasma fire that allows her to reach Kahn, coming to the realization that the relationship is worth exile. After returning to the station, Kahn recuperates from her injuries. She decides against resuming her relationship with Dax, and—with the experiments complete—departs with the science team, leaving Dax heartbroken.

Production

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Writing and directing

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A head and shoulders photo of a white woman with black hair, wearing a black top.
Terry Farrell was happy to support the LGBT community through the story line in "Rejoined".[1]

"Rejoined" marked the first time that longtime Star Trek writers Ronald D. Moore and René Echevarria wrote a script together. They had been hired by executive producer Michael Piller following separate unsolicited manuscripts submitted during the third season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and had remained on the staff of the franchise since.[2] In Echevarria's first draft of the story, there was no lesbian element as Dax's former lover was male. The Trill taboo against reuniting relationships from past hosts was suggested by Piller early on in the creation of Deep Space Nine, in order for the society to prevent an "aristocracy of the joined", where joined hosts never met anyone that they did not already know.[3]

It was Moore's suggestion to make Dax's former partner a woman in order to tackle the taboo against homosexuality by way of the on-screen taboo against re-association. At that stage, they intended to make no reference in the script to any characters having a concern about Dax's relationship with a woman so as to focus the story.[3] Clearance was sought for the plot, first from showrunner Ira Steven Behr, then executive producer Rick Berman, and finally from the studio executives. Moore later explained that they agreed to the idea, saying that Star Trek stood for making statements like those in "Rejoined".[4]

Terry Farrell was happy with the story line, saying that it made sense for Dax to have this issue because the symbiont had been in both male and female hosts, adding that "Gender wasn't the issue. For the worm/symbiont, it was a matter of the being it was embodied in."[1] She was pleased to be able to "stand up" for the LGBT community.[1] A similar story had been approached during the first appearance of the Trill in The Next Generation episode "The Host". In this story, however, when the symbiont is transferred from a male to a female host, the Trill is rejected by the character who was the Trill's female partner, Beverly Crusher. The subplot featuring Kahn's artificial wormhole was described as a "MacGuffin" by Moore, and simply a way to get the character into "Rejoined".[4] This was not the first subplot to be considered for the episode, with the main plot from "Bar Association" originally thought of as being suitable to appear in either "Rejoined" or "Crossfire". Instead, the plot, which involved Rom forming a trade union, was expanded into the main plot of its own episode.[5]

The episode was directed by Avery Brooks, who played Benjamin Sisko in the series, who later said that "Rejoined" was his favorite of the episodes he directed.[6] He said that the episode was about love, and the choices that result from that, and that it was an extraordinary story about losing someone you love and having that person restored to you some time afterward.[3] Following the death of Jadzia in the sixth season finale, "Tears of the Prophets", Farrell suggested that the symbiont could be moved to a male character resulting in a similar situation as "Rejoined" between the new Dax host and Worf, as the two were in a relationship at that point.[7] Instead, the symbiont was placed in a new female host called Ezri, as the producers did not want Kira Nerys to be the only female main character.[8] The prejudice against re-association first highlighted in "Rejoined" was mentioned in seventh season episodes such as "Afterimage".[9]

Visual effects and guest stars

[edit]
A blonde woman reclines. She wears a black lace top.
"Rejoined" was one of several appearances in the Star Trek franchise for Susanna Thompson.

Visual effect supervisors Gary Hutzel and Glenn Neufeld were busy completing post-production work on the opening episode of the fourth season, "The Way of the Warrior". In their place, visual effects coordinator David Takemura led on the visual effects work on both "Rejoined" and "The Visitor". For this episode, his two main tasks were the creation of the artificial wormhole and the sequence where Dax uses a forcefield as a walkway to reach a trapped Kahn. Takemura was relieved that the wormhole was intended to be artificial in nature, as it meant that he did not have to attempt to re-create the detail already seen in the Bajoran wormhole on the series. Once he came up with the basic design, visual effects company VisionArt completed it.[4]

For the forcefield scene, Farrell was shot "skating" down a board painted blue against a blue screen. A mixture of liquid nitrogen and hot water was used to create a fog around the ground. VisionArt combined these shots with the force field and footage of the engineering set on board the Defiant, while a staff animator added a "plasma glow" around her feet as she made contact with the field.[4]

Before appearing in "Rejoined", Susanna Thompson had previously appeared in two The Next Generation episodes; "The Next Phase" and "Frame of Mind".[10] She later appeared in Star Trek: Voyager as the Borg Queen, previously portrayed by Alice Krige in the film Star Trek: First Contact.[11] Farrell praised Thompson's part in "Rejoined", calling her a "wonderful actress and a joy to work with".[1]

Themes

[edit]

Writers on Deep Space Nine had previously hinted at a potential same-sex relationship in the first season episode "Dax", when Jadzia Dax says goodbye to Enina Tandro, a former lover of Dax's previous male host, Curzon. The first take of the scene resulted in a situation in which it was unclear whether Dax and Enina were about to kiss. It was decided at the time that it was not appropriate, although the writers had hoped that there would be a time when the viewers would accept such a relationship. This theme was eventually realized in "Rejoined".[12] Allen Kwan has argued that Deep Space Nine is the only series of Star Trek that resists the heteronormativity typical of the franchise at the time, citing both "Rejoined" and the Mirror Universe episodes as examples, even if the presented bisexuality is problematized.[13]

During that 1995/96 television season there had been an increase in the number of homosexual characters appearing in major television series, and so the same-sex kiss in "Rejoined" was reviewed in this context. An article published by the Associated Press suggested that the kiss in Deep Space Nine was not truly a same-sex kiss due to "extenuating circumstances"; namely, one of the characters was an "alien who used to be a man".[14] A similar opinion was offered by Jan Johnson-Smith, author of American Science Fiction TV, who said that the situation was "ambiguous" as, despite presenting a same-sex kiss, the episode was clear that Jadzia was "actually kissing the symbiont who has the memories of the former host, her male lover, not the current female host".[15]

For film studies scholar Jean Bruce, the ambiguity of the kiss is foreshadowed in an early scene revolving around a magic trick. On the one hand, the magic trick produces a "pleasurable surprise", while, on the other, this mirrors the deception necessary, due to Trill norms, in the reacquaintance of the characters. At the same time, the juxtaposition of very different shots serves to "convey physical distance and the desire to bridge it", which mirrors the fact that the Trills' love for one another transcends gender, identity and death. Though the kiss is "informed by the fact that Dax was a man in her past life", once it occurs, it can "never be taken back", and remains the queer image of two women kissing.[16]

Nonetheless, "Rejoined" was still considered controversial because of its subject matter, which depicts two women who engage in a same-sex romantic relationship, and included one of the first[vague] televised lesbian kisses.[3][17] During the course of the episode, no characters register concern about Dax being involved with a woman, only that she was an ex-spouse.[3] David Greven, literary critic and author of Gender and Sexuality in Star Trek, said that "Rejoined" was one of the better-received episodes of Star Trek that dealt with homosexuality as a theme, but that the franchise overall had typically avoided LGBT issues.[18] Bryan Fuller, who also wrote for Deep Space Nine, said that the franchise had usually avoided those story lines because of the paranoia of the studio regarding homosexuality.[19] Dale Palmer, in an essay on gender and sexual politics, suggested that the choice was made to have a female same-sex kiss on screen because a male one would have alienated the main viewer demographic for the series: heterosexual men.[20]

Reception and legacy

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Broadcast

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"Rejoined" was first broadcast on October 30, 1995, in broadcast syndication. It received Nielsen ratings of 7 percent, placing it in eighth place in its timeslot. This was lower than the share received by "Indiscretion", broadcast in the week prior with a 7.2 percent share and "Little Green Men" in the week afterward with 7.7 percent.[21]

Fan, cast, and crew response

[edit]

When the episode was originally broadcast, there was a strong negative reaction from some viewers. As Deep Space Nine was shown in syndication, one channel in the Southern United States took the step of editing out the kiss from the initial broadcast. The mother of script writer René Echevarria told him that they should have issued a parental guidance warning before broadcasting it. More responses were received at the production office from viewers than for any other episode of the series, resulting in several staff members having to take turns on the phones in order to cover the load. The staff found that although the majority of the phone calls were negative about "Rejoined", the letters were mostly positive.[3] Terry Farrell said in a 2015 interview that "Rejoined" was her favorite episode of all time and that she still had people thanking her for the episode, because "it gave them strength, and that it made them feel like they weren't alone, it inspired them to be themselves—all the things I was hoping it would do."[1]

Critical response

[edit]

Zack Handlen reviewed the episode for The A.V. Club in 2013, praising the natural manner in which the romance was progressed, saying that this was "refreshing" to see.[22] He felt that the relationship did not appear to be manipulative for the sake of male viewers, but added that the ending was expected and that the episode never communicated to the audience the need to care about the duo.[22] Handlen wrote that the overall story itself was "shallow", as the episode suffered from an "enervating lack of fun" which was only saved from "complete tedium" through "strong acting and an admirable lack of stigma".[22] Keith DeCandido, in 2014 review on Tor.com, compared "Rejoined" structurally to The Next Generation episode "Lessons", which also had a "love-interest-in-danger climax".[2] He praised the episode, saying that at the time of broadcast it was considered "radical" and said that both Farrell and Thompson managed to get across the romantic message. He called it a "Trek message" episode, but said that it was one of the better ones as it "shines a light on an inadequacy in our own culture via an alien culture, but in this case it muddies the waters a bit because the taboo actually makes sense on the face of it".[2] He gave "Rejoined" a rating of eight out of ten.[2] Reviewer Jordan Hoffman commented that Farrell's acting "really steps up to the plate" for this episode, and rated the episode five out of five.[23] Writing for Playboy.com, Hoffman ranked the episode 256th out of 695 episodes in the Star Trek franchise.[24]

In 2018, SyFy included this episode on their binge-watching guide for episodes featuring Jadzia Dax.[25]

alien kisses

[edit]

Dara Gellman, an independent Canadian video artist, used the kiss sequence in "Rejoined" as the basis of her 3-minute 1999 project alien kisses. In this piece, the kiss scene is manipulated—the video is slowed, the image enlarged and digitized—and trance music is added.[26][27] New media scholar Carolyn Guertin argues that this serves to make the footage "even more alien", presenting queerness as "unearthly".[27] Jean Bruce argues that, despite the inherent ambiguity of the scene in the episode, "the image is still one of two women kissing, which opens up the possibilities of queer desire on its own terms".[16] Similarly, Guertin argues that Gellman translates the (not truly queer) scene into an "expression of gay love that is alien and apart, but no less erotic for being so".[27] In using the scene in isolation, alien kisses, Bruce argues, "strips away the gender equivocation by imposing a new queer vision".[16] She suggests that alien kisses works as an "antidote" to the "ultimately tame treatment" Star Trek has offered of queer themes, and as a "suggestion" that Star Trek acknowledge the desires of queer viewers and fans "beyond the occasional titillating episode".[28]

Home media release

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The first home media release of "Rejoined" was on a VHS cassette alongside "Indiscretion" on March 25, 1996, in the United Kingdom.[29] The first release within the United States was on a single-episode VHS release on August 1, 2000.[30] It was released on DVD as part of the season four box set on August 5, 2003.[31]

On August 5, 1998, "Rejoined" was released on LaserDisc format in Japan, as part of the 4th Season vol.1 box set.[32]

Notes

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References

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See also

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[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Rejoined

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from Grokipedia
"Rejoined" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Directed by Avery Brooks and written by Ronald D. Moore and René Echevarria, it originally aired on October 30, 1995, on syndication in the United States. The episode centers on Lieutenant Commander Jadzia Dax, a joined Trill science officer hosting the Dax symbiont, who encounters Lenara Kahn, a scientist whose symbiont was previously married to one of Dax's prior hosts; their reunion revives romantic feelings complicated by the Trill cultural prohibition against "re-association" between past mates of symbionts. Despite the attraction, Dax ultimately adheres to the taboo, parting ways with Kahn after a pivotal kiss that marked the first depiction of same-sex affection in the Star Trek franchise. The story explores themes of identity, symbiosis, and forbidden love within Trill society, while advancing Kahn's research on artificial wormholes aboard Deep Space Nine station.

Episode Overview

Plot Summary

In the episode, Lieutenant Commander , the eighth host of the Dax symbiont, performs a sleight-of-hand trick at Quark's bar before being summoned by Captain to his office. Sisko informs her that a of Trill scientists, led by Lenara Kahn—the current host of the Kahn symbiont—will arrive on Deep Space Nine to conduct experiments on stabilizing artificial wormholes using technology derived from research. Dax recognizes the significance, as the previous host of the Kahn symbiont, Nilani Kahn, was married to Torias Dax, a prior host of her own symbiont, creating a potential conflict under Trill prohibitions against reassociation. Upon the Trill team's arrival via the runabout , Dax greets Lenara and her colleagues, including Bejal Otner and Dr. Marr. Initial interactions are professional, focused on preparations for the tests aboard the , but underlying tension arises from Dax's memories of the past relationship between Torias and Nilani. During the experiments, a destabilizes, prompting Lenara's team to recalibrate, while Dax and Lenara share private conversations revealing mutual attraction despite the cultural taboo forbidding joined Trill from resuming relationships with symbionts' former associates, enforced to prevent stagnation of symbiont experiences. As collaboration continues, Dax and Lenara's bond deepens; Lenara admits the prohibition feels arbitrary, and they kiss in Dax's quarters, marking an intimate reconnection. However, Lenara experiences psychosomatic symptoms suggesting possible symbiont rejection, a severe consequence of violating the reassociation ban. Seeking counsel, Dax confides in Sisko, who, drawing from his own history of reassociation with the Dax symbiont as a close friend of previous hosts like Curzon, urges her to prioritize her symbiotic bond over personal desires. Faced with the risks, including potential separation from their symbionts and exile from Trill society, Lenara resolves to adhere to the taboo and depart after the experiments succeed in creating a brief stable artificial . Dax, though heartbroken, accepts the decision, bidding farewell as Lenara's team leaves, underscoring the episode's exploration of duty versus forbidden love within Trill biology and customs.

Character Developments

In the episode "Rejoined," aired October 30, 1995, confronts the Trill prohibition against reassociation, a cultural intended to prevent joined Trill from resuming intimate relationships from previous hosts' lives to promote diversity in symbiont experiences. The arrival of Lenara Kahn, whose symbiont was previously joined to Nilani, the spouse of Jadzia's prior host Torias Dax, triggers intense emotional and romantic responses in Jadzia derived from those past connections. Despite admonitions from Symbiosis Commission representative Ambassador Velis, Jadzia pursues the relationship, culminating in a public with Lenara during her farewell, an act that directly violates the taboo and endangers Jadzia's joined status by risking separation from the Dax symbiont. This sequence marks a key development in Jadzia's portrayal as a character who asserts personal agency and the primacy of symbiotic over institutional edicts, reflecting a causal continuity of experiences across hosts rather than isolated individual identities. Lenara Kahn exhibits a contrasting arc, initially adhering to Trill norms while collaborating on a subspace research project at Deep Space Nine, but gradually yielding to mutual attraction with Jadzia amid shared professional and personal interactions. Though tempted to defy the , Lenara ultimately departs the station after Jadzia saves her life during a subspace experiment mishap, prioritizing avoidance of severe repercussions such as symbiont removal for both. This resolution underscores Lenara's characterization as more constrained by societal pressures, serving to highlight the 's enforcement mechanisms and their impact on joined Trill decision-making. The episode minimally advances other station personnel: provides counsel to Jadzia as a longtime friend, reinforcing his role as a mentor attuned to her unique Trill perspective, while Odo's investigation into potential sabotage among Lenara's team reveals no major threats, yielding little personal growth for him.

Production

Script Development

The script for "Rejoined" originated from a story by , with the teleplay co-written by Echevarria and , marking their first joint writing credit on . The episode received production number 478 and bore the "Once Joined" during early development, reflecting its focus on the continuity of symbiont relationships across hosts. A draft dated August 30, 1995, outlines the core structure, beginning with Sisko briefing Dax on the incoming Trill science team and building to the emotional climax of reassociation's consequences. Development emphasized the Trill Symbiosis Commission's ban on reassociation, portraying it as a mechanism to prevent symbionts from reverting to prior relational patterns, which could undermine host individuality and societal stability. The narrative deliberately frames romantic tension between and Lenara Kahn as stemming from Torias Dax and Nilani Kahn's past marriage, prioritizing biological and cultural imperatives over gender dynamics; script explicitly attributes objections to symbiont reconnection rather than the female hosts' same-sex attraction. This builds on Trill lore from The Next Generation's "The Host," where relationships were shown to adapt to host changes, but advances it by testing the taboo's enforceability through personal stakes. Moore contributed to integrating the forbidden romance element, using the symbiont framework to metaphorically address relational taboos while adhering to network constraints on direct depictions of in broadcast television. The script avoids endorsing reassociation, culminating in Dax's adherence to Trill law despite mutual affection, underscoring causal trade-offs: pursuing past bonds risks symbiont rejection and host , as evidenced by prior cases like the dissolution of Torias and Nilani's union after Torias's fatal shuttle crash. No major revisions are documented in available production materials, suggesting a streamlined process aligned with season 4's thematic exploration of identity and duty.

Directing and Filming

![The kiss between Jadzia Dax and Lenara Kahn in "Rejoined"][float-right] Avery Brooks directed "Rejoined," the sixth episode of 's fourth season, which aired on October 30, 1995. Brooks, known for portraying Captain Benjamin Sisko, approached the episode by prioritizing the story's themes of love, choice, and consequence over sensationalism, particularly regarding the same-sex kiss between and Lenara Kahn. He refused permission for to film the kiss scene, explaining in the Companion that "people want to hype stuff like that, but I wasn't going to have it," and emphasized that "it was a story about love, and the consequences of making choices out of love. The kiss was irrelevant." To ensure a comfortable environment, Brooks met with actors Terry Farrell (Dax) and (Kahn) prior to shooting the intimate scenes, fostering a sense of safety amid the episode's controversial elements for 1995 broadcast standards. Farrell later credited Brooks' direction for intelligently integrating the kiss into the episode's narrative flow, making it difficult to excise without disrupting the story, and expressed gratitude for his handling of the sequence. Filming occurred on Paramount soundstages using established sets for Deep Space Nine station interiors and the , with no required. The production incorporated practical effects and early CGI for the science experiment sequences, including the spatial anomaly and subspace tensor matrix depicted in engineering and on the Defiant bridge, supervised by visual effects artist Glenn Neufeld. Additionally, actors and Terry Farrell rehearsed and performed authentic tricks in the opening bar scene to add realism to their characters' interaction. Brooks' direction contributed to a tender portrayal of emotional complexity, providing Farrell with some of her strongest material as Dax.

Casting and Visual Effects

Terry Farrell reprised her role as Lieutenant Commander , the Trill science officer whose symbiotic relationship with the Dax symbiont drives the episode's central conflict. Susanna Thompson portrayed Dr. Lenara Kahn, a Trill scientist hosting the symbiont of Jadzia's past-life spouse, marking Thompson's first appearance in the franchise before her later roles. Supporting cast included as Lt. Commander Michael Eddington, Tim Ryan as Dr. Bejal Otner, and J.N. James Noah as Hanor Pren, all involved in the research subplot. The episode's direction by , who also played Captain , emphasized intimate character interactions over action sequences. Casting choices prioritized actors capable of conveying subtle emotional tension from symbiotic memory recall, with Farrell and Thompson's performances highlighting restrained chemistry amid Trill cultural prohibitions. No major recasting controversies arose, though the episode's romantic elements drew network scrutiny during production, as noted in retrospective accounts of broadcast standards. Visual effects in "Rejoined" were subdued compared to later DS9 seasons, focusing on practical sets and minimal CGI for the artificial experiment central to the plot. Peter Lefevre served as visual effects associate, contributing to sequences depicting the unstable prototype tested aboard Deep Space Nine. These effects relied on early-1990s techniques blending model work and basic , consistent with the series' transition from practical effects dominance before Foundation Imaging's full involvement in season 4. Trill facial prosthetics for spots remained standard makeup applications, unaltered for this episode's character-driven narrative.

Themes and Philosophical Underpinnings

Trill Symbiosis and Biological Imperatives

The Trill symbiosis entails the surgical implantation of a mature symbiont—a sentient, worm-like spanning approximately the length of a —into a compatible humanoid host's abdominal pouch, establishing a mutualistic biological . This integration facilitates bidirectional neural interfacing, whereby the symbiont imparts accumulated memories, skills, and personality elements from prior hosts, often spanning centuries, while the host provides mobility, sensory , and environmental interaction essential for the symbiont's survival and experiential growth. In Deep Space Nine's portrayal, only a select fraction of Trill (estimated at around 500 suitable candidates annually for the symbiont population) possess the physiological and for successful joining, with rejection rates historically high before advanced selection protocols. Biologically, the symbiosis aligns with mutualistic imperatives observed in terrestrial ecosystems, where both entities derive adaptive advantages: the symbiont achieves extended and diversified beyond its limited independent lifespan in native breeding pools, while the host gains enhanced cognitive depth, potentially conferring evolutionary edges in problem-solving and social . The mechanism likely involves or engram transfer, enabling the composite entity's fluid identity shift, as evidenced by hosts exhibiting traits from multiple lifetimes post-joining. This continuity underscores a core imperative for symbiont propagation—maximizing experiential novelty to enrich future transfers—yet introduces tensions when past neural imprints trigger persistent affiliative drives toward former associates. In "Rejoined," these imperatives manifest as an innate pull toward reassociation, where the symbiont's encoded emotional histories provoke intense, host-overriding attractions, defying the Trill Symbiosis Commission's cultural edict against resuming prior romantic bonds. Canonically, the prohibition stems not from biological risks like —irrelevant given symbionts' in controlled pools—but from a prescriptive aim to avert experiential redundancy, ensuring each joining yields fresh perspectives rather than recursive patterns that could stagnate the symbiont's evolutionary trajectory. Violations historically result in societal and symbiont termination upon host death, highlighting a clash between unadorned biological affinity, rooted in memory-driven , and imposed normative constraints ostensibly for collective benefit. Empirical in-universe data, such as rare documented reassociations, reveal no inherent physiological harm, suggesting the functions more as a resource-management amid limited symbiont availability than a response to causal biological peril.

Societal Taboos and Causal Mechanisms

In the episode "Rejoined," Trill society imposes a profound taboo against reassociation, defined as joined individuals pursuing romantic or intimate relationships with those connected to their symbiont's prior hosts, such as former spouses from previous lifetimes. This norm, while not formally legislated, enforces compliance through social ostracism and the threat of expulsion from Trill society, which would sever the symbiont's lineage by barring future host joinings. Violation risks the symbiont's effective extinction, underscoring the taboo's role in safeguarding the symbiosis program's continuity. The causal mechanisms driving this prohibition align with the evolutionary demands of Trill symbiosis, where symbionts rely on diverse host integrations to accumulate varied genetic, cultural, and experiential data for long-term viability. Reassociation could induce symbionts to preferentially cluster with familiar partners, mirroring in , which reduces and heightens vulnerability to environmental shifts or pathologies—potentially leading to stagnated adaptation or isolated "inbreeding" within symbiont subpopulations. By mandating novel associations, the taboo promotes broad exposure to unjoined Trill and external influences, ensuring symbionts evolve through heterogeneous inputs rather than recursive familiarity that might erode their resilience. This framework reflects a realist of population-level fitness over individual desires, as unchecked reassociation historically risked forming insular elite networks among the rare joined (comprising less than 0.5% of Trill), potentially skewing and propagation toward privileged symbiont lines. The episode illustrates these dynamics through Jadzia Dax's , weighing personal continuity against societal imperatives that prioritize symbiotic .

Identity Continuity Across Hosts

![Dax and Lenara share a kiss defying Trill taboo][float-right] In the episode "Rejoined," identity continuity across Trill hosts is portrayed through the persistent emotional and relational legacies carried by the symbiont, challenging the official doctrine that new hosts initiate entirely distinct existences. The Trill Symbiosis Commission enforces a on "reassociation," arguing that while symbionts retain memories, the unique combination with a new host creates a individual, thereby discouraging joined Trill from perpetuating past relationships to promote societal integration and genetic diversity. This policy, however, is undermined by the narrative evidence of unbroken affective continuity, as Jadzia Dax's attraction to Lenara Kahn revives the marital bond between their prior hosts, Torias Dax and Nilani Kahn, demonstrating how symbiont-transmitted experiences shape present inclinations beyond mere recollection. Deep Space Nine's depiction of Trill symbiosis emphasizes the symbiont's role in sustaining core personality elements and relational dynamics across hosts, contrasting with earlier Trek portrayals where host influence was minimal. In DS9 lore, the joined entity inherits not only factual knowledge but also emotional imprints and behavioral patterns from previous unions, fostering a hybrid identity that evolves yet preserves essential continuity. This framework posits the symbiont as the enduring vessel of identity, with hosts serving as successive expressions rather than resets, a view reinforced by Dax's internal conflict where past-life urges compel actions against cultural norms. The thus illustrates causal persistence: biological imperatives encoded in symbiont neural patterns override imposed separations, revealing the as a constructed barrier rather than a reflection of ontological discontinuity. Philosophically, "Rejoined" probes the boundaries of by questioning whether continuity resides in the symbiont's cumulative essence or dissipates with each host transition. Proponents of strict host primacy, as embodied by Trill authorities, prioritize the fresh subjective experience of the current vessel to avert elitism among the joined minority, who comprise only a fraction of the population. Yet the plot's resolution—Dax and Kahn's clandestine reunion—affirms empirical persistence, where shared history trumps doctrinal fragmentation, suggesting that identity's coherence derives from integrated memory and affinity rather than arbitrary host boundaries. This tension highlights a realist critique: societal rules attempting to sever biologically anchored continuities inevitably falter against underlying causal mechanisms of .

Reception and Viewer Response

Initial Broadcast Metrics

"Rejoined" premiered in syndication across various local television stations on October 30, 1995. As a syndicated program, its initial broadcast metrics were measured via aggregate Nielsen household ratings rather than network-specific figures. The episode recorded a Nielsen rating of 7 percent, equivalent to approximately 6.5 million television households tuned in, and placed eighth in its timeslot among syndicated shows. This performance was slightly below the preceding episode "Indiscretion" at 7.2 percent but aligned with season 4's overall trajectory following the ratings boost from Michael Dorn's addition as in the . Syndicated viewership for Deep Space Nine during this period typically translated to 6–8 million actual viewers per , reflecting stable but not peak franchise performance amid competition from emerging network dramas. The subsequent "" improved to 7.7 percent, indicating no significant dip attributable to the episode's thematic content.

Fan and Participant Reactions

Fans acclaimed "Rejoined" for its poignant depiction of romantic longing constrained by cultural prohibitions, with particular praise for the chemistry between and Lenara Kahn. The episode's inclusion of Star Trek's first televised same-sex on October 30, 1995, marked a milestone, eliciting enthusiasm from viewers who viewed it as a step toward broader representation. A 2021 analysis on the official website highlighted the narrative's optimistic undertones, portraying the characters' connection as a beacon of hope amid societal constraints. Nonetheless, fan discourse has scrutinized the storyline's reinforcement of the Trill reassociation taboo, interpreting it as an that ultimately upholds restrictions akin to historical stigmas against same-sex unions, prompting debates on whether the episode advances or mirrors conservative norms. Participant responses underscored the episode's artistic merits. Terry Farrell, embodying Jadzia Dax, identified "Rejoined" as her preferred DS9 installment in interviews, citing its emotional resonance and the evolving fan appreciation, including its role in establishing her as an icon within LGBTQ+ communities. Susanna Thompson, who portrayed Lenara Kahn, recounted in DVD commentary how director Avery Brooks shielded the actresses from on-set scrutiny during intimate scenes, fostering a supportive environment that enhanced performances. Writer Ronald D. Moore advocated for a female love interest to facilitate the kiss, intentionally framing the plot to parallel real-world same-sex relationship dynamics, as reflected in his later critiques of the franchise's limited queer representation. Brooks himself framed the story as a universal love tale unbound by symbiont specifics. The episode also sparked minor broadcast controversies, with some affiliates altering or cautioning content due to the kiss, though core production team members defended its narrative integrity.

Critical Assessments

Critics have generally praised "Rejoined" for its character-driven narrative and expansion of Trill lore, marking it as a standout episode in 's fourth season. Jammer's Reviews awarded it 3.5 out of 4 stars, commending the plausible where characters propel the plot rather than contrived events dominating, particularly highlighting Jadzia Dax's as authentic and compelling. Similarly, The m0vie Blog described it as a "tremendous accomplishment" unique to DS9's serialized style, emphasizing its emotional depth in exploring and personal history without relying on action-oriented tropes. The episode's handling of the re-association taboo has drawn mixed assessments regarding its allegorical use for forbidden relationships. StarTrek.com analysis views it as a balanced commentary on the costs of societal prohibitions, portraying the Trill rule—rooted in symbiont rejection risks—as a for living authentically amid external pressures, while noting the between Jadzia and Lenara as a for Trek's representation of intimacy. However, some critiques argue the biological justification for the taboo undermines the allegory, equating a same-sex attraction to a potentially fatal impulse in a way that reinforces rather than challenges prohibitions; a Reddit-sourced discussion from sci-fi enthusiasts, drawing on the DS9 Companion book, labels this dynamic as regressive despite surface-level progressiveness in depicting the 1995 on-screen . Technical and performative elements received acclaim, with reviewers noting strong performances by Terry Farrell and in conveying layered emotional tension. Treknobabble praised the episode for deepening Dax's backstory and Trill physiology, viewing the subplot as secondary but effective in framing interpersonal drama. Conversely, Reactor's rewatch critiqued the romance as clichéd and forced, with the scientific elements feeling underdeveloped amid the focus on . The interpreted the narrative shorthand as efficiently mirroring real-world barriers to depicting non-heteronormative love on 1990s , though constrained by broadcast standards. Overall, while not universally lauded, "Rejoined" is assessed as a mature exploration of identity and consequence, bolstered by DS9's willingness to prioritize psychological realism over Trek's typical optimism.

Controversies and Interpretations

Representation Debates

The episode "Rejoined," which aired on October 30, 1995, features Star Trek's first on-screen same-sex kiss between Lieutenant and Dr. Lenara Kahn, both Trill hosts whose symbionts had been romantically involved in previous incarnations as opposite-sex partners. This depiction has sparked ongoing debates regarding its value as LGBTQ+ representation, with proponents highlighting its role in normalizing same-sex affection within the franchise's narrative of exploration and tolerance. Critics argue that the story's reliance on Trill symbiosis undermines claims of authentic same-sex representation, as the attraction originates from a heterosexual bond between prior hosts—Torias Dax (male) and Nilani Kahn (female)—rather than an independent orientation tied to the current female hosts' biology or preferences. In the episode, the re-association taboo enforced by Trill society prohibits resuming past relationships regardless of host gender, framing the conflict as one of continuity and symbiosis preservation, not sexual orientation per se; no character objects to the pairing on the basis of the hosts' sexes. This structure, some contend, allows the narrative to explore taboo romance through a biological mechanism that transcends gender, effectively portraying a persistent partner preference rooted in symbiont memory rather than innate same-sex attraction. Further scrutiny points to the episode's context within 1990s television standards, where depicting overt human faced resistance from network executives, including producer ; the alien Trill framework may have facilitated approval by distancing the same-sex elements from human norms. Reviewers have noted that while the marked a —occurring amid a wave of similar depictions on other shows like in 1994—it avoids deeper engagement with societal , instead analogizing the to risks of genetic stagnation in the symbiont population. Consequently, interpretations vary: some view it as progressive for its era by presenting the relationship as equivalent to heterosexual love across reincarnations, while others see it as evasive, using speculative biology to include imagery without endorsing fluid sexual identities independent of prior heterosexual history.

Allegorical Critiques

The episode "Rejoined" has been widely interpreted as an for societal prohibitions against same-sex relationships, with the Trill custom against symbiont reassociation—intended to maintain genetic and experiential diversity among joined Trill—serving as a for homophobic taboos. Producers aimed to use the narrative to explore forbidden love transcending physical forms, culminating in the franchise's first televised same-sex kiss between female hosts and Lenara Kahn, whose symbionts had previously shared a heterosexual as Torias and Nilani. This framing positions the story as a commentary on the personal costs of adhering to arbitrary social restrictions, with franchise-affiliated analyses highlighting its role in portraying the tension between individual desire and communal norms. Critics, however, contend that the allegory falters under scrutiny of its causal foundations, as the Trill prohibition carries verifiable in-universe biological imperatives absent in human analogies. Reassociation risks symbiont rejection or death due to immunological similarities from shared lineages, a mechanism designed to safeguard species-level viability by promoting novel pairings—contrasting sharply with cultural homophobia, which lacks empirical evidence of species detriment and relies instead on unsubstantiated moral or traditional claims. The heightened stakes, where consummating the relationship could terminate the symbionts' centuries-long continuity, introduce life-or-death consequences not applicable to same-sex human pairings, distorting the metaphor and potentially portraying nonconformity as inherently reckless rather than benign. Moreover, the attraction's origin in a prior opposite-sex bond between symbionts undermines claims of paralleling innate same-sex orientation, framing the dynamic as a gender-transcendent continuity of a specific prior partnership rather than an independent for one's current host's . This —wherein desire stems from worm-like memory transfer rather than host psychology—highlights a core mismatch: Trill "re-love" is not elective but an imposed echo of past , repackaged across bodies. Independent reviewers note this renders the episode more a on reincarnation's disruptions than a direct critique of gender-based . The narrative's resolution, with Dax and Kahn parting to preserve their symbionts despite mutual affection, has drawn further critique for prioritizing collective survival over , arguably reinforcing taboo adherence in a way that dilutes any subversive intent. Fan and analyst discussions emphasize how this outcome, while narratively coherent within Trill lore, limits the allegory's applicability to real-world advocacy for acceptance, where no analogous existential threat exists. Such analyses underscore science fiction's challenges in allegorizing sexuality, where contrived alien imperatives often fail to replicate earthly causal realities without introducing variables.

Backlash and Defense

The episode "Rejoined," which aired on October 30, 1995, elicited substantial viewer backlash primarily due to its inclusion of Star Trek's first televised same-sex between and Lenara Kahn. Complaints flooded Paramount's offices, with viewers decrying the as an inappropriate promotion of on a family-oriented sci-fi series syndicated across diverse markets. Some local television affiliates reportedly excised the to preempt protests, reflecting the era's heightened sensitivity to depictions of relationships amid ongoing cultural debates over media content. Producers and writers countered criticisms by emphasizing the storyline's foundation in Trill biology and sociology, where the taboo against rejoined symbionts serves a pragmatic purpose: preventing inbreeding-like risks to the symbiont population's , distinct from human moral or identity-based prohibitions. Executive producer defended the narrative choice in interviews, highlighting its intent as an for challenging arbitrary societal norms through first-principles examination of causal imperatives in alien reproduction, rather than mirroring contemporary human politics. This framing positioned the episode as consistent with Star Trek's tradition of using to probe empirical consequences of customs, arguing that the kiss illustrated personal against collective survival needs without endorsing or condemning real-world analogs. Defenders among cast and crew, including director , underscored the scene's restraint and integration into the plot's emotional arc, rejecting accusations of by noting its brevity—lasting mere seconds—and narrative necessity to convey the characters' . While acknowledging the complaints' volume, which represented a spike over typical , proponents cited positive feedback from audiences appreciating the exploration of identity continuity and taboo-breaking as evidence that the backlash overstated isolated conservative objections, often amplified by outlets with incentives to cultural skirmishes. Over time, such defenses have gained traction, with analyses crediting the for advancing franchise boundaries despite initial resistance rooted in unexamined preconceptions.

Legacy

Impact on Franchise Lore

"Rejoined," the sixth episode of 's fourth season, aired on October 30, 1995, entrenched the Trill reassociation taboo within franchise canon as a core societal prohibition. This rule forbids joined Trills from rekindling romantic or familial bonds with individuals connected to the symbiont's previous hosts, ostensibly to avert psychological dominance by past memories that could undermine the current host's individuality and risk rejection. Breaches incur expulsion from Trill society, symbiont sterilization, and cessation of its future joinings, underscoring the Symbiosis Commission's authority in preserving species stability. The episode's depiction amplified Trill lore's focus on the symbiotic bond's precarious equilibrium between inherited recollections and emergent identity, diverging from The Next Generation's earlier, host-subordinating portrayal of Trill physiology in "The Host" (1991). For , it crystallized tensions between her seventh-host autonomy and the Dax symbiont's storied past, informing arcs like the zhian'tara ritual in "Facets" (July 17, 1995), where past hosts' personas temporarily possess friends to achieve closure. This narrative device reinforced lore on memory transfer's enduring influence without endorsing taboo violation, as Jadzia prioritizes symbiont longevity over personal desire. Across the franchise, "Rejoined" bolstered Deep Space Nine's role in maturing Trill mythology, establishing late-24th-century norms that constrained character agency and societal integration within the . Subsequent entries, such as Voyager's joined Trill in "The Least Important" (October 14, 1997), echoed these constraints, while : Discovery's 32nd-century Trills exhibit relaxed reassociation practices, implying cultural evolution over centuries amid broader canon shifts like human-Trill joinings. These developments highlight the episode's foundational yet adaptable contribution to alien continuity.

Broader Cultural Resonance

"Rejoined," which aired on October 2, 1995, featured the first same-sex kiss in the Star Trek franchise between Jadzia Dax and Lenara Kahn, marking a notable moment in network television amid limited depictions of such intimacy during the era. This scene, framed within the Trill prohibition on reassociation to ensure symbiont genetic diversity, served as an allegory for societal taboos against same-sex relationships, drawing parallels to real-world restrictions without directly endorsing or condemning them. The episode's narrative resolution, where the characters ultimately adhere to cultural norms by parting ways, has sparked ongoing analysis regarding its progressive intent versus reinforcement of conformity. The portrayal resonated in discussions of queer identity, particularly through Dax's history of inhabiting hosts of varying genders, offering an implicit exploration of fluidity and that contrasted with more allegorical or evasive treatments in prior Trek episodes like "The Outcast." Critics and fans have credited it with advancing science fiction's role in probing personal autonomy against collective rules, influencing later franchise entries to depict more explicit LGBTQ+ characters and relationships. In broader media history, it exemplified Deep Space Nine's willingness to tackle interpersonal ethics over utopian ideals, contributing to Trek's reputation for subtly challenging viewers on identity and without overt preachiness. Retrospective views highlight its cultural endurance, with analyses positioning "Rejoined" as a bridge between 1990s broadcast constraints and modern inclusivity, though some argue the symbiont framework diluted direct representation by attributing the attraction to past heterosexual bonds. This duality has fueled academic and fan on whether such stories prioritize over unambiguous , underscoring Trek's impact on normalizing complex relational dynamics in popular entertainment.

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