Star Trek The Next Conversation - a comedy Star Trek podcast currently about TV's Deep Space Nine DS9 (or TNG) · Matt Mira and Andrew Secunda

DS9 s4e13 "Crossfire"

·2 hr 8 min

They start with a cough. Matt and Andy immediately spin that into their usual preamble, swapping cold stories, making Palm Springs jokes, and acting as if the Zoom itself has caught the bug. Then the hails begin. Listener corrections and questions pile up, including a time-check on old movie trivia, a pronunciation note, and a thoughtful complaint about the Lakota plan that keeps the conversation in argument mode before the Trek talk even starts. At last, they reach "Crossfire." The 1996 DS9 episode becomes the center of the hangout, and the hosts focus on the assassination plot, Odo's reactions, and how much of the hour's power comes from watching him reveal more depth than he usually lets anyone see. That is the real hook. They keep circling the idea that the story works because it makes a political-security problem feel personal, even when the mechanics of the plot give them something to grumble about. Andy is skeptical. Matt keeps pushing the point that the episode succeeds by revealing Odo's depth, and the back-and-forth lands because both of them can be annoyed and impressed at once. They settle on a score. The rating conversation becomes its own little trap, with jokes about being one point apart and the whole thing playing like a friendly ambush. That suits the show. The usual TNC machinery shows up too, with social plugs, callback energy, and the sense that the audience already knows how the crew likes to wander. Nobody rushes it. Even when they drift into timing, memory, or podcast housekeeping, the detours still point back to the same thing: they like episodes that make Trek characters feel layered and worth arguing over. The ending stays loose. They close by joking around, teasing each other, and leaving the listener with the feeling that the argument mattered more than the verdict, which is exactly why the conversation works. It is very TNC. The whole package is for listeners who want DS9 talk with jokes, bickering, and just enough sincerity to make the praise feel earned.

As heard by us

A sharp, messy DS9 conversation that settles on Odo's hidden depth.

Crossfire turns into an Odo-centered DS9 discussion, with Matt and Andy circling back again and again to the assassination plot and to how much the episode reveals about Odo beyond the badge.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

A cranky, funny Star Trek TNC hangout that keeps circling Odo and the assassination plot.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify