VaBeachGuy 12 Posted February 4, 2004 Season: 4 Episode No: 491 Episode Name: Hard Time Director: Alexander Singer Teleplay By: Robert Hewitt Wolfe Story By: Daniel Keys Moran & Lynn Barker Original Air Date: 04-15-1996 Miles O'Brien is arrested for espionage by the Argrathi and convicted for the crime. His sentence is to spend 20 years in one of their prisons. The way the Argrathi prison system works is by implanting memories into the minds of their prisoners that will make them believe they were incarcerated for many years when in fact they have only been in custody for only a matter of a couple of hours. Chief O'Brien must nor reintegrate back into his real life on DS9. During his "years" in the prison his only friend was Ee'char, his cell mate. Now that he is back on DS9 Miles continues to see Ee'char in places around DS9, though no one else can see him. Cast: Avery Brooks as Captain Benjamin Sisko Rene Auberjonois as Odo Michael Dorn as Worf Terry Farrell as Jadzia Dax Cirroc Lofton as Jake Sisko Colm Meaney as Miles O'Brien Armin Shimerman as Quark Alexander Siddig as Julian Bashir Nana Visitor as Kira Nerys Guest Cast: Margot Rose as Rinn Craig Wasson as Ee'char Visit the STARTREKFANS.NET Episode Guide. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VaBeachGuy 12 Posted March 10, 2004 No comments on this episode? THis was one episode that my brother said he thought was incredible in concept. In fact he is developing an idea for a movie based on this concept. (Non Star Trek movie) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LadyNarana 0 Posted March 10, 2004 "Hard Time" is a gut-wrenching episode, that's for sure. As far as being a vehicle for Miles, it's excellent. One part that I like about this one (but that I hate about some other eps - go figure) is that at the end, you know that it's not all solved, wrapped up in pretty little paper, and on to the next episode. It's something that's going to stay with Miles for ever, even after the memories fade a bit. Have to feel badly, though, to be carrying those memories to begin with... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VaBeachGuy 12 Posted March 10, 2004 I think the character of Ee'char was a very interesting one. Even though he was only a figment of Miles' imagination it would have been interesting to have seen them bring him back in future episodes to "talk" to Miles. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stoned_vulcan 0 Posted March 11, 2004 I loved Hard time the first time i saw it i always felt bad for miles' cell mate at the end but it is quite possibly some of Colm's best acting in the series, i try to avoid the episode because of the way it makes me feel---depressed.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VaBeachGuy 12 Posted March 12, 2004 I loved Hard time the first time i saw it i always felt bad for miles' cell mate at the end but it is quite possibly some of Colm's best acting in the series, i try to avoid the episode because of the way it makes me feel---depressed.. I think it would have been great to see Ee'char pop up from time to time to "Advise" Miles. It would have been a nice touch to his continuing struggle with the ordeal. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Madam Captain 0 Posted March 13, 2004 Hard Time is such a fantastic episode and definitely one of my favorites. For me, it holds lots of symbolism and it relays a few contraversial issues. Miles believed that he had been held in that prison for twenty years, when in reality, it was only for a few hours. Everyone on the station tried to help him. However,they just couldn't reach him. They tried to understand what Miles 'believed' he had been through but they really had no idea. Even though they all knew that Miles had only experienced the prison for a few hours, he 'had' been there for much longer. It also brings up the issue of mental health while being solitary confined for so long. Miles had been alone in that cell for so long that he conjured up another person that was just a figment of his own imagination. However, to Miles, Ee'char was 'real' and he helped him to cope with prison life. On the other hand, Ee'char was another 'part' of Miles coming to the surface in times of great hardship. I like to think that Ee'char was Miles' inner self. I found it interesting that Ee'char was an alien, when in fact, he really 'was' Miles. Madam Captain out!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Madam Captain 0 Posted March 13, 2004 Colm Meaney did such a fantastic job in this episode and I think it was one of his best episodes. I really like the character of O'Brien because he is just an ordinary guy and this makes him the perfect person to place in an extremely challenging situation. I really felt sorry for Miles during this episode because his memories of that prison cell would be with him for the rest of his life. He would have to learn to deal with these memories because they wouldn't just fade away after a certain period of time. Madam Captain out!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
