STARFLEET ACADEMY Honors Two DEEP SPACE NINE Characters

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The latest episode of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, titled “Series Acclimation Mil,” felt like a tribute to the classic Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The episode focuses on SAM, a unique cadet who is the Academy’s only student made of light, as she investigates the fate of Captain Benjamin Sisko from the DS9 series finale. That finale happened over 800 years before the events of Starfleet Academy. During her investigation, two other well-known characters from Deep Space Nine appear, and surprisingly, one of them is still living in the 32nd century.

The final episode of Deep Space Nine from 1999, titled “What You Leave Behind,” sees Captain Sisko complete his destiny as the Emissary of the Prophets, essentially becoming one of them within their sacred realm. Sisko, chosen by the godlike aliens revered as prophets by the people of Bajor, transforms into a spirit-like being inside the wormhole near Bajor. He vows to return, but by the 33rd century, he hasn’t. This prompts Commander Sam Rutherford to launch her own investigation, which unexpectedly leads to appearances by two key characters from DS9 at Starfleet Academy. However, these cameos aren’t what Star Trek fans would anticipate.

Cirroc Lofton Returns as Jake Sisko From Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

While researching Ben Sisko’s past, SAM discovers a holographic recording of his son, Jake, as an adult from the 24th century. By this time, Jake has become a successful author with a family of his own. The original DS9 series showed Jake growing as a writer and journalist, especially during the Dominion War. Actor Cirroc Lofton reprises his role to portray this holographic version of Jake, who fondly remembers his father and the positive impact he had on him and others. Later, Jake appears within SAM’s mind as she reads excerpts from his unreleased book, Anslem. These scenes are touching, offering a sense of resolution for the character. We learn that Jake went on to live a full and happy life, even after his father was gone.

Tawny Newsome Plays a New Dax Host, Illa Dax, in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Another surprising character from Deep Space Nine appears in the 32nd century, one that many fans predicted would live on. At Starfleet Academy, SAM meets Professor Illa, the instructor for a course on the unexplained. Illa is a Cardassian played by Tawny Newsome, who you might know from Lower Decks. Interestingly, Tawny is also a writer for Starfleet Academy and a huge DS9 fan! She gives SAM a book called Anslem, and that’s when SAM realizes something incredible: Illa’s first name is Illa, and she has Trill spots under her hair. Her full name is Illa Dax, meaning she’s not just Cardassian, but also part Trill – and the current host of the Dax symbiote, following in the footsteps of Curzon, Jadzia, and Ezri Dax, all friends of Ben Sisko.

In the world of Star Trek, the Trill are a unique species formed by the joining of a humanoid host and a long-lived, worm-like symbiote. Introduced in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “The Host,” a Trill individual gains the memories and experiences of all the symbiote’s previous hosts when they join. While the host retains their own personality, the joining creates a new, combined identity. The symbiote encountered in this story is already 1,250 years old, carrying the accumulated knowledge of centuries.

Jadzia and Ezri Dax on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Before joining the crew of Deep Space Nine, the Dax symbiote inhabited nine hosts. Three of those hosts had significant relationships with Benjamin Sisko. Curzon Dax acted as a guide and teacher to Sisko when he was starting his career. After Curzon died of old age, the Trill transferred the Dax symbiote into a young woman named Jadzia (played by Terry Farrell). Jadzia possessed all of Curzon’s memories, but in a new body. She and Sisko became friends, and she served as his science officer on Deep Space Nine, where he playfully nicknamed her “Old Man.”

In the sixth season of DS9, the villain Gul Dukat shockingly kills Jadzia Dax after marrying her. The Dax symbiote then attaches to a new host: a young Starfleet counselor named Ezri Dax (played by Nicole de Boer). Ezri and Dr. Julian Bashir develop a romantic relationship, and her fate after the show’s end remained a mystery. However, we now know the Dax symbiote lives on for another 800 years, inhabiting numerous hosts. Throughout all these changes, the Dax symbiote always maintains a special connection and love for Ben Sisko, which likely explains why Jake Sisko entrusted a Dax host with his book many centuries prior.

Dax’s Future as a Professor in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Fans are hoping to see Professor Illa Dax (Tawny Newsome) return in future seasons. As a Starfleet Academy instructor, there’s a good chance she could reappear. Her unique background – being both Trill and half Cardassian – would offer a fascinating viewpoint, and she could update viewers on the stories of characters from Deep Space Nine. With Star Trek: Legacy seemingly cancelled, it would be wonderful to have Dax continue the legacy of DS9 as a regular at Starfleet Academy, similar to how The Doctor from Voyager occasionally appears as faculty.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is currently streaming on Paramount+.

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2026-02-05 11:06