Reviewer: Nerys Ghemor Signed [Report This]
Date: 03 Oct 2011 01:24 Title: Section 31

Man...this is one dysfunctional little group, to be sure.  Not only is each member of the "Jack Pack" dysfunctional on his or her own, but the whole group dynamic is screwed-up, with Jack spewing vile abuse on everybody...well, I guess everybody except Sarina.  Honestly, I'm not sure why Jack is allowed to be with people, unless it was decided that he would get even more hostile if cut off from social contact.  (I wonder, though, if Lauren keeps Jack in check in some way, even after she dumped him.)

I particularly worry about Sarina and Patrick in this group, though, being constantly subjected to Jack's abuse or at least having to listen to it.  That cannot be helping them.  If putting Patrick in with Jack was supposed to keep him from being bullied by "normals," all they did was put him in with a worse bully.  As childlike and almost innocent as he is, I never saw anything on the show to suggest that he would've been a danger with normal people (though I can imagine him getting really upset and crying out of boredom if he wasn't intellectually stimulated enough).

Surely the "Jack Pack" can't be the only "Augments" needing medical treatment anywhere in the Federation.  I would think more suitable company could've been chosen for Patrick.  (Sorry...I guess I have a soft spot for him even though I didn't like the rest of the Jack Pack.)

I wonder if in your writings you've ever taken on that question?

As to the plot of your story, I think you offer a plausible explanation as to how the threat of treason might've been dealt with by Section 31.  "Good" thing Sloan targeted Sarina, though, or else Jack might've made it his singlehanded mission to either destroy or take over 31, and both of those options could have really ugly endings.

Author's Response: The nearest I could think of goes to when Dr. Loews chose to separate these four from the other residents. They all showed a level of intelligence beyond "genius level" and a potential to be productive members of society on some level and that Jack was kept on a tight leash. Except, no punitive was taken against him when he threatened Sarina's life. Maybe he was just tugging Bashir's strings, but that's a risky assumption considering the physical strength of an "augmented" human. And outside of her unusually strong libido, Lauren seemed the most like the voice of reason, especially when Sarina was regressing back to her old self. Some of those issues are addressed in "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished".