By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
In recent years, it’s been depressingly common for television episodes to get yanked from streaming for one reason or another. More often than not, this is due to streaming executives panicking over offensive content, which is why shows like the hilariously transgressive It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia got some of their episodes removed from Hulu. However, despite it being one of the least offensive episodes in television history, the “Duet” episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was once mysteriously removed from Paramount+.
The Disappearing “Duet”
Back in April 2022, “Duet” was briefly removed from Paramount+, causing concern among Star Trek fans wanting to stream their favorite show. This occurred when Paramount was taking episodes from Netflix and moving them over to their own streaming service. After enough pressure from fans, the episode was restored, but the only explanation for its absence was that there was some “streaming rights issue” that was never fully explained.
Obviously, nobody outside of Paramount knows exactly what was going on here, but the explanation behind the “Duet” initial absence from Paramount+ made many Star Trek fans question the office story. That’s because it took less than a week for this fan-favorite episode to arrive on Paramount’s streaming service. Nobody ever explained what could be causing this mysterious streaming rights issue, and it would take more than a week (usually much more than a week) to resolve any disputes involving rights holders.
While some audiences would have likely complained about any episode getting unexpectedly yanked from streaming, the absence of “Duet” particularly annoyed Star Trek fans. That’s because this is generally seen as the best episode of Deep Space Nine’s first season thanks to its plot about Kira, a former Bajoran freedom fighter, confronting a Cardassian who claims to be a war criminal. We discover that the man in question didn’t actually kill thousands of Bajorans but feels guilty about not doing more to stop his race’s atrocities. So guilty that he’s willing to be tried and executed as a notorious war criminal so that Kira’s people can achieve closure.
A Classic Episode
In short, “Duet” is an emotional powerhouse, one that Star Trek’s producers love just as much as the fans. A great example of this is the fact that Deep Space Nine showrunner Ira Steven Behr reacted to the streaming drama online. When the @askparamount account on X revealed that the episode wasn’t available on Paramount+ “due to streaming rights,” Behr reposted by saying that the late “Duet” writer Paul Allan Fields “would not approve” but simultaneously “would not be surprised.”
Behr also called the problem with “Duet” a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine “snafu for the books.” It was a fairly mild critique, but it caused the @askparamount account to respond with an apology for their “miscommunication.” They claimed that “there was an issue, but our team was able to get the episode back up and available to stream,” helpfully posting the link. From that day forward, “Duet” was available to stream, and there was never any more information about the alleged streaming rights issue.
For “Duet” fans who remember this brief controversy, this remains one of Star Trek’s weirdest unanswered questions. Was there really some mysterious third party who somehow held onto the rights for a beloved episode for a few days, or did Paramount simply make an error when explaining what happened? Either way, we’re grateful that, unlike with It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, it’s now possible to always stream our favorite Deep Space Nine episodes.
Now, we’re just waiting for Paramount execs to hatch their own scheme in the vein of Charlie, Dennis, Frank, and Dee. And we already have the perfect episode title: “The Gang Finally Fixes NuTrek.”
