Star Trek: 10 Behind The Scenes Secrets From Caretaker
6. The 'Mistakes' Of Emissary Led To Caretaker
Michael Piller recalled that the drive behind Caretaker was inspired by learnings from Emissary. For Deep Space Nine's pilot episode, the crew knew from the beginning that the show would tackle 'loftier' ideas, which in turn led to the episode becoming a cerebral, psychological examination. Piller knew that this was not the intent behind Caretaker.
In his words, Caretaker gave him the opportunity to let loose and get straight to the action. Indeed, while Emissary opens with Wolf 359, it then calms down to show Sisko and Jake talking. The cold open for Caretaker sees Chakotay and the Val Jean hunted by Gul Evek, leading them into the badlands, and then both ships being either damaged by the storms - in Evek's case - or sucked into the Delta Quadrant, in the Maquis' case.
The rest of the episode, while still delivering character and story arcs that introduce the audience to the main cast, focuses on action far more than Emissary does - their encounter with the Cardassians notwithstanding. Ultimately, though Caretaker may arguably be the more fun pilot episode, Emissary has stood the test of time a little better, in this writer's opinion.