future Starfleet uniforms and combadges were the same as those seen in the alternate future parts of the Star Trek: The Next Generation series finale "All Good Things...". Jake starts writing the novel Anslem in the later season 4 episode "The Muse", and was accepted into the Pennington School in a previous season 3 episode "Explorers". Reception Broadcast "The Visitor" was first shown on October 9, 1995, in broadcast syndication. It was the second episode of the fourth season and received Nielsen ratings of 6.9 percent on the first broadcast. Critical reception Writing for Tor.com, Keith DeCandido felt that the episode was among the ten best Star Trek stories and praised the acting of Avery Brooks (Benjamin Sisko), Cirroc Lofton (Jake Sisko), and particularly Tony Todd (adult Jake Sisko). He felt that "Everyone who gets substantive screen time puts in a great performance here", also commending Terry Farrell (Jadzia Dax), Alexander Siddig (Julian Bashir), and Aron Eisenberg (Nog). DeCandido summarized his thoughts on the episode by writing, "Just a great great hour of television. One of the finest there has ever been", and awarded the episode a rating of 10 out of 10. Jamahl Epsicokhan of Jammer's Reviews gave the episode 4/4 stars. He felt "The Visitor" was a "moving, thematic tale [that] is one of the most brilliantly realized character pieces I've seen on television." He lauded Michael Taylor's story, David Livingston's direction, the editing and the music. Ending his review, Epsicokhan wrote, "Even if you're grabbing the tissues by the end of this episode (I was) there is no way you can call this story maudlin or melodramatic. It's completely absorbing from the first frame to the last; definitely one of DS9s finest moments. There is true magic working here." The A.V. Clubs Zack Handlen reviewed the episode standalone rather than alongside another episode – he had done so similarly in his review for "Duet" – and interspersed his review with memories with his own father. Handlen explained that he was reduced to tears when old Jake woke up to find his father watching him and smiling towards the end of the episode. Analyzing Star Trek: Deep Space Nines representation of black fatherhood in America through the characters of Benjamin and Jake Sisko, Vulture's Angelica Jade Bastién wrote how the "beauty of [their] relationship is perhaps never better portrayed than in the season-four episode "The Visitor." [...] Seeing