#both nog and rom

[monkeyoc]

I feel like out of Rom Nog and Quark, Quark feels like the only neurotypical

[youngpettyqueen]

once again thinking about the post-canon dynamics on DS9

[jvlianbashir]

would they have a driver's license (ds9 edition)

sisko: yes. overall a good driver. serious about "defensive driving" and believes everyone should know how to drive manual in a pinch. gets annoyed when people don't respect zipper merging

kira: she got one as an adult after a few attempts, but was definitely driving both cars and other vehicles/equipment illegally as a young teen and had to rein in some of those "seat-of-the-pants" driving habits

jadzia: yes and is a pretty good driver but has collected a few speeding tickets over the years

o'brien: yes and somehow ended up de facto driver's ed instructor for other ds9 folks trying to get one. it is very stressful

worf: yes and is a solid driver overall but the road rage is crazy when people cut him off or drive like assholes

bashir: yes. aced the written exam and knows all the rules well, but you CANNOT talk to or argue with him while he's driving or he becomes a distractible terror on the road

odo: yes and abides by traffic laws and speed limits perfectly (some may say pettily) which ironically makes him a bit of a hazard at times

ezri: no and she's scared to get one, but wants to eventually

quark: license chronically suspended

nog: similar to kira. got one later (after instruction from sisko and o'brien) and is a very good driver now but was an absolute menace on the roads as a teen

rom: yes but drives slow as hell and causes traffic jams that make him anxious so he drives even slower

[thethirdromana]

There's a question that I think lies at the heart of nearly every character on Deep Space Nine: who am I and where do I belong?

In Star Trek terms it's not a question that's unique to DS9 - TOS asks it of Spock, TNG asks it of Worf and Data, in both cases very effectively. But where DS9 differs is that, with the loveable exception of Miles O'Brien, it's something that every main character grapples with at some point, and usually in depth.

At the start of the series, Sisko thinks he knows who he is (normal human) and where he belongs (Earth, ultimately), but he discovers he's wrong about both of those things.

Bashir hides who he is, and his belonging in Starfleet, the only home he has, is fragile and threatened.

Worf's sense of who he is as a Klingon adopted by human parents is a key theme of TNG; his arc on DS9 is in part about finding a way to belong to both parts of his background.

Kira seems like she has a very strong sense of who she is and where she belongs, but 'Second Skin' throws all that into doubt. (Never mind the part of her identity that is "fighter of Cardassians").

Odo doesn't even know what his species is at the start of DS9. Even by the end of the series, the question of whether he belongs on the station or with the Changelings is an open one.

Jadzia Dax is more certain of who she is and where she belongs, but her nature as a joined Trill inherently raises questions of identity and belonging.

Ezri Dax, unprepared for joining, sometimes has literally no idea who she is when she's first introduced.

Garak knows who he is (a Cardassian) and where he belongs (Cardassia). But you could hardly describe either answer as straightforward.

Quark believes himself to be a traditional Ferengi through-and-through, and desperately tries to cling on to that belief despite all evidence to the contrary.

Nog breaks away from what's expected of him based on who he is, in order to find where he belongs.

Jake does the same, albeit with an easier journey.

Rom believes himself to be of little worth and that with his lack of business sense he could never really belong on Ferenginar, and he learns that he's wrong about both of those things.

The same question even plays out with minor characters - Eddington, Ziyal, Damar, Weyoun 6.

For me, I think this is a significant part of what makes DS9 such a rich series, and what makes its characters so interesting. None of them are static because in almost all cases their identities are actively being challenged and changed as the series goes on. And all of this intersects with DS9's themes of colonialism, migration, and cultural assimilation in fascinating ways.

[kitkatt0430]

Quark doesn't have any children of his own (goodness knows he'd be paying out the nose for child support if he did) but he helped raise Nog. In a lot of ways, Nog is very much his kid.

When Quark was a kid, his father wasn't a good businessman. We learn over the course of the show that he's a lot more like his mother. She's brilliant with managing finances and gaining profit. Rom is much more like their father and for that reason Quark initially keeps him on a short leash. Rom's already been screwed over by his first wife and Quark feels like he has to protect his brother, even as he also tries to be a good ferengi by exploiting him.

Nog, raised with his father and uncle as his primary guardians, is acutely aware that his father has no real business sense. And while Nog is his father's son in many ways... he's also Quark's son. I doubt Quark would appreciate thinking it's his influence on Nog that leads him to join Starfleet, but Nog does inherit his uncle's intelligence and realizes that while he doesn't want the same life his father has... he doesn't want the life Quark has, either. Chasing profit and having it never be truly fulfilling enough. Nog's smart enough to figure out what he wants his own path to be, however, and he applies the lessons of their culture in ways that might not gain Quark's approval but does often gain his respect. (And inspires his father to eventually chart his own path too.)

Quark may never outright say it, but the way he feels at heart is pretty clearly that Nog is his kid too; we see him act parental, concerned... perhaps treating Nog at times the same way Ishka treated Quark and Rom when they were younger. Quark takes an interest in Nog's schooling when he's young and while he thinks Starfleet Academy is a mistake, still takes pride in being part of Nog's send off. Quark often 'mothers' Nog; I'm not really sure how else to put the way Quark will hover over Nog when he worries about his nephew, but it's definitely behavior Quark learned from his own mother. And when Nog is injured so badly during the war that he loses his leg, Quark nurses his nephew and even sets aside his own ideals to pick up a weapon in defense of them both from the attacking jem'hadar.

Every time I watch this show I think I come to love the way Quark, Rom, and Nog grow and change as a family over the course of the years a little more.

[cdr2002]

I gushed about the DS9 mirror universe in a previous post and how I feel the setting is more fluid than stories centered on the dominance of the Terran Empire, but I really do love the way it handles inverting and “mirroring” characters and concepts

“The names are the same, but the players are in different places” I think Prime Kira put it

The Federation and the mirror Cardassian Union are direct parallels. Both powers enjoy beneficial alliances with the Klingons and Bajor, and a severe dominance over Alpha Quadrant politics. The Alliance is on a larger scale essentially the mirror Federation of this era. Kira at the beginning of the series worried that the Federation would be just like the Cardassians. Oh the irony.

The TNG era is generally considered to be the Federation at its height, before the losses suffered at the hands of the Borg and the Dominion, at least. Meanwhile in the mirror universe, the Terrans, vulcans, and others are at their absolute lowest. They are in essentially the same position that the Bajorans were under the Cardassian occupation. And the Bajorans are, at least in part, among their oppressors.

Kira’s nemesis is Gul Dukat. The Intendant has Gul Dukat’s old job, and behaves similarly to him in many ways. Both Kiras are fundamentally the same person enough to understand each other, but in the ways that they differ are all traits that Intendant shares with Dukat. Kira is second in command of the station, under Sisko’s command. The Intendant commands the station, and Sisko works for her. The reversal of their egos is the most obvious, and the component Nana Visitor herself has commented on.

Prime Garak is an exile. Mirror Garak is still trapped in Cardassian military service, and seems miserable with it, much the way I imagine Prime Garak would have found himself eventually.

O’Brien has a loving family. Smiley has nothing. This very fact helps to inspire him to become a revolutionary. O’Brien knows what he lives for. Smiley has to find it.

Both Siskos “lost” Jennifer. One to the Borg, one or his own hubris.

Prime Bashir is a genius and a savant. Mirror Bashir is kind of a thug.

Prime Quark is arrogant and swaggering. Mirror Quark is timid and quiet, but also more outwardly kind. Too outwardly perhaps, considering he got caught, but we can’t fault him for doing the right thing.

Prime Worf was raised by humans. Regent Worf is all Klingon. If he knew the Rozhenkos, they were probably house servants or something. He was intentionally written to be like Gowron.

Similarly, Mirror Nog is very Quark-like.

The situation that the Rebellion finds itself in forces them to operate and conduct themselves VERY similarly to the Maquis, ironic considering how many of our Starfleet characters have mirror selves who are members of this Rebellion, and who in the prime universe, have opposed the Maquis. Sisko being the most prominent example. They even use more or less the same vehicles and weapons as the Maquis, and I think there are a few shared background actors between both groups, potentially the prime and mirror versions of the same peoples.

Similarly, Tuvok is a spy for Starfleet within the Maquis in the prime universe. He is genuinely 100% a rebel in the mirror universe. Both Tuvoks also have the same outfit in their wardrobe.

Prime Rom is relatively timid. Mirror Rom is fairly aggressive.

Ezri received the Dax symbiont in the prime universe. This never happened in the mirror universe, and the episode makes sure to emphasize this. She’s also tough, guarded, sassy, and aggressive where Prime Ezri is somewhat meek, fairly open, friendly, and usually cordial but does say what’s on her mind, bringing a similarity between her and her mirror counterpart. Mirror Ezri ultimately choosing to become a member of the rebellion could also be argued as a similarity.

Mirror Jadzia is unfortunately quite underdeveloped and boils down to mostly sleeping with people Prime Jadzia ordinarily doesn’t. But there is an interesting note to Mirror Jadzia seeming to be a more frivolous and carefree person (or at least fronting as such), while Prime Jadzia is a relatively more serious person, and while both engage in casual sex, Prime Jadzia is a lot more considered when it comes to starting long term relationships than her counterpart, who doesn’t see Bashir’s immaturity as an obstacle to his compatibility as a partner.

The mirror Klingons and Cardassians find success and dominance in aligning. In the prime universe they go to war, to their mutual detriment.

DS9 ends with the prime universe Cardassian Union brought low and made to suffer a form of ironic penance for their past sins at the hands of a greater fascist power than themselves, much like the fall of the Terran Empire. But where the Empire was conquered by the Alliance, Cardassia is brought back to its feet by the Federation.

I don’t know precisely how intentional any of this was but I found it fascinating.

Oh and Mirror Bariel has a personality.

[whispsofwind]

Tbh I still absolutely refuse to entertain the idea of Ziyal as a love interest for Garak because it just - isn't thematically interesting nor coherent with the rest of the series??

Like, there's so much importance on fatherhood and parental figures on DS9.

There's Ben Sisko and his relationship with both his own father and his son Jake, and how the positive relationship with his father translated into a virtuose generational cycle where he does his absolute best for Jake, always. Also, Sisko acts as a Moses figure in Bajoran religion, becoming as a paternal figure of sorts of Kira and as a Captain he acts a paternal figure for all of the Station, much more than Kirk or Picard ever did imo. (And quite frankly he is basically the MC so his character arc informs the whole series)

There's Julian and his relationship with his parents and especially his father - the father who became his architect because his son was "defective" and then resented Julian for it.

There's Rom and Nog and their mutually supportive relationships.

There is Kira Nerys and her relationship to multiple father figures - her biological father, sure, but also Ben Sisko and Tekeny Ghemor, and all the complicated messy feelings that those bring in their intersection with religious and political elements. And then the fact that Kira was a surrogate for the O'brien family and all the complicated feelings there, and her role as a parental figure to Ziyal.

There's Dukat and his absolute disaster of a relationship with his daughter (and his implied relationship with the rest of his children - and the implication that Dukat is not a good father by neither Federation or Cardassian standards).

There is Garak and the absolutely fucked up relationship he has with Tain and the intersection between Tain as a representative of the State and Tain as a father and the State as a parental figure to Cardassia.

In a smaller capacity there's also Miles who literally becomes a father a second time in DS9 and Worf and his complicated relationship with Alexander.

Odo and his complicated relationship with his "father", who wasn't his father at all but in a way wasn't he in the way he shaped Odo and his perspective of the world?

Even Dax, one could argue if stretching the argument enough, can be read through the lens of parental figures- Curzon as a father figure of sorts to Benjamin, albeit in a more fun dad sense, and Ezri as a metaphorical daughter figure to both Jadzia and Curzon, the young one with such big shoes to fill - I feel like I am not stretching it toooooo much here ok.

Just - so much of DS9 narrative revolves about being children of someone, and parents of someone. What it means to be a good father, a good parent, and how parents shape and form ad hurt and traumatise you.

And the writers were aware of that! So many episodes directly parallel two or more different plots about these elements with either the main characters or one-shot characters.

So, like, the subplot with Ziyal and Garak is basically already written?? Garak supplanting Dukat as a father to Ziyal is so thematically resonant with Garak and Dukat's storylines in the context of the broader implications of the show. It works on multiple levels in terms of Dukat not deserving fatherhood, and Garak breaking away from Tain's cycle of trauma and reconciling with a more humane and natural approach to family, and it also serves Ziyal's character arc in bridging her Cardassian and Bajoran sides through her putative parents, Garak and Nerys.

It's unfortunate that they really needed to make sure Garak looked straight and they chose Ziyal for it, because I truly think it was such a bad choice. I do not believe for a second that Garak is straight, so it didn't even work, but it surely ruined a perfectly good thematic streak they had going on.

[sopranoentravesti]

All right, DS9 fans who are opera freaks

For the 3 of you on tumblr, @currymuttonpizza and myself got chatting and one thing led to another and Badda-bing, Badda bang, we came up with the Fächer of the characters for the Opera version of DS9. Here goes

Captain Sisko: Bass Baritone. This seems self explanatory

Jake Sisko: countertenor

Major Kira: Coloratura mezzo. I may have been biased for this one bc that is the closest thing to my fach, but think Rossini‘s heroines, or some of Vivaldi‘s work (like Armatae Face et Anguibus from Juditha Triumphans)

Gul Dukat: also Bass-baritone, but of the villainous variety. Think Samuel Ramey as Reverend Olin Blitch in Susannah, or the titular role in Don Giovanni

Julian Bashir: Tenor leggiero. This also seems self explanatory

Kai Winn: originally I thought of a mezzo a la Ježibaba, but I think actually this may be a place for a villainous contralto

Jadzia Dax: mezzo, but of the type that delves down in contralto territory periodically (a la Avery Amereau ❤️)

Odo: dramatic baritone— to use @currymuttonpizza‘s inimitable phrasing “He's like if Scarpia were a good person idk.”

Worf: Bass, nuff said

Miles: baritone. Mostly an Everyman lyric kind but can venture in dramatic territory when he’s Suffering (he’s basically Wozzeck, if you think about it)

Keiko: sweet, loving, badass, sassy when needed? A soubrette, of the Mozart variety, a la Susanna and Zerlina

Garak: Britten tenor

Quark: dramatic baritone. Basically Alberich in space

Rom: Basso buffo

Nog: the guy you think is a tenor buffo, but is actually a Helden tenor

Kasidy Yates: full lyric soprano

Weyoun: tenor buffo. Complete Don Basilio type

Brunt: also tenor buffo. Both played by combs who brings buffo energy to both

Ezri: soubrette

Leeta: high poppy squeaky coloratura soprano (I’m thinking Olympia in the doll aria)

Damar: baritone, maybe slightly romantic but pretty run of the mill

Ziyal: light lyric soprano, ala Gilda from Rigoletto

Joseph Sisko: Dramatic Bass

Female Changeling: contralto, think Erda

Moogie: mezzo a la Marcelina from Nozze, but also some Despina vibes

Grand Nagus Zek: gonna trust @currymuttonpizza on this one, heldentenor like the drum major, but make it funny

Vedek Bareil: speaking role

[ferengii]

Sometimes I think about how different Nog and Bena’s (rom and leetas daughter) childhoods would’ve been.

Like nog grew up on terok nor, in the middle of the occupation, with only his father and uncle (who were both assholes tbh) and him and his having to work for low wages and quark cheating rom out of his .

And bena would grow up with two loving parents, being the daughter of the grand magus. She probably wouldn’t have to work a day in her life if she really didn’t want to.

Wonder how nog would feel about this tbh

[denahi]

A very late Multifandom Doodle gift -- I started this in 2021. I saw these eight characters being requested and came up with a 4-piece idea themed around pairs of characters in Quark's family celebrating a Ferengi holiday themed around Rule of Acquisition #75 ("Home is where the heart is, but the stars are made of latinum") and the date the Ferengi acquired warp drive technology, but then didn't have the time to actually execute it. I was finally able to finish this up for Late Treat Bonanza. More notes under the cut if you're interested:

Jake and Nog are in charge of cooking. This is post-canon, so Jake has some facial hair, and also can cook Ferengi dishes.

Rom and Leeta are in charge of decorating. I get the feeling they'd both enjoy making things look pretty. I wanted to come up with a holiday that Ferengi might celebrate, so I decided on a commemoration of when Ferengi bought warp drive technology and so were able to travel the stars for the first time (and so engage in many new business ventures!). Traditional decorations are the Tower of Commerce (this one here is an official 1/300 scale model) plus the Ferengi Alliance insignia, stars, and slips of latinum. This one took me forever -- trying to figure out poses and perspective and the background... ToT

Pel and Ishka are making the dough! Pel is on a business call, and Ishka is giving her advice while also doing some stock trading.

Finally, Quark and Odo are doing nothing of value arguing with each other at the dining room table.

[cheeseanonioncrisps]

My personal hc is that, though Nog was the first, post-DS9 and Rom becoming Nagus Starfleet Academy is going to start becoming an increasingly attractive option for young Ferengi women whose families are more liberal in their beliefs but aren't as ‘radical’ as Ishka.

Cause I mean, Ferengi men are going to keep experiencing the pressure to earn Profit. That's not going to go away anytime soon.

Their religion appears to centre around the idea that it is a man's responsibility to earn enough latinum to allow themselves and any dependants (meaning both female family members and male members who can't earn for some reason) to enter the afterlife. Profit essentially = prayer.

Give it a few decades and I imagine they'll come up with some way to work around it— maybe Starfleet and the Alliance will rustle up some kind of ‘cultural stipend’ for Ferengi Fleet Members, or maybe the religion will start allowing for symbolic ‘earnings’ for unpaid labour— but in the mean time almost any male Ferengi who tries to apply is going to face exactly the same issues that Nog faced.

Concern from family members about how they're going to earn a Profit, and potentially resentment from male family members who will now have to pick up their slack.

But we can tell from the fuss everyone makes when Ishka starts earning that female Profit either doesn't count or is possibly actively profane. Ferengi females can clearly handle latinum that is earned by males (Quark sends his mother a stipend to live off) but they can't contribute to the family coffers.

So what can you do, if you're a newly liberated Ferengi Female who doesn't want to be married off and have to spend your life chewing food and performing Oomox on demand, but who perhaps isn't ready to bring Ultimate Shame on your family by earning Profit?

Well now there's an Option 3.

Yeah, you'll have to wear clothes. But I suspect that that particular social convention will vanish fairly quickly once Ferengi tailors start making Profit from selling women's clothing. And you get to have a job where you'll be treated with respect, with lots of opportunities for advancement, but no Profit is involved, so you're not stepping on any male family member's toes.

Hell, you can even spin it as a positive to your Head of Family (or a potential Mate). Like, they won't have to pay for your upkeep anymore, because Starfleet covers employee room and board. And you'll be travelling across the galaxy gaining potential business contacts for the Family.

And when trading with other species, especially Federation members, I suspect that having a sister or daughter employed and living out in the open would be a real positive when it came to negotiation.

Not only would you have a (wo)man on the inside, but you'd get to present yourselves as some of the New Modern Ferengi who are respectful towards Feeemales and Hoomans and are definitely nothing like those other Ferengi you may have heard about, who are just awful.

It'd be the equivalent of irl corporations tweeting about feminism to advertise how progressive they are.

[writergeekrhw]

Was it always the plan for Rom and Nog to have such incredible character arcs? They both grew so much over the course of DS9, it's stunning comparing season 7 to their season 1 versions

ROM AND NOG

Honestly, no. We were pretty much flying by the seat of our pants with them.

A lot of the credit for Rom and Nog's character arcs has to go to the actors. Max and Aron were so good, they inspired us to write more and more stuff for them. Because we knew they'd deliver, we started looking for opportunities to give them big emotional shifts and surprising moments, and those shifts and moments organically grew their "incredible arcs" over the course of seven season.

[sshbpodcast]

Character Spotlight: Jake Sisko

By Ames

We’ve talked a bunch of times on A Star to Steer Her By about how Jake Sisko is the best. He’s one of the best child characters in the whole Star Trek franchise, in both writing and acting (second to maybe Mezoti and/or Rok-Tahk). His relationship with his father is depicted so beautifully in so many episodes, as we’ll surely discuss below. And that kid’s personal style bypasses Wesley Crusher’s in every single way.

So this week, we’re picking up a Jake Sisko holonovel to read as your SSHB hosts declare our favorite Jake-O moments and scrape up some bad moments to consider. Our definition of what a Worst Moment is – which was shaky at best to begin with – gets really stretched this week. So enjoy them all below, listen to our chatter this week on the podcast (jump over to 1:01:52), and prepare for Jake Sisko to make a deal for you to have great damn day.

[Images © CBS/Paramount]

Best moments

“A” is for Apple, “B” is for Best friend ever Jake is just a straight-up good kid. So good that we happily forgive everything on our bad list, and this early moment really established what a pure heart he has. When Rom pulls Nog out of Keiko’s school in “The Nagus” and Sisko is about to get all racist at the Ferengi for corrupting his son, we learn that Jake has been sneaking off to teach Nog to read, squashing all the jumped-to conclusions and being the example that everyone on the station needs right now.

Who wears the lobes in this relationship? Speaking of teaching things to Nog, when the two form the Noh-Jay Consortium in “Progress,” which is adorable enough on its own, Jake somehow schools Nog on the value of owning land when they start trading assets around. How a Ferengi doesn’t understand real estate is beyond me, but Jake knows a good deal when he sees one. Turns out Jake’s got the lobes!

My friend’s real sorry for what he did In our Nog coverage on the podcast, I mistakenly sullied Jake’s name, claiming he started a fight with the Skrrean kids in “Sanctuary.” Well I was dead wrong! Jake, the ever goody-two-shoes, actually tries to prevent the fight and then does one better by patching things up with Tumak in line for the replimat later. How I could think Jake would have a vicious bone in his body was my error.

I need to find what’s me While we gave Nog lots of props for pursuing his dream of being the first Ferengi to join Starfleet, Jake goes the opposite path, and we love him even more for it! You’d think with a father commanding a whole station, Jake would go the Starfleet route too, but in “Shadowplay,” he reveals he’d rather pursue something he’s more passionate about.

First let me get the hang of flying at impulse When the away team gets captured during “The Jem’Hadar,” Jake and Nog sneak aboard the runabout to escape. Despite not knowing how to pilot the thing, Jake is able to elude disaster and invaders long enough to be rescued. Add to that the fact that they were there to ensure Nog got a passing grade, and Jake comes out as the hero of this episode! (Sorry, Quark.)

If I go, you’ll be all alone Even though he wants to spend time with Leanne, Jake decides to accompany his father on the lightship in “Explorers.” This episode gives us some more of those patented lovely father-son moments of the two being honest and supportive of each other, as Jake expresses his interest in writing and also that he’s concerned about Ben coping without him if he went away to school.

Something called “Sliding into Second” An episode later in “Family Business,” Sisko relents to Jake’s insistence that he get a girlfriend by going on a date with Kasidy Yates based on his son’s matchmaking skills. And it turns out Kasidy is perfect for Ben! Now whether Ben is perfect for Kasidy is another matter altogether that we hinted at a little in our Ben Sisko post, but let’s just say Jake has solid taste.

To my father, who’s coming home I cannot overstate how beautiful “The Visitor” is, and at the center of it is Jake’s relationship with Ben, undoubtedly the strongest asset of all of Deep Space Nine. Jake’s love for his missing father is so strong and pure that he dedicates his life to getting him back from the white void. Is it what Ben would have wanted? Absolutely not. But is it perfect for Jake Sisko? Tremendously.

You may be a little rusty, but you’re still the Chief When O’Brien has gone through literal decades of torture after his brain adventure in “Hard Time,” who better than Jake Sisko to help reacclimate him to all his tools? Jake, who apprenticed briefly under the Chief earlier in the series, shows characteristic patience and empathy for the man who is clearly in need of much rehabilitation and therapy.

The line between courage and cowardice Cirroc Lofton gets his time to shine in “...Nor the Battle to the Strong,” providing an understandably terrified face to the front lines. Not only does he scrub up to help Julian and the other combat medics as injured soldiers start pouring in, AND thwart a Klingon siege by blasting out the ceiling, but he also reminds us that war is absolutely horrifying, in case we’ve forgotten.

You can always find something that’ll make you smile Yet another feel-good moment comes from Jake in the entire lovetrip that is “In the Cards.” While trying to cheer up his dad by getting him a baseball card, Jake and Nog find themselves running a series of fetch quests that add up to one thing: finding ways to make everyone have a nice day, even in the middle of the Dominion War. It was a breath of fresh air in a very serious season.

Let people read it and decide for themselves While Nog and the rest of Red Squad were entirely taken in by the opportunity to play war, Jake saw through Watters’s bullshit immediately in “Valiant.” He’s able to scrape Nog and Dorian Collins together and save them from destruction. And I’ve got to give him credit for endeavoring to write both sides of the story, without bias or condemnation, even if Watters deserves it.

—

Worst moments

Watch the wheel, not the girl Boy, that Jake Sisko has a type, and that type is older Bajorans. We first meet Mardah in the flesh in “The Abandoned,” and not only is she a Dabo Girl (whom we know have sex acts with Quark written into their contracts), but she’s also too old for him. I don’t know what age of consent laws are in the future, but when she’s 20 and he’s 16, it just feels on the wrong side of legal.

Stop calling her Nerys When things with Mardah don’t work out, Jake sets his sights on another Bajoran who’s definitely too old for him in “Fascination”: Major Kira. And sure, you could justify this one by saying that everyone on the station is affected by Lwaxana Troi’s Zanthi Fever, but out of all the uncomfortable pairings, it was this one that just felt kinda gross about it.

I guess I just forgot you’re a Ferengi While we blame Nog for his terrible behavior during their double date in “Life Support,” Jake isn’t innocent either. First, how he let Nog weasel in is just a goofy plot device to make the episode happen. But also, Jake shows naivete on his part for not understanding that this is perfectly normal for a Ferengi, and blaming his friend for his upbringing isn’t a good look.

So you’re Jennifer Sisko, but you’re just not my mom Okay, this one’s a little on Ben too for trusting mirror Jennifer to be alone with Jake, like a fool, but Jake’s whole attitude toward his mirror mom in “Shattered Mirror” plays right into her trap. He is so blindsided by her presence that he doesn’t think rationally, even if he’s heard the stories about how nefarious everyone is in the alternate universe. Jake, don’t trust this imposter!

I can spot a creative soul a galaxy away Jake’s weird thing for older women shows up again in “The Muse” when Onaya easily manipulates the poor boy. This is just an episode after “Shattered Mirror,” when his mirror mom took advantage of his trusting nature and eagerness to believe people have good intentions. And this soul-sucker preys on him so easily because he lets himself get taken in.

How much laundry is too much laundry? One last one that’s on both Nog’s and Jake’s list somewhere, since the two are so intertwined: While Nog has become a complete square in “The Ascent,” Jake has turned into a slob so comically disorganized that it stretches credulity. Nog is literally gone for several hours and when he’s returned, Jake’s laundry coats their quarters. How is that even possible?

These visions, they’re not worth dying for This is one of those instances that’s more bad for Jake than bad for us at home. When Ben is catatonic from prophet visions in “Rapture,” it’s Jake’s responsibility as next of kin to decide his fate. He chooses for his father to live, partly selfishly, even though it’s not what Ben would have wanted. But really, I say they should have put this decision on Joe and not a teenage boy.

Just remember, Bashir is spelled with an I Consistently, it’s a running joke on the show that Jake’s spelling is poor. It comes up a couple of times! Nog has to correct all his spelling in “The Ascent.” Sisko points it out when he reads Anslem in “The Muse.” And clearly he spelled Dr. Bashir’s name wrong in his article from “...Nor the Battle to the Strong” because Julian reminds him of the spelling in “Call to Arms.”

This is where I belong After all the Starfleet personnel have abandoned the station in “Call to Arms,” Jake opts to stay behind to do some journalism work, hoping that his status as the Emissary’s son will keep him safe because the Bajorans will revolt if some harm comes to him. So he effectively makes himself a hostage of the Dominion just for a writing gig. Weird flex, Jake-O.

What about freedom of the press? And then the stories Jake writes about the Dominion occupation don’t even go anywhere because Weyoun keeps intercepting them in “A Time to Stand”! Jake, my dude, you can’t go writing clearly biased stories and thinking they’ll make it to your audience. You think Weyoun’s going to let you interview him when he knows your angle? Oh you sweet summer child.

Anything for a story I’ll admit that Jake’s actions and uncharacteristic ability to see through bullshit in “Valiant” were commendable, but his reasons for being there in the first place were thin at best. He weasels into Nog’s trip to Ferenginar to try to get an exclusive interview with the Nagus. Presumptuous much, kid? This after promising to Nog that he wouldn’t be acting as a reporter on his mission.

Please, no more Vic Fontaine! When Nog returns to the station in “It’s Only a Paper Moon” after his leg replacement and clearly suffering from PTSD, the support he gets from friends, family, and professional therapists alike is laughable. Even Jake. It strikes me as out of character that Jake fails at being tolerant of Nog’s wishes during a painful time. Maybe get the guy some comically large headphones instead of kicking him out next time.

—

Send this one off to the presses because we’re done! We’ve still got some more Deep Space Nine characters to spotlight coming up, so keep following along for those. We also hope you’re watching Enterprise along with us over on SoundCloud or wherever you get your podcasts. You can play some dot-jot with us over on Facebook and Twitter, and check your spelling before submitting because evidently there’s no Clippy on DS9!

[biblioflyer]

It was no “All Good Things” but it did what it needed to do.

Discovery is a bit of a metaphor for “NuTrek.” Never quite sure what it is, whether to take itself uber seriously with the razor edged gravitas of nuGalactica or The Expanse, or to lean into joyful camp like Doctor Who. I think the choice to lean into the camp was ultimately a sound one. The edge simply didn’t fit the writing which was all over the place, in true Trek fashion.

It brought out some of the worst in the fandom, which apparently also has a deep legacy. See also the extensive letter writing campaign condemning TNG as a betrayal of TOS back in the day. We have never been as good as our heroes and some of us don’t seem to try very hard.

Discovery has long baffled me because I’ve struggled, more during the early seasons, with how to approach it. The early aesthetic made me feel like I should be taking it as seriously as open heart surgery which meant it could never withstand scrutiny. The choice to lean into camp made me more forgiving.

I still prefer the bridge crew being a more core part of the ensemble but I think that’s my old school Trek training. It makes more sense for the senior staff to be spread around rather than clustered on the bridge every time and there were plenty of Ensigns and Lieutenants whose names we never learned.

Having a defined main character worked better logically when Burnham was XO or even outside the command structure. The way the character was written, I actually found it frustrating when they first had her rejoin Starfleet and then promote to Captain. They eventually wrote her as a more convincing leader but it has always seemed like she was more convincing and more compelling as someone following their conscience outside the formal hierarchy.

For all the griping about its supposed radical politics, NuTrek has felt very safe. I’ve written a lot about this in the context of Picard, but NuTrek’s skepticism of institutional power clashes with the traditional story format. It keeps walking right up to the edge of legitimizing independent actors working outside of formal structures to right wrongs and do good deeds that are harder to do from a position of responsibility where the cost of making a mistake isn’t just losing one’s own life but possibly losing hundreds of lives or starting a war.

But it always chickens out. Burnham, Rios, Raffi, Seven, Jack: all roads lead back to Starfleet. Which is not to say that Starfleet is bad, actually. I’m all for depicting Starfleet as an enlightened institution but there’s a nuanced position where some people don’t work well in that setting and there are legitimate roles for individuals acting outside of Starfleet. It doesn’t have to be a binary where on one side you have all of the honorable, moral, and disciplined people and on the other are only pirates and vigilantes.

I must give a nod of respect to Saru who has probably undergone one of the most interesting and well executed character arcs that has left the character almost unrecognizable from where he started but it all happened very naturally. Which is an achievement given how the show has struggled with pacing in the modern season format. The next closest examples I can think of would be Rom and Nog who had 7 seasons to complete their arcs. 7 much longer seasons.

I’m sorry to see Discovery go. Just on a meta level, it’s been fascinating to scrutinize its artistic decisions and how it has engaged with its critics. Ultimately I think it did an excellent job of sifting through the muck to find the good faith, well formulated criticisms and adapt gently. Given the incandescent nature of the fandom, it would have been tempting to write off the detractors entirely or essentially reboot the entire show, writing out or severely changing unpopular characters and abandoning previous choices.

I’m a big tent fandom guy, so I will always say that a show needs to be a show for both the people who loved it from the start as well as people who only approved of it later. Balancing that is tricky, I think Discovery did it well. It was often confused and janky, but it grew both the competencies of the storytellers and grew the fan base. For that I’m grateful.

[thegeminisage]

STAR TREK UPDATE TIME. last night we finished off the third season of ds9 with "facets" and "the adversary."

facets:

FINALLY some good fucking food re dax. oh finally finally finally. i absolutely loved this episode start to finish. 10/10 no notes. well no i have two notes 1. it's hilarious that they included leeta bc they didn't have enough characters for all of dax's lives 2. i wish we didn't on-purpose forget that crazy mf who kidnapped her in that one episode...where was he. anyway, aside from those two things, literally perfect

gonna start with the b-plot - nog finally passing his starfleet exams was such a huge fucking deal and it was an even BIGGER deal to me that rom - rom, who initially almost stopped his own kid from going to school because of his brother's influence/ferengi culture in general - got so mad on his kid's behalf he yelled at quark NOSE TO NOSE. not only that, he had a uniform commissioned from garak at a high expense...his son is more important than even MONEY and GOOD FOR HIM!!! my new friend rom.

i'm trying haaard with quark - i liked his scenes in the a-plot - but him fucking with the test is just so horrible. i am begging for even a scrap of character development or even just likability. why can't his schemes and shenanigans be something that doesn't cause emotional harm to other people?? he did a lot of that in the first two seasons, what happened??

anyway, it's cosmic justice that dax assigned him hairbrushing and pregnancy talk in her little ritual. at first i was like i can't believe theyre not gonna make him curzon because he's an asshole and so was curzon but this episode was so enlightened

actually, i had a little spoiler going into this episode. one day i was gooling pics of curzon bc i couldn't remember what he looked like and was so shocked to see ODO! i was like damn is odo mimicking curzon, i thought it was dr mora, what manner of backstory...but then i happened to see the summary for the episode later (i try not to read them, but it happens) and was like ohhh. and it turned out to be perfect

like, the picks for everyone were great - maybe o'brien as tobin was a little mean, that could have also been quark lol - kira was such a perfect feminist trill even with her little voice and sisko made an AMAZING joran (his fakeout was SO fun and i love when sisko calls jadzia old man) but you can't get more perfect than curzon and odo

like, theyre both assholes who go too far sometimes, though obviously they're different KINDS of assholes - odo's grumpiness in generally more benevolent, though not always, and curzon's is much more hidden under charm. they're also both PINING! what a plot twist. it actually explains so much (why he asked for her despite expelling her) and it's like...yeah, jadzia was an adult, but the age difference still made it kind of inappropriate, and he knew enough to know that. and rene auberjonis can play that kind of tortured wish-i-didn't-love-you angst PERFECTLY

and even though he's an asshole, you didn't feel like jadzia's sympathy for him was misplaced, because he obviously did his best to make amends (important!!) and suffered over it a great deal - that his own inappropriate behavior almost cost jadzia something she'd worked her whole life for, and it was nearly a mistake that couldn't be undone. you felt like he actually HAD a wake-up call, unlike a lot of the characters in tng or in a recent case voy who were only sad and made excuses so THEY could feel better without actually attempting to correct course for someone ELSE'S sake. i liked curzon a lot, he had a lot of nuance

also, i gotta talk about odo. since curzon and odo's personalities are so different, it actually makes total sense why they'd want to stay joined...odo gets to be free and easy around others, and curzon gets the joys of being a changeling. odo's rigid personality doesn't complement his abilities as a changeling very well, but curzon's personality kind of does??

curzon sisko reunion was so good too. sisko pointing vaguely at him to an amazed and speechless jake going oh you remember curzon ha ha and getting sort of dragged out of the room. they're SO funny and i love sisko scenes so much

and of course sisko's scenes with JADZIA! i feel like i understand her so much better now...firstly, she's had this sort of sassy personality for a few episodes, so i'm wondering if we are finally sticking with that one? but then she also has this deep-seated insecurity underneath there which could kind of explain away some of her reserved rigidity in earlier seasons - her whole deal enrolling kind of traumatized her, and her "real" personality is starting to shine now that she's healing? all conjecture/headcanon, but i could get used to sassy jadzia! it feels great that she has actual conflict and stuff to say and like, a pretty fun sense of comedic timing also

and now that her character has started to appeal to me i can see how lovely it is that curzon was once sisko's mentor and now sisko is mentoring jadzia on how to confront curzon...also they fucked twins once. and fucked in the mirrorverse. there's so much to unpack. it's a complex fun relationship that i've always LIKED but am only just now starting to APPRECIATE

anyway, wonderful stuff, 10/10

the adversary:

MY BEST FRIEND ODO. "no changeling has ever harmed another" are such fun arc words and i was hoping he'd be the first and he WAS. i think that other changeling technically attacked him first but whatever. it was what i wanted and i GOT IT and he was so fucked up after <3

sisko's promotion!! i always wondered when they'd get around to making him captain, it was always bonkers to me that he started as a commander. he is still ROCKING that beard also but i do pre-emptively miss his hair. also, sisko taking jake's drink at the toast when he tried to steal too much. priceless. he has such dad energy

dax teasing sisko about his baseball gf..........i love this so much for them. i love that he gets a baseball gf and i love that everyone gossips about it behind his back. i also love how much glee everyone took in calling him captain for the rest of the episode. his besties love him so much.........................

changeling plot was so fun because i THOUGHT it was weird for julian to be crawling around in that little hole but the close-up on obrien had me CONVINCED he was the one and ofc also that one traitor guy was there too and he's super squirrelly. so it kept me GUESSING

i do think it's really funny that they used this nice civilized hypo to draw blood though - firstly, it's less secure, because the changeling was able to swap samples, but secondly, on s*pernatural they would have been cutting each other up INSTANTLY. straight across the palm like idiots. they're so fucking civilized in the 2300s.

the return of the self-destruct codes!!!!!!!!!!! GOD THAT WAS SO METAL. everyone went very calmly to their almost certain deaths too.

the fact that kira was the first to ask after odo after he went, sorry, NONVERBAL, and showed up in the meeting room.......that's romance. r, well, it's not but i'll take it and happily.

"you're too late we're everywhere" THEY'D BETTER GET USED TO THE CUTTING!

TONIGHT: kicking off voy s2 with "the 37s" and "initiations." though i do happen to know the former was originally just supposed to be part of s1 lol

[cloveroctobers]

starting to get to you — 9. Paul Cho (beef) [Winter Prompts]

A/N: Y’all have been asking for more Paul since forever and here’s me delivering it year(s)later. My concept of time has been trash since 2020 don’t mind me. I know this won’t probably do much in the notes department but I don’t really have anybody else to write about tbh. Also haven’t heard anything else on season 2 and if that’s still a go but they’re changing the storylines to anthology anyway which is unfortunate for Danny & Paul’s story and ironic since that’s pretty much all I write. At least we get to see YM in the last of us? Anyways! Happy new year to you all 🩵

~ @cigarettesandcoffeex I thought you might like a tag 😊

PROMPTS ARE FROM HERE & I’m using: DIALOGUE PROMPTS — "Someone spiked the eggnog!" + “Yeah, yeah i know, you hate Christmas.”

WARNINGS: language + innuendos, grumpy reader! & minor use of possible incorrect German.

<- read my previous winter anthology prompt here.

⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･

At the holiday market was honestly the last place you wanted to be but having a best friend—who was broke mind you—who also adored Christmas was basically a set up to begin with. The both of you arrived to the festivities right before the sun set, since you had to go to work and Paul was gracious enough to give you an hour to decompress before bringing you out to interact with more humans.

You were content staying in, hate watching crappy Christmas rom coms, having some snacks, catching a few naps that you knew would hit perfectly since you had the day off tomorrow but you should have known Paul would make you his number one target to hang out with him. It’s not like you hated Paul’s presence by any means, he wouldn’t be your friend if you did, it’s just that Christmas wasn’t your thing.

And this year in particular felt heavier for some reason. Like you weren’t meant to enjoy the gift that is Christmas but you put on a happy face, caught an uber together down where the holiday market was held, and braced yourself against the chill in the California air.

It felt like the both of you had been here for hours, walking down the large street of vendors filled with too many people. Paul ended up pulling you off to a less crowded area so you could try the beverage he brought without anyone bumping your elbow in the process. Placing your lips against the rim, Paul watched you as if you were his favorite tv show, anticipating your reaction as you tasted the contents.

You’re coughing as soon as you do, “Someone spiked the eggnog!"

Paul furrows his brows first, plucking the cup from your hand and sips himself, before a grin appears on his face, “Whoa, you’re right! Guess that’s why this was called: Esther’s spunky Nog.”

Giving him a blank expression, Paul just laughs further before shoving a hand into the pocket of his hoodie and nudging his head for the both of you to continue, “C‘Mon, I heard there’s a mini tree decoration competition. Maybe that’s more your vibe.”

“Maybe if I get to stomp them out after everyone puts up the decorations?” You countered as you fall into step with Paul.

He rolls his eyes at you, taking another sip of the disgusting beverage, “I forgot how much of a grinch you are…you’re worse than Danny and that says a lot.”

Scoffing you say, “Am I supposed to be offended?”

“…I would be.” Paul mutters just for you to jam your elbow into his hip, “Ow! Hey! I’m just being honest.”

“And I’m being honest about Christmas being too much that it actually makes me want to gag.”

“I thought you didn’t have a gag reflex?” The twenty something year old man jokes, which immediately makes you walk off ahead of him.

Yet he didn’t want to lose you in the sea of people, however due to his height, he had the advantage if he did. Paul gives you your space for a little, enjoying the soft bells of music that plays from overhead speakers tucked somewhere above your heads, embracing the chilly air that Californians would often label as cold but wouldn’t last a day in areas that actually were in the winter, and he did find himself smiling at a family in particular that felt familiar until his senses pull him back to you.

You’re being led off to one of the stalls, disappearing beneath the tent and Paul has no problem pushing through people to get to you. Once inside the surprisingly warm tent, he sees you sitting in a chair chatting with a woman who has a heavy German accent, holding up a gingerbread heart.

“You good?” Paul questions, making your attention shift from the woman to him.

The heavy set woman who is dressed traditionally beams at the sight of Paul as she winks at you, “Liebling.”

Is all Paul catches and you’re shaking your head, which lets Paul know that you understand what’s being said and he’s out of the loop. The German woman pulls Paul by the wrist and shoves him into the space beside you.

“Nice to meet you too.” Paul snorts as the woman yells for the young man with the camera, while Paul slouched down beside you and leans towards you, “Guess you really have no choice but to get in the Christmas spirit now, huh?”

Crossing your arms you side eyed the man in the rolled beanie, “Little do you know, I already asked Mrs. Adelheid if she has any Krampus masks.”

It was Paul’s turn to give you a blank stare while you smiled sweetly at him, “What the fuck? That’s not very Christmas of you.”

“It is in Germany.” You bump his shoulder, smiling to yourself while Paul rolls his eyes.

Mrs. Adelheid comes back questioning and motioning what you two wanted on the gingerbread heart. Paul got the gist, pressing his elbows into his knees and letting a smirk grace his lips, “What about…y/n loves Paul? X-Mas ‘22.”

The annoyance on your face is evident while Mrs. Adelheid smiles at you two, before letting out a yell for the young teen to step forward and take their picture. Paul tosses an arm across your shoulder, leaning back against the chair and grinning while roughly pulling you into his side that you have to hold onto his chest so you don’t double over as you quickly look up at him. The camera flashes before you know it, making you call out to the anxious teen.

“Hey, I wasn’t ready!”

Before you translate it into the bit of German that you know. Studying photo journalism abroad in Germany was a tale within itself but it was definitely a learning experience.

“1 hour.” Mrs. Adelheid informs the two after shooing her son off, “You’re welcome to stay and browse.”

Paul dips his head at the woman while you pull yourself away from under his arm. He lets his hand rest against his thigh, taking another sip of the warm spiked drink, smiling in secret amusement.

“How many likes do you think our gingerbread heart is going to get?” He asks.

Shaking your head you immediately reply, “You’re not posting that. We don’t even know how the picture came out.”

You understand getting raw footage but you can only wonder how this footage appeared.

“Quit your worrying, we’re hot and there’s no such thing as bad photos if you know your angles. And I would hope the kid would.”

“Seems like he’s forced to be here…something I can relate to so who knows?!” You throw your hands up in the air, “And I don’t need a repeat of your little fangirls threatening me on every social media account they stalk me on.”

Paul rubs at the back of his neck, “I did say I was sorry about that and made it clear to stream that no harassment towards you is cool…unless it’s from me of course.”

Your best friend was doing so well until he threw that last bit into it. It was during the summer time when Paul’s content creation slowly started to take off and people on the internet can definitely be more vicious since they felt like they had a screen that protects them. Even had a few “dedicated” fans pull up on you at work once, which was honestly the last straw and caused you to not want to be part of any streams Paul had going on.

He definitely understood and didn’t blame you.

The both of you sat in silence for a while, seeing the constant movement of attendees from outside the open tent. A few people would come in to browse and one ended up purchasing a wooden toy for their twins before it became quiet once more. Paul eventually got to his feet, looking around the vendor himself, knowing he couldn’t afford to purchase anything else right now but window shopping didn’t hurt.

You decided to browse your phone instead until you heard Paul’s booming voice, “Oh this turned out sick!”

That got you to your feet, moving to see the artwork. It was your photo in faded black and white placed in the shape of the gingerbread heart cookie, red frosting along the trimming, and a white string for it to be hung up. You peeked at Paul who appeared just like a kid on Christmas Day with stars in his eyes. Something so small brought him the biggest amount of joy and you were included on that.

The way your heart seemed to skip at the sight was something you’d never share.

“You like?” Mrs. Adelheid asks, “If not he will do it again.”

Paul shakes his head, “No! We love it, right?”

He glanced at you, hopeful.

A crooked smile appears on your lips, “We do. We’ll take it, you two do incredible work.”

Mrs. Adelheid smiles followed by a laugh at her own pun, “Herzlichen Dank.”

“Danke.” You still have a small smile on your lips, as Paul is holding onto the gingerbread heart by the string and the woman leaves to retrieve a padded box to protect it on your way home.

Your chin is hovering over Paul’s arm as he can’t seem to take his eyes off the cookie, “I told you we would look good as fuck. Or we ate down as you like to say. This is going to look fire hanging in the window…whoever decides to keep this and takes this home that is.”

Sighing, your lips part but Paul interrupts already having an idea of what you’re going to say,“Yeah, yeah I know, you hate Christmas.”

The longer you stare at the picture of you two together on this stiff cookie, the warmth that’s radiating from just standing beside your best friend, his soothing scent of ginger, mint, and cedar, and the way his own eyes are studying your gaze makes you appreciate the moment he’s loved all along.

Being around someone that mattered was perhaps maybe the only gift that you need.

“…I tolerate it because you love it.” Is what you come up with as your eyes meet his.

A stupid grin shines all over his features quicker than the glance he sends to your lips, “I’ve always known you were mushy underneath it all.”

“Don’t ruin it.” You shush with a finger to your lips.

Paul chuckles, “I won’t. It only lasts for a few seconds anyway.”

“Aw…you shouldn’t talk so low of yourself. It’s all about stamina.” You tease.

Paul scoffs, “Trust me, you don’t ever have to worry about that inside or outside the bedroom.”

Grimacing you lightly shove him, “Shut up, Paul.”

“You started it.”

Before you could get into a bickering match, the mother and son are back, wrapping and placing your gift into the box, collecting payment and wishing you a happy holiday before you’re blending back into the crowd. Paul’s holding onto the box underneath his arm, your arm is linked with his other now, and you’re stuck holding onto the eggnog that you’re occasionally sipping on to keep warm.

You don’t have much trouble doing that as your laughter echoes with Paul into the all and good night.

⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･

Continue with my winter anthology prompts here.