In Retrospect: "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine"

CORNER CHARACTERS: EXPLORING THE FRINGE FIGURES OF
"DEEP SPACE 9"  by Bennett Campbell Ferguson

 

 

Left: Marc Alaimo as Dukat
in Season Four of the show

 

Have you ever found yourself watching a movie or television show and realized that your sympathies lay not with its heroes, but with its minor characters?  With the villains, seducers, and fools who fill the margins?  I have, especially as I’ve been watching “Deep Space Nine,” the third television series in the “Star Trek” franchise.  While I certainly found favorites within its main cast (especially the tortured, cantankerous shape-shifter Odo), I often found myself longing to be reunited with certain guest stars.  In fact, the main characters often seemed like vehicles for getting to know the supporting cast. 

            It is for this reason that I decided to take a deeper look into the minor characters of the show.  “Deep Space Nine” may be about the futuristic operators of the titular space station, but it is enriched immensely by the sparse presence of their casual friends and commendable adversaries.  To them, I dedicate the following (which will be presented in multiple parts) as we go deep into the shadows of one of the greatest shows of all time.

DAMAR Murderer.  Pawn.  Terrorist.  Revolutionary icon.  More than anything, Damar embodied the core meaning of “DS9”—that no one is simply a hero or simply a villain.  Of course in his early appearances, the man certainly seemed to be more of the later.  Grey-skinned and armored, Damar was a key figure in the Cardassian Union, a militaristic government whose exploits pushed it well towards an alien version of fascism.  But Damar was happy to be a part of this system, mainly because of his brotherly devotion to his superior, Gul Dukat.  It seemed as though that was how it was meant to be—Dukat issuing the orders, Damar determinedly following them.

            Then, everything changed.  When the Cardassians found themselves oppressed by the treacherous galactic power known as the Dominion, Damar stepped down from his ivory tower to lead a revolution against the occupying force.  In the process, he not only inspired his people but stepped into a leadership role with passion, forsaking not only his usual deference but also his chronic alcoholism.  Thus, he served as a reminder that even when we’re weak, we still have the potential to be leaders.

            There is one more thing to be mentioned about Damar, though.  In the final episode of “DS9,” he is shot and killed by Dominion soldiers in the midst of the revolution.  It’s a heroic end for a great man, but also tragic karma.  Damar, a man who murdered many, is murdered himself.  His death weighs heavy, but so do the deaths of those he killed in name of duty.

 DUKAT Damar was not the only Cardassian to change dramatically over the course of “DS9”—the same can be said of the enigmatic Gul Dukat, a villain who appeared multiple times during each season of the show.  But while his friend gradually grew into a man who could take pride in his convictions, Dukat’s beliefs shriveled and twisted into a web of madly arrogant inconsistencies.  And the worst part?  He’s not just a monster but a relatable despot, a man whose cruelty you can understand, even appreciate in some mad way.

            When Dukat struts onto the scene, he carries the weight of a dark history.  For years, he oversaw the Cardassian occupation of the planet Bajor, during which Bajorans were routinely enslaved, abused, and killed.  Dukat prided himself on presiding over this brutal state of oppression, but being an overlord was never enough.  For some strange reason, he became desperate to be loved by the Bajorans.  Despite using and exploiting them, he showed them small kindnesses (like abolishing child labor), trying to establish himself as both a dictator and a knight in shining armor.

            Any sane doctor would probably diagnose Dukat as a sick man, on par with the very worst of dictators.  And yet, he mad moments of humanity.  When he took in his estranged daughter Ziyal, he did it partly to prove how noble and fatherly he could be, but also because he truly did love her.  And when she was finally killed, Dukat’s spirit completely broke—he allowed all his careful plans for power to go up in flames, instead choosing to collapse into a heap, sobbing, “My precious girl…..”

            For most of “DS9,” Dukat remained an insecure, power-hungry lunatic, smiling and slaughtering with equal enthusiasm and ever in search of the respect of his enemies.  But Ziyal’s death altered him forever.  And while such an event might have humbled a better man, it simply drove Dukat even more insane.  Abandoning the pursuit of military power, he turned to religion, salving his wounds by becoming a satanic spiritual seeker.  The result led to his final demise, as he tumbled into the fiery depths of a certain kind of hell.

            Dukat’s final appearance is a fitting conclusion—it shows how deeply mad he is.  Yet as he screams nonsensically about setting the entire universe aflame, you can’t forget the man who cried while watching his daughter slip away.  Is Dukat truly evil?  Probably.  But he also has a desperate need both to receive and to give it, something which makes improbably and irrevocably human.