star trek ds9 vorta cast

Star Trek: The Vorta, Explained

Deep Space 9 had some of the most compelling characters in Star Trek, and among them was this race of clones employed by the Changelings.

• The Vorta are a cold and calculating race of aliens who act as emissaries for the Founders, the ruling class of the Dominion.
• The Vorta command the Dominion's military, the genetically engineered Jem'Hadar, and manage the supply of drugs they rely on for survival.
• The Vorta originated as arboreal primates on Kurill Prime, genetically enhanced by the Changelings to serve them without question. They have no culture of their own and reproduce through cloning.

Star Trek has been entertaining fans since 1966, presenting a world where humans have evolved beyond their petty differences and eliminated crime and war from Earth. However, there were still threats living among the stars. Between the original series and Star Trek: The Next Generation, the franchise only followed starship captains and their exploration of strange new worlds. That changed with Deep Space Nine , a show that explored the lives of people living on a space station.

Despite being set on a space station rather than a starship, DS9 delivered one of the most compelling ongoing stories the franchise had yet seen: the Dominion War. The Dominion represented the antithesis of everything that Starfleet and the Federation stood for. Coming from the Gamma Quadrant of the galaxy, the anti-Federation had a slew of alien races never before seen in Star Trek . One of these species was the Vorta, a cold and calculating race of aliens who sat at the top of the Dominion's chain of command .

Star Trek: What Made DS9 So Dark?

Who are the vorta.

The Founders sat at the top of the Dominion's hierarchy. This race of liquid-based shapeshifting aliens, also known as Changelings, saw carbon-based lifeforms as beneath them. Below them in the chain of command were the Vorta, who acted as emissaries for the Founders. Aliens all around the Gamma Quadrant , and eventually the Alpha Quadrant, listened to the Vorta commands as if they were commands directly from the Founders. Most of the time, they were.

The Vorta commanded the Dominion's military , a genetically engineered reptilian species called the Jem'Hadar. In addition to delivering orders to the Jem'Hadar, the Vorta also managed the supply of drugs that the Jem'Hadar relied on for survival. The Founders engineered the Jem'Hadar to be reliant on Ketracel White to prevent mutiny and free-thinking. The same conditioning was built into the Vorta, but in different ways.

When they weren't ordering the Jem'Hadar to attack the Federation or enslave more planets in the Gamma Quadrant, the Vorta negotiated terms on behalf of the Founders in trade deals, peace treaties, and alliances. Some even performed the tasks of medical doctors , such as when the Federation developed the morphogenic virus that affected the Founders.

Where Are the Vorta From?

The Vorta originated as arboreal primates on Kurill Prime, where they lived in hollowed-out trees. When a family of Vorta shielded a Changeling from certain doom at the hands of Kurill Prime predators, the Changeling promised to return the favor someday. The Changelings fulfilled their promise by genetically enhancing all Vorta, creating a subservient race that would follow all of their commands. The Vorta evolved to view the Changelings as gods with unwavering faith. While they blindly followed the Founders, they were cold and ruthless shot callers with the Jem'Hadar.

The Vorta had no culture of their own, as a product of being genetically enhanced. They were designed to serve every whim of the Founders, and having art, cuisine, a sense of style, or music doesn't serve the Founders' best interests . They needed unquestioning loyalty and calculating servants. In other words, the Vorta's reward for protecting a Changeling was endless servitude. That said, the Vorta did enjoy kava nuts and rippleberries, two sources of food native to their homeworld. Their taste for these two foods carried over from before the Changelings altered their genome.

One aspect of the Vorta that might constitute a culture is their cloning practices. Cloning was the way the Vorta reproduced, providing another means for the Founders to control their servants. Whenever a Vorta showed signs of degradation or simply died, the Founders created a clone. When fans meet the character Weyoun 4 , he introduces the notion that death isn't the end for Vorta. While Weyoun 4 dies at the end of the same episode he debuted in, a future episode introduces Weyoun 5, a clone. Weyoun 5 retained all of Weyoun 4's memories and served as the longest-lasting Weyoun until he died in a transporter accident. Weyoun 6 was one Vorta who questioned his creators and attempted to defect.

What Happened to the Vorta After the Dominion War?

The Dominion War saw the destruction of the Vorta's cloning facilities, preventing them from reproducing further. Without these cloning facilities, the Vorta would eventually die off unless they evolved with a natural ability to reproduce.

The Changelings did return in Star Trek: Picard 's third season, where they worked alongside a Borg Queen to take down the Federation. While Picard didn't show any Vorta or Jem'Hadar, it's possible the rogue Changelings either modified other aliens to serve them or re-established cloning facilities throughout the Alpha Quadrant.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

In the vicinity of the liberated planet of Bajor, the Federation space station Deep Space Nine guards the opening of a stable wormhole to the far side of the galaxy. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was the third ongoing TV series in the franchise.

MORE: Star Trek: How Did Odo Keep His Job After The Occupation Of DS9?

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Published Apr 20, 2018

That Time Iggy Pop Played a Vorta

Boldly going where no one has gone before. It's been in the mission statement since the beginning, first uttered by Zefram Cochrane and adhered to by every writer and producer to work on the Star Trek franchise. Of all the strange new worlds our valiant space explorers have visited, one could argue that among the strangest was when Quark, Rom, Nog (ex-)Liquidator Brunt, cousin Galia and Leck the Eliminator went to Empok Nor to trade a captured Vorta for Moogie. Because that's when Iggy Pop showed up.

This week is James Newell Osterberg, Jr.'s 71st birthday, and if you don't know much about the guy, you may not realize how terrific it is that he donned the Vortan grey skin and ridged ears of a middle-management Dominion stooge named Yelgrun. Here's the backstory.

The Michigan native was living in Chicago in the 1960s when he fell in with the burgeoning garage-rock/psychedelic blues bands that were cropping up. (If you don't know what this music sounds like, drop everything and get a copy of the CD collection called “Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965-1968.”) He was galvanized by seeing a performance by The Doors, and particularly taken with Jim Morrison's stage persona.

Taking a daring and energetic approach to leading a rock band, as well as the moniker Iggy Pop (one of his earliest bands had been The Iguana), he formed the band The Stooges. They were not a huge success, but they were incredibly influential in crafting a new proto-punk sound that was heavy, fast and angry, but still fun. Their third album, Raw Power , produced by friend and supporter David Bowie, is a landmark piece of dirty, aggressive rock.

The Stooges' live shows, however, are where Iggy made his reputation as someone who was. . . dangerous. It may be hard for young people to understand today, but way back when rock fans had far fewer avenues to get to “know” the stars. There were no videos, no Twitter, no YouTube. A band's reputation was made by urban legend, word of mouth and extremely rare (and highly stage-crafted) TV appearances.

Stories abounded of Iggy being a maniac. He would leap off the stage into the arms of his fans. He would roll around on cut glass. He would vomit on stage. Or would he? Where facts end and where myth begins have now faded into the mists of pop culture history.

In the next phase of his career he retreated again with David Bowie to Berlin to record, among other things, the masterpiece album Lust For Life . Even if you don't think you know some of these songs, you do. The title track and “The Passenger” have been used in many TV commercials, which some might consider “selling out,” while others consider a sly example of “stickin' it to the man.” Trivia fanatics love to point out that the rhythm section, Hunt and Tony Sales, are the sons of the legendary NYC broadcaster and borscht belt comic Soupy Sales.

As the 1980s came, Iggy recorded some more “New Wave” style albums, made hilarious TV appearances (check out YouTube for his couch-chatting skills on the early David Letterman show) and started appearing in small roles in oddball films. This all culminated in 1997 with DS9 's “ The Magnificent Ferengi .”

By season six of DS9 , the Dominion War was raging in full force and a dark tone was evident in many of the episodes. Still, a little levity is always welcome and you could always count on a Quark-centric episode for it. While Quark and Ferengi culture had already been established as something far deeper than a one-note gag (part of what makes DS9 so rich) there's no way to hold back the comedy when you get Armin Shimerman, Max Grodenchik, Jeffrey Combs and the others in their lobes.

For reasons that are a little vague, the Grand Nagus dispatches Quark to rescue Ishka (Quark and Rom's mother, also the Nagus' lover) from the clutches of the Dominion. The first half of the episode shows our heroes “teaming up” in a manner similar to the film The Magnificent Seven . However, Ferengi, by and large, are not warriors, they are negotiators! Our Magnificent Ferengi fight back the way they know how – by using their noggins.

They enter into a prisoner exchange, using a spare captured Vorta that Sisko has hangin' around. The gang heads to Empok Nor – the decrepit former Cardassian space station. (Question for the scientists reading – just because it is abandoned, why would it be keeled over in the gravity-free environment of space? Looks cool, but kinda makes no sense. . .) The Dominion strongman sent to make the exchange? None other than the subversive, dangerous punk rocker Iggy Pop.

With his deep voice and flatly midwestern accent, Iggy is one of the funniest bad guys in all of Trek . His comeback, “I was cloned,” when Quark shrugs about family is fantastic, as is his weary nodding along to Moogie's financial counseling.

Trek producer Ira Steven Behr originally tried to get Iggy for the season-three episode “ Past Tense ,” to play the not-all-there character Grady. Scheduling didn't work out, so that went to TOS alum Clint Howard. Ultimately, I think it all worked out for the best.

Iggy's Vorta Yelgrun is eventually captured by the Ferengi and taken back to DS9 . But strangely, we never consider him much of a bad guy. We never see him personally harm anyone and, in a way, other than Weyoun, he's one of the finer windows into Vorta culture. He's just a guy doing a job, a little cranky, and with a deadpan sense of humor. Having a rock star on the show would have been cool enough, but Iggy Pop, the writers and producers truly made the most of it, making this one of the best bits of strange casting on the show.

Do you remember how odd it was when you first recognized Iggy Pop beneath all that makeup? And what kind of alien do you think his pal David Bowie should have played, if he ever made a trip to DS9 ? Let me know in the comments below.

Jordan Hoffman frequently contributes to StarTrek.com via his column, One Trek Mind, and hosted Engage: The Official Star Trek Podcast. He is also a writer, critic and lapsed filmmaker living in New York City. His work can be seen on Film.com, ScreenCrush and Badass Digest . On his BLOG , Jordan has reviewed all 727 Trek episodes and films, most of the comics and some of the novels.

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Characters / Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - The Dominion

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The Founders

"Ironic, isn't it? The hunted now control the destinies of hundreds of other races." — "The Search, pt. 2"

• Bad Boss : It's dangerously easy to fall out of favor with this Changeling. Broca found this out when he delivered some bad news from the front (see below). Weyoun 8 got into hot water when he failed to quell Damar's rebellion immediately; suddenly, the Dominion's most trusty Vorta finds himself being upstaged by Thot Pran. F.C. (to Pran) If our cloning facilities were operational, I would eliminate this Weyoun immediately. Weyoun : O_O
• Became Their Own Antithesis : Her worst fear made manifest, thanks to the bright boys at Section 31's virology department. "I haven't been able to change form in weeks. It's ironic, isn't it? (close to tears) That I should die as a Solid?! "
• Because You Were Nice to Me : She readily agrees to end the war with the Federation after Odo freely gives her the cure to Section 31's virus.
• Big Bad : She acts as leader of the Dominion's efforts in the Alpha Quadrant, although she seems to leave the bulk of the heavy lifting to Weyoun .
• Bitch in Sheep's Clothing : When she first appears in "The Search", she comes across as a wise, serene mentor who is pleased that Odo has returned to his people. She and the other Founders are later revealed to be the leaders of the tyrannical Dominion. Throughout the series, she demonstrates the malevolence behind her gentle facade.
• Worse yet, when the Space-AIDS starts kicking in, the kaposi's sarcomas start growing out of her "clothes", seeing as how they're just another part of the humanoid form she shapeshifted into.
• Care-Bear Stare : By sharing one last link with Odo, she inherited all of his life experiences among solids — along with the cure for the Section 31 virus. She immediately surrendered and ordered her forces to withdraw.
• Control Freak : Like all changelings, she is absolutely obsessed with things being in order. As soon as the Cardassian people prove to be too chaotic to control she orders them to be killed. All of them .
• Definitely Just a Cold : After Odo unwittingly acts as carrier to a virus cooked up by Section 31 . The Female Changeling does her best to disguise her symptoms, but eventually starts to visibly rot away.
• Dissonant Serenity : She almost never gets angry, but when she does, oh God, watch out. Her hatred of solids really shines through.
• Even Evil Has Loved Ones : The Changeling race serves as this for her. At the end of the series, she calls off the Dominion offensive and surrenders in exchange for Odo curing the others Changelings of the Section 31 virus.
• Evil Cannot Comprehend Good : As a result of hailing from a species of conquerors and xenophobes, she finds the idea that groups like Starfleet and the Federation could even exist a fleeting notion. On the verge of defeat, she's content to simply order her troops to fight to the bitter end and take as many of the Federation Alliance with them, even when Odo personally promises that Starfleet won't do anything to their people; to her, Starfleet will just use the opportunity of her defeat to wipe out the other Founders. Odo willingly sharing the cure to her condition convinces her to stand down.
• Evil Mentor : To Odo. In "The Search", she teaches him about the history of the Changeling race and helps him hone his shapeshifting skills. When Odo discovers that she and the other Founders lead the tyrannical Dominion, he leaves her. Later, during the occupation of Deep Space Nine, she teaches him more about his people and links with him .
• Garak was against the idea of curing the Female Changeling of her disease — even training his gunsights on Odo — not realizing that a Changeling's word is their bond. As promised, the Female Changeling withdrew from Cardassia in exchange for saving her civilization from ruin.
• Evil Overlord : With a kind and gentle demeanor, she will boldly have her troops fight to enslave the entire Alpha Quadrant, no matter how many lives are lost, because she feels it's her duty to enslave the "unorderly" Federation and their allies.
• As the series progresses, her opinion of Cardassians sours. When the Dominion's Cardassian soldiers turn their coats and fight alongside the Federation, she has no reservations with ordering their immediate genocide.
• Her hubris. Time and again she assumes that The Dominion is infallible, and that everyone should simply bow down and do whatever they want because they know what's best for everyone. It never occurs to her that people would actually dare to resist on such a large scale, and even then she thinks that their superior fighters and troops are enough to quell any rebellions. All she learns is that the harder she pushes, the harder the opposition will fight back, which leaves her prone to making fatal mistakes when things aren't going the way she plans. She could have gained a loyal ally in Odo had she not decided to kill Kira to keep Odo from being "distracted" , which lead him to fully reject the Founders and free Kira, resulting the station being rendered defenseless against the Federation-Klingon task force. This really came back to bite her in the finale when she starts trying to put down the Cardassian Rebellion by having the Jem'Hadar wipe out every city for each act of insurrection. This just causes the Cardassian fleet to turn against The Dominion, which leads her to order the entire planet wiped out. All that does is just piss the Cardassians off even more, leading her to be captured, and no doubt charged with much higher crimes than she would have been.
• Her inability to recognize the power of individualism. Because she hails from a species that believes in the collective whole, she grossly underestimates what one person is capable of. Who alerted the Federation to the fact that the Dominion had almost shut off the mine field to the Gamma Quadrant? MORN . Yes, Morn completely turned the tide in Starfleet's favor by warning them, thus leading to their full-scale assault on the station. Another comes up when The Breen destroy the Defiant , and she orders Weyoun to let the survivors get away so they can warn Starfleet about the price for resisting the Dominion. This results in Sisko making it out alive, and he pushes the Federation Alliance into attacking the Dominion's retreating lines around Cardassia, leading to a chain of events that result in her defeat.
• In "The Search, Part II", she accurately predicts that Odo will long to return to the Great Link (a longing that he admits under torture later in the series).
• In "Favor the Bold", she tells Weyoun that returning Odo to the Great Link means more to the Founders than securing the Alpha Quadrant. This is proven in the series finale when the Female Changeling makes a deal with Odo: she gives herself up to the Federation to be put on trial for the Dominion's war crimes against Cardassia and the entire Alpha Quadrant, and Odo returns to the Great Link.
• Faux Affably Evil : Most of the time, she's calm and polite to everyone she meets. However, her civility is a very thin veneer that barely, if at all, hides her hatred and bigotry towards solids. Garak saw up close and personal that she will drop her nice persona and bluntly tell you that she's gonna genocide your entire race.
• Forgiven, but Not Forgotten : As an autocratic xenophobe, the Changeling does not distinguish between her obedient subjects and the seditious ones. If it were up to her, the Dominion would have gassed Cardassia Prime in retaliation for the attack on her homeworld by the Cardassian intelligence service. The army swiftly turned around and pledged allegiance to the Dominion as a form of apology — but the Female Changeling never really forgave them. Sure enough, when one of them dares to rebel and turns more of the people against them, she's just as quick to order them all wiped out.
• Galactic Conqueror : An unusually low-key version, being a lot more placid and no-nonsense than the usual bombastic examples of this trope. Still, in her view the galaxy needs to be put under control , no matter how much bloodshed she has to order to make it happen.
• G-Rated Sex : The linking scenes between Odo and the Female Changeling in "The Search", "Behind the Lines" and "Favor the Bold" have the feel of love scenes. In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion, Director LeVar Burton confirmed that they were straight-up love scenes.
• It isn't even certain that it's the same individual every time.
• Irony : How her story in the series ends. She had been trying to get home to the Gamma Quadrant. She never can, as she's forced to stand trial for her crimes and remain in Federation custody.
• Jerkass Gods : To the Vorta. They're genetically engineered to worship the Founders, but their slavish devotion barely registers for them (with a few exceptions .)
• Kick the Dog : When Garak, cringing, comes asking about the Cardassian crew who attacked her homeworld, she flatly tells him they're dead... And he's next, followed by the rest of his species. At the end of the series, she nearly makes good on that promise, and wipes out 800 million Cardassians .
• Knight Templar : Changelings prefer orderly societies. The Female Changeling considers bringing this order to the galaxy to be her duty and she will gladly kill billions if she finds it necessary. And heaven help if anyone, even her most loyal of followers, disobey her...
• Manipulative Bastard : She plays people for all their worth and, when Odo thinks he can convince her that solids are okay by linking with her, winds up quasi-brainwashing him into seeing them the way she does.
• Muscles Are Meaningless : Being a Changeling, she's stronger than she looks. In "What You Leave Behind," she grabs Broca by the throat and lifts him off his feet when he tells her that civilians have disrupted the power supply.
• No Need for Names : Hence why she's just "the Female Changeling." (The Vorta refer to her as "Founder" or "The Founder", though). Odo: You haven't told me your name. Female Changeling: What use would I have for a name? Odo: To differentiate yourself from the others. Female Changeling: I don't.
• Pet the Dog : After finally accepting that the Dominion has lost the war and that she and her entire race are doomed to extinction, she admits to Weyoun that he's the only Solid she's ever trusted, and that he has served her well. When Garak kills Weyoun minutes later, she's visibly saddened.
• Pink Means Feminine : Her " clothing " is a shade of pink, and she's the only Changeling we see that presents as female.
• Revenge Before Reason : The glassing of Lakarian City. Dominion sledgehammer tactics are precisely what isn’t needed at this stage of the game and their second big mistake (their first being letting Sisko & co. walk scot free all those times ) is punishing the entire Cardassian population for the acts of a few rebels. In a blind fury, the Changeling levels an entire city — wiping out two million innocents, including children — and it makes Cardassians more angry than ever. Sure enough, their fleet defects to the Federation and gives their offensive line a much needed boost of support while depleting the Dominion's own fleet substantially. This gives Starfleet a chance to take the battle straight to Cardassia.
• Taking You with Me : In the finale, faced with imminent defeat, she orders the extermination of the entire civilian population of the Cardassian homeworld in revenge against their military's Heel–Face Turn .
• The Power of Hate : Played with. Her irrational loathing toward solids can be allegedly traced in part to persecution that Changelings endured from solids in the distant past. Also subverted when genocidal loathing of solids causes her to pick up the Villain Ball at certain key junctures as the war drags on.
• Save the Villain : When Odo cures her of a deadly disease afflicting the Changelings. This convinces her that she can surrender.
• Shapeshifting Squick : She and Odo have sexual relations in their humanoid forms during the occupation of Deep Space Nine. Their body language and dialogue afterwards indicates that it was unsatisfying for both partners. She insists that sex pales in comparison to immersion in the Great Link, probably to dissuade him from seeing Kira.
• Soft-Spoken Sadist : She's extremely serene for a genocidal Galactic Conqueror .
• Suicidal Cosmic Temper Tantrum : The plan was to "cut off the snake's head" and force the Jem'Hadar to stand down by capturing their Founder. This doesn't quite work out as planned. Rather the opposite; she promises a Pyrrhic Victory until Odo links with her .
• Technically Naked Shapeshifter : Like other Changelings, she typically forms clothing out of herself when taking humanoid form.
• Tranquil Fury : The Female Changeling does not forget past slights against her people. Although the Dominion later buries the hatchet with Cardassia, the hatred is still very much there, as shown when she throttles Broca and snarls that she should've have eradicated their species long ago.
• The Trickster : A malevolent example, especially when she impersonates Kira in "Heart of Stone."
• Despite being a fairly straightforward example of The Vamp , she defies several of the stereotypes associated with the trope: she takes on the appearance of an older woman, she is not conventionally attractive, and her dress and demeanor are relatively chaste.
• It's a Justified Trope though, as her understanding of individuality is completely lacking, and she had yet to realize what a single man can mean to his people. Sisko, despite being a war hero, an inspiring leader, a brilliant tactician, a religious icon and a strong part of the link uniting the Federation and the Klingons, was in her eyes just another solid.
• Villainous Breakdown : A gradual instance brought about by Section 31's virus and the Dominion's declining military fortunes after losing DS9. While she is no more condescending toward solids than before, she is notably more irritable and more violent, manifesting in her growing willingness to severely punish her subordinates for their failures. All of this culminates in her attempt to exterminate the Cardassians for their betrayal while the Dominion forces are on the verge of defeat.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist : To an extent. She plans a Bolivian Army Ending because she thinks the "solids" will dominate and enslave the Founders. Something the Founders do themselves.
• Wham Line : "The Changelings are the Dominion."
• You Can't Go Home Again : She was on Cardassia when the Federation mined the wormhole entrance, leaving her cut off from the Great Link. And by the time the mines came down, the Federation retook DS9. At the end of The War, she willingly surrenders to face war crimes charges as well, never to see the Great Link again.
• You Have Failed Me : She has a very low tolerance for failure and incompetence. Hell, it's implied that the main reason Vorta can be brought back via cloning is because changelings routinely kill them as punishment for failure.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness : She pulls this on the entire Cardassian race in the series finale. It backfires against her when the Cardassian fleets switch sides and the Cardassian troops assisting the Jem'Hadar free Damar, Garak, and Kira.
• You Look Familiar : Salome Jens previously had a one-shot role as the ancient humanoid in TNG: "The Chase". Even the makeup is similar.
• You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry! : Generally, despite being such a horrific monster, she's usually quite polite to her opponents and subordinates. If she gets annoyed, she usually throws out a few threats but then goes right back to being calm and polite. But if she every gets truly pissed off, that usually involves Neck Lifts and genocide. Just ask Legate Broca and the Cardassian people.

Hah! Overconfidence — the hallmark of the Weyouns. — Damar , "Strange Bedfellows"

• Acting for Two : Jeffrey Combs also played the recurring Ferengi Administrator Brunt.
• Good lord, even Kai Winn thinks he's a tiresome windbag!
• Although he is specifically designed to be polite and persuasive, most characters (especially some of the Cardassians, who are supposedly on the same side ) find him intensely irritating.
• She also seems to be somewhat saddened by Weyoun's final death, as the destruction of the cloning facility means she can't bring him back anymore .
• When he first met Sisko, he tried bribing him with the prospect of becoming Federation President. Or, heck, why not think big? Emperor!
• Arbitrary Skepticism : The Bajorans think of the Wormhole aliens as gods? Preposterous! But thinking that the Founders are gods? Well, that's entirely different. Weyoun : Pah-wraiths and Prophets. All this talk of gods strikes me as nothing more than superstitious nonsense. Damar : You believe that the Founders are gods, don't you? Weyoun : That's different. Damar : [laughs] In what way? Weyoun : The Founders are gods.
• Awesome by Analysis : In "Statistical Probabilities", the genetically engineered Jack Pack super geniuses come up with a fool-proof plan to defeat the Dominion in the long run by having the Federation surrender and then have a future rebellion spring up on Earth, crush the Dominion, and give rise to an even better Federation in a few thousand years. Without even knowing about the plan, Weyoun had already figured out a way to counter it by exterminating Earth's population. How did he know to do so? He simply observed the Federation and figured out what humans are in the Star Trek universe.
• Baddie Flattery : Part of the reason he's so Affably Evil .
• Bandwagon Technique : One of the arguments he uses when trying to persuade people over to the Dominion.
• Beware the Nice Ones : Extremely diplomatic in general, but just listen to him threatening Jake and Nog in "In the Cards" and you'll see how dead serious he can get. Not to mention he's a high ranking commander in the Dominion.
• Breakout Villain : First appeared in "To the Death" and was promptly killed off. The concept of Vorta cloning was created solely to bring Combs back as Weyoun.
• Combat Pragmatist : Of the more strategic type than actual throw-downs, but... yep.
• Covert Pervert : He apparently finds "interspecies mating rituals" fascinating to watch. Ezri and Worf looked suitably creeped out when he said that.
• Death by Irony : The Female Changeling, eager to replace Weyoun 8, keeps asking about when the cloning facilities will be fixed, to which he quickly replies days. Weeks even! Of course, he ends up being the last of the Weyoun line for this very reason. He also shifts blames for the Cardassian rebellion onto Broca, and later the civilians themselves, to direct the Founder's wrath elsewhere. Now, this is very convenient for Weyoun, but it leaves the Dominion HQ largely defenseless as most of the Jem'Hadar troops have deserted it to go exterminate the Cardassians. It certainly doesn't help that the Jem'Hadar bombing run also destroyed Garak's childhood home... and so on to Garak unloading his gat.
• Death Is a Slap on the Wrist : As a Vorta, killing Weyoun would only mean the next clone would be activated. The only way he can truly be killed is to kill him while no cloning facilities are operational.
• The Dragon : The Female Changeling's paranoia is so all-encompassing that she considers Weyoun "the only solid I ever trusted." Presumably, she refuses to put her life in the hands of most Vorta, to say nothing of Jem'Hadar.
• Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette : Like all Vorta. This appearance is standard for all Vorta as they are a genetically engineered species.
• Even Evil Has Standards : As loyal, obedient and ruthless as Weyoun is, even he is briefly shocked and unable to respond when the Female Changeling orders the entire population of Cardassia Prime to be wiped out to the last man, woman and child. Although it's debatable whether that falls under this trope or Pragmatic Villainy considering that it's not exactly an opportune time to divert a majority of their fighting force to a non-military task.
• Temperance too. Though it is not clear that counts for a creature bred to have almost no fleshly desires anyway.
• Expendable Clone : To his chagrin. It got to the point where Damar chuckles heartily whenever a new Weyoun strolls into his office. It's implied that Damar bumped off Weyoun 5 himself, out of annoyance. Weyoun 8 : I'm glad to see you find the death of my predecessor so amusing. Damar : Oh, you misjudge me. I miss him deeply. Here, let's drink to Weyoun 7!
• Which is an odd fashion choice, considering the Founders' obsession with order and Weyoun's need to serve the Founders in all things. Although the Vortas' lack of a sense for aesthetics might account for it.
• It's worth noting that Borath wears the same outfit in "The Search." It's likely a uniform of some kind, or at least a very common fashion for Vorta. Perhaps it represents the Dominion creating order from disorder? Or maybe the Dominion just conquered a planet of excellent tailors and neither the Founders nor the Vorta have thought about what they're wearing too much.
• Horrible Judge of Character : Despite considering himself The Profiler , he misreads The Sisko at every turn. In particular, he considers The Federation to be timid by nature, even after Sisko repeatedly demonstrates that Humans Are Warriors .
• I'd Tell You, but Then I'd Have to Kill You : A scene between Weyoun, Damar, and Damar's lady friend, in the Important War Room. Weyoun : I have news. Damar : Well? Weyoun : Your friend doesn't want to hear this. Damar : And why doesn't my friend want to hear this? Weyoun : Because if she did, I would be forced to have her executed. [She leaves.] Weyoun : What a pleasant woman.
• The Heavy : With Weyoun as the "face" and most active of the Dominion, he becomes the most active antagonist of the series.
• Knight of Cerebus : For Deep Space 9, since his arrival heralds the beginning of the Dominin War in earnest.
• Subverted in that the Female Changeling mentions she would promise the Breen the entire Alpha Quadrant if she thought that would make them fight harder, implying like the Cardassians, the Breen are just expendable tools to her.
• Legacy Character : He was Weyoun 8 at the time when his cloning facility was destroyed.
• Neck Snap : How Weyoun 7 dies, courtesy of Worf.
• No-Sell : After Sisko reveales he uncovered a plot by Dukat to assassinate a dying Cardassian defector through a poisoned "gift" of Kanar (Cardassian wine), Weyoun pours himself a glass to demonstrate he is immune to poison. His only reaction is to act like he got indigestion and comment that it's "quite toxic".
• Oh, Crap! : Weyoun 8's reaction when he realizes that Damar specifically destroyed the Vorta cloning facilities as his first rebellious move as a direct attack against him.
• Other Me Annoys Me : Weyoun 7 is really not happy that Weyoun 6 would defect to The Federation .
• Out of Continues : Once Damar blows up his cloning facilities. Oops.
• Also pet himself by the Female Changeling, who acknowledges him as "the only solid [she] ever trusted."
• The Profiler : According to Weyoun, Sisko's psychological profile is required reading for all Vorta. Not that it does him much good . For one thing, he acts like Sisko can be tempted with the promise of becoming absolute ruler of The Federation , clearly not knowing that Sisko had months earlier saved President Jaresh-Inyo from a coup-d'état by an Insane Admiral .
• Professional Butt-Kisser : It would appear that the loss of Deep Space Nine was laid squarely at Dukat's feet, despite the fact that (as Dukat points out) Weyoun was right there and nodding at every decision he made at the time. Weyoun's even more cold-blooded than the Cardassians he works for—and indeed, he later dumps Damar for the Breen.
• Properly Paranoid : He knows that all the non-Dominion representatives he meets with distrust him and would happily bump him off. (Weyoun 4 was less cautious around his own troops, and learned that lesson the hard way.) He was also wary of putting the Dominion's eggs in one basket, believing that re-taking and holding onto DS9 would drain resources that could be better applied elsewhere. Most of Weyoun's better suggestions fell on deaf Cardassian ears.
• Punch-Clock Villain : We see both sides of this trope in Weyoun. He is generally pleasant and shows no real malice towards anyone, but is still unfailingly loyal to the Founders and will put their wishes over his conscience every time.
• Shiny New Australia : Subverted — Weyoun had been looking forward to hoisting his flag over Starfleet Headquarters (as the ultimate revenge for all those times Sisko snubbed him), but his boss changed her mind and promised it to the Breen. Pop! That's the sound of a deflating ego. "Apparently, uhh, I was under the mistaken impression that all Federation territories would fall under my jurisdiction, including Earth..."
• Shut Up, Hannibal! : Garak turns up in the command center, blood in his eye, and shoots Weyoun in the heart for gloating about Cardassia's fate.
• Sycophantic Servant : The change in his tone, manner, and body language whenever a Changeling walks in is instant .
• Sissy Villain : He never picks up a phaser himself. The Jem'hadar do all the heavy lifting.
• Smug Snake : To a tee, albeit a very competent one.
• Tampering with Food and Drink : The Dominion probably noted that their diplomats are often victims of this, so they engineered them to be immune to most poisons. Weyoun takes a swig from one to prove his point.
• Teeth-Clenched Teamwork : With Dukat, and later (even more hilariously) Damar.
• Teleporter Accident : How Weyoun 5 dies (at least, they never prove that it wasn't an accident).
• They Killed Kenny Again : The first one to be introduced is Weyoun 4 (who dies at the end of his debut episode). By the time the war ends, it's Weyoun 8 who bites it.
• Damar burst out laughing when Worf killed him, and mocked the next clone about it as well.
• It's possible that between his intense loyalty to the Founders and his knowledge that they'll clone him, he simply has no sense of self-preservation. Taunting a very pissed off Garak knowing he's the last, however...
• Tragic Villain : There's something very sad about Weyoun devoting his entire existence to the Founders, who regard him, as best, as a particularly useful tool that is nonetheless disposable. He worships them and is utterly loyal to them and they in turn return none of that loyalty because he's a Vorta and it's expected of him. The Female Changeling regrets him being killed in the end - but at the same time she openly was going to kill Weyoun 8 the moment a new clone would be available. Weyoun also notes the founders engineered his race to lack many of the capacity for entertainment other species have . He has no ability to appreciate art and poor eyesight, and the only food they really like are berries and nuts they apparently subsisted on before being uplifted by the founders. Weyoun is aware of those shortcoming but too blinded by faith to question them.
• Undying Loyalty : Even by Dominion standards.
• The Unfettered : Most definitely qualifies for his often frightening devotion to the Founders and their cause. He would do ANYTHING for them... the only 'right' or 'wrong' that exists for this character is whether or not something will serve the Founders.
• Unfriendly Fire : How Weyoun 4 dies, courtesy of his Jem'Hadar First.
• Weyoun even calls out Dukat's petty and self-serving behaviors to his face, but in ways that Dukat might not see as flat-out insults at the time.
• In the script notes for the aftermath of the Dominion's occupation of DS9, it's noted that Weyoun lived in Bashir's quarters and was building a collection of random stuff - like string and things we might consider trash.
• Weyoun is fascinated by alien games, including the Dabo wheel in Quark's bar. Dukat has to pry him away from it. (In an unfilmed scene from "The Sound of Her Voice", Quark admits the only way he survived during the Dominion occupaton was by overcharging Weyoun.) "DABO! Hehe! (That is Dabo, isn't it?)"
• Not technically Weyoun; but his renegade clone, Weyoun 6, flummoxes Odo by sampling every item from Odo's food replicator on their runabout (with chopsticks!) claiming he likes the varying textures.
• We Have Reserves : This is what ultimately causes Damar to defect. It's not enough that Cardassian troops are being fed into the Dominion's meat grinder, or that Dominion troops now occupy all of Cardassia. Now Weyoun is auctioning off Cardassian territories to the Breen in exchange for their help. Weyoun : We need the Breen to win this war. When it's over, there will be more than enough territories available to compensate Cardassia for the loss of a few minor planets. Damar : (fuming) There're no " minor " planets in the Cardassian Union!
• Your Favorite : When a holo-image of Weyoun says to Bashir, "Do you remember when I first offered you scones?" in that magnificent voice of his, after delivering said scones on a tray (with jam and tea, just the way Bashir likes it!) to a flustered and freaked out Bashir.

Odo : Has it ever occurred to you that the reason you believe the Founders are gods is because that's what they want you to believe? That they built it into your genetic code? Weyoun 6 : Of course they did. That's what gods do. After all, why be a god if there's no one to worship you? — "Treachery, Faith, and the Great River"

• Clone Angst : By Dominion standards, anyway. Weyoun 6, who was considered "defective" after he questioned the plan to invade the Alpha Quadrant and decided to defect. Despite being bred to be loyal and serve the Founders, Weyoun 6 realises that both could still apply if he served Odo , who just happens to be allied with the Federation. Unfortunately, he was killed shortly after by his replacement, Weyoun 7.
• Defector from Decadence : He thinks the Dominion War will end in their loss and goes to the one Founder who would share that opinion: Odo.
• Died in Your Arms Tonight : Odo's arms, specifically.
• Dies Wide Shut : After he expires, Odo makes sure to close his eyes.
• Heel–Face Door-Slam : This Weyoun actually felt some remorse for what he had done. As he lay dying, he expressed terror that he'd failed in his mission.
• Heroic Sacrifice : Activated his termination implant to save Odo from the attacking Jem'Hadar ship.
• My Country, Right or Wrong : Subverted. He saw himself as loyal to the Founders and the Dominion as a whole, but he just couldn't support the war, seeing it as both immoral and ultimately counter to the Dominion's best interests.
• Offered the Crown : Asks Odo to come take over the Dominion and reform it after the Founders die. Odo never gives him a definitive answer, but the Founders don't die at the end, and Odo does wind up joining them and trying to reform them .
• Redemption Equals Death : He didn't do much evil himself (having defected not long after activation), but Weyoun 7 tells him that the only way he can redeem himself is by punching his kill switch.
• Sympathy for the Devil : Odo clearly did not know how to feel about one of his greatest enemies dying in his arms.
• Token Good Teammate : Of the Weyouns, and arguably the Dominion itself, at least until Damar turns.
• White Sheep : The only Weyoun who isn't blindly faithful to the Founders' plan.

• Asshole Victim : Both the smoking hole in his chest and the indignity of having his corpse used as a poorly-animated puppet are richly deserved.
• Dirty Coward : Keevan happily sells out the Jem'Hadar under his command to save his own neck, as well as giving himself up to the Federation rather than commit suicide, as Vorta are expected to do. Further, during the attempted hostage exchange, Keevan takes the first opportunity to make a run for it, although given the kind of welcome he was likely to get from the Dominion, this is more understandable.
• Dying Declaration of Hate : His final words after being shot are that he hates the Ferengi.
• Faux Affably Evil : He pays lip service to the Vorta's typical affable nature, but he fails to hide (or even make much of an effort at hiding) what a self-interested slimeball he really is.
• Hate Sink : Smug, selfish, and willing to sell out his own troops. According to Word of God , he was written to be "as despicable as possible".
• Humiliation Conga : Receives a very satisfying one in "The Magnificent Ferengi" that lasts beyond his death.
• In a way, though, it's also a Mercy Kill . With no supply of ketracel-white, the Jem'Hadar will slowly go violently insane, killing everything in their path before dying themselves.
• Karmic Death : Accidentally shot by Quark's cousin, but it still pays to see him phasered.
• Smug Snake : Even more so than Weyoun, if that were somehow possible.
• Welcome Back, Traitor : He knows that if he's handed back to the Dominion, they'll "debrief" him with the most amount of pain they can dole out, likely including a You Have Failed Me and his next clone being activated, so he's not exactly happy to go back.

• Early-Installment Weirdness : She's the first Vorta we meet and the only one to show telekinetic powers.
• False Innocence Trick : She claims that the Vorta were conquered by the Dominion, when in reality they're second-in-command.
• It Has Only Just Begun : Her final words to Sisko: "You have no idea what's begun here."
• Trojan Horse : She's a Dominion spy masquerading as a fugitive from them, but she's discovered before she can do any real damage.
• Meaningful Name : In Greek mythology, Eris is the goddess of discord.

• Actor Allusion : Some versions of Yelgrun from the Star Trek collectible card game have the "Music" talent as a nod to Iggy’s behind the scenes status as a legendary musician, even though Vortas canonically have no artistic ability.
• Affably Evil : Perfectly willing to make a deal and abide by the terms of it, as well as being quite friendly with Ishka, despite threatening to kill her if Quark doesn't make good on his end of their arrangement.
• Deadpan Snarker : Makes a lot of snarky comments throughout his sole appearance. In particular, when Quark makes a joke about the universality of family problems, Yelgrun just shrugs and points out that he was cloned.
• Dirty Coward : Like Keevan and Weyoun 6, Yelgrun doesn't activate his termination implant upon capture, and he spent the brief shootout between the Ferengi and the Jem'Hadar cowering in a corner.
• Hypocrite : Despite being sent to bring in Keevan for failing to kill himself upon being captured, as Vorta are required to do, he himself fails to commit suicide after being captured by the Ferengi.
• Odd Friendship : With Ishka, as she is seen giving him business advice, and he in turn says that he really doesn't want to have to kill her if Quark fails to live up to his end of the agreement.
• Pragmatic Villainy : While a full platoon of Jem'Hadar would be able to take out a half-dozen lightly-armed Ferengi without breaking any sweat, as Quark correctly surmises, Yelgrun won't actually have them attack, as the Ferengi would just kill Keevan as soon as the fighting started, leaving the Dominion unable to find out what secrets he gave up to the Federation.
• Villain Respect : He genuinely admires the Ferengi for their cunning and hopes that they'll join the Dominion.

• Dirty Coward : Unlike Damar, who stood bravely for his execution, and Dukat, who never lost his Smug Snake -ness, Broca died whining about how loyal he actually was and how it was unfair.
• Neck Lift : The Female Changeling lifts him up by the throat in a moment of anger.
• Puppet King : He's even more of a puppet than Damar. "I serve the Founders in all things."
• The Quisling : Why he is listed here and not on the Cardassian page, as he's far more willing to go with the Dominion party line than Dukat or Damar were.
• You Have Failed Me : Taken out and shot as soon as the Cardassian fleet switches sides as a preemptive measure.

• Deadpan Snarker : When Legate Damar observes that he and Thot Gor are equal in rank, Gor tells Damar to fix his Universal Translator .
• The Faceless : We never do get to see what they look like under those masks.
• The Unintelligible : To the audience. Everyone seems to understand what he's saying though.
• We Have Reserves : Orders a suicide attack on Federation Headquarters .
• What Happened to the Mouse? : Thot Gor is replaced by Thot Pran after the second battle of Chin'toka, with no given explanation. Word of God though is that he was replaced because Todd Slayton (his actor) was "too skinny to be a supreme leader".

• Blood Knight : Thot Pran is noticeably more eager to fight than his predecessor, insisting on joining the Jem'Hadar on the front lines during the Dominion's last stand at Cardassia Prime.
• Creepy High-Pitched Voice : The Female Changeling remarks at one point that she "finds the shrillness of his voice very tiresome". The audience has to take her word for it, given that what they hear is unintelligible electronic gibberish.
• Deadpan Snarker : About as much as his predecessor was. Special mention goes to his Implied Death Threat to Weyoun 8 during a meeting with the Female Changeling. She agrees with him .
• The Dragon : Effectively becomes this to the Female Changeling during the waning hours of the war.
• The Faceless : As per usual with his people.
• The Unintelligible : Ditto.

Alternative Title(s): The Dominion

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‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Best Crossover Character Changed the Show Forever

It also results in some of the best relationships within the Star Trek universe.

The Big Picture

• Worf's arrival on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine deepened the exploration of Klingon culture and his personal identity.
• Worf's relationship with Jadzia adds depth to his character and highlights his humanity.
• Worf's struggles adjusting to life on DS9 test his loyalty, friendship, and honor.

Worf, son of Mogh ( Michael Dorn ), is a beloved character initially introduced to audiences in Star Trek: The Next Generation , known for his battle-hardened stoicism and the comedic relief that his upright and rigid demeanor brings. Worf crossed over to Deep Space Nine in the fourth season, much to the delight of Star Trek fans. Initially, his arrival on DS9 allowed the show to explore the Klingon Empire in-depth by extrapolating his inner conflict between his roles as a dutiful Federation Officer and a fierce Warrior of The Klingon Empire.

However, Worf's presence on DS9 would also forever change the series , allowing a deep exploration of the machinations of the Empire through its saga with Gowron ( Robert O'Reilly ). His relationship with Jadzia ( Terry Farrell ), a Trill learned in the ways of the Klingon, would help highlight Worf's humanity, act as a romantic counterpoint to his rigidity, and provide context for the curious observer. Jadzia and Worf are similar in some respects, as they both have multiple identities to reconcile. Jadzia would be the first non-Klingon woman that Worf could be with in the traditional sense, giving a vulnerability to the character that would carry on throughout the series and provide a deep richness to DS9 that helped cement it as a critical series in the Star Trek universe.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

In the vicinity of the liberated planet of Bajor, the Federation space station Deep Space Nine guards the opening of a stable wormhole to the far side of the galaxy.

What Is 'Deep Space Nine' About?

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is the fourth series in the Star Trek universe, created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller . Deep Space Nine ran from January 3, 1993, to June 2, 1999, for 176 episodes over seven seasons. It was the first Star Trek series to be created without the involvement of series founder Gene Roddenberry , the first to be set on a space station, and the first to boast a Black captain in Benjamin Sisko ( Avery Brooks ). The series follows the exploits of a hybrid crew of Starfleet and Bajoran officers on the titular space station, in orbit above Bajor and adjacent to a wormhole leading to the distant and mysterious Gamma Quadrant. Starfleet has come to oversee the transfer of power from the oppressive Cardassian Empire to the Bajoran civilian government, which has been under the heel of the Cardassians for some time.

The series is much darker than its predecessors . At one point, Major Kira Nerys ( Nana Visitor ), the first officer of Deep Space Nine, is a Cardassian prisoner of war, and even Sisko himself saw his wife killed during a Borg raid on a space station. The currents of trauma that run through the ensemble invoke feelings of loneliness, desperation, and fear, which the characters must overcome in typical Starfleet fashion. The well-roundedness of the characters makes them very compelling and adds a layer of sophistication to the series, which, while present in its predecessors, came into its own during DS9 and became a recurring theme on the show.

One particular theme that runs through Deep Space Nine is the duty to one's station and the duty one has towards one's individuality. This exploration of where duty and individuality meet is present in many characters. Take Odo ( René Auberjonois ) , for example, a Founder separated from his people and planted firmly in the camp of the Alpha Quadrant. In contrast, his people wage war on the planets of the Federation. Odo must choose between his people, Starfleet, and his cultural identity and individuality. So, too, must Kira, whose hatred for the Cardassian is a defining feature of her character, and who has to learn to overcome this so that it does not interfere with her duties to Starfleet. This war between the Founders, their allies, and Starfleet is the primary conflict in the series . They are a formidable race of shapeshifters backed by the Jem'Hadar, a warrior race of beings whose soul existence is to crush opposition. They are a tough, genocidal race, terrifying in their methods and fearsome enough to give the Klingon Empire a run for its money.

Worf's Arrival Changed 'Deep Space Nine' for the Better

Worf joins the crew of Deep Space Nine during the feature-long premiere episode of Season 4 in "The Way Of The Warrior." At the beginning of the episode, the Klingon Empire, led by Gowron, shows up at the space station to aid them in their fight against the Founders. This is a serious boon for Starfleet and the Alpha Quadrant, as the Klingons are such fearsome and brutal fighters that they may tip the balance of power throughout the war. But they push things too far, illegally searching Bajoran ships and starting a war with the Cardassians, whom they believe to be comprised of the shapeshifting Founders. Worf is brought to gather intelligence by reaching out to the Empire. He is very close with Gowron, who has absolved Worf and his family of their generations-long disgrace. Worf learns of the Klingon plans to invade Cardassia and must choose between fulfilling his duties to Starfleet or joining Gowron in battle. Worf's choice to maintain his honor by remaining in Starfleet is a moral choice that tests his individuality against those of his bloodthirsty cultural traditions.

Throughout the series, Worf meets Deep Space Nine's chief science officer, Jadzia Dax, a Trill and the host of the symbiont that once belonged to Curzon Dax . Due to the Dax symbiont carrying all its previous hosts' memories, Jadzia can tap into Curzon's familiarity with Klingon customs. The characters are exciting foils to one another. Worf is glib, stoic, and utterly humorless, while Jadzia is more irreverent and open, owing to the many past lives she recalls through her symbiont. However, the two also have more in common than one might think ; they are both people who have multiple identities. The critical difference is that Jadzia has reconciled her identities, while Worf remains at odds with his.

Jadzia is the only person aboard Deep Space Nine who can genuinely understand Worf , and it is this factor that blossoms their innocuous meeting into what may be one of the most fantastic love stories ever told in the Star Trek universe. Their connection is marvelous as their conflicting natures are both points of contention that allow for humorous moments where Jadzia's tenderness assuages the beast within Worf. It is delightful to watch Worf babysit chief operations officer Miles O'Brien's ( Colm Meaney ) daughter, paving the way for the couple to conceive a child of their own — which is made all the more tragic by Jadzia's murder and Worf's spiral into despair.

Worf Had a Difficult Time Adjusting To Life On Deep Space Nine

Initially, Worf has his former Enterprise crewmate O'Brien to help ease his transition into life on the space station. The two were close, and their relationship strengthened on The Next Generation , after Worf helped O'Brien's wife Keiko ( Rosalind Chao ) give birth to their daughter. When Worf joins the crew of DS9, O'Brien is among the first to receive him to help him acclimate — introducing him to Doctor Julian Bashir ( Alexander Siddig ), a rival suitor for Jadzia's affections and eventual boyfriend to Ezri ( Nicole de Boer ), who becomes the host of the Dax symbiote after Jadzia's untimely death.

O'Brien is the only person Worf can genuinely confide in after the death of his wife, and he heartbreakingly confesses to his friend that he fears Jadzia's soul may never make it to Klingon heaven because she hadn't eaten the heart of her enemy after a night of too much blood wine. Worf longs to be with his wife in the afterlife, making Ezri's relationship with Bashir a sore point for the commander. But Worf eventually becomes a friend to Ezri, who, in effect, helps Worf to properly grieve Jadzia's death so that he can move on and step up to be the man that the Klingon Empire needs.

It isn't an easy transition for Worf after he accepts the commission of Special Operations Officer on Deep Space Nine — yet Captain Sisko has incredible foresight when he offers Worf the position. He sees Worf as a profoundly knowledgeable and capable military strategist whose intuition and extensive knowledge of warfare, particularly Klingon warfare, would greatly benefit the station and Starfleet. This position puts Worf in direct opposition to his people and weighs heavily on his mind. By siding with Sisko over Gowron, Worf again sees himself as an outsider among his people . His frustrations are palpable, but he can sublimate these into his work and subsequently earn a place of deep respect in Sisko's heart. It is summed up rather nicely between the two with a hearty handshake when Worf accepts the role of Ambassador to the Klingon homeworld.

Until this point, Worf wants to restore his family's honor, and ironically, he loses it again while pursuing what he believes to be honorable. Here is the show's crux: how far someone is willing to go to do what they believe to be correct. Sisko tests the bounds of his morality while making difficult choices about defeating the Founders. Odo turns his back on his people. On the fringes of the known universe, a brave crew of deeply traumatized heroes will learn exactly that. Worf's crossover on Deep Space Nine marks the point where the series descends into a dark rabbit hole spurned on through the fog of war, but it also results in some of the best character relationships within the Star Trek universe.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is streaming on Paramount+ in the U.S.

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Star Trek: DS9’s Jake Sisko Joining Starfleet Was Never Going To Happen

• Jake Sisko's choice to become a writer over joining Starfleet Academy was a deliberate and refreshing departure from fandom expectations.
• Nog's surprising path to becoming a Starfleet officer subverted viewer expectations and added depth to DS9's storytelling.
• By exploring Jake's career as a writer, DS9 was able to delve into new aspects of life in the Federation, enriching the show's narrative.

There was never a serious chance of Jake Sisko (Cirroc Lofton) joining Starfleet Academy in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , and an episode from season 2 proves it. As the young son of the widowed Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), Jake Sisko was set up as DS9 's answer to Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) from Star Trek: The Next Generation . However, Jake took a very different path to Wesley in DS9 , choosing a career as a writer and journalist over a place at Starfleet Academy. During DS9 's Dominion War arc, Jake's career gave Star Trek the opportunity to explore new aspects of life in the Federation .

One of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's smartest decisions was to put Nog (Aron Eisenberg) on the path to becoming a Starfleet officer instead of Jake. It subverted audience expectations of both DS9 's Ferengi characters and the character of Jake Sisko. DS9 put a full-stop on the question of Jake Sisko applying to Starfleet Academy in the season 2 episode "Shadowplay", written by Robert Hewitt Wolfe. In the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion , Robert Hewitt Wolfe explained why Jake's decision about Starfleet Academy fit perfectly into the three plots that comprise season 2's "Shadowplay" :

" They're all about the unreality of appearances. Everyone would think Jake would want to be a Starfleet guy, but he doesn't. You'd think Bareil was on the station to see Kira, but the truth is that Quark lured him there. And then there's the girl, who seems real, but isn't ."

Rene Auberjonois Star Trek: Enterprise Appearance Contained A Massive DS9 Callback

Ds9’s jake sisko in starfleet was never a serious consideration.

There's a matter-of-fact way to how Jake Sisko's Starfleet Academy aspirations - or lack thereof - are dealt with in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . This suggests that there was never an intention to redo Wesley Crusher's Starfleet journey . In fact, the character outline for Jake Sisko in DS9 's 1992 writer's bible makes no mention of Jake wanting to follow in his father's footsteps. In fact, it references the death of Jennifer Sisko (Felecia M. Bell) and how it's inspired Jake to dream " of going to live on Earth " because " he knows that his mom would still be alive if they did not live in space ".

This is in sharp contrast to Wesley Crusher who, despite the tragic death of his father Lt. Commander Jack Crusher, still wanted to pursue a career in Starfleet. Jake's disinterest in Starfleet is sensitively handled in "Shadowplay", as he gets a job working with Chief Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) who encourages the young man to speak to his father. Jake's discussion with his father is beautifully understated, and never becomes emotionally overwrought. The whole issue is touchingly resolved by Sisko asking his son to " Find something you love, then do it the best you can. "

Chief O'Brien reveals to Jake that he gave up a potential career as a talented cello player to join Starfleet, a nod to his cello playing in Star Trek: The Next Generation .

Jake Sisko In Starfleet Could Never Have Bettered Wesley Crusher’s Star Trek: TNG Arc

Jake Sisko joining Starfleet Academy would only have been a carbon copy of Star Trek: The Next Generation 's Wesley Crusher arc . Star Trek: Deep Space Nine never wanted to repeat TNG 's past glories, and always pushed the franchise in new directions. If Jake had joined Starfleet Academy two things would have happened; either he would have grown disillusioned like Wesley in "Journey's End", or he would have become an exceptional officer like his father. Neither of these potential stories are dramatically interesting, so it's a relief that DS9 chose to make Jake a writer instead.

By making Jake Sisko a writer, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine could explore the place of literature and journalism in the Federation, something that had rarely been explored before. Indeed, the loss of one Star Trek kid from Starfleet Academy allowed another to fly. Nog's Starfleet career told the story of what happens when, unlike Jake or Wesley, nobody expects you to succeed. This meant that the reward of Nog's Star Trek: Deep Space Nine story was far richer than it would have been if Jake Sisko had followed his expected path.

All episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine are streaming now on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.

Screen Rant

James bond exists in star trek & discovery proved it.

James Bond's existence in Star Trek's universe is tacitly confirmed by Star Trek: Discovery as 007's signature cocktail is name-dropped.

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 4 - "Face The Strange"

• Star Trek Discovery season 5 confirms the long-held belief that James Bond exists in Star Trek.
• Commander Jett Reno name-drops the Vesper martini, which was introduced in James Bond's Casino Royale book and movie.
• Deep Space Nine's "Our Man Bashir" homage to James Bond precedes Discovery's nod in season 5, episode 4.

It has long been suspected that James Bond exists in Star Trek 's universe, and Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4, "Face the Strange" proved it. Written by Sean Cochran and directed by Lee Rose, Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4 , is an extraordinary time travel romp as Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie), and Commander Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) cycle through key events in the USS Discovery's past and potential dark future. Among the surprises is an unexpected shout-out to 007 by Commander Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) .

Star Trek is set in the future, but pop culture inevitably woven its way into the various Star Trek series and movies. For instance, Star Trek: Discovery season 2 saw then-Lieutenant Paul Stamets and Ensign Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman) sing David Bowie's "Space Oddity" together. Alcohol consumption certainly has been a part of Star Trek since the saga's original pilot episode, "The Cage." Still, the signature cocktail of James Bond , the most famous secret agent in pop culture, being name-dropped in Star Trek: Discovery season 5 came out of nowhere, but it confirms the long-held belief that 007 exists in Star Trek' s universe .

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 Returning Cast & New Character Guide

Discovery proves james bond exists in star trek, the vesper martini is jett reno's cocktail of choice.

In one of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4's time jumps, Captain Burnham and Commander Rayner are sent back to the events of Star Trek: Discovery season 3's finale when Osyraa (Janet Kidder) and the Emerald Chain attacked the USS Discovery. Burnham and Rayner take out Osyraa's goons, but Michael makes herself scarce so as not to disrupt the timeline by being seen by Commander Jett Reno (Tig Notaro). After saving Rayner's life, Reno suggests he buy her a drink - "Vesper martini - ice cold". The Vesper martini is the signature cocktail invented by James Bond (Daniel Craig) in Casino Royale .

The Vesper martini is named for 007's tragic love, Vesper Lynd, played by Eva Green in Casino Royale .

James Bond's creator Ian Fleming introduced the Vesper martini in the first 007 novella, 1953's "Casino Royale." The exact recipe is "Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel." Until the 2006 Casino Royale movie which also introduced the Vesper Lynd character, the previous versions of James Bond only ordered vodka martinis "shaken, not stirred". Commander Jett Reno specifically requesting a Vesper martini makes her a James Bond fan , or at least a fan of his favorite drink, and verifies that 007 and Casino Royale exist in Star Trek 's universe.

Star Trek’s Greatest James Bond Homage Was On DS9

"our man bashir" is a classic ds9 episode..

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine homaged 007 in the classic season 4 episode, "Our Man Bashir." Dr. Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) unwinds in Quark's (Armin Shimerman) holosuite by play-acting as "Julian Bashir: Secret Agent," a spy who lives in the 1960s. Bashir's holosuite program is clearly based on James Bond as Julian takes on the kind of international crisis 007 would typically face. With Garak (Andrew Robinson) in tow, Julian Bashir saved the world from destruction at the hands of the evil Dr. Noah (Avery Brooks).

A transporter accident sent Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), Major Kira Nerys (Nana Visitor), Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell), Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn), and Chief Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) in the holosuite where they became characters in the Julian Bashir: Secret Agent program.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's "Our Man Bashir" premiered just two weeks after GoldenEye , Pierce Brosnan's first film as James Bond , in November 1995. Although James Bond was never name-dropped - and he still wasn't in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 4 - "Our Man Bashir" is an obvious ode to 007 that played into the classic James Bond tropes even more than GoldenEye did. Because James Bond lives in an era vastly different from the space-faring universe of Star Trek, it makes sense that characters like Jett Reno on Star Trek: Discovery indulge in the old-school fantasy and luxurious trappings of James Bond, like his signature Vesper martini.

New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 stream Thursdays on Paramount+

• April 19, 2024 | Exclusive First Look At Artwork From ‘Star Trek: Celebrations’ – IDW’s One Shot Comic For Pride Month
• April 19, 2024 | Podcast: All Access Faces The Strange On ‘Star Trek: Discovery’
• April 18, 2024 | Lost Original USS Enterprise Model From ‘Star Trek’ Returned To Gene Roddenberry’s Son
• April 18, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Gets The Timing Right In “Face The Strange”
• April 17, 2024 | Watch: Things Get “Odd” In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Trailer And Clip From “Face The Strange”

Exclusive First Look At Artwork From ‘Star Trek: Celebrations’ – IDW’s One Shot Comic For Pride Month

| April 19, 2024 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 6 comments so far

IDW is releasing a one shot comic book titled ‘Star Trek: Celebrations’ on May 29 just in time for Pride Month in June. The anthology has five brand-new stories celebrating LGBTQIA+ characters from across the Star Trek universe. Today TrekMovie has an exclusive first look at the artwork for pages from three of those stories.

From the Lower Decks story

The first story in Celebrations focuses on Mariner and Jennifer from Star Trek: Lower Decks , written by Hannah Rose May with art by Jack Lawrence. We have three inked pages.

From the Kelvin Universe story

The fourth story in Celebrations focuses on Kelvin Universe Sulu, written by Steve Olrando with art by Denny More. We have three colored pages.

From the Discovery story

The fifth story focuses on Jett Reno, Paul Stamets, and Hugh Culber from Star Trek: Discovery , written by Stephanie Williams with art by Denny Minonne. We have three inked pages.

Celebrations also includes a story focused on Christine Chapel from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , written by Mags Visaggio with art by Trench. And there is also a story focused on Seven and Raffi from  Star Trek: Picard , written by Vita Ayala with art by Liana Kangas.

Here is the official synopsis for Celebrations :

Star Trek was an attempt to say that humanity will reach maturity and wisdom on the day that it begins not just to tolerate but to  celebrate  differences in ideas and differences in life forms.” —Gene Roddenberry IDW proudly presents a one-shot anthology centering and celebrating Join legendary heroes from each era of the beloved franchise in stories that showcase the strengths of infinite diversity in infinite combinations, brought to you by a star-studded cast of writers and artists including Vita Ayala, Steve Orlando, Mags Visaggio, and more!

And here is the cover by artist Paulina Ganucheau…

Star Trek: Celebrations cover

Star Trek: Celebrations arrives on May 29, 2024.

Keep up with all the Star Trek comics news, previews and reviews in  TrekMovie’s comics category .

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Watch: Things Get “Odd” In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Trailer And Clip From “Face The Strange”

Comics , DS9 , TNG

History [ ]

The Dominion invades the Alpha Quadrant

According to Weyoun 4 , the Dominion "has endured for two thousand years ", i.e., since the 4th century. Later, in 2375 , Weyoun 8 stated " the Dominion has never surrendered in battle since its founding 10,000 years ago . " It was established by Changelings , who sought to protect themselves against persecution by the solids via totalitarian control. Becoming known as the Founders , the Changelings used advanced genetic engineering to create two servant races, the Vorta and the Jem'Hadar . On behalf of the Founders, these two species began expanding Dominion territory through diplomacy and military conquest. By the mid- 24th century , the Dominion had conquered hundreds of species. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part II ", " To the Death ", " Treachery, Faith and the Great River ", " The Dogs of War ")

In the 2370s , the discovery of the Bajoran wormhole brought the Dominion into contact with civilizations in the Alpha Quadrant . After learning that Starfleet would destroy the wormhole in the event of a direct Dominion incursion, the Founders initiated long-term plans to weaken and subvert the Alpha Quadrant. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part II ", " The Adversary ") In 2373 , the Dominion was able to secure both the wormhole passage and a power base in the Alpha Quadrant, through the absorption of the Cardassian Union . ( DS9 : " By Inferno's Light ") By the end of the year, open war erupted between the Dominion and a joint opposition consisting of the United Federation of Planets and the Klingon Empire . ( DS9 : " Call to Arms ")

The Dominion made rapid gains in the opening months of the war, beginning with the siege of Deep Space 9 and the wormhole. ( DS9 : " Call to Arms ", " A Time to Stand ") However, it was dealt a major setback in mid- 2374 , when Starfleet and Klingon forces retook Deep Space 9 and prevented the Dominion from obtaining reinforcements from the Gamma Quadrant. ( DS9 : " Sacrifice of Angels ") Also in that year, the Romulan Star Empire joined the war against the Dominion. ( DS9 : " In the Pale Moonlight ") Despite various reversals and an eleventh-hour alliance with the Breen Confederacy , by late 2375 , the Dominion verged on defeat and was additionally beset by a Cardassian uprising. The war ended when the Female Changeling agreed to surrender, in exchange for a cure to a morphogenic virus afflicting the Great Link . ( DS9 : " Strange Bedfellows ", " The Changing Face of Evil ", " Tacking Into the Wind ", " What You Leave Behind ")

Territory [ ]

Government [ ].

The Female Changeling , one of the Founders

Eris , a Vorta covert agent

Kudak'Etan , a Jem'Hadar soldier

The Dominion was organized under a strict hierarchy, with the Founders at the top, then the Vorta as administrators, and the Jem'Hadar as soldiers next. This arrangement was referred to as "the order of things" and deviation from it was punishable by death. ( DS9 : " To the Death ", " Rocks and Shoals ") The Founders held ultimate authority and their decisions could not be questioned under any circumstances. However, the Founders were largely apathetic towards the affairs of solids and were content to leave the administration of the Dominion to the Vorta. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part II ") The Vorta commanded the Jem'Hadar and disseminated ketracel-white crucial for their survival. ( DS9 : " To the Death ")

Members [ ]

Below the Founders, Vorta, and Jem'Hadar, the Dominion included numerous subjugated "member" races. These species were expected to obey the orders of the Vorta administrators. Disobedience would be punished by massive Jem'Hadar reprisals. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part I ")

Known member species included:

• Cardassians ( 2373 – 2375 )
• T-Rogorans (conquered 2370 )
• Yaderans (homeworld annexed 2340 )

In the 2370s , the Dosi and the Son'a were economically affiliated with the Dominion. ( DS9 : " Rules of Acquisition ", " Starship Down ", " Penumbra ") In late 2375 , the Dominion signed an alliance with the Breen Confederacy . ( DS9 : " Strange Bedfellows ") While the Teplans were punished by the Dominion for their resistance in the mid- 22nd century , their political status as of the 24th century is unknown. ( DS9 : " The Quickening ")

Society [ ]

The Founders were rarely encountered by their subjects, leading them to be regarded as myths or gods . The Vorta and the Jem'Hadar were both engineered to worship the Founders; indeed, they believed that their lives belonged to the Founders, rather than themselves. ( DS9 : " Rocks and Shoals ", " Treachery, Faith and the Great River ")

The Karemma were an important commercial power within the Dominion, and constructed weapons for the Dominion military. ( DS9 : " Starship Down ")

The language of the Dominion was known as Dominionese . ( DS9 : " Statistical Probabilities ") The Dominion judicial system made use of courts, but charges and subsequent trials were often merely for show. Enemies of the Dominion were often put on trial for various charges which "hardly mattered", since the goal of the trial was to convict and execute the offender while merely giving a facade of legal framework. ( DS9 : " Sacrifice of Angels ")

Although the Dominion might seem monolithic and united, there were some internal pressures, mostly between the Vorta and Jem'Hadar. The two servant races of the Founders regarded one another with barely disguised contempt, and a delicate balance existed between Jem'Hadar troops and their Vorta overseers. Their shared loyalty and obedience to the Founders kept them nominally at peace, but often, it was only the Vorta's control of ketracel-white that kept them alive, and even then, this form of control has been known to fail; Jem'Hadar killing their Vorta was rare, but not unheard of. Vorta and Jem'Hadar tried to maintain the appearance of unity, but this varied between individuals; some Vorta, such as Keevan , behaved in a false paternal fashion to their troops, while others, like Weyoun 4 , were visibly disinterested in the Jem'Hadar's welfare. ( DS9 : " To the Death ", " Rocks and Shoals ")

Philosophy [ ]

The philosophy of the Dominion was divided into three distinct groups, each with notably differing outlooks and aspects. The perspective of the Founders , or the Changelings , with whom ultimately rested the control over the Dominion, was formed from their history of persecution at the hands of non-shapeshifting lifeforms they thereafter termed " Solids ". To that end, the priority of the Founders was the survival of their own species , by any means necessary. They had no interest in matters such as Klingon honor , the Federation 's goal of peaceful exploration, Ferengi material success, or objections made by opposing groups regarding their methods of self-preservation. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part II ") Their philosophy is to dominate everything that can be dominated and destroying all that cannot; the Founders were, in essence, driven by an urge to "impose order on a chaotic universe."

The Founders' extreme longevity (indeed, practical immortality) has provided them with a uniquely long viewpoint. As the genetically-engineered and highly intelligent Jack described: the Dominion does not adjust its strategies based on what has occurred within the past week or even year, but is concerned instead with what the universe will look like centuries or more forward. This perspective was evident in the Dominion War , where the strategy was to engage in a long-term war of attrition, counting on superior construction methods and their ability to breed Jem'Hadar , rather than risk everything on one battle. ( DS9 : " Statistical Probabilities ")

Apart from the Changelings' metamorphic abilities, the most distinguishing ability of their species is "linking" – the physical and mental connection of multiple Changelings. The species seems to exist in a collective union called The Great Link for much of their life span, producing a strongly anti-individualist perspective. Consequently, the Founders seem to be a remarkably unified, even monolithic, species. Their most sacred axiom: "No Changeling has ever harmed another" reflects both this and their obsession with physical security. Disagreement between the Founders, however, is not unheard of, as illustrated by the (at least initial) lack of consensus over how to deal with Odo after he murdered another changeling. ( DS9 : " Broken Link ")

The Changelings genetically modified the Vorta to serve them in various roles. They have also genetically-engineered the Jem'Hadar to serve as their soldiers. Each group of Jem'Hadar is closely controlled by the Vorta. The Jem'Hadar enforce the will of the Founders, fight in wars to expand the Dominion, protect the Vorta and the Founders, etc. Both races are engineered to worship the Founders as their gods.

Military [ ]

A Dominion strategy frequently used was to not use its military might during initial contacts, but rather, to take over via influence and espionage . While Jem'Hadar fighters destroyed the USS Odyssey as a show of force, the Dominion used its vast influential and espionage tactics to destabilize the Alpha Quadrant . For example, the Dominion precipitated a war between the Cardassian Union and the Klingon Empire , and then struck an alliance with the Cardassian Union, knowing full well they would accept due to their dire state, so that the Dominion could gain support and a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant before deploying its military power. ( DS9 : " The Jem'Hadar ", " The Way of the Warrior ", " By Inferno's Light ")

The Dominion was founded on the principle of control, with the intent being to neutralize any potential threat to the Founders by whatever means necessary. In cases involving cooperative species such as the Karemma, the extent of Dominion interference was fairly minimal and restricted to material support. However, if the target species was or became less cooperative, the Jem'Hadar were dispatched to wipe out any opposition. The fear of massive Jem'Hadar reprisals was enough to keep most planets in line. For a prospective member, at first contact the Dominion may have appeared helpful, or even benevolent. A typical Dominion strategy was to make concessions in the short term for an advantage in the longer term, which may have been centuries in advance. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part I ", " Statistical Probabilities ")

Technology [ ]

A typical Jem'Hadar attack ship armed with the phased polaron beam

By the time of the Dominion War , Dominion technology appeared to have significantly outpaced that of most Alpha Quadrant species.

Instead of phased energy or disruptor beams, Jem'Hadar rifles emitted powerful polaron beams. They had a side effect of acting as an anticoagulant in some humanoids , thereby impeding the natural wound healing process. ( DS9 : " The Ship ")

Similarly, Dominion warships displayed more impressive firepower than their Alpha Quadrant counterparts. Phased polaron beams were mounted on all Jem'Hadar attack ships . These initially cut through Federation shielding without effort; however, the DS9 crew subsequently managed to adapt their shields to withstand Dominion weapons for short periods. By the time of the Dominion invasion of the Alpha Quadrant, Federation shields had no more difficulty withstanding polaron weaponry than any other energy weapon. The Breen also wielded a huge advantage on the battlefield with an energy dissipating weapon , which was capable of disabling Federation and Romulan vessels with a single shot. Effective countermeasures were eventually developed by Starfleet engineers . ( DS9 : " The Jem'Hadar ", " Call to Arms ", " The Dogs of War ")

Dominion transporters utilized transponders , which enabled them to transport individuals across distances as far as three light years . ( DS9 : " Covenant ")

Dominion warp capability was less advanced when compared to most major Alpha Quadrant species. A Dominion fighter was capable of at least warp 7 and a battle cruiser was capable of at least warp 4.7. ( DS9 : " The Jem'Hadar ", " Valiant ")

While some Dominion technology was in many ways more advanced than that of the Federation, the Vorta Keevan once lamented that Starfleet engineers were famed for being able to "turn rocks into replicators ". ( DS9 : " Rocks and Shoals ") At least some Dominion technology was manufactured by Dominion member species; it is known, for example, that at least one type of torpedo carried on board Jem'Hadar attack vessels was sold to the Dominion by the Karemma, a Dominion member. ( DS9 : " Starship Down ") The Jem'Hadar did, however, seem capable of performing not only some minor and emergency repairs, but also understanding complex engineering on even Starfleet vessels. ( DS9 : " One Little Ship ")

Appendices [ ]

Appearances [ ].

• " The Jem'Hadar " ( DS9 Season 2 )
• " The Search, Part I " ( DS9 Season 3 )
• " The Search, Part II "
• " The Abandoned "
• " The Die is Cast "
• " Call to Arms "
• " A Time to Stand " ( DS9 Season 6 )
• " Rocks and Shoals "
• " Sons and Daughters "
• " Behind the Lines "
• " Favor the Bold "
• " Sacrifice of Angels "

Background information [ ]

The Dominion insignia was designed by Herman Zimmerman and Anthony Fredrickson . ( Star Trek Sticker Book , pg. 20)

Origins [ ]

The Dominion resulted from several meetings which the writing staff of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had about establishing villains in the Gamma Quadrant during the show's second season . " We had meeting after meeting on what those guys would be like before the word 'Dominion' was ever dropped into a script, " stated Robert Hewitt Wolfe . ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 73)) Ira Steven Behr once referred to the Dominion as "an attempt by the staff to come up with something specific about the Gamma quadrant." ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 25/26, No. 6/1, p. 100) He also related, " I remember saying [to Wolfe, James Crocker and Peter Allan Fields , while having lunch together] one day, 'Okay guys, we're gonna come up with villains, not one but three sets of villains. And we're gonna make them as scary as any villains you can possibly find.' " As part of this mandate, Behr tasked the writing team to read Isaac Asimov 's Foundation trilogy, which all the writers then read. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 153)) " The Dominion was definitely a group project, " clarified Wolfe. " That was something that Ira, Michael [Piller] , Pete, Jim and I talked about and conceptually worked on as a group. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 112) Wolfe continued, " We just felt it was time to give a face to the Gamma Quadrant. Voyager was going to be wandering through the Delta Quadrant from place to place, meeting new people every week, and we wanted to make the Gamma Quadrant distinctly different from that, by creating the Dominion […] Instead of like the big mysterious out there, which all the other Star Trek shows had done, and Voyager was going to do, it was a very specific, dangerous, nasty Other, so that was part of the motivation. " ( The Birth of the Dominion and Beyond , DS9 Season 3 DVD special features) The invention of the Dominion not only fulfilled the need to define the Gamma Quadrant but also came about because Behr thought "villains are cool." ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 97)) He remembered, " With the Dominion, we came up with characters, people, aliens and problems that impact not only in the Gamma Quadrant but the Alpha Quadrant as well. I came up with the idea for the Dominion, then the staff met every day for lunch for a week or two, and we would kick around what to do about this Dominion, then we presented it to Mike [Piller] and Rick [Berman] and they were receptive to it. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 76) Peter Allen Fields highly approved of the name chosen by the writing staff for the new group, saying it "was a pretty good name." ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 153))

The Dominion was conceived as "a sort of unifying anti- Federation in a way, just to give it a completely different character," said Robert Hewitt Wolfe. Indeed, the group was intended to be similar in structure to the Federation but with very different ideologies. The Dominion was to represent a wide array of alien races, just as does the Federation (as opposed to the mono-species Klingon Empire , Romulan Star Empire , and Cardassian Union ), but it was to be fascist-like, ruled by coercion and domination, in contrast to the cooperation and freedom of the Federation. As Wolfe explained, " The Dominion was not monolithic. It wasn't just the Romulans or the Cardassians . They were distinct in that they were the Dominion. They were, like the Federation, a collection of different races. But unlike the Federation, they were bound together by fear and extortion, whereas the Federation is bound together by noble thoughts and love and friendship and all that good stuff. So in a lot of ways, they were the mirror image of the Federation. " ( The Birth of the Dominion and Beyond , DS9 Season 3 DVD special features) Ira Steven Behr explained, " We wanted warriors, businessmen, and a dark force that was controlling it all. " Wolfe elaborated, " Basically, the idea was that the Dominion was the Carrot-and-Stick Empire. The businessmen, the Vorta, were the negotiators, the friendly guys who show up with the carrot […] Then, if you don't toe the line, they kick your ass with the Jem'Hadar. " ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 154)) Michael Piller offered, " Ira and Robert and the staff worked very hard on creating a new group of aliens that are quite different than the others that we have had before. There's a symbiotic relationship where you have to peel back several layers to understand what they really are. What seems to be the most threatening is not necessarily the most threatening. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 76)

Initially, the plan was for numerous different species to be seen on Dominion vessels and involved in various parts of the Dominion's activities, although eventually, only three "main" species were firmly established: the Founders , the Jem'Hadar , and the Vorta , although the Karemma were also a member and, subsequently, both the Cardassians and the Breen became members.

The concept of introducing three species at once, as opposed to the more traditional Star Trek method of introducing major races one at a time, was Ira Behr's and came from the fact that he didn't want to risk introducing only one species which may not work. If the Dominion was basically a single race, and the audience didn't accept that race, the ramifications for the show would have been disastrous, so Behr felt it better to err on the side of caution, feeling that if he introduced three races, at least one of them was bound to work. As it turned out, all three were readily accepted by viewers, and all three became major players in the later years of the show.

Robert Hewitt Wolfe explains the structure and organization of the Dominion: " The Gamma Quadrant […] [is] bound together by the Dominion, a very very tough, very smart, very old civilization, run by the mysterious Founders, who are experts in genetic engineering, and who turn out to be Odo's people, the Shapeshifters. They then go and engineer these slave races that do their bidding. Essentially, the two main slave races were the 'carrot' and the 'stick'. The carrot being the Vorta, who would come to your planet and say, 'Hey, you're nice people, here's some M-16s and some popcorn, and whatever else you want baby, alcohol, fire-water? All you have to do is sign this little contract and we'll make you cool.' Then there's the Jem'Hadar. So the Vorta say, 'Oh, you don't want to play ball? Then meet these guys. They're gonna kick your asses.' " ( The Birth of the Dominion and Beyond , DS9 Season 3 DVD special features)

One idea that the writers had that was never actively utilized on-screen was that the Dominion knew about the Federation long before the Bajoran wormhole was discovered, and that they were developing a long-term strategy to deal with the inevitable contact. As Wolfe explains, " The Dominion knew the Federation was out there long before the wormhole was opened, and they had plans to deal with the Federation when the Federation was projected to enter their space in two hundred years, and they were building slowly towards that, that's why they sent out Odo in the first place. But then the wormhole opens up and suddenly the Federation is in their backyard today and it just throws everything into question for both the Federation and the Dominion. " ( The Birth of the Dominion and Beyond , DS9 Season 3 DVD special features)

Ultimately, Ira Behr was pleased to have been instrumental in the creation of the Dominion, happy his Star Trek legacy resulted in something more than merely altering the Ferengi . " I was hoping that it would be something else I could leave to the Star Trek universe, " he expressed, " and I'm really glad it was the Dominion and the Founders and that whole thing. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 102) Michael Piller similarly appreciated the design of the Dominion, saying, " We have a good look to some of them. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 76)

Episodic developments [ ]

The Dominion was first mentioned in " Rules of Acquisition ", then in " Sanctuary " and next in " Shadowplay ", before finally being encountered in " The Jem'Hadar " (whose original name was "The Dominion"). " We sort of peppered mention of the Dominion into several episodes before we actually saw them, " recalled Robert Hewitt Wolfe. " Basically, we were trying to build the idea that there was something big out there, something pretty tough. " ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (pp. 73 & 153))

References to the Dominion in "Rules of Acquisition" altered how Ira Steven Behr thought of the episode. He reflected, " It […] gave us the opportunity to introduce the Dominion […] Suddenly the weight of the show became more important because I wanted the Dominion to work. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 25/26, No. 6/1, p. 100) Behr also said, " The thing that sold the show to me was coming up with the Dominion. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 65) Although the Dominion was conceived as three main species, the first Dominion race to be referenced was the Karemma , in "Rules of Acquisition".

A reference to the Dominion was also deliberately included in "Shadowplay". " It just seemed like the perfect place to keep it alive, " Ira Steven Behr noted. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 124))

In the script of "The Jem'Hadar", the Dominion is directly linked with "the Tosks [and] […] the hunters ." [1] Indeed, Robert Wolfe has speculated that the Vorta had supplied the Hunters with the Tosk, as part of a general policy providing benefits to Dominion members. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 154)) Michael Piller said about how the Dominion are portrayed in "The Jem'Hadar", " It's only the tip of an iceberg. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 76)

Ira Steven Behr promised the Dominion would have a profound effect on DS9 Season 3 . " The Dominion is going to add a new element into the show that I think will build on what's already there, " he predicted. " We will expand this into the gamma quadrant and it will have a tremendous impact on our people. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 25/26, No. 6/1, pp. 98 & 111) He later said, " The major thing we wanted to accomplish in year three was to take the Dominion, which we had been teasing the audience with throughout the last half of the second season, and really bring them to some kind of fruition. We needed to show that there was something worthwhile in the Gamma Quadrant […] I think that's what we went in thinking: How do we make this Dominion the next big enemy or antagonist of the Star Trek franchise? " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 82)

When Ronald D. Moore and René Echevarria joined the DS9 writing team at the beginning of the series' third season, the Dominion was an aspect that appealed to the newcomers. " Ron and I came in and saw all this new stuff they were doing with the Dominion and we realized what a rich backdrop it was for storytelling, " reminisced Echevarria. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 91)

In " The Search, Part II ", the writers wanted to depict the Dominion as powerful enough to run elaborate scenarios in the heads of the DS9 main characters, just to see how they would react. Ira Behr related, " We said, 'OK, we're going to give the audience what they think they want,' which is what happens if the Dominion gets into the Alpha Quadrant. " Added Ron Moore, " What would really happen if these things occurred? How would the characters react? Ultimately, that's what the Dominion was trying to find out. " The use of the illusory situation set the Dominion's stratagem apart from the strategies usually employed by other villainous Star Trek races, since the writers didn't want Deep Space 9 and its regular crew to be constantly under siege from the Dominion. " We basically wanted to set up what the Dominion was and establish that they had a different strategy, " explained René Echevarria. " It wasn't going to be them sending the Jem'Hadar to battle us, but they were going to have a long-term strategy of destabilization. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 83)

Following the "The Search" two-parter, the Jem'Hadar continued making regular appearances in DS9 but the Vorta seemed to disappear for a while, possibly indicating there had been an altercation between them and the Founders. The writers wanted to keep the latter group somewhat mysterious and distant, so the Vorta were considered vital to continue establishing as an intermediary party between the other two races. This idea led to the notion of enmity possibly existing between the Jem'Hadar and the Vorta, which led to the subsequent return of the Vorta in Season 4 's " To the Death ". ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 168))

Even though the discovery of the Dominion in "The Search" occurs chronologically several months before Voyager is taken to the Delta Quadrant (and despite VOY : " Parturition " featuring a holographic simulation in which a Jem'Hadar fighter is pictured on Voyager 's viewscreen), they are never referred to as the Dominion by Voyager 's crew. In VOY : " Hunters ", after learning of the Dominion War following communication with Earth, Chakotay tells B'Elanna Torres of how the Maquis have been wiped out by the Cardassians, who have "an ally […] from the Gamma Quadrant who supplied them with ships and weapons," implying he had never heard their name before.

One potential way of using the Dominion was inspired by a line of dialogue from season three outing " The Die is Cast ", in which a Founder posing as a Romulan named Lovok predicts, " After today the only real threat to us from the Alpha Quadrant are the Klingons and the Federation. And I doubt that either of them will be a threat for much longer. " Ira Behr recollected, " I […] said to Ron [Moore] at the time, 'You know, we could do a whole show about that if we wanted to, how the Dominion would want to get between the Klingons and the Federation.' But the Earth didn't move. Nothing shook. " ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (pp. 255-256))

The Dominion was further developed in DS9 Season 3 finale " The Adversary ". " We knew that we wanted to do something with the Dominion [in that episode], " recalled Ira Behr. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 250)) Robert Wolfe concurred, " We wanted [to] show that the Dominion was a really smart organisation and they went about things in an intelligent way. Making your enemies fight each other is a good thing to do. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, p. 114)

At the conclusion of the third season, Ira Behr was satisfied with how the Dominion had been developed during the course of the season, remarking, " We've been able to get good use out of it. " He also believed "keeping the Dominion alive" was an important goal for the writers to bear in mind for DS9 Season 4 . ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, pp. 102 & 115)

Although the DS9 staff writers wanted to concentrate on the Dominion, they were distracted from focusing on the group by the introduction of the Klingons into the series, which took place in the fourth season. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 256)) Nonetheless, Rene Auberjonois considered that making the Klingons fearful of the Dominion was "a way of pumping up the danger of the Dominion, which has taken some doing." He continued, " They're not the Borg, they're not the Klingons; they're something else, and it's a more complex kind of danger that's being presented. " ( Starlog , issue #222, p. 31)

Though the Dominion became a major part of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , not everyone who worked on the show cared much about the alien organization or how the writers chose to develop it. Jadzia Dax actress Terry Farrell , for example, was often confused by the Dominion subplots in the fourth season. She conceded, " I don't put much thought into the whole Dominion thing […] If they're going to do something interesting with the Dominion, great, but if they're going to let it hang there, there's nothing I can do about it. " ( The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine  issue 14 , p. 10)

In fourth season installment " Hippocratic Oath ", a discussion regarding the Dominion appealed to Ron Moore. " My favorite moment [in that episode] is when the central Jem'Hadar is talking about the Founders and the fact that they're like gods, but these gods don't talk to them even though they die for their gods. I thought that stuff was pretty interesting, " Moore commented. ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 107)

Midway through DS9 Season 4, Bashir actor Alexander Siddig thought the Dominion weren't entirely satisfactory villains, at least not yet. " I don't think […] the Dominion have gotten to first base with regard to being a serious threat, " he remarked. " I don't think anybody bites their nails over them. " ( The Official Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Magazine  issue 15 , p. 24)

To prepare for directing " To the Death ", LeVar Burton had to learn about the Dominion, specifically the relationship between the Jem'Hadar and the Founders, by watching earlier installments of DS9. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 347)) Regarding "To the Death", Ira Behr noted, " I thought it really filled in a lot of the Dominion backstory that I thought was really necessary. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 119)

Ron Moore similarly approved of how the Dominion are portrayed in " The Quickening ". " I thought it […] said something interesting about the Dominion and how they deal with dissent, " he remarked. " That they weren't just berserkers that went around killing everybody, they actually make examples of you and make you suffer quite a bit. They do it in a really nasty way, which adds more to the franchise overall. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 120)

The Dominion was briefly referenced in the first draft script of " Body Parts ", Quark being referred to (by both his brother Rom and Quark himself) as the first Ferengi to have made contact with the group. However, the organization isn't mentioned in the final version of that installment.

As noted by Robert Hewitt Wolfe, big revelations about the Dominion served as the conclusions to the second, third, and fourth seasons; DS9 established the existence of the Jem'Hadar at the end of the second season and developed the prevalence of the Founders at the end of third season as well as the conclusion of fourth season. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 353))

As a sign of the times, Robert Wolfe stated about the Dominion, at the end of DS9 Season 4, " The Dominion threat is being dealt with. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages , p. 102) However, the DS9 writing staff wanted to establish the Dominion as antagonistic more in DS9 Season 5 than the aliens had been in the fourth season. In fact, during the fifth season, the creative staff tried to return focus on making the Dominion the main enemies of the series. About halfway through DS9 Season 5, the writing staff had a meeting with Paramount in which the writers told the studio, " We want to get back to the Dominion. " Ira Behr later said, " It was slow going getting back [to them]. " ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (pp. 359 & 256))

An opportunity to refocus on the Dominion presented itself to the DS9 writers in the form of fifth season two-parter " In Purgatory's Shadow " and " By Inferno's Light ". Ira Behr recalled, " After doing " Apocalypse Rising " to open the season, we knew we had […] to get the Dominion back on the playing field. " ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 422)) Behr also said about how the Dominion are portrayed in the two-parter, " We brought the Dominion back into focus as the leading villains in the galaxy for us, which I thought was important to do after the sidetrack of the Klingons. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, Nos. 6/7, p. 47)

Weyoun actor Jeffrey Combs suspected that, when the Dominion formed an alliance with the Cardassian government in season five, they were "using" Cardassian leader Gul Dukat . " We're perhaps the true power behind the throne, " Combs remarked, from the perspective of the Dominion, at the end of the season. " That all remains to be seen, because I don't know what the writers have in mind. " Combs reckoned, though, that the Dominion didn't "trust anybody" but that "they will certainly use them for their own purposes." The actor went on to say, " I think we feel that we can at least get what we want, and then perhaps do away with [the Cardassians] at a later time. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, Nos. 6/7, p. 61) However, at the start of DS9 Season 6 , Ron Moore couldn't foresee a time when the Dominion wouldn't be allied with the Cardassians, though he also suspected that the Dominion's relationship with their Cardassian allies might be strained due to the Cardassians still having a long-held goal of reconquering Bajor . ( AOL chat , 1997 )

The Dominion played a role in the story for DS9 Season 6 finale " Tears of the Prophets " at least as far back as when Ira Behr gathered the writing staff and announced, for the first time, details of the plot to them. " We basically knew we wanted to […] have the Dominion attack the Prophets in some way, shape, or form, " recalled René Echevarria. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 586))

Concluding their exploration of the Dominion was an important aim to the DS9 writers, in the interim between season six and the show's seventh and final season . " We want to wrap up many of the implicit promises that we made to the audience about […] the Dominion, " René Echevarria said. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 67)

Many viewers began to wonder if, at the end of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Dominion forces would overrun space station Deep Space 9. This theory was motivated by the show's seventh season increasingly referencing the Battle of the Alamo , in which over 180 Texans lost their lives while defending the Alamo from Mexican invaders. However, a final Dominion invasion was not to be. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 594))

In an early version of the story for seventh season installment " Treachery, Faith and the Great River ", a new Dominion race of warriors called the Modain was introduced. The Modain were, according to an initial explanation Weyoun gave Benjamin Sisko, being bred by the Founders to replace the Jem'Hadar but, after a Modain hatchery was destroyed by Sisko and Weyoun, it was ultimately discovered by Sisko that the Modain had actually been intended to replace the Vorta. ( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion  (p. 617)) Ira Behr recalled, " The Dominion had to become a factor again in the series. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 32, Nos. 4/5, p. 42)

External links [ ]

• Dominion at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Dominion (Star Trek) at Wikipedia
• 1 Abdullah bin al-Hussein

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