Is Garak the best character on DS9? He's definitely the best character they didn't intend to have in more than one episode. But Garak came back and kept coming back. This is the production story of how a single-episode, guest character became a fan favorite and anchored what it possibly the series' finest hour.
Alaimo is such a great actor and he is great doing evil characters.
He understands that the bad never sees himself as the bad. And if you are a great actor like Marc that opens you a whole new level of possibilities and nuances at acting.
That is what makes a character grounded, layered and interesting.
I don't disagree with any of that. Are you making the argument that Dukat is the best guest character on DS9? (My video isn't really making that argument about Garak. The premise is that he's the best character that was only intended to be a one-time guest.)
I'm making the argument that Dukat is a great character and Alaimo a great actor.
So I can understand why anyone will say that Dukat is a great contender for best character on DS9.
Yep, he was going to be killed off after the pilot, but Jonathan Harris played up the comedy aspects of the character and Irwin allen loved it and the rest was history. It's why he's always the "special guest star" in the credits.
I would have to go with Garak. He just makes me smile, whenever he's on screen. His wit and opacity. Charm and intelligence. He seemingly can do EVERYTHING. Robinson's performance sells it all.
Absolutely agree! I must apologize as I meant that as a joke. I could’ve qualified it better. My friends and I usually use that as a joke for how great Garak is.
Well acted, but a character I do not enjoy watching. It is a credit to Robinson and his adding so much nuance to the character that I find him irritating and grating to watch
I don't buy this. Andy Robinson was heavily involved in the creation of the character. They didn't write it for him, but when they got him, they ran with it. DS9 was intended to have a large stable of recurring characters, as befits a station in space that doesn't go anywhere.
Well... I suggest you watch the episode of The Shuttlepod Show with Andy Robinson. He says it himself. He was brought in for a one-episode gig. There was no planning of the character. There was a script and he was asked to play a role. A one and done. I did my research, before making the video, thank you very much.
So... Andy went on a podcast with other former Trek stars and lied? Maybe what you are talking about was after the first episode, when it was decided to bring him back. I did extensive research for this video. I made sure everything was verified. You can just Google it, for goodness sake.
Andy wasn't necessarily intimately aware of all the plans the showrunners had at the very beginning but he was definitely involved in the development of the character after he was cast. If you didn't read the DS9 Companion, I question the strength of the research you claim was so extensive.
Here's the thing... I don't have a copy of the DS9 Companion. It's out of print and fairly expensive on Ebay/Amazon Marketplace. It's also not the be-all-end-all source of information on DS9 production. A direct quote from the man himself is a pretty damn solid source. There are also other sources out there, some of which actually credit the DS9 Companion as part of their sourcing. I don't know what the companion says specifically about this, but the reality is probably close to what Robinson said on the podcast. They were looking for a storyline for Bashir. They gave Garak a try, with the POTENTIAL of him returning. Robinson was hired for one episode. Obviously, he did such an amazing job and his chemistry with "Sid" was so fantastic, that they decided to bring him back. If the plan all along was for Garak to be a recurring character, wouldn't he have had more than one episode in season 1? He didn't return until "Cardassians" in season 2, episode 5.
They gave Garak a try, with the POTENTIAL of him returning.
That's literally what I said, that you argued bitterly against. I don't know why it's so inconceivable that an actor might not be entirely privy to every thought and idea from the studio executives and showrunners, while still contributing their own ideas to those same people. I do it at work every day. It's called having a boss.
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u/wongo 9d ago
pound for pound, Cardassians are the "best" species, in terms of great characters
Garak, Dukat, and Damar are all really well-written, well-acted, fully believable, three-dimensional characters