168: A Father’s Choice

The Orb: A Star Trek Deep Space Nine Podcast

“Cardassians” 30th-anniversary reflections

A biting boy in the replimat presents a mystery that leaves Garak’s arm in pain and puts the tailor’s suspected spy skills to the test. Teaming up with Bashir, he helps uncover the background behind this young Cardassian wearing a Bajoran earring. The boy turns out to be an orphan, left behind after the Occupation and adopted by a Bajoran family. But there is much more to the story than it first seems, and when it is discovered that the boy is actually the son of one of Gul Dukat’s opponents, Sisko’s decision to allow him to remain on Bajor or be returned to his father becomes all the more difficult.

In this episode of The Orb, hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing continue our 30th-anniversary retrospective that will take you through all of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, one episode at a time. In this installment, we discuss “Cardassians,”how the story expands the rich world created for the series, the return of Garak, and the difficult questions around culture and identity.

Chapters Intro (00:00:00) Plain Simple Garak (00:03:40) Complex Cardassians (00:10:30) Impacting the Innocent (00:17:34) All in the Family (00:22:08) Oversimplifying Issues? (00:25:32) Culture and Identity (00:27:12) Misguided Assumptions (00:35:06) A Father’s Choice (00:42:03) Final Thoughts and Ratings (00:47:48) Closing (00:52:37)

Hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing

Production C Bryan Jones (Editor and Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer)