At the time of its airing, Deep Space Nine was immediately recognized as a "different" kind of Star Trek. Gone was the idea that the stories would be told primarily from the decks of a starship. Introduced instead to a space station, but not just any space station.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]

A Subtly Different Trek

This station had a wormhole, with people recently freed from decades of oppression struggling to survive, aliens worshiped as prophets, and eventually a war that would encompass the entire Alpha Quadrant. All of which we tend to point out immediately whenever the differences of this series are talked about.

But what about the other difference? One that was so unique and subtle in its portrayal that we often just include it in our discussions. A difference so cleverly included in the series make-up that we often say, "It just isn't Deep Space Nine without it." A nuance so different that it separated the series from every one that preceded or would follow after it.

The answer is simple, yet profound. This was the first Star Trek series that included a main cast never accredited as a main cast.

In previous Trek series, there were always re-occurring characters that we the audience were presented with quite often. The Borg, Q, the Kazon, Shran, etc. But these were often set as the "enemy" of the show or the protagonist of that episode's storyline. Sometimes these characters stretched into other seasons and continued a storyline from before. But never were these characters built into the fashion of being "main characters." Never before were we compelled to "feel" something for a character and what happens to them, to want to know more about their story or background, and then have a sizable amount of episodes devoted to these desires over a significant span of seasons.

Deep Space Nine did this and more.

When the pilot episode "Emissary" first aired, we saw several of these characters for the first time. Elim Garak, Nog, Gul Dukat, Rom, and I'll even include Morn in this topic. As you're reading this, stop for a moment and consider the importance of those characters to your memory of show. Morn especially.

When that first episode aired, we weren't sure how important these characters would be or how pivotal their roles would later become to the story that was Deep Space Nine. The only one that truly had the appearance of being a "regular" was Gul Dukat as an obvious protagonist of the Bajoran/Cardassian conflict. The rest took longer to develop, but as they did these characters not only affected how we associated the path that the accredited main characters were going, but cemented themselves as worthy of being considered more than just "re-occurring."

Nog

Looking first at Nog, he initially served as the "only friend" to Jake Sisko. One of only a handful of children within the same age range as Jake, Nog was the total opposite in both race and culture. In this simple addition, we were shown our first real look at Ferengi adolescence and the social structures they are raised upon. Nog was often in trouble, concerned about profit (often scheming in ways that got him and Jake in trouble) and becoming a "good" Ferengi. He would continue to be a vital demonstration of the differences and similarities between Humans and Ferengi throughout the series (equally as important as Quark was). This "re-occurring character" would then find his "main cast evolution" by transforming himself from a troublesome child to a young adult striving for his own independence and development of his own life path. Taking him in the direction of becoming the first Ferengi to join Starfleet. Not too different in many ways from the story arc that was used for Wesley Crusher aboard the ST:TNG.

Elim Garak

Garak is one of my all-time favorite characters from any Star Trek series. The sly wit and deductive reasoning that he would often demonstrate when talking with Bashir were some of my favorite Trek highlights. Here is a character that was initially brought on to be depicted as a spy turned tailor. Marooned on the station by his people for crimes unknown. As his character evolved, we began to learn and understand how the Cardassian people thought and functioned in their society. We also began to see what made Garak different from other Cardassians, such as Gul Dukat, while also demonstrating how very much alike they could be. To learning that his father was the head of the Obsidian Order to his eventual movement towards a desire of peace and open-mindedness for the Cardassian people. This evolution "humanized" the Cardassians in a way that started to show how very similar they are to those of us watching and others in our own world. Something that could not have been accomplished with only Gul Dukat and the rest of the Cardassian military characters. I often compare his development to the inclusion of Worf in ST:TNG to demonstrate that Klingons were not just the blood-thirsty, war-mongering warriors depicted in TOS. Garak gave depth to the Cardassians in this same fashion.

Gul Dukat

Gul Dukat is by far the easiest to recognize as a character that could easily have been made a main character. So few episodes passed without his involvement that he was almost missed as little as main characters that weren't included in every episode. (Interesting Fact: Sisko was the only main character seen in every episode of DS9) His parts were small to start with when we saw him in each episode, but soon developed into grand involvements as the story changed. From the former leader of Terok Nor to the head of the Cardassian 2nd fleet, eventually a renegade resistance fighter for his people turned head of his government (aka puppet to the Dominion), and finally an emissary for the pah-wraiths. His character evolved as much or more than many of the main characters and was an important figure in the DS9 series.

Rom

Rom started out as a tough assistant/waiter at Quark's bar who early on was revealed to be a bumbling fool that tried to act "the good Ferengi" even though he didn't have the lobes. Depicted in the truest "rags to riches" fashion, we watched over the course of the series how he grew from this bumbling fool into a prominent character with some measure of pride and courage. From waiter he transformed into a skilled Bajoran engineer (developing the self-replicating mines that blocked the Dominion fleet from entering the wormhole) and eventually became the Grand Nagus of the Ferengi people. Rom was the ultimate underdog that we, subtly in my own case, found ourselves rooting for and hoping to see him find some measure of greatness. Which he did as the series concluded.

As the series progressed, we saw the inclusion of other characters that are no less noteworthy than those introduced in the first episode...

Martok

Initially a protagonist of the Klingon/Cardassian conflict and eventually shown to be a prisoner freed from the Dominion, Martok served as a character for us to cheer for and love. A person with great wit and enthusiasm who, eventually, embodied all of the notions of Honor and Glory that we had come to know and love from our favorite Klingon, Worf.

Deep Space Nine's MartokBut Martok was different. He struggled to get over his captivity and the effects that it had on his psyche as well as physical abilities. His re-invention back into the man that he had been before we first met him was specifically important. This series of episodes gave us a background for where he had come from. A background that was in kinship with the kind of person that Worf had always wanted to be and had succeeded in becoming. We were allowed to see a transformation of Martok back into this place of honor and in so doing we saw the Klingon people transform from being very "different" from Worf to being very similar. These marked some of the best "Worf" storylines as well as their friendship and camaraderie demonstrated how far Worf had come in his own development as a character.

I felt particularly grateful and satisfied with the progression of his story when Martok was raised to lead the Klingon people by Worf. Often times, I had found myself watching the episodes of ST:TNG where Worf faced his people and saying, "Why can't someone like Worf lead his people?" Gowron was heading in the right direction, but he wasn't Worf. Martok was the Klingon who grew up a Klingon and was Worf in all the ways we loved and some of the ways we knew Worf struggled to be in ST:TNG. He became a pivotal part of the Dominion War and the Alpha Quadrant's fight to find victory as his people's leader. For me, he provided a newfound love of the Klingon people and their traditions as his character appeared throughout the series.

Kassidy Yates

It's hard not to consider Kassidy (Yates) Sisko a main character with as often as she appeared in the later seasons of the series. Wife to Ben Sisko and mother of their unborn child, her's was a re-occurring role that became as important as any main character towards the end of the series. First introduced as a blind date set up by Jake Sisko, Kassidy brought out sides of Benjamin that had been locked away since the death of his first wife, Jennifer. We saw their shared love of baseball become a focal point to learning about Kassidy's background and personality. Her support of the Maquis, subsequent arrest by Benjamin, and later continuation of their relationship after her sentence was served demonstrated a newfound depth for a character on the series. For that matter, any series. We had never seen a Captain become involved with someone, arrest them for a crime, continue that relationship upon their freedom, and later become married to that same person. We saw married life to a Starfleet Officer in real-time through Kassidy's eyes and the impact it brought to the story.

Wait, what's that you say? I skipped over Morn?

Morn

I purposely left Morn for last. Not because he is the least important, but perhaps because he is the most important. In what series in Star Trek, in science fiction, or in any genre did a character have as much impact as Morn did on Deep Space Nine... without uttering a single word?

The ever talkative Morn and QuarkA stable of Quark's bar and the subject of numerous conversations throughout the series by the main cast, Morn was every bar's favorite patron. He had a favorite chair, always owed money to the bar, and it was considered an off-day if he wasn't around. The only character that's facial expression was limited to only a few gestures, but were used to deliver that silent approval, protest, or affirmation that the other party was looking for. His ability to be "in the thick of things" throughout the series was always well received and pivotal to the success of that week's or that season's story arc (i.e. delivery of an encoded message to Starfleet during the Dominion occupation of DS9). We even found out that he was a criminal at one time... who would have guessed that from silent, humble Morn?

Such a pivotal character in his own right, I reflect back to the celebration of glee when it was announced that Morn would be joining the station of Deep Space Nine in Star Trek Online. He was such an important part of the series and its overall identity that it just wasn't Deep Space Nine without him.

Conclusion

As I look back at the series as a whole, especially since I've started to re-watch all of the episodes season by season, I've found myself appreciating the impact that these characters had. As it just wasn't DS9 the station without Morn, it wasn't DS9 as a series without this entire cast of characters. My focal point may have been with the main cast to start, but as the series progressed I truly found myself rooting for these characters to continue to be regulars, to develop their stories, and to be a part of the story that I was witnessing. I cared about their fate and how circumstances would affect them. They became as important to me as anyone else on the show and a large reason why this is my favorite series.

Because it just isn't Deep Space Nine with this main cast of characters.