If Michelle Forbes had taken the job

[doctorfoto]

All I know is that unlike Kira who was as straight as an arrow as they come, Ro was always portrayed as rebellious character on a downward spiral.

She physically distanced herself from her planet and was willfully rebellious toward her people's own traditions and religion.

Then she's frequently rebellious toward Starfleet protocols to a point where she makes a decision that kills people, lands herself in prison and then when she's pawned off on the Enterprise she doesn't see the error of her ways but continues to fly in the face of protocol.

Later she ends up joining the Maquis - a fringe group that is neither Starfleet nor Bajoran, has expatriates from both groups, but certainly a group of anti-establishments in their own right. Perfect for someone like Ro.

Which non-traditional DS9 cast member is most likely to accept such a rebel? Quark.

And since Ro is essentially a man without a country, why not at least befriend such a character? And really, a friendship is all that was being initially suggested.

I'm not personally trying to write some crazy Ro/Quark fanfic out of this (Pocket Books already has some nice prewritten stuff you can buy). That aspect has no interest to me, but I certainly won't say, with what we know of Ro I can't see such a friendship/relationship happening.

Would a relationship, even a sexual one, with a traditional Ferengi make Ro seem weak in any way? Absolutely not. Pel, Natima Lang, and Grilka were all strong female characters who remained as such and I don't doubt that a strong woman like Ro would be diminished by such a relationship. Besides, why would being with Quark be the be-all and end-all of taboos anyway?

Kira would not go near Quark of course, but that's the point. They're not the same person. Kira was a traditionalist. True to her people, true to her religion, straight as an arrow. Sure, she eventually ended up with Odo but it took years, after Bareil, Shakaar, and Mirror Bareil and all that time she said many times that she wasn't attracted to Odo in that way. Clearly he changed her mind of course - but again that's the point, her mind had to be changed about it.

(Also, to clarify, I was referring to Kira as the spiritual Bajoran patriot. Ro clearly was anything but.)

 

[DevilEyes]

(Also, to clarify, I was referring to Kira as the spiritual Bajoran patriot. Ro clearly was anything but.)

I knew you were referring to Kira, so there was no need to clarify. The point is, you're right that Ro was anything but a spiritual Bajoran. But she very much was a Bajoran patriot. (The difference was insignificant on TNG, anyway.)

And if Michelle Forbes had accepted to be one of the main cast members on DS9, you bet she would be very much written as the main representative of Bajor and Bajoran culture on the show, religious or not. They wouldn't be casting another main Bajoran character to fulfill that role.

You seem to misunderstand my whole point. I never argued that Ro couldn't, wouldn't or shouldn't get involved with Quark. For all I know, she could have gotten involved with him, but she could just as well become involved with someone else - it could have been pretty much any of the characters, if the chemistry was right and if the writers decided to go that route.

But I really don't see what evidence do people have to claim that it's self-evident that she would have definitely liked the Ferengis or become Quark's friend or lover. Which is exactly what people have been claiming in this thread. Since when does being a rebellious Bajoran necessarily entail liking Ferengi or being attracted to Quark?

Sure, she eventually ended up with Odo but it took years, after Bareil, Shakaar, and Mirror Bareil and all that time she said many times that she wasn't attracted to Odo in that way.

I must have missed that. I don't remember her ever having said that. As far as I remember, she simply never even considered him as a potential lover - and until he (or rather, his older self in Children of Time) told her, never even had any idea he could be have such feelings for her. And can you blame her, really? Odo himself used to say that he found solids' interest in romantic coupling baffling, and I don't think that many people on DS9 expected a Changeling to be interested in a romantic relationship with a humanoid... Even some people on this forum still find it hard to believe.

We know that Dax was more open to relationships with different - and unusual-looking - species than Kira was... But Ro? That's just pure conjecture, since there has never been any evidence on screen to suggest anything either way. (Riker doesn't count because Kira was attracted to [a] William T. Riker, too. Humans are physically very similar to Bajorans, anyway.)

 

[Arix]

Maybe the more important question is what if Famke Janssen had taken the role of Dax?

That would just be confusing, cause she was a Kriosian, not a Trill.

Well, originally the Trills had ridges and the reason they changed to spots was that they felt it made Terry look weird/not attractive enough. So if she did take the role she the Trills we know might have looked different.

Uh, I don't mean to be rude, but - I knew all that already, the Trill are my favourite Trek race, Dax is one of my favourite characters, and I'm well versed in TNG and DS9.

They didn't like the forehead ridges, so they decided to "give her spots like Famke" - which is what mattyyhugh was referring to, and what I was joking about. There's also a common (well okay, occasional) joke in some of the novels about people mistaking Kriosians for Trill.

Personally, I'm glad they did, spots are awesome.

 

[mattyhugh]

That would just be confusing, cause she was a Kriosian, not a Trill.

Well, originally the Trills had ridges and the reason they changed to spots was that they felt it made Terry look weird/not attractive enough. So if she did take the role she the Trills we know might have looked different.

Uh, I don't mean to be rude, but - I knew all that already, the Trill are my favourite Trek race, Dax is one of my favourite characters, and I'm well versed in TNG and DS9.

They didn't like the forehead ridges, so they decided to "give her spots like Famke" - which is what mattyyhugh was referring to, and what I was joking about. There's also a common (well okay, occasional) joke in some of the novels about people mistaking Kriosians for Trill.

Personally, I'm glad they did, spots are awesome.

No I was referring to them offering the role to Janssen. It happened.

 

[Tallis Rhul]

She has telepathic powers in real life. How easy would it have been for her to get her lines right? Plant someone on the set with a script, and shazam!

If they had given it to her then they should have kept her Kriosian, it would have been a bit rubbish if they'd brought her back looking very nearly the same but as part of a different race...

 

[DevilEyes]

She has telepathic powers in real life. How easy would it have been for her to get her lines right? Plant someone on the set with a script, and shazam!

If they had given it to her then they should have kept her Kriosian, it would have been a bit rubbish if they'd brought her back looking very nearly the same but as part of a different race...

Ironically, that was exactly what happened with Michelle Forbes. I remember I was very confused when I first watched "Ensign Ro"...

 

[Arix]

Well, originally the Trills had ridges and the reason they changed to spots was that they felt it made Terry look weird/not attractive enough. So if she did take the role she the Trills we know might have looked different.

Uh, I don't mean to be rude, but - I knew all that already, the Trill are my favourite Trek race, Dax is one of my favourite characters, and I'm well versed in TNG and DS9.

They didn't like the forehead ridges, so they decided to "give her spots like Famke" - which is what mattyyhugh was referring to, and what I was joking about. There's also a common (well okay, occasional) joke in some of the novels about people mistaking Kriosians for Trill.

Personally, I'm glad they did, spots are awesome.

No I was referring to them offering the role to Janssen. It happened.

Ah, well forgive me for misunderstanding. They did give Terry Farrell the 'Kriosian' spots which Famke had in the Perfect Mate, I thought that was what you were referring to.

 

[SoM]

The point is, you're right that Ro was anything but a spiritual Bajoran. But she very much was a Bajoran patriot. (The difference was insignificant on TNG, anyway.)

Sure, but it was built into the premise of DS9. If you're going to do a show which is in large part about Bajoran deities and the effect their discovery has on that planet, then not having a religious Bajoran character in the main cast would surely have hamstrung them. They already had a load of built-in doubters about the godliness of the "wormhole aliens", they needed someone who would take their divinity on Faith. Could Ro really have been that character?

 

[DevilEyes]

The point is, you're right that Ro was anything but a spiritual Bajoran. But she very much was a Bajoran patriot. (The difference was insignificant on TNG, anyway.)

Sure, but it was built into the premise of DS9. If you're going to do a show which is in large part about Bajoran deities and the effect their discovery has on that planet, then not having a religious Bajoran character in the main cast would surely have hamstrung them. They already had a load of built-in doubters about the godliness of the "wormhole aliens", they needed someone who would take their divinity on Faith. Could Ro really have been that character?

Which is one of the reasons why Kira worked much better as a character for DS9.

I wonder what the writers would have done with Ro, if Forbes had taken the job - how would they deal with her skepticism? Would she have changed her mind after the discovery that of the Wormhole? What would she think of the Prophets after learning that they were real? One might believe that the Prophets exist, but still not worship them.

To add something to the previous discussion about Bajoran patriotism, traditions, open-mindedness, etc.: Atheism doesn't entail open-mindedness to other cultures any more than religiousness does, neither is being religious a prerequisite for being a Bajoran patriot (or considering yourself one). Tahna Los was an extremist, xenophobic Bajoran nationalist who obviously did not care about Bajoran religion (he was ready to blow up the Wormhole, completely unconcerned about it being "the Celestial Temple").

 

[CommanderRaytas]

Given I dislike Ro Laren a lot I'd probably be in an alternate universe Trekbbs bitching about the writers not going for an original character whose loyalty was to Bajor and was all about the Prophets.

Me too!

I love Kira, and I never liked Ro. Kira is the living proof that you can be feisty without being a bitch.

 

[StarryEyed]

Given I dislike Ro Laren a lot I'd probably be in an alternate universe Trekbbs bitching about the writers not going for an original character whose loyalty was to Bajor and was all about the Prophets.

Me too!

I love Kira, and I never liked Ro. Kira is the living proof that you can be feisty without being a bitch.

Not that I dislike Kira but you have a different idea of what a "bitch" is than I do.

 

[CommanderRaytas]

I've heard that before.

 

[Kira Nerys]

I am glad the series turned the way it did Ro,would have been under Sisko's command and she would have to follow his order's whether she liked it or not .Kira was perfect ,the series turned out better.Minus the Intendant Kira eps I could live without .

 

[Mirror_Barclay]

The point is, you're right that Ro was anything but a spiritual Bajoran. But she very much was a Bajoran patriot. (The difference was insignificant on TNG, anyway.)

Sure, but it was built into the premise of DS9. If you're going to do a show which is in large part about Bajoran deities and the effect their discovery has on that planet, then not having a religious Bajoran character in the main cast would surely have hamstrung them. They already had a load of built-in doubters about the godliness of the "wormhole aliens", they needed someone who would take their divinity on Faith. Could Ro really have been that character?

Good point.

Although I always thought it was odd that there was only one Bajoran on the senior staff, if they were supposed to be training the Bajorans to stand on their own two feet.

Not bad, we all love Starfleet, just a little odd.

 

[Mr. Scott]

I never much cared for the Ro Laren character either. As a matter of fact, the ones with her in it I usually skip. I really dislike the whole Maquis storyline as a whole, Eddington was the only interesting one, only because the actor who plays him is very good in my opinion.

(Not a troll statement.) I have always thought that Ro and Kira were lesbian like. Dax was kind of gay too. It was almost that they had to give these characters lovers just because of that fact.

 

[I am not Spock]

It would have been interesting to have Forbes as a recurring guest star on DS9, as part of Eddington's Maquis cell, maybe? It would have been cool to see Kira and Ro interact.

I hadn't heard about her being offered Voyager. I imagine she would have been the B'Elanna Torres character.

 

[DevilEyes]

(Not a troll statement.) I have always thought that Ro and Kira were lesbian like. Dax was kind of gay too. It was almost that they had to give these characters lovers just because of that fact.

 

[Pemmer Harge]

Although I loved Ro, and Michelle Forbes is one of my all time favourite Trek guest actors, after seven years of DS9 it's hard for me to imagine the show without Kira. On the other hand, I think that if Forbes had signed up to do Voyager things could have been really interesting. This isn't to denigrate Roxann Dawson - who I like - but I really do think that show would have been substantially better with Ro on board. There's no chance she would have been overshadowed by the Doctor and Seven of Nine.

 

[neozeks]

It would have been interesting to have Forbes as a recurring guest star on DS9, as part of Eddington's Maquis cell, maybe? It would have been cool to see Kira and Ro interact.

This. DS9 with Ro, but without Kira, definitely no. But with both? Great potential. I guess I should start reading the relunch...