Re: Deep Space Nine And Vulcans
3D Master said:
Really?
You consider T'Pau interesting? She's just a big bitch, what's so interesting about that?
Language, language.
What do I find interesting about a dry, opaque, ruthless old hag? I think I just answered my own question. Remorselessly logical and amorally traditional, she's one of TOS's most intriguing guest stars as she's not quite a villain, but also she forces Kirk and Spock into a fight to the death.
But it's no big deal to her, it's just tradition and they can back out if they want, though they'd be cowards to do so, of course, nyah nyah... and not only does this activity go unpunished, she gets Kirk off the hook as well by retroactively 'requesting' the Enterprise go to Vulcan, though she'd have been just as indifferent to him dead.
We know what T'Pring and Stonn want, in the end. We know what Spock learns he wants. But T'Pau seemed to be screwing with us, sticking to her guidebook and totally unpeturbed by any possible conclusion. Every time I watch "Amok Time" I spend most of the latter half analysing T'Pau.
Granted, the baseball Vulcan was probably no more, but at least you get some personal stuff on the guy. T'Pau, apart from insulting humans every other sentence for no real reason, which really doesn't give us much on her personally, is just doing her duty.
Solok has no subtelty at all. He's a straightforward jerk, a comic villain who is meant to be annoying so we can feel satisfied at his partial comeuppance at the end of the piece. He doesn't have the compelling ambiguity T'Pau posesses, and background detail saying 'oh, he's been a jerk since forever' is no more revealing than the TOS characters comments on T'Pau's political importance.
No, the Vulcan Maquis woman that Quark convinces through some logic of his own, I find far more interesting than T'Pau.
Sakonna? Not terribly interesting, really. The only thing I liked about her is the result she has on Quark's wheels spinning in his head: Since she's a Vulcan, he tries to pretend he's an honest, honourable businessman, but he gets caught with a decidely shady client; and all the time he's trying to hit on her.
The character herself, like all of the Maquis in "The Maquis", isn't particularly interesting by herself and kind of a plot contrivance.
