Dukat in s4-6

[Paul Weaver]

Rewatching “Return to Grace”, making me think how much I really enjoyed the whole Dukat arc from way of the warrior through to Zyaal’s death

Was anyone else disappointed by “Waltz” resetting Dukat to “pure evil”.

Dukat made reasonable decisions time and time again for 2 years. yes he was manipulative, yes he made decisions that perhaps benefited him over others, but he made reasonable choices all along from a certain point of view - including his alliance with the dominion.

Post breakdown I felt his character lost a lot.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Dukat was always pure evil. All that happened in Waltz is he dropped the pretense he wasn't.

But yeah, without the pretense he was much less interesting.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

He was always a fascist. He simply became a fascist dictator.

 

[NCC-73515]

I never understood why Waltz is supposed to be great

 

[Court_Vince]

Dukat really should've died or at least had his character arc be finished after Waltz. There really wasn't much with him after that episode.

 

[Tosk]

I don't agree that Dukat became "pure evil". He was still the same self-serving, egotistical, megalomaniac that he'd always been.

 

[Xhiandra]

I agree with OP: Dukat was becoming a more interesting villain, with more realistic motives... but then they had to shove him into the whole prophets vs pah wraiths drivel, and he became a standard christian allegory villain: in it purely for the evulz, no motivation beyond "he's a baddie, and he wants to kill everyone! Because he's a baddie!".

DS9 would've been a much better show without the prophets, pah wraiths, kais and vedeks. When it focused on those, it turned from TV show to thinly-veiled church sermon or indoctrination class.
What about the wormhole without the prophets? Easy: naturally occuring phenomenon, no entities in it.

 

[somebuddyX]

Nah, I liked Dukat turning into this insane wannabe Sisko by the end. He got himself in with the evil prophets, he got himself his own Nor-type DS9-looking space station, with a bunch of Bajorans who worshipped him. Whether the execution was there at the end I don't remember but I like the concept.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

As Sisko grew more comfortable in his role as the Emissary, his opposite had to evolve to challenge him on that front as well, so Dukat embracing the Pah-Wraiths does make sense in order to keep him as an ever present threat to Sisko.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Nah, I liked Dukat turning into this insane wannabe Sisko by the end. He got himself in with the evil prophets, he got himself his own Nor-type DS9-looking space station, with a bunch of Bajorans who worshipped him. Whether the execution was there at the end I don't remember but I like the concept.

As Sisko grew more comfortable in his role as the Emissary, his opposite had to evolve to challenge him on that front as well, so Dukat embracing the Pah-Wraiths does make sense in order to keep him as an ever present threat to Sisko.

It makes sense that he would become more evil--both less constrained and more talented in his schemes--but did Dukat necessarily have to become the anti-Emissary? His megalomania was his defining quality. Although I can see him becoming more spiritual, putting himself into a religious system or engaging with mythology was out of character.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Dukat saw himself as the hero of his own story and he always had an odd perception of his relationship with Sisko, so he wouldn't want to be outdone by the Emissary. Though after Ziyal's murder he really is a broken and damaged man, everything he does just shows how far he fell into mental ill health and instability, whilst still justifying to himself the choices he makes are the right ones, because he's the protagonist in his own eyes.

 

[DGCatAniSiri]

Dukat saw himself as the hero of his own story and he always had an odd perception of his relationship with Sisko, so he wouldn't want to be outdone by the Emissary. Though after Ziyal's murder he really is a broken and damaged man, everything he does just shows how far he fell into mental ill health and instability, whilst still justifying to himself the choices he makes are the right ones, because he's the protagonist in his own eyes.

If anything, him setting out to become the anti-Emissary of the Prophets fits right in with that narrative. The Bajorans themselves, none of them are WORTHY of being his counterpart, but Sisko, but dear old Banjamin... That is someone he can claim as the singular “villain” to Dukat’s “hero.”