Invasive Procedures thoughts on Dax

[Eman1986]

Hello Trekbbs,

So, I just got done rewatching Invasive Procedures from season 2, and other than being really impressed by Glover as the guest star, I was left with a few questions.

So, when Verad became Verad Dax..Is it just me or did the Dax symbiont genuinely seem happy at the situation? I mean, Verad while a bit of a selfish A hole, was not an even guy. He genuinely seemed to want to go to the Gamma quadrant to use the symbionts talents to help people and make new discoveries. Versus this symbiont of multiple talented lives being 'wasted' on a backwater space station manning a science console, doing pretty much nothing (till the war starts)

So, how did the rest of you interpret Glovers scenes as Dax? What did you think? Was I the only one rooting for him a bit?

 

[Bad Thoughts]

It hadn't been established yet, but I assume that the episode was supposed to show that the symbiots were naturally impulsive and somewhat amoral (or at least not given to being loyal). The host was probably chosen to frame the activities of the trill and game the instincts of the symbiot. I could easily see Verad Dax meeting an early death after making rash decisions.

 

[matthunter]

It may not just be the symbiont, but the previous host personalities. Jadzia once said she occasionally felt overwhelmed by the desires of past hosts (as did Ezri) and we saw the trouble "Curzon" caused when Jadzia underwent her zhian'tara ritual. One or more of the hosts might have been caught up in the excitement of new prospects and not really focused on Jadzia.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Obviously, the characterization of Jadzia Dax changed over the course of the series, but with a little squinting, there is a consistent story about personal development being told. To keep everything in check, Jadzia portrays an extreme stoicism, to the point of being willing to sacrifice herself along with the symbiot. In the second season, the symbiot starts to assert itself more, looking for new experiences or revisiting its past, overwhelming the host. In the third season, the deficiencies of the symbiot are revealed: they can be a problematic aspect of the joined Trill if the host does not assert itself. Season 4, especially Reunion, is the symbiots last attempt to reconnect with past lives. Season 5 shows a more balanced joined Trill, where the symbiot informs the personality of the Trill rather than directly informing the decisions. As terrible as Let He Who Is Without Sin was, it shows Jadzia Dax acknowledging the past without being constrained by it. And in season 6, she commits to a relationship different from the one's she had in the past ... at least the one's we know about. Again, this requires some squinting.