Ro Laren

[Worf'sParmach]

I just watched the TNG episode "Ensign Ro" last night and it really got me thinking. Does anyone know if there were ever plans to put Ro on DS9? TNG was not known for giving that much development to secondary characters, it really makes me think that they were setting her up as a link from TNG to DS9. Maybe it went the way of Nick Locarno/Tom Paris?

Any good insider information out there about this?

 

[Sindatur]

I just watched the TNG episode "Ensign Ro" last night and it really got me thinking. Does anyone know if there were ever plans to put Ro on DS9? TNG was not known for giving that much development to secondary characters, it really makes me think that they were setting her up as a link from TNG to DS9. Maybe it went the way of Nick Locarno/Tom Paris?

Any good insider information out there about this?

Yes, Ro was meant to play Kira's part in Deep Space Nine, and when it didn't work out (I believe Michelle Forbes wasn't available or wasn't interested in a Series), they changed the name and hired Nana Visitor

 

[spot_loves_data]

^Yup, that's what I've read, too.

The Kira character is a slightly changed version of Ro.

 

[toughlittleship]

Does anyone know if there is any truth to the rumour that Voyager tried to get Michelle Forbes to play Ro in place of Chakotay?

 

[Worf'sParmach]

Does anyone know if there is any truth to the rumour that Voyager tried to get Michelle Forbes to play Ro in place of Chakotay?

That would have been good!

 

[IntrepidMan]

Ro was never in the Bajoran resistance, was she? IIRC she joined Starfleet but got kicked out after her actions led to the death of fellow crew members.

If that's the case, then I think DS9 was better off with a new character, one (like Kira) with a background in the resistance and a previous relationship with some of the other regulars (Odo, Dukat) on the station, because that made for some interesting storytelling.

Still, it would have been great to see Ro as a guest star, maybe giving us some information about her whereabouts after joining the Maquis. Presumably she was killed or captured when the Dominion wiped out that organization. Do any DS9 novels talk about this?

 

[Worf'sParmach]

Ro was never in the Bajoran resistance, was she? IIRC she joined Starfleet but got kicked out after her actions led to the death of fellow crew members.

If that's the case, then I think DS9 was better off with a new character, one (like Kira) with a background in the resistance and a previous relationship with some of the other regulars (Odo, Dukat) on the station, because that made for some interesting storytelling.

That's true. She felt ashamed of Bajorans for being so weak compared to the Cardassians and ran off to Starfleet so she didn't had to feel that way anymore. So her story arc could have surrounded coming to terms with the heritahe she tried to run away from. I'm guessing she would have also been a prophet-skeptic as opposed to Kira's staunch belief.

 

[Knight Templar]

Michelle Forbes never liked to be a regular in television series work from what I've read.

IIRC, a few years later she chose to end her regular role in "Homicide: Life on the Street" as well.

I've heard that Tony Todd (Worf's brother, grown up Jake Sisko) also was not interested in a regular series role.

 

[You_Will_Fail]

I would have loved to see Ro on Voyager, but I think DS9 was better off with Kira.

 

[IntrepidMan]

Does anyone know if there is any truth to the rumour that Voyager tried to get Michelle Forbes to play Ro in place of Chakotay?

Interesting! I had never heard of this before. However, I would think if they wanted Ro on the show, they would have had her replace B'Lanna, not Chakotay, because B'Lanna and Ro have pretty similar personalities (bad attitude, rebelling against authority, etc.).

 

[shivkala]

If you're interested in Ro and DS9, I recommend the DS9 books, starting with the Avatar duology.

Spoiler: Trek Lit Spoilers

Ro takes over Odo's job as head of station security, develops an interesting relationship with Quark, and re-signs with Starfleet when Bajor is welcomed into the Federation. In the Typhon Pact storyline she is now commanding Deep Space 9

 

[DS9Continuing]

Sorry, I'd always thought it was common knowledge that Kira was originally intended to be Ro. I guess not everyone's as obsessive as some of us! Most of the concept of DS9 was built out of the Bajoran-Cardassian situation as described in the TNG episode "Ensign Ro" so it was a natural fit to spin off the popular character from that episode into her own show.

But I agree that Kira turned out to be better. Aside from Nana Visitor being an excellent actress who we wouldn't have seen otherwise, Kira's character could more easily stand for the Bajoran side of the equation against the Starfleet commander, which Ro - as an actual member of Starfleet, however troubled - couldn't have done.

As for the Ro-on-Voyager rumour, I have heard it but I don't place as much stock in it as the confirmed Ro-on-DS9 information. She does have certain character traits in common with Chakotay (or at least with the character Chakotay was supposed to be if not what he actually became), but IntrepidMan is also correct that she would have been very similar to Torres. I don't think she could have replaced Torres because Ro never had anything to do with engineering IIRC - she was always tactical. And if she had been there as first officer, it would have led to Voyager being a very female-dominated series, as four of the most prominent characters - Captain, XO, engineer and "alien-perspective character" - would have been women. Not saying there's anything wrong with that, it would have made for an interesting dynamic, but it certainly hadn't been seen before on Star Trek.

FYI, in TNG "Preemptive Strike," when Ro refers to a trainer at her advanced tactical course who quit and defected to the Maquis, the intention was that she was referring to Chakotay.

.

 

[Trek Survivor]

Does anyone know if there is any truth to the rumour that Voyager tried to get Michelle Forbes to play Ro in place of Chakotay?

There is no truth in this whatsoever. Michelle Forbes had made it quite clear to Rick Berman and Michael Piller that she would not ever commit to a regular role. They knew this going into Voyager, and it was never on the cards.

 

[vincent96]

Does anyone know if there is any truth to the rumour that Voyager tried to get Michelle Forbes to play Ro in place of Chakotay?

There is no truth in this whatsoever. Michelle Forbes had made it quite clear to Rick Berman and Michael Piller that she would not ever commit to a regular role. They knew this going into Voyager, and it was never on the cards.

thank you!!!

 

[The Dominion]

I liked what we got with Kira, but I still wish I could see what Ro would have been like on DS9. It would have been awesome to have her make an appearance, was that ever considered?

 

[Worf'sParmach]

Sorry, I'd always thought it was common knowledge that Kira was originally intended to be Ro. I guess not everyone's as obsessive as some of us!

I actually used to be quite the obssessive . I've just been out of the Star Trek loop since DS9 ended in 1999 and I've forgotten some things. I'm rediscovering everything on Netflix, which is fun because there are lots of episodes that I haven't seen in 15 or so years, so it's like watching again for the first time. Like, I watched "In the Pale Moonlight" and I'd forgotten about Garak blowing up the Senator's ship.

 

[IntrepidMan]

I don't think she could have replaced Torres because Ro never had anything to do with engineering IIRC - she was always tactical. And if she had been there as first officer, it would have led to Voyager being a very female-dominated series, as four of the most prominent characters - Captain, XO, engineer and "alien-perspective character" - would have been women. Not saying there's anything wrong with that, it would have made for an interesting dynamic, but it certainly hadn't been seen before on Star Trek.

Ah yes, you're quite right. They would not have made Ro the chief engineer, given her background. First officer would make more sense.

Seeing as this is in the DS9 forum I won't dwell on this too much, but Ro as Janeway's XO...can you imagine? As you say it would have made for a very interesting dynamic and I think would have added much more tension to the show. I do not dislike Chakotay, but I think having Ro in his place would have made for a better show because the Chakotay character was unfortunately on auto-pilot for much of the time.

FYI, for anyone looking for background information, behind-the-scenes trivia, etc. about Ro or any other character, http://en.memory-alpha.org is an excellent source.

 

[Worf'sParmach]

Seeing as this is in the DS9 forum I won't dwell on this too much, but Ro as Janeway's XO...can you imagine? As you say it would have made for a very interesting dynamic and I think would have added much more tension to the show. I do not dislike Chakotay, but I think having Ro in his place would have made for a better show because the Chakotay character was unfortunately on auto-pilot for much of the time.

I agree with this, definitely would have been more interesting than Chakotay. Then again, I think he was originally conceived to be the male version of Ro. Ex-Starfleet, left to join the Maquis because his home was threatened...

I think had Ro beean the XO, they would have made the Captain male. I just can't see them having two female leads.

 

[IntrepidMan]

Actually now that I think about it, I'm not sure Ro would have worked on VOY, because frankly I don't think she would have stayed on the ship. She seems to have a history of not staying in one place for too long. I don't think she would have betrayed Voyager like Seska, but I think that sooner or later--maybe after word of the Maquis' destruction reached her and there didn't seem to be anything to go home to--she would have set out on her own.

Then again, Janeway might have inspired the same kind of loyalty in her that she did in B'Lanna. She might have made a home for herself on Voyager. But I don't know--Picard tried to reform her once and didn't succeed. Maybe Ro and Starfleet just don't mix.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I agree with this, definitely would have been more interesting than Chakotay. Then again, I think he was originally conceived to be the male version of Ro. Ex-Starfleet, left to join the Maquis because his home was threatened...

I think had Ro beean the XO, they would have made the Captain male. I just can't see them having two female leads.

Which is a shame because it would have been great. They have no problem with two male leads.

Ro was always one of my favorite characters, if we had gotten her instead of Chakotay that would have been incredible. I would have preferred her to Kira too, though the Chak replacement idea is even better