The appeal of Sisko

[indolover]

Was the appeal of Sisko him being a dude and a bad-ass?

Sisko was bold, forthright and took no nonsense, and this to me was his strength. For the Uniform and Blaze of Glory stand out here.

Just as Picard's strength as a character was his reason and wisdom, Sisko's was his bold persona.

 

[DukatSwagger]

my favourite element of Sisko's character has always been his capacity for obsession - which we first get a look at (comically) in "Dramatis Personae," when he's building that clock - and then is built on in episodes like "Explorers," and the potential drawbacks of which are shown in episodes like "For the Uniform."

 

[Cornholio]

^you've both mentioned 'For the Uniform' so I gotta say, I never really cared for the Eddington arc. the whole thing just annoyed me.

I was never really much of a Sisko fan, partly because of the obsessions you mentioned.

DS9 was a cool show though.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

It's the fact that not only can he be personable with his crew--he has the guts to take action when required, not just sit back and talk. When the situation calls for TOUGH action, he doesn't wuss out or back down (unlike Picard). And even then, you get the sense that with few exceptions, he's thought it through (unlike Janeway or Archer, and sometimes Kirk). Frankly, I would trust him as my commanding officer where I would trust NO other Trek captain.

 

[EnsignRicky]

He could crush any opposition with the power of his tears.

 

[Navaros]

I agree that the best thing about the Sisko is that (unlike the other Captains except for Kirk) he doesn't take any crap from anybody.

 

[DarKush]

I liked the toughness, but I also liked his role as a father. That was something you hadn't really seen on Trek before. He was a very well rounded character.

Regarding the Eddington arc, I didn't love it, mainly because I think the writers failed to integrate Eddington into the show more beforehand and make him a bigger part of the crew, so his betrayal didn't mean all that much because he was something of a bit player. But other than that, I liked Sisko's dogged pursuit of the man.

 

[Sykonee]

Was the appeal of Sisko him being a dude and a bad-ass?

Sisko was bold, forthright and took no nonsense, and this to me was his strength. For the Uniform and Blaze of Glory stand out here.

Just as Picard's strength as a character was his reason and wisdom, Sisko's was his bold persona.

You've been watching sfdebris, haven't you.

 

[Tosk]

The thing I liked most about Ben was that his two main character traits were well balanced.

He's the most loving family man; his relationship with Jake is arguably the best/most believable family dynamic in Trek's history.

On the flip side, as others have said, when shit goes down, he'll do what needs to be done no matter what. Even though it sometimes pushed over into obsession, he wasn't one to hold back unnecessarily. I mean, he punched Q in the face. What more proof do you need that he don't take crap from nobody?!

 

[TerokNor]

I think the appeal is, that he can lead with a firm hand AND with a gentle hand, always depending on what the situation calls for.

TerokNor

 

[greenguy]

I was never really much of a Sisko fan, partly because of the obsessions you mentioned.

DS9 was a cool show though.

I agree. I love DS9 and I like Sisko, but I don't love him. I find him to be fairly vanilla (how ironic) as a captain. But, this was more the nature of DS9 than the writing or Brooks's performance. His relationship with the Prophets sort of superseded his role as a Starfleet officer, and DS9 was never very captain-centered even though many plot devices rested on Sisko.

 

[Kirkman1987]

As is often said, Sisko was a builder. Because of the premise of the show, Sisko became very attached to Bajor and that area of space, and his dedication was appealing.

I think his role as a family man was also very interesting, especially since we haven't seen that on any other trek.

Sisko seemed more like a regular guy, upset at first about his job, and just trying to raise his son and do his job.

 

[Bones2]

He started out as boring, progressed to become unlikeable and amoral, and was badly acted throughout. So they Mary Sued him and made him a god.

Worst character in the show.

 

[Tosk]

^How is that "his appeal"?

 

[flemm]

^How is that "his appeal"?

Speak for yourself, I'm quite partial to boring, badly-acted characters that mutate into Mary-Sues at the last minute. And there just aren't enough of them on television

 

[Tosk]

Good point. Retracted.

 

[Navaros]

I'm quite partial to boring, badly-acted characters that mutate into Mary-Sues at the last minute.

That describes Jadzia exactly IMO.

 

[flemm]

I'm quite partial to boring, badly-acted characters that mutate into Mary-Sues at the last minute.

That describes Jadzia exactly IMO.

My earlier facetious post aside, I would be interested to know more about how either Jadzia or Sisko can be understood as Mary and Gary Sue respectively, given that the definition of a Mary Sue (as I understand it) is a character lacking flaws who is primarily a means of wish-fulfillment for either the reader/viewer or the writer, the example most often cited from Trek being Wesley Crusher?

 

[Praxius]

Was the appeal of Sisko him being a dude and a bad-ass?

Sisko was bold, forthright and took no nonsense, and this to me was his strength. For the Uniform and Blaze of Glory stand out here.

Just as Picard's strength as a character was his reason and wisdom, Sisko's was his bold persona.

Sisko's character was pretty unique.

While he generally came off as a bit of a hard ass, persistent and someone who doesn't put up with BS, he's also shown on a few occasions where he'll bend the rules, give his crew some slack, be very charming, caring, compassionate, and can hold his own as a religious icon for the Bajorans.

He's shown he can be a very caring father, he's decent in relationships, shown many times where he's not perfect, makes mistakes and will admit when he does, not to mention learns from those mistakes. He also take his mistakes very seriously and to heart, where he'll usually guilt or beat himself up over those mistakes.

Sisko also has shown many times where he will do whatever it takes to get a job done, either from Starfleet or from the Prophets, usually at great risk to himself..... he was just an all around typical guy most could relate to that was thrust into a complex and unique situation.

He was also one of the best Starfleet tactical officers and knew combat well.

 

[Pemmer Harge]

Sisko was a badass, but then, so were Kirk, Picard, Janeway and Archer. What makes him stand out for me is how he combines being tough with vulnerability and how he has relationships - with Jake, Kasidy and his father - that seem more true to life than what we saw in other Trek captains. Badassery is cool up to a point, but to care about a character I need there to be more dimensions and Sisko had those, I think.