The purpose of the original DS9 uniforms

[Ray Hardgrit]

The first error in looking for an in-universe explanation is thinking that there must be one.

A big part of what attracted me to Star Trek to begin with is that it always feels like there's an in-universe explanation for things. In the good series anyway. It's why I get so immersed in the stories and the world.

 

[inappropriate.ensign]

If they're anything like the real-life US Navy, the uniform changes may have more to do with the egos of an admiral at headquarters than with what the crew of any ship or station find useful ot necessary.

It's been fifteen years and I'm still bitter about having to pay out of pocket for four sets of those new-at-the-time blue digital cammo uniforms, even though I only needed one.

 

[Qonundrum]

I had always assumed that they were intended to be "Starbase" uniforms as opposed to "Starship" uniforms. Note how everyone changes into the base uniforms after arriving for duty at the station. Of course, Voyager came along and tossed this idea right out the window. Then Generations really F-ed it up. Thank goodness the black and grey all-purpose uniforms came along (my 2nd faves after TMP)

In its defense, "Generations" was to have a completely new uniform design to blast off the movie series with. But for reasons unknown to everyone except for a few YouTube channel overviews** and a handful of dustbunnies, the new costume idea fell through, so they scrambled to get everyone changing into the main cast DS9 outfits* and form-fitting they were not... the movie having everyone doing it at different scenes was otherwise interesting, apart from obvious questions of "we're in the middle of a situation, why am I changing clothes into this saggy non-fitting mess right now?! Oh well."

* Merely implied by the outcome, we sadly don't see the actual scenes of them changing clothes. But no worries, the remaining movies will feature new original standard and bland outfits that look like rejected SUV chair upholstery and make me miss the earthtone-laced hippie doobie-doobie-do outfits. Then come the haute waiter ones in "Insurrection" that would have also worked if the TNG crew met Captain Stebing. ​

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** Such as the following and, yup, I'd reversed the footnotes' ordering because consistency is Pavlov's bread and peanut butter and jellyfish sandwich:​

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(yeah, they're both not quite as stellar as hoped... still better than having the actors wear those sleeping bags during the filming, though it also has to be said that Data's lapels make the 70s shirt lapels scream out in lapel envy by comparison...)​

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[Tosk]

In its defense, "Generations" was to have a completely new uniform design to blast off the movie series with. But for reasons unknown to everyone except for a few YouTube channel overviews** and a handful of dustbunnies, the new costume idea fell through, so they scrambled to get everyone changing into the main cast DS9 outfits*

They looked like shit, so they dropped them at the last minute.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Pics, please?