Thoughts on Vic in DS9

[Bad Thoughts]

Vic is the kind of person that you would want to talk to. That alone makes all the difference.

No, he ain't. I would not want to talk to a smarmy lounge singer from the 1930s. Ever.

And I hated that philosophy Star Trek sometimes had that "people rather talk to their bartender than their counselor"
No, Gene; not everyone. I don't have a bartender, I don't enjoy drinking or the bar scene. When I have a problem its either a friend or a counselor.

Holographic?

For the record, Vic Fontaine's milieu was the 1960s, and he didn't play Swing.

 

[Mk_Sn]

Never got the purpose or liked the character. Was he supposed to be kind of like The Doctor from Voyager? He was self-aware and such, so I assume so.

 

[BillJ]

I found the character dull. I watch Star Trek for cool spaceships not 60's casinos.

 

[Kilana2]

Maybe there are people who prefer battle scenes, slaughtering and fancy technology over plot and character-centered episode. I don't. But to each his own.

On the other hand, I'm not really a fan of Voyager's Captain Proton and quite happy that there aren't more episodes.

But Vic is different and an asset for the station. I prefer Vic over an arrogant psychobabbling counselor who tries to mentally dissect you.

 

[Ithekro]

Interesting that back in 1962, James Darren was playing the likes of Moondoggie (a surfer dude) at the high point of the Rat Pack era. But 35 years later? He's the holographic Rat Pack, man. And he did it rather well.

 

[Amaris]

Interesting that back in 1962, James Darren was playing the likes of Moondoggie (a surfer dude) at the high point of the Rat Pack era. But 35 years later? He's the holographic Rat Pack, man. And he did it rather well.

You could say he did it his way.

 

[Relayer1]

"It's Only a Paper Moon" is probably the best ST episode ever, two recurring characters get center stage and more character development than main characters from other series.

This ! Vic was one of the (many) things I loved about DS9 !

I'm more of a prog rock and thrash metal fan, but I loved the music too...

 

[Keith1701]

I liked Vic, but then again I like the crooners from the 60s. Vic, a cheap Frank Sinatra, no - a potential member of the Rat Pack, yes. Besides that, when he was on the screen, he brought an interesting dynamic and perspective to the table.

I liked Vic as well, but didn't think his role was really needed in some of the episodes.

 

[kkt]

I loved Vic and admire DS9 for taking a chance on a character that was not a typical part of sci fi. It would have been easy to get it wrong, but Darren played the character beautifully and it worked so well.

The Vic episodes functioned as a necessary relief from all Dominion war, all the time episodes.

 

[Zonker]

Vic had no business being on DS9. Not only was he really out of place but they also introduced him (along with Ezri) at the end of the series when there wasn't enough time to develop his character (let alone both of them) with the Dominion War and the Emmisary plots coming to a climax. And yet... I like him. A lot. He seemed like a very genuine person. He seemed like the sort of person that I could just sit and talk to. It's Only a Paper Moon was a fantastic episode that singlehandedly justified his character existing. And although I rarely seek out that sort of music I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even the episodes that didn't really contribute to the rest of the show (Badda Bing Badda Bang) were really entertaining.

 

[Kilana2]

Vic had no business being on DS9. Not only was he really out of place but they also introduced him (along with Ezri) at the end of the series when there wasn't enough time to develop his character (let alone both of them) with the Dominion War and the Emmisary plots coming to a climax. And yet... I like him. A lot. He seemed like a very genuine person. He seemed like the sort of person that I could just sit and talk to. It's Only a Paper Moon was a fantastic episode that singlehandedly justified his character existing. And although I rarely seek out that sort of music I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even the episodes that didn't really contribute to the rest of the show (Badda Bing Badda Bang) were really entertaining.

You've really shocked me with the first sentence of your post. But everything turned out to be alright.
I wouldn't say that Vic had no business there, but he seemed to be out of place. And he was quite a refreshing distraction from the business of war.

 

[Zonker]

I'm not saying I would get rid of him. It's just that he seemed so out of left field, he didn't seem to belong on the show at all but at the same time he managed to improve it in my opinion (which is a big feat cause DS9 is my favorite show of all time).

 

[RoJoHen]

Vic is the kind of person that you would want to talk to. That alone makes all the difference.

No, he ain't. I would not want to talk to a smarmy lounge singer from the 1930s. Ever.

And I hated that philosophy Star Trek sometimes had that "people rather talk to their bartender than their counselor"
No, Gene; not everyone. I don't have a bartender, I don't enjoy drinking or the bar scene. When I have a problem its either a friend or a counselor.

As a bartender myself, I assure you that you are in the minority.

 

[kkt]

Why wouldn't Vic belong there? The holosuites aren't just for Vulcan Love Slave.
If we had a holosuite available and we needed an escape from a war, Vic's would be just the thing.

 

[SPCTRE]

I like the character.

The in-universe concept of him though I always had trouble with, but that's not so much a fault of the character but the difficulty of Trek writers to portray AI and holodeck characters (see: holodeck AI gone awry trope) consistently.

 

[Ithekro]

This time is a bit different. Bashir requested that Vic be programed to be aware that he was a hologram and that the people coming in were from the 24th century. He was also programmed to mostly not care about that, just to act as a host for them without needing to have issues with 400 years between them. The idea was to make Vic's place a home away from the war for Starfleet personal and anyone else that happened by. Without having to keep the program limited to 1962 logic which has caused problems with other period relaxation programs in the past, as we've seen on the USS Enterprise and USS Voyager.

So Vic was intended to be able to interact with anyone that happened to come to his place without needing to worry about species, gender, or even ethnic backgrounds that would have caused massive issues in 1962. That he knew he was a hologram helped the simulation and the interactive quality of the program in unexpected ways.

 

[Orphalesion]

Holographic?

For the record, Vic Fontaine's milieu was the 1960s, and he didn't play Swing.

Not Siggy Freud. And as to what exact decade genre Vic rears his ugly, pomaded head from...I don't really care. Swing, big band, crooning, jazz, all the same to me, all make my skin crawl equally. Granted I'd still prefer that to techno or dubstep (since it's at least still music) but not by much .

Maybe there are people who prefer battle scenes, slaughtering and fancy technology over plot and character-centered episode. I don't. But to each his own.

On the other hand, I'm not really a fan of Voyager's Captain Proton and quite happy that there aren't more episodes.

But Vic is different and an asset for the station. I prefer Vic over an arrogant psychobabbling counselor who tries to mentally dissect you.

You know there are more possible reasons why people might not like a smarmy crooner and more than two groups of people.
I love character pieces and low action, I just can't stand Vic. If he had been, let's say a folk singer I'd sing a completely different tune (pun intended).

As a bartender myself, I assure you that you are in the minority.

I know. Story of my life, not that I'd tell you about it unless we were friends and far, far away from a bar.
I honestly just hate bars, I sometimes like Irish Pubs, but only if they have life music and good potato soup/shepherd's pie. But I'd never go to a bar to talk about my problems to some stranger.
Though I can't imagine you get many teetotalers telling you their troubles, do you?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I always wondered how Vic and the EMH would get along. Once Voyager got home, I hope the Doctor loaned Vic the holo-emitter for a time so Vic could see the rest of DS9!

 

[Kilana2]

I always wondered how Vic and the EMH would get along. Once Voyager got home, I hope the Doctor loaned Vic the holo-emitter for a time so Vic could see the rest of DS9!

My thoughts exactly!

 

[BillJ]

I always wondered how Vic and the EMH would get along. Once Voyager got home, I hope the Doctor loaned Vic the holo-emitter for a time so Vic could see the rest of DS9!

Why would he need a holo-emitter when he could just recreate it in the holodeck?