Tora Ziyal

[Kilana2]

.... is one of my favorite DS9 character. It's a crying shame that she was killed off.

Garak and Ziyal hit it off with each other - much to Dukat's consternation, who tried in turn to curry favor with Kira - to no avail. Hilarious.

She was portrayed by three different actresses, but only Melanie Smith stuck in my head. Maybe it's because she appeared more often than Cyia Batten and Tracy Middendorf (who wasn't convincing as Ziyal IMO).

Which actress do you like best as Ziyal and why?
What was your favorite moment involving Ziyal?

 

[Bad Thoughts]

Definitely Melanie Smith. I hated the change, but she did more with the character than the other actresses.

Her best episode was definitely Call to Arms: helping Leeta, Rom and Garak with the wedding dress. I also think she was good in Favor the Bold: trying to get Dukat to change his mind about executing Rom, and then watching Kira kick Dumar's a--.

 

[DS9forever]

Definitely Smith. I liked the character especially in Sons and Daughters.

 

[Terok Nor]

I really liked the Melanie Smith version of the character. I was annoyed when she was killed off. The first version was okay but the second one was dreadful. I thought the Garak May/December romance was a bit strange at the time but looking back it was quite endearing.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

Definitely Melanie Smith, she brought a great deal of depth to the character.

I love Ziyal and am still miffed she was killed off, after all there were so many ways she could've gone. Although that being said, I wasn't overly fond of the relationship with Garak (at least not the romantic way it went). Part of me wish she and Jake had become involved, as a way for Dukat to see a whole new twisted slant to his relationship with Sisko. I'd also loved to have seen the reveal that Tora Naprem was actually an alias used by Kira Meru, making Ziyal Nerys half-sister.

 

[TheSubCommander]

Definitely Melanie Smith, she brought a great deal of depth to the character.

I love Ziyal and am still miffed she was killed off, after all there were so many ways she could've gone. Although that being said, I wasn't overly fond of the relationship with Garak (at least not the romantic way it went). Part of me wish she and Jake had become involved, as a way for Dukat to see a whole new twisted slant to his relationship with Sisko. I'd also loved to have seen the reveal that Tora Naprem was actually an alias used by Kira Meru, making Ziyal Nerys half-sister.

I didn't mind Ziyal was killed off, and really there wasn't much to the mutual attraction between her and Garak beyond flirtation and a hint if Garak pursued it, Ziyal would have been open to something. Really, it's not a stretch that two outcast Cardassians on DS9 would end up bonding in some way, add that to one being male, and another female...seems kind of a natural progression to me.

Not so sure about a Jake-Ziyal romance, though it might have been interesting if they flirted in front of Garak, and Garak's ugly, jealous side came out!

I think it really would have been a good reveal that Ziyal could have been a half sister of Kira. But the Kira Meru story line, if I remember, came after Ziyal's death. Talk about a missed opportunity.

 

[Kilana2]

I understand that actress number 2 couldn't stand the "Cardassian" prosthetics.... Not the first one to complain about it. According to Memory Alpha Ira Steven Behr wanted to swap the actresses each time Ziyal showed up. I don't know if a myriad of different Ziyals would have been a wise desicion. Three are more than enough...

 

[apollo1984]

Shows how much attention I paid when watching I never noticed that Ziyal changed actresses.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Definitely Melanie Smith, she brought a great deal of depth to the character.

I love Ziyal and am still miffed she was killed off, after all there were so many ways she could've gone. Although that being said, I wasn't overly fond of the relationship with Garak (at least not the romantic way it went). Part of me wish she and Jake had become involved, as a way for Dukat to see a whole new twisted slant to his relationship with Sisko. I'd also loved to have seen the reveal that Tora Naprem was actually an alias used by Kira Meru, making Ziyal Nerys half-sister.

I also wish TPTB had made Ziyal one of the children of Kira Meru. Ziyal and Neyrs were so close, and the reveal that they were sisters would've been great drama to the show.

 

[Pingu]

I really liked the voice of the first Ziyal. The second Ziyal I don't remember much about other than being a bit turned off by her performance, but the third actress for Ziyal really got to take the character a lot further than the other two, so it makes sense she would be a favorite.

 

[maneth]

I like the character. I never noticed that she was played by three different actresses, though, as her appearances were so infrequent.

 

[Kilana2]

I like the character. I never noticed that she was played by three different actresses, though, as her appearances were so infrequent.

Maybe it's time for a rewatch. The first Ziyal was very young, the second I can hardly remember. Only the third made an impression to me. All the discussions might be irrelevant now, because Ziyal is dead. But nevertheless........