Over the course of Deep Space Nine’s run, Garak made thirty-three appearances and is generally regarded as one of the most interesting and complex characters that Star Trek has ever produced. So, thankfully, they decided to keep him around. But when the writers of Deep Space Nine saw actor Andrew Robinson bringing Garak to life, they knew they had the makings of a great character on their hands.
A mysterious Cardassian tailor living aboard Deep Space Nine, Garak was supposed to show up make conversation with the station’s doctor, Julian Bashir, to help move the plot along and then bow out-never to be seen again. It all began with the introduction of Elim Garak who, by all accounts, was supposed to be a one-off character. However, in another world, this might not have been the case.
In fact, it wasn’t until 2017-51 years after Star Trek first began-that Star Trek introduced a canonical romantic relationship between two characters of the same sex. One episode, which would act as an allegory to the AIDS crisis, was notoriously scrapped after producer Rick Berman opposed the concept-not wanting to touch on such a “risqué” idea that could offend the sensibilities of viewing audiences. However, in terms of diversity and representation, there is one glaring area in which, until very recently, Star Trek has lacked: sexuality.įans have been vocal about the distinct lack of LGBTQ+ representation in Star Trek since as early as The Next Generation. To many fans, one of the major draws of Star Trek has always been its willingness to champion diversity and boldly go where other shows cowered away. Later series like Deep Space Nine and Voyager respectively introduced a black man and a woman as captains-which broke even more new ground. The Original Series saw women in a position of authority, a Japanese helmsman, a sympathetic Russian character during the red scare, and one of the first interracial kisses in television history. This is the story of Julian Bashir and Elim Garak-the gay relationship on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine that never was.įor more than 50 years, the Star Trek franchise has stood as a landmark for diversity when it comes to television.
Although fans have been shipping characters together since the Star Trek franchise began, one popular same-sex relationship almost saw canon representation onscreen.
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