Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: writers had drastic changes in mind for three characters

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine went on for seven seasons, and fans grew to know and love the characters as they were.

But three of those characters almost underwent major changes that would have affected their personalities and the way they interacted with other characters aboard the station. Fortunately, the writers and producers of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine were wise enough not to utilize these drastic character concepts and, instead, focused on creating the best storylines to fit the characters they already had.

The Kira we knew was almost not Bajoran

If this one has you scratching your head, it’s understandable. Writer Robert Hewitt Wolfe had the idea that the Bajoran Kira had died and that the one that was now serving aboard Deep Space Nine was, in fact, Cardassian but changed to look like she was Bajoran as in the season 3 episode, Second Skin. We would have lost so many great episodes based around Kira’s Bajoran heritage, but, on the other hand, we could have had some amazing ones with the Cardassian Kira.

The Odo we knew would have undergone a drastic personality change

The writers for the sixth season of the series originally intended for Odo to undergo a drastic personality change that would have had him withdrawing from all interaction with the other characters. He would have become reclusive because of his guilt over assisting the Dominion. The character was to have been written differently from that point forward, changing our Odo forever. Fortunately, Rene Auberjonois protested, and the writing staff listened to him. It took almost forever for viewers to really get to know Odo. Changing him after five seasons would have changed the show.

Captain Sisko almost faced a constant threat that would have changed him drastically

Remember at the end of episode 11 in season 6 where Gul Dukat tells Sikso that he wouldn’t be able to save the citizens of Bajor? Well, originally, Gul Dukat was going to tell him that he would learn what it was like to lose a child. From that point forward, Sisko would have been constantly worried about Jake and trying to protect him in every way possible. Fortunately, it was decided that it would be a pain to have to work his fear into every episode of Deep Space Nine from that point forward. And we got to keep the Sisko we knew.

Writers bounces ideas around all the time. Some turn into awesome, unforgettable episodes. These, though, would have erased the characters we knew.