DSN: Past Prologue: Dr. B
Scott Hollifield
(Erik Oliver) wrote:
EO>Okay, well I watched the opening Garret-Bashir scene again last night from
EO>Past Prologue, and once again I was struck by the awkwardness and
EO>potentialy/actual homophobic nature of the scene. Before you flame me,
EO>let me try to explain what I am saying about the scene.
EO>Now, let me make myself clear, it wasn't the characterization of Garret
EO>I object(ed) to, in fact I rather enjoyed it. It was the response by
EO>the Dr. Which granted, may have just been played wrong by the actor,
EO>but I also felt that one of the following was happening:
EO> a they were setting up an opening to portray bashir as a bisexual
EO> or the scene really was somewhat homophobic in that Bashir
EO> was uncomfortable around Garret primarily because Garret didn't act
EO> like the other Cardassians.
Homophobic? I don't think so. I'm about as gay-friendly as a straight
person can be, and yet I don't think I would have acted very differently
than Bashir. Someone I've never met, someone whom everyone says is a spy,
comes up to me putting his hands on my shoulders and talking patronizingly
like that - yeah, I'd think that's a little creepy. Someone may have
intended Garak to be a gay character without saying so (nudge, wink), but I
don't think Bashir was meant to be reacting to anything sexual - just
the fact that this guy was acting fairly strange under the circumstances.
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
\ "Let us think the unthinkable, let us / scott.hollifield
/ do the undoable. Let us prepare to \ @the-matrix.com
\ grapple with the ineffable itself, and /
/ see if we may not eff it after all." \
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. OLX 2.1 TD . I am... distressed concerning your clothing. . Worf
Gary Sarff
>On Sun, 17 Jan 1993 17:50:22 GMT, eol...@ralph.cs.haverford.edu
>(Erik Oliver) wrote:
>EO>Okay, well I watched the opening Garret-Bashir scene again last night from
>EO>Past Prologue, and once again I was struck by the awkwardness and
>EO>potentialy/actual homophobic nature of the scene. Before you flame me,
>EO>let me try to explain what I am saying about the scene.
>EO>Now, let me make myself clear, it wasn't the characterization of Garret
>EO>I object(ed) to, in fact I rather enjoyed it. It was the response by
>EO>the Dr. Which granted, may have just been played wrong by the actor,
>...
>Homophobic? I don't think so. I'm about as gay-friendly as a straight
>person can be, and yet I don't think I would have acted very differently
>than Bashir. Someone I've never met, someone whom everyone says is a spy,
>comes up to me putting his hands on my shoulders and talking patronizingly
>like that - yeah, I'd think that's a little creepy. Someone may have
That is my impression after watching it again last night while making a
copy of it for someone else. It never occured to me that the cardassian
was being anything but patronizing. Also I felt there was a lot of the
feeling of cat and mouse, bashir being the mouse of course. The cat plays
with the mouse being on the surface a congenial visitor but enjoying the
uncomfortable situation it puts the doctor in, and enjoying the fact that
the doctor cannot do anything about it without losing face.
Very similar to the way that the cardassian who was torturing picard
acted in chain of command. Did he not also at times toy with picard,
demonstrating a false sense of interest and empathy with his poor prisoner,
before unsheathing the claws again?
'..Here have some food.'
'..Oh I would enjoy debating with you.'
etc.
I think Dr Bashir has been singled out, much the same way a predator, say
a large cat or a wolf will run a herd in order to pick out the stragglers,
the weak ones, the defenseless ones, and probably get some enjoyment out
of doing it. Watching the prey cower, wondering when the fatal blow would
fall. I think Dr. Bashir has been singled out.
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