Rom's Fortune

[Mansa40]

*Spoilers



I have been watching the various Ferengi oriented DS9 episodes and I have noticed an interesting issue regarding Rom. Whenever Rom's wealth or net worth is mentioned the amount of Latinum he has vassilates widely. In Body Parts Quark states that the bid of 17+ bars that has been placed on his remains just happens to be the total value of Roms holdings. Meanwhile, when Rom marries Lita the total amount of Latinum strips on the bed seems to be no more than a few bars. Yet when Rom buys the bar he pays Quark 5,000 bars for it. So where did Rom get all that latinum, seems too high for a loan considering his previous worth was less than 20 bars. Does this bug anyone else?

 

[Rush Limborg]

Here's a possible explanation.

From "Prophet Motive":

ROM: Don't worry. I've made enough profit for the both of us.

QUARK: What are you talking about?

ROM: I'm talking about The Ferengi Benevolent Association. Did you know it was funded with Zek's personal fortune?

I...was the senior administrator, Brother....

QUARK: ...You embezzeled money...from the Grand Nagus???

ROM: Suprise....

QUARK: ...Father would be proud!



And Rom kept his share in a super-secret place so that Zek would never find out. Quark knew about it, but Rom, never quite having the lobes for business, never brought it up until, at long last, he realized that his dream of getting the bar might well be fulfilled....

 

[rahullak]

And then of course being a part of the Ferengi Benevolent Association, Rom, after he became Nagus, restored ownership of the bar back to Quark free-of-charge.

 

[Alrik]

Yep. Rom may not have had the lobes for business, but embezzelment was right up his alley....even if it was from Zek, which makes it that much more funny.

 

[rahullak]

Rom was a cloak-and-dagger Ferengi. Made him more dangerous than Quark, IMO.

 

[happydave]

For all we know Quarks does seem to have a decent enough turnover, so 5,000 bars could have been a bank loan (or whatever the Ferengi equivalent is). Quark does constantly seem to be throwing around 10-100 bars as if it's small change, while Nog has saved his entire life for 5 bars (In The Cards).

 

[Bluesteel]

Rom was a zigzag Ferengi. One minute he would try to assassinate his brother. The next he doesn't care about profit.

 

[Danoz]

For all we know Quarks does seem to have a decent enough turnover, so 5,000 bars could have been a bank loan (or whatever the Ferengi equivalent is). Quark does constantly seem to be throwing around 10-100 bars as if it's small change, while Nog has saved his entire life for 5 bars (In The Cards).

Haha, it's funny because that's where my mind went as well. If you're purchasing a business or home for "$250,000" you would seldom be paying that entire cost up front (unless you were some sort of millionaire). You would take out a bank loan, but you would still say "I bought it for 250K."

 

[rahullak]

Rom was a zigzag Ferengi. One minute he would try to assassinate his brother. The next he doesn't care about profit.

That's part of his cloak-and-dagger strategy I think. Keep everyone guessing as to your true motives and all that. (there's no Ferengi emoticon here on trekbbs...hmmm)

 

[nx1701g]

Rom was a cloak-and-dagger Ferengi. Made him more dangerous than Quark, IMO.

Odo agreed with you. In Civil Defense, Odo told Quark he believed that Rom was more dangerous than him.

 

[Mansa40]

Yeah the Ferengi Benev would seem to have a lot of money on hand. Roms character really changed though early on he was devious and dumb like a TNG Ferengi but by Season 5 he was a much deeper character, a new kind of Ferengi indeed.

 

[Timo]

One might say that in "The Nagus", he felt the social pressure to be devious and dumb like his compatriots, even though he really was only a little bit devious but quite clever by nature...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[rahullak]

Ferengi peer pressure!

 

[Farrens]

Rom was a zigzag Ferengi. One minute he would try to assassinate his brother. The next he doesn't care about profit.

I saw a lot of this in the early seasons. (The assassination attempt being in season 1 I believe) But they seemed to have sorted out exactly who Rom was as the series developed. After all he began as little more than background decoration at Quark's and ended up as a semi-main. Some growth had to happen along the way.