Sisko in the early seasons

[indolover]

Sisko was very warm and fuzzy in the early seasons.

But in the later seasons, he changed. He became less fuzzy and more no nonsense.

I think For the Uniform Sisko (so to speak) was a different character to say The Maquis Sisko.

Did Avery Brooks ever say that he consciously chose to play Sisko differently in the later seasons?

Warm and fuzzy Sisko was OK, but take no crap Sisko was cool. If anything, from Emissary, Sisko should have stuck with take no crap Sisko.

 

[Navaros]

I've seen this said before on this board and I disagree with the perception.

Sisko never took any crap starting with Emissary, such as when he immediately demanded that Kira get her inferior butt out of his office.

Brooks did say he wanted to shave his head and have a goatee from the start but Berman et. al wouldn't let him.

But, I don't think he played the character any differently after they finally let him.

 

[ClayHefner]

I totally love how they make him no nonsense Hawk in "The Adversary" and "The Way of the Warrior", then have Kasidy cut him down to size in "Indescretion". Good stuff.

 

[od0_ital]

Yeah, in the early seasons, Sisko's bad assery was more subtle, but as the situation aboard the station and their enemies became more aggressive, Sisko dropped the subtlety to his bad assery.

But he was always a bad ass, with or without hair.

 

[flemm]

Sisko was always a tough, strong commanding officer who didn't take any crap. He was also a committed father from the beginning, with a tender side, but this is a quality he nevers loses.

The demands of the war certainly brought out a harder edge in Sisko, but that is to be expected. In the early seasons, we see him working more often as a diplomat than as a soldier and general, especially in his dealings with the Bajorans, but again, that is more a question of the nature of the task at hand (establishing strong ties with Bajor), than a change in personality.

Avery Brooks certainly looks a lot cooler bald with the goatee, and he prefers that look, so probably he should have been allowed to go with it from the beginning, but I have to say I like how it turned out: Sisko's increasingly badass appearance seems to develop alongside the station's strategical importance, the Defiant's deployment, upgrades to the station's weapons systems, his promotion to Captain, etc.

The shortcoming of Sisko in the early seasons is that, for whatever reason, the writers can't seem to figure out what to do with his character after a strong start in Emissary, other than that he is an effective commander and a good father to Jake. In a sense, I guess you could see this as a sort of down period in Sisko's life as he continues to move past the death of his first wife, committing himself to his job and his son primarily in order to move on.

Second Sight, a mediocre 2nd season episode, is pretty important in that it's the first time we see Sisko develop a romantic attachment, and Jake says something to the effect that he is ready to have a motherly figure in his life again. This paves the way for Kasidy a bit later on.

Season 3 is where Sisko really comes into his own as a character: the writers establish the basic concept that "Sisko is builder" in every sense of the word: a builder of a family, of starships (the Defiant and the space sailor in Explorers), of alliances, of a home, of DS9 itself as far as its strategic importance is concerned.

 

[Sykonee]

Admittedly, there's far fewer "Sisko blows his stack" scenes in the first two seasons, and even then he seems to have a level of restraint. Check it:

- Dax: He gets frustrated at Dax's reluctance to defend herself, but doesn't go into histrionics about it.

- Q-Less: He decks Q, but treats the affair matter-of-factly.

- Invasive Procedures: Though he shows disgust over Vared Dax's unwillingness to return the symbiont to Jadzia, ol' Ben quite calmly takes him out in the end.

- Move Along Home: Grabs Falow by the collar. That's about it.


It wasn't until The Maquis that he really started to let his emotions override his actions.

 

[Red Ranger]

I don't quite agree he was warm and fuzzy in the early seasons. He blows his stack a number of times, like in Q-Less, when he punches Q, and in Captive Pursuit, when he chews out O'Brien for daring to take off his communicator so he didn't have to hear Sisko's orders. I also recall he threatened to have Kira's head on a platter when she went behind his back with Starfleet in an early ep (don't remember the ep title).

 

[od0_ital]

^

'Past Prologue'

 

[Kira Nerys]

I hated Avery in the earlier season he come across to me as wooden .The harder edge Sisko he played improved both in his acting and my eventual liking of the character he portrayed .

 

[Cepstrum]

Whatever about his personality--I can't say.

What's puzzled me for a very long time, however, is that I simply cannot believe it's the same man playing Sisko before/after his transformation from the slim, clean-shaven, guy with hair, to the filled-out, bald, goateed, guy. I cannot make out their faces to be the same person.

Does anyone else have this problem? Aside from the obvious hair changes, what about his features makes him look so different?

 

[flemm]

Aside from the obvious hair changes, what about his features makes him look so different?

I don't know, I just think that going bald and adding a beard makes for a pretty major cosmetic overhaul, which is doubtless why there is a transition period in season three where Sisko has the goatee but without the shaved head.

 

[Cepstrum]

Aside from the obvious hair changes, what about his features makes him look so different?

I don't know, I just think that going bald and adding a beard makes for a pretty major cosmetic overhaul, which is doubtless why there is a transition period in season three where Sisko has the goatee but without the shaved head.

can't disagree, but there seems more to it. Is it just my impression, or did he put on a lot of weight/fill out which caused his face (viz., jowls) to appear much fuller? For some reason, (maybe this), his smile took on a more menacing tone.

 

[Hober Mallow]

Is someone gonna kick me when I mention the time Rick Berman told Brooks he was playing Sisko too black?

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Has anyone ever noticed how he walks down stairs in the early years? Like his back is utterly ramrod straight and his legs jump out and up sideways, like a marionette!

He also does this "ah.. heeheeHEE" laugh that is excrutiating to listen to.

 

[otherjr]

I think Sisko did change, but that was probably because... you know, lots of his friends were being killed in the Dominion War and it seemed like they were going to lose. I think the change in Sisko corresponded pretty well with the way the show changed. The first two seasons were generally a bit more easy going, and the conflicts were usually internal as opposed to external, but as the show got darker and mroe series, so did Sisko.

One of the things I really love about ds9 is first season episodes are still great, but they're very different from the later episodes.

I was worried Sisko was going to become a total dick in Season 7, because in the second episode when they're on that desert planet, he keeps a ridiculously fast pace for his Dad to follow, and doesnt seem at all concerned that he might die, even though its been established many times that Papa Sisko is not in good shape.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I think Sisko did change, but that was probably because... you know, lots of his friends were being killed in the Dominion War and it seemed like they were going to lose. I think the change in Sisko corresponded pretty well with the way the show changed. The first two seasons were generally a bit more easy going, and the conflicts were usually internal as opposed to external, but as the show got darker and mroe series, so did Sisko.

One of the things I really love about ds9 is first season episodes are still great, but they're very different from the later episodes.

Yes I think the change was completely realistic. In the first season Sisko was on a bit of a high, he knew he was supposed to be on DS9, he had finally moved on from his traumatic past, he was probably happier and more ready to embrace his job than he had been since Jennifer died. He was enjoying himself. But then came the war.. and grim realities. And he stepped up to the plate to deal with that very well.

I was worried Sisko was going to become a total dick in Season 7, because in the second episode when they're on that desert planet, he keeps a ridiculously fast pace for his Dad to follow, and doesnt seem at all concerned that he might die, even though its been established many times that Papa Sisko is not in good shape.

I assume that was because he really wasn't himself and was pretty much oblivious to these people who had insisted on tagging along with him. He would have gone without them. It was up to the others to take care of his dad.

 

[Hober Mallow]

Boring generic Starfleet commander.

Badass.

 

[indolover]

I don't quite agree he was warm and fuzzy in the early seasons. He blows his stack a number of times, like in Q-Less, when he punches Q, and in Captive Pursuit, when he chews out O'Brien for daring to take off his communicator so he didn't have to hear Sisko's orders. I also recall he threatened to have Kira's head on a platter when she went behind his back with Starfleet in an early ep (don't remember the ep title).

True. But he certainly had a softer side to him in those seasons, and was not as tough in temperament.