Puddle to Man

As much as I liked Odo on Deep Space Nine, I was never much interested in episodes where he sought to uncover the mystery of his own origins. He's set up as a hard-nosed detective character and that's how I mostly liked to see him, working out the clues, trying to crack some case. Usually when he's doing that, he's a supporting character. Maybe actor Rene Auberjonois really wanted opportunities to emote, though, because he always goes to pieces in these episodes about this origins.

But I did enjoy "The Alternate" recenlty, an episode from January 1994. It guest stars James Sloyan, a very familiar face to Star Trek fans. He was on two episodes of The Next Generation and one episode of Voyager, each time playing a different character. He also had frequent guest roles on other shows starting in 1970. His last television credit on Wikipedia is that Voyager episode in 1995.

He plays Dr. Mora Pol, the scientist who discovered Odo when Odo was just a mysterious pile of goo. It was Mora who studied and nurtured Odo in his formative years and Sisko and others around him automatically refer to Mora as Odo's father. Odo himself resists this idea, just like a child with a difficult relationship would.

It's an interesting contextualising of a parent and child relationship. I say "formative" and it's really in more ways than one as it's plain that Odo has modelled his hair style, appearance, and gruff voice on Mora's. Since Odo is a shapeshifter whose natural state is a pile of goo, he can't help but wear his self-image on his sleeve, as it were. When he loses control in his anger at Mora, he becomes a shapeless mass, losing the identity he formed over the years. I could envision telling a story about a shapeshifter who totally changes their default shape at least once a decade as they encounter new "formative" experiences.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is available on Netflix. You know, I'm feeling confirmed in my old opinion that season two is the best season of Deep Space Nine. But I'll have to wait 'til I've rewatched the others.