The Star Trek Book of Friendship by Robb Pearlman

Author:Robb Pearlman
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781637740521
Publisher: BenBella Books
Published: 2021-12-23T00:00:00+00:00

R: Happily! I mean, who wants off-the-rack when you can get a garment whose creases are as sharp as the designer’s wit, and whose hemlines are as eye-raising as their turns of phrase?!

J: In the very first episode of DS9, we learn that Dr. Bashir has come to this distant outpost looking for adventure. And, as we’ll learn later from his holosuite adventures, he has a penchant for espionage adventures. The very first scene of the first episode after the pilot, “Past Prologue,” the good doctor is flagged down by a curious man looking for new friends, none other than Deep Space Nine’s mysterious tailor, a Cardassian outcast named Garak. Though many on the station think he’s been left behind as a spy, Dr. Bashir invites him for a mug of Tarkalean tea. Garak accepts, calls him a thoughtful young man, and lo, a friendship is born.

R: Their replimat chats are a highlight of the series for me. Google tells me there are ten canonical on-screen moments, and many forums have devoted thousands of words of fan and slash fiction to even more. I happily defer to them all on this issue. My personal favorite is DS9 season three’s “Distant Voices,” because Garak is just so eager to give Bashir a birthday present that he does it a few days early—a Cardassian enigma holonovel with a bow on it. But Bashir is, in his own words, grumpy because he’s about to turn thirty. You expect Garak to bark, “What are you complaining about?” but he doesn’t. He lets his friend be grumpy. Sometimes a friend doesn’t want suggestions, they just want someone to listen and be grumpy with.

J: And Bashir was always willing to let Garak be Garak. Bashir eats it up, and Garak is ready to spoon-feed it like it’s I’danian spice pudding. Take their most famous exchange from DS9 season two’s “The Wire,” which begins to shed some light on Garak’s time in the Obsidian Order. Bashir finally asks, “Of all the stories you told me, which ones were true and which ones weren’t?” “My dear doctor,” Garak responds, “they’re all true.” Bashir thinks he’s got him now and asks, “Even the lies?” and Garak says—

R: “Especially the lies.” It’s just perfect. Maybe it doesn’t exactly make sense, but it’s spellbinding. Let’s face it, we all have our theories about who Garak is, where he’s been, and where he’s going. But that’s on us. Garak is consistently and unapologetically himself and lets other people draw their own conclusions. He just doesn’t care what other people think of him. He’s just being himself and appreciates it when people, like Bashir, just accept him for who he is.

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