The Delta Flyers - Rules of Acquisition

Episode Date: June 11, 2024

The Delta Flyers is hosted by Garrett Wang, Robert Duncan McNeill, Terry Farrell & Armin Shimerman. In each podcast release, they will recap and discuss an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. This week’s episode, Rules of Acquisition, is hosted by Garrett Wang, Robert Duncan McNeill, Terry Farrell, & Armin ShimermanRules of Acquisition: A Ferengi woman disguised as a man violates several Ferengi laws when she offers Quark business advice about a big deal he is trying to close for the Nagus.We want to thank everyone who makes this podcast possible, starting with our Production Managers Megan Elise & Rebecca McNeill.Additionally, we could not make this podcast available without our Executive Producers:Stephanie Baker, Jason M Okun, Marie Burgoyne, Kris Hansen, Chris Knapp, Janet K Harlow, Heidi Mclellan, Rich Gross, Mary Jac Greer, Mike Gu, Tara Polen, Tom Paynter, AJC, Nicholaus Russell, Lisa Robinson, Alex Mednis, Holly Schmitt, James H. Morrow, Nicole Anne Toma, Roxane Ray, Andrew Duncan, David Buck, Ian Ramsey, Feroza Mehta, Jonathan Brooks, Rob Traverse, Matt Norris, Stephanie Lee, Izzy Jaffer, Jan Hanford, Sam Mikelic, & Thomas IrvinOur Co-Executive Producers:Liz Scott, Sab Ewell, Sarah A Gubbins, Luz R., Dannielle Kaminski, Utopia Science Fiction Magazine, Courtney Lucas, Elaine Ferguson, Captain Jeremiah Brown, E & John, Deike Hoffmann, Anna Post, Shannyn Bourke, Jenna Appleton, Lee Lisle, Sarah Thompson, Holly Smith, Amy Tudor, Mark G Hamilton, KMB, Dominic Burgess, Mary Burch, Sandra Stengel, Normandy Madden, Joseph Michael Kuhlman, Darryl Cheng, Elizabeth Stanton, Kayla Knilans, Tim Beach, Victor Ling, Shambhavi Kadam, Tae Phoenix, Donna Runyon, Nicholas Albano, Daniel O’Brien, Danie Crofoot, Steven Lugo, Gemma Laidler, Rob Traverse, Penny Liu, David Smith, Stacy Davis, Timothy McMichens, & Kevin HarlowAnd our Producers:Philipp Havrilla, James Amey, Patrick Carlin, Ann Harding,Trip Lives, Samantha Weddle, Paul Johnston, Carole Patterson, Warren Stine, Carol Murphy, Jocelyn Pina, Mike Fillmon, Chad Awkerman, Mike Schaible, AJ Provance, Claire Deans, Maxine Soloway, Barbara Beck, Brianna Kloss, Dat Cao, Stephen Riegner, Debra Defelice, Vikki Williams, Cindy Ring, Alicia Kulp, Kelly Brown, Jason Wang, Gabriel Dominic Girgis, Rob Johnson, Maria Rosell, Heather Choe, Michael Bucklin, Lisa Klink, Dominique Weidle, Justin Weir, Jesse Bailey, Mike Chow, Kevin Hooker, Matt Edmonds, Miki T, John Richardson, Heather Selig, Rachel Shapiro, Clark Ochikubo, Stephanie Aves, Seth Carlson, Amy Rambacher, Jessica B, E.G. Galano, Annie Davey, Tim Neumark, Will Forg, Jeremy Gaskin, Ryan Tomei-Sigurðarson, Charlie Faulkner, Estelle Keller, Carmen Puente-Garza, James Lyszczek, Greg Kenzo Wickstrom, Lisa Gunn, Lauren Rivers, Jennifer B, Dean Chew, Linda Daireaux, Mars DeVore, Robert Allen Stiffler, Jennifer Vaughn, Walkerius Logos, PJ Pick, Preston Meyer, Rebecca Leary, Ryan Mahieu, Andrew Cook-Feltz, Karen Galleski, Constance, Loretta Reyes, Kyle Freund, Cassandra Girard, Francesca Garibaldi, Andrea Wilson, Carol Ramsey, Willow Whitcomb, Jadzia Mehari, Mo, Leslie Ford, & Travis CamposThank you for your support!“Our creations are protected by copyright, trademark, and trade secret laws. Some examples of our creations are the text we use, artwork we create, audio, and video we produce and post. You may not use, reproduce, or distribute our creations unless we give you permission. If you have any questions, you can email us at [e-mail] Sponsors:* Check out Mint Mobile: https://mintmobile.com/TDFSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-delta-flyers/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Greetings, everyone. Welcome to the Delta Flyers, Journey Through the Wormhole with Quark, Dax, and their good friends, Tom and Harry. Join us as we journey through episodes of Star Trek Deep Space Nine. Your host today are Terry Farrell, our enchanting science officer. Shimmerman, our beloved entrepreneur, and Robert Duncan McNeil, your favorite helmsman, and of course, myself, your Forever Ensign, Garrett Wong. Welcome. Hello. Hello, hello. Yay. The gang's back together. I know. I'm so glad Terry is here because this episode has a lot of women's perspective, and we need you here, Terry. We need your thoughts. Thank you. I'm also wearing my very political sweater. Wow. What does it say? I don't see it.

Oh, 1973. Okay. Well, we're here, everybody. Robbie, can you tell us what's been going on with your audio and things? Like, it's been nothing. I'm having, you know, I live on top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere. And I guess my internet's playing tricks on me today. So I hope you guys can hear me okay. What I hear from my end of you guys is like robots, like this.

Like that. Well, the good news is we can hear you plainly. So whatever your internet is doing, it's only doing it to you. Yeah, that's true. And Garrett is recording it. So what we're seeing is through Garrett's feed, right? Yeah. And it's totally smooth.

Sorry you're experiencing it though. Yeah, it does suck. It does. Those days of like hearing yourself on the phone when you call overseas. The echo. Oh, it's horrible. Yeah. Nobody wants that.

Nobody wants that. No. That's just the CIA listening. There you. Nothing that interesting here. What have you been tweeting lately, Robbie? Let us begin with our poetry synopsis. Robbie, can you give us your limerick for Rules of Acquisition, Rules of Acquisition?

Yes. Rules of Acquisition. Here we go with my Limerick. synopsies. There's a waiter named Pell who's brand new. We learn Ferengi treat women like poo. At Tongo, Dax's

winning. The Dominion's just beginning. And women can do anything men can do. Woo! Excellent. Excellent. Wow. Thank you. Very good.

I got poo in there. You did. See, that sent me I almost. And you got women in there as well. yes yes oh my goodness i was going to guffaw when you said poo i was i had to hold it all in okay here we go with my haiku for rules of acquisition dax the tango champ zek gives quark important job pell must leave station thanks for giving away the ending very good i know i just call me Spoiler man.

Clever deception is in the air. Greed and power are never fair. Testing rules and winning, not enough in the final inning. Bittersweet, a soulful connection, lost on holding the rules of convention. Wow. You've pulled in baseball, too. I love Terry's poetry because there's something so pure and heartfelt about it. Like, my limerick is goofy and, you know, Garrett's haiku is abstract, but there's something

something so. You're so sweet. Beautiful about your poetry. She's a many talented lady that Terry Farrow. Yes, she is. Thank you, Armin. Yes, she is. But, you know, I like that all three of us have our own voice. Yes. Yeah, that's true. And then Armin comes in, and he is our scholar. He is our road scholar. Can I just throw this out? I'm going to throw this out there. I want to challenge Armin. If he feels like it, I love that he's doing the etymology, but it'd be awesome. if he threw in a poem here or there. If he felt so inspired, that's all. I'm a very competitive person.

I wouldn't want to compete with the three of you. Okay. And he's a really good writer. He's a very talented writer. So he'd blow us all out of the water. If we started on a poem, Gary, it would end up a novel. Please don't. Well, I'll tell you, it'll get to the point where the three of us

will be sitting there going, we're the worst. We're just going to be so crestfallen. Exactly. You'll wipe us across the floor. And I would remind you to. Remember how special you are and your talent shine. Yes. Tell us some etymology.

Okay, etymology. Very short from the Oxford English Dictionary. The word acquisition from the old French word, aquare. And here's the definition. Works perfectly for this episode. The action of obtaining or getting for oneself or by one's own exertion. First used in 1387. It was in something called the Higden Rolls.

The acquisition of a wholesome merit. That was the first use of acquisition in the English language. Wow, I love that. The acquisition of the wholesome merit. But it's interesting that it sounds like it's talking about a quality in people rather than acquiring a thing. Do you know what I mean? You'll have to go back and find the person in 1387 who wrote it and ask.

Probably a man, so you probably have to ask that guy. Yeah, probably. back then. They lived by Ferengi rules. They did. They did. Most of the world lived by it in the past, and unfortunately, a good part of the world still lives by it. It's true. You know, I wouldn't trade what you offer in explaining the titles, because I have found, I'm just blown away by the thought that goes into each title. It never occurred to me how deep. that actually goes. And so I want to thank you,

Armand, because you're helping me appreciate it in a whole new way. Thank you. Thank you. And I'll take an apple from the student anytime you're like. I'll bring you some.

I love it. Okay, so our guest stars, and let me see if I pronounce this right with all the accents on there. I'm going to say, Helene, Helene Udi. I don't know if Helene is the right way or if she says a different way.

Do you know, Armine, no. No. I was actually struck by the fact this is the first episode that I've been watching of Deep Space Not where I don't know any of the guest star. Wow. I mean, I knew them, and I worked with them, of course.

Right. But you know of a history with them. There was some of that I knew before I did the episode. Yeah. I don't know any of the guest. Okay. Okay. So Heleneudi played Pell and did quite a good job as Pell.

I was very impressed. We also have Brian Thompson as Inglatu, Have any of you worked with Mr. Brian Thompson? No. Okay. All right. I met him at a convention.

He's one of those guys, yeah, he's one of those guys that people recognize as being in countless numbers of TV shows and films as, you know, it just comes in, does a small bit part. But you remember him because he's the super buff, always in shape guy. I met him at a convention. I was talking to him at the con. He brought his son with him to the con. and really nice guy. And he typically plays the heavy in everything that he does. Yeah, everything.

But as life goes, when you meet him in person, you realize, wow, this guy's really nice. He's a super nice. He's a softie. He's a teddy bear. But Brian Thompson. And I had no idea that he did Star Trek. And it's so cool to see him on this episode. Yes.

Of course, we have Max Gredenchik as Rom. Amelia Crow as Zairey, Zyri. Tiny Ron, Tiny Ron comes back again as Mahjardu, and of course, Wallace, Sean, as Zeck. And those are our players for this episode. I want to add one more. Sure. He's not credited. He's not a guest star per se. But that's David Levinson, who plays one of the Ferengue Waiters, who was my stand-in. Oh, nice. And his character's name was Broek. He's sitting. He's sitting. there at the Tango game as well. And let's give credit where credit is due. Absolutely. So that's a shout out to David as well.

Nice. Very cool. I did not know that. Okay. Teleplay by Iris Stephen Bear, story by Hillary Bader, and directed by good old David Livingston. Who has sent me some notes about the episode. Oh, great. Oh, I can't wait.

Ladies and gentlemen, you're in for a treat. Okay. Opening shot is tight. on mourn, snoring, sleeping. As far as people on the show, let's also talk about Mark Altman, who played Mourn, who like Mayn or Do, never had the opportunity to speak a word, but was certainly a presence. And it's an action figure doll as well. Wow.

Is he really? Yeah, that must have meant a lot to him, especially not getting to get a line. That's a long conversation that we'll have at another time. Exactly. Yeah. Okay. But it worked. It worked.

It did work for that. character. Livingston actually went out of his way. He didn't say this to me, but it was obvious from his actions, to make Morn very much a presence on the show. Oh. I wonder, yeah, this opening shot with Morn sleeping and then going trying to get into quarks, but the door's locked. It seemed like a lot of shoe leather, unusually long shoe leather for an opening where you could have just started in the game. But it was nice to build the world. Yes. with a person or character that is, on paper anyway, a background player. Correct.

And so Odo calls him mourn. We find out that the background player has a name. We know we've seen him enough times so that we know that. But yes, this is a lot of coverage for someone who in our business normally would not be covered. Yeah. Yeah, but I agree 100%, but I'm going to just say it was so funny to watch him when it Odo says, go, he says, what does he say? No sleeping on the promenade.

Yeah. And then he says, go home. And what does he do? He doesn't go home. He does. Well, no, home is quarks. But the first thing he does, he goes straight. Yes, you're right.

Home is quarks. But it's just like the character that he was designed to be designed after, which is Norm from Cheers. Norm from Cheers would rather be at Cheers than be at home with his wife. And that's exactly what this character, Morn was doing. So to me, it was hilarious. His home, yeah, was Corks. He went straight there.

But it's closed. It's closed because there is a game of Tongo being played by all the staff. And so basically we see five Ferengis. We see five Ferengis and Rom and Cork are included. They're playing Tongo. And they all make moves because we haven't really seen this game before. You know, we've seen Dabo, but this is something different. It looks like a roulette wheel again.

But on top, there's this sort of like a pale. And people are throwing bars of latinum and spinning this little outer ring thing. And I don't know the rules of how to play this. I'm guessing, Armand, they never told you guys the rules of how this thing. No, we made it up. Didn't we, Armand? Yeah, we made it up. While they were lighting.

It was like, David Livingston was like, well, you guys make it up. And so we're like, what do we do? Wow. Yeah. Did they have it scripted? At some point, they do say, like, challenge or. those are in the script but what exactly the actions are what's the intent of the game or what is it we're trying to get no we all made that up as Terry said as they were lighting we did yeah that's amazing it was a scramble but it was fun because we were all super willing to jump in okay did you feel that way Armin I remember that that we all were just like and to this day I don't know whether Dabo means you won a Dabo or whether you lost a Dabo Is that a loss or is that a win?

You know, 30 years later, I'm still trying to figure it out. Maybe it's both because of the inflection of your voice on Dabo, right? But I love the fact they did that, and no one took it badly. No one, it didn't land wrong where you thought, you guys should have prepared for us better. You should have given us exactly the rules. Nobody did that. No one got crazy like that. As Mr. Brooks once said to me, we were very dutiful, very dutiful.

Yes. We were. Especially that little crew of us. Yes. But you think it's just all. Ferengi playing this game because as it goes around the table, the camera tracks it around, and then everyone turns and looks off camera, and then we have a reveal of Dax playing as well, and she wins the round.

I love that. Oh, I love that. And this is the first time they bring up the male female thing, the bias against females, because they do say, oh, that's because it's Curzon. He must have been the good player. And then Dax says something like, no, no, no. Actually, Jad Zia is a lot better than Curzon. So the beginnings of that.

Yeah, that's when Rob says, but I still prefer a Ferengi female, one who never wears clothes, never talks back, and never plays Tongo. So now we know we establish some rules, ground rules for the Ferengi gender, what am I saying? The Ferengi gender iniquities. Gender rules. Yeah, rules. Exactly. Horrible. This is also where we meet Pell, this new waiter.

Yeah. And I was a little confused at first. I was like, I didn't know who Pell was. obviously I'm not supposed to. But Pell offers up a bean to Cork that will increase his drink sales and the bean basically dries out the salivary glands or something. So it makes you want to buy more drinks. And Cork and Pell discuss profits and they both quote a lot of rules of acquisitions. So they're on the same page there. And that's when the Granegas calls and offers Cork this chance to be the lead negotiator in their big expansion into the Gamma Quadrants. So the rules of acquisition just to

be brutally clear about this, for anyone who doesn't, although I'm sure everybody does, are like the Ten Commandments for the Ferengi. And for a female to know anything about these rules is sacrilegious. So it would be like women reading the Torah back in the day. Exactly the same. Exactly. And then she says it, I'm quite sure of this, not only does she say how many there are, but she also says the commentaries. And that is very much like a Jewish student studying the Torah. It's not just what's written in the Torah, but also the commentaries as well. Right. So intellectuals, you know, interpretation of the rules of acquisition. It's scholarly religious interpretation of the rules. And that's what we're talking about here about the rules of

acquisition. Which could end up even being much longer than the actual rules of acquisition. Absolutely. Absolutely. Got it. I felt like Pell in this scene, didn't recognize Pell at all. I thought it was a young Ferengi because I definitely heard a quality in the voice. I was like, it doesn't sound like a fully matured man to me. I did not guess that it was a woman at this point. And so small. And small. So I thought it was like a 17 year old, like a 17 year old.

Yeah, like a kid. A little older than nog. I think sometimes when thoughts come in, because we did it, even though we did it 30 years ago, I don't know if it's a memory coming back. no wait it's a woman or is it because you know there's a real tell there i felt like that it was youth at this point but i did in yeah before the ears came off i was like that's not a man that's a woman that's i knew something was up well it's interesting because the voice that that the actress was trying to you know put on this character as a man and there was some

affectation going on to me it sounded very much like simpsons as the as the wife oh yeah you know March. But at some points, at some points when the voice got a little higher pitch or squeaky, it sounded like Bart Simpson. And that's what immediately when Megan was watching, she goes, wait a minute. Is that the actress that does the voice for Bart Simpson? Because it's, is it Yardley Smith or whatever? We looked up, but no, it's not. It's not her at all. It's Helen. But I had, that's what I heard. All right. So we have a really wonderful scene now in Cisco's office. And basically we have Grand Nagas. Zek is. is there, his ever-present attended My Hardoo is there as well. It's Cisco. May Hardoo. May Hardoo. May Hardoo. May Hardoo.

Hit the first syllable. May-Hardoo. My hairdo? Sorry. Yes. Exactly. May-Hardu, right? So sweet.

May Hardu. Yeah. May Hardu. Tiny Ron is there as well. We have Cisco in this meeting and Major Kira as well. And right off the bat, he offers this hybrid Hyperian beetle snuff, which is clearly going to go up his nose, and it's pulverized, you know, insect is what it is. And he takes a sniff. And he starts sneezing. And he's kind of pissed because he doesn't get the handkerchief to blow his nose fast enough from his attendant. So he's a little upset about that. But they basically talk about the fact that he wants to host a business conference here at Deep Face 9 with a race of beings from the gamma quadrant known as now. Do you guys say dozai or dozai or do you, there's a couple of different ways that people pronounced it in here.

But I think it's dozai for the most part. Mostly a z sound. Z sound. Yeah. Yeah. So they are, they are going to come in to the station to have this meeting. And what's, what's cool is that there's a, there's one point where Kira is basically not, not excited about this meeting, basically trying to set the law that she's going to, she's not

going to stand for any funny business. Well, she thinks that Ferenghis cheat everybody. She gets up in his face, you know, do not, you know, I don't trust you guys. She's very computational, basically. Yeah. And then he mentions, hey, you guys need some brising nitrate, right? Yeah. And all of a sudden, here is like, oh, yeah, Baydra could use that.

Yeah. And so he basically bribes her. He says, I'll give you some brysine nitrate if, you know, you approve this negotiation. And then as he's leaving, he says, yeah, I'll give you a 25% discount. And Cisco's like, whoa, whoa, wait a minute. You said you'd give it. And Cisco basically out-negotiates the Nagus here and says, if you want to have this meaning, you need to give it to him.

Yes, the Nagas is very excited about that. He is impressed by Cisco's negotiation skills. I have several comments about this scene, which bothered me as a frangi, not as a human, but as a Ferengi. First of all, what business is it of theirs about what goes on in Quarks, bar, is this not an open establishment? If we don't break any laws, what business is it of theirs? Second of all, they are indeed bribing Kira, but then Cisco says you can't have it at all.

And is that not a bribe as well? Yes. There's fault on both sides. And the thing that for me as a Ferengi watching, this particular scene is you can see the utter disgust primarily in Kira but also in Cisco about the head of a planet, the head of a nation, the head of whatever. Should he not get the same respect that all the other heads of planets that we have seen on the show get?

Yeah. Whether you like his ethos, his ethics or not is of no concern if you are following the prime directive. I can see where Kira has a problem. She's not necessarily Starfleet, so she doesn't have to follow the prime directive, but Cisco does, and God bless him, he does

correct her on it, but even so, this immediate disdain for a group of people to me borders on, and this is a phryngy speaking. Racism, yeah. On racism. Yeah. Armand, do you see that also

from Kira as well? Yes. Almost, especially from Kira. Even more so. Or not for Dax later on who corrects that attitude or at least tries to correct that attitude. So I think we shouldn't overlook the fact that there's fault on both sides. Yes, the parakee are sneaky. Yes, that's their, that's their 185 rules of acquisition. They're not only their business practices, but their religious practices as well.

But even so, should we not have respect for other people's ethics? Yes. Absolutely. And I think we've seen in previous episodes where Cisco has helped keep her in check with what the prime directive is. And I absolutely agree with you, Armin. It was, first of all, surprising about Cisco's attitude. But I think also that they're even having this meeting about having a meeting because you've already had meetings without having this conversation. It's just very bizarre. It's not like the tuliberry wine's being delivered to Deep Space 9. That's right. And it's not being involved in your business. It's just the meetings happening there. It is strange.

It is Quark's establishment. He can have, as long as they don't break the laws, I get that. The laws have to be respected. But what they do in negotiations, in my opinion, isn't necessarily breaking laws. And if Kira's worried about Ferengi cheating, then, And I've seen some of her actions as a Bajoran freedom fighter that aren't as, to a Ferengi, Ferengi don't kill. Ferengis don't do that at all.

The killing is an ennithmet to them. So I would have some problems with the Bajoran point of view as well. And that's just me as a Ferengi as an ex-Ferengi speak. I love your Ferengi point of view, Armin. I love it. It's great. I just think that's what makes D-Space 9 so great. because I'm not saying that that is right.

It's wrong that he's showing the prejudice towards Frangis. That's wrong across the board. But the fact that D-Space 9 shows that is what makes it so great because this is a Star Trek that shows all the moles and the warts. You know what I'm saying? Exactly here. It is a plus.

It is a plus. We are showing the good sides and the bad sides to our lead characters. And God bless the Dax character, the smartest, the one who's lived the longest, who has the most frame of reference. She is there to advise all of us. So what about what's the best thing to do and how to live together, how to live to me? Dax is the voice of reason, the voice of knowledge, the voice of wisdom. No pressure.

Team Dax. Team Dax. Next scene we go to Quark's quarter, Zek is having his ear hair combed and styled, which I thought was disgusting. Super close up. David Livingston, thanks very much. Zek is instructing quark about these negotiations tells him get these tulibaries they could be the most profitable thing

in Ferengi history because it can make the wine and this is going to establish the Ferengi's in the gamma quadrant so they're going to be set so this is basically Zek's instructions to quark this is your big break, big opportunity. Can we talk for a second about how amazing

Michael Westmore's design of Wally Sean's makeup because it looks like candle wax. melting. Like he's melting, yes. Yeah. Oh, it just gross and intriguing all at the same time. And it has ear hair.

And it has ear hair. And it has ear hair. Lots, lots of ear hair. Okay, so we have a little time jump and quark. We're still in quarks. Quark is telling Rom now about the tool of berries and how he thinks he's going to be super rich. And Rom wants to help. He wants to be a part of this.

Pell is waiting tables at this point. Swings by. by does a little fly by drops the before you go on i think it's essential for the episode that we do mention that while everyone is together in cisco's uh that um that sex begins to hit on kira that's essentially oh yes yes yes because that's a sweet kind of see storyline that just threads through yeah yeah yeah i think it's really well done too because it's just just little splashes through the whole episode yeah back in quarks when

Rom's hearing about the tool of berries and Pell is kind of eavesdropping you can see him at this point we know we think it's a him in the background Pell runs by drops the 48th rule of acquisition quark I love that Pelt seems to be more versed in the rules of

acquisition sometimes than quark works like oh yeah that's great remind me what that's about and Pell basically says you know, if this works, then Zek is going to take credit and if it fails, you're going to be blamed, basically. Right. And Quark

is starting to realize that Pell's pretty smart so makes Pell his assistant for 20% of the profits and gives the food the food tray to ROM. Jealous Rom. Jealous, envious, and upset Rom. And I do love how she says partner and Quark's

like, no, no, no, I don't need a partner. I need an assistant. I love how bold hell is. Yeah. Did you notice this scene, David Livingston, did it in a oneer? Yes. He does a number of scenes in this episode as a oneer. This is actually one of David's favorite scenes when we were discussing this episode.

He says he's very proud of it. There's what he called a lot of docy does in it where one person moves off and then another one comes in and all the while. And it's not just the principles. The people in the background are also doing the same thing. They're all moving it. It is a day in the role. restaurant in the bar and everybody everybody's moving and david got all of that to work as one

god knows how many takes we took did but but but that's the important thing as i said to david it's not in it's not in hindsight it's not how many takes you took it's rather that you got the perfect shot and and that's all that counts in the end and it's fun when you're not tired when you're not tired it's fun to keep doing it but when you're exhausted and it's two in the morning You're like, oh, my gosh, didn't we already get it? Why are we doing it again? Oh, yeah. But he was a perfectionist.

He is a perfectionist. And in the end, we're grateful for that he finally did that because it makes the episode better. I liked working with him. I really did. Kind, man. Very kind. Very easygoing. Never lost his shit on the set.

I really, really enjoyed David Livingston. He was telling me about the difficulty. of being a guest director, although he was a line producer as well. That's his everyday job. But as a guest director, it's a hard place to be, Robbie, I'm sure you're aware of that, between the writers and the set. It is, you have the least amount of power. Even for David Livingston, who was the line.

There is a great deal of non-power, if I can put it that way, when you're the guest director. It should point out that David Livingston, perhaps even more than Franks, I'm not sure, because I haven't counted. But probably David Livingston directed more episodes of Star Trek than any other person alive. Probably. I would think so. But isn't it funny that when he wears his producer hat, he's supposed to save money, finish the day on time or early. And then when he put the director hat on, he does multiple takes. He goes over time. Yeah. He did the opposite. Because he knew the real deal. David went to school to be a director, not to be a line. produce that's right he wants to use the skills that he learned and perfected and did very well at

yeah when he's directing and he's able to divorce himself just as uh when we had uh actor directors they were able to take off their actor and be directors yeah well we go to pal's quarters next she's uh well we don't know it's to she quite yet he pulls a case from under his bed takes And then he takes off these fake lobes and the jacket and leans back. And we see clearly the fake lobes, the big lobes are much smaller. And it wasn't just the lobes. Thank you. And then suddenly when she takes her jacket off, you see her breast.

And it's like. Yes. Her bosom. Yes. For sure. What was that tool that she used, Robbie? Anyone see it would look like a little like a like a farmer's site? Sight.

Yes, exactly. It looked like a tiny sight. And then I don't know what it was, but that's what she used to pull them off. But she didn't need them later in the episode, spoiler. Yeah, she just yanked them later. Yeah. And kudos to whoever figured out how to do that. Oh, my gosh.

Because obviously that's a lot of makeup work to do that so that it looks believable. I'd have to see it a third or fourth time to really see. How did they do that so it was seamless? Now the expression that we've used several times, you have the lobes. Now I understand, ah, it's a sexist remark that female Ferengi don't have as large ears as the males do. And so it's really very much a sexist as well as an entrepreneurial remark. Yeah, because they think they're smarter because they have bigger lobes. You know, we can reference other parts, other organs on the human body.

Okay, let's just keep going. What's the next scene, guys? Hey, we're at the airlock. We're at the airlock waiting, waiting for the dozzi, dozai, dozai, dozai. The dozai, you're about to say the docee does, yes. The dozee does he does. We're waiting for the dozai to arrive and Kira jumps because Zek is there and somebody touched her butt or pinched her butt or something and she threatens Zek in the scene.

You do it again and you're dead. She's mad about it. Then the airlock opens and some dozai flies through the air or some stunt man. It's being tossed out of the airlock. And then this big buff guy, Inglatu steps out and explains, oh, we just had a small disagreement. So quirk is a little nervous about these. Yeah. Is it like not umpalumpa makeup?

Oh. I mean, when I saw that color, I was just like, they're like umpalumpas with like. Yeah. It was crazy, and it reminded me of the original series in a way. It felt very vintage or retro. Yeah, it did. It looked to me kind of Cirque de Soleil. Yes.

Circus kind of. Yes, but I will say for a species, they are so aggressive. They make Klingons look like Girl Scouts in the way that they do, you know, how they go by their day-to-day. It's a little crazy. Yes. And Quirk was nervous. If they, you know, if they're going to toss somebody like,

like that just for a minor disagreement, he's in big trouble. Was that guy dead? Was he, is he dead? What, what happened to that guy? I don't think that guy's dead. Later on, they shoot somebody. Yeah, right, but they never show that guy that got thrown, get back up in this scene. No.

You don't, okay. He's, that's how they do it. Yeah, that's how they do business. Yeah. Okay. We go to Quark's quarters. This time, Quark is very nervous. Pell is there and they're,

negotiating with Inglatu, the big buff guy. They offer this package of a lot of technology in exchange for 10,000 vats of tulibaries. And Inglatu says, I can give you 5,000. They say they want to talk to the Grand Nagas. They don't want to, they're not respecting Quark at all. He's nervous. They don't respect him. They want to talk to the Grand Nagas. Inglatu grabs Quark and threatens to kill him when Pell stands up for cork. And he backs down when Pellel gets a little aggressive. He kind of seems to respect that. And he says, I'll consider $10,000 at the end of the scene.

Do you remember getting grabbed by this actor, Armin? No, no. And, you know, no, I didn't. And at least it didn't hold me by the throat. That's what I was wondering. Because this one, to me, seemed much more control. I remember in the other situation, it was a series regular grabbing another series regular's throat in this case it's a guest star guest star is not going to be that uh desirous to

to grab there his regular right and this is brian thompson the teddy bear off camera brian thomas that's right exactly exactly um but i i do it's it's really wonderful for the storytelling to see who we now pell who we now know to be female to be more aggressive to be more machismo than then quark is and show showing us by her actions that she's comparable to any Ferengi male that we have met so far. Yeah. And loyal and enormously loyal. She's really, yeah, just a global comment about that character.

She is smart. She knows how to work all the side. She's got confidence. She stands up to the bullies. Like, she is the perfect Ferengi in a way. Like, she can navigate any situation. Exactly. We come to understand.

this is a deserving, I'm about to say human being, but this is a deserving person that we should come to like a great deal. And I'm giving something away here, but it is a great disappointment to me. This is the only episode that Pell is in. Oh, yeah, I agree.

That's a bummer. All right, we're in ops now. We have Mayherdew. That's it. Yeah, I said it now. May hairdo. Coming up out of the turbo lift with a gift. It's a gift for Kira.

And it's this little tiny, well, it's latinum covered earring. So it's actually a very expensive gift. Very expensive. Yes. And then leaves. Dax, Kira doesn't want to accept it, but basically she has to. He just doesn't stay. He leaves.

But I just love Mayhardu never says word in the entire series. And this is the first time I think that we are shown that Mayhardu just does not speak. Yeah, because they try to talk to him in this scene. He doesn't even respond. He cannot speak. I used to be an official at the Screen Actors Guild. I think a lot of people know that. It is interesting to me, going back to our original discussion,

it is interesting to me as an ex-official that Tiny Rahm, who speaks not a word, and who is indeed a guest star, is indeed a guest star, gets guest star billing. Okay, he should. That's fair. That's what should be. And yet Mark Shepard, who plays Norm, a recurring character, a very recurring character, who speaks not a word, is relegated to the background community. There's something wrong about that. Oh, 100%.

It comes down to money, right? Because they're paying Mark, Alan Shepard, extra money, you know, extra rate or background actor rate. And if they gave him billing, they would have to give him some kind of co-star. rate and it would change the budget and now they'd be locked into that yeah but the difference the difference ravi is is you know a couple of bagels i agree with you i agree with you but in their minds they're like yeah no we're not gonna they don't want to cross that bridge it's funny because in canada and i i've worked a lot in canada the the canadian guild and the guild that i most work with is UBCP, which is the British Columbia Union of actors, if you have a non-speaking actor

in the frame and the director, and they're doing anything where they are featured in the frame, even if there's more background actors behind them, if they are featured playing an emotion or a story point, then they get paid as an actor rate. They don't get paid the background right. Wow. So they don't even have to speak. Yeah, it's much more fair. They don't even have to speak. And you shouldn't have to because acting isn't just when you speak. Yeah. And 100% the background can ruin a scene if they're not acting. Right. I think we had excellent background actors. They were 100% in the scene with all of us helping tell the story. So, I mean, we've all seen movies or shows where the background kind of ruins it and stands out like oh no kira gets this earring this very very fancy

earring she says she can't stand for angies basically and then dax reveals she likes them yes she thinks they're the most fun species of all and which i had no idea that's a whole new angle on dax yes yeah so i love that she's playing tango she's telling kira they're awesome they're a lot of fun it's a new perspective on pharynge's and on deck but dex does even make that comment their behavior toward women is somewhat primitive so it's you know there's a limit to how far she her you know waving the frangy flag goes i feel yeah i think though what i like about uh dax's point of view it's respecting different species or different cultures for what they are and not try to change anyone and say my ways better right you have

have to honor that people are living in their truth and then take what you can from that and enjoy it or don't spend time with them. And one of the things that I would point out is don't ever group every person in a culture the same. Don't make a general oversight because somebody is such and such. That means all of them are such and such. Yeah, individuals or individuals who may belong to a group, but that group doesn't necessarily define each and every person in the group.

I mean, she lives with Nog. Kira, by she I mean. Kira lives with Nog. Kira lives with wrong. They are not necessarily people. First, when you said that I'm like, she doesn't know with anyone. They love us. They love us.

You know, she should know, But again, this is the good thing about our show, Garrett, is that we are showing the foibles of the characters as well as the good points. Yeah, yeah. We do go back to Quarks for another Tongo game that Dax is taking everybody's money again. She's winning. She is so good at this. Even the Nagus tries to cheat and say, what is he?

He says, did I say a choir? No, I meant a vaid. Let's just play over. Play the roundover. Very funny little bit. The weird thing is, though, Armand, did we shoot this scene before we shot the first scene? I don't know why this felt like this was the one we did first. I don't remember.

I think it's because I thought Wally was with us when we were making the game up. That would make sense. I have no memory of that. It makes sense just makeup and schedule-wise that you'd get everybody through makeup together with the larger group, which is this group. and then do the earlier scene with a smaller group. Right. I don't remember.

But if I may, I want to go back to the scene in ops quickly because Dax says something I think everyone should hear, not only for this episode, but for life. And it's in regards to what I was just talking about. Dax defends the Ferengi by saying, you don't understand them. And this is what I think is incredibly wonderful. Because she says,

because you don't socialize with them the way I do. And that's absolutely true. We don't like people until we socialize with them. Until we meet them on a one-to-one basis. I think that's quite brilliant thing for Dax to say, and I think it's an even more brilliant thing for the writers to write. Because that is the essence of what causes dissension among people. If you don't really get in and rub elbows,

with people, you don't know who they are. Yeah. Yeah, you don't. I'm glad you went back. It reminds me of when we were in school and elementary, and you'd want to stay with the people you felt comfortable with, but the teachers would sometimes pair you up with someone you didn't know. And at first it would feel scary.

But by the end of the day, you've made a new friend because they're not scary anymore. Now you've gotten to know them. That happens a lot, I think. And it would be great if we did it more as adults. I think so. So back in Quarks after the Tongo game and Dax winning some more and the Naga is trying to squeeze out of losing, he tells, he tells Quark that he now wants 100,000 Tula berries and Quark panics. He doesn't have anything to get 10,000. 100,000 vats of tulipers.

Vats, yes. Vats of tulabaries. Yeah. Cork, Cork is panicking, but then Pell jumps in, praises the Nages' idea, and tells Zek that, you know, Quark is an amazing negotiator. He's great at this. And Zek is flattered by Pell, and then he asks for fresh tube grubs, which sound delicious. And Cork heads over towards the bar. Pell follows him over there.

And at the bar, Cork is panicking. He doesn't think he can get 100,000 bats. Pell says you can do it. And Cork wonders, why is Pell, ask Pell, why are you being so nice? And that's when Pell says, I want 20%. And so at this point, it's for my 20%. Yeah, she's already negotiated that earlier. For my, yeah, for my 20%, exactly.

And then Zek calls for his grubs. Pell and Cork go back over to the table. But the scene finishes on Dax. Yeah. You see Dax at the end looking at Pell. hell and you know that Dax is figuring something is up here so yeah nice way to end that scene a lot of stuff happened and what do you think i know it's a long time ago Terry but what do you think you were thinking at the time because several thoughts came across my head about what she might be

thinking but i'd be fascinated to know if you can remember and i wouldn't be able to remember but if you can remember what you were thinking at the time what do you think Dax saw at that moment her attraction to quark she was picking up on that yeah but she wasn't picking up as we find out in the in the scene with pell well we can talk about that in a second

but I think just that she knew something was up with Pell's attraction to quark not with the gender and not that that would concern Dax that's what's so great about Dax that wouldn't be an issue at all it's like Pell's into you was the important

piece of information. We do see Dax go join Pell by the Repliment. The girl bonding scene here. Girl, yeah, a nice scene. I like the scene a lot. Isn't it sweet? A one. It's so sweet.

Another one or, yes. No. Pushes in on close-ups. It was the two of us. I like it when you see the whole scene like that. It's great. Actually, that's exactly what David said. This is why he made it a wonder.

He wants to see the actors act. act. He wants to see them doing what they naturally do without intercutting here and there. He wants to see the rapport as it's happening and not intercut it with other things. And Robbie, will you do me a favor in anyone out there who doesn't understand when we say what a winner is? A oneer just means that there's no editing involved, that the scene from beginning to end or the shot from beginning to end, has no cuts in it. It's continuous.

It has no editing. It's one shot. Often most scenes, most, one of the strengths of filmmaking is that you can cut, you can edit, you can cut into a point of view shot.

You can, you know, go tight on an insert. You can build a story through shots. But when you do something in a oneer or, you know, something like this scene where you see two actors acting like you said,

Armin, then it becomes more about the acting is in control of the scene and not the editor or the or the cinematographer or anything the actors are are living in the space the context of the scene and you get to see the whole thing play out and and and i would venture to say and not having been ever a director with uh in a with a camera um that it's a way of the director protecting his or her but because if there are no interstitial shots then you have to accept the one or is the only piece of material you have to edit into the final product it limits your ability to fix details or if you get a note from a studio or network hey you know we don't we don't love the way dax reacts to this line

is there coverage of that can we look at some other takes if it's a oneer there are no other takes this is what you get so and and just again to add to that usually it's a longer take it's it can be a full page or longer and and that means everybody the actors the cameraman the sound people every costumes makeup everybody has to get it right while we're shooting it no it cannot be a mistake from any department because there's not going to be any cuts it's more like doing a play that's being filmed Which makes it, I think, more fun. Yeah. I've said this before.

Vincent Minnelli is one of my favorite directors, old Hollywood director, and did a lot of very complex winters. And David Livingston often reminds me of Vincent Manelli's work in these kind of design, beautifully designed choreographed shots. He's very happy about doing oners, he told me. Yeah. Because it does, as I said, allows the actors to act. The female bonding scene, Dax says, I can tell you you love for.

And Pell admits, yes, she does, and then she admits to Dax that she's a woman in disguise. Dax is surprised here. It's a lovely, lovely reaction by Ms. Farrell. It's a wonderful, wonderful reaction where she is both amazed and yet it covers it enough so that she's not being obnoxious to Pell. It's a really, really nice response, Terry. Thank you. I think more over-impressed. right impressed because I impressed by what she pulled off me yeah yeah and she Dex does say I've

never met a Ferengi female before so that's kind of a big deal you know yeah with nine lifetimes you think that Dax sort of met a fringy female at least once she went to Perengenar she wouldn't have done it right no because they're not allowed out right yeah yeah yeah wow now I must say this is my one of my perhaps the only problem i have with the episode and that's i think she admits pell admits way too easily for me having kept this secret for as many years as she has that she just blurts out that she's a female i i know it's part of the story you have to do that but it just seemed if there's a missing scene i would have liked another scene with the two of them talking and then finally she admits that this happens way too abruptly for me i agree with you

one thousand percent i felt exactly the same thing but i validated by i validated the whole scene by and that moment by saying that pell could feel the energy of dax and trust dax with that and so she just let it let it slip she didn't feel she was so comfortable with dax that she was willing to trust her that easily and dax knew you know she knew she was the only one to say you You love quark. I see it. I see you. And as I said to Terry before we started, I love the fact that Dax says, and I love Quark, too.

I'm grateful that Dax's character was fond of my character as well. Because nobody else is. Let me tell you. I'm glad they wrote that for us. Yeah. Right? It was sweet that they wrote that for us. Cork.

Dax is the only character that hasn't thrown Quark across the room or, grabbed him violently. Dex is literally the only non-physical assault character. Non-violent character towards Quark. It's good. Well, it's a lovely scene. Quark shows up at the end. He says to Pell, it's time.

Pell, it's time. We don't want to keep the dozee waiting. Hurry up. And off they go to Quark's Cafe for some negotiations where we start the next scene upstairs in Quarks. Zek is up there Kira goes to return this earring I do like the beginning of this though

Zex, it's like some female background actors walk by and you see Wally Sean Zach like completely letcherously checking them out I love everything he does. He makes it so funny and interesting

yeah but Pira does come back with the earring she can't accept that gift but she does thank him for the rising nitrate and and then as she leaves he pinches her butt or slaps her butt again we see below and she just stops and to herself she's like dax is crazy yeah but but she's controlling her anger now yes yes i don't remember ever hearing that before so made me laugh out loud.

Yeah. Of course she thinks of them crazy. Yes. Quark and Pell do arrive and they inform the Nagus that the doze I left, no contract,

they couldn't make a deal. Quark is very nervous. He gets on his knees even begging for forgiveness, basically. And the Nagus is yelling at Quark. When Pell intervenes again, she says they can go to the Gamma Quadrant, get them to sign it there.

They just need to borrow Negus' ship. Cork says he can pilot it, and the Nagus does agree, but he warns him, do not mess this up. So change a point. I love that scene, too. I love how she swept in. And I loved how it's like struggling, Armin, Cork, you're right there, how Corks, like, I can pilot a ship. Who knew we could pilot a ship? What?

Oh, look at that. That's pretty cool. That's pretty dang cool. Yeah. And again, I think this scene is a oneer. I think, I think, this is a oneer. Yeah. Is it?

Oh, I think so. I think, yeah. There's quite a few of them in the episode, for sure. Yeah, he's very good. He also, he likes shots with two or three people in them. And oftentimes there are two principles in the shot. And then there's a third person who's important to the scene but has no lines. is sort of in the background caught between the two people that are talking.

I found that fascinating as I was watching as well. So again, kudos to Mr. Livingston for his... Yeah. And, you know, I was thinking about that letcherous look of Zex. That must have been David, too, because after all, David or the second AD, but I would assume it would be David, decides who's going to walk by in the scene.

I'm sure that they're walking by is not in the school. script. So he's decided, and he's probably told Wally, if Wally didn't think of it himself, to give him a look. Yeah, directors are important for that. We go into Zek's ship next. Cork is flying. They're flying to find the dozai. And Cork reveals here, he thinks the Nagus is trying to sabotage these negotiations. You know, he's asking for 100,000 vats now. It just seems crazy. Pelle agrees. She thinks that the Nagus knows more. than he's admitting to that there's something else going on here.

I love in the scene when Quarks says, you know, the only thing I've done right is to pick Pell as his assistant. I thought that was a very sweet. Sweet thing for Quark to say, a sweet side of him. There's this awkward moment. You can see Pell's about to tell him the truth. And then she says,

I've got to tell you something. and he interprets that of, oh, it's your percentage. Oh, yeah, I knew you were going to bring this up. It's about your commission. And he says, never let friendship come before profit. You can see her disappointment there. She does not tell him that she is. I was glad.

I was like, don't tell him. Don't tell him. Wait till the deal's done. Yeah, exactly. He needs you, pal. He needs you, pal. Don't show. And he's also, Quark's also dealing with this.

feelings that he doesn't understand. He's getting very attached to his associate and he's getting vibes and feelings that don't make sense to him as a male Ferengi. And we can see that she wants him to understand his feelings. But the Ferengi that he has brought up in the way he was,

He just puts them out of, no, no, I won't do that. And goes to the obvious what any other Ferengi would have thought, this is a negotiation. Ferengis are about negotiations. Yeah. Well, that scene when you're in there, and there is that awkward moment when Pella's looking at you, and it looks like she's about to have a kiss. Yeah, well, also. And then, yeah, and you're looking also very intently.

And I also felt you played, you played it as if I am becoming attractive to this male Ferengi in a way. And it looked like you were about to go in for a kiss. Am I correct to... I think you're absolutely right. As I remember doing that scene, that is exactly what I felt. Yeah. I have to understand my Shakespearean background. How many Shakespearean plays do we have males having tender feelings about what they think

are other males and only to find out at the end of the play that they're females? Right. Another problem, they've already established, I think, for Rangi Ships, but I looked at that. It's a very cramped space, the two of them were in. Very cramped. The ceiling is very low. They look like, you know, they had to be squeezed into a space shuttle or something like that. And I said to myself, how does Mejard do sit in that ship?

Great point. Where does he put his head? Has he leaned over forward so much that it's uncomfortable? I just thought, it's just my heart went out from Mayhard Duh looking at that ship. I knew Ron would never be in that. They should have had one. really long chair in 191. Yeah.

Or you could think about Zex ship having sort of like, if it was a yacht, if it was a yacht, and it has a little, it's pulling a dingy along. So it's pulling an extra craft that's just to fit Mayhardu. It's right. Mayhardu. Yes. There you go.

We do go to Quarks where Ram is making some drinks. And this is seen, Armin, where I did notice David Livingston had done this a few times where he was kind of behind some architecture, and it was sort of framed in a frame. It was a frame in a frame. So you saw rum mixing drinks facing the camera, but you could see the sets kind of framing the actor in the space. I thought that was nice. And David did it a few times in this episode. There was an opening in Quarks Bar. You've seen it many times. You've just never been on that side of it that often. He shot through that opening. And then, as you said, you can see all

of Quark's bar. And again, we have all the atmosphere back behind it doing what they do. And this is a wonder, by the way. This is another oneer. Another oneer. Yeah, because Odo comes in, asks when Quark's going to be back. Rom reveals he's hurt that Quark's ignoring him now because of Pell and everything. And Odo does say something. He says, you know, if I had a brother, I wouldn't let anybody come between them. And this is where Rom pops up. I love the staging of this. Rom's flustered and he's moving around and Odo's just standing there and Rom sort of disappears below frame

as Odo says, yeah, I wouldn't let anybody come between me and my brother. Rom pops up, Odo leaves and then it just sort of pushes in on Rom there. That's the only movement in the scene, I think, is when Rom realizes he's got to take some action here. And I don't know whose choice it was, could be anybody's, could be all of them.

I don't think the way Renee played it, I thought the way Renee played it was quite brilliant. But I don't think that would have been in the script. The point of that, of that if I had a brother, is probably to galvanize Rom to do something if he's jealous. And I think that's the point of the script. But I think Renee turned it on its head and made that moment wonderful. about the fact that he is once more reminded that he's alone, that he has no family. Yeah, he says something like,

I don't have a brother. Well, not that I'm aware of. So, yeah, he's... If I had a dot, dot, dot, brother, and you can see him thinking about his being alone. Yeah, he's a little anguish in it. Yeah, it's a very personal sort of moment there. Very reflective.

Yeah, it's nice. Renee definitely had a lot of time off on this episode. But the few scenes that he was in, he had some good character. Not as much as Cullum. That's true. Or Ciroc. Or Ceyrac. Or Cora.

Cullin was probably working on another movie. That's what he was doing. So he was still working, just not on our set. He was in Ireland at the time, clearly doing it in a film. But this does galvanize Rom. We cut to Pell's quarters where Rom is just ransacking the play. He's literally tearing fabric. It looked like he's like,

looking for anything for something he finds the ears in a box under the bed it's he opens the box there's fake lobes in it he's busted pell that that uh it was funny because we went into there and i thought how does she have all this stuff because it seemed like she had like next to nothing when we saw it with her and i i was a little perplexed how it was almost yeah yeah i agree with you 1,000% because initially, initially, I thought he was in his quarters being so frustrated. He was throwing things around in his quarters because of the sheer amount of belongings that were there. Yeah, it was too much.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I agree. Very quickly, the script says that, yes, Rahm is looking through things, but David decided to start the shop from down below and then come up on Ron. Which he thought was a very creative choice. and it made it much more interesting. Yeah, there was a lot of cool shots for a scene that really had one line in it. It was one actor ransacking a room,

but he was under the bed. He was, yeah, camera movement discovering ROM and it was well shot. It was very interesting. Now we go to the DOSI meeting space, looks like a bar or I don't know what it is. There's wine, barrels of wine pouring into a tub, they're mingling around this bar, nightclub, whatever it is.

Clearly they like to fight because you hear off camera a fight and then a shot and you cut over and there's a dozi laying on the ground who's been shot. They drag him out. Zairey, the female dozai tells Quirk that the Dossi are very serious about profit. And that's when Quark has an idea. He's like, oh, I get it. They're so serious. He goes over to the muscle guy, Inglatu, and demands that he sign this deal for 100,000 vats of tolleberries.

And Inglotu says that's impossible. And court goes over and throws one of the wine barrels. He's like, he's playing their game here. He's getting very serious, very aggressive. Yeah. Yeah. Yes. Did you guys think that for that race of who they were, as aggressive as they were, that environment, that's set up?

was so contradictory there was like white linen flowing but it was just like what's going on here it was a sexy cool hip club they were in it was really it was a club it felt like a night club yeah but why would but you do you agree that that didn't really add up in terms of who they were I would think it's what's kind of interesting though too isn't it to have the juxt position of that yes okay yes like these these wild guys these wild guys these what this wild racing of people. Yeah, I just felt like the set director didn't get the memo of who these people were. I was just like, what is, okay.

Well, they like fancy makeup on their face. They like the graphic geometric designs on their face. So maybe. And that's what I thought would be on the wall, fancy, crazy colors. But it was very monochrome when it doesn't hit the nail on the head. Okay. Because the clangons, their ambiance is very much. Matching their person.

Yeah. So it's nice to see it be. Okay. Yeah. I'll buy that. Sorry. with that. Yeah.

But Inglatu says, impossible. I can't give you 100,000 quark throws. He gets aggressive, throws the wine barrel. And in glattu, oh, and quark says,

I'm not leaving until I have a signed deal. And inglato says, well, fine, then stay. Enjoy yourself. Yeah. It takes the,

pulls the rug app from underneath quark. Yeah. You don't scare us. What happened? Enjoy our nightclub, quark. Have fun.

Well, Quirk doesn't enjoy the nightclub. He goes to his guest quarters next that only has one bed. It looks like the honeymoon suite at the DOSI. Was the bed concave? Was it kind of a weird? I don't know. It looked like a weird shape. They are a weird shape.

They didn't do square beds. No. They were usually like oval pot-ish kind of thing. Something from the Poconos. Yeah. Yeah, it felt like something in the Poconos. The honeymoon suite, it had like flimbing. gauzy, gauzy, sexy, again.

Another, Gary, it's another sexy space. I'm happy. Yeah. Just one bed. Quark is very tired, though. He wants to go to sleep. He starts undressing, lays down on the bed, says to Pell, what side do you want? Pell is panicking.

She's like, what are you doing? You're taking your clothes off. And then she says, let's toast to profit. And she goes over and pours them a little, looks like a beaker, like a science beaker of wine. Blue wine. Yeah. Yeah, a shot of... Which is actually a good thing for the Ferengi.

It is very difficult to drink from a cup when you have all those prosthetic teeth in your mouth. Oh, so the test tube is it better for you to... The test tube is actually better. It's easier to manipulate than something in the cup because then it just comes down. The teeth, the teeth. Oh, interesting.

Wow, smart. You got to think about the makeup. You do. Yeah. Well, they toast to profit. The cork immediately begins to relax. This toloberry wine is... You see, it's good stuff.

It's good stuff. It's very strong stuff. Blue Kooli. Yeah, they talk. They're getting closer and closer and closer. And then she kisses him and jumps on top of him, basically tackles him on the bed when Zyrie enters. You're so attractive, Cork. Yeah.

She couldn't help herself. She can't help herself. Cork doesn't really fight Pell off either. No, no. So you know. I would have been a fool to have done that in this scene. Right. Yes

Zairey comes As she says Bad timing I'll come back later Quark grabs her though And asks what she wanted She says Inglado can't sell them

100,000 vats Because there's not that much On the whole planet Yeah And she says I know where you can get it though And this is where we first hear About the Dominion

Yes Quarks's like what I've never heard of the dominion And Zyry says Well the Karema Carrema, I think, is that you Caramma, thank you. Yeah, I remember that because it sounds like caramel.

The caramah. I had to say it on lower decks that's the only reason why. Ah. Well, the carama are the key, she says, to the Dominion. And now Quark is putting it all together. What Zek was doing.

I think this is, again, fooling our perceptions of what we think should be. We've seen these funny characters called Ferengi and they seem really stupid. They seem innocuous. They seem not a threat to anything. But look at the chess game that Zach is playing.

He's not only playing with the Jose, he's playing with Quark and he's working moves, wheels within wheels. And it really shows that what the Ferengi at least Zek's case are capable of and what Harka's will aspire to for seven years to try to be that smart. I liken it to chess

because he's thinking moves way ahead of time in his game and his mind and he's watching it play out. And kudos to the writers for doing that. And kudos to the writers to bringing in an element that is going to be enormously important to the thrust of the whole show

and putting it in a Ferengi scene. Yeah, yeah. And just a drip. Just the name. Yeah. The name. Yeah, I do know. Robbie and I, clearly, we haven't seen very many DS9 episodes,

but I am knowledgeable enough as a sci-fi fan to know that the Dominion play a huge role in DS9, and for them to introduce them in season two, I thought this was an introduction that happened later, as in season four. But now we hear about them right here, early season two, which is exciting. Yeah, very cool.

Well, we go on Zek's ship, headed back, Hork and Pell are headed back. Quark is putting this all together. He realizes Zek didn't want to deal with the dozai. He really wanted to get to the Dominion, and Pell asks about the kiss. Doesn't he want to talk about the kiss? And he says, what are you talking about?

You never kiss me. I don't want to talk about it again. So he's now his focus has changed. to Zeck and the deal and he definitely just wants to stubble experience and not talk about it. He's focused on profit now.

So poor Pell. And she's caught between her aspirations to be a successful being and these feelings that she's has for Quark. And, you know, we've all been in that situation where we're being tugged two ways.

And yes, I feel for Pell as well. Again, I wish we had seen more of her in the show as the phone. I agree. I would like to have seen her established before this. You know, a couple little scenes where she was just working and just a brief interaction, but something where you, you know, establish her, then it'd be great. Yeah, she could have done a lot of episodes. Yeah.

We're back in Quarks. Zek is really mad. Rom wants to talk, but Quark says not now. Quark reveals to Zek. He knows about the Dominion. He's discovered. And before that, when it gets the feeling that Zek really, for the first time, appreciates Quark, that he's played his chest move rather well.

Yeah. And there's a sort of like, oh, then you, you know, it is, you are someone that I should consider. And I'm very appreciative of that. It really, if Quark wants anything besides profit and everything else, he wants the respect of Zek. and at that moment in this scene he gets it yeah yeah i saw that it's a it's a really nice moment when zek realizes quark has put all the pieces together is very smart and he says to him because zek reveals to quark he says uh most of the information i've got consists of hints and whispers and so he he kind of spills the beans he trusts you enough basically because

You've proven yourself. Yeah, it's a nice scene. He realizes that the docide don't know very much about the dominion. And Zek offers Quark a commission at this point on everything that happens in the Gamma Quadrant, if he can get a name. And Quark reveals the name of the Karima. And that's when Rom returns, drags Quark over into the bar, whispers in his ear. Another kind of oner in this scene. And we see this tableau of just being dragged far away.

I mean, he's in the back of the, I mean, it's into the middle of the bar. David actually told me there was some discussion. He was very, at the end, very happy with the distance. Oh, I love the distance. Between Zek and where Raman and Quark is. It's enough of a distance so that you really don't hear what they're saying. Exactly. But it's not far enough away so that they disappear into the background.

And he was very, very happy with the distance. Oh, he should be really proud. It was hilarious when you fell, you know, exactly what he just told you. And he was just like, and he says, I don't see it in the episode, but he says, maybe he saw it in Dailies and that's what he remembers. He says, quark bounces. He says, I wasn't happy that you bounced off of the platform because obviously there was a mat there for when I fell. But I don't see it in the episode. I don't see it either.

I didn't either. The mat? The mat is completely obscured. You don't see it out of, no. You don't see the mat. You wouldn't, you wouldn't see the mat. You wouldn't see the mat. But you don't even see a little.

But yeah, only he would have seen it as the director. Yeah. Of course, David is a perfectionist. So if I move just a hair's breath up from the mat, you know, if I bounce the tiny bit, only he would see it. Got it. It was still very effective. Well, shame on you for being human.

Yes, exactly. For being for Rengi. Yeah, I'm just going to read what David wrote about that shot with Max looking through Pell's room. Perfect. This is what David wrote me. Another moment I really like and want to give a shout out to the director for their brilliance. He's talking about himself, of course. Yes.

The shot on Pell's bed across the ears box as Max appears upside down takes the box. And the camera rises as he puts it on the bed and opens it. Cut to his close up for his realization. and the future intent. Now, he's very proud of that. He said, this is what the script said. It said about that scene. It says, it describes it,

the place has been turned upside down. The camera pans over to Rom, who is desperately giving the room a thorough going over. He opens the closet, looks around inside, then notices the carrying case on the floor. He carries it to the counter, opens it, and slowly pulls out a pair of lobes.

His expression changes from confusion to realization to joy. So I agree with David. I think the way he shot it is much, much more interesting than the way that I rewrote it. Yeah, then just go away over to a closet and setting it on a counter. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, and that angle of upside down ROM is amazing from underneath the bed. I love it.

Yeah, exactly. Thank goodness for artistic license. So next scene is in the infirmary. We see Quark is on a infirmary bed waking up. we reveal that Rahm is there. Rahm is enthusiastic. He wants to help. He's just trying to be a helper.

He wants to tell Zach about Pell. Yeah. That Pell's been lying and Quirk says, no, no, no, no. I don't want anybody to know. Rom, Ram then asked, wait, do you have feelings for her? And Quirk denies it at this point. And then Rahm insists on telling Zach. He's going to do it anyway.

It's for Quark's own good. And Quark offers, he says, you still want the bar, right? You would like the bar. He offers the bar to Rom if Rom stays silent. And I love Rom's answer at the end. Rom says, Pell, what about him? What about him, yes. What about him, exactly?

Max is a brilliant comic actor and often had me hysterics the moment the camera stopped rolling. He really is. Rom is such an amazing character. This offer that Zek has made Quark, this percentage of all the, the negotiations that are going to happen in the Gamma Quadrant, is a huge, not funny, which is important for the ending as well of this episode.

And the fact that Quark is willing to give Rom the bar in order to get this other fortune is really, important for what happens at the end how much work is going to lose and what he's aspiring for at this point yeah yeah yes great great scene great ending with roms comic reply but we go to pell's quarters next and pell is out of her disguise when the doorbell rings cork enters and he's flustered by this new look he tells her put on her lobes put on your clothes and tells her that she's got to leave, that he'll give her 10 bars of latinum.

He's got it in a box. She says, it's not about profit anymore. This is about love. She loves him. He basically says it doesn't matter if he has feelings. She's got to go. She's got to leave. He doesn't admit his feelings to her.

He does, in a way, in a Ferengi sort of way, he offers her 10 bars of Latin. He doesn't have to offer her any. Right. He wants her to have something to start a new life with. That is atypical for a Ferengi. He also replies, when she says, I love you, Quark, and I know you care about me too, admit it.

And he pauses and you say, what difference does it make? So you don't deny it. But it's interesting because he says, you'd never be happy being a Frangie wife. So in his mind, he's ready to marry her. I feel that's a really telling statement as well. He wants her to be happy. Clearly, he cares for her.

He does. He more than cares for her. He does love her. I don't know if he loves her, but he does definitely care for her. And he likes her because they're great business partners. That is a huge, huge big deal to someone like Quark. And to someone like Pell, in the sense, Quark is finally a. despite all of his upbringing, everything that he's been told by his mentors.

Here's a woman that you could admire, respect, and feel that she had as good a mind as anyone on the planet. And she had your back over and over and over and over. Over and over. Yeah. Yeah. And loyal. Yeah, absolutely.

That is a growing instance for this character. And I'm very happy for this episode. because of that. Yeah. Agreed. She says something, and I say, I would care. Does anyone remember that? Yeah. She says, then come with me to the Gamma Quadrant. No one there cares if I wear clothes or not. And Cork says, I'd care. And Pell says, I guess I better start packing. And Cork says, I guess so. I guess so. David was kind enough to say that was one of his favorite moments in the episode, was my reaction. by saying, I care, because he said, Armand, what you did was, yes, you were still respecting your education

and what you had been taught, but you could see that it was difficult to say that. It wasn't really difficult, but it was, you could see that it's hard for people. I'd care. Yeah. So you can see he's thinking about everything that he's been talked. Yeah, there was definitely a poll. And you played that incredibly elegantly, Armand, to have, walking that tight line or tight wire of your world that you know. This new awareness, this new epiphany about women, about women that he is beginning to understand.

And again, thank you, Terry. And again, it's his maturation process, which he will go through for seven years or at this point six years. it's amazing that max credensic has already been established as the one actor that will bite into an insect and here he is biting into the crawfish which robbie was it a crawfish you could it looked like a crawfish to me yeah it did but he really bit into I mean my question is I think it was a real it was a real dead crawfish because when he bit into it you saw the innards of it come out you know and it was like oh my goodness yeah uh there aren't many things that are vivid in my imagination and my memory this one is this one um first of all while i was doing that

scene where we all seated around the table and just before max bites into it i had a horrible cold and my head was throbbing inside and i must have had somewhat of a fever because during some of the shooting of that particular scene i distinctly remember uh must have the palm asleep because I remember waking up hearing someone said cut and I went cut I didn't hear action um so and I know he would that I don't know if they used it or not but I know that they were shooting it over my shoulder so that you know I probably they didn't care where my head was but I was fast asleep but before that going to the to the crawfish as I remember it David asked all of us, asked me primarily first, will you bite into this thing?

And I looked at it and I went, no. And Max went, oh, I'll do it. I'll do it. And for extra screen time, actually. And I remember David said, okay, thank you, Max. All of us thought it was disgusting. disgusting and we all

he said turned to the camera crew and said we've got to get this in one take we don't want Max to do this more than once so let's make sure everything is ready

to get this and then and then Max indeed bit into that horrible crustacean and that the juice is flowing out of his mouth and it was disgusting

and I wasn't feeling well at that moment anyway and I remember my stomach really turning it at seeing him eating that Anyway, that's the backstage chest. Well, he did it. Okay, thank you for the, yeah, he really did it.

Quark says, I am not hungry at the top of the scene, which sounds like you really weren't feeling hungry for anything. I was, all I wanted to do was go to sleep. Quark is not hungry. Pell arrives suddenly, and Zek says, is glad to see Pell in the beginning. Zach says, oh, Pell, you know, you're going to have a big future, you're awesome, implementing Pell as the male Pell that Zec thinks he is still. When Pell marches over and rips off the fake ears,

Zek is furious. It was a very funny reaction to this. First, terrified and then furious, threatens to punish Quark and Pell for, you know, first punished Pell and then punish Quark. And Quirk says, I didn't know. And Zell goes, well, that's not. I didn't know she was a female. Exactly.

Yeah. Yeah, because that's not an excuse. But then Quark turns it around and says, oh, well, Pell helped you achieve this goal. So, you know, they'll have to put three of us in jail then because you're going to be punished two. And while Sean plays it beautifully, he completely stops, hmm, I see your point. He does say, I didn't know she was a female. And he repeats the same thing. ignorance is no excuse right yeah but uh he does punish quark by taking his commissions away

and that's a huge punishment oh my gosh this is what i was referring to before this is the percentage of every single deal future deal that ever made in gamma quadrant would have got exactly yeah cork would have been um he would have been probably the second richest very shameful right after the grad negus yeah very much so um male pal can we abbreviated as mel Mel? Yeah, male pal is male. Male pal. Mel Mel Mel.

Pal Mel. Well, Quark has lost all of these, this riches, this, basically, it's like the mega powerball lottery he just won. And then he just lost it. He just lost all of it. David pointed something out to me that I didn't remember. There's this, when the ears come off, I put my hands over her ears to prevent people from seeing the loss. He said, that wasn't in the script. He said, you must have made that up.

Oh, wow. No, that's cool. Is it a natural reaction? He said, that wasn't my idea, and you did it, and it wasn't in the script. So you must have just done that out of your own instincts. Oh, bravo. It was great. Yeah.

It was the perfect reaction. Yeah. Well, Zek takes away the Powerball lottery that you thought you won, and he leaves, and Quark is very disappointed. Like you say, it's a big loss. Hell apologizes for, you know, coming in here. But she wanted to make the point that women are as capable as men at all of this. Yeah. And Quirk says, please just don't tell anybody else.

And we have this tender goodbye moment where they kiss. They kiss. Yeah. Yeah. It's a very sweet. It was lovely. It really was. And it's cute.

That final line. Well, then, I guess if I can't have you, I'll take those 10 bars of Latinam after all. Yeah, she wants the money. She has a Ferengi. I do want to rewind just a half smidgen to when Zek leaves. I just love, he looks at Quark, he says, I've always said you are a bright fellow quark. And then he looks at Pell and says, shame on you! And then walked out.

It was just like, oh, my God. It's such a funny little. It's not only funny. It's enormously evocative of men who put down women. because he says shame there's something just slightly religious about that you've done something immoral yes um and and at this point we've all come to respect pal we all understand what she's going through we all understand we all want her to do better in life right and here is this sort of quasi religious put down uh i hope people understand

That's the writers and the production saying something, again, enormously important. Yeah. This sort of attitude, this kind of unthinking put down, is hurtful, painful, and wrong. Yeah. Well said. Thank you, Armin. Yeah. Our final scene is back in Quark's bar.

Quark approaches Dax here and asks her to play some more Tongo, wants to win some money. back, I guess. It's not going to happen, Herman. Dax is good at this game. But I like her company. It's worth it to me to have her there. Oh, that's saying a lot. Yeah. I pay him back in other ways. Oh, oh my. Dax does admit, though, that she's really going to miss Pell. And she says to Quark, I know you'll miss her too. And Quark tries to cover here a bit, but Dax knows. Nice try, Corp. She knows quark. She socializes with Frankie's. She knows quark.

I know. It's a whole new side. Yeah. Wow. There you go. What an episode. What a great episode. This was a fun episode.

It really was. And it was an episode that makes people think. It definitely is a good, it's one of those episodes. And as we said several times, it also betrays our main characters as not perfect heroes. Forgetting about Quark, but the other people, except for Dax, but the other members of the Dax is perfect. are less than perfect. But you know what, this is two shows in a row that we have bittersweet endings.

Yeah. Yeah. Two shows in a row where you're just like, oh, our heroes come this close to a true loving romance that elevates them. And it just slips through their fingers for rules for, you know, everybody. everybody having, well, in an interesting way, respecting that their lives are going in different directions and they can't come together and make that happen. So it's bittersweet. What was your lesson, Robbie, from this episode?

This has got a lot of lessons in it. But I guess if I had to pick one for me, the lesson is, what I wrote is don't let old ideas from the past blind. you to what's true today oh that's my answer okay terry what do you think of i wrote uh gender equality just you know i mean look we haven't even passed the equal rights amendment how long has that been going on and so it's it's important that they wrote this episode so that's that's what speaks to me, is she is doing just as good of a job, if not better. Rom couldn't do what she did.

She's a very intelligent person, and it doesn't matter what her gender is. Just very much what Robbie said, so you need to get, you know, don't judge a book by its cover, or its lobes, rather. Yep. Well, but. Armin, what is your lesson? I'm going to read what I wrote. The theme is the social issue.

of women having to exist under a glass ceiling, their need to do extraordinary things in order to achieve things that men don't necessarily have to do. They have to be extraordinary. Pell is extraordinary. And for her to be considered an equal, she has to do extraordinary things,

whereas men don't have to do that. That's so true in our world, isn't it? It is true, yeah, unfortunately. In fact, I wrote, which they shouldn't have to, which women shouldn't have to do that. The second thing I wrote also a theme. Also, this has to do what I mentioned earlier.

Also, that preconceptions need to be constantly re-evaluated, even if experience and social mores have indoctrinated you otherwise. You have to constantly re-evaluate what you think about things as more information comes in and not be locked in to a point of view that was baked in years ago. Great. Yeah, so I agree with all of you, everything that you've said, definitely the gender inequality issue.

And also, Armin's secondary theme, which is basically don't, you know, be careful of generalizations. It's so easy just to generalize. And so for me, yes, it's the gender inequality, but it's also the racial or species inequality that goes on in this episode, too. Be careful of that. The winner of our Patreon poll for the theme and moral of this episode is submitted by Cody. Don't be afraid to go against societal norms and expectations. Great, Cody.

Great, great. Great theme. Well, that was awesome for everybody listening. Thank you for joining us today for this recap and discussion of this episode. Next time, we're going to be talking about the episode Necessary Evil. So please come back and listen to that conversation for all our Patreon supporters. Stay tuned. You're going to get all your bonus material coming right up.

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