Memory Alpha:AOL chats/Ronald D. Moore/ron087.txt

Subj: Answers Date: 2/17/98 11:46:36 AM Pacific Standard Time From: RonDMoore

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We usually try to throw in the name of a post-20th person whenever we discuss historical events or people on DS9, but you're right in that I can't think of an author or playwright that we've specifically identified from the post-20th era. Then again, we've made so many off-hand references to people and events over the years that there might be a few mixed in there somewhere.

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We never addressed this point, but my working assumption was that the E-E had her keel laid sometime during TNG's last season and was probably going to be given another name. When the E-D was destroyed, that Sovereign-class ship was nearing completion and was then christened Enterprise. This same sort of thing happened during WWII. After the carrier Yorktown was sunk at Midway, the US Navy decided to rename a carrier then under construction in honor of the fallen ship.

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The question that will not go away... No word on any future Tom Riker episode.

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Possibly. We've only just begun discussions on the final season.

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There are no plans to do so at the moment.

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Not completely. We intended that both the Tal'Shiar and the Obsidian Order would be devastated, but not totally wiped out by the failed attack on the Founders' homeworld. By now, the Tal'Shiar has been rebuilt, if not to its former strength.

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We still have some things in store for the Kai...

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It seemed to me that we laid in a lot of motivation for Odo within the six- episode arc: his growing involvement with the Dominion, his gradual indentification with the Founders, the divergence of his goals from that of Kira and the others, etc. It also seemed that we'd established that Odo had felt a powerful tug toward the Link in previous episodes, so I'd say that the foundation for his behavior was firmly established.

Subj: Answers Date: 2/17/98 12:28:01 PM Pacific Standard Time From: RonDMoore

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While I wish we'd spent more time dealing with the fallout from Odo's betrayal, I think it's important to remember that Odo *did* come through for Kira and the others in "Sacrifice". He *did* change sides and he *did* rally his deputies at a crucial moment to save Kira and Rom. I don't think there's a question about his trustworthiness on the station. The real question is what he'll do when confronted with the Female Shapeshifter again. As for the Odo/Kira relationship post-"Sacrifice", I agree that we could've spent time more time dealing with it, but I also think that Kira of all people understands what it's like to be torn between your people and your duty, and it's not too much of a stretch to imagine that she found a way to handle what happened. And although I never intended the closet scene in "Cordially" to be the one beat of reconciliation between them, I'm glad it's there now since it at least acknowledges that there were issues to be settled between Kira & Odo and it *implies* that other discussions took place. However, in the final analysis, this is an area in which we could've done better.

We haven't dropped Kira & Odo, however, and in episode #20, "His Way" their relationship will be front and center.

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Sure, but we had no choice in the matter.

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I doubt that Ira & Hans will be posting. I can tell you that there was no pressure from Paramount for a story featuring the actors sans makeup -- although that was something that the writing staff had wanted to do for a long time. Avery worked very closely with Ira & Hans during the rewrites of the script and throughout the prep, filming, and post-production of the show.

The show came from a pitch by Marc Scott Zicree that I can't entirely recall, but the basic idea was that our characters find themselves working as science fiction writers in the 1950s, and that they're working on something called DS9. The premise was one that Ira especially loved and it was kicking around here for a full year before we focused in on it and committed to doing the episode.

Marc has written for the show before and has several other series credits to his name, including "Beyond Reality" and "TekWar." He's also the author of a book on "The Twilight Zone."

Subj: Answers Date: 2/17/98 12:46:15 PM Pacific Standard Time From: RonDMoore

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My objection to the "redemption" of Vader in "Jedi" was that it seemed so unmotivated. He wasn't struggling with some kind of moral quandry in "Empire" he just wanted his son to join him so that they could "rule the galaxy and father and son." The sudden pangs of conscience in "Jedi" rang false to me and seemed like an easy way of getting to a happy ending (pass Vader's black hat to the really, really, oh-boy-you-better-believe-it, baaaaad guy, the Emperor and then have Vader kill *him*). Even if you accept the final turn toward the light by Vader at the end, doesn't it seem a bit much that he shows up in the same post-card shot as Kenobi & Yoda? Doesn't it seem like their moral choices were of a different character than his? Is this (dramatic) justice?

As for Dukat, while I find him an interesting and complex character, I'm not particularly drawn to taking him down the path of redemption. I rather like the fact that his motives are a swirling brew of self-interest, noble rhetoric, ambition, flawed heroism, and dark hatreds. He's interesting. He's fun to write for. Yes, we could take him down the redemptive path, and yes, that's a valid way to go with the character. But I like Dukat precisely because he's so deeply flawed and unable to grapple with himself and what he's done.

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She came off a little more ditzy than we intended on the page. In fact, her character reads a lot and was rather impressed with "The Puppet Masters." Although I didn't visualize it that way, I like the way Terry played her, giving Darlene the front of a ditz with something more behind it.

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The original pitch centered around the idea of science fiction writers working at one of the famous magazines of that era.

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As I think I said before, I do believe race relations have improved since the 50s & 60s, but that there's still a long way to go.

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Not solely, but Asimov was definitely one of the inspirations.

<<Why the weak "are we the dreamer or the dream" coda? It seems to me that that was the perfect opportunity for Ben to reflect on the similarities of his vision and his current situation bringing the story full circle and ending it on a more powerful note.>>

My own opinion is that this is one of the best things about the episode. I always liked the idea that all of DS9 may be nothing more than the fevered imaginings of Benny Russell. I still get a kick out of the ending and think it is one of the key ingredients to elevating the show to something very special.

<<Is there still an episode coming up entitled "Patriots"? Or has the title changed to something else?>>

This was the working title for what is now called, "In the Pale Moonlight."

<<Did you (and Ira and Hans) intend to foreshadow any upcoming events or themes with this episode ["Far Beyond the Stars"]? A lot of this had the feel of setup (something that only added to the power of the story).>>

There are definitely pieces of foreshadowing in this one.

<<Ira Behr mentioned that Avery Brooks really campaigned to make this a two- parter. Can you tell us why you decided not to go this way? (I would guess it was, at least in part, a monetary decision.)>>

The story was never intended to be larger than a single part episode and there wasn't enough story there to justify stretching it out.

<<As someone who worked on the episode (but didn't write the teleplay), can you give us your impressions on "Far Beyond the Stars"?>>

In my humble opinion, I think it's one of the best episodes in the entire franchise. (And I wish I was the one who wrote it!) Ira & Hans have written a true classic and when this show is long gone, I hope that people will still remember this one.

Subj: Answers Date: 2/17/98 1:01:16 PM Pacific Standard Time From: RonDMoore

<<The dialog [in "Far Beyond the Stars"] mentioned Heinlein, Sturgeon, and Bradbury...Was there any thought given to mentioning a young G. Roddenberry?>>

We did mention this once in our story discussions, but it seemed wrong. Not only would mentioning Gene be out of context in the magazine world we'd created, but it would also break the fourth wall in a fundamental way that would do more harm than good.

<<My question is this: was this epsiode written for, or scheduled to coincide with Black History Month? >>

Just a happy coincidence.

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No. We came up with this and then told them about it.

<<When we see control panel displays are they really there? I thought maybe the actors are just moving their hands over blank displays that are digitally added later.>>

Most of the time the control panels are simply back-lit graphics that are actually on the set.

<<should we read anything into the fact that Rene, who plays the CHANGELING, also played one of Benny's nemesises, who hides his racism under a thin veneer of platitudes and mutterings of "it's nothing personal"?>>

I don't know. What do you think?

<<When this story was being written, did you have the regular actors slated for characters as you were writing them? That is to say, was Colm always going to be the slow, thoughtful pipe-chewer, and Armin the obnoxious, insulting leftist? Could we have seen Nana as the giggling secretary instead of the "tough cookie" writer?>>

We played around with several variations on all the characters before settling on the ones seen in the final draft.

<<Speaking of Nana... it seems to me you could have played up the parallels between K.C.'s situation and Benny's. Was there any particular reason the issue of the sexism during this period was given only a brief mention and then ignored?>>

The issue of sexism was something we wanted to touch on, but it wasn't really what the show was about. We tried to bring it up to show that Benny wasn't the only one feeling the sting of discrimination in those days, but we couldn't really develop it as a full-blown subplot in an already full episode.

<<How much of the writers' characters were created by the episode writers, and how much by the actors?>>

As always, this was a collaborative effort, and it's hard to say where one ends and the other begins.

<<Was there any point during the story break when you and the staff looked around and each other and it struck you, "Hey.... we're all a bunch of white guys! What exactly are we doing here?">>

Well, since Rene Echevarria is Cuban, and Hans Beimler is Mexican/German those weren't precisely the words we used, but yes, we were certainly aware of our own ethnicity during this show.