Top 20 Episodes of Star Trek Deep Space Nine #13: The Wire

Even though we touched upon him last time, the last episode didn’t truly give us a full look at who Garak truly is as a character. This is to be expected, as Garak’s nature dictates that he never reveal too much of himself. It’s this that makes Garak one of the most intriguing characters in the entire show, due largely in part to the acting of the equally intriguing Andrew Robinson. If I could sit down and pick the brain of any one member of the stellar cast of this series, I would choose Robinson without a moment’s hesitation. According to various interviews, upon seeing himself in the full Cardassian makeup for the first time, Robinson was overcome with this feeling of awe and knew that he had to tell this character’s story. He’s even alleged to have written an entire autobiography in character as a coping mechanism for the demands of the role. While in this episode, we don’t get the full picture of Garak, we get a more clear glimpse of his true self than ever before or since.

We open with Garak and Bashir having lunch together, a staple of the show. As an aside, Garak and Bashir’s friendship is one of the most interesting Dynamics in the entire show. Bashir, being a doctor, is a man who prides himself on his unwavering morality, while Garak is a practiced liar and a man who makes little to know apologies about his moral ambiguity. Two characters such as these should be the bitterest of enemies, but despite this, they actually get along quite well. Anywho, while at lunch, Bashir notices that Garak is clearly suffering from unusual migrains and when confronted about them, Garak acts more evasive than usual. Garak refuses treatment until eventually, his condition causes him to pass out and Bashir has no choice but to bring him to the infirmary. A scan of Garak’s brain reveals some kind of implant that Bashir at first assumes to be some kind of torture device, implanted when he was exiled for Cardassia, but the timing doesn’t seem to add up, especially when research into the devices origins leads to the possible involvement of the Obsidian order, the Cardassian spy organization from our last DS9 article. Finally, presumably to get Bashir off his back, Garak reveals that implant is not a torture device, but in fact, the exact opposite. It was placed in his head during his time with the Obsidian order to alleviate pain should he be caught and tortured for information. Living on the station away from his fellow Cardassians is torture as far as Garak is concerned so he activated the device. However, since the device wasn’t intended for long-term use, it is now malfunctioning and slowly killing him. Throughout the episode, Garak tells multiple stories to reveal the reason for his exile, all of them intended to get Bashir to back down, but what makes Bashir such a perfect foil to Garak is his unwavering devotion to the preservation of life, even the life of someone like Garak. Eventually, Garak’s manipulations lead Bashir into finding a means to save Garak’s life.

You might be wondering, if Garak hates living on the station so much, why doesn’t he just cut a deal with Starfleet. Simple: Because the only means to escape his current situation would be to sell out Cardassia, and to a Cardassian, even a Cardassian in exile like Garak, there is nothing more important than duty to the state. Garak would rather endure endless torture for the people who betrayed him and banished him from his home, than betray his ideals. On the other side of that coin is Bashir, who despite being about as different from Garak as one could be, reveals that he is equally dedicated to his own ideals. This is a phenomenal episode with great acting from both Andrew Robinson and Alexander Siddig, who had great chemistry throughout the entire run of the series. It gives us insight into who Garak was and still is without giving us the full picture. Garak’s constant lies and manipulations liken him in a way to Heath Ledger’s Joker, in the way he tells two conflicting stories about how he got his scars with such passion and intensity that you would swear they were true. In a similar fashion, Garak tells multiple contradictory stories that explain the reasons for his exile, but does so with such sincerity you’d swear that there’s no way it’s not true, even though in the end, while there may have been some truth hidden within, they were all lies.

Next time, Worf has a less than happy reunion with his brother, but for now, I’ll leave you with an exchange between Garak and Bashir that sums up Garak’s character better than I ever could Bashir: What I want to know is, out of all the stories you told me, which ones were true and which ones weren’t? Garak: My dear doctor, they’re all true.

Bashir: Even the lies?

Garak: Especially the lies.