The Four Seasons Couple (Julian/Jadzia and DS9 commentary)

Dr Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) & Lt Cmdr Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell), DS9 (source)

I love Star Trek. It teaches me a lot about understanding yourself, other cultures and the nature and the universe. It teaches me a lot about different perspectives. It teaches me that humans can hope to be better beings. But TBH, my love for Star Trek didn’t really get the boost until the Star Trek movie reboot (alternate universe) 2009. Beforehand, I have watched several Star Trek movies and random TV series (TNG and Voyager) and I liked them, but I never really invested myself in them. Not until Netflix provided us with the Star Trek series (sans the movies, unfortunately!!!) that I actually started to binge Voyager first in 2018. I binged Voyager first because I was intrigued with its premise (a crew returning home against all odds). Then I watched Disco (Discovery) and unexpectedly fell in love with Anson Mount’s Captain Pike. Then a good three years after Voyager, a few months ago I started binging The Next Generation. I fell in love with Commander Data, respect and admire Jean Luc Picard and realised why TNG has been hailed as a classic. I have not watched The Original Series, still can’t get over the antiqueness of it, but I will definitely watch it one day. 

These days, however, I have been watching ST Deep Space Nine. TBH, I first watched it to fill in the void left by TNG’s finale. I could subscribe to Amazon for ST movies, but I want to limit my subscriptions. Thus I tentatively watched DS9. However, I almost dropped it after Season 1 Ep 1 because I couldn’t stand the cold, scary Benjamin Sisko. I understand his pain and hatred (if not antagonism) towards Picard because Sisko’s wife Jennifer died when Picard (as the Borg Locutus) invaded the sector where Earth is… but it wasn’t like Picard meant it to happen! So I really nearly dropped DS9 after S1E1.

I’m glad that I decided to watch S1E2, though, because at the end, Sisko made a peace with his past and forgave Picard for causing Jennifer’s death (Sisko didn’t say it to Picard, but his attitude was clear that he had put his past behind). Later, Sisko even smiled when he shook Picard’s hand. 

Thus I watched the entire Season 1… not without stopping and yawning though, because it was a bit difficult to digest the storyline at first. It’s hard for me to accept the concept of a Federation-Bajoran space station, plus the whole the Prophet concept. It was hard for me to accept Kira Nerys as the main Bajoran character in DS9 (I still wished Ro Laren was in DS9 instead). I also miss a starship. I actually jumped in excitement whenever a galaxy-class starship (or any starship that rather resembles the USS Enterprise) docked at DS9.  But anyway, I survived Season 1. Then, something made me realised I started to love DS9.

It was when Major Kira had to be transferred to Bajor due to changes in the political landscape between Federation and Bajor, and she was packing. First, Odo came charging, angry that Kira didn’t fight back. Then Jadzia Dax came in, followed by the socially-awkward but flirtatious Dr Julian Bashir. Then Chief O’Brien came, then the Ferengi Quark. Then I realised… I loved this crew. 

I then realised, I wanted to continue watching DS9.

And I’m glad that I kept watching it. DS9 is not without flaws of course, but the continuity is quite solid, and there are less loopholes that are left agape compared to – gasp! – TNG and Voyager. But, of course there is ONE major DS9 flaw for me, and you might be able to guess from my title. 

One thing that generally irked me about Star Trek is their handling of romance. Granted, the Alternate Universe Spock-Uhura is welcomed, particularly because they are indeed so cute on screen. Tom Paris-B’Elanna Torres pairing in Voyager is also very sweet. In Picard, Will Riker-Deanna Troi’s pairing is a relief, for this pairing was an on-off pairing during the TNG series. They eventually got married, but it was not smooth sailing beforehand. For one, Riker was a skirt-chaser, and they never really mentioned why Riker-Troi didn’t make it during the series. Worse, Troi was later paired up with Worf.

Now, I know many people love Worf etc, and I admire him as a character. However, there was zero chemistry between Worf and Troi. They are much better as friends than as a couple. Even Marina Sirtis said that pushing the “Beauty and the Beast” concept between Worf and Troi didn’t work. It might work… with a much better chemistry, but TBH, the only women I can see with Worf are those with forehead ridges. Thus, his Klingon former partner (murdered by his Klingon enemy) or the Klingon-Romulan girl as depicted in the Birthright storyline. I don’t think I am being ‘racist’ in having this attitude… I just think Worf is more suitable with this type of women. 

Hence, when I learned that the TPTB decided to axe the Worf/Troi romance and somehow move the Riker/Troi romance forward, I am happy. At least TPTB learned their mistake. 

TPTB can also learn the mistake in the romance department from the Voyager. Janeway was always seen flirting (from a safe distance) with Chakotay… and I can see clearly how Chakotay always protected Janeway. But their romance never happened… and Chakotay was later paired up with Seven of Nine (!!!). Out of nowhere. Enraging so many fans. Resulted in so many Janeway/Chakotay fanfictions. Heck, there is even an academic paper, from a journal article, about how wrong Chakotay/Seven pairing was! Hence, when the producers of Picard decided to make Seven of Nine single again, I am relieved. Not sure if it meant that Chakotay died or something, but there’s hope for older Janeway/Chakotay fanfics after all…

Now, back to DS9. Romance-wise, I am rooting for Kira-Odo because… well, they’re just so cute together. However, my main OTP for the DS9 is actually Julian/Jadzia. That is, Dr Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) and Lt Cmdr Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell). And as per usual with the Star Trek TPTB… they axed my OTP… and decided to pair Jadzia with Worf instead. Seems TPTB had not dropped the Beauty and the Beast idea, and thus they decided to pair Worf with the one of the most beautiful women in DS9, and that’s Jadzia. 

TBH, when I read the spoilers about Worf’s relationships in the Memory Alpha fandom, I was just thinking, “Oh okay, he’s going to marry Jadzia… this… Trill. No biggie.”  Then, entered Jadzia into DS9, followed by the flirtatious and certainly not bashful Julian Bashir, and all I said was “Okay. Jadzia… is going to marry Worf, right? Okay. And what the heck is Julian doing, chasing her around like that?!”

TBH (I use this word a lot in this post!), Julian Bashir was NOT my favourite character in DS9 the first time he appeared. I actually first saw him in TNG Birthright, conversing with Data, but I just thought, who was this pompous guy?! Unlike my love to Data (which practically bloomed in the 3rd episode of TNG S1 or so…), I thought Julian was annoying with him chasing around Dax. Naturally, I am with Dax in ignoring this young, pompous British-accented doctor. He’s funny, but that’s it. Let him chase her around. It won’t make a difference.

Commander Data, meet Dr Julian Bashir! (TNG Birthright p1)

Several episodes later though… I was surprised to find that my opinion about Dr Bashir changed ever so slightly. I can pinpoint exactly when I realised he was not just being a skirt-chaser… that there is a sincere doctor behind that adolescence attitude. It was a good few episodes into Season 3 (“Equilibrium”, E4), when Jadzia Dax had to be taken back to Trill for medical examination due to her violent hallucinations. 

"If this little story doesn't put you to sleep..." (Equilibrium, S3E4)

Onboard the Defiant, Dax actually went to Bashir’s room (nothing fancy, just a spartan military room with two bunkers). She couldn’t sleep, so could she talk with Bashir for a bit? I was as surprised as Bashir. For one, that Dax actually came to Bashir for a chit-chat, instead of to Sisko (because Curzon Dax – the Dax host before Jadzia – was actually Sisko’s mentor). Another thing, Bashir was actually being a gentleman! He told Jadzia that he was actually scared of doctors when he was a child, but then he realised they were actually just trying to help people, hence he wanted to be a doctor as well. Then, bashfully, Julian said “If this little story doesn’t put you to sleep, I don’t know what will.” Dax smiled and touched Bashir’s arm fondly, saying that he was "such a dear man" ... and I was really surprised. 

When did she start to accept Bashir as a friend???

Then, Bashir offered Dax to sleep on the upper bunker, if that’s what Dax wanted. Dax’s eyes actually lit in happiness when she heard that offer! She even negotiated to sleep at the lower bunker (cos Curzon was afraid of heights), and Bashir let his bed go for her. Bashir then went up to the upper bunker, continued his reading (‘Trill Physiology’) and asked whether the light was too bright for Dax. He was as surprised as I was to find Dax already slept soundly.

Look here: The skirt-chaser Bashir, not only he actually acted gentlemanly around Dax, he offered her his bed, but did not even touch her, and he actually was relieved to see her sleeping soundly!

Since when did Bashir become a gentleman?!

Since when did Jadzia start to accept Bashir as a friend, a confidant?!

Julian and Jadzia, the two nerds in the DS9 (source)

So I back-tracked and re-watched several episodes. Apparently, during “Invasive Procedure” (S2E4), Jadzia already started to trust Bashir. In this ep, a rogue Trill called Verad boarded DS9 (thanks but no thanks to Quark!) and demanded that Jadzia’s symbiont Dax (basically a slug-looking symbiont) be transferred to him. Bashir point-blank refused to be involved in this operation, for removing the symbiont from the host would kill the host. Only when the other Trill shot O’Brien and only when Jadzia agreed to have her host removed that Bashir relented and ‘helped’ the invasive procedure. But what strikes me is when Jadzia was laying on the hospital bed before the surgery (they call the room the ‘Infirmary’ instead of ‘Sick Bay’ in DS9), she explicitly was searching for Julian’s hands. She said she was scared, and Julian was super gentle with her that I actually couldn't believe that this was the same Julian who chased her around the table just a few episodes back. Julian even expressed his regret for having to do the surgery and asked for her forgiveness before he put her to sleep. When Jadzia’s symbiont (Dax) was finally returned to her, she was seen looking at Julian with an expression of trust. 

I think “Invasive Procedure” (S2E4) was the episode when Jadzia realised she could actually trust Julian with her life. A full season later,  this expression of trust returned at the end of the “Equilibrium” episode (S3E4), added with a dose of fondness. Sisko, Bashir and Dr Renhol (Trill doctor who handled Dax) decided what to do to her hallucination, i.e. telling Jadzia the big secret, that one of her hosts was actually a murderer, hence that memory was suppressed. They agreed that Jadzia had to be the one to choose the best option for her. Dr Renhol woke Jadzia up.  Jadzia called Julian’s name as she reached for his hands. He welcomed her hands too and gently told her that she had a big decision to make (i.e. whether she wants the memory of her suppressed former host to be revealed). 

Another thing to note for “Invasive Procedure” (S2E4), writer Robert Hewitt Wolfe noted that this episode was also the episode where Julian showed he was actually a hard-core when needed; the good doctor demanded that Yeto, one of Verad’s two Klingon assistants (the other one was T’Kar, played by Tim Russ, the Tuvok of Voyager), assist him in treating Jadzia’s surgery scar post-surgery. Julian (or shall I say Alexander Siddig) was amazing in standing up to the Klingon. I mean, Julian is skinny, yet he barked his orders at Yeto and didn’t back down until the Klingon assisted him with Jadzia. I think Jadzia (being an expert on Klingon-culture) would be proud if she was awake.

Anyway, to further trace down the Julian-Jadzia interactions, I went back further to “Dax” (S1E8) where Jadzia was trialed for murdering a man (of another species), and the act was allegedly conducted by Jadzia’s former mentor, Curzon Dax. This is the first time in my observation that I saw Bashir genuinely concerned about Jadzia, instead of him just chasing her as a gorgeous young woman. When Bashir’s medical testimony almost endangered Jadzia’s case, he looked genuinely regretful about it (he cannot lie in the courtroom, as well as a doctor). Hence, “Dax” was an episode where I realised that Bashir’s interest in Jadzia might not be superficial.

I couldn’t say that for Jadzia, though. The next S1 episode that involves Julian-Jadzia is “If Wishes were Horses” (S1E16), where an alien impersonated Jadzia and acted the way Julian would like Jadzia to be (i.e. madly infatuated with him). The real Jadzia scoffed at Copy Jadzia, and Julian was appropriately ashamed that Jadzia knew his fantasies about him that he apologized. Though Jadzia was cool about it, it was certain that she was still tepid about Julian in this episode. 

If Wishes... (S1E16)

I think I can safely say that “Invasive Procedure” (S2E4) was indeed the moment Jadzia started to realise that Julian was a good friend she could rely on. Jadzia-Julian friendship continued while each of them also grows independently into established characters. Bashir would rescue Garak (“The Cardassian Spy”) from his depression in “The Wire” (S2E22), even to the point of beaming down to a Cardassian colony to find a man responsible for Garak’s ailment in that episode (this episode is amazing to me because it shows how far Bashir is willing to go to save his patient). Bashir had to grow up even further when he and Kira accidentally crossed over into the Mirror Universe (“Crossover”, S3E23). Meanwhile, Jadzia had her own adventures, including exploring Curzon Dax’ past in the Klingon home world (“Blood Oath” S2E19). Yet, nearing the end of Season Two (“The Wire”, S2E22), Jadzia and Julian were established friends that she had no issue in complimenting him for saving Dax’ new plant she retrieved from Ledonia III. By the way, this ep was also the ep where Julian did the Bones thing of saying that he was “a doctor, not a botanist”. 

Anyway, throughout Season 2 and early Season 3, Jadzia has come to trust Julian enough to confide in him again when she fell in love with another guy in “Meridian” (S3E8). I remember feeling surprised that Julian was ready to offer her his support, despite the broken-hearted look on his face. The two characters have apparently progressed enough that both can accept Julian’s unrequited love to Jadzia while still being friends. Still, when “Past Tense” came (S3E11 and S3E12), I was still a bit surprised that Jadzia readily went towards Julian (instead of to Sisko) when she found him and Sisko again during their adventure to the 2024 Earth. Apparently, at this point, Jadzia has truly accepted Julian as a confidant. Julian has also grown wise enough to realise that he would not trade his friendship with Jadzia for anything else, not even by admitting to her that he still harboured feelings for her (“Distant Voices”, S3E18). Their friendship went further to the point that Julian felt free enough to type "GO AWAY" to Jadzia when the latter interrupted his flirting with Leeta ("Explorers", S3E22, it was a VERY funny scene!).

Hence I found myself sailing through, enjoying Julian-Jadzia friendship, to the end of Season 3 to the beginning of Season 4 where Worf arrived. I knew Worf would be paired up with Jadzia, but I was not very concerned. But, then came “The Visitor” (S4E3) where Jadzia and Julian were highly likely to be married in an alternate future. I saw the beautiful chemistry between the two actors, who were actually wearing old people make up by then, but the sparks and bickering were still there (well, Julian would smile at Jadzia’s snarky comments). Then I realised, I actually am intrigued with this couple. When Jadzia asked Julian to chaperone her while she played with fire in “Rejoined” (S4E6), and Julian obliged despite having to watch Jadzia rekindling one of her former hosts’ romance, I realised again the extent of Jadzia’s trust in Julian and the depth of his love for her. He’d do anything just to make her happy. To me, this trust and desire to make their beloved happy are one of the primary ingredients to a good love story.

The good-intentioned but bored chaperone (S4E6)

When “Starship Down” (S4E7) came, I was half-hoping that Julian would leap to rescue Jadzia when she was trapped. To my relief, he did (the story could make it that Worf rescued Jadzia instead, or Julian tried to rescue Jadzia but was too late… but thank God Julian did rescue Jadzia). Julian and Jadzia spent hours stuck in a cold turbo-lift and he hugged Jadzia when she felt cold. Jadzia didn’t mind; she actually shifted towards Julian and laughed when Julian told her his past fantasies of being trapped in a runabout only with Jadzia. All the time they were trapped, Julian did nothing dishonourable towards Jadzia. He was just there to protect her and to comfort her. 

Starship Down (S4E7)

Such was the extent of Bashir’s devotion to Jadzia (yes, I consciously use the word ‘devotion’) that I savour every little morsel of J-J’s exchanged glances in the next episodes. Julian adored Jadzia, and Jadzia trusted Julian with her problems and life, and they both enjoyed their friendship tremendously. Perhaps a bit too late, or perhaps on cue, I realised how beautiful the chemistry between them was. When Julian kissed the hologram Jadzia in “Our Man Bashir” (S4E10), despite Jadzia was “not being herself” because her mind pattern was stored in a different computer, I actually squealed, for I truly have come to root for this couple. 

I literally squealed when I saw this kiss...(in S4E10)

When “Shattered Mirror” came (S4E20), I was already rooting for this couple so bad that I squealed again when I saw the Mirror Jadzia exchanging passionate glances and touches with Mirror Bashir. I thought it could not get any hotter than that... nor any more romantic than that (much later, MU Jadzia later got killed in combat, but MU Julian could not get over her and he even captained a Defiant-class ship called the Jadzia).

The sizzling hot Mirror Jadzia-Julian (source)

... which proves that Julian is also a (foul-mood) fighter alongside Jadzia (source)

But I was wrong. The Prime Universe Julian-Jadzia, though not exchanging passionate glances and kisses the way their MU counterparts did, still came out impressive for me. The crème de la crème was in “The Quickening” (S4E24), where Dax and Bashir actually worked together to solve a disease on a planet conquered by the Dominion. As a scientist myself, this episode is very poignant to me because it reminds me of COVID-19. 

The Quickening (S4E24)

For the Julian-Jadzia OTP, the episode is important because it shows how much the two of them have progressed. In this episode, Julian was his usual driven self, a good doctor (although unconsciously arrogant at first for he thought he could find the cure in one week) who wanted to save lives. Jadzia played not just as a nurse and assistant; she was his colleague here. They both loved science and exploration, thus Jadzia was the best person to accompany Julian in his quest of finding the cure to the Quickening. Jadzia was also his reality check who told Julian that he needed a rest, and that it was more arrogant to think that there was no cure just because he didn’t find one. When Julian decided to stay on the planet while Jadzia and Kira returned to DS9, I realised how much he and Jadzia had bonded over the four seasons. 

Jadzia did a pep-talk for Julian (S4E24)

Sadly, “The Quickening” also seems to be the last episode where Jadzia and Julian interacted as close confidants. In early Season 4, Worf has been shoved in to rescue DS9 from dwindling viewing rates, and if there is Worf, there should be Klingon conflict. Hence the Klingon War where the Klingons are the bad guys again. And to make it more interesting for fans, why not pair up Worf with one of the most beautiful women in DS9? Namely Jadzia Dax?

Hence they started pairing up Worf and Jadzia in every opportunity there is in Season 5, and leave Bashir to tend to himself. On his own, Bashir still grew to be a better character in every episode he’s in. Just a few nights ago I was so impressed with his performance as a mentor (or chaperone) to Jake Sisko in “Nor the Battle to the Strong” (S5E4). Bashir was kind, concerned and yet he was also strong. Despite his skinny figure and him nerd-babbling away about proteins and genetics, Bashir was still able to retrieve a generator for a hospital under Klingon bombardment. He did not hesitate to return to fetch Jake Sisko when the latter collapsed under the rubble of the cave ceiling. Bashir also realised something wrong with Jake, but when the young Sisko didn't want to admit it (Jake actually had a trauma there amidst the shelling), Bashir didn't push him further.

Yet, on her own… well, Jadzia became a Klingon woman. She was Velcro-ed to Worf so much that anything scientific about her (she is, after all, DS9’s Science Officer) has been reduced to the bare minimum, replaced with Jadzia the Warrior Princess.

To ensure viewers’ “interest” in the Worf storyline, Jadzia had to be made Madame Klingon. She growled at Worf, challenged him to a battle, and suddenly, just like that, Worf forgot his infatuation towards the Klingon Grilka (“Looking for par’Mach in All the Wrong Places”, S5E3). 

Don’t get me wrong. I’m fine that Jadzia is interested in Klingon culture. I understand many people like the Worf-Jadzia pairing too (the contributors to the Star Trek Memory Alpha Fandom seem to be Worf-Jadzia shippers too, given that very little information was found there about Julian-Jadzia and that the page readily accepts Jadzia to be the best pair for Worf). 

However, Jadzia is not just Curzon. She is also a scientist. Curzon (the host before Jadzia) was not a scientist; he was a happy-go-lucky rascal who loves Klingon culture (self-explaining). Torias (the host before Curzon) was a pilot (which might explain Jadzia's excellent piloting; she's usually at the helm). But Jadzia Dax was a scientist (she said so herself in one of the early episodes). She was this girl who considered Leonard Nimoy’s Spock handsome (I agree!) because… perhaps because – like her – Spock  was a scientist. If anything, Terry Farrell’s Jadzia Dax is like Wonder Woman to me: a warrior (no explanation needed) and a scientist (Diana of Themyscira created the Purple Ray) at the same time. It’s fine to have Jadzia as a warrior, but she’s also very smart and she should still own to that scientific passion of hers.

The closest scientific colleague Jadzia has on DS9 is actually Bashir. Yet, so far in Season 5 (I have only finished until “Trials and Tribble-ations”, S5E6), Dax was always with Worf, and her role as a Science Officer was put to the bare minimum. Her interaction with Bashir was watered down to the minimum (the only passing reference to Bashir’s old infatuation to Dax was when he said “I think I’m going to love history” when he saw Dax emerging with a 60s, I mean TOS time, uniform. The next episode (“Let He Who Is Without Sin…” S5E7) features Dax wearing a swimsuit for Worf, and I just have to focus on other characters (including Quark!), cos I could not care less about Jadzia-Worf stuff. 

To me, there is no chemistry between Jadzia-Worf. I think there is more chemistry between a Tribble and Worf, come to think of that. When Worf found out that Dax was infatuated with him (S5E3), and that they were going to try it out, Dax said something and Worf laughed… and Dax laughed as well… but there was no chemistry exchanged in that laughter. There was no sizzle, unlike the glances and smiles Jadzia exchanged with Julian in numerous episodes in the first four seasons.

Surely, SURELY one of the ST writers objected to the Worf/Dax pairing??

Surely, SURELY one of them realised the zero chemistry between Worf and Dax?? 

Dax might be infatuated with Worf. Terry Farrell might be able to make her eyes shine with love when she faced Michael Dorn’s Worf… But that is not the same as the natural chemistry between Alexander Siddig’s Julian and Terry Farrell’s Jadzia. 

Hence, this post, an elegy, a lamentation of the Four Seasons of the Julian-Jadzia friendship, ends with “at least” notes. At least this is a TV series. At least in reality, Sid is happy with his family and Terry with her husband (Adam Nimoy, the son of Leonard Nimoy – the very Spock whom Jadzia considered sexy in “Trials and Tribble-ations”). At least I can re-watch and re-watch the previous episodes where Jadzia and Julian grew to like and trust each other. At least, I now enjoy Kira-Bashir interactions, because Kira is pregnant (Bashir transferred Keiko’s baby to Kira’s womb to rescue Keiko in “Body Parts” S4E25) and the Kira bashing Bashir in “Apocalypse Rising” (S5E1) was actually very funny (particularly because Nana Visitor was actually pregnant with Alexander "Sid" Siddig’s baby back then!). Coming back to reality and seeing how beautiful Sid has become as an actor helps me a lot.

"This is still your fault!" (S5E1)

But one of these days, I need to make time to watch DS9 again and watch “Let He Who…”. Because I need to move on and I am also curious about Kira’s baby. I need to move on and focus on Kira and Odo. I need to move on and hope that Ezri Dax would be a suitable replacement for Terry Farrell’s beautiful Jadzia Dax (Terry is so gorgeous that I think she would be a great Amazon, certainly a great Wonder Woman in the late 1990s). 

I need to move on… but I also hope that more Julian-Jadzia read this post and understand they have one more fan supporting this OTP. Because Julian-Jadzia’s subtle exchanges of glances, smiles and laughter, and their knitted eyebrows when they discussed anything scientific (including ST techno-babbles), would be much more suitable for my OTP than the growls of Klingon-Trill fights.

But it’s just me. A nerd-scientist who happens to love Star Trek.