Odo
Encyclopedia
Odo (ˈoʊdoʊ), played by René Auberjonois, is a major character on the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
. He is a member of a fictional shapeshifting race called Changelings and serves as the head of security for the space station Deep Space Nine
on which the show is set.
overseers translated this into their own language as "odo'ital", which literally means "nothing". Even after it became clear that Odo was sentient, the scientists kept calling him that, giving him the name 'Odo Ital' (like a typical Bajoran name), which was eventually shortened to simply "Odo" (Episode "Heart of Stone").
He was studied by Bajoran scientist Dr. Mora Pol, whom Odo disliked due to Mora's questionable (but effective) practice of inducing pain as a motivator in encouraging Odo to assume different shapes before, and even after, Odo was recognized as sentient. While Mora regarded himself as a father of sorts to Odo, Odo felt intense hostility toward Mora. Their relationship was difficult, but eventually they did reach a certain understanding. Odo modeled his humanoid appearance on Dr. Mora, but never had the skill to duplicate humanoid features with precision, making his humanoid appearance an approximation.
As a Changeling, Odo can alter his appearance at will to camouflage his presence. He can change the shape of body parts as needed, such as lengthening an arm into a tentacle to grab a fleeing individual, and liquefy himself in order to flow into otherwise inaccessible areas. After 16 hours in solid form, he must revert to his gelatinous state in order to rest. Originally he uses a bucket for this purpose, which he keeps in his office, but he gives it up after getting his own quarters in the Season 3 episode "The Abandoned." From this point on, he uses the bucket as a pot for a house plant given to him by Kira Nerys
.
When others of Odo's species (the Founders) are later introduced, they share a similar "unfinished" look, which they adopt to make Odo feel at ease around them as they are able to replicate humanoids exactly, whereas Odo, having grown up without others of his kind, never learned to master it. The other Founders refer to non-shapeshifters as "solids", while Odo occasionally calls them "you humanoids".
Due to his status as an impartial outsider, he was sometimes employed by Bajorans to settle disputes. Odo later worked for the Cardassians during the Occupation of Bajor aboard the orbiting Terok Nor ore-processing space station, and later for the Bajorans/Federation
aboard Deep Space Nine (the Federation name for Terok Nor), in both cases as chief of security. During the occupation, Gul
Dukat
had originally enlisted Odo to investigate the murder of one of the Bajoran station workers. Since Odo was seen as a neutral observer, sympathizing with no one, he was considered a valuable security officer.
Odo's early career on Terok Nor hit a snag when he investigated an assassination attempt on Dukat. Three Bajoran workers were initially linked to the attack, and Odo, eager to enforce the rule of law and quickly conclude the investigation, hurriedly convicted them and allowed them to be executed. Soon after, Odo discovered that all three men were innocent and that his lax investigative procedures caused a serious miscarriage of justice. This prompted Odo to be much more insistent on actual justice, though not necessarily the actual letter of the law.
Up until this time, Odo was unaware of his people and his ancestry. A criminal showed him a necklace containing an apparently non-sentient shape-shifter in the episode "Vortex
". Later, in the episode "The Alternate
", Dr. Mora visits Odo at Deep Space Nine and travels with him to the Gamma Quadrant to investigate a planet with a similar life-form. It isn't until later that Odo learns that his people are the leaders of the Dominion
.
In 2372, Odo marries a pregnant, recently divorced Lwaxana Troi as a favor to her, so that her child will not be taken away from her at birth by the father, as required by Tavnian law. Although Odo had been annoyed by Lwaxana in the past, he has come to appreciate her company. However, he still is not in love with her, so after her ex-husband witnesses the marriage, she returns to Betazed.
Odo becomes the first ever Changeling to kill another of his species (in "The Adversary
"). Although it was in self-defense, and there was no intent to kill, the Founders punish him by taking away his shape-shifting abilities, then transforming him into a physical human being ("Broken Link
"). He retains his physical body for several months and even has a brief romantic relationship, but is unhappy in this form. Eventually, an infant shape-shifter Odo cares for dies, but before doing so integrates its gelatinous form into Odo's physical makeup. This causes Odo's body to revert back to normal, and he regains all of his shape-shifting abilities ("The Begotten
"), in a particularly violent slap in the face to science.
Odo remains loyal to the Bajoran and Federation people throughout the Dominion War
. At the end of the war, he goes back to the "Great Link" to cure the other Founders of a disease that Section 31
had infected them with and to teach the Founders how to trust other races again.
During his time on the station, Odo is involved in an ongoing battle of wits with the Ferengi
, Quark
. Odo often spends a great deal of time observing Quark, in humanoid form as well as various other shapes. Over the years the two men would gain a grudging respect for each other. In the series' final episode, "What You Leave Behind", Odo refuses to admit the friendship he had developed with Quark, turning away with his usual contempt. But Quark sees through this, saying, "That man loves me. Did you see it? It was written all over his back."
Odo enters a romantic relationship with Kira Nerys
with the help of Vic Fontaine. Odo had pined for her for years, while she was oblivious. They remain involved even after Odo leaves to rejoin the Great Link. He returns to the station for a while in the novel "Unity", first under disguise as a Trelian woman named Wex. He later reveals himself to Kira during a conflict at one of the temples on Bajor. The two pick up where they left off even though Odo has to leave again, at least for a while.
In the Voyager
episode, "Non Sequitur," Tom Paris' alternate self (in the parallel dimension) relates to Harry Kim a story about how, during a stop at Deep Space Nine, he got in a bar fight with a Ferengi and was thrown in the brig by "a very unpleasant shapeshifter", obviously referring to Odo.
, seizing the opportunity to escape, disintegrates him with a disruptor.
In this reality, Odo has his own set of rules called the "Rules of Obedience" and quotes one of the rules in the same way that regular universe Quark would quote his "Rules of Acquisition".
, who is working for the Bajoran Militia.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe...
. He is a member of a fictional shapeshifting race called Changelings and serves as the head of security for the space station Deep Space Nine
Deep Space Nine (space station)
Deep Space Nine is a fictitious space station, and is the eponymous primary setting of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. It serves as a base for the exploration of the Gamma Quadrant via the Bajoran wormhole, and is a hub of trade and travel for the sector's denizens...
on which the show is set.
Overview
One of "the hundred" sent out by The Founders long ago to explore the galaxy, Odo was found adrift in 2356 in the Denorios Belt by Bajorans. It is unclear how long he had been adrift. Since Odo had not yet learned how to morph into a humanoid appearance, he appeared in his natural gelatinous form. Bajoran scientists, not sure of what Odo actually was, put him in a container and labeled it "unknown sample". The CardassianCardassian
The Cardassians are an extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek science fiction franchise. First introduced in the 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Wounded", the species originating on the fictional Alpha Quadrant planet Cardassia Prime...
overseers translated this into their own language as "odo'ital", which literally means "nothing". Even after it became clear that Odo was sentient, the scientists kept calling him that, giving him the name 'Odo Ital' (like a typical Bajoran name), which was eventually shortened to simply "Odo" (Episode "Heart of Stone").
He was studied by Bajoran scientist Dr. Mora Pol, whom Odo disliked due to Mora's questionable (but effective) practice of inducing pain as a motivator in encouraging Odo to assume different shapes before, and even after, Odo was recognized as sentient. While Mora regarded himself as a father of sorts to Odo, Odo felt intense hostility toward Mora. Their relationship was difficult, but eventually they did reach a certain understanding. Odo modeled his humanoid appearance on Dr. Mora, but never had the skill to duplicate humanoid features with precision, making his humanoid appearance an approximation.
As a Changeling, Odo can alter his appearance at will to camouflage his presence. He can change the shape of body parts as needed, such as lengthening an arm into a tentacle to grab a fleeing individual, and liquefy himself in order to flow into otherwise inaccessible areas. After 16 hours in solid form, he must revert to his gelatinous state in order to rest. Originally he uses a bucket for this purpose, which he keeps in his office, but he gives it up after getting his own quarters in the Season 3 episode "The Abandoned." From this point on, he uses the bucket as a pot for a house plant given to him by Kira Nerys
Kira Nerys
Kira Nerys , played by Nana Visitor, is a main character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Backstory:Per Bajoran custom, her family name, Kira, precedes her given name, Nerys. She has two brothers , and her parents' names are Kira Taban and Kira Meru...
.
When others of Odo's species (the Founders) are later introduced, they share a similar "unfinished" look, which they adopt to make Odo feel at ease around them as they are able to replicate humanoids exactly, whereas Odo, having grown up without others of his kind, never learned to master it. The other Founders refer to non-shapeshifters as "solids", while Odo occasionally calls them "you humanoids".
Due to his status as an impartial outsider, he was sometimes employed by Bajorans to settle disputes. Odo later worked for the Cardassians during the Occupation of Bajor aboard the orbiting Terok Nor ore-processing space station, and later for the Bajorans/Federation
United Federation of Planets
The United Federation of Planets, also known as "The Federation" is a fictional interplanetary federal republic depicted in the Star Trek television series and motion pictures...
aboard Deep Space Nine (the Federation name for Terok Nor), in both cases as chief of security. During the occupation, Gul
Gul
-People:* Gul , people with the Indian, Arabic, Turkish name* Great Liberal Union, Nicaraguan political party a.k.a. Gran Unión Liberal-Manufacturing:* Gul , oriental-carpet element...
Dukat
Dukat (Star Trek)
Gul Dukat is the main antagonist of the fictional television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He is a member of the fictional Cardassian species, and leader in the Cardassian Union. At times he is an enemy, whilst at others an ally of the series' protagonist Benjamin Sisko. He was played by actor...
had originally enlisted Odo to investigate the murder of one of the Bajoran station workers. Since Odo was seen as a neutral observer, sympathizing with no one, he was considered a valuable security officer.
Odo's early career on Terok Nor hit a snag when he investigated an assassination attempt on Dukat. Three Bajoran workers were initially linked to the attack, and Odo, eager to enforce the rule of law and quickly conclude the investigation, hurriedly convicted them and allowed them to be executed. Soon after, Odo discovered that all three men were innocent and that his lax investigative procedures caused a serious miscarriage of justice. This prompted Odo to be much more insistent on actual justice, though not necessarily the actual letter of the law.
Up until this time, Odo was unaware of his people and his ancestry. A criminal showed him a necklace containing an apparently non-sentient shape-shifter in the episode "Vortex
Vortex (DS9 episode)
"Vortex" is the 12th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Overview:A visitor from the Gamma Quadrant, whom Odo arrests for murder and then must extradite, claims he has met a Changeling before.-Plot:...
". Later, in the episode "The Alternate
The Alternate (DS9 episode)
"The Alternate" is 32nd episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Overview:Odo's former teacher believes he has found a life form similar to Odo in the Gamma Quadrant.-Plot:Dr...
", Dr. Mora visits Odo at Deep Space Nine and travels with him to the Gamma Quadrant to investigate a planet with a similar life-form. It isn't until later that Odo learns that his people are the leaders of the Dominion
Dominion (Star Trek)
In the Star Trek universe, the Dominion is a ruthless and militaristic Gamma Quadrant state consisting of many different races. The Dominion wages war on the United Federation of Planets and its allies in the late 24th century, acting as an antagonist in the TV show Star Trek: Deep Space...
.
In 2372, Odo marries a pregnant, recently divorced Lwaxana Troi as a favor to her, so that her child will not be taken away from her at birth by the father, as required by Tavnian law. Although Odo had been annoyed by Lwaxana in the past, he has come to appreciate her company. However, he still is not in love with her, so after her ex-husband witnesses the marriage, she returns to Betazed.
Odo becomes the first ever Changeling to kill another of his species (in "The Adversary
The Adversary (DS9 episode)
"The Adversary" is an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the season finale of the third season. It is rated 4.5/5 on the official Star Trek Website.-Plot:...
"). Although it was in self-defense, and there was no intent to kill, the Founders punish him by taking away his shape-shifting abilities, then transforming him into a physical human being ("Broken Link
Broken Link (DS9 episode)
"Broken Link" is an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the final episode of the fourth season. It has an average fan rating of 4.2/5 on the official Star Trek website....
"). He retains his physical body for several months and even has a brief romantic relationship, but is unhappy in this form. Eventually, an infant shape-shifter Odo cares for dies, but before doing so integrates its gelatinous form into Odo's physical makeup. This causes Odo's body to revert back to normal, and he regains all of his shape-shifting abilities ("The Begotten
The Begotten (DS9 episode)
"The Begotten" is an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the twelfth episode of the fifth season. It has an average fan rating of 4.7/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September 2009.-Plot:...
"), in a particularly violent slap in the face to science.
Odo remains loyal to the Bajoran and Federation people throughout the Dominion War
Dominion War
The Dominion War is an extended plot concept developed in a number of story arcs of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, an American science-fiction television series produced by Paramount Pictures...
. At the end of the war, he goes back to the "Great Link" to cure the other Founders of a disease that Section 31
Section 31
In the Star Trek fictional universe, Section 31 is an autonomous intelligence and defense organization. It is presented as a special security operation, manned by Federation citizens, that is not subject to the normal constraints of Starfleet ethical protocols...
had infected them with and to teach the Founders how to trust other races again.
During his time on the station, Odo is involved in an ongoing battle of wits with the Ferengi
Ferengi
The Ferengi are a fictitious extraterrestrial race from the Star Trek universe. They first appeared in "The Last Outpost", the fifth episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987, during which they made first contact with the United Federation of Planets in 2364 on the planet Delphi Ardu,...
, Quark
Quark (Star Trek)
Quark is a fictional character in the American television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The character, which was played by Armin Shimerman, was depicted as a member of an extraterrestrial race known as the Ferengi, who are stereotypically ultra-capitalist and only motivated by...
. Odo often spends a great deal of time observing Quark, in humanoid form as well as various other shapes. Over the years the two men would gain a grudging respect for each other. In the series' final episode, "What You Leave Behind", Odo refuses to admit the friendship he had developed with Quark, turning away with his usual contempt. But Quark sees through this, saying, "That man loves me. Did you see it? It was written all over his back."
Odo enters a romantic relationship with Kira Nerys
Kira Nerys
Kira Nerys , played by Nana Visitor, is a main character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Backstory:Per Bajoran custom, her family name, Kira, precedes her given name, Nerys. She has two brothers , and her parents' names are Kira Taban and Kira Meru...
with the help of Vic Fontaine. Odo had pined for her for years, while she was oblivious. They remain involved even after Odo leaves to rejoin the Great Link. He returns to the station for a while in the novel "Unity", first under disguise as a Trelian woman named Wex. He later reveals himself to Kira during a conflict at one of the temples on Bajor. The two pick up where they left off even though Odo has to leave again, at least for a while.
In the Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
episode, "Non Sequitur," Tom Paris' alternate self (in the parallel dimension) relates to Harry Kim a story about how, during a stop at Deep Space Nine, he got in a bar fight with a Ferengi and was thrown in the brig by "a very unpleasant shapeshifter", obviously referring to Odo.
Mirror Universe
In the Mirror Universe, Odo is the supervisor of the mining complex at Terok Nor. He is a brutal taskmaster over Terran slaves there and tolerates no deviation from his strict rules. Relatively little is known of him, as no one in the mirror universe is aware that the wormhole exists or who Odo's people are. During a mining accident, Odo leads an evacuation of the Terran workers from the complex. Julian BashirJulian Bashir
Lieutenant Julian Subatoi Bashir, M.D., played by Alexander Siddig, is a main character in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Bashir is the chief medical officer of space station Deep Space Nine and the USS Defiant.-Overview:...
, seizing the opportunity to escape, disintegrates him with a disruptor.
In this reality, Odo has his own set of rules called the "Rules of Obedience" and quotes one of the rules in the same way that regular universe Quark would quote his "Rules of Acquisition".
Novels
In the initial Deep Space Nine relaunch novels, Odo is succeeded as security chief by Ro LarenRo Laren
Ro Laren is a recurring fictional character on Star Trek: The Next Generation, played by Michelle Forbes.Ro Laren was also planned to be a main character in the two following Star Trek television shows, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager...
, who is working for the Bajoran Militia.
External links
- Odo at StarTrek.com