#I AM going to make garak at some point but I don't think I could bear to part w him and rn I want to make ones for the craft swap lmao | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

clementine-kesh · 7 months

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It's such a struggle to be a Phlox fucker, I'm not even kidding. It's not the lack of hot Phlox appreciation or the other people thinking it's a bit or even the hypocrisy of Quark and Garak being treated as sex symbols (I mean yes they're hot too but you know what I mean) while Phlox is just treated as some funny guy. All of that sucks but it's not what's hardest for me. No, it's the shipping.

I have been trying really hard to find someone to consistently pair him up with in my mind - I have already given up on finding a ship there's actually considerable content for, if you go to Phlox' ao3 tag and go to filter by relationship literally none of the options even involve him which is fucked up if you ask me - but there's always some kind of snag.

(Note from future me when I was finishing writing the rest of this message: I don't touch on every possibility, only ones I think could evolve into any kind of relationship rather than a quick one off shag (thinking of Trip here) so there's not even that many but I wrote way too much, especially on candidate #3)

The first I saw suggested was Archer which, fair enough I guess, but at that point I had not yet met Shran or knew about Shrancher and now that I do it's not like I stopped with the Phlox x Archer but it's just no longer a priority. And yes, you can totally make Archer having two alien boyfriends work, especially since both Denobulans and Andorians are poly by default, but while I haven't seen Shran and Phlox interact yet (and thus could be totally off) I just don't feel like they'd vibe enough to even hang out casually tbh. Again, I do still ship this but pretty low key.

The next option I wanna talk about is T'Pol and I think that at least initially, she's the most "realistic" option and if the show had been twice as long they probably would've been at least teased at some point (in part ofc since it was the 00s and so heterosexuality was the only option but y'know) and the whole "only two non-human crew members" thing adds something that vibes with me, too, but there's just no way you could ever make them work in the long run because Vulcans are just PAINFULLY monogamous and I simply don't think she's willing to break with that. Phlox would off-handedly mention one of his wives and T'Pol would be absolutely seething. This is not a long term ship.

Then possibly my favourite so far is Tobin Dax. Technically it's only beta canon that Tobin was around during Ent (in the alpha timeline Lela died in 2226 (thus presumably when Tobin was joined) which is over 60 years after the end of Ent and there's no alpha info on what he was doing before but in the beta timeline Tobin was definitely already joined by the 2160s and probably quite a bit before) so unless you wanna go with unjoined Tobin (whom we have zero alpha info and as far as I can tell little to no beta info on) you gotta go beta timeline which I know so little about that it's hard for me to daydream about. But at least Phlox and Tobin are said to have met in beta canon tho I don't know if there's scenes of their interactions. I can probably forget about any non me made content too since beta Tobin is already "commonly" (considering it's all beta) shipped with Iloja of Prim who, fun fact, is actually given as Jadzia's favourite Cardassian writer in alpha canon. Anyway, point is I just don't know enough about (beta) Tobin or beta canon in general to generate anything here.

(And I would consider other Dax hosts as well but unless you count the (alpha timeline) three years between Lela's joining and Ent ending there's not much opportunity for this without time travel. I should mention two things here, one: I don't think Lela is one of the Daxes that I'd ship with Phlox and two: I am not strictly opposed to time travel for the sole purpose of PhloxDax and I can defo imagine him with Jadzia, Curzon, maybe Torias and possibly Emony, but it's an extra level of complication that I frankly can't be bothered with if I'm the only one doing it.)

(Also, just for completeness' sake: in the beta timeline we know Phlox was alive at least until the 2260s which would put him parallel with Dax until at least Audrid tho it's very feasible he made it until after her death in 2284, the two subsequent hosts (who as you know didn't make it long) and Curzon's 2285 (again, beta timeline, it's '86 in alpha) joining. There's different lifespans given for Denobulans (about 300y in beta tho, according to memory beta) but even by the shortest I found (which said 170 to 280) it's very much possible since Phlox was born in the 2080s (beta)/generally sometime late 21st century (alpha). But that's just additional info.)

In summary, I may have to read Uncertain Logic (last Rise of the Federation novel to feature Tobin and the one that, based on my research, is most likely to show him interact with Phlox) but it would be difficult as I can no longer read long texts after getting off my ADD meds (which mess with my antidepressants) and thus literally haven't finished even half of a book in about a decade. As I said, the struggle is real. I swear to you I don't set out with the intention of writing a dissertation in your askbox each time, it just happens. I'm sorry.

Oh, also, if you have more suggestions (or better yet: content) for Phlox ships I'd be very eager to listen! Thank you so much for your time!

-Levi

i respect the grindset so much more people should be phloxfuckers tbh. he’s got that jovial mad scientist vibe and is in an open marriage with his three wives like?? the best phlox ship i have for you is ages ago i made a post that included a joke about neelix using a temporal anomaly to moonlight as the chef on the nx-01 and beginning a torrid love affair with phlox which i still stand by. it happened to me. also i know next to nothing about beta canon but conceptually the idea of pairing phlox with one of the dax hosts is very fun

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aurora-nova-fic · 1 year

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You know when you're sort of mentally lounging in a fic idea with no intention to actually write it? That's where I am right now.

It's another post-canon Garak's exile continues fic, because I am still not tired of those. The idea for this one is that Cardassian men up to a certain age, maybe 50-ish, have an evolutionary adaptation which means that if they don't get exposed to female Cardassian pheromones every eighteen months or so, their biology thinks there's been some kind of terrible crisis, and since no women = no babies, the men will undergo a kind of hermaphroditic process so they can get pregnant. Insert xeno speculative handwaving stuff here. Anyway, moving on, during the seven years Garak was previously the only Cardassian on the station he made do. There was Lang, obviously, those Cardassian scientists, and Ziyal... he made it work.

Post-canon he hasn't been able to make it work, so he confesses to Julian, which is regrettably necessary because they're together so Julian would definitely notice some changes, and anyway Garak doesn't know about the likelihood of conceiving a half-human child but it sure happened a lot with Bajorans so, you know, better to do his homework.

After asking approximately eight hundred medical questions, Julian goes off to confirm his theory that they wouldn't likely conceive a child because human biology is less compatible with Cardassians for some vaguely plausible-sounding reason. But he agrees to, one, make very sure, and two, try to work out a medical treatment to prevent the hermaphroditic process in the first place. There aren't female Cardassians Garak could easily access for some sort of reasons, I don't know what they are.

Anyway, both Julian and Garak have a few misgivings about their plans to prevent all of this, which they tell themselves are foolish but naturally, being the two of them, fail to actually discuss with their partner. (Side note: Ezri has entirely given up at this point and just accepted that the two of them manage to have a more or less healthy relationship despite breaking literally every piece of conventional wisdom on what is required for a healthy relationship.)

It all comes to a head when a Cardassian woman comes to DS9, or wherever they are now, and Garak keeps putting off going near her. Julian finally buys a clue and decides they need to have a Serious Conversation, immediately. Garak is forced to confess that he would like a child, and he also figures that if he is exposure to the woman's pheromones he won't have another chance because he will be too old. And eventually, after a lot of dogged persistence on Julian's part, Garak also drops enough clues that Julian can piece together Garak's reluctance to have a child out of wedlock, because even though it doesn't matter in the Federation it matters to him. He was raised a bastard child and has some baggage, okay?

So they both want a child but aren't sure they're fit to be parents and it's all very emotional and messy and ultimately happily ever after.

(And Ezri just goes ahead and signs them up for classes on parental communication without asking first.)

#ds9 #post canon ds9 #julian bashir #elim garak #garak/bashir #garashir #fic i doubt i will actually write

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slippery-domjot-balls · 11 months

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DS9 S3 E12 Part 1 and Part 2 "Past Tense"

So....I watched these episodes for the first time about one month ago. This is not a review of the episode, but a quick look at some things I enjoyed. I just realized the play on words of the episode title....past......tense.....Past.....Tense.....PAST TENSE. Got it. Good!

Anyway, Jadzia looks professional and ready to mingle in the suit, very flattering, even the feather is great. It looks just different enough to feel unfamiliar to our 2020s, but similar to the point we recognize the potential trends humanity could have experienced and maybe still should.

I love the refined silly look! Hair is fantastic. Great job everyone! High fives all around.

Look at that vest! Can there be too many stripes? NOPE. And before you ask, yes those stripes go ALL the way down girl. All the way. Whoever decided that our vests need to be tailored to be worn upside down is an innovative magician. The fabric beneath that is also wonderful. Looks paisley in design? Either way it is beautiful!

Just look at that smile! No wonder Worf fell in love with Jadzia just like many others before him and all of us viewers! Magnificent molars!

Geometric fashion was really cutting edge....heheheh....

However, art did was not done any favor by that odd Tron Crosshair throwback thing. Maybe it is the Bell Riot Era version of retro? it isn't terrible, but would you hang that on the wall of your 2020s AU penthouse suite? Would you though? I genuinely don't know if you would, so please tell me because I have to decorate in an hour.

You might think that hot fashion would not be allowed in the slums and that the Sanctuary does not permit hotties to dress as provocateurs', but you would be wrong. Julian is sporting a lovely horizontal stripe vest that fits perfectly with his heavy hoodie. He looks VERY comfortable against the concrete.

Julian cannot steal the spotlight though. He might be Garak's main squeeze, but Ben Sisko steps aside for no one. Flannel is the future people.

Perfect outdoor wear for a BBQ with the family or for saving timelines from suffering, Sisko stands front and center showing off a delicious cutoff flannel top with the breast pockets needed for snacks. His overalls also boast great maneuverability and certainly flatter his glutes.

Commanding a room has never been so chic. But we still need to enjoy Kira and Miles.

Do you know why Miles needs to wear such a HUGE belt? It is because he carries so many tools in his pockets. The man is a walking toolbox I swear. You might think that the two tone top is common place in Star trek, and you would be right. But wrapped around the unmatched muscle of O'Brien we get a sight that captured Keiko from day one. Manly magnificence on the bridge!!! Let's take a closer look at Kira. She is always worth it.

No one else could pull off nose tape with such panache and flair! She is a beauty. I think I am smitten! Short hair has never looked better than it does right now. Her knitted vest draws out the color in her hair. The bag she wears proves that she totally snuck a disrupter to the past.....probably. She is always ready for action.

Rest up you lovely man. You deserve it. The purple pjs just work. They make sense since Sisko is DS9 royalty.

OH THERE IT IS! My favorite mug! That thing shows up sometimes and I guarantee Sisko bought that from a gift shop on the promenade.

When all is said and done Star Trek is about fashion. This is a fashion show disguised as the best science fiction franchise ever made.

#star trek ds9 #deep space nine #ds9 #star trek #jadzia dax #benjamin sisko #miles obrien #julian bashir #star trek fashion contest #pictures courtesy of trekcore.com

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ectogeo-rebubbles · 5 months

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for the 2023 in review ask game

1, 18, 23

Yay, thanks for the ask!! <3 (2023 in review ask game)

one. What’s something new that you tried in a fic this year? How did it turn out and would you do it again?

I never thought I'd write about Garak dying in a fic because it makes me too sad to even consider, so that was a new thing for sure. As for how it turned out, the fic ended up amazing tbh (Julian goes full mad scientist and brings him back to life). <3 But I also don't plan to write that particular scenario again lmao. Anyway, the fic in question is save me from the dark (The Wire AU).

In terms of craft rather than content, in nothing to hide (holo!siskarak OMB AU) I used the format of switching back and forth between a series of flashbacks and a conversation about the events in those flashbacks to great effect. I managed to avoid writing all of the tedious descriptions of how characters got from point A to point B, as well as the rehashings of an episode everyone knows by heart, and ALSO skip over the gaps in the dialogue I didn't know how to bridge seamlessly. Felt like such a lifehack when I realized I could structure the fic that way. It won't work for everything, but I really am gonna try to apply what I learned from that experience to writing future fics.

18. What was the hardest fic to title?

home is wherever I’m with you (post-Second Skin garak exile angst + garashir first time). Pretty sure that I had that fic written and postable like weeks to a month before I had a title for it, like, that was the ONLY hold up. And I'm still not fully satisfied with that title tbh, but it's Fine.

23. Share the final version of a sentence or paragraph you struggled with. What about it was challenging? Are you happy with how it turned out?

Hmm. One kind and helpful thing that my brain does for me is that I immediately forget all the details of the parts that I struggled to write and/or was not happy with, once I've posted the fic. XD

(I just went back into a fic to try to quickly find a part I struggled with and ended up making minor wording tweaks and typo fixes throughout the whole fic, so at least I can definitively answer the "Are you happy with how it turned out?" part of this question with a resounding "ALMOST, but not entirely," which is basically applicable to every sentence I've ever written+posted lol!)

Anyway, here's some sentences from a section of the world will never take my heart (In Purgatory's Shadow/By Inferno's Light whumpy hurt/comfort) that I def struggled with:

Julian presses his cheek hard against Garak’s shoulder and greasy tufts of his hair brush the side of Garak’s chin. Under the sharp smell of his blood, there’s an additional sourness that makes it clear that Julian hasn’t had a chance to wash up since his stint in solitary, but Garak doesn’t even consider pulling away.

This bit in the first draft was originally much more focused on Garak enjoying the feeling of having Julian in his arms but I changed that (upon your excellent and much appreciated suggestions, stuffedtiger! <3) in order to better fit the tone that I was going for. I do think it still reads romantic but at least now the romance is not the focus, the focus is more towards the horrible situation they're in.

#ask game #2023 in review

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thegeminisage · 29 days

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STAR TREK UPDATE TIME quick fast. last night we watched tng's "gambit part ii" and ds9's "cardassians"

gambit part ii (tng):

well, this continued to be underwhelming and frustrating for reasons outlined in my previous post

i will cop to maybe not following the plot as closely as i could have been but i thought the artifact turning out to be a weapon was fucking stupid, especially considering it was a Mind Weapon. girl what on earth. we didn't even get to visit vulcan properly

i DID however call that vulcan racefaking as romulan which i was quite thrilled about

vulcan race purity extremists right as we're having bajoran race purity extremists in ds9...girl what is in the water out there. everybody calm down. globalization (galaxization?) is not the end of the world

i did perk up a little when riker was forced to play his literal charade with other people, such as worf and beverly, but it was so brief as to be nearly insulting

this is the only time i think i have not sided with data in an argument...i don't think there was any reason to take poor worf to the woodshed like that :( i'm glad they're still friends though

cardassians (ds9):

oh i had STARS in my eyes this entire episode. i have been COUNTING DOWN THE DAYS until we see garak again and he did NOT disappoint

from what i saw of gifs i never expected his and julian's relationship to be like this...i expected julian to be mister stammery and for garak to enjoy making him squirm. which would have been great and i would not object to it in future content but what we got was a welcome surprise in that it was way more complex!!

like, julian as the garak whisperer...sisko didn't summon garak to his office directly he told julian to have garak there at a certain time. "he never tells me what he's actually thinking i just sort of deduce it"etcetc. i also like julian instinctively knowing when to let garak come to him and when to be firm with him ie stop the whole fucking shuttlecraft until his ass gets some real answers. we havent seen much of his bedside manner yet so to speak but he actually CAN be good with people! or maybe just good with garak

i can't wait to find out more about garak. the worst part of a garak episode is knowing now you have to wait a long time until the next garak episode. i love that he deliberately keeps us out of the loop even though i am DYING to know everything about him. you get the idea that he's really been through something

side bar how and why is he able to get into julians room in the middle of the night???? did julian give him the door code jic 👀other side bar i love this mans little silk pajamas. actually everybodys pj game was on point

cardassian war orphans FUCKED UP. no one is coming to take them back to cardassia, except the one who doesn't want to go. i am SO relieved they didn't pull a tng here by the way. going in i was almost sure they wouldn't but still

bonus points for obrien being fantasy racist in front of his japanese wife. she used her teacher voice to set him straight and not another word of that came out of his mouth for the entire episode. one that man knows about happy wife happy life. two it's a good callback to him also having a card in the cardassian-hating game. pretty sure we said "that was a very ugly thing you just said i dont need to hear it twice" about 1000 times to each other during the rest of the episode

my only gripe with this episode is that i would have liked to hear where kira comes down on this...this episode was very full and not really About her, but the absence of her felt very weird, especially when most of the cardassian stuff involves her so heavily. you can sort of guess where she'd stand ("if they don't like the way we parent they shouldn't have left them here and also we're being way nicer to them than they ever were to bajoran children") but i'd still like to hear it FROM HER. a shame we just didn't seem to have room

of course, i cannot possibly end this post without a shoutout to my very best friend sisko. my favorite sisko moment in this episode was his increasing incredulity when bashir interrupted his MEETING WITH A CARDASSIAN POLITICIAN to interrogate him without warning and then said "it was the highlight of my day. don't do it again." and then bashir did it again. my second favorite part was when bashir woke him up at fuck o clock and said he needed a runabout and sisko was like girl why and julian was like im sorry i have no idea and sisko was like well by all means. will one runabout do. like. he's so wry and sarcastic and at the same time so chill with breaking the rules when it matters - he trusts julian enough to know he wouldn't ask for a shuttle without a good reason and julian trusts him enough not to get mad at the request even when it comes at fuck o clock in the morning. like, he's so GOOD with his people and they respect him so much. im anxiously waiting for more sisko-centric content almost as much as i am for more garak content!!!

TONIGHT: tng's "phantasms" and ds9's "melora."

#personal #star trek blogging #tng lb #ds9 lb

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icykalisartblog · 4 years

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hi, I've been reading some of your fic and I really enjoy it! one thing that interests me is you seem to see Julian as gay, whereas most of the fandom reads him as bi or pan, and I don't think I've seen a post by you but I'm wondering why that is? (I really like that interpretation myself as I'm a lesbian who sees a lot of myself and my journey out of the closet in Julian, but I am curious what your thoughts are on this.) Thanks!

Thank you for asking me about this! I was considering making some kind of post about it earlier, but felt too shy to at first! Explanation below the cut:

First of all, I give most credit for characterization in DS9 to the actors. I mean, they’re the ones who had to take charge and seemed to have the best vision (thank you, Nana Visitor, for refusing to let Kira have a romance with Dukat), so I think it’s pretty telling that day one, Siddig read the script and immediately thought Bashir and Garak were going to be “Star Trek’s first gay couple.” Plus, whenever he’s asked about Bashir’s romances, Siddig seems to always say they “never worked” and that Garak fulfilled the role of love interest for Bashir instead. Also, I’ve noticed Siddig talks in interviews about how young gay men were the ones sending him the most fanmail back when Bashir was an extremely unpopular character. And while it’s generally not a good idea to assume a character’s sexuality based on stereotypes, my goodness is Bashir coded gay for half of the show. Like, what about that time in “Past Tense” where some conventionally masculine men were talking about baseball, and then they’re stunned when Bashir says he prefers tennis? Or look at his campy exercise routine and outfit in “Rivals” contrasted with O’Brien’s drab outfit! Or how he acts so much like the gay best friend trope in episodes like “Rejoined” for Dax, or in “The House of Quark” for O’Brien.

This is all in addition to his relationship with Garak, too. In fact, I suspect that the reason Bashir was so disliked by many fans while DS9 was airing and characters like O’Brien were liked wasn’t because of his occasional obnoxious moments or bad attempts at flirting, but because in the majority of episodes he comes across as gay. Note that many cis straight guy critics think Bashir “grew” so much in the later seasons when he 1) gets even worse with women, 2) ends up with a girlfriend, 3) stops being shown with Garak, 4) loses all his campy mannerisms and acts deadened constantly, and 5) starts behaving actually arrogantly and callously when he was very sensitive and not anywhere near as arrogant as people claimed in the early seasons. So, all this is part of why most fans who are open to a queer reading see Bashir as bi or pan, often with a preference for women. But I’m pan with a preference for women and Bashir doesn’t read that way to me whatsoever! As Siddig said, whenever I see Bashir’s romances with women on the show, they feel forced and utterly devoid of chemistry. His initial stuttering overtures toward Dax felt genuine... but she’s been a man several times, points out to Sisko that Bashir finds that interesting, and then the relationship feels so much more natural as a sibling-like one around season 3! And I guess you could say, “Well, if the writing had been of a higher quality/If Siddig had been willing to follow direction more, these relationships would have felt more romantic,” but it’s a lot simpler to conclude that Bashir is gay and just didn’t start acting on it until he came aboard the station. In my own fic, the concept I go with is that after “Melora,” Bashir never pursues Dax or dates women again and is an adult gay afterward (so no dating Leeta, for instance). As for the engagement with Palis... Bashir already gives so many misleading explanations for why he became a doctor when we learn in “Distant Voices” that the true reason was “because his parents wanted him to,” so I imagine it was more of an arranged marriage that Bashir ran away from. Yes, that would mean he lied to O’Brien, but I’m pretty sure that’s what he would have done. I wouldn’t even be surprised if Palis was also an augment.

#garashir #Doctor Julian Bashir #I need an analysis/meta tag

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littlewalken · 2 years

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Ap 16

I'll tell you what, watching Andrew J Robinson as Liberace is refreshing because you get to see that man just act and tell a story. I'm up to the mom seeing the moving van scene. The top hat scene and then the movie theater and first candelabra part are a ride you can feel like some of the stuff in The Wire.

And it's not Garak on earth/Liberace in space either, haven't seen the milkshake scene yet, but Garak has seen The Loved One where Liberace sells caskets.

Being that was the officially endorsed Liberace bio pic then we can assume AJR screened a few things etc to prepare. I am going to swear that somewhere someone pointed him out to Liberace and it was a sort of unwritten thing that the boy from Ryan's Hope will play me some day.

Next time AJR does an interview someone ask him about making it.

Playing with the new art supplies I got. The charcoal paint behaves like the XL Graphite does when I use that as paint pants. So use really good watercolor paper because it'll need lots of layers to get dark.

The Bruynzeel Design watercolor pencils aren't as dark as Derwent, what is, but they're better than the Cretacolor.

Also have a 24 pack of Derwent Chromaflow. I know they have up to 72 now, all the store had was 24, but this is enough for me to see if I like them. For Derwent fans wondering why they exist smoother than Coloursoft but more opaque than Lightfast comes to mind. But Chromaflow aren't really light fast nor are they meant to be.

Maybe something like a budget sketchbook pencil that's softer than Studio/Artist makes sense? Because when you're just fucking around to find out you don't need a light fast expensive pencil but you want something that's going to feel close to the good ones.

Just saying yes there is a difference between wax and oil and hard and soft pencils.

What I need to do for myself is catalog my art supplies, going to get into doing a demo book again, and take a picture of each set then pair it with the reference picture I plan to use.

For most it doesn't matter but some sets I only have a handful or they only come in earth tones so I need to pick someone with brown eyes. Others like the Bruynzeel design have 'caucasian flesh' tones that are kind of off so I need to find someone they'll compliment, usually goth. Also goes with some sets that are ruddy, some that have a sort of violet ginger skin color, and some that are yellow tone.

Acknowledge that people like Martin Gore have certain undertones to their light skin and you'll be a better artist for it.

rant

Eldest daughter day yesterday where excuses were made for a stranger who was allowed to say "I'm coming right now" for 12 hours for a something that I would never be able to think of doing, especially on a Friday when if anyone else in the family but the eldest daughter had business to do that could only be done on a weekday it would have been the first thing done. Now it has to wait a 4 day weekend.

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