“Rivals” 30th-anniversary reflections

War isn’t always fought with phasers. Sometimes the weapons of choice are drinks, dabo tables, and an extra dose of charm. That's how El-Aurian Martus Mazur sees it. Being a listener also helps. As a rival to Quark, Martus gives DS9 residents and visitors an alternative way to be bamboozled. But this isn't the only rivalry brewing on the station; Miles O'Brien and Julian Bashir have their own battle going on the space racquetball court. With strange things happening all around, the outcome of it all may just come down to the laws of probability. Let's just hope no sperm whales or bowls of petunias are harmed in the process.

In this episode of The Orb, hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing continue our 30th-anniversary retrospective that will take you through all of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, one episode at a time. In this installment, we discuss “Rivals,” how casting impacted the final results, the surprise guest who wasn't, what the story does for the Miles–Julian relationship, and more.

Chapters

Intro (00:00:00)

Highly Improbable Filler (00:02:57)

Guinan's Wayward Son (00:07:24)

Is the Story Rewatchable? (00:11:03)

The Martus Problem (00:17:26)

The Better Listener (00:20:58)

Miles and Julian (00:23:03)

Final Thoughts and Ratings (00:26:52)

Closing (00:28:58)

Hosts

C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing

Production

C Bryan Jones (Editor and Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Norman C. Lao (Associate Producer)