10 MORE Character Reveals That Didn’t Have To Go THAT Hard
5. Explosive Decompression
Sometimes, a reveal is thrown in that clearly intended to shock and unsettle the audience. In Waltz, the writers managed to do exactly that with this little reveal of Gul, or Glinn, Dukat's early days.
This episode was designed to do one thing and one thing alone: restore Dukat to his rightful place as the main antagonist of Deep Space Nine. While stranded on a barren world with an injured Sisko, he has all of the cards; he has the phaser, and he has stories. Lots, and lots, of stories.
In one such story, he recounts a horror story from his past. As a lowly Glinn, he was once tasked with cleaning up a compartment in which three unlucky men had experienced an explosive decompression. In his own words, he didn't sleep for a week.
That he can remember it as clearly as he does, while simultaneously going on to claim he was 'too lenient' on the Bajorans during the Occupation, gives us a little more insight into Dukat's mind. To him, the Cardassians were people, while the Bajorans weren't. Having said that, what was it about this event that left him unable to sleep? Was it the mess that he found, or was it something that awoke in him - something that would fuel his actions as the Prefect of Bajor?
Sometimes, revelations can help understand the man - even if they're a little horrific to think about.