Star Trek: 10 Things You Didn't Know About The Cardassians
6. A Romulan By Any Other Name
Ensign Ro introduced Michelle Forbes' Ro Laren to Star Trek, yet it is also responsible for saving the Cardassians. When they were created for The Wounded, they were seen as a new breed of villain, one who could stand toe-to-toe with Captain Picard and talk to him on his level.
Marc Alaimo, speaking about his role as Macet, said that these initial Cardassians were very one-dimensional, serving as simple soldiers rather than any kind of political heavies. While the crew loved the look and design of the Cardassians, they may have remained, as they had been originally planned, as a one-off villain of the week,
When the fifth season of The Next Generation was gearing up, Deep Space Nine was still a few years away from its premiere, with no plans for Cardassian involvement. The original script for Ensign Ro featured the Romulans as the race that had occupied Bajor.
It was, in fact, Rick Berman who stepped in to suggest the Cardassians instead. He loved Michael Westmore's designs and felt that they would make stronger antagonists.