Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - 10 Best Episodes Not About The Main Cast
4. Waltz
Waltz is perhaps the quintessential Gul Dukat episode, exploring the thought process behind the megalomaniac. Here, imprisoned on the USS Honshu as it travels toward his trial, Dukat meets with Sisko, initially beginning the usual friendly sparring that the audience is so used to seeing between the two. The ship is attacked and destroyed by a Cardassian warship, which leaves the men stranded on a desolate planet. There, Sisko's situation takes a dramatic turn for the worse.
Marc Alaimo is never better than in this episode, truly expressing a sense of evil as he reckons with the crimes Sisko puts to him. He has an answer for everything, explaining, justifying, and waving everything away as necessary. He believes completely that he brought goodness to the Occupation that would have been lacking without him. He even ponders aloud why there are no statues of him on Bajor.
In the end, he beats the crippled Sisko to within an inch of his life, though in classic Dukat style sends a message to Starfleet, letting them know where to find him. The war between these two men is only beginning to heat up, with Waltz being the most important episode to understand what truly drives Dukat to commit the crimes he does.