What Separates Sisko From Other Star Trek Captains, According To Deep Space Nine's Cirroc Lofton
Just as "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" was a strikingly different show from the "Star Trek" shows that preceded it (it was set aboard a space station, keeping actual trekking to a minimum), so too was "Deep Space Nine" a different and more challenging command post for the characters on it. Briefly: "DS9" was about a space station that was bequeathed to the planet Bajor after a murderous military occupying force of Cardassians left it behind. Bajor entered a state of post-genocide reconstruction, and Starfleet was called in to oversee the station and help the unstable, nascent Bajoran government manifest.
The series was largely about the relationships between Starfleet officers and the growing Bajoran powers that seemed to be constantly teetering on the brink of a corrupt neo-theocracy. "Deep Space Nine" was also a famous weigh station and hang-out for a galaxy of traders, so Starfleet and the Bajorans constantly interacted with merchants, criminals, weary travelers, and aliens of all stripes.
Monkey wrench #1: Starfleet, shortly after taking command, discovered a stable wormhole right next to the station that led clear across the galaxy to an unexplored region. Monkey wrench #2: Sentient non-corporeal aliens live inside of the wormhole. Monkey wrench #3: Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) exited the wormhole praised by the Bajorans as a holy figure after communing with the non-corporeal aliens. He was, more or less, a Messiah and a captain at the same time.
It was a great show.
Actor Cirroc Lofton played Sisko's teenage son Jake in the 1993 series. Sisko was a stern commander but a good father, and his conversations with Jake were typically warm and revealing. In a recent interview with ScreenRant, Lofton talked about what separated Sisko from other Starfleet captains. (Well, apart from the mishegoss above.)
Sisko is a dad
In playing Captain Sisko's son, Lofton naturally thought of the character as a father before everything else. The actor noted that most Starfleet captains on the other "Trek" shows tend to be uncoupled; their job is too complicated to accommodate lovers or families. Kirk, Picard, Janeway, and Archer were all marked by their romantic and familial solitude. Not so with Sisko. Lofton said:
"[F]irst of all, the fact that he's a father, that's going to be one of the main things that separate him. Just the fact that you're a father means that you have a little bit more on the line than everybody else, you have a vulnerability, and the vulnerability is your child. And that's something that you always have to make consideration for when you make decisions. As a parent myself, I know that, if I'm going to do anything, I have to consider how that's going to affect my child."
Lofton also points out that "Deep Space Nine" was more assertively religious than other "Trek" shows (set in a largely post-religious world). Because Sisko was a holy figure, part of his job was considering actual spiritual matters. That requires a level of diplomacy that even Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) never faced. Lofton said:
"The other thing that separates him ... is the fact that he is this religious icon. And that responsibility wears heavy on him because he has so many people relying on him to be their guidance. [...] The other characteristics that separate Sisko are the ones that we see on camera. His concern for his fellow crew. His fidelity to the job and responsibility as a Starfleet officer. He never strays from that dedication. And the toughness that he approaches the role with, I think separates, himself from everyone."
The intimidating captain
Lofton said he admired Sisko as a character for how no-nonsense he was. There were no kid gloves with Sisko, and he happily communicated as directly as possible. He could be jocular, even friendly, but began conversations with an air of stern expectation from you. He was like a professor you didn't want to disappoint (a quality he shared with Jean-Luc Picard). "There's no euphemism games with Sisko," Lofton said. "He tells you straight how he feels and how it is going to be."
The interviewer pointed out to Lofton that Sisko was the only "Deep Space Nine" character that seemed to frighten the tough-as-nails Klingon character Worf (Michael Dorn). This is something Lofton also noticed. Sisko was confrontationally principled, careful to stand up to, well, just about anyone who would violate those principles. Sisko knew how to get a crew to work for him, and it wasn't through sugar. It was through forthrightness. As Lofton explained:
"[T]hat would be one of my favorite things when we rewatched the episodes, is just to see how he didn't let Worf get away with anything, you know? And he would strike some fear into him. And of course, he started the series by really being a formidable adversary, let's say, to Captain Picard in the pilot episode. We saw him stand up, strong and tall, really toe-to-toe and face-to-face with Picard, and speak his mind with great authority."
Picard usually held people's attention. In the "Deep Space Nine" pilot, Sisko expressed anger and outrage right to Picard's face. That was not something Trekkies were used to. It was clear Sisko was going to be formidable, and "DS9"-loving Trekkies can happily report that he was, indeed.