Trust and Boldness: Why DS9’s Kira and Odo Have the Best Slow-Burn Romance in SFF
1200 words, ~6 minutes reading time
Issue 5 (Summer 2024)
I’m a sucker for a slow-burn romance. The kind of sucker who screams at the television when things are tense and cheers when the couple has one of those cute moments that seems innocuous but is massive from a narrative standpoint. It shouldn’t have surprised me when I started co-writing my first fantasy romance (but it did). As it turns out the timing couldn’t have been better, because we started working on it around the time I was doing my first full watch of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
Here's the thing. The relationship between Kira and Odo? Best slow-burn romance across the entire franchise, maybe across sci-fi television. Because one thing I’ve learned is that the best romance is all about trust and knowing each other, in the deepest sense. Which is what DS9’s writers did with Kira and Odo, while forcing them to be bold and take risks and asking us to trust their journey through to the end.
What’s important to note about Kira and Odo is that they start the show with history. Kira is a career soldier devoted to the cause, fighting the Cardassian occupation of Bajor from a young age. Odo is a forced collaborator, made security chief by the Cardassians because he’s an outsider Changeling, trying to maintain order for everyone’s sake. They learn to rely on each other under the occupation, and when the show opens with the Federation’s arrival at DS9, we see the mutual trust they’ve already established. Kira believes Odo to be “the most honorable man on the station” and Odo isn’t afraid to insist on joining Kira for the first mission to the system’s wormhole, despite her objections. The smile she tries to hide at his gruffness tells us from episode one that these two aren’t just colleagues. They’re friends.
Which means that bond needs to be tested, along with their trust in each other. I think the best early test is one that also offers flashbacks to Kira and Odo’s origins under the occupation, when new evidence comes to light about Odo’s first case: the murder of a collaborator. That investigation is how he and Kira met, why he’s Chief of Security—and his mistaken conclusion that she wasn’t the murderer helped form the basis for his trust in her. When he finds out the truth, we learn that she never told him because their friendship means too much to her—more than her sense of righteousness about defending Bajor. And it means more to Odo than the code of honour he holds dear. But the truth staying between them shows more than their care for each other; it’s proof that Odo is learning not everything is black and white, and Kira learning that she won’t be ostracized for her past mistakes.
Admittedly, it takes a long time for these two to openly discuss their feelings for each other. Five seasons to get on the same PADD (Personal Access Display Device), in fact. And when they do, they agree to put their relationship aside—the Dominion War is raging and Deep Space Nine is about to be captured, and they need to focus. But that’s only part of why they decide to wait. We already know by season five that they matter more to each other than duty. But their friendship? That needs time for these two strategists to consider, making the war a convenient excuse for them to both latch onto.
So finally deciding to risk romance is only possible with even more pushing. They’re both so worried about ruining everything and have so many walls up that need to be worn down. Odo can’t even ask Kira out on a date without practicing in the holodeck first, and only ends up at dinner with the real Kira because he thinks she’s still a hologram—and when the truth comes up, those walls spring back into place, courtesy of their mutual embarrassment. By this point, though, DS9’s writers know not to risk the audience’s anger with more delay. And Kira doesn’t want more delay, either. She’s a person of action, which leads her to corner Odo on the Promenade and demand a redo, in full view of everyone:
KIRA: Now, are we gonna have dinner together, or not?
ODO: And if we do, then what?
KIRA: I don’t know! Maybe we could go dancing?
ODO: And after that I suppose you’ll expect me to kiss you?
KIRA: It’s possible.
ODO: Well, then who needs dinner? Why don’t I just get it over with and kiss you right now?
KIRA: Well, why don’t you?!
Ahem. Obviously they kiss.
Though Odo has no problem voicing his frustrations and advocating for what he thinks is right, when it comes to Kira, he’s willing to sacrifice to make her happy—even at his own expense. Except when it comes to his connection with the other Changelings and their Great Link, and grappling with whether he even belongs in the Federation. For Kira, it’s doubt about whether she really understands Odo, despite their history. This is how the writers maintain the tension in their relationship after they become a couple, and every development continues to be steeped in how much they trust and respect each other. When Odo finally has a chance to travel the galaxy with one of his people and finish learning what it means to be a Changeling, Kira lets him go—again by breaking the rules, through a little jailbreak—but it’s this decision that convinces him to stay, after letting her down before by being caught between his people and the Federation. One of the most gorgeous moments in the show follows this, with Kira’s heartfelt insistence that she wants to know him “the way you really are.” His transformation into this miniature golden nebula, swirling around Kira as she beams with joy, is one of the best moments between them.
In the end, learning to trust and be bold with each other unknowingly paves the way for their part in the series finale. This mutual respect built over seven seasons makes Odo’s ultimate decision to return to his people as earned as it is bittersweet. He’s considered returning before, but this time he needs to, to bring the Dominion War to an end and teach the Changelings not to fear the Federation. It’s a bold choice, but not tragic. By the end of the show, Kira and Odo have already let each other go more than once—they know who they are to each other. Which means that when Kira takes him back to the Great Link, neither of them is really letting go. They’re making a choice, to do what’s best for the Federation, even if it’s hard. A romance like theirs doesn’t end when they part ways.
This is also the sort of romance that you can’t accomplish in a season. Or even three. Kira and Odo’s story requires time to pull off. And a willingness to risk keeping the audience waiting, knowing that you might lose some along the way.
We should all be that bold in our writing.