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I was rewatching DS9 and after Profit and Lace, I realized that the events of Prophet Motive weren't so cut and dried.

In it, Nagus Zek tried to open negotiations with the Bajorans prophets. They turned him into a hippie peacenik. Quark goes into the wormhole to fix it, and convinces them that too many annoying Ferengi will come looking for answers, so they do. Zek goes back to being a douchebag, all becomes "right" on Ferenginar.

Except, the Ferengi story arch in DS9 is one of sudden social change after thousands of years of greedy stagnation. Zek is in the center of this change. And while Quark's mom seemed to catalyze it, Zek doesn't strike me as the type to suddenly go for a strong women with "radical" feminist policies before it happens.

So, did Quark only succeed in convincing the Prophets that the change to Ferengi needed to be more subtle and long term?

Zek also didn't seem as clever as he did in his first episode, 'The Nagus'. Whereas before he seemed more like a mafia Don, playing the fool to make his son act, he was more of a senile old fool afterwards, unable to remember or achieve anything..

FaxModem1 wrote:Zek also didn't seem as clever as he did in his first episode, 'The Nagus'. Whereas before he seemed more like a mafia Don, playing the fool to make his son act, he was more of a senile old fool afterwards, unable to remember or achieve anything..

Zek WAS becoming senile in the later episodes (or at least was more and more unable to remember things). That was why he needed Ishtar to run things behind the scenes for him and why he went along with the changes she initiated. He probably retired and left the job to Rom, because at that time his decline could no longer be covered up.

Actually, Zek's entire story arc was set up in the first episode he was in.
He even said it himself, he was looking for a successor, and was testing his son.

Zek knew he was getting older, and at the end of the episode, before teasing Quark, he even resigned himself to having to keep running the Ferengi (Empire?) for a few more years.

Next time we see him, he has tried to talk to the Prophets to learn what is going to happen in the future. Probably to try to get a leg up on his declining mental state, and find out who his successor SHOULD be. Yeah, he comes back a Ferengi hippie, BUT, at the end of the episode, he remembers everything.

We then she Ishta helping him, and covering his decline.

He then reveals his having her help, to start getting the Ferengi to move towards a different philosophy.

Then, when that transformation is underway and not really stoppable (do we put women back into their place, and lose half our new workforce and customer base, or not....), he announces Rom has his successor.

I think that was both Zek, and the Prophets 'plan' all along.

I think this is what happened, behind the scenes.

Zek is restored, but remembers everything, including, subconsciously seeing what the Ferengi had to move towards, and how best to do it. In other words, he got what he wanted. So, without realising it, he arranges for that liquidator to find out about Ishta, and then for Quark to get bad medical treatment, and have to break a contract. This causes Quark to lose his lisence. Zekk then goes to meet Ishta, and they hook up. Eventually, he's 'discovered', Ishta is shamed by Quark, and Quark discovers the truth about Ishta helping Zekk out. We saw what an impact that had on Quark. That literally shock his world to the core.

So, later, when they needed Quarks help for the reforms (the sex change), he went along with it. He protested, but he knew, on some level, they were for the best. This leads to the reforms taking, and Rom becoming the next Grand Negus.

Not to far fetched, considering the Prophets arranged for Sisko to be born, have tossed people through time, and wiped out space fleets.

Actually, it's a fair point about Quark there. He was also in touch with the Prophets. And the Prophets knew this when Zek contacted them. Knew that, in fact, getting Quark on board with the reforms would require them to turn Zek into a Hippie.

Non-linear time hurts my head.