Garak vs Elim, a really shitty meta on The Wire.

[sad-eyed-lady-of-the-low-lands]

Honestly the wire is such a great episode, like not even talking about the fact its like watching fanfiction! It’s just so INTERESTING, I love seeing Garak’s mask break, even a little bit. But what I find really fascinating, and what I haven’t seen talked about is the name thing. 

The first time I watched this Julian finding out Garak lied about “Elim” was funny, it was so typically Garak that I just laughed and fondly muttered “You’re such a fucking arsehole” at my TV. And honestly the idea Garak would quite literally lie with his last breath and about his first name, it’s so ridiculously Garak it is amusing.

But then I watched it again. And now I can’t help but feel there’s something very important in the fact that Garak spun stories about “Elim”. And about the fact that most of those stories were about betrayal. 

Garak’s first story, the one about blowing up the shuttle, murdering a bunch of innocent people just to kill a few Bajoran terrorists. I don’t doubt that happened, I don’t doubt Garak did that, or something similar, I don’t think it was why he was exiled, and I don’t think it meant very much. Aside from demonstrating Garak’s habit of lashing out at people when he’s scared. It was designed to be shocking and ugly it was intended to push Julian away, a futile attempt to keep him at arms length. Although it is interesting that this particular story also involves Garak killing Elim.

In the next version he’s exiled for saving some Bajoran children from being executed while Elim looks at him with disbelief.The final version of Garak’s story has him trying to blame Elim for letting the children go, only to find that Elim betrayed him first. And I just find it really interesting how all of Garak’s exile stories involve him betraying/killing Elim, and how that could be seen that, whatever Garak did to get exiled betrayed/killed a part of himself.  

Given “Elim’s” role in Garak’s stories it sounds a lot like he represented the part of Garak that was the professional, the part of Garak that got a confession out of a man by staring at him for four hours and had to be prevented from making false treason charges against a guy because he talked too much. And whatever Garak did he feels like he betrayed that part of himself, or that part of himself betrayed him, or possibly both. But I honestly don’t think he believes he betrayed Cardassia, or Tain. And that just makes me more curious as to what the fuck he actually did. 

Also the implication that Garak was conflicted about his activities in the order is kind of fascinating, I think it’s pretty likely the order was corrupt, especially if Garak could apparently make up charges of treason whenever he wanted but the idea that he was conflicted about that, or that he was anything other than a loyal servant of Cardassia intriguing to say the least 

[deepspacefeels]

I think he did let those children go and that he “framed” himself–because deep down he knew the whole system was fucked. He knew if they were willing to torture children (especially when it was clear they knew nothing), that the act was not about duty to the state, but sadism and abuse of power. And I think Tain knew that he framed himself. It was more than the fact that he let the children go; it was because Garak intentionally got caught doing it knowing full well he would be exiled. That was what Tain viewed as betrayal; he saw this as a radical act of renouncing the state.