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The Defiant proves once again that she is indeed a "tough little ship".

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    Season 1 
  • The Battle of Wolf 359, which Star Trek: The Next Generation mostly implied (in the form of a massive graveyard of destroyed Starfleet ships) rather than showed, is presented as the opening scene of the series. From Locutus's opening speech to the total destruction of the Saratoga is just over four minutes. And it's implied that the ship only lasted that long because she was crippled early on, causing the Borg to move on to other targets until there were no longer any ships capable of offering resistance. Overall, it's a space battle the likes of which have only rarely been seen in Star Trek, and a level of brutality usually left to some of the feature films. It was a very early indication that the show-runners had a much different tone in mind for this show compared to previous Trek works.
  • "Duet" is a CMoA for Nana Visitor, the actress who played Kira, and guest star Harris Yulin. While the writing and direction for the episode was top-notch, it was the amazing performances those two gave that carried the episode.
    • Ask an actor what their favorite episode of a series is, generally, it's an episode where they got to be heavily involved or had a particularly powerful and emotional scene. Armin Shimmerman (Quark) cites "Duet" as one of if not the favorite episode of a series he's been involved in, and Quark has nothing to do with the episode, making just a cursory appearance. Let's give the writers their due for this one as well.
  • In "Babel", even when Kira gets the virus, she's still as spry as ever, as opposed to everyone else who becomes droopy and lethargic. She also gets the doctor to help by coming up very close to him and telling him she has the virus too, so he better help himself.
  • Ben Sisko surprising Q with a right hook in "Q-Less"
    Q: (astonished) You hit me! Picard never hit me!
    Sisko: I'm not Picard.
    • Worth noting: Q never comes back to DS9 after this episode.
    • Also a bit of Fridge Brilliance / Foreshadowing since Sisko is half-Prophet, and thus might actually be able to punch out Q.
  • Sisko saves DS9 and the entire Bajoran system from a Negative Space Wedgie in "If Wishes Were Horses" by simply saying that it doesn't exist. A moment later, the anomaly disappears.
  • "Dax" gives one for Kira when she shoots down Ilon Tandro's claims that Bajor has no right to interfere in his attempt to arrest Jadzia and extradite her back to his homeworld to stand trial for murder (after trying to simply abduct her and using knowledge of the station's security and layouts almost succeeds) because Bajor is not threatened by this. Kira's response is wonderful.
    Kira: You Klaestrons are allies of the Cardassians; your knowledge of the station confirms they must have given you the layouts. Which not only compromises Bajoran security, but also...annoys us.
  • The season finale, "In The Hands Of The Prophets," introduces Vedek Winn, who immediately sets about getting into Passive Aggressive Combat with Keiko O'Brien, who, in her role as a teacher to the children on the station, is insistent on teaching of the wormhole and referring to the inhabitants of it - who, to the Bajorans, are worshipped and known as Prophets - in secular terms, which Winn, a religious leader, opposes, insisting that Keiko teach of the wormhole as the Celestial Temple and the entities within solely as the Prophets, and not Sufficiently Advanced Aliens. Even in the face of the Bajoran children being pulled from the school, and even a bomb going off, destroying the classroom, Keiko refuses to budge - her duty as a teacher is to teach science, not theology. She even changes her lesson plan to teach of Galileo's persecution by the Inquisition. And, after the bomb, while she takes the rest of the day to recover from being shaken up, she makes it clear that school will continue the next day, now in one of the cargo bays.
    • After the bombing, Sisko outright calls Winn out about how her rhetoric inspired the bombing. She responds by condemning him and the Federation as being soulless and that they will lead Bajorans into darkness, doing so in front of a crowd of Bajorans. Sisko, however, is quick to point out the mistake that she just made.
    Sisko: The Bajorans who have lived with us on this station, who have worked with us for months, who helped us move this station to protect the wormhole, who joined us to explore the Gamma Quadrant, who have begun to build the future of Bajor with us... These people know that we are neither the enemy nor the devil. We don't always agree. We have some damn good fights, in fact. But we always come away from them with a little better understanding and appreciation of other. You won't succeed here. The school will reopen. And when your rhetoric gets old, the Bajoran parents will bring their children back.

    Season 2 
  • This exchange in "Blood Oath"
    Odo: How did you get in here?
    Koloth: I am Koloth.
    Odo: That doesn't answer my question.
    Koloth: Yes, it does.
    • In attempting to prove that she is worthy of standing with Kor, Kang, and Koloth as they fulfill their blood oath against the Albino, rather than be released from Curzon's obligation, Dax takes up a bat'leth and duels Koloth. Sure, ultimately the Dahar Master wins, but the fact that she stands her ground against him and isn't immediately taken down by a master of the blade is damn impressive.
    • The reason that Kang has found the Albino now is that he was contacted by the Albino, offered a chance to end things between them. Even though Kang knew that it had to be a trap, he takes the offer - they're all old men, and at this point, there's almost no other way that the blood oath would be fulfilled before their deaths. However, the Albino has set up his fortress to easily wipe out any invaders in seconds, between guards and traps. But he wasn't counting on Curzon Dax having died and the Dax symbiont being transferred to Jadzia, a science officer. She uses the cloaked Bird of Prey they use as transport to render all energy weapons useless, then, because she's younger and quicker, manages to blow up the armory to divert security. Without Jadzia's knowledge, they'd have been killed walking in the front door.
    • The death of the Albino himself. This is a Complete Monster if there was one, having tailored a genetic virus to kill the firstborn sons of all three of the Klingon trio, just because he bore a grudge against the fathers of those children. After he seems to get the upper hand against Kang, striking a mortal wound on him, he's stopped by Jadzia and her blade. He taunts her, not believing she'll strike the killing blow, and it certainly seems he's correct, as she stands there, frozen and uncertain of if she can take this life. Then the Albino shouts and staggers, falling to the ground dead, a d'k'tagh dagger in his back. Kang, with his dying breaths, thanks Jadzia for saving the killing blow for him, allowing him to go to Sto'Vo'Kor in victory.
  • Li Nalas gets one in "The Siege" when he starts living up to the hero role with his speech at the airlock. The unruly crowd that had just shouted over Sisko became silent the first time Li Nalas raised his voice - all of them, Bajoran and non-Bajoran. This speech, from the man who had previously hated giving speeches, simultaneously shames and inspires his people and is worth reproducing in full:
    "Where are you running to? This is Bajor. We are Bajorans. We fought a war to regain our homeland, how can you abandon it like frightened Cardassian voles? These ships are for our guests, who must leave because it is no longer safe for them here! However, we are Bajorans, and I say that we stay and we solve our own problems together. Are you willing to join me?" [He then walks out, followed by every Bajoran in the crowd.]
  • In "Cardassians," Miles and Keiko are tasked with taking care of a Cardassian boy who'd been adopted by Bajorans as a custody hearing is arranged. At one point, Miles remarks to Keiko privately that "'Gentle' was bred out of these Cardassians a long time ago." Keiko stops and just fixes him with a look, telling him that what he said was a very ugly thing. When Miles attempts to defend himself, she cuts him off, not wanting to hear it again. Miles's words were fueled by his experiences having fought in the war against the Cardassians (including his firsthand experience of their work at the Setlik III massacre, which, as the TNG episode "The Wounded" established, had also included his commanding officer's wife and child, and had Miles himself acknowledge that he hated who he became because of the Cardassians during that war), which makes them understandable. But, as Keiko shows, she may understand, but she will NOT condone it under her roof.
    • It also can't be failed to mention the optics of this moment, where a white man is married to an Asian woman and she calls him out on his microaggression and racism towards others.
  • Near the end of "The Maquis Part I," Odo is raging about the way his hands have been tied by Starfleet rules and regulations, after a ship has been destroyed and two kidnappings. When he declares that the station was safer during the Occupation and the draconian measures employed by the Cardassians, Kira fixes him with a look.
    Kira: Unless you were a Bajoran.
  • In "The Maquis, Part II", Quark out-logics a Vulcan by convincing her that peace can be had "at a bargain price" and swaying her to aid the heroes in preventing a war.
    Sakonna: Do you propose to lecture me on logic?
    Quark: I don't want to, but you leave me no choice.
  • "Tribunal" showcases the Cardassian legal system - in short, a Kangaroo Court where the accused is always guilty and everything is about exposing how and why they are. And this time, O'Brien is the accused. As it turns out, however, the Cardassians are using him to scapegoat the Federation - one of their spies stole Federation weapons by using O'Brien's access codes and a recording of his voice, in the name of making it appear the Maquis had Federation sanction. Of course, the problem the Cardassians face isn't just the Federation's tendency towards True Companions, leading to Keiko defiantly refusing to turn on her husband (in the manner that Cardassian spouses would be expected to plea for the mercy of the state) and the crew on DS9 to discover the spy, but also how Odo, acting as O'Brien's Nestor, or advisor, isn't just interested in the appearance of justice but ACTUAL justice, ends up stalling the proceedings (and expressing his disdain for them every step of the way) so that, in a darkly humorous moment, the Arbiter declares this to be the longest trial in Cardassian history. This is long enough for the spy to be found and Sisko to show up in the courtroom, spy in tow, and not needing to say a word, just glare at the Arbiter, who, knowing that the gig is up, "pardons" O'Brien, in "the spirit of furthering Cardassian-Federation relations."

    Season 3 
  • "The House Of Quark":
    Quark: I am Quark, son of Keldar. And I have come to answer the challenge of D'Ghor, son of... whatever.
    • In the same episode, Quark gives a blistering "The Reason You Suck" Speech:
      Quark: Go ahead, kill me! That is why I'm here, isn't it? To be killed? Well, here I am, so go ahead and do it. You all want me to pick up that sword and fight him, don't you. But I don't have a chance, and you know it. You only want me to put up a fight so that your precious "honor" will be satisfied. Well, I'm not gonna make it so easy for ya. Having me fight D'Ghor is nothing more than an execution. So, if that's what you want, that's what you'll get... an execution. [looking over at a stunned Gowron] No honor. No glory. [looking back at D'Ghor] And when you tell your children and your grandchildren the glorious story of how you rose to power and took Grilka's house from her, I hope you remember to tell them how you heroically killed an unarmed Ferengi... half your size.
    • And the best part, when D'Ghor actually tries to kill Quark despite the dishonorable circumstances, it shows to Chancellor Gowron and the whole Klingon High Council that he is without honor as Quark claims and they discommendate him. Quark got a Klingon warrior stripped of his honor and power and banished from Klingon society. Checkmate! Even Gowron had to commend Quark, even going to his knees just to look Quark in the eyes: "A brave Ferengi. Who'd have thought...?"
  • Rom tricking Quark and Ishka into talking to each other in "Family Business", and then laying down the law:
    Rom: That's enough bickering! You're both acting like children! (Ishka and Quark try to interrupt) I will not stand by and let this family fall apart! Quark, you should be ashamed of yourself! I've seen you treat Cardassians with more respect than you show your own mother. And Moogie, if Quark can uncover your hidden investments, eventually the FCA will too. And then all that profit will be lost. Think about that for a moment. Now, neither of you is going to leave this room until you've settled things. Is that clear? And no shouting! (beat) I'm going to take a nap.
  • "Defiant" Dr. Bashir stands up to Major Kira.
    Major Kira Nerys: Listen to me! You can't have a runabout! You cannot get your medical supplies and I don't give a damn about the colonization schedule! Those colonists can make do with a box of bandages for all I care!
    [Kira turns to leave]
    Dr. Julian Bashir: Stop right there, Major.
    [Kira turns back around, glowering at him]
    Bashir: When was your last day off?
    Kira: I don't know! What does that have to do with anything?
    Bashir: If you can't remember, then it's been too long. You're off duty, as of this moment.
    Kira: What do you mean, "I'm off duty"? You can't do that!
  • The first time the Defiant actually has a chance to engage the Dominion, in "The Die is Cast". A joint Romulan-Cardassian fleet is completely outmatched by Dominion fighters, while Odo and Garak are attempting to escape in a runabout. Just as all seems lost, the Defiant decloaks and destroys about a dozen Dominion fighters while rescuing the pair without breaking a sweat.
    • One of those kills includes waiting until they're at point blank range. The Jem'Hadar ship blows up just before the Defiant rams its way through the wreckage.
  • Nog explaining why he wants to join Starfleet in "Heart of Stone" is mentioned on the Tear Jerker page, yet, in a way, the plot of this episode is Nog's Moment of Awesome. Why? Because Nog is able to step back and objectively look at Ferengi culture and realise its flaws; namely, Ferengi who aren't good at business are second-class, something that has effectively crushed his father — a Ferengi who could be a brilliant engineer, but who instead throws himself into mercantile businesses he's just not any good at, making him a nobody among his own people. Recognizing that, he chooses to defy expectations and make something of himself by taking a different route in life; joining Starfleet. He faces — and overcomes — opposition from his own uncle and the suspicious disdain of other races who see his race and expect only a money-grubbing Dirty Coward. Despite all this stacked against him, Nog not only becomes the first Ferengi officer in Starfleet, he gets there entirely of his own merits and he establishes a reputation as a good officer that even Sisko is proud of.
    • There's also how Sisko's acceptance inspires Rom to put his foot down to Quark and, when Quark tries to forbid Nog going to Starfleet Academy, Rom tells him that Quark runs the bar, but Rom is Nog's father and Quark gets no say in what Nog wants to do with his life, wishing Nog luck at the academy. Rom had prior to this largely been a door mat who took whatever abuse Quark through at him, only acting against his brother behind his back. But in this scene Rom firmly puts his foot down and states that Quark does not get to run Nog's life. He even manages to earn his son's approval in this scene, the same son who had previously said he didn't want to turn out like him.
    • And even though Nog threw his hat in with Starfleet, episodes like "Treachery, Faith, and the Great River" show that he hasn't stopped being a Ferengi. He can still wheel and deal with the best of them, and in ways that can benefit The Federation, thus striking a balance between where he came from and what he is now.
      • Tiny bit of Fridge Brilliance here, touched on the respective page: Nog may be a bad businessman by Ferengi standards, but in the no-money-future Federation? He's bloody Rockefeller.
  • Rom had one of his first in "Facets", when he confronts Quark after learning that his brother sabotaged Nog's test that would qualify him for Starfleet. After shoving Quark against the wall, Rom threatens to burn Quark's bar down if he ever hurts Nog again, telling his brother that his son's happiness is more important to him than anything, including latinum.
  • Odo in "Improbable Cause," finally has enough of Garak's evasiveness, tells him to shut up, and dissects his entire plan in about five minutes. The look on Garak's face makes it all the better.
    Odo: I have had enough of your dissembling, Garak! I am not Dr. Bashir and we are not sparring amiably over lunch. Now you dragged me into this investigation, and you are now going to cooperate with me!
    Garak: Dragged you in? I don't know what you're talking ab—
    Odo: YOU BLEW UP YOUR OWN SHOP, GARAK!
    • Give Garak some credit for having the audacity to do it. Dragging Odo into the investigation was intentional since he was key in uncovering an assassin sent to kill Garak. When he tells his old mentor about it (who by the way sent said assassin), the reaction is basically "Damn, you're good!"
  • There is also the description of Garak's best interrogation ever, he just sat and looked at the guy... for four hours.
    "His eyes, his eyes!"
    • In a moment of very Black Comedy, Tain notes that the doctor being interrogated has since spent three years in a labour camp, been released and returned to medicine. "You should look him up."
  • Odo suffering from not being able to regenerate and still managing to get in a brief Reason You Suck Speech to Garak.
    Odo: What's the matter, Garak? You don't look very happy. Aren't you enjoying yourself?
    Garak: There's no pleasure in this for me, Constable, I assure you. I am simply doing my job.
    Odo: Your job. Yes, this is the job you've been waiting for. All these years of exile and here you are interrogating a prisoner again. It must fill you with pride.
    Garak: Odo, just tell me what I need to know and this will end.
    Odo: But you don't want it to end, do you, Garak? Isn't this what you've been dreaming of? Back at work serving Cardassia.

    The Way Of The Warrior 
  • Both Garak and Sisko get one when they devise a way to warn Cardassians of impending Klingon invasion. More awesome for Garak, because he was able to get a head of Cardassian military who absolutely hates him to sit down and listen. Getting a hold of Dukat in the first place is awesome moment itself. It is as if exiled nobody German spy who Hitler hates called Hitler's personal cellphone number from Puerto Rico, told him USSR is going to invade with a third of their military and that he has a day to counteract that or die. And Space Hitler listened.
  • Can inanimate objects take a level in badass? If so, Deep Space Nine does in "The Way of the Warrior". The Klingon fleet enters into what Martok thinks will be a total Curb-Stomp Battle against the decrepit space station... then panels start sliding open on the hull to reveal a shitload of hidden phaser banks and torpedo launchers. A glorious slugfest ensues.
    Gowron: You're like an toothless old grishnar cat, trying to frighten us with your roar.
    Sisko: I assure you, this 'old cat' isn't as toothless as you think.
    • That same glorious slugfest is made all the more impressive when you realize that the majority of it is filmed with studio models, not CGI battleships. Definitely a Crowning Moment for the guys working behind the scenes of the show as well.
    • Also a Call-Back to the first episode (see below).
  • Apparently the producers of Deep Space Nine decided to create a two-hour episode that was basically just every character taking turns on the "Doing Unbelievably Awesome Shit" carousel.
    • Sisko starts off the festivities when the Defiant faces down a Klingon ship that is harassing a cargo ship (commanded by Sisko's lady friend). When Sisko orders the Klingons to chill, the Klingon captain basically tells Sisko to shove off. Sisko responds by powering up the Defiant 's one-hit-and-your-ship-is-scraps weapons and threatening to fire on the Klingons. When the Klingon basically tells Sisko he won't dare, Sisko simply orders a shot across the Klingons' bow, gives him The Glare and orders weapons locked on his engines. The Klingon wisely backs down.
    • Worf's Big Entrance, with a badass pan-up as he steps onto the station, is kind of awesome in and of itself. But then, Worf really gets in Boss Mode and establishes his rep on the station by bitch-slapping a Klingon who's raising a ruckus at Quark's, and then taking his honor blade after beating him up. Oh, yeah, the Klingon who got beat up is the son of Four-Star Badass Martok, who isn't known for taking these things lying down. Bonus points for backhanding him - which "Apocalypse Rising" establishes as a challenge to a duel to the death - and then not killing him once he's been defeated, adding extra insult to injury. After the beatdown, General Martok berates Worf for what he did, saying that he took away his son's honor. Worf's response? "You cannot take what one does not have."
    • Certified Action Girl Jadzia Dax actually being able to last more than four seconds against Worf using a bat'leth.
    • Worf is summoned by Gowron after the Klingons have officially broken from the Khitomer Accords, calling on Worf to join him in the assault on Cardassia. Worf refuses, which, as Gowron points out, means that the House of Mogh will officially be dissolved, their seat on the High Council revoked, their lands seized, in effect his place (and the place of his brother and son) taken from him. Worf still refuses. All the more awesome and meaningful given the effort that Worf went to in the name of clearing his father's name, leading to Gowron having it reinstated in the course of the episode "Redemption," only to now see it taken - and again, in the name of honor. As previously established, Worf is frequently a better Klingon than other Klingons in obeying the demands of honor, rather than the perception of it.
    • The Defiant's Big Damn Heroes moment when it rescues Gul Dukat and the Cardassian civilian government, while being attacked by three Klingon Birds-of-Prey and one Vor'cha-class cruiser.
    • What looks like 60 Klingon ships chase them all the way back to the station and order the Cardassians handed over. When Sisko refuses they threaten to pulverize the "decrepit" station. As another troper above states, panels start unlocking and gun ports emerge; and you realize that Deep Space Nine is armed. To the teeth. Sisko gives a smirk that almost says, "Now... witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational BATTLE-station!"
    • With calls for their surrender and their very old space station surrounded by dozens of very powerful warships, Sisko has only two words in response.
    • At one point, just before the station's new armaments are revealed, the Klingons initially dismiss the readings of the weaponry as "an illusion created with thoron fields and duranium shadows" — a Call-Back to the pilot, where Major Kira bluffed a trio of Cardassian warships with a sensor illusion that showed the station as having 5000 photon torpedoes and integrated phaser banks on all levels. The Klingons are seeing the exact same readings now, but being Klingons—and in greater numbers than the Cardassians were in the pilot—they're more likely to call a bluff. This time, though, it isn't a bluff—the weapons are real.
    • And now comes one of the most awesome moments in the history of filmed Star Trek. The Klingons attempt to blast the station, and just like Sisko promised, the station fights back, unleashing 5000 torpedoes and skewering the Klingons with its phasers. But that's not where it gets good. The Klingons punch a hole in the shields and start beaming onto the station in waves to take it over...
    • ... We get a near 10-minute scene in which every single duty officer, including the no name extras, goes blow-for-blow with the Klingons. Such gems include:
      • Sisko (really, who else) backhanding Klingons and sending them flying. Then he takes a bat'leth and sucker punches another.
      • Kira gets knifed in the back and merely PULLS THE KNIFE OUT AND THEN JUDO CHOPS THE KLINGON WHO STABBED HER.
      • Bashir, who you figure would be hiding in the sickbay, is actually running around the station picking off Klingons with his phaser. (Which itself is a bit of brilliant Foreshadowing.)
      • Odo living up to his statement that any Klingon able to take him down would deserve an entire Klingon Opera dedicated to them.
      • Dax is battling at least four Klingons with a bat'leth, while Worf is literally doing the same against about a dozen Klingons, with ease.
      • AND Offhand Backhands an attacking Klingon with his mek'leth, getting him in the gut without even looking in his direction.
      • Gul Dukat and Garak are in a hallway fighting the Klingons 2 against 10, and winning! ...All while bitching at each other.
      • The anonymous Bajoran and Starfleet security forces on the station get their own moments too, doing plenty to help repel the Klingon boarders.
    • And when all is said and done, the crew manages to stop the Klingon boarding parties. Sisko then gets on the horn and tells the Klingons to beat it, before they beat them worse. That fact that it persuades Gowron to stand down is itself pretty awesome.
      Gowron: Captain, your shields have been weakened, your station boarded, and more Klingon ships are on the way. Surrender while you still can!
      Sisko: I don't think so. My shields are holding, your boarding parties are contained, and my reinforcements are closer than yours. You're facing a war on two fronts, is that what you really want?!
      Worf: The Empire is not strong enough to fight the Federation and the Cardassians! End this now, Gowron, before you lead the Empire to its worst defeat in history!
      Martok: We will not surrender!
      Sisko: This is exactly what the Founders want! Klingon against Cardassian! Federation against Klingon! The more we fight each other, the weaker we'll get and the less chance we have against the Dominion!
      Worf: Consider what you do here, Gowron! Kahless himself said "Destroying an empire to win a war is no victory"!
      Gowron: "And ending a battle to save an empire is no defeat".
      Martok: We can still win!
      Sisko: Not before those starships get here! Now what do you want me to tell them: to stand down or to come in firing?
      Gowron: ... It is we who shall stand down.
      Martok: *swears in Klingon*
      Gowron: Enough. Cease fire! Order our ships in Cardassian territory to halt their advance! I do not intend to hand victory to the Dominion! But let your people know: the Klingon Empire will remember what has happened here! You have sided against us in battle, and this we do not forgive! *to Worf* Or forget.
    • And the episode is topped off with Worf getting moved to the Command division and taking his permanent place on Deep Space Nine.
    • In the middle of the battle, the camera cuts to Martok and Gowron. The dialogue is in Klingon, but if you know what they say, it makes the crew of Puny Earthlings that much more badass.
      Martok: "They fight like Klingons!"
      Gowron: "Then let them die like Klingons!"
    • And while all this ass-kicking is going on, The Federation itself gets one (albeit one that's more dramatic than dynamic) in a quiet conversation between two characters who are normally the first ones to criticise it. Even they can't deny that for all the Federation's hypocrisies and blind spots, it has a nasty habit of winning - not just wars, but arguments as well.
      Quark: (watches Garak drink root beer for the first time) What do you think?
      Garak: (almost spits it out) It's vile!
      Quark: I know. It's so bubbly and cloying and happy.
      Garak: Just like the Federation.
      Quark: But you know what's really frightening? If you drink enough of it, you begin to like it.
      Garak: It's insidious.
      Quark: Just like the Federation...
      (Beat)
      Garak: Do you think they'll be able to save us?
      Quark: I hope so.

    Season 4 (the rest of it) 
  • In "To the Death." The DS9 crew They are forced to team up with Jem'Hadar soldiers because rogue Jem'Hadar had captured a gateway temple that can transport them anywhere in the galaxy. When tensions mount between the leaders of the unlikely team-up, and the Jem'Hadar First promises to kill Sisko after the mission is over, Worf reassures him:
    "If, somehow, he does carry out his threat... he will not live to boast about it."
  • Out of universe one: After the episode "Rejoined" aired, an assistant took a call from an angry viewer, complaining about his kids seeing the kiss between Jadzia and Lenara. The assistant listens to the viewer rant, and then asks if the viewer would have been fine if, instead of kissing her, Jadzia had taken out a phaser and shot Lenara. When the viewer responds in the affirmative, the assistant's response is "you should reconsider who's messing up your kids."
  • "Our Man Bashir" Dr. Bashir gets his moment in a holodeck episode where it seems likely that the program will cause at least some of the main crew to die. Garak tells Bashir that he's going to cut his losses and run, causing Bashir to pull a gun on Garak. Garak claims that Bashir would never be able to shoot him... right before Bashir actually does.
    Garak: That...was awfully close. What if you'd killed me?
    Bashir: What makes you think I wasn't trying?
    • As can be seen at 2:20, although Garak's preceding speech of 'knowing when to quit' is good too.
    • His solution to that problem is sheer CMoA, too. You can just imagine the holodeck program try to make sense of someone deliberately screwing up the endgame after getting this far and just giving up and trying to kill him anyway, because, presumably, the programmer did not actually consider 'good guy destroys the world' as likely behavior for that holonovel. For a second, it may seem that it was 'out of character' for the bad guy to continue to try to kill him, but consider that the player had gone completely Off the Rails. You have to wonder how that 'episode' would have ended if he'd continued to play, or if Bashir was about to get a Non-Standard Game Over by getting shot without any escape because he'd already 'lost'.
    • Bonus points for Garak's reaction after Bashir's one-liner - "Well, who am I to argue with Julian Bashir, secret agent? Lead on!" It's a mix of "he's completely insane but let's roll with it" and "I am so turned on right now."
  • Rom's balls take 47 levels in badass in "Bar Association" when, fed up with Quark's abuse, forms a labor union and throws all of Quark's insults back in his face.
  • "Homefront." The Federation President, even after a Dominion terrorist bombing, proclaims in a meeting with Sisko and Admiral Leyton that he doesn't believe the Changeling threat to be as serious as Starfleet makes it out to be. In response, they give the President a hell of a jolt when the briefcase Sisko brought to the meeting transforms into Odo. Even the President admits that was a hell of an entrance.
  • In the next episode, "Paradise Lost," the Changelings get one themselves when Changeling!O'Brien sits for a chat with Sisko just to taunt him about how they've played the Federation.
    Changeling!O'Brien: Let me ask you a question. How many Changelings do you think are here on Earth right at this moment?
    Captain Sisko: I'm not going to play any guessing games with you.
    Changeling!O'Brien: Ah. What if I were to tell you that there are only four on this entire planet? Huh? Not counting Constable Odo, of course. Think of it - just four of us. And look at the havoc we've wrought.
  • At the end of "Body Parts". Brunt maneuvers Quark into breaking a Ferengi contract, ruining his business. Quark loses the day, but, rather uncharacteristic for a Ferengi, says:
    Quark: Look, I've broken the contract, so do your job. Take my assets, revoke my Ferengi business license. Do whatever you have to do, then get out. And if I ever see you walk into my bar again...
    Brunt: Yes?
    Quark: You won't walk out.
  • "For the Cause" Kasidy Yates may be in command of a cargo freighter and not a starship, but she proves her worthiness to stand alongside any other captain in the franchise when, after Sisko and the Defiant bust her and her ship for smuggling medical supplies to the Maquis, but, because of the Maquis raiding supplies off the station, he leaves her behind, giving her the opportunity to run away, she instead drops off her crew with the Maquis and returns to take the full weight and responsibility of her actions. She is the captain, they followed her orders. She returned, knowing she'd be arrested for it. And, for heartwarming points, she also did it to be able to return to Sisko, the man who she loves.
    • Sisko making a solemn vow to Eddington to hunt him to the ends of the universe if necessary.
      "You know what, Mr. Eddington? I don't give a damn what you think of the Federation, the Maquis, or anything else. All I know is that you betrayed your oath, your duty, and me, and if it takes me the rest of my life, I will see you standing before a court martial that'll break you, and send you to a penal colony where you will spend the rest of your days growing old, and wondering whether a ship full of replicators was really worth it..."
    • Eddington himself had his own crowning moment just prior to that:
      Eddington: "Why is the Federation so obsessed about the Maquis? We've never harmed you. And yet we're constantly arrested and charged with terrorism... Starships chase us through the Badlands... and our supporters are harassed and ridiculed. Why? Because we've left the Federation, and that's the one thing you can't accept. Nobody leaves paradise. Everyone should want to be in the Federation. Hell, you even want the Cardassians to join. You're only sending them replicators so that one day they can take their 'rightful place' on the Federation Council." [beat] "You know, in some ways you're worse than the Borg. At least they tell you about their plans for assimilation. You're more insidious... you assimilate people and they don't even know it."

    Season 5 
  • "Apocalypse Rising" is one for Odo. Having been forced into a permanent form by the Founders as a punishment for killing one of their own, Odo has a crisis of confidence where he ponders what good he is to the crew. Yet right as Worf is about to do battle with Gowron to expose him as a Changeling, it's Odo who, out of absolutely nowhere, deduces that Martok is the real Changeling, who's been playing Gowron and the Klingons for who knows how long. A validating moment for Odo, and made even more awesome when an entire room of Klingons react to this revelation by pulling out their weapons and blasting the Changeling straight to Hell.
    • Sisko acting like a convincing Klingon for an undercover op in the same episode. He even beats up a Klingon who killed a friend of his and claims that the guy was keeping him from the bloodwine, further reinforcing his Klingon persona.
      "BRAG ALL YOU WANT, BUT DON'T GET BETWEEN ME AND THE BLOODWINE!"
  • Sisko and Dax not only save Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Lurry, and Baris; they also save a TOS Red Shirt!
  • O'Brien in "The Assignment" saves his wife from the Pah-wraith possessing her by taking its plan to destroy the Prophets and turning it against it. Rom gets the assist on this one by figuring out the Pah-wraith's plan before O'Brien does.
  • Quark gets one in the episode "Business As Usual". In the story, Quark goes into business with an arms dealer named Hagath and ends up tap-dancing on the Moral Event Horizon. He ends up not crossing that horizon when he learns that Hagath is making a deal with a Regent who intends to use a biological weapon on his own population, killing 28 million. Quark risks his own life to screw the deal, manipulating events so that the Regent and Hagath end up blaming each other.
    "One life for 28 million. Best deal I ever made."
    • Later, when called on the carpet by Sisko, he defends his actions;
      Quark: The Regent's dead?!
      Sisko: The Purification Squad caught up with him this morning.
      Quark: I can live with that too. And I can think of 28 million other people who won't mind either.
      Sisko: 28 million and one.
  • Worf's Determinator refusal to surrender to the Jem'Hadar in "By Inferno's Light", acknowledged as such by the very Jem'Hadar he was fighting. "I... yield. I cannot defeat this Klingon, all I can do is kill him. And that no longer holds my interest." Leaving the Vorta in charge all "Whaaaaa...?" It also helped offset The Worf Effect, given that he had gone through six increasingly brutal Jem'Hadar fights with minimal medical treatment and little rest.
    • Even more awesome for fans of TNG who would recognize what the Jem'Hadar said as an Ironic Echo of what Worf said to Ba'el in "Birthright".
    • There is an easily overlooked but nonetheless profound CMOA where Garak's concerned. Namely, Garak goes back into the extremely cramped crawlspace to finish the plan to escape, despite having recently had a claustrophobic attack, and despite it being clear that he's extremely uneasy about having to go back in. General Martok and Worf even acknowledge his bravery.
    • Counts doubly for the actor, Andrew Robinson, who is claustrophobic as well. He wasn’t acting.
    • Kira has one as well - when they figure out that the Bashir changeling is planning to wipe out the combined Federation/Klingon/Romulan fleet by blowing up Bajor's sun, she orders the Defiant to make an in-system warp jump (something so risky even James T. Kirk only did it once) to intercept the stolen runabout, snags it with a tractor beam, and flings it away from the star before the bomb goes off.
    • Bashir also gets one, starting when he gives the Jem'Hadar guard interrogating him a look that clearly says "Go screw yourself." When the guard turns his back, Bashir then pulls out a hidden knife and stabs him.
    • The unnamed Breen gets one. The moment the situation goes south, the Breen gets the drop on a Jem'Hadar guard by stealing his gun and killing him and another, dying in the process. The Romulan in the camp tells the others that her people have a saying. "Never turn your back on a Breen." The Romulans, one of the most secretive, tricky, and powerful nations in Star Trek, says that about a species hardly anyone's ever heard of before.
  • The entire crew of the Rotarran in "Soldiers of the Empire", when they recovered their courage and began to sing their war song, to include Martok giving the order to engage fitting the song's tempo right before he himself began to sing, in a scene that was reminiscent of a badass pirate shanty in space, sung by a bunch of happy and bloodthirsty nutcases with lasers and swords. In short: whoever was their target when they began to sing had no chance whatsoever. They proceed to kick some Jem'Hadar ass, fulfill their mission and ask the folks at the station for fifteen barrels of bloodwine to celebrate. For reference, Jadzia had taken three barrels to last for the crew for a couple of weeks. Worf deserves special mention on account of having made it all happen.
  • "For the Uniform" Sisko dropping the jaws of every single viewer and every member of his crew (including Worf) by backing up his promise to hunt Eddington down by any means necessary.
    Sisko: Commander, launch torpedoes.
    [Worf hesitates]
    Sisko: Commander, I said launch torpedoes!
  • "Blaze of Glory" * Nog threatens General Martok of all people with prison for loitering. He stands up to him and his two other Klingon subordinates, at which Martok says that Nog is either very brave or very stupid. Nog says he's probably a little of both, which gets the general to obey him and earns his respect to the point that, later in the episode, the general, when passing by him and Kira, acknowledges him by his rank and barely casts a second glance at Kira. And, as shown in a 2021 event in Star Trek Online, Martok fondly remembers this moment decades after the fact, and honors the bravery of a little Ferengi officer with warm anecdotes.
  • O'Brien gets one (despite his normal Butt-Monkey role) in "Empok Nor," when Garak has been infected by a violence-inducing super-soldier-serum and decided to hunt O'Brien down:
    Garak: Maybe it's true... maybe you're not a soldier anymore.
  • Not a character one, but at the end of "Call to Arms" when the USS Defiant and IKS Rotarran join up with a massive Federation fleet.
    • The Dominion fleet introduced in Season 5 was pretty huge compared to anything seen before (thanks to CGI). But they outdid themselves again by showing the Federation-Klingon fleet with hundreds of ships. And that's far from the only awesome moment from the episode; it's got a last stand at the titular station while Salting The Earth, an I Shall Return speech, and the baseball as a symbolic warning, along with pretty much every main character getting a moment to do something significant.
      • The Salt the Earth moment is notable for the nonchalant way Kira and Odo look over Ops as the 'gift' left for the Dominion has every console blow up in spectacular fashion.
        Kira: Dukat wanted the station back? He can have it.

    Season 6 
  • "Sacrifice of Angels" the Klingon fleet arrives out of the sun and swings the battle against the Dominion.
  • More of a Visual Effects of Awesome than anything else: In Valiant, we get to see a David Versus Goliath match between a small, nimble warship and a massive heavily armed battleship. The captain decides to invoke Point Defenseless by ordering his crew to fly as close to the larger ship as they can. At one point, in the viewscreen, we can see that the Valiant actually flies through a gap in the larger ship's superstructure. They still get their their butts kicked in the end, though.
  • The entire battle to re-take Deep Space Nine back from the Dominion. The Federation started the battle already outnumbered and then ran into such tricks as the Dominion fighters picking off their backup and using an EMP to jam communications. And the crazy thing is Sisko remains so steadfast and resolved that even though the battle quickly fails, he actually kicks the Dominion's ass long enough for the Klingons to arrive and lend reinforcements. Star Trek's ultimate failure is that they didn't do more with a Captain who clearly very nearly rivals Kirk and Picard for top Starship Commander in the entire Starfleet.
    • And of course, there's the arrival of the Klingon fleet, doing their best Big Damn Heroes moment, posed with a sun behind them. Always count on a Klingon to make a dramatic entrance.
    • And before that, when the Starfleet ships try to force their way past the Dominion fleet. Highlights of the battle include a pair of Galaxy-class starships unloading their phaser banks in a series of point-blank broadsides against a hapless Cardassian cruiser and the Defiant sailing through the battle escorted by a pair of Miranda-class starships. Even the Mirandas' sudden destruction managed to be a Special Effects moment of awesome. And then once it seems that the situation is hopeless for the Starfleet ships, cue the Klingons.
    • Before the battle, when the crew realizes how badly the odds are stacked against them, it would make sense for them to back down and live to fight another day. But then, that's not an option due to the short deadline before the Dominion can bring reinforcements through the Wormhole. O'Brien and Bashir proceed to recite a verse from Alfred Lord Tennyson's Charge of the Light Brigade before being shushed. Despite the poem being about a Self-Destructive Charge that got everyone killed, it comes off as a Badass Boast.
      Cannon to right of them,
      Cannon to left of them,
      Cannon in front of them
      Volley'd and thunder'd;
      Storm'd at with shot and shell,
      Boldly they rode and well,
      Into the jaws of Death,
      Into the mouth of Hell
      Rode the six hundred.
  • "In The Pale Moonlight" Sisko successfully, and completely unapologetically, blackmailing extorting Garak, one of the most Magnificent Bastards in the entire franchise. Also a Call-Back to a similar moment in Season 3’s "Second Skin"
    Garak: Commander, this is extortion.
    Sisko: Hm... Yes, it is.
    Garak (smiles): There is hope for you yet, Commander.
  • Of course Garak's subsequent actions straddle the line between awesome and utterly terrifying,
    Sisko: You killed [Vreenak]!
    Garak: That's right...
    Sisko: That's what you planned to do all along, wasn't it? You knew the data rod wouldn't hold up to scrutiny; you just wanted to get Vreenak on the station so that you could plant a bomb on his shuttle!
    Garak: It wasn't quite that simple. I did have hopes that the rod would somehow pass inspection, but I suspected that Tolar might not have been up to the task.
    Sisko: And what about Tolar? Did you kill him, too?
    Garak: ... Think of them both as tragic victims of war.
    Sisko: [punches him]
    Garak: If you could allow your anger to subside for a moment, you'll see that they did not die in vain! The Romulans will enter the war!
    Sisko: There's no guarantee of that!
    Garak: Oh, but I think that there is! You see, when the Tal Shiar finishes examining the wreckage of Vreenak's shuttle, they'll find the burnt remnants of a Cardassian optolithic data rod that somehow miraculously survived the explosion. After painstaking forensic examination, they'll discover that the rod contains a recording of a high-level Dominion meeting at which the invasion of Romulus was being planned.
    Sisko: And then they'll discover that it is a fraud!
    Garak: Oh, I don't think they will! Because any imperfections in the forgery will appear to be a result of the explosion! So, with a seemingly legitimate rod in one hand, and a dead senator in the other, I ask you, Captain: what conclusion would you draw?
    Sisko: [sighs] That Vreenak obtained the rod on Soukara, and that the Dominion killed him to prevent him from returning to Romulus with it.
    Garak: Precisely. And the more the Dominion protests its innocence, the more the Romulans will believe they're guilty, because it's exactly what the Romulans would have done in their place. That's why you came to me. Isn't it, Captain? Because you knew I could do those things that you weren't capable of doing. Well, it worked. And you'll get what you want: a war between the Romulans and the Dominion. And if your conscience is bothering you, you should soothe it with the knowledge that you may have just saved the entire Alpha Quadrant, and all it cost was the life of one Romulan senator, one criminal... and the self-respect of one Starfleet officer. I don't know about you, but I'd call that a bargain.
    • Tolar is a walking Jerkass until he hears Garak's name. He gives an epic Oh, Crap! and immediately behaves.
    • This exchange:
      Sisko: Who's watching Tolar?
      Garak: I've locked him in his quarters. I've also left him with the distinct impression that if he attempts to force the door open, it may explode.
      Sisko: I hope that's just an impression.
      Garak: It's best not to dwell on such minutiae.
    • It was also one of Sisko's moments:
      "I lied; I cheated; I bribed men to cover the crimes of other men; I am an accessory to murder. But the most damning thing of all is... I think I can live with it. And if I'd have to do it all over again... I would. Garak was right about one thing...a guilty conscience is a small price to pay for the safety of the Alpha Quadrant. So I will learn to live with it... because I can live with it. [beat] I can live with it... Computer, erase that entire personal log."
  • In "Resurrection", Kira's taken hostage at gunpoint by the mirror-universe version of Bareil Antos, who was her lover in the prime universe. After climbing up 57 decks with him to get to Landing Pad A, Kira declines to open the door for him, asking him to give her the phaser instead.
    AU!Bareil Antos: Oh, you've been so cooperative up until now; I'd hate to have to kill you.
    Major Kira Nerys: You're not going to kill me.
    AU!Bareil: Oh, you're sure of that?
    Kira: You're not going to kill anyone, not with that disruptor. Power cell's cracked.
    AU!Bareil: [sighs] How long have you known?
    Kira: Since before we left Ops.
    AU!Bareil: Then why did you come with me?
    [Kira then proceeds to kick his ass]
  • Whether or not you agree with what she says beforehand, there is no denying that Kira's escape from the serial killer who'd been murdering the former members of the Shakaar resistance cell is pretty awesome.
    • Earlier still, when she finds out a bomb went off and killed Furel and Lupaza, she kicks the crap out of several security members in her way. While being the Bajoran equivalent of nine months pregnant.
      • A fridge one for Lupaza: earlier in the episode she gives Kira herbs that help with pregnancy pains, while hinting to their other use. That other use? Counteracting Cardassian most often used anesthetics, thus allowing Kira to pretend she is unconscious and save herself by striking at the right moment.
  • "You are Cordially Invited" Sisko putting Jadzia back on track when she angrily refuses to marry Worf.
    Jadzia: Save your breath. Worf went too far and now it's over. Do you know what he wanted me to do? He wanted me to go crawling on my hands and knees to Sirella and beg her forgiveness. Beg her! Me! I was once the Federation ambassador to the Klingon Empire! I negotiated the Khitomer Accords before Worf was even born!
    Sisko: Curzon negotiated the Accords! And I've got news for you, old man... you're not Curzon anymore!
    Jadzia: What the hell is that supposed to mean?
    Sisko: It means you can't expect Sirella to treat you like Curzon just because you carry his memories. To her, you're just a young woman who's decided to marry into her family. If you have to get down on your knees and kiss Sirella's boots, then that's what you have to do. And you know that. From the moment you decided to marry Worf, you've known that sooner or later, you'd have to bow down and show her the respect she's due.
    • And after hitting her with the Wham Lines, he deliberately softens and reminds Jadzia that she's in love with Worf.
  • In 'Who Mourns for Morn?" Morn's plan wherein he faked his own death to draw out his former conspirators from a decade-old theft, gave them all the shaft by exploiting the fact that they would all be willing to kill for the money, and proceeded to walk away with 1,000 bricks of latinum , since the statute of limitations had run out? The best part of it all is that, after everyone has been arrested, Morn strolls into Quark's and sits in his old chair like it's a regular Tuesday morning.
    • Not to mention that when Quark complains to Morn about being thrown in the middle of Morn's former accomplices in order to get them arrested, Morn spits up about 100 bricks' worth of latinumnote  into a shot glass and gives it to Quark.
  • In "The Reckoning", after Jake's in the infirmary recovering from being possessed by a Pah-wraith and being used to battle a Prophet, Benjamin is feeling horribly guilty about his part in the ordeal, but Jake says, "You don't have to explain. When the Pah-wraith was inside me, I could feel its hatred. And I knew that no matter what, it couldn't be allowed to win... even if it meant I had to die."

    Season 7 
  • Jake got shafted a lot during the Dominion War arc, but he still managed a Crowning Moment of Awesome of his own in the seventh season opener, when he saves his father from a Pah-wraith cultist (who has traveled to Earth and stabbed him) by hitting him with a bag of potatoes and knocking him unconscious.
    • Not to mention that staying behind as a reporter when the Dominion occupied the station took a lot of guts to do. Sure, he knew that they'd never harm a hair on his head since he was the son of the Bajorans' living messiah figure, but still, that's a ballsy move.
  • Kira's bluff of the Romulans in "Shadows and Symbols" certainly qualifies.
    Admiral Ross: Remind me never to play poker with you.
    • We saw what she could do as early as the pilot. A Bajoran, a race that the Cardassians have been using for target practice, standing on the bridge of what was once their station, all but giving them the finger. The station was woefully underarmed, so she and O'Brien whipped up one hell of a bluff to make it look like ol' Terok Nor was armed to the eyeteeth. The Cardies suspected a bluff, but when one little Bajoran female pretty much said "Wanna call it?" and they backed down... awesome.
  • Early on in "Take Me Out To The Holosuite", Ezri mentions that one of the Dax hosts was a gymnast and that she should, thus, be better at sports. And then, when one of the Vulcans hits a near-homerun, Ezri jumps on the wall and catches the ball while doing a backflip.
    Bashir: Now that is a "Fancy Dan"!
  • In the episode "Once More Unto the Breach" of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, aging, washed-up Klingon warrior Kor takes on ten Jem'Hadar ships in a suicide delaying action in order to allow the rest of the Klingon ships to escape... after knocking out Worf, who was originally supposed to take the mission, with a hypospray. Before departing, he tells the unconscious Worf that he will find Worf's dead wife, Jadzia, in the afterlife, and assure her that her husband is a noble warrior who still loves no one but her. Doing this also allows Kor to die a Klingon's death: in battle, not in dotage. At this sacrifice, Martok, who had denigrated Kor as a useless has-been for most of the story, proposes a toast to Kor: "A noble warrior to the end." To the Klingons, there is no higher compliment.
  • Quark during "The Siege of AR-558," gives a What the Hell, Hero? speech to Sisko after Nog comes back from a mission Sisko sent him on minus a leg, and then protecting Nog during the titular siege. Special kudos to Armin Shimmerman for being able to convey his horror at having killed someone (and the realization that even he can become as bloodthirsty and violent as humans when forced to fight) through those heavy prosthetics.
  • "Extreme Measures", the episode where finally - finally - after getting played like a fiddle by Sloan and Section 31 multiple times, Bashir gets some sweet revenge on Sloan. He lures Sloan to the station by making him think he has Odo's cure, and then traps him, stuns him, and straps that smug little prick to a bio-bed so they can force the cure out of him. Sloan tries to play mind games, but Bashir just played Sloan big time, and he knows it. Unfortunately, Sloan then activates a suicide function in his head, but then Bashir and O'Brien actually manage to probe a dying Sloan's mind and find the cure for Odo. Even Section 31 can't compete with Determinators.
    • And then O'Brien, of all people, saving the day by being The Everyman that he is. Sloan almost takes Bashir into death with him by leaving a boatload of Section 31 intel for him to analyze, but O'Brien keeps him focused on finding the cure and getting out in time to use it. Bashir even acknowledges that The Power of Friendship saved him.
    • An understated crowning moment for O'Brien - The Batman Gambit that lured Sloan into Bashir's trap was O'Brien's idea. After Bashir tried and failed throughout "Tacking Into the Wind" to come up with a cure, pulling multiple all-nighters out of desperation, O'Brien stops in to chat. As they talk, O'Brien suggests Bashir just lie to Starfleet Medical and claim he found a cure, since then someone with knowledge of the virus would arrive to investigate and Bashir could interrogate them. Sloan falls for it precisely because it's the kind of thing Wide-Eyed Idealist Bashir would never think of on his own. Sloan may have had Bashir's number from even before they met, but O'Brien is the one factor that Sloan could never predict.
  • After Damar finds out in "Tacking Into the Wind" that the Dominion have killed his wife and children, he wonders what kind of people could give orders like that. Kira responds with a perfect "Yeah, Damar. What kind of people give those orders?"
    • What makes it even better is that she immediately realizes that was absolutely the wrong thing to say in that situation. After Damar heads for the cockpit, she has this conversation with Garak.
      Kira: That was stupid.
      Garak: Not at all. Damar has a certain... romanticism about the past. He can use a dose of cold water.
      Kira: I could have picked a better time.
      Garak: If Damar is the man to lead a new Cardassia, if he's the man we hope him to be, then the pain of this news made him more receptive to what you said, not less.
    • This comes to fruition in a small Moment of Awesome for Damar when he completes his Heel–Face Turn by saving Kira and Odo from Rusot, a treacherous officer who wanted to bring back the old Imperial Cardassia.
      Damar: He was my friend. But his Cardassia's dead...and it won't be coming back.
    • In the same episode, Ezri pointing out to Worf the hypocrisy of the Klingon Empire claiming to value honor while having such a horribly corrupt government. This leads Worf to the equally awesome moment of finishing the job he started in TNG's "Reunion" and killing Gowron in honorable combat, then passing the title of Chancellor to Martok restoring honor to the Empire at long last.
      Worf: Tell me what you think.
      Ezri: Okay. I'm not sure you're going to like it.
      Worf: Tell me.
      Ezri: I think that the situation with Gowron is a symptom of a bigger problem. The Klingon Empire is dying, and I think it deserves to die.
      Worf: ...You are right. I do not like it.
      Ezri: Don't get me wrong, I'm very touched that you still consider me to be a member of the House of Martok. But, I tend to look at the Empire with a bit more skepticism than Curzon or Jadzia did. I see a society that is in deep denial about itself. We're talking about a warrior culture that prides itself on maintaining centuries-old traditions of honor and integrity, but in reality, it's willing to accept corruption at the highest levels.
      Worf: You are overstating your case!
      Ezri: Am I? Who was the last leader of the High Council that you respected? Has there even been one? And how many times have you had to cover up the crimes of Klingon leaders because you were told it was for the good of the Empire? I-I know this sounds harsh, but the truth is, you have been willing to accept a government that you know is corrupt. Gowron's just the latest example. Worf, you are the most honorable and decent man that I have ever met. And if you're willing to tolerate men like Gowron, then what hope is there for the Empire?
  • The Breen get possibly the highest of villainous awesome moments in the show during "The Changing Face Of Evil". How? They single-handedly annihilate all but one of the 311 Starfleet, Klingon and Romulan ships sent to retake Chin'toka with a significantly smaller fleet, and they top it all off by destroying the Defiant in what amounts to a One-Hit Kill.
    • The Breen get another one in that same episode when they manage to pull off a sneak attack on Earth and severely damage Starfleet Headquarters. Even Martok is impressed, claiming it's something the Klingons themselves never even considered doing during their wars with the Federation.
  • In "The Dogs of War", Martok shows how high-level he thinks when he notes that the Dominion pulling back shortens their supply lines while forcing the alliance to lengthen theirs. As they say, amateurs talk strategy, professionals talk logistics.
  • In "What You Leave Behind", the unnamed Cardassians who join Damar's grassroots rebellion. This isn't about obeying orders, or service to the state, or milking other planets for resources. Their home has been taken over by supposed allies who were really invaders that conquered them without a shot, and now the Dominion has gotten nasty, wiping out a large city in retaliation for the rebellion. This is about nothing less than taking their home back and saving their people, and for this, they charge gladly into battle, not stopping for anything, until they capture the Female Changeling.
  • When the Cardassian fleet turns against the Dominion in the finale "What You Leave Behind.". Aside from violently opposing being used as cannon fodder to those who treat them like dirt, it's a very rare moment to see Cardassian warships be badass, popping Jem'hadar and Breen ships left and right, whereas usually they've been the underdog in space engagements.

    Novels 
  • Nog's actions in the novel "High Score", set when he and Jake are still kids, serves as Foreshadowing for the kind of person he'll grow to be; when he and Jake discover that the mining operation they're working for is stripping an inhabited planet of its resources and killing the inhabitants as part of the "game" the young employees are playing, he is quick to follow Jake in choosing innocent lives over a paycheck.
  • In the book Fallen Heroes- which begins with Odo and Quark being sent forward in time by a few days to find that the entire station has been destroyed- the story of what happened to everyone is revealed in flashbacks over the previous few days. Damn if they didn't go down awesomely. Hooray for Reset Button.

    Unsorted 

  • How awesome is Nog? Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery reveals that in the 32nd century, Starfleet has a ship called U.S.S. Nog. The boy left his mark and then some.
  • Damar's final moments deserve mention. He charges in, dual-wielding phaser rifles, shooting everything that moves. When the Jem'Hadar get their act together and start shooting back, he takes at least a dozen shots to the chest. Any one of those should have killed him outright. He manages to live for about a minute, and his last words to his men are to keep fighting. Well, he only got the first half of that order out, but it was obvious.
    • Then you have Kira's involvement. Considering her Back Story with Cardassians, her urging after Damar's Last Words, essentially saying, "You heard the man", revolution comes full circle.

  • One more for Worf snapping Weyoun's neck in response to an offhand insult to his dead wife.
    • And Damar laughing about it. Which gets both funnier and more awesome when he offers Weyoun 8 to drink to Weyoun 7 with a bottle with A TWISTED NECK. That being a Cardassian and Damar in particular, you know that can't have been a coincidence.
  • The creation of the Defiant. Sisko wanted a ship to kill Borg. So he made one. The result is Starfleet's first warship class (and a reminder why it's a good thing for other powers that Starfleet doesn't regularly design them), and one of the coolest ships in the franchise.

    • When Sisko entered the bridge and started speaking in his "Joran voice", you knew shit was about to go down.
    • ...taking the Defiant into the middle of the Wormhole to face an entire Dominion fleet.
      • ...while at the same time giving the Prophets a What the Hell, Hero? that convinces them to take an active role in the defense of Bajor:
        "You want to be gods, then be gods! I need a miracle. Bajor needs a miracle. Stop those ships!"
    • ...getting the name of a Red Squad member by putting the fear of God into Nog.
      Sisko: Cadet, you are obviously under the mistaken impression that I am asking a favor. I want a name, and I want it now, and that is an order! Understood, Mr. Nog?
    • It's implied in "The Wire" that he frequently yells at admirals and gets away with it without even a slap on the wrist. Ultimate Job Security, anyone?
    • And let's not forget his being Defiant to the End:
      Sisko: (to Gul Dukat) First the Dominion, now the Pah-wraiths. You have a talent for picking the losing sides...
    • Dukat gets his own when delivering a withering Pre-Mortem One-Liner to Winn: "Are you still here?" After vaporizing her, he gives a venomous sendoff: "Farewell, Adami."
  • How does one talk about CMoAs and not mention Rom, in one of the best lines of the entire series. His delivery of the line just makes it all the better. Rom is panicking over his upcoming wedding and apparently not concentrating on his work at all until...
    Rom: But what if Leeta turns out to be just like Nog's mother? What if I can't make her happy? What if this is the biggest mistake of my life? What if-
    O'Brien: ROM!
    Rom: (long pause, Rom stands up) ...self replication.
    • And then, after helping a little more with the technical details, Rom goes right back to bringing the funny, practically wailing the last two words:
    Rom: Where are we gonna put all her clothes? I don't have enough closet space!
  • "So that's what we've become: a 24th Century Rome, guided solely by the principle that Caesar can do no wrong! It's also one for Admiral Ross and his actor: ""I don't like it. But I've spent the last year and a half of my life ordering young men and young women to die. I like that even less." It helps that neither character is depicted as right or wrong. Is Bashir being true to the ideals of Starfleet or just being naive? Is Ross acting in the best interests of The Federation or just morally compromising everything it stands for?
    • Any of the pivotal moments comprising Damar's Heel–Face Turn, including the very first when he sees himself in the mirror and throws his drink at it in disgust. Watching this increasingly important character snap himself out of half a season of depression and defeat, and transform himself into a revolutionary leader is just amazing to watch thanks to Casey Biggs' acting work.
      • The speech he delivers to broadcast his Heel–Face Turn shows that he has truly found his voice.
        "...and so two years ago, our government signed a treaty with the Dominion. In it the Dominion promised to extend Cardassia's influence throughout the Alpha Quadrant. In exchange, we pledged ourselves to join the war against the Federation and its allies. Cardassians have never been afraid of war, a fact we've proven time and again over these past two years. Seven million of our brave soldiers have given their lives to fulfill our part of the agreement, and what has the Dominion done in return? Nothing. We've gained no new territories. In fact, our influence throughout the quadrant has diminished. And to make matters worse we are no longer masters in our own home. Travel anywhere on Cardassia and what do you find? Jem'Hadar, Vorta, and now Breen. Instead of the invaders we have become the invaded. Our 'allies' have conquered us without firing a single shot. Well, no longer. This morning detachments of the Cardassian First, Third and Ninth Orders attacked the Dominion outpost on Rondac III. This assault marks the first step towards the liberation of our homeland, from the true oppressors of the Alpha Quadrant. I call upon Cardassians everywhere. Resist. Resist today. Resist tomorrow. Resist till the last Dominion soldier has been driven from our soil!"
      • And then another Rousing Speech when the military resistance has been destroyed, but a new one is brewing amongst the citizenry:
        "Citizens of Cardassia, hear me! The Dominion told you that the rebellion has been crushed. What you have seen here today proves that that is yet another lie. Our fight for freedom continues! But it will take place here in the streets. I call on Cardassians everywhere to rise up, rise up and join me! I need you to be my army! If we stand together, nothing can oppose us. Freedom is ours for the taking!"
    • Earlier in the same episode, Rusot accuses Kira of teaming with them for the sole purpose of having an excuse to kill more Cardassians... and then makes the mistake of putting his hands on Colonel Kira. Wrong move. Kira's resulting Curb-Stomp Battle is very satisfying.
      Kira: Don't you ever touch me again.
  • Kira has another awesome retort two seasons earlier, while talking to Dukat. (Only this time, without the regret). Dukat is angry with Kira because his daughter Ziyal has befriended Garak, his sworn enemy.
    Kira: Dukat, she was lonely. And the last time I checked, he was the only other Cardassian living on the station.
    Dukat: The man is a heartless, cold-blooded killer.
    Kira: Like I said, he's a Cardassian.
  • Sisko's victory at Chin'toka becomes even more awesome when you remember that at the time, he had some deep-seated doubts as to where, when, and even who he really was.
  • Sisko defeated Gul Dukat after he ascended. With nothing more than guts and awesome.
  • One of Quark's best moments was describing the benefits of greed and capitalism to the Prophets when they mess with the Grand Nagus' personality. When that didn't move them and they stated they wanted to change Quark's as well and avoid contact with the Ferengi, however, he pointed out that they'd get more curious Ferengi to visit them by changing him. He didn't convince the Prophets, these immensely powerful beings that transcend time and space, so much as threatened them with annoyance. And it worked.
  • Or when Quark shot Jem'Hadar guards to free Rom, and a Funny Moment with how stunned he was the next moment.
  • In an early appearance, Jem'Hadar fighters trounce a Galaxy-class starship. Later, enter the Defiant, a Pint-Sized Powerhouse. Even after taking severe damage because the fighters saw through its cloak, the Defiant still rips one of them to shreds with a single volley.
  • The Romulans got one off screen during the Dominion War. How? Easy: as soon as they got tricked into entering the war they turned the tide, unleashing one Curb-Stomp Battle after another on the Dominion. It also explains exactly why, about a century earlier, Kirk was scared by the prospect of going to war with those meddlers who always schemed for nothing: when they don't need to meddle, they kick ass.
    • Having a powerful fleet that hadn't taken losses yet against the Dominion and were the Alpha Quadrant's inventors and masters of cloaking technology certainly helped.
    • The biggest one comes after the fighting. During their initial offensive they took a number of Federation and Klingon worlds that the Dominion had occupied. Everyone was worried what the Romulans would do with them, because, as Odo pointed out, it's their usual policy to keep any planet they occupy in a war... And they just turned them over to their previous owners as soon as they showed up.
  • Sisko does a duet with Vic Fontaine. The pipes on that man.
  • The finale gives us one of the most awesome moments in the franchise with a single line of dialogue:
    Odo: "The Cardassians ... they're firing on the other Dominion ships!"
    • Two words: FOR CARDASSIA!
  • She may have been a piece of work all her own, to the point of having betrayed everything that she was meant to stand for as Kai in the name of pursuing her own personal power and glory, but Winn's final act was attempting to destroy the Book of the Kosst Amojan, stopping the Pai-wraiths and Dukat, and, when that fails, having just enough time to shout to Sisko what he needed to do to accomplish what she couldn't before her own demise and truly acknowledging Sisko as the Emissary of the Prophets for the first time. Not enough to qualify as Redemption Equals Death, but still, worth noting that even in the face of her devils and certain death, she still managed to, this one time, do the right thing.
  • Damar's resistance against the Dominion needs help, and the best person for the job is Kira, considering the tactics she and the Bajoran Resistance used during the Occupation of Bajor. Problem is, Damar recognizes that, what with one of the Cardassian major flaws being pride, his men are probably going to have some problems taking orders from a Bajoran in the uniform of the Bajoran militia, the people who bloodied their noses so much for so long that they had to withdraw from Bajor. So what's Sisko's solution? Give Kira a Starfleet commission and send her to the Cardassians in a Starfleet uniform, empowering her to speak not for Bajor but the Federation. Sure, a token gesture in theory, but enough of a play on appearances and Cardassian vanity to work in practice.

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