You can always count on Garak ...or can you?

"I will betray you at every turn."
saves the Federation again
- This is technically correct, he betrayed your expectation that he would betray you.
  
  But only when you expect the betrayal. It’s when you trust him not to, that you must be careful.

It's criminal that Berman would only allow the Garak/Bashir thing to be subtext. The first gay couple on Star Trek and also a cross-species couple would have been amazing. The best we got was evil mirror Kira fucking anything.
- To be fair, The Intendant can get it.
- It's criminal that Berman would only allow the Garak/Bashir thing to be subtext
  Ok I am SO GLAD I was not imagining this! I’m only halfway through S2 of DS9, and but I have been sitting here questioning whether Bashir and Garak were gonna have a little something going on in the future, or if the girl in my class that talks loudly about her yaoi manga collection was finally getting to me…
  
  https://www.reddit.com/r/DeepSpaceNine/comments/l22vbl/garaks_intentions_are_made_apparent_with_the/?rdt=41261

Well, if you need something that a simple tailor can help you with... like high-stakes negotiation with foreign governments, data exfiltration, intelligence analysis, or other such trivial tasks that don't require contacts or secret knowledge, he's the man for you!

I think what we have here is a misunderstanding. Whatever his sexuality, Garak is clearly just a plain, simple, tailor.
- Whatever his sexuality
  It's plain and simple. He's pretty forward about that.

Garek is not a hero, and he's certainly not noble.
- Yes - he’s just a plain, simple tailor.
- What’s ignoble about this simple tailor?
  
  Why, just the other day he hemmed a formal gown for a client two inches too short!

Am I like tone deaf or something because I never got like a gay vibe from him.
- Ya ive read that the actor played him gay but I didn't learn that till after I'd watched it all so I guess knowing that he is straight makes it even harder for me to see it. Tbh I could have a guy hit on me and not know it and I do have some pretty "weird" ideas/beliefs and stuff that I don't think a lot of mainstream straight guys have or would even agree with
- His interaction with the doctor was very romantic. Not sexual, just delightfully romantic.
  
  I just thought they were buds just like O'Brien and the doc. Never got a gay vibe from it I just thought it was 2 guys being friends with eachother.
  Can you give an example of how it was romantic?
- Time for you to go watch season 1 again. 🙂
  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eTeJKg8Yf4A
  
  Guess I'm just super tone deaf cuz that didn't look gay to me.
- Yes

It's basically Garak and Ashok for this trope

https://twitter.com/MlNDMELD/status/1601549565751984128
(Sorry for the Twitter link, couldn't find another source)
- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZR1zgRYL530
- Why are you apologizing for a Twitter link?

According to Andrew Robinson's book Garak is bisexual though. Also if you haven't listened to Andrew Robinson reading "A Stitch in Time" you're missing out.

Where's a Garak? the new hit game of finding characters like Garak in other media!

Fuck it, Im blocking this sub. Garak is not gay, men are allowed to have friendships with other men. Yall are worse than ao3 with your fanshipping.
- The actor who played Garak is on record saying that he played the character as bi, with a crush on Bashir.
- Andrew Robinson himself has said in many interviews that he played the character as “Omnisexual,” and initially attracted to Bashir. In fact, he was originally written that way until Rick Berman put an end to it out of nothing more than homophobia, but Robinson continued to play him that way regardless.
  
  I love when actors do this out of a genuine love for the potential of a character, star trek would be so much worse if it wasn’t for so many actors challenging the ethical and visionary failings of the script both through their acting and directly speaking up. It matters less that the script never ships bashir and garak (I haven’t finished though.. hahaha) because the acting makes it true no matter what the narrative says on paper or what dialog happens between them.
  It is always about what is implied by what we are being shown isn’t it? Especially if you don’t quitteeee take the words the actors are literally saying at face value as the only dimension of truth.
  Nothing is more fitting for garak in a way, though that is more sad than anything because the show would have been richer with an openly queer garak.
- What I find funny is I blocked the sub, and I still see the replies. I can reply from my inbox, but I can't go and see the post itself. Interesting how it all works.
- Friendship is for chicks, I have rivals and subordinates
- Would a straight man bring a disruptor to their first date with a woman?