Editing Odo (Star Trek) (section)

=== ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' ===
The original ''Writer's Bible'' from 1992 for ''Star Trek: Deep Space Nine'' described Odo as follows:

{{blockquote|Odo, an alien male, middle-aged curmudgeon, and a shape-shifter. In his natural state he is a gelatinous liquid. He was a [[Bajoran]] law enforcement officer on the space station under the [[Cardassian]]s. [[Starfleet]] decides to have him continue in that role, since he's extremely savvy about the Promenade and all who frequent it. His backstory is: 50 years ago, with no memory of his past, he was found alone in a mysterious spacecraft that appeared in the Denorios asteroid belt. He was found by the Bajoran and lived amongst them. At first he was sort of an [[Joseph Merrick|Elephant Man]], a source of curiosity and humor as he turned himself into a chair or pencil. Finally he realized he would have to take the form of a humanoid to assimilate and function in their environment. He does it, but resents it. As a result, Odo performs a uniquely important role in the ensemble: he is a character who explores and comments on Human values. Because he is forced to pass as one of us, his point of view usually comes with a cynical and critical edge. But he can't quite get it right, this humanoid shape, though he continues to try. So he looks a little unfinished in a way. He's been working on it a long time. Someone might ask him: Why don't you take the form of a younger man. His answer: I would if I could. He has the [[adopted child syndrome]], searching for his own personal identity. Although he doesn't know anything about his species, he is certain that justice is an integral part of their being, because the necessity for it runs through every fiber of his body – a racial memory. That's why he became a law man. He has a couple of Bajoran deputies; he doesn't allow weapons on the Promenade, and once every day he must return to his gelatinous form.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.twguild.com/resources/development1.html |title=Star Trek Deep Space Nine Pre-Premiere Bible |website=Trek Writer's Guild |access-date=2018-03-11}}</ref>}}

[[File:Rene Auberjonois by Luigi Rosa, 12.jpg|thumb|left|Odo was portrayed in ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'' by actor [[René Auberjonois]]]]

Actor [[René Auberjonois]] describes Odo as "a very unformed being" who was "trying to get some kind of shape to his life".<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.startrek.com/article/catching-up-with-ds9undefineds-rene-auberjonois-part-1|title=Catching Up with DS9's Rene Auberjonois, Part 1|work=StarTrek.com|access-date=2018-03-11|language=en}}</ref> Co-creator of ''[[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine]]'', [[Michael Piller]], speaks of Odo's role within the show as being prompted by needing "a character who represented the traditions of [[Spock]] and [[Data (Star Trek)|Data]], the outsider who looks in at humanity."<ref>''New Frontiers: The Story of Deep Space Nine'', DS9 Season 2 DVD, Special Features</ref>

Late in the [[Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 5|fifth season]], in the episode "[[Children of Time (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|Children of Time]]", an Odo who has lived an additional 200 years tells the "current" [[Kira Nerys]] that he has loved her from the time their friendship first began. With this revelation, Kira and the "current" Odo eventually become a couple.

According to the backstory of the series, Odo was found adrift in his natural gelatinous state in the Denorios Belt in the Bajoran system. Doctor [[Mora Pol]] studied him for seven years, not initially recognising him as a sentient being. Mora and his fellow [[Bajoran]] scientists, not sure of what Odo actually was, initially had placed him in a sample container which they labelled "unknown sample". This was translated by their [[Cardassian]] supervisors as '''odo'ital''', which literally means "nothing". Doctor Mora was later compelled to recognise Odo's sentience when he copied a [[beaker (glassware)|beaker]] on a laboratory table.  Even after it became clear that Odo was indeed sentient, the Bajoran scientists kept calling him ''odo'ital'', styling it like a Bajoran name ("Odo Ital").

Later on the story was slowly developed: Over 200 years before, the Changelings' Great Link (a planet in the Gamma Quadrant where Changelings exist in their natural gelatinous form) had sent out 100 Changeling infants in containers throughout the universe in order to see how other alien races react to the presence of Changelings. Other than Odo, of those sent out, three have been accounted for:

* An unnamed Changeling which took the shape of a key in a locket, which ended up in possession of Constable Odo ("Vortex").
* An infant Changeling. Bought by Odo from Quark, Odo tries to teach the infant shapeshifting abilities. However, the infant is dying due to radiation poisoning. It "joins" with Odo so that he can regain his shapeshifting powers ("The Begotten").
* Laas. Over 200 years old, he ended up on the Valara planet where the name "Laas" means "changeable". He left when he realized that he was only being tolerated and would never be accepted. He ended up on Deep Space Nine. He killed a Klingon in self-defense who was going to assault him and, with the help of Major Kira, he escaped. He vows to search the Alpha Quadrant in order to find the other missing "Hundred Changelings" like himself, in order to create a new Great Link ("Chimera").

In a battle with a Changeling spy, Odo ended up killing him and thus breaking the most important rule of the Changelings (no Changeling must ever hurt another). He was punished by being changed by the Great Link into becoming a "solid". He regained his powers in the process of trying to save a dying Changeling. Although his deepest desire is to rejoin the Great Link, he is reluctant to do so due to the mad crusade of the "Female Changeling / Founder" for total war against every solid in the Alpha Quadrant. In the last episode, Odo rejoins the Great Link, saving them from being totally destroyed ("[[What You Leave Behind]]").

Odo is tacitly mentioned in the third season of ''[[Star Trek: Picard]]'', set two decades after ''Deep Space Nine'', as still being among the Great Link and having informed [[Worf]] of a rogue group of Changelings plotting a terrorist attack against the Federation.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Orquiola |first=John |date=2023-03-04 |title=Picard's Odo Easter Egg Answers A Big DS9 Finale Question |url=https://screenrant.com/star-trek-picard-season-3-odo-ds9-answer/ |access-date=2023-03-12 |website=ScreenRant |language=en}}</ref>

In ''[[Star Trek: Prodigy]]'', a holographic version of Odo appears in "Kobayashi" as a part of the ''Enterprise''-D bridge crew during Dal R'El's attempts to beat the Kobayashi Maru test. The other crewmembers that Dal selects are former crewmembers of the ''Enterprise'' and ''Enterprise''-D.

====Mirror Universe====
In the [[Mirror Universe (Star Trek)|Mirror Universe]], Odo is the supervisor of the mining complex at [[Terok Nor]]. He is a brutal taskmaster over [[Earth|Terran]] slaves there and tolerates no deviation from his strict rules. Relatively little is known of him, as no one in the Mirror Universe is aware that the [[Bajoran wormhole|wormhole]] exists or who Odo's [[Changelings (Star Trek)|people]] are. During a mining accident, Odo begins an evacuation of the Terran workers from the complex. [[Julian Bashir]], seizing the opportunity to escape, destroys him with a [[Disruptor (science fiction)|disruptor]].

In this reality, Odo has his own set of rules called the "Rules of Obedience" and quotes one of the rules in the same way that mainstream universe [[Quark (Star Trek)|Quark]] would quote the Ferengi [[Rules of Acquisition]].

After filming of the episode "[[Crossover (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)|Crossover]]", which was mirror Odo's sole onscreen appearance, actor [[René Auberjonois]] liked the mirror universe uniform so much he began wearing it while playing the regular universe version of Odo as well.