Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) had many enemies on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, but he hated one particular foe even more than Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo). In his 7 years as commander of Deep Space Nine, Sisko was a target of several adversaries of the United Federation of Planets. Along with Gul Dukat, Captain Sisko faced down Dominion Changelings, Cardassians, Klingons, and even the Pah-Wraiths, who were the mortal enemies of the Prophets of Bajor. However, the villain that incensed Sisko the most wore a Starfleet uniform.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 3 introduced Lt. Commander Michael Eddington (Kenneth Marshall). Originally conceived as a rival for Constable Odo (Rene Auberjonois), Eddington was the Starfleet Chief of Security on Deep Space Nine. Michael was another reassuring Starfleet presence on the station. Efficient and capable, Eddington integrated smoothly with the other Star Trek: Deep Space Nine characters. However, Eddington was secretly a Maquis sympathizer, and he showed his true colors in DS9 season 4. Eddington betrayed Starfleet to join the Maquis, earning him the ire of Captain Sisko - and the feeling was mutual.
Captain Sisko Hated Star Trek: DS9’s Eddington The Most
"You betrayed your uniform!"
Captain Sisko had a unique contempt for Michael Eddington because he was a traitor. Eddington betrayed his Starfleet uniform and everything it stood for when he joined the Maquis. What particularly galled Sisko was that he didn't see Michael's betrayal coming. Ben worked closely with Eddington for a year and a half and Michael hid his true sympathies and intentions perfectly. Sisko even took Eddington to a baseball game in Quark's (Armin Shimerman) holosuite, and Ben never suspected what Eddington was planning. The fact that Eddington fooled Sisko so thoroughly was something Ben couldn't reconcile, and drove his passion to see Eddington court-martialed for his crimes.
For his part, Michael Eddington saw Captain Sisko as his nemesis. Eddington had a fondness for Victor Hugo's Les Misérables, and he fancied himself as the novel's hero, Jean Valjean, casting Sisko as the intolerant policeman, Javier. Captain Sisko did live up to Michael's portrayal by relentlessly pursuing Eddington until he captured the traitor. Compared to Gul Dukat, who was a more complicated adversary driven by his pride, ego, and desire for power, Michael Eddington was a more clear-cut and personally offensive opponent for Captain Sisko.
What Happened To Eddington In Star Trek: DS9
Eddington is gone but not forgotten
Michael Eddington made nine appearances on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. The saga of Eddington's treason and his rivalry with Captain Sisko played out in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 4, episode 22, "For the Uniform," and DS9 season 5's "For the Cause" and "Blaze of Glory." After Eddington stole replicators and betrayed Starfleet to join the Maquis in "For the Uniform," Captain Sisko pursued and captured Michael in "For the Cause." In "Blaze of Glory," which was Eddington's final DS9 appearance, he manipulated a ruse to rescue Maquis from the Dominion, but Michael was ultimately killed by the Jem'Hadar.
Eddington's treason was deeply personal for Captain Sisko.
LIke Captain Sisko, Michael Eddington had a wife, Rebecca Sullivan (Gretchen German). Rebecca was a member of the Maquis, and this parallels how Sisko's future wife, Captain Kasidy Yates (Penny Johnson Gerald), also aided the Maquis and was sent to prison. Eddington's treason was deeply personal for Captain Sisko. Michael was a man who turned his back on everything Sisko deeply believed in, and Eddington even told Benjamin that the Federation was "worse than the Borg." In a way, Eddington was a dark mirror for Captain Sisko, and their rivalry remains one of the most memorable in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
