Ezri Dax

Ezri Dax is a character on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, appearing in the show's 7th and final season. She becomes a host of the Dax symbiont after the death of its former host, Jadzia Dax. Although Ezri had previously made the choice not to pursue joining, she was the only Trill aboard the ship transporting Dax to the Trill homeworld and was asked to undergo the procedure when Dax's health began to deteriorate. As such, she was unprepared for the change and had a lot of difficulty adjusting to it. 
==Fan Perspectives==
During the show's original run, Ezri was a controversial figure -- to some, her presence on the show was a constant reminder of the loss of Jadzia, who had been a fan favourite for several seasons. Other fans felt that introducing a man character during the last season was pointless, arguing that there would not be enough time to have any amount of development, especially given that the plot was in the middle of a fairly dark arc with the Dominion War.
More recently, as new fans are brought into the fandom via streaming platforms and social media, Ezri has had if not a resurgence of popularity, at the very least more compassion. 
From a fan in 2003: 
===Shipping===
Ezri's canonical romance with Julian Bashir (sometimes smush-named as "Jezri") was also not without controversy. Some fans argued that she was simply a watered-down replacement of Jadzia, and therefore the writers' way of "rewarding" Julian for his years of failed pining after the former Dax host. Some enjoy the Jezri ship in an unconventional way, more focused on subverting the idea of it as a rewarding romance and instead enjoying it as a somewhat messy or dysfunctional relationship.28ghosts. 3% Hydrocortilene, on AO3. July 20, 2018. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. This often goes hand-in-hand with headcanoning Ezri as a lesbian.incorrect-ds9-quotes. Tumblr post, May 2, 2016. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021.
Others saw her as getting in the way of what they felt was the more compelling Garak/Bashir ship. One tumblr user complained about the trend of killing off Ezri in fanfics in order to get the two together.
In terms of femslash shipping, Kira/Ezri (Ezryz), Ezri Dax/Lenara Kahn, and Ezri Dax/Tora Ziyal all have small-to-medium followings. Some rarer pairs include Ezri Dax/Leeta (influenced by the romance between the Mirror Universe versions of the characters), Ezri Dax (or Tigan)/Jadzia Dax, and Ezri Dax/Erika Hernandez, a crossover ship with Star Trek: Enterprise.
==Notable Fanworks==
===Fanfic===
* Closure by Altariel. "Interrogation, therapy, and a fix for 'Afterimage'." Focuses on both Ezri Dax and Elim Garak, includes self-harm. Also available on AO3. (2013)
* Get with the Program by katiemariie. So far the only work on AO3 featuring the extremely rare pairing of Ezri Dax and Lauren, a minor reoccurring character. (2016)
* Fulcrum by captainraz. An Ezri Dax/Lenara Kahn oneshot. (2016)
* In Her Self by Acidqueen. Featuring an Ezri Dax/Jadzia Dax/Lenara Kahn combination it was written for the Femmeslash category of the 2003 Slash Advent Calendar. Author's summary: Newly joined with the Dax symbiont, Ezri must come to terms with her new life.
===Fanart===
* , an illustration by sweetfloatapartment than uses a redesign to make the Trill look more alien. (2019) 
===Graphics & Memes===
* , a post from textsfromdeepspacenine on tumblr. (2015)
==Archives and Fannish Links==
*Ezri Dax on Archive of Our Own
* Ezri D. in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine & Ezri D. in Star Trek: DS9 Crossovers on FanFiction.net. (Both links include M-rated stories)
* Story search for #ezri dax on Wattpad
* Ezri Dax on Memory Alpha
==References==
Category:Star Trek DS9 Characters