Although it was shown second in broadcast order, following the
pilot, "Past Prologue" was filmed third, following "
A Man Alone". There were several changes to hair and makeup following "A Man Alone", including modifications to Odo, and a simpler, closer haircut for Nana Visitor in her role as Major Kira. Visitor had pushed for her changes, as she did not find it believable that the character would style her hair on a daily basis, instead wanting a look that took minimal effort. The episode was directed by
Winrich Kolbe, He would go on to direct the series finale of
The Next Generation, "
All Good Things...", and 48 episodes of the franchise across four separate series.
Katharyn Powers received the sole writing credit on the episode, although elements such as Garak were created by co-producer
Peter Allan Fields. An initial version of her script featured Kira and Tahna as lovers, which was rejected by executive producer
Michael Piller. The ending originally showed the terrorist giving up his violent ways and seeking peace with the Cardassians before being killed by the Bajorans. The episode was named after the line from
William Shakespeare's
The Tempest; "
what's past is prologue."
Guest appearances Following a suggestion by Piller, the
Duras sisters were written into the episode. The duo had previously appeared in the two-part
The Next Generation episode "
Redemption" and would go on to appear in "
Firstborn" and the film
Star Trek Generations. The character of Admiral Rollman made her first appearance in "Past Prologue", and would later return in the
second season episode "
Whispers".
Susan Bay, who played Rollman, has a long-standing relationship with the
Star Trek franchise as she was the wife of
Leonard Nimoy, the actor who portrayed
Spock in
Star Trek: The Original Series and the
film series. including the recurring part of Rear Admiral
Maxwell Forrest in
Star Trek: Enterprise. The episode is best known for the introduction of the recurring character Elim Garak. Fields said of the character at the time, "we didn't want to make him an out and out spy, because then what would you do with him after the episode? You'd have to put him in jail on Bajor. So we tread a pretty thin line." Robinson was invited back to audition for Garak, while Graham was cast as the Hunter in "
Captive Pursuit". Kolbe thought at first that casting Robinson was "really off-the-way", but he felt the actor made the episode "bloom". ==Reception ==