That was why I didn't like TNG that nuch. Everyone was perfect all the time except for the occasional episode where someone was taken over by an external force. That's not interesting. No one ever grew. They were basically the same characters at the end of the series tha they were at the beginning.

On the other hand, DS9 people were, in many cases, very different. Things that happened to them affected them and their views of other people, and not just for that one episode.

Was anyone friends? Sure, but not all of them. You had different people brought together that had wildly opposing ideals, and the show was about how that worked, or didn't. In addition, I don't know that people in a military situation of varying ranks become friends. It's hard to view someone as your friend who might order you to your death tomorrow. And it would be pretty dumb for that commander to become your friend, as he might have the need to order you to your death. Respect is the name of the game.

As for all the conflict being internal, there was some of that, certainly more than on TNG, but there was also an invading force that was the driving force of the last four or five seasons. There were recurring characters from the enemy's side, as well, but I don't see how making them different characters each time would have helped.

As to your appelation of ``soap opera'', while I understand where you're coming from (that much of the action was internally driven), I totally disagree. Soap operas are usually defined by their high melodrama, and DS9 was hardly melodramatic. Actions had real consequences, not just immediate temporary peril, and the characters, again, grew and changed, something that soap operas tend to avoid.