Shipper war: Spock/Uhura or Spock/Chapel?

[Vicki]

Aragorn wrote:

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I didn't read the whole thread, so has anyone chimed in with Uhura/Chapel?

Gah. NO.

/signed/ looking for brain bleach

[M'Sharak]

Jeri wrote:

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M'Sharak, I noticed something strange going on. The number of people in the forums is way off. In SF&F, there are normally about 30, and there are like 10. In the TV forum, there are usually 25 or so, and there are 4. And in here, there are usually at least 25, and there are about 4. That is weird. It's been like that for a couple hours, not just because it's late.

Looks like whatever it was may be fixed, may have corrected itself, or may have been charmed by fairies. Quite a few people have been posting in the QS&F thread that they have board access again after having been locked out for varying lengths of time. My link above which had been misbehaving seems now to be working again. I'll see whether any explanation is forthcoming or if it's just one more thing to be chalked up to simple internet weirdness.

[Cassy4]

M'Sharak wrote:

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Looks like whatever it was may be fixed, may have corrected itself, or may have been charmed by fairies. Quite a few people have been posting in the QS&F thread that they have board access again after having been locked out for varying lengths of time. My link above which had been misbehaving seems now to be working again. I'll see whether any explanation is forthcoming or if it's just one more thing to be chalked up to simple internet weirdness.

I couldn't get on the boards yesterday either...something must have been going on with the servers. Well things are back to normal now, at least from my end.

[Jeri]

When I logged in last night, it tried a long time to do so. But everything worked ok once I got in.

[diftorhehsmusma]

seemed like yesterday the servers were having trouble. it would not load for me, absolutely refused.

i voted for spock/uhura. it worked for me in the film, for reasons that others have already stated. definitely seemed to me like they cared about each other before the scene in the lift, but as far as being romantically involved? i don't think so. if for no other reason than it seems totally out of character for both of them. i had a back-and-forth with someone about how since they are changing the characters, why not that? because that's so far out there they would have to be different people altogether. especially spock. plus if they are already involved in that way, the whole emotional journey we see spock take loses most of its punch.
but they are interesting together. it adds a lot of texture to spock's outward persona, texture that, admit it, we like when he shows it. i really enjoy the idea of him actually growing as a person, rather than having to be infected with spores or suchlike. at the end we see old spock relaying to his younger self a lesson it took him a lifetime to learn. with these experiences and that information spock is set up for a whole different character arch which i, for one, am excitedly waiting to see. and he and uhura are both very strongly professional people. i would imagine that in the next film this could be a nice little subplot about spock's personal development, and not have too much bearing on the action.
as for nurse chapel, well, i never really did understand that. why exactly is she so in love with spock? not only is he not able to respond in kind, he just doesn't seem to dig her that way, on any level. the one time he gives any hint to the contrary he is pretty much out of his mind. maybe if he is already involved elsewhere, christine will never develop those strange feelings of hers and we can avoid the prospect of any sort of triangle. which would be lop-sided, anyway, because like i said i never saw any evidence that spock returned her feelings in any way. so it would just make her more pathetic. how about if she gets to have some characteristics that don't have to do with some love interest? all due respect to majel, but that character just never seemed to go anywhere.

[M'Sharak]

diftorhehsmusma wrote:

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seemed like yesterday the servers were having trouble. it would not load for me, absolutely refused.

It is looking as if there was a DoS attack on the DNS provider we use, possibly still ongoing. It's being looked into, but things appear to be behaving, for the moment.

[cooleddie74]

Honestly, I'm a classic Spock/Chapel fan.

[ShimmeringFacet]

DevilEyes wrote:

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Heh. If it was a war, it's obvious which side is winning. I am pleasantly surprised by the results of this poll, after all the whining and fuming over Spock/Uhura storyline that I've seen on IMDB and all sorts of other places, with some people crying "OMG what about Chapel?!", others mad over Spock having a love interest at all and being "too emotional", and others shouting that Uhura should not be involved with anyone, especially not Spock, because it apparently "reduces" her, or hurts her dignity (? ). Not to mention those who just throw in slurs and offensive comments about Uhura that I won't bother to repeat. I guess, similar as with people who hate the movie, one can get the wrong impression that there are more people with negative opinions than there really are.

QFT. But I have to say I generally dislike endless storylines about unrequited love, whatever the genders involved.

I'm also very surprised at the results thus far. Very well done poll, BTW.
I wonder if the type of people interested in clicking on the thread is a factor, the particular population of this board or just that it really is a popular relationship. Also, those that were unhappy (or outraged, heh) about it probably made a lot more noise, as is often the case.

If they want to introduce Chapel ( but NOT for a love triangle! ) they'll really need to do a complete overhaul on her character for the reasons Just Kate mentions, imo. I'm a little surprised that they seriously considered bringing back the unrequited love scenario.

I also think that Uhura/Spock relationship is perhaps easier or more organically incorporated into a greater variety of plotlines than Chapel/Spock would be. Since Chapel is in Sickbay and not on the bridge it might take a few more steps or twists to have them interacting as part of the plot or involve some medical issues. I mean, sure they would have thought of something, but offhand it just seems like Uhura works out better here. I'm really glad that they went in this direction!

Having said that I could see McCoy having something with Chapel, maybe, although I'm not sure if they'll want to involve his character in a love interest. There'd likely be less space for that than even Spock and Uhura.

[Tribbles]

McCoy does call for Chapel at one point during the movie, so I don't think they're adverse to introducing her in future installments.

Like many people said, however, I hope we don't have any schmoopy, mopey triangles going on. (Please no Spock/Uhura/Kirk... pleeeease don't do it, no matter what Zoe thinks!) Since it's unlikely that Chapel will have much time onscreen, if she were pining after Spock, it's probable that she would again be defined as a character by her unrequited love. Isn't it enough to show a woman who's a good nurse and truly cares for her patients? I personally hope she has no romantic interests that we see. Or let someone (not Spock) pine over her for a change, if we must...

[15wss]

DevilEyes wrote:

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And here's more from Nimoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYvHloEVjpw

Great link!

I also have to say, after watching the clips (and maybe some fanfic) of the original series, Spock and Uhura had a nice chemistry (I still haven't quite figured out the flirtation between them on "Charlie X" - was Spock really smirking there?!).

I always wanted Chapel to be stronger, which she didn't seem to have a problem when dealing with McCoy. Plus, she was a research scientist before she became a nurse and later became a medical doctor - she must have had more fortitude than she had a chance to show on-screen (a couple of the novels seemed to help shape that view of her for me). Perhaps a newer version of her might enhance her strengths, much like how the movie's Uhura played up more of Uhura's intelligence and abilities.

[DevilEyes]

Tribbles wrote:

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McCoy does call for Chapel at one point during the movie, so I don't think they're adverse to introducing her in future installments.

Like many people said, however, I hope we don't have any schmoopy, mopey triangles going on. (Please no Spock/Uhura/Kirk... pleeeease don't do it, no matter what Zoe thinks!)

I don't think she was serious in that interview... I suspect that ot was said in the same vein as when she told women to watch the movie because "the guys are all shirtless on the bridge all the time".

It would've been a rather strange change of opinion otherwise, since she's always said in every other interview that Kirk is not Uhura's type and she wouldn't be interested in him.

[Possum]

15wss wrote:

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I always wanted Chapel to be stronger,

Totally- just like I wish Uhura's "Captain, I'm frightened" could be struck from episode and memory.

which she didn't seem to have a problem when dealing with McCoy. Plus, she was a research scientist before she became a nurse and later became a medical doctor - she must have had more fortitude than she had a chance to show on-screen (a couple of the novels seemed to help shape that view of her for me). Perhaps a newer version of her might enhance her strengths, much like how the movie's Uhura played up more of Uhura's intelligence and abilities.

Chapel, for TOS, was a decently strong female character except for the Kryptonite effect that Spock had on her. However, in all honesty, the only reason there was a Chapel role is probably because Barrett wasn't allowed to play Number One in the final series. Plus the role allowed there be another re-occurring female role which let it be half a step up from Gunsmoke (which was still better off than Bonanza or The Wild Wild West).

I'm happy with how Spock/Uhura seems to be working in the new universe but I also liked the Spock/Chapel in the old. It is my fervent hope that if Chapel gets a bigger role in the new universe it won't be as part of a triangle OR as a love interest for anyone- I would just like to learn more about the character. However, I'm not holding my breath.

[DevilEyes]

Possum wrote:

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Totally- just like I wish Uhura's "Captain, I'm frightened" could be struck from episode and memory.

You can always use the Gene Roddenberry receipe for dealing with ST V> declare it non-canon. I certainly like to pretend that this line never happened... (just like I do with ST V...)

Chapel, for TOS, was a decently strong female character except for the Kryptonite effect that Spock had on her.

And her fiancee.

Unfortunately, 95% of her screentime consisted either out of scenes with Spock, or the scenes from episode that dealt with her psycho fiancee.

Her one really strong moment I remember was in For the World is Hollow... when dealing with McCoy's illness.

[ShimmeringFacet]

Tribbles wrote:

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McCoy does call for Chapel at one point during the movie, so I don't think they're adverse to introducing her in future installments.

Like many people said, however, I hope we don't have any schmoopy, mopey triangles going on. (Please no Spock/Uhura/Kirk... pleeeease don't do it, no matter what Zoe thinks!) Since it's unlikely that Chapel will have much time onscreen, if she were pining after Spock, it's probable that she would again be defined as a character by her unrequited love. Isn't it enough to show a woman who's a good nurse and truly cares for her patients? I personally hope she has no romantic interests that we see. Or let someone (not Spock) pine over her for a change, if we must...

I am not hugely interested in the Chapel character, to be completely honest. I think there are a number of other female TOS characters that could have more intriguing possibilites. But if people want to see that she's there and active I guess I can understand this, but if this character got more screen time than the "core" 7, if you will, it's hard for me not to find this somewhat problematic. Some might argue that point. Especially where someone like Chekhov is concerned- and I can see that. But in any case it does touch on a bit of a dilemma. As we all know there is a severe gender imbalance in the core 7 characters and more women do need some prominent roles. So how should that be remedied? They could have different strong female roles in each film relevant to a particular plot including superiors from Star Fleet. That would be my personal preference at this point. Or do you feel that they should add more recurring characters on board the Enterprise? What does everyone think?

[Cakes488]

ShimmeringFacet wrote:

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I'm also very surprised at the results thus far. Very well done poll, BTW.
I wonder if the type of people interested in clicking on the thread is a factor, the particular population of this board or just that it really is a popular relationship. Also, those that were unhappy (or outraged, heh) about it probably made a lot more noise, as is often the case.

If they want to introduce Chapel ( but NOT for a love triangle! ) they'll really need to do a complete overhaul on her character for the reasons Just Kate mentions, imo. I'm a little surprised that they seriously considered bringing back the unrequited love scenario.

I also think that Uhura/Spock relationship is perhaps easier or more organically incorporated into a greater variety of plotlines than Chapel/Spock would be. Since Chapel is in Sickbay and not on the bridge it might take a few more steps or twists to have them interacting as part of the plot or involve some medical issues. I mean, sure they would have thought of something, but offhand it just seems like Uhura works out better here. I'm really glad that they went in this direction!

Having said that I could see McCoy having something with Chapel, maybe, although I'm not sure if they'll want to involve his character in a love interest. There'd likely be less space for that than even Spock and Uhura.

Are you really surprised about the Spock/Uhura popularity? I thought you knew how hugely popular this "love affair" is...it was instantly popular, much to my horror (being dramatic) ...even with the people I went to the movie with..that's the first thing I asked them and they all said "we love it"...I knew right there that I was in the minority! So yeah there are waaaaaaay more pro's for this than against.....way more. And no...the pro Uhura/Spock lovers were just as loud as the against-ers (me)...and they were far far more numerous.

Please no McCoy/Chapel affair...do you see what could happen...all these onboard romances....Noooo! Are they all going to have love affairs for Cripes Sake...???!!!! Noooooooooooooo! This is Star Trek...not Fuck Trek, yes there was sexuality in it...but please no full fledged romances, please! I will say that I do like the sound of Fuck Trek -- I'm sick I tell you...SICK! LOL