In defence of Shades of Gray

[Christopher]

If they had a better selection of clips, perhaps it'd be better - but the strike necessitated something to be hurried.

We already covered this -- the strike was a year earlier. The strike lasted from March 7 to August 7, 1988. "Shades of Gray" was written in April 1989. The strike had nothing whatsoever to do with "Shades of Gray." The reduced shooting schedule was requested by the studio to compensate for the overruns on "Elementary, Dear Data" and "Q Who."

 

[Oddish]

It definitely isn't anywhere near the worst Trek has to offer. Just really bland.

Relatively bland, yes. I'm not saying it's anywhere near "Best of Both Worlds" or "Inner Light". But it's... passable entertainment.

 

[Orphalesion]

It definitely isn't anywhere near the worst Trek has to offer. Just really bland.

IDK I rather watch the really bad stuff than a collection of old clips interspaced by uninspired dialogue by Troi and Puladski.

It's the worst kind of bad for me; completely pointless and unnecessary.

 

[Oddish]

Totally cool. We all have our opinions. Take the episodes I unloaded on earlier... Most folks here are fine with "Half a Life", many like "Sub Rosa", and I've even seen "New Ground" get some love. Not sure if I've ever seen "Code of Honor" defended, but it's... possible?

 

[Ragitsu]

Not sure if I've ever seen "Code of Honor" defended, but it's... possible?

There will be NO vaccine and NO Lieutenant YAR!

 

[Oddish]

I mean, an episode that has a wild brawl with lasers and spiky fists can't be all bad. Just mostly bad.

 

[Christopher]

Not sure if I've ever seen "Code of Honor" defended, but it's... possible?

It's got really good music -- the only TNG score by a TOS composer, Fred Steiner.

At the time it came out, I thought it was pretty progressive to cast an alien culture with black actors, since most SFTV humanoid species back then were all-white (or white actors painted weird colors). In retrospect, I can see what a bad decision it was -- how much the Legarans are a pastiche of stock Orientalist and "tribal" stereotypes of all kinds, and how the director compounded that by emphasizing African tribal stereotypes, and apparently being so racist toward the guest actors that he was fired mid-production.

I also thought it was progressive to showcase a female lead as a strong action hero, and to end it with the possessive man being put in his place and the women getting their way. For 1987, that was pretty forward-looking. Although it is undercut by Tasha telling Deanna how flattering it is to be desired by the man who kidnapped her.

I also liked the bit where Picard stopped himself and modestly said he didn't want to start making a speech. I guess they were trying to differentiate Picard from Kirk, but it's very ironic in retrospect.

 

[Oddish]

Some good points there. Using all black actors to cast an alien civilization that wasn't relentlessly tribal might have even worked at some point.

 

[Christopher]

Some good points there. Using all black actors to cast an alien civilization that wasn't relentlessly tribal might have even worked at some point.

Although most of the stereotyping was in the script. The writers envisioned the Legarans as reptilian aliens, but culturally they were modeled on the white writers' perceptions of feudal Japan, and the dialogue referenced similarities to Sung Dynasty China and Native American counting coups. And the costuming wouldn't have been out of place in a production of The King and I. Yet the all-black guest cast speaking in stereotyped African accents overrode everything else in viewers' perceptions.

The episode's co-writer Katharyn Powers was also responsible for one of Stargate SG-1's most racist episodes, season 1's "Emancipation," which depicted a supposedly Mongol culture in a ridiculously inaccurate and negative way. It painted Mongols as a misogynistic culture that kept women sequestered and veiled, when in fact the Mongols had greater gender equality than sedentary civilizations, with women participating in leadership and combat, because a horse-nomad culture couldn't afford to have isolated, non-participating members of society. Plus this culture that supposedly kept its women veiled for modesty also put Samantha Carter in an ouftit that showed a great deal of cleavage, which is completely missing the point of the custom.

 

[Ragitsu]

The episode's co-writer Katharyn Powers was also responsible for one of Stargate SG-1's most racist episodes, season 1's "Emancipation," which depicted a supposedly Mongol culture in a ridiculously inaccurate and negative way. It painted Mongols as a misogynistic culture that kept women sequestered and veiled, when in fact the Mongols had greater gender equality than sedentary civilizations, with women participating in leadership and combat, because a horse-nomad culture couldn't afford to have isolated, non-participating members of society. Plus this culture that supposedly kept its women veiled for modesty also put Samantha Carter in an ouftit that showed a great deal of cleavage, which is completely missing the point of the custom.

Your soul is mine.

 

[Oddish]

Plus this culture that supposedly kept its women veiled for modesty also put Samantha Carter in an ouftit that showed a great deal of cleavage, which is completely missing the point of the custom.

Reminds me of "Enterprise". Most Vulcans wear assorted robes, but T'Pol for no definable reason struts around in a Seven 2.0 catsuit.

Your soul is mine.

Fatality.

 

[Christopher]

Reminds me of "Enterprise". Most Vulcans wear assorted robes, but T'Pol for no definable reason struts around in a Seven 2.0 catsuit.

Not exactly. Vulcan starship crew wore uniforms rather than robes, and T'Pol's uniform was a variant on the standard design. Although it was unexplained why it was so tight-fitting and differently textured.

What I found even more inexplicable was why, when T'Pol formally joined Starfleet in season 4, she just went on wearing the same civilian outfits she'd worn in season 3 with Starfleet insignia and pips attached, rather than adopting a proper uniform.

 

[Mojochi]

Threads about Shades of Gray always turn into a "Worst of" retrospective lol

There's another reason to hate it

 

[Orphalesion]

Some good points there. Using all black actors to cast an alien civilization that wasn't relentlessly tribal might have even worked at some point.

Although most of the stereotyping was in the script. The writers envisioned the Legarans as reptilian aliens, but culturally they were modeled on the white writers' perceptions of feudal Japan, and the dialogue referenced similarities to Sung Dynasty China and Native American counting coups. And the costuming wouldn't have been out of place in a production of The King and I. Yet the all-black guest cast speaking in stereotyped African accents overrode everything else in viewers' perceptions.

I once did an experiment; I put on Code of Honour on my tablet and then put it away where I couldn't see it, but still hear the episode. And when only listening to the episode I felt it became *very* clear that the script was working with old "orientalist" stereotypes rather than African tribalist stereotypes; the alien culture's obsession with protocol and politeness and I even felt that the alien lady sounded a lot like a stereotypical "dragon lady" from old pulp stories and such.
(mind you I'm not talking about the accents. English is not my native tongue and I find it difficult to distinguish between several "foreign" accents in English)

The African tribe stereotypes were really then a product of the casting and the direction.

Which really, how bad does something have to be that it masks racism against one group with racism against another group?

 

[Christopher]

I once did an experiment; I put on Code of Honour on my tablet and then put it away where I couldn't see it, but still hear the episode. And when only listening to the episode I felt it became *very* clear that the script was working with old "orientalist" stereotypes rather than African tribalist stereotypes; the alien culture's obsession with protocol and politeness and I even felt that the alien lady sounded a lot like a stereotypical "dragon lady" from old pulp stories and such.
(mind you I'm not talking about the accents. English is not my native tongue and I find it difficult to distinguish between several "foreign" accents in English)

The African tribe stereotypes were really then a product of the casting and the direction.

Which really, how bad does something have to be that it masks racism against one group with racism against another group?

That's very interesting, that you tried that and got such a clear result.

All that you say is true, although the plot device of Lutan kidnapping Tasha does resonate with racist stereotypes about rapacious black men preying on white women. But then, I guess "They're coming for our women" is part of pretty much any racist portrayal of another culture. There's certainly a fair amount of that trope in Orientalist depictions, e.g. Flash Gordon's Ming the Merciless trying to force Dale Arden to become his bride.

 

[Oddish]

Threads about Shades of Gray always turn into a "Worst of" retrospective lol

There's another reason to hate it

Other people hate it, so I must as well? I'd rather judge it on its own merits and deficiencies.

Deficiencies? One big one.
1. Clip show. Nuff said.
Merits?
1. Some of the clips were actually pretty good ones.
2. The plot framing the clips was an interesting way to handle it.
3. The final lines were kind of cute.
4. Dr. Pulaski.

 

[Christopher]

1. Some of the clips were actually pretty good ones.

I don't understand how that matters, since they were presumably at least as good in the episodes they originally came from.

2. The plot framing the clips was an interesting way to handle it.

Whereas I always found it one of the least interesting clip-show envelopes I've ever seen. No accounting for taste.

 

[Oddish]

True. And it goes both ways. I find "Half a Life" to be disgusting, but most audience members seem perfectly Ok with it.

 

[Christopher]

True. And it goes both ways. I find "Half a Life" to be disgusting, but most audience members seem perfectly Ok with it.

Do you mean you disagree with the outcome? So do I, but I don't think we're supposed to agree with it. Many great stories end in tragedy, or leave us to decide for ourselves whether the outcome is right or wrong. We can be uneasy with the outcome and still admire the episode. After all, it's really more of a character story. It's ultimately about Lwaxana caring enough about Timicin to respect his decision even though she strongly disagrees with it. And it's a remarkable episode because of the way it deepens Lwaxana, and the way it allows the story to be driven by two guest characters when the usual formula demanded centering everything on one of the leads.

 

[Orphalesion]

Honestly I thought "Half a Life" was a very good episode, and definitely one of the better Lwaxana ones.

4. Dr. Pulaski.

That's not a "merit" in my book. And as I wrote earlier she's so generic in it that it's a particularly bad send-off for her.

And please don't take this the wrong way, but sometimes it seems you'd defend episodes like Code of Honour or Treshold if Pulaski had been in them.