Where is the Diversity of Starship Crews?

It could be argued that a big aspect of speculative fiction is how we, as human beings, would deal with the situations presented therein. "What if we encountered such-and-such?" If aliens or fantasy creatures are the protagonists, they need to be relatable as they serve as stand-ins for ourselves.

Kor

 

Assuming my universal translator was working properly.

I continue to be genuinely surprised by how narrow the parameters for relatability seem to be among sci-fi fans, of all people.

 

Reverend.

And, lest we forget the most popular fucking character in Star Trek:

 

Here is a link to a queston and answers about stories where all the characters are nonhuman and there is no mention of Earth.

https://scifi.stackexchange.com/que...hich-no-character-is-an-earthling/94337#94337

 

If they can not have intergrated alien crews on human Starfleet vessels, they should show Starfleet vessels being crew mostly by one or more alien species with humans sprinkled amongst them... Maybe some aliens cannot live in human environments and need their own Starfleet vessels made for them...

 

They sort of do that with Riker serving with the Klingons.

 

You'd think though with fewer episodes and larger budgets they could afford a few pairs of pointed years or tubs of body paint to have some diversity in the backgrounds. If they stopped changing uniforms every season they could spend that on alien prosthetics

 

Like ships crewed entirely by Vulcans

As well as time to put people in prosthestics.

 

...was half human.

 

*sigh*

Sure. You win.

 

Yea... Instead of a Vulcan starship, it would be Starfleet starship ... Let's not forget, CGI can be used to make aliens or put sleeves over human actors...

 

That's literally what happened with the INTREPID and in DS9. STARFLEET ships with all Vulcan crews.

 

Spock is my favorite character. Still relatable because of his mixed nature. At least for me.

Same with characters like Pilot from Farscape. O can relate but it takes connecting them to human experience to help that.

 

the Universal Translator is Human Supremecist..


as it should be. Terra Prime! Forever!

 

Sure, but it's the alien half, the fact that he's not baseline human, that makes him fascinating.

Good writing can make aliens accessible. Pinky, the alien character in my books, is consistently the most popular of the cast.

 

I don't think it requires a human experience to connect or relate.

Take your example, Pilot. Pilot is very much the caretaker for Moya and the crew aboard her. Many people, myself included, have been a caretaker for someone else for years... seeing to their needs, being their voice when others either can't or won't hear, understanding and sharing their pain. I am not a father, but I'm certain parents feel very much the same way with their children, especially babies/young children.

And even if you've never been a parent or caretaker, all it takes is some empathy or sympathy to see what kind of person Pilot is. In virtually every way, Pilot is the most selfless person on Moya, and he gave up a lot to be there. (Sacrificing 2/3 of his natural lifespan, for instance.)

 

Is it? I like both halves, not just the alien half. That's what's most fascinating for me.

I'll take your word for it on the character side. Good writing makes anything possible but you have to consider all factors. Good writing requires time and effort and an actor to make it work, not just "cast alien make money" type attitude that is often bandied about by us armchair writers.

Requires is a strong word. It's more a matter of ease in which the audience can relate, not a requirement. But, ultimately, the more human style traits you give a character, as you note with Pilot, the easier it is for a human audience member to relate. In other words, they are not truly alien. They are relatable.

That's what I'm saying about all alien shows. You will end up with aliens taking on human traits in order to make it relatable to the audience. Even Tolkien acknowledge that his works are primarily a human story and are designed to connect with humans. That's not a bug in fiction but a feature.

I feel this shouldn't be controversial, but apparently human characters are not as "fascinating" as aliens, even when aliens exhibit very human traits.

Thank you, yes. It was absolutely part of his character. I love ST 09 because it put Spock's conflict square in the crosshairs with Sarek's line about him being a "child of two worlds." That is what draws me to Spock, not is purely logical self.

 

Which is why I often use the word "lazy", even though @Serveaux hates it.

 

I would not say lazy either but a matter of priorities. You have limited resources, and can get it done good, on time and under budget. Usually it's two out of the three, rather than all three. That's not laziness but a reality of limited resources.