Talkin' about Janeway

[T.D. Possum]

Janeway fans are a special breed. I think we all agree on that. One thing that I've noticed is that Janeway fans seem to have more - and more active - discussions about their favorite than other Star Trek fan groups. For example, a lot of people adore Captain Picard (I do!) but the TNG board isn't exactly brimming over with "Picard is Totally Awesome" threads.

Well, when I get curious, I like to investigate. So instead of cleaning my house like I'm supposed to be doing on my afternoon off, I made a little survey of the front pages of each series board here on the BBS and put together some stats about which characters are being discussed. Here are the characters and the number of threads that are specifically devoted to them.

Janeway 6

Ezri Dax 3

Sisko 2

Data 2
Jadzia Dax 2
Tuvok 2
T'Pol 2
Bashir 2

Kirk 1
Spock 1
Riker 1
Picard 1
Beverly Crusher 1
Pulaski 1
Troi 1
Chakotay 1
Archer 1
Trip 1
Sato 1

Non-ensemble characters from all series 3

All others 0

Procedural Notes:
- Ship threads are counted one time for each character in the title of the thread.
- Threads established only for the purpose of linking to vids, fan art, and . . . um . . . Shirtless Kirk Cologne are not included in my count.
- Threads about the actor are included with the threads about their character.
- Three threads were excluded because they were based solely on breast size, penis size, or hairstyle, and contained no serious discussion.

So. Not the most scientific study in the world, but it seems I was probably right that Janeway fans are more likely to get involved in big online discussions about their favorite character.

Which begs the question: Why?

Y'all wanna throw out some suggestions?

 

[Adm_Hawthorne]

You answered you own question...she's totally awesome.

 

[T.D. Possum]

You answered you own question...she's totally awesome.

Could you be more specific?

I guess what I'm asking is: What is it about Janeway that makes her fans so extremely devoted to her? There are other ST characters who are very interesting and popular (Spock, Picard, Kira, and Odo jump to my own mind). But I've never seen anyone referred to as "a militant Spock fan". What do you think Janeway have that other popular characters are missing?

 

[Adm_Hawthorne]

On this forum, part of it is a throwback reaction from when Voyager was on air. There were so many trolls in here throwing out 'Janeway Rape' threads and 'Janeway should be put in jail' threads that those of us who were fans just trying to have an actual discussion started becoming more and more defensive.

In general, Kate Mulgrew creates a certain militant devotion in her fans, period. There's a group called "Straight Girls Hot for Kate". She's also a gay icon akin to Cher or Kate Hepburn. Finally, I've yet to meet a lesbian who didn't find Kate attractive. She's one of those love them or hate them types, and her fans bring that over to their love of Janeway.

 

[T.D. Possum]

There's a group called "Straight Girls Hot for Kate".

LOL. She's 25% of the reason I'm only 80% het. However, I had no idea there was an official group of this nature. *Off to look at pictures*.

She's one of those love them or hate them types, and her fans bring that over to their love of Janeway.

^ Agreed. I definitely haven't seen many people expressing a middle of the ground opinion about Janeway.

 

[froot]

I was wondering this myself. I can't put my finger on why I'm such a militant fan, or why she inspires that. I know some of it might be backlash from all the negativity her character inspires online, but I've been a serious fan since I was a little girl watching "Caretaker," so it can't be all that. My good friend even named her pet hamster Captain Janeway! (and then Captain Janeway got loose in my house, but that's a whole other tale.)

Actually, funny this came up just today I was chatting with a lady at work today, and we got onto the subject of TV, and we both found that the other enjoyed Star Trek. After another couple minutes, she dropped the conversational tone and said enthusiastically, "And Voyager was the best! JANEWAY WAS AWESOME." And I'm all like, "SHE TOTALLY WAS."

And then we had a moment.

Also, the lady is lesbian, so chalk another one up for gay icon. Although I'm pretty sure Janeway and Felicia Day make me question my straightness sometimes too.

Ladies in my family have a military history, so maybe that too. It's so hard to really say...

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

Well it's simple. As mentioned in the Janeway dating Ballard thread..

As has been mentioned above, Janeway does tend to "seduce her staff" to do what she wants them to do.

If you ever spend two minutes or more in a room with Janeway, you can expect the following to occur:

A) She will stare at you very intently.
B) She will invade your personal space.
C) She will place her hands all over you.
D) She will talk to you while her lips are about a micron away from your face.

Janeway has seduced us. Her personal commanding style has drawn us in. That's what she aims for and she has succeeded. No one would ever say this about Picard.

Now personally I always found Kirk had an element of this. I've always said Janeway is the most similar to Kirk but in the past I've focused on her lateral thinking and action oriented command style, her sheer cleverness and ability to read her opponent.. now thinking about it I can see that this element of drawing you in and making it personal is something they share. The reason he isn't focused on at the TOS forum has more to do with the demographics of that forum than the character IMO.

 

[froot]

Oh my goodness, you're probably right. I guess I answered my own question and didn't even think about it!

 

[JanewayRulz!]

Teacake, you slipped in faster than I! But I'll post this anyway.

We've commented in another thread, and at least one poster has "dreamed" of this, that Captain Janeway seduces her crew into doing whatever (nearly) she askes of them. She does this by staring INTENTLY into their eyes, lowering her voice nearly into Eartha Kitt's register, placing her hand/hands on your hand, arm, shoulder, chest, face and making you believe that you are so special and talented and strong that you really don't need an environmental suit to survive the vaccum of space.


TORRES: When I came to this ship I resented the fact that Captain Janeway was responsible for our being stranded here in the Delta Quadrant. I didn't think that she made the right decision and I certainly didn't want to serve under her command. In the beginning I fought her. Even when she made me Chief Engineer I didn't trust her reasons. I kept looking for a hidden agenda. I actually believed that she'd set me up to fail. Well, I couldn't have been more wrong. She saw, she saw something in me that I didn't see. She saw a worthwhile person where I saw a lost and hostile misfit, and because she had faith in me I began to have faith in myself. And when she died, the first thing I thought was that I couldn't do this without her. That I needed her too badly - her strength and her compassion. But then I realized that the gift that she gave me, and gave a lot of us here, was the knowledge that we are better and stronger than we think. I wish I had said these things to her, I wish I'd taken the time.

The actress, however, is performing not for a real crew, she's performing for us, so in effect she's busy seducing the audience into believing WE are better and stronger than we think, and if we only had a Janeway in OUR lives, what wonders would we do.

Is she successful with everyone?

Heck no.

Not on the boards, and not even on the Voyager, but one should look into one's own psyche and ask "How is she manipulating me?" By learning that, one can learn to protect yourself from true Svengali's and Rasputins that still tread this world of ours.

Since I don't fear Kate has enough power to get me to put on new sneakers and drape myself with purple while awaiting the next comet passby, or make me swallow the poison koolaide, then I can sit back and "enjoy" the show.

Watching Kate the actress, work a convention ballroom into a frenzy is more fun than a basket ball game and less tiring than a tennis match between an American and a Frenchman.

Kate can be "as intense" as Janeway, and I vicariously experienced that at the first con I saw her in. A young woman in the question line thanked Kate for helping her pull out of a deep depression a few years before, by focusing on a photo of a smiling confident Mulgrew. Well Kate pulled her up on stage, hugged her, told her not to stand in the long autograph line and signed her "focus point photo" immediately. After the young thing was led off stage, Kate turned to the audience (and naturally being one of the hundred in line, I felt she looked right at me) and said...

Ask me, where else in the world, as an actress, you can have that conceivable influence? It's overwhelming. It's overwhelming. It's a great, great privilege.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

JanewayRulz! that was very interesting and inspiring. Inspiring because as I was reading it I wondered, "could I ever make people feel special like that? maybe I should be try and be more encouraging to people.."

It's fascinating to me too that these Janeway qualities are actually Mulgrew herself. I think it's wonderful that we can watch VOY and get the subliminal message that Janeway would believe in ME. It can be easy in life to feel that no one actually does.

 

[Adm_Hawthorne]

To be fair, parts of it are Mulgrew. Kate herself is a bit more flighty than Janeway.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

It can be easy in life to feel that no one actually does.

I think one of the magic tricks that Mulgrew (and therefore Janeway) uses is one that we frequently comment on in this forum and was the one that drew that young convention goer.

Her smile.

Last year I was at the NJ con (Now let's count folks, that's just 3 cons in 10 years. I'm not THAT obsessive.) and I still remember Mulgrew turning towards me in the photo line, reaching out her hand with the grandest smile on her face as she welcomed me up to the camera stand. You'd think I'd remember that handshake more... but no.

It was that smile.

A friend loaned me a miniseries once. I think it was one of the Austen tales, and her comment was how amazing the actress was who played the protagonist. She was "ugly" at the start of the show (Maybe it was a Bronte tale? Maybe Jane Eyre?) and absolutely beautiful by the end. When I gave the miniseries back, my friend asked if I agreed with her assessment. I said "yes", but it wasn't "mysterious".

The actress just began to smile, as our protagonist began to blossum.

Try it. It looks good on everyone, even people wearing Vulcan robes.

To be fair, parts of it are Mulgrew. Kate herself is a bit more flighty than Janeway.

Good Heavens, I should HOPE so!

"The Captain" is far more serious than the actress. Look how many romances Kate went through during her years on Voyager, and not one of them with a hologram. That was something Janeway could only dream of doing.

 

[T.D. Possum]

My good friend even named her pet hamster Captain Janeway! (and then Captain Janeway got loose in my house, but that's a whole other tale.)

That made me giggle.

Well it's simple. As mentioned in the Janeway dating Ballard thread..

As has been mentioned above, Janeway does tend to "seduce her staff" to do what she wants them to do.

If you ever spend two minutes or more in a room with Janeway, you can expect the following to occur:

A) She will stare at you very intently.
B) She will invade your personal space.
C) She will place her hands all over you.
D) She will talk to you while her lips are about a micron away from your face.

Janeway has seduced us. Her personal commanding style has drawn us in. That's what she aims for and she has succeeded. No one would ever say this about Picard.

Now personally I always found Kirk had an element of this. I've always said Janeway is the most similar to Kirk but in the past I've focused on her lateral thinking and action oriented command style, her sheer cleverness and ability to read her opponent.. now thinking about it I can see that this element of drawing you in and making it personal is something they share. The reason he isn't focused on at the TOS forum has more to do with the demographics of that forum than the character IMO.

Janeway has always reminded me of Kirk, too, but I never thought about it on the more subliminal level. Now that you've presented that viewpoint, I think you are dead right. In fact, the longer I sit here thinking about it, the more examples I can recall where Kirk was doing everything on Froot's list. And, yep, I see your point about forum demographics, too.

The actress, however, is performing not for a real crew, she's performing for us, so in effect she's busy seducing the audience into believing WE are better and stronger than we think . . . .

I certainly agree with that. As you know, I work out while watching Janeway videos. I think that's pretty good proof of the above point.

Not on the boards, and not even on the Voyager, but one should look into one's own psyche and ask "How is she manipulating me?" By learning that, one can learn to protect yourself from true Svengali's and Rasputins that still tread this world of ours.

Food for thought, there. I wouldn't drink the Koolaid for her, either, but only yesterday she motivated me to squeeze in one more set of pushups when I was really feeling like flopping over on my butt.

If a fictional character on TV can inspire people to see the best parts of themselves . . . well, no wonder that character's fans are extraordinarily devoted to her.

 

[vas2009]

I don't know who I love more Kate or Kathryn.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

Is there reason you have to choose?

 

[Adm_Hawthorne]

HECK NO!

 

[JanewayRulz!]

Star Fleet Academy: A lesson in Janeway Seduction 101.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yy0dnVOJEQw&feature=fvsr

;-)