Season 1 Raffi was very charming and likable. I thought she was caring and low key a sweetheart. I enjoyed her brainstorming like an extrovert, preferring multiple holograms to do her research. That made her an almost real character to me. Season 2 raffi was basically her shutting down her emotions because of the death of her surrogate son that she cared deeply for. While that's real, it made her the opposite of unlikable as she adopted a means justify the ends point of view and was very emotionally erratic. I am a little surprised at the lack of resources (or knowledge) for mental health in the Star Trek universe, kind of like how it is right now but it shouldn't be like that on the show. Raffi was on her own to deal with her trauma with no help.
Um, the opposite of unlikable is likable so is Raffi likable? She seemed to pretty much reject help so...
I just dont like how the white writers and producers turned her into a stereotype which I thought was wildly tone deaf especially since modern trek is all about inclusion, diversity and breaking racial and gender stereotypes but it seems like they still have A LOT of unlearning to do. Overall Raffi is still very human and I don't mind her character at all.
SNW did no such thing. SNW did not state or imply that, if 1/6 had not happened, then WWIII would have been avoided. That, too, is neither stated nor implied by SNW.
I suspect she is partly written in such a manner that we are not supposed to like her. The Cordelia Chase from Buffy. (not Angel version) In my opinion she is the worst written character in all of Trek. The most unlikeable, the most unprofessional for a Starfleet officer. Before my career as a coder I was in the US Navy and came across people that she reminds me of. Universally disliked individuals. How she could be XO on a starship is beyond me but I would imagine she would not have been liked by those under her. Personally I wouldn't make her an XO of even a freighter. The actress is a good one and I have seen her in other stuff. When she went to choke Q I was hoping he would turn her into a deer and she can run off into the forest so we would never see her again. Oh well. I realize that this is subjective. My old buddy could never stop going on and on about Neelix. He wanted him to be killed in every episode while I enjoyed the character.
Which is exactly what people who complained when I was in the Navy were told. She didn't get tossed so we can assume she did her job. She can still be the most unlikeable character in Trek though and do a good job. Would I want to serve under a sarcastic XO like that? No way, nobody does.
My father was a Lieutenant in the Army. I know a little about how things go in the military. Officers aren't known for winning popularity contests.
We also have to take into account the gap of years in her career. There was what a 10 year gap where she was out of Starfleet? That person, after 10 years of drug use and more, might well be a totally different person overall. There is no way the Raffi of current Trek would survive for very long. She would act out and possibly strike somebody or say the wrong thing to superiors where the right thing would be to just shut up.
Lets be clear - we have no evidence for just how long the drug use has been going on. It is more likely to have been a gradual thing following her isolation after her son cut her off. Finding herself vindicated after being accused of being a truther/nutjob is likely to have levelled her out a bit, plus JLP will have ensured she got the best support possible reintergrating. I think she would do a hell of a lot better than she gets credit for
Wow now that is a tough one. Tilly is one of the most annoying characters they ever created but she is not a sarcastic jerk. My own personal preference between two totally unlikeable characters would be the less sarcastic one and so Raffi edges out Tilly just by a bit. I think that If I encountered the two characters in the real world I would rather talk to Tilly than Raffi. I feel at least to some degree they wrote Tilly to be insecure but not unlikeable on purpose. I think they went out of their way to make Raffi unlikeable by their written dialogue, much like Cordelia Chase was written. (I think Buffy did a much better job)
I would not want to be around either. But I kind of like Tilly, more. She's annoying but seems to try to be nice. I'd take nice but annoying b/c neurotic over unpleasant. But I think I'd rather have Raffi in a a show. She's less annoying, and I don't have to actually be around her. To recap, for those keeping score at home: IRL, Tilly, I'd choose you, though we prob wouldn't hang out. In a show, Raffi.
Maybe. Maybe not. One of the interesting aspects of people who serve in an military organization is returning to that sense of order can actually help right the ship. My uncle struggled a bit from discharging from the Marines to joining the Army. The Army helped him recover a sense of order and creating leadership in up and coming NCOs. It did wonders for his sense of order and purpose. Though, he also got a commanding officer to drop charges by threatening to bring charges against the commanding general under the UCMJ due to misfiling paperwork. So, even then, he said the wrong thing sometimes.
I hear you. Of the two - I'm more incredulous that Tilly is in Starfleet; conversely, I'm more incredulous that Raffi is a 24th century human.
25th Century human! We've seen Tilly as an officer being ridiculous but we need to see Raffi functioning as a Starfleet officer doing what she does. She's probably a lot different on duty than what I've seen from Tilly. So, I'm giving Raffi the benefit of the doubt, but I'd rather neither on a show.
Good point. She was recovering afresh in S1. Traumatized by second loss of a son in S2. She might be just fine under normal circumstances. JL apparently thought she was good when his No. 1. Btw is that a Roddenberry ism or do they really say that in the Navy, re. A First Officer? “No. 1” I mean.
Very true, and with Seven being an officer on the Excelsior, I think, will stable Raffi. I think there's an opportunity to see how Seven adapts to the new Starfleet protocol and how she'll adjust to a Raffi, in First Officer stature, who may not play favorites and treat her like all subordinates. It's not an easy transition but I think it's a nice test to their relationship.