Fan reactions to Starfleet Academy's female Jem'Hadar/Klingon hybrid character

[fireproof78]

I like El-Aurians. Betazoids are meh to me

I don't care for either one but the idea that human looking aliens is passe is laughable to me. We have whole shows work with that concept and it is baked in to Star Trek as a world. Even if one ignores TOS as Roddenberry wanted to with TNG you still have several human looking aliens going forward from TNG.

I don't mind more alien looking aliens but human looking aliens are just as acceptable to me in Star Trek.

 

[Rahul]

Bro, this! The human but actually isn't alien got played out decades ago

Yes. 100% Human-looking aliens belong to Star Trek like to a lot long-running franchises (Superman, John Carter).

But for me these have always been mainly a budget-/production related issue. E.g. if you're story takes place on a planet with a whole ass civilization, with dozens of characters and extras- I don't expect unique makeup for all. (E.g. SNWs "among the Lotus Eaters"). In fact, here I might even prefer "human" aliens compared to all the "minimal make-up" aliens of the TNG era, where they just had a bump on the forehead or nose.

But whenever the budget allows, they should go for a more "alien" look.

 

[Rahul]

Lurak Thor is also a remarkable fresh breath of air because it's the first woman main character in a full on alien face mask.
Usually that's mostly men (Saru, Worf, Dr. Phlox, even og Spock), whereas women still need to look "sexy" as aliens (Ilia, Troi, Jadzia, Kira, B'Elanna, T'Pol, Una, Nahla, Pelia),.
Aka what I call the "Kes & Neelix effect".

 

[Tosk]

Lurak Thor is also a remarkable fresh breath of air because it's the first woman main character in a full on alien face mask.
Usually that's mostly men (Saru, Worf, Dr. Phlox, even og Spock), whereas women still need to look "sexy" as aliens (Ilia, Troi, Jadzia, Kira, B'Elanna, T'Pol, Una, Nahla, Pelia),.
Aka what I call the "Kes & Neelix effect".

You're counting Spock as a main character with 'full on alien face mask'?

 

[Rahul]

You're counting Spock as a main character with 'full on alien face mask'?

...for a 60s tv show, he had quite comprehensive make-up for a main character...
(obviously no comparison to modern latex masks or anything - but remember, this was before the first Star Wars)

 

[Tosk]

...for a 60s tv show, he had quite comprehensive make-up for a main character...
(obviously no comparison to modern latex masks or anything - but remember, this was before the first Star Wars)

Arguably, but how you gonna count Spock as a yes for the male side but T'Pol and B'Elanna as a no on the female side?

 

[Nerys Myk]

TOS didn’t do “masks” too often. The Tellerites are the only example that comes to mind. Wigs and body paint were the usual go to.

 

[FredH]

I don't care for either one but the idea that human looking aliens is passe is laughable to me. We have whole shows work with that concept and it is baked in to Star Trek as a world. Even if one ignores TOS as Roddenberry wanted to with TNG you still have several human looking aliens going forward from TNG.

I don't mind more alien looking aliens but human looking aliens are just as acceptable to me in Star Trek.

Since it’s long established that there are numerous alien species who externally look exactly like humans, I’ve long thought they should roll with that and also have numerous unrelated species who externally look like Klingons, Ferengi, and indeed any visually distinct species we’ve ever seen. They already did that a little with Vulcanoids (the Mintakans; I’m not counting the Romulans, since they started as actual Vulcans, or the Debrune, who started as Romulans).

 

[Rahul]

You're counting Spock as a main character with 'full on alien face mask'?

As I said, by comparing it to other technologies and productions of their time.
In the 60s aliens were usually either monsters with a complete suit, or completely human looking. Doing face-masks and make-up was quite unusual for main characters, more of a twilight zone thing, and Leonard Nimoy spent as much time in the make-up chair as today Doug Jones would. He was the "designated weird alien" at the time.
Also, if you notice, his whole face was painted green (originally planned to be red, but that didn't look good on black/white tvs), which they stopped doing with the movies and for all later Vulcans.

Basically you can see the progression of make-up technologies through time. In ENT Dr Phlox was the edge of what was reasonable to expect for an actor every day. T'Pol had it "easy" by then. In the 60s this was Spock. Today it's Lurak Thor (she looks as good but spends probably much less time in the chair than the Jem Ha'dar actors on DS9 needed to for their guest appearances).