More casting news: 24 Actress Nazneen Contractor joins Trek 2013

[Pauln6]

Actually, I think Uhura is one female character who didn't swoon over a man - oh wait... NuTrek changed that. Well we have Number One... oh wait they wrote her out... Dr Dehner... oh no they wrote her out of the new comic. You know, I'm thinking they don't like women who don't swoon over men! Rand's place is secure!

Uhura swooned over Spock and once for Kirk. Dehner ended up swooning over Mitchell (I don't think she'll be in the next movie).

Hmm, Dehner fell in with Mitchell as a kindred spirit after they both developed powers rather than swooning over him on a romantic level. I recall her being rather clinical up until that point (albeit not ruthless like Spock). I might be wrong though as it's been a while since I've seen it.

Uhura flirted with Spock as a tease (Man Trap and Charlie X?) and Scotty (STV) but the closest she came to swooning was in the Man Trap when she was all but hypnotised by the alien digging her fantasy man out of her subconscious (and the alien was not necessarily male). If you mean her swooning next to Kirk in City on the Edge of Forever, she wasn't really swooning over Kirk and the line was written originally for Rand so I'm prepared to give TOS Uhura a pass.

Ann Mulhall only swooned while possessed so I'm prepared to give her a pass too.

 

[Pauln6]

it's the repetition that gets so wearing...!

Dude, JJ has given us one movie so far and we know ziltch about the plot of this one. You can't blame JJ in advance for a perceived lack of female equality in ST movies when he's only made one so far - and elevated a second stringer female to major co-star status in it.

No amount of activism is going to change the script at this point. Just relax, and save the complaining for the premiere.

You'd probably complain if the male Starfleeters all connected emotionally and the women were left out of the relationship action altogether.

I'm only lobbying now so I can whine and say I told you so later. I'll be very happy if I'm proved wrong so it's win/win.

I'd be ecstatic if the women were left out of the emotional stuff altogether as long as they got something else within the plot to replace it. Children of Men is an example of a great movie that is almost devoid of romance with varied, interesting roles for women where probably the largest female role goes to a middle-aged chubby hippy midwife. Oooh and the original Andromeda Strain too.

 

[Trekkie2]

Swooning is swooning and it was the aim of the writers to make the female swoon, regardless of who played her, in every episode, because it appealed to the baser instincts of the audience they assumed were watching. That was the thinking of the '60's.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Name a female character of substance, in TOS, that did not swoon over a man.

This isn't TOS.

 

[Trekkie2]

Name a female character of substance, in TOS, that did not swoon over a man.

This isn't TOS.

It isn't? With all the Khan talk, Khan's wife, she-Khan, you could have fooled me.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Swooning is swooning and it was the aim of the writers to make the female swoon, regardless of who played her, in every episode, because it appealed to the baser instincts of the audience they assumed were watching. That was the thinking of the '60's.

And most of the male characters swooned over women too.

 

[Pauln6]

Swooning is swooning and it was the aim of the writers to make the female swoon, regardless of who played her, in every episode, because it appealed to the baser instincts of the audience they assumed were watching. That was the thinking of the '60's.

And most of the male characters swooned over women too.

Well presumably the women needed men to swoon over so that much is obvious! I suppose the issue is that the women spent a larger proportion of their time swooning, which gave them less time to do other sci-fi related stuff.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Swooning is swooning and it was the aim of the writers to make the female swoon, regardless of who played her, in every episode, because it appealed to the baser instincts of the audience they assumed were watching. That was the thinking of the '60's.

And most of the male characters swooned over women too.

Well presumably the women needed men to swoon over so that much is obvious! I suppose the issue is that the women spent a larger proportion of their time swooning, which gave them less time to do other sci-fi related stuff.

Like what? Give emotional speeches and engage in fistfights?

 

[Pauln6]

And most of the male characters swooned over women too.

Well presumably the women needed men to swoon over so that much is obvious! I suppose the issue is that the women spent a larger proportion of their time swooning, which gave them less time to do other sci-fi related stuff.

Like what? Give emotional speeches and engage in fistfights?

The ripped shirt - how could you have overlooked the potential of the ripped shirt... especially after Yeoman Barrows!

Although I was thinking more along the lines of modifying equipment, outwitting villains, scientific discoveries, phaser fights, and death by special effect!

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

...and death by special effect!

Hmmm. I've seen a lot of promising films die that way once Michael Bay get s a hold of them.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Although I was thinking more along the lines of modifying equipment, outwitting villains, scientific discoveries, phaser fights, and death by special effect!

"Calling Sigourney Weaver. Ms Weaver, report to the set."

 

[Pauln6]

Although I was thinking more along the lines of modifying equipment, outwitting villains, scientific discoveries, phaser fights, and death by special effect!

"Calling Sigourney Weaver. Ms Weaver, report to the set."

Spookily I was thinking I should have included Ripley in my earlier post. Her image as the gun-toting bad-a** is about as accurate as Kirk's rep as a glory-hogging womaniser.

In Alien, Ripley isn't that brave or tough at all, she just happens to be next in the chain of command. She isn't overly heroic (until desperate enough to save a child in the second movie). She's basically a well-rounded character; a competent officer just doing her job.

Veronica Cartwright wasn't overly happy that Lambert was so whiny and fell apart in a crisis (she does ok in the earlier parts of the movie) but apparently Ridley Scott wanted one of the characters to reflect the fears of the audience and she, as the youngest and best at being hysterical, was up for that role in the story. It needn't have been a woman though - doesn't Hudson go a bit loopy in the sequel at one point?

One of the many mistakes in the third movie was bumping Ripley up to a (rather weary) Rambo-like character taking charge of the others yet again. I would have much preferred Hicks to have taken charge (for as long as he lived - lol) and left Ripley to provide a supporting role. Not because he was a bloke but because he was qualified to do it. I wonder if the reason they killed Hicks was because they felt that featuring him would have 'disempowered' Ripley. If so then I think they misundrestood that equality doesn't have to mean equality in all things just as long as they don't repeat any bias across all the characters. Thus Ripley being the sole woman taking charge of a cast full of men was never going to strike a blow for feminism, it just left a lot of actresses without work in hte real word. Idiots.

 

[Captaindemotion]

^ They killed Hicks and Newt because they were a bunch of dumbasses, who never thought that fans of Aliens might like to see what became of the survivors of that movie, who helped make it so memorable. And they were too mean to pay Michael Biehn's salary. Wankers.

 

[Pauln6]

I think they screwed Karen Allen in the same way following Raiders. What a waste of some great characters. At least they didn't kill her off in the opening titles (yet).

 

[Therin of Andor]

In Alien, Ripley isn't that brave or tough at all, she just happens to be next in the chain of command. She isn't overly heroic (until desperate enough to save a child in the second movie). She's basically a well-rounded character; a competent officer just doing her job.

Well, isn't that what you're asking for?

 

[Pauln6]

In Alien, Ripley isn't that brave or tough at all, she just happens to be next in the chain of command. She isn't overly heroic (until desperate enough to save a child in the second movie). She's basically a well-rounded character; a competent officer just doing her job.

Well, isn't that what you're asking for?

NuUhura couls easily slot into that role but not if they leave her chained to her post... or the bedpost (or transporter pad).

 

[Nerys Myk]

I don't see her role in future films as being limited to "hailing frequencies open" or "I love you, stay safe".

 

[FarStrider]

In Alien, Ripley isn't that brave or tough at all, she just happens to be next in the chain of command. She isn't overly heroic (until desperate enough to save a child in the second movie). She's basically a well-rounded character; a competent officer just doing her job.

Well, isn't that what you're asking for?

NuUhura couls easily slot into that role but not if they leave her chained to her post... or the bedpost (or transporter pad).

Saying things like this is why your dodgy attempts at feminism annoy. . .especially when you KNOW that in the comics they've already had Uhura stealing a shuttle craft and saving the day in Galileo 7 (and yes, before you say that she did it in order to save Spock, Spock stole the Enterprise in the TOS in order not to save Pike's life, but to give him a better quality of life, and Kirk stole the Enterprise -- and got it blown up -- to retrieve Spock's dead body in Search for Spock. . .so, what's the difference?)

Basically the writers have already shown that they are willing to expand Uhura's character to be active. . . that she won't be chained to her post or a bedpost. . .so why the hell would you even go there? Why are you so quick to assume the worst? Like I said before: Feminism, you are doing it wrong.

~FS

 

[Trekkie2]

Well, isn't that what you're asking for?

NuUhura couls easily slot into that role but not if they leave her chained to her post... or the bedpost (or transporter pad).

Saying things like this is why your dodgy attempts at feminism annoy. . .especially when you KNOW that in the comics they've already had Uhura stealing a shuttle craft and saving the day in Galileo 7 (and yes, before you say that she did it in order to save Spock, Spock stole the Enterprise in the TOS in order not to save Pike's life, but to give him a better quality of life, and Kirk stole the Enterprise -- and got it blown up -- to retrieve Spock's dead body in Search for Spock. . .so, what's the difference?)

Basically the writers have already shown that they are willing to expand Uhura's character to be active. . . that she won't be chained to her post or a bedpost. . .so why the hell would you even go there? Why are you so quick to assume the worst? Like I said before: Feminism, you are doing it wrong.

~FS

Doesn't annoy me. It took TNG writers a while to recognize that 24th century women who venture into space, are not looking for a boyfriend. TOS writers seemed to promote that idea in most of the episodes. "Space Seed" and "Who Mourns for Adonais?" are rediculous examples.

The comic books are not canon. Abrams has said though, that a hint of story could be found in books #1 and #4. I take it to mean, at least, that Uhura will take a shuttle and rescue someone or several people. I don't think we're going to see overgrown monkey monsters, unless they are in the form of Klingons, or Khan.

 

[Nerys Myk]

TOS at least has the excuse that it was made in the 1960s.