Trek's catsuit problem with female actresses

I’ve always found that kind of behind-the-scenes decision making weird on the part of producers, because it basically assumes the worst about the audience, or maybe it’s an attempt to expand the audience and reach people that will only watch Star Trek for “pew-pew” battles and sexy women.

And maybe that’s realistic, since in recent years there’s a significant group that call themselves fans of this franchise that love to whine about “Woke Trek” because a show has the gall to have women, people of color, and LGBTQ characters front and center. I remember reading that Timothy McVeigh, an anti-federalist who killed 168 people and was tied to white supremacist groups, was a big fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and saw it as “a Utopian model for the future.” Just spend a moment trying to square that circle.

Because with the catsuits you have to assume that the people watching a show about an enlightened, utopian future that has achieved gender and racial equality still want their underlying sexist titillation satisfied while watching stories that castigate those attitudes.

 

Did Theiss ever chime on this?

 

Welcome to the dialectic nature of Hollywood.

 

Star Trek pretty much ended after ENT.

 

See post #19.

 

No one is suggesting that at all.

 

I don't know about Theiss, but memory alpha quotes Grace Lee Whitney as the one who suggested short skirts (shorts with flaps) instead of long pants for women in TOS.

Believe me, I'm glad others enjoy and find them meaningful....they're just not for me.

Catsuits-- and jumpsuits for the men--may have been pretty comfortable, except for having to remove them almost completely for bathroom breaks. Marina Sirtis complained about this.

 

With advances in textiles and design, a similar-looking outfit made these days would probably be much more comfy.

 

Of course not.

Better idea: Acknowledge that the stuff has flaws and represents a lot of misogyny that was normalized in American culture at the time.

I know a lot of practical women. None of them wear catsuits.

Heels are also ridiculous, yeah.

 

Ridiculous! At least so far as This isn't Star Trek #1 thru #7 (believe me, I'd happily nuke #6 if I could).

#8 thru #10 -->

 

If we all had a say as to what's Star Trek and what's not Star Trek, nothing would be Star Trek.

Enterprise is now "acceptable Star Trek." If I told you 20 years ago that that's what people would think today, no one would believe me. It keeps inching forward. It's starting to happen to the Kelvin Films. 20 years from now, Discovery and Picard will be "acceptable Star Trek." Don't believe me? Wait and see.

Whatever you think of them now, you'll think whatever Star Trek series they'll have in the 2040s will be worse. Because the sensibilities will keep moving further and further away from the people complaining about them.

 

that's a very interesting POV.

But invites a question, at what point Star Trek changes so much it isn't Star Trek anymore?

The Star Trek of Theseus

 

As for hats....

Don't recall the title of the episode, but there was a scene where Archer is gallivanting around a Vulcan desert wearing two items forgotten in later centuries-a cap and sunglasses.

 

First we'd have to know "what is Star Trek?"

 

Definitely. Many people forget that TNG and DS9 used to be disliked by large parts of the fandom too.