Why did people complain about Khan's white-washing in STID...

[BigJake]

"They just found the best actor for the job" is really the laziest, least interesting possible answer to a complaint about whitewashing, to the point where I'm basically willing to call it just a derailment tactic. Because of course that's always the excuse and, as J_M points out, the "best person for the job" turns out to be a white guy a suspiciously disproportionate amount of the time.

It's basically like saying "Has it ever occurred to you that most CEOs are white men because white men are just smarter?"

 

[Jedi_Master]

"They just found the best actor for the job" is really the laziest, least interesting possible answer to a complaint about whitewashing, to the point where I'm basically willing to call it just a derailment tactic. Because of course that's always the excuse and, as J_M points out, the "best person for the job" turns out to be a white guy a suspiciously disproportionate amount of the time.

Especially when you consider the fact that when criminal (particularly an incarcerated one) is cast the "best actor for the job" tends to be a person of color.

However, I do agree that "in-universe" it would be reasonable for Section 31 to alter Khan's appearance, considering that he was fairly well known historical figure.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

At least I'm not wasting my time being a big, outright conniving bitch complaining about video games that I don't even play

... aaand I think we're done here.

For those interested in further reading / viewing, we had a thread on and around this sub-topic over in Misc. in which we eventually got round to actually watching some of Anita Sarkeesian's videos (with a side order of debunking common falsehoods about them that seem mostly to stem from a certain YouTube personality with whom much of the frothing fury about Sarkeesian among GamerGate dead-enders seems to have originated). Enjoy.

BTW, Jake, I didn't mean you were the bitch, I meant Anita Sarkesian-hope that clears it up.

And no, #NotYourShield isn't a hate group, either.

Shaka Zulu, this is not okay. You're calling someone something rather nasty and you know full well that this is something that is going to cause a fight. Again, I give you an infraction for trolling.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

"They just found the best actor for the job" is really the laziest, least interesting possible answer to a complaint about whitewashing, to the point where I'm basically willing to call it just a derailment tactic.

Sorry.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I saw a bit of X-Men 3 the other day and noticed a bald black guy of regular stature who everyone was calling "Trask". It made me think of this debate and i laughed.

 

[Bry_Sinclair]

I'd have liked a canon explanation as to why Khan was so different in STID, without that then his appearance makes no sense--otherwise him being a genetic superhuman called Harrison would've been a far more interesting villain.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

I'd love to know how, in the original series, they picked Ricardo Montalban.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

otherwise him being a genetic superhuman called Harrison would've been a far more interesting villain.

What another Khan rip off?

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

Why do we need to defend it, the movie made money, got good reviews, and got a sequel greenlit. Thats pretty much the definition of success.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

Why do we need to defend it, the movie made money, got good reviews, and got a sequel greenlit. Thats pretty much the definition of success.

Slide that question over to this board's JJ-ST fans who feel the need to defend it...usually attacking TOS along the way.

 

[Jedi_Master]

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

Bringing up the fact that certain things that are considered to be "negative elements" in nuTrek were quite common in TOS is not attacking TOS.

 

[JWPlatt]

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

Why do we need to defend it, the movie made money, got good reviews, and got a sequel greenlit. Thats pretty much the definition of success.

I love irony ever time I see it.

 

[fireproof78]

otherwise him being a genetic superhuman called Harrison would've been a far more interesting villain.

What another Khan rip off?

Why would it be another Khan rip off? The idea of Harrison, a Starfleet officer, being genetically engineered to create the perfect solider against the Klingons, is not only an interesting back story, its also classic science fiction concepts that could be twisted in a new way.

I mean, we had that whole thing with Bashier being genetically engineered, and how it was against the law. The moral questions and challenges would be fascinating material, as S31 attempts to ensure their victory over the Klingons.

I keep wondering how many times this is going to be brought up?

As many time JJ fans need to find reasons to defend the indefensible STID by launching fruitless attacks on TOS.

Bringing up the fact that certain things that are considered to be "negative elements" in nuTrek were quite common in TOS is not attacking TOS.

Indeed. It presenting a broader picture that nuTrek isn't somehow doing something that TOS never did, for the most part.

 

[urbandefault]

I've previously offered up the possibility that John Harrison was not Khan Noonien Singh, but another of the augments randomly awakened by Marcus. He then decided to take on the mantle to carry on Khan's mission. That would partly explain the urgency of saving his "family."

Obviously, no one accepts the possibility since there are no in-universe clues to support it. Except that Harrison doesn't look like Khan.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ Also, all of Khan's people are accounted for: in STID, there are 72 torpedoes, with an Augment in each of them, plus Khan. This is exactly the same number as in "Space Seed".

If 'Harrison' had been somebody else and not Khan, there would have been one missing.

 

[urbandefault]

I've previously offered up the possibility that John Harrison was not Khan Noonien Singh, but another of the augments randomly awakened by Marcus. He then decided to take on the mantle to carry on Khan's mission. That would partly explain the urgency of saving his "family."

Obviously, no one accepts the possibility since there are no in-universe clues to support it. Except that Harrison doesn't look like Khan.

^ Also, all of Khan's people are accounted for: in STID, there are 72 torpedoes, with an Augment in each of them, plus Khan. This is exactly the same number as in "Space Seed".

If 'Harrison' had been somebody else and not Khan, there would have been one missing.

Unless I'm misreading this, the number would be the same no matter which of them was awake and wreaking havoc.

What in your post did I miss?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ If Harrison was not Khan, then where WAS Khan?

It'd be unlikely that he'd simply be one of the other people in the tubes, since Khan - as leader - would have been woken up first. So if Harrison hadn't been Khan, then something must have HAPPENED to Khan...like if Section 31 tried to wake him up and his life support system failed, killing him. Then there'd be a missing augment...

 

[urbandefault]

^ If Harrison was not Khan, then where WAS Khan?

It'd be unlikely that he'd simply be one of the other people in the tubes, since Khan - as leader - would have been woken up first. So if Harrison hadn't been Khan, then something must have HAPPENED to Khan...like if Section 31 tried to wake him up and his life support system failed, killing him. Then there'd be a missing augment...

People make mistakes. Marcus made a couple of serious ones. Who's to say that he didn't accidentally wake up the wrong guy? One more vicious than Khan, who was only tamed by his loyalty to the real Khan?

 

[Ithekro]

We are assuming evens on the Botany Bay repreat and Kahn's chamber activates first. However that might not have been the case (luck). There were more chambers on the Botany Bay. Not all of Kahn's people survived the hundreds of years. Also the ship would have been discovered roughly nine years earlier.