Lisa Paitz Spindler, Danger Gal

In light of the recent reboot of the Star Trek franchise with the release of J.J. Abrams’ new movie, this weeks’ Danger Gal Friday post profiles Number One, the original first officer of the Enterprise from The Original Series pilot “The Cage.”

Number One was played by Majel Barrett, wife of Gene Roddenberry. Originally, Number One had also served as first officer under Christopher Pike on the USS Yorktown before joining him on the Enterprise. Network executives made several changes to the series after the original pilot, one of which included changing Barrett’s character to Nurse Chapel. Number One’s “highly-logical, steel-trap mind” was then attributed to Spock instead. I have few criticisms of the new Star Trek movie, and in fact very much enjoyed it, but one facet that saddened me was the continuation of the Nurse Chapel character without any reference to the Number One character. Initially, Spock was the science officer, but the new movie continues with the idea that he is both chief science officer and first or executive officer.

While I appreciated the update to Uhura’s character, I do hope that Abrams touches on the Number One character in future installments of the new franchise considering he’s also created characters such as Alias’ Sydney Bristow* and previous Danger Gal Fringe’s Olivia Dunham. Jennifer Weiner at The Huffington Post voices many of my misgivings with the female characters in the new movie:

Honestly, I didn’t have a problem until about midway through the film…at which point I realized that every single lady on screen was either a mother, a ho, or an intergalactic hood ornament.

Memory Alpha describes Number One: “. . . she held the rank of lieutenant. She was noted for her exceptional intelligence and rationality. In 2254, Captain Pike regarded Number One as the most experienced officer on the Enterprise.” Evidently, Roddenberry initially based the Starfleet rank structure on the 18th and 19th century British navy, when a ship’s second-in-command was often a First Lieutenant, rather than 20th century Naval ranks now associated with the series.

In “The Cage,” the Talosians reveal to Pike that Number One harbored feelings for him. Number One and Spock at one point installed computer upgrades that made the Enterprise voice-interactive. They utilized her voice-pattern, which was later carried over into all Starfleet computers.

Many different names have been associated with Number One in the Star Trek expanded universe: Eunice Robbins and Morgan Primus among others.

* I thought I’d already profiled Sydney Bristow, but when I searched the archives I discovered that I’ve neglected her! I’ll try to rectify that shortly.

This week’s Danger Gal post profiles Hancock’s Mary Embrey. This movie isn’t new, but I myself only watched it recently, so beware that spoilers follow.

I admit to having mixed feelings about this movie and about Mary’s character. Charlize Theron, who portrayed Mary in the 2008 movie, had this to say about the character:

“She makes this conscious decision to live in suburbia and be this soccer mum to her stepson and be the perfect wife—she lives in this bubble. But when people do that it usually means they are hiding some characteristic inside themselves that scares them. That is Mary’s case. She knows who she is and what she is capable of. I find it very complex when I get to play women like that.”

As visual evidence that Mary is not living authentically, we see her appearance change pretty drastically when she finally owns up to her true nature: Mary transforms from hippie housewife to black-clad superhero. The black eyeliner alone tells you not mess with her, right?

Turns out that Mary and Hancock are, in Mary’s words:

“Gods, angels. . . Different cultures call us by different names. Now all of a sudden it’s superhero. . .Whatever we are, we’re built in twos. We’re drawn together. No matter how far I run, he’s [Hancock] always there! He finds me. It’s physics.”

The only two of their kind left, Mary and Hancock have been breaking up and reuniting for millennia. The problem? When they’re together both lose their superhuman abilities and become vulnerable. By the way, when their powers are manifest Mary is the stronger of the two.

This is actually a great romantic concept: That love makes you vulnerable. Mary and Hancock, however, are subverting their destinies by periodically breaking up after particularly nasty events, perpetuated by outside forces, happen to them that nearly kill one or both. The most recent was a mugging that nearly killed Hancock. Mary stayed away initially so Hancock could make use of his superhuman healing abilities, but then decided it was best if they never reunited (or maybe they’re just “on a break,” we’re not told). He ended up with amnesia and therefore has no clue about his identity or the source of his powers. Hancock doesn’t know who he is without Mary.

You’d think they’d ask why this pattern keeps repeating? Is there a Big Bad out there with their demise as a goal? Or is it just that if you live long enough, bad things eventually happen? When together, proximity or love, possibly both, turn these two superhumans into regular people. Maybe they’re supposed to live a natural life together and die like the rest of us? Instead of sticking it out together when bad things happen they break up and become superhuman again.

So, what happens in the end? Do these two lovers learn how to live life being vulnerable both physically and emotionally? Um, no. Nope, the world needs a protector and Hancock is The One.

Never mind that Mary is actually stronger and therefore actually more qualified for the job.

Mary decides to stay in the bubble. Sure, she’s doing good work creating a stable environment for her step-son and seems to have a good drama-free relationship with her husband. I do like this twist on the fated mate motif, and Mary and Hancock need to form identities separate from simply being one part of an eternal dyad. So, if separating is what’s best for both of them — if the real romance here is between Mary and Aaron — I still don’t like that Mary decides to keep her superior powers under wraps. There’s a double-standard going on here in that Hancock isn’t permitted to shirk his superhero duties, so why should Mary get a free pass? The world needs all the help it can get. Why do either of them have to choose between family and career? If Aaron really loved Mary he wouldn’t want her to keep her light under a bushel.

Overall, I like the Mary Embrey character mostly because, despite this double-standard, she is not a reactive female character. To the contrary, it was Mary who decided to leave Hancock, Mary who decided to form a family with Aaron Embrey, Mary who decided to out her superpowers, and Mary who decided to remain with Aaron. The men in her life, and the world at large, have to accept those choices. I generally like the roles Charlize Theron picks because more often than not, she chooses to play active, choice-making characters like Embrey — even if I don’t always agree with those choices. For this alone I think Mary Embrey qualifies as a Danger Gal — the superpowers of course help.

With all the attention garnered by Ronald Moore’s re-imagined version of Battlestar Galactica, it’s easy to forget what was good about the original series — and if you’re willing to filter out the 1970s cheese factor there is a lot of good to be found. One of these is the female characters. This week’s Danger Gal Friday profile is on the women of the original Battlestar Galactica series: Sheba, Athena, and Casseopeia. We’ll even talk a little bit about Serina too.

The original series reflected the changing gender roles of the 1970s as well as portrayed the beginnings of a more feminist future. This latter point is evidenced by Sheba’s command of Pegasus’ Silver Spar Squadron. A big deal is made of Galactica pulling its pilots and Viper pilots from civilian — and female — volunteers when a sickness decimates pilot ranks. However, clearly women have not only been serving as Viper pilots, but also as commanders such as Sheba, on Pegasus without the impetus of male pilots’ absence. While this development on the Galactica has more in common with the situation during World War II when women worked in factories simply because most men were away fighting in the war, it did open up the show to portray the friction between women and men in the 1970s as women willingly joined the workforce.

Serina enjoyed a career as a journalist on Caprica prior to the holocaust, but Apollo is definitely not comfortable with Serina putting her life in danger by becoming a Viper pilot and the two have several arguments over it. With Serina’s character we get to see a woman balancing a career and family since she is one of the few mothers portrayed in the series. Incidentally, Jane Seymor was originally offered the role of Lyra, a member of the Quorum of Twelve. Lyra was intended to be an ongoing character, but Seymor wanted to be free to do films so the character was changed.

(more…)

In lieu of a Danger Gal post this week, here is a link to Pink Ray Gun’s review of last week’s Battlestar Galactica episode “The Oath.”

Money quote:

It was like they [the women of BSG] attended a seminar with Gwen Cooper! Possibly “Sci-fi Chick Badassery: Intermediate Methods ” or “Reconnecting with Your Lost Badass: A Seminar for Disenfranchised Women Who’d Rather Not Kill Themselves”. Whichever seminar they attended, I hope this behavior keeps up for the remaining episodes.

Yeah, someone please help Dualla out from under that refrigerator.

This week’s Danger Gal Friday post profiles Lt. Jodenny Scott from Sandra McDonald’s THE OUTBACK STARS.

Lt. Jodenny Scott earned a MacBride Cross for bravery during the tragedy that destroyed her previous ship the T.S.S. Yangtze. The story picks up with Scott frustrated after three months of recovery and desk duty when she pulls out all the stops to be reassigned to the T.S.S. Aral Sea. Scott finds herself embroiled in an existing mess of intrigue that she and Sergeant Teren Myell unravel, all the while discovering an ancient alien device and trying not to fall in love. I agree with Heather Massey’s assessment of this novel as “a terrific mix of accessible military SF, romance, and mystery.” In fact, McDonald has a great tagline on her web site that so very succinctly describes her books: “love. duty. really big spaceships.”

Ships in Scott’s world travel faster than light via an ancient alien system called the Alcheringa. Earth’s climate has been decimated, though some unfortunate people still live there. Many have colonized seven planets called the Seven Sisters. The mythology of the story is taken from Aboriginal Australian mythology and explained by the fact that Australians were the first to discover the Alcheringa and therefore the first to colonize the Seven Sisters, though no one yet has discovered the purpose of three spheres found on each planet called the Mother, Father, and Child Spheres.

Scott definitely qualifies as a Danger Gal in that she’s a decorated officer and, once joining the Yangtze, is put in charge of Underway Stores, the department responsible for all supplies across the entire ship. I thought the Romance and Science Fiction elements were well-balanced and the plot well-executed, but I also admired McDonald’s obvious knowledge of daily life on a Naval vessel. Her bio states that McDonald has in fact served as an officer in the United States Navy and this life experience definitely comes across in the main details of the story.

While fraternization between officers and enlisted is not permitted, it’s clear that in Scott’s world women and men enjoy quite an egalitarian approach to sexuality, though other modes of approach are not extinct. For instance, one female character is suspected of exchanging sexual favors for gifts and another female character is in an abusive relationship. However, Scott encourages the first character to give up her situation because of how it may impact on her career — no mention is made of anyone’s aspirations on the woman’s moral character. The woman in the abusive relationship is helped by several characters, including Scott and Myell.

In a reversal of many Romances I’ve read, it’s the hero, Myell, who has to deal with past physical abuse rather than the heroine. Scott has had her trials and tribulations, but none of them include the stereotypical tropes often given to female characters to support an unwillingness to consider a new romantic relationship. Throughout the story Scott outranks Myell, but never does he demonstrate a problem reporting to a woman or following orders given by her. Scott has emotional baggage to deal with from her losses on board the Yangtze, but her efforts to continue on despite them show a sense of admirable determination. My only criticism in this area is that Scott considers and voices the possibility of giving up her commission in order to continue their relationship, but Myell never talks of making a similar sacrifice. In his defense, Myell is against Scott resigning and before having met her decided he would leave the military when his contract expired in three months.

I appreciated that many of Scott’s and Myell’s superior officers were women, including a very important admiral. Also the Aral Sea is comprised of a multicultural crew that I found refreshing. Overall I very much enjoyed THE OUTBACK STARS, relished reading about Scott’s adventures, and look forward to the next installment in the series.

More information on this novel:

10 Hella Sexy Discoveries in The Outback Stars
SFF World Review
SciFi Weekly Review

This week’s Danger Gal Friday is Dr. Helen Magnus portrayed by actress Amanda Tapping in the new science fiction series Sanctuary.

There are so many fun things about Helen Magnus, I’m not sure where to start, except to say that Tapping has some great taste in choosing roles to play since she’s the first actress to have character be profiled more than once as a Danger Gal. Sanctuary is setting new precedents for the production and distribution of Science Fiction television. Most notably, the series is shot on a green screen with most of its complicated sets being CGI and that originally the show was distributed via the web only. The series, with Tapping as executive producer, has since been picked up by the SciFi Network. The premise is an interesting way to bridge the gap between the Paranormal and Science Fiction: that the world is full of “abnormals,” some of whom need protection and some of a dangerous few need captured.

Magnus is a 157-year old female doctor. Yeah, read that again. She was born in Victorian England when few women were allowed that kind of education. Sometimes I find it difficult to suspend my disbelief while watching this show (but mostly I do very much enjoy it), and this is one of those moments. I’d much rather have had Magnus actually obtain her medical degree on her own later in her life when it was much more possible than in Victorian England, due to her fabulous daddy who was the “most brilliant and controversial medical researcher of his day” in his Super Secret Lab. This situation just makes me think of the daughter of a king who has no son, so she gets the throne by default. It seems to be a much more elaborate explanation for her medical degree than is actually needed.

That being said, I like that Magnus is almost 200 years old and looks to be in her 40s. She’s the main protagonist, built and runs the Institute. She answers to no one. I like that she doesn’t micromanage her weapons expert and martial artist daughter (and future Danger Gal) Ashley. Though it relates to the show overall and not to her character, I like that Ashley is the smart muscle while Dr. Will Zimmerman is the emotional muscle.

In a recent From Inside the Box review Zap2It said:

Similarly, Helen is too detached, with her Mona Lisa smile promising, but never fulfilling, the need for warmth. She’s also rightfully mysterious. After all, she is revealed to be 157-years-old, so apparently there’s something about her that makes her one of those “abnormals” that she protects, but she is on occasion exasperating when she speaks in riddles or withholds vital information from Will. In addition, Tapping is at times a bit too reserved, perhaps which is why when Helen is upset or angry, she seems almost laughably melodramatic

I don’t see why it should be important that Magnus exhibit warmth, in fact, it think it would be quite out of character. She’s seen a lot, came of age in a time when emotions were expected to be kept in check, and she has a lot to protect Zimmerman both from and against. She needs to play her cards close, as Tapping herself notes in a Zap2It interview:

But when you watch everyone you’ve ever known grow old and die — all your lovers and your friends — I think that her heart is very well protected now because if it wasn’t, she would be heartbroken all the time.”

Fans of Stargate will notice a few familiar faces, especially in the SciFi Channel premiere: David Hewlett, Kavan Smith and Christopher Heyerdahl.

This week’s Danger Gal Friday profile is a little bit different: Margaret and Helen, two “best friends for sixty years and counting.” Margaret and Helen are both in their 80s — and have started a blog set up by Helen’s grandson. I’m dubbing them Danger Gals because they speak their mind. From their About Us page:

My name is Helen Philpot. I am 82 years old. My grandson taught me how to do this so that I could “blog” with my best friend Margaret Schmechtman who I met in college almost 60 years ago. I have three children with my husband Harold. Margaret has three dogs with her husband Howard. I live in Texas and Margaret lives in Maine.

These two women, but Helen especially, have a lot to say and they’re hilarious saying it. Helen’s grandson set up the blog for them because he “wanted to capture her words and stories for our family to have as a tribute to her for many years to come. I told her it would be like scrapbooking with a computer. . . I thought it might give her something fun to do with her friend and keep her young at heart. I think it is working.”

I hope these two are for real, I really do.

If you’re a McCain supporter, a word of warning: You likely won’t enjoy Helen’s point of view. She does have a way with words and I admire both ladies for voicing their opinions. I respect that they’re mastering blogging technology in their 80s. I hope that when I’m that age I’ll be just as spry.

It’s hard to choose a favorite quote from Helen, but this is right up there on my list:

I am 82 years old (83 in December). It’s time to hand the reigns over to the next generation and hope that we did a good job raising them. To Senator McCain I say, with love in my heart, sit down and shut up. You’re beginning to look like an ass and your answers sound like a cross between Barnie Fife and Floyd the Barber. And no matter how many times you start a sentence with “My friends” if you end it with a bunch of stuff that really doesn’t make sense… well eventually someone like me is going to call “bullshit”…

You just can’t teach an old dog a new trick… even if you put lipstick on it. Change is needed. I know because I am a fat, old dog. For too many years I’ve been eating more pie than I should. Jenny Craig had me doing pretty good for a few years but eventually I started eating pie again. John McCain has been part of the Republican party in Washington for 26 years. It doesn’t matter what he has been saying the last few months, eventually he’s going to eat the party pie again. He’s old. I’m old. That’s what we do. We don’t suddenly switch to salad.

It’s OK. We’ve been part of the greatest generation. We had our turn. Now we get to sit back and enjoy our pie while someone else worries about the calories. The new guy has the energy and the new ideas. Senator Obama, I hope you’re up for the challenge.

One more thing for Senator McCain before this old bird goes to bed. Ronald Reagan is dead. Let it go.

You go girls!

This week’s Danger Gal Friday is FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham played by Anna Torv from Fox’s new Science Fiction TV show Fringe.

One aspect I have so far enjoyed about Fringe is that Dunham is our main protagonist. She’s the center of the action and not a sidekick. While Dunham has her problems (a horrible step-dad, falling in love with her off-limits partner), we also see how she excels. We get to see a mix and balance of the negative and positive forces in her life. This makes for a multi-dimensional character.

From a Gaze standpoint, I’ve also noticed that Dunham dresses in suits and simple t-shirts, we’re not seeing her body objectified by outfits an FBI agent just would not wear. Actually, it seems like Dunham’s black suit attire is meant to evoke a “Men In Black” vibe, or it could simply be that a woman with her background and profession likely would have a “uniform” similar to that. If the attire is due to the former, that’s a fun twist on a stereotype that I haven’t seen since Linda Fiorentino and Rosario Dawson in the Men In Black movies.

If her attire choices are due to the latter, that seems to fit what I would expect from Dunham’s character. Dunham is not in a “girly headspace,” and I just don’t see many of the typical feminine trappings appealing to her. Dunham’s one assent to femininity is her long hair. Again, this seems to fit the character the writers have created. It’s a compelling mix of the practical with the impractical.

In the series premiere, the plot did call for Dunham to strip down to her skivvies, but no special emphasis was placed on this. In a later episode we see Peter Bishop, played by Joshua Jackson, in his boxers somewhat gratuitously (Pacey, all grow’d up), so I feel there’s an even treatment so far across the genders of the main characters. I also like that they’ve teamed up the crazy old white mad scientist man with a Black female lab assistant whose character seems to be treated as much more than window dressing.

Dunham’s character is also active in that she’s not only investigating intellectually into cases, but we get to see her in physical foot and car chases. We get to see her pull and fire a gun. In that last episode “The Cure,” we see her leading a SWAT team intent on rescuing a woman undergoing a tortuous medical treatment. So far, I have overall found Fringe to be a fun hour of entertainment. Some of the science in the show seems way more out there than what I’d even call “fringe,” but I have so far been able to suspend my disbelief and enjoy the show.

For more on Fringe:
IO9’s What to expect on the fringe
SF Scope’s Fringe episode reviews

Owen: “Make yourself useful, sweetheart, pass us the big chisel from the toolbox?”
Gwen: “Not sweetheart, Gwen. One syllable, sure you can manage it.”
Owen: “Not sweetcheeks? Freckles? New girl?”
Gwen: “It’s a shame your tool’s not big enough for the job. Darling.”

This week’s Danger Gal Friday profile is of Gwen Cooper from the BBC show and Dr. Who spin-off, Torchwood as portrayed by actress Eve Myles. Cooper comes to Torchwood after her South Wales Police officer investigative skills lead her to discovering the secret Cardiff branch of the Torchwood Institute. While often the “everyday man” member of the team, stand-in for the audience, and her obvious compassion, Cooper never loses her sharp edge and proves to be an asset to the team over and over again. Hathor Legacy sums up Cooper’s character nicely:

Despite being the conscience of the team, Gwen’s not a pushover. She can chase down a suspect with the best of them, is willing to use force, sticks to her convictions even when everybody with far more experience thinks she’s bonkers. Kindness and strength in one person. Kindness as strength. Gwen’s not a perfect person, but she’s a darn near perfect character.

Gwen handles much of the interviewing of witnesses and investigative work due to her previous experience as a police officer. Jack Harkness, head of the Cardiff Torchwood office, regards Cooper as the grounding force of his team, reminding everyone of their ties to humanity. One of the main themes of Cooper’s character is her struggle to maintain this humanity and her inability to reveal to Rhys Williams, her live-in fiance, the true nature of her work.

In dealing with the dangers she faces everyday as part of Torchwood, Cooper temporarily turns intimately to fellow teammember Owen Harper. Harper, an all-around unlikable character, offers Cooper the company of someone who understands what she faces each day, but without any real emotional attachments. While their relationship is ultimately a short-lived mistake, Cooper does not face any Scarlet Letter moments with Rhys afterward. In my opinion, Cooper does lose part of the humanity Jack admires about her when she gives Rhys the amnesia pills after confessing to him, but the secret is hers alone to bear without any kind of global aftereffects. It’s refreshing to see this approach — i.e., in shows of the supranatural type, I’ve often seen female characters engage in some sort of “dishonorable” or “unheroic” behavior to only shortly afterward face some sort of vital personal and global threat, as if the fate of the whole world were somehow tied to their personal honor or to whom they slept with. Not so on this show, in Torchwood Cooper’s indiscretion has only personal repercussions, not global ones. In fact, Cooper took control of the situation and broke off her affair with Harper instead of becoming the stereotypical jilted woman. She’s permitted to be an imperfect person and to make mistakes.

Cooper never stops thinking with both her heart and her head, and we often see her as a formidable debater with Jack and the other members of the team. She stands her ground often and despite being a newbie to the group, continually demonstrates her marked contribution to the team. Cooper is also the first member of the team to learn of Jack’s secret inability to die.

Quote found via the The To Be Human Gwen Cooper Fanlisting.

This week’s Danger Gal Friday post goes to Anna Diaz as portrayed by Rosario Dawson in the new Web series Gemini Division.

Diaz is an NYPD undercover vice cop after the people who murdered her fiance is Nick Corda, an artificial lifeform created by the military as a super-warrior. From the Gemini Division web site:

Determined to bring the people responsible to justice, Anna discovers Nick was not the man she thought - in fact, he wasn’t a man at all. Nick Korda was a “Simulant” - a bio-engineered life form - connected to a global conspiracy involving covert military operations, bizarre genetic experiments… and a mysterious organization known as GEMINI DIVISION.

IO9 isn’t too thrilled with the show so far, but I think it’s premature to pass judgment. I so far like the format and I obviously like that Diaz is the main POV character. I’ve liked Dawson in other roles, so I’ll continue to watch before deciding whether I like it or not.

However, I am seriously annoyed that their Flash video player crashed my Firefox twice. If they’re expecting people to actually watch these videos online, then that just can’t happen. I was also unable to grab the code to embed the Flash video here, hence the You Tube version of the second trailer.