"Heterosexuals have lives, the rest of us have lifestyles."
I don't know why this is suddenly bugging me, but it really irritates me when shows have only one character of a particular type: one woman, one non-white, etc. I feel like the fact that they're not a white male becomes their defining characteristic, whereas the various white males are allowed a whole range of histories and personalities. Alias boggled my mind when I first saw it: Three black characters? And they're not related? They each get their own plotlines and personalities? Christopher Judge said one of the things that made him jump at the role of Teal'c was it was the first time he'd EVER seen a script for a black character that wasn't pinned in on all sides by issues of race.
Highlander really pissed me off in that regard, much as I loved the show. It's rare to see two women in the same episode, so each female character is a single take on femininity, usually from a man's perspective. Tessa had some texture, but she basically had two modes, pissed and seductive, and wasn't really developed beyond "hero's girlfriend". Amanda was a typical Hollywood girl, using sex to get what she wanted, and always shown in relation to the men she leaves holding the bag or who get the better of her. Anne had some personality as a doctor, at least, and they developed how Duncan's killing affected her, but she never really clicked with Duncan. (We won't even get into the majority of the walk-on arm candy). Carl Robinson was a former slave whose whole life revolved around that. Kiem Sun and Jimmy Sang were pretty stock Oriental stereotypes. I mean, compare them to Darius, Methos, Sean Burns, Joe, Greg Powers, not to mention Fitzcairn.
Is this just bad writing by white men? Or is this a comment on larger society, that when you belong to a marginalized group, you're forced to display yourself through that lens all the time: you're a gay person defined by your sexuality, or a Jew defined by your religion, or a woman defined by your boobs.
Man, if it wasn't for Stargate, B5 and Firefly, I don't know what I'd do...
Highlander really pissed me off in that regard, much as I loved the show. It's rare to see two women in the same episode, so each female character is a single take on femininity, usually from a man's perspective. Tessa had some texture, but she basically had two modes, pissed and seductive, and wasn't really developed beyond "hero's girlfriend". Amanda was a typical Hollywood girl, using sex to get what she wanted, and always shown in relation to the men she leaves holding the bag or who get the better of her. Anne had some personality as a doctor, at least, and they developed how Duncan's killing affected her, but she never really clicked with Duncan. (We won't even get into the majority of the walk-on arm candy). Carl Robinson was a former slave whose whole life revolved around that. Kiem Sun and Jimmy Sang were pretty stock Oriental stereotypes. I mean, compare them to Darius, Methos, Sean Burns, Joe, Greg Powers, not to mention Fitzcairn.
Is this just bad writing by white men? Or is this a comment on larger society, that when you belong to a marginalized group, you're forced to display yourself through that lens all the time: you're a gay person defined by your sexuality, or a Jew defined by your religion, or a woman defined by your boobs.
Man, if it wasn't for Stargate, B5 and Firefly, I don't know what I'd do...