Top Five Star Trek Women Who Need More Love
First of all, this is not a list for the women who often get short shrift in canon but who fortunately get more love in fandom, at least in the corners of the internet I frequent. Women like:
Nor is it for awesome characters who only showed up once or twice, like:
Even though they are terrific too.
This list is focusing only on women who have been regular or recurring characters at some point, and who either don't really get discussed much by fans, or who are often portrayed or perceived as one-dimensional, annoying and whiny, incapable, or just there to get in the way of a slash pairing.
Here's why they're actually awesome.
5. Kasidy Yates
Who Is She? A freighter captain who works around Bajor
What's She Like? Fun. Principled. Capable. Affectionate.
What is There to Talk About? Captaining a freighter during wartime. Why she decided to move to Bajor. Her relationship with her brother. Her implied religious upbringing and heritage. The discomfort that causes her in relation to the Bajoran faith. Her friendship with Jake. How she relates to Kira. Her interest in baseball. Her time in prison. What she does after the series has ended. Her sub-par cooking skills.
Why Is She Awesome? She does what she thinks is right no matter what the consequences.
4. Tasha Yar
Who Is She? A security chief on the Enterprise
What's She Like? Dedicated. Passionate. Friendly. Brave.
What is There to Talk About? Her experiences on Turkana IV. Her relationship with her sister. Her friendship with Data. Her intense devotion to Starfleet. Her first meeting with Picard. How she managed at the Academy without any prior formal education. Her friendship with Deanna. Her interest in martial arts and sport.
Why Is She Awesome? She does her job very well, and loves doing it with all her heart.
3. Kes
Who Is She? A medic and airponics expert on Voyager
What's She Like? Strong-willed. Empathetic. Curious. Intelligent.
What is There to Talk About? What made her want to leave her life on Ocampa? Does she ever miss it? Her relationship with Neelix. Working in the airponics bay and Sickbay. An Ocampan childhood. Her experiences with the Kazon. Her feelings about her mental powers. The Elogium. The aftermath of her time with Tieran.
Why Is She Awesome? She left everything she ever knew so that she could have adventures on other worlds.
2. Keiko O'Brien
Who Is She? A botanist and school teacher on the Enterprise, Deep Space Nine and Bajor
What's She Like? Loving. Focused. Musical. Tenacious.
What is There to Talk About? How she fell in love with botany. How she joined the Enterprise. What it's like to be a civilian in a Starfleet facility. Her interest in fashion. Her pride in her heritage. Her close relationship with her grandmother. Choosing her career over staying on Deep Space Nine. Living on Bajor. Refusing to teach the Celestial Temple.
Why Is She Awesome? She raised kids while holding down a job, and during a war.
1. Kate Pulaski
Who Is She? Chief medical officer on the Enterprise
What's She Like? Easy-going. Practical. Open-minded. Modest.
What is There to Talk About? Her transporter phobia. Her ground-breaking work in ocular implant surgery and viral propagation research. Her love of traditional remedies. Her admiration for Picard. Her friendship with Deanna. Her three marriages. Her low regard for the Prime Directive. Gradually growing to understand Data. Her interest in Klingon culture. Her skill at poker.
Why Is She Awesome? She prescribes chicken soup to her patients and drinks poisonous tea.
These are just my personal top five. Feel free to suggest more - as well as share recs - in the comments!
images from Trekcore