Uhura fandom is for everyone (long post)
Happened to be in the right city, right time & attended this TV Dinner event, part of a series produced by Seattle’s Central Cinema, which is a combo movie theater/dinner theater (sit,watch,eat). The special Uhura-focused Star Trek event was co-sponsored by the organization GeekGirlCon, an organization “dedicated to recognizing and celebrating the contribution of women in all aspects of geek culture”. GeekGirlCon hosts an annual convention in Seattle and other events year-round ; volunteers are welcome.
Unfortunately, the friend I'd hoped to attend the event with was working, but I had a good time despite flying solo.I came early, sat by myself, glanced around to see who else was there. It was a large, youngish, cheerful crowd, mostly 20s-30s perhaps. I think I was one of a few people in the room beyond the age 21-34 demographic but I don’t guess ages well. 5 women seemed visibly identifiable as women of color, myself included. More men than I'd expected; some cuddled with women during the screening (what a nice date night!), while others seemed to be with women friends or colleagues, or in small groups with other men. During the intermission one young man stopped to talk to the people at the table behind me and chatted knowledgably and fondly about TOS episodes and Lt. Uhura as a character - even now in 2012 TOS Uhura’s fans include youngish White men. All told, a large group of about 80+ viewers, a polite and fun crowd. Roddenberry wasn’t perfect, but his role in changing popular culture is undeniable.
The evening opened with an intro by Jen - , dressed for the occasion in Command red. She spoke briefly about how Uhura as a character and Nichelle Nichols as a person have inspired many women fans. Lt. Uhura was intelligent, able to work with technology every day, and able to solve problems -- many young girls felt that a science or technology related profession could be possible for them because they identified with Uhura. As she explained two women of color involved with the organization cited Uhura as an example, but also said that she herself (not a woman of color) looked up to Uhura.
Show time! I ordered a tasty pizza bianco (Gruyere, mushrooms, fresh basil, roasted garlic) & glass of a sweet, dry Reisling-ish wine and settled in for the show: Mirror, Mirror; The Lorelei Signal; and Plato’s Stepchildren. Some spoilers here if you haven’t seen these episodes.
Mirror, Mirror
Clasisc ep written by Jerome Bixby. One of my favorite episodes, and probably other folks’ too, judging by the reaction. Whoops and shouts when the Enterprise crew first appears in their Mirror uniforms on the transporter pad -- especially Uhura! Ms. Nichols looked good in anything.
Cheers for bearded, sexy evil Mirror Spock!
Unsurprisingly, giggles at the fight choregography and Shatner’s quirky line delivery. More giggles of anticipation at Mirror Sulu’s “Still no interest, Uhura?” as he attempts to seduce her on the bridge. Applause for Normal Spock’s line: “Fascinating.” Knowing laughter in response to McCoy’s “I’m a doctor, not an engineer.”
Loud cheering followed Uhura’s attempt to create a distraction first by encouraging, then repelling Sulu’s advances, and a man behind me commented on the redshirt who leans casually against the wall and openly checks Uhura out during the scene. Applause & commentary as Uhura efficiently disarms Marlena.
The Lorelei Signal
I hadn’t seen any TAS (The Animated Series) episodes since childhood, and remembered the ‘action scene’ music because it seemed to be recycled in other Filmation productions. Spock is still attractive here, despite being an animation cel drawing.
Uhura takes command of the Enterprise after the ship’s male crew falls under the spell of a mysterious beacon sounding from Planet Two in the Taurean star system. Spock thinks the signal sounds like a Vulcan marriage drum and visualizes a woman playing one (audience cracked up laughing). Kirk visualized a woman and McCoy sees magnolias (more laughter). If I were researching fanfic & pop culture, I’d search for fic with a queer spin on Lorelei; it’s gender, not sexual orientation that makes one respond to the signal but what if the signal drained emotions and affections as well? How would LGBT Enterprise crew respond to the signal and how might it complicate matters or lead to a resolution?
Planet Two is populated by a group of Taurean women who all resemble each other and represent a single concept of beauty: long, straight platinum hair; young looking; thin with projecting boobs; light skin; blue eyes (blue and pink in closeups due to the animation style). Not surprising for 1973 (and probably cheaper to draw) but geez, even the “space babes” of the live-action series were a bit more diverse; sometimes you saw an Asian actress, a brunette or someone older, wise, confident & sexy like the Romulan Commander.
Audience erupted in gales of laughter in response to animated Spock’s line early in the ep: “Captain, we are being probed.”
Some of the other humor in The Lorelei Signal still comes across as surprisingly dry and sardonic -- one imagines that the writer, Margaret Armen, was well aware of attitudes about feminism at the time and for what was a kid’s show the script is pretty sharp. She also wrote live-action TOS episodes The Gamesters of Triskelion,The Paradise Syndrome" and "The Cloud Minders".
In Armen’s script, Uhura, Chapel, and the rest of the female crew are efficient and badass. A roar of applause greeted Uhura’s “I’m taking command of this ship!” Uhura forms an all-woman rescue party (more cheers!) which she later directs to break up into armed search parties of two. When she gives a command to stun it’s followed without any dissent or expressions of fear, and she later negotiates conflict resolution and resettlement of the planet’s inhabitants. The Lorelei Signal would have made a truly kickass live-action episode.
Intermission!
Communications on my phone: indications of Trekkie-tolerant support from people who couldn’t attend the event.
Plato’s Stepchildren
Plato's Stepchildren has always made me uncomfortable. As screenwriter Meyer Dolinsky intended, I'm bothered by the cruelty and malicious behavior of the Platonians; according to Memory Alpha, UK censors chose to block broadcast of this episode for many years, calling some plot elements “sadistic”. Parmen’s behavior quickly goes far beyond bullying into tortuous abuse. Parmen’s cynical question to McCoy -- “How can you let this go on?” reminds me of a similar question, “Why are you making me do this to you?” from an abusive ex of mine.
Some of the dialogue may seem painted with a broad brush - Kirk assures the dwarf/little person Alexander (a good performance by Michael Dunn) that "Alexander, where I come from, size, shape or color makes no difference" - but such idealistic values are not wrong ones, no matter how plainly they are expressed. That episode preceded the disability rights movement by some years, the attention paid to the way Alexander is mistreated for his size - well, it's almost surprising. There is no real post-racial world, but why not strive to meet high ideals? Spock has dialogue in which he counters the Platonians' actions by reminding them that Plato believed in justice. The youngish audience cheered at Kirk's line; I'd like to believe they did so without irony. Roddenberry's vision of the future is still meaningful to some fans. The much-discussed interracial kiss was met with a mixture of cheering and silence -- the kiss is forced, not romantic, and involves neither attraction, desire, nor pleasure. One might argue that it doesn’t really count as an interracial kiss for that reason, or instead mention a kiss between a Black woman and White man on the British soap opera Emergency Ward 10 aired in 1964. Anyway, the audience of knowledgeable fans understood.
The show ended. As I was leaving several young women in Starfleet uniform dresses (some in Command or Engineering red, one in Science blue) were posing for a photo in the lobby, flashing the Vulcan salute. A fun night. Learn more about the October 2012 GeekGirl convention and buy a pass here: http://www.geekgirlcon.com/con. Socialize with people who enjoy SF, fantasy, gaming, comics, and tech in a woman-friendly environment.
On Watching TOS, Nichelle Nichols, and Personal Fandom
(personal reflections here...read on only if interested)
Nichelle Nichols, as fans know, had a difficult experience on the show and her character was minimized and virtually written out of the later episodes. Audiences lost out too. Nichols’ acting is more than capable in these 2 eps. Also, she's absolutely beautiful to look at, despite the odd wigs (though to be fair, nearly every actress on the show seemed to wear some sort of big wig or hairpiece in keeping with contemporary fashions) and sometimes less than flattering lighting. Nichols' non-verbal reactions in the wide shots of the forced performance in Plato's Stepchildren are genuinely affecting - embarassed sadness as Spock is made to sing, and she conveys fearful tension in other moments.
Even in the off-kilter, campy Mirror, Mirror she's compelling: scared, but tough, and alluring during the 'distraction' with Mirror Sulu. I didn't understand, as a kid, any of the sexual undertones in either Plato's Stepchildren or Mirror, Mirror. I certainly understand now.
Last winter, I became so comfortable with a nice, non-Trekkie woman in my offline social circle that I admitted writing fanfic. She’s brilliant, highly educated, has traveled to many countries, can hold a conversation with pretty much anyone, and reads widely, but wasn’t familiar with fan fiction. I gave her my admittedly biased sociopolitically tinged description, showed examples of K/S in a couple of different languages and my own S/U work-in-progress (Snow Leave), and talked about fandom and Uhura as a character. Then I showed her the Mirror Sulu distraction scene with Uhura teasing Sulu, then slapping him and pulling a knife. She actually gasped. My own response upon seeing the scene as an adult was also one of surprise, because I understood more about the real world in which Star Trek was made - and also how unusual it was for a character like Uhura to be the focus of attention. The scene is still a little shocking for those of us who weren't alive when it was broadcast. Not simply because the slap and knife defense could be interpreted as mildly kinky. Maybe it's because of how we conceive of the recent American past.
Mirror,Mirror was first broadcast on October 6, 1967. In 1967, Black people had been admitted to the public library for fewer than 15 years in the town where I would be born some time in the future. Understandably, it's still a big deal for me that Uhura was on Star Trek playing one of the 'good guys' before I was even born. Few Black women were on TV at all, let alone any wearing sexy outfits in the future and exercising a sense of sexual agency, saying no and getting to keep it at no, while working with a team for the greater good. Of course it’s no surprise that she does this with an actor of color -- the scene would probably have been cut if played with a White actor. As with so many elements of pop culture, it looks simple, but for some fans it's complex.
The TOS episodes are still watchable nearly half a century later because of some good scriptwriting and acting that fits the series. The show's style remains engaging. People of varying ages appear to enjoy its combination of suspension of disbelief, campiness, moral lessons, whimsical budget costumes and sets, mind-boggling choices in fight choreography (does Kirk really need to do a flying kick in Sickbay during the big fight in Mirror, Mirror?). Yep, other shows have better special effects, but one can enjoy them all in different ways.
Being older, bookish, and fond of social interaction with dancing and conversation, I know I’ll never fit into much modern fandom. Anyway, my awareness of much popular culture is limited or involves niche cultures/subcultures. That’s OK. I’m used to moving between worlds and switching codes; that’s daily life for many people. The tricky part is finding ways to be with other people and share an experience, be it inside or outside fandom.
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