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Star Trek: Enterprise – the final episode “These are the Voyages…”

Original Airdate: May 13, 2005

The final episode of Enterprise doesn’t quite seem as epic as it could have. TNG and Voyager both ended with a look ahead to the future as well as a nod to the past. DS9 left everyone parting ways with a farewell that served the characters and audience equally well. Enterprise, however, falls flat.

The episode takes us 6 years into the future (from the perspective of the last episode, 10 years after the pilot). The Enterprise is returning to earth where it will be decommissioned as the new, faster fleet comes to take its place. Captain Archer will give a speech honoring a new charter between humans and a handful other alien races. A hitch in the trip home comes when a former acquaintance, Shran, shows up. Apparently Archer owes this guy a favor, so the Enterprise helps him get his kidnapped daughter back.

(Click the link to check out the rest of the entry, but I’m putting SPOILER ALERT on this post. If you ever plan on watching Enterprise you might want elements of this episode to remain a surprise. The episode itself actually spoils those moments early on, but, well… I’m warning you anyway.)

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SciFi originals are one of my weaknesses, and although they’re a little embarrassing from time to time, they are so fun that I am not ashamed to share with you another of my newest (Netflix Instant)  obsessions: Primeval.  The show is essentially about a merry band of scientists who are investigating anomalies in the space-time continuum which have allowed dinosaurs to slip through into the modern world (along with the occasional future monster).  I know what you’re thinking – AWESOME!  Even better is the rock score that accompanies the action scenes.

Fantastic, right?  But what is it doing on a feminist review site?  SciFi’s attention to female characters is often a double edged sword: female characters are intelligent, competent, and typically hold their own with the manfolk – just in less clothing.  Primeval is no exception to this rule.  There are three primary female characters in the series: Abby, Claudia Brown/Jenny Lewis, and Helen Cutter.  Let’s break them down across the seasons: Read the rest of this entry »

Last night marked the end of the Dollverse as we know it.  Because I canceled my cable service a week too early not thinking about this, I just watched the finale online this morning.

The end of a favorite show is always bittersweet.  We get a little bit of closure, and a significant sense of loss in saying good-bye to characters we have come to love.  I find that this is especially true when it comes to Joss Whedon’s shows, as his characters are complex, charasmatic, despicable, and loveable – often simultaneously.  Although Eliza Dushku’s performances are often criticized (and her portrayal of Echo was no exception), I believed in Echo.  I watched her transform from a passive, agreeable creature into a fierce and confident leader.  And this is the type of leading character women and girls could stand to see more of.

Each of the characters evolved over the two seasons of the show – Topher grew a conscience and suffered from the mental fallout of what he had created; Adelle went from cold, hard bitch to warm and maternal (and back again a few times); Boyd and Paul showed us the gray areas between the light and dark sides; Sierra/Priya and Victor/Anthony taught everyone that there are levels of emotion and connection that are stronger than any wipe.  And the LA Dollhouse taught us that no matter how we kid ourselves, there is always a greater potential for harm and evil within human nature than we are willing to admit – but there are also people willing to stand up and fight against that.

Dollhouse didn’t live up to everyone’s expectations, but a lot of those expectations were really high.  There were a lot of themes (identity, individuality, agency, sex work, human trafficking, economic privilege, power) and little time to address them.  It was a bumpy road, and themes and storylines didn’t always get the attention they deserved, but Dollhouse gave us a show that was willing to take a look at the dark side of human nature and the future of technology.  Dollhouse made us think, made us feel, made us question.  I’ll miss it.  Until next time, Joss.

Check out these other send-offs from io9 and Adventures of a Young Feminist.

I’ll be honest – I didn’t expect to like Monsters vs. Aliens.  It looked like a stupid, plotless, action based animation film filled with obnoxious characters voiced by even more irritating actors.  But I was pleasantly surprised at how wrong I was!

What wasn’t clear to me in the trailers I saw for the film, but is pretty clear in this one, is that the film really centers around Susan. Wait, what? An action-based animated children’s film with a female lead? Inconceivable!  Of course, she is the only female character, but she’s big and important, which is nice.  Despite her enormity, Susan doubts her ability to use her powers to defeat the attack of a giant robot on San Francisco, but when she sees the people in danger on the Golden Gate Bridge she goes into battle anyway, saving the city.  Her newfound confidence helps her see that her near-husband is actually a shallow, selfish, arrogant a-hole and she becomes (dun-dun-DUN) a confident and powerful single woman.  Whoa.

Even after Susan’s size returns to normal, her confidence and strength remain and she saves the world as an average woman.  An accident enlarges her again, and after her former fiance tries to rekindle their relationship (now that she’s a famous hero, of course) Susan brushes him off to continue fighting evil with her new-found mutant friends.  What a message for boys and girls – girls can be interesting, powerful, and admirable and romance isn’t the most important aspect of their lives.

I’ll admit it – I’m a sucker for SyFy original movies.  The wild plots, hyper-hyperbole, and fantastically noticeable CGI crack me up and hook me at the same time.  Two of my personal favorites include Mega Shark Vs. Giant Octopus and High Plains Invaders (which happened to star Buffy’s James Marsters as a wild-west sharpshooter killing giant alien-insect-robots in shoot’em ups).  But I’m willing to argue that their recent Alice in Wonderland tribute was actually pretty good, and not just for laughing at.

I’ve always loved Alice in Wonderland. Alice is typically portrayed (and pretty accurately to the book) as a little girl whose adventures in Wonderland primarily consist of her allowing things to happen to her or eating and drinking strange items simply because their labels tell her to.  At worst, this makes her appear foolish and as though she needs a protector, at best this makes her a compliant little girl.  But something about the fantasy and adventure and the fact that Alice is rarely shaken by her experience has always appealed to me.

SyFy’s Alice takes it to a new level.  Alice is now a young adult teaching karate classes and navigating the dating world.  When her new boyfriend Jack gives her a special family ring, she finds herself falling through the looking glass into Wonderland.  Here she sets out (with the help of the Hatter) to rescue Jack and escape back to her world.  Although Hatter really wants to be Alice’s hero, she often ends up using her karate skills to help them escape and really holds her own throughout the movie.  Hatter just wants to save Alice, but Alice is set on saving Jack (a nice twist on the “damsel in distress” trope). Spoilers, more analysis and a little bit of romance after the jump.

Enterprise – the first episode “Broken Bow”

Original Airdate: Sept. 26, 2001

After a long break, I bring you the next installment in “Star Trek Through the Years.” We’ve made it past the beginnings of the franchise, through the three middle series, each achieving seven year runs, and we have now made it to the ever-controversial (among Trekkies) Enterprise.

Notice that’s just Enterprise. No “Star Trek” in that title. Part of the goal of Enterprise was to rejuvenate the series, try something new while bringing it back to its roots. So they went back in time, in terms of Trek chronology, to 2151 (for those looking for a frame of reference, the Original Series took place in 2265). The show chronicles the adventures of the first Enterprise and Starfleet’s (and mankind’s) first steps into the great beyond of space.

The ship is led by Captain Jonathan Archer. His dad worked hard on developing warp vessels with the Vulcans (the first alien race aliens encountered–that story is chronicled in the movie Star Trek: First Contact). The senior Archer never really got to see his ship take off, however, because the Vulcan’s were never too willing to give away information and Mr. Archer died before they perfected the technology. Due to this Cpt. Archer’s got a chip on his shoulder. He’s not a fan of Vulcans and likes to mock them snarkily whenever possible.

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Star Trek: Voyager – the Final Episode “Endgame”
Original Airdate: May 23, 2001

Voyager swoops in over San Fransisco, a fireworks show adding to the glory of the display. Crowds gather below and cheer. A news voice exposits that this celebration is honoring 10th anniversary of the return of Voyager.

An old, white-haired Janeway ends the display and looks out her window.

Endgame starts with a look at the future of the Voyager crew. I’ve never watched the finale right after the pilot before and I gotta say it’s interesting. If these were the only two episodes of the show you’d seen, it would be quite the change. B’elanna’s not yelling. The Doc isn’t worrying about being deactivated any time soon (he’s roaming wherever he wants to go with a wife, no less), Harry, the super-green ensign is now running a ship on years-long missions, and the former prisoner Tom Paris is now writing holo-stories as his wife goes out and patches up fights with the Klingons (remember how she whined about her Klingon past). Seriously…. this is a different group, folks.

As for the rest of the crew… Janeway is an Admiral, Tuvok is ill. He has some sort of mental deterioration; a Vulcan Alzheimers almost. Seven is dead. As is Chakotay. All in all, the future brought some sadness, but there’s also a pleasant contentment.

Janeway will have none of it.

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I have a vague memory of watching the second Resident Evil film sometime during my freshmen year, but had never seen the original.  Female lead, major role for Michelle Rodriguez, and I was good to go.  However, my partner regularly plays Resident Evil 4, which has always creeped me out (things jumping out at you and attaching themselves to your body isn’t really a fun concept for a video game, IMHO) but I decided, in the spirit of our Halloween Movie Marathon I’d give it a shot.

As with Aliens, the film was less scary than I had convinced myself it would be.  It certainly had its flaws (initial Mila Jovovich nude scene in the shower, ever shortening little red dress), but again this was a film where the lead roles could have just as easily been cast as male with minimal changes to the script or plot, but were instead enriched by being cast and written for female actors.

Some comparisons between Resident Evil and Aliens, Alice in Wonderland, and other observations after the jump.

Never having seen any of the Alien films, but having heard good things about Sigourney Weaver’s character, I consulted an Alien fan about which film to watch, and 1986 sequel Aliens it was.

My first encounter with anything Alien related was a scary monster popping out of the ceiling in a Disney World theme ride at the age of 7, so I was pretty concerned that I wasn’t going to handle the beasts well.  However, the movie was much less scary or even suspenseful than I had expected.  In fact, it was kind of slow, predictable and boring.

That’s not to say that there weren’t any interesting themes.

I recently purchased a Roku box to use with my Netflix account, and I am loving it.  I’ve been able to rewatch Heroes from the beginning, and over the past few weeks I’ve almost caught up.  Watching the show years after its debut, I’m certainly in a different place than I was the first time around, and it’s been really interesting to view the characters and their powers with special attention to the role of gender.

As you may or may not know, Heroes debuted in September 2006 and revived NBC with an average of 14.3 million viewers in the United States, and the highest rating for any NBC drama premiere in five years.  The premise of the show is that ordinary humans begin manifesting superpowers, like invincibility, invisibility, flight, mindreading, flamethrowing and so on (we’ll pretend that it doesn’t remind us of a makeshift X-men knockoff).  Its been revealed through an artist that paints the future that there is going to be a massive, devastating explosion in NYC, and in order to prevent the disaster…  You know, “Save the Cheerleader, Save the World.”

As the season progresses, we get to know a variety of characters with powers ranging from kinda lame to flippin’ sweet.  At first glance, it seems like the casting crew must have commended themselves on incorporating diversity (main characters include an Indian doctor, two Japanese office workers, a biracial family, and an African American art dealer), but on closer inspection most of the characters fit a pretty specific mold.  After the jump, we’ll take a closer look at some of the main characters and their strengths, weaknesses, and character flaws.

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