There was never any doubt that the captain of a Starfleet ship lost in a strange new part of the universe would have to be a woman. Do you think James Kirk would stop and get directions?

Part one of our new three part series looking at the women of Star Trek Voyager focuses on Captain Kathryn Janeway (last seen as an Admiral in Star Trek Nemesis).

It’s one of those all time great Star Trek what if’s. What if one of the other commanders was in charge of the USS Voyager given its unique situation, lost in the Delta Quadrant a distance that will take 76 or so years to get home. There is so much speculation given the decisions that Janeway must make, never before had a commanding officer’s decisions affected the course of a Star Trek series so greatly. Certainly Kirk, Picard and Sisko all had live or die decisions to make but to my recollection none of them had to live with a decision that effected the crew so deeply for so long.

Kirk and Picard have ordered self destruct several times between them however the situation was always been resolved within either an episode or movie. When Janeway decided to destroy the Voyager crew’s only quick way home in order to maintain the morals of Starfleet she was committing herself to a possible life time voyage home. A voyage which was her responsibility and burden to carry for seven years.

And carry it she did, alone. The thing about Janeway is that she is torn between being the detached Captain or being a mother figure to the crew. Trying to assimilate both styles and choosing when to sway which way. By season seven we’ve borne witness to Janeway’s descent into Melville obsession, her white whale a wormhole or technology to get her crew home safely. By series finale she does everything and more to achieve this.

Something about Kate Mulgrew’s performance is that there is always a sadness and heaviness about the character who has made throughout the series compromise after compromise in order to achieve her self imposed goal. An incredible strength is also there to stand by her decisions and to make them swiftly given the situation. No doubt her scientific background serving her well.

After returning to Starfleet it is gratifying to see her promoted to Admiral, she certainly deserved it after serving under such extraordinary conditions.

Not everyone will agree with that assessment however with many taking a dislike to the character. I think a lot of the frustration about the perceived quality of Voyager and its writing fall often without warrant on the Captain and the actress who performs her. When writing Voyager a lot of the writers had been writing or producing Star Trek for 15 years and eventually one has to lose one’s creativity, not that there aren’t some extremely good episodes throughout.Captain Janeway’s story is all about choices, the decisions that she had to make throughout the series run and the promise that she made to each and everyone of the crew.

Lee is a a huge popular culture freak, loves comic books, science fiction, soundtracks and writes for Quit Your Day Job.

Since time immemorial, or rather the 1950’s B-movies have entertained popcorn-chomping audiences all over the world. In America, these movies are usually dismissed by the more highhanded members of the public and enjoyed ravenously by the rest of us. In the 1970s, the post feminist era if you will, the female action hero was first conceived. She’s sexy, smart (ish) and takes absolutely zero crap from anybody! The first that comes to my mind is Foxy Brown, Pam Grier’s tough as nails, female crime fighter. The others are more recent: Milla Jovovich and Michelle Rodriguez in Resident Evil, the Girls from Grindhouse and a slew of others, bequeathed upon this earth by the Sci-Fi Channel, a B-movie powerhouse, if there is such a thing

The B-movie heroine is usually gorgeous and can handle any weapon handed to her. If she’s in the right kind of B-movie, she can also be part zombie or demon or even bear. At first she seems like she’d be impossible to crack, but her love for people/the environment/fluffy kittens/her man, make her human in a vague sort of Momish way. Obviously, even if she is tormented, tortured or a mutant of woman and fish, she is somehow the perfect woman.

The exception to all of this rigmarole is Michelle Rodriguez’s character in Resident Evil: Rain. She does not overplay her sexuality, she does not have special powers or even a weakness other then her basic humanity. When watching this particular film (or schlock-fest, which ever noun you prefer), she is one of the only believable characters. Though she is in the military, she wavers from her mission. She is self-sufficient, even when her best friend is killed, and when, he returns as a zombie, she must kill him again. Throughout most of the film, she is dying and forcing herself to be strong. She refuses help from everyone around her, never denying what she feels to be inevitable.

This may sound like a normal B-movie heroine, but that is only when one takes a quick and dismissive look. Miss Rodriguez plays this script to the best of her abilities and she shines. She is tough but human, bitchy yet flirtatious and independent but not sexist in it. In fact, she may be what all of those other films were looking to have, but not really achieving: a real person.

Julia is an avid over-thinker of pop culture and the b-movie. You can find her online journal here

I don’t generally like pilot episodes of television shows, they are often unpolished with the actors not yet comfortable in the roles.  The writing tends to be a little heavy-handed and lacking in subtlety  and I have to say that Painkiller Jane follows this trend.

It’s interesting though, very interesting.

The title character has the ability to regenerate from fatal injuries (40 stories fall for example) and is drafted into a ‘men in black’ like group that hunt down ‘Neuros’ - genetically enhanced humans that are able to affect those around them.

Jane Vasco herself is a tough as nails ex DEA agent who has the action hero dialogue down pat ( a little heavy handed maybe).  She doesn’t take crap from anyone.

If I had turned the show off in the first 15 minutes like I was tempted I probably wouldn’t have given it a second thought.  I’m glad to reserve final judgement on the show with this weeks episode.

Did you see the pilot?  If so what did you think?  Strong female heroine or bad imitation?

Lee is a a huge popular culture freak, loves comic books, science fiction, soundtracks and writes for Quit Your Day Job.

It can be unfashionable and oh so very uncool to fall in love if you are a strong, intelligent, ass-kicking woman. But the reality is that no one can exist in an emotional vacuum. Independent and capable people still have emotions, and occasionally they even follow them.

As an officer on the Nebuchadnezzar, Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) is in the business of freeing the minds of those deemed ready to accept the truth about The Matrix. One such person who she helps ‘free’ is Thomas ‘Neo’ Anderson (Keanu Reeves), someone with which she feels an immediate bond. As it turns out Trinity was told by The Oracle that she would fall in love with a man who would be ‘The One’, a person with amazing powers. She keeps this information to herself, but with her feelings for Neo growing, she allows herself to wonder.

However, feelings as powerful as love and thoughts of soulmates cannot be kept silent for long. A critical point follows a betrayal by one of their crewmates which results in Trinity barely escaping The Matrix and leaves Neo locked in battle with Agent Smith. A battle which ends in Neo’s death. ‘Watching’ this unfold from outside The Matrix, Trinity refuses to accept he has gone and holds to her trust in what The Oracle has told her. She kisses Neo’s lifeless body and tells him that he must be The One because she loves him, and so he must get up and fight. Defying belief, Neo comes back to life, kills Smith and with that finally steps into the role of The One. Without Trinity’s connection to Neo, her refusal to accept his death, and her transference of emotional energy and strength to him, Neo would not have been able to complete this transformation and fulfil his prophecy.

Time passes and the strength of the connection between Trinity and Neo is now openly displayed. With guidance from The Oracle, Neo and the team set out to rescue The Keymaker from his imprisonment by the luxuriously rich and powerful The Merovingian. Unable to broker a satisfactory deal with The Merovingian, help comes from an unexpected corner. Persephone, The Merovingian’s wife offers The Keymaker up on one condition. All she asks is for one kiss from Neo so that she can sample the love between Neo and Trinity. As could be expected from any red-blooded woman in love with the man in question, Trinity reacts rather negatively to this arrangement and takes immediate and decisive action. Pointing her gun at Persephone she asks, ‘Why don’t you sample this instead?’

Given the importance of the trade deal at stake, the terms are agreed much to Trinity’s displeasure. Persephone takes her kiss, but she is not satisfied. She is not just interested in the physical sensation of a kiss, she wants to be able to feel the emotion of the kiss; she wants to experience love. Unfortunately then a second kiss is required, and Neo has to summon the intensity of feeling which he shares with Trinity to meet Persephone’s needs. Filled with love, longing and passion, this is a kiss that finally satisfies Persephone. In any case, with Trinity growing more irritated by the second, it is unlikely whether she would have been given another chance to ’sample’ further.

In the world of The Matrix though things are never far from taking a dramatic turn. Following a particularly gruelling battle between Neo and several Sentinels, Neo is left unconscious and in the care of Trinity. After discovering that The Merovingian is holding Neo’s mind prisoner, Trinity and Morpheus plan an attack on The Merovingian’s club. While getting inside the club proves to be relatively easy, they are soon captured and brought to see The Merovingian, who of course knows why they are there. After The Merovingian elaborately explains the details of the terms under which he will agree to Neo’s release, Trinity quickly loses patience. Driven by something more than just frustration at wasted time, in her own inimitable style she simply says, ‘I don’t have time for this shit’. With that a fight ensues and she convincingly negotiates the terms of Neo’s release by trapping The Merovingian at gunpoint.

After successfully returning Neo’s mind to his body, Trinity accompanies Neo to the Machine City on his mission to stop the war. While on their journey, Neo is forced into battle with an incredibly powerful opponent whose body is being controlled by an Agent Smith clone. While ultimately winning the fight, through the course of their duel Neo is blinded. With his sense of sight now gone, Neo depends on his other senses to guide his path, and of course is reliant on Trinity to be his eyes and provide the support he needs to continue.

Unfortunately just as they make it past the Machine City’s defences, Trinity is fatally wounded. With a kiss she says goodbye to Neo for the last time. Neo’s last personal human connection has been severed, and so he is now able to focus his mind entirely on the fulfilment of his prophecy. Even in death, Trinity provides Neo with the motivation, strength and power which he must channel to face this, his most important of tasks.

The course of love is never smooth, never easy and always challenging. Trinity demonstrates that the power and strength to be gained and to be given through the sharing of love, does not have to compromise a person’s spirit or impact on their fighting prowess. Without experiencing this love, Trinity’s life path would have been somewhat incomplete and Neo’s prophetical journey could never have been embarked upon.

Tracey is the author of Quiet Paws

Max Allan Collins’ novel Dark Angel: Before the dawn is a prequel to the television series Dark Angel.

It has been a number of years since I’ve seen Dark Angel and I didn’t watch a lot of the second season (something on my list to do). So a lot of the back story that Collins inserts into this novel is impossible for me to fault. Although there is one major part of the storyline involving Seth (one of the other X5s) that doesn’t quite sit well with me.

Apart from that this is an interesting look in Max Guevara’s past. We follow her escape from Manticore through to her life in Los Angeles where she uses her genetically enhanced skills to become a cat burglar without equal. When she catches a glimpse of one of her X5 siblings on a news report she leaves Los Angeles for the familiar setting of Seattle.

On her way she meets Original Cindy and we learn how Max came to work at Jam Pony and make a life for herself in Seattle.  We are also introduced to “Eyes Only” Lucas.  I was a little confused because I’m fairly certain he was in a wheelchair and in the novel he isn’t.

This novel is a nice companion piece to the series to give you some of the background that wasn’t able to be explored when the television show was cancelled in its second season.  Does this book make it as a standalone story?  Probably not, it’s written for fans of the show who are familiar with the source material as I noticed certain story points weren’t explained well enough for a newcomer to the Dark Angel world (or at least someone who hasn’t visited for a while!).

The novel does succeed though as a tasty morsel for starved fans!

Agree or disagree?  Leave us a comment.

Lee is a a huge popular culture freak, loves comic books, science fiction, soundtracks and writes for Quit Your Day Job.

It’s been 16 years since Thelma and Louise blazed their way across the big screen and the film has certainly attracted its share of analysis and critical review during that time.

One of the main reasons for the attention is that the film took what is generally considered to be a male genre, the buddy, road, action film and placed two women in the lead. More than one comparison to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid has been made in the past and quite rightly so.

Amongst the questions raised in analysing the film is that because it does have firm roots within a male dominated or themed genre does this have the effect of removing or reducing the feminine gender traits from the main characters?

Since the genre is so soaked in testosterone could Thelma and Louise with minor script adjustments just as easily been Bill and Jack?

Many have raised concerns over the use of violence and guns as empowering sources. That because the characters resort to what are typically recognised as masculine behaviour that any positive role model for women is removed.

For the longest time female orientated entertainment has been considered second class to male related entertainment. Men dominate sports, film, comics and up until recently the music scene. Take a look at the highest paid actor and then compare that to the highest paid actress.

So does having female characters as the lead of traditionally male orientated films serve simply as a token gesture? Is it the sheep in wolf’s clothing?

But does any of this even matter? Is being there half the battle? Nichelle Nichols says that at one stage she was considering leaving Star Trek as she saw her role as limited and not going anywhere. It was an encounter with Dr Martin Luther King Jr that changed her mind. When explaining to him why she was thinking of leaving he demanded that she reconsider as it was so important that she be seen there on the bridge of the Enterprise as an equal.

In a perfect world Thelma and Louise would have simply been an interesting outlaw buddy film perhaps with a little more depth than usual instead of the political gender piece it became.

So is Thelma and Louise still an important film for women? Or is it a harmful gender role piece that encourages masculinity over femininity?

I’d love to read your thoughts on the topic even if you don’t feel you have much to say. Commenting is pretty easy and very welcome!

Lee is a a huge popular culture freak, loves comic books, science fiction, soundtracks and writes for Quit Your Day Job.