Hermione Granger is a political activist. She is the girl that has her homework done on Friday night, when it is really due in two weeks. Not one to be intimated by peer pressure, she is always first to eagerly raise her hand in class. Unlike many high school students, she isn’t overly concerned with her appearance. She is the daughter of two dentists and realizes the value of the private school education she is receiving. She was invited to enroll in an exclusive school that specializes in her major study of interest, magic.

In an ordinary school, she would be an exceptional student and possibly class president. But she is not an ordinary student in an ordinary school. Hermione is a witch and she is enrolled in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The first day of class she was the only one who had read the history book, allowing her to know how the passageways work and who the ghosts were. Much to the dismay of her professor, Snape, she performs perfect potions. She has organized SPEW, the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare after seeing the working conditions of the house elves that live at Hogwarts. The house elves don’t really want her help, but that doesn’t stop her. She has found a cause and is determined.

Her determination has helped one of her best friends, Harry Potter many times. She gets offended if Harry assumes she does not want to come along on his quests. The first time Harry has to fight He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, Hermione proves instrumental. She makes the Polyjuice potion that allows Ron and Harry to pose as their enemies and gain information about the location of the Sorcerers’ Stone. Later, as the go through the labyrinth, Ron becomes entangled in a plant that Hermione correctly identifies and saves Ron’s life.

As the story progresses she becomes more and more instrumental to Harry. When the Ministry of Magic is trying to declare Harry Potter a liar and murderer, Hermione stands beside him. She never doubts him. She is one of the first students to say Voldemort’s name out loud. There is such fear of him that he has been referred to as ‘He-Who-Should-Not-Be-Named’. Hermione dismisses this and states; ‘If Harry can fight him, I can at least be brave enough to say his name out loud.’

Realizing the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is a failure (again), Hermione decided to organize a group of students to practice spells outside of class. For a high school student this is not only organized, but very aware of social conditions within her world. Even after the school labels it illegal to have such an organization, she persists. Eventually that fact that her and her friends have practiced necessary defense spells saves their lives against the Death Eaters.

She is consistently an impressive heroine. She is the voice of reason, encouraging her friends to study and practice. And no Ron, Quidditch doesn’t count.

This is Karalea's first article on Pop Culture Heroines

Character Overview

‘Mulder… None of that really happened out there tonight. That was all in our heads, right?’

As one half of the famed Mully-Sculder partnership, Special Agent Dana Scully MD (Gillian Anderson) is initially assigned by FBI Section Chief Scott Blevins to report on Mulder and his work on the ‘X-Files’. It is hoped that Scully’s analytical approach to work and logical scientific mind will temper Mulder’s unwavering belief in the paranormal. Reporting to FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner, Mulder and Scully become a formidable team based on mutual professional respect, complementary skill sets and compatible personality traits.

Educational Background

‘So much of the work that we do cannot be measured in standard terms.’

Special Agent Dana Katherine Scully graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of Science in Physics. Following the completion of her undergraduate qualification, Scully qualified as a medical doctor and completed a residency in forensic pathology. Recruited for the FBI straight from medical school, prior to her work on the X-Files she was teaching at the FBI Academy in Quantico.

Characterisation

‘Mulder, there’s something out there.’

With her red hair, blue-green eyes and fit physique, Scully is obviously a striking woman. Thankfully though her appearance is not the focus of her character, in fact more often than not her attractiveness is downplayed. Scully has an impressive intellect and similar to Mulder she displays a very focussed and motivated career mindset. Equally at home in the field investigating evidence as she is in the lab performing autopsies, Scully’s fascination with all things science is what truly captivates.

The loyal friendship that develops between Scully and Mulder adds another dimension to her character, as do the sometimes complex relationships she maintains with different family members. While she is logical and practical, Scully is not cold and unaffected by her interactions and dealings with others. She is caring, compassionate and always willing to fight for a cause and for the people she believes in.

Through her work on the X-Files Scully must come to terms with many things that fail to fit comfortably within the commonly accepted realms of the scientific world. With constant pressure on what she previously understood to be scientific certainties, Scully also struggles at times to reconcile X-Files events with her Catholic faith.

Character Development

‘I’ve seen things that I cannot deny.’

When she first joins the X-Files, Scully is highly sceptical of anything paranormal and has difficulty accepting any unscientific explanations. However given her later personal experiences and all the strange things she witnesses and comes to know through her work, Scully herself becomes more of a believer. While she is more open to alternative explanations, her opinions are still primarily drawn from science.

Aside from having to cope with several periods of career uncertainty where the X-Files Division is closed down, Scully’s involvement with the X-Files impacts significantly on her personal life. She is abducted, experimented on, has to cope with the death of immediate family members, discovers that she has a malignant, inoperable tumour and struggles to come to terms with the news that she is infertile. However just when all hope seems to be lost, Scully is cured of her tumour, though it is unclear exactly what causes the intervention. While overcoming cancer was a significant challenge for Scully’s health, she is also infected with a deadly virus after being stung by carrier bees. Lucky for her though, Mulder comes to the rescue and administers a much needed vaccine.

Despite her previous infertility diagnosis and in the midst of pursuing a more intimate relationship with Mulder, against all odds Scully falls pregnant and subsequently gives birth to a healthy boy named William. Given his interesting parentage and unique powers, William is in constant danger from highly dangerous and extremely powerful external parties.

We have seen Scully experience the highest of highs both professionally and personally, and also seen her suffer through her lowest, most desolate of times. While she doubts herself and her beliefs at times, Scully is a fighter and she will always endure. Over the years we have known her, we are given plenty of insight into the strengths and capabilities of Scully’s character. More importantly though, we are constantly reminded of Scully’s humanity through her struggles within herself and against a world which seems to be pitted against her happiness. While we may not have faced the same circumstances, we have all felt like that at times.

Relationships

‘I don’t have any recollection of this. I was surprised to wake up the next morning to find Mulder asleep in my room.’

While they may differ in their approaches to work, Mulder and Scully are both committed to the pursuit for truth. Sharing a high work ethic and motivation to solve mysterious circumstances, Mulder and Scully quickly form a close professional bond. While they are drawn together for work, there can be no denying the presence of a strong spark of sexual chemistry whenever the two are together.

Even when apart, Mulder and Scully have an unbroken bond which provides each of them with professional expertise and personal support. While their relationship continues to grow stronger and they become more deeply involved in each other’s lives over the years, a great deal of ambiguity surrounds the development of their relationship into a romantic and physical union. Whatever the specifics of the circumstances may be, Mulder takes on the role of father to William, and the relationship between Scully and Mulder moves from one that was primarily a professional partnership, into that of a complete life partnership.

Current status

‘Call my doctor. You have to call my doctor. Call Doctor Scully.’

With William in constant danger, Mulder goes into hiding in the hopes that with him gone, Scully and William will be safe. Scully looks for normalcy and returns to her teaching position at Quantico, leaving the X-Files Division in the hands of new agents. Unfortunately for Scully, peace will not be found so easily. She finds out that she and William are once again under constant surveillance by significantly dangerous parties who eventually succeed in kidnapping William. While he is later found safe and sound, Scully realises that she cannot provide William with the safety he needs, and so she makes the difficult decision to give him up for adoption.

Mulder resurfaces and is faced with imprisonment and a likely death sentence. With Scully’s assistance the two escape to New Mexico to avoid the authorities and hopefully finally expose the truth about the government conspiracy to cover up the threat of alien colonisation. The immediate future for Mulder and Scully remains uncertain.

Believability

Gillian Anderson is perfectly cast as Scully, the calm intellectual presence that is always willing to try to explain the seemingly unexplainable in logical terms. Balanced against the instinctive and passionate approach of her partner Mulder, they display a natural chemistry that is impossible to resist. Completely believable as both a medical doctor and an FBI Agent, Anderson’s portrayal of Scully is genuine and refreshingly strong.

Stereotype rating

Low - The role of Scully is a nice gender reversal to the male-female personality partnerships which are normally shown on screen. While Scully is very much a woman, she is the objective logical professional played off against Mulder’s ‘gut instinct’ approach to solving cases.

Heart or Hate

Heart (while she is sometimes a little irritating, surely Scully deserves to be more loved than loathed?)

Agree or disagree? Let me know your thoughts.

Tracey is the author of Quiet Paws

Character Overview

‘Ready to have your world rocked again?’

The quirky Abby Scuito (Pauley Perrette) has been employed with NCIS as a Forensic Specialist for the past five years. Based at headquarters in Washington DC, charming goth-girl Abby is a master in the laboratory, capable of anything from materials testing, ballistics and computer science, to blood and tissue analysis. Seriously addicted to Caff-Pow (a super caffeinated soda), she is fiercely independent and works best alone with just her loud music for company. Known for her distinctive sense of style, she can often be seen in platform boots and short skirts, with her penchant for tattoos clearly displayed. Looking on the bright side of every situation and comfortable expressing affection (most typically in the form of hugs), Abby makes being a goth seem like a positively cheery experience.

Educational Background

‘I am a scientist, McGee. Luck has nothing to do with it.’

Raised in New Orleans, Abby graduated with full honours from Louisiana State University with a triple major in Sociology, Criminology and Psychology. She was awarded a Master’s Degree from Georgia State University in Criminology and Forensic Science. Being the daughter of deaf parents, Abby is also proficient in Sign Language.

Given her inherent talent within the forensic field and passion for problem solving, it is only on the very rarest of occasions that Abby is puzzled by case evidence.

Characterisation

‘Aaaah! Gibbs! Didn’t your momma teach you not to sneak up on people?’

With her black hair, green eyes, variety of piercings and tattoos, and goth inspired wardrobe, on the surface it may seem easy to dismiss Abby as someone more interested in image than solving crime mysteries. However like the case evidence she is employed to analyse, there is much more to Abby than what meets the eye. Aside from being an astute professional with control-freak tendencies in the lab, Abby displays a sweet and thoughtful disposition. It is clear that she cares both about her forensic work and the people that she works with.

Character Development

‘You can’t rush science, Gibbs! You can yell at it and scream at it, but you can’t rush it.’

While traditional crime television shows focus only on the progress of police or legal investigations at the expense of character development, NCIS works towards creating more of a balance between the two elements. Of course NCIS is still fundamentally driven by the quest to solve cases, however viewers are also given more than a glimpse of the life that our characters lead outside the working day. Helped by witty interplay between herself and the rest of Gibbs’ team, it is in this subtle way that we learn more about Abby.

For instance we know about her toy collar-wearing hippo Bert (who suffers from flatulence), her interest in alternative therapies (including aromatherapy), her top three worst ways to die (falling into a wood chipper, drowning in lava and worst of all, being eaten by a shark), and that she may have an unnatural attraction to coffins (apparently they are good for more than just sleeping).

While the lab is where we see most of Abby, she is not a stagnant one-sided character. We are constantly learning new things about her either directly through related storylines or through comments made by her NCIS colleagues.

Relationships

‘A girl likes to be thought of first.’

Like the woman herself, Abby’s romantic relationships follow no fixed path or pattern. She has become involved with everyone from a gemmologist to a NASA engineer, and seems to stay on good terms with most of her ex-boyfriends. While currently single, she did have a relationship with Special Agent Timothy McGee, which ended after McGee pressured Abby on the status of their relationship. She is much more of an ‘enjoy the moment and see what happens’ kind of girl. Abby and McGee remain firm friends.

Abby seems to be well liked and highly respected by her work colleagues and remarkably unlike pretty much everyone else, she shows no fear of Gibbs. While they clearly hold each other in high professional regard, the relationship between Abby and Gibbs seems to be more like one between father and daughter. Abby is always keen to show him her latest triumph like an excited child and Gibbs often responds by showing her open affection.

One of Abby’s closest friends was NCIS Agent Caitlin Todd (Kate), with the two clearly enjoying each other’s company outside the work environment. Following Todd’s tragic death, Abby grieved heavily along with the rest of the team.

Current status

‘You know Abby, sometimes the dead make more sense to me than the living.’

After surviving assassination attempts, psycho stalkers and maliciously minded lab assistants, things are pretty much business as usual for Abby. She is still solving cases using her range of scientific skills, she is still addicted to super-sized Caff-Pow, and she still enjoys working alone.

Believability

Pauley Perrette herself studied Sociology, Psychology and Criminal Science to an undergraduate level. Following her life-long crime obsession she also commenced study towards a Masters in Criminal Science before moving into the entertainment industry. Perhaps it is her real life interest and experience that imbue the character of Abby with such life and give her such genuine appeal. Perrette looks entirely comfortable with technical science speak, carrying out a full range of lab experiments and dealing with a diverse range of analytical instrumentation. Abby and Perrette seem like a perfect match of reality and fiction.

Stereotype rating

Low. Sure she’s quirky, eccentric and a whole lot different to the mainstream, but Abby differs from traditional perceptions of women in science. While there is a tendency towards cheesiness and a ‘don’t forget that I’m kooky’ attitude from time to time, this comes more from the heavy-handed nature of all NCIS characterisations than from the character of Abby. It is incredibly difficult to resist Abby’s scientific brilliance or incredibly likeable personality.

Heart or Hate?

Heart.

Agree or disagree? Let me know your thoughts.

Tracey is the author of Quiet Paws

Character Overview

‘Handsome man saved me from the monsters.’

Fred (Amy Acker) is a brilliant young scientist who is rescued from the demon world of Pylea by Angel and his crew. Not the typical damsel-in-distress, Fred has been living alone in a cave and sent pretty well completely mad by her torturous treatment. She comes to believe that her previous life in LA was nothing but a dream. Displaying extreme bravery she comforts ‘Beast Angel’ and nurtures him back to health. Upon her return to LA she works with Angel Investigations before stepping into a role at Wolfram & Hart where she heads up the Practical Science Division.

Educational Background

‘She’s smarter than all of us put together.’

After she graduates from high school in Dallas, Fred moves to Los Angeles to attend college. While there she discovers a passion and ability for all things science, particularly in the fields of physics and mathematics. At the same time she starts working at the Stewart Brunell Public Library. Unfortunately while shelving a demon language book, Fred recites some of the text and is transported to Pylea through a dimensional portal.

Fred is a normal human woman with no supernatural powers. However, her brilliant mathematical mind, high powered intellect, impressive knowledge of quantum physics and science, and logical approach to problems makes her an asset in Angel’s team. While she never completes her science degree, her natural scientific aptitude and personal experiences results in an invitation to speak at a Physics Institute conference on ‘String Theory and Alternate Dimensions’.

Characterisation

‘You’re not real. Or I’m not real…somebody here isn’t real and I suspect it’s you.’

Fred is sweet and unassuming; however it would be a mistake to underestimate either her intellect or capacity to join the battle for good. Her wardrobe is simple consisting of t-shirts, jeans and summer dresses. Her functional wardrobe is matched by her uncomplicated appearance. She clearly has more important things on her mind than excessively fussing over her clothes and appearance. She is uncluttered, fresh-faced and more interested in people than material possessions.

Character Development

‘Hey you want a piece of me buddy? …You walk alone… You walk alone’

Fred first appears in one of Cordelia Chase’s visions and so the team starts to investigate her disappearance. We learn that Fred has been living under the most miserable of slave-like conditions in Pylea, with the harsh existence and extreme solitude taking their toll on her mental stability and perception of reality. After her return to Los Angeles she slowly readjusts to real life once more, but at times of extreme stress she has a tendency to withdraw. We see her grow in confidence and step comfortably into the role of resident Angel team scientist.

Most valuable in understanding the growth and development of Fred’s character is our ability to watch her through the eyes of her colleagues and their different relationships with her. We see most from what we learn through Angel’s protection, Gunn’s affection and most tellingly, Wesley’s devotion.

Relationships

‘I’ve loved you since I’ve known you. No, that’s not—I think maybe even before.’

Following her rescue from Pylea, Fred develops a crush on Angel. With Angel caring for her as a sister or close friend, Fred’s crush subsides but her feelings for Angel remain ever strong.

Fred and Gunn become romantically involved, however Gunn faces some sideline competition from Wesley Wyndam-Pryce who can’t bring himself to tell Fred how he really feels. Fred and Gunn date for about a year until Gunn prevents Fred from taking revenge against the person responsible for sending her to Pylea. Their relationship never recovers its romantic edge.

Fred and Lorne become fast friends, with Lorne reciprocating the loyal devotion and kind affection shown by Fred in equal measure. Fred is the first person in Los Angeles to believe that Spike is worth saving and she succeeds in developing a one-time-only cure. However during a fight with a demented ghost, Spike sacrifices his chance at becoming corporeal to save Fred’s life.

While working at Wolfram & Hart, Fred briefly dates one of her colleagues Knox, but starts to develop strong feelings about Wesley. While he has never stopped loving her, it takes Wesley some time to figure out that Fred feels the same way about him. Ditching the subtle approach, Fred shows Wesley how she feels and things are finally as they should be…happiness like this is normally only dreamed of.

Their romance is however destined to be short-lived. While Fred is examining a mysterious sarcophagus in her lab, a hole opens and she breathes in the air which escapes.

We find out that Fred has inhaled the essence of Illyria, a pure-breed demon who begins to overtake her body.

Current status

‘Please. Wesley. Why can’t I stay?’

As Fred weakens against the growing strength of the parasitic Illyria, two of her ‘boys’ Angel and Spike head to England to find a cure. Meanwhile Wesley takes Fred home and tries to offer comfort and relieve her pain as much as possible. Angel and Spike find out that the only way to save Fred would be to cause the deaths of thousands of others in the process. While Angel and Spike briefly entertain the idea, they realise that this equation does not compute, and in any case Fred would not want to live under such circumstances. With her stuffed rabbit Feigenbaum by her side, Fred dies in Wesley’s arms in tragic, heart-breaking fashion.

Believability

Amy Acker’s portrayal of Fred is completely natural, displaying comfort with the delivery of technical scientific language and Fred’s occasional tendency for incoherent rambling. Joss Whedon has once again crafted a character who it is impossible not to care about.

Stereotype rating

Low. Fred is a multifaceted character who defies traditional and obvious categorisation. Yeah sure she can be a nerd, but she can also defend her friends in a fight, fall in love and get drunk along with the best of them.

Heart or Hate

Heart. (Could it really be anything else?)

Agree or disagree? Let me know your thoughts.

Tracey is the author of Quiet Paws

It may seem sensible for a heroine to eschew romance in order to remain focused on her ongoing mission. However, love can give the heroine the impetus to carry on the fight in the face of overwhelming opposition. It may also be a factor which tests the heroine’s resolve to take the higher path for the greater good of all.

Cordelia Chase was no ordinary heroine. This rich, beautiful, spoiled cheerleader did not appear to be meant for a life of heroism, but her dynamism and athleticism would prove indispensable to her future career as a formidable heroine.

Her spiritual journey began in Buffy: The Vampire Slayer, where she reluctantly joined the Scooby Gang and frequently served as bait for demons and vampires alike. Her romance with Xander precipitated her move out of her cliquey social circle and challenged her to move beyond her superficial and shallow persona.

At the end of season three she left Sunnydale for Los Angeles in order to find fame as an actress. When she met Angel there and joined Angel Investigations her evolution into a mature woman really began.

Cordelia slowly began to warm to Doyle during the first season of Angel, and even when she discovered that he was half-demon her feelings for him did not diminish. Just before Doyle sacrificed his life to save the Lister demons and the rest of Los Angeles, he kissed Cordelia. During their first and last kiss he transferred his visions to her, making her Angel’s link to the Powers That Be. That was a significant turning point in Cordelia’s life.

Although the premonitions caused her tremendous pain, as they were not meant to be endured by a human, she felt that they had given her life purpose and she was loathe to give them up. During her time in the demonic dimension Pylea, she was given the opportunity to transfer her visions to the Groosalugg by having sex with him, but she refused in spite of her strong attraction to him. When the Groosalugg meets her again in Los Angeles, she finds a spell which allows her to sleep with him without giving up her visions.

Cordelia eventually chooses to be changed into a part-demon so that she could bear the visions without pain. As a part-demon she also acquired the ability to levitate and heal.

Meanwhile the attraction between Angel and Cordelia grew. It had been developing before the Groosalugg’s appearance in Los Angeles, and continued after his departure, which was itself due to his realisation of the depth of her feelings for Angel.

The final test of her heroic will was when she was told that by choosing to become part-demon she had earned the honour of becoming a Higher Being. The only problem was that she would have to leave without saying goodbye to Angel, on the same night that she had decided to declare her love for him. She chose to give up the chance of love with Angel to fight evil on a higher plane of existence.

Unfortunately during her time away she was corrupted by the being who would later be known as Jasmine. After giving birth to Jasmine she fell into a mystical coma.

During the episode ‘You’re Welcome’ in the fifth and final season, Cordelia awoke from her coma and visited Angel at Wolfram and Hart, where he had become jaded and disillusioned by the evil surrounding him. She helped to remind him of the original ethos of Angel Investigations, ‘to help the helpless’, and helped him to defeat Lindsey, had been plotting to destroy Angel.

At the end of the episode she tells Angel that she has to leave, and reveals that the Powers That Be sent her back to him as a final favour. They share a final kiss. His phone rings, and when he answers it he learns that she has died. She never woke from her coma. In that episode we had a bittersweet vision of Cordelia’s development into a true heroine, and what might have been if she had not been exploited by evil.

Cordelia added humour and passion to Angel. She was an inspirational character, and was fundamental to many of the plot arcs in the show. By the end of her time on Angel, not only had Angel grown to adore her, but also anyone else who had encountered this breath of fresh air.

PJ is an aspiring novelist who blogs at The Urban Recluse – http://nubiana.co.uk

It would not be an unreasonable assumption to make about a movie called X-Men that it was a male orientated film that is driven by male characters and females are not given the same status.  It is a pleasant surprise then after examining the film that it goes to extraordinary (by comic book film standards) to create an impression of gender neutrality and equality.

I wonder if this was intentional to illustrate that it is the mutant gene that defines the characters rather than conventional ideas of gender and race.

Firstly we should examine the naming conventions used in the movie.  There are no gender specific character code names.  Storm, Wolverine, Sabretooth, Magneto, Cyclops, Professor X, Mystique, Toad etc.  In fact the one character in the group that does have or has had a gender biased name is Jean Grey who in the comic books was known for a while as Marvel Girl.  Her codename is omitted completely from the film with her character being referred to simply as Jean Grey (or Doctor Jean Grey).

The only hint then of a gender biased change to the characters is that Jean is given the Doctor role that normally would have been Hank McCoy (Beast) in the comic book.  The traditional concept of women being more nurturing or caring may have had a hand with this role going to Jean Grey however I’m not really convinced of it.  Beast was going to be in the film originally but due to the make up demands for his character he was dropped and the role had to go to someone.

The other key idea I wanted to raise in regards to this was the X-Men uniform.  Often, not always but certainly often women in comic books and comic book films are reduced to visual stimulus thanks to their skimpy and impracticable swimsuit costumes.  In X-Men the uniforms are all the same, the black leather suits that Wolverine is asked if he prefers yellow latex to.  There are only slight deviations for the characters but these are based on their mutant power rather than their appearance or gender.

I’m sure there are instances that can equally be pointed to that shows the ‘normal’ gender ideas coming through, particularly the roles of nurturing and aggression but over all if you were looking for a film that does not present its female members as anything less than equals then X-Men is not a bad place to start.

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

I’m currently working on several pieces about the women of X-Men but I couldn’t let this trailer go past.  I think this looks amazing.

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

Connie Chan Po-Chu was Hong Kong cinema’s most beloved teen idol in the sixties. She was born 1947 to impoverished parents and sold to a couple of famous Cantonese opera stars. (No, she’s not a relative of Jackie Chan who’s Chinese name is Chan Kong-Sang) Her career exemplary outlines the development of Hong Kong’s movie productions. She played in over 200 movies in many different genres: Cantonese opera, wuxia, action movies, romances, melodramas and youth musicals. (She even starred as a female James Bond in ‘Lady Bond’ and its three sequels - China’s answer to 007 movies.)

Though she quit the silver screen in 1972 she still has a strong fandom. In 1999 she came back from her retirement and has starred in different successful stage productions. In January this year she was honored with the lifetime achievement Hong Kong Drama Award - kind of Hong Kong’s oscar.

It seems like not one of her movies is available on DVD, so I was happy when I found some very interesting and odd movie clips of Connie at YouTube, just click to watch them and let yourself be carried away to Hong Kong in the sixties:

See happy pilots and flight attendants dancing merrily to a simple tune. This is the first clip I found. It made me wonder if she really worked in Hong Kong - it looks more like propaganda from Peking…

Here she is acting with cartoon characters - seems like electric irons went through times of trouble in the sixties.

See Connie Chan and Lydia Shum singing the Chinese version of the Monkee’s hit ‘I’m a believer’.

Here’s a typical Cantonese Opera movie: ‘Flag of Pearls’. The male part is played by Connie.Here are two interesting fansites: Movie-Fan Princess and in Chinese: Chan Po-Chu Net.

This article first appeared at The In-Sect 

Zep Hopper lives near Munich, Bavaria, Germany. He was born 1964, has a family and worked as a media designer for over twenty years now. Zep saw the rise and fall of DOS, Basic, the Newton, multimedia CD-ROMs and of Web 1.0 and naturally is a little sceptic about Web 2.0, but thinks the Internet is a place full of wonders and surprises. Zep says that the internet is as huge and multifaceted as humankind itself. It is as unpredictable and chaotic as life itself. It is the greatest picture that humans ever painted about being alive as homosapiens. Its main color is pop culture: The language and symbols we all learned as children. This diversity, these colors, these emotions are exhibited day by day at the In-Sects site. Seeing is believing.

B’Elanna comes to us via the long Star Trek tradition started by Spock in the original series.

The hybrid.

Spock of course being half human half Vulcan, Deanna Troi continued on the tradition in the Nex Generation being half human half Betazoid which brings us to B’Elanna Torres. Now both Troi and Spock are interesting in that their human halves are the part of them that is the most emotional or unrestrained. B’Elanna has the opposite problem, she struggles to maintain her human traits and fights to suppress her other heritage, Klingon.

Of all the main characters on Voyager it is B’Elanna who takes the most interesting journey during the seven year series. She drops out of Starfleet Academy when she is 19, joins the Maquis (a renegade organisation who fight against the Cardassians) and finally is forced to return to Starfleet after the Voyager’s chief engineer is killed and she is eventually put into the role. Here she clashes with Captain Janeway, earns the respect of the crew, takes on responsibility, marries Tom Paris and gives birth to their daughter whilst in the middle of a Borg transwarp conduit! Heck of a seven years.

I think one of the more compelling story lines involving Torres was her decision to use gene therapy on her unborn child to ensure that she would not have the same cranial ridges that Torres herself carries. When she was young she found it hard to control her ‘klingon’ violent outbursts when being teased about her appearance. I must say though I’m fairly certain most children would be capable of outbursts when taunted with the term ‘turtlehead’ although probably don’t have the Klingon strength to back it up.

Towards the end of Voyager we see Torres beginning to accept and celebrate her Klingon heritage. One of the things I liked about the character was that a reason was developed for her rejecting her Klingon half instead of just accepting it. Her parents would fight when she was younger and she always believed that her human father was driven away because of her mother being Klingon. Not her mother as a person but Klingon itself being too hard to live with.

She is a complex driven character and a strong addition to the Trek universe. As Roxann Dawson herself puts it:

“She was an unruly teenager who grew into a woman, over the course of seven years.”

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

I have a love hate relationship with Seven of Nine or Seven as I’ll refer to her throughout the remainder of this article. She is certainly one of the more interesting characters to be produced in the Star Trek universe with a world of potential story telling and character deconstruction. She is also unfortunately and I don’t believe through Jeri Ryan’s own fault at all a representation of the poorer side of the Star Trek universe’s approach to women.

I’ll get my main gripe out of the way immediately.

The catsuit.

The skin tight obvious ploy at attracting twelve to one hundred year old boys. The most uncomfortable looking costume in Star Trek (this is before T’Pol’s time well kinda if you forget that it’s a prequel and… enough of that my head is going to hurt). For a supposedly enlightened television series in its approach towards diversity and gender Star Trek still has a lot of way to go in how it treats the way women dress in the 24th century. Uhura and the mini skirted women of Star Trek the original series were a product of their time and in their own way because of the times they were liberated, but that’s no excuse now and I’m not going to dwell on this point except to say as a male I’m slightly offended that Star Trek doesn’t think that intelligent strong women appropriately dressed would be attractive enough. End of rant.

Seven herself though is this extraordinary complex character that represents so much of what we all go through. She is the ultimate outsider, foreign to her own people, feared by them and incredibly sheltered. Seven was born Annika Hansen and was assimilated into the Borg at the age of 6.

The Borg violate, they rape, they brainwash.

When the Borg assimilate an individual into the collective they take every part of that individuality and strip you of any privacy. Your body is invaded with Borg technology and twisted to the requirements of the Borg. Nothing is yours.
This all happened to Seven when she was a child and she is reminded of it every time she looks into a mirror or down at her Borg encrusted hand.

It is fortunate that she was rescued by the Voyager ‘family’. Had she been taken in by another crew the results could have been disastrous. It is the family bonds of the Voyager crew that help Seven become more comfortable with herself. She has swapped one collective for another but one that respects the rights of the individual and during her time on the ship she is healed both physically and mentally.

The real joy watching Seven is how she interacts with the crew especially with Naomi Wildman the first child born on Voyager, in many ways Seven was reborn on Voyager herself. It’s also interesting to see her come full circle when Voyager takes on some children who have been assimilated and then separated from the collective. Seven assumes the role model / motherly figure that Janeway served as for her.

This is part two of a three part series examining the women of Voyager - you can read the first part here. 

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