Women of Star Trek: Fixers

The Beat’s Trek Squad continues with our weekly celebration of the ladies in Star Trek with a salute to the Women Fixers.

These are ladies who’ve a technical mastery of their area, can restore an important ship system whereas beneath fireplace, mend bones or minds in perilous circumstances, or work to advance social injustices. These ladies are the bridges for a profitable mission final result.

Nyota Uhura

Lt. Uhura, initially portrayed by the nice Nichelle Nichols, later by Zoe Saldana within the reboot films and Celia Rose Gooding in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, might be thought-about the voice and soul of the USS Enterprise. This iconic character begins within the background merely answering communication, and this might simply be a chunk about her being the apex of male nerd fantasies, however scene by scene we see her showcase technical proficiency in repairing essential communication techniques, leaping into the navigation slot, standing in as science officer, or being left in cost of the ship, and that’s from the unique sequence, because the years progressed we’d see extra of her strengths, particularly in Strange New Worlds as that iteration of Uhura is positioned to study as many ship techniques as doable, and for a prodigy like Uhura, this can be a unbelievable start line for her Starfleet profession.

In all iterations of Uhura, we see her skill to step in and supply perception into the present drawback be it translating a language, determining methods to observe a cloaked vessel, or discovering the appropriate kind of music to shut a spacial rift. Her data and expertise would serve her effectively previous her time on the Enterprise and Enterprise-A as captain of the USS Leondegrance, beginning with a five-year mission with over 100 first contact missions, the Leondegrance would change into an Academy coaching vessel the place she would foster within the “Next Generation” of Starfleet officers together with a younger cadet named Jean-Luc Picard. The backstory of Uhura is one of tragedy, however the energy to heal and study makes her a Starfleet Legend, a real warrior scholar. — GC3

Una Chin-Riley

Like Spock and the USS Enterprise, Number One has been an element of Star Trek since day one. In her unique incarnation, performed by the inimitable Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, Number One despatched a message about the place ladies slot in in Star Trek’s imaginative and prescient of the longer term: on the bridge, proper alongside the lads (Pike’s dated sexist line apart). However, Great Bird of the Galaxy Gene Roddenberry was infamously compelled to decide on between preserving Spock or preserving Number One. Fortunately, Majel went on to change into the enduring voice of the Enterprise (and a number of other subsequent Starfleet laptop techniques as well), in addition to to painting each Christine Chapel and the legendary Lwaxana Troi.

And in a further flip of success, the character of Una Chin-Riley has gone on to get her simply desserts. This incarnation, portrayed by Rebecca Romijn, first appeared on Star Trek: Discovery and is now half of the bridge crew on Disco’s spin-off, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. In the SNW season 2 episode “Ad Astra per Aspera,” Una is placed on trial for concealing the truth that she is genetically augmented.

As a trans lady, it was straightforward for me to see myself in Una’s battle, which addressed relatable themes like passing privilege. Did I cry on the conclusion, which affirmed Una was making Starfleet higher? Reader, I did; and I additionally cried once more when the subplot unexpectedly returned in “Those Old Scientists” to disclose our beloved Bradward Boimler cites Una as his inspiration for becoming a member of Starfleet to start with. Plus, who doesn’t get pleasure from her renditions of Gilbert and Sullivan? — AJK

Christine Chapel

Originally a usually occurring character within the unique sequence, however by no means totally fleshed out, that might change in 2022 with Strange New Worlds when Dr. Christine Chapel, nonetheless a younger nurse aboard the Enterprise, was given complicated character arcs that might cement her as one of my favourite characters within the franchise. A survivor of the Klingon War, Chapel discovered herself at dwelling aboard the Enterprise the place she would serve beneath Dr. M’Benga and ultimately fall in love with Spock who was simply starting to discover his humanity. The two entered a torrid affair the place Chapel was actually the extra emotionally mature of the 2 but couldn’t assist herself from latching onto what made her happiest.

That all got here to a head in season 2 when she would resolve to go away the Enterprise to tackle an apprenticeship that lastly allowed her to think about a future in her life and profession inflicting a schism between the lovers. Exuberant and full of life, selecting primarily to dwell within the second Chapel struggles with the emotional scars left behind by her time combating for her life throughout the warfare. Despite a rotating roster of docs aboard the Enterprise, she would serve faithfully for a few years as one of the ship’s nurses till she would later lastly get her MD, ultimately serving at Star Fleet Headquarters.

Dr. Chapel is superb at her job and has routinely healed and helped others all through her profession. During the Klingon War, she fought to maintain wounded troopers alive, and afterward she discovered herself as half of Starfleet’s initiative to create brief time period genome manipulation serums to permit officers to watch alien races with out contamination to the inhabitants. She has helped preserve the crew of the Enterprise alive on away missions together with her concoctions, in addition to constantly serving to to avoid wasting the day by hand-to-hand fight when enemies are close to.

What I like essentially the most about this character, and granted it’s largely as a result of of her depth in SNW, is that she’s so very emotionally and morally complicated. You might not all the time agree together with her selections however usually they’re nonetheless legitimate even when she approaches them within the mistaken means at instances. People are messy, Christine Chapel is messy, and that makes her extremely robust within the face of hazard and on a regular basis life. — DC

Jett Reno

Jett Reno doesn’t present up on Discovery till season 2, however their presence is a welcome one. Starfleet engine rooms are typically buddy-buddy, so Reno’s prickliness brings a novel vitality to Discovery’s engine room. It’s enjoyable seeing the friction between her and fussy Paul Stamets within the queerest engine room in Star Trek historical past. But Reno’s one the most effective engineers in Star Trek historical past. Someone who can “MacGuyver” something to get a chunk of equipment working as seen by her skill to jury rig a sick bay to avoid wasting her crewmates on the USS Hiawatha. They’re as prepared to unravel an issue as they’re giving a sardonic remark. — DM

Nichelle Nichols

Born in a segregated US, Nichols lived in a world the place Black folks weren’t allowed in sure locations and never allowed sure jobs. Like most Black expertise of the day, she discovered her means in entrance of the digicam the place she helped to originate the groundbreaking Lt. Uhura within the unique Star Trek sequence. While the function was largely background and supporting, she was a task mannequin to the Black neighborhood particularly to folks like President Barack Obama, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the early candidates of the Space Shuttle program.

After Star Trek‘s cancellation, it was her actions behind the scenes that were just as inspirational as her representation of Black Women on the screen. Becoming enamored with NASA and the space program, Nichols recognized that there weren’t any People of Color or Women that she may level to at NASA or the astronaut coaching program. She grew to become a vocal advocate for adjustments within the area program, calling NASA out for this, NASA responded by enlisting her to assist recruit new trainees for the brand new Space Shuttle program.

Nichols created her Women in Motion group and for 4 months she canvassed the nation, making private appearances and PSAs encouraging, her work was straight answerable for serving to to spice up the quantity of astronaut purposes from Women and People of Color. In movie-making parlance, she was a real triple risk; dancer, singer, and actor, however her ardour for area and STEM applications for everybody needs to be her true legacy. — GC3

Ishka A.Ok.A. Moogie

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 6, episode 23, “Profit and Lace,” Ishka/Moogie (Andrea Martin/Cecily Adams (major)), the mom of Ferengi brothers Rom and Quark, predicts that, “One day, a female will enter the Tower of Commerce, climb the forty flights of stairs to the Chamber of Opportunity, and take her rightful place as Grand Nagus of the Ferengi Alliance.” But the assertion is greater than a prediction, it’s an motion plan. Prior to Moogie’ Ferengi ladies have been handled as decrease class residents, as they weren’t allowed to vote nor put on clothes.

That all begins to alter when Moogie shacks up with the planet’s ruler: Grand Nagus Zek (Wallace Shawn), whose reminiscence is now failing and is unable to maintain observe of Ferenginar’s financial system on his personal. To assist preserve Zek in energy, she begins to run the nation behind-the-scenes, doing all the pieces in her energy to make her prediction come true. By DS9‘s end, Moogie’s considerably modified Ferengi society for the higher, with reforms like laws permitting females to choose out of the standard nudity. You can see these adjustments in motion in Lower Decks season 4’s “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place.” Moogie’s a fixer, all proper—a society fixer. – ROK

Join us subsequent week as we proceed our Women’s History Month celebration of the Women of Star Trek, spotlighting the Fighters of this franchise.

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