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#i've not seen any of the series post-enterprise
itsclydebitches · 8 months
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Years ago I remember seeing a post positing that all the other Federation ships are having Perfectly Normal exploratory missions and it's only Kirk's crew experiencing the kind of off-the-wall nonsense seen in The Original Series. Strange New Worlds undermines the playful headcanon (as does any ST series by default) but it got me thinking about how people in-universe might rationalize things. Like oh... Kirk spent a lot of time on The Enterprise back in the day too, didn't he? Visiting his brother, helping with cooperative assignments, training under Number One... clearly whatever influence makes his crew encounter gods and break out into song was seeping onto the ship every time he set foot on the transporter pad. No one else is dealing with that shit unless Kirk is nearby!
But then one drunk ensign has a 'I've connected the dots' moment as they consider the long-term crew rosters: "What if it's Spock?"
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spacelazarwolf · 9 months
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The longfic post you shared got me curious, are you a fan of any other particular media aside House MD?
oh absolutely. i'm not really in fandom anymore, it's just not the same as it was back in my heyday, but here's some i find myself rewatching or rereading.
-star trek (i've seen all series up to enterprise and most of the movies up to whichever the one with benedict cumberbatch was. i grew up on it so it has a special place in my heart)
-doctor who (yes i was into superwholock in 2014)
-good omens
-our flag means death
-what we do in the shadows (movie and tv series)
-greys anatomy (i hate it and i can't stop watching it bc i have to see how it ends if it ever ends)
-abbott elementary
-q-force
-she-ra
-avatar: the last air bender
-the dragon prince
-the good place
-derry girls
-bridgerton
i'm a big fan of christina lauren's romance novels, will reread red white and royal blue every year until i die, really enjoy austin chant, and am always looking for more queer and trans book recs.
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holodexmachina · 6 months
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Listen. I wrote a thing.
Part of me still can't believe I've done this, but, okay, here we go: I wrote some Star Trek fanfic! And while posting fanfic is a pretty banal activity in tumblrland, it was kind of A Whole Thing for me. I’ve never written fanfic before! I haven’t even written fiction of any sort since, good lord, my sophomore creative writing class, which was *checks watch* twenty years ago. And it’s been way too long since I wrote anything just for fun. So it’s been kind of a wild practice, and now it’s out there, and I want to tell you about it.
The fic is called “A Woman of Your Century,” and it is a rewrite of the Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Space Seed,” but imagines Khan as a woman. [You don’t need to have seen the episode to get the story, but here’s a quick synopsis: the Enterprise encounters a ship full of sleeping humans and wakes one—Khan Noonien-Singh, played by Ricardo Montalban. The crew soon realizes that Khan is an “augment”—one of a group of genetically engineered superhuman despots who took over Earth in the 1990s, causing the disastrous Eugenics Wars. Khan tries to take over the Enterprise so that he can conquer the galaxy. Khan nearly kills Kirk; fist fights ensue; Khan loses, and Kirk ditches the augments on an abandoned planet (thus setting the scene for Star Trek II: Wrath of Khan twenty years later).] 
“Space Seed” is my favorite Trek episode, hands down. Khan is a pretty interesting villain—ruthless, narcissistic, ambitious—and the augment storyline has always been incredibly compelling to me, especially as it gets picked up and developed further in several other series. That said, the episode isn’t without its flaws; like many TOS episodes, the premise didn’t need to be thought through any more than was required of its 50 minutes, and later attempts to explain the augments’ history tended to introduce more questions and canonical conflicts. And then there’s the squick-inducing relationship between Khan and the ship’s historian, Marla McGivers—a relationship that provides plot devices, but has a deeply fucked dynamic. I mean, he negs her over her hair, and she decides, yeah, I’d engineer a mutiny for this man. You can tell the writers really respected women. 
Then a friend said: could you imagine how this story would have gone if Khan had been a woman?
Oh. Oh—
Yes. Yes, I can imagine that. 
I started thinking about what would change if Khan were a woman. How would the crew of the Enterprise react to such a powerful female villain? How would it unfuck Marla’s interactions (or not)? What kind of rivalry would develop between Kirk and Khan? TOS doesn’t skip female villainy, but does tend to keep it squarely in the realm of “seductress acting on behalf of a male.” The limitations of midcentury masculinity make it hard to imagine Kirk seeing a woman as a true threat—as a mind on par with his own (let alone far beyond it). 
Thinking through the gender-bent implications also led me to considering the story from Khan’s point of view. It’s a tricky balance—Khan is a genocidal sociopath with the blood of millions on his hands. Let’s not defend that, maybe! At the same time, there’s a reason the best villains are humanized: we need to be able to see ourselves in the monstrous, and the monstrous in ourselves. Cartoon evil is boring and unrealistic. But finding ways to create sympathy for a villain—without condoning them!—is very interesting. 
Rewriting “Space Seed” let me not only explore material I adored, not only fill in minor plot holes, not only build out augment backstory—it also let me highlight the current of sexism and misogyny that has always been part of Trek, and blow it up real good. Marla’s treatment in the original—and the crew’s reverence for Khan’s aggression—both speak volumes about gender attitudes in the 1960s (and, uh, beyond). But swapping genders—Khan for Khana and Marla for Marlow—forces (I hope) a reexamination of character, of narrative, of values. Which is what science fiction is for, after all.
Also: it was just fucking fun to do. Which makes me wonder if I should…write more fic? (I’m open to ideas! What should I try next?) Either way: thanks, friends, and happy reading!
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particlewaveform · 9 months
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hello, I've seen you Star Trek posting a lot and I've gotten curious.
Hypothetically speaking someone wants to watch it where does one start?? What do you suggest?
o hi there!!! so technically you can start whenever you want - some series reference previous series a bit more than others but if youre sticking with 80s-2000s trek it doesnt make a big difference (new trek such as discovery, strange new worlds, lower decks..... its a whole other ball game you really need context)
so now its rly all about the vibes you want!!
2009 movies: a LOT of new trek enjoyers got into the series through these ones - theres only 3 movies and their pacing is p much like most modern media so theyre easy to consume. more actiony than the rest of star trek. they are gonna have people like kirk and spock and bones etc
ToS (the original series): the OG! what started it all! this is the technical START of the series but its got really slow pacing so it might be harder to get through. this is THEE epitomy of submarine warfare but we love it. makes up for it by silly 60s shoestring budget, sass, COLOUR, and the most iconic charas in star trek (kirk, spock, bones, uhura, scotty - its a great time!)
TNG (the next generation): another really good place to start the series (this was my start as a kiddo) essentially this is the trek most people think of and sets the vibe. good pacing, consistent story, more modern graphics, and provides most of the worldbuilding for the whole series. the vibe here is mostly diplomacy > action but dw we still got silly scifi happenings. this will have picard, riker, worf, data, etc
ds9 (deep space 9): tumblr's darling child. the MOST gay and chaotic out of any of the treks - its insane how good (and bad) it can get. this has some carryover from tng but doesnt effect the story at large. a drawback for most people is its based on one spacestation so theres little to no exploring which is the bread and butter of star trek - it makes up for it by delving deeply into the alien races that live nearby instead of having them The Alien of the Week and never talking about it again. big themes of Imperialism/resistance/spirituality which is just Chefs Kiss. has characters like sisko, julien, garak, dax, kira, obrien, quark/odo, worf again
Voy (voyager): ever wonder what these ships are like in a crisis situation? ever think "wow star treks idealism would be hard to hold up without support and safety?" WELCOME TO STAR TREK: SURVIVOR. ship gets stranded hundreds of years from home and has to make the long journey back with little resources, allies, and a stedily degrading ship and crew. VOY weirdly has a bad rep but its v good and i just chalk that up to weird nerd sexism about the first female captain (Janeway my beloved). ofc it has its ups and downs like EVERY star trek series. crew becomes very much like a found family and theres tons of exploring since everything is new and exciting! has people like Janeway, Chakotay, Tuvok, Seven of Nine
ENT (enterprise): we've had a LOT of starships called Enterprise but this is the first! this predates the federation which is the defining theme of star trek in general. it heavily leans into a low tech astronaut feeling instead of scifi science magic. got canceled when it was just getting good and i really think its worth a watch. has people like Archer, T'pol, hoshi, Shran
TLDR
tos: Classique 60s hijinks
tng: diplomats in space but cool
ds9: chaotic gays in space
voy: oh god everything wants to eat us
ent: ASTRONAUTS SPACE IS COOL!!!!!
star trek itself is really a love letter to life, humanity, and the possibilities of space - i grew up watching it and its really been one of the most impactful medias of my life. if you do try it i hope you enjoy it and have fun!
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fourthreee · 5 months
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Saw a post a while back about favourite and least favourite bits of star trek and I wanted to join in. So here's my two cents :
Original Star Trek
Favourite: Spock. Bones. Scotty. Uhura. Kirk. Chapel. Sulu. Chekov. EVERYONE. The sets. The lighting. The camp. The blatant homoeroticism. The do or die for each other crew. That time they found an alien that was just a pomeranian wearing fancy headgear. The fact that every episode is self contained and ends with a little bit where everyone stands around the conn and chats. Leonard Nimoy. Sulu with a sword. Sulu the rest of the time.EVERYONE. This is my favourite trek, and the one I return to over and over again. First trek is best trek.The bell bottom trousers and cuban heel knee high boots. More kinky boots, modern trek, d'ya hear me? More kinky boots.
Least favourite: When the show reveals how terribly it can abandon everything that makes it good. Of all the episodes, there's about a third I just cannot watch. Times where they fill it full of weird christian metaphor.
TNG
Favourite: Geordie and Data. And Spot. I keep trying to watch this but I've only ever seen A Fistful of Datas. IT was great. And horribly horribly slow. (oh. And one where Picard chases bandits through the ship armed only with a saddle and while dodging a laser car wash. That one was great. Except for when I rewatched this as an adult. When it was horrifying.)
Least favourite: Invented the holodeck which gets used too much later and which always confuses me. Can't watch holodeck episodes without obsessing over how it works. Everything is carpeted and it panics me. Why are there wall to wall carpets in the future. In high traffic areas. Also it was genrerally too slow and difficult to watch. And whil I love Hornblower I have a headmaster nor a Naval Captain fetish, so Picard never does it for me.
DS9
Favourites: Everyone. Everyone together. I want Sisko to be my dad. Or my friend. Or my Captain. All of the above. Julian Bashir trans icon. Jadzia Dax trans icon. Everyone is poly and queer. Ferengi episodes. Kira Nerys lesbian energy. Every 36 hours I turn into a liquid. I can swim. The whole Odo marrying Lwxwna episode. Our Man Bashir. He was more than a hero. He was a Union Man. It's written all over his back.
Least favourite : When they switched to serialised I do struggle to keep watching. Taking away Kira's butch haircut and stompy boots. Show never recovered from that. Any time they give Kira a beard. I've never finished the series bc I couldnt face the Julian/parents arc or the Jadzia death/Julian and Ezri thing. When they stopped Andrew Robinson from being on screen with Siddig El Fadil. Any time Dukat got more than a minute airtime. Any executive decision Rick Berman made.
Voyager:
Favourites: Seven of 9. Harry Kim. Janeway. B'elanna. The time they all opereated the French Resistance out of a bar. Stand alone episodes. The time Janeway definitely slept with Amerlia Earhart. The time Janeway ran around in a dirty singlet with a big gun. That episode where they hide the telepaths in the buffers of the transporters to sneak past a moustache twirling villain while Janeway flirts with him like they're both opponent pirate captains with insane homoerotic tension. Ther's coffee in that nebula.
Least favourites: The Doctor. Seven not getting a uniform. Tom Paris any time he's not just Harry Kim's boyfriend. Janeway's inconsistent characterisation. The fact that phages might be a real world last line defence against antibiotic resistance but thanks to voyager it will always terrify me. I've never made it to the end because Tom/B'elanna was too hard to watch and I didn't know how to deal with them actually getting home. Ithink they never should have. Any executiev decision Rick Berman made.
Enterprise:
Favourites: I have seen two episodes and Hoshi Sato has my heart forever. Phlox is great. Tight-wound angry queer british guy can stay too. Travis is great. Theme song is terrible and I love it. It's so incongruent. Sounds like the sort of country song you listen to while committing suicide in the bathtub. Can't stop singing it. The fact that it killed Rick Berman's career.
Least favourite: Everything else. The dog in particular. Why is it there. Why is it soulless. Poor Jolene Blalock. Why are their uniforms so bad. I love a jumpsuit but they didn't colour code them properly! Every executive decision Rick Berman made.
JJ Abrams:
Favourites: Nothing. This is terrible.. If you can't make up you own characters why are you butchering my boys. Go away.
Least Favorites: Trying to remake wrath of Khan (the worst movie with the original cast imo) without even bothering to buiild the relationship that makes us care. Why is he still white? Why are they in a brewery? Why is Pike a hot dad now? He's a wreck of the american masculine heroic ideal who exists as a counterpoint to Kirk. If tumblr wants to make his doomed ass a poor little meow meow fine. JJ Abrams shouldnt put him in his movie. Every exectuive decision they made about women in this movie. Making Sulu gay in massive disrespect to Takei's depiction of him and Takei's own acting skills. Making everyone else straight in the worst possible way. Pretending miniskirts in 2009 meant the same thing as in 1969. Also I stoppped after the first couple because it was starting to feel like self harm. Blue orbs. The fact their chracterisation feels like if you'd never star trek but a cabbie had explained it you once badly, and the fact that literally WAS WHAT HAPPENED
Oh wait. Leonard Nimoy cameo. only good thing.
Discovery.
Favourites: Wanted to love it. Couldn't see what was going on because it was too dark. Everytime I tried in spite of that I fell in love with many parts of it, then they immediately fucked it over. they fucked over a thing I love. Michael Burnham? In jail for unfair reasons. Cap. Georgiou? Dead. Burnham should be Captain, and I think she still isn't. I don't know I couldnt see. Etc etc. Apparently it gets better but It's too serialised to start in the middle.
Least Favourites: Too dark. Bad uniforms (Why would you bring back the ENTERPRISE uniforms of all things?) The fact that klingons are now middle eastern coded so that they still align with the zeitgeist of who we're being xenophobic again right now. (OOHscary FIGHTYculture is Russian. No WAIT black. NO middle eastern. yeah) Jason Isaacs. I liike my villains NOT on the crew. Why does EVERYONE have to be related to Spock
Lower Decks: I don't do this format of cartoons.
Prodigy: I don't do this kind of animation either.
SNW:
Too dark to see. Also stop just redoing the original characters. Make your own. For years now I get excited about new Star Trek and it ALWAYS either too dark to see or animated to see or just about tos characters done badly. At which point I'll just go watch tos. Also remember when Star Trek uniforms actually looked futuristic? Yeah, me too.
Turn the lights back on and maybe we can talk.
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incognitajones · 2 months
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Fic rec ask game
[I'm going through this list in random order]
14. favourite series
In terms of Stars, I've always been more into the Wars than the Treks. (I'd call myself a casual Trek fan; I've seen all of the original series and Enterprise, and enjoyed parts of Discovery and the new series.)
But there's no question that my favourite fanfic series ever, at least as measured by re-reads, is hundreds of words about two Vulcan OCs, their marriage, and their extended family and friends.
Pi'maat by sixbeforelunch
I've re-read every story in this series multiple times, even though I know barely anything about Vulcan, because sixbeforelunch is so good at developing a convincing fictional world. I love the world-building of a truly alien society, and all of the characters feel absolutely real (the death of a minor background OC in the last installment made me tear up).
It's about building a life with someone you never expected to know, it's about post-war trauma (both societal and personal), chronic illness, burnout, and PTSD - and yet it's absolutely uplifting, in the end.
3. fic that made you reconsider a ship?
I'm a multishipper, so this isn't usually an issue - I'll read pretty much any ship as long as the story makes it seem plausible. That said, I've never really bought Finn/Poe/Rey, but this charming little piece nearly convinced me.
the new three's company by verity
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mitziholder · 5 months
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apologies for being weird and hogging your inbox like this but i LOVE your thoughts on fandom and i think very few people talk about it in a critical way without completely condemning the entire occupation. in my experience people (not just on this website but in general) tend to take a very black and white view of fandom/fic, probably because it can feel like a very personal thing for many; either they're 'normies' who think all fanworks are 'cringe' or they're the anything goes kind of person. radfems seem to me to be the only ppl who aren't overly defensive of the enterprise but can still enjoy fanworks critically. its nice to see women who aren't like. Fandom Moms talking about these things at length. i think you're one of the few people i've agreed with regarding this subject so far :/ your analyses are very much appreciated and i'd love to read more of what you think (especially regarding the point about navigating trauma). have a good day!
oh and also regarding the whole 'i want women to read better thing' ive always felt this idea that fandom culture is above criticism (or criticising it is inherently misogynistic) is in some ways an extension or at least related to the societal notion that women should be confined to the fluffy feeling aspects of writing and art and aren't as capable of intellectually engaging with things (and of course some 'criticisms' of fan culture ARE misogynistic but i'm not referring to those atm). and obviously there isn't anything inherently WRONG with silly fluff novels or romance (especially romance of course as one can certainly explore that subject in depth and i actually think there's a lack of well written romance out there) but it still feels like a limitation on female growth to normalise women ONLY reading fanfiction or even only certain brands of genre fiction i guess? and i find it sad that so many women seem to almost buy into that idea nowadays or shoot down any sort of criticism with the 'stop shaming female desire' catchphrase. and considering that there is still a dearth of well made original female work for women in pop culture (that act as cultural touchstones in the same way a lot of male works do) it's even more depressing that a lot of fanwork centers men. sorry if this comes off as insufferably pretentious lmao! i'm not even against fanwork i mean this is tumblr i still enjoy things but hopefully you know what i mean lol
like i mean. there's a reason why fanfiction is seen as primarily a female affair (even though a lot of the highly regarded published fanfics are by men. u know the neil gaiman stuff or whatever). its sort of a reassurance that women are 'limited' to writing fanworks. idk. i guess i want women to do better idk if im making any sense
ok, mandatory disclaimer that what I’m describing here is a series of trends, trends I’ve observed within fandom at large including both fanfiction readers/writers and fujos more broadly. obviously, not everyone who reads fanfic or yaoi is a woman (though the vast majority are). obviously, not every woman who reads fanfic or yaoi is a stunted teenager who refuses to engage with any other media. I will also admit that not every fanfic is jimin ABO. I don’t think that fanfic is inherently cringe or low-quality, and there are certainly a lot of respectable published works that have been created with other people’s characters or settings. but, as I’ve said, the vast majority of fanworks in the modern day are essentially pornographic mad libs. I find that disappointing. and there’s no reason it has to be this way… except for all the reasons I’ve outlined in my other posts.
things that are lazy and thoughtless and easy, that provide instant gratification, are generally more popular than things that are difficult or uncomfortable. clearly. but people who denounce all fanfic/fanfic writers and pigeonhole it as low-effort slop are not actually interested in helping the women who write it achieve their fullest potential because they do not believe those women have any potential. it’s true that some criticisms of fan culture and fanworks are purely misogynistic… but I care about women’s voices, and I do want women to be able to express themselves. I’m not on a quest to stop women from writing or reading fanfic. I’ve been slightly flip about the subject, but truthfully, not everything that is “derivative” is bad, and there’s no reason that fanworks couldn’t be good. it’s just that the culture around them is so intensely sensitive - anti-“shaming” - that women are terrified of saying anything about the level of quality or the potentially harmful nature of most fanfiction because they don’t want to devalue media created by and for other women.
I think that’s a disservice to women as a whole. not everything we write is valuable. I’ve written plenty of crap in the pursuit of getting better - plenty of crap I currently disagree with. and if our work can’t withstand criticism - if we shut down immediately at any hint of a deeper, more unflattering analysis of what’s really going on… then what’s the point? what are we communicating? that female fantasies exist in a compartmentalized bubble far and away from our politics and intellectual pursuits? that we should be able to j/o to rape fantasies without question because it’s not that serious? that the personal is political, except for when it isn’t… and we should all be quiet and let women write whatever they want free of criticism lest we shame them so hard they go into hiding? my standards might be a tad high, but that is setting the bar… dangerously low. it’s also patronizing. since when has “just let women enjoy things!!” ever gotten us anywhere? since when has that been a cornerstone of feminist thought? is that really the best we can do? are we really so fragile?
I’ve seen a glut of posts about how useless and harmful constructive criticism supposedly is. the reasoning is always basically the same:
criticism is mean/toxic/discouraging
maybe I’m too hardened by countless death wishes I got on my old blog, but in my experience, whenever I have something I want to say or a point I want to make, very little can keep me from doing so. I can’t imagine being so bothered by what random Internet people think. it’s important to remember that not all criticism is good, and being able to determine what criticism is valuable is a skill in itself. disavowing criticism as a whole because some of it is “toxic”/discouraging is throwing the baby out with the bathwater.
criticism is pointless; perfection is unattainable
of course nothing is ever going to be perfect. but if that’s your attitude, why bother editing? (rhetorical question. some fanfic authors do post unedited works… just because they can.) hell, why write? why get up in the morning? why make your bed? why try anything new at all? it’s a completely absurd, defeatist attitude. like the first point, it also reeks of intellectual laziness and self-satisfaction.
you could just be nice and say what you liked instead because that’s helpful too
please don’t blow smoke up my ass. in editing, I want to fix things that don’t work and to trim the fat. is it “kind” or “helpful” to let me do something completely stupid while knowing it’s stupid because you’re too afraid of embarrassing or offending me to say as much? also, knowing what people like is useful in producing more of what people like - it doesn’t help me do anything new or different. there is nothing less helpful to me than saying “good job!” when I ask you to read my work. it’s certainly nice (as long as you actually read it), but it’s not helpful.
it’s published, the author is through with it, and they don’t want to touch it anymore
I plan to do everything I can to edit and improve my writing before the thing is drawn and published, but I’m sure some flaws will inevitably slip through the cracks. currently, I’m rewriting entire chapters from the beginning because they became incompatible with what I wanted out of the series as it progressed. considering that a lot of people write fanfic on a chapter-by-chapter basis with only a very vague trope-strung outline, I have to wonder why they’re so averse to major overhauls. sure, it’s not pleasant, but don’t you want your writing to be the best that it can be? what is the purpose of uploading it if you don’t want the thing to be responded to as it is, warts and all?
also, not all criticism is limited to the specific work it’s derived from; many things can be extrapolated to future works as well. how are we supposed to correct trends that could lead to a decrease in the quality of future works if we can’t even point them out?
fanfiction is a hobby, and hobbies should be fun
I’m not under the impression that I’ll ever be able to make a living from my writing. I do it as a “hobby” in my spare time simply for the fact that I need an outlet for my thoughts - I need to organize them in some way. writing is an art form that we use to communicate meaning and to make sense of the world around us. your goal as a writer may be to have fun, but it isn’t mine. overgeneralizing and building an entire subculture around the pursuit of mindless fun limits what fanfiction and amateur writing have the potential to be.
you could just go read something else that you like more
actually, no. I don’t like any of it. I’m sorry if saying that is offensive to the 38-year-old she/they whose blog post I grabbed this from. most fanfic is bad. I yearn for the exploration of topics that are categorically not explored in fanfic - because the scope of what fanfic is interested in is constantly narrowing, feeding on itself, like an ouroboros. this problem is only going to get worse over time. why wouldn’t I be bothered? why can’t I say it’s a shame?
mass-media and tiktok are worse!
maybe, but so what? at least the majority of people who spend their time watching tiktok videos and bad TV don’t act like it’s a suitable replacement for real literature. and at least there aren’t tiktok compilations being listed on goodreads(?)
anyway, more to the point, fandom is full of technically competent writers. but if they continue to insulate themselves within fandom or fandom-adjacent offshoots, they will never be great writers, because great writing requires tight editing (the elimination of things that are pointless and redundant), syntactic fluency, organizational skills, and, most importantly, an individual voice - an artistic vision - interpreting individual ideas… things that are born of criticism and a diversity of influences that are not present or valued within fandom in its current state. great writing cannot be made in a vacuum. great writers don’t allow themselves to be broken or stifled by criticism they disagree with.
sure, no one has a responsibility to be a great writer, and mediocre writing isn’t a moral failure… but I’m certainly not going to be happy about it, especially when the prevailing attitude is “fanfic is art… but I make what I want for myself and sharing it with you is a privilege and therefore you can’t criticize it!” how boring! how utterly conceited! my god. throwing a temper tantrum because you’re not 100% in control of how others perceive or respond to your creation. put it in a diary and not on a public forum if that bothers you so much… (but then, of course, you couldn’t count kudos.)
I do have a plan to touch on some of my other gripes since you asked so nicely. but this response is, once again, getting too long, and those things have little to do with what I was complaining about here. I’ve got an outline for a post I’ll develop and publish later as a final note on this convo, since at that point I really will have said all that I have to say… thanks again for writing in :-)
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A Whovian Watches Star Trek for the First Time: Part 035 - Ghost Hoshi
Star Trek: Enterprise - Season 2 Episode 10 - Vanishing Point
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Hoshi and Trip got to do some Indiana Jones stuff in the cold open! I wasn't expecting some archaeology, but I'm down for this! Unfortunately a storm is brewing and any convenient excuse to keep the ground crew down there. Enterprise transports them back during the storm. We've seen a few people have misgivings about using the transporter before now, and I've been waiting for an episode focussing on it.
Of course the crew immediately start scaring her with ghost stories about some guy who got scrambled wrong while testing it. Kind of a dick move on their parts, especially with how she seems uncomfortable with being transported. Phlox says repeatedly that everything is fine with her, at least on a physical level, but later on she starts fading in and out of existence. I liked how it started with people just... subtle not noticing her, and technology not working for her, and leaving you to figure out what's happening before the big reveal of her fading away in the bathroom, and phasing through objects in the gym, then finally completely disappearing from everyone's perception
This episode could be considered low level body horror, and it plays it well. Everyone's acting is on point, especially Archer and Trip at the devastation of thinking they've accidentally killed one of their close friends. Hoshi's actress is on point here too, she portrayed the confusion over what's happening too her in the first half, and the absolute helplessness of her situation in the 2nd half really well. This episode really was a stand out performance wise.
What I want to know is... what on earth is that gym apparatus that trip was using actually supposed to do? He was spinning about all over the place.
Later on the episode also throws in some saboteurs that have infiltrated the ship and setting it to explode, and only Hoshi notices because she's invisible, and the mission begins to try and get noticed by anyone to save the ship.
I loved a lot of the ideas Hoshi comes up with, interfering with the light circuit to get it to flicker in Morse Code was genius, it's just a shame it didn't completely work.
I really liked this episode until the end. I don't like that the whole episode was revealed to just be a weird transporter fever dream. "It's just a dream" is my least favourite trope, by far. This set up was really working for me, and pulling all of it out as "just a dream" never feels like a satisfying ending. I also kinda wish we got the archaeology episode that the cold open promised, but perhaps another time.
Now, I do want to acknowledge that there is an Eighth Doctor Adventures Novel called Vanishing Point, however I'm not going to do my whole Same Title Comparison segment for it, because I'm still reading the series it's part of for the first time, and I don't want to spoil myself, the EDAs are a very arc heavy book series. When I eventually get around to it, if I remember, I'll probably reblog this post with the comparison segment, but that's for future me to do.
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juniebgroans · 1 year
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I feel like I've made this post before but I'm bored and thinking about Deep Space Nine and so thus I must rank all star trek series on their levels of gayness
The Original Series: literally so gay but in a like. Homoerotic undertone way. Like Sam and Frodo looking longingly into each others eyes. Like the original Holmes and Watson proclaiming their respect and adoration for each other. 10/10 gay
The Animated Series: never seen it. Theres a catgirl tho, so I guess a 3/10??
Next Generation: I love TNG but there is not a single gay on the crew. 5/10 and that's only because Q exists. Its a crime that Picard had to be a brick wall of heterosexuality because Kirk and Q would've made out on the bridge.
Deep Space Nine: ABSURDLY GAY. Dax = trans. Garak exists. Bashir falls in love with anyone of any gender that pays attention to him. Kira has a weird poly thing with the O'Brians and also shes an angry bisexual activist. Odo and Quark are little gay rivals. Ezri is a baby enby. 1000/10 gay, Worf had the biggest culture shock for this specific reason when he joined the station.
Voyager: My comfort star trek despite being almost as straight as TNG. Thankfully the Doctor is a very Frasier-esque gay and Seven of Nine is an asexual lesbian half-cyborg which is enough. 6/10 gay
Enterprise: Shran is Obsessed with Captain Archer and I'm very happy for him. Malcolm is gay and I will not take questions about it. 5/10 gay but also T'pol and Tripp are like the best straight couple in star trek because of the LONGING.
The Alternate Series: great movies, Chris Pine is very attractive. Unfortunately, oops all straights. 0/10 gay
Discovery: First actual gay representation in star trek. Tig Notaro makes me happy. The doctor/engineer (can't remember their names) couple was clearly written by someone that shipped Tripp/Malcolm. 8/10 gay, points removed for making it very normal and background-y and not having the chaos of TOS and DS9
Picard: Seven is a lesbian and Raffi is cool. Overall my least favorite new Star Trek series but in terms of gayness, a good 9/10
Lower Decks: Beckett is bi and Tendi is trans and thats that folks. Also some fun shout outs to Spock/Kirk. 9/10 gay
Prodigy: kids show that hasn't really established romantic relationships between any characters, gay or straight, so I've disqualified it from getting a ranking.
Strange New Worlds: Nurse Chapel is the bisexual Kira never could openly be in the 90s. I'm in love with Ortegas. Spock is technically straight but has the exact same homoerotic undertones with Pike that he does with Kirk so like. Very accurate to the mythology. 10/10 gay.
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robotpussy · 2 years
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Have you ever watched star trek? I feel like youd love it, especially Deep space 9
!!!!!!!!!!! yes i love star trek 😭 i dont rlly post abt it anymore but when i remade in 2015 this was a majority star trek blog actually u can check my star trek tag if u want NCJWBE but yes I've seen all the series up until enterprise cause it just wasn't to my liking and i haven't rlly thought abt star trek since so i haven't seen any of the newer shows unfortunately, mainly because i am not a tv show person anyway.
i also went to a star trek convention (in uhura cosplay 💓) in November last year to meet up with a friend i made online so its safe to say i have seen star trek 😁
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reckless-glitch · 8 months
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Hi! You post a lot of Star Trek so I thought you might be good to ask. How did you get into it at first and where did you start/where do you think someone should start?
Oh! Well first off I got into it the same way I get into most things....
someone I thought was hot really liked it and I wanted something to talk to them about lmao
Now for the second part......I might not be the right person to ask. I started with the original series and watched in release order up until Enterprise (I haven't seen any of the new shows) and tos is my absolute favorite but I'm...in the minority there nowadays I think. Most people would probably suggest you start at DS9 and that's probably a good idea.
But...I mean.....I think you should start with the original
I've said it before but my series ranking is
The original
The animated series (no one likes this one you should not watch it but I love it very much)
Voyager
The Next Generation/DS9 are tied
a faaaaaaar 5th is Enterprise
and my captain ranking is:
Kirk (TOS/TAS)
Janeway (Voyager)
Sisko (DS9...not technically a captain but he counts)
Picard (TNG) and Archer (Enterprise) do not deserve space in a ranking
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giffingthingsss · 1 year
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*For the record, I've seen bits and pieces of TNG and one movie that I remember (and one that I forgot everything about). So this is completely based on feeling and should be ignored, probably.*
Why do they keep making TNG stuff? From an uninformed perspective, its story was told a long time ago. This was a pretty day-to-day business-of-the-federation show.
They made movies out of it because it was popular, not because the material needed it. And from what I've seen, the fandom hates three out of the four, so, ya know. Worth it. /s (one day I'll watch them and like them, probably. just to be contrary.)
Well they got one good one. And I think its existence is really justified because we got to go back and see drunk Montana Man making first contact with Vulcans. Also Borg lore, which a large chunk of the fandom also hated, but it had something to say.
I don't think more TNG needed to exist. You could do TNG character cameos in other things. Current characters at a Starfleet banquet and you see Picard walk in in the background with Beverly on his arm, stuff like that. Little hints at what they've been up to, occasional cameos.
But TNG sells. So they just keep making it.
TOS was canceled, so bringing it back in movies made some degree of sense. It wasn't finished. Plus nothing else existed yet and there wasn't much of an inkling that anything else could exist.
DS9, I don't know much about. From what I do know, the war ended. I'm not sure if there are any real loose ends there. Maybe something interesting in the rebuilding, idk.
Voyager ended pretty abruptly. You could do something with the post-series of that. It's not vital, but you could come up with something. It was really about them being on that one ship by themselves. I think the main bee left in people's bonnets was the Janeway/Chakotay thing, and Prodigy seems to be addressing it.
A Seven show might have worked if it was gone about differently. That's another one where we could have seen various VOY cameos while focusing on the new show. Seven had just begun her journey. There was more to say.
And then we have Enterprise. The show with a lot left to say. But people probably wouldn't buy that one. They'll buy TNG. Even if there's not much point to it.
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archivyrep · 1 year
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Two "keepers of secrets" in fiction
In their glossary of tropes, #ArchivesInFiction talks about a "popular trope in which the Archivist is portrayed as an unapproachable curmudgeon who views the archives as their own personal fiefdom and is therefore protective of their records and their knowledge" which they call "keeper of secrets." In this post I'd like to highlight some of those people, as I know them, in series I've seen up to this point. Even tough the second example isn't a curmudgeon, he still is protective over records in his care but for a different reason.
Reprinted from my Wading Through the Cultural Stacks WordPress blog. Originally published on Jun. 24, 2021.
Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
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This is the quintessential example of this trope and it was the subject of one my first posts on this blog. Putting aside the archives-library confusion in this film, which I, of course, wrote a whole post about, Madame Jocasta Nu, seemingly the Jedi Archives lone arranger, first asks Obi-Wan if he needs help, but then declares the archives are totally immutable, thinking there is no way that anyone could tamper with the records. Don't they have records management tools or something to check the records? Why do they blindly trust that no one tampered with the records? After finding that Kamino DOES exist, was there any consequences for her? I sure hope so. There is no doubt that she, and the archives, were of little help to Obi-Wan, who was faulted for chasing something that didn't exist.
I have to disagree with what then-SAA President Randall Jimmerson said about the film: "George Lucas presents a more confident view of archives." How in the world can that be the case? Isn't this view of an archives very cynical? I mean, I'm taking away from this that archives shouldn't be totally trusted. And also the fact that if items do not appear in archival records, they do exist.
However, I can agree with him that this vision definitely "shows the limits of archival control" and the illusion of the power of the archivist, who has a powerful and crucial role.
Other than this, in that post, Samantha Cross is right to call Nu a person of experience and age, and says that her confidence and complacency are worrisome,and argues there "a distinct lack of scrutiny and curiosity in Jocasta that’s endemic throughout the Republic." In that post I also noted that she served as Archives Director for over 30 years, formerly on the Jedi Council for 10 years, and that she was reliant on data of the Jedi Archives. This also makes clear the impression, for archivists, that everything in their collections is, as I noted in that post, all there is, that they have everything, that records could not be tampered with, which is absurd, to say the least.
Nu sort of reminds me of Filis in Tri-Squad VoiceDrama, who is also a lone arranger. Currently, there are almost 300 fics which feature Nu on Archive of Our Own. However, only ONE fic specifically mentions her as an archivist, and even that fic doesn't seem that positive to me, when it comes to archives, from what I can tell. [1] I did like this one (even though it slightly confuses libraries and archives) where she wonders what is hidden from them:
... Two hours later, having returned the youngling - Charzi, of Pod Kwinn - to her teachers, Jocasta was staring at the blank space on what should have been a top of the line star map of the entire known galaxy. It was the best known star map of the galaxy, being updated daily as new information came in from the exploratory corps and other private enterprises. And yet, she was staring at clear proof that someone had sabotaged her archives. No, not her archives. Pride and possessiveness were traits unbefitting a Master of her years and discipline. Still, this was a problem that needed to be rectified immediately. ... Jocasta’s eyebrows went up, but the scouting and exploring of a newly discovered system and interacting with the locals respectfully were long accepted parts of the Trials for those who chose the archival path. ... She was going to need to audit the entire library. Top to bottom just to see what else they’d missed. It was going to take years, even if the entire Education Corps and Archivists worked on it. Which they would be. ... Jocasta stared at the archives, gaze scanning over the shelves and shelves of books, scrolls, datapads. What else was being hidden from them?
I think one fic writer put it well, that after the Kamino incident, she "made a whole whack of archive backups and stashed them in increasingly unlikely places, which allowed at least some to survive long enough for Rey to get to them," adding that you don't get to be "Head Archivist by being casual about data integrity and backups, especially once you've been shown a problem!"
The same issues with Nu also are somewhat reflected in the animated series, although you could argue the series is a bit more fair.
The Joker
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Carl, the records clerk, first shown. Look at those Hollinger boxes in the background! The records are being stored correctly in this scene. Did they consult any archivists when making this film? I sure hope so.
The archivist, er actually records custodian/clerk named Carl (voiced by Brian Tyree Henry) is not a curmudgeon but he really wants to stick to the rules. As I noted in the post, Arthur Fleck wants to get records about his mother,but the records clerk lugs in a heavy storage box and does some digging for Fleck. He ultimately, however, says he can't give the file to Fleck without the right forms, saying he needs his mom to sign a "patient disclosure form." Fleck won't stand for this, and he ultimately grabs the file and runs away.
Apart from the metal gate itself symbolizing, as I noted in the post, the division between those who can access records and those who can't, there are other takeaways from this. For one, in this film, the records center is literally part of the system which is oppressing people. Secondly, the clerks are prevented by bureaucracy from providing patrons with access to records in a fair, equitable, and efficient way. Thirdly,is the division between those who can access the records and those who can't access the records. I wish more series and fiction would discuss this, but sadly, they do not.
© 2022 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.
Notes
[1] This expands when you only use the term "archives," with some only mentioning it in passing as "Jedi Archives," (same here, here, here, here, here, and here), another which confused libraries and archives sadly, along with those about flirting in the archives, one more specifically about her, missing records, various archivists, interactions between Nu and Jedi, surprise in the archives, finding a stray Padawan in the archives, vastness of information there, Anakin meeting Nu, and her dying during Order 66.
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arcticdementor · 2 years
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Is it just me, or is Star Trek’s “backstory” a bit Posadist?
I mean, humanity finally unified into a single post-capitalist society following a devastating nuclear war, with the help of post-capitalist ascetic space elves? Plus some cetacean intelligence.
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Master Post: Spirky Books in the extended Star Trek universe that feature hurt!Kirk (Memory Beta, Secondary Canon)
Now, I could make a master post of books that are simply Spirky, but that would be ALL OF THEM. Not unlike the series itself, there really isn't a single officially published work that doesn't include some kind of beautiful, cute, emotional and/or downright romantic scenes between Kirk and Spock.
Now, as an angst-lover myself, however, I figured I'd just list as many of these books as I can that feature angsty K/S, specifically ones where Jim Kirk is hurt (or killed, there are a few of those), simply because that is my cup of tea. I'd love it if people would add to the list, and add their own lists, since I've read far from all there is!
I'll be brief in my descriptions of the books, but ahead there may be spoilers for those who really don't want to know.
THE STAR TREK READERS, James Blish These are novelizations of almost all of the Original Series episodes. If there is an angsty scene in the episode, it's written up to eleven in these books. I recommend The Tholian Web, Plato's Stepchildren, Turnabout Intruder, Amok Time of course, and really any other episode you liked.
THE ENTROPY EFFECT, Vonda N. McIntyre A scientist who's been experimenting with space-time seemingly appears on the Enterprise and murders Jim Kirk before the eyes of the entire bridge crew. Spock goes on a hell-trip to try and reverse what happened.
THE PRICE OF THE PHOENIX, Sonda Marshak Jim Kirk is killed in what's supposed to look like an accident, only for a dangerous super-being to try and buy Spock's loyalty with Jim's "life" (the opening chapter of this book is one of the most heart-wrenchingly grief-stricken Spock scenes I've ever seen).
THE FATE OF THE PHOENIX, Sonda Marshak Part two of "The Price". Continues the same story, so I won't spoil more by summarizing it. Just as amazing, just as angsty.
THE RETURN, William Shatner After his death and burial by Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek Generations, Jim Kirk's body is stolen by Romulans. They revive him and restore his "katra", only to turn him against the Federation and his previous friends, including Spock (this book is part of the so-called Shatnerverse, which stands alone from the rest of the Memory Beta timeline, but it's still really really good).
Honorable Mention: The New Voyages I & II. These short stories (The Winged Dreamers!!!) are just... insane, some of them. Literally published fan fiction. Lovely!
Again, there's probably lots and lots more, and I'd love for those who know some to tell me!
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yano2519 · 2 years
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One of the first blogs I found on Tumbl was @denise-alwaysuselove. I like the nature of her posts and her calm and matter-of-fact way of looking at things from the beginning. It made me all the more thoughtful, when I read her last post and the many reactions in which longtime fans distance themselves from SC.
I've only been here a year and didn't know the books, DG or any of the actors before watching Outlander. I've never been to a fandome and probably won't be, when this is over because I have no interest in the personal lives of other actors.
Someone wrote to me yesterday, that it's totally sickening to be a groupie of a person you don't even know personally. I wouldn't call myself a groupie, as I have no interest in the individual CB or SH. What brought me here, probably like most here, was the fact, that I saw a chemistry between two actors that was so convincing, that I just couldn't imagine an actor being able to convey such emotions so convincingly without being privately involved (and I don't mean the sex scenes now). This image has been confirmed after seeing SC's joint performances in the early days.
In fact, nothing is left of this natural appearance of the early years, and only very rarely does one see this special connection between the two of them shining through, at public appearances.
But I don't think their appearance today has anything to do with the fact, that they've changed as a result of success, but rather with the path they took at the beginning of OL.
I've always been of the opinion that Starz let them loose on the "pack" completely unprepared in the early days and SC had no idea, what they were in for and what a snowballing system it would develop into. And quite honestly, Starz was only too happy to use the affectionate appearances of the two, the S&M banter and all the stupid questions from journalists to fuel interest in the series.
The problem is that from the beginning an image was created that chained SC to each other and to OL so much, that even all the attempts like IFH, various Blondies, EFG, WFH, etc. could not change this image. For example, if Starz had stopped the recurring questions from journalists about the sex scenes (which were still being asked in season 5) after a certain initial period, we wouldn't be where we are today.
With a CB and her PR desperately trying to change the image created in 2013 and distance herself from her co-star and OL.
From the point of view of a business enterprise, I know how difficult it is to change an image or reinvent oneself. It takes years and even then it doesn't always succeed.
And CB has several problems here: she works in an entertainment sector in which women over 40 generally have a hard time. All her roles outside of OL were small roles, tending to always be the mother role, and that probably won't change. Furthermore, the end of OL is foreseeable, a fixed guaranteed employment is no longer given and so far the big roles are waiting.
Thus, Belfast and a possible award is the only way for her to be remembered by producers, film studios, etc. for further roles outside OL.
In the promo appearances and interviews she has given with the rest of the Belfast cast or with JD, the journalists' questions have always been factual and largely related to the film and not the stars' personal lives. And here she didn't do a bad job.
It's a different story when her PR was on the line. This is not a new issue though, her PR has never really done a good job in my opinion.
It remains to be seen whether her approach, to push a part of your fans in front of the head, or to instigate a fan war on SM and to protect your baby by not naming it (which I can fully understand), but otherwise mentioning it in every interview, will be successful in the long run. But for me, one thing is relatively certain: if she doesn't get rid of her OL image, it will be hard for her to get role offers in the future. After all, how many series stars have really managed to land roles in big movies after a series ends?
And I'm sure that she and her PR are also aware of that and that's why they act the way they currently do.
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