Welcome aboard the Galactica, where anxieties run high and the question of whether you’ll live or die creates a never-ending feeling of suspense. The frackin’ Cylons, trying to obliterate the human race, are flying over-head, and we need to make a light speed jump to escape Now! Now! Now! So, welcome aboard, but don’t get too comfortable.
Right now I am on season two of BSG and I am OBESSED. I was immediately sucked in to this high-anxiety drama, and I always anticipate the next episode before I have even finished the one I’m watching. Upon viewing this show, however, I could not help but notice the odd gender dynamics that have developed in “the future” that are projected on to the crew of the Battlestar. A friend originally described BSG to me as a “soap opera for men” because it’s about inter-galactic wars, but still involves relationships. The more I watched, the more I found this description to be accurate.
The first thing that became immediately apparent in regards to the strange gender relationships was that all of the females holding any kind of power aboard the ship (the viper pilots, the deck hands, and other members of the crew) are referred to as “Sir.” The use of this title on BSG connotes that only a man is truly worthy of respect, and thus we should be blind to a woman’s gender while she is doing a “man’s work.” While this bothered me, I hoped to find solace in the fact that this future is at least progressive since the President of the human colonies is a Madame. Through season one, though, I am sorry to say that I was disappointed in the way that this particular female was portrayed. One of the fears Americans have of a female presidency is that the stereotypes of a woman will be acted out and that she will be emotional and unprofessional on the job. To me, this is utter nonsense and a prejudice that needs to be overcome. That is why when the Madame President on Battlestar was portrayed in this very way I almost felt personally offended. Through the first season President Laura Roslin (a former school teacher) takes on a passive role in comparison to the powerhouse of Commander Adama, and it is unclear as to whether her word really counts for anything at all. In one scene she even has a business talk while wearing a nightgown. By season two, the President takes on a more active role, but her decisions are rash and based on visions and hallucinations. She takes an emotional and religious angle to the presidency and this is a binary opposition to Commander Adama’s practical rational “manly” way of doing things. To be fair, I have only seen two seasons of BSG and I have faith that in seasons three and four Rosalin will gain more legitimate power because even towards the end of season two, she becomes a more serious force to be reckoned with.
While the emotional rashness of women can be found in the President, their manipulative seductive “nature” can be found in the tall blonde Cylon who haunts Dr. Gaius Baltar. The Cylons are a race of robots originally created by the humans. They have evolved and are now able to copy every aspect of the human being: from their appearance to their emotions. The blonde Cylon (who comes to be known as #6) is one of these “skin job toasters.” She is your typical Barbie doll: tall, bleach blonde, model-skinny, big lips, perfect skin, face…the works. Her Cylon mission is to win over Vice President Baltar so that she can gain access to the colonial government and destroy it from the inside. Her tactics for winning over her man include sex and…and not really anything else. This highly sexualized creature wears slinky red dresses and other revealing garments that accentuate her breasts and hips. She manipulates by threatening VP Baltar, and taunts his masculinity, telling him to “be a man” and make decisions, which will earn him more power. Now this character would not bother me so much if it were not for the fact that all the main Cylons featured, in season two, are women. Women=evil is a popular message that we have had to live with since Eve took that fatal bite.
#6’s traits are mirrored in a few other female characters on the show. For example, Ellen (the wife of Colonel Saul Tigh) has that same conventional blonde look and seems to be responsible for reawakening her husband’s bad habits and alcoholic tendencies. She is very manipulative in that very “female way,” meaning she will use her sexuality to get what she wants, and takes advantage of the fact that she is the wife of a man that has power. Granted, in a society where women are not given much power to being with, it can be hard to assert oneself in other ways in order to have any input in major decisions. Still, it makes me sad to see women taking on these roles in a show that is meant to take place in the distant future.
On a brighter note, there are several females who act totally independent of men. My favorite character, Kara ‘Starbuck’ Thrace is one of these women. She is an example of someone who is strong, respected, gutsy, and powerful but avoids the label bitch (A very challenging thing for a woman in power to do). Even though Kara is all of these things she is not just “one of the guys” and manages to hold on to her feminity (even though her sensitivity seems to be stunted at times).
Although BSG seems to be infested with gender issues almost as much as it is infested with Cylons, I still love it. Like I said, I have faith that the show will turn around these female characters and make them into multi-dimensional people. By the end of season two I could already see many of the women evolving, so I will not give up hope!
I can only conclude by saying…If you have not started watching this show, being…immediately…before the Cylons take over the world.
- Sarah B.
Monday, March 30, 2009
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