Sfdebris.net

I guess the honest synopsis for this episode would be: ''the women get to do something today.''

TV used to be full of these. I get that its meant to be empowering but how empowering is it really that the women only have a use because the men are out of action? BSG would eventually get Sheba who would be added to the Apollo, Starbuck, Boomer team as a regular so there's that. I am curious though why the shuttle pilots are all women. I wonder if its an extension of that old trope where men are doctors and women are nurses?

Those outfits though. Hoo boy! Modern sci-fi has its problems but at least it has left this sort of thing behind - not that we wouldn't have to endure it for many decades to come. I am genuinely not sure what is more sexist: the lingerie patterned G-suit or Seven of Nine's padded catsuit - and I am veering on the catsuit. We should have known better by the 1990s. And the G-suit actually has a purpose.

And as a side note, a decon chamber that not only works, but which you don't have to intimately smear gel into your underwear clad work colleagues. What an amazing concept.

They could've given the men some form-fitting G-suits too, just sayin'.

Fianna wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 5:13 am They could've given the men some form-fitting G-suits too, just sayin'.

Its the outline of the lingerie that gets me more than the form-fitingness of it. But yes, the one-sided nature of it is what makes it sexist. If you can't imagine a man wearing such an outfit then there is only one conclusion.

clearspira wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 12:11 pm

Fianna wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 5:13 am They could've given the men some form-fitting G-suits too, just sayin'.

Its the outline of the lingerie that gets me more than the form-fitingness of it. But yes, the one-sided nature of it is what makes it sexist. If you can't imagine a man wearing such an outfit then there is only one conclusion.

I am just going to jump in on this and pray I have some skin left at the end.
I think the suits are fine. Apollo in that scene is commenting as though he and Starbuck are wearing similar suits right then as well. Now my explanation of why I think those suits are like that. First is the obviously puerile skimpy esq attire. Done by producers for entertainment. Second they could not get away with a plain skin tone suit. It would look too nude to get by censors. So the bathing suit outlines bypass that. And third is an in world bit. Men and women are built a little different. Now that sounds pretty lame. I do however have an anecdote. When I was in the service, I worked with the NBC gear for the aircrews. We had this little thing coming up called Operation Desert Shield. Now all the NBC stuff was laughed off by each and every aircrew. Right up till they were being deployed some place that might actually use that stuff. So we were assaulted by officers all wanting to be refitted for their gear so it worked right. One Lt Col was very adamant because everything was unisex. And she kept insisting but women are different. And suddenly wanted custom charcoal suits so it worked right.
So it is possible they just fabricated up something usable by women as opposed to the male version.

clearspira wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 1:32 am I guess the honest synopsis for this episode would be: ''the women get to do something today.''

TV used to be full of these. I get that its meant to be empowering but how empowering is it really that the women only have a use because the men are out of action? BSG would eventually get Sheba who would be added to the Apollo, Starbuck, Boomer team as a regular so there's that. I am curious though why the shuttle pilots are all women. I wonder if its an extension of that old trope where men are doctors and women are nurses?

It was 1978. The showrunners are probably drawing on a lot of WWII tropes, where women pilots were in rear echelon positions flying planes from factories to military bases and other such jobs to free up more male pilots for front line roles. Showing women combat pilots was likely considered forwardlooking at the time.

Also, as a practical matter, the known living human species is down to a few ten thousands of individuals, putting women of child bearing age into high risk duties is a risk to their civilizaion as fertile women are one of the major bottlenecks to growing and even maintaining a viable population.

Mickey_Rat15 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 11:32 pm

clearspira wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 1:32 am I guess the honest synopsis for this episode would be: ''the women get to do something today.''

TV used to be full of these. I get that its meant to be empowering but how empowering is it really that the women only have a use because the men are out of action? BSG would eventually get Sheba who would be added to the Apollo, Starbuck, Boomer team as a regular so there's that. I am curious though why the shuttle pilots are all women. I wonder if its an extension of that old trope where men are doctors and women are nurses?

It was 1978. The showrunners are probably drawing on a lot of WWII tropes, where women pilots were in rear echelon positions flying planes from factories to military bases and other such jobs to free up more male pilots for front line roles. Showing women combat pilots was likely considered forwardlooking at the time.

Also, as a practical matter, the known living human species is down to a few ten thousands of individuals, putting women of child bearing age into high risk duties is a risk to their civilizaion as fertile women are one of the major bottlenecks to growing and even maintaining a viable population.

Yikes this just reminded me a little thing. Women did not get to fly fighter jets in the US till 1993. So pretty forward for the time is right.

Fianna wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 5:13 am They could've given the men some form-fitting G-suits too, just sayin'.

There are the triad uniforms in "Murder on the Rising Star".

Mickey_Rat15 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 11:32 pm It was 1978. The showrunners are probably drawing on a lot of WWII tropes, where women pilots were in rear echelon positions flying planes from factories to military bases and other such jobs to free up more male pilots for front line roles. Showing women combat pilots was likely considered forwardlooking at the time.

Also, as a practical matter, the known living human species is down to a few ten thousands of individuals, putting women of child bearing age into high risk duties is a risk to their civilizaion as fertile women are one of the major bottlenecks to growing and even maintaining a viable population.

Genetic diversity is fucked either way and a space fleet is no place to repopulate your species so its either find Earth and other humans or you are fucked.

I always disliked them killing Apollo's wife but the explanation by Chuck at the front explained it.

CharlesPhipps wrote: ↑Mon Dec 13, 2021 6:51 am

Mickey_Rat15 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 11:32 pm It was 1978. The showrunners are probably drawing on a lot of WWII tropes, where women pilots were in rear echelon positions flying planes from factories to military bases and other such jobs to free up more male pilots for front line roles. Showing women combat pilots was likely considered forwardlooking at the time.

Also, as a practical matter, the known living human species is down to a few ten thousands of individuals, putting women of child bearing age into high risk duties is a risk to their civilizaion as fertile women are one of the major bottlenecks to growing and even maintaining a viable population.

Genetic diversity is fucked either way and a space fleet is no place to repopulate your species so its either find Earth and other humans or you are fucked.

I always disliked them killing Apollo's wife but the explanation by Chuck at the front explained it.

The explanation... explained something? Huh. What a novel concept.

Humanity could survive with as few as a thousand unrelated individuals. Any fewer than that, and inbreeding depression starts to be a serious problem after a few generations. Ten thousand people is more than enough, in principle, to repopulate the species.

Not to fight a war against genocidal robots, though.