Review by C.J. Bunce
For literally decades trading card series have highlighted the diversity of the women characters in the Star Trek franchise via Women of Star Trek cards. The key champion of the subject has always been the groundbreaking Nichelle Nichols, who via speeches, books, and in-person events shared what it meant being the first woman of color in the main cast of a major TV series as Lieutenant Uhura. She would recount to anyone who asked her the conversation she had with Martin Luther King, Jr. when she considered leaving the series, and he encouraged her to stay–she had not yet realized the impact she had. But nobody has really looked at what it means to portray women in Star Trek, both behind the scenes as actors and writers, and in front as heroines, really exploring every aspect of the human condition.
Until now.
You may not think Nana Visitor, the top woman star of Deep Space Nine playing Major Kira, would be so well-versed in the entirety of Star Trek. Actors aren’t typically fans with all the detailed knowledge of the fanboys and fangirls–acting is their job. But via an incredible research project and some personal introspection, Visitor has compiled one of the most important books ever produced on Star Trek. Just released and available from Insight Editions here at Amazon, Star Trek: Open a Channel–A Woman’s Trek is a giant 272-page magnum opus on Star Trek and its women that you might find yourself, as I did, reading straight through in one sitting, glued to some incredible and intimate stories of opportunity, adversity, triumph, and influence. If you think you know the women who created the the franchise and its stories over six decades, prepare for stories you’ve never heard before.
Although she just missed on an interview with the late Ms. Nichols, Visitor interviewed other actors, writers, producers, and audience members from all walks of life, including a politician and an astronaut to highlight the struggles and triumphs of women both behind and in front of the camera throughout the sixty-year history of Star Trek, and how these experiences mirror the experiences of women throughout that legacy. These include Kate Mulgrew, Sonequa Martin-Green, Terry Farrell, Gates McFadden, Denise Crosby, Tawny Newsome, Jess Bush, and many more.
Most compelling is Visitor’s personal journey, encountering physical assaults in the film industry early in her career, a brutal assault and rape outside the studio, and her ongoing fight to create the woman she is today. She digs into how writing staffs on Star Trek series reflected the worst (and later, the best) of who women are, beginning with Lucille Ball greenlighting the show, to a scene where William Shatner slapped Grace Lee Whitney off-camera to gain a reaction while filming a scene. Whitney said later she was grateful, which reflects the change in what was acceptable in society and what is not today. The high point may be Captain Janeway actor Kate Mulgrew being called to the White House to give a speech to the world’s leading STEM experts, many who had been influenced by Star Trek across the decades.
Visitor compiled enough great feedback from women contributors that it doesn’t matter that she couldn’t reach all the women behind Star Trek–many like Nichols and Majel Barrett Roddenberry have passed away, and others, like Voyager Kes actress Jennifer Lien, have left public life. Others like Enterprise’s Linda Park were just not reachable. My wish list for a second volume would include guest stars of the original series and later series, people like Lee Meriwether, Madchen Amick, Teri Hatcher, Kirsten Dunst, and Academy Award-winning actor Michelle Yeoh, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortiz–who recently discussed her love for Voyager with Stephen Colbert–would all be interesting additional interviews for a project like this. Also, women featured in the movies aren’t covered in detail, so I’d love to see input from people like Sofia Boutella and Rachel Nichols. The book’s title–Open a Channel–is both a callback to Uhura’s role, and an invitation to continue the discussion started in this book.
Visitor doesn’t pull any punches, freely dissecting troubling moments of characters in each Trek series, both resulting from writing constraints or simple lack of understanding or due consideration. But she does this in a respectful manner–it’s clear she is trying to understand and examine changing mores and decisions from long ago and not-so-long ago. She delivers a solid analysis of Enterprise writers seemingly omitting much that was gained by Voyager for the franchise, while also showing where the show’s characters were more successful. She also acknowledges her own role on Deep Space Nine and journey into Trek would not have been possible had Ensign Ro actor Michelle Forbes decided to continue with the franchise after Next Generation.
Visitor’s own interest and excitement with the franchise shines through in her writing. You can tell how much she loves newer characters Melissa Navia as Erica Ortegas on Strange New Worlds, and Tawny Newsome as star Beckett Mariner on Lower Decks. And you can tell how much personally she invested in her own character. She compares her feeling that she could not speak up and contribute suggestions to the writers about her character in the 1990s with statements from women on current shows who are able to have greater influence, one even getting a producer credit for her contribution.
Both diehard and casual fans will be impressed with the photographs selected for the book. The images further showcase the costume design work of William Ware Theiss, Robert Blackman, and others. The costumes of Star Trek’s women are often, if not usually, better designed and constructed–and more artful–than the male outfits, and you can see the looks change over time with every page you flip. And yes, Visitor even delves into the how and why behind the decision to use mini-skirts in the original series, the skant in Next Generation, about Jeri Ryan’s ability to breathe in her Seven of Nine catsuit, and more.
I’m going to give Visitor and her designer bonus points for finding the exact shade of orange she wore as Major Kira for the color of the end papers of the book, which has been released in a hardcover edition that will look great as an ongoing resource on your Star Trek shelf.
If Star Trek stood for anything since its inception by Gene Roddenberry, it was about imagining a future of equality for all people. So this subject couldn’t be more pertinent to any discussion of what makes the franchise tick and keep ticking and why people are drawn to it. Star Trek has influenced women in the real world of all vocations. Visitor interviewed astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti while she was in orbit on the International Space Station, and the book includes a section with stories from many women fans who were influenced by some part of the franchise.
Consider it required reading for every fan of Star Trek fan and American culture, and anyone interested in the history of film and TV production. Order Star Trek: Open a Channel–A Woman’s Trek, available now from Insight Editions here at Amazon.
