Essay on "Woke" Sci-Fi Heroes (Yep, Going There)

I just finished season 1 of Foundation, and it's inspired meta in me. Rather like with ST: Discovery season 4, Foundation left me feeling like I was watching (at least) two shows: one that was spectacularly good science fiction and one that okay-ish. I'm bursting to write a gushing fannish essay about the good show, but I'm going to make that my reward for starting out with the okay-ish, and to do that, alas, I need to address "wokeness." Because my discontents with Foundation land along its arguably "woke" female hero. Moreover, it's not just Foundation. Frustration with "woke" women heroes is a pattern for me, and that bothers me because I consider myself progressive. I want to have better representation in media. I want to see diversity celebrated. I agree we've had far too many white male heroes in our narratives. So why do my frustrations so often align with those of more conservative folks? I want to do a meander through some things I see going on, both in me and in our society.

Disclaimers: This essay ended up not really discussing men of color. There's much to say; it just ended up being a bit too much to tackle in one essay. This essay is also very much about my personal response as a viewer; others' will vary.

(Major spoilers for Discovery and Babylon 5, minor spoilers for Foundation, Star Trek: TOS, possibly others)( Read more... )