I hate that in “Hope and Fear” they had B’Elanna say that she can only speak a few sentences of Klingon because taking this literally doesn’t make any sense, she lived with her mother for so long (on Qo’nos) and stayed at a Klingon monastery, I cannot imagine her not being fluent in Klingon. I can understand her mixed feelings about it, or Klingon being the victim of language attrition if what she’s spoken on a daily basis since her Academy days is Federation Standard, or Spanish, or whatever pidgin was spoken among the Maquis—but I’m sure she speaks Klingon very well. So the only interpretation that I can accept is her being defensive about it and unwilling to admit to just how much Klingon culture still influences her.
THIS.
I refuse to believe that B’Elanna does not know the Klingon Language. I also want to believe she knows Spanish as well. Everyone is always trying to get her to be or act more Klingon–so that is why she is defensive.
yes you’re totally right, the fact that everyone wants B’Elanna to be “more Klingon”, or the way they constantly comment on her supposed “Klingon aggression” (which, come on. I’ve never seen her actually overreact, it’s just people being shitty to her for no reason!) certainly can’t help have her less misgivings about her heritage om her upbringing!
I also agree with you about Spanish, I want to believe B’Elanna speaks it as well, if anything because I think it’s disappointing how Voyager always pretty much ignored that part of her character.
#i don’t think she’s overly aggressive. i think people see what they expect. i think she’s been super aware and in control of her anger #since what her father said and i think she’s probably shutting off an entire part of herself to avoid having the same reaction from other #people she cares about (via @gaygentkatz)
forgive me if I bring this out of the tags but I think you’ve totally hit the nail on the head here—B’Elanna knows about what people think when they look at her. I absolutely agree that she’s been hyperaware of it ever since her father, and she’s had to manage people’s expectations all her life, her time on the USS Voyager very much included. It’s such a heartbreaking side of her character and, to me at least, it clearly is the source of much of her own misgivings about being Klingon.
I so wish Voyager had had enough self-awareness to recognize just how much effort B’Elanna puts into trying to fit in, to make herself smaller for the sake of everyone else around her, instead of making easy quips about her being “angry because she’s Klingon” or whatever. It’s just an infuriatingly lazy approach, and the racism at the root of it also pretty evident, I think.
Taking a step into the sub text, can we talk about how by this point in Trek Klingons have been heavily coded as black including the use of literal black face in many cases.
Now lets talk about how comfortable the human (often white or male) characters feel in making assertions about her volatility, violence and anger management issues. Dropping casual comments about her heritage into professional conversation. How many times are her enthusiasm and passion criticized as being uncontrolled anger from her Klingon side?
I could write a dissertation on the casual racism Star Trek allows some of it’s beloved characters to enact regularly on the bridge often without censure and many times other characters’ tacit support. The racism is coded as being against another species, and is only questioned on rare occasions. Sometimes it takes years of character development before they ever acknowledge they were wrong, if they do at all.
Culturally Christian Gentiles: The Judeo-Christian concept of original sin
Jews: Huh?
Culturally Christian Gentiles: The Abrahamic religions’ belief in heaven and hell
Jews: Say what now?
Culturally Christian Gentiles: The Judeo-Christian religions emphasize obedience over asking questions and debating ideas.
Jews: *spit coffee laughing*
I’ve seen some people confused about this:
Judiasm has no concept of original sin, we have mitzvah and averah (good deeds and transgressions. You cannot be born with transgressions you must personally commit them, they are actions).
No concept of heaven or hell, merely a world to come. “A” singular world to come. We do have a sort of, i guess “purgatory” the maximum time spent there before proceeding to the world to come is 11 months
Judaism is founded on fist fighting G-D and debating every aspect of our scriptures (which we have been doing for millennia)
Also! The purgatory concept/world to come are not central to Jewish life in the way that wanting heaven and fearing hell appear to be central to christianity.
Judaism: the purpose of life is to live a good life and perform mitzvot
Christianity: the purpose of life is to go to heaven when you die
hot take but i actively miss when tv shows were like 20 episodes a season. slow down. let me get to know the characters. let them do something dumb and not consequential to the plot for one fucking second i’m begging you.
>dozens of complaints ab their kids getting scared shitless
>i ThOuGhT tHiS wAs A kIdS mOvIe
>theaters have to warn parents that fnaf isn’t a kids thing
>social media outrage
>horror games stop fucking advertising to children due to backlash
look man I’m so for kids being into horror cause I was a kid into horror but I’m so fucking tired and pissed at game companies making their target marketing audience children.
u shouldn’t be advertising a horror game to 4 YEAR OLDS. I don’t want to see literal preschool sized backpacks and 6T shirts with horror game characters plastered all over them. this isn’t for that audience.
I want to fucking explode huggy wuggy due to this shit. horror games although can be enjoyed by kids who like it, shouldn’t be fucking advertised it intentionally
Watching this movie feels like watching a master writer and director in command, and an artist really come of age. This is easily Martin McDonagh’s best film. I was astonished by the quality of writing here, so rare for an original screenplay, and it already feels classic.
The imagery is the best promotional material the Irish tourism board has ever had gifted to them – it’s gorgeous, verging on miraculous. And the score by Carter Burwell recalls something deep underneath this island; an Irish Fargo maybe, with almost the same spirit.
Martin McDonagh likes to make films about unique, fringe places, and the fringe people who cross through these places; the locations are so defined and necessary to his stories. Here now he turns the Irish coastlines into a dream of somewhere far away and long ago, and he envelops you in it.
