Stargate: Atlantis -- Gender, Race, and Teyla's Baby

I must begin by admitting that I actually enjoy the Stargate franchise a great deal. I have seen every episode of all ten seasons of SG-1 probably more than once, and followed all four seasons its spin-off, Atlantis. At their worst, the shows have nonsensical pseudo-science, wobbly storylines, and cardboard-cut out characterizations. At their best...Well, at their best, they've probably still got all that, but at least in lower doses. I will certainly not deny that there's a great deal wrong with both shows, and the franchise is pretty close to being at its worst when it comes to race and gender.

SG-1, for instance, has only one non-white main good guy, and he's an alien. Sure, there are various other races in the background at Stargate Command -- one episode has a young Asian woman in a pretty good role -- but Teal'c is the only non-white on the SG-1 team and he's not even human!Not only that, but Teal'c is honestly just a one-note character for most of Sg-1's run, and most of the episodes that round out his characterization seemed to stemmed from actor Christopher Judge's own requests. (If I recall correctly from all the "behind the scenes of Stargate stuff I've seen.) Now, I often love Teal'c's "Resident Badass" moments, but sometimes the show goes a little too overboard on that, and some episodes imply that because Teal'c can be so stereotypically macho, he cannot enjoy anything even remotely non-masculine. (I will never forget, or forgive, Teal'c's look of utter horror and panic at the discovery that he had received tickets to The Vagina Monologues at the end of one episode. Not that I'm a big fan of The Vagina Monologues, but I would've hoped Teal'c woud have been more open and receptive than that. It's a minor thing, but it still can bug one.) I don't know if it's true or not, but it often felt, when watching the show, that Teal'c's alien-ness and pure, raw masculinity, was meant to be emphasised by his blackness, or "non-white" status.

I don't even know where to start with Stargate's treatment of women. In all honestly, it's done so well on the Hathor Legacy, (http://thehathorlegacy.info/tag/stargate/), that I honestly feel it's a little unnecessary for me to point out everything that's wrong with Samantha Carter's character. Not that the other -- rather few -- female protagonists get any better of a deal. At Stargate Command, on a fairly regular basis, in a somewhat upfront role, we get Dr. Janet Frasier, and...Dr. Janet Frasier. Later, there's Dr. Lam, Colonel Landry's daughter, and the delightful, (to me), Vala, but, for many seasons, in not-purely-background roles, we have Sam and Dr. Frasier. Dr. Frasier doesn't even get much screentime or characterization. Then, much to my annoyance, she is killed in season eight, a "twist" ending to an episode that had been trying to lead the viewers to believe that main character Jack O'Neill was going to kick the proverbial bucket. (I shall leave further speculation on the complete implications such an action in the hands of others. I, for one, think it was the cheapest of all cheap gimmicks.)

SG-1's spin-off, Atlantis, seemed, initially to do much better in the race and gender areas, at least compared to its predecessor. After all, the expedition was a global endeavor, so even just the background personnell were much more diverse. We even had a woman in charge of the Atlantis, another woman, (and a non-white one, at that), who was a warrior, and a non-white main character that got to be from Earth! Not only that, but they all seemed to be capable, as Lieutentant Aidan Ford was a remarkably young demolitions expert, Dr. Elizabeth Weir was a brilliant diplomat and linguist, and Teyla Emmagan was leader of her people during times of extreme duress, and, we are led to believe, from a very young age. Of the three, I will admit Teyla fascinated me the most. I think it was because it was obvious to me what viewers were meant to think of her: Rachel Luttrell's -- dare I say -- "exotic" beauty and the skimpy outfits she was put in left little room for doubt. She was supposed to be the resident "hottie," the alien that main character John Shepherd might very well be expected to eventually pull a Captain Kirk on. Teyla's character was a warrior, but also very soft-spoken and caring, and I believe, (though I will admit I have heard/read nothing that indicates such a thing ), that this was meant to render her less threatening to any (specifically male) fans.

However, queries among my brothers -- who are often far too honest with me for anyone's good -- and other male Atlantis fans reveals to me that this tactic by writers and creators seems to have failed. I certainly can't claim to have polled every male Atlantis viewer ever, but the ones I have asked tell me they like Ms. Emmagan, and they like her very much, but not because of her "hotness." They are impressed by Teyla. Rachel Luttrell's beauty is undeniable, but also not to be denied is the inherent dignity she seems to bring to her character. They do not see a woman who is soft-spoken because she is not meant to be threatening, they see a warrior who is soft-spoken because she does not ever need to raise her voice. Her caring nature is part of this, they say, for while she has grown up in a world where survival is key, she has still managed to keep her compassion, and that, to them, is impressive.

There did seem to be distinct efforts to "depower" Dr. Weir and Teyla Emmagan; that is difficult to deny. Trapped in an almost-hopeless situation, Dr. Weir was forced to make difficult, and often "bad," decisions. She was also frequently falling desperately ill, getting possessed by alien entities, becoming captured, falling under mind control, or simply watching helplessly on the sidelines while "they boys" saved the day. Teyla, too, has had her rough patches. Her loyalties were often questioned, and she discovered and explored an ability to communicate telepathically with the enemy, the Wraith, a part of herself that, initially proved to be dangerous, and more of a "curse," than a "gift." Maybe it was the actresses' portrayal of their characters' struggles, or perhaps my own refusal to interpret things the way I'm "meant" to, but I rarely saw weakness in these women. Weir made her tough choices and learned to live with them, she dealt with her traumas and carried on, Teyla began to learn to use her gift and conquer her demons, and neither one seemed any less capable than they were before. Even Lt. Ford, though he didn't get a lot of depth added to his character, at least didn't devolve into tokenism so far as I could tell. He remained a cheerful but considerate young man, even coming up with the idea to videotape everyone's "goodbye" messages in one episode, when doom seemed very near, indeed, for all of Atlantis. I had had great hopes that further character development would come for him, and we'd see more of what made Ford the way he was.

But, well, all good things...Aidan Ford became addicted to an enzyme that came from the Wraith, lost his mind, went on a rampage, and vanished, to be replaced by a non-white alien that seemed cut from almost the exact same cloth as Star Trek's Worf. (Now, I like Worf, but that doesn't mean I want to see him in every science fiction series I watch.) Elizabeth Weir was blown up, infected by nanites, and sacrifices herself to the Replicators to save John Shepherd and Rodney McKay. She is replaced by Samantha Carter, the "golden girl" of the Stargate canon. Teyla Emmagan's people were apparently kidnapped by the Wraith, and, as the result of an offscreen, never-until-that-moment-mentioned, romance with one of her fellow Athosians, is pregnant, and there's a villianious individual with ominous plans for her child.

The elimination of Lt. Ford way back in season two does not bother me nearly so much as the fact that they seemed unable to get rid of the character without destroying his character first. His instability and madness were emphasised, and there seemed to be very strong implications that there was "no going back" for him. Now, I don't mind characters that change dramatically, if it makes for good writing. I will have to admit, however, that I get thoroughly annoyed if a show dramatically alters a character, in order to make getting rid of them seem like a blessing, most likely, because the actor wanted out. (Well, I say, no wonder they wanted out, if they were going to end up becoming treated like that!) Dr. Weir's sacrifice also seemed rather pointless to me, though she does get to display her real strength one last time as she manages to mess with the mind of the leader of the Replicators. (Don't even get me started on the "Repli-Weir" debacle, either.) I've personally remained rather iffy about Teyla's pregnancy, as there are parts of the story I like, and other parts I very strongly dislike.

I know that the pregnancy was written in because Rachel Luttrell herself had become pregnant. I can even understand, within the bounds of the show, why Teyla decided to carry her child to term. Teyla is probably very aware that her child is potentially the last full Athosian, and the only thing she has left to remember the baby's father by. Though the temptation might be there for some to get rid of such a painful reminder, it wouldn't fit, (in my opinion), with Teyla's personality. Though the show never addresses this issue of Teyla keeping versus not keeping the child, it does (somewhat) explore another problem that comes up for pregnant women: to keep one's career after having a baby, or to give it up. Teyla's debate is colored by events normal women would not face, but the struggles behind them seem real enough. With her people missing and her own life being lived on a military/scientific that certainly lacks a daycare center, the question Teyla seems to ask herself is one many single mothers who keep their children ask: Who will care for the child, if not me? And, with the child possessing the telepathic skills of both father and mother, and Teyla having been forced to expose the child to a Wraith's mind, Teyla's question is one nearly every parent, everywhere asks: How can I keep my child safe, in such a world? Though John Shepperd tells the story of a friend of his that is both police officer and mother, and that she feels her job keeps her children safe, the fact that Teyla still struggles with the question is, in my mind, a good thing. I certainly want her to stay on Atlantis, and stay active, (as my spoiler hunting seems to indicate will happen), but I think the debate is important to show. Should she be shown simply deciding to stay and care for her baby, as "that's what mothers do," I'd be very upset, but, should she also simply decide to continue her work without even considering her child's needs, then, well, that would seem too much like they were trying to prove the whole "a woman can't be a mother and a warrior at the same time" thing. (Catwoman giving up her daughter, Helena, in my opinion, fits that trope to a T.)

There is a great deal I dislike in the Teyla pregnancy arc, as well. For instance, the writers have invariably defined Teyla by her relations to men. It was the loss of her father that put her in her position as leader, and, presumably, what has given her her strength. The only other Athosian Teyla ever had a good deal of screen time with was her surrogate father figure, Halling. John Shepperd is the first to encounter Teyla and offers her a position on his team; he is also the one from whom most of her understanding about Earth's culture comes. Most of her conflicts are with men, such as security officer Sergeant Bates, and most of her frienships, as well, such as Ronon, John, and Dr. Beckett. Though she and Elizabeth mention having lunch in one episode and Teyla appeared to have a had a friendship with a female scientist, she is rarely shown in a scene with just another woman. (Both scenes fail the Mo Movie Measure miserably, by the way.) She and Dr. Jennifer Keller share an episode that focuses exclusively on them, but in it, they are threatened by potentially cannibalistic males and a male whom Teyla has no wish to save, but Dr. Keller insists on helping. The pregnancy and the missing Athosians take this a couple steps further: Teyla's main mission seems to be finding the father of her son, and it is Micheal, the Wraith-human hybrid, that is behind the capture of the Athosians and has sinister plans for Teyla and her child.

You see, Teyla and Kanaan's child is "special," as both parents possess that bit of Wraith DNA that enables them to sense, and even communicate with, the Wraith. With this child, (whom I cannot imagine is as rare as Micheal seems to insist), Micheal's attempts to transform all humans into hybrids like himself would become so much easier. This leads to me believe that there is so much about Teyla's son that makes him special than just the combination of her and Kanaan's DNA, and that actually upsets me. You see, on SG-1, Claudia Black became pregnant, and, so, her character Vala did, too. But, this was far from a normal pregnancy, as the child was conceived, without a father, by ascended beings, in order to create a human being with all the powers of ascension. While my biggest problem with that storyline was the fact that it made no real sense, I also noticed that it seems, almost, a physical impossibly to have conceived and given birth to a normal child, in a normal manner, for normal reasons, within a science fiction program. This is why, I admit, I so very desperately wanted there to be nothing "odd" or "ominous" about Teyla's pregnancy and child.

Part of me liked, and part of me did not like that we knew nothing about Teyla's romance with Kanaan until we learned Teyla was pregnant. I actually like the idea that these characters have lives outside of what viewers might see, and I liked the idea that Teyla could have a relationship with someone outside of Atlantis, (though there were a great deal of angry/heartbroken 'shippers), but there was something about it I did not like, and it is hard for me to explain. Part of it, I know, began when I was hearing things from a lot of Teyla/John 'shippers, and one made a statement that caught my attention, along the lines of how they didn't want the writers to give Teyla and Ronon a romance because that would "just be sticking the aliens together." Well, it would also just be sticking the non-whites together, too.

Like I said, it's hard for me to explain this, but it feels to me that if they put Ronon and Teyla in a relationship, it would be because she's not white, and he's not white, and they wouldn't dream of pairing either of them with someone outside their race. (I'm speaking more in terms of the actual actors, here, however, as Ronon and Teyla the characters may be from the same galaxy, but they're from two different planets.) It's a "like-goes-with-like" kind of thing that isn't necessarily true. Well, she and Kanaan are from the same planet, both have the Wraith DNA, and, well, they're both non-white. The actor who portrays Kanaan, Patrick Sabongui, is born from Egyptian immigrants, and seems just non-white "enough," if that makes any sense.

See, I've been observing the Stargate franchise kind of closely, and I've noticed that dark skin seems to be associated with masculinity. Not that a character has to be non-white in order to be masculine, but if they are non-white, then they are going to be more likely to able to kill things with their bare hands. (Compare the technologically advanced, less-violent, mostly fair-skinned Tok'ra, to the mostly dark-skinned, proud, powerful, and vaguely primitive Sodan warriors.) Kanaan, even by his appearance, seems to be meant to hit somewhere in the middle. He has to be masculine --for how else would Teyla have slept with him -- but he cannot be too masculine, because he has to fall under the influence of Micheal. (Note, however, that being white is never associated with being weak or non-masculine. As most the main characters are white, they still have to retain their action-star-like masculinity. Unless they're scientists.) But still, Ronon is always clearly far more masculine and powerful, (and less easily controlled), than Shepperd, and the same applies to Teal'c versus, say, Jack or Mitchell. It seems almost as if Kanaan was meant to be dark enough to emphasise that he is "alien," but light enough to not resemble Teal'c or Ronon's bad-ass black guy trope, which would be "threatening," as he seems meant only to have been the father of Teyla's child/catalyst for her current actions.

As I said, it's hard to explain, but but casting someone like Patrick Sabongui seems like a "safe" choice, especially since the viewers aren't being compelled to like him and really, really want him to be with Teyla and happy. He is, in fact, likely to either nobly sacrifice himself and die, or, (what seems more likely to me, just because of the way Stargate can be), to attempt to betray Teyla, and die. It brings to mind the fact that, yes, Kirk and Uhura had that controversial kiss on Star Trek, but only in the Mirror Universe, where just about everybody else was evil. I think making the father of Teyla's child outside of Teyla's race would have at least had the potential to be more daring, though certainly not as daring as, for instance, having the father of her child be a person and not just a plot point.

Naturally, part of Kanaan would have to be a plot point, because, well, the writers hadn't planned to make Teyla pregnant. The actress' own pregnancy sort of forced that on them, at least, so far as I have read in most interviews and articles. But the fact that Teyla had a relationship with someone, and someone outside of the Atlantis base, is treated, at times, as if it were some sort of betrayal. See, the writers had been, (badly), attempting to build up and maintain some sort of sexual tension between Teyla and John Shepperd, or Teyla and Ronon, or Teyla and Dr. Beckett, depending upon whom you ask. But she's been kissed by John, (while he was transforming into a bug-hybrid thingy), and she's been told that he "cares for her," (by a manipulative alien entity in John's body), he's risked his life several times to save her, (as he has done for nearly every other character, anyway), and so, there are many who believe the viewers are supposed to feel that these two characters are in LUUUVE. (No, there is no way I could have said that maturely.)

I'm certainly not denying that Joe Flannigan and Rachel Luttrell have distinct chemistry. I certainly cannot deny that were Teyla and John ever to get together, (though not bloody likely in the Stargate universe), it would be pure sexy. What I don't get is the fact that, according to Teyla/John shippers and some of the stuff I've read, we are meant to interpret John reacting badly to the news of Teyla's pregnancy as a sign of true luuve. Now, I have seen the episode in question, and even watched that particular scene mnore than once. John's feelings do look like shock, anger, and betrayal. These are, perhaps, even justifiable feelings, though not necessarily in a romantic context. After all, Teyla was three months pregnant and going on incredibly dangerous missions, and the only people who knew about the baby were herself and her doctor. It's very in-character that John would feel personally responsible for the safety of Teyla and her child, and, therefore, very in-character that he would feel betrayed. It's awfully condescending, but it has the John-Shepperd brand of almost, kind of, being sweet to it. They make it very clear that John is not a guy who expresses caring very well, and in that sense, though his anger still isn't completely justifiable, it's at least a little more understandable. The only real way I can see his reaction being completely unjustifiable is if John Shepperd is in true luuve with Teyla.

See, John's sort of a man-slut on Atlantis. He gets, (and seeks), action pretty bloody frequently. Teyla, meanwhile, has had...Her offscreen, never-until-then-mentioned, relationship with Kanaan. (At least, as far as we know.) And yet, the response on many forums is, "Oh, poor John! How could Teyla break his heart like this?" If John and Teyla are deeply in true luuve, then John breaks Teyla's heart on a regular basis. Feeling sorry for John, and not Teyla, in that circumstance, reeks of a double-standard: "Well, sure, he loves her. All those other women didn't mean anything. How dare she sneak around behind his back!" And that is, sadly, all too familiar in shows that need to create "drama." John does alter his attitude a little in later episodes, to prove that it really is the well-being of Teyla and her child he's concerned for, and therefore keeping John from being regarded as too much of a jerk. (Which also leads to more cries of "Poor John!") From that view, however, Kanaan is little more than "the thing keeping them apart," instead of, you know, a person Teyla actually had a relationship with. Which means he is going to die, and most likely sooner rather than later. Yeah, the non-white alien and their child is just an impediment to Teyla's relationship with the white, human hero.

See, I love Teyla, and I don't really mind that she's having a baby. (I just hope they actually let her get to be a mother!) I'm even rather amused by the prospect. (I imagine that the people of Atlantis would spoil the boy terribly, in their own way. Provided, of course, any of them know how to actually treat a child.) I wouldn't even be upset if Kanaan were to eventually die and Teyla ended up with John. (Or Ronon, or Dr. Beckett, or whomever is your own cup of tea.) My own real requirement would be that it was done well, and so far, Stargate, you have not done this story too well.