Star Trek's Pilot Episode Started A Negative Trend That Took Over 50 Years To Break

Star Trek: The Original Series

The original pilot ofStar Trek : The Original Seriesbegan an unfortunateStar Trektrope that took the enfranchisement more than 50 old age to fix . Before Captain James T. Kirk ( William Shatner ) took over as commander of the USS Enterprise , Captain Christoper Pike ( Jeffrey Hunter ) was in command of the iconic ship . In"The Cage , " Pikeand his crew travel to Talos IV , where they run into an incredibly advanced backwash of aliens who could manipulate thought . The Talosians tried to convince Pike to stay , tempting him with an attractive woman .

For her part , Vina ( Susan Oliver ) did begin to make grow touch for Pike , and he for her , despite the disturbance from the Talosians . Asthe Talosians , Star Trek ’s first baddie , prove to determine what form of cleaning woman Pike want , they gift Vina to him in several different guises , creating realistic illusions that feel veridical to Pike . In the first scenario , Vina was a Rigellian princess who needed rescuing from barbarians . In the second , she was a simple farm girl from Earth , and in the last , she was a green - skinned Orion slave little girl who danced seductively for Pike . It ’s this latter camouflage that make a recurring trouble forStar Trek .

Star Trek’s “The Cage” Established The “Orion Slave Girl” Trope

This Particular Trope Should’ve Remains On The Cutting Room Floor

The limning of Vina as an Orion slave girl is problematic for several reasons , and exemplify one of the most out-of-date look ofStar Trek : The Original Series . WhileTOSwas reformist in many way , the casual sexism sprinkled throughout the show grade it hard in the sixties . The Orion slave female child unfortunately became a bit of a trope and subsequent depictions of Orions did not come much ripe . Another Orion cleaning lady namedMarta ( Yvonne Craig)makes an appearance inTOSseason 3 , episode 16 , " Whom Gods Destroy " as a affected role in a mental institution .

While there is nothing wrong with a cleaning lady who own her sex , hit these Orion women slave or prisoners takes away any means they may have had .

Like Vina as an Orion , Marta wear down very little clothing , dances seductively , and endeavor to score the men around her . While there is nothing wrong with a woman who owns her sex , making these Orion women hard worker or prisoner takes away any agency they may have had . The Orions receive very little growing as a species onTOS , and they became most known for their dancing green slave adult female . In " The batting cage , " Captain Pike falls for Vina as herself , but even he is tempted by her Orion dance , which is not a great look for the Enterprise captain .

It Wasn’t Until Lower Decks That Star Trek Finally Fixed Its Orion Portrayal

Lt. Tendi Redeems Star Trek’s Orions

AlthoughStar Trek : Enterprisetried to update the Orions for a innovative audience , their version of the exotic society was only marginally better than what was limn inStar Trek : The Original Series . It was not untilStar Trek : Lower Decksthat the franchise finally enclose three - dimensional Orion character who were more than pirate and slavers . With her infective enthusiasm for Starfleet and scientific discovery , Lt . D’Vana Tendi ( Noël Wells ) is a breath of fresh atmosphere among the gang of the USS Cerritos . She withstand her past as an Orion pirate , even as she sometimes uses the science it taught her .

Star Trek ’s green - skinned alien Orions have a complicated history , but the Orion polish seen on Lower Decks through Tendi finally stimulate them bully .

As one of the few Orions in Starfleet , Tendi has fight down to commute the perceptions many have of her specie and her stories onLower Deckshave singlehandedly redefine the Orions . Tendi ’s relationship with her sister , D’Erika ( Ariel Winter ) , in special , is one ofStar Trek’sstrongest sibling relationships , despite only being featured in a few scenes . Star Trek : Lower Decksleans into the glee of the Cerritos crew ’s antics , but the show has facilitate bringTrekcanon into the modern earned run average and it can be serious and heartwarming when it wants to be .