T'Pol

[Trekfan12]

I have to admit that "Enterprise" never really grabbed me. When it was originally on I watched some episodes, but never became a big fan. I'd have to say from the entire Star Trek universe my fave (my #1) is the original series, then Voyager, and a tie between TNG and DS9 then Enterprise.

Vulcans are my fave alien species. I absolutely LOVE Spock. He's been a big help for me with anxiety issues. But aside from that. After seeing Enterprise, and T'Pol and episodes that featured Vulcans. Do you think that T'Pol represented how Vulcans are, their demeanor. I find that they tend to portray them as suspicious, and on the emotional side. (not quite on the emotional scale of humans, but far more emotional than how it was laid out in TOS and later on when they were featured. Tuvok seemed to represent Vulcans more as we saw them in TOS than on Ent.
Just my take on this, I'd like to hear what my fellow fans think.

 

[Long Syntax]

Certainly T'Pol was atypical of the average Vulcan with respect to emotion. She tended to have her emotions much closer to the surface than what we have seen in most other Vulcans. A reason for this has been somewhat explained by those associated with the show in which they explain there was to be a reveal in a fifth season that showed T'Pol as half Romulan. I thought it would have been an interesting twist, given TOS and Spock's half human heritage.

 

[Sybok Was Wrong]

Enterprise has never grabbed me either.

Having said that, the only truly good representation of Vulcans were

-Spock
-Tuvok
-Sarek
-T 'Pring

I find in every single other portrayal of a Vulcan is an impersonation of Leonard Nimoy. Further, particularly in TNG, the Vulcan wigs and makeup jobs are not too good! Not helping the performances at all!

 

[Nerys Myk]

Like humans, Vulcans aren't monolithic in their personalities, actions and attributes. Kohlinar Masters are one extreme and the V'tosh ka'tur the other, with most Vulcans falling in the middle. Though many the Vulcans we meet in Trek seem to lean a little toward the V'tosh ka'tur side. Spock, Tuvok and T'Pol all have emotional control issues. T'Pring is a schemer and manipulator. Sybok is a fanatic.
Hard to judge Vulcans just by TOS. Spock in the only one we see on a regular basis. The rest are all one offs and can be counted on one hand. Other than Surak and maybe Sarek, they aren't exactly positive representations. While not outright villains, they are adversarial.

 

[Balok's Decoy]

There was an interesting discussion in the Warp Five podcast way back when (like episode 1 or 2, I think) where they talked about how a person's perception of what a Vulcan "should be like" is often based on what series they watched first. Individual Vulcans are somehow expected to be representative of all Vulcans, which doesn't really make sense, though I guess it's human nature.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I think it was Spock who was the atypical Vulcan, overcompensating for his human half. Watch "Amok Time" and compare how every other Vulcan acts - that's the template for the Vulcans in Enterprise. They have lofty ideals and goals, but like many people here on Earth they fall somewhat short of their target. T'Pol included.

 

[Reanok]

I like T'Pol I thought she was a complex character in her own right just like Spock had his strengths and weaknesses. As it mentions in the series Vulcans criticized her for emotions being closer to the surface than other Vulcans. I like her relationship with Trip in the tv series and the Enterprise relaunch novels.

 

[KennyB]

Enterprise has never grabbed me either.

Having said that, the only truly good representation of Vulcans were

-Spock
-Tuvok
-Sarek
-T 'Pring

I find in every single other portrayal of a Vulcan is an impersonation of Leonard Nimoy. Further, particularly in TNG, the Vulcan wigs and makeup jobs are not too good! Not helping the performances at all!

I would add T'Pau from TOS not the band to the list.........

 

[Nerys Myk]

There was an interesting discussion in the Warp Five podcast way back when (like episode 1 or 2, I think) where they talked about how a person's perception of what a Vulcan "should be like" is often based on what series they watched first. Individual Vulcans are somehow expected to be representative of all Vulcans, which doesn't really make sense, though I guess it's human nature.

My first Vulcan was Spock.

 

[Voth commando1]

Her Trellium-D addiction was either interesting or a bad retcon depending on how much leeway you give Enterprise.

Jolene Blalock did better I think in Season 4 in terms of acting.

However given her past career as a soft porn star I don't think she had much right to complain about her character's arc. I mean really?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I liked T'Pol. She wasn't nearly as annoying as the rest of the Vulcans of the day (like Soval). And she was definitely capable of being polite and sociable - not everything she said was an insult. She honestly seemed like she was trying to fit in and become a productive member of the crew.

That said, I also hope that the Enterprise character who cameos on the first episode of Discovery (because we all know there'll be one - every Trek series' pilot has a cameo by somebody from the preceding one) is T'Pol.

 

[Voth commando1]

I liked T'Pol. She wasn't nearly as annoying as the rest of the Vulcans of the day (like Soval). And she was definitely capable of being polite and sociable - not everything she said was an insult. She honestly seemed like she was trying to fit in and become a productive member of the crew.

That said, I also hope that the Enterprise character who cameos on the first episode of Discovery (because we all know there'll be one - every Trek series' pilot has a cameo by somebody from the preceding one) is T'Pol.

I wonder if they could get Jolene to do that.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ I'm sure she'd be up for it, if they asked her (and if she liked the script).

It just makes the most sense, IMHO, for T'Pol to be the ENT crewmember who has a cameo on DSC. Being Vulcan, she would be the most likely to live that long. And without the Trellium-D affliction, her 2254-era self won't be as worn out as the future T'Pol from "E2" was.

 

[Balok's Decoy]

However given her past career as a soft porn star I don't think she had much right to complain about her character's arc.

Not that it matters, but Blalock was not a porn star, of either the hard or soft variety. She appeared in Playboy and some other men's magazine, but that doesn't make her a former porn star.

EDIT: Also I don't think her past posing in men's magazines disqualifies her from having opinions about the character she's playing in a tv show.

 

[Long Syntax]

Not that it matters, but Blalock was not a porn star, of either the hard or soft variety. She appeared in Playboy and some other men's magazine, but that doesn't make her a former porn star.

EDIT: Also I don't think her past posing in men's magazines disqualifies her from having opinions about the character she's playing in a tv show.

I'm glad someone said that. It's somewhat hypocritical to view said soft porn then look down upon them. I thought she looked amazing in that Maxim spread and, at the same time, I think she did a more than adequate portrayal of the Vulcan first officer - and she only got better as the seasons progressed IMHO.

 

[Balok's Decoy]

I'm glad someone said that. It's somewhat hypocritical to view said soft porn then look down upon them. I thought she looked amazing in that Maxim spread and, at the same time, I think she did a more than adequate portrayal of the Vulcan first officer - and she only got better as the seasons progressed IMHO.

Yeah if posing in Playboy makes you a porn star ("soft" or otherwise) then I'll just go change Marilyn Monroe's Wikipedia page...

Either way, Blalock deserves the same respect and standing as any other actor on that set. Even if she had done hardcore porn for a decade, she still should have been taken seriously and listened to on the ENT set or any set, and been entitled to her thoughts about the direction of her character.

I don't think slut-shaming should be accepted in this forum. She's a human being.

 

[Tuskin38]

I think it was Spock who was the atypical Vulcan, overcompensating for his human half. Watch "Amok Time" and compare how every other Vulcan acts - that's the template for the Vulcans in Enterprise. They have lofty ideals and goals, but like many people here on Earth they fall somewhat short of their target. T'Pol included.

This here. Vulcans are not all logical.

 

[urbandefault]

Jolene Blalock is a better actor than many of her Trek peers, male or female.

 

[Voth commando1]

Jolene Blalock is a better actor than many of her Trek peers, male or female.

Or maybe your just smitten?

 

[Balok's Decoy]

Or maybe your just smitten?

Or maybe @urbandefault thinks she's a good actress.

Which I think too, btw. She's great in that role.