Are Vulcans not allowed to just... be?
I take back everything I said about Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Watching season 3 episode 8 ("Four and a Half Vulcans") and episode 9 ("Terrarium") broke something in me. Excuse the autistic rage, but when are we going to let Vulcans be themselves? Spoilers ahead!
So we have Erica learning to empathize with a Gorn. They must overcome their communication differences and work together, compromising (like Erica needing to use fire and the Gorn not liking it). Erica gets a deeper understanding of the Gorn, and why she wouldn't want to be rescued, as that carries a cultural weight for her. Fantastic.
WHEN are we going to start being kind to Vulcans? When I read the episode description of "Four and a Half Vulcans", I assumed the crew members would be turned into Vulcans, and then they'd get to experience the intensity of unregulated Vulcan emotions and sensory inputs. They'd understand why Vulcans use logic, why they deal with their emotions the way they do, and that it may be a good choice for them. Maybe they are okay as they are and don't need to be "saved" or forced to change (gasp). The humans would have a deepened understanding of Spock and Vulcans in general, making it easier for both parties get along.
But NO, the conclusion of this whole experience was "Vulcans are inherently jerks, it's bad to be one, they'll wreck everything you hold dear, best not to associate with them". Wtf? Almost like Spock should be ashamed of his Vulcan half (oh the IRONY). He is only loved when he acts as human as he can muster.
There is zero criticism of the human characters demanding emotional performance from a Vulcan to enforce their own conventions, while ignoring how uncomfortable it might be for said Vulcan to perform emotion. Or worse, they could disregulate themselves by forcing a surge of emotion because the humans don't want to be friends otherwise. Have they considered that Spock doesn't need to be "cured" from his Vulcan half?
How can "Gorn feel lonely too" go together with "if a Vulcan doesn't show caring in the same way a human would, assume they're an asshole by nature, and not that they might express caring differently"?
We have "Gorn are more complex than they seem" and "Vulcans are just an asshole species" back to back. Why is this show so Vulcan = bad? Not just different, a different way of living, but going out of its way to portray it as BAD?
Spock's Vulcan side is treated as a character flaw, except for those moments when he can do something the humans can't do. Just like autistic people are hated unless they have some special talent for people to admire. People hate my autism until I do 3x the work in the same amount of time, then suddenly I'm okay to have around (as long as I keep performing).
Yes, the parallels fuel my frustration with this show. No, I am not objective.
The performative tolerance of it all is just a bit too much like real life.
