To give a specific example, there's the scene with her and Kendra in the kitchen. "You keep my secret, and I'll keep yours." That was all for show -- a way for her to get some power. Lee knows full well that she drinks off-duty (and since this is shortly after "Scar", sometimes ON duty!) She knows that he knows... and that he won't punish her for it unless it puts others at risk. Kendra doesn't have that same luxury. The drug use is very much a secret. Plus, she's the XO. If Commander Adama found out, the repercussions would be serious and possibly career-ending. On a more personal level, drug use signifies weakness, and that's the last thing she wants to show the world. She might not know at this point that Lee's fully aware of Kara's "personal flaws" (the drinking), so she assumes they both have secrets to keep. Kara does know, and she's ... well, "threatened" is not the right word, but she wants to have the upper hand with this new woman she certainly doesn't trust. It's all a power play in the end, of course, as with so many interpersonal dynamics on this show.
It was interesting to see Kara respond with such vehemence to Kendra's assassination of the man who got captured by the Centurions. While my sympathies are largely with Kara on this (it hadn't been previously discussed and Kendra was reckless in making this her priority--staying in a vulnerable position and getting shot herself), I thought it was interesting in light of Kara's experience on the Cylon farms. She herself will later ask Anders to kill her rather than let her be taken to the farms again. So she's not totally unsympathetic to Kendra's feelings, surely? It seems like she was more just taking issue with Kendra making that call herself without clear direction from their commander.
Ah! Another interesting thought, but IMO there's a key difference to the situations. When Kara killed Sue-Shaun and made the suicide pact with Anders, it was as a way to exert control over potential victimization. She and Sue-Shaun chose those fates. That man who got captured by the Centurions did NOT make a deliberate, vocal choice. Kendra's motivations for shooting him were the same as Kara's -- to keep him from becoming a victim of experimentation and other potential horrors -- but, again, it was not his choice. Now, I don't think this was entirely the reason for Kara's anger. Everything happened so quickly that I doubt she even had time to process all this. But I do think she might've subconsciously flashed on the issue of consent.
Whew! As I just told you in IMs (hee!), this is all I have so far. Hopefully it's provided you with a bit of food for thought. :)
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branchandroot
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Date: 2007-11-05 06:22 am (UTC)To give a specific example, there's the scene with her and Kendra in the kitchen. "You keep my secret, and I'll keep yours." That was all for show -- a way for her to get some power. Lee knows full well that she drinks off-duty (and since this is shortly after "Scar", sometimes ON duty!) She knows that he knows... and that he won't punish her for it unless it puts others at risk. Kendra doesn't have that same luxury. The drug use is very much a secret. Plus, she's the XO. If Commander Adama found out, the repercussions would be serious and possibly career-ending. On a more personal level, drug use signifies weakness, and that's the last thing she wants to show the world. She might not know at this point that Lee's fully aware of Kara's "personal flaws" (the drinking), so she assumes they both have secrets to keep. Kara does know, and she's ... well, "threatened" is not the right word, but she wants to have the upper hand with this new woman she certainly doesn't trust. It's all a power play in the end, of course, as with so many interpersonal dynamics on this show.
It was interesting to see Kara respond with such vehemence to Kendra's assassination of the man who got captured by the Centurions. While my sympathies are largely with Kara on this (it hadn't been previously discussed and Kendra was reckless in making this her priority--staying in a vulnerable position and getting shot herself), I thought it was interesting in light of Kara's experience on the Cylon farms. She herself will later ask Anders to kill her rather than let her be taken to the farms again. So she's not totally unsympathetic to Kendra's feelings, surely? It seems like she was more just taking issue with Kendra making that call herself without clear direction from their commander.
Ah! Another interesting thought, but IMO there's a key difference to the situations. When Kara killed Sue-Shaun and made the suicide pact with Anders, it was as a way to exert control over potential victimization. She and Sue-Shaun chose those fates. That man who got captured by the Centurions did NOT make a deliberate, vocal choice. Kendra's motivations for shooting him were the same as Kara's -- to keep him from becoming a victim of experimentation and other potential horrors -- but, again, it was not his choice. Now, I don't think this was entirely the reason for Kara's anger. Everything happened so quickly that I doubt she even had time to process all this. But I do think she might've subconsciously flashed on the issue of consent.
Whew! As I just told you in IMs (hee!), this is all I have so far. Hopefully it's provided you with a bit of food for thought. :)