I is for Ivanova
Apr. 10th, 2018 12:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rhodrymavelyneBefore Buffy and Xena, there was Susan Ivanova.
Second in command on Babylon 5, Ivanova was tough, capable, and often hilariously human. I’d never seen anyone quite like her before on television.
Over the course of watching Babylon 5, I discovered that Ivanova was a Russian Jew, a low level telepath, bisexual, and a pessimist who hated getting up when it was dark outside. She was one of the most well-rounded, unique characters I’ve ever seen on a TV show.
Not that Babylon 5 wasn’t chock full of rich, well-developed characters played by talented actors. This is one of the reasons Babylon 5 remained in first place for years as my favorite television show. It has been challenged by others since. It has yet to be actually knocked out of that place, though.
Ivanova was and is one of the reasons Babylon 5 is special. Many a season she was there with all her quirks, delivering some of my favorite lines on the show. I still sometimes find myself muttering some variety of one of them whenever I’m feeling a twinge of Ivanova-style sarcasm.
Not that I’m anything like her. I’ll never be that tough, especially in the face of the series of crisises Ivanova faced. Her toughness, humor, and humanity were an inspiration to watch.
Ivanova was the beginning of a wave of strong female characters appearing in speculative TV shows during the 1990s, ones that made me and other viewers hungry for more. She paved the way for others to appear on TV, bringing on a renaissance of more diverse women brought to speculative fiction fans.
Thank you, Ivanova for being part of that wave. Thank you,
Second in command on Babylon 5, Ivanova was tough, capable, and often hilariously human. I’d never seen anyone quite like her before on television.
Over the course of watching Babylon 5, I discovered that Ivanova was a Russian Jew, a low level telepath, bisexual, and a pessimist who hated getting up when it was dark outside. She was one of the most well-rounded, unique characters I’ve ever seen on a TV show.
Not that Babylon 5 wasn’t chock full of rich, well-developed characters played by talented actors. This is one of the reasons Babylon 5 remained in first place for years as my favorite television show. It has been challenged by others since. It has yet to be actually knocked out of that place, though.
Ivanova was and is one of the reasons Babylon 5 is special. Many a season she was there with all her quirks, delivering some of my favorite lines on the show. I still sometimes find myself muttering some variety of one of them whenever I’m feeling a twinge of Ivanova-style sarcasm.
Not that I’m anything like her. I’ll never be that tough, especially in the face of the series of crisises Ivanova faced. Her toughness, humor, and humanity were an inspiration to watch.
Ivanova was the beginning of a wave of strong female characters appearing in speculative TV shows during the 1990s, ones that made me and other viewers hungry for more. She paved the way for others to appear on TV, bringing on a renaissance of more diverse women brought to speculative fiction fans.
Thank you, Ivanova for being part of that wave. Thank you,
