The original “Star Trek” series continues to captivate audiences with its cutting-edge science fiction concepts. All of the female crew members on board the USS Enterprise wear short miniskirts, while the guys get to flaunt around in far less revealing outfits, but the programme is nonetheless enthralling despite being so firmly rooted in the 1960s. The classic short-skirt look has at least one ardent supporter: “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” actress Rebecca Romijn. Although “Trek” has come a long way in the years since to make Starfleet uniforms work for all genders and body types, “The Next Generation” even featured male officers in the Starfleet minidress, or “skant,” uniform.
Throughout the first five episodes of “Strange New Worlds,” Una Chin-Riley, a.k.a. “Number One” to Captain Christopher Pike and “Star Trek” fans, rocks the Starfleet dress look. The tough-as-nails first officer of the Enterprise makes a compelling argument for this seemingly dated look to make a significant comeback. And you can think of Romijn as having succeeded in his goal as he not only asked Una to wear a Starfleet uniform, but also made sure she did so when participating in action scenes.
“Number One” made her acting debut as Captain Pike’s steadfast, super-reliable first officer in the original “Star Trek” pilot, “The Cage” (and was played by Majel Barrett, the future wife of “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry). But who said that being trustworthy and unflappable couldn’t have a feminine side? In “Strange New Worlds,” Una continues to be a formidable military commander and leader, but Romijn thought it was crucial for the character to embrace her femininity:
“Initially, I was inspired by the hair and the nails. There would be background artists on the original series that I would get screen grabs of and send that into hair and makeup and be like, ‘Let’s try something like this.'”
The badass Starfleet Dress
Even though the program’s creators initially didn’t intend for skirts to be a part of the official Starfleet attire on the new show, Romijn’s concept for Una to wear the uniform style made famous by Nichelle Nichols (among others) in the Original Series:
“I requested a Starfleet dress, which, the first answer was, ‘No. We’re just going to do pants and tops.”‘And then they came back around and said, ‘No, we changed our mind. Why don’t we start building uniform wardrobes,’ where sometimes I’m wearing Starfleet dress and sometimes not.”
Every character on “Strange New Worlds” has numerous outfits that they alternate between on a regular basis, which is a lovely touch. Veteran “Trek” fans will go crazy over one of Captain Pike’s wardrobe options. Especially though we occasionally see Una in pants, Romijn felt it was crucial for her to always wear skirts, even in potentially dangerous situations:
“I made a specific request that the Starfleet dress shouldn’t just be on the Enterprise. I actually want to make sure that Starfleet dress goes into action and turn it into a badass Starfleet dress, so it’s not just like a flight attendant standing around on the enterprise.”
The outcome is a subtle subversion of sci-fi clichés. The “badass” lady on a spaceship is frequently coded with more masculine characteristics and attire, with Vasquez from “Aliens” as the model. But Una, second in command of Starfleet’s flagship ship, rocks an unapologetically feminine attire, lets her long hair fall to one side, paints her nails, and makes the decisions. Even when they are firing phasers on an away mission, “Strange New Worlds” is delighted to put women in command and to let them express their femininity.
Romijn explained to me about her Starfleet attire, “I wanted to flip the narrative.” I want to confirm that it is active somewhere.
On May 5, 2022, “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” will have its Paramount+ debut.
