• IninewCrow@lemmy.ca
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    4 months ago

    The Chakotay fiasco was pretty messed up.

    But as a teen growing up in the 90s and seeing the Chakotay character … it still had a big impact on me. When I first learned of his character, there was no internet (or the internet as we know it) and it was years later that I learned about the whole thing about the fake consultant. For a few years before I learned about the background, Chakotay had a major impact on me. I thought the whole character had a lot of cliches and stereotypes and I even knew that back then but still I felt really proud that they included any kind of indigenous character in there, even if it was a bit cheesy or goofy. And for a few years after, I really liked the character.

    Then I learned about the background and the whole game consultant. Then I liked the character less.

    But now I’m starting to appreciate the Chakotay character again. I think Beltran was performing in good faith, they just happened to have the wrong person as a guide and reference. So now I think of it all differently. I enjoy Chakotay’s character now just because he is one of the first, a flawed first but at least a first.