Perceptions of Hoshi

[ginamr]

I thought I'd start this one as a companion to "Perceptions of Malcolm" b/c I've noticed also that a lot of stories make Hoshi out to be weak and needy and clingy. Perhaps some of my own can be included in that. I'd need an outside opinion on that one.

Hoshi's character is oddly hard for me to grasp. Hers is actually prolly the hardest for me. Trip's is the easiest because we're kindred spirits in a way. T'Pol's I've only picked up halfway b/c of intense study and I still don't think I've got hers perfect.

But Hoshi is a bit too complex for me to understand.

[evcake]

I don't see Hoshi as needy or clingy. She spat in the face of Dolum. She managed to do that "extra layer of encryption" thing even after they tortured her.

I think its probably more like Conceptus, part 7:

"He was off to visit a newborn and its parents.

The turbolift halted short of its destination to admit a second passenger along its route of travel. Ensign Hoshi Sato stepped into the tube, and the door swiftly sealed behind her. She turned deftly to face front, as was the age-old unconscious custom of humans travelling in lifts of any type.

“Hello, Hoshi,” the captain said affably.

“Hi, sir,” Hoshi replied, as always making it sound, somehow, like she was apologetically, but earnestly enough, addressing him as ‘Sir’. As if it was his name. Doglike. Archer didn’t mind somehow. He halfway seriously suspected it happened reflexively—since she was so much brainier than everyone else on board.

The whole crew were a pack of phenoms, but Hoshi was special: a savant-like talent to memorize, reverse engineer, and utilise language she had spent less than five minutes listening to. And give the woman a week! Archer couldn’t take offence if Hoshi unconsciously considered her colleagues somewhat Porthos-like when it came to intelligence. Anyone who could swear in thirty different languages certainly had him beat."

[Distracted]

I don't agree. I don't see her as thinking of others as stupid, even unconsciously. She's brilliant but she doesn't see herself that way. Most truly brilliant people who are actually nice to other people don't see themselves as different from anyone else. I see her as a truly curious individual when it comes to language and interpersonal interactions but maybe a little clumsy when it comes to physical things. She's good at anything that involves symbology, including computers and cryptography...someone who's always asking why, researching minor things that no one else even notices. I see her as very aware of other's emotions and facial expressions but shy sometimes about expressing her own. She's not timid, but when it comes to physical things I think she's cautious. She likes physical security. I see her attracted to Malcolm because he's capable of protecting her and because she considers him a challenge emotionally.

[evcake]

Well, she knows she's a prodigy - she says so in Shockwave. And she got less timid as she went along, until she was helping give firearms training in Marauders. As for Malcolm, I agree she'd certainly be up for a challenge. But couldn't it be the dry wit, the curly dark hair, the wry smile, the deep ble eyes?

[Distracted]

His eyes are grey...but, sure it could!

[evcake]

Are they? Even better. And let's not forget the Cary Grant chin.

Samuels: You're risking the lives of hundreds of thousands of people
Hoshi: I know what I'm doing

[Linda]

Didn't Hoshi get in trouble with Starfleet for running a betting pool or something like that? I can't remember the episode where she admitted that. But I don't think it was in the first two years because I just finished rewatching those.

[evcake]

Floating poker game. She broke her CO's arm - she has a black belt in akido. She told that to Trip in Observer Effect.

[JadziaKathryn]

Yeah, I wasn't so keen on that. It was like they decided in "Observer Effect" to make Hoshi a different character.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

Yes, that one came out of left field!

[evcake]

Still waters run deep.

[Rigil Kent]

She spat in the face of Dolum. She managed to do that "extra layer of encryption" thing even after they tortured her.

In season 3. Prior to that, we had instances of "Scaredy Cat Hoshi" (like the very first actual episode Fight or Flight as well as the crappy season 2 Vanishing Point.) In the instance of Dolum, she likely assumed (correctly, IMO) that Dolum was going to kill her once she outlived her usefulness.

The Martial Arts Hoshi of OE was a serious "WTF?!" moment that made me wonder if Manny had actually looked at seasons 1 & 2, or if he just ignored them completely (which is understandable since they frankly kind of stink.) I have no problem with Hoshi being a stronger character, but just revealing some martial arts ability that hasn't been there in previous episodes was almost as annoying as T'Pol's apparent forgetting that she knew Vulcan martial arts after the one instance that it was shown. Why couldn't they have revealed that Hoshi had been taking extra classes with the MACOs?

As displayed by her almost complete lack of a presence in my Endeavour series, I have a big problem nailing down the Hoshi character. *shrug* Hopefully, I'll figure it out when the Muse decides to wander back in my direction...

[evcake]

So - character developement too abrupt?

[CoffeeCat]

I really liked Hoshi in Raqua's "Miscommunication". I think she handled her character really well.

[evcake]

Yes, I like it too. There's some great humor in it too.
Trip: "Thank you for being cool on my head, alien access panel"