Monday, October 17, 2011

Nikita (CW)


After watching Nikita and seeing a somewhat disappointing end, I was actually excited to see that there currently is a "new" version of Nikita airing on the CW, with Maggie Q. and Shane West headlining. Interestingly enough, this spin off has Nikita want revenge on the CIA organization that ruined her life. While the original French film Nikita had the super heroine simply run away from her life at its end, this one sees Nikita coming back and fully fighting the baddies. The trailer for this Nikita looks pretty badass: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySr1u6jguHQ. Yet while watching, I could not help but notice that she was dressed very sexy and revealing for most of it. Even the music in the trailer was very pop-ish at one point.



In the promotional poster above, Nikita is depicted in a very sexual way. The headline even reads "looks do kill." Is this new Nikita over sexualized? Do these modern-day assassin super heroines all need to be sexy to be deadly and powerful?

I've personally not seen this show, so if anyone has, I would love to hear what you all think about it. Do you all believe this new version of Nikita is stronger and better than the old version?

6 comments:

  1. I haven't seen this show either, but I just looked at the trailer and it looks like such an improvement from the movie we watched. Yes, she appears sexualized, but I think it has more to do with how the CW produces its TV shows than just a general sexism. Although she seems to not wear much clothing (I'm sure just to attract a greater male audience), she also appears to be independent and extremely bad-ass. I'd like to watch this show!

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  2. I also have only seen the trailer, and this Nikita is definitely a different person from the one we saw in the French movie, but in a lot of good ways. Like you two said, she seems more independent and a lot more badass. However, the clothing is definitely impractical if nothing else - why would an assassin wear nothing but bikinis, or just a bra and panties, or ridiculously high, strappy heels? This is a pretty common theme for women killers, for some reason - Elektra, for example, was an assassin and wore skimpy outfits of leather - but the main reason just seems to be that the hetero male audiences think assassins are hot. But why can't they be hot and practical at the same time?

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  3. I agree with Sam. I think that her physical portrayal is just very characteristic of the CW. The CW, as much as i love it, will take any woman and throw her in skimpy clothing because its considered sexy, attractive, and appealing. As difficult as it can be sometimes, it is necessary to look beyond the physical appearance, and just assess the character. I haven't seen this particular show either, but from family and friends, I hear it's great and that Nikita is a very strong and admirable character.

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  4. That poster is so much different than our original Nikita, who barely knows is able to learn how to act sexy. American media is able to make a story more interesting.

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  5. I think the fact that Nikita dresses that way goes all the way back to the movie- when they teach her that being feminine and sexy is an asset that can be used. In the new Nikita, she's obviously drawing on that knowledge and using her looks to her advantage. As an assassin, it probably is a good idea to wear an itty bitty bikini if it will get your target alone in a room with you.

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  6. I have seen every episode of CW's Nikita. That poster above does not represent the character at all. Maggie Q has evolved the character beyond that.

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