Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Is Five's hair color a genetic modification?

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Is Five's hair color a genetic modification?

    I have always wondered why Five's hair is continually bluegreen.
    Someone pointed out that spending months on a ship away from hair salons, the color should have eventually faded and her natural hair color would return.

    And then we have the episode where she goes through a Transfer Transit pod.
    The pods only duplicate organic matter, so if it was artificial dye, the color wouldn't have been copied as the copy was fabricated.

    Which makes me think she had some genetic reprogramming done, to make her hair color bluegreen.

    And there is this post from Jodelle on the subject:
    Five's hair color

    #2
    That's definitely a possibility, but there's also another way.

    Consider this: Transfer Transit is marketed to tourists and business travelers which probably means the high end of the market. With luxury services you also get convenience features up the wazoo. Just look at the perks on first class seats, luxury vehicles, etc - it's never just about getting from A to B.

    This is why I think the transit pods also support a basic level of non-genetic customization:

    - things like the type of hair cut, beards, eyebrows, etc.
    - body type: exact muscle/fat ratio, height (beside the genetic component it's also affected by your childhood diet).

    The features above are not (mostly) genetically linked but we've seen them transfer accurately all the same.

    It makes sense as convenience goes, it would be a huge pain to start your vacation with a makeover to redo your look.
    Also it would be jarring to wake up in a body different from your own if you don't expect it, even if it were technically possible with your genetic makeup.
    A vacation is all about enjoyment, feeling like you don't belong in your own skin would really put a dampener on it.

    Hair color is one of the most common cosmetics changes, replicating it would be simple. Once's cutting edge identity theft-grade cosmetic surgery would understandably be too much for the pod.
    Carter: "The singularity is about to explode!"

    Comment


      #3
      The dye might be from biological material, too.

      Comment


        #4
        Well as mentioned above, the pods have thus far accurately reflected many traits not quite influenced by DNA, most visibly lenght of body hair. So clearly there must be some scanning going on that would replicate uch features.

        Where it does get very weird is One's case back in Season 1 (or was it beginning of Season 2?). Any kind of scanning would uncover the mismatch of his current look against his DNA - there the pods appeared to give priority to a body based on DNA.

        Obviously we might not come up with a sensible enough excuse and might have to just wave this whole transit pod problem away as an inconsistency - something Mallozzi and Co. haven't quite thought through.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Tilarta View Post
          The pods only duplicate organic matter, so if it was artificial dye, the color wouldn't have been copied as the copy was fabricated.Five's hair color
          Just a thought. If the pods only duplicate organic matter, then the clones should be climbing out of the receiving pods naked, with new clothes provided on exit. I would also think any acquired (non-inherited) characteristics such as tooth fillings, scars, tattoos, artificial parts (e.g. if someone had reconstructive knee surgery) would not carry over.

          Your clone could have a "reset" version of your body. That artificial knee joint? Now it's a real knee joint. Too bad clone bodies are temporary. Otherwise, it has the potential of making everyone who can afford it effectively immortal.

          Instead, we see clones climbing out as an exact duplicate of their original selves--same frailties, clothes, age, etc. There has to be more to it than just a scan-and-forward packet of organic information about an individual.

          Comment


            #6
            That was actually what happened the first time the pods were seen in use.
            The subjects go over to a table after being transferred where there's a row of neatly folded clothing and some other small items.
            Presumably Transfer Transit replicated these things separately and had them waiting for when the clone was fabricated.

            In She's One of Them Now, they show a different approach:
            These are bioorganic outfits, which will be replicated along with the clones.

            And notice that Five has removed her metal earring, most likely because she knows it won't be copied by the receiving pod.

            The crew also have never allowed Two to travel via Transfer Transit because they theorised the clone would die due to the possibility that the duplication process is incapable of copying the nanites that sustain her life functions.

            This seemed oddly inconsistent to me:
            In this scene, they're wearing their cryostasis outfits.
            Why aren't they using their bioorganic outfits?
            My theory is because they didn't have a third outfit for Six, they just had to use existing props.
            Last edited by Tilarta; 09 September 2017, 01:34 AM.

            Comment

            Working...
            X