Claudia Black makes science fiction’s difficult company worth getting to know. Farscape gives us the strongest reason to recommend her, though her turn towards comedy usefully complicates the familiar casting as a tough woman.
Fi1m perspective
In Farscape (1999), the encounters within the crew can be as absorbing as anything waiting outside the spacecraft. Claudia Black’s Aeryn Sun is a substantial reason for that. Alongside Anthony Simcoe’s Ka D’Argo, she gives Ben Browder’s approachable astronaut company with enough force to prevent the ensemble becoming a set of spectators. We grew fond of this awkward crew because the actors made their dealings with one another matter, even when the early melodrama got in the way. Black helps make patience with the programme feel well spent.
Farscape also gives her time to develop a character as the relationships become increasingly involved. Aeryn was her breakthrough role, and it remains the clearest place to see what we value in her: a character with enough weight to hold her place among peculiar companions. The early drama can be laborious, and the ageing effects remain an obstacle. Black helps us care about the people, but she cannot make every stretch of the programme work.
The shift to Vala Mal Doran in Stargate SG-1, a role she began in 2004, put more emphasis on comedy. Browder was also a co-star there, but Black had a different job to do, bringing lighter energy after Aeryn’s dramatic intensity. That contrast matters more than the fact that both programmes are science fiction. Casting her as another tough woman can make the work sound more uniform than it is; comic timing asks something different of an actor.
Her distinctive deep voice is another asset, with game roles including Morrigan in the Dragon Age series and Chloe Frazer in the Uncharted series, roles dating from 2009. She remains chiefly associated with science fiction and fantasy, but that is a poor reason to assume she always does the same thing. We would welcome more opportunities for the comic performer evident in Vala. For the clearest evidence of why we rate her, start with Farscape and allow its crew time to settle.
Biography
Claudia Black is an Australian actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Aeryn Sun in the science fiction series Farscape (1999–2003) and Vala Mal Doran in Stargate SG-1 (2004–2007). She also played Sharon "Shazza" Montgomery in the film Pitch Black (2000).
Black began her career in Australian television, appearing in A Country Practice (1993–1994) and the New Zealand series City Life (1996). She has worked in voice acting for animated series including Rick and Morty (2013) and video games, and has appeared in other productions such as The Originals (2013) as Dahlia, Xena: Warrior Princess (1995) and the film Queen of the Damned (2002).
