Janisi

First Officer Kava, Captain Losha and First Lieutenant Hodell.

> *They're a fiercely matriarchal species from the Izar system. Totally dismissive of any and all males who appear to be dominant.*— Talla Keyali
>
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The **Janisi** were a fiercely matriarchal species from the Izar system, observed to be completely dismissive of any and all males who appear to be dominant. They had made contact with the Planetary Union by 2420, however, they remained obscure enough that First Officer Kelly Grayson, though familiar with the name, had to be reminded of who they were.

When the Krill dissolved treaty negotiations with the Planetary Union in 2422, the Union actively pursued an alliance with the Janisi to counter the Kaylon threat. The Janisi sent a small delegation to initiate a dialogue shortly thereafter.

## Culture

The Janisi were sentient humanoids from the Izar system with a monarchic system of government. In 2422, a regent ruled in place of their queen.

Janisi culture was famous for its oppressively matriarchal structure. Men were kept in subservient roles in government, family, and all other affairs, and denied positions of responsibility. Women had the right to claim any man for sexual relations so long as no other woman had already claimed him. Men had no ability to select their partner and possibly not even the right to refuse intercourse. Once a man was claimed by a woman, that woman possessed ownership rights to "lend" him to another woman. In marriage, women were not expected to remain monogamous while men were. Men had only recently been given the right to read.

The Janisi were at least in some ways technologically behind the Planetary Union. They did, for example, not know how to manage the cross-dimensional power instabilities that could occur when using a fourth-generation quantum reactor.

As of at least 2422, the Janisi were aware of Moclan society and greatly disdained them, due to the Moclans essentially practicing the opposite of what they practiced, by being an almost all-male society and attempting to suppress the rights of what few females existed within their society.

## History

As recounted by Lieutenant Talla Keyali to Captain Ed Mercer and Commander Grayson upon her transfer to the USS *Orville* in 2420, she had made an amicable contact with the Janisi on her previous post; following an attack by the Krill, the Union ship was losing power up to and including life support. As it turned out, the only ship in range to answer the Union distress call was a Janisi cruiser. The Union crew did not discover the identity of their potential rescuers until the moment visual communication was made with the commanding officer. Knowing that the Janisi would not acknowledge her male captain, Talla promptly punched him in the face to assert dominance, breaking his nose. This demonstration impressed the Janisi, who repaired the Union ship's power grid.

In 2422, the Planetary Union sought an alliance with the Janisi. Though they were not being offered Union membership, the admiralty felt that in the wake of the ongoing Kaylon threat and the recent loss of the alliance with the Krill, the Union needed all the allies it could get. To this end, they had the crew of the USS Orville make contact, as they were impressed with their work with the Krill, despite the loss of that alliance.

Knowing that the Janisi would be upset if they saw males in positions of power aboard the Orville, they decided to present Kelly Grayson as the Captain, with Talla Keyali as her First Officer, Charly Burke as Chief Engineering Officer and Claire Finn as Chief Medical Officer. Meanwhile, the males were reduced to tasks such as hauling luggage and kept out of positions of power on the bridge. The farce worked, and the Janisi seemed impressed.

However, when it came time to reveal the deception, the Janisi captain, Losha, expressed disgust at being lied to in an attempt to curry favor. She announced her intention to leave. Kelly than began researching Janisi culture, discovering that their men were expected to remain faithful in marriage, but the women could take as many mates as they wanted. She and Ed came to Losha, revealing that Kelly had been unfaithful in marriage to Ed, yet he still trusted her in a position of power. Losha agreed that this was something to start with and that she could tell the alliance meant a great deal to them. She told them that if the Union chose to send a representative to the Janisi Regency, they would receive her.

## Production

The Janisi were mentioned in *Episode 2x05: All the World is Birthday Cake*, written by Seth MacFarlane, prior to appearing for the first time in *Episode 3x07: From Unknown Graves*.

In reality, Izar is a name for Epsilon Boötis, a binary star in the northern constellation of Boötes. It is also mentioned in the *Star Trek: The Original Series* episode *Whom Gods Destroy*, as the home of the infamous Garth of Izar.

## Appearances

* *Episode 2x05: All the World is Birthday Cake* (mentioned only)
* *Episode 3x07: From Unknown Graves*

## References

1. ↑ Episode 2x05: All the World is Birthday Cake
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Episode 3x07: From Unknown Graves
3. ↑ Episode 2x05: All the World is Birthday Cake