Character Analysis
When was the last time you saw a film where the morgue director was the heroine?
Dr. Laurel Weaver is a total boss. She's the capable medical deputy officer working at the New York City morgue. Since the alien activity on Earth is centralized in New York, she gets to see a lot of weird stuff in her work, yet her intelligence and cool demeanor help her to figure things out even when she's missing some serious pieces to the puzzle.
When she opens up Rosenberg's body, she tells Jay:
LAUREL: See, I don't think this body's really a body. I think it's some kind of transport unit for something else altogether. The question is, what? Is this freaking you out?
She's totally right about the body. Unfortunately for her, being correct means several run-ins with the Men in Black and several more neuralyzed memories. In fact, she has more memories erased in the film than any other character, and we're guessing maybe more than any other person in New York. Let's hope Jay's worries over long-term brain damage prove baseless.
Damsel In-Charge
Let's consider Laurel's path through the story. When Rosenberg and the rest of the Bug's victims show up at the morgue, she becomes responsible for Orion the cat and, unbeknownst to her, the Galaxy. She's later kidnapped by the Bug, held hostage, and freed once the evil monster is destroyed.
Now, you're probably thinking to yourself, "That's a classic damsel in distress right there." And you'd be right, plot-wise. Laurel does fit the role of a damsel in distress. She holds the key to saving the kingdom (i.e. the Galaxy), she's kidnapped by an ugly monster (the Bug), and she's dragged to the top of a high tower in a derelict castle (the observation towers at Flushing Meadow Park).
But Laurel's no Princess Daphne. Instead, she takes the classic damsel in distress model and flips in on its head. To paraphrase from one of Disney's underappreciated efforts, "She's a damsel. She's in distress. She can handle it. Have a nice day."
See, Laurel's a take-charge kind of girl. We see this when she's autopsying Rosenberg. She doesn't let a lack of rectum and other oddities stop her. Instead, she charges ahead, taking notes and getting excited by the challenge.
When she examines Rosenberg with Kay, she wonders if the lack of organs in the body is freaking him out; her delivery clearly shows it isn't affecting her. In fact, she even takes the opportunity to flirt with Jay. Say what you will about the setting, but when you work the swing shift at a New York morgue, you take what opportunities are presented when they are presented.
When the Bug kidnaps her, she tries to outsmart the alien, and might have succeeded, too, if Jay had taken the hint. Later, when the Bug's carrying her to the UFO, she continues to try and talk her way out of being a travel-sized snack:
LAUREL: You don't want to eat me. I'm a very important person on my planet. Like a queen. A goddess, even. There are those who worship me. I'm not telling you this to try to impress you. I'm just letting you know it could start a war.
EDGAR BUG: Good, war. That means more food for my family. All 78 million of them.
LAUREL: You're a wonderful dad, but I'm staying here!
At this point, her knights in shining armor—well, lint-free suits—are on their way, but rather than rely on them she decides to just get the job done and rescues herself, leaping from the alien's arms and landing in the trees below.
Finally, in a most epic un-damsel-in-distress move, Laurel rescues the heroes of the story. After Kay blows the Bug from the inside out, he and Jay sit in a puddle of bug guts, reveling in their victory. But the Bug's upper half is still kickin'… well, slitherin', and goes to chomp on Jay.
It's blasted in another explosion of pus and guts, and the next edit reveals Laurel with Jay's big gun, smiling as she says:
LAUREL: Interesting job you guys have.
Boosh! Laurel's not damsel in distress. She's a damsel in charge.
Woman in Black
Laurel ends the film as Jay's new partner, Agent L. Like Jay, she's proven herself able to handle the rigors of the job. We're just guessing here, but chances are she didn't have the same trial period he did. They probably just fitted her for the suit and told her to do her thing.
Laurel's Timeline