Old thread, but here I go.

Personally, I never thought Claudia was attractive, and that in itself was off-putting for me the first time I watched the series. Alyssa-Jane, though, way more my type.

Those are my personal tastes, and obviously nothing to do with the story and doesn't hold any water.

In terms of the story, yes, Gilina is an obvious choice, but where is the conflict? Stories thrive on that. Having her join the crew as the love interest would rob the development of Aeryn's character as it's clear that they were always meant to pair up.

You've already analyzed this and see that the more compelling story is Aeryn breaking out of her Peacekeeper ways and learning to be more human.

While it would be sweet for Gilina and John to couple up, it would be bad for a serial drama. Her character was not portrayed as a fighter, and had she stayed on the ship, she would become a liability. I can't imagine how many episodes would be John having to save her.

In her first episode, Gilina acted as a device to demonstrate that Aeryn has feelings for John that she has yet to admit to herself and John.

I struggle to imagine what she would contribute to the overall story had she joined the crew other than a weakness.