mtv lifer writing a Joss Whedon biography to come out in 2013. i watch a lot of television. a lot. and i talk about fandom and television in general lot. stillscape replied to your link: ‘Justified’s Timothy Olyphant, ‘House Of Lies’ Ben Schwartz Join ‘This Is Where I Leave You’
I want that in my eyeballs now, please.
I KNOW! My eyeballs are on strike and are totes refusing to read or concentrate on anything until i give it to them.
princessgeorge replied to your post: After getting super frustrating news this morning…
I’m 89% sure you’re the only person who’s going to share that particular set of details with me today.
So, verdict? Did anyone else share those details with you on Thursday? (Also, I sadly lost the battle for “anal.” However, I did get to write some fantastic emails and have amazing conversations that would have gotten me in trouble with HR had they not been completely and totally work related.)
ginamak replied to your post: loading principia-coh replied to your post:…
I love the scarf! Why did I not think of this before (I sweat like mad too)?
We bought a ridiculous amount of silk and cotton scarves at the Siam Reap Old Market, because it’s easy to bargain down when you buy a ridiculous amount. I carried one around in case I needed to cover up when going into a temple, and then used them to wipe all the sweat from my head. Which lead to me wrapping it around my head and realizing that kept ALL THE SWEAT from pouring down my face and hid my drenched hair. It’s really the best idea ever.
princessgeorge replied to your post: loading principia-coh replied to your post:…
A) you both sound like delightful traveling companions. B) I share a problem with you - I don’t think my hair was ever dry the whole time in SE Asia. Have a shower, start to sweat. Maybe that one weekend at a Malaysian hill station…
We were! I had learned many lessons the year earlier with an incredibly difficult traveling companion (thank goodness for my new Xanax prescription!). On the first night, I told Angela that if she ever needed time to herself or if I was annoying her to just tell me. I’d recommend having that deal with anyone you travel with – it takes the pressure off everyone having to be in the best!mood!ever! and gives you an out when you need some time alone.
princessgeorge replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
Nope, I’m with you. Not interesting, even as a device.
code-name-duchess replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
I’m basically just pretending that part didn’t exist.
judygrimes replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
nah def a popular opinion no one likes him and his five bathrooms
parksandseth replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
i agree! but i’m so happy that somebody punched him
iloveyouandilikeyou replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
not unpopular. it didn’t make sense to me, but on the whole, i’m forgetting about him in the grand scheme of the episode.
I get that he and his actions were the catalyst to get everyone back to City Hall and the Parks department, but it was poorly done. It felt stupid, in a show that is filled with absurdity yet never feels stupid. if Jamm had been a better developed character, it have MAYBE upped the stakes but it never seemed to feel like the wedding was really in jeopardy. And because there were no stakes, they went for stinkbombs which, again, felt cheesy and stupid, without even a shred of cleverness.
sullenaquarian replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
I do not understand how he can keep his job after what he did at the gala.
Ugh, I know. Unless they’re going the Dexhart route wherein NO ONE EVER HAS TO DEAL WITH REPERCUSSIONS, he should be recalled. We know he won’t resign as the only characteristic he’s been given is that he’s an asshole.
pleasant-tomorrow replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
no i’ve seen a lot of that. not a good character at all. he’s not funny to watch, just painful.
stars-inthe-sky replied to your post: probably an unpopular opinion
Nope, right there with you. I loved the end results, and the Leslie-Ron scene in the jail, but Jamm was just awful. I had the same sort of issue with Bobby Newport (who at least meant well)—they’re just not interesting opponents.
I think this is the place where Parks tends to do a less-than-great job in the later season: creating villains/opponents. It’s almost like they’re intimidated by making a whole-season villain so the ones that come out are fairly one-dimensional and cartoonish. Yet the recurring antagonistic characters — Joan Callamezzo, Marcia Langman, Tammy 2 — actually have a point of view and are far more relatable and compelling.
The only longterm interesting opponent so far has been Jen Barkley.
princessgeorge replied to your post: stillscape replied to your post: 6, 7 and 10….
No, youre quite right that if you read fan fic from various writers the sunshine thing does get old after a while. Doesnt make an individual instance of it problematic necessarily.
…
Do you think this is ultimately a limitation of fan fiction? I’m finding (shh! don’t tell anyone!) that I’m not reading the fiction now even remotely the same way as I used to. (Context: I only started reading fanfic at all in any way about 2 years ago, and only Parks & Rec at the time. Since then I’ve read some other fanfic in an exploratory way but haven’t really gotten into it.)
Perhaps there’s a paradox that what’s canon gets overused and become cliche and banal - and what’s not risks being out of character (maybe especially the more character information you have, eg a few more seasons into a TV show). Which leaves us maybe with AUs after a while? But then my tolerance for AUs isn’t super-high.
?
I’m not sure if it’s a limitation of fanfic — I mean, there’s only so many formulas for a romantic comedy, and there are hundreds (thousands?) of romcoms made across film and theatre. It’s the way the tale is told, the characters, the relationships and motivations, the twists in each one that makes them different from each other.
I think there are a few things in play:
1. A new piece of canon is introduced (example here being “the town has really nice blonde hair”) — especially when it’s introduced it gives a ‘ship or character a new development than excites fans — and that is woven into new stories.
2. A lot of stories come out all at once because the writers are rightfully super excited by said new canon and so it pops up in all of them.
3. It’s a really great/fun/sweet idea and people respond to it in stories and it starts to get repeated so much that it becomes fanon.
Personally, I tend to noticed these overly repeated fanon pieces once there’s been some distance from the revelation in canon. Ben said that Leslie had nice hair in the end of season 3. So there’s been a TON of fic since then, and there’s been a TON of kissing fic since then. (which, yay! because leslie/ben kissing fic!) I’ve found that he notes her sunshiny hair most in kissing fic — usually when the kissing has just started. Which is maybe why it sticks out in my head, because I can’t remember repeatedly making out with someone and taking the time to think that their hair is the color of well-roasted chestnuts.
And! I love me some AUs, and oddly enough, i don’t tend to mind the overly repeated fanon in them. In an AU, the writer generally works to set up the world and relationships and the familiar moments and realizations are like touchstone to an emotional experience that we’ve already had, yet it feels new and exciting in this new setting.
I liken the repetition in fic to the reblogging of pics and gifsets on tumblr. You see a gifset of, say, Ben reaching for Leslie to kiss her in “The Smallest Park.” After the ep airs, it’s like OMG! ALL OF THE REBLOGS! GIVE ME GIFS! GIVE ME GIFSETS! GIVE ME PHOTOS! GIVE ME MANIPS! GIVE ME VIDEO!
And it’s like that for a week and you reblog ALL OF IT. It fills your dash because everyone you follow in fandom is reblogging all of it too. By the time a month rolls around, you’ll still have the feelings and possibly reblog. Three, Four months on and you’ll smile but unless something moves you, chances are you’re not reblogging. Then if six months down the line, your dash is filled with ALL OF THE GIFSETS, PHOTOS, MANIPS and they’re all the same moment with slight variation, it’s no longer exciting and engaging — just obvious that it’s all the same thing. It doesn’t make that “Smallest Park” moment any less awesome and breathtaking, but you’d love to see a new take on it like an illustration or a text post about how these characters got to that moment, or how that moment changed everything.
Except Ron snakejuice-drunk dancing in April’s hat is always funny. Always. And should be reblogged to spread the joy.
princessgeorge replied to your post: stillscape replied to your post: 6, 7 and 10….
No, youre quite right that if you read fan fic from various writers the sunshine thing does get old after a while. Doesnt make an individual instance of it problematic necessarily.
absolutely. and i didn’t mean to imply that it was, or that any writer was bad for doing it. and i don’t feel bad for calling it out — the question was things that annoy you in fandom, and the dearth of it makes me a little itchy.
every fandom has their thing — both canon and fanon that shows up a ton in fic and leslie’s hair and ben’s cooking are two of Parks. in all cases, it just reminds me of the Regionals in Bring It On with the back-to-back performances of Sparky’s syndicated spirit-fingered choreography to “Get Ready for This.”
total world domination = bright, sunshiny hair ;)
I stumbled across the Desperately Seeking Susan trailer after chatting with princessgeorge about longterm crushes on Aidan Quinn sparked from this film. (and also, the patheticness of knowing at 10 year old that I’d be a boring Roberta when I wanted to be an exciting Susan.)
Oh wow, this is bad. Really bad. The cut itself isn’t HORRIBLE but the VO and random audio cuts are painfully awful.
“She’s a woman of mystery. A woman of surprises. A woman named Susan.”
“Madonna is Susan — the hottest voice in rock is now the freshest face in film.”
“Desperately Seeking Susan: A life so crazy, it takes TWO WOMEN to live it.”
Huh, Elementary is really really great. I could watch Jonny Lee Miller and Lucy Liu be smart for a few more hours, and that’s after watching 3 episodes more or less in a row. That’s saying a lot for me and crime dramas (low tolerance for completely unrepresentative crime portrayed in these shows, another serial killer? another wealthy victim? come ON).
Also, completely on board with anti-shipping these two.
Also, have you kids seen Desperately Seeking Susan? If so, do you understand why I’m so excited to see Aidan Quinn, basically, breathe? If not, you really should see it. It’s the movie Madonna is actually good in. One of the movies of my youth that made me realize that New York City would have eaten me alive.
on the first page of my diary — my cabbage patch kid diary — i talk about going to see desperately seeking susan with my mom. i was 10, and it started a lifelong crush on Aidan AND the desire to be as remarkable as Susan when even then i knew i was a Roberta.
and i’m very much adoring Elementary as well :)
iloveyouandilikeyou replied to your photo: So, sadly, I had to return the Fluevogs I ordered…
WOW I LOVE THESE.
they’re even more fabulous in person!
princessgeorge replied to your photo: So, sadly, I had to return the Fluevogs I ordered…
God I love Fluevogs! I should manufacture an opportunity to wear mine soon.
principia-coh replied to your link: Parks and Recreation: Annabeth Gish to play Bens sister
I was going to remark on the age difference, but then I remembered Adam Scott was born the same year I was he only LOOKS like hes 12. XD
ha! same here. i don’t quite look like i’m 12, but i generally look a lot younger than i am. providing that you can’t see all my grey hair ;)
princessgeorge replied to your post: i am such an idiot.
Oh hey I did that once, and it made me feel awwwwwwful. I hope someone can make you some soup or something.
continuants replied to your photo: Uhm. I keep losing time. And everything feels…
nooooo be safe out there!!!
