I think Whedon's particular skill is to deal with tragedy in a human and epic scale at the same time. With his work it's not flip or gory or silly on a scale from say, South Park at one end and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre at the other. There is death and bad things happen to good people, but unlike lots of material, I find that it means something. Looking at DH and thinking in context, I was thinking how unusual it really is to have that level of empathy with characters and that they are not just disposable.
Perhaps there's a level of not as much emotional masochism, but wanting us to care. Whedon is also a sentimentalist (which I am all for), and he's one that isn't cloying or syrupy and I think part of the reason we as viewers respond to his work is because very few artists want us to care or feel these days--it's not hip.
While there is a place for shock value and deconstruction and much lighter material, I don't know many artists in the TV medium who place such a high level on caring and community and really feeling emotions. It's a paradox since we sit there and watch, but for me, his work really keeps me engaged in a way I like. If we see a tragedy on a Whedon show it hits home and means something--it's not a corpse of the week or a splatty cartoon, but it is sudden and meaningful. People do bad things and make complicated choices and maybe somewhere we're watching and thinking about that too.
I think Whedon is interested in humanity and what makes us human--it's big topics for TV and singalong blogs, but I think that's what keeps it from being masochism and brings it into something else entirely. At the same time he shows us the worst, he shows us the best.
I think/agree that he gets us to care plenty. His characters are rich and interesting.
I can't help thinking that there is something about showing us the cruel fates of so many of his characters (Tara, Wash, Jenny, Angel/Buffy to name just a few) that is deliberate on his part.
After a while, it gets to be too much.
I will never forgive him for Wash. That was unnecessary (both to the plot and to the character) IMO. And it made me like the Firefly universe a good deal less. It is poorer without Wash in it flying somewhere with his hair on fire.
Whedon's gift, and his curse as far as I'm concerned, is that he creates characters that are so beloved. And then, he f*cks with them to the point that it just feels sadistic to me. As I said, I'll keep watching but it's getting harder to do.
With his work it's not flip or gory or silly on a scale from say, South Park at one end and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre at the other. There is death and bad things happen to good people, but unlike lots of material, I find that it means something. Looking at DH and thinking in context, I was thinking how unusual it really is to have that level of empathy with characters and that they are not just disposable.
Perhaps there's a level of not as much emotional masochism, but wanting us to care. Whedon is also a sentimentalist (which I am all for), and he's one that isn't cloying or syrupy and I think part of the reason we as viewers respond to his work is because very few artists want us to care or feel these days--it's not hip.
While there is a place for shock value and deconstruction and much lighter material, I don't know many artists in the TV medium who place such a high level on caring and community and really feeling emotions. It's a paradox since we sit there and watch, but for me, his work really keeps me engaged in a way I like. If we see a tragedy on a Whedon show it hits home and means something--it's not a corpse of the week or a splatty cartoon, but it is sudden and meaningful. People do bad things and make complicated choices and maybe somewhere we're watching and thinking about that too.
I think Whedon is interested in humanity and what makes us human--it's big topics for TV and singalong blogs, but I think that's what keeps it from being masochism and brings it into something else entirely. At the same time he shows us the worst, he shows us the best.
So, that's my take on it.
Reply
I can't help thinking that there is something about showing us the cruel fates of so many of his characters (Tara, Wash, Jenny, Angel/Buffy to name just a few) that is deliberate on his part.
After a while, it gets to be too much.
I will never forgive him for Wash. That was unnecessary (both to the plot and to the character) IMO. And it made me like the Firefly universe a good deal less. It is poorer without Wash in it flying somewhere with his hair on fire.
Whedon's gift, and his curse as far as I'm concerned, is that he creates characters that are so beloved. And then, he f*cks with them to the point that it just feels sadistic to me. As I said, I'll keep watching but it's getting harder to do.
Reply
Leave a comment