Unpopular Fandom Opinions, Batch #2
Warning: kinda wanky in places. For wrestling in particular, and for general fandom opinions. >__>
Wrestling
1. Christopher Daniels is a god among men
Not so much unpopular as, uh, crazy. :D
2. "Angel" is a shitty nickname for Christopher Daniels and "Idjits" is a horrible nickname for AJ/Daniels
There, I said it. And I judge you if I see you using it. I've seen enough people use these nicknames for me to count them as a fandom trend, one that I feel strongly about.
3. Randy Orton is fug
Hot body, but dear god, his face is ugly.
4. Hardycest is boring as fuck
Mostly because, INEXPLICABLY, they take the brother aspect out of it. In the sense that you'd hardly know Jeff and Matt are brothers at all in any given fic. I LOL every time I see people in SPN fandom going WINCEST IS TAKING OVER. Wincest folks have NOTHING on Hardycest in wrestlefandom, where incest is so incredibly normalized that it's mindboggling when you really think about it.
5. Bryan Danielson doesn't really move me as a wrestler
PLEASE DON'T KILL ME. But, uh, yeah. I really enjoy his wrestling, don't get me wrong. He is indeed amazing, but I discovered that I only gave a crap when he's wrestling people I already love.
7. I can't bring myself to hate John Cena
In a lot of ways, he is emblematic of all that's wrong with this current cycle of wrestling. But at the same time, he is an earnest, hard-working guy, who demonstrates a love and respect for the business, for the fans, and for those around him. He was PUT into this position, and in my opinion, he has done his very best to carry the ball that he's been given. I find it ludicrous to suggest that he should somehow step aside. This is still work, people. A way to earn money. He is a young man with the opportunity to make money in a shitty business. More power to him. There are WAY WAY WAY worse people to hate. How about Randy Orton, who has pedigree and favoritism on his side, but continues to piss his opportunities away and endlessly act like a douchebag. Or Kevin Nash, who just won't go the fuck away, and disrepects the business and me as a fan by joking ON-AIR on how he has managed to dupe a company into paying him for doing absolutely jackshit.
Yeah, Cena's crappy wrestling bores me, too, and his overexposure is irritating as fuck. But seriously, there are, like, at least 20 guys way more deserving of vitriol before you can even get to John Cena.
Leverage
1. I see no shippiness between Eliot and Parker
Grumpy older brother with fwee little sister, yes. But I don't really see sexual tension or sexual sparks. Which isn't to say that I haven't read good fics that made it work, but mostly, I just don't see it.
2. I'm tired of seeing Eliot as the little black dress of fandom
I love Eliot, don't get me wrong, but the fandom is way too skewed in his favor.
3. Sophie, and her relationship with Nate, is more interesting than the fandom gives her, and them, credit for
I know I'm one of those who was really annoyed with Sophie's obsession with Nate, which dragged her character down massively. But I still think she's really interesting. She's the grifter of the group, the long con gal. She's the one who lies like she breathes. I don't think we ever got a glimpse of the real Sophie until "The Second David Job."
Part of what fascinates me about her relationship with Nate is that it was based in deception. She ran, he chased. It's a grand romance. But it's all lies. The irony is that they've known each other the longest in the team, they're the ones with history, but really, they know each other the least. Neither of them is who they were pretending to be, to others and to themselves. Most of my frustration came from the fact that I wasn't sure if the show knew this. I was worried that they were playing it straight. But now that it's been confirmed that it's supposed to be messed up? It's awesomecakes. But most of the fandom still find them boring. Or annoying.
24
1. Tony isn't OOC in S7
I'm with catch22girl on this. Tony isn't remotely OOC in S7. It makes me really sad to see people say that they gave up on the show because of what happened with Tony in S7, that they find the writing a mess, that his turn isn't justifiable, isn't him. No, this has been phenomenal beyond words in terms of taking Tony's character to the limits.
2. S7 is SO VERY NOT a mess, is boring, is poorly-written, etc.
S7 has been a revelation to me, in terms of the amount of thematics thrown out, the amount of callbacks to earlier easons. I've already talked a LOT about this, so I'm not gonna repeat myself. I think this has been one of, if not THE best season of 24.
3. I like Audrey Raines
Okay, I flip-flopped a lot regarding Audrey, and mostly I flop on her whenever she gets all weepy over Jack. But when she's in control, when she's doing her job, she is fucking awesome.
Profit
This is REALLY hard for me, because there isn't much of a fandom for Profit, so I don't really have a sense of general fandom opinion, so I don't know whether mine would be popular or not. But here goes:
1. I can't see Profit and Gail's relationship as being sexual in any way
Again, not that I haven't read good fics, but it's SO HARD to get me there. I hate the term "beyond sex" because it implies that sex is somehow an immature development or something, but Profit and Gail are beyond sex. Profit definitely uses sex as a weapon, but he also uses intimacy as a weapon. Sex he uses on Bobbi, but it's intimacy that he uses to keep Nora and Gail in line. Shared secrets, shared deeds, shared crimes. You can't give him up. After all, you did it with him. That's the bond they share.
Besides, Profit would find it unseemly to sleep with his secretary. He may blackmail and threaten and murder, but you can never ever break decorum.
2. Profit's relationship with Nora is awesome and should have more love than it does
Most of what I DO see is stuff with Profit and Bobbi, or Profit and Gail. There isn't enough love for Profit and Nora. Yeah, she started out as a pawn in his game, and she remains a pawn in his game, but everybody is a pawn in Profit's game. What I love about Profit is that he has a very genuine-seeming affection for the women in his lives, even though he manipulates the fuck out of them. I think Profit comes to care for Nora... in the way he cares for all members of the Gracen family: he wants them to become better, stronger, more productive versions of themselves. And god, the scene with Profit and Nora in Art's office in "Forgiveness" blows me the FUCK away every. single. time.
Um. That's all I got, really.
James Bond
1. Roger Moore made a horrible Bond. All his Bond movies should be burned
What a fucking embarrassment to the franchise, and I know Bond has been ridiculous before and after him. But Roger Moore is the worst.
2. The World Is Not Enough was really awesome, if you ignore Denise Richards
The overwhelming suck of Denise Richards was overwhelming, I know. But if you, uh, just ignore her completely? TMINE was actually really good, in terms of the story between Bond and Elektra King. Sophie Marceau was incredible. Robert Carlyle was unfairly dissed by reviewers and fans. This was the movie that tried to be deeper, that tried to show a somewhat more flawed Bond. It ended up being really schizophenic, because it had some of the worst cheese of the franchise paired with that attempt for something deeper and more meaningful. And I get really resentful sometimes, because THIS is where they tried, but obviously there was some kind of backstage struggle about what the tone of the movie should be. It ended up being a mess on that count, it didn't do well, which lead to Die Another Day, which led to "Bond is tired, overblown, and lame" which led to the reboot with Daniel Craig. I love Daniel Craig's Bond. I LOVED Casino Royale. But I really really wish we could've gotten srs!Bond with Pierce Brosnan. We got some in GoldenEye, but it wasn't nearly enough.
3. Timothy Dalton fucking owns your face
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Timothy Dalton was a fucking kickass Bond. So very very underrated.
Burn Notice
Not very in touch with BN fandom, so I'm not sure what the general consensus/overwhelming majority opinions are.
1. I hate Victor
Yeah, yeah, I know I said Victor became interesting in the S2 finale, and Michael Shanks vaguely redeemed himself with his performance. But I still hate Victor.
2. Carla was a pretty good villain, and Tricia Helfer was awesome in playing her
I think most people are apathetic about her while some are meh. I liked Carla, mostly because Tricia Helfer is awesome. She really portrayed that breezy smarter-than-you attitude, which progressed into desperate menace, the latter of which is when she really shone.
Legend of the Seeker
Again, not very in touch with the fandom. So.
1. Richard's virtue doesn't make him boring
IDK why fandom insists on stripping complexities and flaws from characters, but when they meet somebody who is flat out noble and virtuous, they go yawn and deem him boring. Sigh.
2. Craig Horner is really good at his role
It's really hard to pull off sincerity without making it cheesy. Craig Horner manages to make Richard idealistic but not naive, righteous but not self-righteous, confident but not arrogant.
3. Darken Rahl's British Accent of Evil is lulzy and yet fabulous
I have no idea if this is an unpopular opinion, but I would imagine most people who aren't me would find it wtf that Craig Parker is doing a British accent. I love it though.
Fandom in General
This is gonna be so wanky. >.<
1. Just because you claim to be a feminist and that you're applying feminist critique to a show or a movie or any text doesn't make your critique beyond reproach
2. Just because you are a PoC and you are applying anti-racist critique to a show or a movie or any text doesn't make your critique beyond reproach
This is a huge HUGE one for me. I hate the fact that you cannot critique somebody's critique without getting accused of being a tool of patriarchy or colonialism or whatever.
3. Fandom misogyny trumps source material misogyny nearly every single time
Kripke killing off female characters in horrible and sexist ways for four seasons worth of SPN has NOTHING on the fan vitriol against those female characters. And let's not even get into the hate for Jensen and Jared's RL girlfriends. I'm not saying the whole fandom is like that, no. But the contingent is big enough and loud enough that it's scary and disheartening.
I feel like 90% of the time, a show is just being a show, in the sense that it is usually the fault of stupidity and ignorance. It's dumb, blind privilege. But fandom vag-hate? Is focused, specific, intent, and deliberate. And female. It's chick on chick hate. That makes it SO much worse.
4. In srs fandom discussions, 95% of the contingents have already made up their minds. All resultant argument is people throwing their opinions at each other and then getting frustrated when people won't see shit their way. No understanding or compromise is ever reached. Everybody goes home grumpy.
I have more, but let's keep it at four. ^^;;;
Wrestling
1. Christopher Daniels is a god among men
Not so much unpopular as, uh, crazy. :D
2. "Angel" is a shitty nickname for Christopher Daniels and "Idjits" is a horrible nickname for AJ/Daniels
There, I said it. And I judge you if I see you using it. I've seen enough people use these nicknames for me to count them as a fandom trend, one that I feel strongly about.
3. Randy Orton is fug
Hot body, but dear god, his face is ugly.
4. Hardycest is boring as fuck
Mostly because, INEXPLICABLY, they take the brother aspect out of it. In the sense that you'd hardly know Jeff and Matt are brothers at all in any given fic. I LOL every time I see people in SPN fandom going WINCEST IS TAKING OVER. Wincest folks have NOTHING on Hardycest in wrestlefandom, where incest is so incredibly normalized that it's mindboggling when you really think about it.
5. Bryan Danielson doesn't really move me as a wrestler
PLEASE DON'T KILL ME. But, uh, yeah. I really enjoy his wrestling, don't get me wrong. He is indeed amazing, but I discovered that I only gave a crap when he's wrestling people I already love.
7. I can't bring myself to hate John Cena
In a lot of ways, he is emblematic of all that's wrong with this current cycle of wrestling. But at the same time, he is an earnest, hard-working guy, who demonstrates a love and respect for the business, for the fans, and for those around him. He was PUT into this position, and in my opinion, he has done his very best to carry the ball that he's been given. I find it ludicrous to suggest that he should somehow step aside. This is still work, people. A way to earn money. He is a young man with the opportunity to make money in a shitty business. More power to him. There are WAY WAY WAY worse people to hate. How about Randy Orton, who has pedigree and favoritism on his side, but continues to piss his opportunities away and endlessly act like a douchebag. Or Kevin Nash, who just won't go the fuck away, and disrepects the business and me as a fan by joking ON-AIR on how he has managed to dupe a company into paying him for doing absolutely jackshit.
Yeah, Cena's crappy wrestling bores me, too, and his overexposure is irritating as fuck. But seriously, there are, like, at least 20 guys way more deserving of vitriol before you can even get to John Cena.
Leverage
1. I see no shippiness between Eliot and Parker
Grumpy older brother with fwee little sister, yes. But I don't really see sexual tension or sexual sparks. Which isn't to say that I haven't read good fics that made it work, but mostly, I just don't see it.
2. I'm tired of seeing Eliot as the little black dress of fandom
I love Eliot, don't get me wrong, but the fandom is way too skewed in his favor.
3. Sophie, and her relationship with Nate, is more interesting than the fandom gives her, and them, credit for
I know I'm one of those who was really annoyed with Sophie's obsession with Nate, which dragged her character down massively. But I still think she's really interesting. She's the grifter of the group, the long con gal. She's the one who lies like she breathes. I don't think we ever got a glimpse of the real Sophie until "The Second David Job."
Part of what fascinates me about her relationship with Nate is that it was based in deception. She ran, he chased. It's a grand romance. But it's all lies. The irony is that they've known each other the longest in the team, they're the ones with history, but really, they know each other the least. Neither of them is who they were pretending to be, to others and to themselves. Most of my frustration came from the fact that I wasn't sure if the show knew this. I was worried that they were playing it straight. But now that it's been confirmed that it's supposed to be messed up? It's awesomecakes. But most of the fandom still find them boring. Or annoying.
24
1. Tony isn't OOC in S7
I'm with catch22girl on this. Tony isn't remotely OOC in S7. It makes me really sad to see people say that they gave up on the show because of what happened with Tony in S7, that they find the writing a mess, that his turn isn't justifiable, isn't him. No, this has been phenomenal beyond words in terms of taking Tony's character to the limits.
2. S7 is SO VERY NOT a mess, is boring, is poorly-written, etc.
S7 has been a revelation to me, in terms of the amount of thematics thrown out, the amount of callbacks to earlier easons. I've already talked a LOT about this, so I'm not gonna repeat myself. I think this has been one of, if not THE best season of 24.
3. I like Audrey Raines
Okay, I flip-flopped a lot regarding Audrey, and mostly I flop on her whenever she gets all weepy over Jack. But when she's in control, when she's doing her job, she is fucking awesome.
Profit
This is REALLY hard for me, because there isn't much of a fandom for Profit, so I don't really have a sense of general fandom opinion, so I don't know whether mine would be popular or not. But here goes:
1. I can't see Profit and Gail's relationship as being sexual in any way
Again, not that I haven't read good fics, but it's SO HARD to get me there. I hate the term "beyond sex" because it implies that sex is somehow an immature development or something, but Profit and Gail are beyond sex. Profit definitely uses sex as a weapon, but he also uses intimacy as a weapon. Sex he uses on Bobbi, but it's intimacy that he uses to keep Nora and Gail in line. Shared secrets, shared deeds, shared crimes. You can't give him up. After all, you did it with him. That's the bond they share.
Besides, Profit would find it unseemly to sleep with his secretary. He may blackmail and threaten and murder, but you can never ever break decorum.
2. Profit's relationship with Nora is awesome and should have more love than it does
Most of what I DO see is stuff with Profit and Bobbi, or Profit and Gail. There isn't enough love for Profit and Nora. Yeah, she started out as a pawn in his game, and she remains a pawn in his game, but everybody is a pawn in Profit's game. What I love about Profit is that he has a very genuine-seeming affection for the women in his lives, even though he manipulates the fuck out of them. I think Profit comes to care for Nora... in the way he cares for all members of the Gracen family: he wants them to become better, stronger, more productive versions of themselves. And god, the scene with Profit and Nora in Art's office in "Forgiveness" blows me the FUCK away every. single. time.
Um. That's all I got, really.
James Bond
1. Roger Moore made a horrible Bond. All his Bond movies should be burned
What a fucking embarrassment to the franchise, and I know Bond has been ridiculous before and after him. But Roger Moore is the worst.
2. The World Is Not Enough was really awesome, if you ignore Denise Richards
The overwhelming suck of Denise Richards was overwhelming, I know. But if you, uh, just ignore her completely? TMINE was actually really good, in terms of the story between Bond and Elektra King. Sophie Marceau was incredible. Robert Carlyle was unfairly dissed by reviewers and fans. This was the movie that tried to be deeper, that tried to show a somewhat more flawed Bond. It ended up being really schizophenic, because it had some of the worst cheese of the franchise paired with that attempt for something deeper and more meaningful. And I get really resentful sometimes, because THIS is where they tried, but obviously there was some kind of backstage struggle about what the tone of the movie should be. It ended up being a mess on that count, it didn't do well, which lead to Die Another Day, which led to "Bond is tired, overblown, and lame" which led to the reboot with Daniel Craig. I love Daniel Craig's Bond. I LOVED Casino Royale. But I really really wish we could've gotten srs!Bond with Pierce Brosnan. We got some in GoldenEye, but it wasn't nearly enough.
3. Timothy Dalton fucking owns your face
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Timothy Dalton was a fucking kickass Bond. So very very underrated.
Burn Notice
Not very in touch with BN fandom, so I'm not sure what the general consensus/overwhelming majority opinions are.
1. I hate Victor
Yeah, yeah, I know I said Victor became interesting in the S2 finale, and Michael Shanks vaguely redeemed himself with his performance. But I still hate Victor.
2. Carla was a pretty good villain, and Tricia Helfer was awesome in playing her
I think most people are apathetic about her while some are meh. I liked Carla, mostly because Tricia Helfer is awesome. She really portrayed that breezy smarter-than-you attitude, which progressed into desperate menace, the latter of which is when she really shone.
Legend of the Seeker
Again, not very in touch with the fandom. So.
1. Richard's virtue doesn't make him boring
IDK why fandom insists on stripping complexities and flaws from characters, but when they meet somebody who is flat out noble and virtuous, they go yawn and deem him boring. Sigh.
2. Craig Horner is really good at his role
It's really hard to pull off sincerity without making it cheesy. Craig Horner manages to make Richard idealistic but not naive, righteous but not self-righteous, confident but not arrogant.
3. Darken Rahl's British Accent of Evil is lulzy and yet fabulous
I have no idea if this is an unpopular opinion, but I would imagine most people who aren't me would find it wtf that Craig Parker is doing a British accent. I love it though.
Fandom in General
This is gonna be so wanky. >.<
1. Just because you claim to be a feminist and that you're applying feminist critique to a show or a movie or any text doesn't make your critique beyond reproach
2. Just because you are a PoC and you are applying anti-racist critique to a show or a movie or any text doesn't make your critique beyond reproach
This is a huge HUGE one for me. I hate the fact that you cannot critique somebody's critique without getting accused of being a tool of patriarchy or colonialism or whatever.
3. Fandom misogyny trumps source material misogyny nearly every single time
Kripke killing off female characters in horrible and sexist ways for four seasons worth of SPN has NOTHING on the fan vitriol against those female characters. And let's not even get into the hate for Jensen and Jared's RL girlfriends. I'm not saying the whole fandom is like that, no. But the contingent is big enough and loud enough that it's scary and disheartening.
I feel like 90% of the time, a show is just being a show, in the sense that it is usually the fault of stupidity and ignorance. It's dumb, blind privilege. But fandom vag-hate? Is focused, specific, intent, and deliberate. And female. It's chick on chick hate. That makes it SO much worse.
4. In srs fandom discussions, 95% of the contingents have already made up their minds. All resultant argument is people throwing their opinions at each other and then getting frustrated when people won't see shit their way. No understanding or compromise is ever reached. Everybody goes home grumpy.
I have more, but let's keep it at four. ^^;;;