Hello suspense, my old friend...
Used my first "free" day to finally catch up on the last few eps of Fringe. I started watching in real time Season 4, then had to stop quickly because it made me hurt for the characters and I can only really take that when I know it gets better (and soon). So I waited out the Season and have been marathoning properly. Now, I can even take the
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I know, they've never been particularly good at it but I think this was the least inspired "storming of the gates" I have seen in my entire life. As a director, I would have called up the writer and told them I wouldn't be shooting that crap. Or, I would have changed it to make it feel and look more dynamic.
It's ironic, considering the last few years, I didn't expect much (or anything) out of this episode so I mostly sleep-watched through it and was so pleasantly surprised at the ending, it put me in a totally giddy and enthusiastic mood. Now that cloud has buzzed off, I can't believe how uninspired that main part was.
I didn't think how they went about trapping the Yellow Eyed Demon in that semetary in the Season 2 Finale was particularly well done but at least that scene had some energy in it. This was...mindboggling.
I remember so many times when I was sitting incredulously in front of the TV because it would have been so easy to improve the ep by 200%, and the flaws were so. damn. obvious.
Lots of people have been saying what a great writer Gamble was, just a bad showrunner but I posit she sucked donkey balls even as a writer. Most her best efforts were with Raelle Tucker and if she had one or two good solo hunting? Well, a blind chicken and all. But what does one expect if you make that blind chicken the leader of the henhouse. *headdesk*
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The quality of the plot was never the reason why I watched the show; at it's best, the show had some charm because of its unintentional cheesiness, but mostly because, by some good fortune, it happened on a very interesting character dynamic with the Winchester family (including Dad), and had one (and sometimes two) actors who were able to lift a mediocre script into excellent characterization moments. But whenever anyone attempted ambitious plot... major ouch and headdesk time.
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Oh, I agree the writing failures were always there but I do blame her for the extra level of suck in Seasons 6 and 7 (and to be frank, to some point for the ultra-stink of Suck Song because I believe it was retro-fitted for her "ideas" for Season 6.) I had my misgvings when she was announced and she managed to surpass even my worst expectations.
But totally, plot, pacing, suspense - never this show's strong point. It was, as you said, a certain goofy charme and the character dynamics giving it a lot of heart, grounding it.
And I don't hold Kripke in a particularly high esteem. I attribute the best influence to the late Kim Manners here.
Though actually character work is another aspect where I believe Season 6 and 7 fell down even more. The characters and relationships were a relentless, repetitive emo mess without rhyme, reason or joy to it. And the plot still sucked. So the glass was basically full empty.
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And I agree, thje characterization got worse and worse and WORSE. That's the main reason why I just couldn't bear to watch anymore after a certain point. All of the original charm was gone, and the show seemed determined to dwell lovingly on things I thought were not only uninteresting, but actively repelling - while destroying everything I ever actually liked about the show.
I have to say, I can't believe the show lasted this long. I'm actually rather sorry in some ways, because Jensen is way too good an actor for this trainwreck, and ought to be on a far better show.
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I think he is rather childish in a way, plotwise, he doesn't have a big attention span - I wasn't a fan of the psy-kids storyline in the least but "eh, they got boring so I dropped them" is not exactly inspired writing - and character-wise, I found some of his interviews and views espoused in the show downright disturbing. The culmination of his five-year "plan"? Could have been an angry diary entry from a moody teenager, reading "I'll show them all." Geeze, grow up.
and the show seemed determined to dwell lovingly on things I thought were not only uninteresting, but actively repelling
It was like a certain brand of fanfiction that makes me hit the back button immediately.
I have to say, I can't believe the show lasted this long. I'm actually rather sorry in some ways, because Jensen is way too good an actor for this trainwreck, and ought to be on a far better show.
It also makes me mad. They only get by because they have tolerable ratings for the shitty, shitty network they're on. Where the other shows do even worse. So the producers see no reason to put any effort in it but rest in complacency. Urgh.
Meanwhile, other shows have to really struggle for survival. I was lucky this year as the ones I truly liked and would have been disappointed to lose, new and old, were renewed.
And totally agreed on Jensen. I guess having to play the same emo scene and making it seem different for about 100 episodes in a row is its own acting challenge but I'd LOVE to see him in a quality project. Or at least one that is fun.
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