Friendship
While working out today - because I wasn't particularly invested in the Core; my shoulders were hurting - I started thinking about friendship.
Friendships fascinate me.
I thought back to all the shows, movies and books I've enjoyed - and I can conclude that every one of the ones I've fallen completely in love with has had developing, strong friendships as base.
My very first foray into fandom was in 1999 (God, it's already been over ten years) with Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. It was the first time I ever got completely into a show, wanting to know everything and more about it. And while the show does - very soon - go into the Clark/Lois romantic relationship, the key to my love for them is not that. It's the fact at every weird plot turn, they have each other. They are best friends.
My second huge dive into a show was when I started watching Buffy seriously. And in that show, it certainly isn't the romantic pairings that I love the most (although yes, I do adore Spike/Buffy). Buffy had her best friends Willow and Xander, always ready to stand beside her even when she didn't want them to, and Giles behind her, getting knocked out at every turn but still always there. When they fought, it felt so wrong, like the world was upside down. I don't know how many times I've wished I was part of that world, part of them. To have someone to call late at night, who'd get you even when you were pissing them off, who'd comfort you when you were sad.
There have been lots of others. The main reason House interests me (and a whole host of other viewers) is because of the relationship between House and Wilson. The medical cases are so-so - especially where the medicine is concerned - but their relationship is almost always interesting. The same thing with NCIS, where the cases aren't always that fun, but the relationships between the characters is fantastic. Or was, anyway. Since all the Tiva crap, asshole!McGee and distant!Gibbs, not so much anymore. The Gibbs/Tony and Tony/McGee tickle me in particularly nice places (as should be obvious from all the fanfic). Bones, back in seasons one and two when it was still awesome, had the same thing. Scrubs always had it. (I'm not going into medicine because of any tv-show, but is it wrong of me to wish that working in a hospital is something along the lines of how it is on Scrubs? *g*)
I've also spent years in the Harry Potter fandom, where I admittedly was more interested in the Harry/Draco relationship - but I can honestly say that both my long fics have them becoming very, very good friends before their relationship turned into a romantic one.
Currently, HIMYM is taking up my time. Also a show with friends, each of them so great a friend to the others that I can't say I've ever had a single relationship like that. And besides any crushing on NPH which may or may not be happening at the moment, the thing I do love about that show, and every other of the fandoms I've listed above, is that they are friends. Good friends. In-sickness-and-in-health-to-death-and-back-even-if-you're-an-ass kind of friends.
I guess there's a certain problem when your best friend is your ex (unhealthy? I don't know; some say it is), and you see your other friends at irregular intervals of about every other month. On top of that, I have huge problems picking up the phone and calling someone (because what if I'm in the way and annoying?), and always feel like other people should have better things to do than hang out with me.
Anyway, some sort of meta for what kind of shows I like. I cannot stand things with big drama and people being awful to each other (read: Desperate Housewives and the like) - and I also can't get into shows where the main characters don't seem emotionally invested in each other, even if they should be (read: CSI: everywhere). I might watch the latter for mindless entertainment at times, but I could never truly get into it.
Friendships fascinate me.
I thought back to all the shows, movies and books I've enjoyed - and I can conclude that every one of the ones I've fallen completely in love with has had developing, strong friendships as base.
My very first foray into fandom was in 1999 (God, it's already been over ten years) with Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. It was the first time I ever got completely into a show, wanting to know everything and more about it. And while the show does - very soon - go into the Clark/Lois romantic relationship, the key to my love for them is not that. It's the fact at every weird plot turn, they have each other. They are best friends.
My second huge dive into a show was when I started watching Buffy seriously. And in that show, it certainly isn't the romantic pairings that I love the most (although yes, I do adore Spike/Buffy). Buffy had her best friends Willow and Xander, always ready to stand beside her even when she didn't want them to, and Giles behind her, getting knocked out at every turn but still always there. When they fought, it felt so wrong, like the world was upside down. I don't know how many times I've wished I was part of that world, part of them. To have someone to call late at night, who'd get you even when you were pissing them off, who'd comfort you when you were sad.
There have been lots of others. The main reason House interests me (and a whole host of other viewers) is because of the relationship between House and Wilson. The medical cases are so-so - especially where the medicine is concerned - but their relationship is almost always interesting. The same thing with NCIS, where the cases aren't always that fun, but the relationships between the characters is fantastic. Or was, anyway. Since all the Tiva crap, asshole!McGee and distant!Gibbs, not so much anymore. The Gibbs/Tony and Tony/McGee tickle me in particularly nice places (as should be obvious from all the fanfic). Bones, back in seasons one and two when it was still awesome, had the same thing. Scrubs always had it. (I'm not going into medicine because of any tv-show, but is it wrong of me to wish that working in a hospital is something along the lines of how it is on Scrubs? *g*)
I've also spent years in the Harry Potter fandom, where I admittedly was more interested in the Harry/Draco relationship - but I can honestly say that both my long fics have them becoming very, very good friends before their relationship turned into a romantic one.
Currently, HIMYM is taking up my time. Also a show with friends, each of them so great a friend to the others that I can't say I've ever had a single relationship like that. And besides any crushing on NPH which may or may not be happening at the moment, the thing I do love about that show, and every other of the fandoms I've listed above, is that they are friends. Good friends. In-sickness-and-in-health-to-death-and-back-even-if-you're-an-ass kind of friends.
I guess there's a certain problem when your best friend is your ex (unhealthy? I don't know; some say it is), and you see your other friends at irregular intervals of about every other month. On top of that, I have huge problems picking up the phone and calling someone (because what if I'm in the way and annoying?), and always feel like other people should have better things to do than hang out with me.
Anyway, some sort of meta for what kind of shows I like. I cannot stand things with big drama and people being awful to each other (read: Desperate Housewives and the like) - and I also can't get into shows where the main characters don't seem emotionally invested in each other, even if they should be (read: CSI: everywhere). I might watch the latter for mindless entertainment at times, but I could never truly get into it.