My problem is that as far as I can tell, the show isn't being that nuanced because so many of the fans (maybe the ones more skewed to younger, but I really couldn't say) are all 'Poor Jackson, being adopted.
You know, for a teen show, Teen Wolf is more nuanced than I was expecting, although that doesn't mean I'm claiming it as some kind of paragon -- it has its share of problems. That said, I do think fans often run away with a reading that is very superficial, but which picks up momentum and becomes fanon.
When I was in SGA fandom, I remember that there was a scene which the woobie-Rodney fans used a lot, and when I actually watched it some time later, I went, "OMG, he's being sarcastic". I can't remember the scene now, just my reaction.
But my point here is that young fans do have a way of taking a text at face value, believing what characters say rather than what they do. They often miss how the text is undercutting what is said with the clear expectation of a counter-reading (he said X, but he's lying; or, the team thought Y happened, but oops, they misunderstood the situation; or, she called him Z, but she's being sarcastic etc).
So while I think the writers have used adoption as a too-easy shorthand for teen angst, I think it's also likely that they've attempted to use it in a more nuanced way, didn't quite nail it, and the teen fans took it at face value as an excuse for Jackson being an arse. These two things aren't mutually exclusive -- they can both be true at the same time.
Certianly my reading is that it's not a straight-up angst narrative -- that just doesn't fit. I think they've set it up on purpose to be a major story thread in a future season, and it will be one of the bait-and-switches the show loves so much. I think the final excuse for Jackson being an arse will be something like, "He's always known he should have been a wolf, that he should have been part of a pack, and that's what made him such an arse." Which makes it more of a cuckoo narrative than a straight adoption-angst narrative.
I guess we'll see, right?
I do hope they have less gender fail in next season, though. That's what really bothered me about the S2 finale. There were other issues, as you say, but the way both Lydia and Allison lost all agency in the service to the men really bothered me a lot.
I watched a lot of SGA after the fact as well (mainlined S1 and S2 during the first half of S3) and was often...perplexed by popular fannish readings. Particularly of Rodney. I think a lot of his sarcasm was taken at face value.
I have to admit that I personally see very little nuance in their use of adoption on Teen Wolf. But then, Teen Wolf along with Once Upon a Time and their representation of adoption are both just pissing me off, so I'm probably being less charitable that I might have been otherwise.
Plus, I dunno if you've seen the news, but Colton Haynes isn't coming back next season - contract negotiations failed or something - so we're never (I presume) going to find out if they were going to do something clever *sadface*
OMG, the gender!fail was HORRIBLE. Lydia went from being a potentially kickass character in S1 to being...that...in S2. I get that she was traumatised but, God, did they have to do that to her? It was such a waste of a good character.
And then Allison. I just. I can't. Not only did they take away her agency, but I can't get over how she went from being good with a crossbow and gymnastics to basically being a ninja who could take out Isaac with knives and badass leaping. Apparently you can learn all that kind of thing in, what, about a week? Not to mention the fact that she went from not trusting her grandfather to believing everything he told her in what seemed to be about five minutes. EVERYTHING about Allison in the final two or three episodes bugged me. Well, more than bugged me. Made me yell at the TV in anger and frustration.
I really hope they do well by the female characters next season.
I have to admit that I personally see very little nuance in their use of adoption on Teen Wolf. But then, Teen Wolf along with Once Upon a Time and their representation of adoption are both just pissing me off, so I'm probably being less charitable that I might have been otherwise.
Yeah. The only reason I think there's more to the TW adoption narrative is because 1) the parent/teacher interviews were largely more about the parents than their kids, and except for the Sheriff and Melissa they were all a bit off, and that contrast seemed to be on purpose, 2) Jackson's problems are clearly not because he's adopted. But they didn't really nail it, if they did want people to read the parent interview as something to be suspicious of -- it's only because of the contrast with the Argents and Martins that I read that into it as strongly as I did.
I hadn't heard about Haynes; a shame to not get closure on that thread, but I won't miss Jackson. :)
And I totally agree with the adoption narrative in OUAT. :(
I won't even get started on Allison and Lydia, but word!
I'm not going to miss Jackson either. Haynes made it just about possible to stand him, but, ugh. And, honestly I'm not that bothered by this storyline not going anywhere. Although, I will admit that had they made Jackson's issues something other than the adoption that would actually have made me a lot happier...depending on how they did it, naturally. It would have depended on the narrative they decided to take and what they finally said about adoption.
And the thing about ouat is that I like the show - well, I like it now, I was this close to giving up on it at the end of S1 - I like that they have strong women but then they have all this weird stuff about adoption and family in general and I just want to scream.
Here's to hoping S3 does nicer things to Allison and Lydia.
You know, for a teen show, Teen Wolf is more nuanced than I was expecting, although that doesn't mean I'm claiming it as some kind of paragon -- it has its share of problems. That said, I do think fans often run away with a reading that is very superficial, but which picks up momentum and becomes fanon.
When I was in SGA fandom, I remember that there was a scene which the woobie-Rodney fans used a lot, and when I actually watched it some time later, I went, "OMG, he's being sarcastic". I can't remember the scene now, just my reaction.
But my point here is that young fans do have a way of taking a text at face value, believing what characters say rather than what they do. They often miss how the text is undercutting what is said with the clear expectation of a counter-reading (he said X, but he's lying; or, the team thought Y happened, but oops, they misunderstood the situation; or, she called him Z, but she's being sarcastic etc).
So while I think the writers have used adoption as a too-easy shorthand for teen angst, I think it's also likely that they've attempted to use it in a more nuanced way, didn't quite nail it, and the teen fans took it at face value as an excuse for Jackson being an arse. These two things aren't mutually exclusive -- they can both be true at the same time.
Certianly my reading is that it's not a straight-up angst narrative -- that just doesn't fit. I think they've set it up on purpose to be a major story thread in a future season, and it will be one of the bait-and-switches the show loves so much. I think the final excuse for Jackson being an arse will be something like, "He's always known he should have been a wolf, that he should have been part of a pack, and that's what made him such an arse." Which makes it more of a cuckoo narrative than a straight adoption-angst narrative.
I guess we'll see, right?
I do hope they have less gender fail in next season, though. That's what really bothered me about the S2 finale. There were other issues, as you say, but the way both Lydia and Allison lost all agency in the service to the men really bothered me a lot.
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I have to admit that I personally see very little nuance in their use of adoption on Teen Wolf. But then, Teen Wolf along with Once Upon a Time and their representation of adoption are both just pissing me off, so I'm probably being less charitable that I might have been otherwise.
Plus, I dunno if you've seen the news, but Colton Haynes isn't coming back next season - contract negotiations failed or something - so we're never (I presume) going to find out if they were going to do something clever *sadface*
OMG, the gender!fail was HORRIBLE. Lydia went from being a potentially kickass character in S1 to being...that...in S2. I get that she was traumatised but, God, did they have to do that to her? It was such a waste of a good character.
And then Allison. I just. I can't. Not only did they take away her agency, but I can't get over how she went from being good with a crossbow and gymnastics to basically being a ninja who could take out Isaac with knives and badass leaping. Apparently you can learn all that kind of thing in, what, about a week? Not to mention the fact that she went from not trusting her grandfather to believing everything he told her in what seemed to be about five minutes. EVERYTHING about Allison in the final two or three episodes bugged me. Well, more than bugged me. Made me yell at the TV in anger and frustration.
I really hope they do well by the female characters next season.
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Yeah. The only reason I think there's more to the TW adoption narrative is because 1) the parent/teacher interviews were largely more about the parents than their kids, and except for the Sheriff and Melissa they were all a bit off, and that contrast seemed to be on purpose, 2) Jackson's problems are clearly not because he's adopted. But they didn't really nail it, if they did want people to read the parent interview as something to be suspicious of -- it's only because of the contrast with the Argents and Martins that I read that into it as strongly as I did.
I hadn't heard about Haynes; a shame to not get closure on that thread, but I won't miss Jackson. :)
And I totally agree with the adoption narrative in OUAT. :(
I won't even get started on Allison and Lydia, but word!
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And the thing about ouat is that I like the show - well, I like it now, I was this close to giving up on it at the end of S1 - I like that they have strong women but then they have all this weird stuff about adoption and family in general and I just want to scream.
Here's to hoping S3 does nicer things to Allison and Lydia.
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