I've posted so many thoughts in so many places. Where to begin? I'll try to write a composite post (this has all been posted elsewhere so sorry if you are reading it twice):
I was fighting back tears as I watched the last 15 minutes or so of the episode. I was less upset after the Dinner Party than other M/J shippers, but I think that's because the season wasn't over yet and I held out hope that the writers would fix things. They did not. At first, I seriously considered making myself stop caring about Michael and Jan together, even stop caring about Jan. The thing is, I don't mind if Michael and Jan are not together just as long as they are happy. However, if they aren't together Jan isn't on the show and therefore her character just stops, and I don't want that. I think though, that I cannot stop caring about Jan. And, in a way, I think it's rather bold that they are making a female character so unlikable. However, they really have to stop writing her so out of character (at least in my eyes).
The baby storyline doesn't quite make sense, although it could. First of all, why is Jan still in Scranton? She has no reason to be there now other than the fact that she has nowhere else to really go. And the whole sperm bank thing. First of all, really weird. I feel as though we're not getting the whole story. My hope is that she's lying and it really is Michael's baby and she just can't deal with that. Why does she want Michael at her Lamaze class?
The more I think about it, I guess it also makes sense if she went to the sperm bank. She would have done it before the Dinner Party, which would have explained her completely crazy behavior better (if she was just totally horomonal). It makes sense that she would still want a child and that she would be afraid of having one with Michael. I can see how her logic would lead her to this decision. Still, she had no intention of breaking up with Michael, at least none that we know of, so I don't know how she was going to swing that-- tell him later? Or maybe when they were going out she was going to let him think it was his, but now that they are not together she didn't see any point in that.
I did love the sincerity in her voice when she told Michael she didn't cheat on him.
Also, I don't know, on second viewing I really felt for her when she said that she needed to make this baby count. Maybe because I love seeing Jan's dormant maternal side, but she really did look committed to having a child at an older age. Even though she doesn't want to have it with Michael (and that sucks), I was moved by her desperation.
Also, I loved Holly, as I think we are supposed to. She's sort of what Jan would be like if Jan actually liked Michael in a normal, unhindered way. Also my sister pointed out that she was fixing her chair and Michael was helping her--- she's another "chair model!!!" God, I love that metaphor.
M/J fans wanted Jan to have a baby, and it turns out it's like this. It reminds me of something Joss Whedon (or another Buffy writer) said about writing-- give the audience exactly what they want, but give it to them in the worst possible way. That's how I felt about the "I love you"s from The Deposition, and that's how I feel about this baby.
In conclusion, I had a hard time with Jan in the episode, however I continue to like her even though she has become completely unlikable. There has to be a reason she's doing what she's doing other than just "she's crazy," even if the writers aren't showing it. From the Dinner Party to the finale, I don't think the writers have done a good job portraying the nuances of Michael and Jan's relationship. Most likely this failure is due to the writer's strike (loss of momentum and not enough episodes), but the breakdown of their relationship was rushed and I just don't really understand them anymore.
That's when I started worrying...when season 3 ended and 4 began...having Jan fired was one of the worst thing the writers could have done because it kind of forces M/J to be together or at least trying to be together or otherwise we get no Jan in the episodes. I didn't think the firing was on just terms anyway, but even if it was, it was a bad idea for Jan's character to have airtime at all from that point on.
Like we've discussed previously, I really hope that this is just Jan putting up a front and lying so she can feel Michael out before telling him what we hope is the truth -- that the baby is his. It's still wrong, but at lest it's better than what Jan said at face value.
This coudl've just been a sloppy mistake, but when Jan said that Michael isn't "the dad" I was bothered. She should've said "father" because we all know that fathers aren't always dads but dads don't have to be fathers. Then, Michael says he's "kind of going to be a dad" at the end, which ties into the phrases I mentioned. Jan could've said he isn't the father which would leave room for him to be the dad.
What you pointed out regarding giving fans what they want in the most unlikely way is interesting. I agree with you - the ILY's were also said in the same manner. Hmm...what do we choose...bland storylines where we don't get what we want or interesting storylines that have awful secondary plots to them?
I was fighting back tears as I watched the last 15 minutes or so of the episode. I was less upset after the Dinner Party than other M/J shippers, but I think that's because the season wasn't over yet and I held out hope that the writers would fix things. They did not. At first, I seriously considered making myself stop caring about Michael and Jan together, even stop caring about Jan. The thing is, I don't mind if Michael and Jan are not together just as long as they are happy. However, if they aren't together Jan isn't on the show and therefore her character just stops, and I don't want that. I think though, that I cannot stop caring about Jan. And, in a way, I think it's rather bold that they are making a female character so unlikable. However, they really have to stop writing her so out of character (at least in my eyes).
The baby storyline doesn't quite make sense, although it could. First of all, why is Jan still in Scranton? She has no reason to be there now other than the fact that she has nowhere else to really go. And the whole sperm bank thing. First of all, really weird. I feel as though we're not getting the whole story. My hope is that she's lying and it really is Michael's baby and she just can't deal with that. Why does she want Michael at her Lamaze class?
The more I think about it, I guess it also makes sense if she went to the sperm bank. She would have done it before the Dinner Party, which would have explained her completely crazy behavior better (if she was just totally horomonal). It makes sense that she would still want a child and that she would be afraid of having one with Michael. I can see how her logic would lead her to this decision. Still, she had no intention of breaking up with Michael, at least none that we know of, so I don't know how she was going to swing that-- tell him later? Or maybe when they were going out she was going to let him think it was his, but now that they are not together she didn't see any point in that.
I did love the sincerity in her voice when she told Michael she didn't cheat on him.
Also, I don't know, on second viewing I really felt for her when she said that she needed to make this baby count. Maybe because I love seeing Jan's dormant maternal side, but she really did look committed to having a child at an older age. Even though she doesn't want to have it with Michael (and that sucks), I was moved by her desperation.
Also, I loved Holly, as I think we are supposed to. She's sort of what Jan would be like if Jan actually liked Michael in a normal, unhindered way. Also my sister pointed out that she was fixing her chair and Michael was helping her--- she's another "chair model!!!" God, I love that metaphor.
M/J fans wanted Jan to have a baby, and it turns out it's like this. It reminds me of something Joss Whedon (or another Buffy writer) said about writing-- give the audience exactly what they want, but give it to them in the worst possible way. That's how I felt about the "I love you"s from The Deposition, and that's how I feel about this baby.
In conclusion, I had a hard time with Jan in the episode, however I continue to like her even though she has become completely unlikable. There has to be a reason she's doing what she's doing other than just "she's crazy," even if the writers aren't showing it. From the Dinner Party to the finale, I don't think the writers have done a good job portraying the nuances of Michael and Jan's relationship. Most likely this failure is due to the writer's strike (loss of momentum and not enough episodes), but the breakdown of their relationship was rushed and I just don't really understand them anymore.
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Like we've discussed previously, I really hope that this is just Jan putting up a front and lying so she can feel Michael out before telling him what we hope is the truth -- that the baby is his. It's still wrong, but at lest it's better than what Jan said at face value.
This coudl've just been a sloppy mistake, but when Jan said that Michael isn't "the dad" I was bothered. She should've said "father" because we all know that fathers aren't always dads but dads don't have to be fathers. Then, Michael says he's "kind of going to be a dad" at the end, which ties into the phrases I mentioned. Jan could've said he isn't the father which would leave room for him to be the dad.
What you pointed out regarding giving fans what they want in the most unlikely way is interesting. I agree with you - the ILY's were also said in the same manner. Hmm...what do we choose...bland storylines where we don't get what we want or interesting storylines that have awful secondary plots to them?
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