Making G.I. Joe dance through the sky.
Some housekeeping stuff, as long as we're all here:
1. I can't imagine why anyone ever would, but please don't post your comments to this LJ on Facebook or Twitter. That would be both rude and dumb.
2. As a result of #1, there seems to be another exodus to Dreamwidth. I crosspost everything there, and my DW tagging system is way funnier. As long as my fandoms stay resolutely on LJ and my inertia remains strong, I'll use both services.
And now, Notes on Recent Television.
Someone on Formspring has asked me several questions about Mad Men, strongly implying that if I post my thoughts on the show, at least one person wants to read them. I feel bad, because I've almost stopped watching the show at least twice this season. Watching it feels like work. Everyone is devastatingly unpleasant; Don and Betty's divorce has taken away much of the tension and one of the centers of the show; I miss Sal and single!Joan. It's still a good show, but if it weren't showing up on the DVR every week, I probably would have drifted already.
True Blood, on the other hand, is my vampire girlfriend. I'm three weeks behind on it (although extensively spoiled) but I love it so hard. As it strays farther from the novels (which I have not read and alas probably will never have time to - I am attempting to get thistle90 to read them for me) it seems to get less trashy and more narratively cohesive. And the quality of the acting is crazy good, often so subtly that it's hard to tell but, like, I saw a YouTube clip of Ryan Kwanten speaking his native Australian. I love it when genre shows stay grounded in the humanity of their characters.
I really don't see the point in watching either of these shows now that they're down to straight douchey men. There's really no one to root for anymore on either show. I know the BB producers have no control over who makes it to the end, but nonetheless, I've been letting it pile up on the DVR since Ragan's eviction. I loved him and Brit, but it was clear neither of them had a prayer.
Top Chef, I'd really been hoping to see Tiffany and Kelly in the finale, and entirely because I wanted to eat everything they produced. I'm lackadaisically hoping Ed wins, because he's the least of three evils. What do Top Chef and The Amazing Race have in common? They've both won Emmys for Best Reality Show, and women hardly ever win either of them.
*
Lifetime's Project Runway is such a different show from Bravo's Project Runway, I feel like I have to look at it on those terms rather than continuing to moan about how much better the show used to be. It's not fair: I think season 2 of ProjRun was the best season of reality TV ever. Back then, there were fewer designers and much more time to complete each challenge. The judging criteria were far different: now, with all the sponsors, there's much more focus on styling and overall look, less on conceptual innovation and artistry.
So I'm watching this season on those terms as much as I can and find myself enjoying the show more than I have in a while. The longer format helps: I started out wishing they would use it to show the clothes, but I also like the surprises on the runway. With so many contestants (one of whom I have only recently stopped referring to as "Gay White Dude #3") the extra time gives us a chance to see and meet more of them.
But at the risk of this whole post being about media representation of women and how I hate it, it is really hard to enjoy any of the remaining female designers this season. Gretchen, Valerie, and Ivy have cliqued into a trifecta of sniping mean girls who think, despite ample evidence to the contrary, that their work is superior to everyone else's. I do actually like Valerie's aesthetic and think she was robbed of a win for that red dress a few weeks ago, but her voice is like sandpaper on my ears. The other two, I have no use for at all. April seems like a sweeter person, but I think she makes ugly clothes. How do you win a resort wear challenge by making black lingerie? Especially when the runner up made that beautiful, flowing, versatile explosion of purple gorgeousness?
Nonetheless, I was ready for Casanova to go. He's not the right kind of designer for the show. I also found him incredibly annoying. He's a Rupert: a contestant with such a huge, "quirky" personality that the producers proclaim him a reality star before the show has gotten going. He should have been gone in the first episode.
But wait! There are designers I actually like this season! Andy South does breathtaking work. His aesthetic is new to the show (if, as I understand, not that uncommon among Hawaiian designers), and I'm surprised whenever he's moored in the middle, since his work is almost always in my personal top three. Despite this week's error in judgment, I like Mondo's playful but classy work, too. I admired the way he admitted he was wrong about Michael C. and made amends with him and how they are BFFy now. Michael C. has become the target for a lot of the mean-girlishness, and while I'm not convinced he deserved either of his wins, both of those winning garments were strong entries.
Tim Gunn is magical and I want him to hug me.
I also have extensive thoughts on Huge, MIOBI, Pretty Little Liars, and the greater ABC Family multiverse, but I think they merit their own post.
1. I can't imagine why anyone ever would, but please don't post your comments to this LJ on Facebook or Twitter. That would be both rude and dumb.
2. As a result of #1, there seems to be another exodus to Dreamwidth. I crosspost everything there, and my DW tagging system is way funnier. As long as my fandoms stay resolutely on LJ and my inertia remains strong, I'll use both services.
And now, Notes on Recent Television.
Someone on Formspring has asked me several questions about Mad Men, strongly implying that if I post my thoughts on the show, at least one person wants to read them. I feel bad, because I've almost stopped watching the show at least twice this season. Watching it feels like work. Everyone is devastatingly unpleasant; Don and Betty's divorce has taken away much of the tension and one of the centers of the show; I miss Sal and single!Joan. It's still a good show, but if it weren't showing up on the DVR every week, I probably would have drifted already.
True Blood, on the other hand, is my vampire girlfriend. I'm three weeks behind on it (although extensively spoiled) but I love it so hard. As it strays farther from the novels (which I have not read and alas probably will never have time to - I am attempting to get thistle90 to read them for me) it seems to get less trashy and more narratively cohesive. And the quality of the acting is crazy good, often so subtly that it's hard to tell but, like, I saw a YouTube clip of Ryan Kwanten speaking his native Australian. I love it when genre shows stay grounded in the humanity of their characters.
I really don't see the point in watching either of these shows now that they're down to straight douchey men. There's really no one to root for anymore on either show. I know the BB producers have no control over who makes it to the end, but nonetheless, I've been letting it pile up on the DVR since Ragan's eviction. I loved him and Brit, but it was clear neither of them had a prayer.
Top Chef, I'd really been hoping to see Tiffany and Kelly in the finale, and entirely because I wanted to eat everything they produced. I'm lackadaisically hoping Ed wins, because he's the least of three evils. What do Top Chef and The Amazing Race have in common? They've both won Emmys for Best Reality Show, and women hardly ever win either of them.
*
Lifetime's Project Runway is such a different show from Bravo's Project Runway, I feel like I have to look at it on those terms rather than continuing to moan about how much better the show used to be. It's not fair: I think season 2 of ProjRun was the best season of reality TV ever. Back then, there were fewer designers and much more time to complete each challenge. The judging criteria were far different: now, with all the sponsors, there's much more focus on styling and overall look, less on conceptual innovation and artistry.
So I'm watching this season on those terms as much as I can and find myself enjoying the show more than I have in a while. The longer format helps: I started out wishing they would use it to show the clothes, but I also like the surprises on the runway. With so many contestants (one of whom I have only recently stopped referring to as "Gay White Dude #3") the extra time gives us a chance to see and meet more of them.
But at the risk of this whole post being about media representation of women and how I hate it, it is really hard to enjoy any of the remaining female designers this season. Gretchen, Valerie, and Ivy have cliqued into a trifecta of sniping mean girls who think, despite ample evidence to the contrary, that their work is superior to everyone else's. I do actually like Valerie's aesthetic and think she was robbed of a win for that red dress a few weeks ago, but her voice is like sandpaper on my ears. The other two, I have no use for at all. April seems like a sweeter person, but I think she makes ugly clothes. How do you win a resort wear challenge by making black lingerie? Especially when the runner up made that beautiful, flowing, versatile explosion of purple gorgeousness?
Nonetheless, I was ready for Casanova to go. He's not the right kind of designer for the show. I also found him incredibly annoying. He's a Rupert: a contestant with such a huge, "quirky" personality that the producers proclaim him a reality star before the show has gotten going. He should have been gone in the first episode.
But wait! There are designers I actually like this season! Andy South does breathtaking work. His aesthetic is new to the show (if, as I understand, not that uncommon among Hawaiian designers), and I'm surprised whenever he's moored in the middle, since his work is almost always in my personal top three. Despite this week's error in judgment, I like Mondo's playful but classy work, too. I admired the way he admitted he was wrong about Michael C. and made amends with him and how they are BFFy now. Michael C. has become the target for a lot of the mean-girlishness, and while I'm not convinced he deserved either of his wins, both of those winning garments were strong entries.
Tim Gunn is magical and I want him to hug me.
I also have extensive thoughts on Huge, MIOBI, Pretty Little Liars, and the greater ABC Family multiverse, but I think they merit their own post.