Wednesday's brain-fried take on The OC
2.20 The O.C. Confidential
I never watched E-street, but I do remember Richard Grieco, so I shouted with laughter at that, particularly because I thought about half of the audience wouldn't get it. I also think the OC would be immeasurably better if they cut certain scenes and replaced them with title cards stating something like: Ryan/Marissa stare at each other, instead of these long-drawn out actual scenes of...them staring at each other.
And while there were fisticuffs, what I wanted was for Summer to push someone - either Capitalist!Zack or Set-up!Seth into the Silverlake pool. I wanted more Summer time, period. (I love how he alleged best friend is the most scathing commentator on Marissa's behaviour.)
Seth redeemed himself by supremely refusing to put himself out for Marissa, until a few minutes later he annoyed me again. I've whinged about the show's self-reference before, so I'll do it again; Seth as a comic book artist, especially with the whole artistic integrity vs. commercial pressure (never mind how ludicrous it is for a graphic novel that's so fledgling) irks me, because of Anna. For the reasons that I've articulated (his forgetting her) and the fact that he's taken on her trait of drawing. This was underscored by hving the beach fight, with the obligatory 'bitch' line thrown at Ryan. Which just went to remind me of Luke. Remember when the developed characters instead of having walk on caricatures reference their lines? And reminding of TJ and the time Marissa didn't die isn't going to improve my mood.
It needs to be funnier to get away with this stuff.
My mood towards the show was not congenial anyway, as I dislike a plotline which only involves me insomuch as calling Kirsten a liar flatly every now and then. Neither do I care for Sandy the uber white knight. Or rather I don't like the way he's used as a template for the brothers Attwood, who then dashing off to compete in trying to 'protect' the charmed Marissa. Which is not good for them, not good for her, not that entertaining.
Trey was an idiot. The party was Marissa's responsibility (and if Cal has PIs on Marissa, he will find out that police were called to he rager, Julie, so could you please punish her?) She wasn't responsible for the drugs and Sandy could have got her out and off much more easily (was she more than slapped on the wrist for the shoplifting episode?) But no we had to have a lot of wacky hijinx that felt limp and ill thought out to me. I wasn't being given enough to let the same quibbles slide.
I'm more gutted that the Julie/Cal debacle seems to be equally poorly thought out. So we get confirmation that her ex was holed up in the Mermaid Inn (hee) and evidence of th PIs. We also got a lot of confusing clues about Cal's knowledge, and I'll be incredulous if they pull all the strands together. What is Cal playing at? If he knows all regarding his wife (about Luke) will he now get the wrong end of the stick about the goodbye kiss? Or did he set up the ex to test Julie - to see if she would kill him? Or something else. Meanwhile, I'm a little sulky because Julie-as-I-wrote-her knew that Cal was going to ditch her (loved how it was shown that it was painful to realise that Cal hadn't paid for her.) My Julie would have come up with an exit plan beyond tears. (ok, so I haven't thought of actually wha and how as the Newport Living thing has become Kirsten's baby.)
Though I do believe she has genuine feelings for Cal. As the blindfold line showed, and the kitchen business meeting, she hasn't always sacrificed herself as much as Marissa always thinks she has. Though Cal's reacceptence of her carried no spark - but with the put something pretty on my good little, humbled trophy wife vibes, I don't think it was meant to/
However, poor Jules, not only is she in a bad spot, but it hasn't - I think - been plotted out as well as it should have been.
I never watched E-street, but I do remember Richard Grieco, so I shouted with laughter at that, particularly because I thought about half of the audience wouldn't get it. I also think the OC would be immeasurably better if they cut certain scenes and replaced them with title cards stating something like: Ryan/Marissa stare at each other, instead of these long-drawn out actual scenes of...them staring at each other.
And while there were fisticuffs, what I wanted was for Summer to push someone - either Capitalist!Zack or Set-up!Seth into the Silverlake pool. I wanted more Summer time, period. (I love how he alleged best friend is the most scathing commentator on Marissa's behaviour.)
Seth redeemed himself by supremely refusing to put himself out for Marissa, until a few minutes later he annoyed me again. I've whinged about the show's self-reference before, so I'll do it again; Seth as a comic book artist, especially with the whole artistic integrity vs. commercial pressure (never mind how ludicrous it is for a graphic novel that's so fledgling) irks me, because of Anna. For the reasons that I've articulated (his forgetting her) and the fact that he's taken on her trait of drawing. This was underscored by hving the beach fight, with the obligatory 'bitch' line thrown at Ryan. Which just went to remind me of Luke. Remember when the developed characters instead of having walk on caricatures reference their lines? And reminding of TJ and the time Marissa didn't die isn't going to improve my mood.
It needs to be funnier to get away with this stuff.
My mood towards the show was not congenial anyway, as I dislike a plotline which only involves me insomuch as calling Kirsten a liar flatly every now and then. Neither do I care for Sandy the uber white knight. Or rather I don't like the way he's used as a template for the brothers Attwood, who then dashing off to compete in trying to 'protect' the charmed Marissa. Which is not good for them, not good for her, not that entertaining.
Trey was an idiot. The party was Marissa's responsibility (and if Cal has PIs on Marissa, he will find out that police were called to he rager, Julie, so could you please punish her?) She wasn't responsible for the drugs and Sandy could have got her out and off much more easily (was she more than slapped on the wrist for the shoplifting episode?) But no we had to have a lot of wacky hijinx that felt limp and ill thought out to me. I wasn't being given enough to let the same quibbles slide.
I'm more gutted that the Julie/Cal debacle seems to be equally poorly thought out. So we get confirmation that her ex was holed up in the Mermaid Inn (hee) and evidence of th PIs. We also got a lot of confusing clues about Cal's knowledge, and I'll be incredulous if they pull all the strands together. What is Cal playing at? If he knows all regarding his wife (about Luke) will he now get the wrong end of the stick about the goodbye kiss? Or did he set up the ex to test Julie - to see if she would kill him? Or something else. Meanwhile, I'm a little sulky because Julie-as-I-wrote-her knew that Cal was going to ditch her (loved how it was shown that it was painful to realise that Cal hadn't paid for her.) My Julie would have come up with an exit plan beyond tears. (ok, so I haven't thought of actually wha and how as the Newport Living thing has become Kirsten's baby.)
Though I do believe she has genuine feelings for Cal. As the blindfold line showed, and the kitchen business meeting, she hasn't always sacrificed herself as much as Marissa always thinks she has. Though Cal's reacceptence of her carried no spark - but with the put something pretty on my good little, humbled trophy wife vibes, I don't think it was meant to/
However, poor Jules, not only is she in a bad spot, but it hasn't - I think - been plotted out as well as it should have been.