Mikey
My journal is way too Brian-centric . . . I must branch out *flogs self to branch out*
So, Michael. Remember I'm nothing but a wee newbie and wasn't around for what appears to have been The Mikey War, so this is going to sound like old news to most of you. Bear with me.
Despite liking Michael as a character (even though he often drives me crazy & I want to strangle him) I have two overarching issues that I'll disclose upfront:
My first problem with Michael is that he's not Vince. I loved Vince. He's my favorite character in the U.K. version. He's clever, funny and sweet, but not in a syrupy kind of way. He's Stuart's equal on every level - and the simmering-something between them makes sense. The only real difference between them is social class. I was so looking forward to meeting the U.S. version of Vince and was very disappointed when Michael didn't resemble him at all. Every other character in the U.S. version is better than the U.K. version except for Michael, which sucks because Michael is an important character. I missed Vince. It took me a long time to warm up to Michael.
My second problem is Hal Sparks. He was wildly miscast. He's not a terribly good actor, and he's always (as Brian so aptly puts it) dewy-eyed; it gets old pretty quick. Hal doesn't have a lot of range. I get it from a story POV why Brian is so attached to Michael, but despite working with Gale, who could have chemistry with a piece of string if need be, I just never quite got their relationship, which I blame Hal for. Of course I got why Michael was locked in a hopeless crush on Brian (duh, who wouldn't be - even Lindsay and Jennifer have crushes on Brian), but despite Gale's acting, I just don't get why Brian's so attached in return, and I think that's primarily an acting problem on Hal's part. (Just my opinion, no offense intended - I come to this fandom in peace bearing the flag of Switzerland.)
Anyway, those are my two overarching problems. Now I want to hear your meta blah blah about Michael in general.
Btw, I love Ben. He's one of my favorite characters.
So, Michael. Remember I'm nothing but a wee newbie and wasn't around for what appears to have been The Mikey War, so this is going to sound like old news to most of you. Bear with me.
Despite liking Michael as a character (even though he often drives me crazy & I want to strangle him) I have two overarching issues that I'll disclose upfront:
My first problem with Michael is that he's not Vince. I loved Vince. He's my favorite character in the U.K. version. He's clever, funny and sweet, but not in a syrupy kind of way. He's Stuart's equal on every level - and the simmering-something between them makes sense. The only real difference between them is social class. I was so looking forward to meeting the U.S. version of Vince and was very disappointed when Michael didn't resemble him at all. Every other character in the U.S. version is better than the U.K. version except for Michael, which sucks because Michael is an important character. I missed Vince. It took me a long time to warm up to Michael.
My second problem is Hal Sparks. He was wildly miscast. He's not a terribly good actor, and he's always (as Brian so aptly puts it) dewy-eyed; it gets old pretty quick. Hal doesn't have a lot of range. I get it from a story POV why Brian is so attached to Michael, but despite working with Gale, who could have chemistry with a piece of string if need be, I just never quite got their relationship, which I blame Hal for. Of course I got why Michael was locked in a hopeless crush on Brian (duh, who wouldn't be - even Lindsay and Jennifer have crushes on Brian), but despite Gale's acting, I just don't get why Brian's so attached in return, and I think that's primarily an acting problem on Hal's part. (Just my opinion, no offense intended - I come to this fandom in peace bearing the flag of Switzerland.)
Anyway, those are my two overarching problems. Now I want to hear your meta blah blah about Michael in general.
Btw, I love Ben. He's one of my favorite characters.