How Not To Do The Count of Monte Cristo
I've been meaning to make a post about Revenge, which is a new show on ABC for the fall. Now seems like as good a time as ever.
This show is supposed to be based on the Count of Monte Cristo, and in some ways it is. For the record, I am a bit of a fan of the Count of Monte Cristo. I even liked the crappy movie, though it went completely into its own crazy territory. ("Albert, I am your father." lololol)
So given that Revenge is a modern day AU version with a female lead? I should be all over this thing. I fucking love this story. I fucking love modern day AUs and genderswap. I mean, if I can get behind an anime version where Edmond is a blue vampire and there are mecha battles in space? Is the Hamptons setting really going to present that big of a hurdle?
The unfortunate fact is that however much I want to like this thing, it's just not delivering on some key levels. Emily Thorne is not Edmond Dantes. She's more like if Edmond had a daughter to do all the pwnage for him. That'd be fine with me, but they've gutted the emotional impact in doing so. Her story lacks the punch that Edmond's does. Her family was certainly screwed over by greedy rich bastards, but she hasn't had her faith in humanity as ruthlessly smashed. She hasn't had her entire future happiness stolen out from under her. She hasn't been dropped to the absolute depths of despair only to rise up with money, education, style, and a single, laser-like focus on dishing it back. This rings less of "I AM THE PERSONIFIED HAND OF GOD, COME TO SMITE MY ENEMIES. SUCK ON MY JUSTICE, BITCHES." and more of petty backstabbing. She also lacks the smooth-ness that Edmond uses to sweep in and charm the fuck out of everyone. I don't see her with a master plan she's pulling all the strings on. She sneaks her way back into the Hamptons rather than lands in a hot air balloon and starts throwing big fucking parties. (I said I liked the crappy movie, yeah?)
The kicker, and the thing that I am most upset about, is that Emily and her family are not working class. Her father was a rich man working with other rich people who fucked him over to get more rich. And now she is fucking them over in return. Presumably to free her father so they can be happy and rich again.
This is not a compelling story.
This is a bunch of rich white people in the Hamptons backstabbing each other. I cannot relate. I cannot bring myself to give a shit. Given our political climate right now, especially in light of Occupy Wall Street, The Count of Monte Cristo is the perfect fucking story to tell. How could they screw this up so badly?
There are some bits I like. I like the guys who are the equivalent of Morrel & Sons. Because they're the only people working their asses off to make a living, bless. I also like that Fernand's equivalent is also genderswapped. I like that Emily is faux romancing the Albert equivalent (which totes is happening in the book too). But that's pretty much it.
That's the story of how I came to dislike a modern day, genderswapped AU. This is a thing I never thought possible. It had so much potential. I am heartbroken.
P.S. The damn boat should have been named the Pharaon, not Amanda. What the crapping crap.
Originally posted at http://revolutionaryjo.dreamwidth.org/561722.html. Comments prefered there, but not required!
This show is supposed to be based on the Count of Monte Cristo, and in some ways it is. For the record, I am a bit of a fan of the Count of Monte Cristo. I even liked the crappy movie, though it went completely into its own crazy territory. ("Albert, I am your father." lololol)
So given that Revenge is a modern day AU version with a female lead? I should be all over this thing. I fucking love this story. I fucking love modern day AUs and genderswap. I mean, if I can get behind an anime version where Edmond is a blue vampire and there are mecha battles in space? Is the Hamptons setting really going to present that big of a hurdle?
The unfortunate fact is that however much I want to like this thing, it's just not delivering on some key levels. Emily Thorne is not Edmond Dantes. She's more like if Edmond had a daughter to do all the pwnage for him. That'd be fine with me, but they've gutted the emotional impact in doing so. Her story lacks the punch that Edmond's does. Her family was certainly screwed over by greedy rich bastards, but she hasn't had her faith in humanity as ruthlessly smashed. She hasn't had her entire future happiness stolen out from under her. She hasn't been dropped to the absolute depths of despair only to rise up with money, education, style, and a single, laser-like focus on dishing it back. This rings less of "I AM THE PERSONIFIED HAND OF GOD, COME TO SMITE MY ENEMIES. SUCK ON MY JUSTICE, BITCHES." and more of petty backstabbing. She also lacks the smooth-ness that Edmond uses to sweep in and charm the fuck out of everyone. I don't see her with a master plan she's pulling all the strings on. She sneaks her way back into the Hamptons rather than lands in a hot air balloon and starts throwing big fucking parties. (I said I liked the crappy movie, yeah?)
The kicker, and the thing that I am most upset about, is that Emily and her family are not working class. Her father was a rich man working with other rich people who fucked him over to get more rich. And now she is fucking them over in return. Presumably to free her father so they can be happy and rich again.
This is not a compelling story.
This is a bunch of rich white people in the Hamptons backstabbing each other. I cannot relate. I cannot bring myself to give a shit. Given our political climate right now, especially in light of Occupy Wall Street, The Count of Monte Cristo is the perfect fucking story to tell. How could they screw this up so badly?
There are some bits I like. I like the guys who are the equivalent of Morrel & Sons. Because they're the only people working their asses off to make a living, bless. I also like that Fernand's equivalent is also genderswapped. I like that Emily is faux romancing the Albert equivalent (which totes is happening in the book too). But that's pretty much it.
That's the story of how I came to dislike a modern day, genderswapped AU. This is a thing I never thought possible. It had so much potential. I am heartbroken.
P.S. The damn boat should have been named the Pharaon, not Amanda. What the crapping crap.
Originally posted at http://revolutionaryjo.dreamwidth.org/561722.html. Comments prefered there, but not required!