Heroes wank and Lost rant
First off, I'm going to discuss Heroes (which I've absolutely come to love, the last show I was this excited about every week was Xena) so as to at least be somewhat calm before moving into Lost territory. So it's just a general warning that the Lost stuff may come off incredibly bitter. I've come to the crossroads that after the next two episodes I'm going to SERIOUSLY consider whether I even want to bother continuing to watch this series. Of course if Medium ends up in it's time slot, I really won't have to think much, I'll catch the rest of the season more than likely on DVD...rental.
I love this show, it's intriguing every week, and every character is just getting that much more interesting.
Nathan is truly the asshole politician that's just fun to watch. He's so self absorbed and mean that he really IS a politician. Yet he has moments where you can wonder what would this guy be like if he hadn't become power hungry and controlling.
Peter is getting much more tolerable. Now if there could just be a freak accident where his hair got stuck in some clippers I'd be even happier. I like how he WANTS to figure out his powers, and is completely embracing his "differentlyabled-ness". Considering that he basically absorbs other people's powers, he definitely could be the "god" character.
Niki/ikiN, I'm still not sure about. I can't tell if she has special powers, or if she just has a split personality. I do wish they'd go into greater detail so we can KNOW without a shadow of a doubt how ikiN comes about, and if she's a branch of Niki's personality, or a completely different person altogether.
Hiro, I just want to take him home to be my pet. His enthusiasm keeps the show from becoming too dark. He's the comic relief, obviously, but it's not TOO over the top or broad, it's actually quite charming. Every single comic book nerd CAN relate to Hiro, and WISH they could be him. Come on, who hasn't wished they could be a comic book hero? Especially one on par with Professor Xavier or even Rogue(NOT the fucking movie versions dammit).
Matt is both annoying and interesting to me. I like how he's using his powers for good, but he's also being INCREDIBLY manipulative with his wife, and I find it an interesting storyline. I WANT to see if there's a fall out should she figure out that he can literally read her mind at will, and he's used that to get closer to her. He hasn't actually gone out of his way to try, he's just fulfilled everything she's thought about. It's basically cheating at a relationship. He's a nice guy, but he's failed so much he's started to try to hard. He's basically doing what anyone would do if their marriage and career were starting to fail.
Isaac needs a reality check. It's apparent through Peter's ability to use his painting the future that Isaac doesn't NEED the heroin to paint the future, but it's his subconcious refusing to let go of the habit. He'd be cooler if they actually went more out of their way to make him seem like an addict. Simone isn't around anymore to clean him and his apartment up.
Then there's Claire. Her ability is just...fun, in a morbid way. Seeing how she messes herself up without a second thought (and apparently with very little pain) is not something you see on everyday TV.
Overall the plot is strong, even if it faulters in a few spots with consistencies. I can give them a little wiggle room with the inconsistencies because, hell, it's the first season and it only has like 5 episodes under it's belt! It's not like ESTABLISHED shows (Smallville I'm looking at you) doesn't have it's fair share of blatant inconsistencies. The characters are pretty true to who they were, though Mohinder and Claire faultered for me this last episode.
Mohinder was just an asshat to Peter. I don't understand how a guy who flies all the way from India to try to figure out why his father was killed, and what his father was working on, baulks at the idea of going back across town in New York. Hello Mr. Crankypants, just because Isaac didn't ANSWER the door when you went to the apartment doesn't mean the dude doesn't exist. Has he never heard of "not being home"? Or "so drugged I was in a future painting zone with creepy white eyes so I'm not technically at home at the moment"? For a scientist of any kind, Mohinder isn't very good on following leads, no matter how "what if" they are. The best scientific finds have been by following improbable "what if's".
Then there's Claire. Granted it's a wrong thing to do, but I'm sure most women cheered a little last week when indestructible (as far as we know) Claire rammed the rapist jock's car, with him in the passenger seat, into a wall full speed. Morally, her compass was a little off, but I'd like to see any woman try to not kill a completely unrepentant rapist. Especially if that woman had only escaped the rape because would be rapist accidentally killed her, stripped her, dragged her, then threw her in a river. So yeah, I cheered when she tried to kill the bastard (even if it was an overly cliche story point). However I almost outwardly screamed when the next week, in all her remorse, she goes up to the bastard that killed her, and basically said he'd do it again, AND SAID THEY BOTH DESERVED A SECOND CHANCE! The fuck, man?! Are you KIDDING me? Way to give the character a backbone and then snatch it back without a second thought. It was even worse that it really then ended up being her creepy adoptive father who took care of the problem, NOT HER.
I know, I know, I GET why they did it. The whole "super heroes don't kill" thing. Which could technically be argued, and hell Clark Kent probably weekly kills people with internal bleeding. But it just made the whole situation hollow, after taking this turn that most shows that have this type of storyline would NEVER do.
Claire's dad is also becoming more and more interesting. He's creepy as hell, and has more than a few paedophile vibes going on, but he's intriguing. I find it not at all coincidental that after Nathan AND Matt meet up with this guy, in a creepy and scary way, that they both are stronger, faster, and just better at their powers. Nathan "accidentally" flies up and catches his brother in the pilot, and he has very little control. After meeting Claire's Creepy Daddy, all of a sudden he can take off Superman style then fly fast enough to create a sonic boom? And Matt, catchs people's thoughts here and there beforee CCD, but now he can read everyone's mind (literally) at will?
I think CCD is going in and taking everyone's power to it's fullest potential. Makes me wonder what he could do if Claire ever told him the truth about herself which he's so DESPERATELY prodding her to. I gotta admit, the actor who plays CCD is amazing, he creepily has an almost inappropriate closeness (literally) with his adoptive daughter, but it was amazing watching his reaction to Claire in the hospital. Smiling, thinking Claire is going to tell the superpower secret, then watching that slowly fade to turn to rage as he realized what his daughter was disjointedly trying to tell him about rapist jock.
The best part is, I can't tell WHERE they are going from week to week. I can't even begin to guess how every storyline is going to pan out as each week rolls around, and I LOVE that.
Lost YOU used to do that.
Heroes is borrowing slightly from the Lost formula. Putting little clues into every episode to get the audience engaged. Little things like, how coincidental it is that Mohinder seems to always make these GRAND discoveries every time the pixie is around (I can't be bothered to learn her name, I don't like the character, and the actress is absolutely awful). Or that when ikiN came to the fore she had a tattoo, but we've yet to see Niki have that tattoo. Or that the tattoo that ikiN had, was similar to the necklace mind erasing dude had, which is similar to a design on one of Isaac's paintings, which was embedded in the code that Mohinder's father had on the flash drive (not to be confused with a portable damn hard drive *rolls eyes*, yes, excuse me while I put this big clunky hard drive in my pocket and carry it around unnoticed, but at least it's USB compatible!). Personally, I think Mohinder was supposed to see that design and not the code, hence why the code was gibberish.
And the difference that I think is biggest between Lost and Heroes, I actually believe that these clues being seen WILL come to something of interest, regardless of what the fans want.
Oh, and the fact that 'ships aren't the driving point and central plot to half the damn episodes.
Grr.
All in all, I DO want them to clean things up a little, try to work out the inconsistencies, but they aren't so bad that it pops me out of the episodes. I'll be more harsh next season though if they continue to make the same mistakes.
Oh, and more Clea DuVall, I've missed her since Carnivale was prematurely cancelled. Bastards.
I'm seriously almost done with Lost. I'm more done with this show than I am The L Words and anyone who reads my journal on a semi regular basis KNOWS how disgruntled I am with that show.
I mean, I'm to the point of giving up on it because there's nothing I even LIKE about it anymore. Yeah I like the "Oooo, Desmond can tell the future", but it's already being done on a more interesting show in a more interesting way. And like the many other plot threads this show that just sit out there and dangle, I feel like they aren't going to do much with it. Hell, we've already gone FOUR episodes and we STILL don't know what happened to make the sky turn purple and the bunker go kaboom.
Oops, I'm sorry, it imploded, but I still reserve the right to call bullshit on that explanation (same as the...'Oh, Desmond forgot to push the button so a big old magnet pulled the plane out of the sky, so that's the only reason every is on the island, therefore all the connections and the plane being off course is completely irrelevant!' plot). For an implosion there should have been something left of the bunker, and the hole was INCREDIBLY shallow. I'm reserving the right to call bullshit until we find out if the bunker is under the shallow dirt grave...but it still doesn't explain the flying hatch landing on the beach.
Anyway, I don't like any of the characters, they are all incredibly unlikable in any way. Charlie is an ass to everyone and just has this incredibly sullen attitude. Claire thinks Desmond is a little odd, but takes to heart the advice of her ex junky boyfriend who lied to her repeatedly, is demanding/possessive towards her, oh and kidnapped her baby maybe slightly more than ONE FRIGGING WEEK ago. (BTW, as a complete aside, it always irks me that they go out of their way to make mention of how little time goes by to the audience, yet their writing always implies so much more time has went buy...hell by their rate, they need to use whatever Jungle Juice is on that island and give it to every heroin addict, cause Charlie had a smooth as hell detox). Jack is...Jack. Kate went from this strong person (even if I didn't like her), to this dirtier (like dirt, not smut) version of any soap opera girl. Locke should have a serious split personality by now considering how many times his character has changed paths in three seasons. Sayid...are you even still on this show? Did you die with Shannon? Jin and Sun, also, not around much unless it's another show about their marriage, and they are both becoming two people who are passive liars.
Oh, and this is coming from someone who is so white they create a glare when they are out in the sun, but it REALLY bothers me that it seems that the people of colour on this show are virtually non-existant now until the story is about them. I remember in the first season, everyone seemed to mingle with everyone, now, it's easy to forget people like Sayid, Eko, Jin and Sun are regulars on this show. And is there as SINGLE person of colour even IN the Others camp (outside of Mrs. Klugh who we've heard not much from since season 2)? If that's true, and when the other Other's come around (cause I'm of the belief there IS two sets of others since the timeline for when Goodwin got to the tailies and when they got attacked did NOT make sense, I have some faith in the writers to believe that was done purposely), if they are people of colour, even *I* am going to call foul.
Then again, I suppose that's what happens when a series is written by good old boys who probably have as many people of colour on their writing staff as women. Hence the many stereotypes (angry black man, submissive korean woman, domineering korean man, "motherly" black woman...)
I love NOTHING about this show anymore. I'm beyond aggravated at the story points, which have gone SO FAR from everything set up in season one that it's a completely different show. I want to know more about the Polar Bears. I want to know more about the mysterious "sound" coming from teh forest as trees were being pulled down. I want to know more about the islands "security" system. I want to know more about how The Black Rock got into the middle of the island. I want to know more about what happened with Danielle's crew. I want to know what the sickness is. I want to know how Locke got paralyzed. And I want a more believable answer as to WHY the plane crashed on that island as opposed to "Ooops, Desmond forgot!". That was a lazy answer, and threw every ounce of physics OUT the window.
I have little to say that's good about this show anymore, and that tells me as a viewer I need to step away. And it's sad, I really loved this show once. I loved theorizing about what the hell Polar Bears where doing in a climate they shouldn't even exist. Or theorizing why Locke was able to walk after he got on the island.
Long ago, the island was a character, but it's one character they killed off without letting the audience in on it.
So boo to them. Boo to love triangles, shitty explanations that they think is BIGGER than anything the fan base thought of. Boo to trying to please the shippers and focusing half of every episode to Kate/Jack/Sawyer, all character who have become one dimensional and uninteresting. Boo to missing the opportunity to tell stories through the eyes of the Others.
Boo to all missed opportunities that could have kept me loving this show.
RIP Lost
ETA: I forgot to mention in the Heroes discussion that Simone is boring. Pretty but boring. Do something with her or get her off the show. She's adding nothing so far, not even a love triangle because Isaac just doesn't seem to really care. So, make her interesting, or make her leave.
I love this show, it's intriguing every week, and every character is just getting that much more interesting.
Nathan is truly the asshole politician that's just fun to watch. He's so self absorbed and mean that he really IS a politician. Yet he has moments where you can wonder what would this guy be like if he hadn't become power hungry and controlling.
Peter is getting much more tolerable. Now if there could just be a freak accident where his hair got stuck in some clippers I'd be even happier. I like how he WANTS to figure out his powers, and is completely embracing his "differentlyabled-ness". Considering that he basically absorbs other people's powers, he definitely could be the "god" character.
Niki/ikiN, I'm still not sure about. I can't tell if she has special powers, or if she just has a split personality. I do wish they'd go into greater detail so we can KNOW without a shadow of a doubt how ikiN comes about, and if she's a branch of Niki's personality, or a completely different person altogether.
Hiro, I just want to take him home to be my pet. His enthusiasm keeps the show from becoming too dark. He's the comic relief, obviously, but it's not TOO over the top or broad, it's actually quite charming. Every single comic book nerd CAN relate to Hiro, and WISH they could be him. Come on, who hasn't wished they could be a comic book hero? Especially one on par with Professor Xavier or even Rogue(NOT the fucking movie versions dammit).
Matt is both annoying and interesting to me. I like how he's using his powers for good, but he's also being INCREDIBLY manipulative with his wife, and I find it an interesting storyline. I WANT to see if there's a fall out should she figure out that he can literally read her mind at will, and he's used that to get closer to her. He hasn't actually gone out of his way to try, he's just fulfilled everything she's thought about. It's basically cheating at a relationship. He's a nice guy, but he's failed so much he's started to try to hard. He's basically doing what anyone would do if their marriage and career were starting to fail.
Isaac needs a reality check. It's apparent through Peter's ability to use his painting the future that Isaac doesn't NEED the heroin to paint the future, but it's his subconcious refusing to let go of the habit. He'd be cooler if they actually went more out of their way to make him seem like an addict. Simone isn't around anymore to clean him and his apartment up.
Then there's Claire. Her ability is just...fun, in a morbid way. Seeing how she messes herself up without a second thought (and apparently with very little pain) is not something you see on everyday TV.
Overall the plot is strong, even if it faulters in a few spots with consistencies. I can give them a little wiggle room with the inconsistencies because, hell, it's the first season and it only has like 5 episodes under it's belt! It's not like ESTABLISHED shows (Smallville I'm looking at you) doesn't have it's fair share of blatant inconsistencies. The characters are pretty true to who they were, though Mohinder and Claire faultered for me this last episode.
Mohinder was just an asshat to Peter. I don't understand how a guy who flies all the way from India to try to figure out why his father was killed, and what his father was working on, baulks at the idea of going back across town in New York. Hello Mr. Crankypants, just because Isaac didn't ANSWER the door when you went to the apartment doesn't mean the dude doesn't exist. Has he never heard of "not being home"? Or "so drugged I was in a future painting zone with creepy white eyes so I'm not technically at home at the moment"? For a scientist of any kind, Mohinder isn't very good on following leads, no matter how "what if" they are. The best scientific finds have been by following improbable "what if's".
Then there's Claire. Granted it's a wrong thing to do, but I'm sure most women cheered a little last week when indestructible (as far as we know) Claire rammed the rapist jock's car, with him in the passenger seat, into a wall full speed. Morally, her compass was a little off, but I'd like to see any woman try to not kill a completely unrepentant rapist. Especially if that woman had only escaped the rape because would be rapist accidentally killed her, stripped her, dragged her, then threw her in a river. So yeah, I cheered when she tried to kill the bastard (even if it was an overly cliche story point). However I almost outwardly screamed when the next week, in all her remorse, she goes up to the bastard that killed her, and basically said he'd do it again, AND SAID THEY BOTH DESERVED A SECOND CHANCE! The fuck, man?! Are you KIDDING me? Way to give the character a backbone and then snatch it back without a second thought. It was even worse that it really then ended up being her creepy adoptive father who took care of the problem, NOT HER.
I know, I know, I GET why they did it. The whole "super heroes don't kill" thing. Which could technically be argued, and hell Clark Kent probably weekly kills people with internal bleeding. But it just made the whole situation hollow, after taking this turn that most shows that have this type of storyline would NEVER do.
Claire's dad is also becoming more and more interesting. He's creepy as hell, and has more than a few paedophile vibes going on, but he's intriguing. I find it not at all coincidental that after Nathan AND Matt meet up with this guy, in a creepy and scary way, that they both are stronger, faster, and just better at their powers. Nathan "accidentally" flies up and catches his brother in the pilot, and he has very little control. After meeting Claire's Creepy Daddy, all of a sudden he can take off Superman style then fly fast enough to create a sonic boom? And Matt, catchs people's thoughts here and there beforee CCD, but now he can read everyone's mind (literally) at will?
I think CCD is going in and taking everyone's power to it's fullest potential. Makes me wonder what he could do if Claire ever told him the truth about herself which he's so DESPERATELY prodding her to. I gotta admit, the actor who plays CCD is amazing, he creepily has an almost inappropriate closeness (literally) with his adoptive daughter, but it was amazing watching his reaction to Claire in the hospital. Smiling, thinking Claire is going to tell the superpower secret, then watching that slowly fade to turn to rage as he realized what his daughter was disjointedly trying to tell him about rapist jock.
The best part is, I can't tell WHERE they are going from week to week. I can't even begin to guess how every storyline is going to pan out as each week rolls around, and I LOVE that.
Lost YOU used to do that.
Heroes is borrowing slightly from the Lost formula. Putting little clues into every episode to get the audience engaged. Little things like, how coincidental it is that Mohinder seems to always make these GRAND discoveries every time the pixie is around (I can't be bothered to learn her name, I don't like the character, and the actress is absolutely awful). Or that when ikiN came to the fore she had a tattoo, but we've yet to see Niki have that tattoo. Or that the tattoo that ikiN had, was similar to the necklace mind erasing dude had, which is similar to a design on one of Isaac's paintings, which was embedded in the code that Mohinder's father had on the flash drive (not to be confused with a portable damn hard drive *rolls eyes*, yes, excuse me while I put this big clunky hard drive in my pocket and carry it around unnoticed, but at least it's USB compatible!). Personally, I think Mohinder was supposed to see that design and not the code, hence why the code was gibberish.
And the difference that I think is biggest between Lost and Heroes, I actually believe that these clues being seen WILL come to something of interest, regardless of what the fans want.
Oh, and the fact that 'ships aren't the driving point and central plot to half the damn episodes.
Grr.
All in all, I DO want them to clean things up a little, try to work out the inconsistencies, but they aren't so bad that it pops me out of the episodes. I'll be more harsh next season though if they continue to make the same mistakes.
Oh, and more Clea DuVall, I've missed her since Carnivale was prematurely cancelled. Bastards.
I'm seriously almost done with Lost. I'm more done with this show than I am The L Words and anyone who reads my journal on a semi regular basis KNOWS how disgruntled I am with that show.
I mean, I'm to the point of giving up on it because there's nothing I even LIKE about it anymore. Yeah I like the "Oooo, Desmond can tell the future", but it's already being done on a more interesting show in a more interesting way. And like the many other plot threads this show that just sit out there and dangle, I feel like they aren't going to do much with it. Hell, we've already gone FOUR episodes and we STILL don't know what happened to make the sky turn purple and the bunker go kaboom.
Oops, I'm sorry, it imploded, but I still reserve the right to call bullshit on that explanation (same as the...'Oh, Desmond forgot to push the button so a big old magnet pulled the plane out of the sky, so that's the only reason every is on the island, therefore all the connections and the plane being off course is completely irrelevant!' plot). For an implosion there should have been something left of the bunker, and the hole was INCREDIBLY shallow. I'm reserving the right to call bullshit until we find out if the bunker is under the shallow dirt grave...but it still doesn't explain the flying hatch landing on the beach.
Anyway, I don't like any of the characters, they are all incredibly unlikable in any way. Charlie is an ass to everyone and just has this incredibly sullen attitude. Claire thinks Desmond is a little odd, but takes to heart the advice of her ex junky boyfriend who lied to her repeatedly, is demanding/possessive towards her, oh and kidnapped her baby maybe slightly more than ONE FRIGGING WEEK ago. (BTW, as a complete aside, it always irks me that they go out of their way to make mention of how little time goes by to the audience, yet their writing always implies so much more time has went buy...hell by their rate, they need to use whatever Jungle Juice is on that island and give it to every heroin addict, cause Charlie had a smooth as hell detox). Jack is...Jack. Kate went from this strong person (even if I didn't like her), to this dirtier (like dirt, not smut) version of any soap opera girl. Locke should have a serious split personality by now considering how many times his character has changed paths in three seasons. Sayid...are you even still on this show? Did you die with Shannon? Jin and Sun, also, not around much unless it's another show about their marriage, and they are both becoming two people who are passive liars.
Oh, and this is coming from someone who is so white they create a glare when they are out in the sun, but it REALLY bothers me that it seems that the people of colour on this show are virtually non-existant now until the story is about them. I remember in the first season, everyone seemed to mingle with everyone, now, it's easy to forget people like Sayid, Eko, Jin and Sun are regulars on this show. And is there as SINGLE person of colour even IN the Others camp (outside of Mrs. Klugh who we've heard not much from since season 2)? If that's true, and when the other Other's come around (cause I'm of the belief there IS two sets of others since the timeline for when Goodwin got to the tailies and when they got attacked did NOT make sense, I have some faith in the writers to believe that was done purposely), if they are people of colour, even *I* am going to call foul.
Then again, I suppose that's what happens when a series is written by good old boys who probably have as many people of colour on their writing staff as women. Hence the many stereotypes (angry black man, submissive korean woman, domineering korean man, "motherly" black woman...)
I love NOTHING about this show anymore. I'm beyond aggravated at the story points, which have gone SO FAR from everything set up in season one that it's a completely different show. I want to know more about the Polar Bears. I want to know more about the mysterious "sound" coming from teh forest as trees were being pulled down. I want to know more about the islands "security" system. I want to know more about how The Black Rock got into the middle of the island. I want to know more about what happened with Danielle's crew. I want to know what the sickness is. I want to know how Locke got paralyzed. And I want a more believable answer as to WHY the plane crashed on that island as opposed to "Ooops, Desmond forgot!". That was a lazy answer, and threw every ounce of physics OUT the window.
I have little to say that's good about this show anymore, and that tells me as a viewer I need to step away. And it's sad, I really loved this show once. I loved theorizing about what the hell Polar Bears where doing in a climate they shouldn't even exist. Or theorizing why Locke was able to walk after he got on the island.
Long ago, the island was a character, but it's one character they killed off without letting the audience in on it.
So boo to them. Boo to love triangles, shitty explanations that they think is BIGGER than anything the fan base thought of. Boo to trying to please the shippers and focusing half of every episode to Kate/Jack/Sawyer, all character who have become one dimensional and uninteresting. Boo to missing the opportunity to tell stories through the eyes of the Others.
Boo to all missed opportunities that could have kept me loving this show.
RIP Lost
ETA: I forgot to mention in the Heroes discussion that Simone is boring. Pretty but boring. Do something with her or get her off the show. She's adding nothing so far, not even a love triangle because Isaac just doesn't seem to really care. So, make her interesting, or make her leave.