Why S.P.D. Fucking Rocks, Part Two
Instead of being a butt, I'll just write some more on S.P.D. Yes.
Part Two: B-Squad - Putting the fun in dysfunctional Or: "The Rangers Are Fucked-Up But I Love Them Anyway".
As mentioned in my previous essay, the B-Squad has a mix of personalities and their own host of issues which resulted in them not getting long well a lot of the time. Now I'm going to dive deeper into their dysfunction and dissect how they also shore up each others' weaknesses and developed as people over the course of the series. (kikos_ai and I have a pet theory that they actually all have mental disorders of some sort - specifically, they're all at various places on the austim spectrum- but of course that's not provable.)
Again, I am most likely going to show bias toward Bridge and Sky here, but I'll try my best to be neutral.
The Rivals: Jack & Sky
Jack and Sky did NOT get along at first. They bickered, they fought, and Sky was a disobedient little bitch who made it very clear that he thought Jack didn't deserve the position and that he, Sky, could do a much better job. Jack, in turn, became perhaps even more insecure and trusted himself even less because of Sky's animosity, and had to work that much harder to prove himself to everyone. Eventually, however, the chip on Sky's shoulder shrank, to the point where he freely admitted that he believed Jack was doing a good job and that his angst wasn't about him, but was his own problem.
These two could not be more different, yet toward the end of the series they are a tight combo, working together, and Sky did everything he could to HELP Jack instead of passively hindering him. This demonstrated HUGE growth on both their parts- Jack learned to trust himself and his abilities, one of his big weaknesses, while teaching Sky that he didn't HAVE to be Red to be a great Ranger, or as he infamously put it, that "heroes come in all colors". So in their long run, their animosity was definitely beneficial, as it made both of them grow up.
The Girls: Z & Syd
These two had a rivalry at the beginning of the series as well, but unlike Jack and Sky, they actually overcame this fairly quickly. They had the problem of coming from very different backgrounds, to the point where they could not understand each other. Z came from the streets and was used to having to work for and fight for every material possession and every friendship she had. She wanted desperately to find a place to belong, and to find a place for everyone else to belong, too. Syd, on the other hand, had a very happy and fulfilling childhood and was used to everything coming easily to her- she was rich, she was a champion fencer and pop star, she had legions of admirers, and even as far along in the series as Zapped, continued to have her picture on magazine covers.
So how did these two manage to put aside their differences and get along so quickly? Part of it was Z's desire to always see the best in people, and part of it was Syd's ability to fit in. They had some initial static with each other at first, and in S.W.A.T. they argued again, but for the most part they developed a strong bond, even being told by Cruger in Abandoned that they fought well as a team. In Badge, Z sat by Syd's bedside and held her hand. All together now: awwww. It's a testament to the strength of both their characters- as well as their maturity- that they realized sooner than Jack and Sky that fighting wasn't going to work, and actually sticking to that.
The Other Guy: Bridge
Bridge didn't have much of a rivalry with any of the members of B-Squad, and didn't really fight with any of them, except in S.W.A.T., of course. On the flip side, though, he had a lot of trouble relating to them- because his powers made him easily able to understand other people, but had the downside of making it hard for him to express himself in a clear and concise manner, combined with his low self-confidence. Bridge's biggest problem was, to be quite blunt, growing more of a spine and learning to speak up when he was unhappy, instead of rambling on then running off on his own whenever he and the others got frustrated. He demonstrated his growth with S.O.P.H.I.E., when he crumbled under the others' wishes at first, but then was able to say to the others "Look, we fucked up, we need to look beyond our prejudices and trust her".
"Missing" was a great turning point for both him and the others, because it showed just how much the others had come to care about Bridge. They were all clearly worried and ready and rarin' to go find their buddy after they discovered he'd been kidnapped. Beautiful. ♥
I'm not really sure there was a point to this, but feedback is welcomed just the same!
Part Two: B-Squad - Putting the fun in dysfunctional Or: "The Rangers Are Fucked-Up But I Love Them Anyway".
As mentioned in my previous essay, the B-Squad has a mix of personalities and their own host of issues which resulted in them not getting long well a lot of the time. Now I'm going to dive deeper into their dysfunction and dissect how they also shore up each others' weaknesses and developed as people over the course of the series. (kikos_ai and I have a pet theory that they actually all have mental disorders of some sort - specifically, they're all at various places on the austim spectrum- but of course that's not provable.)
Again, I am most likely going to show bias toward Bridge and Sky here, but I'll try my best to be neutral.
The Rivals: Jack & Sky
Jack and Sky did NOT get along at first. They bickered, they fought, and Sky was a disobedient little bitch who made it very clear that he thought Jack didn't deserve the position and that he, Sky, could do a much better job. Jack, in turn, became perhaps even more insecure and trusted himself even less because of Sky's animosity, and had to work that much harder to prove himself to everyone. Eventually, however, the chip on Sky's shoulder shrank, to the point where he freely admitted that he believed Jack was doing a good job and that his angst wasn't about him, but was his own problem.
These two could not be more different, yet toward the end of the series they are a tight combo, working together, and Sky did everything he could to HELP Jack instead of passively hindering him. This demonstrated HUGE growth on both their parts- Jack learned to trust himself and his abilities, one of his big weaknesses, while teaching Sky that he didn't HAVE to be Red to be a great Ranger, or as he infamously put it, that "heroes come in all colors". So in their long run, their animosity was definitely beneficial, as it made both of them grow up.
The Girls: Z & Syd
These two had a rivalry at the beginning of the series as well, but unlike Jack and Sky, they actually overcame this fairly quickly. They had the problem of coming from very different backgrounds, to the point where they could not understand each other. Z came from the streets and was used to having to work for and fight for every material possession and every friendship she had. She wanted desperately to find a place to belong, and to find a place for everyone else to belong, too. Syd, on the other hand, had a very happy and fulfilling childhood and was used to everything coming easily to her- she was rich, she was a champion fencer and pop star, she had legions of admirers, and even as far along in the series as Zapped, continued to have her picture on magazine covers.
So how did these two manage to put aside their differences and get along so quickly? Part of it was Z's desire to always see the best in people, and part of it was Syd's ability to fit in. They had some initial static with each other at first, and in S.W.A.T. they argued again, but for the most part they developed a strong bond, even being told by Cruger in Abandoned that they fought well as a team. In Badge, Z sat by Syd's bedside and held her hand. All together now: awwww. It's a testament to the strength of both their characters- as well as their maturity- that they realized sooner than Jack and Sky that fighting wasn't going to work, and actually sticking to that.
The Other Guy: Bridge
Bridge didn't have much of a rivalry with any of the members of B-Squad, and didn't really fight with any of them, except in S.W.A.T., of course. On the flip side, though, he had a lot of trouble relating to them- because his powers made him easily able to understand other people, but had the downside of making it hard for him to express himself in a clear and concise manner, combined with his low self-confidence. Bridge's biggest problem was, to be quite blunt, growing more of a spine and learning to speak up when he was unhappy, instead of rambling on then running off on his own whenever he and the others got frustrated. He demonstrated his growth with S.O.P.H.I.E., when he crumbled under the others' wishes at first, but then was able to say to the others "Look, we fucked up, we need to look beyond our prejudices and trust her".
"Missing" was a great turning point for both him and the others, because it showed just how much the others had come to care about Bridge. They were all clearly worried and ready and rarin' to go find their buddy after they discovered he'd been kidnapped. Beautiful. ♥
I'm not really sure there was a point to this, but feedback is welcomed just the same!