Fandoms I Have Loved 8: Oz
I'll be the first to admit that when it comes to Oz, I know nothing. But when has that ever stopped me before? Roll on with the FIHL, and if I get it wrong, hey, just tell me so.
Oz is a TV show. About a maximum-security prison. That did its damnedest to show prison life the way it really is. And it was written by Tom Fontana. This is all ( Read more... )
Oz is a TV show. About a maximum-security prison. That did its damnedest to show prison life the way it really is. And it was written by Tom Fontana. This is all ( Read more... )
Oh my god. No no no. There was a reason I only watched one episode of Oz. I do not want to be sucked into the fandom. I. Do. Not.
Because um, the Ultimate Darkfic Wuss? That would be me. I like my characters angsty, but ultimately happy and for the most part good for each other. Not, you know, shanking each other in the back and breaking arms.
Oz is not a place where I want to spend my recreational time.
So why won't it leave me alone?!
Reply
Well, if you figure out, let me know. Because I also am the total non-fan of darkfic - I want happy endings in my fannish reading, dammit. If I want tragic and gruesome, hell, I can always read Ethan Fromme. But somehow the Oz tentacles are all over me. I can't help reading.
So if you figure out how to get rid of the curse of Oz, please, make the information public.
In the meantime, of course, there's a lot of really excellent fic for you to read...
Reply
Eeevil. Or, at least, it would be if I hadn't already READ THEM ALL YESTERDAY. Am I allowed to blame you for this?
More importantly, am I allowed to even talk about Oz fandom if the only canon I am willing to watch is that vid on my hard drive?
Of course I spent a lot of time yesterday reading Episode Guides too. Dammit.
All right, as soon as I return from darkest Africa after consulting many venerable witch doctors I shall announce the cure for the Oz curse publically. Maybe I can sell, it and buy myself some therapy time.
Also, Ethan Frome was the bane of my existence last summer, thanks to that freaking English AP reading list. It looked so innocent! DAMN YOU EDITH WHARTON.
Reply
Hey, I wrote a Fandoms I Have Loved about it, and I've only ever watched that vid. (And, thank you, that's quite enough; I don't need to, you know, see the rape scene and the branding scene and the myriad death scenes and whatever scene explains that godawful thing - that roadkill fungus creature, or whatever it is - that Beecher has on his face sometimes.) So, hell yeah - weigh in with the commentary. This is fandom. It's not like you need to pass comps to have an opinion here.
Am I allowed to blame you for this?
No. I am a fellow-sufferer, and it is wrong to blame the victim.
All right, as soon as I return from darkest Africa after consulting many venerable witch doctors I shall announce the cure for the Oz curse publically.Good. Just don't try the thing with the pentagram and the iron filings and the giant cauldron of stinking muck, because I did that last week and I don't feel my addiction ( ... )
Reply
Rape I cannot handle. At all, ever. American History X proved that very nicely, and at least the protagonists in that one had some semblance of redemption or morals. Things were bad, but they weren't Fontana bad. From what I've heard of Oz, rape seems to be an almost weekly occurence, which is the main reason why I will likely never watch it or, if I do watch, will cause my eventual mental breakdown.
I don't think anything, really, can explain Beecher's beard. Or so I'm told that's what it is. Personally I think that's taking a lot on faith. Keller has almost a beard thing going on in parts of that video, and it is PROPER AND SOMEWHAT SEXY [and then really, that's the beginning of the reasons why i shouldn't watch Oz. Serial killing sociopaths should not be that attractive ( ... )
Reply
This is sort of the blind leading the blind, but, yup. Most characters die. I mean, OK, nearly everyone. And definitely anyone who has sex with Beecher (who goes through a whole "I'll fuck anyone who's interested and everyone I can, just to fuck with your head" thing that really increases the body count) bites it, 'cause Keller is, as you said, protective like that. I read a fic once where O'Reily tries to warn off a new guy who is flirting with Keller (who is, of course, on the outs with Beecher) by saying, "Those two aren't known for playing well with others. I wouldn't get between 'em if I was you." Aaaaaand the Understatement of the Year Award goes to - Ryan O'Reily!
Um, so, the very pale guy that ( ... )
Reply
Is it wrong that I giggled here? It's definitely wrong that I giggled here.
You'd think though, that after awhile a pattern would start to emerge and either Beecher would realize it ["Is it me?"] , or the prisoners he's having sex with would ["Fuck Beecher, end up dead in a supply closet."]
Aaaaaand the Understatement of the Year Award goes to - Ryan O'Reily!
No kidding. Aha! Through google image search [for Schillinger, but we'll get to that later] I've discovered that the one eppy of Oz I inadvertedly watched part of, contained Cyril O'Reily, previously known only as "Someone with long blond hair to whom unspeakable things happened in the space of fifteen minutes. Let us never speak of this again." Ha! You have no idea how satisfying that is. For years my only knowledge of Oz was a vague impression of someone with long, ( ... )
Reply
Reply
Hey, just to poke my head into your convo here for a sec (I'm a buttinski that way *g*) -- actually, no, there really weren't that many rapes *shown* on the show. More like one a season. (Not that that isn't plenty, but...)
Deaths? Heh. Now that's another story...
Yes, the guy Keller has his arm around is Schillinger. The actor JK Simmons lost a quite a bit of weight after the first two seasons, which might account for some of the confusion.
And you know, one thing I haven't seen mentioned here at all in this discussion is that the show isn't *all* violence and despair. It's really really funny sometimes. And human, and sometimes downright touching. I hope I don't sound prickly for saying this, but some of this discussion is making it sound like anyone who actually watches this show must be some sort of depraved ghoul. It's really not like ( ... )
Reply
Well, that's not so bad I guess (and how wrong do I feel for saying that?) I think that just by reading episode guides, maybe it seemed like there were a lot more rapes than actually existed per square inch. Condensing the plot makes it sound a lot more batshit than it actually is, I'm guessing.
Deaths? Heh. Now that's another story...
See, that I think I could handle more, because of the morbid sense of humour thing I have going on.
Yes, the guy Keller has his arm around is Schillinger. The actor JK Simmons lost a quite a bit of weight after the first two seasons, which might account for some of the confusion.
Aha. Thank you very much. thefourthvine and I were going back and forth, so it's nice to have confirmation from someone who's actually seen the show. Can I just say for the record that he is SO SCARY?
And you know, one thing I haven't seen mentioned here at all in this discussion is that the show ( ... )
Reply
I went to check this out, but it must be a locked entry. :-(
Anyway, no I totally hear you -- and believe me, OZ isn't the show for everyone. It is intense, and graphic, and it will put you on an emotional rollercoaster if you get attached to the characters. I'd say go ahead and rent the first season, give it a shot and see what you think. If it's too intense, you'll know after an episode or two, heh, but I doubt that would be enough to send you out for psychiatric care. :-)
Reply
I think another part of the reason I'm reluctant [read: scared] to start watching is that, well...not unlike Beecher, I have a bit of an addictive personality. Only instead of drugs, I do fandoms. Multiple fandoms. For some reason, it is all too easy for me to get really really into a new fandom, and generally it doesn't work if I try to do it halfway.
So even if I do rent the first season, watch a couple of episodes, and then decided it's too much, I will in all likelihood, spend altogether too much time still thinking about it. "I wonder if so and so dies." "I wonder how many episodes I'd have to watch before Beecher goes nuts ( ... )
Reply
My apologies; that wasn't what I intended to convey, or what I actually think. I just think you guys are braver and tougher than I am. I mean, I pitch a major wobbler when there's even one death in my favorite canons (Sirius, whose death really undermined my love for the whole HP series, being one example), and I tend to get squealy and scared and totally little-girly if there's the slightest hint of badness in TV shows. (Seriously. Cannot watch the second season of Sports Night without making this horrible noise, just because there's some drama happening there.) That does not make me not ghoulish, because I am. It just makes me really irritating to be around.
And I know the acting (on Oz, which is actually the subject at hand no matter how much I like to turn the conversation back to me me me) was incredible, and the show itself was amazing and ground- ( ... )
Reply
Anyway, I'm sorry again for sounding cranky. I just get tired of feeling defensive about my fandom (You like WHAT??? Ohmigod, WHY???) and I guess my buttons are a little too easily pushed. :-(
Reply
Leave a comment