I have Thoughts on TVD.
I should probably have written them up . . . last week. When the show came on. But I was busy, so I didn't. Now I am rectifying that.
My Very Important Thoughts on every thing that ever happened (or failed to happen) on The Vampire Diaries, so far
- Every episode is like a roller coaster. I watched it with my (new) roommate, explained essentially nothing to her beforehand. The choice to rerun the last minutes (with some added details, I think?) of the finale was a good one, at least in the cause of roommate television harmony, because as soon as Katherine stuck that knife in David Anders, my roommate said, "I'M HOOKED." (Nikita did not garner a similar reaction.) This was a strong premiere, coming off a strong finale. I hope its sophomore slump starts soon, because otherwise I will spend a lot of Thursdays weeping in indecision.
- Katherine is much more interesting now that she was. I dreaded the Civil War flashbacks in season 1; I didn't find Nina Dobrev convincing. Actually, I found Katherine kind of an embarrassing character, probably because the show is a bit too obviously on a budget and the costumes in the flashbacks were . . . um, not all they could be. (Plus, I think we all agree, using the penultimate year of the Civil War as your base for a history of decadence and excitement is a poor decision, especially since your show is set in Virginia. I mean, seriously, Gone With the Wind gives a better picture of the Civil War.) And she gave me secondhand embarrassment for other, non-cosmetic reasons, which were actually rectified by her appearance here. First, because I think Nina Dobrev has a better handle on the characters now (she did get better toward the end of S1, in fairness). Second, because Katherine, as a character, didn't belong to the 1860s, and it showed too clearly. In 2010 she's great. I'm not sure the writers know how to create characters authentic to that time period while still keeping it a fun teen drama - Damon and Stefan are also not convincing in the 1860s.
- Digression: my favorite moment of the episode was definitely when Katherine sighed over Matt's blue eyes. (Evil bitch after my own heart!) Oh Matt, I loooove you like I love all sincere and good-hearted fictional high school football players. And if Katherine or Caroline eat you, I will be sad. We all know what a terrible vampire you'd make. Maybe Caroline can eat your mom instead?
- Killing Pearl (and Anna! let's be fair) was a STUPID MOVE though. Especially since Katherine does not seem at all interested in vengeance. I want vengeance. I will also accept a way to bring dead vampires back, beyond flashbacks. (Spinoff!)
- Okay . . . killing Anna did lead to Jeremy's hilarious subplot, and I guess indirectly to Damon killing him, which was just . . . mind blowing. So maybe I regret Anna's death a little less? But that is a big maybe. D:
- Haha, and speaking of Jeremy! caitiedidit said: Unless he [Tyler] and Jeremy are going to start making out, and that would be fine too.
themis: I keep expecting this to happen! Probably it's because "I want to jump you" tension is the same if it leads to beating up or making out. (In hindsight . . . poor Vicki. This observation is perhaps too on the nose.)
caitiedidit: LOL, yes, that is exactly it. But Tyler wants to do the beating up kind of jumping to a lot of people, but it's always better with Jeremy.
I stand by this opinion! I know that my basic television M.O. is to suspect the male characters of making out with each other whenever the camera's back is turned. So it is perhaps not a surprise that I think Tyler and Jeremy's mutual aggression can be read differently. But! Part of this is because of the way Jeremy reacts to Tyler's aggression, which has changed since Damon did that vampire thing to his mind. Once Jeremy stopped moping over Vicki, his interactions with Tyler became less, "YOU HAVE MY GIRL" - which is already a classic breeding ground for homoeroticism. Instead, Jeremy wants to be conciliatory, and maybe even friendly since he a) doesn't have any friends; b) has a vague memory of some sort of connection with Tyler (there is no good way to phrase that); c) thinks Tyler's art means he has hidden depths. (Again with the unfortunate phrasing.) What I'm saying is, Jeremy is conflicted, and Tyler requires physical contact to function. I have written too many words on this extremely trivial topic now. But that is what reading (and writing) too much slash at an impressionable age does to you.
- caitiedidit, she is so smart! She said (many months ago - I am such a stalker): I am not the type of television fan who gets more invested in the myth arc of a show than the characters, and yet! I am more invested in TVD's myth arc than the individual characters! That seriously never happens. I like basically everyone, but I don't really care about anyone. (But really, the first time I read this, I was like: HAH, that is absurd! I will NEVER WATCH TV THAT WAY. And yet:)
This is my experience with TVD as well. I don't dislike any of the characters - I mean, I practically melted about Matt up there, and I just wrote 300 words about Tyler and Jeremy's suppressed desire for each other (Britta Perry is my TV alter ego), and I genuinely love Caroline and Bonnie - but none of the characters are indispensable. Partly because the show doesn't treat any of them that way, although really I guess only guest stars have died. Whatever - I watch more because I want to know what happens next than anything else. It's weird, because I generally latch on to characters - even in a show like Community, I latch on to all the characters - and don't give a damn about plot. I never really watched TV for the pairings (I am very passive about shipping, actually), but I think TVD is taking that to a new neutrality.
- I like how Stefan can be morally ambiguous (or unambiguously bad for stretches of time) as well. And both versions of Stefan are accurate and worth considering when you talk about his character. Most shows would be like, "oh, he is just steely on the surface! really he is a marshmallow" - and he's not a marshmallow. The gentlemanly part is important, but Stefan is tougher and meaner than he seems; Damon is the fragile brother. Damon's fragility just happens to manifest as a lot of sharp edges and snappy dialogue, which is generally more entertaining. And it's true that Damon is more likely to kill you on a whim . . . or because he's drunk and depressed . . . or he will arrange your death (I AM SITLL ANGRY ABOUT THIS). To make a really horrible comparison: Boromir = Damon; Aragorn = Stefan. I'm sorry, that is the WORST COMPARISON EVER.
- In conclusion: CAROLINE NOOOO. D:
You may think that The Vampire Diaries does not deserve that much internet text about it. But you are wrong, because it's a consistently good show, both funnier and more touching than it seems on the surface, and it's always a fun ride. Except for the first few episodes.
This entry was originally posted at http://themis.dreamwidth.org/22217.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
My Very Important Thoughts on every thing that ever happened (or failed to happen) on The Vampire Diaries, so far
- Every episode is like a roller coaster. I watched it with my (new) roommate, explained essentially nothing to her beforehand. The choice to rerun the last minutes (with some added details, I think?) of the finale was a good one, at least in the cause of roommate television harmony, because as soon as Katherine stuck that knife in David Anders, my roommate said, "I'M HOOKED." (Nikita did not garner a similar reaction.) This was a strong premiere, coming off a strong finale. I hope its sophomore slump starts soon, because otherwise I will spend a lot of Thursdays weeping in indecision.
- Katherine is much more interesting now that she was. I dreaded the Civil War flashbacks in season 1; I didn't find Nina Dobrev convincing. Actually, I found Katherine kind of an embarrassing character, probably because the show is a bit too obviously on a budget and the costumes in the flashbacks were . . . um, not all they could be. (Plus, I think we all agree, using the penultimate year of the Civil War as your base for a history of decadence and excitement is a poor decision, especially since your show is set in Virginia. I mean, seriously, Gone With the Wind gives a better picture of the Civil War.) And she gave me secondhand embarrassment for other, non-cosmetic reasons, which were actually rectified by her appearance here. First, because I think Nina Dobrev has a better handle on the characters now (she did get better toward the end of S1, in fairness). Second, because Katherine, as a character, didn't belong to the 1860s, and it showed too clearly. In 2010 she's great. I'm not sure the writers know how to create characters authentic to that time period while still keeping it a fun teen drama - Damon and Stefan are also not convincing in the 1860s.
- Digression: my favorite moment of the episode was definitely when Katherine sighed over Matt's blue eyes. (Evil bitch after my own heart!) Oh Matt, I loooove you like I love all sincere and good-hearted fictional high school football players. And if Katherine or Caroline eat you, I will be sad. We all know what a terrible vampire you'd make. Maybe Caroline can eat your mom instead?
- Killing Pearl (and Anna! let's be fair) was a STUPID MOVE though. Especially since Katherine does not seem at all interested in vengeance. I want vengeance. I will also accept a way to bring dead vampires back, beyond flashbacks. (Spinoff!)
- Okay . . . killing Anna did lead to Jeremy's hilarious subplot, and I guess indirectly to Damon killing him, which was just . . . mind blowing. So maybe I regret Anna's death a little less? But that is a big maybe. D:
- Haha, and speaking of Jeremy! caitiedidit said: Unless he [Tyler] and Jeremy are going to start making out, and that would be fine too.
themis: I keep expecting this to happen! Probably it's because "I want to jump you" tension is the same if it leads to beating up or making out. (In hindsight . . . poor Vicki. This observation is perhaps too on the nose.)
caitiedidit: LOL, yes, that is exactly it. But Tyler wants to do the beating up kind of jumping to a lot of people, but it's always better with Jeremy.
I stand by this opinion! I know that my basic television M.O. is to suspect the male characters of making out with each other whenever the camera's back is turned. So it is perhaps not a surprise that I think Tyler and Jeremy's mutual aggression can be read differently. But! Part of this is because of the way Jeremy reacts to Tyler's aggression, which has changed since Damon did that vampire thing to his mind. Once Jeremy stopped moping over Vicki, his interactions with Tyler became less, "YOU HAVE MY GIRL" - which is already a classic breeding ground for homoeroticism. Instead, Jeremy wants to be conciliatory, and maybe even friendly since he a) doesn't have any friends; b) has a vague memory of some sort of connection with Tyler (there is no good way to phrase that); c) thinks Tyler's art means he has hidden depths. (Again with the unfortunate phrasing.) What I'm saying is, Jeremy is conflicted, and Tyler requires physical contact to function. I have written too many words on this extremely trivial topic now. But that is what reading (and writing) too much slash at an impressionable age does to you.
- caitiedidit, she is so smart! She said (many months ago - I am such a stalker): I am not the type of television fan who gets more invested in the myth arc of a show than the characters, and yet! I am more invested in TVD's myth arc than the individual characters! That seriously never happens. I like basically everyone, but I don't really care about anyone. (But really, the first time I read this, I was like: HAH, that is absurd! I will NEVER WATCH TV THAT WAY. And yet:)
This is my experience with TVD as well. I don't dislike any of the characters - I mean, I practically melted about Matt up there, and I just wrote 300 words about Tyler and Jeremy's suppressed desire for each other (Britta Perry is my TV alter ego), and I genuinely love Caroline and Bonnie - but none of the characters are indispensable. Partly because the show doesn't treat any of them that way, although really I guess only guest stars have died. Whatever - I watch more because I want to know what happens next than anything else. It's weird, because I generally latch on to characters - even in a show like Community, I latch on to all the characters - and don't give a damn about plot. I never really watched TV for the pairings (I am very passive about shipping, actually), but I think TVD is taking that to a new neutrality.
- I like how Stefan can be morally ambiguous (or unambiguously bad for stretches of time) as well. And both versions of Stefan are accurate and worth considering when you talk about his character. Most shows would be like, "oh, he is just steely on the surface! really he is a marshmallow" - and he's not a marshmallow. The gentlemanly part is important, but Stefan is tougher and meaner than he seems; Damon is the fragile brother. Damon's fragility just happens to manifest as a lot of sharp edges and snappy dialogue, which is generally more entertaining. And it's true that Damon is more likely to kill you on a whim . . . or because he's drunk and depressed . . . or he will arrange your death (I AM SITLL ANGRY ABOUT THIS). To make a really horrible comparison: Boromir = Damon; Aragorn = Stefan. I'm sorry, that is the WORST COMPARISON EVER.
- In conclusion: CAROLINE NOOOO. D:
You may think that The Vampire Diaries does not deserve that much internet text about it. But you are wrong, because it's a consistently good show, both funnier and more touching than it seems on the surface, and it's always a fun ride. Except for the first few episodes.
This entry was originally posted at http://themis.dreamwidth.org/22217.html. Please comment there using OpenID.