Comments | horridporrid: Watched TV. Had thoughts.

horridporrid

Watched TV. Had thoughts.

Feb 14, 2009 20:20

Tired from work, etc. But I did watch some tv last night. So, conclusions on the quick. :)

Sarah Conner Chronicles: No spoilers in this. Second ep I've watched, and I'm not impressed. I like Sarah herself, I like the Terminator played by Summer Glau, I'm even mostly okay with the Reese brother played by the guy from 90210 fame. But the guy ( Read more... )

tv, bsg, dollhouse

Comments 11

equality_72521 February 15 2009, 04:47:32 UTC

I kind of loved Dollhouse. The premise is excellent and the acting, the characters, etc. I am totally in. But it's Fox... so we must be cautious with our love. Alas.

Also, I am madly in love with BSG. I mean.. yes, info dump. But. Wee!

horridporrid February 16 2009, 01:54:02 UTC

I kind of loved Dollhouse.

Oh, thank God. :D I watched it, was very excited with what it was doing, flicked through my f-list and just... o.O It's funny how completely differently various people will see things. And it's always strange if it's folks you've previously agreed with. But, it does make for interesting reading! :D

Also, I am madly in love with BSG. I mean.. yes, info dump. But. Wee!

Best info dump ever? A very strong possibility. ;D

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horridporrid February 16 2009, 02:02:28 UTC

There were clearly Issues, but I think that's the point, so I'm interested to see how they break through those and handle them. :D

Yes, exactly! I mean, there's a massive tar-pit just waiting to be stumbled into; it's an incredibly challenging set of issues the show is taking on. But if they do it right? It could be so very awesome. And even if they just get near right, maybe they'll have at least raised some questions. And that's not nothing.

vain_glorious February 15 2009, 14:35:50 UTC

Dollhouse struck me as very oddly non-Whedonesque. As in, if I didn't know it was by him, I wouldn't have guessed. Some of the line delivery style was familiar (as well as the casting), but that's about it. I was disappointed, because it didn't hold my attention.
It might just be network heavy-handedness, which isn't awesome but is sometimes a necessary evil (I thought Firefly was daring the network to get canceled from day one).

I'll tune in next week because I usually like Whedon's shows, but I'm not super excited.

horridporrid February 16 2009, 02:19:41 UTC

Dollhouse struck me as very oddly non-Whedonesque.Hmm... Thinking about it, I can see your point. I wonder... we haven't gotten a "charming innocent" character yet. There's no equivalent to Xander or Willow or Cordelia or Doyle or Wash or Kaylee. (The computer guy zigged that way, but then quickly zagged into creepy land, along with the rest of the people running the dollhouse ( ... )

vain_glorious February 16 2009, 03:05:26 UTC

I wonder... There've been questions about how a show without a main protagonist will work, since Echo will be mindwiped every ep.

All of Whedon's other shows have been ensembles more than protagonist vehicles (even though 2 of them were named after the lead). I think that's another thing that felt 'off'. Also, to be totally mean about it, I don't think it's a good idea to put the future of the show on Dushku's shoulders alone. I find her a very, very limited actress. It seems FOX was pushing the "SEXY BABE" angle around her pretty intensely (kind ridiculously so, but then I'm not the target of that advertising, heh).

I definitely agree that Whedon has set up a huge challenge for himself, writing basically the opposite of what he's done in the past. Whether it'll survive - or I'll like it - remains to be seen.

horridporrid February 16 2009, 20:22:18 UTC

All of Whedon's other shows have been ensembles more than protagonist vehicles...

Ooh, you're right, that's another thing that was missing. I mean, there is a team, but it's a really creepy team I'm not really rooting for.

Also, to be totally mean about it, I don't think it's a good idea to put the future of the show on Dushku's shoulders alone. I find her a very, very limited actress.

I'm... taking a wait and see on that one. I've only seen Dushku in Buffy and Angel and I wasn't a huge Faith fan. (I didn't hate her or anything, but I was never able to get behind her.) But I'm not sure what was actress and what was character, you know?

I did like the Ms. Penn character as we got to know her, but of course, she's gone now. So...

(So, so much agreement about the advertising. I actually watched in spite of the ads. And yeah, I'm betting I'm not the target audience either. *g*)

opaleye_dragon February 15 2009, 19:17:39 UTC

I really liked Dollhouse. I stayed away from all spoilery-type stuff about the show, so only knew the premise. I agree with what you say about character sympathy. That said, even if I didn't like it, I would have made sure to keep watching, because I learned my lesson when I dismissed Firefly based on the train job. FOX is untrustworthy.

horridporrid February 16 2009, 02:24:23 UTC

FOX is untrustworthy.

Amen. ;) It's the reason I tuned in, even though the ads themselves looked kind of silly. I trusted Whedon wasn't going to fall into the same-old, same-old. And boy, did he not!

wemblee February 16 2009, 04:25:59 UTC

Honestly, I don't think we're supposed to bond with any of the main characters we've met

Right! I feel the same way!

The show didn't quite work for me, in part because so many of the characters are unsympathetic or don't grab me or aren't super lovable, but it's only the pilot, and I'm intrigued enough to watch more.

I just feel so out of step in that the premise itself wasn't a huge "OH SHIT IMMEDIATE BACK BUTTON" for me... and I was sort of surprised by fandom's reaction at first, like, "But... whuh? But... sex slaves and mindrape and Aliens Made Them and issues of consent and agency... that's fandom's bread and butter!"

Buuuut, I get that Fox Network != fandom and neither does Joss, and seeing these issues played out on the bodies of fictional dudes, in text, is different than seeing them played out on the bodies of fictional-ladies-played-by-real-ladies, visually, is different, so... I get it.

Still, it was kind of lonely and uncomfortable being that out of step. I mean, I like being contrary, but this time, it wasn't on

horridporrid February 16 2009, 20:49:00 UTC

I mean, I like being contrary, but this time, it wasn't on purpose!

Hee! I know the feeling. :D But yeah, I'm highly intrigued with where this show is going and I feel like a lot of the criticism is... I don't think so much missing the point as maybe a little quick off the gun. I mean, the show could slide into a position where suddenly the Dollhouse is cool (which would be as horrifying as the criticism paints it), but it's not there yet. The Dollhouse disgusts me and I think it's meant to disgust me. And that's what has me intrigued! Because sending up the "hot chick assassin/spy/soldier" trope is an interesting idea.

Buuuut, I get that Fox Network != fandom and neither does Joss, and seeing these issues played out on the bodies of fictional dudes, in text, is different than seeing them played out on the bodies of fictional-ladies-played-by-real-ladies, visually, is different, so... I get it.See, I think another thing is, Joss isn't speaking to us. (And by "us" I mean people who've thought about these issues and wrestled ( ... )