*raises a skeptical eyebrow*

Minor spoilers for Heroes, Supernatural and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, although I suspect all who watch them will be up to date, and all those who don't watch them have no intention of doing so, but, oh well.

It shouldn't be too much to ask. A decent SF or fantasy TV show, one with witty, well-written dialogue, three-dimensional characters that I can care about, and a story that is engaging both in an episodic, and overall, arc-y manner. Saying something profound about humanity or at least the current times or my generation wouldn't go amiss, either.

Recently, I've tried to get into three shows: Terminator: The Cameron Phillips Sarah Connor Chronicles, Supernatural and Heroes. Each time, I've been disappointed.

Let's start with T:TSCC. Clever premise, but it just goes on and on, with no progression and no development; it's the same every week. John whines, Sarah is overprotective, they continue to be pursued. The only character with any nuance is Cameron, who is, as we are constantly reminded, a machine. All credit to Summer Glau, because she's the only thing carrying the show right now. The writers seem to have realised this, since this week's episode featured about 30 seconds of Sarah, 10 minutes of John, and the rest of Cameron.

I tried so hard to like Supernatural, but the quality is a bit patchy. My enjoyment hasn't been helped by the uneven quality of the streamings I have access to, or by the fact that I've watched it out of order. I saw many of the early episodes, which are terrifying and chilling in that visceral, horror movie kind of way. The later episodes lose this, and seem more interested in character, but don't really seem to know what to do about it. My main problem, though, is that I prefer shows with ensemble casts. There's something about the dynamic of the two brothers that shuts you out rather than draws you in, as a viewer. Their relationship is so intense that you watch it always as an observer, rather than (as always) in the case of shows such as Buffy, which are driven by a group dynamic. There's something about the idea of a group of misfits, banding together to save the entire world's existence, surviving due to the intensity of their friendship and trust, that really speaks to me.

This love of ensemble-driven shows made me desperate to give Heroes a chance. I'd started watching it in a rather haphazard way last year when I shared a house with angel_cc, but had not really followed it properly. But if I was looking for something to fill the Whedon-shaped void in my TV-viewing life, Heroes was not it. Where to start with my exasperation? Peter Petrelli, overacted with grating intensity by Milo Ventimiglia? The show's insistence that all our problems stem from our dysfunctional families - and the strident insinuation that this nature-nurture debate is DEEP AND MEANINGFUL? The circular, false profundity of Season 3: 'oooh, wow, heroes and villains are really the same thing - we all have our dark moments, our moments of weakness, with great power comes great responsibility, blah blah blah.' It's angst without purpose, soul-searching without a soul, cliche dressed up as IMPORTANT SOCIAL COMMENTARY. And don't even get me started on Claire Bennett. Obviously we're supposed to identify with her, but when I think that she's tracing her origins from Buffy (perky blonde with superpowers, one girl in all the world chosen to save us all), I feel physical pain at such degradation of ideals. First, there's her power: regeneration/invulnerability. In other words, it's a passive power, a reactive power. A 'female' power. She has no strength in and of herself, no ingenuity or resourcefulness. All she has is the ability to endure other people's violence. She's a walking punching-bag. She's the centre of the show, but the real action takes place around her: people protect her, people attack her.

Wow, I don't usually wear a feminist rant hat, but obviously I was feeling more incensed than usual.

Another thing that really irks me is the poor quality of the fandoms. Whenever I get mildly interested in something, I check out what's going on online. But unless I want wish-fulfilling fanfic, or a plethora of avatars (well, sometimes the avatars are nice), I'm kind of stuck. What I really want are discussion forums on a par with BttS, Obernet or Whedonesque. Where people actually discuss things, analyse things. Sorry, guys, but "Hey, is anyone else still awake?" and "eeeeeee" posted as ENTRIES ON A THREAD do not count as discussion of the latest episode! *headdesk*

I guess the problem is, as always, that I've been spoiled in previous times. Not all fans are going to be as articulate as the sraffies or the Obernet crowd. The only person who can make television like Joss Whedon is Joss Whedon. If I really wanted to have intelligent discussion, I should make my own forum. But that won't happen. Instead I shall continue to stare, masochistically, at Zachary Quinto's intriguing eyebrows, at Summer Glau's oddly puppy-dog-like interpretation of how a conscious machine moves, and at the 'epic' war between Heaven and Hell that appears to be unfolding around the Winchester brothers, and try to make all of it mean more than it actually does. And I'll complain bitterly about it the whole time.

*raises a skeptical eyebrow*

Minor spoilers for Heroes, Supernatural and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, although I suspect all who watch them will be up to date, and all those who don't watch them have no intention of doing so, but, oh well.

It shouldn't be too much to ask. A decent SF or fantasy TV show, one with witty, well-written dialogue, three-dimensional characters that I can care about, and a story that is engaging both in an episodic, and overall, arc-y manner. Saying something profound about humanity or at least the current times or my generation wouldn't go amiss, either.

Recently, I've tried to get into three shows: Terminator: The Cameron Phillips Sarah Connor Chronicles, Supernatural and Heroes. Each time, I've been disappointed.

Let's start with T:TSCC. Clever premise, but it just goes on and on, with no progression and no development; it's the same every week. John whines, Sarah is overprotective, they continue to be pursued. The only character with any nuance is Cameron, who is, as we are constantly reminded, a machine. All credit to Summer Glau, because she's the only thing carrying the show right now. The writers seem to have realised this, since this week's episode featured about 30 seconds of Sarah, 10 minutes of John, and the rest of Cameron.

I tried so hard to like Supernatural, but the quality is a bit patchy. My enjoyment hasn't been helped by the uneven quality of the streamings I have access to, or by the fact that I've watched it out of order. I saw many of the early episodes, which are terrifying and chilling in that visceral, horror movie kind of way. The later episodes lose this, and seem more interested in character, but don't really seem to know what to do about it. My main problem, though, is that I prefer shows with ensemble casts. There's something about the dynamic of the two brothers that shuts you out rather than draws you in, as a viewer. Their relationship is so intense that you watch it always as an observer, rather than (as always) in the case of shows such as Buffy, which are driven by a group dynamic. There's something about the idea of a group of misfits, banding together to save the entire world's existence, surviving due to the intensity of their friendship and trust, that really speaks to me.

This love of ensemble-driven shows made me desperate to give Heroes a chance. I'd started watching it in a rather haphazard way last year when I shared a house with angel_cc, but had not really followed it properly. But if I was looking for something to fill the Whedon-shaped void in my TV-viewing life, Heroes was not it. Where to start with my exasperation? Peter Petrelli, overacted with grating intensity by Milo Ventimiglia? The show's insistence that all our problems stem from our dysfunctional families - and the strident insinuation that this nature-nurture debate is DEEP AND MEANINGFUL? The circular, false profundity of Season 3: 'oooh, wow, heroes and villains are really the same thing - we all have our dark moments, our moments of weakness, with great power comes great responsibility, blah blah blah.' It's angst without purpose, soul-searching without a soul, cliche dressed up as IMPORTANT SOCIAL COMMENTARY. And don't even get me started on Claire Bennett. Obviously we're supposed to identify with her, but when I think that she's tracing her origins from Buffy (perky blonde with superpowers, one girl in all the world chosen to save us all), I feel physical pain at such degradation of ideals. First, there's her power: regeneration/invulnerability. In other words, it's a passive power, a reactive power. A 'female' power. She has no strength in and of herself, no ingenuity or resourcefulness. All she has is the ability to endure other people's violence. She's a walking punching-bag. She's the centre of the show, but the real action takes place around her: people protect her, people attack her.

Wow, I don't usually wear a feminist rant hat, but obviously I was feeling more incensed than usual.

Another thing that really irks me is the poor quality of the fandoms. Whenever I get mildly interested in something, I check out what's going on online. But unless I want wish-fulfilling fanfic, or a plethora of avatars (well, sometimes the avatars are nice), I'm kind of stuck. What I really want are discussion forums on a par with BttS, Obernet or Whedonesque. Where people actually discuss things, analyse things. Sorry, guys, but "Hey, is anyone else still awake?" and "eeeeeee" posted as ENTRIES ON A THREAD do not count as discussion of the latest episode! *headdesk*

I guess the problem is, as always, that I've been spoiled in previous times. Not all fans are going to be as articulate as the sraffies or the Obernet crowd. The only person who can make television like Joss Whedon is Joss Whedon. If I really wanted to have intelligent discussion, I should make my own forum. But that won't happen. Instead I shall continue to stare, masochistically, at Zachary Quinto's intriguing eyebrows, at Summer Glau's oddly puppy-dog-like interpretation of how a conscious machine moves, and at the 'epic' war between Heaven and Hell that appears to be unfolding around the Winchester brothers, and try to make all of it mean more than it actually does. And I'll complain bitterly about it the whole time.

*dies laughing*

For the love of Joss and shiny sparkly vampires, why has it taken me this long to discover badfic_quotes? I've been spending all evening trying not to laugh out loud (because shrieks of laughter emanating from my room might disturb my housemates).

*dies laughing*

For the love of Joss and shiny sparkly vampires, why has it taken me this long to discover badfic_quotes? I've been spending all evening trying not to laugh out loud (because shrieks of laughter emanating from my room might disturb my housemates).