Ahhh...more stuff and Firefly
Jan. 10th, 2004 12:42 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkatFeeling a tad persnickity and irritable tonight. I think this is just end of the week woes - ie. I'm frustrated that I'm still unemployed, single and poor. And a tad bored of whining/worrying about it. Don't mind the single bit so much - except for being horny and no sex. Forget I said that. Hmmm, wonder if I can take a vacation from myself?
Watched the Train Job on pumpkinpuss's Firefly DVD tonight, along with the commentary - is it just me, or is anyone else finding the commentary wicked hard to access? Had no trouble finding it on the DVD, just could not for the life of me get it to click on, took me forever, then suddenly without warning? It does. And I have no idea how I did it. Is this a design problem or a problem with my DVD player on my computer? Have no idea. Anyhow - after watching the commentary section, I realized a couple of things.
But since I'm in a snarky mood? I think I'll keep them to myself. All in all? A revealing commentary.
Especially after reading that annoying chud DVD review on whedonesque. Yep, Whedon has *exactly* the same experience with Firefly that Serling had with the Loner and for some of the same reasons. Another nice tid-bit? Apparently Mike Mastiff - Boreanze's stunt double and stunt coordinator had a cameo on The Train Job. He has the same hair style as Boreanze. Interesting.
While I like Firefly, a lot better than just about anything else on at the moment, - it can be slow at points. I think over time it would have grown on me. Because to be honest? I wasn't that fond of either BTVS or ATS in their first seasons, got incredibly bored at times. The second seasons? Took off. I honestly think Whedon is one of those tv show-runners who needs time to build a series - he needs time to fiddle with the characters, feel them out, play - then whammo! Brilliance. Of course he also should probably stop after about five years...or before he gets bored, or the series can well peeter out a bit.
From the Train Job Commentary and the Serenity Commentary and some of the Objects in Space Commentary I read - there's a subtle hint that Whedon got incredibly bored of BTVS in S6-7, which explains a lot. While I liked portions of both seasons quite a bit, in retrospect I have to admit the plotting and pacing was a tad disjointed at times and very uneven from a structural standpoint.
After watching The Train Job, wandered over to atpo board and almost, almost got sucked into that ranking game some of the posters are playing. I'd play but I can't for the life of me remember the order some of these episodes aired in, which makes reading some of the posts very confusing. Must avoid ranking game. Ranking games bring out the geek in me - every time. Also lead to me bashing others favorite episodes such as *cough*storyteller*cough*
...which is never a good thing. Not to mention a tad hypocritical on my part.
Still frigid in New York. That type of cold which has the radiators hissing and clacking to keep up with it. The type that leaves the streets and sidewalks with a white dusty residue from the morning dew freezing on contact and any remaining water on rooftops: Cracking as ice, frozen solid. Not a shred of water underneath. Meanwhile the sky is clear and sunny. Not fond of the cold. Like those in between temperatures of 40s,50s, 60s and 70s. Extremes make me grouchy. And up until 2000? I was spoiled, NY had been having incredibly mild winters and summers. Hmmm, should go to bed now, read for a while maybe. Sleep late. Too cold to go anywhere. So guess I'm hibernating until Sunday, when I meet cjl for lunch, discussion, and a movie. Will be the first I'd seen since RoTK over the holidays.
Oh the new icon is commenurate my new ship - the brother ship between Spike and Angel, not slash, except in my head. I have no interest in seeing it on screen.
Watched the Train Job on pumpkinpuss's Firefly DVD tonight, along with the commentary - is it just me, or is anyone else finding the commentary wicked hard to access? Had no trouble finding it on the DVD, just could not for the life of me get it to click on, took me forever, then suddenly without warning? It does. And I have no idea how I did it. Is this a design problem or a problem with my DVD player on my computer? Have no idea. Anyhow - after watching the commentary section, I realized a couple of things.
But since I'm in a snarky mood? I think I'll keep them to myself. All in all? A revealing commentary.
Especially after reading that annoying chud DVD review on whedonesque. Yep, Whedon has *exactly* the same experience with Firefly that Serling had with the Loner and for some of the same reasons. Another nice tid-bit? Apparently Mike Mastiff - Boreanze's stunt double and stunt coordinator had a cameo on The Train Job. He has the same hair style as Boreanze. Interesting.
While I like Firefly, a lot better than just about anything else on at the moment, - it can be slow at points. I think over time it would have grown on me. Because to be honest? I wasn't that fond of either BTVS or ATS in their first seasons, got incredibly bored at times. The second seasons? Took off. I honestly think Whedon is one of those tv show-runners who needs time to build a series - he needs time to fiddle with the characters, feel them out, play - then whammo! Brilliance. Of course he also should probably stop after about five years...or before he gets bored, or the series can well peeter out a bit.
From the Train Job Commentary and the Serenity Commentary and some of the Objects in Space Commentary I read - there's a subtle hint that Whedon got incredibly bored of BTVS in S6-7, which explains a lot. While I liked portions of both seasons quite a bit, in retrospect I have to admit the plotting and pacing was a tad disjointed at times and very uneven from a structural standpoint.
After watching The Train Job, wandered over to atpo board and almost, almost got sucked into that ranking game some of the posters are playing. I'd play but I can't for the life of me remember the order some of these episodes aired in, which makes reading some of the posts very confusing. Must avoid ranking game. Ranking games bring out the geek in me - every time. Also lead to me bashing others favorite episodes such as *cough*storyteller*cough*
...which is never a good thing. Not to mention a tad hypocritical on my part.
Still frigid in New York. That type of cold which has the radiators hissing and clacking to keep up with it. The type that leaves the streets and sidewalks with a white dusty residue from the morning dew freezing on contact and any remaining water on rooftops: Cracking as ice, frozen solid. Not a shred of water underneath. Meanwhile the sky is clear and sunny. Not fond of the cold. Like those in between temperatures of 40s,50s, 60s and 70s. Extremes make me grouchy. And up until 2000? I was spoiled, NY had been having incredibly mild winters and summers. Hmmm, should go to bed now, read for a while maybe. Sleep late. Too cold to go anywhere. So guess I'm hibernating until Sunday, when I meet cjl for lunch, discussion, and a movie. Will be the first I'd seen since RoTK over the holidays.
Oh the new icon is commenurate my new ship - the brother ship between Spike and Angel, not slash, except in my head. I have no interest in seeing it on screen.
Re: Reading Disorderly Knights
Date: 2004-01-10 10:36 am (UTC)Not at all. I added you to mine a while ago. ;-)
Regarding Dunnett? I've been warned. Alcibades tells me that DK-Ringed Castle is "very" similar to the Angel/Connor arc and if you liked Angel/Connor - you must read. While my friend pumpkinpuss who got me hooked on them - by dangling the Sunnydale U academic BTVS/ATS listserve in front of my face (you can only join if you've read Dunnett), informs me that Dunnett tortures her characters even more than Whedon does. LOL!
Actually I'm enjoying it - I just find the battle scenes slow-going and that's the section I'm on at the moment.
Also unlike some writers - Dunnett requires the reader pay attention, which means it takes longer for me to read.
(that and the fact I keep getting distracted by things...)
The thing I love most about Dunnett - is while I may struggle a bit through the work, when I finish I feel satisfied and happy...like I want to hug the book. An experience you only really get from books that develop their characters and themes thoroughly, I think.
Am noticing a trend in her writing though - she seems to set up, like you state, a question about who the hero is, and instead of telling the story through her lead's pov, through the main characters surrounding him. There's at least three types of characters Lymond deals with: the young impressionable man who has a love/hate relationship with Lymond, befriends him then betrays him, then realizes his mistake too late and redeems himself by helping Lymond, just as Lymond redeems himself by helping the young man. (It's Will Scott in GoK, Richard Stewart? in Queen's Play, and Jerott Bylthe in Knights.) Then's there's the girl who Lymond feels responsible for or cares about: Christian Stewart in Gok, Oonaugh O'Dwyer in Queen's Play, not sure who in Knight's. The girl he betrayed or is trying to save or redeem himself for hurting: Eloise in Gok, Christian Stewart in Queen's Play (also little MAry in Queen's Play), and Oanaugh O'Dwyer in
Knight's). The complex villain/hero that he's at loggerheads with. Interesting structure.