Things on the Brain or Weekend Download - Buffy, Farscape, Feminism - none of which are connected

[shadowkat]

1.. Feminism - how people seem to view this word continues to bug me. So, I'm going to give you a definition that I agree with. Make of it what you will.

Feminism refers to political, cultural, and economic movements aimed at establishing greater rights, legal protection for women and/or women's liberation. Feminism includes some of the sociological theories and philosophies concerned with issues of gender difference. It is also a movement that campaigns for women's rights and interests. Nancy Cott defines feminism as the belief in the importance of gender equality, invalidating the idea of gender hierarchy as a socially constructed concept. Feminists are persons of either sex who believe in feminism – and of course practice their beliefs. [From Wiki]

2. Read the preview page for Buffy issue 36 - out of curiousity - wanted to see what all the fuss on flist was about. Is it just me or does this plot thread feel a lot like the second season of Dollhouse? Possibly just me. Whedon seems a bit obsessed with the whole puppet thing, or doll thing - people using as dolls to entertain or satisfy someone else's fantasy or view of them. It's a theme I've seen done better elsewhere - notably the hilariously disturbing independent masterpiece "Being John Malkovich" - which is about celebrity and how we manipulate others to meet our fantasies. John Cusak plays a puppeteer who finds a way to enter John Malkovich's brain and literally pull his strings and do whatever he wishes through him, until he is finally forced to realize the nightmare himself, when he gets trapped inside the newborn child that ex-partner/girlfriend has with her new female lover. He can do nothing. He is just a bystander, his hands and body moved by someone else. There's also the quite splendid My Fair Lady and Pygamillion by George Bernard Shaw. And quite a few horror flicks that I've seen, including a B movie starring Vincent Price entitled House of Wax. Not to mention the superior and hilarious "Smile Time".

The idea of being used as a puppet or controlled by someone else is not new in science fiction or fantasy. Farscape plays around with it - regarding Crichton and Scorpius. It also has actual puppets, so part of playing around - is a direct commentary on the use of puppetry in the show itself. I adore puppetry - it is the one artform that seems beyond the grasp of technology. There's nothing more magical than watching a puppet show - you know there's a human behind the puppet, but if the puppeteer is good, the puppet becomes more real, a character outside of the human, to the point you forget the human exists. There's a rather good horror tale based I believe on a Twilight Zone episode - where the puppet becomes more real than the man. He begins to pull the man's strings. Another good horror tale - is about people being turned into dolls - you are safer this way, I can protect you.


In the Buffy comics and the series itself, along with Angel, Doctor Horrible, and Dollhouse - and yes, even Firefly, the concept of people as puppets or dolls comes up metaphorically repeatedly. Angel is literally a puppet of whomever he seeks approval from. And he in turn, seeks to turn everyone else into his puppets. He is always pulling people's strings. The mistake many characters, and fans, make is falling under the delusion that Angel and Angelus are separate, they aren't. They are similarily motivated. Both desire control. The character is fascinating in part due to this simple contradiction - he is both puppet and puppeteer - much like John Cusak's character in Being John Malkovich. He creates Drusilla and Spike and takes great pride in his creation. And he believes that he creates Buffy - he orders her to stay out of LA. He spies on her. He does the same things with Connor - the mindwipe. And everyone who is with him falls into this trap - Wes attempts to manipulate things to his liking. Fred is taken over by a demon who pulls her strings, or appears to, until Fred turns the tables, and her personality starts to pull Illyria's. Gunn allows WRH to pull his to be smart. And Lindsey pulls Angels and Spike's strings. In Buffy, Angel states in I think the Prom, that he fell for her the moment he saw her, that he wanted to take her heart, hold it, and protect it, lock it away from harm. It's romantic but creepy at the same time. His over-riding desire is to take over, to protect her, to do what he wants to do with Connor, to remove her from the fray, while he plays at being the hero. To put her in the ivory tower or glass case.

Spike is the opposite, he hates having his strings pulled. And rails at Angel for pulling them. OR trying to. Spike is actually more like Buffy in this respect, who equally rails against it. While it's simple for people to lable Spike as bad-boy, just as it is simple for people to lable Angel as Oedipus or is that Electra Complex? Both cliche tropes. I doubt seriously that anyone watching the show is turned on to the characters just for those reasons or restricted to them. For myself? I didn't find Spike all that interesting when he was evil or the bad boy. S2-S4 Spike didn't do much for me. I enjoyed him, he was entertaining and attractive, but...that was it. No, the character took off for me first in Becoming, then in Fool for Love - which sort of goes counter to the whole bad boy trope. In fact people who saw him as mainly a bad boy - or loved that aspect, tend to have troubles liking Season 5-7. And have more or less ignored everything after the first four seasons of the series. I found him interesting when he went against his nature. Becoming Part II - was when the character first took off for me. Trickster. You don't know what he will do. He goes against his nature, who he is, for love.
The idea of being motivated by love to become something else - fascinates me. To want to
go against your very nature, your programming, what you were conditioned to be. And Spike was conditioned to be Spike by his demon, by Angelus, Darla, and Drusilla. Over a long period of time. To go against that conditioning, if it is even possible - fascinates me. Can we change our conditioning? Can we go against what we are taught? Not, our genetic makeup per se, but traumatic conditioning. Can we choose who we are? Or does someone else choose it? Are we puppets? Spike's arc, in a way, much like Faith's (although Spike's was better done in part because we had male writers and they don't quite get how to write a Faith arc) - is about fighting against the puppet master pulling his strings, in his case it is Angelus, his mother, Drusilla, and the demon inside. In Faith's it was well - her father, the Mayor, and her watchers (not sure about a mother) - this also explains why I prefer Spike's - it was more complex. Faith's, sorry, was a bit simplestic and cliche - done in some respects far better with Illyria and Cordelia and Lilah.

The comics seem to be commenting on both Angel and Spike's take on puppetry and puppeteers. And women. Spike notably is against controlling people - and into free will/choice. Note - his name is like Angel, counter to who he is. And unlike Angel, Buffy knows his real name, his birth name, and uses it - when she wants to hit at the human inside. "William" or "WILL". And in each of the Spikecentric episodes - it is about free will and not being someone's bitch or puppet. Lies My Parents Told - is about breaking the trigger or the puppeteers strings. As is Hellbound in Angel.Angel in contrast is less willing and almost wants to give in to it, he never breaks those strings, he embraces the puppeteer instead - as we see in both Amends and to a degree in Smile Time, and Home. On the surface, he appears to get rid of the puppeteer, but the old man behind the curtain stays.


3. Farscape - finished watching the brilliant and hilarious Look at the Princess arc in Farscape, along with Won't Be Fooled Again, Beware of Dog, and The Locket.

There's a great line in Look at the Princess - A Kiss is But a Kiss.

"Do you know what they want to do to me? Turn me into a statute for 80 cycles. If I ever return to earth after that - everyone will be dead. Dad, DK, my family, my cousins, my friends, Angelina Jolie, Cameron Diaz....Buffy The Vampire Slayer!"

I laughed my ass off. Yes, Farscape's writers watched Buffy.

They were also super-aware of their fandom. Ben Bowder keeps stating that he would just go read commentary or fanfic to figure stuff out that the writers didn't explain. The fans often did a better job.

I don't have a lot to say about the episodes, except that they do a great job of building the relationships between the characters, maintaining tension, conflict, and exploring the psychology of each one. Farscape unlike most sci-fi is a messy series - it goes into dark places, and plays with your head.

Funny story about censorship - according to the commentary, someone at the BBC got really offended by something in Won't Be Fooled Again and cut the episode to shreds, so that it was literally two minutes shorter. While the only thing Syfy worried about was when they blow up the Scarren's head, not to show too much gore on the wall. (Sigh, times have changed.) Another bit of commentary - Ben Bowder apologizes for parents of the under-12 set for saying the word "shit" on Farscape. Okaay. This brings up a question? Why would any parent care if Ben Bowder said shit on tv - after watching an episode in which he has shot someone, people have died horribly, and been blown up? I mean, why are letting your twelve year old watch Farscape to begin with? It's a violent tv series with adult themes, and not written for a 12 year old.
Shit should be the least of your worries. Honestly, people, you don't think your kid doesn't hear shit on the playground, at school, or at the store?

I find the continued censorship of foul language on tv mind-boggling. Also a tad hypocritical. Just as I find the continued censorship of nudity and sexual content. Apparently we have no problems showing a man or woman beat a woman or man, smack her or him, shoot her or him, suggest attempted rape, suggest rape or attempt to rape her/him - but nudity, a kinky sex scene, or the word fuck, shit, hell, or damn sends us running for the hills. Yes, we are an evolved species. Can't you tell?


4. Doctor Who - Vicent and the Doctor (yes, I'm behind everyone online on this series, BBC America isn't airing the next episodes until the end of July, so will be even more behind, by the time I see them, your reviews will be impossible for me to find by mere scrolling. And no, I can't download episodes without killing my computer, so don't bother offering.)

Was a rather good stand-alone. Partly due to the casting of Bill Nighey as the Museum Curator and whomever they got to play Van Gough (is it Goff or Gou). I know quite a bit about Van Gough, because have one too many people in my family who studied art and I'm in love with the impressionists. Van Gough allegedly cut off his ear - because of Muenir's disease according to some, and was just crazy to others. Muenir's could drive you nuts - if untreated, it creates severe imbalance in the inner-ear, ringing in the right ear, and vertigo. I know - my Dad had it. Made him sick and miserable until he was able to get it treated. But some art guy I meet at a gallery meetup insisted that Van Gough was just nuts and didn't have Muenir's. Or so his biographer stated. So I don't know. Like James Joyce, Gough made no money. Most brilliant artists made nothing. Popularity and fame rarely has much to do with actual talent.


Can see why people loved the episode - it was about the poor starving frustrated artist who never gets appreciated until after he's dead. Who online can't identify with that? But outside of that, not much happened and not much characterwise was advanced, well except for the fact that Amy can't remember what she lost and has been forever changed by her journey with the doctor and not necessarily in a good way.
A story arc that I have mixed feelings about. I like the bit about how changing time for someone can have dire consequences. The Doctor - for all his blather about not spoiling history or interfering, does interfer and for selfish purposes - when he takes a companion on board. OR interacts with one. He took Amy away from her time line, her life, and in the process changed many other lives - causing a rift or crack.
IT's a problem that was touched on briefly under RTD's reign, but never to my satisfaction - and was sidestepped on Lost to my annoyance. It is also an issue that was dealt with rather well in an old Ray Bradbury story - The Sound of Thunder.
(SKip the movie - it was crap). What I have mixed feelings about is - the whole, Amy says she's not the marrying kind as it turns out, and isn't sure why she feels loss, and wants a guy with ginger hair. All I could think of is - Rory was not that compelling. And why is married life the best option for her? Why can't she want to be single and fancy free - why can't any of the women? It's annoying. Not, anti-feminist, just annoying.

So, while I enjoyed Vincent and The Doctor, it didn't blow me away like a few of the episodes in S4 or was that S3 did? Possibly both. It's no Blink, Human Condition,
Library, or Forests of Air (can't remember the name of it - the first River Song arc).
But it was enjoyable. A little sentimental and a tad cliche - the old we're going to meet a famous artist and change his life story - which they do every year it seems.
I admittedly liked this one better than the one about Shakespeare.

Comments

[local-max.livejournal.com]

It's interesting how much dog imagery comes up in these episodes as well. Mr. Platt says that you become loves dog in an Oz-centric episode; Spike is love's bitch; Oz in wolf form is completely uncontrollable (and appears in The Zeppo, probably notably when Xander gets past his dog-like status). Oz and Veruca are of course complete puppets to their emotions in dog-form. Willow moves from dog-person to cat-person when she moves on from Oz to Tara and simultaneously increases hugely in power. Spike, when he's chipped (and thus completely controlled) is referred to over and over again as a dog in a muzzle, a dog who has gone to the vet and doesn't play with the other puppies anymore, etc.

Season five of AtS is the one with the most puppet imagery, and, what do you know--dog-girl Nina becomes a major character!

[shadowkat67.livejournal.com]

Season 4 - ATS also has a great deal of puppet imagery - with Cordelia. And by the way, Cordelia is foreshadowing in some respects for what happens to Angel in the comics. To understand Angel's arc in S8, all you have to do is rewatch Cordelia's.
She decides that it is up to her to save Angel, and sees herself as the savior - and she manipulates Angel throughout S4.
Except it is really Jasmine, one of the powers that is doing it.
Which is why Angel's actions as Twilight are so ironic, yet understandable - if you think about how easily he bought Cordelia's story and how easy it was for Jasmine to manipulate him.

[local-max.livejournal.com]

Yes, I have thought about the Cordelia connection. The thing that's interesting/frustrating about AtS season four is the way you can see seeds of the story that Whedon, Jeff Bell et al. were trying to tell originally--the one where Cordelia is mostly Cordelia, but believes strongly in herself as a higher power. Then because of Charisma Carpenter's pregnancy they had to spend the season rewriting to make everything fit. The arc becomes very difficult to follow--when was Cordelia's fatal mistake? Not giving up the visions, when she had the chance (with the Groosalugg)? Accepting Skip's offer to become a demon? To ascend? But you can still see enough of the arc that it's still an interesting story.

[shadowkat67.livejournal.com]

They have a tendency to do what Ian Watson states in commentary to Farscape is bad direction/editing - they keep scenes and bits in the story that do not further the story and are not necessary. It's called being unable to delete your darlings. S3 was horrifically edited, as was S4 - we have a lot of bits in there that did not help the plot and/or further the characters. Buffy S7 had the same problem.

Getting back to Angel and the Puppet theme? You can tell that's how Whedon saw the character - considering almost every single episode Whedon wrote that focused on Angel or was for Angel the Series had numerous puppet metaphors or images. Waiting in the Wing - the maestro who is pulling everyone's strings, Spin the Bottle - the spell that is controlling everyone and the higher being inside Cordy that is manipulating her, Hole in the World - the old one inside Fred and how the old one got inside Fred.
And...it was Whedon's idea to turn Angel into a puppet literally in Smile Time. Whedon found it ironic - since Angel is the ultimate manipulator/puppeteer. As we see in the episode where they bring Angelus back and he manipulates everyone from his cell. While Cordelia does it from outside.

[candleanfeather.livejournal.com]

Somebody (I'm sorry I cant't remember who it was) on LJ once made a statistical study about this imagery. If I remember rightly, the prevalence of negative imagery in relation with the dog was overwhelming as in the opposite, positive imagery prevailed in the case of cats. There seem to be a link established between control and dogs, either that it indicates a lack of control (though the wolf imagery seems more adaptated in this case)or on the contrary that it indicates a control established from outside. Both can be seen in fact as the opposite faces of a same coin; meaning if you're not able to respect the rules and control yourself, there's a big risk somebody will impose these rules on you in a much more restrictive manner. That's after all what happened to Spike. I suppose one can see the dog as the animal by excellence which is controlled by outside powers in opposition to the cat which is a much more independant animal.

[local-max.livejournal.com]

That's interesting. Besides Willow & Tara's cat, I remember Xander referring to Riley as "like a jungle cat" in "Fool for Love." And there's Cordelia in the cat costume in "Halloween"...I'm not sure if there's as much consistency to those references.

But yes, there's both dog-as-wildness and dog-as-domesticated in the series. And "Beauty and the Beasts" has quotes from The Call of the Wild, which is about the movement of a dog from domesticated to wildness.