![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkat1. Should go to church and meet new Minister, but have a dull headache and am tired. Work was...productive. Amongst other things, managed to wrangle four engineering consultants into presentations for next Tuesday. Now I need to find time to read their proposals...and I have none between now and then. I don't take work home as a general rule. I'm not paid too and I learned long ago not to give all my time to my profession, particularly one that can't be bothered to buy me a new chair.
Don't kill yourself for your jobs, folks. It doesn't care. [Is that too much info? I'm never sure how much to reveal in these unflocked posts.]
2. I've no time to a proper meta on Mad Men - so if you are interested there's a rather good one over here by superplin, and it references Buffy and Angel - so bonus (assuming of course you are still into Buffy and Angel). She's doing meta again, and plin is amongst my favorite meta writers. Meta is an art...or at least I think it is.
Was always more into meta than fanfic for some reason. I think it's because it is rare for me to seek out fanfic. I've only sought it out for a couple of tv shows, mainly genre, usually ones that have a character, characters, or scenarios that capture my attention, and are incredibly loosely written, with a lot of the action either happening off-stage, off-screen, off-page - and vaguely referred to. Densely written works - I don't need fanfiction for. Loosely written ones with a lot of gaps in the action and a lot of things happening off-stage, I sort of do, assuming I get obsessed.
Whedon? God, the man leaves half the story off the screen. Focusing on weird and often obvious things. He's not alone, Ron Moore does this too, as does Stephen Moffat, George Lucas, Stephen Spielberg, RT Davies, and the vast majority of genre/cult writers. Which may explain why they can't get respect from the mainstream or the critical elite. Too focused on obtaining the mcMuffin or fighting the big bad. So they skip over stuff like...oh, A finds out B is alive and not dead, or C/D have to figure out how to deal with the fact that R is actually their daughter and not just one of A's wacky alien friends, or ...how did S get home after being beaten to a pulp? Do B ever apologize to S? Little stuff like that is dealt with in depth by shows such as Mad Men, Game of Thrones, Sopranoes, The Good Wife, Breaking Bad, Being Human, etc...densely written shows deal with this stuff. Loose tv series don't. So I hunt for fanfic to fill in the gaps. I also write it to fill in the gaps.
I'm not saying that Mad Men is necessarily better written than Buffy - I don't believe it is fair to compare the two. The writers have different purposes and interests. The production value is different. Also completely different target audiences. But Weiner is a tighter writer than Whedon, tighter in plot, and more thorough. Felt the same way about Game of Thrones...it's tighter. So no need for fanfic, at least for me. Your mileage may vary of course.
For the record, had the same issue with The Hunger Games - I sought fanfic out for it, because so much was left off the page. It's almost too focused on one pov. You leave wanting more, while in direct contrast The Fault in Our Stars, The Night Circus...didn't make me want fanfic at all. Harry Potter? I do, it's also too focused and too loose,
too much detail here, and not enough over there...if you know what I mean? Maybe not.
It's hard to explain and my head hurts. I should just eat and watch my tv shows.
3. Name Ten TV Series That You Watched from the ages of 5-14 that you remember vividly.
[The difficulty of this meme has a great deal to do with how old you are. And well, how willingly you are to admit to it.]
1. Kimba - the White Lion - about 6 or however old you are when you are in nursery school.
Loved that series. It was a cartoon, on at 2pm in the afternoon. Plot? Insanely similar to the Lion King - to the extent that the creator of Kimba would have been well within his rights to sue for copyright infringement.
2. The Monkeeys - I was between the ages of 7-9. And I loved this show. Was in love with Davy Jones, who I got to meet in person years later and acquired his autograph.
It was a cool show that was basically nothing but music videos.
3. Star Trek and Space 1999 - two early TV series that scared me. But my first introduction to science fiction. Star Trek was better. My parents were fans of both and watched them. I remember leaving the room at different points during Space 1999.
4. Battle Star Galatica - version 1, I was 11 or 12, and I loved it. Was in love with Richard Hatch who played Apollo. I made up stories in my head about it. And wrote fanfic.
5. Gunsmoke - my parents were Western fanatics - they watched Gunsmoke every night and in reruns. It aired until the mid-late 70s. The longest running tv series. Part of my love of Westerns stems from my parents, who equally loved them. They adored all genres.
6. Dark Shadows - we used to watch it at slumber parties at midnight, to scare ourselves.
It was spooky back then. We eventually gravitated to Night Gallery. But it wasn't as much fun as Dark Shadows. The Vamp Diaries of its day.
7. Batman and Robin - my best friend and I would watch this like crazy. She was in love with Adam West. My fav's were Robin and Batgirl - who I was shipping at the time. I remember driving all the way out to a used car dealership with her family, about three hours away - to see them in person, and Robin had an massive perm or afro. I was so disappointed, because it clearly wasn't him.
8. American Bandstand - we did a marathon one night at a slumber party, where the three of us danced until we were ready to drop to each song, copying the dance moves - I was maybe 8 or 9.
9. Happy Days - a spin off of Love American Style, and my baby-sitter's favorite tv show.
It had three spin-off's: Laverne and Shirly, Mork and Mindy, and Joanie Loves Chachi.
10. MASH - my parents favorite sitcom, we watched it every night. It was on about the entire length of my childhood. And in college I did a media essay on it. The first tv series I ever wrote meta on.
11. Scooby Doo, Where are You - my favorite Saturday Morning Cartoon as a youngster, because it scared me. I was remember 7.
Honorable mentions:
* Schoolhouse Rock - educational cartoon ditties on Saturday Mornings
* Bugs Bunny & Road Runner Show
* H& R Puff'n Stuff - sort of a live action British take on Where the Wild Things Are meets The Prisoner by way of the Muppet Show...but for kids, with Jack Wild and a lot of big puppets,
* ABC Afterschool Specials - these varied from amazing to mediocre. Go Ask Alice was amongst them, as was the special Free to be You and Me. I remember all fondly. They don't have them any longer - Nickleodoen and Disney Channel have clearly taken their place.
* The Muppet Show - aired from 1975-1980s or thereabouts. A children's variety show that adults could love. I recently got the first season on DVD.
* The Electric Company, Captain Kangeroo, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, and Sesame Street...along with Reading Rainbow - although I think it was called something else at the time. Of the four, only Sesame Street is still on today.
* Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman - I didn't see them, my best bud would recap them for me on the way to school each morning, we had a 30 minute walk to the bus stop.
I couldn't watch them because they aired past my bed-time, she got to stay up later than I did. I eventually did watch them in reruns and was disappointed, because her recaps were more interesting.
* Little House on the Prairie - see Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman
* The Brady Bunch - my brother's favorite show. I was also addicted. I remember racing home to catch key episodes in reruns after school. We even watched all the reunion movies, attempts at spinoffs, and the insane variety show.
* Ryan's Hope - my mother was addicted to a lot of soap operas when I was a kid, but I remember that one the best during those years. Mostly because it came on before the Monkeey or Brady Bunch.
Don't kill yourself for your jobs, folks. It doesn't care. [Is that too much info? I'm never sure how much to reveal in these unflocked posts.]
2. I've no time to a proper meta on Mad Men - so if you are interested there's a rather good one over here by superplin, and it references Buffy and Angel - so bonus (assuming of course you are still into Buffy and Angel). She's doing meta again, and plin is amongst my favorite meta writers. Meta is an art...or at least I think it is.
Was always more into meta than fanfic for some reason. I think it's because it is rare for me to seek out fanfic. I've only sought it out for a couple of tv shows, mainly genre, usually ones that have a character, characters, or scenarios that capture my attention, and are incredibly loosely written, with a lot of the action either happening off-stage, off-screen, off-page - and vaguely referred to. Densely written works - I don't need fanfiction for. Loosely written ones with a lot of gaps in the action and a lot of things happening off-stage, I sort of do, assuming I get obsessed.
Whedon? God, the man leaves half the story off the screen. Focusing on weird and often obvious things. He's not alone, Ron Moore does this too, as does Stephen Moffat, George Lucas, Stephen Spielberg, RT Davies, and the vast majority of genre/cult writers. Which may explain why they can't get respect from the mainstream or the critical elite. Too focused on obtaining the mcMuffin or fighting the big bad. So they skip over stuff like...oh, A finds out B is alive and not dead, or C/D have to figure out how to deal with the fact that R is actually their daughter and not just one of A's wacky alien friends, or ...how did S get home after being beaten to a pulp? Do B ever apologize to S? Little stuff like that is dealt with in depth by shows such as Mad Men, Game of Thrones, Sopranoes, The Good Wife, Breaking Bad, Being Human, etc...densely written shows deal with this stuff. Loose tv series don't. So I hunt for fanfic to fill in the gaps. I also write it to fill in the gaps.
I'm not saying that Mad Men is necessarily better written than Buffy - I don't believe it is fair to compare the two. The writers have different purposes and interests. The production value is different. Also completely different target audiences. But Weiner is a tighter writer than Whedon, tighter in plot, and more thorough. Felt the same way about Game of Thrones...it's tighter. So no need for fanfic, at least for me. Your mileage may vary of course.
For the record, had the same issue with The Hunger Games - I sought fanfic out for it, because so much was left off the page. It's almost too focused on one pov. You leave wanting more, while in direct contrast The Fault in Our Stars, The Night Circus...didn't make me want fanfic at all. Harry Potter? I do, it's also too focused and too loose,
too much detail here, and not enough over there...if you know what I mean? Maybe not.
It's hard to explain and my head hurts. I should just eat and watch my tv shows.
3. Name Ten TV Series That You Watched from the ages of 5-14 that you remember vividly.
[The difficulty of this meme has a great deal to do with how old you are. And well, how willingly you are to admit to it.]
1. Kimba - the White Lion - about 6 or however old you are when you are in nursery school.
Loved that series. It was a cartoon, on at 2pm in the afternoon. Plot? Insanely similar to the Lion King - to the extent that the creator of Kimba would have been well within his rights to sue for copyright infringement.
2. The Monkeeys - I was between the ages of 7-9. And I loved this show. Was in love with Davy Jones, who I got to meet in person years later and acquired his autograph.
It was a cool show that was basically nothing but music videos.
3. Star Trek and Space 1999 - two early TV series that scared me. But my first introduction to science fiction. Star Trek was better. My parents were fans of both and watched them. I remember leaving the room at different points during Space 1999.
4. Battle Star Galatica - version 1, I was 11 or 12, and I loved it. Was in love with Richard Hatch who played Apollo. I made up stories in my head about it. And wrote fanfic.
5. Gunsmoke - my parents were Western fanatics - they watched Gunsmoke every night and in reruns. It aired until the mid-late 70s. The longest running tv series. Part of my love of Westerns stems from my parents, who equally loved them. They adored all genres.
6. Dark Shadows - we used to watch it at slumber parties at midnight, to scare ourselves.
It was spooky back then. We eventually gravitated to Night Gallery. But it wasn't as much fun as Dark Shadows. The Vamp Diaries of its day.
7. Batman and Robin - my best friend and I would watch this like crazy. She was in love with Adam West. My fav's were Robin and Batgirl - who I was shipping at the time. I remember driving all the way out to a used car dealership with her family, about three hours away - to see them in person, and Robin had an massive perm or afro. I was so disappointed, because it clearly wasn't him.
8. American Bandstand - we did a marathon one night at a slumber party, where the three of us danced until we were ready to drop to each song, copying the dance moves - I was maybe 8 or 9.
9. Happy Days - a spin off of Love American Style, and my baby-sitter's favorite tv show.
It had three spin-off's: Laverne and Shirly, Mork and Mindy, and Joanie Loves Chachi.
10. MASH - my parents favorite sitcom, we watched it every night. It was on about the entire length of my childhood. And in college I did a media essay on it. The first tv series I ever wrote meta on.
11. Scooby Doo, Where are You - my favorite Saturday Morning Cartoon as a youngster, because it scared me. I was remember 7.
Honorable mentions:
* Schoolhouse Rock - educational cartoon ditties on Saturday Mornings
* Bugs Bunny & Road Runner Show
* H& R Puff'n Stuff - sort of a live action British take on Where the Wild Things Are meets The Prisoner by way of the Muppet Show...but for kids, with Jack Wild and a lot of big puppets,
* ABC Afterschool Specials - these varied from amazing to mediocre. Go Ask Alice was amongst them, as was the special Free to be You and Me. I remember all fondly. They don't have them any longer - Nickleodoen and Disney Channel have clearly taken their place.
* The Muppet Show - aired from 1975-1980s or thereabouts. A children's variety show that adults could love. I recently got the first season on DVD.
* The Electric Company, Captain Kangeroo, Mr. Roger's Neighborhood, and Sesame Street...along with Reading Rainbow - although I think it was called something else at the time. Of the four, only Sesame Street is still on today.
* Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman - I didn't see them, my best bud would recap them for me on the way to school each morning, we had a 30 minute walk to the bus stop.
I couldn't watch them because they aired past my bed-time, she got to stay up later than I did. I eventually did watch them in reruns and was disappointed, because her recaps were more interesting.
* Little House on the Prairie - see Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman
* The Brady Bunch - my brother's favorite show. I was also addicted. I remember racing home to catch key episodes in reruns after school. We even watched all the reunion movies, attempts at spinoffs, and the insane variety show.
* Ryan's Hope - my mother was addicted to a lot of soap operas when I was a kid, but I remember that one the best during those years. Mostly because it came on before the Monkeey or Brady Bunch.