A Rant That Will Probably Make Me Unpopular

[poliphilo]

I see there is much weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth in fandom.

The movie Serenity (which I haven't seen) has divided the followers of the Firefly cult (I haven't see Firefly either.)

Oh come on guys, it's a story. It's fiction. It didn't really happen. That guy that got killed (and you're all getting so worked up about) didn't really get killed because he was never really alive. That was an actor. He got paid at the end of the day and is sitting comfortably beside his pool in the Hollywood hills waiting for his agent to ring.

It's the religion thing, isn't it? We stop believing in God, but it leaves such a huge, gaping, black hole and it hurts so much that we panic and rage and go round looking for things- any old things- to stuff into the emptiness. And so we start believing in Joss Whedon or that guy who made the LOTR films (whose name temporarily escapes me) or (heaven help us) George Lucas.

And just as true believers make themselves blind to the inconsistencies, impossibilities and stylistic infelicities in the New Testament, so fans convince themselves that their favourite TV shows and films aren't in fact a load of crap.

Look, I liked Buffy. I was sort of in love with Willow. But series #7 was garbage, you know it was.

And Lord of The Rings. I love Tolkien (not uncritically) but the movies kinda highlighted all his faults and failed to translate his real merits into filmic terms. Wake up, guys, those films are dull. As dull as the Pentateuch. And I for one never want to see another CGI battle ever again.

As for Lucas- everyone agrees that the prequels are horrible- so why do you keep going to see them again and again? Are you mad?

Wake up, think for yourselves, think critically. Stop being such sheep!

Comments

[karenetaylor.livejournal.com]

I've never understood the fandom scene. I probably never will.

I did end up watching Firefly (on DVD) just recently and found that I enjoyed it a lot (unlike Buffy and Wheadon's other shows, whatever they may be) so we saw the movie yesterday. I was upset when the character in question died, but I'm writer enough to know -why- he did. Someone had to. I sort of felt that more should've died.

I enjoyed the LOTR movies, but tended to phase out during the fight scenes, much as I would while reading the books (which I do, once a year, whether I need to or not...) None of the scenery (lovely though it was) matched up to what I thought it should be. But that's the way it is.

My biggest pet peeve these days is the lack of character motiviation. This, plus the creation of false conflicts, dulls my interest completely. (See LOST for numerous examples of this...)

Haven't seen a Star Wars movie since the third one came out. No, not the one that came out recently. You know, the third one. The real third one. Return of the Jedi. Lucas can insist until his dying day that he actually planned to do all of these movies exactly the way he has from the get-go, but I'll never believe it.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I mean to watch Firefly. I think it's probably the sort of thing I'd like. And I was very fond of Buffy.

I watched a couple of episodes of Lost. I may watch more, because it's light and fluffy and passes the time of day, but I'm not going to get hooked. The writing's just not good enough.

I can faintly remember a time when I liked Star Wars, but now the blight of the sequels reaches back into the original trilogy and blasts my enjoyment of them.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I mean to watch Firefly. I'll rent it on DVD.

I have exactly the same feelings as you do about Lost. Life is too short to invest several days of it (and that's what it'll be by the time they've completed seven seasons) in a shaggy dog story.

Jah Jah Binks- "oh the humanity"