Leverage and some random things...

[hells_half_acre]

Although Tumblr has been doing its best to get me to watch Teen Wolf, I promised that Leverage would be the next series that I try out. 

Leverage!

I've watched the first episode. I could do without Christian Kane's batman voice - but I like the show! I developed a small crush on Aldis Hodge when I saw him at VanCon2010...and I knew a little about his character (or at least his character's speciality). I was picturing his character a little differently - less stereotypically black, I guess. I'm not sure if that makes the show racist, or it makes me racist....maybe both? ETA: Okay, he seems to have toned it down to a more realistic (to me) level in the second episode. Kane still has a batman voice though.

Anyway, like I said, I do like the show so far and I'm looking forward to seeing more....which I'm going to do, right after I finish typing this entry. 

Random thought about Black Widow (from the Avengers)

So, on the plane back to Vancouver, I watched The Avengers again. The first time I watched it, I ended up with two questions concerning Black Widow: 1)What is her special weapon?...everyone has a special weapon, except seemingly her. Those two small pistols can't possibly count! 2)Why do I find her so awesome?

Turns out, there is one answer for both questions. What I like about Black Widow is the fact that her special weapon is whatever her enemy's special weapon is. She takes whatever the enemy has and turns it back on them. She interrogates her interrogators. Watch her in a fight, and within fifteen seconds, she'll have her enemies weapon in her hand and will be using it to beat the shit out of them. When she needs a ride to Stark tower, she not only uses an alien ship, she uses the alien riding it as her own personal puppet. She shuts off the portal with Loki's staff (granted, he dropped it when fighting Hulk, but still, it's Natasha who uses it to cut off his reinforcements. Anyway, I think that's pretty cool. Her resources are her enemies resources, so she's always on an even playing field...except, of course, when it comes to someone like the Hulk, who terrifies her.

Sherlock - The Great Game rewatch progress report:

This one is going to be longer than my A Study in Pink rewatch, folks. Start bracing yourselves now. I'm halfway through and I'm honestly afraid to do a word count.

Comments

[farfadine.livejournal.com]

Leverage is awesome!!! Christian Kane sometimes looses the Batman voice when his character has to play other characters.
What I really like about this show is that you don't always really know how their con work until the end of each episode (but that maybe is just me not always getting things XD) and the bounds that form between all the characters.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Yes, I noticed that about Kane's batman voice :P

And yes, so far I've never been quite sure exactly how their con plan is going to work - so it's a lot of fun to see it come together.

I'm already liking the dynamic between Aldis' and Kane's characters. :)

[metallidean-grl.livejournal.com]

I love Leverage and never really thought Christian Kane's voice was batman like. I'll have to pay closer attention to his voice in tonight's episode and see for myself. I love his character though, the hardass fighter with a heart of gold underneath. Kinda like Dean.

I particularly love it because they have been filming the show here in Portland the past several years, and just this year they have had the characters living in Portland, so this has been a great showcase for my beautiful city.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Ooo, filming somewhere other than Vancouver! That'll be fun to watch. As much as it's amusing to recognize locations, it helps suspend my disbelief more when I don't. :P

Well, it's not as raspy as Batman (thank goodness - I can't actually understand Batman in the Nolan films)...but he speaks in this kind of odd low monotone when he's not doing a "character". I'm sure I'll get used to it.

I really like how in the second episode Christian Kane's character can identify guns by their gunshots and fighters by their fighting style - I hope that keeps up. I think his and Aldis's characters are actually my favourite so far...though, in truth, I like all of them (which is a good and rare thing!)

[metallidean-grl.livejournal.com]

Yea, I love all characters as well, each in their own way, but Christian's character is by far my favorite. I think its the hard cookie shell with a very soft gooey inside that gets me every time. And yea, the way they have Kane's character identifying guns and fighting methods is ultra cool.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'm looking forward to getting to know the character better - so far they haven't explored much about him (it's mostly been about Nathan), but I've only watched two episodes. :P

[metallidean-grl.livejournal.com]

It's a fun ride. A nice, light-hearted, not too angsty type of show, you should enjoy it. Also, in case you didn't know, Mark Sheppard appears in several episodes more toward the end of S1. He also makes a couple other appearances in later seasons, which have always been fun. He, of course, plays the nemesis for Nathan Ford and the team. Since I haven't ever seen Mark in any other show, it was fun to see him in a role other than Crowley.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Cool. I've seen Mark in Firefly and Doctor Who - and I always enjoy him. :)

Yeah, I like light heated shows - so I think I'm going to like this one. Plus, I LOVE heists...and I like Aldis Hodge...so, yeah, seems like a good match for me so far! ;)

[claudiapriscus.livejournal.com]

From what I've heard, the black widow also has some sort of zappy wristbands or something They show her wearing them in the movie, apparently, but didn't have her use them, IDK.

She was pretty awesome though. Leave it to Joss Whedon to take the most cardboard, one-dimensional, blatant fetish-fuel character and make her one of the best. I love that man.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Oh? Yeah, I don't know anything about the comic-book Black Widow. I ONLY know this version - sounds like she's the best version!

Joss Whedon is very good at making things the best. I'm not even a Buffy/Angel fan, but even I can recognize that he did a very good job with them. He seems particularly good at making every character awesome in their own right.

[claudiapriscus.livejournal.com]

I don't know about the comic book version either- I was thinking of how she was in Iron Man 2. They didn't even try to give her a personality. Her personality was that she looked hot. This is a huge pet-peeve of mine, especially when it's as blatant as it was.

I'm not really a buffy/angel fan either, but I loved Firefly and Dr Horrible. And I'm more than willing to point out his flaws- he has his own little excesses, and for all his feminist cred, he's a total h/c junkie and the stories he writes for his 'strong female characters' have frequently involves putting them through the ringer until they're revealed as vulnerable little girls (emotionally speaking). Their stories are frequently propelled by what is done to them rather than by what they do. His male heroes also get put through the wringer, but in ways that means their stories are driven by their choices. (E.g. Male character makes choice! choice is rooted in his emotional state, but he knew what he was doing. choice has consequences! vs Female character has something done to her. stuff happens because of that thing! character has emotions.) But for all that? AT LEAST HE GIVES THEM PERSONALITIES. (And his side female characters tend to be pretty awesome and somewhat immune to having those kind of stories). There's this weird tendency by a lot of writers to seem to regard female POVs as completely alien and unknowable. Which is damn weird, but it explains a lot. So I'm kind of happy they've handed Joss the keys to the Marvel Cinematic Universe...because even at his worst, he's better than most.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Oh, I haven't seen Iron Man 2 either. I have a short attention span for some things. I enjoyed Iron Man, but not enough to be bothered to see the sequel. :P

I think Joss also falls into the manic-pixie-dream-girl trap, doesn't he? River was a little like that, at least.

But yeah, it's kind of sad that the guy who is best known for writing 'strong female characters' is actually not really the best at it. Though, I did think he did a good job with Zoe - but maybe that's just because the show ended before he could mess it up. :P

There's this weird tendency by a lot of writers to seem to regard female POVs as completely alien and unknowable.

It's funny, because I've always found other females to be completely alien and unknowable...I blamed my somewhat messed up gender identity. But sometimes I wonder if my messed up gender identity was influenced by the media I was consuming, which painted females as so different from me that I assumed I couldn't be one of them. Or maybe it's a weird cocktail of me being weird and inaccurate media portrayals of females not helping. :P

Anyway, yeah, I'm always of the opinion that we should support those who come closest to being feminists, even if even they don't necessarily get it right. I think a lot of people fall into the trap of attacking their allies for not being perfect, when they should be attacking those who don't even try to be an ally.

[claudiapriscus.livejournal.com]

Zoe is awesome. As was Kaylee. And Inara. But Zoe (and the others) were never really the mytharc's focal characters, the way River obviously was intended to be? (In the sense that while River never seemed like much more than story wall-paper to me, it's pretty clear that her story was central to the overarching story).

I don't think River was exactly a MPDG...her sole purpose in life wasn't to be a mysterious person who brought fulfillment to some sensitive but aimless and ennui-filled young man. Though she's clearly still a fantasy- like Buffy, like Faith, like Fred, hell, even Drusilla, who is clearly an evil proto-River- the fantasy of a beautiful and exceptional waif of a girl whose exceptional nature (read: intimidating nature) is undercut by her aching emotional vulnerability. It makes her non-threatening.

My feeling on allies and such is that yeah, we should totally avoid attacking those who are clearly trying. It's all too common in the social-justice circles. You know, the pile-on, the race to find something to knock someone down with. (Favorite example recently: someone writing on their own struggles with mental illness, mentioning how much they hate having attacks of 'crazy brain', immediately getting called out for ableist language.)

On the other hand, there's a school of thought that acts as if any criticism is an attack on that person's intentions, sincerity, and integrity. And I'm not a fan of that either. It's fair enough, I think, to point out that Firefly was weirdly lacking in asian characters for a show set in a universe where Chinese is as dominant as English. I don't really see that as an attack, especially when used/phrased that way. It's more of...pointing out something that could use improvement. So I can be aware of the things that Joss does really, really well without needing to hail him as the BEST FEMINIST EVAR!!!!!!!! and I can point out the things he's a little weak on, without making him into the enemy. I think it comes down to being okay with people being flawed. Unfortunately, it seems that there are many people who can't handle a little contradiction. Everything's got to be all one thing or the other.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

I don't think River was exactly a MPDG...her sole purpose in life wasn't to be a mysterious person who brought fulfillment to some sensitive but aimless and ennui-filled young man.

Good point. You're right.

My feeling on allies and such is that yeah, we should totally avoid attacking those who are clearly trying. It's all too common in the social-justice circles. You know, the pile-on, the race to find something to knock someone down with.

Exactly. It really hurts when I see that happen - because no rights movement is going to get very far if they turn against their supporters. People aren't going to get their rights in the public discourse, or educate the world about their social group, if people are afraid to talk about them even if it is in support.

So I can be aware of the things that Joss does really, really well without needing to hail him as the BEST FEMINIST EVAR!!!!!!!! and I can point out the things he's a little weak on, without making him into the enemy. I think it comes down to being okay with people being flawed. Unfortunately, it seems that there are many people who can't handle a little contradiction. Everything's got to be all one thing or the other.

Yes, exactly. This constant insistence that things have to be one way or the other really really annoys me. I find American culture is absolutely torn apart by it, quite frankly. You are either a socialist liberal or you're an anti-abortion misogynistic conservative....and I'm not sure how you feel as an American, but from my vantage point in Canada, it seems really poisonous and detrimental to your political choices. Though, don't get me wrong, we have similar problems in Canada at the moment, they just aren't nearly as pronounced.

It's the old dichotomy myth...which just doesn't exist. People and opinions are far too nuanced. Everything is on a sliding scale.

I just wish that those who do the pile-ons, who can't handle faulted heroes, weren't so vocal. I always feel like the reasonable suggestions for improvement are lost in a barrage of unwarranted hate. /rant. :P

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

Love your thoughts on Natasha. I've definitely noticed her exceptional reaction to Hulk and been puzzling over why. It's turning up a lot in a WIP I have going, and I haven't settled on what my take will be yet. The idea that it's because his strength is something she can't take from him is an interesting explanation, and does run parallel to some of the things I've been musing on.

Also, re: your comments about the polarization of American politics. Agreed, and as an American, it disgusts me. I can only speak for myself, but I despise all the election crap going on - I always do, but even more so this time around, when they're barely even touching the issues and just trying not to look like the other guy. Though personally I'm well over to the liberal side, all I want is for people on both sides to figure out how to talk to each other with respect and actually make progress. They do want some of the same things, but they're so busy fighting to the death they'll never admit it and figure out how to find a middle ground between their opposite approaches. Surviving an election year always just makes me want to move somewhere else and be done with the whole thing. *sigh* But talking about politics always makes me depressed/exasperated, so enough of that.

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

I've definitely noticed her exceptional reaction to Hulk and been puzzling over why. It's turning up a lot in a WIP I have going, and I haven't settled on what my take will be yet. The idea that it's because his strength is something she can't take from him is an interesting explanation, and does run parallel to some of the things I've been musing on.

Yes, to me Natasha's exceptional fear of the Hulk was quite puzzling as well - I mean, no one else reacts that way. They're wary of him, but they aren't terrified. Her inability to use his strength/madness against him is the only explanation I've come up with so far - anything else might be driven by something that happened in her past, but you'd think if that were the case they'd have made special note of it. (As they did with her response to Hawkeye's comment about being unmade).

Yeah, talking about politics depressed and exasperates me as well. The current Canadian gov't is quiet horrible, and unfortunately our electoral system is flawed so they've ended up with a fair bit of power, despite the fact that very few people actually voted for them.

But yes, the main problem with this polarization of politics is that no progress is made. If you aren't allowed to agree with your opponent on ANY issue, if there seems to be a mandate of striking down ANY bill proposed by the other side...then what is ever going to get done? Good or bad, if nothing gets done, then everyone suffers. I once had a history teacher who pointed out that for all America talks about being democratic, their democracy actually stagnated in the 1800s and hasn't moved further since then. If you want to see a good example of democracy these days, you have to look to Europe.

America is sort of like a bad relationship. The two parties keep arguing about who is leaving wet towels on the floor of the bathroom, rather than the fact that they can't pay their mortgage and their kids keep ending up in jail...and no one is feeding the dog and he's starting to eye the baby oddly.

Anyway, I hope you survive this election year. Speaking as a Canadian, it always annoys me too, because we get inundated with it as well and we can't even vote.

[et-tu-lj.livejournal.com]

America is sort of like a bad relationship. The two parties keep arguing about who is leaving wet towels on the floor of the bathroom, rather than the fact that they can't pay their mortgage and their kids keep ending up in jail...and no one is feeding the dog and he's starting to eye the baby oddly.

OMG, you are awesome. That's the perfect analogy, and has the benefit of making me laugh in the process. Too bad it's true.

I always feel like apologizing to other countries, lol. As if can control it. *grimaces*

So while I'm projecting:
Thank you, Canada, for giving me all my favorite television shows. You rock. (You too, UK.)

;D

[hells-half-acre.livejournal.com]

Haha, I'm glad you like my ridiculous analogy. ;)

And yeah, no need to apologize. I, too, often feel like I need to apologize to the world on behalf of what my country does (*cough*tarsands*cough*)...but when I really think about it, I didn't vote for any of it! So, therefore, I think my country should be apologizing to ME...and the rest of the world.