Hello babes and babettes.
Sorry I am a terrible person who flagrantly never checks her flist anymore at all ever! Please tell me how you are all doing. I am not doing much besides working (new job very happy), watching TV (many shows enjoying a lot of them), and also avoiding family drama (complicated, pointless, dramatic). I am working on some fic (a Matt/Claire/Elektra fic, another installment of the old Dan/Blair musicians AU because a friend requested it for her birthday, and some more fuckin Shadowhunters fic because I'm trash) but haven't posted here just because I haven't had much to say? But I don't want to abandon livejournal, I want to hold on fast to the past like Blanche Dubois, so I thought I'd just scattershot some thoughts about the shows I've been watching and stuff. Mostly just talk to me!
Mondays on the CW inexplicably remain my happy place to my eternal and utter surprise. Crazy Ex Girlfriend is honestly one of the best things I've watched in a long time, and Jane the Virgin never disappoints. Other things that I don't have much to say about because I've been enjoying them unreservedly: Broad City (god the finale had been ROLLING) always gets me, Daredevil (love it despite flaws), and The People vs. O.J. honestly deserves to go down as one of the Greats. Incredible series.
I'm also rewatching s1 of Outlander with the intention of FINALLY catching up (I never did watch the second half of s1) and I forgot how delightful it can be. Claire is absolutely wonderful, I wish I was one one thousandth as elegant as she is. The actor who plays Frank/Captain Randall is incredible. But I also forgot how rape-y it is and am wondering now if that was why I stalled out on it the first time. I love the show, but I really find it hard to watch shows with rape scenes, especially since it's so regular.
I am also full on Shadowhunters trash. So sue me, that shit's fun. Also Harry Shum Jr <3 <3 <3. Been YouTube stalking his handsome ass lately, he is gold.
I have always had a dislike-to-hate-but-still-watch-it-for-some-reason relationship with Girls, where I'll drop it for a season or two then pick it up again then drop it, etc so color me surprised as shit when I loved this season. Like, just straight loved it. I watched the finale yesterday morning and I was WEEPING. Weeping! Over fucking GIRLS. It's just been a really good season, a lot of it is hitting home.
Now let's talk some shit!
Faking It. I am super hating this season. I know Faking It has been kind of trashy from the beginning – as I have said before, it is basically a trope-y fanfic that you find yourself enjoying anyway because it's not badly written. I liked the actresses and the characters and found it did some things very delightfully; in s2, it was a show I genuinely looked forward to week to week. But I have been struggling very much with suffering through s3. Part me of thinks so much of it is same shit, different day – like, how many times can I watch the exact same plot developments happen with the exact same results? Amy's over Karma and found a new girl! Oh wait, she's not & also goodbye new girl. Karma and Liam pretend not to be in love but they still actually are! I do not understand the function of any of the boys – pray tell me, is anyone actually checking for Liam, Shane, or Felix? Does ANYONE care? Why do they take up so much narrative space? I cannot fucking believe Liam is going to hook up with my princess Lauren, esp on the heels of my residual rage over that Theo mess.
But what is genuinely making me the angriest is the queerbaity nonsense. I KNOW that is writ into the very fabric of the series, I am not a derp, but it's really making me angry lately. Why is Amy/Felix a thing? Why? Several times an episode I find myself physically yelling SHE IS A LESBIAN at my television, lol. Why can't they just let her be a lesbian? Why do they have to give a nudge to her being into boys every now and then? I cannot wrap my head around it. Why is that happening? It just feels weird to me, it doesn't feel like she is bisexual or that that's even the intention; the stuff with boys is so tonally weird to me and Amy never seems actively into it the way she is with girls. Is it just that they had her fuck Liam that one time and they decided that to make up for the lameness and cheapness of that, she had to have a ladyboner for boys once a season? Like, turn a mistake into a character trait so no one can call you on it? Lol I don't know. But it's been bothering me. JUST LET HER BE GAY.
Vinyl is pretty much terrible, but I watched the whole thing out of love for the music, the clothes, the cast, and the 70s vibe – all of which were great. What was not great? Literally everything else. This show might have had a chance at being edgy ten to fifteen years ago, but it feels incredibly dated now – and not because it's a period piece, but because of how the narrative functions. Rich white dude antiheroes with deep pain are no longer new territory, and if you're doing that you better be bringing something new to the table. Vinyl brought absolutely nothing new to the table. In fact it ripped off Mad Men so shamelessly (and with absolutely zero subtlety) that I'm surprised I haven't seen more articles about it, except that no one is watching this show because it's awful.
The thing is, literally every character is more interesting and feels fresher than Richie, even though Bobby Cannavale is amazing and acts the hell out of whatever he's given. Juno Temple playing an ambitious girl who fights to rise in a company that doesn't take her seriously! Andrea (Andrea? Is that her name?) as a tough and competent career woman who does a difficult favor for the ex who fucked her over! Hell, even Olivia Wilde is pretty okay on this show despite the fact that she's playing nouveau Betty Draper with more nudity. The show would benefit from focusing on any of these characters instead. But I would say the character I think should be the lead more than any of them is Ato Essandoh's Lester. He is crazy underutilized and maybe it's just me, but I am so fascinated by his story – this guy with all this talent who not only gets screwed over by his best friend but has his voice DESTROYED in the process and is now doing everything he can to claw his way back into making a life for himself/finding some dignity... Idk, I find it very compelling, personally. It's emotionally resonant to me in a way most of the show is not. Plus, Ato Essandoh, though I have never seen him in anything else, has a kind of energy and charisma that I really like.
The Walking Dead. Nothing really to say because I don't care about this show aside from my man Glenn, but it's extra cheap and gimmicky lately and also please don't kill off my boyfriend thx.
I am behind on The Americans because I tend to wait for the season to end so I can stress binge but I was spoiled for The Big Thing That Happened and I am reserving judgment on it until I see it go down.
Sorry I am a terrible person who flagrantly never checks her flist anymore at all ever! Please tell me how you are all doing. I am not doing much besides working (new job very happy), watching TV (many shows enjoying a lot of them), and also avoiding family drama (complicated, pointless, dramatic). I am working on some fic (a Matt/Claire/Elektra fic, another installment of the old Dan/Blair musicians AU because a friend requested it for her birthday, and some more fuckin Shadowhunters fic because I'm trash) but haven't posted here just because I haven't had much to say? But I don't want to abandon livejournal, I want to hold on fast to the past like Blanche Dubois, so I thought I'd just scattershot some thoughts about the shows I've been watching and stuff. Mostly just talk to me!
Mondays on the CW inexplicably remain my happy place to my eternal and utter surprise. Crazy Ex Girlfriend is honestly one of the best things I've watched in a long time, and Jane the Virgin never disappoints. Other things that I don't have much to say about because I've been enjoying them unreservedly: Broad City (god the finale had been ROLLING) always gets me, Daredevil (love it despite flaws), and The People vs. O.J. honestly deserves to go down as one of the Greats. Incredible series.
I'm also rewatching s1 of Outlander with the intention of FINALLY catching up (I never did watch the second half of s1) and I forgot how delightful it can be. Claire is absolutely wonderful, I wish I was one one thousandth as elegant as she is. The actor who plays Frank/Captain Randall is incredible. But I also forgot how rape-y it is and am wondering now if that was why I stalled out on it the first time. I love the show, but I really find it hard to watch shows with rape scenes, especially since it's so regular.
I am also full on Shadowhunters trash. So sue me, that shit's fun. Also Harry Shum Jr <3 <3 <3. Been YouTube stalking his handsome ass lately, he is gold.
I have always had a dislike-to-hate-but-still-watch-it-for-some-reason relationship with Girls, where I'll drop it for a season or two then pick it up again then drop it, etc so color me surprised as shit when I loved this season. Like, just straight loved it. I watched the finale yesterday morning and I was WEEPING. Weeping! Over fucking GIRLS. It's just been a really good season, a lot of it is hitting home.
Now let's talk some shit!
Faking It. I am super hating this season. I know Faking It has been kind of trashy from the beginning – as I have said before, it is basically a trope-y fanfic that you find yourself enjoying anyway because it's not badly written. I liked the actresses and the characters and found it did some things very delightfully; in s2, it was a show I genuinely looked forward to week to week. But I have been struggling very much with suffering through s3. Part me of thinks so much of it is same shit, different day – like, how many times can I watch the exact same plot developments happen with the exact same results? Amy's over Karma and found a new girl! Oh wait, she's not & also goodbye new girl. Karma and Liam pretend not to be in love but they still actually are! I do not understand the function of any of the boys – pray tell me, is anyone actually checking for Liam, Shane, or Felix? Does ANYONE care? Why do they take up so much narrative space? I cannot fucking believe Liam is going to hook up with my princess Lauren, esp on the heels of my residual rage over that Theo mess.
But what is genuinely making me the angriest is the queerbaity nonsense. I KNOW that is writ into the very fabric of the series, I am not a derp, but it's really making me angry lately. Why is Amy/Felix a thing? Why? Several times an episode I find myself physically yelling SHE IS A LESBIAN at my television, lol. Why can't they just let her be a lesbian? Why do they have to give a nudge to her being into boys every now and then? I cannot wrap my head around it. Why is that happening? It just feels weird to me, it doesn't feel like she is bisexual or that that's even the intention; the stuff with boys is so tonally weird to me and Amy never seems actively into it the way she is with girls. Is it just that they had her fuck Liam that one time and they decided that to make up for the lameness and cheapness of that, she had to have a ladyboner for boys once a season? Like, turn a mistake into a character trait so no one can call you on it? Lol I don't know. But it's been bothering me. JUST LET HER BE GAY.
Vinyl is pretty much terrible, but I watched the whole thing out of love for the music, the clothes, the cast, and the 70s vibe – all of which were great. What was not great? Literally everything else. This show might have had a chance at being edgy ten to fifteen years ago, but it feels incredibly dated now – and not because it's a period piece, but because of how the narrative functions. Rich white dude antiheroes with deep pain are no longer new territory, and if you're doing that you better be bringing something new to the table. Vinyl brought absolutely nothing new to the table. In fact it ripped off Mad Men so shamelessly (and with absolutely zero subtlety) that I'm surprised I haven't seen more articles about it, except that no one is watching this show because it's awful.
The thing is, literally every character is more interesting and feels fresher than Richie, even though Bobby Cannavale is amazing and acts the hell out of whatever he's given. Juno Temple playing an ambitious girl who fights to rise in a company that doesn't take her seriously! Andrea (Andrea? Is that her name?) as a tough and competent career woman who does a difficult favor for the ex who fucked her over! Hell, even Olivia Wilde is pretty okay on this show despite the fact that she's playing nouveau Betty Draper with more nudity. The show would benefit from focusing on any of these characters instead. But I would say the character I think should be the lead more than any of them is Ato Essandoh's Lester. He is crazy underutilized and maybe it's just me, but I am so fascinated by his story – this guy with all this talent who not only gets screwed over by his best friend but has his voice DESTROYED in the process and is now doing everything he can to claw his way back into making a life for himself/finding some dignity... Idk, I find it very compelling, personally. It's emotionally resonant to me in a way most of the show is not. Plus, Ato Essandoh, though I have never seen him in anything else, has a kind of energy and charisma that I really like.
The Walking Dead. Nothing really to say because I don't care about this show aside from my man Glenn, but it's extra cheap and gimmicky lately and also please don't kill off my boyfriend thx.
I am behind on The Americans because I tend to wait for the season to end so I can stress binge but I was spoiled for The Big Thing That Happened and I am reserving judgment on it until I see it go down.