(no subject)

[wren_kt7oz]

Okay - fixed yesterday's mess.  Should be readable now.

 

Written in response to a post by silly_grl who said (in part):”I do think that they probably are hearing a quite a bit from the community that wants to see "Queer as Blazes" ;) - and with gay issues becoming front and center politcially- they might think that showing a more "normal" relationship ie Ben and Mikey, may be less polarizing and more assimilating (Very much like the HRC's agenda - in my understanding)....In a way I see what they have been doing as an interesting opposite to what you often see happen on long running drama shows. Frequently you lose the presmise of the show in the characters getting more and more involved with eachother to a level of incredible inbredness. On QAF each character does change and go through their own arc, this takes time, and sometimes means the characters are more appart (which takes more screen time) than together. I am not saying its necessarily any better of a solution. Either way you alientate some segment of your viewing population.”

To a certain extent I agree with this. But for me the problem is that they have aspirations above the ability of the current writers to bring to the screen. And they have certain handicaps that they can't seem to get over or around.

One of them, IMO, is their fantasy that Michael is 'everyman' and the character that most people can identify with. For me that isn't, and has never been, true. He's irritated the living hell out of me from the first episode. And I'm not alone. There are legions of us. For me there is a huge difference between childlike (how C/L apparently see Mikey) and petulant and childish (how I see Mikey - to the extent that seems to me to be more emotionally retarded than Brian with far less cause).

So now that they are setting this new 'family friendly' agenda, they naturally turn to Michael and in and of itself that turns a lot of their viewers off. That's one problem.

Hal's acting abilities are another, because I don't think he has the range as an actor to really pull off what they need for this story arc to be truly compelling.

And the third is that in the midst of all this they have decided to make Michael perfect. He never messes up any more - or at least, not in any way that we are intended to interpret as messing up.

Caused a problem with Brian and Justin? "Selflessly" tries to fix it.

Hubby on the verge of straying? - Mikey remains loving and supportive and waits for him to sort himself out.

Hunter going through some teenage angst? - Mom - er Mikey - knows just what to say to sort him out.

Brian needs help on the bike ride? - perfect Michael is there to offer the perfect level of support.

All the way through the relationship with Ben, since that first wobble when he freaked over Ben's HIV+ status, Michael has been in the right, Ben is the one who continually messes up.

Ben had the steroid issue; the 'you can't understand what it's like to wake up with this thing' issue (which were linked, but still caused separate ructions); the 'nobody liked my book so I'm going to behave like a jealous prat over your film deal' issue; the 'ardent young thing is all over me and I'm basking in it' issue.

Always Ben. Never Michael.

And that's not just unrealistic - if realistic relationships are what they are going for. It's terminally boring.

There are a series of story arc's involving problems in their relationship, but the problems are always of Ben's making, never Michael's. The closest they came was early S3 with the Brian and Michael show revisited stuff, and even then Michael was shown as constantly trying to think about his partner but big bad Brian was too demanding and needed him and it was all his fault. Michael was just being a supportive friend.

Sorry ... I know this is going on forever.

My point is that CL's Michael fantasy and obsession is on the verge of completely ruining the show for me.

Partly because I didn't like him to start with.

Partly because every moment of Michael being Loretta Young takes screen time away from things that I might conceivably find interesting (and I do wish they'd come up with a decent plot line for Em). But mainly because it's just so damned boring. If I wanted sweet little sit com where Mom always knows how to kiss it better it's not QAF I'd be watching, dammit!

Which brings us back to the writing talent - and candidly, it sucks. The Drew story line I found appallingly bad. It's a serious issue, with guys going through hell trying to decide between putting the career they've worked years for, since they were children, at risk or living a lie in constant fear that they'll be found out.

And what we're given is Drew - who's quite comfortable, thank you very much, and loves his girlfriend and wants a normal life with wife and kids, and just likes to fuck guys on the side. So Em is really no different to the bit on the side that any het player might have. No real angst - except for Em's. Nothing to indicate that Drew is in any deep psychological pain over this. Nothing.

It was ridiculous and worse, it trivialised the issue to an extent where I think they should be deeply ashamed of themselves. If they weren't really going to address it, they should have left it alone completely. This certainly didn't do the guys in this situation any favours at all.

That's my problem with the aspirations that they seem to have developed to deal with "issues". They don't have the skill or the resources to do it well.And meanwhile, as per my original post, we get truncated bj, and pathetic storylines that I could find in any het show. Well ... not good enough. Not by a long shot, it isn't.

I have hopes for S5, but I have deep deep fears also.

Comments

[silly-grl.livejournal.com]

quick note - its silly_grl - that way you won't get the weird crossout thingie ...

[wren-kt7oz.livejournal.com]

Sorry - I write these things first thing in the morning (only time I get) and the brain hasn't really kicked in yet.

Many apologies.

W

[silly-grl.livejournal.com]

I could careless - but If you wanted it clean ... ;)

[wren-kt7oz.livejournal.com]

Fixed!

[silly-grl.livejournal.com]

totally agree about Hal's acting ability - sometimes he can really do okay - but that wierd look he gets on his face when he is supposed to be overwhelmed in any occasion is a bit strange and doesn't generally convey anything but raised eyebrows ;)

I hadn't really thought that way about Mikey - he is so different from my social crowd it never occured to me that he was supposed to be the one we were supposed to identify with. In general I end up in hopelessly "helper" relationships - where I am very Justin like, not in "taking abuse", but in helping someone deal with their sh!t, and in general I have enjoyed watching the general arc and growth between the two.

I guess in general, I am a little more go with the flow about it. It hasn't in general ever bored me, and I know I have loved some of the eps that other people hated. Sometimes I think my frame of reference hangs on different wall than everyone elses ;)

[wren-kt7oz.livejournal.com]

I think people bring many different expectations to this show.

My main problem, as I said, is that I'm allergic to Michael. Which wasn't so bad in previous seasons, but there was so much of him in S4 that I would never have made it to the end of the season without the fast forward button.

As for the "everyman" thing - Ron and Dan have said it in more than one interview. It was even mentioned in the book. They really believe that Michael is "Mr Average".

Which is dowright scary, now I come to think about it.

Wren you are amazing

[highd.livejournal.com]

Wren I read this and just schook my head in agreement to everything you said.

Hal's biggest acting problem is that he never made the leap to 'this is a job and I am supposed to make people believe I like being touched by a guy'. his acting with Chris Potter was horrid and the only saving grace for him was when they hired Gant. Bobby was able to bring out something is Hal that made him become softer and even ok to a point. I think the confrontation scene with Bobby and Hal over the steriods will always be his best scene and after like what 60 hours of a show that is god damn sad.

I completely agree with you about mikey being perfect, He never has to pay any price even when he is going out of the way to be a shit. Like when he hooked up with that guy just to spite David and David just sat there and dusted cds off

or when he continuely gets in the way of Brian and Justin there isn't anyone that will tell him to stay the fuck out of their lives. A REAL FRIEND will tell you to butt the fuck out that is what friends are for.

I am completely bothered at the thought that after 4 years of making us love a couple like Brian and Justin, that they seem to be changing the focus of the show.

I think this was supposed to be an in your face, we are here, we are queer so get the fuck used to it show and now it just seems like a naked version of melrose place. lately. and that isn't just disappointing its a shame.

Re: Wren you are amazing

[wren-kt7oz.livejournal.com]

I think Hal does okay in some scenes. He was quite good in the scenes with Hank, and I agree with you that the confrontation scene where he threatened to inject himself with Ben's used needle was one of his best, and most believable.

But there are other scenes - and not just the sex scenes - where he's just ... he just has a limited range. Let's leave it at that.

I laughed at the Melrose Place comment. Sadly, I don't think it's even that sophisticated. It's more like "Days of our Queer Lives". Or in Australian terms, Neighbours.

(There's more on this subject in today's post.)

[teisfortiger.livejournal.com]

If CowLip's plan was for Mikey to be 'everyman', the character we most associate with, then they failed miserably. The fiddler and his snobby friends aside, Mikey is the type of person I could least be friend with. After a week, I would either bitch slap him into the next county, or just plain strangle him. Whiny people get my gander up, whether they be five or thirty five. Whiny, self-absorb, self-centered little shits like Michael, who never get their comeunppance, make me want to scream, break things, and start looking for a big stick.

If Michael is 'everyman', I need to go puke.

[wren-kt7oz.livejournal.com]

Could not agree more, but it's what Dan and Ron have said - and more than once.

Quote from the book (Dan):

"In many ways Michael is the emotional centre of the show. ... Michael is the Everyman. And he is flawed, like Everyman. ... But he's sweet and adorable, so sometimes you overlook that."

Which is wrong in almost every conceivable way that I can think of. From my perspective at least.

One of my main complaints being that his flaws are always overlooked.

And that he really isn't shown as having any, any more.

(Well, except for the whiny self-absorbtion you've mentioned, and they don't seem to mention that at all. I don't think it exists for them.)

What really scares me is - what sort of "Everyman" is so damned retarded that at the age of 30 he's still suffering from his high school crush, and has to be told what to do if he belches in company? (Not to mention those eating habits!)

If that's really C/L's idea of Everyman, then may God and all the Saints preserve us, cos we're gonna need all the help we can get!