{ the wrong guy, the wrong situation. }
Jun. 27th, 2007 10:56 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
delgaThe postman brought jewels of JOY and WONDER, namely my copy of Lancelyn Green's Tales of Greek Heroes and Grave's The Greek Myths. So I basically have all of my source texts now, except for the post-modern research that I really, really need to get done already. I also need someone to explain the niggly bits in Pelevin's Helmet of Horror because it goes pseudo-philosophical half way through and then I stopped understanding the parallel between Pelevin's writing and the Minotaur myth. WHAT IS THE HELMET OF HORROR, YO.
--
Plans for today should be as follows but likely will not: go to town and post books; go to library and return books; go to P. avec The Sister to see PotC3. I'm not certain that we'll get around to the third one.
--
I think the thing that I like the most about our portion of the Numb3rs fandom is that there's a lot of dialogue here. (I think last night's posts prove two things: that I have a fair few Numb3rs fans on my flist; that I have a couple of NCIS fans on my flist. Actually, in general, I know more people in the former than the latter. I think this is because I rarely find any decent fic from the latter. [That doesn't mean I haven't been reading self-indulgent fluffy fics because, well, I have.])
ANYWAY. I'm still thinking about Liz Warner (I'd rather not but it's become a sticking point). I'm trying to think of ways in which I'd like her character more. Firstly, she's a professional. Not every conversation she has with Don has to end up being about The Relationship. Secondly, if she's going to be on the team in season 4, she's going to be a fifth wheel. She is. So far, the team is split into pairs for the most part. Is she going to fill A Space that TPTB have told us isn't there? Or is she going to develop an actual skill set (or a personality beyond being someone who rushes in headfirst? Or used to rush in headfirst)? Thirdly, some sort of backstory beyond Don, or some indication that she is good at her job away from Don. Girl is being hampered by her man, yo.
Also! Even though she's been in episodes with Megan, the latter still treats the former the same way that she treats single-show guest stars. Colby and David have talked to Liz, but mostly about the job; Megan has interacted with her on a purely work level. The female relationships on this show are notoriously separate for long stretches of time which is a shame because whilst the men have complicated, layered relationships to one another, the girls really don't. I don't expect the women on this show to become BFFs or whatever because that, I feel, would be unrealistic. But they do work together. Megan and Amita have been shown together a lot, yet the only time I've seen them talking comfortably is 3x11, Killer Chat - other times Something Plotty and Time/Thought Consuming is happening (à la Amita going to see that girl in prison, or Megan trying to follow Colby as he runs around a lot). Have Millie and Megan even met? My point here re: Liz is as follows: if Megan accepts her as part of the team, to me that means a lot more than if the boys do because (a) Megan is senior and (b) Megan is the only one not to have bridged the gap yet. Also, female relationships on the show have yet to be fully confronted, in my opinion, so putting these two together would be interesting, even on a work footing. So far the only time they've worked together alone is in 3x18, One Hour and that was difficult to negotiate because Megan had stepped into Don's chair and their relationship was very much led by chain of command.
It's just, the male relationships on the show are dealt with a lot. Colby and David's relationship has three freaking tiers to it. The women should not be Token Women but more and more they feel that way. So the problem with Liz Warner is that (a) she's already in the hierarchy of women (and thus poorly treated from the get go) and (b) she's low on the hierarchy.
Still, it's strange. I really do think they got it right with Terry, and for the most part the same happens with Megan. (I know people are all, ohnoes, Megan was a damsel in distress in 3x02 but actually, she was pretty much on the ball throughout those episodes. In addition to that, I think we're getting somewhere with her, or at least TPTB are indicating that we're getting somewhere with her soon.) Amita. Oh, Amita. It's obvious that TPTB love her and thus she must NEVAR LEAVE EVAR, but she's not really consistent. Or, rather, they try to make her too many things at once. I don't think she's as enamoured of Charlie as she was in the first season. I love her little speech in 3x02 when she's all, dude, Charlie, what makes you think that I stayed here JUST FOR YOU, ego!numbskull, because even if the writers arranged Plot that way, she in herself made the decision that there was more at CalSci than anywhere else.
And OH BOY. Charlie and Don are both so emotionally retarded. And they lack chemistry with their girlfriends. SIGH. SIGH SIGH.
Back to the women, other than the Don!props, we've had some interesting one-offs, right? Teri Polo's character in Nine Wives was one of the best guest-FBIs I've seen; Sandy Lopez was interesting if not one-dimensional (although that 1D served a functional purpose and made a lot of sense); Crystal Hoyle had two episodes in which we basically found out everything about her (and this is what I mean: through her interaction with Megan, we found out more about both of them). And now I can't think of any others. Oh, Kim. Kim who, interestingly enough, wasn't a clear-cut Don!prop. I think the things Kim and Terry don't get to say to one another (as well as the way Terry needles Don through the episode) tells us a lot about them. BUT. But but but. Is it really supposed to be such a boysie show? The women should not just be WAGs, yo. That's the fundamental problem, here. The women in the show are misused.
I've forgotten what the hell I was taking about, but still. I love the boys, I do. In and of themselves, I love the girls, too. But people become most complex when they're interacting with other people and there's a lot of that missing. Personally I think TPTB should look to Rene Balcer and L&Overse for female templates. You might not like all the L&O women, but you know they're all capable, different entities.
--
You know, NCIS has a lot of women in it. Hmm.
Am replying to emails and comments now. Huzz.
--
edit: DUDE. The end of One Hour is so telling. Don is on the outside because he's the boss and he wasn't in the loop this week, so his distance is self-explanatory. But Liz? IS SITTING ON HER OWN. Out of the fold. OUT! Even though she was an important runner in the proceedings. Even though she merited above the Nameless FBI Dudes who always drive around with Colby! OUTSIDER. (So: in that case, there was no relationship between her and Megan. NONE.)
no subject
Date: 2007-06-27 08:12 pm (UTC)TPTB should also watch Battlestar Galactica, because in that show they have both SUPERSTRONG female leads as well as SUPERSTRONG male leads. And they are aaaaallll played around with, unlike the women of Numb3rs. All the Law & Order women are great. Olivia Benson??? I don't watch CI much, but I saw most of the episode recently with Bobby's mum wondering about his "girlfriend Eames". Hehe!
no subject
Date: 2007-06-27 08:32 pm (UTC)re: BSG, I don't know. I mean, I agree that they have strong female leads, but the reason I suggested L&O is because (a) it's the same genre, i.e. crime and (b) its fiction deals with 'real life' situations. The L&O women are professional women. They screw up a fair amount, and they succeed a fair amount. They're 3D, individuals, and you're not really able to sum them up in a few words. They're complex and diverse. BSG, too, but there you're dealing with women who aren't in the professional sphere.
no subject
Date: 2007-06-27 11:05 pm (UTC)