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[krickets]

→ I don't usually notice the featured journals on the main livejournal page however they caught my eye today and I thought I'd rec one of them. little_details looks like a great resource for writers, of the fanfiction and original variety. [Plus they utilize tags: a bonus.] The userinfo describes the community as:

a community that helps writers with their research and fact-checking. We have a large, diverse membership that can answer questions such as:

"If I hit my character on the head like so, what will happen?"
"Will this destroy the Earth?"
"Can guys have freckles on their penises?"

All types of fiction writers--professional, amateur, fanfiction, original--are welcome to post questions. Our focus is on factual accuracy rather than general writing advice. If you're still not sure what we're about, reading our recent entries page should give you a better idea.

(The answer to the last question, by the way, is "yes.")

→ My boredom often leads me to checking out the google news feed, which once in a while holds some interesting tidbits of information. Well, apparently Jeremy London [OMG, Griffin!] was recently kidnapped and forced to use drugs and drive his kidnappers around town? Well that's... I don't know what that is. I mean it's horrible! Obviously. [And incredibly strange....]

→ Speaking of boredom that leads to interesting discoveries [which seems to be the theme here] I just read this interesting blog at NPR called More Misery! More Death! More Cruelty!: The Onset of Dystopian Fatigue by Linda Holmes. In it, she coins the term dystopiphilia, which I can certainly identify with. While I don't agree with all of what she says, as a self-proclaimed dystopiphiliac, I certainly understand what she means. My issues with Breaking Bad, as an example, are of no secret to my flisters who love that show. And I recently watched the first episode of Mad Men and felt incredibly underwhelmed by it all. I told Warren, "I don't understand why that episode wasn't enough for everyone." Because it certainly was enough for me. But I promised I would watch at least the next two episodes. Give it a solid try at least. Somehow, despite my love for post-apocalyptic, gritty, angsty, dirty storytelling -- pretty much all of my new favorite shows are lighter fair -- Life Unexpected, Parenthood, Community, Modern Family. Definitely worth a read and I am curious as to what you guys think about this subject? Do you love it or hate it? Is the shiny, happy, more your bag?

→ If none of this interests you, yesterday Dayl helped me to rediscover the joys of Dumb Jokes That Are Funny by The Oatmeal.

Where does George Washington keep his armies?






In his sleevesies!

Comments

[gigglemonster.livejournal.com]

Wow, I really do agree with that article as well. And I feel like lately my favorites have been lighter shows too - Chuck, Modern Family, Glee, etc. The darker movies/shows definitely start to take their toll after a while. But they do tend to be my favorite in the end. I think though, kinda the way we like our fic, lol I like the depressing movies/shows that have a ray of hope in them. People finding love, having family/friends, something that keeps them going. Idk, that's a very interesting article though.
And I do have to say, I watched the trailer for Never Let Me Go a couple days ago and I kind of really wanna see it lol. I guess you gotta have a balance - light and dark.

PS. How much does a pirate pay for corn?







A buccaneer!
♥

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I think maybe it has a little to to with the fact that a lot of the darker things on TV right now are devoid of hope or humanity or some spark of something other than just general doom and gloom. I need that little bit of something. One of the darkest shows I've ever loved is BSG, and at least they had EARTH. Plus a lot of really thought-provoking philosophical thinky-thoughts. [Like maybe your enemy isn't all that unlike you after all, what does it mean to be human? Etc.]

Also, for me, SoA has had Jax's determination to change what they are. I fear, with the end of s2 and what all happened there, that he will lose that dream. But I'm counting on Tara, Piney, Opie, and even Hale to not let him forget it.

[workswithwords.livejournal.com]

HAHA sleevesies! I totally laughed out loud, I'm lame. LOL.

I'm sorry I haven't been around, Greg's grandma is really sick and we've been going back and forth from our house to his parents every weekend, and its been very draining.

BUT I am totally going to start writing my Jack/Claire fic tonight. I PROMISE. '

I favorited that article so when I get a chance I will definitely read it, because it sounds very interesting!

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Hahaha, No you're not lame. I LOVE those jokes. They're so cute and funny.

It's okay, don't worry about it! Yay for writing fic!

You'll have to let me know what you think when you read it.

[missy-useless.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the rec of the comm. And thank you for the link to the article as well, it was definitely interesting to read, even though I'm not one of those who are sick and tired of all the dystopia around (yet?). I do enjoy happy stuff - books, movies, TV shows, whatever - too, of course, but I think I prefer "post-apocalyptic, gritty, angsty, dirty storytelling" overall.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

You're welcome. Yeah I'm not sick and tired of it, it's actually one of the tropes I tend to gravitate towards more than anything else. However I do think that there are times when it's overwhelming. Like Dayl above said there has to be some hope, or something to countebalance all the doom and gloom. To make it all worth it in spite of it.

[ozmissage.livejournal.com]

That comm sounds awesome. :)

I've noticed in the last year or so I've been moving away from/becoming frustrated with dramas...well dark dramas, anyway. But in my heart of hearts, I love dystopian fiction and shows about unhappy people. I just can't take a steady diet of it anymore. So while I love Mad Men, Justified, and Dexter there's just no room in my life for Breaking Bad or Sons of Anarchy or most anything on HBO. Even SPN toes the line these days, where I'm like if Dean Winchester cries one more time I will change this channel and watch a Friends rerun instead.

So much of what I'm watching and enjoying right now is lighter fair (the NBC comedies, Modern Family, the new Who which is decidedly less angsty this season, Parenthood). It's weird but I almost feel guilty for binging on so many "light" shows. Like I'm less serious as a result, but man it feels good to laugh every now and then.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Yeah and it looks like there are tons of helpful people there too.

I definitely think there's a certain balance that has to be met. I can't stand the sweetness without a little dark, and the darkness without a little light. I guess it just goes hand in hand for me.

Modern Family, gah, I love that show beyond explanation. LOVE. I think for me, even if I enjoy something lighter there has to be substance behind it. Whether that's thematically, or with well-developed characters, or with smart writing. I can't really deal with completely mindless fluff. It's gotta be thoughtful fluff, haha. So therefore I don't have too much guilt over it!

[harlot2.livejournal.com]

Oh, I love little details! It is a fairly busy community, though. At least it's busy enough for me that I don't have time to keep up with it. I can look up things if I need answers (or ask questions that haven't been answered before), but most of the questions are not things I need myself, and if I can answer them, by the time I see it it's already been answered by 50 other people and certainly doesn't need my measly input that basically sums up to "ditto."

Holy crap @ Jeremy London!! That's the craziest thing I ever heard!

I also agree with the article. It's why I'd rather watch stand-up comedy than anything else, although even stand-up is going downhill these days. Also, I live in a town where everyone is super negative, so I can't be around that attitude 8 hours a day and then go home and watch depressing television. I would go insane. It will be interesting to see what happens to my television-viewing habits when I go back to my happy place (aka the beach). For now I'll stick with Jeopardy!, Mythbusters, and the Soup.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

Yeah it looks really busy. In that way it's a great resource for those of us seeking answers though. Even if it may be hard to keep up with as a general participant.

I know, isn't it? I mean, his kidnappers must have already been on drugs. I mean, kidnapping someone so they'll pick you up liquor at the liquor store for you? Not exactly an average kidnapping I'd wager.

Sometimes I like stand-up but I've never been a huge fan. My sense of humor often doesn't mesh with what they're trying to do. I feel like it's more about the audience than it is about the comedian's own sense of humor. I LOVE Mythbusters and I've hardly watched it all year long! I miss that show!

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Yes that article is ME. I have just about given up on depressing TV at the moment as I stopped watching Breaking Bad and Treme because I just need happy TV at the moment (Mad Men feels positively happy compared to them). And that is why I love Glee so much (although I completely disagree on her comments about it but whatever) because thank GOD there is a TV show out there that embraces the joy in life. And now with all this oil spill stuff and increasing negativity on my flist added to my boring job and other hard stuff in RL, I just want some positive media in my life instead of the bleak stuff in real life. If that makes me a "bad" TV watcher...so be it.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

I can understand that to an extent. I think I probably agree more with the writer about the substance of Glee based on what I've watched of it. [I gave that show the old college try and could NOT get into it for the life of me. I was bored, bored, BORED.] I like my share of the dark, but I can see how some shows really go overboard with it. Breaking Bad in particular. I've heard the Wire is REALLY good and want to give it a shot but this article makes me think I might need to re-think that.

[anoel.livejournal.com]

Well different opinions and all that, I'll take my Golden Globe nominations/wins and ignore the dissenters.

I actually disagree about The Wire. It's true that it's probably not the best to watch if you're really depressed about the world. But the narrative of The Wire is SO PERFECT that it actually becomes beautiful and inspiring and rises above the bleakness that it can show. And once you really get into the characters, there's a lot of love and happiness there. It's harder though in the beginning which is why you usually want to be in a positive frame of mind when you start watching.

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Um, excuse me for jumping in but are you essentially saying "fuck everyone else's opinion, the HFPA knows everything?"

Do you know how much of a fucking JOKE a lot of critics think the HFPA is? Not to mention the people who actually review this shit for a living? Really? The HFPA is comprised of 90 foreign journalists. Sometimes it takes all of five votes to win a category. Five. Come on now.

Not to mention the fact that I, and I'm sure a bunch of people who bother to read through comments, just found that highly offensive. The sheer number of quality shows that haven't been nominated is staggering. But, you know, who cares about that. We just watch shitty shows. The HFPA knows all.

Please.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

...okay.

Wow.

I kinda have to say I do feel like you basically just gave me the equivalent of "Your opinion is invalid. You are dismissed!" Not the greatest feeling ever, to be perfectly honest. :(



[]

[far-to-nowhere.livejournal.com]

You know, I completely understand where this article is coming from. I actually feel it more with movies than I do with shows. i.e. Heard Precious was good but I'm not sure if I want to be depressed for 2 hours. But with shows, I watch it all. I love love love Mad Men and The Wire but you know I also watch and enjoy shows like Glee and Grey's Anatomy. It all interests me and they all satisfy a part of what I like in shows. I love to laugh, I love to be entertained, I love drama, cartoons, musicals--the whole nine yards. But I also find that the dark things are really interesting. And that a show about a dysfunctional family is more interesting than a perfect family. So I love when they explore that darkness in characters, life, and reality. Shows like Mad Men and HBO shows give me something Glee never could in storytelling and writing. But in the end, no matter what show it is, it has to have a purpose and it has to say something. Glee makes a huge statement with its shows while HBO says something completely different.

But I cannot STAND procedural crime dramas. Those shows don't say anything to me. Basically the show consists of writers sitting in a room thinking of new ways of how to kill people and more reasons as to why people would kill people. Those shows are about how horrible people can be to other people. It doesn't have any purpose or say anything interesting. Those are the dark shows that really bother me.

I love exploring every aspect of the human condition and you can't get all that from just light, entertaining, fun shows. So I get them from shows like Mad Men, but I need laughter too so I get it from something else. I'd hate to have just one or the other. But I do really see this dark storytelling trend going on, which is why things like Pixar and Glee are hitting it off so well. And I can see why people are getting bogged down by it all. But I love a balance.

[crickets.livejournal.com]

You know I didn't realize it but it definitely applies more to movies for me. I think if something seems dark, I might be interested in it at first but the longer that goes that I don't see the movie the less I'm interested in subjecting myself to it for the sake of an interesting story, lol. I think Grey's Anatomy definitely has its dark moments but it's more human centered. Like the good parts of humanity. I agree with that. The substance just isn't there with stuff like Glee, I think.

Procedurals are pretty much lost on me unless there's a quirk to it. For example I think I could really get into bones just because it looks very cute. Haha.

Balance is definitely my preferred route. If you can get that balance in ONE SHOW too, then you're golden.