Last night, as I decorated my Christmas tree, I had Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer on in the background. When I was a little girl, my brother and I always decorated our family tree while watching Rudolph and Frosty, while nomming down on fresh-baked cookies and hot chocolate. (Yes. I did, really, have that Norman Rockwell Christmas. I honestly didn't realize other people didn't until I got much older.) Anyway, Rudolph is not quite what I remember it to be. Or rather, I'd blocked out lots of bits that make me annoyed.
The sexism throughout this show is just....*sigh* First, there's the fact that all Mrs. Claus seems to do nothing but run around feeding people. Santa treats her like a nuisance. Then, we have Rudolph's mother and Clarice. When Rudy goes missing, his father forbids them from looking for him. And once he's gone, they promptly set out on their own and get captured by the Bumble! Who tries to eat them, only to have Rudy and Co. end up rescuing them. Then, there's this condescending comment about Rudy deciding the best thing to do would be 'get the ladies back to town." ARG!!! It's not bad enough that they end up almost eaten, they also get talked down to. *sigh*
And none of the deer on Santa's sleigh are women either. Even though they are given names that could belong to either gender. Hmp.
Way to go, sexism. Destroy another childhood memory.
On the upside, Hermie really does seem quite gay, doesn't he? Here, have some funny:
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Ain't No Girl Love 'round Here Anymore
Grey's Anatomy, I have a bone to pick with you.
You have couples on your show that run the gauntlet.
We have couples that form when an underling sleeps with her boss. (Never a guy who sleeps with his boss. Notice that?) We have couples that for strictly for sex. We have couples that seem to be happily married, only to break up shortly after the birth of their child. We have couples that have been together for decades who break up then reunite. We have couples that cheat. Oh, gods, do we have couples that cheat. Let's see...we have a married man who knowingly sleeps with his underling, without telling her he's married, then wonders why she gets so upset when his wife shows up. We have couples that break up on their wedding day. We have couples that get married in a rush, only to have the husband freak out and start sleeping with his best friend because -- why again? I never really got that part. Does anyone on this show know the meaning of fidelity? (Wait -- Christina does. As does Bailey. So, two out of...how big's the cast again? And hey, they're both minority women. . .)
So, anyway. You have all these kinds of couples (and I'm sure I missed some somewhere), but you can't handle a same sex couple?
Seriously?
This season, the only thing that had me watching was the unfolding hook-up of Callie and Erica. I thought it was sweet. The build up to the first kiss last season? I liked it. Sure, as a queer girl, I was a little bemused by Callie's freak-out at discovering she had feeling for Erica. Hey, it IS confusing if you've never been attracted to another woman before to suddenly find yourself smitten. It was cute and not overdone and she and Erica dealt with it easily enough. And the leaked previews for this season had that relationship front and center. Good deal, I thought.
And then, what did you do? Oh, you did what every damned show does -- you fucked up. Big time.
First, Callie. Callie, one of the few people on the show who got fidelity. (Oh, look. ANOTHER minority woman. Are we sensing a pattern here boys and girls?) She hooks up with Erica, gets a little freaked out by Erica's "You're a leaf' speech and runs back to Mark for a little sex. (Although, Erica's leaf bit? Awesome. Likewise her, "I'm so totally gay" line. Very nice.) Callie. Who has just recovered from the devastation of her husband's cheating. Becomes a cheater. Uh-huh. At least Mark had the sense to tell her that she was cheating. (Mark Sloan: Grey's Anatomy Man Whore and Voice of Reason.) And you did get her to come clean pretty quickly. But still. Callie, cheating?
Then, Erica. She seemed to handle Callie's revelation of her on-call room fling with a bit of grace. Seemed to, being the operative word. They patched things up, Callie declared her desire to be with Erica and off we go. OK. Rocky start, but I'll go with it. These things happen. Then, Erica finds out about Izzy's whole 'stealing a heart for Denny' schtick. And that the hospital knew about it, including Callie, and didn't fire her. So, she goes off. An understandable reaction, given the circumstances. I'm all there for the righteous anger. BUT -- when Callie tries to talk her out of reporting the hospital, thereby endangering it's transplant statue and thereby risking the lives of countless patients -- she turns on her.
"You can't be a part-time lesbian," she says.
Hell, yes you can, says I -- and every other bisexual woman in the world. Oh, and so did Callie. Yay for Callie. But clearly, Erica is not over the whole 'I slept with Sloan, but I want you.' episode. (And really, can you blame her? You wake up with your girlfriend, tell her she's your Leaf, she runs away to work, knocks boots with the resident Man Whore and then tells you about it? All in, it seems, ONE DAY? I'd be pissed too.)
So, then what happens?
She leaves. Just up and leaves. No explanation, no goodbyes, not so much as a break-up text.
Oh, Grey's, how I hate you. Right now, you're up there with Heroes.
First -- the word is bisexual. Try it. Say it slowly at first. It gets easier the more you say it. Callie is not gay. Callie is clearly bisexual. She has had, and enjoyed, relationships with men. They were important to her. They should not be invalidated just because she's discovered she has a thing for women too. It's ok. We exist. You can use the word. Bisexual. See? That didn't hurt at all, did it?
Now, try this one: Lesbian. It seems a bit sexier, but that's ok. Lesbian. Erica was a lesbian. Lesbian and bisexual are not the same thing, but we can get along together quite nicely. Unless stupid writers decide to have a Lesbian tell a Bisexual woman that she cannot exist. Then we get angry, take back our toasters and go home.
For a show that fired one of your biggest stars (Oh, hi, Isiah. How you doing?) because of RL slurs about one of your RL gay stars, you're being seriously hypocritical. Oh, we support our gay stars. We just don't want to see two girls getting it on on-screen. But it's okay to routinely show het couples sexing it up in the bathroom or the bedroom or the on-call room or hell, a gurney in the middle of the hall. (Ok. Not yet, but I'm waiting for Mer and Der to just go for it one day. Just wait.) But two women having a relationship, that's too much? You've fucking blown a man to a red mist, but girl-on-girl is too much for you?
Yeah, yeah. Fuck you too. You fired one of your best actresses over this and the rumor has it that Sara R. will be leaving when these season is over. I hope she does, because unless this thing between Christina and Owen takes off, I'll no longer have a reason to tune in.
You have couples on your show that run the gauntlet.
We have couples that form when an underling sleeps with her boss. (Never a guy who sleeps with his boss. Notice that?) We have couples that for strictly for sex. We have couples that seem to be happily married, only to break up shortly after the birth of their child. We have couples that have been together for decades who break up then reunite. We have couples that cheat. Oh, gods, do we have couples that cheat. Let's see...we have a married man who knowingly sleeps with his underling, without telling her he's married, then wonders why she gets so upset when his wife shows up. We have couples that break up on their wedding day. We have couples that get married in a rush, only to have the husband freak out and start sleeping with his best friend because -- why again? I never really got that part. Does anyone on this show know the meaning of fidelity? (Wait -- Christina does. As does Bailey. So, two out of...how big's the cast again? And hey, they're both minority women. . .)
So, anyway. You have all these kinds of couples (and I'm sure I missed some somewhere), but you can't handle a same sex couple?
Seriously?
This season, the only thing that had me watching was the unfolding hook-up of Callie and Erica. I thought it was sweet. The build up to the first kiss last season? I liked it. Sure, as a queer girl, I was a little bemused by Callie's freak-out at discovering she had feeling for Erica. Hey, it IS confusing if you've never been attracted to another woman before to suddenly find yourself smitten. It was cute and not overdone and she and Erica dealt with it easily enough. And the leaked previews for this season had that relationship front and center. Good deal, I thought.
And then, what did you do? Oh, you did what every damned show does -- you fucked up. Big time.
First, Callie. Callie, one of the few people on the show who got fidelity. (Oh, look. ANOTHER minority woman. Are we sensing a pattern here boys and girls?) She hooks up with Erica, gets a little freaked out by Erica's "You're a leaf' speech and runs back to Mark for a little sex. (Although, Erica's leaf bit? Awesome. Likewise her, "I'm so totally gay" line. Very nice.) Callie. Who has just recovered from the devastation of her husband's cheating. Becomes a cheater. Uh-huh. At least Mark had the sense to tell her that she was cheating. (Mark Sloan: Grey's Anatomy Man Whore and Voice of Reason.) And you did get her to come clean pretty quickly. But still. Callie, cheating?
Then, Erica. She seemed to handle Callie's revelation of her on-call room fling with a bit of grace. Seemed to, being the operative word. They patched things up, Callie declared her desire to be with Erica and off we go. OK. Rocky start, but I'll go with it. These things happen. Then, Erica finds out about Izzy's whole 'stealing a heart for Denny' schtick. And that the hospital knew about it, including Callie, and didn't fire her. So, she goes off. An understandable reaction, given the circumstances. I'm all there for the righteous anger. BUT -- when Callie tries to talk her out of reporting the hospital, thereby endangering it's transplant statue and thereby risking the lives of countless patients -- she turns on her.
"You can't be a part-time lesbian," she says.
Hell, yes you can, says I -- and every other bisexual woman in the world. Oh, and so did Callie. Yay for Callie. But clearly, Erica is not over the whole 'I slept with Sloan, but I want you.' episode. (And really, can you blame her? You wake up with your girlfriend, tell her she's your Leaf, she runs away to work, knocks boots with the resident Man Whore and then tells you about it? All in, it seems, ONE DAY? I'd be pissed too.)
So, then what happens?
She leaves. Just up and leaves. No explanation, no goodbyes, not so much as a break-up text.
Oh, Grey's, how I hate you. Right now, you're up there with Heroes.
First -- the word is bisexual. Try it. Say it slowly at first. It gets easier the more you say it. Callie is not gay. Callie is clearly bisexual. She has had, and enjoyed, relationships with men. They were important to her. They should not be invalidated just because she's discovered she has a thing for women too. It's ok. We exist. You can use the word. Bisexual. See? That didn't hurt at all, did it?
Now, try this one: Lesbian. It seems a bit sexier, but that's ok. Lesbian. Erica was a lesbian. Lesbian and bisexual are not the same thing, but we can get along together quite nicely. Unless stupid writers decide to have a Lesbian tell a Bisexual woman that she cannot exist. Then we get angry, take back our toasters and go home.
For a show that fired one of your biggest stars (Oh, hi, Isiah. How you doing?) because of RL slurs about one of your RL gay stars, you're being seriously hypocritical. Oh, we support our gay stars. We just don't want to see two girls getting it on on-screen. But it's okay to routinely show het couples sexing it up in the bathroom or the bedroom or the on-call room or hell, a gurney in the middle of the hall. (Ok. Not yet, but I'm waiting for Mer and Der to just go for it one day. Just wait.) But two women having a relationship, that's too much? You've fucking blown a man to a red mist, but girl-on-girl is too much for you?
Yeah, yeah. Fuck you too. You fired one of your best actresses over this and the rumor has it that Sara R. will be leaving when these season is over. I hope she does, because unless this thing between Christina and Owen takes off, I'll no longer have a reason to tune in.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
And why wasn't this put out BEFORE the November vote?
Here's a little something that doesn't make me want to throw things at my computer monitor.
Prop 8 -- The Musical!
Prop 8 -- The Musical!
See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die
The Depowered Woman, or Why I Hate Heroes
They killed Elle.
Not only did they kill her, but they made her a victim of domestic violence. Her boyfriend killed her. Granted, said boyfriend was a murdering bastard anyway, but Elle was one of the few people he'd ever shown any fondness for. And why did he kill her? Not to take her power -- that at least would be understandable and in character. No, he killed her (or so it seems) because he could.
So, let's review: Elle, the only female character on Heroes who seemed to relish her ability and use it without fear, is killed by her boyfriend. Not only is she killed, she doesn't even fight back. She could certainly fight Sylar off -- she'd done it before. And I'm not buying any argument that she was weakened by being shot. Screw that. Your boyfriend is trying to kill you and you have the ability to fight him off? You use it. (Understand -- I'm not judging RL victims of domestic abuse. They don't have the ability to electrocute people. If they did, we'd have a hell of a lot fewer causes of domestic violence.)
This tendancy to kill off or write off women with genuine power on Heroes is killing the show for me. (Note: I'm writing this under the assumption Elle is genuinely dead. They left that bit somewhat hazy last week, but previews for next week show Sylar burning her body. So, if she's not dead now, she likely will be soon. And what the hell? Burning your girlfriend's body? Because killing her father, taking her ability, making her think you cared about her and then slicing open her head isn't enough? Really?)
First, we had Nikki. She was wicked strong. She was also suffering from a serious mental disorder. (I'm sorry, but Dissociative Identity Disorder is NOT a superpower. It's an illness, generally caused by some sort of childhood trauma. It would have been an interesting story to explore how Nikki's ability was tweaked by the murder of her sister. It always seemed obvious to me that Nikki's inability to protect her sister when she was young channeled her physical abilities into her alter as she got older. Nikki was 'weak', the ability was strong. Nikki's mind, damaged by the trauma of her sister's murder, couldn't integrate the strength, so it created Jessica to handle the ability. Fairly classic DID, with superpowers on top. But they never explored that. They just said that having an alter was a special ability. *sigh*)
Anyway, Nikki -- for all her strength -- was always somehow a victim. First, she didn't realize she had the ability. Then, she used it to kill people and steal money, which got her husband sent to jail. And got her indebted to Linderman. She had some good moments at the end of Season One, but then she ended up getting her husband killed, leaving herself and her son to rely on the kindness of his family. Then, she finally seems to be getting some control of her life and her ability -- and she ends up dead.
We also had Monica -- a character I really liked and want to see more about. While a bit freaked over her ability at first, she took to it pretty quickly, trying to use it to help those around her. She was a genuinely good person, with a really useful ability that she was learning to relish. And what happens to her? She gets in over her head (which, granted, I don't object to. You gotta have some conflict or there's not story) gets rescued (but hey, at least she wasn't rescued by a man!) and then...gets written out of the show.
Next, we have Claire. Admittedly, she's a bit whiny. But I give her a pass for most of that, because she's only 18 or so. (I'm assuming 17/18, because she's clearly not going to school this season. They seriously messed up her age.) Anyway, she's fricking indestructable. She can heal anything, is likely never going to die and what are they doing with her? Nothing. No one is teaching her how to fight or sleuth or any of the things she wants to do. (Yes, I realize there have finally been what, two? attempts to teach her things. But come on, how long as the girl been demonstrating her desire to learn? Yeah.) She's gotten the hang of her ability, she's made her peace with it and -- she's being treated like a fragile, breakable thing. I understand that coming from her parents -- they're her parents. But everyone else? Please. She's doing stupid things because she's young and inexperienced -- and can't find a fricking teacher to help her out. (I totally want Claude to come back and take her under his wing. She'd be the craftiest, sneakiest, morally gray character around.)
So, let's see...who else do we have? Oh! Daphne. At the moment, she's the only one I'm holding out hope for. Yes, she's got a bit of 'victim' in her background. I can deal with that. At least no one is trying to put her in a little box. (Matt? I'm looking at you -- do NOT try to control your girlfriend or I have a brick with your name on it, got it? You almost got one when you read her mind without permission. Grr.) The revelation that she had cerebal palsy is. . .a post for another day, actually. But it's at least different. It seems she had a decent childhood. Her father clearly loves her and they seem to have a good relationship. And her thing with Matt, while the 'I Love You's came too fast, at least feels like it's becoming genuine. His total acceptance of her is really good for her and she's good at bringing him down to earth.
Which means that the rumors of her being killed off next season are likely true. Screw you, Heroes. I'm tired of all the strong women being killed off.
Which brings us back to Elle. *sigh* I loved Elle, because she was so totally herself. Yes, I know, she was a bad person. I'm ok with that -- women can be bad people. We're not paragons of virtue. Despite all that was done to her to warp her into a sociopath, she never seemed to be a victim. When she found out what had been done to her as a child, she didn't collapse into a pile and beg for someone to save her. The knowledge colored her actions, yes, but she got on with her life. She fucking 'saved' herself.
And so, they have her boyfriend kill her. Just when she seemed to be truely freeing herself from her past, just when she seemed to be ready to become herself.
Seriously, Heroes, fuck you. Just fuck you. Call me when you start randomly killing off your male cast. How about when Saundra sticks a knife in Bennet's heart for being such a giant asshole? Or when Claire bricks Peter over the head for being such an overbearing, patronizing, whiny little emo bitch? Maybe when Sylar gets his head cut off by an Eileen Wurnoes wanna-be he picked up at a truck stop because she reminded him of Elle? Oh, not going to do that to your big manly cast? Yeah. Fuck you.
Not only did they kill her, but they made her a victim of domestic violence. Her boyfriend killed her. Granted, said boyfriend was a murdering bastard anyway, but Elle was one of the few people he'd ever shown any fondness for. And why did he kill her? Not to take her power -- that at least would be understandable and in character. No, he killed her (or so it seems) because he could.
So, let's review: Elle, the only female character on Heroes who seemed to relish her ability and use it without fear, is killed by her boyfriend. Not only is she killed, she doesn't even fight back. She could certainly fight Sylar off -- she'd done it before. And I'm not buying any argument that she was weakened by being shot. Screw that. Your boyfriend is trying to kill you and you have the ability to fight him off? You use it. (Understand -- I'm not judging RL victims of domestic abuse. They don't have the ability to electrocute people. If they did, we'd have a hell of a lot fewer causes of domestic violence.)
This tendancy to kill off or write off women with genuine power on Heroes is killing the show for me. (Note: I'm writing this under the assumption Elle is genuinely dead. They left that bit somewhat hazy last week, but previews for next week show Sylar burning her body. So, if she's not dead now, she likely will be soon. And what the hell? Burning your girlfriend's body? Because killing her father, taking her ability, making her think you cared about her and then slicing open her head isn't enough? Really?)
First, we had Nikki. She was wicked strong. She was also suffering from a serious mental disorder. (I'm sorry, but Dissociative Identity Disorder is NOT a superpower. It's an illness, generally caused by some sort of childhood trauma. It would have been an interesting story to explore how Nikki's ability was tweaked by the murder of her sister. It always seemed obvious to me that Nikki's inability to protect her sister when she was young channeled her physical abilities into her alter as she got older. Nikki was 'weak', the ability was strong. Nikki's mind, damaged by the trauma of her sister's murder, couldn't integrate the strength, so it created Jessica to handle the ability. Fairly classic DID, with superpowers on top. But they never explored that. They just said that having an alter was a special ability. *sigh*)
Anyway, Nikki -- for all her strength -- was always somehow a victim. First, she didn't realize she had the ability. Then, she used it to kill people and steal money, which got her husband sent to jail. And got her indebted to Linderman. She had some good moments at the end of Season One, but then she ended up getting her husband killed, leaving herself and her son to rely on the kindness of his family. Then, she finally seems to be getting some control of her life and her ability -- and she ends up dead.
We also had Monica -- a character I really liked and want to see more about. While a bit freaked over her ability at first, she took to it pretty quickly, trying to use it to help those around her. She was a genuinely good person, with a really useful ability that she was learning to relish. And what happens to her? She gets in over her head (which, granted, I don't object to. You gotta have some conflict or there's not story) gets rescued (but hey, at least she wasn't rescued by a man!) and then...gets written out of the show.
Next, we have Claire. Admittedly, she's a bit whiny. But I give her a pass for most of that, because she's only 18 or so. (I'm assuming 17/18, because she's clearly not going to school this season. They seriously messed up her age.) Anyway, she's fricking indestructable. She can heal anything, is likely never going to die and what are they doing with her? Nothing. No one is teaching her how to fight or sleuth or any of the things she wants to do. (Yes, I realize there have finally been what, two? attempts to teach her things. But come on, how long as the girl been demonstrating her desire to learn? Yeah.) She's gotten the hang of her ability, she's made her peace with it and -- she's being treated like a fragile, breakable thing. I understand that coming from her parents -- they're her parents. But everyone else? Please. She's doing stupid things because she's young and inexperienced -- and can't find a fricking teacher to help her out. (I totally want Claude to come back and take her under his wing. She'd be the craftiest, sneakiest, morally gray character around.)
So, let's see...who else do we have? Oh! Daphne. At the moment, she's the only one I'm holding out hope for. Yes, she's got a bit of 'victim' in her background. I can deal with that. At least no one is trying to put her in a little box. (Matt? I'm looking at you -- do NOT try to control your girlfriend or I have a brick with your name on it, got it? You almost got one when you read her mind without permission. Grr.) The revelation that she had cerebal palsy is. . .a post for another day, actually. But it's at least different. It seems she had a decent childhood. Her father clearly loves her and they seem to have a good relationship. And her thing with Matt, while the 'I Love You's came too fast, at least feels like it's becoming genuine. His total acceptance of her is really good for her and she's good at bringing him down to earth.
Which means that the rumors of her being killed off next season are likely true. Screw you, Heroes. I'm tired of all the strong women being killed off.
Which brings us back to Elle. *sigh* I loved Elle, because she was so totally herself. Yes, I know, she was a bad person. I'm ok with that -- women can be bad people. We're not paragons of virtue. Despite all that was done to her to warp her into a sociopath, she never seemed to be a victim. When she found out what had been done to her as a child, she didn't collapse into a pile and beg for someone to save her. The knowledge colored her actions, yes, but she got on with her life. She fucking 'saved' herself.
And so, they have her boyfriend kill her. Just when she seemed to be truely freeing herself from her past, just when she seemed to be ready to become herself.
Seriously, Heroes, fuck you. Just fuck you. Call me when you start randomly killing off your male cast. How about when Saundra sticks a knife in Bennet's heart for being such a giant asshole? Or when Claire bricks Peter over the head for being such an overbearing, patronizing, whiny little emo bitch? Maybe when Sylar gets his head cut off by an Eileen Wurnoes wanna-be he picked up at a truck stop because she reminded him of Elle? Oh, not going to do that to your big manly cast? Yeah. Fuck you.
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