tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post7328924669345539700..comments2023-03-28T04:32:18.124-04:00Comments on Witless Prattle: And Now We Look At The Shocking SwerveKazekagehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-7556502861458780592009-06-20T22:31:33.728-04:002009-06-20T22:31:33.728-04:00I think, if comics have proven anything through th...I think, if comics have proven anything through their history it's that they're extremely slow to adapt, both in terms of the authors and the audience.Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-68654467111042731652009-06-20T09:25:42.227-04:002009-06-20T09:25:42.227-04:00Which explains so much about their current state o...Which explains <i>so much</i> about their current state of creative bankruptcy... though I suppose readers are to blame as well, for not being able to accept new characters and models.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-70203551543179949842009-06-07T21:21:45.500-04:002009-06-07T21:21:45.500-04:00More than likely they're right--not least beca...More than likely they're right--not least because every character that's come after that even vaguely caught on was a distaff version of another character or followed the Wolverine model to one extent or another.Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-6153333062323925082009-06-07T15:44:33.184-04:002009-06-07T15:44:33.184-04:00Most likely - I remember reading somewhere that Wo...Most likely - I remember reading somewhere that Wolverine's considered the last iconic character Marvel ever created - everyone after that is interchangable to some extent or other.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-43333976311622191432009-06-01T18:53:27.187-04:002009-06-01T18:53:27.187-04:00True, in fact, I'd say he's probably the most rece...True, in fact, I'd say he's probably the most recent character to get in the backpack club, wouldn't you?Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-81787929240798451782009-05-31T03:47:03.752-04:002009-05-31T03:47:03.752-04:00Hard to say - he's one of the few characters who's...Hard to say - he's one of the few characters who's transcended the medium and passed what I call the Backpack Test (ie: a character popular enough to appear on a kid's backpack), and that was certainly the case <I>before</I> Hugh Jackman and the Singer movies...Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-53109668011220350392009-05-23T23:38:30.362-04:002009-05-23T23:38:30.362-04:00True, but he's become more popular while the audie...True, but he's become more popular while the audience for comics has shrunk. There's an argument for milking these things in good time (rising tide lifts all boats and all that) but when things are winnowing? <br /><br />Besides which, how much of Wolverine's popularity comes from being in comics now, anyway?Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-73946610453635730082009-05-23T11:21:29.762-04:002009-05-23T11:21:29.762-04:00Much as I hate to admit it, it's not as if Wolveri...Much as I hate to admit it, it's not as if Wolverine has become any less popular now than he was in 1980...Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-134022786460752762009-05-03T13:17:00.000-04:002009-05-03T13:17:00.000-04:00Well, as with wrestling (it always comes back ther...Well, as with wrestling (it always comes back there) the temptation is to ride the established gravy train out before resorting to the far riskier prospect of trying to build a new star to take over from the old. It's a neccessary thing to do--everyone accepts that--but the resistance to taking the risk is so ingrained, and there is such resistance to doing the sensible thing, one is amazed when it happens at all.<br /><br />After all, riding something until the wheels falls off is sensible until you need a ride to get another car.Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-80818780650081120652009-05-03T10:34:00.000-04:002009-05-03T10:34:00.000-04:00It also hints at a certain lack of confidence in t...It also hints at a certain lack of confidence in the writers: presumably, if they can create one breakout character they can create another. But they're rarely given an opportunity to do so.<br /><br />Unfortunately, what they never seem to figure out is just how "short" the short-term really is: Sylar became tiresome by the end of the second season and flat-out <I>unbearable</I> by the middle of the third, and given the writer's strike in the interrim, there weren't that many episodes. I'd argue that even the short-term benefit can be a double-edged sword, because improperly-handled overexposed breakout characters will wear thin <I>very</I> quickly.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-20386691790666202392009-04-26T20:52:00.000-04:002009-04-26T20:52:00.000-04:00Well, if you want to keep the breakout character a...Well, if you want to keep the breakout character a going concern after your Arc gets done, your choices are few--either put them on the bus, or realign your plotting to do that, which is going to cock up the works something fierce.<br /><br />Or you can take the road less traveled, and kill off the breakout character and run the risk that people will hate you for it. Alas, most aren't willing, seeing the short-term benefits worth the long-term damage.Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-60543848834872518582009-04-25T10:47:00.000-04:002009-04-25T10:47:00.000-04:00I think the problems start when the breakout chara...I think the problems start when the breakout character turns out to be someone <I>other</I> than whoever the creators might have been hoping for. With Sylar, I honestly don't know if Tim Kring anticipated the surge of popularity, given how totally monstrous the character's written in the first season. And, clearly, there was no plan for him beyond the point of getting skewered by a katana.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-53806716527783311012009-04-11T23:55:00.000-04:002009-04-11T23:55:00.000-04:00Well, it's a bit of a false choice, isn't it? It's...Well, it's a bit of a false choice, isn't it? It's fine if you have a breakout character--a lot of shows do, and breaking out from the pack can keep things fresh while the main part of the story is ramping up.<BR/><BR/>BUT--if you have a big arc planned, then the character ultimately has to serve the needs of the story and you owe it to the story to see it through, even if some people will be pissed off. If it's all about the characters, then you can probably get away with that, just don;t turn around and try to tell me it's all One Big Plan.Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-39803578640418537732009-04-11T08:50:00.000-04:002009-04-11T08:50:00.000-04:00I think most TV writers today conflate what's best...I think most TV writers today conflate what's best for the character and what they think the audience wants (ie: Spike, Sylar). But that's a catch-22, isn't it? If you pander to the viewers, you inevitably start screwing things up, but if you try to hold to a dramatic/structural ideal your ratings will crash through the floor and your story will be aborted before you finish it.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-3147584273785840462009-04-03T23:55:00.000-04:002009-04-03T23:55:00.000-04:00Well, Shocking Swerves could be said to have no mo...Well, Shocking Swerves could be said to have no motivation beyond upsetting the status quo--more specific justifications usually come after the fact.<BR/><BR/>There's nothing particularly wrong with serving your cast at the expense of a TV's shows larger narrative, though. Although you often end up with something like <I>Voyager</I>Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-10135744982703340452009-04-03T16:44:00.000-04:002009-04-03T16:44:00.000-04:00I'd say the emphasis lies more with the motivation...I'd say the emphasis lies more with the <I>motivation</I> for the Shocking Swerve: with Daria, <I>and</I> BSG to an extent, the Swerve was meant to specifically affect the characters - if Tom had never come into the picture, Daria and Jane would've stayed exactly the same. And barring the finale, I think a lot of the Swerves in BSG served the cast more than they did the plot.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-84729094120504401132009-03-21T22:22:00.000-04:002009-03-21T22:22:00.000-04:00I'm probably compromising something by saying the ...I'm probably compromising something by saying the following, but the hell with it:<BR/><BR/> Yes, of all the things you referenced that I never saw, funnily enough, I <I>did</I> see <I>Daria.</I> :) And Daria <I>did</I> make the Shocking Swerve work, but they prove my point in that the problem is <I>not</I> in pulling the Shocking Swerve, the problem is how you justify doing it later. It's all in the follow-through, and what makes me gnash my teeth when people <I>aren't willing to follow through and yes BSG I am looking RIGHT at you.</I>Kazekagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07499536996058174109noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-56349784825460872972009-03-21T17:06:00.000-04:002009-03-21T17:06:00.000-04:00I'm not much of a wrestling expert, but I think th...I'm not much of a wrestling expert, but I think the classification of "Shocking Swerve" depends entirely on execution. And rather than call upon an overused and tired example, I've thought of one we haven't discussed before: "Daria".<BR/><BR/>I don't know if you're familiar with it, but basically, after three seasons of Daria and Jane being friends and hanging out, Jane gets a boyfriend, Tom. And at the end of the fourth season, Daria kisses him.<BR/><BR/>On the one hand, it's a shocking swerve because it comes out of nowhere, and it seems out-of-character for Daria given her loyalty to her best friend. And it derailed the story, true, in the sense that the kiss completely shattered the dynamic that had existed throughout the show's run. <BR/><BR/>But it never felt contrived. Daria and Tom start dating, and Jane's eventually okay with it. In the end, a different kind of story emerges - not necessarily better, certainly not worse, but... it's the <I>right</I> story to tell at that point in their lives. And that story couldn't begin without a Shocking Swerve to disrupt the status quo.Diana Kingston-Gabaihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06606122690934557406noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8207237618509440496.post-8318231916670612592009-03-11T01:33:00.000-04:002009-03-11T01:33:00.000-04:00I'd like to say an "Amen" to this entire post, wit...I'd like to say an "Amen" to this entire post, without reservation.<BR/><BR/>There are certain advantages to flying by the seat of your pants, but I also think it helps to at least have an idea of where you are going. To use your example, if King Slender had lost a feud to Fighter Hayabusa a year earlier, and this was his long delayed revenge by "pretending" to face turn, that would be some brilliant and insightful booking.<BR/><BR/>Brilliant and insightful booking rarely happens anymore.<BR/><BR/>A swerve is only good if you have a really good, logical explanation for it. Those are usually in short supply.C. Elamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00284263547435956344noreply@blogger.com