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Well, actually my massive annoyance with BSG is bad for my marriage.
You see, BSG annoys me and I rant about it at my poor husband. Since BSG doesn't annoy him, it ends up causing stressful... discussions in which we come close to sounding like we're arguing. It's a tad stressful and completely unfair to poor Wil.
But I just can't help it. It just annoys me so damn much.
That's not exactly true. The cheap, theatrical writing that they occasionally stick in BSG annoys me. In a show that has many legitimately tense and moving moments, it too often settles for slight of hand and time manipulation to build contrived suspense -- often at the expense of what could have been truly suspenseful scenes in their own right.
The sheer manipulation of it irritates me to the point of being unable to enjoy the scene. It's so obviously a manipulation -- it's like watching the old serialized cliff hangers, where they stick on a completely pointless life-threatening situation at the end of a part only to have the situation completely resolved and rendered moot in the next ten minutes of story. The worst part is, the artificial construct of it makes the actual, natural ending points of the scene less powerful.
Don't get me wrong, I like the show but I want to love the show. Maybe I'm expecting too much from it. After all I love 24 and that's all about artificial constructs. Not only I can live with that, but I look forward to them. It doesn't bother me because that's what 24 is. It's not what I want BSG to be, though. *sigh*
I want BSG to be the sharp, intelligent show that so many tout it to be. And it shows that in a lot ways and then... then it takes the easy way out. And not just in editing and false suspense. They also have a tendency to present just one point of an argument, this despite the fact that there are ample characters around who would have legitimate reasons and opportunities to voice the other points in the argument.
Recently our intrepid heroes have decided to take up terrorism in an attempt to prove they are betterat it than the Cylons. So, they send in suicide bombers to blow up a graduating class of police recruits/Cylon collaborators. Oh, and those pesky civilian bystanders. The plan was, I guess, to make the civilians' fear being killed by the resistance greater than their fear of being killed by the Cylons. The resistance is, after all trying to save humanity by killing them off as collateral damage.
Okay, so my opinion of this development is obvious. Now, I can see the dramatic possibilities of it -- the thematic points that could be made, the characters that could be made or destroyed by those choices they make. It could be great. But I fear that it won't be. They missed all the opportunities to set the arguments up. Sure, when Tigh first suggested attacking the graduation ceremony, there was mention of innocent deaths but it wasn't mentioned again. In fact, when President Rosalyn confronted Tigh about the attacks I fully expected her to make some sort of definitive statement about killing innocents. But all she complained about was the the suicide bombers were killing themselves. No mention of killing off all those random humans that they are supposed to save.
It would have been an easy to just bring up the complete picture, for someone to point out that becoming exactly like the Cylons defeats the purpose of fighting the Cylons. It wouldn't have had to have been a winning argument, either. If Rosalyn mentioned it, Tigh could have easily shot her down by saying that all the morals in the world wouldn't help anyone is humanity is dead because of it. Or that she could bring him up on charges once his actions saved them all. It would be a simple nod to the horror of the actions and the desperation of the people placed in the situation. To totally ignore that issue, give no voice to the true cost the actions (even if that cost is deemed acceptable) is a cheap and unfulfilling way to write the show. Especially in an issue that is as current and controversial as terrorism and the circumstances that push people to believe that is an acceptable act.
If you want to make a point in your writing, make it an argument, not a sermon. More importantly, don't bring up volatile, morally complicated issues without being sure to recognize that's it is a volatile, morally complicated issue.
You see, BSG annoys me and I rant about it at my poor husband. Since BSG doesn't annoy him, it ends up causing stressful... discussions in which we come close to sounding like we're arguing. It's a tad stressful and completely unfair to poor Wil.
But I just can't help it. It just annoys me so damn much.
That's not exactly true. The cheap, theatrical writing that they occasionally stick in BSG annoys me. In a show that has many legitimately tense and moving moments, it too often settles for slight of hand and time manipulation to build contrived suspense -- often at the expense of what could have been truly suspenseful scenes in their own right.
The sheer manipulation of it irritates me to the point of being unable to enjoy the scene. It's so obviously a manipulation -- it's like watching the old serialized cliff hangers, where they stick on a completely pointless life-threatening situation at the end of a part only to have the situation completely resolved and rendered moot in the next ten minutes of story. The worst part is, the artificial construct of it makes the actual, natural ending points of the scene less powerful.
Don't get me wrong, I like the show but I want to love the show. Maybe I'm expecting too much from it. After all I love 24 and that's all about artificial constructs. Not only I can live with that, but I look forward to them. It doesn't bother me because that's what 24 is. It's not what I want BSG to be, though. *sigh*
I want BSG to be the sharp, intelligent show that so many tout it to be. And it shows that in a lot ways and then... then it takes the easy way out. And not just in editing and false suspense. They also have a tendency to present just one point of an argument, this despite the fact that there are ample characters around who would have legitimate reasons and opportunities to voice the other points in the argument.
Recently our intrepid heroes have decided to take up terrorism in an attempt to prove they are better
Okay, so my opinion of this development is obvious. Now, I can see the dramatic possibilities of it -- the thematic points that could be made, the characters that could be made or destroyed by those choices they make. It could be great. But I fear that it won't be. They missed all the opportunities to set the arguments up. Sure, when Tigh first suggested attacking the graduation ceremony, there was mention of innocent deaths but it wasn't mentioned again. In fact, when President Rosalyn confronted Tigh about the attacks I fully expected her to make some sort of definitive statement about killing innocents. But all she complained about was the the suicide bombers were killing themselves. No mention of killing off all those random humans that they are supposed to save.
It would have been an easy to just bring up the complete picture, for someone to point out that becoming exactly like the Cylons defeats the purpose of fighting the Cylons. It wouldn't have had to have been a winning argument, either. If Rosalyn mentioned it, Tigh could have easily shot her down by saying that all the morals in the world wouldn't help anyone is humanity is dead because of it. Or that she could bring him up on charges once his actions saved them all. It would be a simple nod to the horror of the actions and the desperation of the people placed in the situation. To totally ignore that issue, give no voice to the true cost the actions (even if that cost is deemed acceptable) is a cheap and unfulfilling way to write the show. Especially in an issue that is as current and controversial as terrorism and the circumstances that push people to believe that is an acceptable act.
If you want to make a point in your writing, make it an argument, not a sermon. More importantly, don't bring up volatile, morally complicated issues without being sure to recognize that's it is a volatile, morally complicated issue.
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no subject
Date: 2006-10-17 04:58 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2006-10-17 05:56 pm (UTC)From:Perhaps the conversation about "no way to avoid casualties" wasn't civilian casualties, but rather focused on the deaths of those attacking. I wish I could recall the exact wording (and I don't have it on tape). The conversation was awkward, though, if that's what it pertained to, because suicide missions are common in wars and even more common in resistance movements. Just being part of the the resistance is almost an act of suicide. And, like Tigh said, he's sent people to their deaths before. I would think that most everyone who was part of the resistance would know that they are ultimately expendable if it means getting the objective done.
I think also the fact that it was a "graduation" made me think that it would be out in the open... although I supposed it could be like the KKK where they through big bonfire parties in white sheets.
I like your take on it much better than mine. And it would explain the President's objecting to the bombers dying and not mentioning any civilians. It also makes a much nicer line between the good guys and the bad guys on a show that likes to blur those distinctions.
I have to remember that the show occasionally sacrifices clarity for style and drama. This could have been one of those cases. Or perhaps I'm just a more cut-throat writer in that I wouldn't think that it being a suicide mission (rather than a terroristic one) would warrant any discussion at all.
no subject
Date: 2006-10-17 09:53 pm (UTC)From: (Anonymous)I can certainly appreciate the remorse in killing the humans who'd signed up to be the police. In a perfect world they would have survived to understand the error of their ways and rejoined the human community, possibly using their inside-knowlege to strike back at the cylons. But it's not a perfect world and the writing wasn't very clear.
I do like BSG. I *hated* it as a kid growing up. My brother lovedLovedLOVED the show but I couldn't stand it. Having watched a few of the old ones recently I'm still not much of a fan of the BSG-Back-Then. Am hooked on the current incarnation.
Can we get rid of Gaius? I *loath* him!