Beautiful piece. Shivers running up and down my spine five minutes after watching it.......
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Favourite Thing of the Week #3
Beautiful piece. Shivers running up and down my spine five minutes after watching it.......
Monday, May 20, 2013
Your Argument is Invalid: Sheldon Cooper vs. Abed Nadir
Okay. I recently had a Community night with my friend Carly. It was her idea, not mine, so don't think I forced it on her. But she didn't seem to get a lot of the jokes, because, as we know, it's a very pop-culture oriented show, so you kinda need to know more pop-culture than what they're showing in Teen Bop Magazine to get the show. It's also a show you need to seriously pay attention to - there's no laugh track to tell you when to laugh, and there's no big obvious set-up to tell you what's coming next, so you need to actually listen to and watch the show to know what's going on. Both of which are things Carly's not oriented with, so it wasn't surprising that she didn't really get it, it was just a little disappointing.
But throughout the evening, Carly repeatedly said (about Abed) "He reminds me of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory!"
To which I would reply "Except he's much more adorable." I had much better reasons for preference than that, but I didn't feel like getting into a debate with Carly because she tends to take things like that kind of personally because as we know, I like to debate rather heatedly, even (or especially) when it's all in fun.
Until finally, after the third or fourth or fifth time she said it, I was like "Except Abed's... better."
She paused and then said "Well, I think Sheldon's better, just sayin'."
Which gave me an extremely unreasonable amount irritation.
Yeah, I get that parrallels can be drawn between Sheldon and Abed. They're both obsessed with routine, they both have trouble understanding things like sarcasm and social cues. They're the same sort of character, but they're used in completely different ways.
So let me just tell you what I think:
Abed is much much MUCH better. For a few reasons.
Exhibit A)
Abed is a much more developed character.
Sheldon Cooper doesn't seem to have any emotions. We barely see anything in Sheldon besides a spectrum of vague to extremely specifically honed condesension. He's not a human character. They joke about him being a robot on the show, but he's literally written like one. They don't write him like a person, they write him like a computer. All we know about Sheldon is he thinks he's better than everyone around and he has eccentricities that annoy everyone to the point of insanity. Long story short, he's simply a caricature, a bit of a stock character, and nothing more.
Meanwhile, at Greendale, we've got Abed. Abed is great because they're not afraid to portray him as a human character in spite of his differences. They don't make him a caricature like Sheldon. In the very pilot of the show, you see his extreme puzzlement at everyone's behaviours, but you also see how happy is to be around them. Three episodes in the ultimate tragedy of Abed becomes clear. He's been so misunderstood, put through tests his whole life, his mother left and his father blamed him. He never felt wanted. And even though his face doesn't move much, Abed has such warmth, has such a tangible aura, that we can sense his sadness. And yet, we know Abed has dreams, and we know how grateful he is to Britta for helping him, and we know that he loves his father, and everything about Abed, in spite of his eccentricities, is just so human.
The closest thing to that story we have with Sheldon is "I'm not crazy. My mother had me tested."
Exhibit B)
The portrayal of the autistic spectrum.
You didn't think I was just going to let this one go, did you? As a person with an autistic brother (and as a person who's probably on the spectrum herself) it's something I need to notice and talk about.
It is never specifically stated or implied with Sheldon that he may be on the spectrum. It is not a canon fact, though many people who ARE on the spectrum see themselves in him. And, really, that's what makes it so irritating to me. They make him seem so very autistic - so obsessed with routine, so set in his stubbornness and irrational fears, thrown off by sarcasm. They're not saying he IS autistic, he's just indistinguishable from someone who is. It's like the writers are implying it, but whenever someone calls them out on it, they go "OH NO OF COURSE NOT! HE'S JUST A LITTLE WEIRD IS ALL!" If you're going to make him like that, have the frackin' balls to own it.
Abed, on the other hand, was called Aspergers literally since day one. They're not afraid to say it, to own that, but it's not what makes the character. They say, "Yeah, okay, he's autistic. But that's not all that he is." Which, really, is sensitive, wise, and most of all, accurate. They don't act like it's taboo, which I really appreciate. Actually, it's a very positive representation of the spectrum.
Unlike Sheldon, which takes all the fears and stereotypes we have about the spectrum and smushes them up into one character.
Exhibit C)
How we are supposed to feel about them.
With Sheldon, it kind of comes back to this villain thing. We don't really like them, but we like when they're on screen, in Sheldon's case, because it makes us laugh. But we're not supposed to like Sheldon, and god help you if you actually connect with him. Usually, he's the antagonist of the piece. And we love when he's onscreen, but we hate the character. When we laugh at Sheldon, we're laughing AT him, no way around it. The writers have created this...... satire. But the thing about satire is that it only really works if the writers really love their character, like you can only make fun of your friends after you're really good friends. Otherwise it just comes off better-than-thou, and that's what the writers are doing. It's spiteful, wow-I'm-so-glad-I'm-not-you laughter. If you see yourself in Sheldon, then there is no character in that world that actually likes you. End of story.
Abed, on the other hand, is the hero of Community. We're supposed to see ourselves in Abed. He's always the protagonist. They've positioned Abed as the audience, because he's an observer, because we all feel clueless to the rest of the world sometimes, and we're only reacting as we know how. And that's the point that Abed makes, really. Abed is designed to remind us that it's okay to have our eccentricities, Sheldon is designed to shame them. We don't laugh AT Abed, not really, because we are supposed to love him. When Abed makes us laugh, it's because we look at what he does and it's just funny, It's not spiteful wow-you're-such-a-loser humour, it's the kind of humour where Abed turns into a vampire because they asked if he had a different version of himself. It's just FUNNY. And even when we are laughing at Abed, that's okay. Because it's satire, and Community can do that because it DOES love Abed (and all it's characters) so it's less spiteful and more satirical.
Abed often thinks he's a hindrance to the group, but that's always dismissed as his own insecurity.
With Sheldon it's made plainly obvious that he is a hindrance to the group and they wish they didn't have to deal with him.
Abed will ultimately bring people closer.
Sheldon has caused large fights over nothing.
We're supposed to hate Sheldon, god knows every character on that show does. And that show is making fun of Sheldon. If you don't laugh with us, you're like him and you're a loser.
In the pilot episode of Community, it is said about Abed:
"Abed is a shaman. You ask him to pass the salt and he gives you a bowl of soup because soup is better. Abed is better."
So in conclusion:
Abed is better.
Your argument is invalid.
But throughout the evening, Carly repeatedly said (about Abed) "He reminds me of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory!"
To which I would reply "Except he's much more adorable." I had much better reasons for preference than that, but I didn't feel like getting into a debate with Carly because she tends to take things like that kind of personally because as we know, I like to debate rather heatedly, even (or especially) when it's all in fun.
Until finally, after the third or fourth or fifth time she said it, I was like "Except Abed's... better."
She paused and then said "Well, I think Sheldon's better, just sayin'."
Which gave me an extremely unreasonable amount irritation.
Yeah, I get that parrallels can be drawn between Sheldon and Abed. They're both obsessed with routine, they both have trouble understanding things like sarcasm and social cues. They're the same sort of character, but they're used in completely different ways.
So let me just tell you what I think:
Abed is much much MUCH better. For a few reasons.
Exhibit A)
Abed is a much more developed character.
Sheldon Cooper doesn't seem to have any emotions. We barely see anything in Sheldon besides a spectrum of vague to extremely specifically honed condesension. He's not a human character. They joke about him being a robot on the show, but he's literally written like one. They don't write him like a person, they write him like a computer. All we know about Sheldon is he thinks he's better than everyone around and he has eccentricities that annoy everyone to the point of insanity. Long story short, he's simply a caricature, a bit of a stock character, and nothing more.
Meanwhile, at Greendale, we've got Abed. Abed is great because they're not afraid to portray him as a human character in spite of his differences. They don't make him a caricature like Sheldon. In the very pilot of the show, you see his extreme puzzlement at everyone's behaviours, but you also see how happy is to be around them. Three episodes in the ultimate tragedy of Abed becomes clear. He's been so misunderstood, put through tests his whole life, his mother left and his father blamed him. He never felt wanted. And even though his face doesn't move much, Abed has such warmth, has such a tangible aura, that we can sense his sadness. And yet, we know Abed has dreams, and we know how grateful he is to Britta for helping him, and we know that he loves his father, and everything about Abed, in spite of his eccentricities, is just so human.
The closest thing to that story we have with Sheldon is "I'm not crazy. My mother had me tested."
Exhibit B)
The portrayal of the autistic spectrum.
You didn't think I was just going to let this one go, did you? As a person with an autistic brother (and as a person who's probably on the spectrum herself) it's something I need to notice and talk about.
It is never specifically stated or implied with Sheldon that he may be on the spectrum. It is not a canon fact, though many people who ARE on the spectrum see themselves in him. And, really, that's what makes it so irritating to me. They make him seem so very autistic - so obsessed with routine, so set in his stubbornness and irrational fears, thrown off by sarcasm. They're not saying he IS autistic, he's just indistinguishable from someone who is. It's like the writers are implying it, but whenever someone calls them out on it, they go "OH NO OF COURSE NOT! HE'S JUST A LITTLE WEIRD IS ALL!" If you're going to make him like that, have the frackin' balls to own it.
Abed, on the other hand, was called Aspergers literally since day one. They're not afraid to say it, to own that, but it's not what makes the character. They say, "Yeah, okay, he's autistic. But that's not all that he is." Which, really, is sensitive, wise, and most of all, accurate. They don't act like it's taboo, which I really appreciate. Actually, it's a very positive representation of the spectrum.
Unlike Sheldon, which takes all the fears and stereotypes we have about the spectrum and smushes them up into one character.
Exhibit C)
How we are supposed to feel about them.
With Sheldon, it kind of comes back to this villain thing. We don't really like them, but we like when they're on screen, in Sheldon's case, because it makes us laugh. But we're not supposed to like Sheldon, and god help you if you actually connect with him. Usually, he's the antagonist of the piece. And we love when he's onscreen, but we hate the character. When we laugh at Sheldon, we're laughing AT him, no way around it. The writers have created this...... satire. But the thing about satire is that it only really works if the writers really love their character, like you can only make fun of your friends after you're really good friends. Otherwise it just comes off better-than-thou, and that's what the writers are doing. It's spiteful, wow-I'm-so-glad-I'm-not-you laughter. If you see yourself in Sheldon, then there is no character in that world that actually likes you. End of story.
Abed, on the other hand, is the hero of Community. We're supposed to see ourselves in Abed. He's always the protagonist. They've positioned Abed as the audience, because he's an observer, because we all feel clueless to the rest of the world sometimes, and we're only reacting as we know how. And that's the point that Abed makes, really. Abed is designed to remind us that it's okay to have our eccentricities, Sheldon is designed to shame them. We don't laugh AT Abed, not really, because we are supposed to love him. When Abed makes us laugh, it's because we look at what he does and it's just funny, It's not spiteful wow-you're-such-a-loser humour, it's the kind of humour where Abed turns into a vampire because they asked if he had a different version of himself. It's just FUNNY. And even when we are laughing at Abed, that's okay. Because it's satire, and Community can do that because it DOES love Abed (and all it's characters) so it's less spiteful and more satirical.
Abed often thinks he's a hindrance to the group, but that's always dismissed as his own insecurity.
With Sheldon it's made plainly obvious that he is a hindrance to the group and they wish they didn't have to deal with him.
Abed will ultimately bring people closer.
Sheldon has caused large fights over nothing.
We're supposed to hate Sheldon, god knows every character on that show does. And that show is making fun of Sheldon. If you don't laugh with us, you're like him and you're a loser.
In the pilot episode of Community, it is said about Abed:
"Abed is a shaman. You ask him to pass the salt and he gives you a bowl of soup because soup is better. Abed is better."
So in conclusion:
Abed is better.
Your argument is invalid.
Friday, May 17, 2013
WHOSE LIVE FREAKING ANYWAYS
[This post was written in February and I just never finished writing it until now don't hate me].
Guess where I went just last night?
That's right. Whose. Live. Anyway.
Ryan Stiles and Greg Proops and Jeff Davis. Chip was SUPPOSED to be there, but I think he was filming the show Nashville..... which I eventually stopped watching because it wasn't interesting or going anywhere. Replacing him was Joel Murray, who I'm pretty sure is Bill Murray's brother.
But back to my original point, I SAW THESE PEOPLE LIVE AND IT WAS EPIC AND THEY WERE THERE.
Ryan was dressed in jeans and a white Tshirt that was sort of checkered with yellow? Like there were lines on his shirt that made squares, but the squares weren't filled in, and the lines were yellow and the shirt was white. I'm describing this in far too much detail. I don't really care at this point. He also wore strange, coloured shoes, which made me feel awesome inside.
Greg was wearing a suit and tie, and his large-ish glasses of course. His hair is puffier now than it ever was on Whose Line. Like what Jeff posted on some social networking site.
Which brings me to Jeff. He was wearing a suit and tie (not sure I've ever seen him without one). He had his hair gelled in a sort of spike up.... you know, like boys do..... whatever.
I should probably mention Joel Murray - he was part of the show after all - but I really don't remember what he looked like. I'm gonna say suit jacket. That's all I know.
Also Bob Derkache was there. He was doing the music for it, like he did on Improvaganza. And he's really good. I always think that the music people in these shows don't get enough credit for what they do. I mean, yeah, we're there for the funny, but it takes a lot of smarts and talent to be able to just improvise any style of music on a piano. So whenever they sort of "presented" Bob Derkache I always cheered very loudly.
The show started with Greg. Greg has the most talent with getting audiences pumped. He spent a little bit talking to the audience members and sort of doing an impromptu stand-up thing, which was really funny, and then he finally introduced the players. First he introduced Jeff Davis, and then Joel Murray (I went to Whose Live with my Whoser friend Sarah, of course, and she hadn't known that Chip wasn't there, and she gave me a very confused look at this point) and then, because he's the most known and therefore the crowd favourite, Ryan Stiles.
They were explaining to the audience that they would have to call things out so that they could take their suggestion (like anyone who goes to Whose Live Anyway doesn't already know that) and one guy in the audience, who was probably drunk and continuously yelling before even asked to, kept suggesting "Pole vaulting". Which then became a running gag for the audience which the lovely players never took us up on.
Now, what games were played? They played Jeopardy, Sound Effects, Forward/Reverse, New Choice, Greatest Hits, Sentences, Jeff sang a song to a woman who sold dog leashes in the style of "something sexy", and I think Joel Murray played a game with Jeff somewhere in there set during World War II, but I really don't remember what game it was.
It was pretty much seeing Improvaganza live, except with less people onstage and more people in the audience who knew what was going on.
My favourite game that was played that night was Jeopardy, just because.... wordplay. Gotta say, as much as Jeff fangirls annoy me on the Internet, he's a talented dude. Good with the quick thinking. Also his Christopher Walken impression was a famous thing from Whose Line and it was really great to see him do that live. My favourite thing was:
"Banana."
"*buzz*"
"Christopher?"
"What sound does a sheep make rolling down a hill?"
"............"
"Baaaaaa-naaaaaa-naaaaa........"
I loved that.
And then Ryan got Bob Derkache to choose a category, and he chose Sixties Songs or something like this. So Ryan asks the audience for suggestions, and it's just quiet. After a minute a few things came out of the audience..... maybe six people yelled things..... and one guy yelled "Cha-Cha Slide". Ryan singled the guy out, because he hadn't heard properly, and said "What was that, sir?"
To which the guy yelled "I dunno!"
All the players sort of looked at each other, and Jeff said in his Christopher Walken impression:
"If you don't know - shut up."
Which was one of my favourite things that evening.
And he really is quick with the songs on the spot kinda thing.
Did I mention SONGS? Because something amazing happened that night in a SONG!
So, since Chip wasn't there, and he, as we all know from Improvaganza, is Jeff's singing partner, they had to switch it up a little. Because they played Greatest Hits. So Greg and Joel were the people selling the DVD and Jeff and RYAN did the song part. And, I mean, I knew Ryan could sing, but it was never really his forte, right? And I knew they were just adapting to what they had, so I didn't really... I expected more quality in the humour than quality of the sound, to put it politely. It's just that I know it's not really Ryan's thing, and so was expecting something enjoyable but not remarkable. Right?
But you know what guys?
HE HARMONIZED PERFECTLY WITH JEFF DURING THE COUNTRY SONG.
IT WAS KIND OF THE BEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE.
They just burst into harmonies and Ryan did the low part and Jeff did the higher part and it was just so goshdarn PERFECT!!! I mean, it literally sounded perfect. Neither me nor Sarah knew he had that in him, and we both gave each other the most incredulous of looks. I'll never forget that. It was the most epic thing I've ever seen.
At one point, before the Sound Effects game, Jeff came into the audience looking for volunteers. And I normally wouldn't have, but Sarah was there and she immediately leaped up, waving her arms and yelling Jeff's name, so I jumped up with her so we could be picked together because he needed two people. And we were pretty far up there, but he really did come up to where we were - I mean, he was maybe six feet away from us at most!
And then he proceeded to not pick us. He picked a woman and her husband I think. But there were a couple of Jeff fangirls who were screaming at him as well, and they thought he picked them and they started to go down and they were like "Us?" And he was like "NO GET BACK UP THERE!" which was kind of really funny.
And then the woman hugged Ryan for a really long time and all I could think was "THAT COULD HAVE BEEN MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE NOOOOOOOOOOOO"
And then we left without getting their autographs. Even though me and Sarah had both brought our Whose Line DVDs to be signed by them. They weren't anywhere signing autographs. Which made me sad but it's a testament to their awesomeness that the night was still as amazing and incredible and fantastic as it was.
Ha. Yeah. Good times.
Guess where I went just last night?
Ryan Stiles and Greg Proops and Jeff Davis. Chip was SUPPOSED to be there, but I think he was filming the show Nashville..... which I eventually stopped watching because it wasn't interesting or going anywhere. Replacing him was Joel Murray, who I'm pretty sure is Bill Murray's brother.
But back to my original point, I SAW THESE PEOPLE LIVE AND IT WAS EPIC AND THEY WERE THERE.
Ryan was dressed in jeans and a white Tshirt that was sort of checkered with yellow? Like there were lines on his shirt that made squares, but the squares weren't filled in, and the lines were yellow and the shirt was white. I'm describing this in far too much detail. I don't really care at this point. He also wore strange, coloured shoes, which made me feel awesome inside.
Greg was wearing a suit and tie, and his large-ish glasses of course. His hair is puffier now than it ever was on Whose Line. Like what Jeff posted on some social networking site.
Which brings me to Jeff. He was wearing a suit and tie (not sure I've ever seen him without one). He had his hair gelled in a sort of spike up.... you know, like boys do..... whatever.
I should probably mention Joel Murray - he was part of the show after all - but I really don't remember what he looked like. I'm gonna say suit jacket. That's all I know.
Also Bob Derkache was there. He was doing the music for it, like he did on Improvaganza. And he's really good. I always think that the music people in these shows don't get enough credit for what they do. I mean, yeah, we're there for the funny, but it takes a lot of smarts and talent to be able to just improvise any style of music on a piano. So whenever they sort of "presented" Bob Derkache I always cheered very loudly.
The show started with Greg. Greg has the most talent with getting audiences pumped. He spent a little bit talking to the audience members and sort of doing an impromptu stand-up thing, which was really funny, and then he finally introduced the players. First he introduced Jeff Davis, and then Joel Murray (I went to Whose Live with my Whoser friend Sarah, of course, and she hadn't known that Chip wasn't there, and she gave me a very confused look at this point) and then, because he's the most known and therefore the crowd favourite, Ryan Stiles.
They were explaining to the audience that they would have to call things out so that they could take their suggestion (like anyone who goes to Whose Live Anyway doesn't already know that) and one guy in the audience, who was probably drunk and continuously yelling before even asked to, kept suggesting "Pole vaulting". Which then became a running gag for the audience which the lovely players never took us up on.
Now, what games were played? They played Jeopardy, Sound Effects, Forward/Reverse, New Choice, Greatest Hits, Sentences, Jeff sang a song to a woman who sold dog leashes in the style of "something sexy", and I think Joel Murray played a game with Jeff somewhere in there set during World War II, but I really don't remember what game it was.
It was pretty much seeing Improvaganza live, except with less people onstage and more people in the audience who knew what was going on.
My favourite game that was played that night was Jeopardy, just because.... wordplay. Gotta say, as much as Jeff fangirls annoy me on the Internet, he's a talented dude. Good with the quick thinking. Also his Christopher Walken impression was a famous thing from Whose Line and it was really great to see him do that live. My favourite thing was:
"Banana."
"*buzz*"
"Christopher?"
"What sound does a sheep make rolling down a hill?"
"............"
"Baaaaaa-naaaaaa-naaaaa........"
I loved that.
And then Ryan got Bob Derkache to choose a category, and he chose Sixties Songs or something like this. So Ryan asks the audience for suggestions, and it's just quiet. After a minute a few things came out of the audience..... maybe six people yelled things..... and one guy yelled "Cha-Cha Slide". Ryan singled the guy out, because he hadn't heard properly, and said "What was that, sir?"
To which the guy yelled "I dunno!"
All the players sort of looked at each other, and Jeff said in his Christopher Walken impression:
"If you don't know - shut up."
Which was one of my favourite things that evening.
And he really is quick with the songs on the spot kinda thing.
Did I mention SONGS? Because something amazing happened that night in a SONG!
So, since Chip wasn't there, and he, as we all know from Improvaganza, is Jeff's singing partner, they had to switch it up a little. Because they played Greatest Hits. So Greg and Joel were the people selling the DVD and Jeff and RYAN did the song part. And, I mean, I knew Ryan could sing, but it was never really his forte, right? And I knew they were just adapting to what they had, so I didn't really... I expected more quality in the humour than quality of the sound, to put it politely. It's just that I know it's not really Ryan's thing, and so was expecting something enjoyable but not remarkable. Right?
But you know what guys?
HE HARMONIZED PERFECTLY WITH JEFF DURING THE COUNTRY SONG.
IT WAS KIND OF THE BEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE.
They just burst into harmonies and Ryan did the low part and Jeff did the higher part and it was just so goshdarn PERFECT!!! I mean, it literally sounded perfect. Neither me nor Sarah knew he had that in him, and we both gave each other the most incredulous of looks. I'll never forget that. It was the most epic thing I've ever seen.
At one point, before the Sound Effects game, Jeff came into the audience looking for volunteers. And I normally wouldn't have, but Sarah was there and she immediately leaped up, waving her arms and yelling Jeff's name, so I jumped up with her so we could be picked together because he needed two people. And we were pretty far up there, but he really did come up to where we were - I mean, he was maybe six feet away from us at most!
And then he proceeded to not pick us. He picked a woman and her husband I think. But there were a couple of Jeff fangirls who were screaming at him as well, and they thought he picked them and they started to go down and they were like "Us?" And he was like "NO GET BACK UP THERE!" which was kind of really funny.
And then the woman hugged Ryan for a really long time and all I could think was "THAT COULD HAVE BEEN MEEEEEEEEEEEEEE NOOOOOOOOOOOO"
And then we left without getting their autographs. Even though me and Sarah had both brought our Whose Line DVDs to be signed by them. They weren't anywhere signing autographs. Which made me sad but it's a testament to their awesomeness that the night was still as amazing and incredible and fantastic as it was.
Ha. Yeah. Good times.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
IT'S ADORABLE GET OFF MY BACK
Because the thing is, they haven't really changed. Colin still lets Ryan ramble when he rambles, with that facial expression he always has, he still tries to get a reaction from Ryan, and Ryan still builds on every little thing Colin says. This, people, this is a great friendship. From the 1970s till now. From Vancouver TheatreSports, to Second City, to U.K Whose Line to U.S Whose Line to Improvaganza to the Whose Line reboot. Nothing's really changed.
God I'm sentimental about it all.
"Well, you see Colin and I, what we have working is, and we realize it... the thing about Colin and I is we've known each other since we were 18 years old, and I'm 42 and he's 43... but whenever we see each other it's like we just saw each other yesterday." - Ryan Stiles
"Ryan Stiles and I have known each other for 25 years, so getting on stage with him is the most relaxed thing in the world." - Colin Mochrie
By the way... these quotes are from a while back, probably when U.S Whose Line (or, according to the C.W network, "Classic" Whose Line) was still running. So, just to put it into even more perspective for you..... they're both 55 now.
And if I'm correct, Colin was 33 and Ryan was 32 when they had their first episode of U.K Whose Line together (1990). And they'd known each other for years before THAT.
Have I mentioned that I freaking adore these guys?
I'M HAVING A HEART ATTACK
THEY RELEASED A PROMO FOR NEW WHOSE LINE
THIS THING IS JESUS
NOTHING HAS CHANGED EXCEPT THEIR LOOKS
WAYNE IS STILL A TALENTED SON OF A BITCH WITH THE EXACT SAME SENSE OF HUMOUR
AND THE COLIN/RYAN DYNAMIC IS STILL EXACTLY THE SAME
I FREAKING ADORE THESE GUYS.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Why Popular Music Sucks: Part 1
So I've been trying to figure out what really bugs me about pop music versus rock music. I say it's the electronic diarrhea we get these days, and that's true because it really is as if someone ate a bunch of computers and now farts electonic sounds.
But that's not what gets me.
What gets me is that a song is, generally, a marriage of poetry and music. There's the chords, the instruments, all that stuff, but there's also the lyrics. The words.
And as a writer, the misuse of words and carelessness with them is something that never fails to get on my nerves.
I can't stand the misuse of the word "love". You get that a lot these days. You don't love them, you're infatuated with them. Or, too much on television, you don't love them, you lust after them. There's a very very VERY big difference.
And that's just one example of misuse of a word that I HATE.
But I also can't stand carelessness and thoughtlessness with words. Because words have power. They can move storms, they can cause revolutions, they can change the world. So when people come out with lyrics that should rightfully be poetry, and therefore should move me in some way, and say
"Baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Like baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Like baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Thought you'd always be mine
Mine."
Yeah. I hate it.
Fact, let's take a look at the lyrics of my favourite songs of the past little while and compare to the favourite songs of radio stations.
'59 Sound - Gaslight Anthem
"I wonder which song they're gonna play when we go?
I hope it's something quiet and minor and peaceful and slow
When we float out into the ether into the everlasting arms
I hope we don't hear Marley's chains we forged in life
'Cause these chains I've been hearing now for most of my life
'Cause these chains I've been hearing now for most of my life
Did you hear the '59 sound coming through on grandmamma's radio?
Did you hear the rattling chains in your hospital walls?
Did you hear the old gospel choir when they came to carry you over?
Did you hear your favourite song one last time?"
The Adventure - Angels and Airwaves
"I wanna have the same last dream again
The one where I wake up and I'm alive
Just as the four walls close me within
My eyes are opened up with pure sunlight
I'm the first to know, my dearest friend
Even if your hope has burned with time
Anything that's dead shall be regrown
And your vicious pain, your warning sign
You will be fine
Heyo, here I am
And here we go, life's waiting to begin."
Ridiculous - Bowling for Soup
"Try not to talk when there's nothing to say
Kept bottled up, we get carried away
Then I fall
Then I fall down
We all fall down
And you know it makes me feel so ridiculous
A pocket full of posies, we fall
Down on the inside, pretty on the outside
Turn it around, can we turn it around?
Try to make a comeback with nowhere to start from now
But it's looking up."
When We Die - Bowling For Soup
"Well I know that it's early and it's too hard to think
And the broken empty bottles are reminders in the sink
But I thought that I should tell you if it's not too late to say
I could put back all the pieces, they just might not fit the same.
Cause nothing's worth losing
Especially the chance to make it right
And you know that we're gonna be fine
And the tattooed mistakes are gonna fade over time
As long as we live, time passes by
And we won't get it back when we die."
Every single one of those songs have made me cry because the lyrics were so resonating with me at one point or another.
Meanwhile, on the radio:
Whistle - Flo Rida
"Can you blow my whistle, baby?
Whistle, baby, let me know
Girl, I'm gonna show you how to do it
And we start real slow
You just put your lips together
And you come real close
Can you blow my whistle, baby?
Whistle, baby, here we go"
Boyfriend - Justin Bieber
"If I was your boyfriend, I’d never let you go
I can take you places you ain't never been before
Baby, take a chance or you’ll never ever know
I got money in my hands that I’d really like to blow
Swag, swag, swag, on you
Chillin' by the fire while we eatin’ fondue
I don't know about me but I know about you
So say hello to falsetto in three, two, swag
I’d like to be everything you want
Hey girl, let me talk to you
If I was your boyfriend, never let you go
Keep you on my arm girl, you’d never be alone
I can be a gentleman, anything you want
If I was your boyfriend, I’d never let you go, I’d never let you go"
I Knew You Were Trouble When You Walked In - Taylor Swift
"Once upon time
You get the idea.
But that's not what gets me.
What gets me is that a song is, generally, a marriage of poetry and music. There's the chords, the instruments, all that stuff, but there's also the lyrics. The words.
And as a writer, the misuse of words and carelessness with them is something that never fails to get on my nerves.
I can't stand the misuse of the word "love". You get that a lot these days. You don't love them, you're infatuated with them. Or, too much on television, you don't love them, you lust after them. There's a very very VERY big difference.
And that's just one example of misuse of a word that I HATE.
But I also can't stand carelessness and thoughtlessness with words. Because words have power. They can move storms, they can cause revolutions, they can change the world. So when people come out with lyrics that should rightfully be poetry, and therefore should move me in some way, and say
"Baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Like baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Like baby, baby, baby, ohhhh
Thought you'd always be mine
Mine."
Yeah. I hate it.
Fact, let's take a look at the lyrics of my favourite songs of the past little while and compare to the favourite songs of radio stations.
'59 Sound - Gaslight Anthem
"I wonder which song they're gonna play when we go?
I hope it's something quiet and minor and peaceful and slow
When we float out into the ether into the everlasting arms
I hope we don't hear Marley's chains we forged in life
'Cause these chains I've been hearing now for most of my life
'Cause these chains I've been hearing now for most of my life
Did you hear the '59 sound coming through on grandmamma's radio?
Did you hear the rattling chains in your hospital walls?
Did you hear the old gospel choir when they came to carry you over?
Did you hear your favourite song one last time?"
The Adventure - Angels and Airwaves
"I wanna have the same last dream again
The one where I wake up and I'm alive
Just as the four walls close me within
My eyes are opened up with pure sunlight
I'm the first to know, my dearest friend
Even if your hope has burned with time
Anything that's dead shall be regrown
And your vicious pain, your warning sign
You will be fine
Heyo, here I am
And here we go, life's waiting to begin."
Ridiculous - Bowling for Soup
"Try not to talk when there's nothing to say
Kept bottled up, we get carried away
Then I fall
Then I fall down
We all fall down
And you know it makes me feel so ridiculous
A pocket full of posies, we fall
Down on the inside, pretty on the outside
Turn it around, can we turn it around?
Try to make a comeback with nowhere to start from now
But it's looking up."
When We Die - Bowling For Soup
"Well I know that it's early and it's too hard to think
And the broken empty bottles are reminders in the sink
But I thought that I should tell you if it's not too late to say
I could put back all the pieces, they just might not fit the same.
Cause nothing's worth losing
Especially the chance to make it right
And you know that we're gonna be fine
And the tattooed mistakes are gonna fade over time
As long as we live, time passes by
And we won't get it back when we die."
Every single one of those songs have made me cry because the lyrics were so resonating with me at one point or another.
Meanwhile, on the radio:
Whistle - Flo Rida
"Can you blow my whistle, baby?
Whistle, baby, let me know
Girl, I'm gonna show you how to do it
And we start real slow
You just put your lips together
And you come real close
Can you blow my whistle, baby?
Whistle, baby, here we go"
Boyfriend - Justin Bieber
"If I was your boyfriend, I’d never let you go
I can take you places you ain't never been before
Baby, take a chance or you’ll never ever know
I got money in my hands that I’d really like to blow
Swag, swag, swag, on you
Chillin' by the fire while we eatin’ fondue
I don't know about me but I know about you
So say hello to falsetto in three, two, swag
I’d like to be everything you want
Hey girl, let me talk to you
If I was your boyfriend, never let you go
Keep you on my arm girl, you’d never be alone
I can be a gentleman, anything you want
If I was your boyfriend, I’d never let you go, I’d never let you go"
I Knew You Were Trouble When You Walked In - Taylor Swift
"Once upon time
A few mistakes ago
I was in your sights
You got me alone
You found me
You found me
You found me
I guess you didn't care
And I guess I liked that
And when I fell hard
You took a step back
Without me, without me, without me
And he's long gone
When he's next to me
And I realize the blame is on me
Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places i'd never been
Till you put me down oh
I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places i'd never been
Now i'm lying on the cold hard ground
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble"
I was in your sights
You got me alone
You found me
You found me
You found me
I guess you didn't care
And I guess I liked that
And when I fell hard
You took a step back
Without me, without me, without me
And he's long gone
When he's next to me
And I realize the blame is on me
Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places i'd never been
Till you put me down oh
I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places i'd never been
Now i'm lying on the cold hard ground
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble"
You get the idea.
But hold on! I can almost hear the protests:
But why does it all have to be deep poetry, Megan? Why can't someone listen to a song just for fun? Why does it all have to be deep stuff that makes you cry?
You'll notice I didn't say that.
I have plenty of songs I listen to just for fun. But guess what? The lyrics are all jokey and fun, not a serious thing said in the song, but they're still more thoughtful than freaking "I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the moves like Jagger."
Take this one, for instance:
Home Alone - Bowling for Soup
"I said 'Hey,' she said 'Hello,'
'You wanna dance?'
She said 'Hell no!'
But I still stood strong
[For way too long]
I had her laughing there all night
She said 'You're such a funny guy!'
[But the biggest laugh he got was when he asked her for her number]
[That's actually true]
I brush my breath and spike up my hair
Finally gonna make her mine tonight
[Shot down!]
Oh my god I just
[Fell down!]
She has got my
[Heart drowned]
And I can't believe it
[Right there!]
For everyone to see it.
So dashing, debonair
My mom was right I should have changed my underwear
Another chance I've blown
Walking home alone."
There is not a serious word in that song. But it's still more thoughtful than any other song on the radio.
(Bowling for Soup are actually great at writing fun songs, and I would urge you to check them out. Other songs that make me smile by them are No Opinion, Dear Megan Fox, My Girlfriend Sucks, Got Beat Up By a Girl, Not a Love Song, and really most of their songs. Also their song I'm Gay is pretty much my life philosophy [it's not about what you think it's about]. Bowling for Soup will either make you laugh or make you cry, but there's no song you feel passive about.)
All I'm asking for is effort. I'm not asking for deep philosophy in every song I hear. I just want poetry. And limericks are poetry as well.
All I want is care with your words, because that, above all else, is what bugs me about pop music, is when the words are nothing more than filler. We need to stick some auto tune here, why don't you just say the word "swag" over and over again?
HOW ABOUT NO. How about you consider this your voice and make sure you say something worth while in a medium that people will be paying attention to. How about you take care with your words, because words are a force to be reckoned with. As I've said, words can change the world. Words can affect people in a way that their writers may never know about. Words can be the difference between love and hatred, between success and failure, between passivity and bravery. Words are everything, and they are valuable. Use them carefully. They're one of the things that separate us from animals, they're our communication, and one wrong word can send completely the wrong message and cause so much trouble - just think how much trouble famous people get in for saying the wrong thing publicly. If you just need a word to use as filler, don't. Insert more autotune bullsh*t there, sing "la" or something, but don't make me listen to your thoughtless sentences that don't mean anything even to you. Because it needs to mean something, even if the meaning is only to make you smile or dance or sing along or have fun. That's still something, and in my opinion, silliness and fun is just as honourable as compassion or perseverence or honesty or any other virtues you care to bring up. But be THOUGHTFUL about it.
That is all.
But why does it all have to be deep poetry, Megan? Why can't someone listen to a song just for fun? Why does it all have to be deep stuff that makes you cry?
You'll notice I didn't say that.
I have plenty of songs I listen to just for fun. But guess what? The lyrics are all jokey and fun, not a serious thing said in the song, but they're still more thoughtful than freaking "I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the moves like Jagger, I've got the moves like Jagger."
Take this one, for instance:
Home Alone - Bowling for Soup
"I said 'Hey,' she said 'Hello,'
'You wanna dance?'
She said 'Hell no!'
But I still stood strong
[For way too long]
I had her laughing there all night
She said 'You're such a funny guy!'
[But the biggest laugh he got was when he asked her for her number]
[That's actually true]
I brush my breath and spike up my hair
Finally gonna make her mine tonight
[Shot down!]
Oh my god I just
[Fell down!]
She has got my
[Heart drowned]
And I can't believe it
[Right there!]
For everyone to see it.
So dashing, debonair
My mom was right I should have changed my underwear
Another chance I've blown
Walking home alone."
There is not a serious word in that song. But it's still more thoughtful than any other song on the radio.
(Bowling for Soup are actually great at writing fun songs, and I would urge you to check them out. Other songs that make me smile by them are No Opinion, Dear Megan Fox, My Girlfriend Sucks, Got Beat Up By a Girl, Not a Love Song, and really most of their songs. Also their song I'm Gay is pretty much my life philosophy [it's not about what you think it's about]. Bowling for Soup will either make you laugh or make you cry, but there's no song you feel passive about.)
All I'm asking for is effort. I'm not asking for deep philosophy in every song I hear. I just want poetry. And limericks are poetry as well.
All I want is care with your words, because that, above all else, is what bugs me about pop music, is when the words are nothing more than filler. We need to stick some auto tune here, why don't you just say the word "swag" over and over again?
HOW ABOUT NO. How about you consider this your voice and make sure you say something worth while in a medium that people will be paying attention to. How about you take care with your words, because words are a force to be reckoned with. As I've said, words can change the world. Words can affect people in a way that their writers may never know about. Words can be the difference between love and hatred, between success and failure, between passivity and bravery. Words are everything, and they are valuable. Use them carefully. They're one of the things that separate us from animals, they're our communication, and one wrong word can send completely the wrong message and cause so much trouble - just think how much trouble famous people get in for saying the wrong thing publicly. If you just need a word to use as filler, don't. Insert more autotune bullsh*t there, sing "la" or something, but don't make me listen to your thoughtless sentences that don't mean anything even to you. Because it needs to mean something, even if the meaning is only to make you smile or dance or sing along or have fun. That's still something, and in my opinion, silliness and fun is just as honourable as compassion or perseverence or honesty or any other virtues you care to bring up. But be THOUGHTFUL about it.
That is all.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
The Joys and Pain of Whoserdom: Part 2
Okay so apparently I haven't been making myself clear.
I don't know why people THINK I watch Whose Line, but it's because it's funny. It cheers me up on a bad day and lets me appreciate a good one. It's the show that reminds me that, hey, you can laugh, remember? You should do that more. Hey, you were embarrassed today? Well this is a bald forty year old man break dancing on national television. Shamelessly. PERSPECTIVE. You had a fight with your friend? This is a clip of two forty year old (straight married) men kissing each other. You're lonely? Join in with Ryan making fun of Drew or Colin, they know it's all in fun! "Oh go on, it's comedy."
It is NOT because I took a look at Colin and went "Boy is he attractive." That's not at all how it happened. I saw a clip, went "Hey, these guys are funny," and began to watch more. After months and months of watching it, Colin's talent drew me in.
I watched a Whoser rant recently where the girl talked about how talent ALWAYS comes before looks for Whosers and their Whose Line crushes. And that's true. Yeah, I understand that maybe Jeff is attractive or whatever, but you wouldn't be fangirling over him just for being attractive, you fangirl over him because he's a talented dude. And maybe Colin's humour or his style or whatever just spoke to me more, but either way he's my Whose Line crush because of his TALENT.
Some girls like athletic guys. And that's cool. Some girls like musicians. And that's cool too. Some girls like nerds and some girls like bad boys and some girls like emo guys. And that's all cool. But me, I like funny guys. I don't care how he looks, cause if he makes me laugh he's got cutie points from me. That's just how I'm wired. I sometimes notice when a guy is hot without them even saying anything - sometimes, but seldom. It makes me suspect I may in fact be pansexual, but that's not the point. My point is that for me, humour/mind>looks, and that's a sure fact.
I bring it up again because since I tried to show Aileen and Courtney that episode of Whose Line, they haven't given it a chance since.
"Hey what should I look up on Youtube?"
"Whose Line clips, maybe?"
*exasperated look* "Seriously, Megan?"
And it puzzled me because I couldn't understand what they had against the show or why they wouldn't give it a chance in spite of my clear love for it. I listen to 1D for my Directioner friend, I listened to Marianas Trench for people who are into that, hell, I even watched Star Trek for my trekkie cousin. And for the life of me I couldn't understand why they wouldn't give WLiiA a shot.
Until it finally occurred to me:
It makes them uncomfortable now that they know about my feelings for Colin.
They think I'm some kind of reverse cougar for laughing at his jokes.
It makes them uncomfortable to watch it with me, or when I fangirl because they know who Colin is now and it's not a twenty year old actor who plays the hearthrob in every movie.
I'm not sure what it is they don't understand. Maybe Courtney gets it just a little more than Aileen, but the first thing Courtney showed Aileen, rather than explaining what Whose Line was, was my extensive collection of Colin Mochrie on my computer and telling her I'm in love with him. So now Aileen thinks that that's all that it's about. She thinks the only reason I watch Whose Line is to see Colin (which I guess would be the only reason people watch movies like Warm Bodies or whatever - yay heartthrobs, whoop-dee-freaking-doo, what is this plot you speak of, story, whatever, OMG abs), which is ridiculous and weird and upon realizing that I understand her discomfort, but knowing what she does about me is she going to believe me when I try to explain the whole story? Or is she just going to think I'm embarrassed? I wish I understood the dynamics of the mind of the normal teenage girl, because I seem to be on a completely different wave-length.
People should never introduce a show with "...and I'm in love with this balding forty year old man." And had it been my choice, I wouldn't have. Thanks for that, by the way, Courtney. But the reason that shouldn't happen is because that knowledge is distracting to those who don't understand it, but also because if that's what you lead with, then that's what they think it's about. Someone trying to introduce a person positively to something like...... I don't know, let's say Third Rock, doesn't start with "OMG isn't French Stewart so hot?" even if that person honestly thinks that. They start with "The show's about these aliens who are coming to Earth to learn about the human race, so they came and took the bodies of humans and now they're trying to learn how to act like regular human beings because the commander made them stay longer because he has a soft spot for a woman he met. It's REALLY funny." That's an interesting concept, something that'll make a newbie go "Hey, that's worth a shot." Whereas Aileen didn't even know Whose Line was improv until I'd started the episode. I'd just kind of assumed she knew. Which, sure, was partly my own fault, but also Courtney's for starting this introduction with "OH MY GOD LOOK AT THIS GUY MEGAN LOVES ISN'T HE OLD AND UGLY? MEGAN YOU'RE SO CREEPY."
Do you really think it doesn't hurt when you say things like that? I can take a joke. I get that it's a little weird. I get that it can be percieved as even a little creepy. I can take a joke. My sense of humour is twice the size of yours. What I CAN'T take is when you IMMEDIATELY give someone else a negative bias to something that I really love, for no reason except that you don't get it. I say with absolute honesty that Whose Line and Colin have been the only thing between me and insanity sometimes. I mean that literally. And you don't have to understand it for it to be true, and you don't have to have felt it to be considerate of it.
Remember how mad you got, Courtney, when I said I didn't particularly want Lady Gaga on my iTunes? That wasn't even meant as an insult. That was simply meant as a fact, and I expected it to be taken as such, like if you told me you weren't particularly tempted to buy a Whose Line DVD. I wouldn't get mad, I would accept it as fact. Still, you went ahead and snapped at me for the rest of the time. And I could say much worse things about Lady Gaga then what I did, or even than what YOU could say about Whose Line, because at least Whose Line doesn't pretend to be something it's not for the sake of popularity (awww snap). It doesn't need to scream "WE WERE BORN THIS WAY" cause you know what? Just the fact that Colin doesn't wear a toupee means that they don't have to.
Now I consider myself to have a fairly wide sense of humour, so I can get things like that, and I'll even chuckle along with you if I feel like it. But when you start showing downright, not-even-trying-to-hide-it CONTEMPT for something so influential on me as Whose Line, then yeah, I'm going to get a little disgruntled. But what I can't stand more than anything else is when you SPREAD that contempt, when you teach others that what I like is dumb, that no one should even watch it if they want a social life.
And why? Because I admire a man who can 100% guarantee brighten my day no matter WHAT happened? Because a person I admire happens to be in his fifties?
Being older isn't a disadvantage to the show, guys. I'd say it gives it an even stronger identity. This is what it is, if you'd rather watch Friends then go ahead but Whose Line will never be anything but Whose Line. This is our show, and this is the way we like it.
I bet you didn't know that one of the first tapings of Whose Line, producers met in a board room and decided they didn't like the Whose Line guys. They weren't telegenic enough, they were too old, too unknown, too this, too that. And they started throwing out names.
"Oh, I have a connection to Lisa Kudrow!"
"And she has a connection to Jennifer Aniston!"
"What about Dustin Hoffman?"
"Nah, Dusty isn't hot right now."
Until finally, someone said:
"You know.... what these guys are doing is kinda hard."
And so they kept people like Colin and Ryan and Drew and Greg on because on an improv show, mind creates content, not looks.
That is my point.
Their MINDS create the content - and let me tell you, their minds are spry with reactions and setups and punchlines! - NOT their looks.
So get off my goddam back about it
and give the show a chance
from the perspective of what they're saying and doing
not the look of the person who's saying and doing it.
The show is the way it is because it's better that way. We love it that way. And also bear in mind that you don't have to be obsessed with the show in order to enjoy it. There are thousands of people who, while aren't Whosers, enjoy the show and watch it when it's on. It's not freakin' Doctor Who, guys. Anyone can enjoy it if you'd freaking let yourself.
Are we understood? Capice?
Good. It's about frickin' time.
I don't know why people THINK I watch Whose Line, but it's because it's funny. It cheers me up on a bad day and lets me appreciate a good one. It's the show that reminds me that, hey, you can laugh, remember? You should do that more. Hey, you were embarrassed today? Well this is a bald forty year old man break dancing on national television. Shamelessly. PERSPECTIVE. You had a fight with your friend? This is a clip of two forty year old (straight married) men kissing each other. You're lonely? Join in with Ryan making fun of Drew or Colin, they know it's all in fun! "Oh go on, it's comedy."
It is NOT because I took a look at Colin and went "Boy is he attractive." That's not at all how it happened. I saw a clip, went "Hey, these guys are funny," and began to watch more. After months and months of watching it, Colin's talent drew me in.
I watched a Whoser rant recently where the girl talked about how talent ALWAYS comes before looks for Whosers and their Whose Line crushes. And that's true. Yeah, I understand that maybe Jeff is attractive or whatever, but you wouldn't be fangirling over him just for being attractive, you fangirl over him because he's a talented dude. And maybe Colin's humour or his style or whatever just spoke to me more, but either way he's my Whose Line crush because of his TALENT.
Some girls like athletic guys. And that's cool. Some girls like musicians. And that's cool too. Some girls like nerds and some girls like bad boys and some girls like emo guys. And that's all cool. But me, I like funny guys. I don't care how he looks, cause if he makes me laugh he's got cutie points from me. That's just how I'm wired. I sometimes notice when a guy is hot without them even saying anything - sometimes, but seldom. It makes me suspect I may in fact be pansexual, but that's not the point. My point is that for me, humour/mind>looks, and that's a sure fact.
I bring it up again because since I tried to show Aileen and Courtney that episode of Whose Line, they haven't given it a chance since.
"Hey what should I look up on Youtube?"
"Whose Line clips, maybe?"
*exasperated look* "Seriously, Megan?"
And it puzzled me because I couldn't understand what they had against the show or why they wouldn't give it a chance in spite of my clear love for it. I listen to 1D for my Directioner friend, I listened to Marianas Trench for people who are into that, hell, I even watched Star Trek for my trekkie cousin. And for the life of me I couldn't understand why they wouldn't give WLiiA a shot.
Until it finally occurred to me:
It makes them uncomfortable now that they know about my feelings for Colin.
They think I'm some kind of reverse cougar for laughing at his jokes.
It makes them uncomfortable to watch it with me, or when I fangirl because they know who Colin is now and it's not a twenty year old actor who plays the hearthrob in every movie.
I'm not sure what it is they don't understand. Maybe Courtney gets it just a little more than Aileen, but the first thing Courtney showed Aileen, rather than explaining what Whose Line was, was my extensive collection of Colin Mochrie on my computer and telling her I'm in love with him. So now Aileen thinks that that's all that it's about. She thinks the only reason I watch Whose Line is to see Colin (which I guess would be the only reason people watch movies like Warm Bodies or whatever - yay heartthrobs, whoop-dee-freaking-doo, what is this plot you speak of, story, whatever, OMG abs), which is ridiculous and weird and upon realizing that I understand her discomfort, but knowing what she does about me is she going to believe me when I try to explain the whole story? Or is she just going to think I'm embarrassed? I wish I understood the dynamics of the mind of the normal teenage girl, because I seem to be on a completely different wave-length.
People should never introduce a show with "...and I'm in love with this balding forty year old man." And had it been my choice, I wouldn't have. Thanks for that, by the way, Courtney. But the reason that shouldn't happen is because that knowledge is distracting to those who don't understand it, but also because if that's what you lead with, then that's what they think it's about. Someone trying to introduce a person positively to something like...... I don't know, let's say Third Rock, doesn't start with "OMG isn't French Stewart so hot?" even if that person honestly thinks that. They start with "The show's about these aliens who are coming to Earth to learn about the human race, so they came and took the bodies of humans and now they're trying to learn how to act like regular human beings because the commander made them stay longer because he has a soft spot for a woman he met. It's REALLY funny." That's an interesting concept, something that'll make a newbie go "Hey, that's worth a shot." Whereas Aileen didn't even know Whose Line was improv until I'd started the episode. I'd just kind of assumed she knew. Which, sure, was partly my own fault, but also Courtney's for starting this introduction with "OH MY GOD LOOK AT THIS GUY MEGAN LOVES ISN'T HE OLD AND UGLY? MEGAN YOU'RE SO CREEPY."
Do you really think it doesn't hurt when you say things like that? I can take a joke. I get that it's a little weird. I get that it can be percieved as even a little creepy. I can take a joke. My sense of humour is twice the size of yours. What I CAN'T take is when you IMMEDIATELY give someone else a negative bias to something that I really love, for no reason except that you don't get it. I say with absolute honesty that Whose Line and Colin have been the only thing between me and insanity sometimes. I mean that literally. And you don't have to understand it for it to be true, and you don't have to have felt it to be considerate of it.
Remember how mad you got, Courtney, when I said I didn't particularly want Lady Gaga on my iTunes? That wasn't even meant as an insult. That was simply meant as a fact, and I expected it to be taken as such, like if you told me you weren't particularly tempted to buy a Whose Line DVD. I wouldn't get mad, I would accept it as fact. Still, you went ahead and snapped at me for the rest of the time. And I could say much worse things about Lady Gaga then what I did, or even than what YOU could say about Whose Line, because at least Whose Line doesn't pretend to be something it's not for the sake of popularity (awww snap). It doesn't need to scream "WE WERE BORN THIS WAY" cause you know what? Just the fact that Colin doesn't wear a toupee means that they don't have to.
Now I consider myself to have a fairly wide sense of humour, so I can get things like that, and I'll even chuckle along with you if I feel like it. But when you start showing downright, not-even-trying-to-hide-it CONTEMPT for something so influential on me as Whose Line, then yeah, I'm going to get a little disgruntled. But what I can't stand more than anything else is when you SPREAD that contempt, when you teach others that what I like is dumb, that no one should even watch it if they want a social life.
And why? Because I admire a man who can 100% guarantee brighten my day no matter WHAT happened? Because a person I admire happens to be in his fifties?
Being older isn't a disadvantage to the show, guys. I'd say it gives it an even stronger identity. This is what it is, if you'd rather watch Friends then go ahead but Whose Line will never be anything but Whose Line. This is our show, and this is the way we like it.
I bet you didn't know that one of the first tapings of Whose Line, producers met in a board room and decided they didn't like the Whose Line guys. They weren't telegenic enough, they were too old, too unknown, too this, too that. And they started throwing out names.
"Oh, I have a connection to Lisa Kudrow!"
"And she has a connection to Jennifer Aniston!"
"What about Dustin Hoffman?"
"Nah, Dusty isn't hot right now."
Until finally, someone said:
"You know.... what these guys are doing is kinda hard."
And so they kept people like Colin and Ryan and Drew and Greg on because on an improv show, mind creates content, not looks.
That is my point.
Their MINDS create the content - and let me tell you, their minds are spry with reactions and setups and punchlines! - NOT their looks.
So get off my goddam back about it
and give the show a chance
from the perspective of what they're saying and doing
not the look of the person who's saying and doing it.
The show is the way it is because it's better that way. We love it that way. And also bear in mind that you don't have to be obsessed with the show in order to enjoy it. There are thousands of people who, while aren't Whosers, enjoy the show and watch it when it's on. It's not freakin' Doctor Who, guys. Anyone can enjoy it if you'd freaking let yourself.
Are we understood? Capice?
Good. It's about frickin' time.
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