reelperspective

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“On my vagin-errrrrrrr” oh Melanie😂

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A quality show with superb writing. It deserved more than four seasons.

- Are you for real?  - Are you?

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I’m generally not the type to mourn celebrity deaths. It’s usually beyond me to truly mourn the passing of someone who is so completely removed from my life. I tend to reserve grief for personal losses. I would say that is still true - I don’t know if you could call what I’m feeling grief, but it’s definitely something akin to it.

When I heard that Naya Rivera had passed away in a drowning accident, I thought “my god that sucks. That glee cast is cursed or something.” Then I moved on with my life, as one does. I felt it in the moment because Santana was my favorite character (well her and Brittany), but I didn’t dwell on it. I hadn’t seen the show in years, so I felt removed from it.

Months later, I go down a YouTube recommended video rabbit hole and end up watching the Glee version of Fleetwood Mac’s Landslide. I’d always loved that cover of the song. From the moment I first heard it, I thought it was beautifully arranged and flawlessly executed, but I digress. The point is, after watching it, I started watching other Glee videos (again, recommended videos). At a certain point I thought, “fuck it, I haven’t seen this show in years. Maybe it’s time for a re-watch.” So, I started to binge watch it. It is just as hilarious and awesome as the first time. And again, just as the first time, Santana proved to be my favorite character.

I think that Santana was the most emotionally complex character on that show. I think she had a great arc as a character that started off not being very sympathetic at all, to becoming a character that people could really relate to and root for. She had a fascinating duality to her as the bully who sometimes had a heart. Her love for Brittany added a significant layer to her character - displaying a side of her that had previously been unseen. A side reserved only for Brittany- the exception to her rule. Which is remarkable because, being that she was an idiot, Brittany should have been an easy target for Santana’s ridicule. Later, Santana reveals in a rant against Rory the Irishman, that she believes Brittany to be beautiful, innocent, and “everything good in this miserable, stinking world.” This revelation spoke to the heart of the character because it showed that despite her blatantly “Evil” characteristics, what Santana truly values most is goodness and purity of spirit. Brittany was the only person Santana never insulted. You could say that this is because she loved Brittany. That’s a factor, for sure, but I think the main reason is that even she couldn’t tear down someone so innocent. This, and other instances of vulnerability, developed Santana into a more three dimensional character - someone real, rather than just the caricature of a mean girl.

Yes, it’s true that the writers can be credited for this nuance in her character, but I believe it can be argued that Naya highlighted these nuances flawlessly. She did a beautiful job of portraying Santana’s *reluctant* displays of humanity. Not to mention how fucking talented she was when it came to the singing and the dancing. Vocally she’s top three along with Amber Riley and Lea Michele - and she’s a better dancer than either of them.

I noticed all of these things during this recent re-watch of mine. I’d always enjoyed Santana’s viscious barbs and her scathing wit, but this time I gained a deeper appreciation of the character as well.

Why am I talking about the character when this post started off being about grief? Well, watching the show again really drove home what a goddamn tragedy it is for the world to lose someone so talented and hilarious. This feeling drove me to look into Naya as a person. I listened to her audio book, and I read what people have said about her, and the general consensus is that she was an all-around amazing individual. She was Kind but sassy, tough yet compassionate, funny and intelligent. I then watched some of her interviews, and her personality was positively magnetic. She always lead with a blunt honesty that she delivered with this matter-of-fact attitude and wry wit. She owned up to things that most people in her position would hide. Despite the bluntness, she never seemed tacky or crass. Then to add to these revelations is the observation that she so clearly loved her little son with a tremendous passion. I’m sure all celebrities love their children more than life itself, but most don’t speak out about it specifically or so frequently. Naya, on many occasions, spoke of her passion for motherhood, and how much it meant to her to be Josey’s mom. With all of the things she has accomplished, she credited her son as her greatest success. Topics that get repeated across many conversations tend to be subjects that the speaker is fairly obsessed with. It is clear that her son was her whole world. He was not only her responsibility and her greatest love, but also her greatest source of joy. I’m not surprised that she somehow found a way to save him even though she couldn’t save herself.

Which leads to the final straw on the camel’s back - the manner in which she died. As was mentioned previously, she saved her son - which kicks you right in the feels. He had to witness some of her final moments - kick #2. Then there’s the tragedy of the circumstances of the death itself. Drowning is a horrific way to die. She must have been so terrified in her final moments. To add to this is the fact that had any of a number of events transpired differently, she’d still be with us today. Had she not gone to the lake that day. Had she gone with at least one other adult. Had she not jumped out of the boat. Had she worn a life vest. Had the boat had an anchor and a ladder attached to It’s side.

Then I’m confused about how this all went down. Apparently, she was sucked under the water by a current - I guess the equivalent of an undertow - but I thought undertows only happened in the ocean! Considering that this is a lake - a man made one at that- and not a river or an ocean, where the fuck did this incredibly strong underwater current come from? A lake is pretty much stagnant water, is it not? I looked at a map of it, and from what I can tell, there are no rivers feeding into this lake. So, I’m confused and this death is not only tragic, but senseless.

It’s just so fucking sad - every which way you look at it. I feel it in my very soul, and as I said before, I never feel celebrity deaths like this. I can’t stop thinking about her poor child having to grow up without his mommy. I lost someone as a child, and it left an enormous hole in my heart. I remember feeling so profoundly and absolutely destroyed. There are no words to describe the depths of my despair, and I can’t help but think that Josey is feeling that now. Though I was older than he is - I don’t know how much his young mind can make sense of or process the reality of his mother’s death. I know for sure that he is feeling it - he will miss her forever. Ryan Dorsey, his father, released a statement in which he said that he had to explain to his son that his mother was in heaven, and Josey asked him how he could go there too so that he could be with her. That just breaks my heart - I know exactly how he feels. I can’t stop thinking about Naya’s mother and how she collapsed on the dock at Lake Piru and threw her hands out in a display of pure, all-consuming grief. As I’ve said, I’ve felt grief like that before. I’ve collapsed to my knees under the weight of it. So, I feel for her family and her friends. I saw an interview in which the actress who played Santana’s abuela says that Heather Morris was so distraught, she wanted to jump into the lake to search for Naya herself.

I also feel a keen sense of loss for all of the wonderful things she will never do, all of the hilarious things she had yet to say, and all of the characters she might have been destined to bring to life with a singular authenticity. Lastly, and least importantly, I feel this keenly because she and I are the same age. The reality of such a thing just slaps one in the face.

That being said, I keep having these moments of cognitive dissonance as I’m watching the show. I feel her loss so much, yet it seems like she’s not dead. She can’t be! Look at her. Look at how full of life she is. She’s so young. That can’t be the reality - but alas, it is. I keep remembering that it is, and the cycle of emotion starts up all over again.

I know that part of the reason for my deep feelings about this tragedy has to do with my own experience with loss. I’ve lost so many people in my lifetime - some of which, I’ve loved more than life itself. At least one of which, I had wanted to follow into the grave because I could not fathom my life without her in it - it just hurt too much.

So I lay this all out here on tumblr. It is very likely that no one will ever read it, and that’s okay. I just needed to express it anyway as it has been building up inside of me.

[reelperspective]

I’m generally not the type to mourn celebrity deaths. It’s usually beyond me to truly mourn the passing of someone who is so completely removed from my life. I tend to reserve grief for personal losses. I would say that is still true - I don’t know if you could call what I’m feeling grief, but it’s definitely something akin to it.

When I heard that Naya Rivera had passed away in a drowning accident, I thought “my god that sucks. That glee cast is cursed or something.” Then I moved on with my life, as one does. I felt it in the moment because Santana was my favorite character (well her and Brittany), but I didn’t dwell on it. I hadn’t seen the show in years, so I felt removed from it.

Months later, I go down a YouTube recommended video rabbit hole and end up watching the Glee version of Fleetwood Mac’s Landslide. I’d always loved that cover of the song. From the moment I first heard it, I thought it was beautifully arranged and flawlessly executed, but I digress. The point is, after watching it, I started watching other Glee videos (again, recommended videos). At a certain point I thought, “fuck it, I haven’t seen this show in years. Maybe it’s time for a re-watch.” So, I started to binge watch it. It is just as hilarious and awesome as the first time. And again, just as the first time, Santana proved to be my favorite character.

I think that Santana was the most emotionally complex character on that show. I think she had a great arc as a character that started off not being very sympathetic at all, to becoming a character that people could really relate to and root for. She had a fascinating duality to her as the bully who sometimes had a heart. Her love for Brittany added a significant layer to her character - displaying a side of her that had previously been unseen. A side reserved only for Brittany- the exception to her rule. Which is remarkable because, being that she was an idiot, Brittany should have been an easy target for Santana’s ridicule. Later, Santana reveals in a rant against Rory the Irishman, that she believes Brittany to be beautiful, innocent, and “everything good in this miserable, stinking world.” This revelation spoke to the heart of the character because it showed that despite her blatantly “Evil” characteristics, what Santana truly values most is goodness and purity of spirit. Brittany was the only person Santana never insulted. You could say that this is because she loved Brittany. That’s a factor, for sure, but I think the main reason is that even she couldn’t tear down someone so innocent. This, and other instances of vulnerability, developed Santana into a more three dimensional character - someone real, rather than just the caricature of a mean girl.

Yes, it’s true that the writers can be credited for this nuance in her character, but I believe it can be argued that Naya highlighted these nuances flawlessly. She did a beautiful job of portraying Santana’s *reluctant* displays of humanity. Not to mention how fucking talented she was when it came to the singing and the dancing. Vocally she’s top three along with Amber Riley and Lea Michele - and she’s a better dancer than either of them.

I noticed all of these things during this recent re-watch of mine. I’d always enjoyed Santana’s viscious barbs and her scathing wit, but this time I gained a deeper appreciation of the character as well.

Why am I talking about the character when this post started off being about grief? Well, watching the show again really drove home what a goddamn tragedy it is for the world to lose someone so talented and hilarious. This feeling drove me to look into Naya as a person. I listened to her audio book, and I read what people have said about her, and the general consensus is that she was an all-around amazing individual. She was Kind but sassy, tough yet compassionate, funny and intelligent. I then watched some of her interviews, and her personality was positively magnetic. She always lead with a blunt honesty that she delivered with this matter-of-fact attitude and wry wit. She owned up to things that most people in her position would hide. Despite the bluntness, she never seemed tacky or crass. Then to add to these revelations is the observation that she so clearly loved her little son with a tremendous passion. I’m sure all celebrities love their children more than life itself, but most don’t speak out about it specifically or so frequently. Naya, on many occasions, spoke of her passion for motherhood, and how much it meant to her to be Josey’s mom. With all of the things she has accomplished, she credited her son as her greatest success. Topics that get repeated across many conversations tend to be subjects that the speaker is fairly obsessed with. It is clear that her son was her whole world. He was not only her responsibility and her greatest love, but also her greatest source of joy. I’m not surprised that she somehow found a way to save him even though she couldn’t save herself.

Which leads to the final straw on the camel’s back - the manner in which she died. As was mentioned previously, she saved her son - which kicks you right in the feels. He had to witness some of her final moments - kick #2. Then there’s the tragedy of the circumstances of the death itself. Drowning is a horrific way to die. She must have been so terrified in her final moments. To add to this is the fact that had any of a number of events transpired differently, she’d still be with us today. Had she not gone to the lake that day. Had she gone with at least one other adult. Had she not jumped out of the boat. Had she worn a life vest. Had the boat had an anchor and a ladder attached to It’s side.

Then I’m confused about how this all went down. Apparently, she was sucked under the water by a current - I guess the equivalent of an undertow - but I thought undertows only happened in the ocean! Considering that this is a lake - a man made one at that- and not a river or an ocean, where the fuck did this incredibly strong underwater current come from? A lake is pretty much stagnant water, is it not? I looked at a map of it, and from what I can tell, there are no rivers feeding into this lake. So, I’m confused and this death is not only tragic, but senseless.

It’s just so fucking sad - every which way you look at it. I feel it in my very soul, and as I said before, I never feel celebrity deaths like this. I can’t stop thinking about her poor child having to grow up without his mommy. I lost someone as a child, and it left an enormous hole in my heart. I remember feeling so profoundly and absolutely destroyed. There are no words to describe the depths of my despair, and I can’t help but think that Josey is feeling that now. Though I was older than he is - I don’t know how much his young mind can make sense of or process the reality of his mother’s death. I know for sure that he is feeling it - he will miss her forever. Ryan Dorsey, his father, released a statement in which he said that he had to explain to his son that his mother was in heaven, and Josey asked him how he could go there too so that he could be with her. That just breaks my heart - I know exactly how he feels. I can’t stop thinking about Naya’s mother and how she collapsed on the dock at Lake Piru and threw her hands out in a display of pure, all-consuming grief. As I’ve said, I’ve felt grief like that before. I’ve collapsed to my knees under the weight of it. So, I feel for her family and her friends. I saw an interview in which the actress who played Santana’s abuela says that Heather Morris was so distraught, she wanted to jump into the lake to search for Naya herself.

I also feel a keen sense of loss for all of the wonderful things she will never do, all of the hilarious things she had yet to say, and all of the characters she might have been destined to bring to life with a singular authenticity. Lastly, and least importantly, I feel this keenly because she and I are the same age. The reality of such a thing just slaps one in the face.

That being said, I keep having these moments of cognitive dissonance as I’m watching the show. I feel her loss so much, yet it seems like she’s not dead. She can’t be! Look at her. Look at how full of life she is. She’s so young. That can’t be the reality - but alas, it is. I keep remembering that it is, and the cycle of emotion starts up all over again.

I know that part of the reason for my deep feelings about this tragedy has to do with my own experience with loss. I’ve lost so many people in my lifetime - some of which, I’ve loved more than life itself. At least one of which, I had wanted to follow into the grave because I could not fathom my life without her in it - it just hurt too much.

So I lay this all out here on tumblr. It is very likely that no one will ever read it, and that’s okay. I just needed to express it anyway as it has been building up inside of me.

#naya rivera #naya rivera son #naya rivera death #gleek #glee #heather morris

[reelperspective]

Bao dir. Domee Shi (2018)

To celebrate Bao making the Oscar shortlist for Best Animated Short Disney has temporarily taken down their paywall and is making the film available to watch for free until December 24, 2018.

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Best sister relationship on television😂🙌🏻

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- Are you for real?  - Are you?

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My favorite part of last night…

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“On my vagin-errrrrrrr” oh Melanie😂

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I have to ask.  Is anyone else confused by some of the story choices made in the Supergirl finale? 

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Tease

I get why writers create conflict in romantic relationships between tv pairings. Otherwise things would get boring. I also think that there’s only two real methods that writers use to keep the viewer’s interest: 

1. They draw it out as long as possible. As was done in Bones and Castle.

2. They let the main coupling get together early on, then they rip them apart for some reason to bring them back together later.

I hate #1. I find that I lose interest in shows that take too long to bring the protagonists together. 4 or 5 years is too. damn. long. to wait for a relationship to happen. In real life, both parties would likely have moved on by that time.

I think method #2 is the most compelling way to do it. They give you a taste of what you want before taking it away. The act of taking it away, allows the viewers to experience all the “firsts” again when they’re brought back together. The anticipation of the first kiss, all the small touches become significant again, the eye contact, the “will they, wont they” etc. It’s delicious torture. We love it and we hate it - we love to hate it. It creates a passionate response in the audience. It keeps things fresh.

Supergirl has done that this season with Kara and Mon-El. While it’s pissed off a bunch of shippers, I understood the need for it. The relationship would quickly go stale if they were just super happy and nothing bad ever happened to them. That being said, they’re taking this teasing thing a little too far now. Mon-El finally ignored the shitty advice J’onn gave him. I’m so glad he did because clearly it’s what Kara wanted to hear - as is evidenced by her response to Mon-el, “Don’t be sorry.”

To me that one line was enough to indicate that though she did a great job of burying her feelings, her feelings were not in fact, gone. She still loves him, perhaps more so now that he’s matured and become the man she always wanted him to be. They could have thrown us a bone by actually letting that kiss happen. 

At first I feared that this was a way to keep them both spotless for when Imra returns in the next episode. I’m almost certain that she will be back because I don’t know how they’ll get back to earth otherwise. They don’t have spaceships on Argo and no way to communicate with the people back on Earth. I’m sure they’ll use the synthetic gravity device to call the legion back to Argo so they can cart Kara and Mon-El back to Earth for the final showdown.  

I’m afraid that they’ll wait until the very last moment to get them back together - or worse - that they’re just going to send him off to the future without him resolving his feelings for Kara after all. If that happens it will mean that the 2/3 of the season were a huge waste of time. I hope the writers don’t do that. 

I don’t like to call myself a shipper because I think that comes with a certain connotation. In some circles the term “shipper” is synonymous with “rabid fan.” All I can say is that I agree with Melissa Benoist. She gave an interview with ET on the set of the flash crossover musical episode. They asked Melissa if she was a fan of the Karamel relationship and her response was great. She said, “I’m a fan of Kara being happy.” That perfectly encapsulates how I feel about every TV relationship I’ve ever rooted for. I always want the protagonist to have who he/she wants. It’s clear to me that both Kara and Mon-El still want each other - so I hope the writers make good on their implicit promises and let them be happy again - at least for a while.

#supergirl #karamel #kara danvers #mon-el #shipping #et #writing #tropes #stop teasing us #itstime #notinvain

[reelperspective]

The separation of politics and TV.

I am feeling ambivalent about the latest episode of Supergirl. I hate that the show has gotten super political and preachy. Leave the politics out of the show, please? Besides making the show feel like an after school special, they’re not delivering the message with finesse. If you’re going to send a message, do so seamlessly- almost subliminally. I can’t speak for most people, but as for me, I watch super hero shows because they’re so far removed from my reality. It’s a pure form of escapism that helps me relax. 

That being said, if you’re going to do it- be creative about it. For example, if Guardian happened upon a school shooting and while he was there he witnessed an armed civilian injuring or killing an innocent bystander because he was trying to take out the gunman with his own weapon. THAT would have been a great way to do it - the lesson could be inferred and it would still be obvious enough for people to get it. By the way, Lena was completely mature during her debate with him. Kudos. If James had gone about it the way she had, maybe I’d be less pissed off about the writers replacing Cat with James as the show’s moral mouthpiece.

Another thing about this week’s pet political message (gun control) - what they did with Lena and James was bad enough, but what they did with J’onn and the DEO was just plain STUPID. First of all, it was well established in the first two seasons that J’onn and Alex offset supergirl because they think like soldiers. they take the practical approach to defeating evil. It was made clear that they  believed that Kara is somewhat naive to believe that everyone is redeemable. Some people are not redeemable and the only way to save innocents from said people is to kill them. Hell, even Kara has had to make the rough choice when necessary. In pressing the button for the lead dispersal bomb at the end of season 2, she killed Mon-El’s mom and countless other daxamites.

To think that a government sanctioned black-ops devision is going to stop using lethal weapons is ABSURD. I want the writers to go out and find a Marine and ask him or her if he or she would go fight terrorists without guns or other lethal weapons. Once the marine stops laughing, I’m sure he or she would agree with me. I’m a martial artist, and one thing I’ve learned (the hard way) throughout the course of my training, is that you can’t win a fight if the person you’re fighting is willing to hurt you and you’re not willing to hurt them back. If your stance is always defensive (”all you need is a shield”), there will eventually be a hit that you can’t block, and that hit will be followed by many other hits until you can’t defend yourself anymore. In order to defend yourself, you must fight back.

#supergirl #guncontrol #guardian #sucks #commonsense #papa don't preach #lazy writing #pacifism #hypocrisy #spoonfeeding #getcreative #bringbackcat #cat grant #calista flockhart

[reelperspective]

“Aimlessly Drifting Since 1979!″

[reelperspective]

Show me, don’t tell me

A big thing for me in screen writing is when the writers of any given show use dialogue to tell the audience something that they really should have inferred from actions. My most recent pet peeve with this is on the show Rosewood.

From the start of the show, we learn that rosewood has a bad heart and has courted death many times. In the beginning of the series, you see some instances in which Rosie’s condition or the medicines he takes to control his condition, affect him physically. They abandon this fairly quickly and then just rely on his family voicing concerns or Rosie himself disclosing the state of his health to someone.

I was able to let that go for a while - until halfway through season 2 when he gets kidney damage. He gets told his kidneys are going to fail or are failing him and that he needs a kidney transplant, but he goes around conducting business as usual? Uh, where is the dialysis? Where is the weakness, fatigue, pain, blood toxicity?

I suffer from kidney issues and my grandmother had kidney failure. When your kidneys stop working, everything else in your body goes to shit. Instead Rosie is playing basketball with his future kidney donor? Screen writers of America - do your research. If you’re going to give your character a debilitating condition, make sure it actually debilitates him.

This is especially egregious when the titular character is a damn doctor. Ugh.

#do your research #do your job #be smarter #writing fail #writer #screenwriting #rosewood #rosie #kidney failure #lazy writing