Something I really like (in theory) and rarely see done well (but when it's well, it's really well, as in, not boring) is 'slice-of-life' stories, where you have something that's neither harrowing drama nor point-and-laugh kitsch. I find it works especially well with a character who's dramatic or dramatized either on the show or in fic (I'm fond of Heero Yuy or Jim Kirk-- both over-the-top heroes in different ways-- being 'ordinary'). I think slice-of-life narrative captures these moments of cheesiness in the right context, which plays them down without being cynical. The reason I said slice-of-life is hit-and-miss for me so often is that I think the good stuff incorporates real drama and character growth, sometimes quite acute. You see this huge arc from a distance, and it's epic.
You'd think TV would be particularly well-suited to this style, but it's rarely done just 'cause the thing that really makes it work for me personally is the fact that these characters (Kirk, say) are living exciting lives, but to the side. They're not *really* ordinary, except they are. Reading about or watching ordinary people with ordinary lives, I just frustrated at cheese/dailiness. I need angst to get interested, but the angst has to ~matter~ and be well-done... like 'My So-Called Life'. I mean, there was nothing special about Angela except that she had a uniquely observant and insightful point of view.
Anyway, to me, a character being being 'on' all the time is boring. If a snarky person is never not-snarky, it gets old, which is why any decent snarky character falls in love, gets serious about some moral issue, gets nostalgic, etc. Even at the height of sentimentality, though, what makes it work is investment-- if you really care about the character and you can be sold their emotional vulnerability, this sudden awkwardness is going to be extra touching. One example of this is the 'significant hand-holding' scene in Star Trek movie 1 where Jim & Spock hold hands & stare at each other. I mean, if you really think it's cheesy/pointless (even if it is overdone, etc, and Shatner is... Shatner), you basically don't care at all about either Jim or Spock. If you care, that scene gets you, no doubt. It seems like it's harder to do on TV 'cause you can't have it just come at the end, and it's supposed to be semi-recurring to keep some interest. Some shows do it well, like (I think) Due South, for instance, and also the Sentinel, both male buddy shows where the emotional bond is genuine-feeling, so if the characters get a little corny, you're there with them. You-- the viewer-- are taking this journey too. We're all cheesy when we're sincere, and sincerity is necessary for bonding whether between character & character or character & viewer, but it could also remind you whether the bonding has really occurred or whether the show is counting on something it hasn't yet deserved.
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Date: 2010-09-16 10:12 am (UTC)You'd think TV would be particularly well-suited to this style, but it's rarely done just 'cause the thing that really makes it work for me personally is the fact that these characters (Kirk, say) are living exciting lives, but to the side. They're not *really* ordinary, except they are. Reading about or watching ordinary people with ordinary lives, I just frustrated at cheese/dailiness. I need angst to get interested, but the angst has to ~matter~ and be well-done... like 'My So-Called Life'. I mean, there was nothing special about Angela except that she had a uniquely observant and insightful point of view.
Anyway, to me, a character being being 'on' all the time is boring. If a snarky person is never not-snarky, it gets old, which is why any decent snarky character falls in love, gets serious about some moral issue, gets nostalgic, etc. Even at the height of sentimentality, though, what makes it work is investment-- if you really care about the character and you can be sold their emotional vulnerability, this sudden awkwardness is going to be extra touching. One example of this is the 'significant hand-holding' scene in Star Trek movie 1 where Jim & Spock hold hands & stare at each other. I mean, if you really think it's cheesy/pointless (even if it is overdone, etc, and Shatner is... Shatner), you basically don't care at all about either Jim or Spock. If you care, that scene gets you, no doubt. It seems like it's harder to do on TV 'cause you can't have it just come at the end, and it's supposed to be semi-recurring to keep some interest. Some shows do it well, like (I think) Due South, for instance, and also the Sentinel, both male buddy shows where the emotional bond is genuine-feeling, so if the characters get a little corny, you're there with them. You-- the viewer-- are taking this journey too. We're all cheesy when we're sincere, and sincerity is necessary for bonding whether between character & character or character & viewer, but it could also remind you whether the bonding has really occurred or whether the show is counting on something it hasn't yet deserved.