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TVD 3x07
Oh my god, Elena is the most HYPOCRITICAL CHARACTER IN THE ENTIRE WORLD. For serious.
Also, with regards to Damon, the writers need to learn how to do a redemption arc. They clearly have no clue what it's about. Do you know why I don't think (at this point) I'll ever believe and/or care about Damon's arc? Because he has never lost anything because of his behavior. Not really. Not for long. If the writers want to redeem him, they need to break him down, take everything away from him, as a clear result of his own actions, and make him pick himself up from that. (Just ask Faith, Spike, Zuko, Cara, or Boyd Crowder.) Instead, Damon is a smarmy dick. The fact that he couldn't even apologize just shows that Damon is absolutely not on the (rocky) path of redemption.
But it was nice to see my girls Lexie, Pearl, and Anna again. Also, I love that Jeremy is all 'you won't be alone! You'll have me!' and Anna is like, 'I stolen the necklace to see my mother again!' More motivations like that, please.
Also, with regards to Damon, the writers need to learn how to do a redemption arc. They clearly have no clue what it's about. Do you know why I don't think (at this point) I'll ever believe and/or care about Damon's arc? Because he has never lost anything because of his behavior. Not really. Not for long. If the writers want to redeem him, they need to break him down, take everything away from him, as a clear result of his own actions, and make him pick himself up from that. (Just ask Faith, Spike, Zuko, Cara, or Boyd Crowder.) Instead, Damon is a smarmy dick. The fact that he couldn't even apologize just shows that Damon is absolutely not on the (rocky) path of redemption.
But it was nice to see my girls Lexie, Pearl, and Anna again. Also, I love that Jeremy is all 'you won't be alone! You'll have me!' and Anna is like, 'I stolen the necklace to see my mother again!' More motivations like that, please.
no subject
That is pretty much exactly what happened this episode. She was totally judging her brother for doing a milder version of what she was doing for the past seven episodes. It was gag-inducing.
Ha, Damon. See, I liked him for a while, because dark, dangerous and damaged is my thing. Except I realized- he's not really damaged, is he? There are no consequences for anything he does. Nobody calls him on all the bad things he does, he doesn't have to live with regret and shame for his actions, he doesn't have to atone for anything. The show's narrative, based on how the main characters treat him and talk about him to others and so on, is all about how Damon is really an awesome guy who needs some understanding and forgiveness and even if he is a murderous psycho, he's hot, okay, and there is UST with Elena, so he gets a free pass on everything ever!
Pretty much. I used to love him because he was acting the way an evil vampire should, and he got all the good lines, and then I was super-invested in his redemption and his relationship with Elena and then the writing feel apart (seriously, he has no snark any more) and I am just DONE. I'd hard to believe that in the first season he was my favorite character and I wasn't into Caroline. The mind boggles.
And...this is longer than your actual post, I'm sorry, but TVD just makes me explode with feelings...
I love long comments!
no subject
Ugh, I loved Damon early on in the show. But the whole thing with Elena just wore me down. I know that's what a lot of people loved, that he was evil but so in love with her and trying to earn her love, but...I don't think you can be written as dark as Damon and still have that love story without making any effort to right the wrongs.
Wait, that's all jumbled. I mean, if you're writing about an evil vampire who's in love with this chick, you need to write a proper redemptive arc where he's doing what he can to make things right so that it's believable that she'll fall in love with him. When he's raped one friend, broken her brother's neck and nearly killed another, you gotta fix that. But Damon doesn't, he's as dismissive and uncaring of them as always and it bothers me so much that Elena doesn't give a damn about Caroline and Bonnie's feelings.
I'd rather he kept on being evil and selfish and focused on his needs and desires- which would be entertaining and worth watching- instead of the sadsap woobie devoted to Elena while still being a colossal douchebag to everyone else with her blessing. It makes her look like a bad person. Which I wouldn't mind, except the show is hinged on Elena being this saintly angel of benevolence.
On a side note, I was trying to think of shows where a main character is a giant jerkass but where it doesn't reflect on his friends for continuing to associate with him. And The Big Bang Theory came to mind, lol. Yes, Sheldon's really abrasive and rude, but...it's not handwaved away by the characters or writers. They're shown to get annoyed with him, they have fights, and it's not 'Sheldon's a poor misunderstood woobie who needs forgiveness he hasn't earned'.
I'm not sure where I'm going with that analogy, since he hasn't committed crimes akin to Damon's, but...the point is that I get why those people still hang out with him even though he's a jerk. He's not deliberately trying to hurt them, and he's even hilarious a lot of the time and you see them deriving amusement when his annoying habits are focused on a friend. And at least they call him out on his behavior, which never happens in TVD. With Damon, it's like...IDGI, why do people want to be around him? He's liable to snap at any moment and kill someone 'coz he's in a bad mood or had a bad day 'coz, IDK, the coffee was decaf or something. But there are no consequences. He kills Jeremy and Alaric, and then they turn around and want to be his BFF. Okay, that makes sense. O.o
Er. I'll never be able to write meta, my thoughts are so jumbled and unclear, lol.
no subject
Exactly. See, if you want to write Damon evil, fine. If you want to write Damon and evil and in love with Elena, that is also fine. But when they're clearly trying to build a legit romantic arc between him and Elena you either a.) need to have him being better (or at least being worse in realistic ways) and/or have Elena and THE WRITERS THEMSELVES aware that Elena is in love with a sociopath and what that means about her.
It makes her look like a bad person. Which I wouldn't mind, except the show is hinged on Elena being this saintly angel of benevolence.
SO MUCH THIS.
With Damon, it's like...IDGI, why do people want to be around him? He's liable to snap at any moment and kill someone 'coz he's in a bad mood or had a bad day 'coz, IDK, the coffee was decaf or something. But there are no consequences. He kills Jeremy and Alaric, and then they turn around and want to be his BFF. Okay, that makes sense. O.o
I really wish people who respond to Damon like his behavior deserves, because I think that could lead interesting places, but they just DON'T. And frankly, he's not getting the deliciously snappy lines he used to, so even I don't want to spend time on him, regardless of how hot the actor is.
no subject
This is why I was so delighted by the Caroline-Elena scenes in 3x04, because I was like, "Yes! Somebody is finally bringing up the WTF-ery of the Damon situation!" And Elena actually came within an ace of admitting that she felt guilty about having feelings for Damon (I particularly loved Caroline emphasizing that he hasn't changed and will never change.) I was so worried that they'd have Caroline PROPPING Damon/Elena, or cheering them on or something, so I liked the way they played it: that she clearly dislikes and distrusts Damon and just has to put up with him b/c she has no other choice, but that there's a lot of residual anger and frustration there.
But this seems to have been entirely forgotten now, at least on Elena's end, sigh.
If they want to do Delena, they should have either genuinely redeemed Damon, or they should have gone the S6 Spuffy route with it being dark and twisted and explicitly driven by PTSD on Elena's end. Instead they seem to want it to be cozy and domestic, which just...does not work.