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Jul. 14th, 2014 07:30 pmEpisode two of this season of Teen Wolf is proof that the writers read our fanfic.
Jul. 14th, 2014
Nihilism vs. Meaning
Jul. 14th, 2014 07:31 pmI have been procrastinating by watching The Closer. I've seen most of the episodes in syndication already, but whatever, I like it, it's comforting and mindless.
Watching it, though, I was thinking about the fact that procedurals are one of the most popular and enduring genres of television. Ever since Dragnet, TV is littered with them. Why should that be? It could be because of the mystery, but honestly, most of these shows don't accomplish mystery very well. Some don't even particularly attempt it. And for those that do, there are so many procedurals, and so many steal each other's plots, if it were just the mystery, I don't think the genre would endure.
I said above it The Closer was comforting, and it is. But why should that be? It, like every other procedural, deals with one of the worst things that can happen, human violence against humans. Every single procedural has either a murder or a rape (or both) at its center. For some, a great deal of screen time is spent on it. These things are literally unthinkable to most of us. So why do we keep watching them?
I think it's because procedurals are, fundamentally, about nihilism versus meaning. The murder is the nihilism--meaningless tragedy. But the entire rest of the episode seeks to erase that nihilism by restoring balance. And not by restoring balance to the victim or the victim's family--in a lot of series, the victim's family barely shows up, and only in the first act. There are exceptions, like Cold Case, but catharsis for the grieving isn't generally the point. So if the show isn't about healing for the grieving, why do we find the endings of each episode satisfying? Because they're about healing for society. And in a society where we have chosen to have the machinery of the state deal with justice rather than it being personal vendetta, it makes sense that we watch this story play out over and over and over again--evil happens, and the state restores the balance.
I also find it interesting that a lot of these shows aren't terribly interested in the actual punishment given to the perpetrator--quite a few of them "resolve" in such a way that no case made by the DA could possibly stick. They almost all focus on one thing: confession. And in cases where the confession is denied, it's meant to leave threads deliberately hanging for the audience. I think this says something profound about us as a society and as humans, that what we feel really needs to happen to rebalance the scales after a horrible wrong is for someone to admit that they were at fault. It isn't even necessary that they repent; in most episodes of most shows, they don't. But even when we already know what happened, the episode isn't satisfying until someone confesses.
In pursuit of confession, a lot of shows routinely throw the constitution out the window. (Only Law & Order original flavor seemed particularly interested in examining and upholding constitutional values.) Over and over, we watch manipulated, coerced, and outright tortured confessions, enforcing the idea that the confession is the necessary element to setting things right, and everything that goes before it is unimportant.
If you think about procedurals as a way for us to look straight at our mortality and the randomness of life and then safely tuck that nihilism away within the framework of civilization, no wonder they're so popular. Medical shows follow this arc too, though they are dealing with nihilism caused by nature, not by humans. But they, too, seek to rebalance the scales against nature's tragedies through the work of our societal institutions.
Anyway. My anxiety level has gone up because of many things which means I'm having a hard time sleeping which means I end up thinking about stuff like this while lying awake in bed.
Watching it, though, I was thinking about the fact that procedurals are one of the most popular and enduring genres of television. Ever since Dragnet, TV is littered with them. Why should that be? It could be because of the mystery, but honestly, most of these shows don't accomplish mystery very well. Some don't even particularly attempt it. And for those that do, there are so many procedurals, and so many steal each other's plots, if it were just the mystery, I don't think the genre would endure.
I said above it The Closer was comforting, and it is. But why should that be? It, like every other procedural, deals with one of the worst things that can happen, human violence against humans. Every single procedural has either a murder or a rape (or both) at its center. For some, a great deal of screen time is spent on it. These things are literally unthinkable to most of us. So why do we keep watching them?
I think it's because procedurals are, fundamentally, about nihilism versus meaning. The murder is the nihilism--meaningless tragedy. But the entire rest of the episode seeks to erase that nihilism by restoring balance. And not by restoring balance to the victim or the victim's family--in a lot of series, the victim's family barely shows up, and only in the first act. There are exceptions, like Cold Case, but catharsis for the grieving isn't generally the point. So if the show isn't about healing for the grieving, why do we find the endings of each episode satisfying? Because they're about healing for society. And in a society where we have chosen to have the machinery of the state deal with justice rather than it being personal vendetta, it makes sense that we watch this story play out over and over and over again--evil happens, and the state restores the balance.
I also find it interesting that a lot of these shows aren't terribly interested in the actual punishment given to the perpetrator--quite a few of them "resolve" in such a way that no case made by the DA could possibly stick. They almost all focus on one thing: confession. And in cases where the confession is denied, it's meant to leave threads deliberately hanging for the audience. I think this says something profound about us as a society and as humans, that what we feel really needs to happen to rebalance the scales after a horrible wrong is for someone to admit that they were at fault. It isn't even necessary that they repent; in most episodes of most shows, they don't. But even when we already know what happened, the episode isn't satisfying until someone confesses.
In pursuit of confession, a lot of shows routinely throw the constitution out the window. (Only Law & Order original flavor seemed particularly interested in examining and upholding constitutional values.) Over and over, we watch manipulated, coerced, and outright tortured confessions, enforcing the idea that the confession is the necessary element to setting things right, and everything that goes before it is unimportant.
If you think about procedurals as a way for us to look straight at our mortality and the randomness of life and then safely tuck that nihilism away within the framework of civilization, no wonder they're so popular. Medical shows follow this arc too, though they are dealing with nihilism caused by nature, not by humans. But they, too, seek to rebalance the scales against nature's tragedies through the work of our societal institutions.
Anyway. My anxiety level has gone up because of many things which means I'm having a hard time sleeping which means I end up thinking about stuff like this while lying awake in bed.
And another thing...
Jul. 14th, 2014 09:15 pmAnother thing I've been turning over in my head a lot lately. I am deeply enjoying The Musketeers on BBCA. The Three Musketeers was one of my first favorite books. I adored it as a preteen. I so wanted to be a musketeer. In high school, at a carnival, there was a photo booth guy that would photoshop your face onto whatever fictional character you wanted. I chose the musketeers. So he made me D'Artagnan, beard and all. (As an aside, I feel like this is the weird dissonant identification mass media forces on women. I have never wanted to be a man, but I wanted to be a musketeer, and since those were only ever men, there you go.)
But this had me thinking--where's my female musketeers? For real. I feel like I've been waiting my whole life for a team of women that made me feel the way I did about the musketeers, and later about The Hunt for Red October, another film with no women in it at all (unless you count Gates McFadden's one line).
There are action/adventure type things with teams of women, but these tend to go one of two directions. Either they are hyper-sexualized, like Charlie's Angels, or, as is more common in books than movie or tv (cause oh look! women write and edit books! way more than women write and direct film!) is the "sisters of the heart" trope (a phrase I HATE HATE HATE). These are women who are overly and effusively emotional with each other. Now, I have seen groups of women do this (and men! it's not just women), become artificially incredibly emotionally intimate very quickly. I mean, I went to summer camp. I don't know what else you can say about a ceremony where we stand crying while telling each other how much we mean to each other after only knowing each other for SIX WEEKS. Anyway.
But the brotherhoods I see in media? Not effusive. Largely made up of clams. And you don't get clams in groups of women as portrayed in media. Also, while the Musketeers are all awfully hot, they're sexuality isn't the most important part of their characterization, the way it usually is with women in action/adventure.
I had an epiphany, though, about exactly what it is that I am missing: stories about groups of women soldiers. These stories of brotherhood that I love so much, they're usually stories of soldiers. Action adventure and loyalty, all together. And right now, I can't think of a single anything that was about women soldiers. There are plenty of smurfettes in media about soldiers, everything from the GI Joe movies to The Losers. But a group of soldiers that is exclusively or even mainly women? I got nothing. Closest I can think is Battlestar Galactica.
So yes. Where are my stories of women warriors? (without cleavage being the main focus of attention) Where's my all for one and one for all sisterhood? Dear Hollywood, I am waiting.
But this had me thinking--where's my female musketeers? For real. I feel like I've been waiting my whole life for a team of women that made me feel the way I did about the musketeers, and later about The Hunt for Red October, another film with no women in it at all (unless you count Gates McFadden's one line).
There are action/adventure type things with teams of women, but these tend to go one of two directions. Either they are hyper-sexualized, like Charlie's Angels, or, as is more common in books than movie or tv (cause oh look! women write and edit books! way more than women write and direct film!) is the "sisters of the heart" trope (a phrase I HATE HATE HATE). These are women who are overly and effusively emotional with each other. Now, I have seen groups of women do this (and men! it's not just women), become artificially incredibly emotionally intimate very quickly. I mean, I went to summer camp. I don't know what else you can say about a ceremony where we stand crying while telling each other how much we mean to each other after only knowing each other for SIX WEEKS. Anyway.
But the brotherhoods I see in media? Not effusive. Largely made up of clams. And you don't get clams in groups of women as portrayed in media. Also, while the Musketeers are all awfully hot, they're sexuality isn't the most important part of their characterization, the way it usually is with women in action/adventure.
I had an epiphany, though, about exactly what it is that I am missing: stories about groups of women soldiers. These stories of brotherhood that I love so much, they're usually stories of soldiers. Action adventure and loyalty, all together. And right now, I can't think of a single anything that was about women soldiers. There are plenty of smurfettes in media about soldiers, everything from the GI Joe movies to The Losers. But a group of soldiers that is exclusively or even mainly women? I got nothing. Closest I can think is Battlestar Galactica.
So yes. Where are my stories of women warriors? (without cleavage being the main focus of attention) Where's my all for one and one for all sisterhood? Dear Hollywood, I am waiting.