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citrus_javaI have this rule about writing (not that I always follow it myself) - don't assume the audience likes the characters because you gave them a reason to, two chapters ago. You have to keep giving reasons. This rule doesn't apply, for me, to Dean and Sam. I love them so much, that part is stable. So I need to amend my rule to say - even in season 9, you have to keep characterizing. These days, I really miss Sam and Dean. These days, the characters are less specific, wobbling too much for emotional arcs I really feel I can hang on to. J&J make it float , (especially Jared, which makes me so proud and glad, since Jensen was the one who used to do more of that, and also since Jared has way less to work with).
It's common these days, in more and more sorts of research, to talk about what's considered "normal", "universal", "not worth mentioning, because of course". Like someone being a white straight man. You know the drill. The common approach today (or, at least, around me) is to look at it as something that is specific, too, not universal. Like- being a man is specific, men aren't "general people". And in one way, most research in existence is about men, canonical everything is written mostly bu men and so forth, but in another way, there's not a lot of research about masculinity itself.
It's interesting to me to look at fic that's like that, in SPN, our "usual" fic. Or at least, your usual Sam/Dean or Sam & Dean fic, I don't read enough of the others to know, and I am curious to hear about this in other places in fandom, if you know and feel like saying.
I'd say your garden variety fic is "not season specific", but it takes place around season 3, minus the deal, give or take the angels and Sam's muscles. Motel rooms, following cases from town to town, diners, bringing each other coffee/take out in the morning(have they ever, ever done that in canon before last episode?) , they know about possession and demons, if there are angels around, they're not central, nobody is crazy or suicidal or an alcoholic, and they don't know about fic. Dean's likely to hit on random (gorgeous) girls, Bobby's around and walking, The Trickster is around in either persona, Crowley probably isn't.
Even with fic that's less specific than that, it's often easy to tell around what season stories were written, the same way decades have indications in fashion and music. Vibe, characterizations, small things that became non-canon, the description of Sam's body and hair, And, of course, bigger things like each character's mental place, the way the audience is expected to think about their relationship, and how they're likely to act.
It's really interesting to me that "first time", while perhaps more central, is far from being obvious in this sort of fic. It might be cause it makes PWPs easier, but I don't think that's why. Perhaps it's because to many people, they sort of always had a relationship. Perhaps it because it's been so long, we get it, they're together, and as I took to yelling at the screen, watching SPN for the first time - there's only so much UST you can drive your audience crazy with before they gather outside the network offices with farm tools and take Show from you. Which is, of course, the low tech version of writing fic.
It seems like in seasons 8-9, a lot of Dean's characterization is "general" Dean, which is to say - zig-zaging between seasons and states of mind. Yeah, they're all Dean, but what Dean are we getting? Why? Sam, on the other hand, is still suffering from his role as "the everyman", even after everything he went through, and we went through with him.
Dean gets so much characterization, while Sam gets close to nothing official. I love, *love* that fandom took things like him not having specific hobbies, not having/decorating a room and so forth, as characterization, as a thing. And I like that canon finally caught up with that last episode. Either way, the writing of both of them suffers from this generalization, imo.
It's common these days, in more and more sorts of research, to talk about what's considered "normal", "universal", "not worth mentioning, because of course". Like someone being a white straight man. You know the drill. The common approach today (or, at least, around me) is to look at it as something that is specific, too, not universal. Like- being a man is specific, men aren't "general people". And in one way, most research in existence is about men, canonical everything is written mostly bu men and so forth, but in another way, there's not a lot of research about masculinity itself.
It's interesting to me to look at fic that's like that, in SPN, our "usual" fic. Or at least, your usual Sam/Dean or Sam & Dean fic, I don't read enough of the others to know, and I am curious to hear about this in other places in fandom, if you know and feel like saying.
I'd say your garden variety fic is "not season specific", but it takes place around season 3, minus the deal, give or take the angels and Sam's muscles. Motel rooms, following cases from town to town, diners, bringing each other coffee/take out in the morning
Even with fic that's less specific than that, it's often easy to tell around what season stories were written, the same way decades have indications in fashion and music. Vibe, characterizations, small things that became non-canon, the description of Sam's body and hair, And, of course, bigger things like each character's mental place, the way the audience is expected to think about their relationship, and how they're likely to act.
It's really interesting to me that "first time", while perhaps more central, is far from being obvious in this sort of fic. It might be cause it makes PWPs easier, but I don't think that's why. Perhaps it's because to many people, they sort of always had a relationship. Perhaps it because it's been so long, we get it, they're together, and as I took to yelling at the screen, watching SPN for the first time - there's only so much UST you can drive your audience crazy with before they gather outside the network offices with farm tools and take Show from you. Which is, of course, the low tech version of writing fic.
It seems like in seasons 8-9, a lot of Dean's characterization is "general" Dean, which is to say - zig-zaging between seasons and states of mind. Yeah, they're all Dean, but what Dean are we getting? Why? Sam, on the other hand, is still suffering from his role as "the everyman", even after everything he went through, and we went through with him.
Dean gets so much characterization, while Sam gets close to nothing official. I love, *love* that fandom took things like him not having specific hobbies, not having/decorating a room and so forth, as characterization, as a thing. And I like that canon finally caught up with that last episode. Either way, the writing of both of them suffers from this generalization, imo.
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no subject
Date: 2013-11-08 09:58 pm (UTC)I guess dysfunctional brother relationships is a thing for me? *g*
Huh. Prison Break just got way more interesting.
I've had my ups and downs with the show and fandom, and there was a period during S6 where I didn't pay SPN much attention at all (got distracted by Stargate Atlantis), but I'll be sticking with it till the end, for better or worse.
Awwwwwwww!
no subject
Date: 2013-11-08 10:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-09 08:37 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-11-09 10:17 am (UTC)And no, I haven't seen PLL. It's too bad that they used up the concept in the first season. For mystery and conspiracy theory type shows, I feel like the writers really need to have a good idea of how to extend the show. Otherwise it becomes a mess :(
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Date: 2013-11-09 02:12 pm (UTC)As for PLL - (spoiler ahead - warning in case the cut doesn't work in the comments - it started out as what looked like a detective show, with some things the audience was expected to believe, and i was very curious what the solution was gonna be. I *love* detective stories, but can rarely read them cause of the stories around them, which I often experience as trigger or boring. Oh well. Anyway, the solution was along the lines of "Yay, we got another season! There will never be a solution! Bu here's this bit of a thing we found out.