New subject: Use of image

20 Mar 2001


      Dana said:
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Shane said:
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Why do you continually equate Blakes' 7 with soaps and
boybands?
Because audience reception is important to the study of any
media production.
Yes, but the audience of a boyband and of Blakes' 7 are different, and
receive each in different ways. The sole aim of a boyband is to appeal to
the lusts of teenage girls (boys too, but that seems to be a sideline :))
and get them to part with money for CDs, posters, concerts etc. While some
people may watch Blakes' 7 for the tight leather trousers alone, I very much
doubt that this was its producers' sole aim, and a lot of people do watch it
for the ideas, the dialogue, the characterisation, the shoot-em-up bits. The
demographic of Blakes' 7 fandom has also changed over the years, and this is
also interesting.
...
...
There are a number of strong female roles in Blakes 7. Servalan, Cally,
Dayna, Jenna etc...
There are a lot of underwritten roles for women who look good in
tight jumpsuits.
I hope you're not referring to Servalan, Cally, Dayna and Jenna by that
statement-- they do a lot more than look good in jumpsuits. Especially
Servalan (jumpsuits? Her? _Dah_ling, _please_!).
...
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This still doesn't answer the question of why the relationship is a gay
one.
...
There are relationships between all the lead characters on B7. Why Avon
and
...
Blake? Why not Blake and Jenna, Cally and Avon... or Avon and Anna (who,
in
...
case you've forgotten, _were_ lovers)?
Read enough fanfic, and you'll find stories about any mathematically
factorable
combination of characters (I was going to say any imaginable combination,
but there are more than that).
Yes, which still makes me wonder why the gay version is seen to be the
dominant one (whether or not it in fact is).
...
...
Again, why? Why do women, in your opinion, find it difficult to identify
with Jenna or Cally?
Because the scripts give them so little background and so little to do
I don't think that's true. As for the background, can't you always invent
some? The less you're constrained by background, the more you can make up...
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I wasn't talking about gay sexuality; in fact, more people than just me
have
...
pointed out that slash has very little to do with actual homosexuality
at
...
...
all (including yourself, I might add). I was talking about frustrated
fans
...
...
of
whatever gender, fixated on an actor of whatever gender, which, even if
it
...
...
doesn't harm the actor, can hurt the fixated fan and his/her family
emotionally. Obsession isn't pretty, as I'm sure you know.
This isn't very relevant to writing about fictional characters.
This came in when Leah brought the conversation off on a tangent about
sexual obsession with actors, so yes, it is a side point (or a red herring).
But it can be relevant because if we're talking about fanfic as an outlet
for unrequited lust, it can (I repeat, it _can_, not that it inevitably
will) fuel that obsession.
...
...
Oh, so most fans don't think sex addiction needs to be treated before it
turns violent? Excuse me, I think I'm in the wrong hobby here.
Assuming that there really is something called sex addiction (as distinct
from general poor judgment leading to dysfunctional behavior) and that
it can be predicted who will turn violent and that there are effective
modes
...
of treatment, sure. Now, what does this have to do with whether my next
story is about Avon pushing Travis over a cliff, Avon and Travis making
love
...
in the jacuzzi of the Fanficcea Hilton, or Servalan opening a charity
bazaar?
Nothing at all.
Shane
"One more death should do it" --Avon
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Re: [B7L] Re: Use of image