Joss' fascination with torture ?
POSTED BY: TheSomnambulist
UPDATED: Monday, December 27, 2004 17:15
VIEWED: 35028
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Not re-view War Stories? That is one of my favorites! The torture scene is genius and it is really well done. The badassery in the episode is in full effect and I love it! Also I just look forward to Wash saying, "Bastard's not gonna get days"
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Quote:So, you're entertained by witnessing torture? Could you expand on really well done? What is the nature of the exclamatory love? My interest is almost as great as my concern. I hope you're the same person that noticed the reversed shot in one of the torture scenes because he had freeze-framed through it, but I fear not.
Originally posted by jenchrissym:
Not re-view War Stories? That is one of my favorites! The torture scene is genius and it is really well done. The badassery in the episode is in full effect and I love it! Also I just look forward to Wash saying, "Bastard's not gonna get days"
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Quote:
Originally posted by PurpleBelly:
Whedon spent his High School years at an English private boarding school.
That's not entirely accurate... he actually spent at least SOME time at a high school in the North Bronx (right down the block from me, actually). Not sure what part of high school but he was definitely here for some of it (he was the honorary speaker at the school a few years ago, invited by my former boss' English wife, who works at the school... convoluted enough?).
Anyway, my two cents of the day.
--Jefé The Hat
***************************
--Don't bother trying to predict, figure out, second guess, criticize, or suggest anything that comes from the mind of Joss Whedon, for you shall usually be wrong, and shall find out the Truth and Purpose in due time.
(This is the Truth of Whedoning)
"I like smackin 'em"--Jayne
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I think he's fascinated by S&M and subsequently that carries on to torture. He's made some comments in RL about dominatrixes and the like and we even saw in "Convictions" the character of Spanky. I really don't want to know what he and his wife do alone.
Harken: "Seems odd that you would name your ship after a battle you were on the wrong side of."
Mal: "May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."
~ƒireƒly
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Quote:
Originally posted by PurpleBelly:
So, you're entertained by witnessing torture? Could you expand on really well done? What is the nature of the exclamatory love? My interest is almost as great as my concern. I hope you're the same person that noticed the reversed shot in one of the torture scenes because he had freeze-framed through it, but I fear not.
The scene was really well done, for me, in that it was impressively constructed and concieved. See, for me it's more about taking the characters and putting them in a situation to see how they'd deal with it. Mal, left by himself (as we see later) refuses to give up to the extent that he is using humor to show his antagonist that he is not going to give. But with Wash there, Mal knows that Wash won't be able to make it. He does everything he can to push Wash, to keep him from giving in to it.
I look back at scenes such as Faith's torturing Wesley, and I don't see any humor in it. I see the torment that Faith is struggling with, and how she's trying to understand and manage her guilt and pain, pushing that pain onto someone she partially blames for it. There's no humor there, just characters dealing with their situation.
Is this entertainment? It depends upon how you look at it. I'm entertained because I enjoying seeing how the characters deal with situations, so yeah, I find this "entertaining". Do I enjoy what they are doing to each other? No. I have no S&M interests or anything like that. I'm not psychologically sick (more than normal, anyway
). I'm not "disturbed".But that's just my take on it.
In my opinion, those scenes are meant to make you uncomfortable. You shouldn't enjoy them. You should find yourself troubled by the fact that you laughed at Mal and Wash while they were quivering in pain and agony.
It means you're okay...
Rabit
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Quote:
Originally posted by BadgersHat:Quote:
Originally posted by PurpleBelly:
Whedon spent his High School years at an English private boarding school.
That's not entirely accurate... he actually spent at least SOME time at a high school in the North Bronx (right down the block from me, actually). Not sure what part of high school but he was definitely here for some of it (he was the honorary speaker at the school a few years ago, invited by my former boss' English wife, who works at the school... convoluted enough?).
Anyway, my two cents of the day.
--Jefé The Hat
I've heard this rumor before about Joss going to school in New York, but I don't see how it's possible. In all his interviews her talks about his schooling in England, and before that he grew up in L.A. I just don't see why he would go to NY for school. Maybe his connection is through his wife or a friend?
And Rabit, I agree. War Stories is my favorite ep because I find it so intriguing that such a disturbing scene can be kind of funny at the same time. "Jokes in the face of danger" as Buffy would say. It tells you just what kind of brave people those two men really are, which is the whole point of the episode.
"Dear diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy."
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Well, it was a brief stint at Fieldston in Riverdale, NY, and when I met him in L.A. 3 years ago, I asked him myself if he'd gone there, and he said yes... so I'm thinking it was one of those brief periods that goes unmentioned due to lack of significance.
--Jefé The Hat
***************************
--Don't bother trying to predict, figure out, second guess, criticize, or suggest anything that comes from the mind of Joss Whedon, for you shall usually be wrong, and shall find out the Truth and Purpose in due time.
(This is the Truth of Whedoning)
"I like smackin 'em"--Jayne
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Quote:Thank you, Rabit. It seems Whedon does know his audience. He puts their words into the mouth of the torturer.
Originally posted by Rabit:
See, for me it's more about taking the characters and putting them in a situation to see how they'd deal with it.
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Quote:Thank you, maugwai. It seems this is an episode that tells us much, about ourselves.
Originally posted by maugwai:
War Stories is my favorite ep because I find it so intriguing that such a disturbing scene can be kind of funny at the same time.
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Quote:
Originally posted by PurpleBelly:Quote:Thank you, maugwai. It seems this is an episode that tells us much, about ourselves.
Originally posted by maugwai:
War Stories is my favorite ep because I find it so intriguing that such a disturbing scene can be kind of funny at the same time.
And your response certainly tells me something about you.
Have you ever read a novel about war? Fiction or nonfiction, written by experienced soldiers or historians, all soldiers find something to laugh about in the middle of battle. If they didn't, they'd be carried away by the horror of it all and couldn't keep fighting.
Mal refused to give in to Niska. Instead, he joked. He made genuinely funny comments to keep up both his spirits and Wash's. And it's okay to laugh at the things he says because they're funny. That doesn't mean anyone who laughs at them goes out and drowns kittens in their spare time. It doesn't mean that person doesn't see the tragedy in torture. It simply means they understand what Mal is trying to do, and that is to keep himself from giving up. If you can't find something to laugh about when the chips are down, you might as well pack it in, because you've just lost your will to go on. That's what I like about the ep. The writers and actors did a good job keeping it funny and intense at the same time, which is very difficult to do.
The episode is about many things much more complex than "torture=bad". It's about conquering our fears and dealing with them - with humor, if necessary.
"Dear diary, today I was pompous and my sister was crazy."
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