(no subject)
Oct. 6th, 2010 09:35 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
geebsTV commentary:
What's with people on TV thinking fancy words mean delicious? I mean, first esoteric on Family Guy, then ostentatious on Raising Hope?
Glee- Really good episode last night, very emotional. Bus sure to be controversial since it covered the topic of faith. Personally, I thought the ep was pretty fair and balanced when it came to covering both religious belief or lack thereof. The main plot was Burt getting a heart attack and sinking into a coma. As per usual, any ep you have that involves Kurt/Burt is sure to be a tear jerker. It was also an ep that featured Sue and her sister, and anytime they have scenes with them you're also sure to be verklempt. So between those two pairs last night, you're some sort of robot if you didn't feel sad during this ep!
Anyways, Kurt is an atheist, and given Rachel (and to a strange extent Puck), Quinn, and Mercedes are characters to whom religion is quite important, there's a clash. They were feeling for their friend and tried to help him the only way they know how, so they said prayers for him and his father, something he in no way wanted given his lack of belief. In the end though, he grew to accept their prayers even if he didn't believe, because he knows it was coming from a good place.
Reading the boards though, it seemed some of those who weren't religious agreed with Kurt's initial feelings, and felt kinda offended that he waffled and except their prayers. They were all, "Oh, you have a problem, and your friend says they'll pray for you, they're really being selfish and only trying to make themselves feel better!" I don't think that's true at all. I mean, yes, if you're an atheist, you wouldn't find prayers very useful, so I can see feeling frustrated at your friends doing something that is meaningless to you. But I wouldn't say someone praying for you is being "selfish". I think in tragic situations like when a loved one is in a coma and your friends don't know what else they can do, I don't think them praying is purely done for their own benefit so they can feel like they're doing something. I think they legitimately feel they're doing the only thing they know how to help, and I can't see how that's selfish. I mean, they're showing their concern and love, and while some people can be like this, not everyone who does pray for their non-religious friends is trying to convert them lest the prayers not work.
People were also offended when Mercedes took Kurt to her church and she was all, "My friend here is a non-believer, but that's okay!" They felt she put Kurt on the spot. Kinda, yeah, but I think that also pre-supposes that the people at her church are all judge-y and would be jerks to him. Maybe she knew her fellow parishioners were as accepting as she was. Yeah, Christians can be quite judge-y, but isn't it equally as judge-y to assume that because someone is Christian they'll be all judge-y and intolerant?
The B-plot also covered faith. Finn makes a grilled cheese sandwich in which he sees Jesus in, and dubs it "Grilled Cheesus". Now it may seem like this was solely comedy to balance out the emotion of the main plot, but I think this was also an important statement of fate. Finn's newfound faith was of the "genie" variety, wherein he feels if he prays really hard, he'll get it. They won their game, he got to touch Rachel's boobs (and heh, how awkward do Finn and Rachel look making out given their height difference?) and he got the quarterback position back. But, the latter involved Sam getting critically injured (and possibly being out for the rest of the football season with a shoulder injury?). That kinda shakes Finn's newfound faith, and when he goes to talk to Emma about it, and she tells him how he didn't hurt Sam by praying to "Grilled Cheesus", it shakes him up even more. There was a part of him that liked believing in something, and made the universe much less colder.
Anyways, some people were also offended Finn didn't pray for Burt to get better. I dunno, I think that was quite in character. Finn's a bit of a dullard, only slightly smarter than Brit, so I can totally see him not putting two and two together and realizing he could prolly pray for Burt.
But like I said, I thought it was a pretty good ep overall, but sure to be controversial because of the main topic.
Caprica- Woah, while watching last night's ep, I had no idea that the holy mother of that One religion was Meg Tilly. Well, that, and she and Jennifer Tilly are both half Asian?! I guess they do kinda have Asian eyes. Anyways, while I enjoy Caprica, sometimes I just feel its too heavy. There's too much intrigue going on. I mean, not only do you have all the political machinations going on between the various factions of the One, you have the corporate intrigue involving Daniel's company and all the stuff with the Tauron mob, its just there's so much scheming to follow. Between that and all the typical philosophizing it and BSG were known for, it sometimes feels a little too high brow for my tastes. But hey, at least they have action in the matrix sometimes!
But yeah, so when the ep starts, Vergis has control of Daniel's company, and he's all alone not that his wife and daughter are gone. Joe Adama is apparently a made man now, and Clarice is jockeying for power amongst the One religion. But! We find out Amanda is alive, and shacking up in some random cabin in the woods with Clarice!
Anyways, given Clarice is with Amanda, I'm kinda curious how much she knows about Daniel's stuff, because it seems they both have similar goals, to make that faux-Matrix heaven a reality. Daniel wants the Tauron mob's help to get back his company, so he can bring back the dead virtually, as he feels people will pay a lot to not have to grieve over the loss of loved ones. Clarice wants to use it as a recruitment tool. After a particularly horrifying vr presentation to the One high council where a bunch of suicide bombers (including a couple of little girls) blow themselves up at a C-Bucs game and waking up in virtual heaven, she thinks if she could make this possible, the ranks would swell with followers. (And the whole concept of suicide bombing to reach heaven is still a very disturbing subject I'm surprised they haven't taken more flak for it)
Of course, they don't seem to be working together. But how does Clarice expect to get the program? I don't think Lacey has revealed the existence of Zoe to Clarice. I mean she suspected it all along, but I'm not sure why she knows it works, because I don't think Daniel shared it with his wife either. With the holy mother giving Clarice whatever she wants given the clergy chose Clarice over the mother's right hand monk, she certainly has powerful resources. I don't know how powerful compared to the Tauron mob, but at least Daniel knows where to start, and both Joe and Daniel have interacted with their dead daughters. It seems like Clarice has way more to do before she can make her dream a reality. Plus, I don't think she can do it without Daniel.
What's with people on TV thinking fancy words mean delicious? I mean, first esoteric on Family Guy, then ostentatious on Raising Hope?
Glee- Really good episode last night, very emotional. Bus sure to be controversial since it covered the topic of faith. Personally, I thought the ep was pretty fair and balanced when it came to covering both religious belief or lack thereof. The main plot was Burt getting a heart attack and sinking into a coma. As per usual, any ep you have that involves Kurt/Burt is sure to be a tear jerker. It was also an ep that featured Sue and her sister, and anytime they have scenes with them you're also sure to be verklempt. So between those two pairs last night, you're some sort of robot if you didn't feel sad during this ep!
Anyways, Kurt is an atheist, and given Rachel (and to a strange extent Puck), Quinn, and Mercedes are characters to whom religion is quite important, there's a clash. They were feeling for their friend and tried to help him the only way they know how, so they said prayers for him and his father, something he in no way wanted given his lack of belief. In the end though, he grew to accept their prayers even if he didn't believe, because he knows it was coming from a good place.
Reading the boards though, it seemed some of those who weren't religious agreed with Kurt's initial feelings, and felt kinda offended that he waffled and except their prayers. They were all, "Oh, you have a problem, and your friend says they'll pray for you, they're really being selfish and only trying to make themselves feel better!" I don't think that's true at all. I mean, yes, if you're an atheist, you wouldn't find prayers very useful, so I can see feeling frustrated at your friends doing something that is meaningless to you. But I wouldn't say someone praying for you is being "selfish". I think in tragic situations like when a loved one is in a coma and your friends don't know what else they can do, I don't think them praying is purely done for their own benefit so they can feel like they're doing something. I think they legitimately feel they're doing the only thing they know how to help, and I can't see how that's selfish. I mean, they're showing their concern and love, and while some people can be like this, not everyone who does pray for their non-religious friends is trying to convert them lest the prayers not work.
People were also offended when Mercedes took Kurt to her church and she was all, "My friend here is a non-believer, but that's okay!" They felt she put Kurt on the spot. Kinda, yeah, but I think that also pre-supposes that the people at her church are all judge-y and would be jerks to him. Maybe she knew her fellow parishioners were as accepting as she was. Yeah, Christians can be quite judge-y, but isn't it equally as judge-y to assume that because someone is Christian they'll be all judge-y and intolerant?
The B-plot also covered faith. Finn makes a grilled cheese sandwich in which he sees Jesus in, and dubs it "Grilled Cheesus". Now it may seem like this was solely comedy to balance out the emotion of the main plot, but I think this was also an important statement of fate. Finn's newfound faith was of the "genie" variety, wherein he feels if he prays really hard, he'll get it. They won their game, he got to touch Rachel's boobs (and heh, how awkward do Finn and Rachel look making out given their height difference?) and he got the quarterback position back. But, the latter involved Sam getting critically injured (and possibly being out for the rest of the football season with a shoulder injury?). That kinda shakes Finn's newfound faith, and when he goes to talk to Emma about it, and she tells him how he didn't hurt Sam by praying to "Grilled Cheesus", it shakes him up even more. There was a part of him that liked believing in something, and made the universe much less colder.
Anyways, some people were also offended Finn didn't pray for Burt to get better. I dunno, I think that was quite in character. Finn's a bit of a dullard, only slightly smarter than Brit, so I can totally see him not putting two and two together and realizing he could prolly pray for Burt.
But like I said, I thought it was a pretty good ep overall, but sure to be controversial because of the main topic.
Caprica- Woah, while watching last night's ep, I had no idea that the holy mother of that One religion was Meg Tilly. Well, that, and she and Jennifer Tilly are both half Asian?! I guess they do kinda have Asian eyes. Anyways, while I enjoy Caprica, sometimes I just feel its too heavy. There's too much intrigue going on. I mean, not only do you have all the political machinations going on between the various factions of the One, you have the corporate intrigue involving Daniel's company and all the stuff with the Tauron mob, its just there's so much scheming to follow. Between that and all the typical philosophizing it and BSG were known for, it sometimes feels a little too high brow for my tastes. But hey, at least they have action in the matrix sometimes!
But yeah, so when the ep starts, Vergis has control of Daniel's company, and he's all alone not that his wife and daughter are gone. Joe Adama is apparently a made man now, and Clarice is jockeying for power amongst the One religion. But! We find out Amanda is alive, and shacking up in some random cabin in the woods with Clarice!
Anyways, given Clarice is with Amanda, I'm kinda curious how much she knows about Daniel's stuff, because it seems they both have similar goals, to make that faux-Matrix heaven a reality. Daniel wants the Tauron mob's help to get back his company, so he can bring back the dead virtually, as he feels people will pay a lot to not have to grieve over the loss of loved ones. Clarice wants to use it as a recruitment tool. After a particularly horrifying vr presentation to the One high council where a bunch of suicide bombers (including a couple of little girls) blow themselves up at a C-Bucs game and waking up in virtual heaven, she thinks if she could make this possible, the ranks would swell with followers. (And the whole concept of suicide bombing to reach heaven is still a very disturbing subject I'm surprised they haven't taken more flak for it)
Of course, they don't seem to be working together. But how does Clarice expect to get the program? I don't think Lacey has revealed the existence of Zoe to Clarice. I mean she suspected it all along, but I'm not sure why she knows it works, because I don't think Daniel shared it with his wife either. With the holy mother giving Clarice whatever she wants given the clergy chose Clarice over the mother's right hand monk, she certainly has powerful resources. I don't know how powerful compared to the Tauron mob, but at least Daniel knows where to start, and both Joe and Daniel have interacted with their dead daughters. It seems like Clarice has way more to do before she can make her dream a reality. Plus, I don't think she can do it without Daniel.
