Everybody needs money.
Jan. 12th, 2004 04:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
out_thereWell, that's why I'm sleeping at work instead of sleeping at home. Hence, as I'm stuck here but don't wanna do anything (like, really, really, don't), I'm going to ramble on about Sports Night.
I have now seen every episode of Sports Night. As much of a shame as it is that SN was so prematurely and viciously killed, it's kinda nice to be part of a fandom where I know all the canon there is to know. Where it's impossible to be Jossed (or, Sorkined, if you will) by the PTPB. Where I know we aren't suddenly going to be introduced to Natalie's ex-husband, or find out that Casey once served in the armed forces. (Yes, I know the guy screeches at a papercut, but still...)
It's nice to know that there will be no character assisination, that this is how the characters will always be, according to canon. Where they're going to stop playing with my emotional responses.
Now, before last weekend, I'd seen the the first two thirds of S1, and the last third of S2. Unfortunately, that left feeling rather unsympathetic to Casey, since he was left punishing Dana for choosing Gordon over the show. After seeing the missing episodes, I am once more filled with Casey-love.
I view the show as basically pre-slash for Dan and Casey. I don't think they're actually sleeping together on the set, but I can't help but see the potential there. However, the show is wonderful, and manages to make me cheer for Rebecca/Dan and Casey/Dana, even when they're doomed. (As a matter of fact, it also makes me cheer for Sam/Dana and Jeremy/Natalie.)
I love this show. I love the characters. Seriously, I totally adore Casey, Dan, Dana, Natalie, Jeremy and Isaac. I'd probably love Kim, Dave, Chris, Will and Eliot if they had more screentime, but at the moment, I'm just very fond of them.
Since this is purely a time-filling exercise until I wake up enough to actually work, I'm going to ramble at length.
The first thing I'm going to talk about is my stunned and amused reaction to "Napoleon's Battle Plan". You need to remember that I'd just finished writing "That Guy", a fic that plays with the idea of Casey cheating on Lisa (with Dan) before they married and his basic belief that's he's "not that guy". It was a fic written out of annoyance at Casey's moral superiority, at his ability to do nasty things and still consider himself the good guy.
Can you imagine how surprised and amused I was when the episode not only featured Dan's strong and vocal objections to Casey allowing Dana to marry Gordon without telling her about his infidelity with Sally, but also featured the following dialogue:
"You don't get to decide what the high road is, Casey. You're not that guy."
I absolutely cackled over that. It was incredibly... encouraging to hear the characters actually say a line of dialogue I'd written for them in fic, to know that I had the characterisations firmly enough in mind that the actual show was supporting my attitudes. Truly mindboggling.
The next thing I'm going to ramble about is Dana. Specifically, Dana and her relationships with Gordon and Casey. I still view it as highly unfair that Casey blamed her for abandoning the show. There are a couple of points I'd like to remind him of. Firstly, she was within her rights to hand it over to Sally. Secondly, it's her job, not her life. She didn't sacrifice the show. She's better than Sally, and could have done it better, but it wasn't necessary for her to stay. She didn't bow out of any obligations. Thirdly, hypocritical, thy name is Casey. She stuck her neck out for Casey for six months after his divorce and she doesn't deserve to have her loyalty repaid with such self-righteous punishing from Casey. And, finally, one of the big reasons Casey was upset was because she chose Gordon, who is not worthy of her in any way, shape or form. Considering he'd refused to tell her about the Gordon/Sally thing, I don't think he can blame her for her lack of knowledge.
Next thought, is Dana's reaction to Gordon cheating on her. I don't think she reacted badly to Casey sleeping with Sally because she was secretly in love with him. I think it's pretty clear that she reacted badly to that because she loved Gordon and wanted to marry him. She wanted to marry him so badly that she forgave him for cheating on her, she graciously accepted his explanation and didn't show just how hurt she was. Of course, she was also hurt that Casey would have the bad taste to sleep with a woman like Sally, a woman who she knows is mainly interested in Casey for his contacts. Unfortunately, Casey got to bear the brunt of that anger.
She didn't get so angry at him just because she was jealous and wanted Casey herself. She got that angry at him because she was hurt and angry at Gordon, and needed to let off steam somehow. Casey was just a convenient target.
I think that Gordon was an idiot for not seeing her supoosed "jealousy" for what it was, displaced anger over Gordon's infidelity. I think she deserved far better than that.
Mind you, I also think her flirtation with Casey in early S2 was a rebound effect. She'd spent months of Natalie trying to convince her she was secretly in love with Casey. Gordon called off her engagement supposedly because she wanted Casey. She was used to Casey flirting with her whenever he was unattached and needy. I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to see why she'd turn to him, give him the same mixed signals that he gave her in S1, and be entranced by the idea that he actually wanted her.
I do think that the six month dating plan was her way of trying to avoid having to tell Casey that she wasn't seriously interested in him. I don't think she was consciously aware of her own motivation, but I think that in hindsight, she would have eventually realised that she sabotaged the relationship on purpose. She seems most happy when they're flirting, without the threat of being able to date.
Generally, I think she sees Casey as a romantic equivalent of not removing her panties at the dinner table. It's socially acceptable behaviour, he's the type of sweet, nice guy that she's supposed to want. He's habit and familiar, and flirting with him is something she does because she's used to it, and people keep telling her it's what she should do.
I think the removal of the panties really shows Dana starting to change her mind. She starting to explore things because she wants to, not because people expect it of her, not avoiding them because they're supposedly wrong or "dirty". She's starting to stand up as a grown woman and explore who she is. Likewise, she can't explore who she is if she dates someone who insists upon seeing her as who she was in college.
I wonder if the six month plan was also related to this new exploration. She wanted to explore her own boundaries, but would feel guilty doing it alone. Hence, she spent a lot of her time trying to force Casey to explore his, to experience more of the world and to change with it.
Although she was undoubtedly hurt when he finally changed so much that he no longer wanted her, or who he'd thought she was, it didn't come as a surprise. In fact, it seemed to almost come as a relief. It gave her a way out of having to follow up on her flirting, without having to be cruel to Casey. It meant that while she was still uncertain about who she was becoming, she no longer had any entanglements stopping her from changing.
As you can probably tell, I really like Dana. She's an intelligent, capable, funny, gorgeous, sexy, professional woman. She's the boss and she knows it, even if she chooses not to use the carrot more often than the stick. But, she needs someone who can see her for who she is, not tie her down to who she should be (Gordon) or who she used to be (Casey).
These are the reasons that I loved the introduction of the Sam/Dana relationship, and loudly cursed the screen when Sam just left.
Well, I did no work, but I did manage to fill in the last hour. Guess who's coming in early tomorrow?
I have now seen every episode of Sports Night. As much of a shame as it is that SN was so prematurely and viciously killed, it's kinda nice to be part of a fandom where I know all the canon there is to know. Where it's impossible to be Jossed (or, Sorkined, if you will) by the PTPB. Where I know we aren't suddenly going to be introduced to Natalie's ex-husband, or find out that Casey once served in the armed forces. (Yes, I know the guy screeches at a papercut, but still...)
It's nice to know that there will be no character assisination, that this is how the characters will always be, according to canon. Where they're going to stop playing with my emotional responses.
Now, before last weekend, I'd seen the the first two thirds of S1, and the last third of S2. Unfortunately, that left feeling rather unsympathetic to Casey, since he was left punishing Dana for choosing Gordon over the show. After seeing the missing episodes, I am once more filled with Casey-love.
I view the show as basically pre-slash for Dan and Casey. I don't think they're actually sleeping together on the set, but I can't help but see the potential there. However, the show is wonderful, and manages to make me cheer for Rebecca/Dan and Casey/Dana, even when they're doomed. (As a matter of fact, it also makes me cheer for Sam/Dana and Jeremy/Natalie.)
I love this show. I love the characters. Seriously, I totally adore Casey, Dan, Dana, Natalie, Jeremy and Isaac. I'd probably love Kim, Dave, Chris, Will and Eliot if they had more screentime, but at the moment, I'm just very fond of them.
Since this is purely a time-filling exercise until I wake up enough to actually work, I'm going to ramble at length.
The first thing I'm going to talk about is my stunned and amused reaction to "Napoleon's Battle Plan". You need to remember that I'd just finished writing "That Guy", a fic that plays with the idea of Casey cheating on Lisa (with Dan) before they married and his basic belief that's he's "not that guy". It was a fic written out of annoyance at Casey's moral superiority, at his ability to do nasty things and still consider himself the good guy.
Can you imagine how surprised and amused I was when the episode not only featured Dan's strong and vocal objections to Casey allowing Dana to marry Gordon without telling her about his infidelity with Sally, but also featured the following dialogue:
"You don't get to decide what the high road is, Casey. You're not that guy."
I absolutely cackled over that. It was incredibly... encouraging to hear the characters actually say a line of dialogue I'd written for them in fic, to know that I had the characterisations firmly enough in mind that the actual show was supporting my attitudes. Truly mindboggling.
The next thing I'm going to ramble about is Dana. Specifically, Dana and her relationships with Gordon and Casey. I still view it as highly unfair that Casey blamed her for abandoning the show. There are a couple of points I'd like to remind him of. Firstly, she was within her rights to hand it over to Sally. Secondly, it's her job, not her life. She didn't sacrifice the show. She's better than Sally, and could have done it better, but it wasn't necessary for her to stay. She didn't bow out of any obligations. Thirdly, hypocritical, thy name is Casey. She stuck her neck out for Casey for six months after his divorce and she doesn't deserve to have her loyalty repaid with such self-righteous punishing from Casey. And, finally, one of the big reasons Casey was upset was because she chose Gordon, who is not worthy of her in any way, shape or form. Considering he'd refused to tell her about the Gordon/Sally thing, I don't think he can blame her for her lack of knowledge.
Next thought, is Dana's reaction to Gordon cheating on her. I don't think she reacted badly to Casey sleeping with Sally because she was secretly in love with him. I think it's pretty clear that she reacted badly to that because she loved Gordon and wanted to marry him. She wanted to marry him so badly that she forgave him for cheating on her, she graciously accepted his explanation and didn't show just how hurt she was. Of course, she was also hurt that Casey would have the bad taste to sleep with a woman like Sally, a woman who she knows is mainly interested in Casey for his contacts. Unfortunately, Casey got to bear the brunt of that anger.
She didn't get so angry at him just because she was jealous and wanted Casey herself. She got that angry at him because she was hurt and angry at Gordon, and needed to let off steam somehow. Casey was just a convenient target.
I think that Gordon was an idiot for not seeing her supoosed "jealousy" for what it was, displaced anger over Gordon's infidelity. I think she deserved far better than that.
Mind you, I also think her flirtation with Casey in early S2 was a rebound effect. She'd spent months of Natalie trying to convince her she was secretly in love with Casey. Gordon called off her engagement supposedly because she wanted Casey. She was used to Casey flirting with her whenever he was unattached and needy. I don't think it's a stretch of the imagination to see why she'd turn to him, give him the same mixed signals that he gave her in S1, and be entranced by the idea that he actually wanted her.
I do think that the six month dating plan was her way of trying to avoid having to tell Casey that she wasn't seriously interested in him. I don't think she was consciously aware of her own motivation, but I think that in hindsight, she would have eventually realised that she sabotaged the relationship on purpose. She seems most happy when they're flirting, without the threat of being able to date.
Generally, I think she sees Casey as a romantic equivalent of not removing her panties at the dinner table. It's socially acceptable behaviour, he's the type of sweet, nice guy that she's supposed to want. He's habit and familiar, and flirting with him is something she does because she's used to it, and people keep telling her it's what she should do.
I think the removal of the panties really shows Dana starting to change her mind. She starting to explore things because she wants to, not because people expect it of her, not avoiding them because they're supposedly wrong or "dirty". She's starting to stand up as a grown woman and explore who she is. Likewise, she can't explore who she is if she dates someone who insists upon seeing her as who she was in college.
I wonder if the six month plan was also related to this new exploration. She wanted to explore her own boundaries, but would feel guilty doing it alone. Hence, she spent a lot of her time trying to force Casey to explore his, to experience more of the world and to change with it.
Although she was undoubtedly hurt when he finally changed so much that he no longer wanted her, or who he'd thought she was, it didn't come as a surprise. In fact, it seemed to almost come as a relief. It gave her a way out of having to follow up on her flirting, without having to be cruel to Casey. It meant that while she was still uncertain about who she was becoming, she no longer had any entanglements stopping her from changing.
As you can probably tell, I really like Dana. She's an intelligent, capable, funny, gorgeous, sexy, professional woman. She's the boss and she knows it, even if she chooses not to use the carrot more often than the stick. But, she needs someone who can see her for who she is, not tie her down to who she should be (Gordon) or who she used to be (Casey).
These are the reasons that I loved the introduction of the Sam/Dana relationship, and loudly cursed the screen when Sam just left.
Well, I did no work, but I did manage to fill in the last hour. Guess who's coming in early tomorrow?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2004-01-12 10:01 pm (UTC)Yes, I think that might have worked. I could see Dana being a friend of Lisa's but having a crush on him. She wouldn't be the type of girl to try to break them up, but if they broke up, and Casey started being charming to her (as we know he can), I can see that happening.
In S1 she mentions that he did it in college, in Texas and in LA (in that order, oddly enough), so it does seem to be a force of habit.
no subject
Date: 2004-01-12 10:09 pm (UTC)I seem to recall dana saying something along the lines of "Lisa's my friend too and she can't stand me." so I'm sure they all met in college or there abouts. Quite a few of the stories I've read have had Lisa and Dana as room mates, which would seem right.
She wouldn't be the type of girl to try to break them up, but if they broke up, and Casey started being charming to her (as we know he can), I can see that happening.
Also, in Dear Louise, we learn that Dana went to series of exclusive girls schools so she might have been rather inexperienced around boys who weren't her brothers when she got to college. Imagine shy little Dana Whitaker, fresh from an an all-girls academy and used to men who treat her like a brother, adjusting to a co-ed dorm and suddenly being confronted with the slightly dorky, yet thoroughly charming and extremely good-looking Casey McCall. Who wouldn't develop a crush?
no subject
Date: 2004-01-12 10:24 pm (UTC)Dana & Casey scene, right? Dana says she was Lisa's friend, Casey says that Lisa can't stand her, and she corrects him tha Lisa can't stand him.
It's also mentioned that he met Lisa and Dana 15 years ago, so it makes total sense.
Also, in Dear Louise, we learn that Dana went to series of exclusive girls schools so she might have been rather inexperienced around boys who weren't her brothers when she got to college. Imagine shy little Dana Whitaker, fresh from an an all-girls academy and used to men who treat her like a brother, adjusting to a co-ed dorm and suddenly being confronted with the slightly dorky, yet thoroughly charming and extremely good-looking Casey McCall. Who wouldn't develop a crush?
*happy sigh* Who, indeed?
You know, that makes me want to read more about Dana in college. Not Dana nad Casey per se, just what Dana would have been like.