elisi | So... that Mark. I think I've worked it out. :)

(Karen Gillan in my icon is doing a Mark impression...)

First of all, then many thanks go to

gabrielleabelle for suggesting that Mark is so... OTT in his Buffy reviews because he expects angst. Because suddenly he was easy to diagnose. Basically he suffers from pre-Traumatic Joss Syndrome.

His tagline is 'You're Not Prepared', but this actually misleading. I don't mean that he's spoiled, but he is prepared. Here are my approximations of his mindset for various things:

Buffy:
'OH NOES IT'S JOSS AND HE LOVES TO STAB PEOPLE IN THE BACK WHEN THEY FEEL HAPPY! EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE PERPETUAL HEARTBREAK, ANYONE COULD DIE AT ANYTIME! WILL IT BE THIS EPISODE THAT BREAKS ME FOR GOOD? OR THIS ONE? OR THIS ONE? OR...'

Lord of the Rings:
'OMG EVERYTHING IS EPIC AND EVERYTHING IS THE FOUNDATION OF ALL FANTASY THAT COMES AFTER AND HOW SHALL I DEAL???'

Moffat Who:
'EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE CLEVER AND COMPLICATED OH NOES WHAT-IS-GOING-ON-I-CAN'T-WORK-IT-OUT-HELP!!!!'

Twilight:
'THIS IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE RUBBISH AND TERRIBLE - AAAAAAAH! IT'S EVEN WORSE THAN I THOUGHT! HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE? AND IT KEEPS GETTING WORSE...'

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

He reacted to Suzanne Collins Hunger Games the same way. Which makes sense, I guess. But there's a tendency to treat novels like tv shows without appreciating the vastly different medium. The novelist is less aware of the audience than the television writer is. Less likely to be influenced.
Particularly during Tolkien's time period. Tolkien being somewhat of a hermit and an academic...tended to be largely oblivious. And in regards to his readers...had no problems with them playing with his characters or reinterpreting them. He disagreed with their interpretations. According to Tolkien Lord of the Rings was not an anti-war series. Nor was he making that point. Nor were the Orcs the Germans - I think he was quite annoyed by that interpretation. It anything I think the main theme of the books was in regards to the effects of the industrial revolution on Europe - the destruction of the primeval forest, the pollution of the air. The changes.

A lot of fiction during that period was about the Industrial Revolution, just as a lot of fiction right now is about the Information/Technological Revolution - with oddly similar themes.

But I think many of those themes fly over Mark's head...because he is somewhat unaware of historical context. Again, I blame the US public educational system for this. The man got a lousy education.

The novelist is less aware of the audience than the television writer is. Less likely to be influenced.
Particularly during Tolkien's time period. Tolkien being somewhat of a hermit and an academic...tended to be largely oblivious.
Exactly. Tolkien would balk at being thought to manipulate people emotionally.

It anything I think the main theme of the books was in regards to the effects of the industrial revolution on Europe - the destruction of the primeval forest, the pollution of the air. The changes.
*nods* He wrote a very specific 'This is not an allegory' foreword.

But I think many of those themes fly over Mark's head...because he is somewhat unaware of historical context. Again, I blame the US public educational system for this. The man got a lousy education.
Which is why he is so strange to read - he utterly fails to grasp everything that I take for granted. Has he even read Narnia? He can't see the metaphors. The trees, for instance...

Which is why he is so strange to read - he utterly fails to grasp everything that I take for granted. Has he even read Narnia? He can't see the metaphors. The trees, for instance...

Well, it does make his commentary stand out, which makes me wonder if this is deliberate? All reviewers, even those who have never seen the series before, write a more detailed review.

Mark's reviews feel a bit like a "performance". As if he is playing a role or persona, and each comment, post, is carefully written in that character or voice that he is portraying. He also does "Mark Does Stuff" with more or less the same emotional language and internet slang. And then there's the "Live Tours" and "Live Blog". Feels very "rehearsed" and "performed".
We all squee over things, we all get excited...but often it will vary.
Our writing voice will vary slightly. His is almost too consistent.

It is like reading a reality show in a way...because reality show performers are somewhat the same way - we're told their emotions and portrayal's are real, but...after a while it becomes apparent that we are watching a "performance" and a well-edited one at that.

Speaking of Mark? Where is he? Shouldn't Monday's episode be up by now?

You mean his Buffy one? Not for another 2-3 hours.

ETA: Just realised that it's Amends today. How very appropriate. ;)

Edited 2012-02-14 18:10 (UTC)

Didn't The Wish come before Amends...and wasn't it supposed to watched on Monday? This is so pathetic, I'm clearly jumping over to read his Buffy posts at lunch to amuse myself. ;-)

Nope, we are up to Amends now. And I know this, because I've just read it. :)

No, you don't understand. I wasn't able to see his reviews of the Wish or Amends until now. For some reason every time I hunted for it - all I got was Lover's Walk.

Two observations?1) This man is a HUGE Cordelia shipper. And a huge Xander/Cordy, Oz/Willow shipper. He did not like their breakup. (He's going to hate Angel S4). Cordy is clearly his favorite character. Also he clearly has major issues with infidelity. Big trigger for him - if he thinks Lover's Walk is the hugest episode ever?? He fell for the mislead that the Wish is a Cordelia centric episode, no. It's a Buffy centric episode - what would life have been like if Buffy never came to Sunnydale.

2) He's deliberately looking at this series through a very immature and somewhat "teen" lense. Possibly, because he is trying to write a YA novel and attempting to find the voice for it and appeal to that young teen male audience. But it rings false, because he is 28 years of age.

No, you don't understand. I wasn't able to see his reviews of the Wish or Amends until now. For some reason every time I hunted for it - all I got was Lover's Walk.
Ah yes, you had to go to the main page. No idea why - maybe he tagged them wrong or something?

This man is a HUGE Cordelia shipper.
I KNOW. And has been since day 1. Complained about her lack of development about 3 episodes in... And I've been thinking the same as you - AtS S4 will be HELL.

He's deliberately looking at this series through a very immature and somewhat "teen" lense.
Possibly because he over-identifies with the whole High School thing. I dunno. I'm used to not getting that part of people's flailing.

I don't understand his love of Cordelia...it's so odd. If he was watching Angel? Sure. But Buffy? Cordy barely has a role.

And the over-identification with high school has always puzzled me.
People, I want to say, you do understand that high school is only three to four years out of your entire life? You can forget it. Actually you are going to forget it. Trust me.

(Actually this what I loved about the episode HIM (which everyone in fandom seems to hate, maybe because it did this?) - it really pokes fun at people who can't get past high school. The first five-six episodes of S7 really had fun addressing that.)

I don't understand his love of Cordelia...it's so odd. If he was watching Angel? Sure. But Buffy? Cordy barely has a role.
Cultural coding? She's the Queen of the school, she has to be important.

People, I want to say, you do understand that high school is only three to four years out of your entire life? You can forget it. Actually you are going to forget it. Trust me.
It's such an American thing though, which is why I ignore it almost on principal? Like yellow NY cabs. They're a *thing*

Actually this what I loved about the episode HIM (which everyone in fandom seems to hate, maybe because it did this?) - it really pokes fun at people who can't get past high school. The first five-six episodes of S7 really had fun addressing that.
I'd love Him so much more if it wasn't for that horrible scene with Dawn embarrasing herself. But yes - adore the way early S7 pokes fun at the whole thing. Like 'I signalled her with my eyes' <- the show is very aware of itself and the tropes it plays with. More so than some reviewers...

It is like reading a reality show in a way...
Ooooh, that's brilliant. Yes. But then, it IS a job.

So... that Mark. I think I've worked it out. :)

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