This Is What They Call Eye Candy
Feb. 12th, 2007 10:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
itsallovernowSo, despite the fact that I actually had a (for me) relatively relaxing weekend (meaning I only worked for about 7 hours as opposed to the normal most of the time), and the alternate fact that I OMG wrote the first scene of the NIP (it had a first scene, but it wasn't the real beginning, and now it has an honest to god beginning which will require me to change to scene after it which was sort of the beginning, but that's okay because I'm fairly proud of the opening scene and it makes me happy enough to be willing to change to following scene. Whew. I feel like I just said all that outloud.) In spite of all that, what do I have on my mind right now? Well, I have on my mind the ridiculous amount of eye candy that graced my presence this weekend ranging from my comfort food candy (Ben Browder in a suit, courtesy of "Bounty") to the wildly unexpected (Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Departed" because dude, him getting hot is right there on par with Patrick Dempsey getting hot in the It'll Never Happen category, except, well, it did. And in the middle there was Mark Antony with a beard, and black armour and animal skins and I sort of glazed over for awhile there.
Ah media, I love you so sometimes. So, I guess we'll go in order. And if I were![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
queenofthorns, and clever with the computer, I'd so do a picspam to illustrate my point!
SG-1, S10. Bounty
My ability to enjoy most SG-1 eps is predicated on my ignoring the details, focusing on the interpersonal and not taking any of it seriously. As a result, I enjoyed this thoroughly after the initial head shake at the conventions of the story, because, Dude, really? Reunion? Kansas? Another blond?
Everyone was exceedingly pretty in this. God, so, so pretty. Even Daniel who I almost never find attractive was definitely working that outfit. But really, you put Ben Browder in a suit and I'm not really gonna stare at anything else. I love a man who can just wear a suit instead of it wearing him.
And let's not forget half-naked and very very shiny Teal'c. MMMM Teal'c.
And Vala (who is clearly getting most of the wardrobe budget, but that's okay, she earns it and looked spectacular for the ep). Fabulous dresses, and I sort of loved the Dorothy Gale/Daisy Duke thing (for one, CB has the utter confidence to pull it off, and for two, the scene with Vala just nailing those cans with the gun, hay between her teeth, giving Mitchell that speculative stare and saying, "Accounts... Receivable" just cracked me up).
The bounty hunting thing was sort of goofy. However, I loved that Vala's first thought was that they'd come specifically for her (and that she was a bonus prize. Hee. I just love reminders of how much trouble she's been to most of the galaxy).
Mostly, this was the Vala and Mitchell show and how can you not love that? I could watch the two of them together do just about anything. But there was actually some lovely stuff going on here (and we'll happily ignore the fact that unless it was the last place his family moved to in a military rotation, there's no way Mitchell is from Kansas). It's a Wizard of Oz ep, the "you can't go home again, can't really have your fantasy, even if it looks like a happy ending" story, or at least it is in my interpretation. Because Mitchell hasn't chosen the heartland and the pretty blond girl. He's chosen the SGC, and so he leaves with Vala, even if he got to kiss the blond. That's his fate. Not comfortable, not easy, not nice, but never, ever dull.
I like that Vala's sense of people is so strong. She's had to pick up on subtle (and not so subtle) clues to stay alive and she is so not above using those skills to amuse herself. But I also like that despite the thousands of hours of TV she must have consumed, she still is happily telling people about her own story (whether the story is truth or fiction, it's Vala's own and I love that she's completely willing to shock the hell out of people). I have a scene in my head, Mitchell and Vala both sort of sleepy and near each other, him asking her what exactly she told his parents and her saying, "Well, you told me not to lie anymore."
I loved the insurance conversation, and Mitchell looking like he's not paying attention but still following the threads. "She's over there plotting my death." Hee.
I also liked that Vala bonded with Mitchell's mom, that she sees this nice family and is sort of touched by them, by their regard for their son, by their kindness to her.
I think the reason I like the two of them interacting so much (aside from the chemistry, the way they play off each other so beautifully) is that they're really fantastic foils. Vala is a liar, she's a theif, she's been living off her wits and her charm and her deceptions for so long that she's kind of lost track at what's real and what's not. She's homeless and rootless and has dodged her responsabilities, the ramifications of her presence and her actions for so long that suddenly being part of something is a novelty. She wants to be worthy, wants to not lose her edge. It's sort of a game, but she's got a very real stake in it and I'm guessing that for all the thrill in this new identity, that's disconcerting as well.
On the other hand, Cam's as rooted as she is a flight risk. He's got a stable, solid family who offer him utter support. He's honest with himself about his abilities. He's the golden boy and every week, every day is a new adventure. And despite all that, he's still fighting a war he isn't sure he can win, leading a team that follows his orders in a sort of, sure whatever kind of way, and my guess is that while self-doubt may not be creeping in, a sort of free-floating anxiety is a constant presence. He does deal with ramifications, he reacts to them, to his mistakes and his successes and takes very personally his role within his team.
So the two of them are natural foils, and I love that we see that. That Vala and Mitchell have finally been allowed to play off of each other, because despite the antagonism, Mitchell is nice to her. He sets up boundaries that she doesn't push at the way she does Daniel. And she does her best to live up to his expectations of her. And at the end, it's Vala feeding him pie, and talking about her marriages that he drives away with. The alien, and a piece of his home and I just sort of love that.
And yes, that's way more commentary than this episode deserves (and if it weren't for BB and CB getting to play in the sandbox together I would have HATED this ep - not for the plot, but for the totaly cheesiness of the concept), but I enjoyed it more than it deserved, so there.
The Departed
I don't have much to say about the content of this. I'd seen "Infernal Affairs", so I mostly knew what was going to happen. However, the momentum really pulled me along (much to my surprise. I'm not really a Scorsese fan). Nicholson was fabulous, and far more restrained than I expected. Matt Damon was fabulous (although I hated him, so I guess he did a good job). Vera Farmiga was totally underwhelming, but then I often feel like Scorsese just gets lucky when he casts women that really work well in the roles. I think he's so focused on telling the men's stories that the women become secondary characters.
Really, all of the men were fabulous, and as I said before, at some point, DiCaprio grew up and got hot. He doesn't carry himself like a boy anymore and that just radiated through this performance.
I actually didn't find it overly violent until the end, and I liked the way the tensions and the betrayals built and built, and the sound track was killer.
Rome, S2. Heroes of the Republic
You know how y'all feel about Supernatural? How you want to rub all over it and bake it cookies? Aside from not needing fic, that's how I feel about Rome. And not just because Mark Antony with a beard, and armour and animal skins was absofreelinglutely hot like burning. Although, lets take a moment to contemplate that. MMMMM. I'm not entirely sure how that man is even hotter dressed (and in a ridiculous homage to MANliness, nonetheless) than he is naked. Well, it's a close call. I'd take him either way.
But, but... Lepidus. And as soon as I knew they'd sent Lepidus, I knew where they were going with it and I pretty much scared the life out of M. with the squee. (This is one of those eps where the historical outweighed the Pullo/Vorenus story for me, much as I love them and their friendship and thought it was a good ep for them, but...) Triumvirate. TRIFUCKINGUMVIRATE!! Atia riding in like a queen, Antony all happy and randy, and then his eyes when he saw Octavian and the embrace, because Cicero, dude, you just underestimated the wrong two men because as much as they hate each other, they hate what you did even more. So, so much more.
Side notes: Vorenus earns worst dad ever award, although I love him, but he's just... he's a soldier and an idealist and he's still a fuckup at the interpersonal, while Pullo is just so the man you want on your side because he gets people (sometimes he slams their heads into things and kills them, but he fundamentally gets them. If there were any way to do a SG-1/ROME crossover, I'd like to see Vala and Pullo together. Although that could just be an intense desire for that much pretty in one frame).
ETA: In a shocking, if unsurprsing, breach of etiquette, I have failed to wish eitherkernezelda or danceswithwords a happy birthday. Ladies, I think you're fabulous and I hope the upcoming year brings everything you could hope for.
Ah media, I love you so sometimes. So, I guess we'll go in order. And if I were
queenofthorns, and clever with the computer, I'd so do a picspam to illustrate my point!SG-1, S10. Bounty
My ability to enjoy most SG-1 eps is predicated on my ignoring the details, focusing on the interpersonal and not taking any of it seriously. As a result, I enjoyed this thoroughly after the initial head shake at the conventions of the story, because, Dude, really? Reunion? Kansas? Another blond?
Everyone was exceedingly pretty in this. God, so, so pretty. Even Daniel who I almost never find attractive was definitely working that outfit. But really, you put Ben Browder in a suit and I'm not really gonna stare at anything else. I love a man who can just wear a suit instead of it wearing him.
And let's not forget half-naked and very very shiny Teal'c. MMMM Teal'c.
And Vala (who is clearly getting most of the wardrobe budget, but that's okay, she earns it and looked spectacular for the ep). Fabulous dresses, and I sort of loved the Dorothy Gale/Daisy Duke thing (for one, CB has the utter confidence to pull it off, and for two, the scene with Vala just nailing those cans with the gun, hay between her teeth, giving Mitchell that speculative stare and saying, "Accounts... Receivable" just cracked me up).
The bounty hunting thing was sort of goofy. However, I loved that Vala's first thought was that they'd come specifically for her (and that she was a bonus prize. Hee. I just love reminders of how much trouble she's been to most of the galaxy).
Mostly, this was the Vala and Mitchell show and how can you not love that? I could watch the two of them together do just about anything. But there was actually some lovely stuff going on here (and we'll happily ignore the fact that unless it was the last place his family moved to in a military rotation, there's no way Mitchell is from Kansas). It's a Wizard of Oz ep, the "you can't go home again, can't really have your fantasy, even if it looks like a happy ending" story, or at least it is in my interpretation. Because Mitchell hasn't chosen the heartland and the pretty blond girl. He's chosen the SGC, and so he leaves with Vala, even if he got to kiss the blond. That's his fate. Not comfortable, not easy, not nice, but never, ever dull.
I like that Vala's sense of people is so strong. She's had to pick up on subtle (and not so subtle) clues to stay alive and she is so not above using those skills to amuse herself. But I also like that despite the thousands of hours of TV she must have consumed, she still is happily telling people about her own story (whether the story is truth or fiction, it's Vala's own and I love that she's completely willing to shock the hell out of people). I have a scene in my head, Mitchell and Vala both sort of sleepy and near each other, him asking her what exactly she told his parents and her saying, "Well, you told me not to lie anymore."
I loved the insurance conversation, and Mitchell looking like he's not paying attention but still following the threads. "She's over there plotting my death." Hee.
I also liked that Vala bonded with Mitchell's mom, that she sees this nice family and is sort of touched by them, by their regard for their son, by their kindness to her.
I think the reason I like the two of them interacting so much (aside from the chemistry, the way they play off each other so beautifully) is that they're really fantastic foils. Vala is a liar, she's a theif, she's been living off her wits and her charm and her deceptions for so long that she's kind of lost track at what's real and what's not. She's homeless and rootless and has dodged her responsabilities, the ramifications of her presence and her actions for so long that suddenly being part of something is a novelty. She wants to be worthy, wants to not lose her edge. It's sort of a game, but she's got a very real stake in it and I'm guessing that for all the thrill in this new identity, that's disconcerting as well.
On the other hand, Cam's as rooted as she is a flight risk. He's got a stable, solid family who offer him utter support. He's honest with himself about his abilities. He's the golden boy and every week, every day is a new adventure. And despite all that, he's still fighting a war he isn't sure he can win, leading a team that follows his orders in a sort of, sure whatever kind of way, and my guess is that while self-doubt may not be creeping in, a sort of free-floating anxiety is a constant presence. He does deal with ramifications, he reacts to them, to his mistakes and his successes and takes very personally his role within his team.
So the two of them are natural foils, and I love that we see that. That Vala and Mitchell have finally been allowed to play off of each other, because despite the antagonism, Mitchell is nice to her. He sets up boundaries that she doesn't push at the way she does Daniel. And she does her best to live up to his expectations of her. And at the end, it's Vala feeding him pie, and talking about her marriages that he drives away with. The alien, and a piece of his home and I just sort of love that.
And yes, that's way more commentary than this episode deserves (and if it weren't for BB and CB getting to play in the sandbox together I would have HATED this ep - not for the plot, but for the totaly cheesiness of the concept), but I enjoyed it more than it deserved, so there.
The Departed
I don't have much to say about the content of this. I'd seen "Infernal Affairs", so I mostly knew what was going to happen. However, the momentum really pulled me along (much to my surprise. I'm not really a Scorsese fan). Nicholson was fabulous, and far more restrained than I expected. Matt Damon was fabulous (although I hated him, so I guess he did a good job). Vera Farmiga was totally underwhelming, but then I often feel like Scorsese just gets lucky when he casts women that really work well in the roles. I think he's so focused on telling the men's stories that the women become secondary characters.
Really, all of the men were fabulous, and as I said before, at some point, DiCaprio grew up and got hot. He doesn't carry himself like a boy anymore and that just radiated through this performance.
I actually didn't find it overly violent until the end, and I liked the way the tensions and the betrayals built and built, and the sound track was killer.
Rome, S2. Heroes of the Republic
You know how y'all feel about Supernatural? How you want to rub all over it and bake it cookies? Aside from not needing fic, that's how I feel about Rome. And not just because Mark Antony with a beard, and armour and animal skins was absofreelinglutely hot like burning. Although, lets take a moment to contemplate that. MMMMM. I'm not entirely sure how that man is even hotter dressed (and in a ridiculous homage to MANliness, nonetheless) than he is naked. Well, it's a close call. I'd take him either way.
But, but... Lepidus. And as soon as I knew they'd sent Lepidus, I knew where they were going with it and I pretty much scared the life out of M. with the squee. (This is one of those eps where the historical outweighed the Pullo/Vorenus story for me, much as I love them and their friendship and thought it was a good ep for them, but...) Triumvirate. TRIFUCKINGUMVIRATE!! Atia riding in like a queen, Antony all happy and randy, and then his eyes when he saw Octavian and the embrace, because Cicero, dude, you just underestimated the wrong two men because as much as they hate each other, they hate what you did even more. So, so much more.
Side notes: Vorenus earns worst dad ever award, although I love him, but he's just... he's a soldier and an idealist and he's still a fuckup at the interpersonal, while Pullo is just so the man you want on your side because he gets people (sometimes he slams their heads into things and kills them, but he fundamentally gets them. If there were any way to do a SG-1/ROME crossover, I'd like to see Vala and Pullo together. Although that could just be an intense desire for that much pretty in one frame).
ETA: In a shocking, if unsurprsing, breach of etiquette, I have failed to wish either
kernezelda or danceswithwords a happy birthday. Ladies, I think you're fabulous and I hope the upcoming year brings everything you could hope for.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:24 pm (UTC)Heeeee! I believe what I said "LEPIDUS!!! THEY DIDN'T FORGET HIM!" and KoT shot me a look. (But he's totally engrossed too - I was talking in one of the scenes and he shushed me. YAY!)
Pullo is just so the man you want on your side because he gets people
I'm afraid I lost the capacity for rational analysis when Pullo started caressing Eirene with his VOICE. Hee! (Although I note the contrast between his read of Eirene and Vorenus's of Gaia. Heh!)
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:29 pm (UTC)And dude, much as I love, love Titus Pullo, Mark Antony has been weaving a strange and compelling spell over me lately!! But I loved Pullo pretty much seducing his wife into his good graces and then doing the "shrug, women" thing with Octavian:)
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:57 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:48 pm (UTC)It may be more analysis than the episode deserves, but the character moments and interaction between Mitchell and Vala were what made the episode watchable, and I love the way you've laid out all of those pieces--Vala rootless, Mitchell maybe a little too rooted in other people's expectations, and both of them a little freed of that pattern by the presence of the other.
And thank you for the birthday wishes!
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 08:53 pm (UTC)I'm far too invested in Mitchell and Vala, but they just shine so brightly for me in terms of what they bring to their roles and to their interaction with everyone around them. And I was just so pleased with how well they played with each other, how they set up this dynamic that was a mix of antagonism and frienship and a little bit of sexual attraction and a little bit of push/pull hierarchy.
I just think there's a lot of interesting possibility there for interaction that defies the traditional expectations.
And you're welcome! I hope you had a lovely birthday.
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 10:10 pm (UTC)OMG YES. Like burning. The... the... the armour! and the fur! and... basically, I am speechless.
I am still a little sad that we aren't getting a two-man triumvirate, because that would have been really, really funny. But Lepidus is pretty inconsequential anyway.
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 10:35 pm (UTC)I'd always found him to be yummy, but the whole rugged manliess in Gaul think sort of melted my brain!! I made M. go back and rewind more than once because GAH!
I am still a little sad that we aren't getting a two-man triumvirate, because that would have been really, really funny
Hee. Dude, I know. I kept chanting TRIUMVIRATE at the TV until M. yelled at me to shut up. And considering all I remember about Lepidus is that he's the third, I was pretty pleased with this sort of bone dry version who I kind of liked. Because when you're caught up in the war of egos and penis posturing that is Antony and Octavian, what else're you gonna do but sit back and try not to get killed.
I have a strange, strange fondness for later Octavian because I like how absolutely brilliant he is in forcing his agenda, in making it part of his propoganda - visual, written, everything, and I like how they're giving him presence, making him the kind of brilliant creepy dude that he was. But the moment when he stood on the dias and announced himself Caesar, looking straight at Cicero, I got shivers.
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 10:16 pm (UTC)Also, this totally confirmed to me that they're having sex. Yeah, I don't know how exactly that works, but they are. *nods*
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 10:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 09:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 10:59 pm (UTC)Obviously, I adore Ben Browder, but I also adore Vala so, so, so much! Just so much! I enjoyed your analysis of the ep, as it's much more coherent than what I could come up with. Which is basically, "And she fed him pie!."
no subject
Date: 2007-02-12 11:09 pm (UTC)This ep, with other actors? Would have been a nightmare. As it was, it was silly and charming and I kind of loved it.
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 01:09 am (UTC)So pic spam in your LJ. Click on the thumbnails for bigger images...
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 06:02 pm (UTC)I think I may need to make the Vala with wheat stalk an icon.
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 01:59 am (UTC)Vala is so beautifully self-centered, isn't she? "They're obviously here for me me", the way she's so pleased with Darrell's flattery of her, her utterly unself-conscious wearing of that Daisy Duke get up (i wonder if the commentary will tell us that Claudia did NOT want to wear that, much the way she fought the mid-riff in Back and Back and BAck to the Future).
Cam's "wait in the car!" just cracked me up
Cute little bland, blond or Vala Mal Doran...you decide...
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 04:53 am (UTC)But, my favorite part was when he shouted "Go wait in the car." Followed by her "Move it!"
Hee! So much Ben and Claudia goodness. And, boy, did they look hot!
seva
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 07:27 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 06:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 06:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-14 01:36 am (UTC)I should just spontaneously combust from all the hotness!
So coherent and adult of me.
(for the record, the answer is Vala Mal Doran, not bland blond...)
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 06:03 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-14 01:44 am (UTC)I loved that line! More, more, more Cam and Vala!
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 01:14 pm (UTC)Cam and Vala were handsome and cute as hell. Of course she instantly finds the hook in insurance! I loved Cam's friend, who kept missing the bottles, and Vala making it look easy.
And let's see - Cam likes nice girls, the episode's in Kansas (I thought he was from Tennessee), he's got a blond mom now instead a brunette, and he hooks up with an old flame. I loved the way he tripped over the chair. As you say, Ben Browder knows how to wear a suit so that it accents him, rather than awkwardly trapping the wearer.
I've watched only the first part of Rome 2.05, so can't read that part of your post yet.
Thank you for the birthday wishes, however belated. ((((Thea))))
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 06:08 pm (UTC)And happy birthday again dear. I hope the upcoming year is fabulous!
no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 10:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-13 10:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-02-14 07:29 pm (UTC)