Worlds Enough and Time

OLIIIIIIVIA!!!!


( Does that feel familiar? Two people who look exactly alike? )

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Fringe continues to be the show of my heart. I love how it tells its story. Sure sometimes it meanders of the mytharc but it tells the story it wants to tell and asks all the right questions without trying to paint its main character in a Male Gaze-y point of view. I love that it addresses the abuse, shows its effects on all the characters and while that lovable kooky man is lovable the narrative never, ever makes me feel that Olivia is wrong to be angry at Walter. Ever.

And, just, this whole show! ♥

( Fringe season 3 promo! )

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I'm stuck in season 1 Legend of the Seeker because of my defective disk. I have to exchange the disks soon, I really want to watch more of LoTS! It really is refreshing to see this fandom more focused on its female characters! It's refreshing!

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My aunt watched Salt and loved it! She agrees that the moves are far, far better than the trailer!

I knew I liked Charlie Francis for a reason! Turns out we share a birthday!

( Spoilery image for season 2 )


-/-


There are some awesome people with fantastic Fringe meta out there (although, not as much as I want to) let's start with the basics first:

beccatoria has a wonderful and comprehensive Fringe rec post complete with video clips!

ignipes has a great meta on Olivia Dunham and why she is awesome.

She also has a wonderful description of Olivia:

imyriadbits is exactly right about Olivia not being immediately accessible, not in the way we usually see main female characters in TV shows being presented. She's so very serious, and we only see her lighter, more joyful and playful moments rarely (usually with Ella and Rachel, occasionally with Peter). She comes across as very stoic, but it's the kind of stoicism that's marred by ever-widening cracks that let her incredible grief and anger out (and, hoo boy, does she have good reasons to be grieving and furious), to the point where there are times she's wound so tight and carrying so many burdens it's a wonder she doesn't break.

Then sometimes she does - she breaks down, she cries, she loses her temper, she lashes out, she makes ill-advised decisions out of desperation and fear.* It can be heartbreaking to watch because, seriously! Olivia! You don't have to carry the burden of THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE on your shoulders! But the show doesn't pull any punches, so she keeps carrying all those burdens, and we keep watching because we love her.

Vid Rec:

Etheric Messages by thuviaptarth
Summary: The recruitment of Olivia Dunham.

This has been recced everywhere but I must rec it again because its so good!

There's a Fringe rewatch community starting on June 21 come and join!


(click image)

Speaking of rewatching... I tried reading the TWOP recaps of Fringe and boy, was that a mistake. It's not that the recaps aren't bad its that... I get the sense they don't appreciate Olivia all that much and they keep using words that don't suit a scene like, when Broyles congratulates Olivia for a job well done and Olivia immediately says, 'It was the whole team.' or something like that the recapper uses the word: grumbles. Grumbles. Really recapper? Grumbles???

Olivia wasn't grumbling or whining or whatever words you keep using, she genuinely felt like she doesn't deserve getting the praise Broyles heaped on her, especially when there's a team who supported her during that case.

*gnashes teeth*

That's the last time I'll visit TWoP.

-/-

There's a 30 Day TV meme going around and while I couldn't participate due to my irregular schedule and the suspicion that I wouldn't be able to answer most of the questions I enjoy reading about them.

aj recently answered the Day 11 question: 'A show that disappointed you' and her answer was Life.

And, oh, I was right there with her because this was one show that really broke my heart.

I'm just gonna quote her wholesale here:

But I have to say that season 2? Really kind of crushed me. Partially because (I'm pretty sure due to studio interference) it took a lot of the small, quiet things that I absolutely adored about season one (Dani's hair and wardrobe, the internal emotional continuity, the relatively not-batshit deaths, the cinematography, et al) and chucked them. Moreover, it honestly dumbed Dani down a lot, dicked Charlie and Jen around and then dropped the whole story line, and ramped up the ~weird~ deaths by a lot. Still, I think the worst part about the whole season is that I couldn't entirely dismiss it. Because whenever I turned my head away and just couldn't take it anymore, the damn show did something awesome or pulled itself back to season one. "Did You Feel That?" was fucking hardcore, as was "Trapdoor".

That's it my whole frustration and heartbreak. It's hard to watch a show that started out so good and end up... end up what happened to Life's season 2. It's the reason why I've been so guarded about Fringe is because I live in perpetual fear that the showrunners would do to Olivia Dunham what happened to Dani Reese.

I have never loved a character as much as I've loved Dani Reese, she was fierce, strong, complicated and never easy. She had an even more complicated relationship with her Lieutenant, a woman who saved her life and career by pushing for rehab and who leaned on her to betray her partner. And that was the straw the camel's back because if there is something she won't do its betray her partner.

Then season 2 came around and-- *sigh* see above.

Then here comes Olivia Dunham and I don't think she'll ever dislodge Dani Reese from my heart because she was the first character I loved so fiercely (just like how other people loved Aeryn Sun and or Dana Scully) but I think Olivia's getting the spot right next to Reese with her stoicism, her strength of will and the ability to get up despite the incredible knocks life keep giving her.

And if you're thinking there's a Bound picspam some time this week then you're right:)