My .2 cents about the Heroes flip-flop

I was thinking about this whole Heroes "Is Zach gay?" for a bit. I like Zach a lot, whether he's a gay or straight character. I'll admit, my first interpretation of him was that he was just a standard geek sort with a crush on Claire. Then I read the interview with one of the producers which stated he was gay.

My first reaction was "Really, well...huh." The more I thought about it, the more I liked it though. It's so rare to see a gay character on television that's not really defined by his sexuality. People are more than their sexual partners, after all. Besides, genuine platonic male-female friendships tend to be incredibly rare on television and I was looking forward to the idea that Zach and Claire were definitely not going to hook up, at least unless she found a secondary mutation that turned her into a guy.

That said, I'm not at all surprised that the character was rewritten as straight. I'm ignoring all the background gossip and explanations offered, really, as I have my own theory for why Zach's concept changed.

Peter Petrelli.

Ever since Peter came to rescue Claire and had that impossibly cute "It gets better" scene in the high school, it seems like a lot of people have started picking up on a chemistry between the two characters. It's to the point that it even comes up in interviews. Personally, I don't see the couple at all (the chemistry feels platonic to me) but I can see where others would start to pick up on it. Heck, it wasn't THAT long ago that Milo Ventimiglia was still playing high school students himself.

So far, there's no sign that the creators are going to make it a romantic pairing. Every interview question I've seen answers with a sharp "Not going to happen". Still, the idea is very popular. The problem is though that previous roles aside, Peter Petrelli is definitely not a teenager. Claire, and more importantly, her actress IS. I think, even if a romantic pairing is on the horizon in the future, they would certainly shy away from it until the character is at least out of high school. (Not to mention, Peter is set up as one of the moral cornerstones of the show. Someone who believes in being good and helping other people for its own sake. It would look very strange for a character like that to turn around and date a young girl still in high school.)

What's the alternative though? People are always going to push for romantic hints and sappy idiotic teenage emotions are pretty much inevitable. And Heroes's pace and structure doesn't really allow for brand new characters to be introduced at the drop of the hat. And Peter is possibly the youngest male of the main cast, so there isn't really any help there.

But there is another option. Zach (who I doubt is gone for good...yet anyway) is witty, appealing, faithful and a very good friend. She can trust him and she interacts well with him. And really, for all the little hints about his sexuality, nothing's been confirmed. The hints can be read different ways, after all. And suddenly Claire has a possible relationship with someone her own age.

I'm sure the behind the scenes stuff is the real reason for the change over, but I wouldn't be surprised if this did end up factoring in on the decision. I'm hoping it is, actually, because that would mean there's a higher possibility of introducing a new, confirmed gay character in time.

How about the new character that apparently Christopher Eccleston is going to play? That'd be really neat!

Quick Update

The responses to this post really went a long way in making me feel better. Thanks guys!

Anyway, as an update, my co-worker is doing well. She's got a bad case of bronchitis and is taking it easy. So all is well! And the genuine niceness of my customers since has helped a lot too.

So personal crisis averted, faith in humanity restored, and most importantly my co-worker is doing okay! :-)

NaNoWriMo Finale Post.

:-) Two days late, but there you go.

Anyway, since Chuck asked, I figured I should update on my progress...which is miserable.

As expected, I didn't end up managing to make the challenge. I did end up finishing up at a comfortable, if not respectable 20,000.

Even though I've lost the challenge, I feel pretty accomplished by my results anyway. I really feel like the project is starting to come together. So I'm giving myself an extension on my novel. My current goal is to have all 50,000 words written by the New Year.

It needs some revision (read: much much revision) to be readable, but I may end up posting some excerpts. Maybe. :-) Probably not. :-)

Anyway, my revised goal is set! The remaining 30,000 words by New Years! Wish me luck!

Misanthropy Rising...(Non-Comic Rant)

This is not normally the sort of post I would make here at PFP. I usually keep personal matters over at my never-updated Livejournal and save this blog for more interesting and fun things like comics and television. But I've been thinking for quite a while and I honestly can't bring myself to blog about comics today.

I'm too disgusted with humanity right now.

I work at a toy store. That's my preamble. I genuinely like it. Even during season, even when I clumsily make all sorts of trouble because I can be a real ham-handed ditz sometimes. People on a whole tend to be nice, if frustrated and rushed, and there's something uplifting to help people find things to make the kids in their lives happy.

Even with the seventieth repetition of "No, we don't have any Wiis/Playstation 3s/Tickle Me Elmo/Kidtough Cameras in stock. We're all sold out."

I mean sure there are mild irritations consisting of things like "So can you go INTO the delivery truck and find this toy I want?" (answer = no, there's a long process for new arrivals. You have to wait until tomorrow. Deal with it) or "Even though I've already left my name and number to call when product A is in stock, I'm calling to find out if product A is in stock." (answer = no, you're on a LIST. WE WILL CALL YOU)

But they're minor. And even a little funny. The guy who needed the cops called on him because he wouldn't leave, ranting that we were hoarding PS3s was less funny, but it was an isolated incident.

Yesterday though, I saw a side of people that I really didn't like. It wasn't the manic batshit crazy "I NEED THIS TOY NOW AND YOU HAVE TO GET IT FOR ME!!!" side, I work in a toy store, I can deal with that. This was something else. It even happened *after* work technically.

I got off work at 5:30 and headed into the back to grab my coat, purse, et cetera. Well, I found something very unpleasant. My poor co-worker was sitting in the break room, looking positively dreadful, gasping for breath and coughing fluid from her lungs. She didn't have insurance so she wasn't going to call for an ambulance, but her physician on the phone did convince her to go to Urgent Care. With good reason, by this point her chest was hurting and her arms tingling. NOT a good sign. She was in agony.

My co-workers were horrified and worried. I was having my roommate pick me up from work anyway, so I offered her a ride to the place if she couldn't get in touch with her boyfriend. So we headed out to wait in the enclosed cart area at the front of the store. (My awesome co-workers didn't even make us sign out, human compassion: 1 bureaucratic red tape: 0)

So we were waiting in the indoor cart area. She DID ultimately get in touch with her boyfriend and understandably preferred to go with him. But she was genuinely scared and my roommate hadn't arrived yet so I decided to wait with her.

In the meantime, the store's still open. Customers are walking past us to get into the store as well as to leave. My co-worker is gasping for breath and moaning in very audible pain and you know? Not a single person stopped to ask if she was okay!

Not one!

I'm not saying I expect someone to drop everything and go all Florence Nightingale on us, but a simple expression of concern would be appreciated! It wouldn't take much for a "Are you okay?" I know no one wants to get involved in these things but heck, an offer to call for an ambulance (or get the people inside to) would have gone a long way, even if she would have refused it.

And to the middle-aged couple that rubbernecked by us, pausing to stare, give us dirty looks and march into the store without a word: Fuck you! You can pause to gape but you can't say anything? And what the hell was that glare? I'm pretty sure my collegue's gasping for air is NOT meant to ruin your shopping trip.

And to the lady bringing back her cart, we appreciate you not leaving that in the parking lot. But honestly, taking one look at us and the long line of carts and then rolling the cart AT US?! Fuck you, too. I hope you never find that toy Junior needs so preciously! It's pretty fucking easy to put back a cart and having a red shirt doesn't make us your slaves. Especially not when there's a serious blooming EMERGENCY going on.

I don't get it. I seriously don't. To me, the toy store is a place where I actually try to be on reasonably good behavior and manners. Even if no kids are around to watch me right then, the store makes me think of kids and the kind of impression I want to give them. I could only imagine what they'd get from that callous dismissiveness toward someone obviously suffering. Clearly no one should let concern for other people get in the way of what they want.

Fuck. Fuck-fuck-fuck. I've had bad days at work before. But this was something else. Thank god I have today off, because I really don't want to have to go back in that store and face those people, smile and take their shit for a measely seven-something an hour. Maybe it's not fair, but right now I can't think of my customers without seeing those people. The countless who just walked by. Cart-lady. Glaring couple. I don't want to help them. I don't want to look at them. I want them to fuck off to some lost forgotten slime-infested bog where they can be with their own kind.

Merry fucking Christmas.

My thoughts on Heroes, revisited (vague spoilers)

As of last week, the first major plot-arc of Heroes completed and I have to say that I've enjoyed it a lot. I genuinely think this is a very good show and I absolutely adore what they've done with most of the characters. I've collected my thoughts on the series thus far, below. (Some spoilers below)

Peter Petrelli: In the first few episodes, he annoyed the heck out of me. I've never really been drawn to the whiny, emo, over-sensitive characters and he has those qualities in spades. If you would have told me that by the end of the first story arc, he would have shot up to become my favorite of the cast, I would have laughed in your face. And yet...he did.

Really, the turn-around for me started when he got the future visitation in the subway. Up until that point, the character had seemed to be floundering, grasping at any sort of purpose to his life beyond the job that, while noble and altruistic, wasn't making him happy. However, once he had that purpose, I really started to like him. He didn't just sit around and angst, he got up off his ass and did stuff. I may not be much for whiny characters, but I tend to adore the characters that coordinate and keep everything together. His scenes with Isaac were definitely some of his best. And of course, facing certain death to try to save some girl he didn't know, without any sort of *useful* powers...that's pretty much THE definition of heroism in my book.

Besides, I like his power. It's neat.

Claire Bennett: The last episode of the arc pretty much cemented Claire as my second favorite character. Who didn't cheer when she punched that little bitch? I like her a lot as a young character, still growing and learning.

I never hated the attempted-rape as much as some. Claire is not a character that can be hurt in the standard manner, there needs to be a psychological element. Also, her revenge against the football player went a long way in redeeming it. Because as much as revenge for herself played a big part in her motivation, so did revenge for his other victim and the desire to prevent him from attacking someone else. Female characters tend to become heroes as a reaction to their own traumas, rape being commonly used. In contrast, male characters tend to become heroes to protect/avenge others. In this case, I found Claire's motivation to be refreshingly more "male" than stereotypically female. (I do think that both female characters being assaulted is a bit much, but Niki's assault seemed much more gratuitous and unnecessary to me than Claire's)

I don't even mind the "Save the Cheerleader...Save the World" theme, as I'm pretty sure that she's going to have a very active role in the world-saving part now that she's out of danger. With her powers, how can she not?

And I love Zack. He's a great sidekick.

Nathan Petrelli: He's an ass, but such fun! And I do think a lot of what he does is part of a misguided attempt to protect his family. He's never struck me as particularly villainous. Besides, who *didn't* cheer when he took over in the air?

Hiro Nakamura: I have to shamefully admit, Hiro does absolutely nothing for me as a character by now. He's cute and geeky, but honestly he's like cotton candy. There's no real substance there, yet. I do enjoy his enthusiasm and earnest desire to help, but he needs more direction right now. I'm hoping when he finally joins up with Peter and the others, that'll help with that. Right now, though, his schtick is getting old. I hope they are letting him evolve into something new.

I am liking Ando though, he's gotten a lot of growth lately.

Matt (whose last name I can't remember): He's a bit of a sad-sack, but I like him. I wonder if he and the blond lady will be called in to deal with the fallout from the end of the story-arc. I hope so. Right now, he's kind of like Mohinder for me: a character I find very appealing trapped in a godawful rut of a storyline.

However I do like that the pre-requisite fainting psychic is a man. :-)

Mohinder Suresh: Egads! Will you let his storyline start moving again soon, NBC?!?! I know intellectually his actions make sense. A lot of stuff happened in a very short time for him, with a lot of setbacks and humiliations and he's got the hapless exposition role anyway. But damnit. I really like him as a character. I like his wry humor and his flirtation with Eden (spy chick) and even his jumpy paranoia. And it doesn't hurt that he's damn pretty to look at. It's just since he got to India, his storyline's been a black hole of boredom. Bring him back to the states please.

I also think it might help if he developed powers of his own too. I keep anticipating that he might. Especially since the role I'd initially expected for him (coordinator/keeps-things-together man) has gone more to Peter instead. Besides, there should be more international/global heroes.

Niki: I hate to say it, but I find Niki incredibly tedious. Stripper with a heart of gold? Beleaguered single mother? Victim of her own (or someone else's) dark side? Whatever. Honestly, the woman wreaks of all the traits I find really annoying in standard female characters. She's such a standard, cliched heroine. Which is a shame because Jessica/Evil Niki is such a blast. The actress really seems to be having fun with that role.

I honestly think it's the Niki character's fault the show has a bad wrap for treatment of female characters. Claire is such a good character. Her assault, though still a little cliche had a point. Niki's really didn't. The mobsters could have easily just threatened to beat her (no bed involved) or threatened the kid and Evil Niki would have had their asses anyway. And the stripping really didn't add any sort of point to the character aside from a pointless interlude with Ando.

So down with Niki, up with Evil!Niki! Micah is cute though and DL has promise.

Bennett: Okay, I love sinister glasses-wearing guys. He's no exception. I love how he manages to be both vaguely or not so vaguely evil while still being a genuinely concerned father. He loves his daughter and, like any good dad, wants to protect her. And somehow that doesn't humanize him at all. I love it!

Eden's pretty interesting too and I want to know more about their operation.

Isaac: I want to like him. He's certainly nice to look at, but he's been terribly stagnant so far. I did like his interactions with Peter though, when he actively started getting involved with helping save the world.

So there we go. In general, I'm happy with the show. My favorite character was the one who annoyed me the most in the beginning, and that's very rare for me. I usually know who I like best from episode one. I like the plots, most of the episodes manage to surprise me somewhere along the way. The acting's decent.

But I still want them to let Mohinder do SOMETHING DAMNIT.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, it's a day late, but I decided to do my Happy Thanksgiving post on Friday instead.

Mostly because I need the good will to brace myself for a 5 AM Black Friday shift!

So what am I thankful for?

I'm thankful for the continued health and well-being of my family and friends.

I'm thankful for my job, as much as I'm dreading today, it's really nice to have work. Especially work I actually enjoy.

I'm thankful for NaNoWriMo, because even though I'm not likely to finish, it's still a rewarding experience.

I'm thankful for my hobby. There are a lot of problems that can't be denied, but I truly believe there's something great and amazing about superhero comics that makes them worth the fight to fix them.

I'm thankful for my column and especially my blog. I've been having a lot of fun with them and they've let me "meet" a lot of great people. Love you guys!

Now that I'm all warm and good spirited, I'm off to work! So have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

And please be nice to your friendly retail workers on this Black Friday! We don't get hazard pay! :-)

November sucks.

As it turns out, there's something I never considered when signing up for NaNoWriMo this month. NaNoWriMo is in November (obviously), and I work in a toy store.

Working in a toy store during November is fun, but it's also insane and life-sucking. It makes it pretty damned hard to sit down after shift and focus on writing a novel.

I'm not giving up, mind you, but I do have to consider the unpleasant fact that I'm already considerably behind and I'm heading into Thanksgiving week and Black Friday. And I work in a Toy Store.

So it's looking more and more likely I won't finish on time.

I AM going to finish. This is the most I've gotten on paper for any one single project and I intend to see it through. I just have to consider the fact that I may need to see it through during December as well.

Still aiming for the 30th though. :-) But I'm sulky too. Why couldn't NaNoWriMo have been during my nice long summer of unemployment? Or in a month that isn't filled with batshit crazy parents/grandparents frantically searching for toys to make Junior happy for one day out of the year than tossed aside once something newer and shinier enters the picture?

:-) Sorry, I'm whining. I love my job and I love to write. It's just a bit of inconvenient timing making me feel sorry for myself. :-)

Decisions...

Okay, so this Blogger Beta thing's been around for a while now and I've been toying with the idea of changing PFP over.

I do like the idea of being able to tag all my posts. But I'm leery of change and set in my ways. I don't trust these new-fangled thingamabobs.

But it does sound kind of nifty. So what I'd like to know, from you folks who've made the switch already, is what's it like? Are there major downsides? What are some of the advantages?

Tell me what it's like? Is it worth switching over?

A Moment of Surreality:

I'm taking a break from my first day of nervewracking NaNoWriMo writing to announce that my main character has somehow turned into a noirish Guy Gardner.

This is unnerving and I wish it would stop.

That is all...

Wait, Wait, WHAT?

According to this person, there is a book in the Dresden Files that has Harry riding an undead dinosaur.

Harry Dresden rides an undead dinosaur.

An UNDEAD DINOSAUR.

As in a DINOSAUR THAT IS UNDEAD. A ZOMBIE DINOSAUR.

Dude. The only way that could be better is if it's a nazi dinosaur too. (Or if it was resurrected and ridden by a nazi first, I'm not picky.

There's a Zombie Dinosaur.

Okay, there goes my good intentions of not getting sucked into a new series. I HAVE to read it now.

Curse My Weak Will:

Yeah, yeah.

I'm a tagalong.

It's all her fault.

Shut up.

Stupid writing ambition.

This is going to kill me.

Seriously.

Dead.

One dead Kalinara.

I hate you all.

Okay. I probably don't.

But yeah. Dead.

Dead, dead, dead.

Doorknob dead.

How do I get myself into these things?

Heroes

This monday the second half of the Heroes premiere will air. I'm looking forward to it. I managed to catch the first half last week and while it's no JLA Pilot (We Were Robbed not getting that as a show), it's okay.

Started off terribly slow, but there were a few twists later that genuinely surprised me. The ending made me go "Whoa".

I've heard actually some complaints about the female characters. One is a cheerleader, frequently in uniform, one is an Internet stripper/single mom. In some sense I see what they're saying, but in the other sense, I think they may be being a little hasty. It's the first half of the first episode after all.

The stripper lady IS pretty cliched down to the uncontrollable, violent power. But the cheerleader really doesn't seem to be the same. She's in uniform because her scenes tend to take place during the day. I admit, I personally hadn't noticed, being too distracted of her pushing her bones back in.

Stripper lady is a martyr doing everything for her son, but the cheerleader is shallow, whiny and very very teenaged. It's not necessarily a pleasant look at adolescence, but it's pretty accurate. I like her so far.

I don't know what to make of tragic painter/heroin addict guy. He's attractive but he seems like he could get old real fast.

Of the two brothers I found the jerky politician brother more interesting than the nurse. But hey, nurse might be pretty but he can't quite match Adrian Pasdar. Besides, I think their family dynamic is more layered than immediately obvious.

Hiro is darling. Genuine enthusiasm!

I think the Kitty Pryde mistake was intentional on the part of the writers. Think about it! What do geeks love most? One-upping people with our geek expertise. So if you can get a thousand geeks to feel superiour watching your show they might come back!

I'd totally do that.

Where are the villains though? Aside from that one guy...and Lex Luthor he isn't.

Well. I'll watch for at least another week. :-)

A Note:

Now, I don't know if anyone's been following the kerfluffle over at Ragnell's blog lately. I've personally stayed out of the argument, there were some personal events last week that left me without the spirit for a nice argument.

It's definitely interesting.

However as a result of these events, certain accusations were made that I simply can not stay quiet about.

The people over at Ragnell's blog are NOT sycophants. You know how I know? Because I am her only sycophant. I worked too damn hard to get this cushy job to share it with the rest of you wannabes!

Hmph.

(On a more serious note, I find it interesting how the accusations of "sycophant" seem to come only after being on the minority side of an argument. When they're being agreed with, the accusation never comes up. Funny how that works.)