TV Show Meme! Day 21!

I had a very excellent birthday, y'all! One of the things I did was spend a few hours before bedtime copyediting. Perhaps that seems strange to you, but if so I suppose you have never seen the beauty in a page with marked up em-dashes. I find marking up a manuscript for typesetting exceedingly satisfying. And now I get to go back through and make lists! Words that are hyphenated! Words that are used in a non-standard way! Words that are not English! Character names and nicknames! It is like my birthday is extended a few days, and also I'm getting paid!

(Hey, I don't make fun of the things that make you happy.)

Day 21 - Favorite ship

I assume this is a fannish 'ship -- meaning relationship -- and not my favorite boat. Obviously my favorite television boat is the Enterprise -- NCC1701-E. (HOLLA.)

I don't have a favorite tv relationship. I know, I know, I am super difficult about everything all the time. I also don't have a "one true pairing" -- you'll never find me in what fandom has affectionately nicknamed "ship wars," fighting about whether it should be Ron and Hermione or Hermione and Harry or Harry and Ron at the end of all things. (FTLOG, people, just have a threesome! It's not that hard!)

But I do enjoy some TV pairings. The intense D/s relationship between Peter and Neal on White Collar; the great, deep friendship between Cagney and Lacey on Cagney & Lacey; the antagonism and disappointment of Toby and the President on The West Wing; the seething hatred of Anna and Sydney on Alias; the suspense and neediness of Michael and Nikita on La Femme Nikita; the exasperated tolerance of Adam and Jamie on Mythbusters...

My least favorite pairing -- possibly of all time -- is Buffy and Angel. I know, I know, blasphemy. (I also hate Bella/Edward! I'm the worst!!) I find vampire/human relationships pretty creepy in general, actually. I am also not a big fan of relationships that have severe power imbalances built in -- teacher/student, boss/employee, mentor/mentee, doctor/patient, most popular/geekiest nerd, guard/prisoner, owner/slave... I find it very squicky and uncomfortable.

I'm not saying these relationships should never happen (or be role played!) in real life or in fiction, but for me it is a careful negotiation between a creepster taking advantage and two people genuinely desiring each other and finding an equal place to meet, and most writers -- of television shows, books, whatever -- don't have the time and/or skill and/or deft touch to write it in a way that I'm comfortable with.

(Hey, I've totally done most popular/geekiest nerd in real life. Guess which one was me!)



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