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1. The Australian Channel Ten ads for Women's Murder Club make me furious. Some bullshit about 'the murder show with legs' and calling them chicks, and the image at the end of the commercial is a pair of women's legs. One of them says that the coroner 'seems like an ordinary housewife' (!!) and then suggests she somehow isn't a good wife and mother because she comments on a corpse's bikini wax. All the ads end with 'the best way to catch a man is with a woman', by which stage I've usually flicked to another channel because I can no longer take the bullshit I'm hearing. I can't even count the number of things wrong with what the ads are saying. The concept is somewhat offensive to begin with; that if you've got four women in various law-related professions it's something worth making a big deal out of, that they're automatically sexualised just because they're women; but the ads make it so much worse.
2. The episode of NCIS that aired tonight (and had Mama Petrelli and the Yellow-Eyed Demon in it, so yay!fandom collision anyway) had a character that transitioned from a man to a woman. (Sorry if that spoiled anyone, but it's kind of important for my rant, and this was a very old episode.) The reasons for the transition weren't exactly kosher, but even with that the concept was handled so appallingly that by the end of the episode I hated everyone except McGee, who probably only didn't offend me because he didn't get a chance to talk about it. Everyone referred to her as him, stating 'she's a he!' several times. DiNozzo kissed the woman, not knowing who she was, and then Cate said 'what does it feel like to have a man's tongue down your throat?' (or something to that effect.) Even Abby said the idea of having your 'plumbing turned inside out' was icky. Any discussion of actual trans people was thrown out the window, it was awful.
I told my sister about it and she floored me by responding that they were right, it is gross, and that trans people 'should just get over it and be what they're born.' At first I tried to talk to her about it (probably somewhat angrily, admittedly, since I was completely shocked) but then she screamed about me about how it was her opinion and just because it was different to mine didn't give me a right to argue with her about it and how she didn't care about my 'fucking opinion'. I had to leave the room, I was so shocked and angry. It's probably just ignorance and she doesn't actually know much about it, but the fact that she could be dismissive of someone else's experiences like that floored me. I mean, the fact that anyone can say summarily that this doesn't exist without experiencing it themselves is like...men commenting on childbirth, something I can't abide in the first place. Basing an opinion on the fact that it gives you a squicky feeling rather than any actual fact is just lazy and stupid. AUGH. SO ANGRY.
On a related note, last night I saw Orlando
I didn't enjoy it much as a film - the soundtrack grated on me so much, I hate that weird airy organ/synth sound, and I found it at times preposterously pretentious. (Alliteration rules.) Where it did have interesting things to say was on the subject of gender (although that was by turns obtuse and overstated.) Everyone acts with a certain detached coldness, which suits Tilda Swinton, who really warms up right at the end enough to make the character's journey work, but it doesn't make sense for a lot of the characters.
Anyway, Orlando lives the first part of his life as a man and the second as a woman (the change just...sort of happens, and the she's all 'exactly the same person, just a different sex') and sees the world from both perspectives. I really got into it during a scene just after the change, when Orlando is with a bunch of men in the 1800's who are discussing women in varied but equally sexist ways and Orlando realises she used to do the same, but is sort of stunned to discover what that's actually like as a woman. She finds both financial ruin and freedom as a woman, which is kind of fun, and there's a lot of sarcasm to earlier moments such as Orlando and a friend toasting to the male virtues of 'loyalty and courage' with Tilda playing the role. Still, overwrought and too busy being arty to say anything interesting a lot of the time.
2.5 out of 5
Green Queen
2. The episode of NCIS that aired tonight (and had Mama Petrelli and the Yellow-Eyed Demon in it, so yay!fandom collision anyway) had a character that transitioned from a man to a woman. (Sorry if that spoiled anyone, but it's kind of important for my rant, and this was a very old episode.) The reasons for the transition weren't exactly kosher, but even with that the concept was handled so appallingly that by the end of the episode I hated everyone except McGee, who probably only didn't offend me because he didn't get a chance to talk about it. Everyone referred to her as him, stating 'she's a he!' several times. DiNozzo kissed the woman, not knowing who she was, and then Cate said 'what does it feel like to have a man's tongue down your throat?' (or something to that effect.) Even Abby said the idea of having your 'plumbing turned inside out' was icky. Any discussion of actual trans people was thrown out the window, it was awful.
I told my sister about it and she floored me by responding that they were right, it is gross, and that trans people 'should just get over it and be what they're born.' At first I tried to talk to her about it (probably somewhat angrily, admittedly, since I was completely shocked) but then she screamed about me about how it was her opinion and just because it was different to mine didn't give me a right to argue with her about it and how she didn't care about my 'fucking opinion'. I had to leave the room, I was so shocked and angry. It's probably just ignorance and she doesn't actually know much about it, but the fact that she could be dismissive of someone else's experiences like that floored me. I mean, the fact that anyone can say summarily that this doesn't exist without experiencing it themselves is like...men commenting on childbirth, something I can't abide in the first place. Basing an opinion on the fact that it gives you a squicky feeling rather than any actual fact is just lazy and stupid. AUGH. SO ANGRY.
On a related note, last night I saw Orlando
I didn't enjoy it much as a film - the soundtrack grated on me so much, I hate that weird airy organ/synth sound, and I found it at times preposterously pretentious. (Alliteration rules.) Where it did have interesting things to say was on the subject of gender (although that was by turns obtuse and overstated.) Everyone acts with a certain detached coldness, which suits Tilda Swinton, who really warms up right at the end enough to make the character's journey work, but it doesn't make sense for a lot of the characters.
Anyway, Orlando lives the first part of his life as a man and the second as a woman (the change just...sort of happens, and the she's all 'exactly the same person, just a different sex') and sees the world from both perspectives. I really got into it during a scene just after the change, when Orlando is with a bunch of men in the 1800's who are discussing women in varied but equally sexist ways and Orlando realises she used to do the same, but is sort of stunned to discover what that's actually like as a woman. She finds both financial ruin and freedom as a woman, which is kind of fun, and there's a lot of sarcasm to earlier moments such as Orlando and a friend toasting to the male virtues of 'loyalty and courage' with Tilda playing the role. Still, overwrought and too busy being arty to say anything interesting a lot of the time.
2.5 out of 5
Green Queen
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Yay Tilda Swinton!
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Tilda Swinton rocks my cottons.
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Still, I understand. It's like trying to talk about gays and slashy things in front of detectives. They're ALL homophobic, man. Oof.
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AMEN!
-straight girl from California!
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the first one - that commercial has been driving me crazy for the same reasons! stupid! lame! gah! *fumes* i hope the tv show crashes and burns!
annnd, as i was reading the second one i was thinking, but surely abby wouldn't have said anything negative... the fact that she did is ridiculous, that's completely out of character for her and the writers should have taken that into account!
i frequently am shocked and saddened by my family (and occasionally close friends) when they announce an opinion that i find absurd, the most recent was "i can't help it, it just seems unnatural for a gay couple to have children!" *sighs* people suck so bad some times >_
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Yeah, having Abby, of all people, say something like that was just disgusting. Even if the writers don't agree (clearly that was the case) they should at least provide an alternate view from an alternate girl.
I've at least gotten most of my family to the point where if they have an opinion like that, they don't dare mention it around me. LOL.
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