04-01-2015, 03:03 AM
(03-30-2015, 10:11 PM)devilbk Wrote: [ -> ]I just don't understand why you would create such marvelous characters in order to deconstruct and destroy them. It makes no sense to me.
This is it, in a nutshell. This is everything I could possibly say about the show, summed-up in one sentence. I don't see anyone here quibbling over minor plot-points or complaining *solely* because their ship isn't canon. It's bigger than that. This isn't just another case of "well, some fans want X to happen and others want Y."
These BBT characters were, and could have been, some of the most iconic and memorable sitcom characters of the past twenty or thirty years. I really believe that. The waste and the lost potential are the saddest part.
I could've tolerated a lot of minor disappointments and a lot of minorly bad decisions on the part of the writers, if the characters remained vibrant and dynamic and true to themselves. My expectations are not high. Nobody here is stomping their feet and going "I want things MY way!"
They've traded something fresh and original for a generic sitcom. It occurred to me today that this is nothing but the age-old "men are dumb, women are bitchy" schtick which has been a staple of comedies since radio and probably before. They've grafted that set of tropes on top of the old show.
That's why we feel so confused and distressed: they've taken the original characters and squeezed them into these archetype/stereotype roles which don't match their true personalities at all. Sheldon is especially ill-suited to such a dull and mundane position, maybe moreso than any other character before or since.
They haven't "developed" or "evolved" the characters; they've slotted them into these traditional sitcom stock-character roles which have nothing to do with their original personalities. If you want to get meta, it's like we're watching the actors play their characters, and then the characters in turn are playing *other* characters.*
This causes a lot of cognitive dissonance for Nostalgics and Purists. It's why we're always saying "But so-and-so wouldn't *do* that!" It's because TPTB have changed their plans mid-stream and we're watching these same familiar actors play Lazy Husband or Dumb Blonde or Wacky Neighbor.
Original Howard has some qualities that aren't admirable, but lazy and stupid are not among them.
Likewise, as Purists have stated, you don't get Sheldumb from Sheldon without some kind of brain damage or psychological breakdown.
There is no possible way that *these* characters could evolve from *those* characters. There is simply no way that someone watching Season 1 would predict the events of Season 8.
Thought experiment: imagine a scenario where something bad happened to those original characters and they *did* deteriorate. What would they be like? Well, I don't think Sheldon would be buffoonish and Howard would be lazy and parasitic, or submissive. Maybe Sheldon would become more reclusive and tic-ridden, maybe Howard would become more snide and nasty.
This is just speculation on my part. But even in a worst-case scenario, I don't think they'd be as dumb and helpless as they are now. Do you see what I mean? These are not the original characters minus the innocence and optimism. These are fundamentally different people.
*ETA: this part is a major breakthrough to me, I think. It's like when you paint a wall, covering-over the previous color, but you can still see hints of that previous color. It's not so much that TPTB have *changed* the characters, as that these "new" characters have been layered over the old ones, which is why you can still sometimes see glimpses of the old stuff. Maybe with Sheldon it's more complex or more severe than that, I don't know. But I think that's what's happening.