No, really, there doesn't.

[apocalypsos]

Dear people on the Top Chef TWoP boards,

The next person I see saying, "There's got to be a reason these people don't like Marcel," is getting sent back to freshman year of high school and being forced to relive all four years. Maybe THEN you'll remember that no, there doesn't. They can all just be asstards.

Sincerely,

This former dork right here

Comments

[strippedpink.livejournal.com]

OMG MUST SAVE YOU FROM THE TWOP.

(like I won't be there tomorrow night, BLINDING myself with the stupid)

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

*clings*

KEEP ME AWAY FROM THE CRAZY STUPID PEOPLE.

I have that Justin/Marc fic open in another window, damn it. Why am I not working on it?! Oh, that's right, because I'm too busy watching people call Marcel the devil incarnate for being awkward, dorky and socially inept.

*headdesk*

[abbylee]

There may very well be a "reason" why they don't like Marcel. But that doesn't mean it's a good one, and it definitely doesn't mean that he deserves it.

Stop reading the threads :p

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Amen to that. I do think it says a lot that his coworkers supported him and it looks like he's got two roommates who haven't smothered him in his sleep yet. I think the competition aspect's got a lot to do with it. I'm betting that in everyday life people DO consider him awkward and dorky and just let it slide, but when it's a competition and everybody's all anxious and on edge, it'll get to you.

But he definitely doesn't deserve it at ALL. He's not cheating, he's not sabotaging anybody else's meals, he helps plate and serve regardless of people's opinions of him. His only crime so far is apparently not keeping silent.

Still, the "Place Blame Here" shit is starting to get to me. I never tried to hurt or bother anyone in high school and I got a LOT of shit for nothing.

Stop reading the threads :p

I KNOW. *headdesk* Glutton for punishment -- that's me. :)

[harmonyfb.livejournal.com]

it looks like he's got two roommates who haven't smothered him in his sleep yet.

Yes, but they've got the same pretentious haircuts as him. ::nods wisely::

[ciara-belle.livejournal.com]

Marcel is a huge dork. I think that's why I like him. He rapped! He's awkward! I want to hug him.

People suck.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Oh, man. The things I want to do to Marcel. I like my guys dorky and silly. :)

[ladyophelia14.livejournal.com]

AMEN!

I haven't had so many frightening high school flashbacks since 'Never Been Kissed.' They're just picking on the lone antelope in the herd. Natural selection my pale Irish behind. No one deserves to be treated with scorn and disrespect.

Sincerely,
a concerned former(?) art geek.

[harmonyfb.livejournal.com]

To me, Marcel comes off as a total prick. That doesn't excuse some of the behavior the others aimed at him. And the juvenile last-minute 'let's complain about Marcel' thing? Jeebus Crackers, those people need to Grow. Up.

I'm appalled that Ilan is going instead of Sam, though - it's obvious that Sam is a much better cook (I'd say, from his performance throughout the competition, he's the best cook out of the whole bunch). I thought it was complete bullshit that they dismissed Sam's dishes with "he didn't cook anything". Dude, neither did Marcel (who is a one-trick foamy pony, imo).

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

I've never really disliked Marcel half as much as everybody else seems to. I might if he weren't harmless -- God knows he's not half as smug as Stephen ever was. And the foam thing ... he's only done it six or seven times out of how many dishes? Everybody gets on his case about the foams when Sam's made just as many cerviches, Betty kept making soups, and nearly every dish Ilan's made was Spanish just like Gail pointed out. The rest of them are right -- he has been in the bottom quite a lot, but he's like Dave. He got past by the skin of his teeth until suddenly he was in the final three. And apparently he realized, "This is where I have to bring my A-game," because he had a home run last night.

I know people consider him a prick, but honestly they've played up his worst moments to make him into a villain and they've been ... what, exactly? The worst thing he ever did (aside from hitting whomever was coming back to harass him some more after Cliff assaulted, and who can blame him there?) was ... stare at Betty. And make comments. And the thing with saying at JT that Sam hadn't led him all that much at the Hollywood party, and if it was like he said in his post-show interview and they made him do all the work and didn't give him any credit, I buy it as an act of frustration at that point. (And I believe it out of that team, too.)

That's his whole thing -- not knowing when to shut up. He doesn't fuck up anybody else's dishes, he cooks as well as he can, he helps other chefs plate and serve even when they've called him names, and he doesn't start shit with other people, they start shit with him. For the most part, it's mostly about his foot going directly into his mouth every damn time. It's the same kind of stuff I smack my brother upside the head for saying, usually while rolling my eyes and laughing at him.

I will admit I don't get why Ilan is going instead of Sam. I mean, I do -- they obviously care more about the drama than they do about the food, which saddens me. I want to watch a talent competition, not Ilan trying to get on Marcel's nerves for an hour next week.

I do think Sam should have stayed, although if he didn't cook anything I can buy it -- they'll jump on that shit in a heartbeat if the food's not good. I think the big problem with the show is that it's not like on Project Runway. You can't just watch and see clashing colors and jagged seams. You're missing a key part of the meal -- the taste. All we know is that it looks really good.

[strix-an-stones.livejournal.com]

Want a moment of sheer Internet geekery? I missed your heading, I don't always read them - I thought you were talking about Marcel Proust and I was sitting here nodding...

[septembergrrl.livejournal.com]

I'm going to piss you off and say I disagree. DO I think they're asstards? Yes. But I also don't believe large groups randomly dislike someone for NO reason, whether we're talking about 11-year-olds or 25-year-olds or 90-year-olds. It might be a stupid reason, but there's something there. (And yes, I was picked on when I was a kid, and yes, I think it was partially my fault.)

Personally? I can see where Marcel would grate on you. Which is not to say OMG LET'S SHAVE HIS HEAD, just that he does seem like kind of a twerp.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

I'd agree, but up until I left college I barely spoke at all to anyone and mostly just sat in a corner trying to read or study. I was painfully shy and had no social life ... I went to my room, I went to work, I went to class. That was it. Didn't bother anybody, didn't even talk much at all because I was so terrified of putting my foot in my mouth, didn't dress any different than anybody else or anything. And on and off through high school and during my first semester of my third year of college, I was harassed for no reason.

The semester of college was a particular joke, because I don't think I spoke to anyone for three straight months. I just stayed in my dorm room and studied and tried to salvage my sinking GPA, and I was getting nasty notes all over my dorm room door for months.

I mean, okay, yeah, in this situation Marcel's behavior could easily draw this sort of taunting. But I swear, I didn't even HAVE behaviors back then and people were being dicks to me.

[cocombat.livejournal.com]

*shrugs*

Sometimes it's group dynamics, and once someone gets scapegoated, that's it - it doesn't matter if there's more 'justified' targets.

I got picked on because, when I was 7, the city council decided to build a motorway through the top of my primary school. Schools population dropped by nearly 2/3rds, all my friends left, and I was one of only two girls in my combined class (something about sudden drop in socio-economic status made people pull their girls more than their boys... interesting, I guess).
The other girl was samoan, and hung out with the couple of other samoan girls younger than us, and, as I couldn't speak Samoan (uh, Talofa?) I was kind of excluded there.
In retrospect, it was a mostly timing thing. I was suddenly friendless in a time when most of the kids were probably stressed, yet most of the others had retained at least a half-assed reason to stick by someone else (church, family relations, neighbours etc), so - I got picked on.
And once I was the scapegoat, that was it. Kids were often nice to me in private, but not in public, not in front of other kids, because they didn't want to get picked on too. It wasn't just names and property damage and shit, I was getting hit & kicked, and - I should have just changed schools, would have been fine, but I was stubborn, and had the most stupid reason for staying. *sigh*
Not too bright.

Anyway. I ended up spending most of the next few years up a tree (out of range), reading books. My reading level jumped at least six years in one year. I wasn't bookish geek before that, but I was after.

Still, I had never, and have never, been bullied like that before or since, or even really had anyone be very mean to me.
High school, Uni, working, extended roadtrips - all completely fine.

So. Yeah.
I'm not one to underestimate the effect of stress and group dynamics, rather than any one person. :P