(no subject)

[apocalypsos]

Oh, you've got to be friggin' kidding me.

Look, I don't watch The Bold and the Beautiful, but my mother does, so I've always got a pretty good idea what's going on. But if I did, I would be pissed at what I just saw them do.

So all of the family members are in this room and Stephanie is complaining that their fashion lines give girls and women a negative body image because Brooke in her underwear is an unfair body to live up to (unfortunately, I can't argue that) and that Stephanie wants them to change the face of their fashion line to someone more realistic and natural ...

Taylor.

Insert your mocking laughter here.

For anybody who doesn't know, not only is the actress just as thin and beautiful as the one who plays Brooke, but she's also had more plastic surgery. I know damn well that it's probably just a big plot point to dig into Brooke (which wouldn't be a surprise, because about half of their storylines are about punishing Brooke for being a manipulative slut who falls in obsession love with anything in boxers at the drop of a hat), but it really fucking pissed me off. Stephanie's going on and on about realistic body image and how they're making girls think bulimia is the answer and women shouldn't think they have to expose their bodies to get attention and I'm thinking they're about to bring about a gorgeous full-figured model like Mia Tyler or someone with equal amounts of beauty and curves and ...

Taylor.

Whose face you can bounce a quarter off of.

Whose hipbones were sticking out so far from my TV screen I had to sit five feet back.

Who stepped up to say she agreed to do it and let the light reflect off her revealed upper chest in such a way as to make it look as if she were smuggling a xylophone in her cleavage.

... I swear to God, I don't watch this show. It's just that everybody else in my family has been watching pretty much since day one. Osmosis of this kind of crap is what screws up children, honestly.

Comments

[wal-lace.livejournal.com]

Soap Operas = Stupid.

Unfortunately, often so are the viewing public.

Luckily, most men don't but into that bullshit.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but sometimes they're just cheesy fun. I mean, Passions is hilariously stupid, but mostly because the writers realize they're not writing high drama. Alas, the CBS soaps I was raised on do exactly that, as if they're striving for as many Daytime Emmys as possible, which is just sad.

[trishalynn.livejournal.com]

But also Comic Books = Soap Operas on Paper

And comics aren't stupid, are they?

[moshez.livejournal.com]

Duuuuuude, how can you say that.
First of all, there are comic books and there are comic books. I would argue more that "comic books are TV on paper". But hell, even the soap-operatic comic books are way better than soap operas. Ever read "Mary Jane"? It's freakin' amazing (It's all about MJ's highschool life. Spiderman is a background figure, which is kind of a funny reversal.) "Astonishing X-Men" is basically Buffy upside-down and inside-out. Spider-Girl is a wonderful commentary on gender roles. I've never seen anything like that done in soap-operas :)

[trishalynn.livejournal.com]

The Marcie/Al relationship in "One Life to Live" explored addictions and body image (the actress who plays Marcie much heavier than the normal soap star, and started out as a joke character, then graduated to a front burner character).

Then there was the implications of having a relationship with someone who has AIDS, and then living with HIV yourself, which was the Stone/Robin relationship on "General Hospital."

And then Bianca on "All My Children"? Came out of the closet and the actress portrayed the first lesbian kiss on daytime TV. All done with a minimum of fuss and fanfare, very tastefully.

Maybe you haven't been watching the right soap operas. ^_^

[moshez.livejournal.com]

Hrm...these all seem a bit too cliche things to "portray"....addiction, AIDS, lesbianism? Probably all portrayed in some kind of "American ideal" where there is just one or two characters who are the "villains" who don't understand, and everyone else is good about it.

Compare it to the first five pages in "Astonishing X-Men" which "portray" a man who is criticised for "moving on too fast" after his girlfriend died, the woman that he is with having problems with his memory of his girlfriend, and basically, everyone in the school staff using their powers on one another. Compare it to Spider-Girl being given harsh reprimands from her team-mates when she tries to stop fighting and violence. Compare it with portrayal of incest(!) in "Ultimate X-Men". And here I stuck to main-line comic books: Transmetrpolitan's harsh commentary on politics, Scooter Girl's ability to take one on an emotional journey or Queen&Country's ability to make you fall in love with and hate characters at the same time were all left for the reader to decide.

I actually have watched "All My Children" for a while (when Buffy was on it :), I've watched "B&B" on and off a few years ago and I have never seen anything approaching "real writing": real writing meaning something which the writer had poured enough talent and hard work into to make you savor every word. "Runaways" is a wonderful example of writing: almost every single sentence contains a snarky turn of a phrase which makes you lick your lips in content.

Sorry for the rant...when I go off on a tangent, I shoot off into infinity :)

[trishalynn.livejournal.com]

I read this again and I think that the "real" things you say you read in the comics you mention can be translated into the "real" emotions the actors portray. Six of one, you know.

I also think that maybe this is one of those times where I'm going to have to drop a particular thread because I know what I want to say but can't articulate it due to my current state of mind.

Watch for a rant from me later, though. ^_^

[insidian.livejournal.com]

Heh. Reminds me of the time Cosmo did a story on how "Curves are Back!".

First page? Skinny models. - OH HOW SKINNY! LOOKIT! UNREALISTIC!

Turn the page:
Skinny models, but WITH BREASTS! - LOOKIT! CURVES!

And I swear to Jebus, I laughed out loud in the beauty salon. Ya put two balloons on a stick and it's STILL a stick, folks.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Honestly. There was a split second there where I thought Stephanie was going to say the new model would be her, which would have been cool because she's older and full-figured and still beautiful, but, no ... Taylor. *growls*

[aberrantangels]

Whose hipbones were sticking out so far from my TV screen I had to sit five feet back.

Who stepped up to say she agreed to do it and let the light reflect off her revealed upper chest in such a way as to make it look as if she were smuggling a [x]ylophone in her cleavage.

Hee!

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

Urgh, thanks for pointing out the typo. Ranting upon waking will lead to that, I guess. ;)

[aberrantangels]

NP. Glad I could help. 8-)

[tsuki-no-yami.livejournal.com]

Taylor.

Whose face you can bounce a quarter off of.

I got to this line, nearly shot soda out of my nose laughing, and read the entire rant to my mom, who's watches B&B too. She agrees.

[tsuki-no-yami.livejournal.com]

who watches B&B.

God, I can't spell today.

[robyn-ma.livejournal.com]

'I swear to God, I don't watch this show'

Suuuuuure you don't.

It's okay. The first step is admitting you watch a soap opera. :)

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

How about I admit I watch Passions? Because when that's on, I'll stop everything. It's just so incredibly moronic, but at least they've got a sense of humor about the whole thing.

On the other hand, there's The Bold and the Beautiful, which wouldn't know a sense of humor if it walked up to each of the cast members and lightly slapped them in a face with a frozen trout.

[fyrdrakken]

And that icon is mesmerizing. Sparkly pretty!

[weetzie21.livejournal.com]

Taylor has had too much plastic surgery. She looks scary these days. It's sad, because she actually used to be really beautiful. Not that I watch B&B - I watch As the World Turns - but I saw her presenting at the Emmys and it freaked me out.