The Onion's A. V. Club (a pop culture website that has become my go-to pop culture website now that all the funny, intelligent people have left Television Without Pity) runs a feature on Fridays where each of its contributors answers a specific question. Every week, I think "I should come up with an answer too and post on the ol' blog." And finally, this week, I have.
This week's question is "What story clichés do you actively enjoy, or at least usually find effective?"
I realized my favorite storytelling cliché right away: when the villain derisively addresses the young (and, of course, idealistic) hero as "boy." Explaining why I enjoy this is a little trickier Maybe it's because it's so effective at emphasizing the contrast between the jadedness of the villain and the innocence/vigor of the hero? Or maybe it's just because it happens so often to Luke Skywalker.
That question was a response to last week's: "If you could permanently wipe one cliché—character, plot, anything—from the future of culture, what would it be?"
I didn't realize until today that my answer would be actual tension turning into romantic tension. You know, when the male and female leads hate each other and squabble constantly, and then they're right in the middle of their biggest fight ever and BOOM! they start making out. I hate that, and I'll give you three reasons why. 1: It's been done to death. 2: It's lazy storytelling, because the writer doesn't have to show development of a relationship, they only have to write point A (fighting) and point B (totally in love!). 3: Does that ever happen in real life? My money's on no.
How about you guys? Do you have favorite and dis-favorite movie/TV/book clichés?
Friday, September 4, 2009
Clichés
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4 comments:
I will say that, while the writers of those "hate-love" plots don't HAVE to develop the relationship, they can. Excellent examples of both can be seen in one of my personal favorites, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. While it may not be classic cinema, it does have some truly excellent writing. Also some really awful writing. When you go 7 seasons, you get a little of both.
I realized today that I truly like when they take a show set in a very specific place, then, for a few episodes, shake it up by taking it out of that location. For instance, in ST:DS9, they had a 6 episode arc where the main characters were not on the titular Deep Space 9. Those were some great episodes. Also, on BSG, they had a arc set on a planet instead of on the battlestar. It may be because both of those shows were written by the same crew, but it was a fun change of pace in both.
So I should stop starting fights with random women?
Agreed that usually, the love/hate thing is pretty stupid and unbelievable. But I offer up for your examination two examples that actually work and are pretty good:
1. Han Solo and Leia in the original star wars. This relationship was believeable. And sexy.
2. Kenneth Branaugh and Emma Thompson in Much Ado About Nothing. Yes, please.
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