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brendalaSo, a few little birdies told me that Mystery Incorporated improved in season two and I should give it another chance (despite all my VERY COMPELLING REASONS to avoid it like leprosy). So I tuned into today's new episode because I had nothing better to do this morning.
Today's episode featured a Puritan ghost who attacks teenagers on Lovers Lane for acting "impure". Specifically, he likes to target the teenage girls for dressing like harlots. When the gang first meets the ghost, the ghost chastises one random girl for her low neckline, chastises Daphne for her short skirt, and when he gets to Velma.....he remarks that he wont attack her because she is "plain, wholesome, and completely un-tempting to the male gaze". No, really. I AM NOT EXAGGERATING! THE SHOW REALLY DID THIS AGAIN!!!!
Apparently, despite the fact that Velma's skirt is shorter than Daphne's, even sexually repressed Pilgrims are so repulsed by her hideous, fat, masculine body that it doesn't bother their orthodox sensibilities to see her traipsing about with her legs exposed (because religious rules about modesty only apply to hot chicks).
Believe it or not, it gets worse...
--The episode shows a couple of teenage boys cheering the ghost on as he tells Velma that she's not hot enough to be attacked for immodesty. Her "friends" are right there as this happens; but none of them say or do anything to defend her. Presumably, it's because they agree with the ghost.
--There's a scene at Fred's house where Shaggy AND Scooby tease Velma by saying "What's wrong? Are you upset that you're not 'tempting' enough to get onto the ghost's hit list?"
Again, I am not exaggerating! This happens! These two are back to behaving like total assholes toward her for no goddam reason!!
--Later in the episode, Velma is sitting in the back of the van fiddling on her laptop while the gang sets traps. Scooby gets into the van, smiles, and snuggles up next to her. At first I thought this show might be attempting a cute Scooby/Velma friendship scene. But, surprise surprise, when Velma asked, "Why are you sitting so close to me?", Scooby replied, "Since the ghost doesn't want you, you're the safest place to be right now!".
Well, at least he's not trying to bite off her face or calling her a slut like he was for half of season one. I guess calling her ugly is somewhat of an improvement. -_-
--At the end of the episode, it turns out the ghost was a pair of teenage boys who teamed up and staged the attacks so they could rescue the "hot" girls and gain their affections. The boys went out of their way to avoid attacking/rescuing Velma because EEEEW! WHAT MAN IN HIS RIGHT MIND WOULD WANT TO DATE A FATTIE, AM I RITE?!?!?? I MEAN, JUST LOOK AT THIS MONSTROUS HAM-BEAST!!!!
YOU CAN'T EVEN TELL IT'S A GIRL UNDER THAT FRUMPY TIGHT SWEATER AND MINI-SKIRT!!!!!!
CLEARLY, DAPHNE IS THE ONLY "REAL WOMAN" IN THIS PICTURE!! VELMA'S BODY HAS ICKY BIG BOOBIES AND HIPS AND A BUTT!!! WHAT TEENAGE BOY IN HIS RIGHT MIND WANTS A WOMAN WITH BIG BOOBIES AND HIPS AND A SHAPELY ASS!?!?!? NONE, THAT'S HOW MANY!!!!!
[/end angry bra-burning sarcasm]
**sigh**
I tried to give the-show-that-shall-not-be-named another chance because I heard that one of the other season two episodes was focused on Scooby and Velma trying to become BFFs again. I'm pretty sure that whatever good things happened in that episode were just erased when Scooby teamed up with her douchebag ex-boyfriend to remind her how fat, ugly, and unappealing she is.
This shit has no place in a children's show! It's cruel, inappropriate, insulting to the franchise & characters, and just plain wrong. And a vindictive part of me hopes that the reason this show got shafted with long hiatuses and bad scheduling and whatnot is because some executive realized what a mistake this show was and is doing all s/he can to help it die a quiet death.
I should have known better than to do this again.
FUCK THIS SEXIST FUCKING SHOW AND THE CREEPY MISOGYNIST DOG IT RODE IN ON!!!!!
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no subject
Date: 2012-08-11 12:39 am (UTC)Either that or the "have everyone treat Velma like a she-beast even though she's clearly attractive" thing is supposed to be an 'ironic' running gag that they executed badly. Either way, turning Velma into Meg Griffin is all kinds of wrong.
The only comfort is that the shit being introduced into MI's canon doesn't appear to be seeping into other current Scooby Doo productions.
The fact that so many people ADORE this show and say it's the best Scooby Doo show since the 1969 original makes me sad. I mean, even if you could pretend that all Scooby shows before MI don't exist and judge MI on it's own merits, it's STILL terrible! I feel like I'm crazy because it seems like only me and a couple of my friends are upset at what this show is doing to beloved childhood icons.
I have a theory that some high up Cartoon Network executive hates this show as much as I do and is actively helping it die (that would explain why a show based on a super popular franchise has gotten shafted with so many LONG hiatuses). I really hope I'm right.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-11 12:46 am (UTC)Is it too much to hope that Velma goes apeshit and beats everyone within an inch of their lives in a future episode? And then runs off with Marcy? I don't even watch this show and I want to ship Marcy/Velma because Marcy's the only one who actually GAVE a shit about the girl.
The sad part is, I still want to see it for myself. Just out of morbid curiosity. And...I'll admit, parts of the actual PLOT are kind of intriguing.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-11 01:12 am (UTC)That's why I was so angry when the show jumped the shark. I fell madly in love with episode one (mainly because it canonized Shaggy/Velma) and just watched in horror as each following episode got progressively worse. I kept thinking "there MUST be a good reason that they're doing this that will be revealed in the end" and it never happened.
The sad part is, I still want to see it for myself. Just out of morbid curiosity. And...I'll admit, parts of the actual PLOT are kind of intriguing.
If you're that curious, go ahead and check it out (it probably wont hurt as much if you can see the badness coming). Hell, you can ease the pain by making a drinking game out of it! XD
no subject
Date: 2012-08-11 01:14 am (UTC)I'll probably only check out a few select episodes. Including the HDW one so I can have a valid reason for shipping Velma/HDW.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-13 05:04 pm (UTC)As for episodes to watch, I recommend the first episode, "The Legend Of Alice May", "Howl Of The Fright Hound", "When Cicada Calls", "Mystery Solvers State Finals", "The Wild Brood", "Where Walks Aphrodite", "Escape From Mystery Manor", "Nightfright", "Menace Of The Manticore", "Attack Of The Headless Horror", "A Haunting In Crystal Cove", "Dead Justice", "Pawn of Shadows", and "All Fear the Freak" from the first season. And then all the first few episodes of the current season up 'till "The Night On Haunted Mountain" (the episode right before this one) 'cause of all the Velma/Marcy goodness. Then you can decide if you want to stick with the show.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-13 05:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-13 08:01 pm (UTC)The Mystery Inc. parallels are great too. Like how Ricky's become such a powerful, ominous figure but is still kind of a whiney, cowardly slob like Shaggy. Or how Cassidy is as unlucky as Velma is but is competent and works to set things right like her too. Or how Professor Pericles is such a total opposite of Scooby in every way: smart, bold, well-spoken, and totally evil. And no, MI Scooby isn't even that last part despite how he behaves at times, especially during the earliest episodes.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 02:12 am (UTC)This is the reason I get so crazy about this show and not other "bad" Scooby productions. Mystery Incorporated had the potential to be one of the most amazing cartoons ever made and really breathe new life into the franchise. But then the writers lost their minds and decided that they wanted to make a horrible teen soap opera instead. You can still see glimpses of awesomeness when the romance subplots are ignored. But they're few and far between.
This show is one of the few instances where a prudish Network Censor hovering over the creative team's shoulders might have done some good.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 02:31 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-08-13 05:08 pm (UTC)Also, this show isn't going to get "cancelled". It's going to flat-out end with episode 52. That's been comfirmed already. Even so, your theory about CN wanting to rush it out still stands.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 02:40 am (UTC)But you'd be surprised at how much some people ADORE this show and think the romance is actually good. I'm the mod at the
I know the show was greenlit for 52 episodes from the get go. But I still stand behind my "executive" theory. It just doesn't make sense for CN to treat a Scooby show the way it treated MI unless someone at the top hated the hell out of it.
Also [shameless name drop alert] I met Joe Ruby and Ken Spears at Wonder Con this year. A braver fan than I had the cajones to ask them what they thought about MI. They both said that they think it's awful.
I doubt those guys have any say in how the Scooby franchise is handled today. But it's an interesting fact none the less.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 02:47 am (UTC)But really, they think the romance is GOOD? REALLY?
I won't take Ruby and Spears' opinion as totally valid unless I heard WHY they think it's awful. And it had better be for reasons other than "it's different from what we created, so it sucks." Like the more thought out reasons you give.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 03:14 am (UTC)Ruby and Spears chatted with fans in a quick meet&greet after their panel (since there was a SHAMEFULLY SMALL turnout, they were able to hang out and talk to people afterward). There wasn't time for them to go into great detail. Spears just said, "it doesn't understand the spirit of the characters".
I'm not saying their opinion is gospel (I'd feel the same way about MI even if they both said they loved it). I just think it's interesting to know their thoughts. It's too bad they didn't have time to go into detail about why they felt the way they did.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 04:59 am (UTC)"The spirit of the characters" is something I find hard to swallow when the characters were so paper-thin in the original toons. If they said the show "takes the characters too far away from what they've been for years", THEN I could understand that. More details would have been appreciated.
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 05:38 pm (UTC)Sadly, by the time the Mystery Incorporated question came up, it was almost time for Ruby and Spears to leave. So there wasn't much time for them to talk about it in detail. If they ever do another panel, I hope I have the stones to ask them about it because I'd also like to hear more details about WHY they didn't like it.
And some people passionately ship Mako and Korra too. XD
I don't get that, either.
"Yeah, we know that Mako treated his first girlfriend like an annoyance the moment he decided he liked another girl better. And then he totally cheated on her. But.....TWU LUV!!!!"
no subject
Date: 2012-08-14 07:53 pm (UTC)As for Makorra... it still bugs me that the whole "cheating on Asami" thing was left unadressed. They have a mutual break-up before Mako goes off with Korra (I think) but Mako STILL never takes responsibility and owes up to his actions by breaking it off with Asami because he's a lousy boyfriend. And Mako even ARGUES when Asami rightfully says that a relationship with her can't happen if he's really in love with Korra? I swear, that boy has no idea how romantic relationships work! He wants to have his cake and eat it too by being with two girls without ever having to break up with one because that would mean being a real man! (Though thankfully, despite some more rabid fans claims, the one other thing Mako would never do to either of them besides breaking up is abuse. If anything, his problem is that he has a White Knight complex and is too chivalrous!)
no subject
Date: 2012-08-15 01:08 am (UTC)It would have been cool if MI had done something with those concepts (since it sets itself up as being a modern continuation of the original series).
None of Mako's behavior made any sense. In the beginning he was a stoic "protector" type who didn't show any strong reaction even when his own brother was kidnapped. Then all of a sudden Korra was his WHOLE WORLD and he went nuts over every little thing she did. Not only did it kill his likeablity, it made no sense. I wish that love triangle had ended the way I wanted it to ~_^:
<http://brendala.livejournal.com/168948.html>
no subject
Date: 2012-08-15 03:41 am (UTC)Expansion on those old concepts would've been preferable to soap opera drama, yes.
With Mako, I find that I liked him fine in the first half of the season except for in episode 5, while I despised him in the second half of the season except for in episode 8. I really hope that he's dumped flat, given a reality check, and mans up in the next season. Because it he's to stay a regular main protagonist, he'd better. And yes, I'm certain that comic shows how Korra and Asami could have come to interact had circumstances not come in their way. XD