Riona (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rionaleonhart) wrote2024-06-20 01:30 pm
rionaleonhart) wrote2024-06-20 01:30 pm
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But I Would Say That, Of Course, Because I'm A Foolish And Misguided Woman.
A few months ago, Rei wandered into the room while I was watching the first episode of YOU.
'What are you watching?' Rei asked.
'YOU,' I said. 'Someone on Reddit saw me waxing lyrical about Light Yagami and said I might enjoy it.'
Rei considered this for a moment. 'That's damning.'
Which is true! But, let's be honest, that person on Reddit was absolutely right. I've now almost finished the second season of YOU, and I'm having a great time.
I don't love Joe Goldberg as much as I love Light Yagami - there are very few fictional characters I love as much as I love Light Yagami - but I am hugely enjoying him. Like Light, Joe is an awful person who refuses to accept he's awful and has therefore become an expert in self-justification. Sometimes the self-justification takes a moment to kick in, so we get to see him being horrified by his own actions before he starts scrambling to tell himself why those actions were actually totally fine. I always enjoy characters being horrified by themselves!
I find it very entertaining that Joe keeps persuading himself he's given up on murder and then relapsing. No, look, this murder really is the last one, I promise. He's a very funny character to watch in many ways, which helps keep the show from feeling too bleak, despite its dark events. It's also interesting to see the tension in him when he's faced with the choice between killing someone who knows his secrets - the obvious option if he wants to keep himself safe - and leaving them alive: risky, but sometimes he really doesn't want to kill them!
When I was originally recommended this show, I checked its Wikipedia article to find out what it was about, and the 'cultural influence' section absolutely drove me up the wall:
The series later became the subject of numerous online discussions and debates surrounding the romanticization of the serial killer and stalker protagonist in question. According to many reporters and critics, concerns were expressed regarding the viewers who have positively identified and connected with Penn Badgley's character on multiple social media platforms, despite the transgressive acts that the protagonist displayed and committed over the course of the season.
In response to the growing concerns of viewers romanticizing Joe's vicious behaviors, Elizabeth Lail conveyed her thoughts surrounding the conversation in an interview with Image. Lail expressed she initially had concerns about the audience's reactions but explained that "I think we are programmed that way. Myself included. With all the rom-coms and fairy tales we've read, we're programmed to root for the hero at any cost, unfortunately. And so, my hope is that these women notice that inside themselves; and ask themselves, 'oh gosh, why do I love this terrible man?' I hope they recognize it as an unconscious bias (that's inside most of us), and actively work against it."
(I can't really blame Lail for saying this. She was asked, in the interview in question, 'What are your thoughts on so many women romanticising Joe, despite him being a stalker and murderer?', which is obviously going to put her under intense pressure to respond in a certain way, so I'd say the question itself is more at fault here than Lail herself.)
I am so tired of people expressing their deep concern about all those foolish, misguided women expressing fondness for a Bad Person who is, crucially, Not Real. (It's not exclusively women, but I do feel I see this 'concern' mainly targeted at women.) It just feels unbearably patronising. I can enjoy watching the actions of fictional stalker and murderer Joe Goldberg while simultaneously understanding that stalking and murder are bad, I promise!
Anyway, I was so frustrated by this that I made a Tumblr post in response:
As requested, I have examined my fondness for terrible characters, and I have concluded that I like them because they’re terrible and I’m not sorry.
It's by far the most popular thing I've ever posted to Tumblr, with over 9,000 notes, which I find heartening! Liking a fictional character isn't a moral act, and I hope everyone feels free to enjoy whatever characters they find compelling.
'What are you watching?' Rei asked.
'YOU,' I said. 'Someone on Reddit saw me waxing lyrical about Light Yagami and said I might enjoy it.'
Rei considered this for a moment. 'That's damning.'
Which is true! But, let's be honest, that person on Reddit was absolutely right. I've now almost finished the second season of YOU, and I'm having a great time.
I don't love Joe Goldberg as much as I love Light Yagami - there are very few fictional characters I love as much as I love Light Yagami - but I am hugely enjoying him. Like Light, Joe is an awful person who refuses to accept he's awful and has therefore become an expert in self-justification. Sometimes the self-justification takes a moment to kick in, so we get to see him being horrified by his own actions before he starts scrambling to tell himself why those actions were actually totally fine. I always enjoy characters being horrified by themselves!
I find it very entertaining that Joe keeps persuading himself he's given up on murder and then relapsing. No, look, this murder really is the last one, I promise. He's a very funny character to watch in many ways, which helps keep the show from feeling too bleak, despite its dark events. It's also interesting to see the tension in him when he's faced with the choice between killing someone who knows his secrets - the obvious option if he wants to keep himself safe - and leaving them alive: risky, but sometimes he really doesn't want to kill them!
When I was originally recommended this show, I checked its Wikipedia article to find out what it was about, and the 'cultural influence' section absolutely drove me up the wall:
The series later became the subject of numerous online discussions and debates surrounding the romanticization of the serial killer and stalker protagonist in question. According to many reporters and critics, concerns were expressed regarding the viewers who have positively identified and connected with Penn Badgley's character on multiple social media platforms, despite the transgressive acts that the protagonist displayed and committed over the course of the season.
In response to the growing concerns of viewers romanticizing Joe's vicious behaviors, Elizabeth Lail conveyed her thoughts surrounding the conversation in an interview with Image. Lail expressed she initially had concerns about the audience's reactions but explained that "I think we are programmed that way. Myself included. With all the rom-coms and fairy tales we've read, we're programmed to root for the hero at any cost, unfortunately. And so, my hope is that these women notice that inside themselves; and ask themselves, 'oh gosh, why do I love this terrible man?' I hope they recognize it as an unconscious bias (that's inside most of us), and actively work against it."
(I can't really blame Lail for saying this. She was asked, in the interview in question, 'What are your thoughts on so many women romanticising Joe, despite him being a stalker and murderer?', which is obviously going to put her under intense pressure to respond in a certain way, so I'd say the question itself is more at fault here than Lail herself.)
I am so tired of people expressing their deep concern about all those foolish, misguided women expressing fondness for a Bad Person who is, crucially, Not Real. (It's not exclusively women, but I do feel I see this 'concern' mainly targeted at women.) It just feels unbearably patronising. I can enjoy watching the actions of fictional stalker and murderer Joe Goldberg while simultaneously understanding that stalking and murder are bad, I promise!
Anyway, I was so frustrated by this that I made a Tumblr post in response:
As requested, I have examined my fondness for terrible characters, and I have concluded that I like them because they’re terrible and I’m not sorry.
It's by far the most popular thing I've ever posted to Tumblr, with over 9,000 notes, which I find heartening! Liking a fictional character isn't a moral act, and I hope everyone feels free to enjoy whatever characters they find compelling.