Wednesday, November 03, 2004

I voted today, as did Cowboy, and we met the Housekarl on the way out. I can't believe how many people are all invigorated about voting this year! The place was packed.

Since voting is pretty much a big question of who is your favorite this or that, here are some more of my favorite things. Oh, I went back to my Oct 23 posting and changed that, adding some elucidation of why I love the things I do, and removing some of the things there so I could put them here with others like them. If that makes no sense, well, neither do I most of the time, I verily believe...

My Favorite __________

#1 TV Show: Combat! (I love stuff set in WWII, and the writing and characters rock!)
#2 TV Show: Angel (It started out as a noirish PI show, and I just kept loving it after that. And did I mention David Boreanaz is hot?)
Combat! Character: Sgt. Chip Saunders (He's tough but sweet, a good warrior that hates war; I've loved him since I was 14 and saw my first ep)
Angel Character: Angel (I'm a sucker for 'Byronic' heroes*, and he's practically an archtype. And did I mention the hotness of David B, who plays him?)
#1 Lord of the Rings Character: Boromir (brave, oh-so-human, and mildly Byronic)
#2 Lord of the Rings Character: Samwise Gamgee (the scene where he says: "I may not be able to carry the ring for you, Mr. Frodo, but I can carry you" makes me weep--he's so brave!)
Harry Potter Character: Sirius Black (amazingly Byronic, and so sweet! Plus, I'm all about escaping from prisons)
Star Wars Character: Han Solo (cocky and smooooth, with a touch of Byronic brooding...and hello? Harrison Ford!)
Shakespearean Play: Hamlet, Prince of Denmark (Um, yeah, I've read it like 14 times and seen 4 movie versions, and I have gobs of it memorized. It's a very cathartic experience for me, whether I watch or read it)
Indiana Jones movie: The Last Crusade (Indy and his dad play off each other so brilliantly!)
Superheroes: Wolverine (Byronic), Spiderman (snarky), and Robin (vulnerable)

(more to come...)

*'Byronic' heroes: So called because Lord Byron wrote several characters, most prominently the title character in Manfred, who were gloomy, broody, and isolated, with a dark past and lots of inner conflict. Readers found these types to be both frightening and compelling, and the type gained popularity, especially during the Romantic Age, I think. I've realized recently that many of the characters I love are quite Byronic.

3 comments:

  1. Ha ha ha, I had to Google "suthun chahm"!

    I saw Hamlet in an outdoor theater once. All I remember about it was that Horatio became a kind of funny, snarky character when they read his lines right.

    --housekarl

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  2. Silly Housekarl, googling for "suthun chahm" :-D

    I wish I could have seen the version of "Hamlet" that you saw, because it sounds like they did Horatio justice. I'm always irritated by the movie versions because they make Horatio so bland. I think he's the second-most-interesting character in the play, and I've never seen him played to my satisfaction. In Kenneth Branagh's version, at least he does get to say my favorite line of his: "I am more an antique Roman than a Dane" (and then he tries to follow Hamlet in death). I think he gets portrayed that way because people put to much emphasis on Hamlet's line: "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." They seem to think this means Horatio is unimaginative, but I think Hamlet was speaking more generally of philosophy, not of Horatio's personal philosophy...Branagh's version also changed that line to OUR philosophy. I didn't like Branagh's version of "Hamlet" when I first saw it back in college, but I've come to see it does have its good points.

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  3. I've heard that Hamlet may have been referring to "natural philosophy," or what we would call science. That still makes Horatio a nerd, though.

    I thought "suthun chahm" sounded like words you'd chant to invoke Cthulu.

    ReplyDelete

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