I'm doing this now with the foresight to see a Christmas/New Year post might be more appealing. Besides, I've been watching more QaFUSA and I want to officially add it to the Gay Update (drum roll not inculded).
(Checking iCal to see what I have been doing...) Ah, yes. Been quite busy actually. So, I chaired a couple of debates between Hampstead and QPCS on the first Friday of December which was quite fun. Enjoyed being in authority (and we won two out of three as well, which is not bad). Then spent that night at Emma's having our belated-and-we're-not-even-American Thanksgiving dinner, which is essentially an excuse to eat a Roast dinner. And it was almost perfect (if a bit cold) and expect them to be up on my Flickr tonight. Very funny night, I even used the candle my teacher gave me...
Went to see Licotine the next day, and they were very good. The more I see them the more they start to look like a band: and I like how many times we've seen them. We can really see how they've matured. And we saw Charlie, which was lovely.
Then the next Thursday we went to Cambridge on a school trip which was AMAZING. Beautiful place to live and giving out the free Prospectus' really helped. It wa scary though, to think this time next year I will have applied to universities. Well, that's a lovely Christmas thought.
Stayed at Alex's for our kind of Christmas meal with Karimah, me, Charlotte, Ed and Charlie. Watched Peep Show and ate food for the first half, and the addition of Charlie did change our conversation slightly. Charlotte's Tweet perfectly described it: 'Gone from dicussing porn to Tesco to Post Offices to economics to Boris Johnson to America to Obama to religion, very interesting'. Lovely evening, even if I didn't get to sleep to 5!
Cerificate Evening on Tuesday was actually a really nice night. Got my GCSEs, which feels a lot less scary than I always imagined, and I did not trip even in my immense (!) heels. Nice to see everyone (Jim, Charlie again, Jack...) and the Year Book is hilarious! Wish more people from Y had been there though...
And, last but by no stretch of the imagination least, TWILIGHT! Well a packed cinema (literally) and a fight for seats later... it was not bad. I mean, some of it was. The skin shining, the scene on the bed and the ending felt a bit like it did in the book; anticlimatic. But some of it was very good: they had the humour, both family dynamics and the style sort of worked. So... better than I would have betted on.
GAY UPDATE: You know you've been waiting for it. And again, very little to say. Ollian has been even quieter and I get the impression it'll take more than Jo Weil's return to give them a storyline. And Hollyoaks is virtually out of the picture now (until the Ravi reveal *yawn*) unless Spike returns. BROTHERS AND SISTERSwas amazing... very sweet Kevin and Scotty scenes with dialouge and family connections that let it win! But I am not giving up on Nuke... and I have a feeling it'll win over this Christmas period (considering it is the only thing airing, it shouldn't be so hard). Very sweet scenes coming up, and Brian and Luke are being given the right scenes for the first time. And QaFUSA is amazing! I love it, despite the poor quality of the video. The scenes which are identical to QAF are hard to watch, because they are not as good, but the ones that are different are truly moving. Thinking about it, current spoilers of ATWT suggest it may win!
So, merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
xXx
Showing posts with label QAF USA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label QAF USA. Show all posts
Monday, 22 December 2008
Wednesday, 10 December 2008
Queer As Folk
Really should be writing my Hardy essay now considering it's 23:17 but I'm not. Instead, I am pondering something I vowed never to ponder. Queer As Folk USA box-set or terrible quality downloads?
The question is, of course, not the format but the principle. I mean, I have slated QAFUSA in many a rant about it's complete disregard for it's source material, excess sex scenes and stylised nature. QAF is an amazing document of love between a man and a sex addict who does not fancy the man. And for so long that was the only story that made sense to me in this world. But now, from watched a few small clips I have realised something. This is not my world.
QAFUSA does have disregard for it's source material, because it is telling a different story. This story is one of finding love (with a schoolboy) rather than seeing a love that's always been there (in spite of a teenage boy).
And it does have sex scenes. But now, I am not so sure about excess. I mean, sure, they are pretty much every other scene. The difference is, you need that because this is a different journey. These characters are moving away from it, and you need to constantly see it to understand why they need to. In QAF, you love it, they love it: they fighting to stay not to find a way to leave.
Stylised is definitely a word that would not describe QAF and does describe QAFUK. But it needs to be: it's about love and sex and hot boys wearing no clothes and shiny surfaces and is taking a new story further than QAF could have. The beauty of QAF is it has a beginning and an end: QAFUSA has a beginning and a new end, one I am far more comfortable with than I was.
And the characters? I have reservations about Michael (the VInce scrape) because I do not think you can equate a comic book store to Doctor Who but... we'll see. But Justin is far more likeable than Nathan, and that shifts the dynamic of the show. You want Justin to win, not Michael. Especially when he's shacked up with his hubby. QAFUSA is about growing up, settling down; QAF is about never letting go, fighting til the end, getting your kicks out of shooting Texans. I am starting to see a possibility for a love for both.
What makes QAFUSA so great is what made QAF weak (although there is not much), it has longevity. These characters and their world could go on forever in a way that QAF's could not: their life was coming to an end and they were trying to hold onto it, whereas in QAFUSA they find new but equaly entertaining lifes. And the similarities are what makes QAFUSA so strong: good dynamics, family allusions, lingering eye contact, tastful camera work and great soundtrack.
So, my verdict? I will never be comfortable referring to QAFUSA as Queer As Folk: to me, they are entirely different shows. QAF is all about the unsaid, the unseen, the subtle and the nonchalant. QAFUSA is about the loud, the proud and the love. Stuart is a silent hero while Brian is an exhibitionist. Vince is a sweet but pathetic tag-along while Michael clearly finds a life outside of his. Nathan is a selfish naive know-it-all while Justin is a naive tender romantic. In the end, you take a framework of a good show and you can make an entirely new one. And that is what they've done. And while they could have made their own, without trying to be a part of my parade, the more I see of it the more I am happy it was made at all.
DVD box-set it is: although I can only get 1-3 on Region 2. No idea if they are ever coming out here. Going to start a petition, who's with me? Come on, it'll improve the Gay Update.
xXx
The question is, of course, not the format but the principle. I mean, I have slated QAFUSA in many a rant about it's complete disregard for it's source material, excess sex scenes and stylised nature. QAF is an amazing document of love between a man and a sex addict who does not fancy the man. And for so long that was the only story that made sense to me in this world. But now, from watched a few small clips I have realised something. This is not my world.
QAFUSA does have disregard for it's source material, because it is telling a different story. This story is one of finding love (with a schoolboy) rather than seeing a love that's always been there (in spite of a teenage boy).
And it does have sex scenes. But now, I am not so sure about excess. I mean, sure, they are pretty much every other scene. The difference is, you need that because this is a different journey. These characters are moving away from it, and you need to constantly see it to understand why they need to. In QAF, you love it, they love it: they fighting to stay not to find a way to leave.
Stylised is definitely a word that would not describe QAF and does describe QAFUK. But it needs to be: it's about love and sex and hot boys wearing no clothes and shiny surfaces and is taking a new story further than QAF could have. The beauty of QAF is it has a beginning and an end: QAFUSA has a beginning and a new end, one I am far more comfortable with than I was.
And the characters? I have reservations about Michael (the VInce scrape) because I do not think you can equate a comic book store to Doctor Who but... we'll see. But Justin is far more likeable than Nathan, and that shifts the dynamic of the show. You want Justin to win, not Michael. Especially when he's shacked up with his hubby. QAFUSA is about growing up, settling down; QAF is about never letting go, fighting til the end, getting your kicks out of shooting Texans. I am starting to see a possibility for a love for both.
What makes QAFUSA so great is what made QAF weak (although there is not much), it has longevity. These characters and their world could go on forever in a way that QAF's could not: their life was coming to an end and they were trying to hold onto it, whereas in QAFUSA they find new but equaly entertaining lifes. And the similarities are what makes QAFUSA so strong: good dynamics, family allusions, lingering eye contact, tastful camera work and great soundtrack.
So, my verdict? I will never be comfortable referring to QAFUSA as Queer As Folk: to me, they are entirely different shows. QAF is all about the unsaid, the unseen, the subtle and the nonchalant. QAFUSA is about the loud, the proud and the love. Stuart is a silent hero while Brian is an exhibitionist. Vince is a sweet but pathetic tag-along while Michael clearly finds a life outside of his. Nathan is a selfish naive know-it-all while Justin is a naive tender romantic. In the end, you take a framework of a good show and you can make an entirely new one. And that is what they've done. And while they could have made their own, without trying to be a part of my parade, the more I see of it the more I am happy it was made at all.
DVD box-set it is: although I can only get 1-3 on Region 2. No idea if they are ever coming out here. Going to start a petition, who's with me? Come on, it'll improve the Gay Update.
xXx
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