Writerly Ways

[cornerofmadness]

I wanted to talk a little bit about balancing the dark with some light. Lately I have been seeing so completely unrelenting dark fiction/television. Maybe it's my age but there are reasons dystopias don't resonate with me well. I don't mind dark fic. You know I write it. But man there has to be something to balance it. Let me just point to this summer's Sci-Fi offerings since I tried to watch several of them because man someone has to support SF right?

So I watched (or tried to) Extant, Killjoys, Defiance & Dark Matter and they were all dark and only one of them even tried to balance their darkness with some light. Extant and Defiance grew progressively darker with the season to the point I could care less if I ever see another episode. I never did make it through Dark Matter (which was also boring IMO).

I was left with Killjoys which had good banter especially between John and well almost everyone. It even balance the darkness of the scarred priests and their masochist religion with the light of hope they inspired. Towards the end we started to lose the light and I started having issues with the show. Also it didn't help that by the end it was so obvious that the company ran everything and everyone right down to housing and that was WAY too much like how my family's life was just a generation ago. Both grandparents homes were company houses, my granddad ran a company store and everyone was paid in company script. Nope, sorry, cuts a little too close to the bone for me. But I could have handled it if some of the earlier humor held out.

I suppose it's a matter of taste. Maybe there are people out there hungering for the darkness. I mean dystopias rule YA literature. But again with so much darkness I find the stories too depressing to want to continue with.

How about you? Are you in my camp wanting a little light? Do you crave the pure dark? I'm curious to see how people feel about this.

Also you can see all Jana's news plus the freebie Las Vegas wedding story which no one seemed to have read. sigh. See it all here

Yearly Word Count -

66030 / 110000
(60.03%)

Blood Red Roulette -

93778 / 110000
(85.25%)

Simmer -

3069 / 10000
(30.69%)

Notice I haven't edited jack? SIGH

Comments

[kiramaru7.livejournal.com]

I'm in your camp as I like the light. Even when it gets a bit dusky in my writing, there's always some light at the end. Real life can be so depressing at times, that when I escape into the fantasy world of some good stories/TV shows/movies,I want there to be light.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

yep that's how I feel about it

[kiramaru7.livejournal.com]

*nods*

[rahirah]

If I want unadulterated darkness, I can watch the news. :P

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

that's my thought. I dont' find dystopias somehow uplifting no matter how triumphant the protagonist is

[dragonydreams.livejournal.com]

While I generally prefer light shows, I did still love Killjoys. John is such a great character. I like how they didn't let the characters off the hook for their behavior. I really hope it gets a second season.

I'm kind of done with Defiance. I did not enjoy this season at all. And you know how boring I found Dark Matter (which I did watch until the end).

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

I did like Killjoys except maybe for the last few episodes. John is great. And I like...Alvin? Is that the priest's name? I love the whole notion of that religion and yes I did like that they are accountable.

Ugh Defiance. Where we twist characters 180 degrees in personality and make women complete second class citizens. Yeah more or less done with it.

Did Dark Matter get any better?

[dragonydreams.livejournal.com]

The monk was Alvis. He was great. (I know the actor from Being Erica where he played a metrosexual character so it is fun seeing him in such a different kind of role. The actor who plays D'Avin played a gay chef on Brothers & Sisters, so this is very different character for him too.) All of the secondary characters had great moments. I really liked Pree (the bartender) too.

Dark Matter had one or two okay moments. And then they had a weird season finale that makes no sense (yet). Don't know that I really care to get the answers, especially now that we have most of their back stories.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

I was close. I liked Pree a lot too. That's fun about their previous roles

yeah sounds like I didn't miss much there

[wildrider.livejournal.com]

I enjoy the stories, but I like something to balance it - that was one of the reasons I really liked the "Hunger Games" series - it ended on a note of HOPE, rather than unrelenting bleakness. But then, I like a nice resolution in any case. (It's no wonder I love Dickens.)

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

well if not humor breaking up the blackness then at least hope would be nice. I prefer, as you said, a balance

[animaven.livejournal.com]

The dark is just too much for me now. This is a serious and confused world we live in , and I want, rather I need , light and joy. So if a show looks like it's going to be too dark,I don't even start to watch it.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

Beleive me, I get that. I'm much the same (just had that thought looking over TV guide's fall preview and eyeing up the bastard executioner) I'm finding this trend of extremely dark dystopias disturbing

[scribesds.livejournal.com]

I’ve only seen Dark Matter, from your list, so can’t comment on the others. I quite like it, but it hasn’t really grabbed me yet. I don’t really watch a lot of television, though.

I do rather like dark stories, and I’ve certainly written my fair share of them. You know I like dystopian stories, too. What I don’t like is unrelenting dark – its just depressing, and I don’t want to watch – or read – something that is going to make me depressed. I think that the odd flash of humour, or something nice that happens (and isn’t tainted by something horrible) makes the dark acceptable. You can’t always have a happy ending, but a little hope goes a long way.

[cornerofmadness.livejournal.com]

What I don’t like is unrelenting dark – its just depressing, and I don’t want to watch – or read – something that is going to make me depressed. I think that the odd flash of humour, or something nice that happens (and isn’t tainted by something horrible) makes the dark acceptable. You can’t always have a happy ending, but a little hope goes a long way.

This is my entire point! I can handle the dark if there is some kind of hope or humor but any more all it is is dark, more dark and Ooo darker than black. Hmm, don't get it.

I tried with Dark Matter but I just couldn't get into it I'm afraid. I was disappointed.