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8th August 2012

Link reblogged from Panels for People with 9 notes

notebook werks: Joss Whedon and the people who don't like his writing →

darrylayo:

darrylayo:

By Ayo

Reached my breaking point. Explain why you think that Joss Whedon’s dialogue is “too witty” or whatever stuff that people seem to reflexively SCREECH whenever his name comes up.

I’m serious, it sounds like the most counter-intuitive criticism yet it seems to…

The problem with that for me is:

1) that’s everything to do with other people, not Whedon

2) it contributes to its own problem. If you hate the defensiveness of some fans attacking them exacerbates that situation

3) crit doesn’t seem to match the reality

It’s not that it’s “too witty,” for me, it’s that it’s constantly witty in what seems like a contrived, self-aware way that really bothers me. All of the characters are making similar jokes, all of them have a very contrived, similar voice, and all of them are attempts at subverting the cliches the embody in ways that are so straightforward that the subversions themselves are cliched. So much of the dialogue in Firefly etc just grates on me. BUT I am super picky about shit like this, it is just my opinion. There are a lot of strengths I can definitely see that his writing has, I just get hung up on particular sorts of Quirky Bullshit.

I will add the same caveat as costak: the Avengers was really excellently written.

(this is evan btw)

Tagged: joss whedonown

  1. bluhaus said: People who automatically assume that if more than their circle of friends like it , then it must be bad.
  2. mrmolasses reblogged this from darrylayo and added:
    It’s not that it’s “too witty,” for me, it’s that it’s constantly witty in what seems like a contrived, self-aware way...
  3. costak reblogged this from darrylayo and added:
    The fundamental issue that many (including myself at times) have with him, in a nutshell, is not simply his writing, but...
  4. twiststreet said: Can entertain but almost everyone has same wisecrack-driven sense of humor; artifice impossible to ignore— can’t believe in truth of character, so no real risk for audience. Compare: is Jesse Pinkman’s humor same as Walt White’s humor?
  5. kidontology said: hm. well I’ve only seen Firefly, & I felt that the dialogue was “too corny”, I don’t know that anyone would complain if it was too witty. I liked Avengers & I liked his Astonishing run, never saw Buffy
  6. darrylayo posted this