Idle Thoughts--I'm Baaack 8/25/03

Fashion notes first . . .

Brought to you by the color ORANGE. If we were unsure that the show had entered the seventies, the costumes are here to tell us that.

Eeek, it's the puke green carpet suit and hideous orange top on Julia. I do like the longer hair on her though and it's nice to see she's not wearing makeup applied with a trowel (well, except for the fake eyelashes).

Okay. Kathy Cody is a strapping young lass burgeoning on the brink of womanhood (actually, let's be honest, she's already there. You can put her in all the bows and frills in the world, we're in older teen territory and there's no denying it). It barely works to have her running around in mod attire suitable for a 10-year-old, but see, a girl of--I'll be generous and say 15--in the mid-Victorian period would have her hair up and would be looking a hell of a lot more grown-up in her clothing.

Love that flip on Daphne! Yeah, there's some accuracy right there. Sure . . .

Onto the shows . . .

This column may seem even more disjointed than usual. I haven't been watching the show in weeks and I found today's episodes rather like being underwater. Note to self: do not, repeat, do not jump in midplot like this again.

Oooh, pretty silhouette. So like how did that get in Dippy Daphne's room? (You didn't really think I'd be a fan of her now, did ya? The only time I cared for a Kate Jackson DS character was in one of Arashi's fanfics). Knowing the backstory of Daphne and Gerard as I do, gotta wonder. Also does no one know how to shut up a room properly? You'd think there would be some dust sheets or something. 'Cause I have to say there are probably hovels in war-torn Iraq that are neater looking than some of the rooms in Collinwood.

Why, look! It's that same damn model ship they keep recycling. And it's not a "boat," Barnabas, that would be a model ship. This kind of stuff kills me. Not that I really care whether it's a boat or a ship, but having been around people who get very passionate about the distinction, I know that any self-respecting scion of a shipbuilding dynasty (that would be Barnabas) should bloody well know the difference between a model boat and a model ship 

Please. I am like the stereotypical awkward adult in the company of children, and even I do not come across as smarmily and/or as patronizing as Barnabas does with David. I think Roger has a better rapport with the kid.

How can you take a great character like Quentin and somehow turn into a lovestruck adolescent?

When Quentin possessed David in the prelude to 1897, it was creepy. This stuff with Gerard is almost on the right level, but the playroom takes us into the wrong kind of creepiness. David is how old now? Bit too old to be messing around with model ships and the Little Lord Fauntleroy duds (in fact, I would expect that there would be a huge inbuilt resistance to wearing cute little suits on David's part that a supernatural being would have to struggle mightly against to make it work).

God, I forgot how much I detest Hallie. She's like the poor man's Lucille Bremer. Bremer, who had some talent, was pretty much the really poor man's Judy Garland, always sounded annoyingly sincere and earnest with her voice . . .

Maybe this reaction is because I haven't been watching the show in weeks and weeks, but allow me to paraphrase Willow from BTVS and wonder "did they all just do a bunch of drugs?" because these people are too freaky for words.

Again, these kids are how old? 14? 15? and they're messing around with stuffed toys, carousels, and rocking horses. Sure. They should be sneaking ciggies and trying to make out, not go all Dickie Moore and Shirley Temple. Makes even less sense for the historical characters, who would have been expected to grow up a lot faster than their modern counterparts.

And Daphne was hanging around Gerard's ship? WTF? I wish the writers had actually bothered to remember this crap when they took the characters back in time.

Dowsing! It's a game the whole family can play . . . or not. Didn't know you could exorcise a house with a forked stick (I realize Trask tried it, but I'd expect a former Satanist to know the difference).

Miss me? 

Glad to see you posting again, have missed your wit.  Now I have to committ on the kids hanging out in the playroom.  My house right this minute is filled with l4 and l5 year olds.  I have seen them do some strange things.  Hanging around a playroom would not be that unusal.  Playing with the toys would be another story.  You have to remember that David and Hallie have just about nothing to do.  They don't play sports or heaven forbid get to watch TV.  At this age they go from acting like children years younger to young adults in the throngs of hormones.  Got to go and check on the gang.

Birdie

Miss me? 

Desperately!!!  Finally....it's like having rain after a drought.

Acid rain, perhaps but welcome, nevertheless!!

I used to think Dan Curtis just didn't have a clue what to do with his women characters.....but that ain't NOTHIN' compared to what he obviously doesn't know about his KID characters.  Did he ever look outside the studio to see what his most loyal fans looked like?...how they dressed?....how they talked?....how they BEHAVED??!!

My 16 year old and her friends routinely hang out in one another's "dens" "family rooms" "finished basements" and "playrooms"......because that's where the DVD players and the wide screen TV's and the sound systems are....they drape themselves all over the furniture like Gumbys (are ALL kids tall today?) and they devour food like locusts...and they're almost always in crowds of kids....not paired off like Noah's animals.......the more the merrier seems to be the credo.

So where are David and Hallie's "posse" hmmm?

How nice to have this back!!

I always figure that David and Hallie wouldn't really be playing with the toys, but when the spell comes over them, they do it.  Look how Hallie says all the "Carrie" things when there, and then later doesn't even remember it.  As to whether the kids back then would have played with these things, I guess we'll just have to assume they did!

As to the clothing, though, you'd think they'd remember that it's supposed to be summer!  Usually, one can assume it's any time one wants.  Except for thunderstorms, there's no hint of appropriate weather and they avoid all allusions to holidays.  But this time, they have a picnic, and today Barnabas asked David about his summer - so they are definite that it's summer.

When David pretends to be sleeping, he hurriedly pulls all the bedclothes up over him.  I suppose Collinwood (or at least the main house) could be air conditioned, but even though he's doing it as a cover-up, it did seem strange for summer.  But, then there's everyone else's clothes.  Julia, in particular, is constantly in those heavy suits!!!

I agree with Josette that David and Hallie's behavior could well be attributed to the enthrallment they're under.

It's great to see you writing again Luciaphil!!

I do like the longer hair on her though and it's nice to see she's not wearing makeup applied with a trowel (well, except for the fake eyelashes).

I too love the longer hair on Julia.  IMO, this is the best hairstyle she's had on the show!  She looks great!

Okay. Kathy Cody is a strapping young lass burgeoning on the brink of womanhood (actually, let's be honest, she's already there. You can put her in all the bows and frills in the world, we're in older teen territory and there's no denying it). It barely works to have her running around in mod attire suitable for a 10-year-old, but see, a girl of--I'll be generous and say 15--in the mid-Victorian period would have her hair up and would be looking a hell of a lot more grown-up in her clothing.

Definetely true!  And what's up with the white knee socks?  I remember wearing white knee socks when I was 12 years old so Im assuming this is age that we're expected to believe Hallie is, even though she looks a good 2 or 3 years older.

  I wouldn't have been able to get my daughters to wear white knee socks even if you paid them!   They both wore uniforms in Catholic school and had a choice as to either wear white or navy blue knee socks (the uniform was navy blue) or a choice of navy or black nylon tights.  They both opted for the black nylon tights and wouldn't wear the socks even when the temperature reached the 90's up here!

Why, look! It's that same damn model ship they keep recycling. And it's not a "boat," Barnabas, that would be a model ship. This kind of stuff kills me. Not that I really care whether it's a boat or a ship, but having been around people who get very passionate about the distinction, I know that any self-respecting scion of a shipbuilding dynasty (that would be Barnabas) should bloody well know the difference between a model boat and a model ship

My Dad (who was in the Navy) keeps yelling at the TV screen whenever he see's this scene, "Thats not a boat for goodness sake, it's a ship!!!"   LOL!!

Again, these kids are how old? 14? 15? and they're messing around with stuffed toys, carousels, and rocking horses. Sure. They should be sneaking ciggies and trying to make out, not go all Dickie Moore and Shirley Temple. Makes even less sense for the historical characters, who would have been expected to grow up a lot faster than their modern counterparts.

And don't forget that music!!!!  It's driving me nuts by now!!

  I could understand Hallie & David behaving out of the ordinary on account of being under the influence of Daphne & Gerard,  but what's Tad & Carrie's excuse?  Back in that time period when you were 14 or 15 you were expected to go out and work if you were poor. On the other hand, if you were lucky enough to be well off, like Carrie & Tad, you were already expected to act like young men & women, attend social gatherings, visit the theaters, opera's, Balls, (chaperoned of course) etc etc.  But not sit on carousels in a playroom?  (And Tad really did look a bit silly sitting up on that thing in one scene.)

Being stuck in that big house all the time goes to show you just how bored these two kids must have really been. They should have been out meeting new friends, going to the movies, bowling, etc..  instead of sneaking through the house looking for more rooms to explore.


Thanks for writing again!  I really missed these!

Cassandra

Why, look! It's that same damn model ship they keep recycling. And it's not a "boat," Barnabas, that would be a model ship. This kind of stuff kills me. Not that I really care whether it's a boat or a ship, but having been around people who get very passionate about the distinction, I know that any self-respecting scion of a shipbuilding dynasty (that would be Barnabas) should bloody well know the difference between a model boat and a model ship 

Miss me? 

You were well missed. I truly enjoy these musings of yours, I find them tart and refreshing and terribly terribly clever. Especially the above comment about Barnabas...it's the writers of course, and their lack of concern about the small details. Barnabas would know the difference! And it would matter to him! Or maybe he was just having an off day.....

Take care,

Maine Girl