OK. I mean, I'm not looking for a whole lot out of this show. It's not Mad Men; it's not even Downton Abbey, but still. I can't be sure if I'm just cranky, or if this show really is getting worse.
And specifically, I mean, is this show getting worse at Dean's characterization? Because I feel like the last three eps in a row (at least) have been straight up OOC for him. And I'm not talking about the thing with Ezekiel and the lying. That's in character, imo, if misguided.
I'm talking about the littler things. The details. In this case, I mean Dean's sneering derision for virgins, Christians, porn stars and women in general.
And here is where it's hard to say if I'm over-sensitive (doubtless what the writers would think) or I'm really seeing some seriously offensive objectification.
The scene where Dean's in Susie's house, and comes across the porn DVDs (which I am unclear on WHY she'd just have those lying around, but whatevs) made me seriously consider autotrepannation. Its set up is obvious and icky enough, with the whole "hoodie and sneakers = unsexy, intentionally offputting, body not for consumption" and then wham: unzip that hoodie and the bow-chicka-wow-wow music starts. Suddenly she's sexually available.
The minute Dean figures out that she's a former porn star, all bets are off. She's nothing but a thing he's about to conquer. He barely had to suffer through one minute of doubt about his irresistible charms.
Nevermind the fact that it's evident that Susie has gone through an insane amount of trouble to conceal her identity. Nevermind her choices, and the fact that, until Dean, at least, she'd taken chastity very seriously. She'd felt called to God. All of that flies out the window the minute Dean says, "hey, I know you."
And then it's like: oops, tee hee, you caught me. I really am a porn star, masquerading this whole time as a virtuous girl. But see, since I can only be one or the other, and you've discovered my ~true self, then therefore I must jump your bones, because I am a promiscuous slut on the inside! Or something. Like she'd just been waiting for the opportunity to renounce her vows. That she took voluntarily.
And I mean look: I'm definitely no prude; I'm also definitely no Christian, but if people want to believe in Jesus and not have sex, then that's their prerogative. And this ep is like, the third in a row, I think, where Dean (and by extension, the viewer) is clearly standing in moral judgment of these misguided yahoos. First it was the animal rights activists, then it was people who work minimum wage at convenience stores, and now it's porn stars who've been born again.
And the most insidious part of this is that in each instance, Dean's derision is borne out as the correct response. He's proven 'right' at every turn. But he's basically walking around being an enormous douche.
WHY ARE THEY MAKING ME HATE DEAN? I don't want to hate Dean. In the past, when they've made him douchey, there's been some 'redeeming' act he's performed, that sort of set the cosmic scales back into balance. Like, in the past, sure he'd been flawed and imperfect, but he still contributed to the world. Lately, I feel like he's just racking up karmic debt for being an asshole.
Re: 9.08 Rock and a Hard Place
And specifically, I mean, is this show getting worse at Dean's characterization? Because I feel like the last three eps in a row (at least) have been straight up OOC for him. And I'm not talking about the thing with Ezekiel and the lying. That's in character, imo, if misguided.
I'm talking about the littler things. The details. In this case, I mean Dean's sneering derision for virgins, Christians, porn stars and women in general.
And here is where it's hard to say if I'm over-sensitive (doubtless what the writers would think) or I'm really seeing some seriously offensive objectification.
The scene where Dean's in Susie's house, and comes across the porn DVDs (which I am unclear on WHY she'd just have those lying around, but whatevs) made me seriously consider autotrepannation. Its set up is obvious and icky enough, with the whole "hoodie and sneakers = unsexy, intentionally offputting, body not for consumption" and then wham: unzip that hoodie and the bow-chicka-wow-wow music starts. Suddenly she's sexually available.
The minute Dean figures out that she's a former porn star, all bets are off. She's nothing but a thing he's about to conquer. He barely had to suffer through one minute of doubt about his irresistible charms.
Nevermind the fact that it's evident that Susie has gone through an insane amount of trouble to conceal her identity. Nevermind her choices, and the fact that, until Dean, at least, she'd taken chastity very seriously. She'd felt called to God. All of that flies out the window the minute Dean says, "hey, I know you."
And then it's like: oops, tee hee, you caught me. I really am a porn star, masquerading this whole time as a virtuous girl. But see, since I can only be one or the other, and you've discovered my ~true self, then therefore I must jump your bones, because I am a promiscuous slut on the inside! Or something. Like she'd just been waiting for the opportunity to renounce her vows. That she took voluntarily.
And I mean look: I'm definitely no prude; I'm also definitely no Christian, but if people want to believe in Jesus and not have sex, then that's their prerogative. And this ep is like, the third in a row, I think, where Dean (and by extension, the viewer) is clearly standing in moral judgment of these misguided yahoos. First it was the animal rights activists, then it was people who work minimum wage at convenience stores, and now it's porn stars who've been born again.
And the most insidious part of this is that in each instance, Dean's derision is borne out as the correct response. He's proven 'right' at every turn. But he's basically walking around being an enormous douche.
WHY ARE THEY MAKING ME HATE DEAN? I don't want to hate Dean. In the past, when they've made him douchey, there's been some 'redeeming' act he's performed, that sort of set the cosmic scales back into balance. Like, in the past, sure he'd been flawed and imperfect, but he still contributed to the world. Lately, I feel like he's just racking up karmic debt for being an asshole.