100 Things #5

100 Things: 100 favorite scenes from anything (books, movies, TV, fanfic, etc)

Scene #5: "Families stay, Harry" from Dresden Files book 11 book 10 actually *facepalm*

Aaah, Dresden Files. I know so many people who've tried to read the series and quit in the first couple of books, usually complaining that they're poorly written and cliche and sexist. And ... it's not like it isn't true! But I have to struggle with my obsessed-fan tendency to wail, "But ... but it gets so much better later on! Give it a chance!"

I know these books aren't going to be for everyone. But they really do get better later on, not just in terms of picking up richness and layers and depth as a series, but also giving depth and agency to a lot of the characters who didn't have all that much to begin with, particularly the female characters. One of the things that makes me love the series is the way that a lot of its characters start out as little more than interesting/amusing ideas or one-note cliches and slowly turn into full-fledged, living, breathing people when you aren't looking. I love to be surprised in that particular way.

And one of the stellar examples of that is what happens to Charity in the course of the series.

Charity is introduced as a gigantic cliche, and a fairly sexist cliche at that. She is Michael's nagging wife. Her main role in the first few books is to take care of Michael's large brood of children and harangue Harry for making her husband stay out late.

But then Book 8 (Proven Guilty) happens.

( Spoilers for books 8 and 10 )

100 Things #6

100 Things: 100 favorite scenes from anything (books, movies, TV, fanfic, etc)

Scene #6: The final page-turn in "Transmetropolitan"

If you haven't read it, Transmetropolitan (Transmet for short) is a series of comics by Warren Ellis that is basically about a not-even-thinly-disguised version of Hunter S. Thompson in a dystopic sci-fi future. If you have a high tolerance for (very funny) vulgarity, if you appreciate (or at least can tolerate) political satire, if you like complicated and layered stories that can switch from hilarious to shockingly dark in the course of a single page, then you should at least check out the first book.

And if you haven't read it and plan to, unless you are a total spoiler aficionado, you REALLY should NOT read what's under the cut! In some ways, the whole series is building to the last issue and the last couple pages of that issue. It's still one of my favorite endings of anything ever, in part because it's so unexpected and yet so well set up by what went before.

( The last couple of pages of Transmet (there is also a very spoilery trigger warning under the cut) )

100 Things #7

100 Things: 100 favorite scenes from anything (books, movies, TV, fanfic, etc)

Scene #7: The director's cut ending of "Blade Runner"

Since I'm doing endings ... :D

I first saw Blade Runner in the late '80s (or so), and I remember liking it okay, but being really meh on the ending. Even though I was pretty young at the time, and generally preferred happy endings, I didn't like that one. It felt slapped on and insincere. Which, apparently, it was.

Several years later, when the director's cut came out, I watched it and was completely blown away with love for the new ending.

( Spoilers for both endings of Blade Runner )