you're watching Sports Night
Jan. 30th, 2009 10:58 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
inmyriadbitsI'm thinking about Sports Night (I kind of blame this fic, The Light, which is really gorgeously done and highly recommended), and wondering. I'm thinking about cancelled shows, in particular, and TV in general, and other kinds of storytelling tangentially, and wondering about loose ends. I mean, movies generally try to tie things up unless they know for sure a sequel's in the works, but even they leave questions without answers. I hate questions without answers, which is probably why I love fanfic. TV is designed to leave you with questions at the end of each little sub-unit of the greater whole, but when you're left facing the end, sometimes there's just no way to answer all of those questions. Especially if the questions you think you need to answer are different from the questions your audience has.
Anyway, the point of that rambling sentence is, I'm wondering what you all wonder about Sports Night. What were you really looking forward to finding out as the episodes continued that you didn't get to find out? I'm not exactly asking for what fanfic you'd like to see; more like what unresolved storylines you're hankering to know about.
My list is such:
1. Dan's therapy/issues. I wanted to see what effect it had on him, whether he found any use in it after his Draft Day meltdown that helped him find a little peace or balance. I wanted to see his social anxiety rather than just being told that he sometimes feels so bad he has to vomit (offscreen). I wanted to see more of his family so I could figure out whether his dad really hated him, or if he was just your average Jewish father with a massive inability to say anything positive to his son. I wanted to see what Dan's mother was like.
2. I wanted to see Casey screw up professionally. It had to happen sometime, and we know he had it in him to screw up when his personal life is going bad from the pilot, and I wanted to see it happen again.
3. Along those lines, more Charlie would've been great.
4. Natalie and Jeremy. I wanted to see if those crazy kids worked it out. Or didn't.
5. I wanted Sam Donovan to show up again. I thought he was such a great character, and I loved him and Dana, and I would really like to see him show up again.
6. A serious look at the problems Quo Vadimus would've had during the transition, and their policies toward the show.
7. Esther Jaffe. She has to be a very cool lady, and I would have loved to meet her.
8. Rebecca. Oh, Rebecca. I liked her, but hated her for treating Dan so badly. I wanted to see how Dan reacted/talked about her return.
9. Dana. Dana, Dana, Dana. I wanted Dana to happy. I wanted to meet more of her family, which I think would be fascinating.
There's more, but that will suffice.
What did y'all want to see play out?
Anyway, the point of that rambling sentence is, I'm wondering what you all wonder about Sports Night. What were you really looking forward to finding out as the episodes continued that you didn't get to find out? I'm not exactly asking for what fanfic you'd like to see; more like what unresolved storylines you're hankering to know about.
My list is such:
1. Dan's therapy/issues. I wanted to see what effect it had on him, whether he found any use in it after his Draft Day meltdown that helped him find a little peace or balance. I wanted to see his social anxiety rather than just being told that he sometimes feels so bad he has to vomit (offscreen). I wanted to see more of his family so I could figure out whether his dad really hated him, or if he was just your average Jewish father with a massive inability to say anything positive to his son. I wanted to see what Dan's mother was like.
2. I wanted to see Casey screw up professionally. It had to happen sometime, and we know he had it in him to screw up when his personal life is going bad from the pilot, and I wanted to see it happen again.
3. Along those lines, more Charlie would've been great.
4. Natalie and Jeremy. I wanted to see if those crazy kids worked it out. Or didn't.
5. I wanted Sam Donovan to show up again. I thought he was such a great character, and I loved him and Dana, and I would really like to see him show up again.
6. A serious look at the problems Quo Vadimus would've had during the transition, and their policies toward the show.
7. Esther Jaffe. She has to be a very cool lady, and I would have loved to meet her.
8. Rebecca. Oh, Rebecca. I liked her, but hated her for treating Dan so badly. I wanted to see how Dan reacted/talked about her return.
9. Dana. Dana, Dana, Dana. I wanted Dana to happy. I wanted to meet more of her family, which I think would be fascinating.
There's more, but that will suffice.
What did y'all want to see play out?
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(no subject)
Date: 2009-01-31 08:42 pm (UTC)I could have watched Dan and his therapy/issues forever, just because I love him and he breaks my heart by being so sad and complicated, so, definitely with you on that one.
Esther Jaffe would have been very cool as well, and I kind of liked Calvin Traeger, too - would have loved another season where he cropped up a few times.
Ooh, what else? I thought the thing about Casey getting paid more was kind of an interesting fact about their relationship that we only found out about briefly; would have been interested to see that played out a little more. (I think I sort of masochistically wanted to see some more Dan and Casey fight episodes. Angst! Drama!)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-02-19 06:54 pm (UTC)I totally could've watched the Danny's In Therapy Show. (In fact, I kind of did watch that, because Josh Charles was on In Treatment...)
I wrote an Esther-centric ficlet a while ago, and have wondered what she would've been like on the show ever since. Especially since I know how awesomely Sorkin wrote the First Ladies on TWW. :) Calvin Traeger was also fun, and it would have been cool to see how Dana and him interacted after she knew who he really was. If we could've had Calvin Traeger AND Sam Donovan, now that would be the ideal...
I know! Those power dynamics are really interesting, and the fact that they try to ignore it most of the time makes it even more so. Fights between characters that get along so well are doubly interesting, because they only fight about the things that really matter, which makes for delicious emoporn.
You know what also would've been fun? A show centered around the secondary characters -- sort of like the Lab Rats episode of CSI -- because more Kim is never a bad thing.