Since I haven’t posted a linkspam in months…

http://rusty-halo.com/wordpress/?p=2904

* John Simm will be playing Hamlet! Apparently it will open in Sheffield in September. Hmmm… I’m planning to go to the Lymond gathering in Paris in October… September is close to October… and England is close to France…

* Why Strong Female Characters Are Bad for Women - Great article that gets at the heart of why Hollywood continues to fail at creating female characters.

* bodlon on character death: “I object to being told that art is a democracy, or that writers are not allowed to make people sad [with] their stories, or that one reading of a text is the only reading of a text.” Fantastic post.

* This long-haired David Bowie picspam is so very, very pretty.

* A funeral for Internet Explorer 6. Web developers, rejoice!

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Okay, I Admit That I Officially Like White Collar

Last night, I watched White Collar 1×13 twice in a row, and then spent a full hour watching a goofy internet Q&A with the lead actors.

It’s time to admit the truth: I officially like White Collar.

Oooh, it’s so fun to have a fandom again!

Here are the things that I like about it:

* It’s character-driven. The plots are an excuse to explore Neal and Peter and their relationship. (Which is good because characters are way more interesting than plots, and also because White Collar’s plots kind of suck.)

* I love Neal and Peter and their relationship. They have a fantastic dynamic. Last night, Tim DeKay said that their relationship is a mix of father/son, older brother/younger brother, old married couple, and professional equals who love working together and have their own language that only they can understand. Which, yes, that’s it! The equals with their own language thing, even though they have power imbalances in other areas of life. It’s the key to nearly every ship I’ve loved: Doctor/Master, Sirius/Remus, Brian/Michael, Fraser/Ray, Sam/Gene, even Sharpe/Harper in a way. Or Jaime/Brienne, who work together brilliantly and understand each other better than anyone else, even though they suck at communicating.

* Their interactions get better with each episode, as the actors grow into their characters, and the writing is also getting sharper.

* Matt Bomer is insanely gorgeous. I could just stare at him all day. (I know, I didn’t think so at first, but he grew on me. He’s still too Hollywood-perfect, but his eyes are lovely, and the character is such a great mix of slick/charming and messed-up/vulnerable…)

* They have promo photos like this. Look, I’m only human, okay?

( spoilers for 1x13 (slash and woobification) )

* The writers do a great job of interacting with their fans. I've really been enjoying following WCwriters and jeffeastin on Twitter. I particularly love the script screenshots that Eastin is posting.

* This show makes NYC look so pretty. I was at this penthouse apartment the other day whose huge bedroom window looks right out at the Empire State Building, and I just about died of jealousy. But anyway, um, watching White Collar in high res on my giant flatscreen TV is almost like having a view.

* My expectations are low, so the show is unlikely to disappoint me. It's not particularly progressive, but it's not terribly offensive either. It's not stunningly dark, or brilliant, or interesting, but it's not incredibly stupid or annoying either. It's just kind of there, and pleasant, and Neal is gorgeous and it's fun to watch him and Peter interact. There's no stress over how the writers might Ruin Everything or how the other fans are Getting It Wrong, because... it doesn't really matter. This is the least invested I've ever been in canon and, oddly, the most I've ever just plain enjoyed it.

Originally published at rusty-halo.com. You can comment here or there.