Buck up, little camper!

[electricland]

After reading a review here, a comment there, something just went click in my head: I don't like heroes who mope. (I knew this already, but now I have three examples to support it!)

Take for instance:

movie!Howl, from Howl's Moving Castle
2005movie!Mr. Darcy, from Pride and Prejudice
Good Angel, from Buffy

They irritate me. Not that I have anything against moody, depressed, or even tormented fictional men (yummy!) -- I just prefer it if they, you know, actually have something legitimate bothering them. (I think I get to pick what's legitimate. No, a minor temporary setback on The Road To True Luuuurrrve does not count. And actually I'm not sure Angel should count in there -- he may just have been boring, tormented or not.) And I seem to like it much better if the brooding depression is overlaid with snark, at least most of the time -- see Veronica Mars' Logan. (The apostrophe means nothing. I'm still not certain about that as a 'ship. But I can certainly see the attraction.) Otherwise, somewhere in the back of my head, there's usually a little voice going "you want to brood? I'll GIVE you something to brood about!"

I think this extends to books too, although I can't call specific examples to mind at present. Possibly brooding goes over better on the page, where you don't have to watch it in real time and/or you can get some insight into the character here and there.

It is possible that I am just not a sympathetic person.

Comments

[rolypolypony.livejournal.com]

Mr. Darcy.....yuuuummmmmm....

Um, were you saying something? ;)

[mrs-cake.livejournal.com]

Heh. WORD.

(I was gonna say the same thing, but use an Alan Rickman icon. He's always been the Mr Darcy in my mind's cast.)

[nellisir.livejournal.com]

While not quite the same thing, I loathe heros/protagonists that are and remain reluctant. There ought to come a time when the hero seizes the initiative.

I have no examples at this time, though.

[electricland.livejournal.com]

I can't think of any either, but I know exactly what you mean -- the ones where you're screaming "Get it together already! The time for waffling is past!" and wanting to shake them. Argh.