Continuing that fandom meme.
May. 24th, 2021 12:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rogueslayer452I did that meme a while back and meant to continue doing it for other specific fandoms, but somehow ended up putting it off, so here's my entry for it for The Expanse.
THE EXPANSE
Favorite character
I love so many characters in this series, it's really hard to pick a favorite. My mind immediately went to Camina Drummer and Bobbie Draper, because of course. But I also fell in love with Julie Mao the moment I saw her in the series and, while I wished we'd gotten more of her, she continues to be a favorite even seasons after her last appearance. And of course there's Holden and Amos and I also adore Miller. But man, I love so many characters.
Least favorite character
Probably Murtry. He was a swarmy character, and was meant to be hated basically, and I'm sure that there's more to his character in the books than what was presented in the fourth season (at least in terms of motivation), but damn he was really straightforward just a nasty guy who hated Belters and had no problem killing them in cold-blood if it meant getting what he wanted and thought was owed to him. Like, I get that's a common sentiment felt among a lot of Inners regarding Belters, but I guess I felt like there needed to be more expansion on Murtry beyond just that alone, y'know.
5 ships (canon or non-canon)
Julie/Miller, Holden/Naomi, Naomi/Drummer, Amos/Clarissa, Polyam Belter Fam, (also bonus: Poly Roci Crew, because Holden canonically did ask his crew for a group marriage in the books, so, y'know....)
Character I find most attractive
Camina Drummer, Bobbie Draper, and I have to say Holden and Amos when they are scruffy because....yeah.....
Character I would marry
I mean, if Drummer would have me among her polyam fam I wouldn't hesitate, let's be honest. Also, Bobbie.
A character I would be friends with
Prax is certainly very friend-shaped. :) And I think Anna Volovodov would make for a good friend as well, she gives good advice and has a very calming presence which is something that I need. And I would love to have Amos as a friend, simply because when you have Amos on your side nobody is going to mess with you.
A random thought
I sometimes wonder what the show would've been like if it had been with Amazon from the start, budget-wise and ability to kind of expand on things without regular television restrictions. Of course, it makes me wonder whether the show would've gotten as much attention had it been on Amazon from the beginning, or if it would've been that niche obscure thing that streaming services often have that do go on for some time but rarely, if ever, gets much recognition. I mean, The Expanse deserves the attention it's been getting lately and it certainly deserves a lot more, but it just makes you wonder sometimes about the kind of fate and luck that it had.
An unpopular opinion
I love James Holden. I don't know if this is an unpopular opinion, but from my observation lately it seems that there's a lot of people within the fandom (or people just getting into the series) who have voiced how they hate Holden. And listen, I get it. I also didn't really like him in the beginning either, I found him to be impulsive and self-righteous, but as the show continued on and the more we saw different sides of him the more I ended up warming up to him and now? I cannot fathom not loving him. Holden goes through a lot during the course of the series, and does have a lot of growth due to the circumstances that he is thrust into, oftentimes against his will. He's a character who tries to do the right thing, and most times he ends up digging himself deeper because of that, but his intentions are good and ultimately at this point he's just a tired man who needs a nap from carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. Not to mention his love for Naomi and his crew, I mean, how can I not love him?
Also, I love the first season. I think I've seen people say how it was slow and it didn't grip them, and that's fine, but the first season is what made me love the series in the first place. It's a slow-burn as the mystery unfolds, but it works.
My canon OTP
Holden/Naomi. What's funny is that I wasn't that interested in them initially, because I wasn't huge on Holden in the beginning so I was indifferent to the concept of them getting together, but that quickly changed once I started warming up to him and now I cannot think fathom not loving the nature of their relationship. I love that they have a lot of love for each other, and that whatever conflicts occur between them is more or less tied with the clashing of cultural beliefs (Earther versus Belter beliefs and ideals) and not anything else that we often seen, especially with m/f relationships in media. The love they have has only grown stronger due to the mutual trust and respect they have for one another, and I think that is the biggest reason why I love their canonical relationship.
And I really adored the polyamorous belter crew that Drummer was in (Polyam Belter Fam!), it was a beautiful addition to showing us another side of Drummer, giving her people to love who loved her the same in return, and I liked how it was shown and how the conflict that happened between them was handled.
My non-canon OTP
Julie/Miller. Just, everything about them, the tragedy of two lost souls who never truly meet but are fated to die together anyway. I cannot help but love everything surrounding that whole narrative of Miller seeing Julie and seeing hope, of finding meaning in life again, of sacrificing himself for that love he had with her. I just, it's tragic and filled with angst yet hope and I'm a sucker for that.
Most badass character
I find this one difficult to answer every single time because all the characters are badasses in their own ways, it's not always the characters who are the strongest or who have endured the most in comparison to others. They've all gone through traumatic experiences and have survived in their own ways, so it's unfair to really say who is the most "badass" when they've all done and gone through so much that they each qualify as being as such.
Most epic villain
I have to say Marco Inaros. The setup of his character has been cleverly done during the fourth and fifth seasons, we're told that he's a dangerous terrorist, we see the seeds that are planted, the way he manipulates others, and by the fifth season we precisely how he operates, the way he intimidates and threatens and manipulates others onto his side, whether they like it or not, and we see his plans coming through. I think out of all of the antagonists the series has had, Inaros ranks as being on top, in my opinion. I find him so fascinating, and I just love to hate him.
Pairing I am not a fan of
Bobbie/Chrisjen, mostly because while I understand where it comes from it just does nothing for me. I adore their friendship that they've developed, nothing more beyond that. Also I wasn't really the biggest fan of the whole Amos/Wei "relationship" that happened in the fourth season. I mostly viewed it as a casual thing, nothing serious, and yet it seemed like Wei had a lot more expectations and assumptions about Amos and the nature of whatever they had together than he did, I don't know. It was just an odd setup that I wished had gotten to be explored more than it did, is all.
Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another)
I can't really think of anyone, to be honest. I haven't started the books yet so I don't know if the show has done anything differently with handling certain characters.
Favorite friendship
Something that I love about The Expanse is seeing the different friendships that are formed, and loving that even if we have established groups (i.e. the Roci Crew) they are also allowed to form friendships outside of each other. Because of course I love the crew of the Roci, but I also love seeing the friendship between Naomi and Drummer, of Alex and Bobbie, of Amos and Prax and then later Clarissa, of Holden and Miller; the friendship between Chrisjen and Bobbie, etc. The connections and companionships made, even if for a brief time, is one of the things I adore about the series.
Character I most identify with
A bit of Julie and Clarissa.
Character I wish I could be
A mixture of Naomi, Drummer, and Bobbie.
THE EXPANSE
Favorite character
I love so many characters in this series, it's really hard to pick a favorite. My mind immediately went to Camina Drummer and Bobbie Draper, because of course. But I also fell in love with Julie Mao the moment I saw her in the series and, while I wished we'd gotten more of her, she continues to be a favorite even seasons after her last appearance. And of course there's Holden and Amos and I also adore Miller. But man, I love so many characters.
Least favorite character
Probably Murtry. He was a swarmy character, and was meant to be hated basically, and I'm sure that there's more to his character in the books than what was presented in the fourth season (at least in terms of motivation), but damn he was really straightforward just a nasty guy who hated Belters and had no problem killing them in cold-blood if it meant getting what he wanted and thought was owed to him. Like, I get that's a common sentiment felt among a lot of Inners regarding Belters, but I guess I felt like there needed to be more expansion on Murtry beyond just that alone, y'know.
5 ships (canon or non-canon)
Julie/Miller, Holden/Naomi, Naomi/Drummer, Amos/Clarissa, Polyam Belter Fam, (also bonus: Poly Roci Crew, because Holden canonically did ask his crew for a group marriage in the books, so, y'know....)
Character I find most attractive
Camina Drummer, Bobbie Draper, and I have to say Holden and Amos when they are scruffy because....yeah.....
Character I would marry
I mean, if Drummer would have me among her polyam fam I wouldn't hesitate, let's be honest. Also, Bobbie.
A character I would be friends with
Prax is certainly very friend-shaped. :) And I think Anna Volovodov would make for a good friend as well, she gives good advice and has a very calming presence which is something that I need. And I would love to have Amos as a friend, simply because when you have Amos on your side nobody is going to mess with you.
A random thought
I sometimes wonder what the show would've been like if it had been with Amazon from the start, budget-wise and ability to kind of expand on things without regular television restrictions. Of course, it makes me wonder whether the show would've gotten as much attention had it been on Amazon from the beginning, or if it would've been that niche obscure thing that streaming services often have that do go on for some time but rarely, if ever, gets much recognition. I mean, The Expanse deserves the attention it's been getting lately and it certainly deserves a lot more, but it just makes you wonder sometimes about the kind of fate and luck that it had.
An unpopular opinion
I love James Holden. I don't know if this is an unpopular opinion, but from my observation lately it seems that there's a lot of people within the fandom (or people just getting into the series) who have voiced how they hate Holden. And listen, I get it. I also didn't really like him in the beginning either, I found him to be impulsive and self-righteous, but as the show continued on and the more we saw different sides of him the more I ended up warming up to him and now? I cannot fathom not loving him. Holden goes through a lot during the course of the series, and does have a lot of growth due to the circumstances that he is thrust into, oftentimes against his will. He's a character who tries to do the right thing, and most times he ends up digging himself deeper because of that, but his intentions are good and ultimately at this point he's just a tired man who needs a nap from carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. Not to mention his love for Naomi and his crew, I mean, how can I not love him?
Also, I love the first season. I think I've seen people say how it was slow and it didn't grip them, and that's fine, but the first season is what made me love the series in the first place. It's a slow-burn as the mystery unfolds, but it works.
My canon OTP
Holden/Naomi. What's funny is that I wasn't that interested in them initially, because I wasn't huge on Holden in the beginning so I was indifferent to the concept of them getting together, but that quickly changed once I started warming up to him and now I cannot think fathom not loving the nature of their relationship. I love that they have a lot of love for each other, and that whatever conflicts occur between them is more or less tied with the clashing of cultural beliefs (Earther versus Belter beliefs and ideals) and not anything else that we often seen, especially with m/f relationships in media. The love they have has only grown stronger due to the mutual trust and respect they have for one another, and I think that is the biggest reason why I love their canonical relationship.
And I really adored the polyamorous belter crew that Drummer was in (Polyam Belter Fam!), it was a beautiful addition to showing us another side of Drummer, giving her people to love who loved her the same in return, and I liked how it was shown and how the conflict that happened between them was handled.
My non-canon OTP
Julie/Miller. Just, everything about them, the tragedy of two lost souls who never truly meet but are fated to die together anyway. I cannot help but love everything surrounding that whole narrative of Miller seeing Julie and seeing hope, of finding meaning in life again, of sacrificing himself for that love he had with her. I just, it's tragic and filled with angst yet hope and I'm a sucker for that.
Most badass character
I find this one difficult to answer every single time because all the characters are badasses in their own ways, it's not always the characters who are the strongest or who have endured the most in comparison to others. They've all gone through traumatic experiences and have survived in their own ways, so it's unfair to really say who is the most "badass" when they've all done and gone through so much that they each qualify as being as such.
Most epic villain
I have to say Marco Inaros. The setup of his character has been cleverly done during the fourth and fifth seasons, we're told that he's a dangerous terrorist, we see the seeds that are planted, the way he manipulates others, and by the fifth season we precisely how he operates, the way he intimidates and threatens and manipulates others onto his side, whether they like it or not, and we see his plans coming through. I think out of all of the antagonists the series has had, Inaros ranks as being on top, in my opinion. I find him so fascinating, and I just love to hate him.
Pairing I am not a fan of
Bobbie/Chrisjen, mostly because while I understand where it comes from it just does nothing for me. I adore their friendship that they've developed, nothing more beyond that. Also I wasn't really the biggest fan of the whole Amos/Wei "relationship" that happened in the fourth season. I mostly viewed it as a casual thing, nothing serious, and yet it seemed like Wei had a lot more expectations and assumptions about Amos and the nature of whatever they had together than he did, I don't know. It was just an odd setup that I wished had gotten to be explored more than it did, is all.
Character I feel the writers screwed up (in one way or another)
I can't really think of anyone, to be honest. I haven't started the books yet so I don't know if the show has done anything differently with handling certain characters.
Favorite friendship
Something that I love about The Expanse is seeing the different friendships that are formed, and loving that even if we have established groups (i.e. the Roci Crew) they are also allowed to form friendships outside of each other. Because of course I love the crew of the Roci, but I also love seeing the friendship between Naomi and Drummer, of Alex and Bobbie, of Amos and Prax and then later Clarissa, of Holden and Miller; the friendship between Chrisjen and Bobbie, etc. The connections and companionships made, even if for a brief time, is one of the things I adore about the series.
Character I most identify with
A bit of Julie and Clarissa.
Character I wish I could be
A mixture of Naomi, Drummer, and Bobbie.
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no subject
Date: 2021-05-28 06:11 pm (UTC)Especially the antagonists, like you see where they come from and you see their side, but how they go about it isn't always the best but the show demonstrates how they're people too with their own motivations in what they believe is the right thing to do. Sometimes it's not always sympathetic, sometimes it's selfish but it's a very human thing and I like how the show portrays the different levels of antagonists. It's great. :)
no subject
Date: 2021-05-28 08:41 pm (UTC)Me, too.