All One or the Other

Finished reading: Last Summer #6 - "It Was Your Idea"

I'm going to be taking a break from blogging for about a week so that my wife and I can travel a bit. Undoubtedly, you might have had your suspicions that the blog might be abandoned, to be left a shell of itself like Fortress CINCGREEN.

Part of that feeling is that I'm "written out". Right now, I have three writing projects going on. Two involve baseball message boards for which I write. The other involves this blog, and it seems I try to juggle these many balls but one always comes close to hitting the floor.

Furthermore, there's so much I want to do. My wife introduced me to Helium...I suspect that she'd like me to earn a little money from all this time spent in front of the keyboard. In addition, there are multi-player baseball leagues that sound interesting.

Oh Daria Fandom! You are such a fickle mistress and I am such a fickle suitor! Should we get married, or should I start seeing other people?

(* * *)

Anyway, back to "The Last Summer Series" and "It Was Your Idea", the most recent installment.

When we return to Daria and Jane, they are planning their summer "road trip" to the beach. Jane reminds Daria that one of the conditions in going is that Daria has to wear a bathing suit. The Morgendorffers say goodbye, Trent says goodbye, and Daria and Jane are on the road.

While driving, Jane asks Daria if she should take a job as an assistant to Ms. Defoe at Lawndale High, just for the fall semester. Jane's parents can help pay for college, but they didn't plan for it so money is tight all around. Daria concurs, and has a secret of her own to share wtih Jane -- she doesn't plan on returning to Lawndale during the summer, planning to spend every summer in Boston and working on a double major. Jane wonders if Daria is trying to cut her parents off, but Daria states that her parents are good people but she needs distance.

The two arrive on the beach and eat at a local pizza shop. Jane asks what Daria will do if they meet any "interesting" guys and Daria promises to remain civil "if they show signs of higher brain function".

Daria and Jane commit to wearing swimsuits (Daria says she feels half-naked and Jane says that she feels three-quarters-naked), and prepare to hit the beachfront. As Daria and Jane bring their beach belonging, two college-age students watch Daria and Jane unloading their car. The two begin to walk over and Jane thinks the guys should be encouraged -- and not frightened off by Daria. Daria promises to hold her tongue.

The two introduce themselves as Will and Greg. Greg pairs up with Jane and Will keeps Daria company. Daria at least admits that Will is interesting to talk to. As Daria and Jane go for a swim, Will and Greg decide to surprise them by setting up lunch for the four of them before they get back.

The four of them visit a cheap beach shop and Daria and will begin swapping one-liners regarding the kitchy items. Greg offers on behalf of both Will and himself to take everyone out to dinner.

While dressing for an informal dinner, Daria wonders if she and Jane know what they're doing. Jane figures that as none of the guys has hinted at playing grab-ass, they should be all right. Daria is forced to admit that she thinks Will is cute.

The four go off to eat seafood and exchange pleasant chat. At the end of the night, Jane gives Greg a light kiss, which Greg returns. Daria figures that Will will expect the same, but at the same time, concedes that he's been a nice guy. She gives Will a kiss, which actually surprises Will.

As Daria and Jane depart, we learn that Greg and Will are in the same situation that Jane and Daria are. Greg has been trying to convince Will to let himself have a good time, and Will admits that he's pleased with the results.

At the end of the night, Daria comes to the same conclusions. She learns that "not everyone's a bastard or a lecherous pervert". Furthermore, the night convinces Daria to have no further regrets about breaking up with Tom. She knows that Tom wasn't the right guy, and that there are a lot of fish in the sea (so to speak).

The two return home, and Daria tells her family about the trip and about Greg and Will as well. Daria admits to Quinn that the guys bought them dinner, and teases Quinn about helping her pick up guys. Quinn sasses back that Daria hasn't seen a pro do it, and Helen wonders that Daria and Quinn seem to be getting along a lot better...and wonders how powerful Daria and Quinn could be if they cooperated.

(* * *)

All and all, this was an interesting story. The main theme is an important one, namely that all men in the Daria universe aren't crazy (DeMartino, Jake), wimps (O'Neill), unreliable (Trent), lechers (Upchuck), spoken for (Mack), stupid (Kevin) or lying, cheating bastards (Tom). Mr. Lobinske decides to do this by comparing and contrasting Greg and Will with Jane and Daria. Will and Daria have a lot of similiarities -- down to even wearing glasses -- but Lobinske doesn't shove the similarities in our face. A younger (and less talented) author would have made Will a carbon copy of Daria ("Daria with a penis") and Greg would have probably been an art major or something. Luckily, Mr. Lobinske spared us that.

There are a couple of flaws in the story, but not major ones. There's a section where the writer devotes a paragraph to both Daria and Jane describing how each has changed during the run of the series. The problem is that the paragraphs are so close to each other -- and so alike in format -- that the paragraphs seem more exposition than explanation. This is a part of the story where "show, not tell" would have been a good idea.

The other flaw is a part of the story where it is implied -- I think -- that Daria might still like Trent. The problem is that the dialogue is so awkward that I don't know what the writer was intending. I think Mr. Lobinske tried to hint at a Daria/Trent attraction, but his attempt to foreshadow turned to pure obfuscation. I could be completely wrong about that, and after reading that paragraph, I wouldn't be surprised if I was.

There is one section of the story worth a more detailed discussion because it brings up an interesting point. Daria mentions that she plans on not returning to Lawndale during the summers, and Jane zeroes in to ask whether Daria is trying to keep her family at arm's length, to sort of cut them out of her life.

During the run of the show, Daria's personality vis-a-vis her family has been one of two sides of a coin. Either Daria is proudly obstinate, enjoying the chaos her attitude brings, or wounded and retreating in self-pity. The final regular episode of the series, "Boxing Daria", took this to its logical conclusion with Daria literally retreating to the psychological comfort of a large cardboard box. At the end of the episode, however, Daria is able to abandon the cardboard box, to actually hug Jane impulsively, and to admit to her parents that at times, she's been a pill:

Daria - It's not the fight. It's the sudden realization that all these years, when I thought they were torturing me, in reality I was the one torturing them.

Jane - First of all, I don't think it's either-or. From where I'm sitting, you and your folks have done a great job of torturing each other. And second of all, you mean to tell me you don't know when you're busting them?

Daria - Yes, I know when I'm busting them. What I didn't realize is what a pain I've been when I thought I was just being me.

Jane -- and Daria -- are right. The two sides have been tormenting each other over the years, with Helen trying to drag Daria into "proper" behavior and Daria trying to drag the family into chaos. At the end of the episode, both side seemed to come to grips with their dysfunctions and have decided to stop dragging, so to speak. I don't know if I'll ever read "Falling Into College" -- as someone said about something else, "the reason I don't read anyone else's work is that it gets in the way of the work I want to write" -- but I hope that Daria can be herself and still be aware of how she affects other people. Trust me, Daria fans, it doesn't have to be all one or all the other.

Honor Society

Finished reading -- Last Summer #4 -- "Out of the Frying Pan"



No new news here, except that it's Valentine's Day! My wife got me a card that reminded me of Love and Rocket, one of our favorite Futurama episodes. It's a card with a picture of candy hearts on the front. Ruth wrote the quotes, "These candies are chalky and unpleasant!" and "You leave me breathless!", two of my favorite quotes.

I got her a much more standard card, with a plastic bowl (hand decorated) filled with Sugar Babies and Junior Mints. The above just goes to show you -- you don't need to buy diamonds for someone to show your love and appreciation.

(* * *)

The Fashion Club are doing a post-mortem on Daria's appearance in a ballgown. Daria interrupts to let Quinn know that she'll be at Jane's for dinner.

At the Pizza Prince, Daria shares news with Jane that she got a second rejection, meaning that she can now call herself a writer. The two meet a dejected Mack, who states that he had planned to have lunch with Jodie, but Jodie's father continues to overload Jodie with work. Daria and Jane decide to liberate Jodie from her drudgery.

When Daria returns, she finds that her latest Melody Powers story will be published in Literature in Action. The family decides to celebrate Daria's success. Daria, however, still has her mind on helping Mack.

Mack shows up the next day and Daria presents her plan. Daria will have a dinner party at the Morgendorffer's to celebrate Daria's success. Jodie will be invited and Mack and Jodie can spend time together there.

Unfortunately, the plan fails. Mr. Landon has Jodie in charge of catering a business dinner, and Jodie can't get out of the obligation. Daria has Helen call Mr. Landon, who hears that Daria has become a speechwriter (apparently, she wrote the speech for Helen to honor Carol Murphey). Mr. Landon concludes that it would be good for Jodie to "network" with a speechwriter and lets her attend the party.

After the dinner, a new plan is formulated. An honor society for past LHS graduates will be created. Jodie, Daria, Jane and Mack all have accomplishments that would qualify them to be inaugural members. The catch is that unbeknownst to all, no real work will be planned at any of the 'meetings' -- the society is just an excuse to give Jodie free time.

With the help of Carol Murphy, and recommendations from the Lawndale Faculty, the Lawndale High School Student Leaders Honor Society is formed.

The only drawback is that the society requires a formal inauguration in everyone's Sunday best to make it look convincing. Daria is given the presidency as the price to Murphey for setting the whole thing up. The inaugural members make the most of their time...by watching "Sick Sad World".

(* * *)

I enjoyed reading "Out of the Frying Pan". It wasn't as eyeopening as "Shifts in Mood", but it was a rather pleasant piece.

One of the problems of reading any work of fiction is 'hitches' -- can you suspend your disbelief enough and be drawn into the author's universe? Daria getting published by Literature in Action might be a hitch to some readers, but the low-key ceremony indicates that this is not the same as being published in "Esquire". It's much more realistic for Daria to have her work published in minor journals first.

Perhaps the only hitch of the story is why Daria would go so far out of her way for Jodie, an acquaintance at best, but even that hitch is negligable -- who wouldn't have sympathy for someone in Jodie's situation? Daria managed a realistic solution to a problem.

(This leads me to conclude that the reason Andrew Landon keeps Jodie so busy is that he doesn't want her to have free time. Why? Because he hates Mack Mackenzie, and doesn't want Jodie to have any spare time to hook up with him. It's a good excuse for him to keep her away from him. Now, all he has to do is solve the problem of Jodie resenting him for the rest of his life, and everything will work out perfectly.)