While it is usually one of my favorites, last night’s episode of Six Feet Under really bugged me. At the beginning of every episode, they show the death of someone who will come into the main characters’ funeral home. This week, it was a fat, terribly stereotypical comic book reader who was crushed under a shelf of comic books as he reached for a rare 1941 comic at the top.
It was such a lazy “Biff, Pow” type of characterization, and was based much more on The Simpsons Comic Book Guy than anyone I know.
I usually like that Six Feet Under takes the normal and puts a spin on it at the last moment, and that didn’t happen last night.
I know I’m nitpicking, but it’s just that I’ve been reading comics forever, and I’ve very rarely met anyone who adhered to that stereotype presented in the show. They were all social misfits, wearing plaid and thick, black plastic glasses. Every one of them. They could have done a story which opened people up to the idea of sequential art, and had something just as good, with the same main point, but instead they went for the cheap laugh.
And now in complete contrast to what I’ve just written, I’d also like to point out that one of the plot points was that this guy owned a copy of Blue Twister #1, and while reaching for it, he was crushed. Blue Twister was their made up book, supposedly from 1941, which this guy owned. But he had it in a regular plastic bag, no backboard, out on top of a shelf, mixed in with some other comics. That fucker would be slabbed and stored in a cool, dark place. Then, later they open up the book, and the color was way too bright to be from 1941, and it was in perfect condition, even after being stored very poorly. This obviously didn’t bug me as much, but I noticed it, and therefore I report it.
Just when you start to trust the media…
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Yeah – it got REEEAAALL quiet on my couch during the beginning and towards the end, i tried to avoid the eye contact of Kristen but she was just staring waiting for me to react…I just shook my head and said, “for every X-Men 2 or Spider-Man 2, there will be 3 of these”
I used to love SIX FEET UNDER… LOVE IT. I thought the first season was absolute brilliance.
Last year I missed a lot of it and found that I didn’t miss it that much. I tried to get back into it this season but I missed the third and fourth episode and decided not to even try getting back into it.
Now I’m glad.
Don’t get me wrong, the rest of the episode was pretty good, at least for this season.
I also really thought that last season was excellent, at least before Lisa disappeared. I think it was robbed by the Sopranos at the emmys. The show is best when it sticks to the tiny uncomfortable problems in reality and at home.
You’re exactly right about the frequency of this kind of thing Ron. And what do you think sticks in people’s minds? BIFF POW!!
I saw about half of last season… I dunno, I just lost interest in it.
Which season was the one where the death in the beginning was the guy in the 70s who was tripping on acid and jumped off a building? Was that this year?
PS – It’s true, escaping the image of the Comic Book Guy is a battle of Sysphian proportions.
I’m watching that rock just ROOOOOOLLLLL back down.
That was last season I think.