"the strike is gonna kill my favorite shows" babe okay if you don't want to think about the human livelihoods at stake (you should really be thinking about the humans though) like. think about what happens after this. when writing pays you enough to eat; more people get to be writers. more stories. more interesting plots and ideas. think about what gets made when artists aren't starving.
you've been complaining for years that tv is going downhill. part of that is because the writers aren't paid enough - a screenwriter needs to be able to live with a very low paycheck while being virtually anonymous, so as a profession it self-selects for a very slim number of people. part of bad writing is burnout and the absolutely criminal amount of influence corporations have over scripts. writing is actually a craft, despite what people who love chatGPT will tell you - and, as a craft; it takes time, diligence, and support.
and yes, i understand. you have a connection to a piece of media, which is what writers want. but we regret to inform you that your blorbo is as real as the image in the mirror - is your reflection actually you? can the reflection ever show anything but the truth? as writers, our work is the reflection. you can't keep throwing our bodies under buses and then being shocked that our work is bitter, 2d, "needs revision". imagine what gets made when the artist is inspired and has the time, space, energy, and fucking budget to actually make what makes them happy.
i love you so much. but also, really - and for real - before anything else, please remember it's human livelihoods at stake.
I woke up today and realized that Big Time Rush literally got the same treatment celebrities in the Hollywood studio system got: fictionalized backstory given to the audience that most adults could figure out was fake pretty easily/or knew was fake but still enjoyed the fake backstory because it gave everyone a "plucked out of obscurity" story to root for. A fake name (or in their case, last name) given to them to make them sound more "star" worthy. Literally slotted into an archetype to make them more appealing to their demographic. (There is literally an episode for Logan's first name goes from "Hortense" to "Logan" to make him more "appealing.") In this essay I will-
“Today is a special day! Today, our beloved Rose joins our ranks, our mission. Through time and time again, they have proven themselves- they have shown us all that this isn’t just a mission for joy- but for some, a mission for family. And with this mask, you’ll never be alone again, Rose.”
isn't it wild how you can play through an entire indie game in a single day and be left with a deeper, more profound experience, story, moral or question all wrapped in a more unique and impactful art style than many triple a games nowadays. for like 8 bucks.