Heroes

"What are you still doing here?"
-Dr. Forsyth

I just ran into my Anthropology professor in the hallway of the Psych. building. He was rather surprised to see me, needless to say. I was pretty entertained. I had to tell him I was still hanging about the place for the sake of an M.A. He asked me if I was still seeing "that young man," my guy had an Anthro class the semester before last, then he dashed off to his office hours, or next class, or such. It's funny, I was just thinking I should stop by Dr. Forsyth's office and say hello. He's one of my favorite professors and was gone last semester on sabbatical.

In other news, I just finished the first season of Highlander last night. Adieu, Darius. Somehow, death just won't go away this week. Werner Stocker, who played Darius, was wonderful. Unfortunately, he also had a brain tumor. Darius, who was originally intended as a long term character, was killed off due to the actor's failing health. The cast & crew's knowledge of Stocker's death is very evident in the episode with regard to the way Darius' death was handled. They're really saying goodbye to Stocker as much as to a character. It helps excuse some of the overdone bits in the episode.

I've been thinking of why I like Highlander so much. Sure Adrian Paul is a lot of fun to look at, but the plots have a strong leaning toward the cheesy, and they bring up issues in one episode which they abruptly drop in the next, and there's too much emphasis on "good vs. evil" where the bad guys are just that. Also, there's a lack of larger story arcs. For the most part, any plot begun in an episode is ended in that same episode. I just keep thinking of what Highlander would have been like with Joss Whedon doing the driving. Yet, at the same time, I tend to like it just as it is.

Superficially, it's fun to have the flashbacks and sword fights. More than that, the crime/detective element is interesting. As much as Duncan is a hero, he's often just as much a private detective and bodyguard. The key, I think, is that he is a hero. Not in the "cop dies in the line of duty" kind of way, but in the mythic/chivalric way. He is the epitome of an epic kind of hero. He fights the good fight, protects the helpless, and abides by a strict moral code-a code which, in one episode, even led him to protect a rapist from the victim's father. As an added bonus, he's also (so far anyway) strictly faithful to his lady love, despite the numerous cute girlies who pop up and throw themselves at him.

I find I'm fascinated with heroes right now. You get everything from a Hercules, to a Duncan MacLeod to a Mal Reynolds, or even a Spike, and yet they're all "heroes." The funny thing is, anymore it seems hard to find the epitomal hero in books or TV or Movies. There's such a huge push for heroes to be "flawed" and "human." The reason, of course, is perfect heroes are boring: see Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Which is why MacLeod is interesting, he comes so close to the "perfect" hero, yet manages to escape doom of being boring. The salvation, there, can be chalked up mostly to his tendency to be cocky or a bit of a womanizer, (primarily in certain flashbacks, since he's totally loyal to Tessa currently).

A note on the side: I looked up Adrian Paul and found out that he started out as a dancer and choreographer. Go figure, eh? Though, I'm sure it helped out in the show as far as choreographing fights went. Like Serenity and Summer Glau prove, dance skills translate pretty well to fighting skills. So there you go, Adrian Paul is so badass as Duncan because of his experience wearing tights.