A Doyle-thing to think about...

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

There's something I've been wondering for a while, off and on, every time I read a fic that reminds me of it, and I'd love to hear what other people think about this. Can anyone tell me:

What is it about canon Doyle that has made fanfic writers portray him as:

a) incredibly selfish

b) incredibly tight with money

I'm really really curious - anyone got any ideas? Are there particular moments that stand out, where he behaves like that? Why do they stand out? Or is it some more general thing? How many people would agree with that portrayal?

It's not that I can't see what might make an author write Doyle like this, it's just that I can't see why he's so often portrayed that way. Whatcha think?

Comments

[jgraeme2007.livejournal.com]

If you're about to die tomorrow, whinge about your expenses today...

I think like all young, fit, confident males, they aren't that worried about the future. I don't think they anticipate dying in the line of duty. Which is why guys join -- no, volunteer -- for the military and to be cops and firemen, etc. Sure, it's dangerous, but they figure -- everyone pretty much figures -- that it won't happen to them.

And I think this is why DiaG, for example, is such meat for fiction. Such terrific possibilities for character development and evolving relationships. Because in that episode they both confront their mortalty in no uncertain terms.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Yes, although I think there is something of a tradition - as I believe you've said yourself, in one of our much older conversations! - of people who work with mortality and danger and so on, of using humour to defuse it, and to me that's what's happening here sometimes, mixed up with the general non-serious nature of chat etc when you're that age, and in that situation etc. And yeah, everyone figures it won't happen to them... 's what I always said about doing forensics on counterfeit condom packets... never happen to me, I said... *g*

And yeah, in DiaG they do confront their mortality, but they're both still doing it implicitly rather than explicitly in alot of ways. We don't see Doyle's conscious thinking about his mortality, only that it must be in the back of his mind. And out loud Bodie says things like "He'll make it", and explains that his will is "the strongest" when Cowley wonders if it's strong enough to keep him alive. He doesn't sit and weep or talk about the possibility of Doyle's death - we see it in other things that he says, ways that he reacts and so on...

And I think that's one of the strengths of the show, and perhaps what has helped it endure in fandom - there is so much scope for interpretation and so on. If they did say everything nicely and clearly out loud, then what's left to play with? *g*

[jgraeme2007.livejournal.com]

And I think that's one of the strengths of the show, and perhaps what has helped it endure in fandom - there is so much scope for interpretation and so on. If they did say everything nicely and clearly out loud, then what's left to play with? *g*

It's the fun of filling in all the blanks. And there are so many blanks.

In DiaG it isn't so much what we see -- because what we see is very little -- but the logical conclusions we draw from what we see. It's pretty obvious that Doyle wouldn't make an instant recovery, but since the show is followed by other episodes, we see that he did eventually recover -- that this was the intent of the show's creator. The fun comes in trying to imagine how those weeks of recovery were spent. And of course the variety of perspectives on a particular episode is always entertaining. Very interesting to see what writers seem to agree on, and where they differ. Someday I'd like to write an essay on DiaG fics.

But I digress.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

You have digressed, I seem to remember a while ago that you were talking about writing a fic based on DiaG... now suddenly it's about fics?! Go on - write the fic first! *g*

It's the fun of filling in all the blanks. And there are so many blanks.
That's what I said! *g*

[jgraeme2007.livejournal.com]

You have digressed, I seem to remember a while ago that you were talking about writing a fic based on DiaG... now suddenly it's about fics?! Go on - write the fic first! *g*

Yeah. One day. One day soon, I hope.

But I do enjoy the analysis side of it too, and for some reason DiaG really gets to me. I've become a collector of those stories.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Sorry, ended up being AWOL from the discussion yesterday, when I'd intended being around all day!

Analysing the stories/eps/fandom can be good fun (although I'm not always in the mood to go too deeply into things, and I really don't need people pointing out all the discrepancies/shortcomings of the eps, which rather spoils the fun of it, which is the whole point for me!), and yeah DiaG is one of my favourite eps too. It was the only one that I really remembered through the years, from having seen the series when it was originally screened, which is interesting. I remembered the general tone of the rest of the show (though the realisation of slash was new - what can I say, I was an innocent young lass!) but it was scenes from DiaG that came back to me and were familiar... It's definitely got something! *g*