the best & worst of TLW-afterellen

[jamiemarch (jamiemarch)]

by Malinda Lo, May 17, 2005
(前言述刪)

Best Kiss – Carmen and Shane’s game of “Too Hot” in episode 2.03 (“Lonelie
st Number”) definitely turned up the heat and set a new bar for kissing on The
 L Word. Watching that scene made that game look like the best invention since
Twister.

Worst Kiss – Despite the fact that Kit (Pam Grier) is one hot mama, even she c
ouldn’t make kissing Benjamin Bradshaw (Charles S. Dutton) look good. When she
 and the self-help guru locked lips after their illicit lunch date (episode 2.0
6, “Lagrimas de Oro”), their lack of chemistry should have reached out and sl
apped them. Where’s Ivan when you need him?

Best Seduction – Shane may be the resident heartthrob, but Bette is the real m
ack daddy. Her trip to New York in episode 2.04 (“Lynch Pin”) may not have la
nded her a grant from the Peabody Foundation, but it did land her a cute little
 number from the Starlight Bar. After downing a couple of vodka martinis, Bette
 swaggered over to the nameless brunette like the hottest shark you ever saw an
d asked, “Do you wanna dance?” Saying no was never an option.

Worst Seduction – Unfortunately for the nameless older lesbian in episode 2.11
 (“Loud and Proud”), she never went to Bette’s School of Seduction. Her atte
mpt to woo Jenny with the line “What’s the matter? Am I too old or too suburb
an or something?” was both pathetic and just plain weird.

Best Sex Scene – Alice and Dana would have been a cinch for this award given t
heir creative use of costumes on the Olivia Cruise, but since Dana cut out earl
y due to seasickness, the award has to go to Tina and Bette, who reunited brief
ly on episode 2.09 (“Late, Later, Latent”). The emotion and sincerity in the
scene made it one of the most multilayered, meaningful love scenes on the show.


Worst Sex Scene – While many lesbian viewers may object to straight sex scenes
 because The L Word is a show about lesbians, I don’t mind them--as long as th
ey’re sexy. But in episode 2.01 (“Life, Love, Leaving”), we got an example o
f a decidedly unsexy straight sex scene when Tim (Eric Mabius) barged into Jenn
y’s room in the middle of the night, woke her up, and basically mounted her wi
th no foreplay whatsoever. To make matters worse, after about a minute (just wh
en Jenny seemed to be getting into it) he decided he had enough and left. After
 that, I think pretty much any woman would turn into a dyke.

Best Dressed – In a wardrobe department full of “eccentric” outfits, Bette’
s closet stands head and shoulders above the others in terms of style, elegance
, and that indefinable hot-damn element. Perhaps it’s just that Jennifer Beals
 has the grace to carry off even high-waisted trousers with suspenders, but eve
n when Bette is down in her cups, she looks damn good. (An honorable mention ha
s to go to Alice in her scrumptious Julie costume.)

Worst Dressed – Out of a plethora of choices, we have a tie in this category b
etween Jenny’s white doily dress (episode 2.03, “Loneliest Number”) and Alic
e’s red velour boob tube/track shorts Pride outfit (2.11, “Loud and Proud”).
 All I can say is, at least Alice wore those accompanying Ray-Bans with pride.

Best Hair – Regular readers of AfterEllen.com will remember that I have a cert
ain fascination with hair on The L Word. Let’s just say that this year everybo
dy on the show should get an award for Most Improved Hair, but the winner in th
is category has to be Bette. Again, just like her wardrobe, her hair always loo
ks good. Even when Bette was floating face-down in her pool, her hair managed t
o fan out in the water perfectly. That’s a miracle.

Worst Hair – I picked on Shane’s hair a lot last year, but this year Shane ha
s also improved—on some occasions. I’m going to choose to believe that her ha
ir is a state of her mood, and that when the strange little bleached ducktail o
n the back of her head emerges, she’s having a bad day. So sometimes Shane has
 the Worst Hair, and sometimes she’s just really cute.

Best Villain – Who would have thought that I would ever develop fond memories
of Tonya (Meredith McGeachie), whom Alice accused of poisoning Dana’s Mr. Pidd
les? But after that hilarious dream sequence in episode 2.03 ("Loneliest Number
") which Tonya left hot pink lipstick prints all over Alice’s stunned face, To
nya quickly skyrocketed to the top of the villains list. She really was someone
 we all loved to hate—and McGeachie played her with admirable tongue-in-cheek
aplomb.


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◆ From: 211.21.99.240
※ 編輯: jamiemarch      來自: 211.21.99.240        (05/18 14:53)
推 esasin:雖然我也愛小貝..但她也偏心得太厲害哩XD
推 iacw:毆毆毆too hot果然上榜了XD
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------- <


作者: jamiemarch (jamiemarch) 看板: the_L_word
標題: the best & worst of the TLW2
時間: Wed May 18 14:51:09 2005

Worst Villain – Shane and Jenny’s roommate Mark (Eric Lively) is a shoo-in fo
r this award. Mark’s behavior was offensive, sure, but he was also boring, and
 his sudden change-of-heart combined with an obvious obsession with Shane was u
nbelievable and, dare I say it, lame.

Best Guest Star – On Season 1, The L Word made a mistake by having the sole As
ian character be the hysterical (as in, apparently crazy) girlfriend of Bette a
nd Tina’s baby daddy. The show made amends this year by casting Linda Ko as th
e calm, assured nurse that Bette hired to care for her dying father beginning i
n episode 2.12 ("L'Chaim"). Thank you, casting directors.

Worst Guest Star – Ariana Huffington’s appearance in episode 2.01 (“Life, Lo
ss, Leaving”) was clearly a throwaway celebrity placement, and an uninterestin
g one at that.

Best Use of Music in an Episode – The L Word has been pretty adventurous with
its sound this year, and music director ezgirl (a.k.a. Elizabeth Ziff of Betty)
 definitely got it right in episode 2.09 (“Late, Later, Latent”) when she cho
se to layer Heart’s “No Other Love” over Bette and Tina’s love scene. That
song’s minimalist aesthetic and one verse of repeated lyrics was perfect for t
he emotion and intensity of the scene.

Worst Use of Music in an Episode – The theme song has really taken a beating t
his year, and while I admit I am not a fan of its spy-girl-meets-surfer-chick s
ound, I would have been okay with it if it had been limited to the opening cred
its. However, the theme song reappears throughout most episodes in endless vari
ation (xylophone, cello, French), hammering home the fact that “this is the wa
y that we live.” Message to ezgirl: okay, we get it! Girls in tight dresses dr
ag with mustaches!

Best Angst-ridden Moment – Dyke drama was showcased in its finest form during
Tonya and Dana’s bridal shower in episode 2.05 ("Labryinth") when a miserable
Bette toasted the mismatched couple. “I lift my glass to caring…and kindness
and trust…and longevity and respect. To all the things that you'll need to kee
p your love alive,” Bette began. “I wish you... happiness. And I hope that yo
u forever spare each other pain. And if you find that is impossible,” she conc
luded with heartbreaking honesty, “then I wish you forgiveness.” Did you hear
 that massive rustling sound? That was thousands of lesbians pulling out their
tissues at the same moment.

Worst Angst-ridden Moment – Tina’s emotional breakdown with Helena (2.09, “L
ate, Later, Latent”) shortly after she slept with Bette was so over-the-top bi
zarre that I kept wondering if Tina was flailing out at Helena on purpose in or
der to drive her away. The scene was a seesaw between stereotypical pregnant ho
rmones gone bad and questionable acting—neither Laurel Holloman nor Rachel She
lley convinced me that the two characters were really in the moment.

Best Use of a Prop – The dildo at the airport in episode 2.10 (“Land Ahoy”)
wins, hands-down. (No pun intended.)

Worst Use of a Prop – “Land Ahoy” delivers again on this category. The Phoeb
e Sparkle/Amy Ziff extended love scene featured the use of a cello. No musical
instrument that fine should suffer that kind of indignity.

Best Man – For two seasons now, Bette’s assistant James (Preston Cook) has st
ood by her through numerous personal and professional challenges. Even though J
ames was forced to reveal Bette’s personal schedule to Helena on threat of bei
ng fired during the season finale, he still deserves to be the winner in this c
ategory. Go James!

Worst Man – Mark’s lascivious, one-dimensional buddy-in-crime, Gomey (Sam Eas
ton) takes the prize in this case. Mark would have won this category, except he
 already won for Worst Villain, and in my random rules for judging, one man can
not win more than one category.

Best Public Service Message Moment – In 2.09 (“Late, Later, Latent”), Alice
crawls up to Dana and declares seductively, “Dana. Many bona fide lesbians fin
d strapping it on the ultimate way of fucking.” Alice, if your radio career do
esn’t succeed, there’s probably a job for you at your local sex toy store.

Worst Public Service Message Moment – The season finale featured Gloria Steine
m (love her, much respect) in a round-table discussion at Bette’s father’s fu
neral about feminism and its intersection with lesbianism. A fascinating and wo
rthy topic, but the conversation was both contrived and unconvincing, not to me
ntion it seemed really inappropriate for a funeral.

Best Actress, Drama – Even if Jenny is a bit crazy, Mia Kirshner invests her w
ith real dignity. Go Mia!

Best Actress, Comedy – Leisha Hailey has emerged as the show’s star comedic a
ctress. Her timing is always perfect, and she plays the straight man with a ski
ll found only in real dykes.

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