josh friedman

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The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
The Television I Need Therapy To Work Through
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twophrasebark
08/31/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Delete.
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Edited by twophrasebark at 08/31/09 5:38 PM twophrasebark was starred twophrasebark was unstarred

twophrasebark
08/31/09

Delete...
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Edited by twophrasebark at 08/31/09 5:38 PM twophrasebark was starred twophrasebark was unstarred

Mortimer Gray
08/29/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Urinal birth. Well, now I'm going to have nightmares.
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Bill-Lee
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
As a writer I enjoy any article about the writing process. As a theater arts major with an award in dramaturgy, I think that the writer should have a concrete idea of what each scene means, even if the audience doesn't. If anything it gives the actors a clue as to what to play in the scene. Sure the scene could mean 5 different things but in good drama it is usually implied by the actors playing the subtext that it means one. My college playwrighting instructor always advised her students to study acting so they could learn how to think like both a writer and an actor. Actors really prefer concrete ideas on how to play a scene rather than "oh it could mean 5 different things."
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Purple Dave
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
I'm sticking with my belief that the whole point of the nuclear reactor scene was so they could have some frog-eyed stick that young guys drool over lying topless on a bed while her sorta-love-interest straddles her in as close as they could get to a position that would allow intercourse but still fit within the confines of whatever in-story explanation they could slap together.

Seriously, it was obviously every bit as much sexploitation as putting 69 in a catsuit and high heels was on ST:Voyager.
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Chip Overclock
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Eisenhower once said (something to the effect of) "Plans are nothing. Planning is everything." Napolean (maybe) once said "No plan ever survives contact with the enemy."

Rather I got the quotes exactly right or not (and you can Google just as well as I can), the point is: it's important to think about the future, but it's even more important to be able to improvise based on the circumstances at hand. Because, well, stuff happens and things change.

WWII historians and Cold War strategists have suggested that this was a the big advantage that American troops have: if they can't blow up their main target, no use hauling all those explosives all the way back, might as well blow up something else that looks expensive. Their adversaries tended to sit down, have a smoke, and await orders. (And I'd argue this attitude is where America's great innovative advantage comes from too.)

Some things, like home mortgages, reward hard thinking about what the future might hold. But other things, like careers, might do better if you just make stuff up as you go along. (It's worked well for me since 1976 anyway.)

This flies in the face of criticism I've had for shows like THE X FILES and TWIN PEAKS where it became clear that the writers really had no clue where they were going. But maybe having a clue isn't nearly as important as giving the illusion you have a clue, and keeping true to the overall theme and vision (you know, the one you had better have), and not get too tied down in the specifics.

If you're trying to, oh I dunno, prevent killer robots from the future from destroying the present, maybe that's the only sensible strategy.
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Starlionblue
08/28/09

@Chip Overclock: Your thing about the US Army in WWII somewhat also applied to the German Army. Officer training in the Wehrmacht was a lot about case studies, thinking on your feet, changing circumstances. Officer training in most other European armies at the time was far more static, and the officers produced therefrom tended to be less than stellar at adapting to unforeseen events.
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Annalee Newitz
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
One of the many things I adored about TSCC was the ambiguity, and the scene where John reaches inside Cameron's chest was so intense and moving because you didn't know what the characters were thinking.

What's profound about a moment like that is that it reminds us that often, we ourselves don't really know what we're thinking. We are contradictory, conflicted. Did John want to kiss her? Yes and no. Did Cameron simply need technical help? Yes and no. That is the real shit.
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Agent355
08/28/09

@Annalee Newitz: And the way Thomas Dekker played that scene was amazing. The facial expressions, his hesitation, even the way he inhaled, added so much to it.
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mbot says Spock yeah!
08/28/09

In reply to The Television I Need Therapy To Work Through
I loved TSCC so very, very much. Thank you, Mr. Friedman.
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EdaPandarus
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Great post - I wonder: how much do the actors affect the ambiguity, and how much can you control that? I imagine that in the scene with John and Cameron - the smallest "look" or movement could really tip the scales towards one impression or another.

Thanks, once again, for creating such an amazing show.
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geesejuggler
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
This post reminds me of all the awesome moments of T:SCC that I know and love, thus making me mourn its untimely end.

Brief sidenote: The last episodes with Jesse were pure genius.
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Grey_Area
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
There I was writing along, tippity tappity type. All the sudden my protag accepts a proffered cigarette. What the hell?! She hasn't smoked in years, the scene is tense but she wouldn't start that nasty habit now, would she? Then a page or so later It comes to me and I slip in a tiny bit of internal yakkity-yak that (to my feeble mind) added a whole lot to the scene. SpOoKy.

So, mysterious ambiguity or Bad Writing? Was that a character taking a life of her own or just me not knowing what the hell I'm doing.
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scifiMD
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
totally rad post.

I also like the idea that the viewers/"participants" can make up their own answers when questions are left open-ended. For example, I decided to actively block the whole schlocky side of the BSG ending by pretending it's just one giant computer sim being run over and over (just like the poor baseball guys that have now played hundreds of repeated years via my husband and father-in-law). Religious god/angel crap be damned.

Still wish T:SCC was going on though. that is the suck.
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Iamtehawesome
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
:(
I miss TSCC.

It was everything that the Terminator franchise should have been.

I prefer to think of the series as the third, and final chapter in the Terminator story.
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I_Like_Bunnies
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Fuck Fuck Fuck.

This just makes me miss T:SCC more!

And Firefly too.

And Fastlane.

Fuck you Fox.

And NBC too. think of the Cromartie cross over appeal for Life! At least they ended up the major plotlines in that show.
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somekindarobit
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
Good stuff Josh. I really miss the show and still hold hope for some sort of dvd movie at least. I would love to see where your brain would take these characters next. I might be able to make up a satisfying ending in my head, but until I see one acted out, it just doesn't mean much. Either way Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles will always be one of my favorite parts of the Terminator franchise.

I still can't believe that Salvation got made and got tons of money thrown at it while your show was let go. And don't even get me started on Dollhouse getting picked up over T:TSSC. While I did watch the show, it was nothing special. Terminator will be missed.
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kolacek
08/28/09

In reply to The Questions You Shouldn't Answer, And The Answers You Can't Let Go Of
If only you'd been moonlighting over on the BSG lot.

(Yes, I said it. RDM could stand to learn a thing or three about wrapping it up.)

Clearly, you know when the afterparty is over, everyone has had a great time and it's time to send people home. You and the rest of the fine people writing TSCC left me wanting questions answered (in the good "I'm still hungry" way) and that is exactly how I like it.

Minor tangent:

"Cameron invites John Connor to get up on top of her and cut her open in order to check and see if her nuclear power source is leaking."

That sequence alone made the entire series worth it for me. Hasn't that happened to all of us?

(I'm actually being serious)

The interaction between the actors was pure gold, and no matter what else happens in my life, I will remember that scene as excellent drama that I was lucky to watch.
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denna promoted this comment Edited by kolacek at 08/28/09 9:54 AM kolacek was starred kolacek was unstarred

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