Ship Manifesto
Jul. 7th, 2005 12:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
seldearThe 'Top 10 Ships' meme was floating around a while ago, and I got nabbed once by ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
coltsbane and once by someone else (I forget whom).
I've been planning to write my own version of![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
ship_manifesto for a while: specific to my own preferred pairings, with reasons and arguments for what I like.
You can agree or disagree with my take on the characters, on their relationships, on the interactions and appropriateness of them. That's okay. This is why I like them, even if you think I'm nutso and off the planet.
And we'll start at the very beginning. (It's a very good place to start.)
Sam/Jack - Stargate SG-1
I don't know when I first realised I was a Sam/Jack shipper. Possibly it was after watching 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the moment when Catherine asks Daniel, "I guess they're not engaged in your world," and Daniel's *blink-blink* response of, "No." I do know that I watched up to '100 Days' and 'Shades of Grey' before the video store ran out of the series. Not good episodes with which to end a 7-day, 3-season, 60-episode marathon viewing!
In Jack O'Neill and Sam Carter, we have two officers of the United States Air Force who work together day in and day out on a top-secret project. In the beginning, they're more or less thrown together with a bit of snarking. Minor compared to the dynamic between Jack and Daniel, both of whom are carry-over characters from the movie, but present.
I love how the attraction between them is fairly evident off the bat, but doesn't take any form until much later in the series. They're comfortable with each other early on in the series - witness the way Jack holds her as she recalls Daniel's 'death' in 'Fire and Water' and the way she immediately goes to him when they discover they're robots in 'Tin Man'. 'Solitudes' is when her determination crashes against his fatalism, and there's the 'sidearm' moment that every Sam/Jack shipper knows off by heart.
The kicker for me came in 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the 'not engaged' moment. I loved that - it was a fantastic moment of dramatic humour. But then, I loved everything about 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the AUs have always sucked me in. It's interesting to note that when Daniel's relating this, Sam looks at it as a exercise in theoretical possibility, and Jack looks at it as an issue of military regulations.
By Season Four and the episode 'Divide And Conquer', they've all but actually spelled it out. And while the argument goes that Jack would die for any of his team, the relationship that the show focuses on is the Sam/Jack relationship. It's not Daniel, nor Teal'c, nor Hammond that Jack can't live without and is shown not to be able to live without - it's Sam Carter.
There are reasons why such a relationship 'should not happen' - not the least of which is that they are in a chain of command. By the codes of conduct, they should not care about each other personally or intimately, and yet when have emotions ever obeyed the rules? In truth, the scenario they face is one faced by all SG-1: they all care about each other more than they should, and yet they carry on with their task - saving the world once again.
To argue that the relationship is 'wrong' because it is against the rules is stupidity itself. If you've ever fallen in love with someone that you knew was unsuitable or wrong for you, then you know what I'm talking about. The heart wants what the heart wants and heaven help us all. (Of course, that doesn't mean that the heart should get what the heart wants - any more than a child should get everything it wants. Sometimes the mind/adult knows best.)
And, for the first seven-to-eight years of the show, barring the occasional scene where Jack and Sam almost touch on what they feel for each other but don't ever actually say the words, "I love you," out loud, it's left quite firmly in the background.
These two people who aren't exactly emotional Central Station. They're unemotional, they're repressed, there are regulations in place, and they have people looking over their shoulders all the time. All. The. Time.
So, not going to be your usual smoochies.
That's okay, they survived eight years without them.
My affection for this ship stems largely from the fact that they haven't done anything about it. Yes, they care about each other; yes, technically, they shouldn't care about each other. But when have emotions ever been governed by the 'should' and 'should not'?
I love that these are two people who work together as part of a team, that they are aware of each others strengths and weaknesses, that they could do something about it, but they choose not to. Yes, hangups and problems and issues up the wazoo - but that's the nature of the human race.
I love how they're a couple who repress...and repress...and repress. They're not tissue-box people, who cry, sob, wail, moan, or grieve when things don't go their way. The pick themselves up and go out and kick the next ass.
I love how they're friends and colleagues, work together day by day, and their love is shown in their actions, not in their words and long declarations of love. They do-si-do around each other, circling like a couple of dancers who won't quite touch and don't hold hands. They won't leave each other and they won't fail each other. Granted, this is their attitude to everyone around them, but the focus on their relationship dynamic is both subtle and telling.
The final scene in the 'Seasons 1-8' of Stargate SG-1 in a way sums up everything that I feel about and like about the Sam/Jack dynamic in the show. They're obviously friends and the affection between them is obvious, but even that affection is broader in scope than just the two of them - as is shown by Teal'c and Daniel's arrival into the scene. They're not an 'exclusive' couple in the way that your best friend meets some guy and you never hear from her again until she's getting married. They're a couple who've been a long time coming, are comfortable with each other, and don't need to be all over each other to love and feel loved.
I don't watch that much television, but from what I've seen, this kind of relationship isn't the usual kind of relationship shown. It's usually all about the untamed passion, the raw sex, the need, the want, the have...
This is the gentle growing of a rose, from shoot to stem, from stem to leaf, from leaf to bud, from bud to flower, slow and patient and beautiful in the end.
And that's the way (and the why) I like it.
Sam and Jack forever and ever.
Amen.
--
Tomorrow: Ron/Hermione - Harry Potter
coltsbane and once by someone else (I forget whom).I've been planning to write my own version of
ship_manifesto for a while: specific to my own preferred pairings, with reasons and arguments for what I like.You can agree or disagree with my take on the characters, on their relationships, on the interactions and appropriateness of them. That's okay. This is why I like them, even if you think I'm nutso and off the planet.
And we'll start at the very beginning. (It's a very good place to start.)
Sam/Jack - Stargate SG-1
I don't know when I first realised I was a Sam/Jack shipper. Possibly it was after watching 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the moment when Catherine asks Daniel, "I guess they're not engaged in your world," and Daniel's *blink-blink* response of, "No." I do know that I watched up to '100 Days' and 'Shades of Grey' before the video store ran out of the series. Not good episodes with which to end a 7-day, 3-season, 60-episode marathon viewing!
In Jack O'Neill and Sam Carter, we have two officers of the United States Air Force who work together day in and day out on a top-secret project. In the beginning, they're more or less thrown together with a bit of snarking. Minor compared to the dynamic between Jack and Daniel, both of whom are carry-over characters from the movie, but present.
I love how the attraction between them is fairly evident off the bat, but doesn't take any form until much later in the series. They're comfortable with each other early on in the series - witness the way Jack holds her as she recalls Daniel's 'death' in 'Fire and Water' and the way she immediately goes to him when they discover they're robots in 'Tin Man'. 'Solitudes' is when her determination crashes against his fatalism, and there's the 'sidearm' moment that every Sam/Jack shipper knows off by heart.
The kicker for me came in 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the 'not engaged' moment. I loved that - it was a fantastic moment of dramatic humour. But then, I loved everything about 'There But For The Grace Of God' - the AUs have always sucked me in. It's interesting to note that when Daniel's relating this, Sam looks at it as a exercise in theoretical possibility, and Jack looks at it as an issue of military regulations.
By Season Four and the episode 'Divide And Conquer', they've all but actually spelled it out. And while the argument goes that Jack would die for any of his team, the relationship that the show focuses on is the Sam/Jack relationship. It's not Daniel, nor Teal'c, nor Hammond that Jack can't live without and is shown not to be able to live without - it's Sam Carter.
There are reasons why such a relationship 'should not happen' - not the least of which is that they are in a chain of command. By the codes of conduct, they should not care about each other personally or intimately, and yet when have emotions ever obeyed the rules? In truth, the scenario they face is one faced by all SG-1: they all care about each other more than they should, and yet they carry on with their task - saving the world once again.
To argue that the relationship is 'wrong' because it is against the rules is stupidity itself. If you've ever fallen in love with someone that you knew was unsuitable or wrong for you, then you know what I'm talking about. The heart wants what the heart wants and heaven help us all. (Of course, that doesn't mean that the heart should get what the heart wants - any more than a child should get everything it wants. Sometimes the mind/adult knows best.)
And, for the first seven-to-eight years of the show, barring the occasional scene where Jack and Sam almost touch on what they feel for each other but don't ever actually say the words, "I love you," out loud, it's left quite firmly in the background.
These two people who aren't exactly emotional Central Station. They're unemotional, they're repressed, there are regulations in place, and they have people looking over their shoulders all the time. All. The. Time.
So, not going to be your usual smoochies.
That's okay, they survived eight years without them.
My affection for this ship stems largely from the fact that they haven't done anything about it. Yes, they care about each other; yes, technically, they shouldn't care about each other. But when have emotions ever been governed by the 'should' and 'should not'?
I love that these are two people who work together as part of a team, that they are aware of each others strengths and weaknesses, that they could do something about it, but they choose not to. Yes, hangups and problems and issues up the wazoo - but that's the nature of the human race.
I love how they're a couple who repress...and repress...and repress. They're not tissue-box people, who cry, sob, wail, moan, or grieve when things don't go their way. The pick themselves up and go out and kick the next ass.
I love how they're friends and colleagues, work together day by day, and their love is shown in their actions, not in their words and long declarations of love. They do-si-do around each other, circling like a couple of dancers who won't quite touch and don't hold hands. They won't leave each other and they won't fail each other. Granted, this is their attitude to everyone around them, but the focus on their relationship dynamic is both subtle and telling.
The final scene in the 'Seasons 1-8' of Stargate SG-1 in a way sums up everything that I feel about and like about the Sam/Jack dynamic in the show. They're obviously friends and the affection between them is obvious, but even that affection is broader in scope than just the two of them - as is shown by Teal'c and Daniel's arrival into the scene. They're not an 'exclusive' couple in the way that your best friend meets some guy and you never hear from her again until she's getting married. They're a couple who've been a long time coming, are comfortable with each other, and don't need to be all over each other to love and feel loved.
I don't watch that much television, but from what I've seen, this kind of relationship isn't the usual kind of relationship shown. It's usually all about the untamed passion, the raw sex, the need, the want, the have...
This is the gentle growing of a rose, from shoot to stem, from stem to leaf, from leaf to bud, from bud to flower, slow and patient and beautiful in the end.
And that's the way (and the why) I like it.
Sam and Jack forever and ever.
Amen.
--
Tomorrow: Ron/Hermione - Harry Potter
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 05:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 06:00 am (UTC)YAY! I love reading these kinda things! :D
Date: 2005-07-07 05:59 am (UTC)*snickers* oh hell yes.
I love how they're a couple who repress...and repress...and repress... The pick themselves up and go out and kick the next ass.
*nods in agreement*
I love the fact that they don't have to have the weepiness, the crying, the sex etc to make this into such an awesome relationship. Their attempts at being unemotional/detatched make the entire thing so much more beautiful.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 09:17 am (UTC)Good metaphor. I guess many ppl are still displeased, because they wished for a wild red flower, and got a nice cream one instead.
Weird as it is, for Sam and Jack love is not their first priority. At least much less than to some of their fans.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 10:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 11:25 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 12:58 pm (UTC)Since you've expressed these views before, I think we'll just leave it at that because we're quite clearly never going to agree on this.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 09:24 am (UTC)And you really can't mention Sam and Jack's uncanny ability to repress without mentioning Divide and Conquer and the fact that Jack's subconscious was willing to be lobotomized before admitting that the Very Special Moment between them in the Upgrades flashbacks was indeed a Very Special Moment. Heck, it took Sam some serious drugs for her to realize it.
And then for course you have all the stuff in Threads -- Kerry's "just retire, you big oaf" -- and the otherwise tacit acknowledgement that they have deep, meaningful feelings for each other. Even though RDA was kind of a stiff through that whole ep. And not in the good way.. Ahem.
Looking forward to Ron/Herm -- cause dude, anyone who's read the books knows it's all about them. And you're going to do one of these for Bruce/Diana, right? Right???
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 10:27 am (UTC)Natch. :)
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 02:32 pm (UTC)*dies* It's lines like that which make me just love your writing. You are absolutely right that this relationship is unique among TV couples.
no subject
Date: 2005-07-07 03:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-08-21 11:26 pm (UTC)well said....
and i totally agree..