lost girl: a primer for the curious
Jan. 14th, 2012 09:08 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pirateygoodnessOkay, so. There is this show. Lost Girl. You may have heard me mention it, uh, a few times.
Anyway, even though the show is Canadian-made and filmed in Canada, it's being picked up by SyFy, who is starting to air the first season this week (starting Monday! January 16th!). And so, for my ~international friends~ (aka: everyone), I thought this might be helpful.
Lost Girl: A Primer For the Curious
So. This is a show about a woman - sorry, a ~lost girl~ - named Bo.
Bo looks like this.
She has a really impressive wardrobe of super-inappropriate leather tops that - being shallow for a moment - do excellent things for her upper chest.
She is a succubus. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about succubi:
Basically: she has magic sex powers. I'll say that again: . This is exactly as ridiculous/awesome/inappropriate as you are imagining, I assure you. But before you hit the back button in contempt and disgust, bear with me. They are not, like, ~magic sex powers~ in the Maxim magazine sense. They are - I am actually not being sarcastic - feminist, sex-positive magic sex powers. She is a deeply human, relatable, badass, wonderful character who just HAPPENS to also have magic sex powers, is fully unapologetic about having sexual appetites and enjoying her sexuality, and the show does not shame her for it.
Incidentally, she is pretty equal-opportunity about the matter, in that she will use them on both men and women, as she sees fit, and is actually one of the best depictions of a bisexual character that I've ever seen on TV. (Like, ever. There is no "this week I'm a lesbian"/"now I used to be a lesbian, DOESN'T THAT MAKE ME INTRIGUING, MALE CHARACTERS/VIEWERS? I'M LIKE MOUNT EVEREST." She is just attracted to men and to women in a no-labels sort of way, and nobody makes a big deal about it or is all BUT WHAT IS YOUR SEXUALITY, BO. DEFINE YOURSELF FOR OUR VIEWERS.)
The show takes place in a world where there are a crew of ~supernatural beings~ called the Fae, which I know sounds like they should all be fairies, but no. Individual fae characters are each different kinds of mythological creatures. So there are vampires, wolf-people, sirens, evil spider-demons, etc, all of which are types of Fae, and they all co-exist in this sort of secret subculture that tries to stay away from the eyes of human society.
Bo has a lot of ~issues, on account of she was raised bywolves humans who didn't tell her she was Fae, and so she kiiind of spent the better part of her youth leaving a trail of bodies through southern Ontario ~the region around the city in which the show is set which may or may not be Toronto except that it totally is~, as her powers mean that she can make out with someone TO DEATH drain people's life forces until they die. Her whole thing throughout the first season is that she wants to learn to control her powers, and find out who her parents are. She later has regrets re: the second half of that life goal.
Bo lives in this sketchy house on the side of the highway with her best friend, Kenzi.
This is Kenzi.
She has an excellent collection of wigs and adorable goth outfits.
She is also a really wonderful friend for Bo, who - again, raised by wolves - has not had anyone else in her life for years, and the relationship between them is legitimately sweet and adorable. Kenzi is human, but makes being one in a world where everyone else has superpowers kind of her own, and is sarcastic and bratty in a deeply charming way.
Bo and Kenzi navigate through the world of the Fae, which includes several interesting people.
Such as Trick, who owns the local bar/has a shadowy past/perhaps is ~more than just a bartender~.
And Hale, who is a siren (which means he has magical whistling powers that can cure hangovers/control people/etc), and also has a job in the human world as a police detective.
He is totally rad, and has amazing friend-chemistry with Kenzithat I totally don't ship or anything, but if I did, I would probably think that it would be totally amazing if we were to discover, Community S2-style, that they were having secret sex.
He also has a really solid friendship with his partner on the police force, who is also Fae.
Sigh. His name is Dyson.
This is Dyson.
This is what he looks like with his shirt off. He whips his shirt off, like, a lot.
He is a sexy wolf-shifter Fae, and is notable for being the first person Bo kisses who she doesn't accidentally kiss to death, on account of him being Fae and therefore less susceptible to the deadly aspects of her powers. If kissing between a woman and a gentleman character who is shirtless and scruffy and kind of a dick (in that way that a lot of straight women on the internet find sexy, but I find inexplicable) is your thing, YOU WILL LOVE DYSON A GREAT DEAL. ESPECIALLY WHEN HE KISSES BO. If it's not, keep reading. There is other good stuff that happens, kissing-wise.
I respect many people's interest in liking Dyson, but respectfully choose not to. But hey, speaking of people who are interested in making out with Bo - this is Lauren.
She has an excellent collection ofgay button-front shirts, and looks incredibly dashing in an intellectual, socially-awkward sort of way.
She is also a human, but a ~human doctor~ who works for one faction of the Fae. She thinks Bo is super, super attractive, and would like to ~help her learn to control her powers~, for science. Out of a totally scientific interest that has nothing to do with kissing or Bo's boobs in that shirt or anything at all, because she is a doctor of scientific science. I. . .am possibly a little bit biased in my love of Lauren, but SHE IS MY VERY FAVOURITE, mostly because she is a) super awkward and also b) really cute, plus c) unabashedly into science, and finally d) a canon lesbian (as far as we know) woman in a genre show who is not dressed in bondage gear and/or totally celibate, THANK YOU NERD GODS.
Anyway. This show, especially in the first season, is nominally about Bo ~finding herself~ and learning about the Fae, and I actually find the mythology pretty interesting if a little ridiculous at times. But it's also got a lot of sweetness to it, and really nice elements of found family and friends supporting each other and being sarcastic-yet-helpful, featuring people who say "sorry" and "about" in exactly the correct way with no accent, which is why I love it ever so much. I think a lot of you guys would love it, too.
There are a lot of comparisons to Buffy kicking around now that it's starting to air on SyFy, and I see the temptation, because there are a lot of similar elements - it's an ensemble genre show, with medium-to-okay quality special effects, featuring a confident female lead and her found family, and it does its best to find elements of levity and humor within its own ridiculous supernatural mythology. It's a much more grown-up show, though, and the dynamics are very different. I like them both, but for different reasons, and so while the overlap is there, the feel to each show is different - I wouldn't go in expecting to love one for the same reasons you love the other, or to love Lost Girl just because you liked Buffy.
That said: January 16. SyFy. SIT DOWN WITH YOUR LOVED ONES/NEWBORNS/CATS/DOGS/GRANDPARENTS, AND ENJOY THE MAGIC.
Anyway, even though the show is Canadian-made and filmed in Canada, it's being picked up by SyFy, who is starting to air the first season this week (starting Monday! January 16th!). And so, for my ~international friends~ (aka: everyone), I thought this might be helpful.
So. This is a show about a woman - sorry, a ~lost girl~ - named Bo.
Bo looks like this.
She has a really impressive wardrobe of super-inappropriate leather tops that - being shallow for a moment - do excellent things for her upper chest.
She is a succubus. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about succubi:
In folklore traced back to medieval legend, a succubus (plural succubi) is a female demon appearing in dreams who takes the form of a human woman in order to seduce men, usually through sexual intercourse. The male counterpart is the incubus. Religious traditions hold that repeated intercourse with a succubus may result in the deterioration of health or even death.
In modern fictional representations, a succubus may or may not appear in dreams and is often depicted as a highly attractive seductress or enchantress, in contrast to the past where succubi were generally depicted as frightening and demonic. (Source)
Basically: she has magic sex powers. I'll say that again: . This is exactly as ridiculous/awesome/inappropriate as you are imagining, I assure you. But before you hit the back button in contempt and disgust, bear with me. They are not, like, ~magic sex powers~ in the Maxim magazine sense. They are - I am actually not being sarcastic - feminist, sex-positive magic sex powers. She is a deeply human, relatable, badass, wonderful character who just HAPPENS to also have magic sex powers, is fully unapologetic about having sexual appetites and enjoying her sexuality, and the show does not shame her for it.
Incidentally, she is pretty equal-opportunity about the matter, in that she will use them on both men and women, as she sees fit, and is actually one of the best depictions of a bisexual character that I've ever seen on TV. (Like, ever. There is no "this week I'm a lesbian"/"now I used to be a lesbian, DOESN'T THAT MAKE ME INTRIGUING, MALE CHARACTERS/VIEWERS? I'M LIKE MOUNT EVEREST." She is just attracted to men and to women in a no-labels sort of way, and nobody makes a big deal about it or is all BUT WHAT IS YOUR SEXUALITY, BO. DEFINE YOURSELF FOR OUR VIEWERS.)
The show takes place in a world where there are a crew of ~supernatural beings~ called the Fae, which I know sounds like they should all be fairies, but no. Individual fae characters are each different kinds of mythological creatures. So there are vampires, wolf-people, sirens, evil spider-demons, etc, all of which are types of Fae, and they all co-exist in this sort of secret subculture that tries to stay away from the eyes of human society.
Bo has a lot of ~issues, on account of she was raised by
Bo lives in this sketchy house on the side of the highway with her best friend, Kenzi.
This is Kenzi.
She has an excellent collection of wigs and adorable goth outfits.
She is also a really wonderful friend for Bo, who - again, raised by wolves - has not had anyone else in her life for years, and the relationship between them is legitimately sweet and adorable. Kenzi is human, but makes being one in a world where everyone else has superpowers kind of her own, and is sarcastic and bratty in a deeply charming way.
Bo and Kenzi navigate through the world of the Fae, which includes several interesting people.
Such as Trick, who owns the local bar/has a shadowy past/perhaps is ~more than just a bartender~.
And Hale, who is a siren (which means he has magical whistling powers that can cure hangovers/control people/etc), and also has a job in the human world as a police detective.
He is totally rad, and has amazing friend-chemistry with Kenzi
He also has a really solid friendship with his partner on the police force, who is also Fae.
Sigh. His name is Dyson.
This is Dyson.
This is what he looks like with his shirt off. He whips his shirt off, like, a lot.
He is a sexy wolf-shifter Fae, and is notable for being the first person Bo kisses who she doesn't accidentally kiss to death, on account of him being Fae and therefore less susceptible to the deadly aspects of her powers. If kissing between a woman and a gentleman character who is shirtless and scruffy and kind of a dick (in that way that a lot of straight women on the internet find sexy, but I find inexplicable) is your thing, YOU WILL LOVE DYSON A GREAT DEAL. ESPECIALLY WHEN HE KISSES BO. If it's not, keep reading. There is other good stuff that happens, kissing-wise.
I respect many people's interest in liking Dyson, but respectfully choose not to. But hey, speaking of people who are interested in making out with Bo - this is Lauren.
She has an excellent collection of
She is also a human, but a ~human doctor~ who works for one faction of the Fae. She thinks Bo is super, super attractive, and would like to ~help her learn to control her powers~, for science. Out of a totally scientific interest that has nothing to do with kissing or Bo's boobs in that shirt or anything at all, because she is a doctor of scientific science. I. . .am possibly a little bit biased in my love of Lauren, but SHE IS MY VERY FAVOURITE, mostly because she is a) super awkward and also b) really cute, plus c) unabashedly into science, and finally d) a canon lesbian (as far as we know) woman in a genre show who is not dressed in bondage gear and/or totally celibate, THANK YOU NERD GODS.
Anyway. This show, especially in the first season, is nominally about Bo ~finding herself~ and learning about the Fae, and I actually find the mythology pretty interesting if a little ridiculous at times. But it's also got a lot of sweetness to it, and really nice elements of found family and friends supporting each other and being sarcastic-yet-helpful, featuring people who say "sorry" and "about" in exactly the correct way with no accent, which is why I love it ever so much. I think a lot of you guys would love it, too.
There are a lot of comparisons to Buffy kicking around now that it's starting to air on SyFy, and I see the temptation, because there are a lot of similar elements - it's an ensemble genre show, with medium-to-okay quality special effects, featuring a confident female lead and her found family, and it does its best to find elements of levity and humor within its own ridiculous supernatural mythology. It's a much more grown-up show, though, and the dynamics are very different. I like them both, but for different reasons, and so while the overlap is there, the feel to each show is different - I wouldn't go in expecting to love one for the same reasons you love the other, or to love Lost Girl just because you liked Buffy.
That said: January 16. SyFy. SIT DOWN WITH YOUR LOVED ONES/NEWBORNS/CATS/DOGS/GRANDPARENTS, AND ENJOY THE MAGIC.