Has LG15 gone off the rails? Can it be fixed?

by ireact
on Sun Jun 15, 2008 11:42 pm

There was a time when LG15 was not about a bunch of twentysomethings trying to overcome an implausible global conspiracy of religious orders and pharmaceutical companies. Admittedly, that stuff was always there in the background, but I remember when an LG15 video was appealing because it featured engaging characters facing the difficulties of growing up. The series was populated with quirky and unique individuals who created a charming intimacy through talking to the audience about their lives. There was very much a sense of a isolated young people (Bree, Jonas, to a lesser extent Daniel) reaching out to a larger world through YouTube. Bree, Jonas, Daniel, Sarah, Taylor and Spencer really came off as actual people with insecurities, personal weaknesses, passions, idiosyncrasies and unique talents. They could be slotted into character types, but they never felt restricted to them.

I remember being nervous when the show moved from a girl blogging in her bedroom to being about teen fugitives on the run. But the videos managed to maintain the level of intimacy that Bree had achieved in her bedroom. While the Order was certainly present, the series focused on the concept of people thrown together by circumstance and dealing with each other. This was accomplished through really strong writing; standout pieces of work include Jonas' social ineptitude and neediness, Daniel's tentative friendship with Jonas, Bree's growing emotional independence, Emma's shattered innocence, Sarah's sense of alienation, etc.. The writing continued to infuse the characters with very distinct qualities.

Somewhere in the third season, that seems to have vanished, and now the show is really all about hot young actors on the run from a global conspiracy, trying to unravel some aspect of it, generally failing miserably. And it's gotten boring. The team isn't going to overthrow the Order; that would end the show. So there's really no tension or anticipation in the endless Order investigations. Most of the videos now are focused on the TAAG trying to unravel the latest plot, the most recent clue, the next avenue of penetrating the conspiracy, all which is doomed to fail. The characters have become little more than mouthpieces for the ongoing, neverending, perpetually directionless mythology arc. There was a time when the Order was merely the catalyst which caused all these disparate personalities to end up living in the same house. Now the Order has come to define the show and the more we see of the Order, the more boring it is. Amanda Goodfried's appearances stopped being scary a long time ago, and the Order isn't particularly effective if they can't find the TAAG's rented house. The Order is a concept that really needs to stay in the background, because its increased prominence only highlights how the Creators don't have a consistent backstory, purpose or methodology for the villains -- if they even ever bother to come up with one at all. Furthermore, the Order isn't going to be defeated so long as the show is running anyway.

I miss LG15 being about human beings. I miss LG15 being about people trying to make their way through the world and make lives for themselves. I miss LG15 being about growing up and facing a troubling world filled with offputting people. "Redearth88" feels more like LG15 than LG15 has in awhile.

I'm aware that there is apparently a significant level of turnover in the writing department for this series, and that often means that the personal characteristics that were so prominent in characters can often evapourate.

What could be done to set this series right? That question, of course, assumes that you don't like the myth-arc oriented approach, which isn't necessarily the case.

- Ibrahim Ng

Join the discussion: http://www.lg15.com/lonelygirl15/forum/viewtopic.php?f=68&t=17696&hilit=

miles said...
Thanks Anonymous (above) for your defense :) Ibrahim, thank you so much for your insightful comments. I think that lately LG15 has headed in a much more positive direction, and a lot of that is due to Amanda's hard work to "bring it back to its roots." She's been here since the beginning so she gets the importance of character and the "normal" kids vibe the best. It is hard with a large writing team and a lot of turnover, but I personally really enjoyed the Prom videos and felt that it was an example of LG15 at its best: intriguing, character driven, fun, scary, and interactive all in one. Regardless, your points are great and posts like these definitely influence how we approach new shows that we are producing.