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amazingmsme · 5 years ago

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Avenger Hazing

AN: All I’m gonna say is that with how long it took me to finally finish it, I better see some notes.

It was hard being an Avenger. It was even harder being the youngest one on the team. What with the stress of school and a normal social life topped with being a superhero, along with the secret fear that he was somehow letting everyone down, Peter had a lot on his plate. He strived to fit in both at school, and with the other Avengers. Most of the time they went out of their way to help him feel accepted, but there were definitely moments when he knew they still saw him as a child. They were never maliciously mean or anything like that, but they would tease him more than the older team members.

"This is an adult beverage. Why don't you get some juice?"

"Better not stay out too late, it's a school night."

"I'm gonna run to McDonald's. Peter, you want me to get you a happy meal?"

"Whoa, slow down on the sweets, don't want you bouncing off the walls. Literally."

"Hey, if it isn't the itsy bitsy spider!"

Peter always laughed it off. He knew they were just joking, but sometimes the comments would grate on his nerves.

"Maybe we shouldn't watch that one. We don't want to give the kid nightmares." Peter didn't say how he had already seen the movie more times than he could count.

"In kindergarten? Wasn't that like five years ago for you?" He bit his tongue, wanting to tell Clint that he was well into his junior year of high school.

"A girl? Is she cute? You got a crush on her squirt?" Peter tried to turn his head away to hide his blush. "Look how red he is! He totally has a crush!" He just sunk deeper into the couch, burying his face behind his phone.

"Your hands are so much smaller compared to mine!" Thor too? He really couldn't catch a break.

~~~~

He went down to the lab to work with Tony. He just needed to get stuff off his mind, and experimenting always helped him relax.

"You okay bud?" Tony glanced at him from over the top of his safety glasses.

"Yeah, why?"

"Oh I don't know, maybe because that's the fifthteenth new web fluid formula you made in the 45 minutes you've been down here."

Peter sighed; he should've known he wouldn't be able to hide it from Tony. "It's just that the other Avengers have been..."

"Hazing you?"

"Yeah, that."

"I noticed. You want me to make them stop? Cause one lecture and I'll make sure they never do it again."

"No, no I can deal with it. But sometimes it feels like they only see me as a little kid, and that they forgot I fought toe to toe with them."

"Trust me, they know. They just want to forget they got their asses handed to them by a 14 year old."

"Yeheah, I guess so. I still wish they wouldn't tease me so much though."

"Have you ever teased them back?"

Peter was taken aback by the question. "What? N-no, they're the Avengers!"

"So are you."

"You know what I mean. What am I supposed to say when it's someone like Ms. Romanoff or Captain Rogers?"

"Just say the same thing you'd say if it were me."

"M-Mr. Stark?"

"Look, all I'm saying is, they're probably doing it to get a rise out of you. They want some sort of reaction. But if you're not comfortable enough yet, I completely understand. I mean hell, it took you three months to sit like a normal person when you were in my company, and another four for you to relax completely."

Peter laughed at that, and Tony smiled.

"I'm serious though. If it ever gets to be too much, you just let me know."

"Thanks Mr. Stark."

~~~~

Tony made sure to keep a closer eye on the others after that. If they picked on him more than usual or if Peter seemed too uncomfortable, he'd step in.

"Alright that's enough."

"Leave the kid be."

"Go pick on someone else."

"Stop bullying my kid."

It made Peter happy to know Tony cared for him so much. It was a relief, and having him there helped him to relax and be more like himself. He started to get more comfortable with the team, even when Tony wasn't there. They still teased him, but after his talk with Tony he didn't take their verbal jabs too personally. And some of them were pretty funny, if he was being honest.

He was sitting on the couch, finally having finished his homework. He watched as various people passed through the living room, greeting him as they walked by. He leaned back into the cushions and closed his eyes, letting all the stress from school melt away.

"Must be pretty boring in here all by yourself." Peter opened his eyes, craning his neck backwards to see Bucky walk over to the couch, trailed by Sam.

"Not really, I just finished my homework so I was taking a break."

"Man I don't miss that," Sam said, taking a seat next to him.

"Thankfully I only have one more year before I go to college." Bucky nodded thoughtfully, "Nice." He turned the tv on and started flipping through the channels, looking for something to catch his eye. He finally gave up his search, settling with Go! Diego! Go! An odd choice, to say the least. He snickered to himself, and Peter glanced at him, then at the screen, and all became clear.

"Oh ha ha, very funny. Find something else please." Bucky's eyes glinted with mischief, "Oh but I chose this just for you. I thought you'd like it."

"I used to. When I was five," he made sure to put emphasis on his words to get his point across, but Bucky just grinned.

"Wasn't that long ago then."

Peter rolled his eyes, looking down at his phone to avoid eye contact and mumbled, "At least I had colored tv when I was born."

Sam, who had been eating pretzels, started coughing, startling Peter. He patted his back, making sure he wouldn't choke, completely oblivious to the shocked expression on Bucky's face.

When he was finished almost choking, Sam said, "Ohoho mahan, that has got to be the funniest damn thing I've heard come out of your mouth."

Peter's mouth twitched into a smile, "Really? 'Cause it wasn't even that funny," he said modestly.

"It's just 'cause it was aimed at me," Bucky said, sending a playful glare at the two of them.

"It was funny Barnes, and you know it," Sam said, pointing at him with a huge grin on his face. He slung an arm around Peter's shoulder, bringing him in closer. "I'm honestly surprised you had the guts to say anything."

"W-well I wasn't really thinking. If I was I probably wouldn't have said it."

"Well I'm glad you did, cause I needed a good laugh, even if it almost killed me." Peter smiled shyly, ducking his head down. He caught a glimpse of Bucky sticking his tongue out at him, but when he shot his head up, he acted as though he were innocent.

"And you try to say that I'm childish."

"Another jab! You feeling bold today Peter?"

He shrugged, "Maybe I'm just finally starting to feel comfortable around you guys."

"And that means insulting me?"

"It means I'll retaliate if you try and tease me, like you've all been doing."

"So what you're saying is, you won't put up with our bullshit without giving us some of your own?" Sam clarified, and Peter nodded. "It's about damn time. All I kept hearing about Spider-Man was how quick and witty he was, and I was starting to think maybe they were talking about someone else."

Peter laughed, although it was a slightly nervous one. "I was worried that I'd make you guys hate me or offend you if I said anything. I guess I'm not afraid of that anymore." It was true. His walls had broken down, and he knew he didn't have to be scared of making the others hate him over something he said.

The smiles both men wore were genuine, "I'm glad Peter."

~~~~

He was a lot more bold after that. The Avengers were pleasantly surprised when he made a sly pass at Strange one morning while they were eating breakfast, and now if they tried to give him a hard time he'd shoot right back with a sassy remark of his own. The change wasn't unwelcomed.

Peter liked hanging out with the Avengers. He wasn't as nervous around them as he once was, and he found their reactions when he smarted off quite entertaining. He could see why they liked doing it to him, but he was more than happy when they eased up on their teasing. All except for Sam and Bucky of course. Those two were relentless.

He found himself on the couch in the living room yet again when two familiar faces plopped down next to him. He looked up from his phone, greeting them, "Hey guys." He was in a very heated discussion about how the giant fossilized dinosaur that was recently found was totally real and not just "fake news" and had to throw the cold hard evidence in MJ's face. He sent her the screen shot from National Geographic's website, only for her to reply, "Snopes, or it's fake." His face scrunched up in annoyance. He knew she was doing this to mess with him, but that didn't mean he had to like it.

Sam looked him up and down, taking in his seemingly sour demeanor, "Man, what's eating you? You look upset," he voiced his concerns.

Peter simply huffed out a breath, "My friend's just being annoying," he said and then grumbled to himself, "I'll show you the Snopes... Ha just like I fucking said!" The two men on the couch shared a confused glance, thinking it best to leave him be. Teenagers... They can be so weird sometimes. Peter sent the screenshot to her and smugly waited for her response.

"Fake."

He wanted to scream in frustration, but thought that if he did then she'd somehow know and get her cruel satisfaction. So instead he just took a deep breath and stared at the tv, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Damn what did they say? You look like you have a frog in your mouth!" Bucky exclaimed. That sure as hell got his attention. "What?"

"Whenever you stare into space like that you make this face that looks like you're hiding a frog in your mouth," Bucky teased with a wide grin, nudging his shoulder. Peter brushed him off with a half hearted glare, "That's just my face, and it doesn't look like that!" he cried out defensively. Sam couldn't help but laugh as he nodded, "It totally does!"

Peter rolled his eyes, deciding to ignore them, "Well then me and my frog are just gonna sit in silence," he said defiantly, turning away from them and directing all of his attention to the tv. Tony was right, they just wanted a reaction from him, just like MJ. So he wouldn't give it to them.

"Aw c'mon man, you know we're just teasing."

"..." Ah the silent treatment. Truly the pettiest of tactics. Well if Peter was going to be childish, then two could play that game. Or rather, three.

"Rrrrribbit," Bucky croaked from low in his throat. And he might've been imagining it, but he swore he saw a hint of a smile. Sam seemed to catch on and joined, "Rrribbit, ribbit!" Peter's smile was noticeable by now, but he was doing his best to hide it. Bucky gasped, "Is that a smile I see! You better watch out, you don't want Kermit to escape!"

"Shut up hobo!" he said, referring to his lazy clothes and shaggy appearance. Bucky's jaw dropped open, "You did not just say that to me! You're gonna pay!" He sensed the oncoming attack and was able to roll over the back of the couch successfully, but Bucky was quick on his tail and easily caught him a second later.

"You think you can get away with calling me a hobo?" he queried. When he shrugged Bucky hoisted him over his shoulder making him let out a small shriek. Peter looked to Sam, "Mr. Wilson hehelp!" Damnit, the kid always turned on his innocent charm when he wanted one of the team members on his side, but it wouldn't work this time.

"Sure, I'll help. What do you need me to do Buck?" Said man tossed the boy onto the couch and grabbed his wrists before he could make another run for it.

"Sit on his legs, we don't want him running off again, do we?" Sam complied and chuckled to himself, "This gives a whole new meaning to the term babysitting."

"Just because you guys are old doesn't mean I'm a baby-waitno! Mr. Barnes stoooop!" his snarky demeanor quickly melted away into panic when he saw Bucky leaning over him, a long string of spit dangling over his face before he slurped it back into his mouth with a laugh. "You're so gross."

"Watch it," he warned with a poke, noticing the slight flinch and giggle that left his lips. A sadistic grin found its way onto his face as he met eyes with Sam. "Now what was it you said about us being old?" he asked, letting his hands rest right above his underarms. Peter had a feeling he knew where this was going and squirmed, already giggling in anticipation.

"Mr. Barnes dohohohon't!"

He chose to act ignorant, as though he had no clue as to what he was about to put him through, but he knew all too well. "I'm not doing anything, why are you laughing?" he teased with a knowing grin.

"Behecause I know what you're gohonna dohoho."

Bucky tilted his head to the side quizzically, a few strands of hair falling in his face. "And what am I gonna do to you?"

Let me get one thing straight: Peter Parker is a smart kid. But this isn't one of his brightest moments. He answered quickly and without thinking, because if he had been thinking, he surely wouldn't have fallen for this trap so easily. "Tickle me." As soon as those words left his lips, Peter realized his mistake. His eyes grew wide as Bucky flashed him a wide, feral smile.

"Well since you asked so nicely."

"No wait I didn't mean ihihit!" He rushed to amend his mistake, but Bucky was already skittering his fingers in his armpits. Peter screeched and pulled at his arms, but his grasp around his wrists held strong. He could tell he was struggling to keep him pinned though.

"Damn how strong are you?" Bucky asked, switching hands to hold him down. Peter managed to worm an arm free and on reflex, shot his hand forward, flicking his wrist to web him.

Only he wasn't wearing his webshooters. He froze in fear as both men stared at him in shock. Sam had a hand covering his mouth and Bucky's gaping mouth slowly morphed into an evil grin. Peter gulped and tried to scoot back, but Sam sitting on his legs prevented him from moving too far.

"Did you seriously just try to web me?" The amusement in Bucky's voice was evident. Peter chuckled nervously, wrapping his arms around his torso for protection.

"Would you believe me if I said no?" he tried.

"Not a chance."

"Worth a shot," Peter shrugged. His nervous smile grew the closer Bucky got.

"Any last words?" Sam asked.

"Go easy on me?" That made them laugh and Bucky shook his head fondly.

"We'll see." He hovered his hands above Peter's stomach, wiggling his fingers as he inched closer. He squirmed as giggles bubbled out of his throat, much to their amusement. "Dude I'm not even touching you," he teased.

"Ihihi can stihil feel ihihit!" He tried to curl in on himself to stop the ghostly tingles, but to no avail.

"Wait so you can feel it? With your Peter tingle?" Bucky asked, continuing to hover over his stomach. Peter covered his face in embarrassment, "Dohohon't call it thahat!" he whined.

"I think I've built up enough anticipation, what d'you think Sam?" he asked for his opinion.

"I have to agree. I mean, he did call us old, and we're not getting any younger," he said, reaching forward and squeezing the kid's knee. Peter yelped out a laugh and kicked out his leg, but Sam kept him pinned as he kept squeezing, skittering a few fingers on the back of his knee. Peter threw a hand over his mouth to try and muffle the embarrassing stream of giggles, but to no avail. Bucky finally let his hands descend and they skittered all over his stomach. Peter let out a squeal, his eyes squeezing shut and nose crinkling adorably.

Bucky chuckled to himself as he walked his fingers up his ribs. "The itsy bitsy spider, crawled up the water spout," he sang the nursery rhyme slowly, each finger worming between his ribs until he reached the top. "Down came the rain and washed the spider out!" He raked his hands down his ribcage, making his shriek and thrash around on the couch. "Out came the sun and dried up all the rain," he formed his hand into a claw and vibrates it into his stomach.

Sam grinned and said the last line along with Bucky, squeezing his thighs as the other walked his fingers back up his ribs, "And the itsy bitsy spider crawled up the spout again!"

Peter's laughter kicked up a notch as he tried uselessly to bat at the offending hands. "Plehehease, you've hahad your fuhuhun!"

Sam snorted, "Pft, yeah right, we're only just getting started."

"Yeah, you can't just stop eating after only one chip, you gotta keep going!"

Sam's brows drew together in confusion. "Seriously, that's the best you could come up with?"

"Hey I'm a little busy at the moment, so watch yourself or else you're next," he threatened playfully. Sam conceded with a chuckle.

"Okay you win."

Meanwhile, Peter was still laughing his head off. He had given up on trying to free himself and succumbed to the torture they dished out. He threw his head back, laughing loud and free.

"You wanna take back what you said about us being old?" Bucky bargained and blinked in surprise when Peter shook his head.

"You're lihihike a huhundred years ohohold!" Bucky narrowed his eyes with a malicious smile stretching across his face.

"Wrong answer."

"Amazing. I've never seen someone already in a casket pull out a shovel and dig even deeper," Sam said in slight awe. He adjusted himself, grabbing the teen's feet in a headlock. He started kicking out and squirmed under their hold, protests flying from his mouth.

"I'm sorry I'm sorry! But I don't lie and I already knew you'd punish me more for lying I had no choice!" he tried to explain himself. His words dissipated into hiccupy laughter as Sam raked his blunt nails down the soles.

While he was thrown into hysterics, Bucky sniffed the air, "You smell that Sam? That's bullshit." Sam couldn't help but chuckle. Peter tossed his head back and forth.

"No it's not I swear!"

Bucky simply shrugged his shoulders, an unsympathetic smirk on his face, "Sure, but I don't really care." He drilled his thumbs into his hips, making him buck like a wild bull. He latched onto Bucky's wrists, not really trying to push them away, instead just needing something to ground himself.

The frantic laughter had caught the attention of one super soldier, and he followed the echoing noise through the expansive halls. Finally landing upon the scene, he smiled to himself and leaned against the doorframe, watching as his best friends took the poor kid apart.

Sam reached up and scribbled on the backside of his knee, drawing forth a loud and embarrassing snort. Peter's hand flew up to cover his mouth while the men laughed along with him. "We're gonna have to call you Spider-Ham if you keep snorting like that!" Sam teased.

Peter blushed a deep red, "Shuhuhut uhuhup!" He squealed when Bucky's hands started to squeeze and knead his sides before letting out deep belly laughter.

"Alright I think the kid's had enough," Steve spoke up, knowing from personal experience just how cruel they could be.

Bucky stuck his lip out in a mock pout, "Aw but look at him! I could keep this up for hours!"

Peter looked at Steve, pleading, "Mihihister Rohogers hehelp!" He was his last hope.

Steve rolled his eyes, "Let him breathe Buck."

Sam came to a stop, letting go of his legs. Bucky wasn't so quick to listen.

"Let me just do one last thing. You know what it is," he sent a wink towards his best friend. Steve shook his head with pity and chuckled. He gave Peter a sympathetic yet amused look, "Good luck."

Peter paused while taking in some much needed breaths, his brows furrowing in confusion. "W-why do I need-"

He was interrupted when Bucky leaned down and blew a loud raspberry on his stomach. Peter's eyes crinkled shut as he curled in on himself, shoving at Bucky's head to try and push him off. He took in another deep breath of air before blowing, shaking his head back and forth.

"FUHUHUCK!" Peter screamed out. Bucky's facial hair made it ten thousand times worse, and raspberries where just totally unfair. Bucky pulled away a shocked expression plastered on his face. Peter flopped back on the couch, panting.

"I never thought I'd live to see the day when Spider-Man said fuck," Sam said.

"And in front of Captain America no less!" Steve joined in. Peter raised his hand weakly, batting the air.

"Sorry sir."

Steve couldn't help but laugh, "You're alright kid. I know it was justified." He leaned against the back of the couch with one hand as Bucky helped Peter into a sitting position.

"You okay?" he asked. Peter nodded.

"Yeheah, my stomach just hurts from laughing. Not a bad pain though."

Sam reached over to ruffle his hair, "I'm glad to hear that."

"You guys suck though," he said, biting back a grin.

Bucky raised his brows, "Oho, bold words for someone as ticklish as you."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't attack me again. Not now anyway," he said with a shrug, having already recovered. Enhanced senses and strength, and all that.

Sam leaned back into the couch, crossing his arms and studying him. "And what makes you so sure?"

"Well, uh, cause, he won't let you," he said, pointing at Steve. Said man looked down at him quizzically, but a certain fondness clear on his face. Bucky just tilted his head back and let out a hearty laugh.

"Oh please he can't do anything, he's almost as bad as you," he said. To prove his point he reached up behind him and squeezed his hip. Steve jerked away, barking out a laugh. He was able to catch his wrist before he could do it again.

"Don't," he warned, voice commanding. Bucky held his hands up in surrender.

Steve sighed heavily, but with a smile on his face. He looked down at Peter, who still grinned from ear to ear. "I think they're gonna be the death of both of us kid." Sam and Bucky only chimed in their agreements. His smile only grew, "Good thing they're ticklish too."

"What no way!" Peter said in excitement.

"What?!"

"You're dead Rogers!"

Steve was already giggling as he ran across the room. "Make sure to go for Sam's ribs, and Bucky's thighs make him scream like a girl!" he shouted from down the corridor. Peter couldn't be happier. He finally felt like one of the team, having endured all their teasing and hazing, he was accepted. That didn't exclude him from things like this, instead only making him feel more welcomed. And like he said, whatever they dish out, he can serve right back.

#peter parker #tony stark #bucky barnes #sam wilson #steve rogers #avengers #avengers fic #avengers tickle fic #ticklish!peter

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theconservativebrief · 6 years ago

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Ozark season two is built on a lie, one the audience can see coming from a long way off.

It begins from the premise that Marty (Jason Bateman) and Wendy Byrde (Laura Linney) will split from the little Ozark resort town they moved to in season one once they’ve built the casino they promised to their various criminal partners. Said casino will help launder money for the Mexican cartel Marty works for, but it will also provide a slightly more legitimate business enterprise for a local crime family, the Snells, whose land will furnish a location for the casino and whose heroin trade might also provide a lucrative side enterprise for the cartel.

This complicated balancing act, with the Byrdes at its center, would seem to set up a second season all about Marty and Wendy trying to keep the casino on track while trying to keep the cartel from stomping on the Snells and the Snells from fucking everything up in a fit of pique. (Darlene Snell, played by Lisa Emery, doesn’t much like “Mexicans,” as she’s fond of pointing out, but she can come up with any number of reasons to stomp on the casino project, some of which she just pulls out of her ass in the moment.)

Yet season two of Ozark is mostly about the Byrdes trying to pretend they’re not characters in a TV show, as Marty and Wendy focus on their plan to split with their two kids for the Gold Coast of Australia once the casino is open, leaving behind whatever mess they’ve created. They give much less attention to their burgeoning criminal empire.

Leaving aside that the Byrdes are frequently the least interesting characters on their own show, perpetually trapped in moral dilemmas prompted by their life of crime (dilemmas you’d really think they would have seen coming had they watched any other crime drama ever made), the audience knows they won’t be leaving anytime soon.

The Byrdes are our point-of-view characters. The story is about their slow descent into outright criminality, juxtaposed with the way said descent changes their family, sometimes for the better (but often for the worse). If they leave the Ozarks, then there is no show.

This is a common thing for an antihero drama to try for a few episodes. The “what if I tried to escape?” story has driven arcs on just about any antihero drama you can think of, though rarely successfully. TV doesn’t handle the moment where the protagonist “refuses the call” well, because it tends to drag out that moment into long bouts of inaction. Thus, in season two of Ozark, the Byrdes are too often reactive protagonists, trying to clean up messes caused by others rather than making new messes of their own.

There are still enough good things going on that I could have written off Ozark season two as competent but ultimately not for me — but for one thing.

Watching any given frame of this series, which has earned Emmy nominations for directing and cinematography, is frequently like looking through a pool of dirty dishwater. So intent on being perceived as serious is Ozark that it never stops to shoot anything in a format other than “ultra-glum.”

Some spoilers follow, mostly in the images, which depict certain situations the characters get into.

Let me explain what I mean by starting with a shot that is, on its face, totally defensible.

Ruth talks to her dad in the Ozark season two premiere. Netflix

I call this image “defensible,” because it more or less makes sense why Ruth’s face would be half in shadow. The scene takes place in a car, in late afternoon, in a place without a lot of light sources other than the sun. If you’re following a naturalistic theory of lighting, you can more or less argue for why Ruth appears to be receding into darkness.

But I pull up this image to give you a rather dramatic example of Ozark’s primary method for lighting scenes featuring human beings. Regardless of where they are, regardless of how much light would be present, they’re always lit so that half of their face is in shadow. I spent season two trying to count times when characters weren’t lit this way, and I never got to 15, across 10 episodes where the shortest installment ran 55 minutes and several ran over an hour.

It’s not just Ruth (the teenage would-be kingpin played by Julia Garner, who was the best thing about season one and is frustratingly wasted in season two), either. It’s every character. They’re all constantly trapped between darkness and light, in a bit of not particularly subtle visual symbolism.

Wendy attends a very important meeting. Netflix Marty makes a choice. Netflix Mason reveals himself. Netflix

Now, again, I could sort of make an argument for any of the above images making sense from the point of view of “there probably would be low light levels in that situation,” especially if you accept that everybody in the Ozarks is turning off lights all of the time to save on their electric bill.

But it’s harder to make that argument for a shot that is set in a hospital room. Have you seen hospital lighting?

You’d think the nurses would turn on more lights. Netflix

Or this shot, set outside, on a sunny day. The sun is literally right behind the subject of the shot, but the director has staged the shot underneath an overhang so that the shadow lies over half the actor’s face.

The sun is right there! Netflix

This is not a problem of any one director, either. The show’s directorial crew includes esteemed Emmy nominees and winners like Alik Sakharov and Phil Abraham and Bateman himself. No, this is just how the show chooses to light every single shot, so that you always know the characters are in a murky moral gray area, caught between their darker selves and their better selves. There’s no attempt to vary this, and everything has a vaguely bluish tint over it, like the whole story takes place at 6:30 am in November.

But all of the above shots are more or less legible. Yeah, I think they’re all kind of silly as visual metaphors, but you can mostly see what’s going on, and a sufficiently skilled actor (and Ozark has plenty of those) will be able to get across just as much with only half their face as with access to their whole expression.

No, the real problems arise when Ozark stages so many of its scenes in ways that downplay visual contrast, leaving almost everything shrouded in shadow, to the point of genuine incomprehension. (At one point in watching season two, my monitor switched off, and it took me a couple of seconds to figure it out. Once I turned it back on, you couldn’t see anything that was happening anyway.)

Like, what are we supposed to make of this …

Ruth wakes up to see her father. Netflix

Or this …

Guys, you can really turn on some lights. Netflix

Or this?

A pieta! I guess? Netflix

Any one of these images might be stunning if it weren’t surrounded by so many other images that looked just like it. The last one, in particular, accompanies an emotionally powerful moment, and seeing this sort of negative image of a pieta could create something incredibly moving. But when everything is suffused with shadow, it’s harder for those moments to stand out.

The shadowy images are so bad they even swallow some of the show’s attempts at visual humor. For example, try to tell me what’s supposed to be funny about this image:

Any guesses? Netflix

The joke is that this would-be tough guy is wearing a shirt that reads “Take a Dam Ride.” Even if you don’t know who the character is, you should be able to spot the silly pun. But Ozark’s visual scheme chokes even that out.

There are some occasionally interesting visuals in Ozark season two, usually involving the sudden eruption of fire (which has a tendency to cast an unearthly but much-needed glow onto everything nearby). And I liked the season’s final image, which uses the flatter lighting of a news photograph to throw everything that’s happened into relief.

But the show’s visuals, too often, feel like a series playing at seriousness via tricks it learned on other, better shows.

This is a big, emotional moment, which would be evident even in a still if we could see the actors’ faces at all. Netflix

I can already hear Ozark fans lining up to say, “So what if it’s dark and moody? I like dark and moody!” Well, let’s take a look at a famous shot from a series Ozark is frequently compared to: Breaking Bad.

Walter White at night. AMC

Notice how much more definitive the contrast in lighting is here. Yes, you lose a bit of Walter’s face to shadow, but you can still see what’s going on, and the string of lights behind him acts as an effective visual counterpoint to the dark things he’s doing. This is a scene, set at night, that immediately tells you everything you need to know about who Walter is and what he’s doing. And if you know the series, you’ll understand that even better.

What’s more, not all of Breaking Bad was lit like this! In fact, here’s a shot from the very same episode as the shot from above, the classic “Ozymandias” (directed by Rian Johnson).

Skyler’s life falls apart. AMC

Look how powerful that shot is because of the contrast between Skyler’s raging emotions and the starkness of daylight. Her whole life has fallen apart, and the unyielding sun is going to make sure you see every iota of her grief.

But I could point to literally any other great antihero drama and find the sort of visual contrast above. Yes, they all had scenes that took place in darkness and shadow, to great effect, and they all had scenes that seemed to take place in an eerie, autumnal chill. But they also had scenes in contrast to those, where the lights are so bright that you can’t look away from the devastation onscreen.

This sort of visual discontinuity is important to an audience’s experience of a filmed story. When everything looks the same, your brain tends to slide down into a rut of numbing familiarity. Effective filmmakers use visual discontinuity, then, to jar your brain out of that complacency, to make you sit up and take notice. (The great YouTube essayist Lindsay Ellis has a wonderful video on just this topic, covering the Transformers franchise, which has a similar problem to Ozark but in an opposite direction — there, the movies have too much going on in every frame.)

Going from dark to light, from action to inaction, from cacophony to stillness are all ways to keep viewers engaged and invested. Making sure everything is muted and coolly blue is a great way to simply trick the brain into guzzling down more episodes without really thinking about what it’s watching, at least not until moving on to the next thing. It’s a way to make what’s being offered seem like it has weight, without actually doing anything weighty.

The illusion of depth without any actual there there is an Ozark specialty. By the end of season two, it’s dragged itself to exactly where you’d think it would go, and racked up quite a body count (also proving it hasn’t really learned the lessons of the shows that came before it, which did their best to hold off on killing major characters). But none of it feels as if it has any meaning beyond getting from the end of season one to the start of season three. It’s a bridge to nowhere that keeps building itself right in front of you.

Tricking viewers’ brains into continuing to just watch stuff without really engaging with it is typical of this streaming era, and especially typical of Netflix, which too often settles for shows that have the appearance of quality without actually trying to do anything worth watching. They might not be good, but so long as they look good and feature good actors and have the sorts of plot turns you’d find in better shows, your brain might think they’re just good enough to keep going.

This is the specialty of Ozark, which is admittedly not the worst show on the air, or on Netflix. But there are few shows that make me feel more like a sucker once I’ve finished watching.

Ozark is streaming on Netflix.

Original Source -> Ozark’s muddy season 2, explained in 11 incomprehensible screenshots

via The Conservative Brief

#IFTTT #The Conservative Brief

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theconservativebrief · 6 years ago

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Ozark season two is built on a lie, one the audience can see coming from a long way off.

There are still enough good things going on that I could have written off Ozark season two as competent but ultimately not for me — but for one thing.

Some spoilers follow, mostly in the images, which depict certain situations the characters get into.

Let me explain what I mean by starting with a shot that is, on its face, totally defensible. (And I apologize for the watermark on these images, which were drawn from my screeners.)

Ruth talks to her dad in the Ozark season two premiere. Netflix

Wendy attends a very important meeting. Netflix Marty makes a choice. Netflix Mason reveals himself. Netflix

But it’s harder to make that argument for a shot that is set in a hospital room. Have you seen hospital lighting?

You’d think the nurses would turn on more lights. Netflix

The sun is right there! Netflix

Like, what are we supposed to make of this …

Ruth wakes up to see her father. Netflix

Or this …

Guys, you can really turn on some lights. Netflix

Or this?

A pieta! I guess? Netflix

The shadowy images are so bad they even swallow some of the show’s attempts at visual humor. For example, try to tell me what’s supposed to be funny about this image:

Any guesses? Netflix

But the show’s visuals, too often, feel like a series playing at seriousness via tricks it learned on other, better shows.

This is a big, emotional moment, which would be evident even in a still if we could see the actors’ faces at all. Netflix

Walter White at night. AMC

What’s more, not all of Breaking Bad was lit like this! In fact, here’s a shot from the very same episode as the shot from above, the classic “Ozymandias” (directed by Rian Johnson).

Skyler’s life falls apart. AMC

This is the specialty of Ozark, which is admittedly not the worst show on the air, or on Netflix. But there are few shows that make me feel more like a sucker once I’ve finished watching.

Ozark is streaming on Netflix.

Original Source -> Ozark’s muddy season 2, explained in 11 incomprehensible screenshots

via The Conservative Brief

#IFTTT #The Conservative Brief

0 notes