Monday, March 21, 2011
"I PROMISE IT ISN'T DRUGS:" The prolific (and wildly scattershot) David E. Kelley sits down with Vulture to talk about casting (the network objected to leads on Doogie Howser and Picket Fences), alternating between being a critical darling and a critical whipping boy, and yes, Wonder Woman. No, the costume isn't discussed.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I don't particularly care one way or the other about superheroes etc or whether or not the wonder woman costume is too sexy, unrealistic or whatever, BUT as a female and someone who spent many many years sewing costumes in various costume shops, I kind of take issue with where the bodice hits her on the above the hip line because it is making weirdness out of her lower torso/hip area. Either that or her skin tight blue pleather leggings are WAY to long in the crotch.
ReplyDeleteI rewatched the first season of The Practice last year, and man that was a good show. Much rawer and (seemingly to this layperson) true-to-details than I remembered. Got much slicker later. Only that first half-season on DVD too.
ReplyDeleteWe always used to call it The Malpractice.
ReplyDeleteMy objection to the costume, besides the shiny pants, is based on recently watching the documentary Double Dare about female stuntpersons. Jeannie Pepper is one of the subjects of the movie, and back in the 1970's she was Linda Carter's stunt double; she makes a specific pioint at how stupid and difficult the season one costume was because of the high heeled boots (which were changed to flats for season two). The new costume? High heels. Good luck, stuntperson.
ReplyDeleteJust to repeat something I've said before, perhaps with the same superheroine in mind: the costume is what you'd get if you said "what clothes does an exceedingly athletic woman need to perform at the highest possible level?" Current state-of-the-art is a highly structured sports bra (which minimizes jiggle), bottoms with pretty minimal coverage, and below-the-ankle shoes. It's possible that one would need more boot-like footwear if one were expecting sand, snow, or mud, and if one expected to be deployed for a long period of time, one might also need more durable clothes. But for short bursts of activity, the Olympic athletes go with what I've described above.
ReplyDeleteSo where the elite athlete goes with athletic shoes, WW chooses knee-high high-heel leather boots. Where the elite athlete goes for minimally restrictive butt coverage, WW picks pleathery non-athletic tights (a defensible choice only if one were expecting inclement weather, which is unlikely, given the top). Where the elite athlete needs a sports bra, WW goes with a push-up bustier.
Now I realize that in the old TV show, WW changed into costume by spinning around. I don't know what magic made that happen, since the costume was not native to the Amazonians (who wore Roman-style togas). I suspect that in this version, WW will change into costume by taking off whatever she has on over her costume. A sports bra and short-shorts would be pretty versatile. You could wear it under just about anything with sufficient neck coverage. A highly-engineered bustier and long tights, no. And it would be easier to carry around shoes in one's purse than giant boots. How many Nazis are going to invade the US in the time it takes Diana Prince to find her gym locker and tug on and lace up her accessories?
Okay, you say, but David E. Kelley is interested in the sexiness, not the utility. But it is silly to think that they're mutually exclusive. Look at what, say, Leryn Franco wore in the Olympics. Nobody was like, "ugh, I have to turn the channel, that hag isn't even competing in a bustier and leather boots."
Bravo, Isaac. Well said all around.
ReplyDeleteThank you to my anonymous editor.
ReplyDeleteI am just chiming in to recommend Double Dare, which I saw years ago and is just terrific. And I see it's on Netflix Watch Instantly, so I will definitely rewatch it soon.
ReplyDeleteI should mention that the other woman mentioned is the great Zoe Bell; it's really interesting to see that varying levels of stuntwork Bell and Pepper had to do in their careers at the same approximate ages.
ReplyDeleteI believe it was the third season of The Practice that had an early arc that involved a client coming into the office with a severed head in a medicine bag. I loved that particular season and thought it featured one of the great season finales I've ever seen from any show. But the show had a complete nosedive from that point on. It was as if Kelley had a plan in mind for the first three seasons and had no idea where to go with the show afterward.
ReplyDeleteAnd while Ally McBeal is a bit of a critical punching bag now, I thought the first season of that show was also outstanding. But it also went off the rails almost immediately afterward, only to have a brief rebirth when Robert Downey Jr. came aboard.