Stop me before I *@&#%*@$! again.

[tzikeh]

Stop me from engaging with ignorant, white-privileged assholes who think they're funny. No, really, someone stop me. It's about the Avatar casting, and includes comments like "I remember how disappointed I was when Akira Kurosawa made his version of King Lear with Asian actors." and someone posits that this is just another case of "over-the-top reactionism".

You know, Metafilter is the one place where the whole point of the site is to read the comments. How can I apply the mantra of "DON'T READ THE COMMENTS" to that?

Comments

[iko.livejournal.com]

*resists reading the thread to prevent exposure from the stupid*

I can't believe that someone would call Ran "King Lear with Asian actors". That's over-simplification to the point of stupidity.

Also, from what I understand of Avatar, the world concept is extremely diverse. Ignoring this in the casting is, I think, doing the original source material a massive disservice.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

That's over-simplification to the point of stupidity.

The poster is mocking the outrage over something he considers pointless by pretending to be outraged over that.

[casirafics.livejournal.com]

I always just think back to this, and then stop and back away.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Yes - but the alt-text is the WHOLE POINT!

[misachan.livejournal.com]

That doesn't even make sense. Ran is set in Japan. I could maybe see being upset that the story was changed from being about king and his daughters to being about a king and his sons (ignoring that Ran is based on Mori Motonari as much as Lear), but being annoyed that they're Asian? Why wouldn't they be?

This is really what boggles me about the "but they don't look Asian" argument. Fine. Because the show's drawn manga style no one "looks Asian" but that doesn't change that the show is clearly set in fantasy!Asia. Why would you default to white instead of Asian?! They're wearing gis and using chopsticks. Use sense, people!

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

That doesn't even make sense. Ran is set in Japan.

It's a joke. The guy's being "funny" (i.e. an asshole)

[klia.livejournal.com]

Actually, most of the comments are very snarky, bitchy, anti-Shyamalan, anti-making an Avatar live-action movie at all, and anti-casting white actors (one comment: He went white to save Asian actors the embarrasment), with only two or three actual privileged assholes showing off their ignorance.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Huh, it seems to have devolved into Shyamalan bashing, yes. But when I first read it, it was the people comparing it to someone complaining about the "racism" of the term "black hole of paperwork" because a lot of black people worked in the office, and the ones saying "these characters have huge blue eyes. Asian actors wouldn't have looked any closer to the drawings than the people they cast," and generally missing the entire point.

[klia.livejournal.com]

Yeah, there were definitely some ignoramuses (ignorami?), but I was glad to see they were in the minority. Pun intended. ;)

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

Pun intended. ;)

See icon.

[klia.livejournal.com]

See Julian.

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

ALWAYS HAPPY TO SEE JULIAN.

[klia.livejournal.com]

Is that a gun in your pocket or are you just happy to see Julian?

[tzikeh.livejournal.com]

I would think, in Julian's case, it would be both.

[klia.livejournal.com]

Hee.