(no subject)

[michals]

IS there a...cliche, or a trope or a syndrome that states all essentially smart secondary characters must be made to look like complete idiots so the jackass main character can come in and show off how smart he is? I'm talking specifically about Lassiter and Wilson. Both are in their 30's, yet one's the head of the entire oncology department in a major teaching hospital, one's the head detective of a police precinct. That didn't happen by magic, they have to pretty pretty smart and capable right? Then why are they always made to look dumb at their very profession so House and Shawn can come in and save the day? I might be the only one who's annoyed by this >.>

Comments

[senor-coconut-1.livejournal.com]

No, but if you join the post I made yesterday and the EPIC clichebadfic we are writing there, you can add it to the story and make it official.

[mrowrr.livejournal.com]

maybe it's just me, but i don't feel that Wilson's character comes off as incompetent in any way. examples?

[rayslady.livejournal.com]

I think Wilson's main tropeage largely comes from here: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheWatson

and I do see what you mean about what the writers do to him at times.
(Oh and ps. Just in case you haven't seen that site before, watch out. It is a RUTHLESS timewasting machine...)
xoxoxoxoxox

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

Man, if you think Psych is bad... I really, really want to like Castle, but the writers screw Beckett over every single episode, practically.

[biting-moopie.livejournal.com]

Definitely not the only one. I don't know about House but Lassiter definitely gets this treatment. He'd head detective for a reason and while Shawn is meant to be the star, Lassiter definitely isn't the sidekick so why treat him that way?

[soophelia.livejournal.com]

No, you're NOT the only one annoyed by this. I am too.

I saw a review (video review) of Sherlock Holmes (the new movie) and the reviewer said that it had the best portrayal of Watson because for once they didn't make Watson look like a dumbass in order to prove or show how smart Holmes was.

Besides if Wilson and Lassiter are considered "dumb", then House and Shawn can't be that smart. :)

If they devalue the secondary characters, they're also devaluing the main character in the process.

I hope I made sense.