After falling down a hate filled tumblr-rabbit hole this evening, I would like to join the current discussion about my boyfriend, Dan Harmon.
Dan Harmon is the most kindhearted, sensitive and passionate person I have ever known. His passion is the reason why Community has more heart than any other sitcom on TV and why its fan-base is the most devoted. His passion is the reason why Joel Mchale fought to get him rehired for Season 5 and why several writers and crew refused to return for Season 4 out of loyalty to Dan(including now co-EP Chris Mckenna).
In Dan’s office is a giant white board with the names of every writer who has handed him a script in the last month with hopes of joining the writing staff for Season 5, a large portion of them being fans. He included every name on that board no matter how green a writer is because he loves the people who care about Community and he believes in those people. I guarantee: there is no other Showrunner who gives fans more of his time than he does. Watch any interview with him and you will feel how much he cares.
Even if Season 4 of Community had been the best season of Television in Television history, it would have been painful for Dan to watch. HYPERBOLE WARNING: It would be like watching home videos of your kids with new parents after they had been taken from you. You probably wouldn’t choose to watch those videos, even if you knew the parents were taking great care of your kids. Months ago, before he was asked back, Dan told me he could never watch Season 4 because, no matter what, it would be too hard and he didn’t want to discuss his feelings publicly and hurt the people who worked on the show or its fans.
Dan’s weekly show, Harmontown is an unplanned, unproduced, improvised podcast featuring Dan and his friends chatting and playing D&D. Sometimes Dan talks about humanity, sometimes he talks about writing, sometimes he talks about farts; but mostly he just talks about whatever is on his mind and sometimes those things are dark. If this show description sounds boring or hurtful to you, you do not have to listen to it and I promise, no one will make you listen to it and you will not find yourself accidentally listing to it. It is produced and released exclusively for people who listen to it on purpose. There is a reason why it’s not written and or enjoyed in transcript-form.
Unlike the articles I read today would lead me to believe, the mood at last night’s Harmontown was light, heartwarming and revolved mostly around the theme of FATHERHOOD, not hatred for Season 4 or anyone involved in it’s writing or production. Dan tried to articulate the unique feeling of watching his project in the hands of other people. He wasn’t saying it was the end of the world or comparable to rape, or that he’s not excited about Season 5, he was expressing his very understandable feelings that were consuming him the day he watched Season 4. He did not want the audience to leave the show with hatred for the S4 writers or Community. Side note: I also made jokes about Season 4 at Harmontown that I regret. I am friends with several writers on Season 4 and I know they worked their hearts out. I was also swept away by my defensive feelings and I feel bad about that.
Now…
This “rape joke controversy” is misguided, unfair and I believe started with reporter who wanted more traffic on her article’s page. She used the word “rape” in a headline so she could get more sweet, sweet clicks. Now, THAT’S vile.
Dan didn’t say the word “rape” because he thinks rape is funny.
Months ago, when Daniel Tosh made a rape joke it was undeniably wrong because he joked about his audience raping a female heckler to teach her a lesson. That’s different than using an analogy to express the extremity of one’s feelings. OBVIOUSLY, Dan could have made a better analogy that didn’t include this painful buzz word, but as someone who was actually at the show, spends the most of her time with Dan and as a woman who has actually experienced the horror of non-consensual sex firsthand, I assure you: Dan was not making light of rape. Kids are murdered everyday and if he had said “It was like watching my kids being murdered” no one would think that Dan was making light of murdering kids, they would think “wow, his feelings are really strong and maybe he’s being a little dramatic”. I mean, really. Come on. If we are going to change the tide of this “rape culture”, we need to be smarter. To the tumblr “Dan is a rape-joke making monster coalition”: I get that it’s fun to hate someone and to have such an identifiable reason to hate him, but your hatred is monstrous and HEART BREAKING.
NOW: I present a self-growth experiment, free of charge:
For ONE day, record yourself speaking openly and honestly about everything that you happen to feel and think. Note: This will be more helpful if you choose a day that’s more emotionally charged. Try to talk without editorializing or changing your opinions or truth depending on who is in the room. No matter how dark, gross, illegal, stupid, misinformed, racist, ignorant or brilliant you sound in your recording, send the file of the recording to someone you don’t know, but suspect may not care about you personally. That person will then find the most unflattering and controversial portions of the recording and edit them together without context. Then, allow this stranger to post your words in transcript form on the internet so no can hear the inclination of your voice. Ask them to include a link to the larger file, so if someone wants to go the trouble of getting the full story, she can (but be prepared for most people not listening to the larger file). Then, implore strangers to size your worth as a human being. Note how this makes you feel and how it affects your perception of quotes in Entertainment columns.
I hope that for the sake of creativity and LOVE, you… the internet and fans of Community can see how much Dan loves Community and understand that he is a human being. I know he is excited and thankful that he was asked back for Season 5. I watched him cry today at the thought that he hurt fans of the show and that was without him seeing any tumblr hatred. He just wants to do his show and make people happy.
Love,Erin McGathy
Dan and Me at last year’s fantastic Community Artshow
ERIN MCGATHY: VOICE OF REASON!
June 2013
In case anyone was wondering Dan really did not like season 4. Erin specifically complained about Troy x Britta (if on the podcast you can hear one sad little smatter of clapping that quickly and awkwardly dies, that was me). Dan complained about people online saying season 4 was better than season 3. But he was also really nice about the other showrunners at the same time, and really laid the blame at the system’s fault for trying to save some money by canning him.
Dan also said he called and left a message for Bill Murray which makes me think he’s reconsidering not Dallasing season 4, though he could be playing someone other than Jeff’s dad. Holy shit could you imagine if they got him I would flip.
Mostly the show was about Dads since its Father’s Day and everything. Spencer’s (the show’s DM) dad was there and Dan talked really emotionally at length about his relationship with his father and how his perception of it had changed through his life that made me tear up.
He never really looks at the crowd, which is something you don’t realize from the podcast. He was always looking down, or at someone else on the stage. On the podcast his voice is immediate and right in your ears so you can’t help but feel he’s talking right to you, but in person there’s this vulnerability to him that doesn’t come across in the audio.
I’m really glad I went.
Oh and he mentioned people tweeting him about We Steal Secrets being bad and I thought about saying something cause I was one of those people, but I didn’t. Still don’t know if I should have.
i don’t play kingdom hearts and i don’t care about context
but for me this is a gif of a chess piece trying to seduce a girl by sensually thrusting its crotch at her and a suave guy in the background wondering why his chess friend can’t just be chill around the ladies
so this is what Kingdom Hearts looks like to outsiders
reblogged already, will reblog again
Why Sorkin Shows Are the Best:
In a Sorkin show the overly-opinionated, over-educated, uncompromising, workaholic, sarcastic woman ALWAYS GETS THE GUY IN THE END!
In real life we get called “Intimidating” and the guy chooses a girl who doesn’t read for fun and thinks astrology is legitimate.
I WENT TO MCDONALD’S AND I ACCIDENTALLY ASKED FOR “CHICKEN NUGGER”
it’s nuggets xD
It’s always a good time at quirkybrittany. Follow her for a peasant and hipster-free blogging experience ♒(★‿★)♒!
Im going to need a ten page essay about why that comment was necessary due monday.
- Richard Jenkins: When’s the last horror film you saw?
- Bradley Whitford: The Margaret Thatcher movie.
- Richard Jenkins: I set you up.
- Bradley Whitford: Thank you. What’s it called? Iron Lady. Scared the shit out of me. That creepy monster.
Why are we expected to stay quiet when creators in our fandom admit that they stalk women?
Why am I not allowed to point out that, were this to happen to me, it would make me want to not leave my house for days?
Why are we not supposed to feel horrified that us feeling unsafe, vulnerable, terrified, or weirded out is a joke to them?
Y’know what? You are allowed to feel however you wish about this issue.
As are we.
So let us have this conversation.
Or is our talking about it making you uncomfortable?
Thank you. Also, just a small point here, but you cannot excuse a person’s behavior by what they’ve created. Charles Bukowski wrote amazing poetry and was also a complete asshole. You can like what a person’s made while also holding that person accountable for their actions.
You can like what a person’s made while also holding that person accountable for their actions.
Theres a lot of hearsay, a lot of people getting information about this from other people and everyones getting hysterical. I’m not giving my own opinion on this, but so people are informed, heres some assistance:
Transcript of the Let’s Play Connect the Hots discussion here
Transcript of the podcast discussion here
Let’s Play Portal House video hereVIDEO HAS BEEN REMOVED FROM YOUTUBEAudio file of the podcast discussion here
(
If anyone can link me to an audio file of the podcast discussion so I have the complete set, that’d be greatThanks KRSpaz)Additional:
Caleb’s Tumblr entry on the matter hereAlso apparently deleted. Somethings happening I think EDIT: UNDER THE CUT IS A SCREENSHOT OF CALEB’S DELETED POSTUpdate:
Apology from Geoff here
Audio file of Lets Play Connect the Hots discussion here
