I was referring to that period, which lasted about half the 3rd season, if I recall aright.
Actually, looking back over my list, I see that most of the traits I listed are common to only two of the three–but which two varied. (I won’t count being hot; that’s almost a requirement for being on TV, and is a matter of opinion anyway. I mean, there are probably some people–insane people, but people nonetheless–who think Charisma Carpenter and Sarah Michelle Gellar are better looking than Alyson Hannigan OR Amy Hacker.
Pat Conroy is really bad this way. You’ve got your abusive father, your son who plays basketball (or football! That’s very different!), your woman who refuses to face the shitty reality of rher situation (usually, but not always, the protagonist’s mother), your unconventional teacher who calls people names and who everyone loves, and a male main character: a cowardly jock English major or proto-English major. It’s a good thing I like Pat Conroy’s favorite plot, because he uses it every damn time.
Well, on the one hand he didn’t create Kitty; she far predates his tenure on the X-men…
And she doesn’t have much of a dark side, unless you count her experiences with Ogun, but nobody ever talks about her ninja skills any more, not even Joss.
On the other, the beautiful-but-doesn’t-know-it-because-she’s-overshadowed-by-a-more-flamboyant-friend bit–hell, Kitty INVENTED it. And she’s an early cute technogeek as well. I think Kitty and Kaylee would be friends, likewise Kitty and Fred. But Willow would set off her bad mojo spider-sense.
Largely but not entirely true; I assume you’re talking about Lords of Discipline, The Great Santini, Prince of Tides, and Beach Music. Will McLean’s father may have been a protypical Conroy abusive military man or vet, but he’s not a character in The Lords of Discipline. Also, I think Will’s the only one of the four main characters whose an out & out coward; the others are just overshadowed by the more powerful friends.
On the other hand, Jordan Elliot from Beach, Luke Wingo from Prince, and Mark Santoro from Lords are all much closer variations on a theme.
Oddly, Pat has more variety in his love interests. Susan Lowenstein isn’t much like Annie Kate Gervais who isn’t much like Shyla or Ansley. I can’t even imagine those women being friends–well, Susan and Ansley, but no other two.
Most of his characters aren’t really enough of a character to say he is reusing, but indeed.
At some point in the last decade he added the thirteen or fourteen year old black girl that everyone for a square mile wants to throw down and have passionate sex with. Trying to envision what prompted this exact character is pretty guaranteed to squick me out.
He did a decent–for him, anywhistle–job in creating Stile in the Apprentice Adept trilogy.
Yes, I wrote TRILOGY. There were no books after the third one. None whatsoever. UNICORN POINT and its ilk were all hallucinations. You guys have got to get off the smack.
Dean Koontz. Are all his protagonists ex-special forces guys with an inheritance so they don’t need a job? And girl friends are invariably incapable of having children, so as not to distract from the frequent, passionate sex.
John Irving manages to put essentially the same female character in most of his books. Tough, tomboyish, not-quite-attractive (but the main character always wants her, whether or not she’s family), and assertive/aggressive.
Melony in The Cider House Rules, Hester in A Prayer for Owen Meany, and Franny in The Hotel New Hampshire are three that come to mind right now - it’s been a while since I’ve read his other stuff, so I may be forgetting some.
Er. I think Xander is an asshole for at least the first three seasons. I didn’t find him loveable at all. He redeemed himself in my eyes by the end of the series but he had a long way to come from. I think Wash has some insecurities but they never lead him to act nearly as selfishly and downright evilly as Xander.
Still haven’t forgiven Xander for lying to Buffy about Angel’s soul.
Shows taste! Now that I think on it, some of Kitty’s late 80s’-early 90s’ musings about Rachel Summers and Illyana Rasputin could easily have been put in Willow’s mouth later.
[quote]
And, also, how’re you going to talk about Joss and not mention the goofy and loyal male sidekick?
[/quote
Because I wanted to leave somethine for the rest of y’all to talk about?
Hmm…what evidence have you that Joss based Wash & Xander upon himself? I’m not contesting, just wondering.
I think things would have turned out horribly had he done otherwise … Buffy would have not gone for the kill had she had hope, and she’d have lost that battle. Angel would have been restored just in time to see her dead body at his feet.
