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02 November 2012 @ 06:56 pm
All The Things Friday: Popular Culture  
Welcome to another All The Things Friday! Popular culture is usually something that people discuss in terms of Steve or Thor, specifically their lack of recent pop culture knowledge, but I find it interesting that when it comes to Clint and Natasha every fic I’ve read seems to have a different take.

For example, there are fics where the Avengers have film nights and Natasha doesn’t recognise the films, or she likes black and white movies, or she likes to correct the moves in martial arts films, or she likes musicals, or… When it comes to Clint and music we’ve had great discussions over what music he likes and if he can play the guitar, but then sometimes Natasha recognises the music, sometimes she doesn’t, sometimes she likes it, and sometimes she prefers classical. And so on.

What books, films, television shows, music, etc. do you think our Master Assassins like? Does Natasha like American pop culture, Russian pop culture, or hate pop culture, or hate aspects of pop culture? Was she familiar with American pop culture from her early training, or did she miss out as a kid and she doesn’t care, or she missed out and Clint teaches her? Is she more international in her pop culture tastes? Does she even see the point of pop culture?

What about Clint? If there’s any pattern that I’ve seen it’s that Clint is the more knowledgeable of the two about American pop culture at least, but at the same time SHIELD is often depicted as sending him all over the globe. Has he picked up on international pop culture himself? Has he missed out on pop culture whilst he’s been busy at SHIELD or whilst he may have been out of the country in the Armed Forces or what have you in the past? Does he care about pop culture, or not care, or care about some aspects in particular?

I have a lot of questions, folks, and no answers, just lots of ideas, because I love that all of these and more can be true considering the little that we know about Clint and Natasha from the films. So bring your thinky thoughts, your recs of creative things in which pop culture is a thing, your graphics, new fics or fic ideas, all of the things! Or just grab a drink, settle in, and have a happy Friday :D
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[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 2nd, 2012 08:03 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
I agree with you wholeheartedly regarding Natasha. I would like to think that Natasha would actually know quite a lot about pop culture, international and American, especially current movies and music. She has to get close to her marks, so that would necessitate small talk. I kinda picture her as a Renaissance woman, you know, she has to know a little about a lot of things, just enough to make her dangerous (shamelessly quoting Supernatural here). Thus she would know all kinds of music, but I would also agree that she probably won't really give thought to what SHE likes until she is with SHIELD and has a safe haven to explore herself.

Clint I guess is more of a conundrum. He spent his most formative years in the circus (as per comic canon), and having no money and not a lot of free time, he wouldn't have been able to go to the movies a lot or buy tapes. I think it would be the same as with Natasha, once he is with SHIELD, he would start to absorb everything and find out what he likes. My take on him is that he is more the classic rock type, as that would have been the music played in his home as a kid and probably also by the guys in the circus. Like you, I don't think he would be bothered to keep up to date on American music or movies, pretty much useless when he is travelling all over the world :) I totally second that he would know more about international pop culture than we would expect, owing to his travelling the world. However, he would mostly be spending his time there somewhere in a sniper's nest, quite removed from the populace, so he would not necessarily have that easy access to foreign movies or music...

And the movie night with arthouse films and everyone being startled by our assassins being arthouse buffs - brilliant! I need this fic in my life!!! ;)
inkvoices: avengers:past behind you hug (C/N)[personal profile] inkvoices on November 2nd, 2012 11:04 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
She has to get close to her marks, so that would necessitate small talk. I kinda picture her as a Renaissance woman, you know, she has to know a little about a lot of things, just enough to make her dangerous Yeah, exactly my thinking! She has to know enough to be able to know what people like Tony Stark are on about, to be able to get people talking, to be able to understand intel that may be couched in pop culture terms.

However, he would mostly be spending his time there somewhere in a sniper's nest, quite removed from the populace, so he would not necessarily have that easy access to foreign movies or music... Yep, but again, I was thinking that he'd need to known enough to be able to get by. I think I've almost headcannoned myself into thinking that Clint can lip read - I kind of see him as a questioning orders, wanting to make the right calls type of person, so he'd be able to follow what his marks that he's watching from a distance are saying (and be able to entertain himself a bit whilst waiting by 'eavesdropping' on people) and pop culture would be a little part of that, like with Natasha, knowing what the marks are going on about.

I know nothing about arthouse LOL. But I can absolutely see Clint encouraging Natasha into trying new pop culture things when she's learning what she likes, and her then making him watch/read/listen to wierder and wierder things as a kind of revenge, and then them both ending up liking some of it or finding the familiarity of it comforting. I dunno, like certain missions call for french noir and some days are martial arts films that can correct whilst throwing popcorn at the screen.
[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 2nd, 2012 11:36 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
Woohoo, we have the same view regarding Natasha :) She has to be stay on top of things so that she can do her job, doesn't mean she can not enjoy it for herself though.

I see Clint as more immersed in the culture of the respective country as in the pop culture, does that make sense? Like know what to eat and what to stay away from, how to adress people, in general just be so nondescript that no one would take notice of him. Of course he would be exposed to music and movies abroad as well, yet more in passing. Totally seconding the lip reading though, and as curious and rebellious as Clint is he would check out what he picked up from his marks... so I guess I agree with you here as well :)

Yeah, I don't either (much), but that is exactly what would make this fun, right? LOL They are just something else, so of course they would be into weird stuff and challenging each other sounds like them. I could picture them watching something like "Wings of Desire" (German arthouse movie in black and white from 1998). But yes, different movie types for different days, totally makes sense.
inkvoices: avengers:clint & tasha[personal profile] inkvoices on November 2nd, 2012 11:44 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
I see Clint as more immersed in the culture of the respective country as in the pop culture I LOVE this idea. Clint being more into the practical aspects and Natasha the more people aspects fits all the thinky thoughts I've read and had on them being two sides of the same coin/complimentary as a team as well as just seeming so very him, y'know? The nondescript thing, YES. I see Clint as being able to be a spy just as much as Natasha, not just an assassin or watching from above, but whilst Natasha is a kind of James Bond spy, in the thick of it and in your head, Clint's could be this more stalkerish, don't see him he'll see you role?

I would have to make up the films, or research until my eyes bled lol. And I'd be sat there going 'more obscure, weirder, weirder!'
[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 2nd, 2012 11:58 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
Totally, he is definitely the stalker type, so he would be the one sneaking into buildings to get the intel, while Natasha really is a female James Bond (and totally OT, Bourne Legacy was way better than Skyfall ;)) and distracting the marks with her looks and sneaking the intel out of them through reverse psychology. They do complement each other perfectly on missions, I would think.

Maybe I should run with that plot bunny and make it my first story LOL
And I'd be content with just sticking with the first weird movie that comes to mind ;) Because really, you can always go weirder, I had a phase where I watched Japanese arthouse movies... and they are pretty weird, beautiful imagery though, lol.

inkvoices: avengers:shameless enabler[personal profile] inkvoices on November 3rd, 2012 12:06 am (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
(Gah, I need to see Bourne Legacy. I saw Skyfall with the family the other weekend - rainy camping day - and I actually thought the script writing wasn't bad at all for Bond. I've heard people saying the script for Legacy was naff but the acting was good, so if it's better than Skyfall and with Renner and Wiez I need to see this!)

I WILL READ THIS *NUDGE NUDGE, WINK WINK*

To be honest, whilst I love music I dabble and whilst I enjoy films and tv I'm rarely up to date. Books are the thing I manage to keep up with. One of my friends recently lent me a bunch of DVDs that aren't my usual fare, so working through those now :)
[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 3rd, 2012 12:25 am (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
(GO WATCH THAT MOVIE! I thought the script for BL was ok, the movie was interesting and the acting was really good. The friend I saw Skyfall with on Wednesday actually left halfway throught the movie as she fell asleep ;) And as she left she said that BL was much better, and she doesn't even like Jeremy Renner or Rachel Weisz ;))

Again, acurate icon is acurate ;) I would probably be able to at least come up with an obscure movie for them, the rest I am not so sure about...

Hey, you never know what you might discover by trying something new and outside your usual likes and tastes... I usually don't watch war movies, but boy would I have missed out on something great had I not watched The Hurt Locker...
inkvoices: avengers:C/N mission is a go[personal profile] inkvoices on November 3rd, 2012 01:46 am (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
(IT WILL BE DONE!)

Again, acurate icon is acurate ;) *whistles innocently*

Oh, I like trying new things. I'm just not good with watching tv shows and films, so when I find the time I usually watch something that I need, which is usually my comfort zone. I'm better trying new things when it's books. But my friend of the lending DVDs (and sending me lots of music links) helps with this. (And I lend her books *grins*)
[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 3rd, 2012 11:02 am (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
Yeah, yeah, you're innocence personified, I know ;) I'll see what I can do, might need some help with dialogues though...

I am a reccer at heart, I think :) I always lend movies and books to my friends and recommend new series for them to watch or music to listen to... Which means I get lots of recs as well, which I love, I love checking out new stuff *lol*

Which leads me to say that I love your recs above :)
inkvoices[personal profile] inkvoices on November 4th, 2012 09:58 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
Completely innocent, me lol. And completely willing to help with dialogue!

It's that 'I need to talk to people about how good this is, so I must show it to other people' thing :D

They're brilliant! There are so many wonderful creative works in this fandom. We're spoilt. I love it.
[identity profile] shenshen77.livejournal.com on November 5th, 2012 02:46 pm (UTC)
Re: some thoughts and recs to start things off
Haha, you are completely awesome, that's what you are :) Yay, thanks so much for your offer, I might have to take you up on it ;)

IKR? I do it all the time, somehow though, none of my friends really caught on to the awesomeness that is Jeremy Renner... but my mom loves him now after I made my parents watch The Hurt Locker... goes to show how persuasive I really am ;)

And you are so right, we truly are spoilt, so much to read and watch and look at, I can't even begin...