Originally posted by Jolein:
As I recall Mac choose her because she had done some bloodspatter analyse which put away a high profiled criminal in Montana and she was the expert he needed.
I always thought it was a shame that they didn`t work that part out more.
Coming out of lurking (for the longest time) to give my two cents...
^ Yep, I recall that - that certain expertise was mentioned but never expanded upon. A bit of a shame, actually. It might have made her character slightly less boring.
Delurk anytime.
I do recall vaguely something like that. They certainly haven't since painted her as an expert specialist in anything. I was about to say even if we don't know more of her work history, it would be interesting to see why the other characters find her a valuable team member. But I think this goes to the heart of what others have pointed out, that we're constantly told Lindsay's awesome in so many ways but the content to illustrate such has been glossed over or left on the virtual cutting room floor.
Anna should simply not do interviews. She always manages to come off like she is an amateur with no real idea of her character's motivations and no real work ethic. For goodness sake she sounds like my 8 year old niece when she whines that something is too hard when really it is only because she wants someone to tell her either she doesn't have to do it or give her sympathy and to tell her what a great job she is doing even though it is really hard.
I agree she does come across as laying herself wide open to ridicule. Especially from the likes of me. But I also realize that what we read more often than not here are clips taken from interviews and so are lacking the wider context, even if only in the tone of the exchange.
She is, however, still responsible for the impressions created. An interview is not stalker papparazzi, I don't think anyone would make the effort to try and ambush her with controversial or difficult, pithy questions. You generally have an understanding of the nature of the questions about to be asked , and you have every opportunity to frame your responses. If you're not comfortable fielding such queries, decline the interview.
She may be answering off the cuff and in a lighthearted fashion, but man does she come off light elsewhere instead. Professionally, I don't like the work she's done on the show, but I will not go so far as to insult her personally by suggesting she's unintelligent or lacking in dedication. It's hugely unfortunate that her own words seem to depict her as such, whether accurate or not. Unfortunate for both her and the show.
If Anna's performances could elevate her above perceptions that may arise based on interview clips like that, that would help. If Anna's media saavy was such that her clips generated respect for being articulate and insightfully well-spoken instead of being so wide open to easy mockery, that in turn would colour what I see on screen. I measure my take on things against what insights writers, producers, and performers provide all the time, just as a guage of understanding their intent, their spin, and a comparison to what ultimately comes across by the time it's a completed entity onscreen. But there's little with Anna media-wise or performance-wise that generates interest or credibility, or makes Lindsay palatable to watch. The end comparison with her usually becomes annoyance not only at her performance, and at Lindsay's character in general, but at the resulting periodic assuaging drek ladled from the producers about how wonderful everything is, when clearly it is not.
I can think of at least 2 actresses who had much more physical scenes to do while carrying around that big belly: Mariska Hargitay on Law & Order: SVU and Amy Jo Johnson on Flashpoint - especially Amy Jo, because her character has to carry those big sniper guns and wear all that Kevlar and other protective gear. But I don't think either of them has passed such comments like "Ohhh, I can't do this!" when asked about working through their pregnancy.
I had no idea either of them were pregnant. Says something right there. Though I also don't think as big a deal was made about their circumstances.
^^ I guess the reason none of those other actresses have said that is because they haven't been asked the question . This is Anna's second pregnancy in the show, so it's only natural that reporters will ask how it's different and how much harder/easier it is for her character to be pregnant on the show as opposed to hiding it. I suspect she was just responding to the questions she was asked.
I expect that both other actressess' parts do not revolve around a fictionalized version of their real life pregnancies as a vehicle for their characters. I don't know Flashpoint, but I do watch SVU. The characters there certainly do not rely on romances for character thru lines, nor on personal relationships to be interesting characters. Even in Elliot's case, the depiction of his home life does much to provide depth to his character, but is not the focal point of his role on the show.
What does Lindsay uniquely contribute to the show?
If it weren't for the fictional DL relationship and pregnancy, I seriously doubt there would be nearly as much interest in
asking questions about her RL pregnancy and what it's like to work thru it, or at least, those questions wouldn't be given such prominence in the media in general.
