Why Lindsay REALLY Must Go (Pt. 2)

I agree. When _____ does a scene, you know what their intent is. You might be curious about what else it could mean (adding depth to the scene), but you know why they're acting that way in the first place. With Lindsay, it seems like you have to try to figure her out in any given scene--was she upset? Curious? Thoughtful? Is the character behaving this way or that way, or is it the actress? Often, it doesn't really make sense...

 

Oh! But judging by the number of posts in this thread, you definitely r not.

That's interesting. I didnt see it that way. Maybe I shld rewatch Season 2, but who wants to sit through Danny & Lindsay again..

Yep! Me too!

 

I noticed that Danny and Lindsay didn't share a scene this week. Remember when the writers kept putting them together even when they were working on different cases? That felt so forced! I know Mac and Stella were working on different cases, but their scenes together felt far more natural.(Yeah, even with that song at the end of the episode) Part of it is the chemestry between the actors, the other part was the writing itself.

 

I know. Remember the scene where Danny & Lindsay were talking in the lab abt Danny rescuing Hawkes in "The deep"? I laughed at the number of interpretations that everyone came up with. Classic example of the viewer having to decide what Lindsay was conveying.

 

Interesting review. Makes you think, if someone who never knew that perfect team from S1 and therefore can't compare, can tell that there's something wrong, and points to her .. well that says a lot.

It's sad that 2 years later they still don't know who she is. They are still experimenting.

That's a big part of the problem. Being around people who are clearly born to do this job, makes her lacks even more obvious. Acting with such amazing actors just won't make her better. You’d think that maybe it’s catchy and she’ll get better, but at this point I gave up all hope for that to happen. Maybe if she would be in a daytime drama she could pass by unnoticed, but being in primetime, just nope.

Me too. If she's gonna be in front of my eyes for a few minutes and on light scenes, I could fast forward and ignore her. It's the constant shoving her down my throat what makes me sick. And most importantly, do not alter the others to prop her anymore. That’s just wrong!

:lol: Yup, we seem to read the same in all the scenes except Lindsay's. What I do is look at the others, if x looks worried, well that's the mood of the scene, whatever her face is.

One of the things I've learned so far from CSI Ny is that the actor can save or kill a scene, the character, the episode.

 

OK well, Hi. I have read the majority of posts on here but I am sorry if I repeat anything someone has already said.

I have been advised by several people to come on here and post what alot of people are thinking. I am actually going to quote mself to make matters easier.

So I have read that peole think Lindsay is "One Dimensional" and "Stand-offish" but did it every occur to anyone this may be the way the writers want her to be portrayed.

To give an exmple, I spent the entire first few seasons of Without a Trace thinking Samantha was cold. But then we found out things about her past that explained it all. I guess what I am trying to say is that I don't agree with you.

I am by no means discrediting your opinons, after all that's all we really base out posts on. But she wouldn't be a character if she didn't have a purpose. Script writers do not spend time developing and writing characters if they do not have a point to them. That would be a waste of time and money.

All I am saying is, try to think of the reasons behind her personality, think why the writers have made her the way she is.

There is always a reason.

Jodie
xx

 

I think a lot of us who dislike Lindsay/Anna have tried to figure out how she is supposed to be as a character. The arguement we've made repeatedly is that from the writing and portrayal, we can't figure it out and after two seasons on the show that's not a good thing.

My interpretation is that the audience is supposed to like Lindsay and see her as a part of the team as well as a viable romatic match for Danny. Everything I see in the writing and the portrayal contradicts that. Even if I did clearly see what was intended for the character, that doesn't change the fact that I think Lindsay is a poorly written and developed character and that Anna Belknap is not a very good actress, at least in this particular role.

Stating this in no way means I am discounting other's opinions or trying to change them. And I don't think it's insensitive or mean for me to say how and why I don't like the character or the actress' portrayal of the character. Critiquing Anna Belknap's performance is NOT making a judgement about who she is as a person, it's merely expressing an opinion about her performance as a certain character.

 

At the moment I am simply looking at the character of Lindsay, on her own, not her interactions with anyone else.

Off this, I can understand where your views are coming from. She doens't seem to do much. But again I must say that this is for a reason.

The producers of these TV shows go the great lengths to find the right characters for the parts. They will not hire someone (even an extra) if they are not right. Belive me, I have been turned down for a few roles becasue I was not 'what they were looking for'.

Her interactions with the other characters, especially Danny, seems a little... forced at times. But I think this is because of lindsay rather than Anna. I would like to see more and see how she develops in the future before properly developing my opinion of that area.

Like I said, I am only offering up my opinion. This is all about friendly debate and I enjoy hearing you're views on the characters.

Much Love,
Jodie
xxxx

 

I've always struggled to work out exactly what the writers are trying to achieve with the character of Lindsay. And I would have to say that I think they have been inconsistent with her, which certainly won't have helped.

But personally I simply find that the character is not believable. For example, when the writers (IMO) write something which requires her to emote, it simply doesn't come across that way on screen. I didn't mind her in most of season 2, and find that so far this season she has been, for the most part, OK. In my opinion, she is better at lighter stuff.

Sometimes the reason is more complex, I personally don't think that writing can be blamed for it all. Lindsay had her 'big secret' storyline, if there was any reason for the writers to make her character 'stand offish' then surely that would be it? But in my opinion, it wouldn't explain away the lack of depth or believability.

I'm sure they do, but I'm sure that sometimes they can make mistakes. Anna herself has said that she wasn't great in the audition for the part, but she must have done something right as they hired her anyway. I wonder if they changed their mind about what they wanted from the character? Obviously the original 'Summer Hamilton' role was completely different from Lindsay Monroe, so maybe they were never really sure what they wanted to achieve with the character.

 

I agree they have ben inconsistant with her, but that is down to the writing. She is working with what she has.

Maybe she is struggling with the character. And I hope that, if she is, the writers will take this into considoration and help her out with scenes she can work with untill she gets bck on track.

I think Anna could do something great with Lindsay.

 

Lindsay is a combination of writing and acting for me. Sometimes the writing is inconsistent or it's hard to decipher what they're going for with the scene. A lot of the time, the acting doesn't pull me in or convey to me what the character is supposed to get across. The differing interpretations of Lindsay's behaviors and motivations and whatnot are proof of that, I think.

So no, it's not just the actress, and no, it's not just the writers, but they aren't meeting in the middle and I think it shows.

I love "Torchwood", but I'm not a huge fan of Owen as a character--but even though I don't like him, he doesn't make me enjoy the show less. He's a character that people seem to either love or hate. I never doubt the acting, and the writing for him is consistent even when they show different layers to his personality. There's just something about Lindsay that's different for me. On all of the shows I watch, there are probably characters I don't like, but it's not the same. *shrug*

 

Anna also said that she asked Hill Harper, with whom she had worked before, to "put in a good word" for her with TPTB. Just like in other professions, it's not always what you know but who you know. I have no idea if that's why she got the part, but the fact that she admitted her audition was bad and she called in a favor can make one wonder why she did get the part.

 

^^ We're not supposed to hate Lindsay but we do, and I think that's the main problem. She was supposed to be the kindness in person, the perfect girl with a very dark past who did get over it and went to the big city to make her dreams come true, but instead we get a multi-personality woman who breaks down in the middle of an autopsy after standing in the middle of a room full of teenagers deads and say that's anything compared with what she've seen.

Maybe the scipters have part of the blame in here, of course they are, but maybe their fault is to try to make a personality to suit Anna's acting skills and not find any. Now they're trying to make her some sort of lab tech who smiles too much and too false for my liking, but hey, maybe they finally find some personality for her (Scrunch in a Christmas episode maybe :lol

 

Thas was posted in Flack’s topic..


About her giving Danny the heads up in RSRD, do you see it as a generous act? I remember someone saying a few weeks ago in this tread that it was the one & only moment that Lindsay wasn’t her “it’s all about me” usual self. I didn’t get that feeling. She clearly had a crush on Danny, she wanted a piece of his @ss. Makes sense to want his @ss safe then. And make herself look good in his eyes, while she's at it. :lol: Again, it comes down to her. That much for hoping she’ll have someone’s back for real. The prove of true caring would have been to do the same for Flack. Again, one more prove that she just doesn’t fit.

By Lindsay not seeing Flack as part of the family, she only proves that she is the one who’s not part of the family. Again.