Comments on: When is a rogue not a rogue? When he’s Jack Bauer.

By: fenzel

fenzel — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 00:23:47 +0000

@Lee

Grr.

You know why I hate that word?

Because it takes two different standpoints that often coexist in parallel and insists that they constitue one standpoint.

People and art are multideterministic. There are a lot of different things happening at the same time that have to share space. Reducing complex interactions like those between ironic and sincere enjoyments into linear continua cheapens the analysis and ignores much of the value of art.

By: Gab

Gab — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 00:37:43 +0000

@Lee: Yeah, earony was probably the word I was looking for.

By: lee

lee — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 17:08:31 +0000

Fenzel, I know you’re not a fan of this word, but I dare say that your post is indicative of an *earonic* appreciation for 24

By: fenzel

fenzel — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 16:42:46 +0000

@Gab –

We all pick up little phrases from the people we date over the years, and I think a phrase I picked up from one of my first girlfriends answers your question very well -

“A little bit of Column A, a little bit of Column B.”

And yes, there is a difference. Going rogue implies that you were once officially employed or accredited to do the thing you are now doing independently. Going vigilante doesn’t carry that implication – a civilian can go vigiliante as easily as a police officer.

Also, vigilantism involves a narrower sort of activity – you have to pretty much be a crimefighter to be a vigilante. As we’ve seen in 24, going rogue can involve anything from fighting terrorists to looking up phone numbers when your boss isn’t looking.

So, vigiliantism involves a larger subset of a practitioners, but a smaller subset of actions.

@ Lauren

If you are still in Boston, we need to hang out! This delay is inexcusable! :-)

By: Gab

Gab — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 14:25:52 +0000

Fenzel: Is this an “I’m making fun of this because it annoys the sh** out of me” kind of post, or an “I’m making fun of this because I love it so much” one?

Is there a difference between going rogue and going vigilante?

Mlwaski- LOL

By: lauren r

lauren r — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:02:56 +0000

Hilarious post.

My friend Alan (who you know because he was in Stiles with you) and I have theorized a Platonic ideal of a person called Jack. You get the best sense of the inherent qualities of “Jack” if you mix Jack Bauer, MacGuyver, Han Solo, Rick Blaine, and a wide variety of people who hold the rank/title of Captain (Jack Sparrow, Kara Thrace, Malcolm Reynolds, James T. Kirk, etc.). It involves a heavy dose of “not playing by the rules but still getting the job done”, some “making the absolute optimal use of your giving surroundings or situation”, and a fair share of “thinking 3 steps ahead of anyone else”.

Some day, when we both have endless amounts of free time, we’re going to do a study and co-write a paper.

By: mlawski

mlawski — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:51:43 +0000

I was gonna go rogue but then I decided to go paladin.