Any Proser worth their salt should have been able to guess
what "K" word I would choose if given half a chance. I think
I've made my opinion about kissing abundantly clear: it's a good thing,
practically a necessity, and yet easily overdone.
By far, my favorite kind of kiss is the Kiss=Redemption kiss.
This kiss is easily confused with the "I like bad boys" kiss, and yet
they couldn't really be more different. For example, I'm as repulsed as a
couple of jazzy songs and a carnival will let me be by the kiss (or its
substitute) at the end of Grease.
But take Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars. At first, Logan 's sole purpose in
life seemed to be humiliating Veronica and forcing her into isolation and misery. I hated Logan. But there were glimmers of another side to Logan: a tortured, lonely soul hiding in there, somewhere. And then this:
There--do you see it? She is kissing the good part of Logan , not the bad, and he
is shocked to feel that good part of himself reaching back to kiss her too. From
that moment on, any writer with any brains at all would make sure that all he
does for the rest of his life is to live worthy of this moment. Of course he'll
do it clumsily, and of course he'll have moments where he's torn by two
opposing forces, and hurts her. I'm not saying the writers at Veronica Mars
nailed it. Eventually, I think they fail. But this kiss does change both
Veronica and Logan forever. And that's my favorite kind.
How about you?
I have to agree with you 100%. Sometimes it is the tension and conflict behind the kiss that make the moment so magical. Great post! I am excited to explore your previous posts :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Angie, and welcome to the Prosers!
DeleteYeah, I'm not surprised at your K choice. :)
ReplyDeleteI love those kissing scenes too when they are done right. I've heard a lot of good things about Veronica Mars, but I've never seen the show. And Netflix doesn't have it. :(
Great post!
Thanks. I don't actually recommend Veronica Mars, MaryAnn. I loved a lot of things about it, but it crossed some lines for me. I was a little bit leery about posting about it, but there's just something about this kiss--especially if you know the backstory.
DeleteI think redemption kisses are awesome, too. I think it's because we all wish we could really change that bad boy (or any boy) into what we want him to be. Ah, naive youth. :-)
ReplyDeleteBut that's what stories are for, right? To get that happily ever after.
DeleteI loved that part of Veronica Mars because I love redemption. It seems to me that all the great stories are about redemption of one sort or another (or the lack of it). I only watched the first season of VM. I heard the second season wasn't nearly as good.
ReplyDeleteI watched the whole thing, but I REALLY wish I had stopped some where midway through season 2. I have a love/hate relationship with the show.
DeleteMy favorite YA redemption kiss is written by Cassandra Clare, in the Infernal Devices. Basically any interaction between Tess and Will is super charged, but it's something else entirely when they kiss.
ReplyDelete(And if you've read the series, don't tell me what happens at the end. I haven't read Clockwork Princess yet!)
I've only read the first one. I should fix that. :D
DeleteI really enjoy your blog! I like the way you write, and you've got an interesting point of view.
ReplyDeleteHave fun with a-z. :)
Thank you!
DeleteLove this post. Why have I never really considered the different meanings of a kiss before? Your example is perfect - although I agree with you, I've got kind of ambivalent feelings for VM, too. Some stuff so good, others, just too much for me, ya know?
ReplyDeleteThanks Susan. Yeah, that's exactly how I feel about VM. Logan is one of my favorite tortured souls...but they go too far.
Delete