Having been restored to my non-drunken, reasonably coherent norms, I've been thinking over something I posted some days ago. It was in the "Dumb and Bizarre" thread, but was somewhat shoe-horned in, because as I acknowledged it was not truly "dumb". It was a character who was interpreted very differently from one novel to another (and these were unrelated novels from different series), with the second interpretation throwing me off in part due to my fascination with the first.
I wrote:
"For me - and this isn't really fair to the author because he wasn't held to anyone else's interpretations and his style is his own- it was the portrayal of Enabran Tain in "Oblivion". Overall I liked the "Stargazer" series- it was a nice change of pace, had a unique style and while it would never be anywhere near the top of my favourites list, it was perfectly enjoyable in a light-hearted way. But having read "A Stitch in Time" and having loved it intensely (it's my favourite novel, Trek or otherwise), I just couldn't accept Tain as he appeared in "Oblivion". He was just a thuggish, selfish bad guy. He was intelligent of course, but compared to the complicated, almost utterly selfless, unintentionally twisted dark philosopher of "A Stitch in Time" he was crushingly disappointing. Not that "Oblivion's" portrayal of the secretpoliceman is flawed, but this isn't any old (or young
) secretpoliceman, this is Tain. This isn't the usual police state, either- this is Cardassia. Between "Oblivion" Tain and "We are the night people" Tain, there's no contest; the latter wins. I'm glad "The Art of the Impossible" contradicts Tain in "Oblivion", forcing me to pretend it's a different "Enabran Tain" if I'm to retain continuity. Maybe that's the Cardie equivalent of "John Smith"? Who knows if it's even his real name? 
Again, it's not that "Oblivion's" interpretation is a problem in itself or in relation to the TV show for that matter, but having read "A Stitch in Time" I couldn't help but personally scream "Wrong!!" at this Tain. 
So, somewhat unfair and personal, but there we are".
Seeing as this didn't quite fit the thread, I've promoted it to its own.. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced something similiar in regards to a character- either simply two different interpretations of which they strongly prefer one, or a second interpretation that they have difficulty accepting due to their attachment to the first.
I wrote:
"For me - and this isn't really fair to the author because he wasn't held to anyone else's interpretations and his style is his own- it was the portrayal of Enabran Tain in "Oblivion". Overall I liked the "Stargazer" series- it was a nice change of pace, had a unique style and while it would never be anywhere near the top of my favourites list, it was perfectly enjoyable in a light-hearted way. But having read "A Stitch in Time" and having loved it intensely (it's my favourite novel, Trek or otherwise), I just couldn't accept Tain as he appeared in "Oblivion". He was just a thuggish, selfish bad guy. He was intelligent of course, but compared to the complicated, almost utterly selfless, unintentionally twisted dark philosopher of "A Stitch in Time" he was crushingly disappointing. Not that "Oblivion's" portrayal of the secretpoliceman is flawed, but this isn't any old (or young
) secretpoliceman, this is Tain. This isn't the usual police state, either- this is Cardassia. Between "Oblivion" Tain and "We are the night people" Tain, there's no contest; the latter wins. I'm glad "The Art of the Impossible" contradicts Tain in "Oblivion", forcing me to pretend it's a different "Enabran Tain" if I'm to retain continuity. Maybe that's the Cardie equivalent of "John Smith"? Who knows if it's even his real name? Again, it's not that "Oblivion's" interpretation is a problem in itself or in relation to the TV show for that matter, but having read "A Stitch in Time" I couldn't help but personally scream "Wrong!!" at this Tain. So, somewhat unfair and personal, but there we are". Seeing as this didn't quite fit the thread, I've promoted it to its own.
. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced something similiar in regards to a character- either simply two different interpretations of which they strongly prefer one, or a second interpretation that they have difficulty accepting due to their attachment to the first.
