What Brian represents to Angela

General discussion about the nineteen episodes of "My So-Called Life". Note: Our episode guide can be found here.
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socalledfan
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What Brian represents to Angela

Post by socalledfan » Aug 15th 2002, 4:14 pm

Hey guys, :)

A thought occurred to me today. This topic is sort of related to William Bloke's about Angela's love for Brian, but slightly different.

You know how it always seems that Brian just annoys the hell out of Angela...the mere sight of him makes her roll her eyes? The chemistry of "annoyance" between them is brilliant, so entertaining. I love the scene where they are bickering about whether Jordan will understand "The Bicycle Thief"....the banter in this scene is priceless.

Anyway, I have a point here... I swear I do.

Maybe it isn't "exactly" Brian's actions that irk her so much. Maybe he just represents her past, her pre-Rayanne "uncool-ness", her "average and boring and un-noticed self", you know, her non-Crimson Glow days.

It's sort of like how she and Sharon break up because Angela wants to change, experience new people and different things.

Maybe Angela feels like she HAS to totally shun Brian because he represents a dead end of geeky-ness for her.

BUT...what is ironic is that by the end of that year (Ep. 19), the "cool" people in her life have dissappointed her and guess who is still standing there? You guessed it. Mr Anglo-Afro himself, Brian Krakow.

I am convinced that given more time (for example, another season or two :x) Angela's dependence on Krakow in her life will no longer be something she's "embarassed" by...in fact, it will go off in her head like a light bulb.

Have you guys ever seen the movie Some Kind of Wonderful? Know the end scene where Eric Stoltz realizes he's in love with his best friend, and runs down the street after her? Picture Angela doing this someday!!! For now, she is pushing Brian away but someday, she will hope it's not too late.

What do you guys think of my long-winded and complicated theory? :P
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Post by Guest » Aug 15th 2002, 6:46 pm

Secretary General, I'll second that motion.....

I'm going to try to kill two posts with a stone here.
Regarding my first, and only, new topic:
There are so many subtle nuances throughout the series about Angela's repression of her feelings for Bri-boy.
1. (Forget which episode but...): Krakow working on his bike...Chase approaches to make small talk...Krakow, infuriated, says something like "and you actually given this thought?"...she counters by saying " Go inflate your tire!"...as she breaks off this engagement, looks back at Krakow.
2. "Guns and Goss.": Krakow doing some work on school's 486...Chase creeps up carefully...opening statement "I don't even wanna talk to you"...Krakow states the like of "and you didn't even care about the damage done to me"....Chase counters "what damage did it do to you?"...does an immediate About-face, walks away cautiously.
3. "Pilot": (under the street lights scene after Let's Bolt debacle)...Krakow helps Chase to her feet...Chase states "they're not my shoes"(opinion: to reassure Brian that she's "not that kind of girl"- the type that's out of control)...Bri-boy "Angela,"...Chase-Face "I gotta go", walks slowly towards house, turns back, makes remark about theme.
(note: great body language....Chase turns back to make comment about theme...one leg towards Krakow, other just "dangling" to find balance...as if she's waiting for the bus or something).
4. "Strangers": Cherski "Brian Krakow is completely in love with and you are just using him"...Chase-Face "BRIAN KRAKOW is not in love with me!"
(opinion: If she was completely unaware of a childhood friend in love with her, is that the best rebuttal she can give to Cherski? Answer: denial).

Justification. Chase always seems to disengage from a conversation with Bri-boy and she seems to "wait" for an answer from Krakow. It's as if she's subconsciously waiting for the Polish/Jewish Knight in shining armor to draw his sword and slay the "Dragon"( aka. obsession for Catalano)to release her from this abyss. It's like she's waiting for someone/anyone to "justify" her feelings for Krakow.

Now, regarding THIS topic:

I'm in complete agreement. I think Angela is trying "oh,so" desperately to break from the past. But, her attempts at this will be futile at best. She cannot exsist with her "new" life and this life only. Towards the end of the series, it's evident that she is reverting back to her relationships in the past to complete her life.

Where the hell is Bob and Bernice to elaborate on this?

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Post by william bloke » Aug 15th 2002, 7:03 pm

I swear that I was logged-in.....I'm beginning to feel that this is a vast conspiracy by the Anti-Krakow factions.
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Post by KrokRos » Aug 16th 2002, 5:23 am

"- You know this song you hear on the radio and you're satisfied with that one time, you don't want the radio to keep playing the song, to ruin it for you.
- ..And I'm like that song?
-No! You're nothing like that song. You're like, if there was a song I wanted to hear for the rest of my life. You're that song."

This is kind of a quote from "The Thing Called Love" but I couldn't remember it exactly. Isn't this something Brian could've said? Or maybe Angela could've later on? Well, maybe I should get the quote correctly. Anyone seen this film? It's with Samantha Mathis and River Phoenix and Dermot Mulroney. It's about two different guys in love with the same girl. One rough and one gentle. I recommend it.

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Angela is too busy looking forward to look back right now

Post by NIGHTJESSI » Aug 17th 2002, 12:36 am

KrokRos, according to the Internet Movie Database, http://us.imdb.com/Quotes?0108327 , the sequence goes like this:
Kyle Davidson: You want me to tell you how I feel about you?
Miranda Presley: Yeah.
Kyle Davidson: Okay, okay. Uh, sometimes you hear a song on the radio and it's just the song you want to hear right then, and then it's over and you're just glad you heard it.
Miranda Presley: And I'm like that song?
Kyle Davidson: No, you're nothing like that song. You're like if that was the only song in the world that I could hear for the rest of my life. You're that song.
I love that movie, and I think you're right that it has shades of MSCl in its own way.

I do think that Angela was not emotionally ready to accept Brian as a potential boyfriend. She's too busy trying new things and growing into herself to realize what she feels for Brian. Yes, we sometimes see shades of it like when she is taken aback by Brian's interaction with Delia. But Angela is still so obsessed with Jordan that she doesn't see any other boy as worthy of her attention at this time.
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Post by KrokRos » Aug 17th 2002, 4:28 am

oh, great! Thanks NightJessi. :)

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Re: What Brian represents to Angela

Post by Nostradamus » Aug 17th 2002, 8:05 am

socalledfan wrote:You know how it always seems that Brian just annoys the hell out of Angela...the mere sight of him makes her roll her eyes? The chemistry of "annoyance" between them is brilliant, so entertaining. I love the scene where they are bickering about whether Jordan will understand "The Bicycle Thief"....the banter in this scene is priceless.

Maybe it isn't "exactly" Brian's actions that irk her so much. Maybe he just represents her past, her pre-Rayanne "uncool-ness", her "average and boring and un-noticed self", you know, her non-Crimson Glow days.

What do you guys think of my long-winded and complicated theory? :P
SCF has touched on something that I too have seen in Angela and Brian's relationship: it is adversarial. Their unhesitating exposure of the other's flaws may not be conducive to romance, but in some ways it is beneficial as it forces them to deal with problems that might otherwise be buried in the subconscious. To expand on Brian as a link to Angela's past, I think she lumps Brian, Sharon, and her family into a vague class of people who were once helpful but now seem to hold her back at every turn. She would rather spend time with those who would drag her forward, as Rayanne and Jordan, or with Rickie, who is a balance between the two forces.

Many people here have drawn analogies to their own favorite dramas to exemplify their theories with great effect. May it please the Court, I'll now follow suit with Northern Exposure. After refreshing my MSCL memory on this site and watching some recent NE reruns, I've noticed many similarities between the relationship of Maggie O'Connel and Joel Fleischman and that of Angela and Brian. Both relationships change rapidly from friendly to antagonistic to romantic and back again. Both men are Jewish, well educated, whiney, irratible, and irritating with a hidden inner core of good nature. Both women are from progressive-minded middle class families, strong-willed, moderately rebellious, overly defensive, and far too introspective for their own good, with otherwise pleasant, well-adjusted personalities. I hadn't considered 'til now, but it is entirely possible that Joel reminds Maggie of the "white bread" existence that she left behind in Grosse Point. Likewise, Joel may fear a serious romance with Maggie because it would mean admitting that he has a reason to stay in Alaska rather than return to his beloved Manhattan. To complete the analogy, then, we might infer that in addition to the obvious risk of rejection and embarrassment, Brian fears that romance with Angela might lead him rapidly onto a different path in life for which he is not yet ready. I belive it was Joel who once summed up this odd coupling as "Mutually Desirous Incompatables". Fits quite nicely, don't you think? :wink:
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Post by Natasha (candygirl) » Aug 19th 2002, 3:58 am

Wow, I go off to Lake Tahoe for a few days and BAM! All these great discussions. SCF, great observations and topic idea.

I agree that Brian represents the past to Angela, a past that she is embarrassed about. When she is faced with both Sharon and Rayanne, she says something about how weird it is to have people from different parts of your life together. In this specific case, Sharon also represents the past confronting the present (Rayanne).

What I really find interesting is Angela's complete lack of awareness about Brian's feelings. The first time we see Angela and Brian together is when she is changing into Rayanne's clothes before she goes to Let's Bolt. Brian says she looked better before. When Angela retorts, "Like I'm devastated," Brian replies, "Well I am."

I am totally with you on the Some Kind of Wonderful thing, but the Brian/Jordan/Angela thing really reminded me of the C. Thomas Howell movie Secret Admirer. Not only is he oblivious to the fact that Lori Laughlin has the biggest crush on him (while he is off chasing the dream girl) but throw in the love letter and the confusion. Of course MSCL was without the wackiness factor, but still...

Anyway back to the part where Brian annoys the hell out of Angela. Those two have snippy conversations, but the type that you can ONLY have with someone who you are very comfortable with. Miss Manners blames the state of modern relationships (read: bad) on the deterioration of common manners. Look at it this way - on a first date, both people are on their best behavior. Then look 20 years down the road (think Janeane Garofalo's assessment of her parents' marriage and how they leave the bathroom door open) when good manners have simply eroded away. Angela and Brian already have that comfort level. The way that she attacks him, the way that he pushes her buttons (in a nonsexual way, of course!), etc - none of which she can do with Jordan - all characteristics of a comfort level that results only from a long relationship.

After all, Brian is simultaneously "comforting and annoying." Angela makes the mistake of believing that because Brian has always been there that he is the same as he has always been. Physically he still has the Krusty the Clown hair, the good grades, and the dorky outfits, but internally he is a different person - a fact that she either chooses to ignore or is completely unaware of.

Brian, on the other hand, can see that Angela is changing. In Miss Mayhew's words, her appearance is altered. She also has new friends, new interests (or at least a lack of interest in her old activities like yearbook), etc. This makes me wonder if Brian is in love with the idea of the old Angela or if he is REALLY in love with the new Angela. I think that part of his interest (especially in the pilot) is trying to protect Angela from herself and what she may become. At that point, only the old Angela exists and Brian sees her entering a new world, a world that he is not part of. Does he accept the new Angela or is he trying to keep her as the Angela of his childhood?

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Re: What Brian represents to Angela

Post by So-Called Loon » Oct 13th 2002, 5:10 am

socalledfan wrote:Maybe it isn't "exactly" Brian's actions that irk her so much. Maybe he just represents her past, her pre-Rayanne "uncool-ness", her "average and boring and un-noticed self", you know, her non-Crimson Glow days.

It's sort of like how she and Sharon break up because Angela wants to change, experience new people and different things.

Maybe Angela feels like she HAS to totally shun Brian because he represents a dead end of geeky-ness for her.

BUT...what is ironic is that by the end of that year (Ep. 19), the "cool" people in her life have dissappointed her and guess who is still standing there? You guessed it. Mr Anglo-Afro himself, Brian Krakow.
Exactly.
socalledfan wrote:I am convinced that given more time (for example, another season or two) Angela's dependence on Krakow in her life will no longer be something she's "embarassed" by...in fact, it will go off in her head like a light bulb.
But she'll never get together with him beyond friendship. That's just not how it works. She'll probably scrap Jordan sometime too. Perhaps when she goes to college.
Been a member since sometime BR (before Ross)

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