Vote For The Fate Of The Scene-By-Scenes!!

[Queen Of The Castle]

Mandier and I have been discussing what we're going to do with the Scene-By-Scenes in the second half of this season and we wanted to get some feedback from each of you first.

The Scene-By-Scenes are definitely time-consuming and require a great deal of work, so we understand that not everyone will want to lead one and those who do may not have the time to get it done within the week before the next new episode airs.

We've also noticed that despite the time and effort put in by those who lead the discussion, not a lot of people join in to share their thoughts as well and SxSs of some episodes don't get commented on much or at all even. This makes it difficult to motivate the person leading the discussion to continue and it certainly doesn't make for much of a discussion at all.

So here's what we want to know:

How often do you actually read a Scene-By-Scene and how often would you want to see a full SxS done?

Our options for the second half of this season are to basically continue as-is and cover each and every new episode, assuming that we'll have enough volunteers to cover each new episode and have them completed by the time the next new episode airs.

Or we can cover just the major episodes; the finale, two-parter, and any important episodes that we know are coming up. In this case, Mandier and myself will cover these episodes between us.

Of course, anyone is welcome to jump into a SxS to share their thoughts on the episode or on the major scenes and what they got out of those scenes / moments, and even if we only cover the major episodes, that doesn't mean that any of you who feel compelled to start a SxS of an episode that you really enjoyed that you want to talk about can't do so!

So please make your vote in the poll and share your thoughts / comments here in the thread as well and let us know what you'd like to see!!

We'll keep this poll open for two weeks and we'll use this feedback to help us decide where to go from there!

Thanks, folks, and I hope you'll all take the time to at least vote here and let your voice be heard!

[CXQ319]

I read every one of them! They are what makes my OCD rise to new heights.

[angie1379]

I've definitely noticed a shift in how the SxS have been approached by readers. They used to be a vehicle for collective in-depth analysis but have morphed into readers stepping back and simply allowing each week's official analyst to have their moment in the spotlight and share their thoughts. While that's certainly considerate, it was never the intended purpose of the SxS. Some of that is probably because those of us who've written them are known to be rather verbose in our comments, which can be overwhelming.

I would really like to see the tradition continue in some capacity, because I have gotten a lot out of other people's comments on episodes. We all love this show because of its subtlety and nuance, and the SxS allow us to really dissect not only what the characters are thinking and feelings, but also how the cast and crew put so much detail into each story and make it all so real and compelling.

On my end, my ability to write as extensively as I'd like to has been limited due to my commitments to my job and family, which is why I haven't signed on for an episode this season. While I'd certainly support keeping it as is, because, yes, I do enjoy reading them, I am also all for getting innovative in order to encourage others to engage more with what's being written. Maybe we can do a "key" scenes, akin to a written version of Castellum's vital scenes thread, so that we can spend more time on those moments that really appeal to us. Then, the person in charge can decide which scenes will get analyzed (it can be as many as they want), and we can center our conversation on that.

I'm just thinking out loud here, so please don't take this as any kind of formal suggestion. I'm far more interested in hearing what others have to say.

[azmcox]

I really enjoy reading the SxS's when I have the time to do so. Lately, though, time to read has been slim.

I know that eveyone's lives have busy vs lull moments and there is no way to know that before hand, nor can we control that after the fact.

Also, I appreciate the insight of the different writers and those who comment. It is not a problem for me that the writer might not have the whole SxS up before the next show. I know that is how it should work ideally, but I want to know what they have to say/think regardless of when I get that information. It doesn't deter from my enjoyment of the SxS.

I think, with everything, the reading and comments to the SxS's will ebb and flow and often if we just let it take it's course, it will correct itself. I think we might be in an ebb moment and that it will flow in the near future without any outside course correction.

By nature, I'm not a commenter because I usually feel like I don't have any new insight to add and constantly responding with "Yeah! What he/she said!" doesn't seem too helpful.

[sassywife]

I always read them and they really feed my OCD. I don't comment a lot because most of the time others have already expressed my thoughts and I'd just be agreeing with them. That's why a like button will help. I do appreciate the time and major effort it must take to do them and I applaud those who do. There are some very clever and talented folks who stepped up and displayed their talents in this arena that we wouldn't have has the pleasure of reading.

I love the SxS but will be ok with whatever the group decides.

[Shutterbug5269]

I read them all. I don't always reply, but I do read them.

[csttraveler018]

I have read the sxs since you all started writing them and I agree with angie that I get so much more out of this wonderful show when I read the sxs and then watch the episodes again. I haven't read them this year as much but that is due to a change in my work schedule. I sure hope there are enough of you to continue them each episode because I would really miss them. Thanks to all of you who write them!

[fantasynovelreader]

I love reading the scene by scene's but, as has been mentioned I don't really comment much because in the end all I feel I have left to say is "I totally agree."

[kansaskid]

After lurking for a long time, this topic is one that I want to post a response. I first started reading the "other" board because of the SxS's. It took me a while to find my way here, but the insights that are posted add a great deal to my enjoyment of the show. I even have most of the printed so that I can go back and refresh my memory without watching the episode again. I would miss them a lot, if they were discontinued. The lack of response may be due to the quality of a couple of the episodes. Definitely out of the box and not my favorites.

[Arky]

Nov 21, 2012 9:03:01 GMT -5 kansaskid said:

After lurking for a long time, this topic is one that I want to post a response. I first started reading the "other" board because of the SxS's. It took me a while to find my way here, but the insights that are posted add a great deal to my enjoyment of the show. I even have most of the printed so that I can go back and refresh my memory without watching the episode again. I would miss them a lot, if they were discontinued. The lack of response may be due to the quality of a couple of the episodes. Definitely out of the box and not my favorites.

There you go friends and neighbors.

[Queen Of The Castle]

Nov 21, 2012 9:03:01 GMT -5 kansaskid said:

After lurking for a long time, this topic is one that I want to post a response. I first started reading the "other" board because of the SxS's. It took me a while to find my way here, but the insights that are posted add a great deal to my enjoyment of the show. I even have most of the printed so that I can go back and refresh my memory without watching the episode again. I would miss them a lot, if they were discontinued. The lack of response may be due to the quality of a couple of the episodes. Definitely out of the box and not my favorites.

Well, welcome to the boards and I'm glad you came out of lurking to let your voice be heard.

Based on what many of you have said here, it's clear that there is still a great interest in keeping the SxSs going for each new episode. We may look at ways of making them easier for to complete, perhaps something like what Angie has suggested about focusing on the main scenes to start with and letting everyone expand it from there if they have more things to add. And perhaps we'll do one or two like we did earlier this season where we'll pretty much just start each set of scenes for you folks with a quick intro and then let each of you jump in with your thoughts on that set of scenes.

We love having the SxSs here and neither Mandier nor myself would ever want them to stop being done, believe me. Lol. But we weren't sure what kind of interest everyone had in them, both to write them and to read them.

So thank you for your feedback so far and it's nice to know you do all enjoy them and want to see them continued. Please keep voting and sharing your thoughts. The poll will still be open for another week and a half, as we'd like as many opinions as possible and as much feedback as possible before we make any kind of decision about how to proceed.

I really enjoy the SxS, particularly with the major eppys. I apologize because don't remember the name of the poster, but one poster has been writing specific character analyses for each episode ie. Martha, Beckett, Castle etc. I enjoy reading the interpretation of the characters more than the narrative of the scene. Anything that can get me into the head of these characters is appreciated. I also appreciate the hard work and effort it takes to write the SxS. Thank-you.

[motowncf]

I definitely enjoy the scene x scenes, and although I'm not generally a regular contributor, I truly do appreciate the talents and insights of those who bring them to us. I find myself going back and rewatching episodes and looking for all the little things that are brought out that I missed.
Like many others, I'm not really good with words, and so many times I read things in the scene by scenes and find myself nodding in agreement that it was exactly what I thought/felt about a particular scene but didn't know how to put into words.