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Nov. 7th, 2007 07:33 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
titusnowlThis whole rambling mess began because I was thinking, and wrote down, one question:
What made Dan want to be a cop?
I then proceeded to never actually touch on the answer to that question.
He started out as your stock idealistic rookie and played true to type; by now, of course, he has a better understanding of the realities of the job, but his idealism isn't entirely dead. He's a straight copper, even if he isn't a straight man.
He's less naive than he can sometimes seem, and less innocent, but he is very straitlaced - that's part of the Dudley Do-Right character trait that makes him (what Jim calls slightly hyperbolically) the only clean cop in Dallas - a highly-developed sense of propriety and a generous amount of repression. Cause/effect relationship to his closetedness not established. Circumstances require deep closeting; if they didn't would he still be secretive about it? See: Last Chance: Relationship w/Jim is obvious and openly acknowledged (GENNELMAN CALLUH), but then we only see him in Jim's company and among friends; at home, and particularly at work, societal expectations require a certain amount of concealment, so he is probably very D.L. normally.
How much of the quietness, repression, etc. is circumstantial and how much is his natural temperament? Occasional flashes of dark humor and snappy wit are seen, which hints that if he felt comfortable enough to really unlace himself he might be very different. Probably even Jim doesn't see very much of that - Dan feels a sort of obligation to be The Responsible One around Jim's Stubborn Refusal To Act Like A Grown-Up. Jim tries like hell to get Dan to really relax, and feels like he's won a fight when he manages to do it. Takes a great deal of pride in goading him into giving smartass comebacks.
Of course, just as Dan isn't always entirely Dudley Do-Right/Quit Bein' A Girl, Jim isn't 100% irresponsible either. HE has a decent work ethic, and is professional about his clients - equally serious about the other jobs he's held - just doesn't choose to be a grown-up if he doesn't HAVE to.
Their opposite personalities make them complement each other well, and for all they both throw up their hands and pretend (and often really feel) exasperation, that's part of why they get on so well. Jim really thinks Dan is a #1 Swell Stand-Up Kind Of A Guy; Dan admires JIm's ability to take everything rolling.
At the same time, the rarity of those flashes of their own opposites makes them attractive too. Jim loves it when Dan can just let things be and go with the crazy, lives for those moments when he's worn through the protests and can see the exact instant where Dan goes from resignation and agreeing so Jim will shut up to genuin enjoyment - like when you're tugging on a rope that's tangled up, and finally you pull through the tangle and it goes slack - the tension dissolves out of him, it's great.
Dan has a tougher time - he's got a fondness for the way Jim looks when he's being serious - he likes his easy grin, too, but he sees that all the time. Much rarer is Jim (in his reading glasses lol) with set jaw and thoughtful eyes, concentrating on some problem, whether it's a case that isn't coming together right (extremely rare given the type of cases he works, but possible), a minor issue with tuning his car's enging that's been bugging him (he does math in his head and he gets that look whenever he's crunching numbers too), or something as silly as trying to lace himself into those knee-high logger boots he used to wear. OF course it's rare because if he realizes he's being watched he quits being serious.
One of the ways in which Jim IS completely irresponsible is - he gets restless. That's what makes him run off, get a different job, move to a new city, spend a month in Mexico or whatever. He just gets restless and tired of doing the same thing and thinks it'd be nice to do something else. He doesn't own a lot of material stuff so he can just pack up his car and leave because it feels like a good idea at the time. Failure to leave a forwarding address is just because he doesn't know where he'll end up - he always INTENDS to inform people of where he's gone, but sometimes forgets, or just doesn't end up staying still long enough to establish himself before he turns around and heads home again.
The first time it happened - the infamous Tijuana junket - Dan was more worried than anything. The next time, he probably got upset - thought Jim was leaving him on purpose, you know. That one got solved because Jim wrote to Rosie asking Rosie to give Dan his address if she ran into him, because Jim couldn't remember Dan's address to write him himself and also perhaps didn't want to look like he was trying too hard or something. Subsequent occurences have established it as a pattern of behaviour met with a certain amount of understanding mixed with continued worry, because God only knows what Jim's getting into this time.
Actually, he's been in Dallas over 2 years as of '37, and he's gotten the old restlessness and FOUGHT IT AND STAYED. A major victory for Dan and their relationship and one which Dan will never know about. Jim doesn't even admit it to himself - if pressed, would claim "there's girls around I ain't pulled yet" - because the truth is an awful lot like he's gotten snared.
What made Dan want to be a cop?
I then proceeded to never actually touch on the answer to that question.
He started out as your stock idealistic rookie and played true to type; by now, of course, he has a better understanding of the realities of the job, but his idealism isn't entirely dead. He's a straight copper, even if he isn't a straight man.
He's less naive than he can sometimes seem, and less innocent, but he is very straitlaced - that's part of the Dudley Do-Right character trait that makes him (what Jim calls slightly hyperbolically) the only clean cop in Dallas - a highly-developed sense of propriety and a generous amount of repression. Cause/effect relationship to his closetedness not established. Circumstances require deep closeting; if they didn't would he still be secretive about it? See: Last Chance: Relationship w/Jim is obvious and openly acknowledged (GENNELMAN CALLUH), but then we only see him in Jim's company and among friends; at home, and particularly at work, societal expectations require a certain amount of concealment, so he is probably very D.L. normally.
How much of the quietness, repression, etc. is circumstantial and how much is his natural temperament? Occasional flashes of dark humor and snappy wit are seen, which hints that if he felt comfortable enough to really unlace himself he might be very different. Probably even Jim doesn't see very much of that - Dan feels a sort of obligation to be The Responsible One around Jim's Stubborn Refusal To Act Like A Grown-Up. Jim tries like hell to get Dan to really relax, and feels like he's won a fight when he manages to do it. Takes a great deal of pride in goading him into giving smartass comebacks.
Of course, just as Dan isn't always entirely Dudley Do-Right/Quit Bein' A Girl, Jim isn't 100% irresponsible either. HE has a decent work ethic, and is professional about his clients - equally serious about the other jobs he's held - just doesn't choose to be a grown-up if he doesn't HAVE to.
Their opposite personalities make them complement each other well, and for all they both throw up their hands and pretend (and often really feel) exasperation, that's part of why they get on so well. Jim really thinks Dan is a #1 Swell Stand-Up Kind Of A Guy; Dan admires JIm's ability to take everything rolling.
At the same time, the rarity of those flashes of their own opposites makes them attractive too. Jim loves it when Dan can just let things be and go with the crazy, lives for those moments when he's worn through the protests and can see the exact instant where Dan goes from resignation and agreeing so Jim will shut up to genuin enjoyment - like when you're tugging on a rope that's tangled up, and finally you pull through the tangle and it goes slack - the tension dissolves out of him, it's great.
Dan has a tougher time - he's got a fondness for the way Jim looks when he's being serious - he likes his easy grin, too, but he sees that all the time. Much rarer is Jim (in his reading glasses lol) with set jaw and thoughtful eyes, concentrating on some problem, whether it's a case that isn't coming together right (extremely rare given the type of cases he works, but possible), a minor issue with tuning his car's enging that's been bugging him (he does math in his head and he gets that look whenever he's crunching numbers too), or something as silly as trying to lace himself into those knee-high logger boots he used to wear. OF course it's rare because if he realizes he's being watched he quits being serious.
One of the ways in which Jim IS completely irresponsible is - he gets restless. That's what makes him run off, get a different job, move to a new city, spend a month in Mexico or whatever. He just gets restless and tired of doing the same thing and thinks it'd be nice to do something else. He doesn't own a lot of material stuff so he can just pack up his car and leave because it feels like a good idea at the time. Failure to leave a forwarding address is just because he doesn't know where he'll end up - he always INTENDS to inform people of where he's gone, but sometimes forgets, or just doesn't end up staying still long enough to establish himself before he turns around and heads home again.
The first time it happened - the infamous Tijuana junket - Dan was more worried than anything. The next time, he probably got upset - thought Jim was leaving him on purpose, you know. That one got solved because Jim wrote to Rosie asking Rosie to give Dan his address if she ran into him, because Jim couldn't remember Dan's address to write him himself and also perhaps didn't want to look like he was trying too hard or something. Subsequent occurences have established it as a pattern of behaviour met with a certain amount of understanding mixed with continued worry, because God only knows what Jim's getting into this time.
Actually, he's been in Dallas over 2 years as of '37, and he's gotten the old restlessness and FOUGHT IT AND STAYED. A major victory for Dan and their relationship and one which Dan will never know about. Jim doesn't even admit it to himself - if pressed, would claim "there's girls around I ain't pulled yet" - because the truth is an awful lot like he's gotten snared.
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Date: 2007-11-08 01:50 am (UTC)