Jason Brown

[el henry]

I still can't see them! I've tried in Chrome and Fox and I just get the article?

Anyway, Phil Hersh's comments on Twitter :disapp:

I just don't get Phil on this, I just don't. And that's a FACT:dev3:

My consolation is that a gazillion more people will read this article than ever see a Phil Hersh tweet

 

[Mrs. P]

This is the only time I'll ever say this. Just read the comments section. I'm starting to think the nytimes.com moderator and website producer are all Jason ubers.

By the way the story showed up on its trending section, so your point is correct el.

 

[Mrs. P]

Also Tricia's tweets in response to Phil is absolutely hilarious!

On Phil's questioning why she included her husband's uninformed diss of Nathan:

awww. Nathan Chen is interesting to me in a separate sphere — could have written a whole piece about different aspects of the underdog, Vera Wang’s costuming of him, narrative concepts of the Good and Evil Skater, but didn’t have the space to go into it here.

 

[TMC]

I still can't see them! I've tried in Chrome and Fox and I just get the article?

Anyway, Phil Hersh's comments on Twitter :disapp:

But I can’t find the comments anywhere :sad21:

I want to read them all the more because those stupid comments made me so upset last night. Phil, just let people enjoy the skaters they enjoy and you enjoy their medals, ok?

ETA: I meant to quote your post Mrs P but in my consternation I quoted my own

 

[Mrs. P]

I'm going to just copy and past a few of them here.

Kate Canton, MA 16 hours ago
Thanks for this. As someone who likes watching figure skating, I've come to dislike the men's division because its become all about landing quads with less and less attention to the beauty and artistry of skating. Jason Brown's skating is what I like watching. It's good to know I'm not alone.

It also seems to me that the result is that male skaters are getting more serious injuries at a young age. Perhaps the human body just isn't made to withstand four revolutions in the air with a one-footed landing on the ice.

susanna Michigan 15 hours ago
Big fan of Mr. Brown and his beautiful skating. Not a fan of jumping beans. Skate to one side of the rink, jump, skate to the other side of the rink, jump. Wash, rinse and repeat. It's boring. Jason Brown has great artistry and he brings joy to his skating. Something the jumping jacks will never have. They will however, have a lot of injuries. Which makes their shelf life very small. You go Jason, we love you!

grumpyoldman midwest 15 hours ago
Yes something is wrong with men's figure skating if Jason Brown is the first alternate.

Artistry, presentation, self awareness, athleticism, elegance, and the ability to connect with the audience and tell a story is all being sacrificed at the altar of the quad jump.

So we have jumpers from all over the world, who know nothing of skating and the history of the sport, but who are able to throw themselves into a quad after quad, while they flap and wave from one end of the ice to the other. Their on-trend costumes and of the moment music choices camouflage their lack of skating ability but still the judges dutifully review the quads and award them the bonus points as if it was the male quad jumping competition and not the male figure skating competition.

Perhaps over time these jumpers will become more self aware, learn how to tell a story, present themselves in a credible costume, and move the audience to tears and ovation, but most likely there will be another junior jumper replacing them before that happens. Oh wait that is the story of today's male figure skating.

Nothing is more soul deadening than seeing Jason Brown, who was born to skate and who becomes the dance, finish behind the jumpers.

js seattle 15 hours ago
i am an avid fan of ice skating and in the olympic year there has been a surfeit of it televised on the olympic network. and yes, i watched it all not only to see my favorites but to catch a glimpse of up and comers.

this profile of jason brown filled my heart with joy. not only is it beautifully written, it's as if my inner most thoughts and emotions were displayed on the page.

i love jason brown. i love his skating. i love his joy. i love his generosity of spirit towards his fellow skaters. i just love him.

however, while i agree that it's sad that his standing on the world stage is diminished because of his lack of the quad, this is, after all, a sport and you can't disregard athleticism in favor of artistry. the effort to acknowledge artistry comes in the component scores and, perhaps, more weight can be given to them in order to make both elements equal. but remember there are skaters who have both -- javier fernandez and Yuzuru Hanyu for instance.

regardless, jason brown has found his place in the skating world and his future is bright

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I found the last comment to be pretty balanced. I think Tricia tried to explain WHY he didn't get on the Olympic team, but still lost on everyone that it's not cause he didn't have a quad, it's cause he didn't skate clean.

 

[TMC]

Thank you

The trick is to let it load and not touch the screen immediately which stops the comments loading process!

 

[elbkup]

Well, I must say, The NYT article brought tears.. so on point and says in exquisite prose what I could not say! My friend who is so not a FS fan but knows how much I love Jason texted the article to me yesterday afternoon but I did not rush to get it to the FF right away... know why? Because I knew you guys would already have it here and I was right!! All the back and forth talk about quads vs artistry is wearisome TBH... a tempest in a teapot. I agree with Mrs. P Jason will get a solid quad in competition. He already has it in practice as we have all noted so it is just him transferring his practice mindset to competition. It's close.. no doubt. Given his brother's comment about Jason's tenacity a couple of years ago, Jason never gives up on a challenge. If he remains in competition going forward he has a lot of time to perfect his jumps and strategy. Take it slow and easy, let it come naturally and with joy.

 

[katmari]

I loved the NYT article and the author's style of writing. Like others have stated here previously, she has put into words exactly how I feel about Jason's skating.

Lin-Manuel Miranda just tweeted it!

https://twitter.com/Lin_Manuel/status/959070140833832961

 

[TMC]

I loved the NYT article and the author's style of writing. Like others have stated here previously, she has put into words exactly how I feel about Jason's skating.

Lin-Manuel Miranda just tweeted it!

https://twitter.com/Lin_Manuel/status/959070140833832961

Ooooh that's great, Lin's such a Jason stan

I'm so happy for Jason :luv17: I had my husband read the article (he enjoyed it very much, especially the spin video) and one of his first comments was "imagine how it must feel for him to read that? it must be an incredible feeling!". And not five minutes later Jason tweeted this: https://twitter.com/jasonbskates/status/958902344468512768

 

[Mrs. P]

If you want to be meta, you should read the NY Mag article about Patricia Lockwood: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/01/magazine/the-smutty-metaphor-queen-of-lawrence-kansas.html

I'm utterly fascinated by her. She has quite the story. I can see why she was drawn to Jason's skating.

I actually remember her poem going viral a few years back.

 

[Tavi...]

If you want to be meta, you should read the NY Mag article about Patricia Lockwood: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/01/magazine/the-smutty-metaphor-queen-of-lawrence-kansas.html

I'm utterly fascinated by her. She has quite the story. I can see why she was drawn to Jason's skating.

I actually remember her poem going viral a few years back.

That was very interesting, thanks! I wonder what drew her to skating.

 

[Mrs. P]

I'm curious too!

Also, I am laughing at Phil accusing her of indefensible journalism because of a comment by Lockwood's husband who is....drum roll.... a newspaper editor. Dang this thread though. Lots of people really pissed about the article and Lockwood's writing LOL. How dare Lockwood express herself though words.

 

[TMC]

I'm curious too!

Also, I am laughing at Phil accusing her of indefensible journalism because of a comment by Lockwood's husband who is....drum roll.... a newspaper editor. Dang this thread though. Lots of people really pissed about the article and Lockwood's writing LOL. How dare Lockwood express herself though words.

I really don't understand the logic. So the husband doesn't enjoy "tricks" as much as he enjoys the other aspects of skating. How is that "taking a shot at Nathan"? It's not the same as saying Nathan is an awful skater! He's not even saying "tricks" are bad, m'kay? On the contrary, she writes that Nathan "skated beautifully".

Even if she/he had criticised some aspects of his skating, surely he is not above all criticism? God knows Jason gets his fair share. Why can't people just let other people like who/what they like? "Omg somebody likes Jason Brown on the internet, I gotta go and shut that down FAST"

 

[Mrs. P]

I think people are just shocked that the "first alternate" got this 5,000-word magazine piece (I didn't count really but I'm sure it's in that ballpark) in the NYT of all places. But it's not like Adam or Nathan is lacking press. And Nathan is getting a Super Bowl ad and plenty of gushing and buzz elsewhere.

I mean if this piece was in the sports section it would be a problem, but it's in the NYT Magazine. Her piece is in line with all the other stuff that's published in there. But I guess since it's online, it's hard to tell that.

Anyway, Lockwood had the best tweet today.

all the world’s a fandom ... and all the men and women merely stans

 

[ice coverage]

I wonder how folks in this thread would feel if a Nathan-centric article likened Jason to Darth Vader?

Comparable to:

" 'No, I don’t like this,' my husband announced as Chen swept over the ice like Darth Vader. "​

 

[Mrs. P]

I wonder how folks in this thread would feel if a Nathan-centric article likened Jason to Darth Vader?

Speaking for myself. I would find it funny and ironic.

Honestly when I read that line -- all I could think about was Boyang Jin's Star Wars program. The battle of the quads in a galaxy far far away in South Korea!

Lockwood was reporting an observation her husband made, it's not like she made that comment herself. Actually I found it sort of surprising he felt that way -- Mr. P actually likes Nathan for the quads....his logic is is if he hits them then that's fine with him. He's more bothered by all the people just falling on them and getting points for them.

Lockwood actually had really nice things to say about all the guys. I think people though calling Ross skate amnesia-inducing was an insult, but honestly having been there I got it---that his skate was so incredible that you don't remember anything else but that moment.

 

[ice coverage]

Speaking for myself. I would find it funny and ironic.

Honestly when I read that line -- all I could think about was Boyang Jin's Star Wars program. The battle of the quads in a galaxy far far away in South Korea!

Lockwood was reporting an observation her husband made, it's not like she made that comment herself. Actually I found it sort of surprising he felt that way -- Mr. P actually likes Nathan for the quads....his logic is is if he hits them then that's fine with him.

But do you honestly think that the author herself intended the Darth Vader reference (in connection with the quote from her husband) to be a positive reference?

I do not think so. YMMV.

---

... I think people though calling Ross skate amnesia-inducing was an insult, but honestly having been there I got it---that his skate was so incredible that you don't remember anything else but that moment. ...

I wish she (poet or not) had chosen to express her thought about Ross in a different way.

If she intended to give a compliment to Ross, why choose words that easily could be misconstrued as the opposite?

 

[Mrs. P]

But do you honestly think that the author made the Darth Vader reference (in connection with the quote from her husband) in a positive way?

I do not. YMMV.

No, I don't.

My point is that someone tried to pull the same line about Jason (or some sort of diss). I'd be like "Okay, that's his opinion." I learned not to take opinions that seriously unless it's truly from people whose opinions I care about.

He's just saying he doesn't care for Nathan's skating. Okay, fine move on. If Phil wants to be bothered by this article and opine about it on Twitter, that's fine too. I enjoyed the article myself and thought she explained it well why people are drawn to Jason. And she did it in her writing style.

[Also prior to being a newspaper poet, her husband also wrote poetry, they actually met when they were 18/19 on a poetry messing board online. So maybe he has the same tastes...]

But if someone called Jason Darth Vader, it WOULD be ironic...Jason's the farthest thing from it. Like even if you knew nothing about him or his skating, it would be a stretch to do so.

I wish she (poet or not) had chosen to express her thought about Ross in a different way.

If she intended to give a compliment to Ross, why choose words that easily could be misconstrued as the opposite?

I don't know why she expressed it that way. De gustibus, I suppose.

 

[ice coverage]

No, I don't.

My point is that someone tried to pull the same line about Jason (or some sort of diss). I'd be like "Okay, that's his opinion." I learned not to take opinions that seriously unless it's truly from people whose opinions I care about.


He's just saying he doesn't care for Nathan's skating. Okay, fine move one. If Phil wants to be bothered by this article and opine about it on Twitter, that's fine too. I enjoyed the article myself and though she explained it well why people are drawn to Jason. And she did it in her writing style.

But if someone called Jason Darth Vader, it WOULD be ironic...Jason's the farthest thing from it. Like even if you knew nothing about him or his skating, it would be a stretch to do so.

And in the hypothetical scenario of a likening of Jason to Darth Vader in a Nathan-centric article, I imagine that this thread would have some reactions to the likening. Which would be fine.

Fine by me as well that people elsewhere have reactions to the likening of Nathan to Darth Vader in a Jason-centric article.

 

[TMC]

I never thought the Darth Vader reference was meant as a negative, and I'm surprised to hear others did! I thought it was cool, because let's face it Darth is pretty freaking cool Nathan skating like the wind into a huge quad / Darth marching purposefully toward the command centre to blow stuff up I thought she meant that kind of determination and coolness under pressure.

I think maybe that sort of almost "menacing"/"sharp" style does not fit neatly into the traditionally soft and flowy figure skating box, and that's why some people - and it seems to me especially casual fans - are confused by it and/or don't like it, like Tricia's husband. I happen to love that style, and I love Nathan's programmes this year, so that's why I took it as a positive comparison.