This immediately colors the audience’s opinion of him.Ĭrosswords can also be used as a mirror to reflect differences between characters. In a fifth-season episode of Angel, a doctor is shown asking his receptionist for random crossword clues, only to fail at answering several. The audience draws conclusions based on these interactions. Wodehouse loved to reveal the intelligence - or lack thereof - of characters through the use of crossword clues as fodder for banter. But when he notices she’s filled in random words instead of actually solving it - in order to pass herself off as someone she’s not - he quickly bursts her bubble in typically acerbic fashion. In an episode of House, M.D., House goes speed-dating, and is initially intrigued by a woman who brought a crossword puzzle with her. Rachel on Friends struggled with a crossword for an entire episode to prove she didn’t need anyone’s help, but still has to obliquely obtain information from others to finish the puzzle. For that brief moment, the playing field has been levelled.Īnd because crosswords are seen as this visual shorthand for intelligence, they’re also used as a intellectual measuring stick, for better or for worse. This also happens on Mad Men, where one of the founders of the company is solving a crossword, only to be corrected by one of the secretaries. The scene immediately punches holes in several stereotypes both characters and viewers might have about the character. Before testifying at Bird’s trial, he helps the bailiff with a crossword clue, identifying the Greek god of war as Ares. In The Wire, the show uses a scene with a crossword to reveal that there’s more to street-smart Omar Little than meets the eye. It could have been math or organization or memorization, but instead, they went with crosswords. (And when Cindy points out that her dad does the same thing, Sheen one-ups her by saying the puzzle is from The Beijing Times.) This is an instantaneous sign that his brainpower has increased. In an episode of Jimmy Neutron, Sheen is shown solving a crossword puzzle in ink. Crosswords often serve as a universal sign of intelligence. The act of solving a crossword puzzle has also become visual shorthand in pop culture. You often see a letterman’s jacket for a jock, or glasses for a nerdy boy or a mousy girl. While some shows spend time developing their characters and slowly revealing their traits to the audience, other shows rely on visual shorthand. In television and movies, there are a lot of different techniques for revealing character traits.
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