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Originally Posted by pitbulllady
*I* did not mean that Wilt was "filler", or a background character who just shows up at random moments when you need to have someone, as you say, standing in a corner somewhere, but that is how he's been used this season. He really hasn't been important to any plot, other than "Nightmare On Wilson Way". In many episodes where he has been seen, he has no speaking lines, or only one, and in many others, he's been completely MIA.
His personality definitely reflected a change, though. I didn't get the impression that any of the trick-or-treaters in "Nightmare On Wilson Way" were amused by Wilt's little trick. The older kids were completely unimpressed, and the younger ones ran away screaming in terror, while Wilt stood there with that big manic grin on his face, lol! It was more for HIS amusement than anything else! He was also clearly disappointed when that fake arm trick failed to get a reaction from the first group of trick-or-treaters, and that in itself is a first-for Wilt to openly show disappointment in someone else. Previously, he would have more or less faked it and concealed how he really felt, lest his demeanor bring someone else down, since keeping others happy was his primary, if not ONLY goal. Now, it's like he's finally starting doing things for WILT, once in awhile, and is letting his feelings show at last, instead of bottling them in. It's like he's finally starting to acknowledge that HE counts, too, instead of always putting everyone else first and himself last. We got a glimpse of that in "Room With a Feud", which shocked a lot of people that Wilt would really go all-out to get something, rather than simply giving up what he wanted to someone else, because he thought of them as somehow more deserving that he was. I really enjoyed that episode because of that, and I've really been wanting to see more of that side of him.
pitbulllady
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Oh, I know that you didn?t mean Wilt was filler; I?m just saying that he is not filler as a general statement. Sorry about the confusion there.
Based on what I?ve read about season five, he wasn?t really a part of anything except ?Nightmare on Wilson Way.? But what we did see in ?Nightmare?? was good-- he?s changing. My memory of the ep is rather fuzzy, but I do recall that whole fake arm dealy got one of two reactions-- none or pure terror. In the case of the latter reaction, Wilt definitely smiled. This could go back to the idea that Wilt is very much a father figure-- I can?t speak for anyone else, but I know my dad scared me and laughed when I jumped. He still does it on occasion, too. What dad
doesn?t do that sort of stuff for the amusement of his kids?
In the case of the former reaction, however, I can see the difference between pre- and post-GWH Wilt. As you said, earlier in the series, he would have hidden his disappointment that his trick fell flat and got no reaction. I agree that before GWH, he would have walked off a cliff to make someone happy; now, he?d probably not be so willing. He may even flat-out say no. Earlier in the series, he hardly ever-- "never" may be the word I'm shooting for here-- think of himself: look at this line from ?Camp Keep a Good Mac Down:?
If it helps, I?ll starve first. This is no doubt much healthier for him than trying to please the whole world single-handedly. It?s also much healthier for him to show his emotions than keep them inside. Based on what we?ve seen in the past, Wilt was the poster child for the Vulcan philosophy ?The needs of the many outweight the needs of the one? from
Star Trek III. (Yeah, I just equated Foster?s with Star Trek. I?m strange like that.) Now, he?s not buying into that concept so much.
I really liked the side of Wilt we got to see in ?Room with a Feud.? I don?t see any real reason that he wouldn?t have any desire to tan someone?s hide-- it?d be just weird if he didn?t, considering the fact that he plays sports so avidly. Putting that bit aside? we?ve seen the give-give-give-give some more side of Wilt. We?ve seen the darker side of Wilt in GWH. Why shouldn?t we see more of the competitive, I?m in it to win it, side of him?