I still have trouble making sense of his declaration that he’ll take her by force.
Blah. This is the one part I am still in denial about. I have managed to construct some level of justification, however feeble, for pretty much everything awful and confusing and wrong about this episode, but, uhhhh... I'm still stuck on this. So instead I choose to focus on the Sheriff in this scene, because he is so ridiculously awesome -- because he's allowed to be unquestionably evil and I can accept it as an inherent character trait and it doesn't make me want to throw up in disappointment and confusion. And, another time where I will gush about the visuals: the framing of Guy's decision, looking at his hands and the Sheriff's face through the screen, is possibly one of the greatest shots in the show EVER. AMAZING use of tension.
And the thing is, I think that the second he stabs her, they’re given one last glimpse of each other, in a twisted way. He completely crumples – he’s devastated, he loves her more than anything in the world and he’s destroyed her in a fit of blind passion. The man he’s become throughout the course of this episode – the one who’s cold and methodical, who follows the Sheriff’s orders and cares for nothing except for gaining power and dismisses humanity as weakness – is gone, and here, instead, is Guy, and he’s horrified and he’s sorry and he loves her.
I... cannot even handle this.
And while it would have been so easy to have her just look at him with shock, or disappointment, or contempt, instead, we get this remarkable expression on Marian’s face as she looks into his eyes the second before she falls. It’s like what he’s done makes her recognize him again, the man instead of the emotionless monster – there’s almost a savage triumph on her face, an “I was right about you all along.”
...And I can handle this even less.
The irony of it all is sort of sickeningly intense.
BUT OH GOD THIS IS SO TRUE THAT IT HURTS. And I think it's why I can't stop talking about this episode, why I can't stop watching The Scene over and over again. They are both completely broken open in their final moments together -- Marian physically and Guy emotionally -- clinging together as they never have before in the moment which finally tears them apart. crumpeteer classified this as a very film noir ending, a connection which I totally completely love and which led me to rewatch Gilda (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0038559/") earlier this evening. And, well, I know that at this point I am seeing Guy/Marian in ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, but how can I hear this quote from the film and not start building associations?: "But hate can be a very exciting emotion. Very exciting. Haven't you noticed that? [...] There is a heat in it, that one can feel. [...] It warmed me. Hate is the only thing that has ever warmed me." I was so angry at this episode for violating everything that Robin Hood was supposed to be to me -- dumb pointless fun for a Saturday afternoon that was decidedly silly and sometimes melodramatic but never to be taken too seriously because we already know how it all ends. And yet in some ways I also used to be confused by why I was drawn to the show and all its silliness, when I have a tendency to only get involved in those things which break my brain and gut my emotions. Apparently I sensed that potential in this show all along, though, because the big finish felt like something straight out of a film noir. I guess I'm starting to move past the story elements and focus more on the cinematic/visual aspects, and I have to admit that this scene aligns with a lot of my favourite dramatic film moments.
And again, thanks so much for this post! It was gorgeous and thought-provoking and also offered much comfort to my weary brain. And, hey, it's just midnight for me, so happy new year! What a fitting way to close out my year with all this endless Guy/Marian meta.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2008-01-01 05:01 am (UTC)Blah. This is the one part I am still in denial about. I have managed to construct some level of justification, however feeble, for pretty much everything awful and confusing and wrong about this episode, but, uhhhh... I'm still stuck on this. So instead I choose to focus on the Sheriff in this scene, because he is so ridiculously awesome -- because he's allowed to be unquestionably evil and I can accept it as an inherent character trait and it doesn't make me want to throw up in disappointment and confusion. And, another time where I will gush about the visuals: the framing of Guy's decision, looking at his hands and the Sheriff's face through the screen, is possibly one of the greatest shots in the show EVER. AMAZING use of tension.
And the thing is, I think that the second he stabs her, they’re given one last glimpse of each other, in a twisted way. He completely crumples – he’s devastated, he loves her more than anything in the world and he’s destroyed her in a fit of blind passion. The man he’s become throughout the course of this episode – the one who’s cold and methodical, who follows the Sheriff’s orders and cares for nothing except for gaining power and dismisses humanity as weakness – is gone, and here, instead, is Guy, and he’s horrified and he’s sorry and he loves her.
I... cannot even handle this.
And while it would have been so easy to have her just look at him with shock, or disappointment, or contempt, instead, we get this remarkable expression on Marian’s face as she looks into his eyes the second before she falls. It’s like what he’s done makes her recognize him again, the man instead of the emotionless monster – there’s almost a savage triumph on her face, an “I was right about you all along.”
...And I can handle this even less.
The irony of it all is sort of sickeningly intense.
BUT OH GOD THIS IS SO TRUE THAT IT HURTS. And I think it's why I can't stop talking about this episode, why I can't stop watching The Scene over and over again. They are both completely broken open in their final moments together -- Marian physically and Guy emotionally -- clinging together as they never have before in the moment which finally tears them apart.
And again, thanks so much for this post! It was gorgeous and thought-provoking and also offered much comfort to my weary brain. And, hey, it's just midnight for me, so happy new year! What a fitting way to close out my year with all this endless Guy/Marian meta.