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more--than--anything · 4 years ago

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Episode review: "We just have to trust each other, like old times." [S05E9/10]

Wow. That was... a lot. How overwhelmed are you feeling after a double dose of our favorite show and knowing that there is only one episode left?

Y: What can I say... I’m usually left exhausted and a ball of anxiety and emotions after one episode of Blindspot. Hit me with two back to back, and I need a couple of days to recover and go back to being a semi-functioning human.

L: I mean, I feel less traumatized than last week? Slightly? But also pre-emptively overwhelmed thinking about what’s going to happen in that last hour. Maybe it’s good that we get this extra week in here...

Let’s take this in pieces. In the first hour, we see our team, after two seasons, finally get an edge over Madeline. How did they get there, and what does it cost them?

L: Our team starts this episode exactly where we left them: In Madeline’s custody in the NYO, grieving for Patterson (as we all were for the week leading up to this episode). In fact, the only people who aren’t grieving for Patterson are Madeline and, well, Patterson, who doesn’t have time for questions about how she survived, because she has a team to rescue. And preferably before Madeline convinces one of the team to confess to all her sins (in another superb bit of cross-cutting, from one interrogation room to another). Madeline is pretty persuasive, even threatening Tasha’s unborn child (how the hell did she find out about that?!), so it’s a good thing our team is pretty stubborn.

I’m not gonna lie, I really thought they’d stretch out the “Patterson is dead” thing longer than they did, but I am not going to complain that we got her back so quickly! Patterson starts by rescuing Boston, arriving just as Madeline’s thugs do, and then cooks up a plan to get Afreen to help her and Boston sneak into the NYO by exploiting the gender-bias on their facial recognition software. (And to cut the software some slack, I hardly recognized Patterson and Boston when they showed up. Josh Dean is fabulous as Boston in these two episodes, as always, but man, he sure makes one hell of a drag queen.) They cleverly send a message to Jane, who is about to confess to all of Madeline’s sins, via a morse code signal in the light on the camera Madeline is using to tape her confession. And then they rescue Tasha and Rich, in short order.

Weller is more heavily guarded, but fortunately Rich is no stranger to crawling through the ductwork at the NYO. And then we get another surprise, when Agent Rose walks in just as Rich reaches Weller. This is one of my favorite scenes in this episode, because it is one of the first that answers a question that’s been nagging at me all season: Does the rest of the NYO truly believe that the team is guilty of all of the crimes they’ve been accused of? Agent Rose has been around since season one. She’s worked under Mayfair, Weller, Reade... and now she’s working under Madeline. She knows what kind of person Weller is, and she knows dedicated this team is. She’s seen them put themselves in harm’s way to save others over and over again. And now she has to decide whose side she’s on. “Agent Rose, you know me. You know my team. We are not what Madeline says we are. You see that, don’t you?” And Weller-the-boss did not underestimate the loyalty of his former employee; she tells him to cuff her so it looks he overpowered her and got away.

I’ve been thinking a lot about this scene, and I think it might be good that some time has passed since the team was branded as criminals and Madeline took over. I am sure that life under Madeline’s reign has not been a party for the agents in the NYO. Even if they were persuaded to believe her about the team (or to follow Weitz’s lead) in the beginning, that confidence must have waned the longer they had to work with Madeline. I’m sure they wondered about the thugs that she brought in, and I doubt anyone was pleased about the draconian security measures she imposed upon them. If this particular scenario—the team locked up at the NYO—had happened right away, it’s possible that there wouldn’t have been as many people willing to stick their necks out for the team. But as it is... Madeline, like so many things, you brought it on yourself. And I can’t deny that it sure was fun watching her come unglued as she realized that the team was slipping through her fingers, right there under her nose.

In the meantime, Patterson has discovered that Madeline has covered her tracks very neatly, placing all the blame for her misdeeds on Weitz. Well, now we know why Madeline has been keeping him around; he’s a very useful fall guy. But fortunately for Weitz, William Patterson is in his corner, and she is able to obtain the original data, all the evidence they need to incriminate Madeline. But just having that information isn’t enough; they need to make it public, so that there is no way that Madeline can bury it. Tasha picks up her phone and calls Megan Butani, Reade’s former fianc��e, who we remember is a reporter for “The New York Star.” I guess that answers the question of whether she got deported or was able to stay in the US. Tasha asks Megan to remember what kind of man Reade was and that there is no way he was guilty of the crimes Madeline pinned on him. Megan reminds Tasha that Reade dumped her because he was in love with Tasha, and Tasha tactfully doesn’t mention that she’s expecting his love child as she asks Megan to go public with all of the evidence they have on Madeline.

Ivy’s team is hustling Jane out of the NYO, so the team has to act fast. Madeline has put the whole NYO in lockdown, so the only way for them to get to Jane is to override the lockdown with an evacuation order. Unfortunately, that reveals to the goon squad that they’ve been hiding out in the server room, and the team is rounded up and taken on their second slo-mo walk through SIOC to face the music. We get two surprises then: First, that Weitz hasn’t quietly moved to Canada as he’d threatened, and second, that Agent Rose isn’t the only agent who has signed on to Team Rogue Agents. TRA emerges victorious from the shootout with Ivy’s goon squad, but Weitz is hit in the crossfire. And here we see illustrated the difference between him and the team; Jane took a similar hit, traveled back to the bunker, started searching for her husband, and then directed her own surgery without anesthetic. Sadly, Weitz, is not made of quite such resilient fiber, and passes away with a last dose of his signature snark.

Without Weitz (or Madeline, who has flown the coop), there is a bit of a power vacuum at the FBI. Without a boss to give them orders, Weller seamlessly slips back into the fearless leader slot, and the team heads out to track down Madeline with help from an anonymous tip. Tasha catches up to her on her private plane, but before she can bring Madeline in, Madeline drinks her poisoned champagne and shuffles off this mortal coil. (I’m honestly a little disappointed that Tasha didn’t see that coming, knowing Maddie’s fondness for using poison to get rid of her problems.) The location of the ZIP bombs is still unknown, although Shirley has that information on an encrypted memory stick he tries to sell to Ivy, but all he gets in return is a bullet between the eyes.

I’m not going to lie: I am a little annoyed with the way that Madeline went out. Committing suicide seems like a pretty easy way out after all that she’s done. I really wanted to see her back in prison orange, regretting all of her life choices. Same with Shirley (although I thought the way he went out was pretty harsh, even for him!). But even more, I’m disappointed that this wasn’t really any kind of end of the systemic corruption that our team (and Shepherd, for that matter) have been fighting since day one. Yes, we still have one more episode, but we have to deal with Jane being zipped and apprehending Ivy, plus (hopefully) a few minutes to give the team some sort of resolution, so I don’t know how much time is left to unravel a big conspiracy plot. I will be disappointed if we don’t get a resolution to the questions this show has been posing since the pilot.

And there are still a lot of loose ends left in the Madeline story. What about all the corrupt individuals she put in place? Weitz seemed to take the view that they were all like him, basically decent people who Madeline had tricked into doing something incriminating, but it’s equally likely that some of them were legitimately corrupt and just didn’t cover their tracks well enough, which allowed Madeline to discover their misdeeds and use them for her own ends. Lucas Nash comes to mind here. He was definitely under Madeline’s control. We know Shepherd wanted to put Keaton at the head of the CIA, which would imply that the current director and other candidates were corrupt. Is Nash still in power? Being freed from Madeline’s control doesn’t necessarily mean that those individuals will become model citizens; freed from her oversight, they could do whatever they want, including exploiting the position she put them in for their own gain.

And I am a little worried. I think it would have been better for the team if they’d brought Madeline in to face trial, rather than letting her go out on her own terms. As Weitz would say, “the optics” would be better that way. As it is, if there is any question at all about the evidence they turned up (which might not be admissible in court, or at least, it wouldn’t be in the real world), it could look like the team was just covering their own tracks rather than exposing Madeline. And ultimately... they did run, and they did refuse to turn themselves in. And when they were taken into custody, they escaped, which resulted in yet another shootout at the NYO in which the Director of the FBI was mortally wounded. And then they refused a direct order by the new interim director. But we’ll get to that in a minute...

Y: So much to discuss! So little time!!

I’m sorry, but I’m a little overwhelmed by how much was packed into the first episode, how much of it was absolutely brilliant, and how much I have to say about it all. First of all, I have to say that I absolutely loved the premise of this episode. The way it was set up and how it played out was so reminiscent of 2.21—including the building lockdown, Patterson doing computer stuff stealthily, the team sneaking their way around the office, and of course the ultimate showdown in SIOC and the director’s demise—and that episode is by far one of my favorite Blindspot episodes ever. So all of this made me very happy.

The interrogation scene was fantastic. The editing and cutting made it so much better. But by far the best thing was the head to head between the team and Madeline and the team’s tenacity and stubbornness. The way they took Madeline’s taunting and her threats and just sat there so badass and defiant. We’re going to talk about the team later—and by talk I mean mostly gush and fangirl and make weird noises about how much we love them. But for now, let’s just say that those interrogation scenes were a thing of cinematic beauty.

The way the case played out was really fun as well. There were so many little games of cat and mouse, some were through the FBI servers, some were psychological mind games, and in Rich’s case they were all about crawling through the vents to save his favorite mumbling special agent. And it all led to Madeline standing in the middle of SIOC all alone as everything collapsed around her and then the ultimate showdown between the team, Weitz and his Team Rogue Agents, and Ivy’s men. And in between all those huge moments, we got to see Agent Rose make a comeback, and Megan make a comeback as well. And you would be 100% correct if you assumed that I cheered for both of those comebacks. First, Megan, while the way she was dumped wasn’t really great, at least the show respects her enough to show us that she’s not one to hold that kind of grudge or have that residual pettiness in her. And it’s also a testament to who Reade really was that Megan knows those accusations cannot be right and that the way to honor his memory is to do what’s right here. And at the same time, a testament to Megan, her professionalism and her pedigree as a journalist. I honestly really loved that scene and the conversation with she had with Tasha and Blindspot once again not falling into the horrible cliché of vengeful exes.

And then there’s Agent Rose. Oh, Agent Rose. For five seasons now, I have singlehandedly held on to the hope that she will someday make a return. That sassy agent in that random scene with Fischer all the way back in season one made like one or two random background appearances, and I’ve stood here alone in my crusade to want her back. I am not going to lie. I never in a million years thought they would bring her back. I mean, even I—the founder and only member of the Agent Rose Fan Club—didn’t expect them to bring her back. But they did! And okay, my excitement doesn’t only stem from this weird niche obsession with her but like L said, her return and the role she played was bigger than just her, and it answered so many questions we’ve had all season, and it validated the faith we have in the team. Except for Weitz, Afreen and for a brief moment Briana, we never really got to see the rest of the agents at the NYO react to the news that the team are all traitors. Most of these people have been working with our team for years and a part of us knew they couldn’t have all just fallen for Madeline’s lies. But of course, we never really had a chance to peek into their private conversations so this episode provided the perfect opportunity to show us just how much they’ve been waiting for a chance to stand up for the team—whether it’s Agent Rose or Agent Woods or Agent Shayla or any of the other agents who proudly and confidently joined Team Rogue Agents. So it was great to see the NYO still full of these good people we’ve come to know and that their loyalty to the team is still strong.

And if I may take another moment here to just flail at how completely epic that moment was! Hands down one of the most badass moments on the show for a single character—Weitz—and one of the most badass group entrances by the Rogue Agents.

And speaking of rogue agents, I love that the little underdog resistance that Afreen and Weitz had going, never knowing if they were doing more good than evil, managed to have such a tremendous payoff. If only they knew they had so many others willing to help… And I also hope we get to see Afreen one last time in the finale because this episode and review don’t really do her enough justice for me to flail about how much I love her. I need the finale to give me some Afreen so I can justifiably spend ten hours talking about her. Or else I will have to have an independent Afreen is Awesome post. You’ve been warned.

But for now, let’s talk about Madeline. Watching her stand all alone in the middle of SIOC as everything she built collapsed around her was the first moment this season we felt the team actually win something. After everything they’ve been through, destroying all that Madeline has built felt good. But the disappointing thing about it is that in Madeline’s eyes, in some ways, it didn’t matter. She had set out to destroy the FBI and even though now she stands there defeated, in so many ways, she has already achieved what she had set out to do. The damage she has caused at the moment looks almost insurmountable. The team has put at an end to her reign of terror but the damage she has done is already catastrophic. And while this part of her story is a plot line I do enjoy, I don’t enjoy the next part of it. Setting up the finale and the next chapter in the universe with the task of rebuilding the FBI and rooting out the corruption once and for all is actually a very hopeful note to end on and maybe Madeline inadvertently did the FBI a favor. And like L, I do wonder if this opens the door to getting rid of all corruption and allows us to finally go back to what started everything and come full circle to the mysteries from season one.

I think it’s poetic that Madeline ultimately died by the same poison she used on most of her enemies, but it is frustrating that she gets to go out on her own terms, that she does not pay for her crimes and that the team don’t get the revenge they deserve. Tasha should have seen it coming. I think we all did when she sat there with a glass in from of her. But dammit, I wanted her to suffer for what she did to the team and not dictate her own fate. But I suppose that is quite a true reflection on how most monsters in this world get to go?

One person who didn’t really have things go his way was Shirley. After cutting ties with Madeline, claiming he wants to do what’s best for his family, Shirley proved he’s nothing more than a bottom feeding leech and went to Ivy seeing as she’s the boat that hasn’t sunk yet. But Ivy was lucky to be the person to do the one thing we’ve all wanted to do for almost a year now. She put a bullet between his eyes. And I know that’s cruel, but he was just unbearable. Some characters you hate to love and others you love to hate, but Shirley was just… ugh. I mean, amazing performances by Raoul Bhaneja every single time, but still. It’s interesting that this episode saw the end of two characters who for most of what we’ve seen from them have always been self-serving and good at attaching themselves to “winning projects”—Shirley and Weitz—but ultimately they went down on opposite extremes of the spectrum.

And finally, there is one more thing I want to touch upon in this section, and that is the way this season set up its villain—or villains. Essentially, it looked like the season’s ultimate villain would be Madeline and that Ivy was just the muscle she hired to get her dirty work done. But as the season progressed, we watched as Ivy and Madeline became more on equal footing in terms of who was in charge, even if Madeline thought she was the one in charge, Ivy clearly didn’t see the agreement between them as such. The power struggle was a really fun one to watch—especially with Shirley in the middle, serving Madeline for the most part but ultimately showing his true colors as only serving himself. The more things got complicated between the two women, the more the cracks showed between them and the disparity in their endgames widened the gap between them and made their agreement less amiable.

Blindspot’s never really done that before—had more than one villain at the same time—and I think in this shorter season, it gave it a little something extra and definitely made things harder on our team, especially going into the finale. It’s going to be an intense finale, but I have to admit I loved the way the antagonist was set up this season as a two-headed monster that in the end had to be split up.

L: I both agree and disagree. I liked that Madeline wasn’t the only bad guy that needed to be taken down, but I also want the final case to be more than just stopping a bomb-toting terrorist (in other words, just another Thursday for this team). I really hope there is a much bigger resolution and payoff coming—not just a case of the day, but a sewing up of the thread that somehow ties all of their cases over the past five seasons together.

Our team won the day—or at least, they finally brought Madeline down—but it was not without cost. I am not going to lie: Weitz’s death made me cry. We had a feeling that he wouldn’t make it through the season, and we were right. He finally discovered his convictions, only to die for them. But there’s no question that he died a hero. As Rich says, “When we needed you the most, you were here for us.” His resolve might have wavered like a flag in the breeze, but when it really counted, he made the right call. When we first met him, he was self-absorbed and snarky, and for the most part, he remained true to that image. But somewhere, deep down inside, he discovered a conviction and courage that no one, least of all him, suspected he had.

And it’s important to note that if he and Afreen hadn’t been able to get rid of the blackmail files on Shirley’s laptop, the team wouldn’t have been able to take her down. The editor of “The New York Star” would have killed the story before it ever saw the light of day. Not only did they destroy Madeline’s hold over him, but Weitz must also have contacted him to tell him that Madeline no longer had any leverage over him, or else the editor would have simply assumed that the blackmail was still in place. And we can’t forget his phone call to warn the team about the drone strike. Rich is right; Weitz may have driven the team crazy over the seasons, but in the moments when it mattered the most, he had their backs.

Rest in peace, Matthew. I never would have thought I’d say this, but I am really gonna miss you.

Y: Oh Matthew Weitz… what can I say to do your character and your journey justice? This was the final chapter in Weitz’s story, and like everything else in his story so far, it was an uphill battle. His instincts were screaming at him to go full ostrich, to pack up and head to Canada, but in the end he remained true to the path he’s been put on for a while, a path that Afreen—out of nowhere—helped him stay on when things got really really tough this season, and he saw it all through. It did cost him his life, but he went out completely redeemed and a true hero.

And his last words were appropriately about his hair.

It was heartbreaking to learn that the only reason Madeline kept him around for so long was to pin everything on him, but that came back to bite her because in his time staying alive, he played a huge part in destroying her blackmail material and in taking her down. I think Madeline hugely underestimated him, and I’m glad he was there to see her defeated.

That scene in SIOC when the rogue agents walked in, armed and ready to fight for him—well, for the team but also for him—brought tears to my eyes. It was an epic scene, and as Matthew’s last stand, it was as heroic as it can get.

Would I have preferred him go full ostrich? He would’ve survived which would have made me happy but very disappointed so ultimately not so happy. This is how it was meant to be. I am heartbroken but so damn proud.

Rest In Peace, Matthew. You did good. You did good.

In the second hour, our team has to face the fact that stopping Madeline doesn’t stop the threat she posed, and it doesn’t guarantee that they will ever get their old lives back. What does that mean for their present and their future?

L: Madeline’s gone, but Ivy is still out there and so are the ZIP bombs. As much as the team would like to focus on clearing their names and getting their lives back (or in Rich’s case, making a clean getaway with a new identity), or even on getting a shower and a change of clothes, first they need to stop a terror attack. You know, business as usual at the NYO? Not quite. The team doesn’t work there anymore. They have no authority to call any shots (and probably don’t even have the clearance to walk through SIOC). So Kurt, showing us exactly why he’s always been the true leader of this team, leaves it up to the people who still work there: “We are not here to take over. We’re here to help. If you’ll have us.” And the agents at the NYO, of course, take them up on his offer, because the FBI doesn’t hire dummies. (Or at least, they didn’t when Mayfair, Weller, or Reade was in charge of the NYO. I’m guessing Madeline vastly preferred dummies she controlled as opposed to the rebels who helped take her down.)

Finding Ivy isn’t going to be easy. The only clue that they have is that Madeline had a good hacker on her team. Someone who could doctor all the documents to point to Weitz and build a puzzle that would trick Patterson and lead Madeline to the bunker. Someone very quirky, kooky even. Someone like their old pal Kathy “Cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs” Gustafson, the third blind mouse, who disappeared after she set loose all manner of chaos in Iceland. The team is moving out to track her down when she walks into the NYO and turns herself in. Patterson and Rich try to “good cop/bad cop” her but are entertainingly blindsided by her offer to help them in exchange for the “good” deal. “The one where you ignore all the bad stuff I did and put me on the team full-time. I want the Rich Dotcom deal.” And frankly, you gotta love a show that can laugh at itself like that. Because, yes, it really is kind of ridiculous that Rich is in the position that he’s in. He should be in jail, or at the very least, not on the FBI payroll. But he is, and of course we wouldn’t have it any other way.

For all of Kathy’s craziness, she’s actually pretty straightforward about this. Ivy wants her to hack Madeline’s Darkcloud server, so she can find out where Madeline stored the ZIP bombs. But Kathy doesn’t want to be on Ivy’s team. “I’m not an evil person. Ivy is and so is her plan. I don’t want people to lose their memories. They’re all we have.” So she’s come to the FBI instead to tell them what she didn’t tell Ivy: She doesn’t need to hack Madeline’s Darkcloud key, because she built it and left herself a backdoor. Of course. If this show has taught us nothing at all, it is that programmers always, always leave themselves a backdoor, whether it’s a videogame, a secure messaging service, or a cloud server solution.

Rich and Patterson squabble for a bit about whether they can trust Kathy, until Patterson finally tells the whole team off: “You are all being hypocrites. We are asking... for a second chance, and we can’t even give Kathy one?” Which is a valid point, no matter how little we trust Kathy. Rich attempts to bluff Kathy, but Patterson delivers her second truth bomb of the day, “We can’t give you a deal because we don’t even have a deal. Stopping Ivy is our best chance at getting one. And if we can get a deal, I will do everything I can to make sure that you get one, too.” It’s not the offer Kathy was hoping for, but it’s the best she’s gonna get—especially once she realizes that the alternative is being arrested for taking down the power grid for Madeline—so she accepts.

Unfortunately, by the time Kathy gets to work, she discovers that she’s too late. Another hacker has beaten her to the punch. Another hacker with a very familiar coding style. Another hacker named Boston Arliss Crab. They need to find him, and fast, because Ivy is going to kill him as soon as she gets what she wants. Or she’ll kill him if he doesn’t get her what she wants. Either way, the outcome for Boston is very very not good. And just to make sure that he grasps the gravity of the situation, Ivy cuts off one of his fingers. And eeek, as much as I should have expected Ivy to do something horrible, I did not see that one coming. Boston puts his remaining nine digits to work doing Ivy’s bidding, and his first order of business is locking Kathy, Patterson, and Rich out of the darkcloud server.

As it turns out, our Three Blind Mice do not, in fact, appreciate being blind. Since they can’t get the information Ivy is after, they figure out how to remotely enable the webcam on Boston’s machine and try to locate him that way. They can only narrow his location to a neighborhood, so they have to resort to old school sound triangulation to find him, which means that Weller, Jane, and Tasha are in one SUV, and poor Patterson gets to drive with Rich and Kathy bickering in the backseat. I think Patterson might reconsider the whole adoption thing, after her “driving mom” experience. It’s really not for the faint of heart, and I can attest that being good at math is really no help at all.

By the time the team arrives, Ivy and her team are long gone, leaving poor Boston standing on a pressure-plate bomb, a distraction to keep the team busy while Ivy goes to get the ZIP. Weller, Jane, and Tasha head out after Ivy while Rich and Kathy and Boston bicker incessantly and Patterson works on defusing the bomb. (And I am not gonna lie, listening to them all throw shade at each other’s coding skills totally cracks me up.) Unfortunately, instead of disabling the bomb, they engage a timer which gives them five minutes to figure a way out. Boston tries to send them all away, but Rich recognizes what he’s doing (in much the same way that Patterson realized that Rich was plagiarizing Harry Potter when he told them that Boston was dead). “I always thought we’d all end up together. All of us. Like some really good looking modern family,” Boston says, and he is not at all alone there. Trust us, Boston, that is what this entire fandom wants!

Kathy insists the only way she can defuse the bomb is by switching places with Boston, so they pile some weights on her as Boston attempts to be honest about his weight (a struggle that everyone who has been eating their way through quarantine and mainlining chocolate during this final season can relate to). The two of them trade places, and then Kathy tells them that there really isn’t any way to stop the timer. “Look, I created this mess. The attack on the power grid. Framing you guys and your friends. Helping Madeline find you... I just need to make it right.” She shoos them away, and they run and take cover, only to discover that the bomb has been disarmed and Kathy is gone.

And at the end of the day, Patterson and Rich were both right. Kathy did help them, and yes, she also played them. But can you really blame her for escaping at the end? She’s already been to prison, and she doesn’t want to go back. Yeah, her obsession with Rich and Patterson is a little weird, but it’s not all that different from Rich’s fascination with Jane and Weller, and he turned out okay. For all Kathy’s kookiness, she was honest about what she wanted. And in the end, Boston does pretty much exactly the same thing as Kathy does; he takes off instead of waiting around to see what the new director decides to do with them. Rich is our only convicted felon who is brave enough to stick around and hope for clemency.

Arla Grigoryan, the new Interim Director of the FBI has arrived in the NYO and her first order of business is to recall Weller et al from the field, where they are closing in on Ivy and the ZIP bombs. But the backup is too far out to get there in time, and so our heroes make the call to go after Ivy instead of following orders. I really want to believe that this decision won’t doom them at the FBI, but honestly, this season has been a lot more grim and loss-filled than we’re used to on this show, and my optimism is really running low.

Weller takes out Ivy’s thugs as Jane finds Ivy, loading the ZIP into the bombs. Ivy escapes through a door which locks behind her, trapping Jane in the room just as the ZIP bomb goes off. Knowing she has already been exposed, she does the only thing she can to protect Kurt and seals the airlock door. And for the second time in two weeks, the music swells as we watch someone mouth “I’m sorry” through a door before being obscured, and frankly, that is two times too damn many for my poor, broken heart.

So if those were the only bombs that Ivy had, the team just won, but nothing has ever felt less like a win. We know that Patterson has the antidote for ZIP, so it’s a good bet that she’s gonna be able to serve up a cure for Jane, but damn.

Everything hurts and I need more chocolate.

Y: I’m going to say this here and no one take it the wrong way. Nothing ever good has happened that has involved Kathy Gustafson! I was completely team Rich on this throughout the episode and was screaming at Patterson to not trust her and yes, I know she ultimately saved Boston’s life, but was it all worth it?!

Yes, Boston’s life is worth it, but I am sure the team would’ve saved him some other way, and they would’ve found the ZIP some other way too. Oh, and speaking of finding the ZIP, we all know how that ended so maybe not finding it would’ve been better? I’m sorry, but I am just very very upset and even with all the chocolate I’ve consumed, it has not helped, and I just want to team up with Rich and rant about Kathy for the next fifteen years.

I think I am mostly upset, also, that this being the penultimate episode, Tasha, Kurt and Jane got so little time because we were focused on the A Plot of the episode, and I was hoping we’d see more of them. There I said it. It’s all Kathy’s fault and I hate Kathy. In fact, everybody should hate Kathy. Maybe this could have been called Everybody Hates Kathy Part Two?

Okay, now that I have gotten this off my chest, I can relax—not really—and talk about something else. All the bantering and bickering and the shouting and the nerding aside, this episode provided an interesting character juxtaposition by including both Boston and Kathy along with Rich. These three in many ways fit in the same category, and Kathy really was trying to fit into the Rich Dotcom mold—if we’re going to believe her claim that she wanted to work with the FBI and get a similar deal. In many ways those three represent that category in its different phases, and they’ve been allowed evolve within it surrounded by different circumstances.

For Kathy, I think, she put it perfectly when she mentioned how lonely she is. We know that one of the main reasons Rich has been allowed to grow and develop is the fact that he was welcomed into this family and was surrounded by these people. Kathy has a lot of issues, not necessarily the same issues as Rich, but issues nonetheless. And maybe had she had the same nurturing environment that was allowed for Rich she could find a way to change and become better. The question is, does she want to? It seems that the concept of it is something that appeals to her, but then again, when she talks to Patterson after escaping, she tells them that they’re delusional.

Who knows what could be next for Kathy Gustafson, whether her love for chaos would overpower her inkling for good, if she’ll find the right environment to allow one to outgrow the other, or if she will continue to sway in the middle—one minute lending a hand to the good guys and the other minute dancing over the ashes of the city with the Madelines and Dominics of the world.

Our team has been through so much, and they still haven’t gotten their lives back. But they just never, ever give up, especially not on each other. How are they staying strong, both individually and together, through this journey?

Y: All you need to know is that Patterson is not dead and she saves the world. Again.

Okay, maybe that’s not all you need to know, but it is at the core of what you need to know because William Patterson is alive! And if you think we’re happy about it, you should’ve seen how happy the team were! And if there was ever any doubt of how loyal this team are to each other, how supportive they are of each other, how far they’re willing to go to save each other, and how much stronger they are as a team, this episode denounces all those doubts.

First of all, the first of the double bill episodes gave us what will go down as two of the best reunions ever on Blindspot.

Maybe even three, because Afreen and Weitz’s discovery that Patterson is alive was just absolutely precious. Okay, maybe precious on Afreen’s end and absolutely adorably panicked on Weitz’s.

And then there are the reactions of both Tasha and Rich to Patterson being alive and nothing in the world could ever be so pure and also so heartbreaking. Tasha’s reaction made me smile and cry all the happy tears. But it was Rich’s quiet somber reaction that absolutely destroyed me. This man has come such a long way, and this relationship has grown to become one of the most honest and loving and genuine relationships on the show, and I am an emotional wreck.

Watching Patterson take full control to save her friends and to clear their names was a thing of magic. We know just how good she is. She has spent the last years proving day in and day out that she is the best. Simply the best. But it never ceases to amaze me when I watch her do her thing on screen. Seriously, my love for Patterson in this episode was almost all consuming that I cannot even bring myself to talk about things, you know, intellectually.

Patterson was her beautiful Patterson self. In the first episode she was everything we know she is. She survived the bunker explosion, found her way back to the US, saved Boston and then spent the day as the true leader that she is to get her friends out of lockdown and bring Madeline down. In the second episode, she again showed the true leader in her, and while I personally was on team Rich with regards to Kathy, I know Patterson did the right thing and that her decisions led to saving Boston and locating the ZIP. She displayed true leadership qualities, unparalleled empathy, and genuine belief in other people, in the concept that people can change and deserve second chances.

And at that she’s a much bigger person than I am.

L: Patterson isn’t our LeBron for nothing. She figured out how to survive the bunker explosion, rescue Boston, sneak into the FBI, save the team, and get the evidence they needed to stop Madeline. I’d appreciate her feats even more if I could stop crying for joy that she’s alive.

I am not going to lie; the reunions of the team members—especially when they realize Patterson is alive and well—are my favorite moments in these two episodes. And I honestly can’t decide which I loved more: Tasha’s “You are the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen” or Rich’s heartfelt “Promise me you won’t ever do that again.” This team is a family, and there is nothing more painful than believing you’ve lost a member of your family. This team has been through so much and lost so much, and this week I am crying tears of joy right along with them that they didn’t lose Patterson, too. For the first (and only) time, I’m glad that this season is so short, because if it was longer, there probably would have been a Patterson-free episode in the middle of this arc, and honestly, I don’t know if my heart could have taken that.

I think the thing that struck me most about Patterson in these two episodes is how all-around smart she is. She’s computer smart, we all know that. And she’s pretty damn good at disguises. But she’s also people smart, as we see in her decision to trust Kathy. She refuses to lie to her, she yells at Rich when she realizes he is deliberately slowing Kathy down. Okay, maybe she should have known that Kathy was lying about the bomb at the end, but also... maybe she did know, and went with it anyway.

I think Patterson understands Kathy better than anyone else. As we saw in the conversation between Rich and Patterson in last week’s episode, it’s not always easy to be the smartest person in the room. It might make people respect you, but it doesn’t always win you a lot of friends. Being part of the FBI team gave both Patterson and Rich (and Boston) a circle of close friends who look out for them and love them for their eccentricities, not in spite of them. Kathy has never had that, and it has been clear in all of their interactions that she’s been desperately trying to find that same kind of family of her own. And Patterson knows that Madeline and Dominic played on Kathy’s loneliness to reel her into their nefarious plans. Patterson was manipulated by Borden in the same way that Kathy was manipulated by Dominic, so of all of them, she is the one most likely to understand Kathy’s perspective.

So in summary... Patterson is smart, but she’s also got a really big heart. And that’s one of the reasons why we love her so damn much.

Y: These guys have been through hell this season. It’s true that no season has been easy, but this year has just felt like it’s been so much harder. With the loss of Reade, the endless string of losses to Madeline, and all the bad luck they’ve faced, it’s a true testament to who they are that they’re still hanging in there, still fighting, refusing to give up and determined to do the right thing.

And no one has had a rougher season than Tasha. She’s really had to dig very deep to continue to find strength and purpose to push forward. She hasn’t found it easy to open up to her teammates, but still she’s leaned on them when she’s needed them, and not once did they abandon her or let her down.

But Tasha has really shined in the moments where she’s been on her own and in a head to head confrontation with someone else. And she has done especially good when she’s come up against Madeline. In the brief scenes of the interrogation that we did see, Tasha once again was just fantastic, resilient, strong, fearless and the perfect antithesis to Madeline, as much as Madeline would want to believe that she and Tasha are the same.

And as much as that last scene on the plane with Madeline frustrated me for how it ended with Madeline, it was great for Tasha in that she finally got to finish the case that has taken so much from her over the past two seasons and to finally stand victorious in front of the woman who has literally destroyed her life in so many ways.

I don’t know how much Madeline taking her own life will feel like a victory for Tasha or if she too will take it as a cop out—like everything she had gone through has gone to waste. But I also hope that Tasha can find some peace after all of this and feel like she’s been on the right side of this whole thing all this time and that her sacrifices have not gone to waste.

L: Oh, Tasha. There’s no surprise that Tasha was the first one on the scene to capture Madeline. Facing down Madeline might be Tasha’s most powerful moment in this entire series. Madeline took literally everything from Tasha. Her professional reputation, her career at the CIA, her friend and mentor in Keaton, even her best friend and the man she loved. And Madeline knew that and gloated about it. I am sure there is nothing more Tasha wanted than to slap the cuffs around Madeline’s wrists, and I’m angry again at Madeline that she did not get that moment.

And I’m not going to lie, I’m worried about where Tasha goes from here. I think she’s been able to avoid really thinking about Reade’s death or the fact that she’s carrying his baby by focusing on taking Madeline down. Now that she has... what’s ahead of her now? She’s lost Keaton, too, and any chance of returning to the CIA. Is there a place for her at the FBI? And if so, can she still fit in there, if she even wants to be in a place where everything reminds her of Reade?

When they were on the run, the team was just focused on stopping Madeline and magically getting their lives back. But now they are finally admitting that it might not be that simple. As Kurt says, “We didn’t do what Madeline framed us for, but we did do a lot of other things. And... Grigoryan, she doesn’t know us. And on paper, we don’t look so good.” Tasha isn’t the only one to worry about their future, but she’s the one I’m most worried about, because her place is the least clear of all of them. Patterson is back in the lab, where she belongs, and if Grigoryan isn’t smart enough to do everything in her power to keep her there, then she’s not smart enough to run the FBI. Kurt and Jane will be with Bethany and Allie and Conor, either in NYC or in Colorado. Whatever is ahead of them, they’ll face together. And I think Rich and Boston will be much the same, even if they do it from the flirty distance they usually do. But Tasha? Stay with your family, Tasha. You know they will be there for you. And really... kids are a lot of work, and it’s hard to find babysitters you can trust.

Y: If season five should be remembered for one thing, it should be how we got to see Rich Dotcom finally become the best version of himself. He’s found his purpose, found his heart, found his family, found his strengths, found his light, learned how to balance it with his dark and embrace all the parts of himself.

I’ve talked about this before, and I am going to do it again, and it’s how season five has more than once brought back people from Rich’s past and put them side by side with Rich to compare the two. These people have presented who Rich was and who he would have been now had he not found this team, and it’s been really great seeing that comparison and appreciating Rich’s journey more and more.

The second episode in the double episode did that with two people—Boston and Kathy. In some ways, Kathy represents the other extreme to what Rich has become. The taste for chaos and anarchy that is left unchecked and giving in to every impulse that Kathy displays versus how Rich has evolved until—much to his annoyance—he often finds himself the voice of reason.

And with Boston, the phone call between them in the beginning of the episode provides insight as to how Boston, while trying to find that path that led Rich to where he is, isn’t there yet. If Kathy is on one end of the spectrum, Boston still finds himself in the middle, struggling to give up some of his older habits as he tells Rich “we have to take care of ourselves.” To which Rich replies, “Yeah, but that’s all we’ve ever done,” indicating that for Rich, these older habits are things they have to learn to move on from.

Boston is still stuck in that mindset, while Rich has moved on and is in a place where he would never abandon his team even if he knows it will lead to something horrible.

Finally, one last thing… I think what made me the proudest I have ever been of Rich is how he’d forgiven Matthew. I cried, people, I totally cried.

L: Yeah, that scene got me right in the feels. And I think it’s significant, because, like Weitz, Rich certainly vacillated between being out for himself and being a team player. It makes sense that he is the hardest on Weitz, not just because he got sent to a blacksite, but also because he is measuring Weitz by the yardstick he uses to measure himself. We are always the least tolerant of the flaws in others that we struggle with in ourselves. It’s safe to say that no matter what happens in the finale, Rich Dotcom has officially completed his amazing character arc. He’s successfully transitioned from self-serving criminal to full-on FBI team player. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy being Rich DotTwo, with all this new self-awareness and a highly developed conscience.

I loved Rich’s speech to the team at the start of 5.10. “Sorry, just before anyone else says anything heroic, may I remind you that we’re still wanted criminals.” One part of Rich’s evolution is this new, adult way of looking at things. “Best case scenario, we get fired. Worst case? I’ve been there before, and I don’t exactly plan to go back.” He understands what’s at stake, and he knows that—of all of them—he’s the least likely to get a deal at the end of all of this. So honestly, I couldn’t blame him if he wanted to run. But the thing is, he doesn’t, because the second part of Rich’s evolution is his newly-discovered skill of self-sacrifice (which, yes, he totally picked this up from the team as Madeline describes, “These people have made falling on their swords into an art form.”). He can’t leave the team to see this through on their own, knowing that he could help, even when it means giving up on the idea of a future with Boston. When Boston tells him that they need to look out for themselves, Rich tells him, “Yeah, but that’s all we’ve ever done.” Being a part of this team is the first time he’s been part of something bigger than himself, and it’s the first time he’s gone out of his way to do the right thing just because it’s the right thing—and it’s even more poignant because of what he is giving up—the chance to run away and build a new life with Boston. And even if you’re not Rich, it’s a tough call—save the world or save your future with the person you love? But in this context, knowing how far Rich has come and how hard he’s worked to get to this point... It’s an impossible call, and I’m all the more proud of him for making it.

Y: One last, probably completely unnecessary note, but I cannot be the only one who freaked out when Ivy grabbed Boston’s hand to cut off his finger, right? Forget hacking, the man is an artist, and he needs those fingers!! Fortunately, she left him with nine so his art career isn’t ruined.

And I know I was a bit tough on Boston in my review, but I do love me some Boston Arliss Crab. Since his days of bantering with Patterson are over, I am glad we got to see some with Kathy. Josh Dean is really good at that. And he’s also good at many other things. His humor is fantastic, he has amazing chemistry with Ennis and with Ashley, and in these two episodes he really got to shine. It’s hard to believe that Boston is only a recurring character. It feels like he’s been part of the show for so long and such an integral part of it.

I just love them all so much and I am very emotional—and yes, I am writing this on the day of the finale, just hours before it airs, so I am extra emotional. If that is even possible.

Like the rest of their team, Kurt and Jane go through a lot in these two hours of television, only to finish on a terrifying note. How do they tackle these challenges, both together and alone, and what do we think this means for their future?

Y: Was it just me or was Kurt extra barky in the second hour of this double episode? He just seemed a bit more growly than usual. And yes, I am talking about this to avoid talking about the… other thing.

There are other things I’m willing to talk about as well. Mainly all the awesome Kurt things that happened this week. Like the rest of the team, Kurt during the interrogation was as badass as we’ve known Kurt Weller to be. He was absolute fire, stubborn as hell, defiant, and so confident in his team. Honestly, that sequence was close to the most badass we have ever seen the team—all of them.

But I think the most badass Kurt scene is—not just in this episode but maybe in the history of badass Kurt moments—is him taking out six armed mercenaries on his way to rescue Jane. Excuse me, but what was that? I don’t know about you, but I cannot stop watching this scene, watching this man do literally the impossible to save his wife and become an entire army himself to get to her.

The Jeller reunion was quintessentially Jeller. It involved some badass fighting, trademark Jeller softness, and of course the adorable flirting during a life and death situation. This is our ship. This is the ship we’ve loved for five years.

And then there was Kurt’s reunion with Bethany. Sigh… that was just the purest thing ever and Little Bee is the most precious little girl ever. That scene melted my heart and soul and Bethany telling her dad to hurry back to her absolutely destroyed me. So I can only imagine what it did to poor Kurt.

L: One of my favorite Kurt Weller scenes in these two episodes is at the start of 5.10, when he stands in the middle of SIOC and basically announces that he doesn’t have any authority there anymore. He tells the gathered agents that the team is not there to take over. They are there to help... if they’re wanted. And he leaves the choice up to them. We’ve talked a lot about how different members of the team have shown leadership this season, and those examples have frequently contrasted with Madeline’s dictatorial style. And this moment showed us so much about what kind of a leader Kurt is. He doesn’t tell them what they should do. He lets them make that call. As we’ve mentioned before: Kurt Weller never asks anyone to take a risk that he wouldn’t take. And he respects the people who look to him for leadership. He asks for their input, he respects their opinions (even when they disagree with his own), and he gives them the choice of doing what their consciences dictate. In short, he is the exact opposite of Madeline and is the best leader that any of them could ask for.

And yeah, he’s also a devoted husband and father. We just really love Kurt Weller, okay??

Y: Oh! How could I forget to mention that scene in the opening of 5.10. That was… just beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. Everything we love about Kurt Weller and then some. Seeing him standing in the middle of SIOC, in his natural born leader pose… it just makes me happy… and it’s such a perfect parallel to the scene in the Pilot as well. Yes, I know we have had several of those scenes, but that one from the Pilot really jumped at me.

Now… onto Jane… Jane, Jane, Jane...

Not to be outdone by her husband, who is willing to fight six fully armed men while he himself is not armed, Jane does the thing we all expected her to do—sacrifice herself for her team. I had a feeling Jane would do this. We know Jane. We’ve known her long enough to know that she would be the first to fall on her sword to protect everyone else. That’s what makes her Jane. That’s what we love about her. And I know that Madeline would not have honored the deal, but Jane really didn’t have much of choice and it’s so true to who she is that she would do that.

But sometimes Jane’s willingness to sacrifice herself to save those she loves can become a little too much and cause us a little too much pain. And I am still not ready to discuss this.

L: Jane’s self-sacrificing nature is simultaneously one of the things I love most about her and one of the things that makes me yell at my television screen like a crazy person.

We already know that Jane blames herself for, well, everything. And to some degree, she’s not entirely wrong. Her arrival in Times Square did put this story in motion. But that doesn’t mean it’s all her fault. The cases the team followed, the corruption they were fighting... all of that was already there, whether Jane showed up or not. If her tattoos hadn’t led the team there, something or someone else might have. There’s no guarantee that Shepherd—or even someone else—wouldn’t have put some other plan into action if Remi hadn’t returned from Afghanistan willing to join Sandstorm. And it’s not fair to blame her for the actions of others—for Oscar or Crawford or Madeline. And even if Jane can’t admit it, an awful lot of good came from her joining the team. All the criminals they put behind bars, all the evil plans they stopped, and all the innocent lives they saved. As Tasha put it, “Do you realize how many times this team has saved the world?”

But we know all of this has been weighing on Jane’s mind all season. And then we add in the weight of Patterson’s “death”; Patterson, who was the first person to welcome Jane to the team and who saved Jane’s life from her lab so many times out in the field. And finally, add the knowledge that Kurt will never get to be there to watch Bethany grow up, when Jane has already sacrificed her own happiness once before to ensure that Kurt would have this future. So it’s really no surprise at all that Jane is willing to accept all the blame for the team’s “crimes” in exchange for Madeline’s promise that the team will be treated fairly and sent to federal prison instead of an anonymous blacksite.

And similarly, it was no surprise at all that, when faced with the prospect of exposing Kurt to ZIP or taking all the risk herself, Jane would choose again to sacrifice herself. It’s who she is. It’s who she was as Remi—willing to sacrifice herself to stop the corruption they saw in the government—and it’s who she is as Jane. Like Kurt, she won’t ask anyone to take a risk that she won’t take, and if she has to sacrifice herself to save her husband or the rest of her family? Well, then there really isn’t a choice to be made.

Look, I am not worried about Jane. We know that Patterson has the stem cells and the cure for ZIP. Jane’s gonna be fine. Honestly, I’m a lot more worried about how Kurt is going to deal with Jane having her memory wiped.

Y: Okay, enough days have passed that I think I am ready to talk about that last scene in 5.10. If the elevator kiss in 5.08 was peak Power Couple Jeller, then the final scene of 5.10, with Jane in the world’s worst Escape The Room situation, is peak Epic Tragic Jeller. First from Jane’s perspective, this is such a Jane thing to do—sacrificing herself for the ones she loves. And that moment right there reminded me so much of 1.15, when Jane goes on the run to protect the team from Cade, and in the end when Kurt confronts her about it, and she asks him what he would have done in her place. And to that, Kurt replied that he would have done the same.

And he would have. In both situations, Kurt would have done exactly what Jane did.

And that is why these two will always be the most epic of ships—tragic, legendary, heartbreaking, a love story for the ages. As heartbreaking as that scene was, and what it sets up, and as nervous as it makes us going into the finale, it just seems right that Jeller get to go through something this huge in the finale. Every season finale has put Jeller through the impossible, so it is in typical Jeller tradition that the series finale puts them through even a harder final ordeal than ever before.

I don’t know what is going to happen. I am braced for the worst and hoping for the best. But what I do know is that this ship has for five seasons been perfect—well, almost perfect. They’ve made us laugh and cry and flail and swoon and cry some more and flail some more. They’ve been through everything—and put us through everything—and it’s only appropriate that at the end of the day they go through one final challenge that really tests who they are and who they’ve become and that beautiful bond between them.

I’m terrified and excited and scared and worried and at the edge of my seat.

And I have faith.

I have faith.

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Which brings us almost to the end of the fifth and final season of Blindspot. How has this season met your expectations? Is there anything that you need to see in the last episode? Come talk to our Ask Box. Or just come and wail about how much you love this show and don’t want it to end.

—Laura & Yas

#blindspot #blindspot: episode review #character: jane doe #character: kurt weller #character: patterson #character: tasha zapata #character: rich dotcom #character: boston arliss crab #character: matthew weitz #character: madeline burke #character: ivy sands #ship: Jane/Kurt

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daimonclub · 11 months ago

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Christmas thoughts

The universal joy of Christmas is everywhere Christmas Thoughts, reflections, ideas, various opinions and some quotes on Christmas by the World of English and good will English-culture blog I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. Charles Dickens Instead of being a time of unusual behavior, Christmas is perhaps the only time in the year when people can obey their natural impulses and express their true sentiments without feeling self-conscious and, perhaps, foolish. Christmas, in short, is about the only chance a man has to be himself. Francis C. Farley A man is at his finest towards the finish of the year; He is almost what he should be when the Christmas season's here; Then he's thinking more of others than he's thought the months before, And the laughter of his children is a joy worth toiling for. He is less a selfish creature than at any other time; When the Christmas spirit rules him he comes close to the sublime... Edgar Guest Let Christmas not become a thing Merely of merchant's trafficking, Of tinsel, bell and holly wreath And surface pleasure, but beneath The childish glamour, let us find Nourishment for soul and mind. Let us follow kinder ways Through our teeming human maze, And help the age of peace to come From a Dreamer's martyrdom. Madeline Morse I hear that in many places something has happened to Christmas; that it is changing from a time of merriment and carefree gaiety to a holiday which is filled with tedium; that many people dread the day and the obligation to give Christmas presents is a nightmare to weary, bored souls; that the children of enlightened parents no longer believe in Santa Claus; that all in all, the effort to be happy and have pleasure makes many honest hearts grow dark with despair instead of beaming with good will and cheerfulness. Julia Peterkin If a man called Christmas Day a mere hypocritical excuse for drunkeness and gluttony, that would be false, but it would have a fact hidden in it somewhere. But when Bernard Shaw says that Christmas Day is only a conspiracy kept up by Poulterers and wine merchants from strictly business motives, then he says something which is not so much false as startling and arrestingly foolish. He might as well say that the two sexes were invented by jewellers who wanted to sell wedding rings. G.K. Chesterton The great majority of people will go on observing forms that cannot be explained; they will keep Christmas Day with Christmas gifts and Christmas benedictions; they will continue to do it; and some day suddenly wake up and discover why. G.K. Chesterton

A Christmas candle is a lovely thing We hear the beating of wings over Bethlehem and a light that is not of the sun or of the stars shines in the midnight sky. Let the beauty of the story take away all narrowness, all thought of formal creeds. Let it be remembered as a story that has happened again and again, to men of many different races, that has been expressed through many religions, that has been called by many different names. Time and space and language lay no limitations upon human brotherhood. New York Times, 25 December 1937 Scrooge went to the church, and walked about the streets, and watched the people hurrying to and for, and patted the children on the head, and questioned beggars, and looked down into the kitchens of homes, and up to the windows, and found that everything could yield him pleasure. Charles Dickens I sometimes think we expect too much of Christmas Day. As for me, I like to take my Christmas a little at a time, all through the year. And thus I drift along into the holidays - let them overtake me unexpectedly - waking up some fine morning and suddenly saying to myself: “Why, this is Christmas Day!” David Grayson The universal joy of Christmas is certainly wonderful. We ring the bells when princes are born, or toll a mournful dirge when great men pass away. Nations have their red-letter days, their carnivals and festivals, but once in the year and only once, the whole world stands still to celebrate the advent of a life. Only Jesus of Nazareth claims this world-wide, undying remembrance. You cannot cut Christmas out of the Calendar, nor out of the heart of the world. Anonymous We see Jesus in the manger. We adore Him; we worship Him; we glorify Him. We stand oppressed before such love--a love stronger than death--a love so strong that it did die that we might live. We thank Thee for the sweetness of human love, but how could we ever have dared to think that such love was in the heart of God for us! We look on nature and see Thy beauty and Thy majesty, but we are afraid, for we have sinned. And then we learn that Thou has sent Thy Son, to be bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh; and before such inconceivable love we can only worship and adore. We are so weary of our failures and our slow growth toward Thee. Cleanse us deeply from sin, strengthen our moral purposes. Maltbie Davenport Babcock We therefore welcome our Christmas in December. The "worship of Christ" could not have a better setting than amid the domestic festivities, social forces, and generous and man helping deeds of our merry Christmas-tide. In no more fitting way can we say farewell to the closing year, and All hail! to the new. "Christ is born." We therefore must put off the old man - his moroseness and selfishness, his sadness and despair, his peevishness and fretfulness, his feebleness and decay - and put on the new man, which, after Christ, is created in true joy, large faith, energetic service, lowly duty, devout obedience, and death-daring self-sacrifice. John Clifford If we were to fancy a wholly Christianized world, it would be a world inspired by the spirit of Christmas - a bright, friendly, beneficent, generous, sympathetic, mutually helpful world. A man who is habitually mean, selfish, narrow, is a man without Christmas in his soul. Let us cling to Christmas all the more as a day of the spirit which in every age some souls have believed to be the possible spirit of human society. The earnest faith and untiring endeavor which see in Christmas a forecast are more truly Christian, surely, than the pleasant cynicism of Atheists, etc., which smiles upon it as the festival of a futile hope. Meanwhile we may reflect that from good natured hopelessness to a Christmas world may not be farther than from star dust to a solar system. George William Curtis The lovely legends of the day; the stories and the songs and the half-fairy lore that gather around it; the ancient traditions of dusky woods and mystic rites; the magnificence or simplicity of Christian observance, from the pope in his triple tiara, borne upon his portative throne in gorgeous state to celebrate pontifical high mass at the great altar of St. Peter's, to George Herbert humbly kneeling in his rustic church at Bemerton, or to the bare service in some missionary chapel upon the American frontier; the lighting of Christmas trees and hanging up of Christmas stockings, the profuse giving, the happy family meetings, the dinner, the game, the dance they are all the natural signs and symbols, the flower and fruit, of Christmas. For Christmas is the day of days which declares the universal human consciousness that peace on earth comes only from good will to men. George William Curtis The "first Christmas" was a simple time of beauty and wonder. The birth of Christ was less about celebration than it was about family. Though many today may grow tired of the commercialization of Christmas, in reality it has opened the door for Christ to once again become the focal point of the season, and for family, especially children, to be at the heart of the celebration. Ace Collins Christmas is ... a time to mark our progress through this earthly journey. Every December we can look back and marvel at the designs of God and realize how very little we are in control of the events that shaped the past year. Then, with hearts full, look to the celebration of that silent, holy night, and all its certainty. Because of Christmas, this we know: Christ was born for us. He is love, and the plans he has for us always surpass those of our own. Karen Kingsbury I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round - apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that - as a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on their journeys. Charles Dickens More and more people each year are going abroad for Christmas... Fed up with the fact that commercial Christmas starts in October. Fed up with carols. Dreading the arrival of Christmas cards from people they have forgotten to send a card to. Unable to bear yet another family get-together with Auntie Mary puking up in the corner after sampling too much of the punch. You see in the airports the triumphant glitter in the eyes of people who are leaving it all behind, including the hundredth rerun of Miracle on 34th Street. M.C. Beaton Christmas has been a season of mixed interests and meanings, but the very foundation, of course, is its religious significance. No matter what other personal desires or crises we have faced, I've never forgotten that this is the time to celebrate the birth of the Baby Jesus, and the impact of this event on the history of the world. Jimmy Carter On Christmas Eve, down there in Texas, we always went to the church first for the lovely service, and then to the town square with its breath-taking, brilliantly lighted Christmas tree, where there were little gifts for the children. And when we woke up in the morning, there was another Christmas tree which had appeared "miraculously" as we slept; the whole family gathered around it, and again we sensed the spirit of love running through the circle. There were gifts for everyone - but not too much! How grateful I am for that now! The real gift was the love we had for one another and the sheer joy of just being together. Dale Evans The herald angels are singing still, and we hear their "Peace on earth, good will to men," once more, as we have often done. What can we do but answer back in glad strains: "Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace"? It is His presence that fills our homes with mirth and song. If he will come again, turning life's water into wine, touching our sick that they may be healed, cleansing, pardoning, blessing us all- as He will if we make room for Him - then, indeed, we must be glad. Christian at Work Shorn, however, as it is, of its ancient and festive honours, Christmas is still a period of delightful excitement in England. It is gratifying to see that home-feeling completely aroused which seems to hold so powerful a place in every English bosom. The preparations making on every side for the social board that is again to unite friends and kindred; the presents of good cheer passing and repassing, those tokens of regard, and quickeners of kind feelings; the evergreens distributed about houses and churches, emblems of peace and gladness; all these have the most pleasing effect in producing fond associations, and kindling benevolent sympathies. Washington Irving

Marry Christmas with our thoughts And when we give each other Christmas gifts in His name, let us remember that He has given us the sun and the moon and the stars, and the earth with its forests and mountains and oceans - and all that lives and move upon them. He has given us all green things and everything that blossoms and bears fruit and all that we quarrel about and all that we have misused - and to save us from our foolishness, from all our sins, He came down to earth and gave us Himself. Sigrid Undset I am sorry to have to introduce the subject of Christmas into these articles. It is an indecent subject; a cruel, gluttonous subject; a drunken, disorderly subject; a wasteful, disastrous, subject; a wicked, cadging, lying, filthy, blashphemous, and demoralizing subject. Christmas is forced on a reluctant and disgusted nation by the shopkeepers and the press: on its own merits it would wither and shrivel in the fiery breath of universal hatred; and any one who looked back to it would be turned into a pillar of greasy sausages. George Bernard Shaw After dinner, eaten, let it be confessed, with more haste and less accompaniment of talk than usual, the parlour doors were opened, and there stood the Christmas tree in a glow of light, its wonderful branches laden with all manner of strange fruits not to be found in the botanies. The wild shouts, the merry laughter, the cries of delight as one coveted fruit after another dropped into long-expectant arms still linger in my ears now that the little tapers are burnt out, the boughs left bare, and the actors in the perennial drama are fast asleep, with new and strange bedfellows selected from the spoils of the night. Cradled between a delightful memory and a blissful anticipation, who does not envy them? Hamilton Wright Mabie There is something about Christmas that requires a rug rat. Little kids make Christmas fun. I wonder if could rent one for the holidays. When I was tiny we would buy a real tree and stay up late drinking hot chocolate and finding just the right place for the special decorations. It seems like my parents gave up the magic when I figured out the Santa lie. Maybe I shouldn't have told them I knew where the presents really came from. It broke their hearts. Laurie Halse Anderson There is a time and a season for all things, as we are told, and the time and the season to decorate our firesides and homes is at Yuletide, when with holly branch and mistletoe we make our Christmas green; with flowers we make it bright and fragrant; with presents we make it bountiful, and with the spirit of peace on earth, goodwill toward men, we make life worth living. Lee James Christmas Gift Suggestions: To your enemy, forgiveness. To an opponent, tolerance. To a friend, your heart. To a customer, service. To all, charity. To every child, a good example. To yourself, respect. Oren Arnold https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpjlBzvesOk Read also: Christmas quotes ; 60 great Christmas quotes ; Christmas tree origin and quotes ; Christmas markets in England ; Christmas markets in America ; Christmas markets in Italy and Germany ; Christmas short stories ; Traditional Christmas Carols ; Ella Gray A Christmas story ; Christmas jokes ; Christmas cracker jokes ; Christmas food ; Christmas thoughts ; Christmas story ; Christmas in Italy ; Christmas holidays ; Christmas songs ; Christmas poems ; An Essasy on Christmas by Chesterton ; Read the full article

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