#c: michael westen

[darkskywishes]

I love him and his suits

Jeffrey Donovan as Michael Westen Burn Notice 2x01 ‘Breaking and Entering’

[andreaskorn]

Karl Korn 1990: Beiträge zur Heimatforschung Mettmann (07)

Karl Korn: St. Lambertus Mettmann. Geschichtliches, Vergessenes, Verlorenes, Bewahrtes. 1990 [Eigenverlag]

Andreas Korn: Anmerkung zum Band

Blau melierter Einband (Hardcover) mit hellrauem Buchrücken; Titel als Fotokopie auf den Buchdeckel geklebt; (ca. 269 Seiten, überwiegend einseitig, einige Doppelseiten); Pfarrer, Vikare, Kapläne, Küster: Zusammenstellung Karl Korn 1990

Vorwort, Inhaltsangabe, Quellen

Vgl. auch die Ausgaben St. Lambertus Mettmann 1983, 1993

Andreas Korn: Bildbearbeitung und Foto des Einbandes; Textdigitalisierungen

Abb. Kirchgrundriss St. Lambertus: deutlich wird der größere Neubau des Kirchenschiff (vom ursprünglichen Bau ist nur noch der Kirchturm aus dem 12. Jh. erhalten sowie ein altes Taufbecken)

Vorwort

Mit der vorliegenden Dokumentation, die keinen Anspruch auf Vollständigkeit erhebt, möchte ich die lange Verbundenheit mit meiner Heimatpfarre zum Ausdruck bringen, reichen doch die Vorarbeiten hierzu in meine Jugendzeit zurück. Als Messdiener und zeitweise Vertreter des Küsters und Organisten Georg Naberfeld [in den letzten Kriegstagen im Westen gefallen] hatte ich Zugang zu den alten sakralen Gegenständen, deren Entstehungsgeschichte und Symbolik mich faszinierte.

Einzige Quelle der Geschichte der Pfarrkirche war damals die in der Festschrift zur 1000-Jahrfeier der Stadt Mettmann [1904] von Pfarrer Döhmer verfasste Chronik, die meine Patentante aufbewahrt hatte. Mein Bestreben, die darin genannten historischen Daten, die weitgehend in Vergessenheit geraten waren, im Bewusstsein der jüngeren Generation zu erhalten und zu festigen, wollte ich als Vierzehnjähriger in meinem ersten Vortrag anlässlich einer Weihnachtsfeier der Messdiener verwirklichen.

Meinem Geschichtslehrer am Gymnasium und Heimatforscher Professor Georg Kuhlmey, der mein Interesse an der Heimatgeschichte bemerkte, verdanke ich, daß er mir Zugang zum Staatsarchiv in Düsseldorf und zum Landgericht in Wuppertal verschaffte, wo damals die alten Kirchenbücher auf bewahrt wurden. Dort fand ich 1934 im Taufbuch von 1767-1809 das Verzeichnis der Pfarrer von 1290 bis 1807. In der Folgezeit, unterbrochen durch Krieg, Gefangenschaft und Beruf, habe ich Prof. Kuhlmey bis zu seinem Tode unterstützt, indem ich seine vielen Manuskripte in leserliche Maschinenschrift übertrug.

Erst nach meiner Pensionierung 1980 konnte ich meinem Hobby nachgehen und das nur lückenhafte Archiv der Pfarre sichten und auswerten. Mit Hilfe der verschiedenen Quellen, insbesondere der Protokollbücher der Reformierten Gemeinde ab 1610, versuche ich die Pfarrer in ihr historisches und soziales Umfeld zu stellen und damit zu lebendigen Zeugen ihrer Zeit zu machen. Karl Korn 1990

+ + +

INHALTSANGABE

CHRONIK 1983 100 Jahre St. Lambertus-Kirche in Mettmann

URKUNDE 1198 Archidiakon Udo Stift Kaiserswerth Pfarre Mettmann

PFARRER IN METTMANN 1198 - 1990

VIKARE - KAPLÄNE Geschichte der Vikare seit der Reformation Aktenabschriften seit 1804

KÜSTER Aktenabschriften 1677 - 1813

KIRCHEN-VORSTEHER GEMEINDE-VERTRETER 1875 - 1904

+ + +

Quellen (S. 1)

Pfarrarchiv St. Lambertus

Stadtarchiv Mettmann

Hauptstaatsarchiv Düsseldorf

Festschrift: zur 1000jährigen Jubelfeier der Stadt Mettmann 1904

1050 Jahre METTMANN: Stadt und Land in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart 1954

Pfr. Wolfsgarten: Geschichte der katholischen Pfarrgemeinde Mettmann (Tagebuch) 1881

Gertrud Middell: Quellen zur Mettmanner Stadtgeschichte 1983

Pastor C. Dott: Geschichte der evangelischen Gemeinde Mettmann 1880

Depositum Prof. Georg Kuhlmey im Stadtarchiv Mettmann: Abschriften aus Akten der Reformierten Gemeinde seit 1610 Protokolle des Presbyteriums

Dr. Hans Thiel: Der Anfang der Reformation in Mettmann METTMANNER ZEITUNG 1955

Kart Heck: Geschichte von Kaiserswerth 1925

Landschaftsverband Rheinland: Inventare nicht staaticher Archive S. Suitbertus Kaiserswerth 1961

Janssen-Lohmann: Der Weltklerus in den Köllner Erzbistumsprotokollen 1661-1825, 1935

Michael Schaffers: Msgr. Karl Weiß 1985

METTMANNER ZEITUNG

Rheinische Post

Westdeutsche Zeitung

SCHAUFENSTER Mettmann

MEDAMANA: Heimatblatt der Vereinigung "Aule Mettmanner"

Kirchenzeitung für das Erzbistum Köln

(Ende Seite 1)

S. 2

Dokumentationen

Karl Korn: Mettmann nach der Reformation. Schlaglichter 1988

Karl Korn: Chronik des Pfarrers M. Tack 1788-1806

Karl Korn: Chronik u. Ausstellungskatalog 1983

Karl Korn: Grabsteine in St. Lambertos 1980

Karl Korn: Benefizium Schlickum 1721-1839

Karl Korn: Benefizium Schöller

Karl Korn: Hauptkirchenbuch S. Lambertos 1770

Karl Korn: Rhentbuch Pastoratus 1716

Karl Korn: Ehe-, Tauf-, Sterbebücher 1663-1842 Zeichnungen

Horst G. Hütten: Siegel 1311, 1339

Karl Korn: Grundrisse alte/neue Kirche Photos

Stadtarchiv

Pfarrarchiv

Karl Korn

Henriette Cremer

(Ende Seite 2)

+ + +

[burnnoticegifs]

Burn Notice re-watch | 2x16 | Lesser Evil

Bruce Campbell: Look. Donovan’s getting all gooey here too. Matt Nix: I remember watching this scene and when your voice, Michael [Shanks], hit that kind of *grunts* it hit Jeffrey. BC: Now, he’s got some weird thoughts here, guys. Did you see what he did with that gun? MN: Well, he didn’t tell anybody he was doing it! This was- He did this once. BC: That was creepy. MN: We were watching that and I was watching it and I was like “Is he going to shoot himself?!” BC: Right, right, ‘cause it’s those moments when you go this is all just not- this is not worth it. This is the downside of the spy business. MN: Yeah, and we were shooting that at 1 in the morning on the last day of shooting the entire season. BC: I don’t think Donovan could even stay awake that day. MN: It was really late and everyone was really tired and then he did that and the whole crew just burst out into applause. Everyone was hugging him and high-fiving and it was- ‘cause we knew- bam.

[i-used-to-be-a-spy]

Me? writing a fanfic that’s only 2k words?? Haha

[fan-burnnotice]

Burn Notice - 6x02 - Mixed Messages

Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan), Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell) & Tom Card (John C. McGinley)

[kirksfattitties]

I don't know, but Fiona Glenanne is my gender, so I get it. (the creators have said she's not cis tho, so i guess that makes sense...?) They said Michael Westen was pan b/c of it.

this is a star trek blog

[peppermintstranger]

blonde male, blue eyes? playable as 20!!

Hello!

You have: Michael Provost, Charlie Plummer, Hugh Laughton Scott, Frederik Westen, Augusta Alexander, Ruben Pol, Charles Bilgrien.

Hope it helps c:

[darkskywishes]

He is THE definition of Florida man. It doesn’t get more Florida man than Michael Westen.

florida man

[filmblabla]

BALLON

C. sagt:

Wie will man einen Thriller drehen, wenn jeder das Happy End schon kennt? Michael "Bully" Herbig probiert es trotzdem! Das Remake der wohl bekanntesten Flucht aus der DDR 1979 kann sich sehen lassen.

Hier und da gibt es aber Minuspunkte. So wurde schon etwas zu viel an der Dramatik geschraubt, dafür wurde bei der Musik gespart. Lobenswert ist vor allem die junge Besetzung, die zum Teil selbst DDR-Wurzeln hat. Besonders schauspielerisch auffällig ist mal wieder Thomas Kretschmann als Stasi-Ermittler. Interessant ist das Spezial auf der BluRay, wo Herbig erzählt, wie sie sich der Geschichte genähert habe, auf was sie alles geachtet haben, bei der Ausstattung, den Kostümen, was wie gesagt wurde – alle Achtung!

Man mag sich gar nicht vorstellen, was diese beiden Familien damals auf sich genommen haben. Was leider viel zu kurz kommt, sind die Hintergründe, was sie dazu treibt, dieses unglaubliche Wagnis auf sich zu nehmen.

Sehenswert ist der Film BALLON auf jeden Fall. Will man aber die DDR besser verstehen und was die Menschen dort umgetrieben hat, sollte man GUNDERMANN sehen, der gerade grandios beim Deutscher Filmpreis abgeräumt hat. 7 Punkte

Marcus sagt:

Als der Film im September 2018 in die Kinos kam, habe ich ihm schnell keine Chance gegeben, da ich ein Remake des 80er Schinkens MIT DEM WIND NACH WESTEN nicht interessant fand. Im Rückspiegel betrachtet, war das etwas zu kurz gedacht und so war es vor ein paar Wochen erst, als mir meine Schwester davon berichtete, wie toll sie BALLON doch fand. Jetzt, nach dem ich ihn auch gesehen habe, teile ich diese Meinung in vielen, aber nicht allen Punkten...

Grundsätzlich interessiere ich mich ja immer für deutsch-deutsche Geschichten, umso kurioser, dass ich BALLON damals so schnell abstrafte. Vielleicht traute ich Bully Herbig dieses filmische Unterfangen nicht zu, whatever. Ich kann auf jeden Fall sagen, dass es ein Fehler war, denn Bully hat dieses Projekt nicht nur richtig angepackt, sondern auch richtig stark umgesetzt. Schlüssel hierfür war sicher die Authentizität, alles sieht echt aus, ich fühlte mich zu jeder Sekunde im Jahr 1979 in der DDR.

Die Schauspieler sind allesamt gut ausgewählt und stark in ihren Auftritten. Besonders gefiel mir, dass die 4 Hauptdarsteller eher unbekannter besetzt waren, David Kross mal ausgenommen. Den stärksten Auftritt hatte für mich Thomas Kretschmann als Stasioffizier. Seine untergebenen Kollegen waren mir allerdings zu klischeemäßig, das hätte nicht sein müssen.

Die Geschichte an sich ist ja so unglaublich, dass sie natürlich auf jeden Fall verfilmt werden muss. Wie gesagt, gab es Anfang der 80er Jahre schon mal aus Hollywood und führt zu einem weiteren Problem: jeder, der die Geschichte kennt, weiß, wie sie ausgeht. Das ist natürlich dem Film nicht vorzuwerfen und in diesem Fall ein Extralob für Bully, denn trotz dieser Tatsache war ich die vollen 125 Minuten unter Spannung! Ob dann im letzten Drittel so viel Action und Dramatik sein musste? Ich finde, hier wäre weniger mehr gewesen...

Die Musik möchte ich noch ansprechen: in einigen Abschnitten erinnerte der Score mich an BLADE RUNNER 2049 und ich dachte, wow, wie haben die denn das gemacht?! Aber die meiste Zeit war es leider billigstes TV-Produktionen-Effekt-Gedudel. Sehr schade, denn das passte so gar nicht zu dem wirklich hochwertigen Kinolook des Films.

Alles in allem immer noch ein sehr starker, aufwühlender Film über eine der spektakulärsten deutsch-deutschen Geschichten überhaupt. Schon deswegen unbedingt sehenswert und wer noch mehr wissen möchte, schaut den Extrabeitrag auf der BluRay „Was für ein Aufwand: Ein Hintergrundbericht von den Dreharbeiten und den Zeitzeugen” - dieser macht den Film noch ein bisschen größer.

8 von 10 Stoffbahnen

P.S.: Die echten Protagonisten erwähnen, wie seltsam es war, ihre Darsteller kennenzulernen und dann später auf der Leinwand zu sehen. Ein bisschen kann ich es verstehen, denn der lütte Fitscher (Tilman Döbler) sieht tatsächlich so aus wie ich in dem Alter. Auch das hat meine Schwester gut beobachtet...

[newcountryradio]

New country 25e jaargang  #1150 (709) van  7 november    2022  (wk 45) tussen 19.00 -22.00 op Smelne fm

Album van de week: Live Forever : A Tribute To Billy Joe Shaver - Various Artistst     New West

          Artiest                        Title                                               

1.    Shania Twain – Any Man Of Mine

2.    Kenny Chesney/Pink – Setting The World On Fire   - 2016

3.    Keith Urban - Street Called Main

4.    Larry Fleet & Zach Williams – This Too Shall Pass

5.    Flatland Cavalery – How Long

6.    Willie Nelson (w/ Lucinda Williams) - Live Forever*album vd week

7.    Ryan Bingham (w/ Nikki Lane) - Ride Me Down Easy*album vd week*  

8.    Thomas Rhett Riley Greene - Half of Me

9.    Ingrid Andress w/ sam hunt-   Wishfull Drinking

10. Tyler Hubbard – 5 foot 9

11. Cole Swindell -  She had me at heads Carolina

12. Morgan Wallen – You Proof  -  #1

13. Zach Bryan – Starved

14. Phil Vassar – Just Another Day In Paradise 2000

15. Alan Jackson – Dallas

16. Lainey Wilson – Atta Girl    --favoriet    

17. Rascal Flatts -  These Days    (melt  2002)

18. Rascal Flatts – Mayberry     (melt   2002)

19. Shane & Shane – Liberty     Sofi

20. George Strait - Willy The Wandering Gypsy And Me.

21. Joy And Rory – Josephine   (verzoekje) .     .   -

22. Riley Downing – Start It Over

23. Garret T Capps – Goodbye San Antonio, Hello Amsterdam .

24.  Rodney Crowell - Old Five And Dimers Like Me.  *album vd week

25. Randy Rogers Band – Picture Frames   *albumvw  

26. Bailey Zimmerman –  Fall In Love

27. Zach Bryan – Happy Instead

28. Morgan Wallen – Warning    #1 album

29. John Michael Montgomery – The Little Girl

30. Travis Tritt – Best Of  Intentions

31. Hal Ketchum -  – Mama Knows The Highway     *Trucksong

32. ShaniaTwain – Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under

33. Mary Gautthiers – Dark Enough To See The Stars -*juweeltje

34. Sam Williams – Happy All The Time

35. Robert Weston - - A Million Things Wrong* Dutch corner

36. Hilde Vos –  What Would Dolly Do  

37. Dieter van  der Westen Band – Don’t Wait For My Money

38. Joe Diffie – C-O-U-N-T-R-Y      .

39. Travis Tritt – T-R-O-U-B-L-E

40. Tammy Wynette – D-I-V-O-R-C-E

41. Miranda Lambert - I’m Just An Old Chunk Of Coal (But I’m Gonna Be A Diamond Someday)

42. George Jones – Tender Years  

43. Nancy Griffith – Night Rider’s Lament

44. Willie Nelson -– City Of New Orleans

45. Florida Georgia Line - Cruise

46. Darius Rucker – Wagon Wheel

[zooterchet]

Operation: St. Peter

Stage A) Register your e-mail address as open to school library computers, in a town with a computer headquarters; generous, aren’t they.

Stage B) Register for a full time summer/winter job, part time school, minimum wage, 9th grade summer starting.

Stage C) Do a ton of drugs, with the CIA watching, while you e-mail half-written papers to yourself, then finish them, at the school.

Stage D) Get a pretty good job at it, dude, smoke freebase junior year of highschool, right before September, for a perfect attendance rate.  You didn’t take a varsity sport, did you, Cartman.  You got a grocery store job, as a stock clerk, and you’re Gentile anti-Semite, but you’ve got looks and smooth moves.

Stage E) Bail on school after an arrest ordered by the Democratic National Commitee, to see why you’re cheating, all these Hispanics can’t figure out “Boondock Saints”.

Stage F) Look at an Asian lawyer’s panties, at college, several times.

Stage G) Suck it up, and play bass guitar, on a drum riff, from learning hand pats, and watching WW2 documentaries, all night long, baby.

Stage H) Play that rock and roll, on your amp, in the dorm, and blow the shit out of that cunt.  Stay indie, you’ve got a bloody thumb.

Stage (I) Note an experience, from an old friend, that you bought amphetamines off of, with a weed trade.  (Mackelmore).

Stage (J): Your town gets investigated, and stomped like brutal hell, while you cruise around, doping, under CIA investigation, as Michael Westen.

Stage (K): War Forever.  Company Man gets rewritten, you are the head of the history department.

[burnnoticegifs]

Burn Notice re-watch | 3x04 | Fearless Leader

[i-used-to-be-a-spy]

New Autistic Michael Westen Master Post

A) Special Interest

Michael's fixation on being a spy and getting his job back is def in special interest territory bc he values it A LOT. In the books, it's mentioned he blew stuff up just for fun as a kid to experiment and to get attention from his parents so spy shenanigans has always been an interest of his

B) Justice is something Michael feels very strongly about. He doesn't hesitate to help the little guy or families or anybody else who needs his help even tho he'll complain when it isnt convenient (which reminds me of Entrapta, a canon autistic character on a show, who gets annoyed when interrupted from her special interest inventing). Even when injured, he'll still help people. Michael wants to feel like he's a part of good in the world, helping right wrongs

C) Michael and relationships

He struggles maintaining deep relationships and doesn't always understand what people want from him. This is partly due to him struggling with processing his own emotions like for example his desire to be with Fi versus his desire to not see her harmed by being close to him.

He has a lot of miscommunications with his family over the years (not necessarily all his fault) and he doesn't know how to bridge the gap at first. Like how Maddie was mad at him for not reaching out on her bday but turns out he was in a hospital and it simply didn't occur to him to explain that

A great example of Michael not realizing how much he means to his friends is when he so readily believes they have abandoned him when Larry made it seem like they had to manipulate him.

D) Not understanding social norms and social queues or hierarchy

This is part of his problem up above but it deserves it's own section. A great example is when Sam asks for advice about marrying the love of his life and Michael says yes and then no and is just exasperated by what Sam wants from him

Michael simply doesn't give a shit about social hierarchies and will go straight through them to get shit done like when he talks back to the frickin head of the CIA in season 7

E) Most likely as a survival tactic growing up in an abusive household, Michael's ability to Mask and appear neurotypical while Undercover is a great example. He knows the human mind well and his friends are always shocked by how he's able to read strangers well but not his close friends and family. Michael is able to imitate people he's around well at least for the job

F) Repetitive behaviors & Sensory issues

Michael has at least two safe foods: yogurt and tuna tahini. We also know he likes spicy foods that have been mentioned throughout the show so he's likely a sensory seeking autistic.

He also really liked a deep pressure massage he got during a cover cause the bad guy had paid for the hour. Many autistics respond well to deep pressure even when they don't like light touch (Michael often seems touch averse outside of Fiona) which part of that is from being a spy but I think it's not liking unexpected touch (I myself like people to ask first then I like touch!)

There is another reason Michael may always wear sunglasses: autistics are more likely to have light sensitive eyes so the sun could be painful for him. He also has his fav particular glasses he wears which is part of his routine

G) Personality

Michael has a pretty stoic personality. He doesn't tend to have huge macro facial expressions when not undercover. It's the smaller smiles or tightening muscles around his eyes or a single raised eyebrow or throwing his head back that says how he's feeling. He also tends to not laugh loudly or out loud except for rare occasions. His humor is dry and sarcastic like many autistics

H) Demisexual

I do see Michael as existing on the asexual spectrum. He describes his attraction to Fi and also how he's never felt that way with anyone else in both the show and books. Demisexuals experience sexual attraction after forming a bond with people and I think that describes Michael well. He literally has hot women flirting with him all the time, especially villains, and he doesn't bat an eye or get tempted bc he's simply not into them.

And even tho he is attracted to Fi, he isn't always immediately as into sex as she always is like when she jumps his bones when he comes home from missions in season 5 look at his face as he tries to convince her to stop. Altho he gets into it eventually 😉

Many autistics are ace altho not every autistic is!

I) overwhelmed episodes

Michael tends to not process his emotions until something really big happens that pushes him over the edge like when he considers shooting himself after Victor is killed bc solving his burn notice seems impossible or when he finally has to process that Fi is gone

J) Smarts

Many autistics are gifted in a specific area and I do think Michael's tactical mind comes from his autism

Have a photo of Michael's smile after Sam compliments his brains :)

The End

Thanks for reading 😁

[fan-burnnotice]

Burn Notice - 6x02 - Mixed Messages

Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan), Sam Axe (Bruce Campbell), Jesse Porter (Coby Bell), Tom Card (John C. McGinley), Rafael Montero (Anthony Ruivivar) & Bruce Gellman (Steve Dumochel)

[darkskywishes]

I think a lot of Michael's more dick-ish decisions in S3 (and later in S5 and S6) make a lot of sense from an emotional standpoint.

This is gonna be long, so I'm gonna put it under a "keep reading" thing, lol.

I'm going to primarily focus on what you've written about Strickler, Tom Card, and Michael's general dealings with the Burned Spies Organization, as I completely agree with you about Gilroy, Sam, Larry, and the flight plans. I also agree with you regarding Michael and Fiona's relationship, but I have some more thoughts on that below as well :)

Regarding Michael's deal with Strickler—I don't think it's entirely fair to say that this decision came down entirely to Michael's wants. It's clear to me that Michael was quite worried about Management's threat toward him in the S2 finale—how Michael has no idea what hell will rain down upon him once they stop "protecting" him (quotation marks necessary since the only reason Michael needed protecting in the first place is because of their organization). In fact, I believe Michael tells Fi as much during one of their dinner dates.

So, coupled with the fact that Michael still feels rightfully wronged by being framed for all these things he didn't do and that he never left his job at the CIA of his own volition (a job that, for all intents and purposes, holds significant emotional weight as it was his escape from his abusive home)—Michael now feels even more driven to get back into the CIA as he, once again, views the CIA as his protection, and by extension, his family/friends’ protection. In Michael's mind, what chance do him and his loved ones stand against all the enemies Michael has when he's a sitting duck in Miami with no resources?

Additionally, it becomes quite clear that the Organization was never going to leave Michael alone; they burned him for a reason, and like Simon said in S7, they are weapons that will be used as tools until they're dead. Although working with Strickler was certainly a choice, I don't believe Michael himself really viewed himself as having a choice.

Michael is also someone who feels immense responsibility for all of the wrongs committed by others, especially if he's aware of them and also feels like he has the capability to prevent/change them. Knowing of the Organization's existence, Michael felt a personal duty to bring them down that went far beyond a personal vendetta; he knew that this organization would continue burning spies and using them for their own gain, a fact that becomes even more clear with Anson's appearance in S5. Victor's mercy death at the hands of Michael in the S2 finale is also something that affected Michael deeply—he saw firsthand what these people did to Victor and what they turned him into. If Michael didn't bring them down, what meaning did Victor's sacrifice even hold? What was the point of all the blood on Michael's hands? However, this once again brings us back to the CIA; Michael feels powerless against this organization without the resources and protection they offer.

Then, regarding the killing of Tom Card, I truly don't think Michael had intended to kill Card in that moment; he knew it wasn't the best play. He had lowered his gun, but then Tom Card said The Line: "I'm so proud of you, son". With the level of psychological issues Michael has surrounding father figures (and the fact that Tom Card was basically the only positive father figure Michael ever had), that line set him off completely; not shooting Card in the head was not a simple decision for Michael.

Furthermore, Fiona had kept encouraging Michael in the previous episodes to shoot Card; however, Michael's rationality and Sam's influence won over until that very moment. Killing Card is an easy decision to rationalize when you know you already have some supporters for that decision and when you're unable to think straight after such a huge betrayal. Not only that, but Michael had also just witnessed Card murdering Tyler Gray, who Michael had come to regard as someone in his exact shoes. What stops Card from continuing to manipulate Michael in the future only to have Michael killed off anyway? It was a no-win situation. Tom Card would have continued to pose a threat had he not been killed; the difference is whether they would have been able to deal with him without flagging all the authorities.

The more I watch and think about Burn Notice, as well as read some of the analyses you've written on the seasons, the more I think Michael was entirely screwed from the start—going all the way back to his abusive upbringing. He either truly had no choices, genuinely felt like he had no choice (even if he did), or had to choose between multiple awful options. I know you expressed similar sentiments during your S7 watch.

Then, regarding Michael's relationship with Fiona, I agree with you. Just to elaborate on some of my thoughts there—I think Michael was definitely aware that being involved with him was dangerous. One of Fiona's main objectives, however, was to show Michael that he's better with his friends than without them—he needs and deserves support too. Fiona never wanted to be protected by Michael, and thus, rendered without a choice by having Michael do what he thinks is best for her; she wanted to make the choice to be with him. This conflict between Fiona's safety and Fiona's agency is part of what, I believe, makes it so difficult for Michael to discuss his relationship with her. Michael already struggles immensely with opening up to people, and it's made even more difficult because of this. Despite all that, Michael has communicated multiple times starting in S1 that he doesn't believe it's a good idea for them to be together. And, although he blew off Fiona's efforts to discuss their relationship multiple times in S3, he was eventually completely upfront about his commitment to his work. At that point, like you said, it's up to Fiona to decide whether that's a dealbreaker for her.

Just as an aside, I relate a lot to Michael and had a similar upbringing as him, and he’s my favorite character as well (I’m sure you can tell lol). So, while you’re in Sam and Fiona protection mode, I’m in Michael protection mode XD I love reading your Burn Notice thoughts, especially since you don’t share the same biases as me!

Burn Notice - S3 take two and some AU musings

Season three is when I became strongly Team!Fiona and I’d been fully on board with Sam since season two. Season three is also when Michael starts to became more obsessive and make more dangerous choices, and those things clashed badly on the first watch as I went into full Fiona and Sam protection mode XD So, rewatching, and forearmed with knowledge of what’s coming, I could be more objective about Michael this time. He’s definitely doing some dickish things, and I still don’t like them, but I wasn’t as actively enraged by them the second time. And honestly, I suspect some of it’s also that I became a lot more sympathetic towards Michael in the later seasons. With everything that this show put the poor bastard through, it was impossible not to, especially in the first half of season seven. Michael spends a fair bit of time dodging Fiona at the start of season three. She wants to talk about their relationship, what it means, and whether there’s a future here, and Michael’s all, ‘No time! Got to go! Later!’ which is pretty shitty of him. But he does eventually sit down and tell her what she doesn’t want to hear – that for him, the job comes first and it always will. Which sucks for Fiona, but it’s Michael’s choice, and at that point, it’s up to her to make her own. She can either accept that this is the guy she fell in love with, that he’s not going to change and live with it, or she can move on and find someone who’ll make her the priority. The thing with Sam and the flight plans still bugs me. That’s a friendship with very little in the way of limitations, which is a damn good reason Michael should respect the few boundaries that there are, not push harder at them and expect they’ll go away too. But Sam caves pretty easily on the first point, which is his call, and on the second point he (rightly) refuses to, and in the end Michael does accept a compromise. Not great behaviour, but Michael eventually recognises that. And the worst of Michael in that ep is partly explained by the fact that he’s simultaneously trying to deal with Larry, which is definitely a strain. Michael’s deal with Strickler is what really raises all my hackles. Michael knows Strickler’s a snake, Fiona and Sam both loudly second him being a snake that Michael should have nothing to do with, and Michael goes for it anyway. Unlike in his dealings with Gilroy, there’s no argument here that Michael’s doing it for the greater good, to try and stop something nasty from happening. It’s entirely about what Michael wants, and it’s a decision that nearly gets Fiona killed and does get Diego killed. But it’s also a decision that sets into motion all the long, slow sequence of disaster that arcs through the rest of the show. Strickler leads directly to Gilroy, which leads to Simon and a deal with Management, and then Vaughn, and eventually to Anson. It’s a perspective that can only come up the second time through, and I’ve been trying to figure out how much, if any, of the decline might have been avoided if Michael had made a different choice here. If not for Strickler, Gilroy probably wouldn’t have latched onto Michael. He would presumably still have been paid to free Simon, though, just found someone else to help him do it. So assuming all of that happened anyway, Simon would have been coming after Michael, with Michael knowing nothing about it in advance. But Simon would still have had to find Michael, and Michael would have been better situated to deal with it because he wouldn’t have already been in high stress mode with the police and the FBI after him. Vaughn was able to get his hooks into Michael because he yanked him out from under arrest. If Michael had survived Simon without being arrested, would it have changed anything? Vaughn could presumably have approached Michael at some point, spun him the same tale of, ‘There are bad people and you can help us stop them.’ Michael wouldn’t have stayed to hear him out, though, if he had a choice. He would have told Vaughn to go screw himself, and Management didn’t try coming to Michael again until after he reached out to them, because they knew that. So I’m left wondering what else might have made Michael desperate enough to go to Management. He might have if one of the team screwed up and got some major jail time, and Michael thought Management could get them out. Unfortunately, I also have to conclude that Anson would have got bored of waiting for Michael to hang himself at some point, and done the same kind of set up-and-blackmail thing that he did with Larry and Fiona anyway. So there’s probably no getting away from that part, and on some level Michael was inherently screwed. But even then, all he had to do was NOT shoot his boss in the head in a public setting to avoid all the joys of season seven. Michael’s usually so careful and logical and thorough with his pre-planning, which is great, because when he does things that are reactionary and impulsive, they’re often not very good things…

[intheseautumnhands]

I totally failed at Camp NaNo, and I have an exchange fic due in two weeks that I’ve not managed to start writing, and way too many WIPs to do anything new.

But here are the fic ideas my brain keeps generating this week while I sleep to Dollhouse.

Most of them involve Victor/Tony and/or Sierra/Priya. Shhh. I don’t have a problem. Shhhhhh.

Tony gets hurt, gets discharged, and ends up being scooped up by the Dollhouse as a handler instead of a doll. He ends up as Sierra’s handler. I have less of a very specific plot idea for this but I do have very clear ideas for him absolutely climbing the walls in the Dollhouse during the equivalent of Needs.

The role-reversal of that, where Adelle unexpectedly finds herself meeting and sympathizing with Priya during the whole art-party thing and ends up finding a way to get her working in the Dollhouse because it would help protect her. Probably not as a handler, though.

The fic idea based on someone’s -- theory or just would-it-be-awesome from way back when season one first ended, I forgot which, but: post-S1, Victor permanently imprinted as Laurence Dominic, who has no idea he’s been made into a doll and is being manipulated.

C o m p o s i t i n g. Will I be forever bitter that the interesting potential of compositing ended up being explained as something completely uninteresting, twice? Possibly. Anyway there’s some good composite!Victor and composite!Sierra fic out there but I would like more still.

That Burn Notice crossover where Nate Westen survives the techpocalypse and ends up leading a group of survivors by asking himself “what would Michael do” on a daily basis.