#some thoughts on Gotham 3x19

[itsybitsylemonsqueezy]

Okay, here it is, my thoughts on Gotham 3x19. Or more accurately termed, my complaints. I want to warn you right now, it’s just a shitmess of complaining, so if that’s not what you want to read, then PLEASE don’t, you’re under no obligation to do so. But I really needed to say these things for my own peace of mind, so here it is:

You remember how 3x18 ended right? 

Here's my question: why didn't they go with that? Why did they have to redo it? Why did they COMPLETELY retcon tone? Why?

Because, I think we can all agree, what we had at the end of 3x18 does NOT match 3x19. So let’s start with that. And I have some theories about why it changed so dramatically, but first let me clarify what changed: the lighting, the framing, the music, the entire TONE of their confrontation is in a new genre. We VERY OBVIOUSLY change perspective and I’m not sure why, I’m not sure WHOSE perspective we had the first time or whose we have now, I'm not sure we’re MEANT to associate the change with any particular perspective, save that a change WAS made. The only things that didn’t change were the lines themselves and the blocking. Everything else was completely new.

And, in my opinion, 3x19 lost all of the tension that made 3x18 what it was. And perhaps that WAS because we were seeing it again, but the changes also very deliberately took the tension out, they deliberately softened the scene. And, in my opinion, that was a mistake. Because I think their confrontation deserved and warranted the tension we had at the end of 3x18. I think the narrative was built for that, was deliberately developed for an exciting climax and, more even than that, I think that end shot is one of the few perfect scenes in all of film. And I think they, the creators (writers, producers, directors, etc), not Robin and Cory I need to stress, butchered it for reasons I will get to later. And I’m upset about it.

Because their choice, from the get-go, to mute their confrontation changed the entire tenor and dynamic of this episode. And, again, I think it was changed for the worse. But even if we hadn’t seen that bit in 3x18, even if we walked into 3x19 without this pre-existing expectation, I still think 3x19 falls short.

Because isn’t it ODD Ed spends no time freaking out?

Ed accepts Oswald is alive and slips RIGHT BACK into a functioning relationship, or establishing a new one with new rules at minimum, like he's slipping on a fucking glove. And I DO have some justification for that but it's FUCKING WEAK and the thing is, the EPISODE doesn't support it. The episode does NONE of the emotional, intellectual work it was SUPPOSED to. The only reason I can come up with justification is I'm a fucking fan who spends all my time in Ed's brain working out how he thinks. The episode gives JACK SHIT about why Ed reacts this way and I'm FUCKING FURIOUS.

(Spoilers, this is the less edited part where I‘m just really mad about everything and swear a lot.)

So, in all fairness to the writers, you CAN justify Ed’s reaction by saying Ed straight up refuses to react/can't react. You CAN justify it by saying his game-playing is a coping mechanism (which it has been established to be, re: 3x15) so instead of having an emotional reaction to Oswald right there, Ed rejects it and instead defaults to an established schema in which he CAN cope and Oswald, for whatever reason, goes with it. So, to be as even-handed with my criticism as I can be, I can reverse engineer this to a point where it's plausible. But again I had to do that, the episode DOES NOT do that for you.

And, personally, I'm not sure it's really justified in Ed's PATENTLY SHITTY coping mechanisms that he'd be able to save himself this quickly. He’s never been able to cope effectively before, and we might chalk this up to progress, but... it seems unlikely to me personally. And, again, the episode does not justify this assumption, it provides no evidence that Ed is coping at all because we never see him react in the first place, and the previous episodes SURE AS SHIT don’t make the argument that Ed has developed a single dependable coping mechanism. So this progress would be fairly out of the blue. In 3x15, we see very clearly why Ed is playing a game, we understand it, we get a deep inside look at what he’s doing and why. And, sure, they didn’t have time to do that this episode and, sure, the title of the show is Gotham, not Nygmobblepot, all of that is true. But I’m getting ahead of myself. I will attempt to justify why the writers did what they did later, but first I need to explain why I'm upset with it.

So let’s recall, shall we, what Ed’s psychology was like leading UP TO this confrontation. Because it seems VERY CLEAR to me that the writers totally fucking forgot OR deliberately rewrote Ed on the fly and I’m not sure which is worse.

3x14: Ed murders Oswald, or, more importantly, he thinks he does, he believes it, with heartfelt conviction. It’s Kind Of A Big Deal.

3x15: Ed copes with having murdered Oswald, culminating in saying goodbye and embracing his new identity as The Riddler. Also Kind Of A Big Deal

3x16: We take a much needed break from Ed shenanigans. He, apparently, moves out of Oswald’s mansion at long last and begins work on an evil hideout of his own.

3x17: Ed takes his first stab at independent villainhood. His single goal is to find out who the Court of Owls are which... is neither really a success nor a failure. He DOES end up with the Court, but not through his own machinations and neither does he really get any information about them and in the end has to escape from them. I’m calling this a net failure.

3x18: He gets less than 24 hours to stew about his stymied ambition and first setback as a new villain before WHOOPS, OSWALD’S BACK, I GUESS INDEPENDENCE IS CANCELLED.

And, let me remind us, ED HIMSELF says his new identity is formed DIRECTLY OUT OF OSWALD’S DEATH. AND OSWALD. IS ALIVE.

And Ed. is. fine???

Forgive me if I feel this doesn’t fucking line up at all.

Forgive me if I think the BLIND FURY coming from Ed at the end of 3x18 was APPROPRIATE AND JUSTIFIED. Forgive me if THAT’S the version I wanted to see and I don’t understand AT ALL why they went with this completely unjustified, no-stakes, softened mess.

And when you think about it, all lined up like that, the retcon in 3x19 falls apart. You just have to wonder what the fuck they thought they were doing. Because it makes no fucking sense.

So, I'm sorry, I'm SORRY, but... THAT is my problem. THAT. Right there. The fact that they gave NO credit or justification to Ed's emotions. And I am BESIDE myself about it.

And it ruined the entire goddamn episode for me. Because you can't have... jesus fucking christ *headdesk* Nothing we just saw would have been happening if they gave a SECOND'S emotional honesty to Ed, but they didn't. And it's really upsetting because I LOVE the shenanigans of 3x19, I WANT to enjoy them, I just wish I could... :/ they just... they, the creators, fucked up for me, they fucked this up and I can't :ccc You lost emotional veracity and that's EVERYTHING to me. I'd rather have a boring shitty episode that was HONEST than this :ccc Because this BREAKS continuity for me :ccc breaks suspension of disbelief.

But I do have a feeling i know why it changed, why they went with this version. The unfortunate thing is they wrote and SHOT a goddamn perfect scene. But the suspense, the expectation, was so high, they got scared and they backed down. Instead of deciding to push the thematic tensions of darkness and angst, they rewrote it to something light that they could get away with, so they COULD write off this HEAVY, heavy scene as what we saw. Because the show IS for teens and it IS called Gotham, not Nygmobblepot, and I want to admit that. I want to admit that the creators have a different perspective and different priorities than I do and maybe it’s not fair to hold them to this. Maybe I am just being harsh, and bitter, and salty. And it’s true, I don’t run this show, they have to run it, and I believe they’re making the best decisions they can. I don’t want to sound like I hate them even though I disagree strongly with what they’ve done. They’ve got bigger things to worry about than this and... you know, maybe I shouldn’t hold it against them. That’s fair.

But at the same time... what they did was a retcon. What they did was not justified by the build up and it was a betrayal to Ed’s characterization. And, no matter how anyone else feels about that, it hurt me personally. And I’m entitled to that hurt. No one else has to agree or appreciate or even listen to me, but I get to feel how I feel. Just to clarify, this is my feeling, it’s not something anyone else has to agree with or listen to, you have every right to believe I’m full of it.

So I understand they might have had VERY justified reasons for this tonal shift and not dedicating the emotional time and energy they SHOULD have to this. I really want to give them credit and admit that my priorities are not theirs. And yet, at the same time, they had ALREADY dedicated two major episodes, back to back, EXCLUSIVELY to Ed’s emotional development about this. So why stop here, why not bring it home? It seems unfair to me and either stupid or cowardly. At the very best, that's realizing they set themselves up for failure and HASTILY backtracking and having to foil everyone's expectations. At worst, it was shitty showrunning where no one was paying attention. But that’s me being harsh.

Now, after having said ALLLL of that, they can still recover in 3x20. Again, I don’t want to sound like I’ve completely lost faith in the show. It is STILL possible that the writers planned this all along, even if I don’t like the way they’re doing this. (I think it’s a lot more likely they panicked last minute, but that’s neither here nor there.) So, here’s one theory about how 3x20 might go:

The only way (that I could find, you may find a different justification yourself) to justify Ed not losing his goddamn shit about Oswald being alive would be if he somehow doubted/wanted Oswald to be alive. Now, the evidence DOES NOT credit this, as it makes his whole goodbye speech moot (ANOTHER reason I am VERY PISSED OFF, but that is secondary from my theory.)

Let us assume that Ed harbored some kind of hope that Oswald was alive OR, alternatively, feared he really COULDN'T do this on his own. Either way, that means, when Ed sees Oswald, he experiences relief, thus justifying the entire episode. Now... this doesn't 100% fix it as the episode STILL fails to do any emotional credit by them. (Side note, which I might detail later, a LOT of really profound, heavy shit is said and it COMPLETELY SLIDES BY WITHOUT REACTION. Like, the shit IS said but NO ONE DOES ANYTHING ABOUT IT AND FUCKING FUCK ALL OF YOU WHAT THE FUCKING FUCK). BUT, it at least allows Ed to be happy to see Oswald again and it justifies his trust and eager willingness to work with Oswald again.

And, here's the thing, I am FAIRLY sure this theory WILL be supported in 3x20. If I'm right, Ed will suddenly become Very Stable. He'll suddenly be making sense and functioning again. This is because of that RATHER IMPORTANT THING HE SAID, "I'm the Riddler and I became him when I killed you" MEANING he killed part of himself in killing Oswald MEANING he's whole again now that Oswald's back MEANING he's reforming around Oswald and will suddenly be Very Stable. Now, again, that line SHOULD have been WAY MORE IMPORTANT at the time, but... the creators did what they did and we have to live with it and do the emotional work ourselves if we are so inclined.

Now... on the one hand, that I can accept. It was always a possibility that Ed WOULD never be able to function independently and would just have to stay latched to Oswald forever. But... what i wanted, and what Ed DESERVES, is the chance to make that decision for himself. Ed has not truly experienced independence yet, he has not had the chance to fail OR succeed at striking out on his own, so he DOESN'T ACTUALLY KNOW. Which prevents him from self-actualizing. Instead of letting him figure it out and making a conscious choice, thus enabling his character development, no, we gave him back a crutch and refused to let him develop. Which means, eventually, we'll have to do ALL OF THIS AGAIN the next time Ed craves independence. And like... fine, if he eventually decides he can't function without Oswald FINE, I accept that, but LET him decide! Just... PLEASE, GOD. Let him make a SINGLE CONSCIOUS DECISION. PLEASE.

And finally, in total fairness, it is a... remote possibility, but still a possibility, that Ed will recognize he feels better now that Oswald's back, but given it's Ed, Master of Repression, WHAT'S THE LIKELIHOOD OF THAT? Still... in fairness, I will admit that it’s an option, however unlikely.

Now I’m just... really sad. I’m really sorry to complain this much, especially about an ostensibly really nice episode that featured some great things. The premise just... didn’t feel justified to me and it bothered me. So... there, I'm done now, I truly hope I have not affected anyone negatively.

[the-last-page]

ALSO when Ed and Oswald were talking about Oswald loving Ed and all that in the cells Ed kept saying he DIDN’T love Oswald, not that he DOESN’T. Those are two very different tenses, so…!

[atcnm]

Lee in 3x12 musings.

My favorite Barbara’s episode is 2x18, where she’s dangerous and vulnerable, self-assured and insecure - all the contradictions, i loved it. The moment where you believe that she would sell Jim to Lady, the moment when you understand that she didn’t, that she truly wanted to help with Wayne case... And her scene with Jim where he acts not like any good guy would, but it’s true too, because sometimes there’s no forgiveness. And that was the episode where i liked Tabitha’s caring for her. The villains cared, the hero didn’t. Oh Gotham.

Anyway, then i started to think what Lee’s episode would be my favorite, and suddenly came up with 3x12. In general, i liked Lee’s descent into pain, anger and hatred of s3b, angst and all, it would be believable for her to just break after all that she faced since s2 started. and in a nutshell it all was already present in 3x12, the ep where she just buried her uncured husband.

She has just four scenes there, and they all showed where she would end up eventually during the remaining of s3.

Fist - scene in GCPD, where she demands arrest of Jim Gordon, and after declining promises Jim revenge anyway. She’s very angry here.

After that there’s talk with Falcone, who is strangely calm despite his only (as far as we know in the show) son being dead. He reminiscents about Jim again.  I cared for Jim Gordon. In some ways, he was more like my son than Mario. Wow here. But Carmine tells Lee that he will order to kill Jim - and asks if she can live with this knowing. Dark soap opera complete with mansion decoration. Lee doesn’t answer. A big leap for once cheerful police medical examiner.

And than she goes to Barnes, probably to remind herself why she does this. Barnes is infecetd but alive, her husband - dead, Jim has to pay and she can’t make him legally. But she’s horrified by Barnes’ madness.

Lee hurries to plead Carmine about calling Zsasz off. She’s agitated, she’s far more emotional than before. Maybe because she, as she states here, saw what awaited Mario and thought that death is more merciful than this. Or maybe - because in Barnes she saw her own image. She wants to be the judge and see Jim executed (not only for Mario’s death, Everything bad that's happened in my life has happened because of him), but she doesn’t have the virus that would let her do it with no conscience. And this seed will grow too in the end. (I still headcanon that they would tear each other apart, infected Jim and Lee. She just wanted to make him give in, escape the lockdown and spread the virus).

Lee was angry here, closed off - but still able to back away from revenge. It was sad - how lonely she was all along s3b, that in 3x19 she ended up with her husband’s infected nightmare to haunt her and trickster in Arkham to tell her what to do. She said that it was Jim who took everyone away from her (meaning her friends at GCPD, Harvey and Lucius) so was there never really someone else? Not even Carmine. 

Maybe if she didn’t back away, he wouldn’t abandon her. But still, i don’t think that her plea alone would be enough for Don Falcone to change his mind. Script is script, but i headcanon Court of Owls meddling. 

P.S. Curious how this episode with Zsasz storyline reminds me of 1x07. And there even was a scene where Harvey comes to Jim  to back him up, and the woman’s interference plays it’s role in Jim’s fate. But the effect is different.

Screencaps from https://tv.homeofthenutty.com/index.php?cat=118

[ouijasaidwhat]

Why Lee is Most Likely to be Harley Quinn and how

I was quiet surprised to see that my post on Lee Thompkins being Harley Quinn got more notes than one. It seems you guys are fans of that theory, so today, I am making a post about why Lee should ad could be Harley, and how it may happen.

Our first piece of evidence is that Leslie is a licensed therapist. We found that out back when Barbara murdered her parents, and Leslie attempted to be her counselor. We are also very aware that Harley Quinn was also once a licensed therapist, who worked at Arkham, (Leslie also worked at Arkham for a small amount of time.)

Our next piece of evidence is that Leslie Thompkins has been very involved with Jerome Valeska, the soon to be Joker. She helped Jim Gordon solve the case of who killed Jerome's mother, (Spoiler: It was Jerome), and after they had arrested Jerome, she even stated that it was scary, yet thrilling. Then, in season three, when Jerome's story ark starts back up, Leslie is the first to find out that Jerome is far from dead. He attacks her, sexually harasses her, and threatens her multiple times. Valeska obviously has some kind of an interest in Leslie. [Contains Spoilers for Gotham 3x19] If you watched the last episode of Gotham, All Will Be Judged, you know that Leslie Thompkins will become a villain. She has injected herself with the Tetch Virus. I'm not sure why she does this, whether it's to be like Mario or whether she does it in order to destroy James Gordon without remorse, Leslie is about to become Gotham's newest problem. Lee obviously has trouble keeping a lover, whether it be because he is in prison or murdered by a previously significant other. She may be desperate for love, and will take anything she can get. Of course, now that she is a villain, it seems that the best decision is to find someone who has the same lust for blood that she now has, and out of all the people she has met, who is that criminal most likely to be? None other than Jerome Valeska. Now, how will Lee become out beloved Harley Quinn? Considering she has just quit her position as Medical Examiner at the GCPD due to a fight with James Gordon, it is possible that she will try and get her job at Arkham Asylum back. This is where her plan starts. I believe she will become Jerome Valeska's therapist. She will get close to him, slowly falling in love. Of course Jerome can see right through her, and uses her to get out of Arkham. She doesn't plan on leaving him at all, so she stays, becoming Harley Quinn. Now this last thing is a stretch but I thought it was kind of funny. Leslie Thompkins Les-LEY Thomp-KINS Har-LEY Qu-INN :)

[mymycorrhizae]

[Spoilers] Finale advance review :/ telfie*com/buzz/gotham-finale-advance-preview-get-down-with-the-sickness

*spoiler alert*

First, thank you for sharing this. I can never find these on my own. As I’ve said before, reviews are not super accurate since they’re mostly opinion based. You can have two different people watch the same episode and have totally different interpretations of what happened. Remember when the review for 3x19 said it was a really bad episode? It ended up being my second-fave episode of this half of the season. 

That being said, there’s some stuff here that’s hard to ignore. 

“There are a few frustrating loose ends. Where’s clone Bruce? Where’s Barnes? Was Isabella really just a piece of lazy writing?” Aww man, I know we were all dyingggg for an Isabella reveal in the finale. It would have been so great.

On the upside, “Meanwhile, Gotham is also busy leaving tantalizing things for the new season to come: the Iceberg lounge! Solomon Grundy! Bruce doing his Batman thing!” oooo the Iceberg Lounge!!! 

And of course the really depressing part: “To be honest, it’s a little sad to see that there’s not a shred of affection left between the two former BFF’s. For Ed, Oswald has now become a murderous obsession. We know that Ed is single-minded, and that’s never been clearer than in this finale, as his fixation drives him to forge on with his own plans at the expense of his own allies.”

By “at the expense of his own allies” they’re probably referring to the fact that it looks like Ed stole Tetch from Babs, Tabitha and Butch, in order to trade him for Oswald. Which probably means the end of this alliance. 

“Who’ll win the final showdown back at the docks? Perhaps fittingly given their shared history, it all comes down to who better understands what makes the other tick.“ Ughhhh those cursed fucking docks. Can we stop with the damn docks lmao. You know, if i hadn’t read the bit about there being no Isabella reveal, I would have totally thought that Oswald would reveal her as a clone or wtv and that would fit into the “who better understands what makes the other tick” thing. Like that would be a huge humiliation for Ed. 

Anywayyyyy, the finale is in like 2 days. Let’s just wait and watch it for ourselves and form our own opinions. 

[itsybitsylemonsqueezy]

Okay, I have so many feelings about Gotham 3x18 just... SO MANY and... here, have some because... FUCK they packed SO MUCH into what is functionally 60 seconds of total silence

Okay, so, my first question is HOW. HOW did they manage not to see each other until the Appropriate Moment. So this is my ideal blocking of that:

Ed’s pacing his cell, slowly, plotting his way out of this unfortunate prison, rehashing his TERRIBLE life choices, thinking up some new, terrible, Oswald-related riddles about all of this. You know, normal Ed Nygma stuff.

When behind him, down at the opposite end of the hall, the doors open, a new prisoner is dragged in. A particularly vocal and uncooperative prisoner. Who is screaming, “I DEMAND an audience with the Court! You can’t do this to me, do you know who I am?!”

Ed knows that voice anywhere. He sounds exactly the same, just as he always did. But no, this can’t be happening. This isn’t real.

Ed steps up to the bars of his cell to see what kind of cruel trick his mind is playing on him this time, because there’s no possible way this could be happening.

But he sees. He sees a guard taking the struggling, flailing man himself up to the cell right next to his.

And Ed freezes. He can’t move. The shock roots him to the spot that this is real and it is happening. He’s alive.

Oswald, meanwhile, is so focused on trying to free himself of his surly captor that he takes in nothing of the surrounding area, much less his fellow inmates. I checked the episode and when Oswald is shoved into the cage, he does a tight turn back to the door, his back is to Ed the whole time, there’s no possible way he saw him standing there, dead inside.

So it truly isn’t until the very second Ed says his name, in that broken voice, that Oswald even knows someone is standing in the cell next to his.

And, mutually, Oswald would know that voice anywhere. He knows without thinking who called out to him. And he came all this way for Ed, after all. And yet, he didn’t expect this. He was not prepared for... this. He’d thought he’d find him, that he’d have more time to prepare himself, to plan their meeting. But no, now this is happening... right here, right now. And there’s not a damn thing either of them can do about it. There’s no way to even make it better or worse. It just is.

And then there’s just... EVERYTHING

Oswald's shoulders hunch at his name, almost like a flinch, like he's almost FULL sewer rat right now, stripped down to that survivalist impulse for a second

Ed's FURIOUS, and broken, and DOES NOT EVEN KNOW HOW TO REACT. Like, his fury is not at Oswald, it's at the betrayal of the universe that Oswald could not stay dead, that he didn't even succeed in doing THAT.

And then Oswald, when he finally takes in that it's Ed, that Ed is here, he goes to goo and heartbreak and he can't quite believe it and then. And then he grabs for Ed and, after EXTENSIVE rewatching and gif set analyzing (GOD BLESS @riddlerbird @lankybrunettepartdeux in particular, I owe you guys, thank you so much for your good work), HOLY SHIT THAT GRAB:

Initially, we’re all terrified of it, except,f or some mysterious reason, Ed. Whose face Does Not Change, even though he steps back from him.

But, upon closer examination... that grab was not a threat.

Not matter how suddenly and madly it was done, Oswald DOES NOT reach for him in the intention to hurt him.

And I point this out because wHAT tHe FUQQQQQQQQ???!?!?!

I exhort you to rewatch, and examine these gif sets.

Now, I know it’s very fast and barely in the frame, but you CAN see, when you look hard, that Oswald’s hand is turned forward, palm out, fingers extended. He is not clawing or tearing at Ed. His palm is not turned down in a threat sign. Neither is he palm up in a show of submission, understandably. He is, quite simply, reaching out for him. The grab is, just that, a grab.

And secondly, look where he aims. He does not aim for Ed’s chest or face. Again, evidence he’s NOT aiming to attack Ed. They’re squared up pretty close to center so reaching forward, Oswald’s chest is near to parallel to Ed’s chest. But that’s not what Oswald reaches for, he reaches off to the side. He reaches for Ed’s arm, his hand. (What Oswald would have DONE if he managed to grab Ed is up for interpretation, he easily could have attacked Ed at that point, and perhaps 3x19 will offer some light on this, we’ll see. My only point is his initial move is not an overt threat, no matter how deranged he looks doing it)

And Ed is standing so close... Oswald DOES manage to brush him.

Now, not having noticed that for way too long, I assume Ed was RIGHTLY startled by Oswald and takes an instinctive step back like any sane, normal person would. Given this is, you know, Oswald Cobblepot who is into murdering the shit out of people who hurt him.

But again... Ed doesn’t look scared. Ed looks like a lot of things. But not scared. (And Ed has never looked scared of Oswald. Even when Oswald had a knife to his throat, Ed was never afraid. I... fuck.)

And when I managed to notice that Oswald DOES touch him... that means Ed isn’t flinching at the potential of Oswald touching him, but the reality. After all, Ed doesn’t step back until that moment. Ed has no fear and no desire to move away from him until JUST then.

And that is, still, in part being startled because Oswald full on LUNGES for him and it s startling. But also perhaps because the last time they touched, Ed threw him into the river. Just A Thought.

But if it’s not to hurt him, at least not yet, why then does Oswald grab for him in the first place? Especially with an unhinged, irrepressible need and urgency. When he has been unable to do ANYTHING else but stare, speechless, at the man across from him.

I think Oswald can’t help it. I think it’s the one instinct he has left, while everything else is in dead shock. When everything else has left him, he still has the ungovernable impulse to grab Ed. A clutch for balance. A reminder of reality. Just... just that, just that simple need of wanting to touch him, to see if he’s real, if he exists, if they exist, if they are both here in this place. Oswald probably doesn’t even really know why he’s reaching out, just that the urge was so strong he couldn’t resist, didn’t even consciously think about it, it just happened.

I think they both don’t quite believe this is real, that they’re both shocked by it and cannot cope. Reality is a stranger to them in this moment. Neither of them have anything to their names right now except for the knowledge that each other is here and they have to deal with that. That's... that's how small their reality is, just that one fact: You're here in this place too. And I can not forget it or escape it or deny it. I can only live with this fact.

And... Oswald has on his "I will bite your face off" face, his high-intensity, will-snap-at-the-smallest-thing focus as he draws back from Ed’s... rejection? Flinch? Reaction?

Ed just stares and stares and stares. And it's not quite accusatory and it's not quite guilty and it's not quite grief. It's... it's a hardness, it's the hardness that comes before acceptance. Anticipation. That's what it is. It's anticipation and you think you're going to die. Like NOTHING about it is positive or hopeful, Ed's anticipating this will kill him. And not necessarily because Oswald will murder him. But because seeing Oswald again is too painful.

And then there’s the lighting!

There is, as always, a staggering glow behind Oswald symbolizing his love for Ed. Go back and check, Oswald and realizing he’s in love with Ed is ALWAYS marked by crazy bright lighting. Lighting is a HUGE symbol in their relationship, huge fucking deal.

And FOR ONCE there's the same glow behind Ed, although muted, and with obstacles. But I'MMA FUCKING TAKE IT. Because they have been OBVIOUS with their lighting cues for these two. So, FEELS.

And, finally, the fact that Ed and Oswald HATE this.

In that first shot they're adversaries, and it's... it's so weird because they've never been adversaries before, not really. But Ed is so OFFENDED that he's alive. He's always been so THRILLED to see Oswald before. You can't help to think back to when Oswald shows up at his door in tar and feathers and Ed CHEERS. Ed fucking LIGHTS UP because his best buddy is here. And, now, here they are, where there's only bars to keep Oswald from potentially murdering him. And Oswald has no idea if that’s what he wants or not.

And in that last shot, they remember they used to be friends. And really liked each other. And still like each other. And it's so fucked up that they're here now. They both think it's fucked up, they both would rather ANYTHING ELSE was happening right now, that anything else had happened so that they wouldn't be here now.

The both of them want to NOT hate each other. And that... knowing they’d rather be friends, that the fact that they’re not is breaking their hearts... that’s going to fuck them up for awhile. Possibly forever.

This has been some thoughts on the 60 seconds of silence at the end of 3x18. I am very tired now and going to bed. I might add more to this as needed. ...fuck me, these two are going to kill me.