Watching a Pros ep - Wild Justice

[byslantedlight]

I almost missed msmoat's post about Pros the other day (it's been nice to catch up on some of the interesting questions being posted about our lads recently - more of those, please! *g*) She asked What is your favorite Pros episode that other people don't like?, and although I find it very hard to answer favourite ep questions usually (many! for many

Comments

[mab_browne]

I like Wild Justice well enough, for many of the reasons you lay out here. I think one reason why it's not hugely popular (if that is indeed the case, I couldn't say) will be lads' relationship reasons - namely, Bodie doesn't tell Doyle what he's up to. Now, it's easy enough to justify that - Bodie is up to no good in a legal sense, even if he's driven by a personal sense of loyalty and justice, so he's going to leave Doyle with plausible deniability. Also, he hits Doyle in the fight in the forest from recollection? Always a black mark. Also, while some watchers will kink on deeply intensely violent Bodie, other people will find that quality off-putting. I always recall LC's claim that he was too aggressive a Bond candidate for the Broccoli era, and that aggression is on display in spades in this ep. Also, I can't remember what the background was for the deaths, and how involved the biker gang was in the whole thing - so maybe some of the plot holes keep it out of classic episode status

[byslantedlight]

lads' relationship reasons - namely, Bodie doesn't tell Doyle what he's up to
Yes, I do see that - I suppose it's just that in my head I do also see why Bodie might not tell Doyle about it, and it can go so many interesting ways that again I rather assume other people might see those ways too! And I do assume that they have a back-and-forth relationship at this stage too, rather than effectively being married, so to me it's all part of those glitches, which makes it all more interesting... Same with Bodie hitting Doyle in the woods - I don't think he looks at Doyle and decides to hit him, I think he's just fighting anyone who moves, and Doyle calling out probably doesn't even register with him. And I love that Doyle jumps back in anyway, and goes to defend him again...

I don't particularly like deeply intensely violent Bodie, but I dislike him far more in Close Quarters, where he seems to be thinking about what he's doing, than here, where he's reacting very emotionally/irrationally for specific psychological reasons (I know you

[mab_browne]

Oh god, don't get me started on Close Quarters. Not an ep that shows young Master Bodie at his best, at all....

[byslantedlight]

Hee - it really doesn't...!

[hagsrus]

I always think Bodie's clothes would be a touch baggy on Doyle.

[byslantedlight]

Lol - his trousers, certainly! I can see a shirt working though - Doyle's got broad enough shoulders and a chest that they'd probably just look comfortably loose on him, I reckon... *g*

[dollidaydream]

I love this episode. I didn't realise that it isn't a fandom favourite. To me, it's like a behind the scenes episode - we get to see the lads training, we see the psychological machinery behind CI5's personnel, we see a relationship between Cowley and Doyle (the bowtie) and between Bodie and Doyle (borrowing the tux) and we see a shared hobby (the bikes) and more background on Bodie. For me, it's like a context-giving episode (if that makes *any* sense

[byslantedlight]

Essay away - not least because I tend to! *g*

And yeay for liking Wild Justice!

To me, it's like a behind the scenes episode
Yes! Nice way to describe it!

where one of the guys goes rouge
Rouge? Like blusher? I think that's a whole different episode... *vbg* (Sorry, I couldn't resist - perfect typo for rogue there! *vbg*

Steven Pacey? You mean Steven Pacey Tarrant Steven Pacey?! Ooh - I shall have to go back and listen to the psych questions! *g*

[dollidaydream]

lol! Yes like the *blusher* - even as I was typing it I was thinking that I can never tell the two words apart! *g* (And in any case, it matches Bodie's eyeliner from the fist-through-the-door incident! *g*). Do go back and listen to the voice, it always sounds like Steven Pacey to me.

[byslantedlight]

Hee - excellent point about Bodie's eye-liner! *g*

Hmmn - had another listen to Tarrant possible-Steven-Pacey, and I don't know - I'd need to get out me Blake's Seven again, it's been aaages since I watched him! Did he sound that posh in B7?!

[anonymous]

Welcome back! I have to admit this wasn't one of my all-time fave episodes but it did intrigue me when I first saw it. I did like the glimpse into their training [added a nice bit of credibility] but found it hard to warm to the idea of Bodie possibly losing the plot and going 'bad'. It all got too intellectual for me with Kate Ross trying to decipher Bodie's behaviour; but watching him and Doyle trying to beat the computer questionnaires was amusing. Otherwise my favourite scene was the one previously mentioned between Cowley and Ray - I loved the flat he was currently calling home; especially that beautiful round window! ...Kiashi

[byslantedlight]

Yeay - nice to be back! *g*

Bodie possibly losing the plot and going 'bad'
I wondered if that might be one of the reasons people didn't like it - but we do see him doing that in other episodes. What about in Man Without a Past when he disobeys Cowley's orders and tracks down whats-his-name, ready to do some serious damage? And Close Quarters, where the only explanation I can come up with for his bizarre behaviour is that he's on pain meds that have messed with his mind?! I dunno - it just doesn't seem that far out of character to me, if we accept the premise that he's reacting to something from his past...

I love Doyle's flat here too - so light, and it always makes me think it must be high up, for some reason - that window! (Although it also makes me want to sing a little bit - There's a bear in there... *vbg*)

[heliophile_oxon]

Great pics and observations :-)
I seem to remember there are quite a lot of fics that spring from this ep, so it has clearly siezed the imagination - perhaps because that apparent breakdown of communications between the lads definitely needs explaining! *g*

[byslantedlight]

Well thank you! *bows* (*falls over own feet, pics self up and dusts down, attempts to resume dignity*) *g*

that apparent breakdown of communications between the lads definitely needs explaining!
Yes! That's something else I love about it - there's clearly backstory between our lads for this ep - something's pushed them apart, even though they're still close in other ways (those looks!) I like to think that Doyle takes Bodie home to wash the mud off him in the next scene... *vbg*