Rough Draft - Why Kate. Spoilers for Robin Hood BBC!!!
Warning! This post contains season 2 and 3 spoilers, including references to the finale. Read at your own risk.
Warning #2: I know a lot of people out there don’t like the character Kate. I was one of these people. However, I have recently become more sympathetic towards this character. If you are interested in bashing/blindly defending this character, this is not the post for you. This is my ramble/rant/in-depth analysis of what this character could have been. Honestly, these are mostly the thoughts and theories I have had while trying to figure out why I like Kate.
Kate’s Joining the Group
Over the past season, I have given this a lot of thought. Why did we get a Kate? I mean, I know that the writer reasoning was to provide a “love interest” and include women in the cast. But I wanted to know the gang keeps her around and why she joined them to begin with. The motivation on both sides is very murky. The writers never really give her a compelling reason for leaving her family behind to join the gang in Sherwood.
This is my theory. Make of it what you will. At the end of season 2, the gang is suffering some serious losses. Not only is Marian dead (*sobs*) but Will and Djaq have decided not to return with them. This leaves Robin (crazy/depressed), Little John (fighting the good fight/trying to hold people together), Allan (still not entirely trusted by the team apparently), and Much (being adorable but still not being treated well by Robin). This is one broken team.
Enter Kate. Kate is/was/should have been a young (teenager) and naïve villager. Robin Hood has been gone probably over a year at this point (yes, we can certainly argue the timeline). People Kate cares about have been suffering. She is young enough, naïve enough, and stupid enough to believe that that isn’t right or fair. The world is very black and white to her. She also believes that if people did the right thing, bad things wouldn’t happen. She’s an idealist, a hothead, but we can’t really blame her because at least she’s trying.
Kate, when she first comes into contact with the gang is angry and unappreciative for their aid. Okay, she is grateful, but she has a hard time expressing it. I mean, this is her childhood hero who left the villagers for no apparent reason. Remember those food drop-offs the team was always doing? Remember the citizens in every village within a day’s walk who depended on that support and aid? She was there when that help disappeared and people had to fend for themselves again. She doesn’t see the big picture. There’s no way she could have known that they had left for the Holy land to defend the king. She feels foolish for believing in them the way she used to. So they did a few things to save her now. What about the people who suffered and died when they were gone?
Two significant things change when Kate is allowed to join the group. First, Robin is realizing that sometimes you have to let people fight for themselves. Looking at one of the over-arching themes in this show, I realized that Robin thinks he can protect the people, but he isn’t willing to risk most of them in the fighting. I honestly think this is made worse by Marian’s death. Which is why -in the finale- it’s so significant that they finally arm the people. Kate is a precursor to all of this. Kate represents the common villager.
The other thing is that, by admitting Kate into the group, they are trying to fill that void that was left by other, more beloved, team members. It’s a sad acknowledgment of the state of the team. Yes, they let her stay for no apparent reason. It’s like they are applying her like a cheap band-aid. She’s often a pain, she rushes into things, and she is shrill (though I don’t know if I blame the writers or Joanne for that). However, she’s new and causes problems/obstacles that take their attention away from the fact that they should all probably be in some intensive group therapy. Kate provides a distraction.
It’s the exact same thing that happens when a beloved pet dies and then you rush right out to get a new kitten. You know it’s not the same, but you have to have that something in your life. You try to convince yourself you are happy with it, but it keeps reminding you of what you lost while at the same time never living up to that memory. That’s Kate.
I think Kate’s reason for staying has a lot to do with Matthew’s death. It upsets me a lot that they seem to forget about it until the very end. Kate felt intensely guilty over Matthew’s death. She blamed herself. Before he died, I think she truly believed that she defend her family. In the following episodes, I wanted her to realize that she was a untrained liability, that she couldn’t stop herself from acting on the injustice she saw, but that she couldn’t live with how it put everyone she loved at risk. I think this would have nicely paralleled Robin’s reluctance to risk letting the villagers fight. Both want to protect people but don’t always go about it the right way.
Other things that should have happened but didn’t and vice-verse:
1. From day one, Allan should have been calling her on the things she did wrong. Hot-headed, naïve characters can be endearing, but only if they are forced to learn from their mistakes. Someone besides the viewers needed to be saying, “why on earth did you just do that?” Then maybe we could have gotten some, you know, character development.
2. Also, she needed to be able to do SOMETHING. She needed one important skill that she could bring to the table. She shouldn’t have been able to get away with “Wow, she can get into the castle; can we keep her?” (by the way, yes she got in, but she got caught too!!! = not useful). Every week for two seasons, you guys got into the castle. Why on earth does this impress you? I don’t care if her special talent was that she could sew, providing everyone with snazzy new uniforms. I don’t care. She needed to be good at something besides making eyes at the leading men. Which leads me to the next point.
3. Do not make her a romantic interest the same season she’s introduced. Stop trying to rush the healing process, writers. And if you are going to do it anyway, do it right. We are not going to see all the men fall for her and believe it. ONE person on the team can go, “hey look, it’s a girl. I rather fancy girls.” And the other can look over, smack that one on the head and tease him.
I actually like Kate’s hero-worship/crush on Robin. It makes sense. He’s practically a superhero. He cares about the causes she cares about. He’s even nice to her mum. Of course she develops a crush on him. It goes along with the theory that she is much younger than she is played. I just don’t think Robin would have gone along with her, especially after what happened with Isabella.
So, Kate and Much. I have a hard time with this because I don’t understand what he sees in her. I know my reasoning for liking her, but most of those come from later in the season. I really wish we were given some scene that really showed us why Much saw something special in Kate. I mean, she’s not the only woman in Locksley. Why her? Why now?
I can’t talk about Kate and Much without addressing that scene where he tells her she’s perfect. In the show, we basically watch her crush him in the worst possible way. I don’t know what the writers were thinking. I’m not even upset that she rejected him. I’m upset with how they did it. Here’s what I think was really going on in that scene. Kate is obviously worried about the village livestock being confiscated and gives important news about it to Much. She, reasonably, expects Much to be concerned and then do something about it (with Robin). Instead, Much acts on Allan’s advice. Terrible timing, Much. Kate still reacts badly and insults Much.
What I think happened that the writers didn’t show:
I think that Kate knew just enough about Much to know that he didn’t say things like this. After all, he was clearly using a cheap pickup line. (Thanks, Allan). I think Kate thinks Allan put Much up to it, that Much doesn’t believe what he’s saying. She thinks two boys from Robin’s team are having a good laugh at her. She doesn’t know Much. She doesn’t know he wouldn’t do something like that. I really do believe that underneath all that bravado, Kate has a lot of self-doubts. I don’t think she thinks she’s perfect. (Remember, it’s often easier to believe the worst in someone else than the best in yourself). She says hurtful things to Much because she was hurt. Stupid, yes, but also completely understandable.
Anyway, this is my rant on Kate. I like the idea of the character if not the execution. I have nothing against fans who love or hate her. I think there is plenty of reason to do both.
Warning #2: I know a lot of people out there don’t like the character Kate. I was one of these people. However, I have recently become more sympathetic towards this character. If you are interested in bashing/blindly defending this character, this is not the post for you. This is my ramble/rant/in-depth analysis of what this character could have been. Honestly, these are mostly the thoughts and theories I have had while trying to figure out why I like Kate.
Kate’s Joining the Group
Over the past season, I have given this a lot of thought. Why did we get a Kate? I mean, I know that the writer reasoning was to provide a “love interest” and include women in the cast. But I wanted to know the gang keeps her around and why she joined them to begin with. The motivation on both sides is very murky. The writers never really give her a compelling reason for leaving her family behind to join the gang in Sherwood.
This is my theory. Make of it what you will. At the end of season 2, the gang is suffering some serious losses. Not only is Marian dead (*sobs*) but Will and Djaq have decided not to return with them. This leaves Robin (crazy/depressed), Little John (fighting the good fight/trying to hold people together), Allan (still not entirely trusted by the team apparently), and Much (being adorable but still not being treated well by Robin). This is one broken team.
Enter Kate. Kate is/was/should have been a young (teenager) and naïve villager. Robin Hood has been gone probably over a year at this point (yes, we can certainly argue the timeline). People Kate cares about have been suffering. She is young enough, naïve enough, and stupid enough to believe that that isn’t right or fair. The world is very black and white to her. She also believes that if people did the right thing, bad things wouldn’t happen. She’s an idealist, a hothead, but we can’t really blame her because at least she’s trying.
Kate, when she first comes into contact with the gang is angry and unappreciative for their aid. Okay, she is grateful, but she has a hard time expressing it. I mean, this is her childhood hero who left the villagers for no apparent reason. Remember those food drop-offs the team was always doing? Remember the citizens in every village within a day’s walk who depended on that support and aid? She was there when that help disappeared and people had to fend for themselves again. She doesn’t see the big picture. There’s no way she could have known that they had left for the Holy land to defend the king. She feels foolish for believing in them the way she used to. So they did a few things to save her now. What about the people who suffered and died when they were gone?
Two significant things change when Kate is allowed to join the group. First, Robin is realizing that sometimes you have to let people fight for themselves. Looking at one of the over-arching themes in this show, I realized that Robin thinks he can protect the people, but he isn’t willing to risk most of them in the fighting. I honestly think this is made worse by Marian’s death. Which is why -in the finale- it’s so significant that they finally arm the people. Kate is a precursor to all of this. Kate represents the common villager.
The other thing is that, by admitting Kate into the group, they are trying to fill that void that was left by other, more beloved, team members. It’s a sad acknowledgment of the state of the team. Yes, they let her stay for no apparent reason. It’s like they are applying her like a cheap band-aid. She’s often a pain, she rushes into things, and she is shrill (though I don’t know if I blame the writers or Joanne for that). However, she’s new and causes problems/obstacles that take their attention away from the fact that they should all probably be in some intensive group therapy. Kate provides a distraction.
It’s the exact same thing that happens when a beloved pet dies and then you rush right out to get a new kitten. You know it’s not the same, but you have to have that something in your life. You try to convince yourself you are happy with it, but it keeps reminding you of what you lost while at the same time never living up to that memory. That’s Kate.
I think Kate’s reason for staying has a lot to do with Matthew’s death. It upsets me a lot that they seem to forget about it until the very end. Kate felt intensely guilty over Matthew’s death. She blamed herself. Before he died, I think she truly believed that she defend her family. In the following episodes, I wanted her to realize that she was a untrained liability, that she couldn’t stop herself from acting on the injustice she saw, but that she couldn’t live with how it put everyone she loved at risk. I think this would have nicely paralleled Robin’s reluctance to risk letting the villagers fight. Both want to protect people but don’t always go about it the right way.
Other things that should have happened but didn’t and vice-verse:
1. From day one, Allan should have been calling her on the things she did wrong. Hot-headed, naïve characters can be endearing, but only if they are forced to learn from their mistakes. Someone besides the viewers needed to be saying, “why on earth did you just do that?” Then maybe we could have gotten some, you know, character development.
2. Also, she needed to be able to do SOMETHING. She needed one important skill that she could bring to the table. She shouldn’t have been able to get away with “Wow, she can get into the castle; can we keep her?” (by the way, yes she got in, but she got caught too!!! = not useful). Every week for two seasons, you guys got into the castle. Why on earth does this impress you? I don’t care if her special talent was that she could sew, providing everyone with snazzy new uniforms. I don’t care. She needed to be good at something besides making eyes at the leading men. Which leads me to the next point.
3. Do not make her a romantic interest the same season she’s introduced. Stop trying to rush the healing process, writers. And if you are going to do it anyway, do it right. We are not going to see all the men fall for her and believe it. ONE person on the team can go, “hey look, it’s a girl. I rather fancy girls.” And the other can look over, smack that one on the head and tease him.
I actually like Kate’s hero-worship/crush on Robin. It makes sense. He’s practically a superhero. He cares about the causes she cares about. He’s even nice to her mum. Of course she develops a crush on him. It goes along with the theory that she is much younger than she is played. I just don’t think Robin would have gone along with her, especially after what happened with Isabella.
So, Kate and Much. I have a hard time with this because I don’t understand what he sees in her. I know my reasoning for liking her, but most of those come from later in the season. I really wish we were given some scene that really showed us why Much saw something special in Kate. I mean, she’s not the only woman in Locksley. Why her? Why now?
I can’t talk about Kate and Much without addressing that scene where he tells her she’s perfect. In the show, we basically watch her crush him in the worst possible way. I don’t know what the writers were thinking. I’m not even upset that she rejected him. I’m upset with how they did it. Here’s what I think was really going on in that scene. Kate is obviously worried about the village livestock being confiscated and gives important news about it to Much. She, reasonably, expects Much to be concerned and then do something about it (with Robin). Instead, Much acts on Allan’s advice. Terrible timing, Much. Kate still reacts badly and insults Much.
What I think happened that the writers didn’t show:
I think that Kate knew just enough about Much to know that he didn’t say things like this. After all, he was clearly using a cheap pickup line. (Thanks, Allan). I think Kate thinks Allan put Much up to it, that Much doesn’t believe what he’s saying. She thinks two boys from Robin’s team are having a good laugh at her. She doesn’t know Much. She doesn’t know he wouldn’t do something like that. I really do believe that underneath all that bravado, Kate has a lot of self-doubts. I don’t think she thinks she’s perfect. (Remember, it’s often easier to believe the worst in someone else than the best in yourself). She says hurtful things to Much because she was hurt. Stupid, yes, but also completely understandable.
Anyway, this is my rant on Kate. I like the idea of the character if not the execution. I have nothing against fans who love or hate her. I think there is plenty of reason to do both.