shall we share the secret of your eternal middle-age?
Okay, I need to talk about Normandy.
Sanctuary 3x17: Normandy
I went into this episode with a LOT of expectations. I was trying to keep my expectations in check because I didn't want to be disappointed, but with the way Damian, Amanda, Robin, Martin, EVERYONE was talking about this episode, I knew it would be special.
HOLY FREAKING CRAP. THAT WAS BEYOND ANYTHING I COULD HAVE IMAGINED.
The history, the scale, the tank, the Five, everything. I can't. I just, I can't. (And, yes, this is part rambling, part picspam because this episode is so freaking gorgeous and I can't stop playing with dunhammed's caps in Photoshop.)
Let's start with the Five. Tesla in his three-piece suit and his slicked-back hair, whining about the lack of tea and protocols and not being out there with the rest of them. Druitt, who joined the SS for the clothes and so he could kill Hitler at the theatre. Griffin, whom I suddenly love because we actually got to see him do stuff; he's cheeky and sneaky and the French woman who's name I've forgotten is totally Clara's grandmother, right? (Did Nigel ditched the Five after the war to settle down?) Watson, being the baddest of the badasses, enduring torture from the Nazis and his former best friend. And Magnus, right alongside him, leading these men as she always does, watching Watson get tortured as she sits trapped a few feet away.
These people, these frakking superheroes, miles more brilliant than anyone else, still faithful and loyal to each other after all these years, working together towards the greater good. I mean Tesla doesn't work well with others, he flat out told that traitor kid (did we ever get his name?) that he works alone, but this is important and God knows that if Magnus asked him there wasn't any way he could have said no. Even Druitt; he's a menace, he betrayed them, they can't trust him and he can't trust them - not fully, not ever again - but harboring an evil such as he is gives him the ability to recognize evil "in its purest form" in the shape of the Nazis and that recognition spurs him to fight against them from inside. He may not be with the Five anymore, but when it comes to this, he's with them.
(And of course he killed Hitler, of course he did. The blunt admission to Watson - "I slid a blade right through his tunic, felt his heart stop" - was so perfect; Chris Heyerdahl, you deserve all the awards.)
Well, not all the awards. Sorry, Mr. Heyerdahl, you'll have to split them 50/50 with Mr. Peter Wingfield. That's right, it's time to talk about what I like to call "Victorian manhandling."
I have loved the Druitt and Watson relationship like crazy since we first witnessed it in Revelations, Parts I and II. I find it utterly fascinating, just as fascinating as Magnus and Druitt's relationship. These two men - these men who were once best friends and then turned into the greatest of enemies - they can’t be in the same room without hurting each other physically and emotionally. They can’t face each other without remembering all the pain and betrayal that has occurred in the past and how everything that has transpired between them has not only soured the good times but is compounded by the good times they once shared. Druitt literally tortures Watson. They hurl insults at each other, particularly when it is revealed that Helen and James are together now.
And yet.
And yet, there is the Victorian manhandling. Whatever they are or were, I love it, I want more of it, and I love how physical they are with each other. All I know is, I love every. single. fucking. scene. between Watson and Druitt and I really, really love it when they're angry and grabbing each other.
And even when they're not angry with each other: when the teleportation doesn't work, Druitt hangs on to Watson's shirt and Watson steadies himself on Druitt's arm before he sits down. They may not trust each other, they may hate each other, but they were best friends once, a long time ago, and there is a tiny part of them that remembers that when Watson has trouble standing on his own.
(For the record, the Five in general are rather handsy with each other and I'm totally okay with that. Granted, it's usually in regards to Watson and his suit, but I'll take what I can get. I think Tesla's the only one who hasn't gotten handsy with Watson at this point, between Revelations and Normandy.)
And then there's Magnus and Watson. I don't think I shipped them before this; I wasn't averse to the idea or anything, I just never gave it much thought. But now? Ugh, I love it crazy amounts. I think it's pretty safe to say that I'm in love with Magnus/Druitt/Watson and any combination thereof. She screamed his name when Korba pulled those tubes, when he got shot and told Nigel to drive away. She called him "darling" when she was finally free of her restraints. The look on his face when Korba brings her into the bunker, that look that just says "Oh dear God, no, they've got you, too." Seriously, y'all. I need more.
(And holy crap, does this make the end of Revelations even more sad than before. I mean, it was damn sad to begin with; even before it was confirmed that Magnus and Watson were a couple for some period of time, he was still one of her best and longest friends and his death was heartbreaking, but now? Uuuuuuuugh. His "you, I shall miss" is so sad.)
(HOLY CRAP, I'VE ALREADY WRITTEN THIS MUCH AND I HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN TO JACK AND MARTIN AND DAMIAN AND ANDREW. The Five give me ~feelings~.)
Jack Zimmerman. Slow clap for you, Robin Dunne. Jack just felt so different from Will that it was easy not to see Will in Robin at all. And I'm not just talking about the accent; I feel like Robin worked really hard to not be Will. I don't know how to describe it. And I love love love love love that he never met Magnus; if he had, it would have been something she's kept from Will all this time and I didn't like the idea of that. Given the relationship that their grandchildren had sixty-five years down the road, I did get a little kick out of the fact that it was Griffin who interacted with Jack.
Okay, now it's time to talk about Martin and Damian and Andrew. The flawlessness of this episode is due in no small part to these three guys. I'm not diminishing the actors in any way, I'm just saying that Martin directed, Damian wrote, and Andrew scored a gorgeous, phenomenal episode. Honestly, Andrew Lockington outdid himself. I'm speechless when it comes to the score. I've always liked his work (the end of Sleepers particularly) but this score was, in my opinion, above and beyond anything he's ever done for Sanctuary. That was like Giacchino material, man (and considering Giacchino is my favorite composer, that's meant as a high compliment). You can totally tell the amount of research and dedication that Damian put into writing this episode, how perfectly paced it is and how everyone works together seamlessly. I've always thought Sanctuary was a pretty show, but this episode was beyond gorgeous. Filming in the mountains, in the dark, with the tank was brilliant and thank God they managed to find the budget for it because Martin probably had a grand old time directing everyone around in the middle of the night, in the rain.
I really loved the tank, okay? I don't know why. Leave me alone.
I know I'm probably forgetting something. I'm sure I'll think of it tonight when I'm at work and can't easily edit this post. Suffice it to say that I thought this episode was utterly and completely brilliant in every single way, I absolutely love the Five and how we see them again soon, and I cannot wait until we get season 3 DVDs. In a few interviews, Amanda and Robin have said that they shot a bunch of behind-the-scenes stuff for this episode during the filming and I need to see that, like, RIGHT NOW.
Ugh. I wonder if I have time to watch it again before I go into work.
Sanctuary 3x17: Normandy
I went into this episode with a LOT of expectations. I was trying to keep my expectations in check because I didn't want to be disappointed, but with the way Damian, Amanda, Robin, Martin, EVERYONE was talking about this episode, I knew it would be special.
HOLY FREAKING CRAP. THAT WAS BEYOND ANYTHING I COULD HAVE IMAGINED.
The history, the scale, the tank, the Five, everything. I can't. I just, I can't. (And, yes, this is part rambling, part picspam because this episode is so freaking gorgeous and I can't stop playing with dunhammed's caps in Photoshop.)
Let's start with the Five. Tesla in his three-piece suit and his slicked-back hair, whining about the lack of tea and protocols and not being out there with the rest of them. Druitt, who joined the SS for the clothes and so he could kill Hitler at the theatre. Griffin, whom I suddenly love because we actually got to see him do stuff; he's cheeky and sneaky and the French woman who's name I've forgotten is totally Clara's grandmother, right? (Did Nigel ditched the Five after the war to settle down?) Watson, being the baddest of the badasses, enduring torture from the Nazis and his former best friend. And Magnus, right alongside him, leading these men as she always does, watching Watson get tortured as she sits trapped a few feet away.
These people, these frakking superheroes, miles more brilliant than anyone else, still faithful and loyal to each other after all these years, working together towards the greater good. I mean Tesla doesn't work well with others, he flat out told that traitor kid (did we ever get his name?) that he works alone, but this is important and God knows that if Magnus asked him there wasn't any way he could have said no. Even Druitt; he's a menace, he betrayed them, they can't trust him and he can't trust them - not fully, not ever again - but harboring an evil such as he is gives him the ability to recognize evil "in its purest form" in the shape of the Nazis and that recognition spurs him to fight against them from inside. He may not be with the Five anymore, but when it comes to this, he's with them.
(And of course he killed Hitler, of course he did. The blunt admission to Watson - "I slid a blade right through his tunic, felt his heart stop" - was so perfect; Chris Heyerdahl, you deserve all the awards.)
Well, not all the awards. Sorry, Mr. Heyerdahl, you'll have to split them 50/50 with Mr. Peter Wingfield. That's right, it's time to talk about what I like to call "Victorian manhandling."
I have loved the Druitt and Watson relationship like crazy since we first witnessed it in Revelations, Parts I and II. I find it utterly fascinating, just as fascinating as Magnus and Druitt's relationship. These two men - these men who were once best friends and then turned into the greatest of enemies - they can’t be in the same room without hurting each other physically and emotionally. They can’t face each other without remembering all the pain and betrayal that has occurred in the past and how everything that has transpired between them has not only soured the good times but is compounded by the good times they once shared. Druitt literally tortures Watson. They hurl insults at each other, particularly when it is revealed that Helen and James are together now.
And yet.
And yet, there is the Victorian manhandling. Whatever they are or were, I love it, I want more of it, and I love how physical they are with each other. All I know is, I love every. single. fucking. scene. between Watson and Druitt and I really, really love it when they're angry and grabbing each other.
And even when they're not angry with each other: when the teleportation doesn't work, Druitt hangs on to Watson's shirt and Watson steadies himself on Druitt's arm before he sits down. They may not trust each other, they may hate each other, but they were best friends once, a long time ago, and there is a tiny part of them that remembers that when Watson has trouble standing on his own.
(For the record, the Five in general are rather handsy with each other and I'm totally okay with that. Granted, it's usually in regards to Watson and his suit, but I'll take what I can get. I think Tesla's the only one who hasn't gotten handsy with Watson at this point, between Revelations and Normandy.)
And then there's Magnus and Watson. I don't think I shipped them before this; I wasn't averse to the idea or anything, I just never gave it much thought. But now? Ugh, I love it crazy amounts. I think it's pretty safe to say that I'm in love with Magnus/Druitt/Watson and any combination thereof. She screamed his name when Korba pulled those tubes, when he got shot and told Nigel to drive away. She called him "darling" when she was finally free of her restraints. The look on his face when Korba brings her into the bunker, that look that just says "Oh dear God, no, they've got you, too." Seriously, y'all. I need more.
(And holy crap, does this make the end of Revelations even more sad than before. I mean, it was damn sad to begin with; even before it was confirmed that Magnus and Watson were a couple for some period of time, he was still one of her best and longest friends and his death was heartbreaking, but now? Uuuuuuuugh. His "you, I shall miss" is so sad.)
(HOLY CRAP, I'VE ALREADY WRITTEN THIS MUCH AND I HAVEN'T EVEN GOTTEN TO JACK AND MARTIN AND DAMIAN AND ANDREW. The Five give me ~feelings~.)
Jack Zimmerman. Slow clap for you, Robin Dunne. Jack just felt so different from Will that it was easy not to see Will in Robin at all. And I'm not just talking about the accent; I feel like Robin worked really hard to not be Will. I don't know how to describe it. And I love love love love love that he never met Magnus; if he had, it would have been something she's kept from Will all this time and I didn't like the idea of that. Given the relationship that their grandchildren had sixty-five years down the road, I did get a little kick out of the fact that it was Griffin who interacted with Jack.
Okay, now it's time to talk about Martin and Damian and Andrew. The flawlessness of this episode is due in no small part to these three guys. I'm not diminishing the actors in any way, I'm just saying that Martin directed, Damian wrote, and Andrew scored a gorgeous, phenomenal episode. Honestly, Andrew Lockington outdid himself. I'm speechless when it comes to the score. I've always liked his work (the end of Sleepers particularly) but this score was, in my opinion, above and beyond anything he's ever done for Sanctuary. That was like Giacchino material, man (and considering Giacchino is my favorite composer, that's meant as a high compliment). You can totally tell the amount of research and dedication that Damian put into writing this episode, how perfectly paced it is and how everyone works together seamlessly. I've always thought Sanctuary was a pretty show, but this episode was beyond gorgeous. Filming in the mountains, in the dark, with the tank was brilliant and thank God they managed to find the budget for it because Martin probably had a grand old time directing everyone around in the middle of the night, in the rain.
I really loved the tank, okay? I don't know why. Leave me alone.
I know I'm probably forgetting something. I'm sure I'll think of it tonight when I'm at work and can't easily edit this post. Suffice it to say that I thought this episode was utterly and completely brilliant in every single way, I absolutely love the Five and how we see them again soon, and I cannot wait until we get season 3 DVDs. In a few interviews, Amanda and Robin have said that they shot a bunch of behind-the-scenes stuff for this episode during the filming and I need to see that, like, RIGHT NOW.
Ugh. I wonder if I have time to watch it again before I go into work.