Only a Borgia can love a Borgia - so it seems I am a Borgia
I am well aware that I have not one, but two unanswered posts. I truly will get to them. But guys. Guys.
CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE BORGIAS PLEASE? BECAUSE JFC THIS SHOW.
I have never really talked much about this show here, because I have always (literally, always) been super behind on it and I fear spoilers like I fear the zombie apocalypse. But this showwww, man. I have been hardcore loving it on the down low for years. It has a special place in my heart, because I remember seeing ads for it on buses before it premiered and thinking HISTORICAL SHOW ON A SEX NETWORK I'M IN. But the premiere date was April 8th, which was the day my senior thesis was due, so this show was going to be a reward for finally finishing all 77 pages of convoluted rambling about the interrupted seriality of Shakespeare's English kings through the concept of usurpation. So sometimes when I think of this show, I just get slammed with nostalgic feels for what was a super strange and awesome time in my life.
But also, this show, tho? It's history and period piece splendor and attractive French Canadians and glorious, glorious incest and Jeremy Irons's voice and did I mention the most perfect incest ever to have incested? And I finally finished series 3 last night, and now due to the general fuckery of TV and the unfaltering desire of the TV gods to cancel everything I hold dearest, I shall have no more Borgia shenanigans to delight me, I will post a general flailing celebration post, because I am awash with feels, and though I am typically late to the party, what I lack in punctuality, I make up for in caps lock.
LET US COMMENCE.
~Trying to encapsulate all my feels in one post-mortem post is kind of like trying to explain the Game of Thrones books to someone who has seen the entire series. You sort of don't know where to start and you feel super obvious saying anything? But let us state for the official record that Jeremy Irons has one of the best voices known to man. All arguments are invalid.
~The look of this show was incredible. I mean, the costumes, the sets, the everything. It was just pretty to look at. It must have been terribly expensive, but man did they spend their money well.
~This show was just extraordinarily acted all around. I don't know why it didn't get more attention, tbh, because damn, this cast was awesome. Picking a series MVP is a near-impossible task, but edging into the lead by a narrow margin is none other than:
~MY #1 LADY, LUCREZIA BORGIA. Flawless from start to finish. Holliday Grainger is fucking masterful in this role. It's a hard call between Francois and Holliday for this (meaningless) award, but Holliday sneaks ahead at the finish line. She just is Lucrezia Borgia, every single glorious facet of her. She nailed it all, the innocence, the longing, the wrath, the calculation, the good intentions and the unrepentant triumph. She never veered too sharply in one direction - her so-called 'descent into darkness' never felt linear, which is exactly right. She wasn't a pure soul who got corrupted by a perfidious world. Every scheming, morally ambiguous, vengeful part of Lucrezia in later seasons was there from the beginning, dormant but very present. Likewise, her earnest nature, her adolescent desires and hopes all remained with her even as she grew into her own power. It was never a case of changing values. It was merely a refocusing of the veritable electron cloud that was Lucrezia Borgia's driving passions. It would have been so easy to make this a straightforward loss of innocence story, but Holliday created such a nuanced, multifaceted character that she will always be THE Lucrezia Borgia to me.
~Also, how amazing is the name Lucrezia. The half Italian in me fucking loved all the names in this show.
~And then there's Cesare. Guys. CESARE FUCKING BORGIA. It will surprise absolutely no one when I say that Cesare is my guy. This is probably the most cliched opinion in fandom. But, come on. It's Cesare Fucking Borgia. Beyond his indisputable historical awesomeness, Cesare is just fascinating from the get-go. And like Holliday's Lucrezia, Francois makes this character into the most stunning possible version. Let's be real, Cesare was always going to be interesting, but he didn't have to be this ridiculously compelling. But somehow, Francois made him the sort of character you can barely keep up with - he's always teetering from one extreme to another, all the while hiding behind stoicism and emotional lockdown. He's crazycakes and eerily calm all at the same time. And for someone like me, who spends way too much time establishing amateur psychological profiles of her favourite TV characters, he's legit exhausting, because he's ALWAYS going through some sort of existential crisis. This guy ranges through emotions and ambitions and vendettas so rapidly I wonder that he still finds time to buy hair product (more on Cesare's ever-evolving hair later). But as dramatique and head-shaking as he can be, he's also just glorious to behold. He's my ultimate anti-hero: he's got so much angst, most of it well-deserved, and yet he makes himself into this terrifying, relentless, borderline sociopathic warlord prince, and best of all, he's not doing it to compensate, not trying to make himself a villain to make up for the lack of love he gets from his father or whatever trope you will. It's because that's what's most efficient. And people. YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT INTELLIGENCE AND EFFICIENCY.
~So to that end, let's talk about Cesare Borgia. I've been thinking about him a lot today (because I am like that, what's new), and something that makes me love him so dearly is that he is quite unlike all these other dark-haired beautiful antiheroes I tend to fall for. He's really quite difficult to pin down. Because there isn't really a defining characteristic to him? He does feel deprived of his proper due from a father he's forever strived to please, often at the expense of his own desires. He does feel mistreated by the world, out of place, lost. But all these things, they're not what make him what he is? Cesare just becomes who he is. He takes one step after another after another, and they all make sense, and somehow he goes from the typical dutiful son inheriting the family business and ends up as Cesare Fucking Borgia. That's not to say that it's all random. All of his inner trauma obviously plays a role, but do you know what I mean when I say that it's not the cause? I don't know if this makes any sense, but that's so much of the intrigue of Cesare Borgia to me. He's so many things in one (damn fine) package, and he's a truly unique character. I've seen a few people say that he wouldn't be nearly as complex were it not for Francois's portrayal, and I think that's 100% true. That Canadian gem had a particular way of making Cesare simultaneously dead-eyed and conniving and consumed with feels. It was a thing of beauty to behold.
~Basically, this particular character and portrayal hit on about 97% of my character kinks, and it ~did things to me. There will never be another Cesare Borgia for me.
~So Francois Arnaud. I mean. What is there to say. He managed to make both long flowing locks and leather pants look oh so appealing, two fashions I have never been in the least bit tempted by before (in fact, I've actively reviled all long hair before, and yet...). How does he everything. Even though I had no need to see Cesare bone anyone but Lucrezia...I can't exactly complain about some of the gratuitous eye-candy we got. Vastly preferable to the plethora of Game of Thrones Why Porn we're subjected to so frequently. I WILL MISS YOUR FACE AND YOUR TORSO AND YOUR SLUTTINESS AND YOUR EVERYTHING, CESARE BORGIA.
~Also, all the points to Francois for his accent. I didn't even realize he wasn't British for all of season 1. I have an irritating propensity to critique faulty accents (accents are my hobby, so I find it inconveniently distracting when they're done poorly), and even actors who are typically very good at their assumed accents slip up sometimes (an eventuality whose identification I have fashioned into a veritable game). But Francois rarely, if ever, erred, at least not badly enough to take me out of a scene. So, well done, French Canadian. Also, he speaks French, so. Hmm, I could have sworn I put on panties this morning...
~I'm fascinated by the way people react to Cesare. Obviously, he runs a tight ship of terror psychology, and usually setting disloyal henchmen on fire in front of said henchman's comrades does the job on that front. But it's not just that people fear Cesare Borgia. They don't love him, though - only his sister and his mother really, truly love him (and probs Micheletto, lbr). But there's a kind of allure to Cesare that I find fascinating. People join him because they would not oppose him, but then it becomes a lifestyle. It occurs to me that all his converted second son allies could have continued with their original plan to aid Caterina Sforza, or at least stand by and let that one rando betray Cesare without outing him. But they don't, because, basically, once you're Team Cesare, you stay Team Cesare. And maybe this is part of why Machiavelli found him so interesting.
~Also, can we talk about how he murdered his brother and has had not a moment of remorse for it. He asks forgiveness for his father's sake, but never for his own. #could be Cesare's creed, tbh
~Ugh, this post is getting so long and I haven't even gotten to my flawless incestuous duo yet! So much to do.
~INCESTUOUS DUO TIME! Guys, Cesare/Lucrezia has been flying under the radar as one of my subtle but intense OTPs of OTPs for a while now. I haven't talked of them much, but they've been there, just biding their time while I dreamed the impossible dream. But lo, what wonder. It is not impossible. IT HAPPENED. IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. AND EVERY BIT OF IT WAS GLORIOUS. Honest to god, people, this show had its ups and downs, but Cesare/Lucrezia was never anything but utterly flawless. I probably use that word more than I ought to, but I mean it so wholeheartedly this time. Their each and every scene together was so charged, so effortlessly intimate, so essential to both their characters. They really were stunning to watch. Their scenes were consistently some of the strongest of the entire series, and I say that not just as a shipper. I think few could argue that Francois and Holliday are not absolutely amazing together. People throw around the term 'chemistry' practically willy-nilly these days, but UNF did these two have chemistry. From the very first, they had such a natural ease with each other, such poignant understanding. They both did such a phenomenal job of being DIFFERENT together. Lucrezia had a special demeanor for Cesare, but jfc, Cesare was damn near unrecognizable when he was with Lucrezia. This is so much of what made them just gorgeous to watch together. Historically, their relationship was the most important of both their lives - spouses and children came and went, and yet, incestuous or not, Cesare and Lucrezia never found anyone who could compare in their esteem to the other. So the way they just gracefully slide into their particular rapport and, jfc, the physicality of them, just. Spot on. But even beyond their mutual respect infatuations, their genuine happiness together just destroys me. They just like each other, in a way that really can't be replicated. I think that scene when they're reunited in front of Alfonso (lol) really drove that home. Beyond just growing up together, Cesare and Lucrezia had a regard and adoration for each other that is intrinsic to who they are. And fuck if that doesn't just get me right in the feels every time.
~LOL forever @ Neil Jordan initially not intending to *go there* incest-wise. I mean, that's what I read in season 1, so I never got my hopes up too high (until this season, obvs), but dude, come on. Literally the FIRST scene they had together, which, was it not the first scene for both of the individually as well? Was RIDICULOUSLY sexual. Like. They never had a chance. And from what I read, Francois, bless that boy, agrees completely. I do love it when the actors just GET their characters, whether or not the writers have clued in yet, and while I haven't read much from Holliday, I assume she's on board. And I know that Francois is pretty much the biggest Cesare/Lucrezia shipper ever. Well done, sir. Well done.
~And to that end, can I just flail about Francois for a second? The both of them were so phenomenal at being almost unconsciously adoring of each other, but Francois in particular was just so utterly, unrelentingly infatuated with her in literally every scene they were ever in together, even if that wasn't even close to the forefront of the action. He always found a way to gaze/caress/smile/eye-fuck his most beloved sister even when the scene itself had fuck all to do with the inevitable sibling boning. And for that, we thank him. But seriously, all shipping aside (lol, not possible), Francois was just a rock star in this. Cesare pretty much only has eyes for Lucrezia - she is the center of his universe, and Francois made that very clear, even when Cesare probably didn't even realize how much his incest was showing.
~UGHHHHH GUYS BUT ACTUAL CANON INCEST. And it was stunning. And so much more tasteful than it could have been. Like, if it really wanted to go big, this show could have made the incest plotline as depraved and explicit as it wanted to. Hell, I probably would have rejoiced in that. But instead, it showed surprising restraint. Obviously we had our longing looks and charged moments, but honestly, we got very little actual acts. We got some, and I will forever be grateful that the show got canceled AFTER the incest officially happened, but still. Restraint, guys. For realz. I said it. I meant it.
Ok, I still have tons more to say, but this post is already way too long and no one is going to read this anyway it's just me flailing about awesome stuff everyone already knows is awesome I JUST HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS. But to conclude:
~While I recognize that they a) didn't know it was a series finale and b) these characters were of lesser importance at this particular moment in the story, I could have done with a proper (or at least more proper) goodbye from Giulia and Vanozza. And Rodrigo, tbh. I'm in this show for the kids, let's be real, but Rodrigo didn't really have much of a send-off, amirite? Don't get me wrong, if I could choose anyone to have a halfway decent ending point, it would be Cesare and Lucrezia, and that's what we got, but still. It will always feel a bit unfinished (and IMAGINE THE INCEST WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN IN S4. IMAGINE IT. AND MINE. AAAAAHHHH).
~I'd like to take a moment to appreciate the unsung hero of this show: Cardinal Ascanio Sforza. That dude was awesome, and the best lieutenant a corrupt pope could ask for, and he had the JAUNTIEST hats. You will be missed, bro.
~I <3 Cesare's bromance with Machiavelli. Fashion advice BrOTP for the win (speaking of, come on, Cesare. When do you ever wear ANYTHING but black? Fool.).
~This whole length-tastic post doesn't even mention Juan, which is a travesty. I just got distracted by the shiny siblings in love.
~And the most important question of all: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GIOFFRE??? I have legit been wondering this for ages. He's there in season 1, I was suitably horrified when his brother boned his new bride in the next room, and then...he vanishes. And then after Juan dies, Rodrigo is whinging about how Cesare is his only son, and I'm just like, "ummmm, no he isn't?" WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHER ONE, GUYS. I'm super serious about this. I have no idea. Did I miss a mention of his random death or something? I will be forever haunted by this. #the case of the disappearing brother
THUS ENDS THIS PARTICULAR FLAIL POST ABOUT THE BORGIAS SORRY ABOUT THE LENGTH BUT IS ANYONE SURPRISED REALLY I THOUGHT NOT.
And because Mean Girls is always relevant:
CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE BORGIAS PLEASE? BECAUSE JFC THIS SHOW.
I have never really talked much about this show here, because I have always (literally, always) been super behind on it and I fear spoilers like I fear the zombie apocalypse. But this showwww, man. I have been hardcore loving it on the down low for years. It has a special place in my heart, because I remember seeing ads for it on buses before it premiered and thinking HISTORICAL SHOW ON A SEX NETWORK I'M IN. But the premiere date was April 8th, which was the day my senior thesis was due, so this show was going to be a reward for finally finishing all 77 pages of convoluted rambling about the interrupted seriality of Shakespeare's English kings through the concept of usurpation. So sometimes when I think of this show, I just get slammed with nostalgic feels for what was a super strange and awesome time in my life.
But also, this show, tho? It's history and period piece splendor and attractive French Canadians and glorious, glorious incest and Jeremy Irons's voice and did I mention the most perfect incest ever to have incested? And I finally finished series 3 last night, and now due to the general fuckery of TV and the unfaltering desire of the TV gods to cancel everything I hold dearest, I shall have no more Borgia shenanigans to delight me, I will post a general flailing celebration post, because I am awash with feels, and though I am typically late to the party, what I lack in punctuality, I make up for in caps lock.
LET US COMMENCE.
~Trying to encapsulate all my feels in one post-mortem post is kind of like trying to explain the Game of Thrones books to someone who has seen the entire series. You sort of don't know where to start and you feel super obvious saying anything? But let us state for the official record that Jeremy Irons has one of the best voices known to man. All arguments are invalid.
~The look of this show was incredible. I mean, the costumes, the sets, the everything. It was just pretty to look at. It must have been terribly expensive, but man did they spend their money well.
~This show was just extraordinarily acted all around. I don't know why it didn't get more attention, tbh, because damn, this cast was awesome. Picking a series MVP is a near-impossible task, but edging into the lead by a narrow margin is none other than:
~MY #1 LADY, LUCREZIA BORGIA. Flawless from start to finish. Holliday Grainger is fucking masterful in this role. It's a hard call between Francois and Holliday for this (meaningless) award, but Holliday sneaks ahead at the finish line. She just is Lucrezia Borgia, every single glorious facet of her. She nailed it all, the innocence, the longing, the wrath, the calculation, the good intentions and the unrepentant triumph. She never veered too sharply in one direction - her so-called 'descent into darkness' never felt linear, which is exactly right. She wasn't a pure soul who got corrupted by a perfidious world. Every scheming, morally ambiguous, vengeful part of Lucrezia in later seasons was there from the beginning, dormant but very present. Likewise, her earnest nature, her adolescent desires and hopes all remained with her even as she grew into her own power. It was never a case of changing values. It was merely a refocusing of the veritable electron cloud that was Lucrezia Borgia's driving passions. It would have been so easy to make this a straightforward loss of innocence story, but Holliday created such a nuanced, multifaceted character that she will always be THE Lucrezia Borgia to me.
~Also, how amazing is the name Lucrezia. The half Italian in me fucking loved all the names in this show.
~And then there's Cesare. Guys. CESARE FUCKING BORGIA. It will surprise absolutely no one when I say that Cesare is my guy. This is probably the most cliched opinion in fandom. But, come on. It's Cesare Fucking Borgia. Beyond his indisputable historical awesomeness, Cesare is just fascinating from the get-go. And like Holliday's Lucrezia, Francois makes this character into the most stunning possible version. Let's be real, Cesare was always going to be interesting, but he didn't have to be this ridiculously compelling. But somehow, Francois made him the sort of character you can barely keep up with - he's always teetering from one extreme to another, all the while hiding behind stoicism and emotional lockdown. He's crazycakes and eerily calm all at the same time. And for someone like me, who spends way too much time establishing amateur psychological profiles of her favourite TV characters, he's legit exhausting, because he's ALWAYS going through some sort of existential crisis. This guy ranges through emotions and ambitions and vendettas so rapidly I wonder that he still finds time to buy hair product (more on Cesare's ever-evolving hair later). But as dramatique and head-shaking as he can be, he's also just glorious to behold. He's my ultimate anti-hero: he's got so much angst, most of it well-deserved, and yet he makes himself into this terrifying, relentless, borderline sociopathic warlord prince, and best of all, he's not doing it to compensate, not trying to make himself a villain to make up for the lack of love he gets from his father or whatever trope you will. It's because that's what's most efficient. And people. YOU KNOW HOW I FEEL ABOUT INTELLIGENCE AND EFFICIENCY.
~So to that end, let's talk about Cesare Borgia. I've been thinking about him a lot today (because I am like that, what's new), and something that makes me love him so dearly is that he is quite unlike all these other dark-haired beautiful antiheroes I tend to fall for. He's really quite difficult to pin down. Because there isn't really a defining characteristic to him? He does feel deprived of his proper due from a father he's forever strived to please, often at the expense of his own desires. He does feel mistreated by the world, out of place, lost. But all these things, they're not what make him what he is? Cesare just becomes who he is. He takes one step after another after another, and they all make sense, and somehow he goes from the typical dutiful son inheriting the family business and ends up as Cesare Fucking Borgia. That's not to say that it's all random. All of his inner trauma obviously plays a role, but do you know what I mean when I say that it's not the cause? I don't know if this makes any sense, but that's so much of the intrigue of Cesare Borgia to me. He's so many things in one (damn fine) package, and he's a truly unique character. I've seen a few people say that he wouldn't be nearly as complex were it not for Francois's portrayal, and I think that's 100% true. That Canadian gem had a particular way of making Cesare simultaneously dead-eyed and conniving and consumed with feels. It was a thing of beauty to behold.
~Basically, this particular character and portrayal hit on about 97% of my character kinks, and it ~did things to me. There will never be another Cesare Borgia for me.
~So Francois Arnaud. I mean. What is there to say. He managed to make both long flowing locks and leather pants look oh so appealing, two fashions I have never been in the least bit tempted by before (in fact, I've actively reviled all long hair before, and yet...). How does he everything. Even though I had no need to see Cesare bone anyone but Lucrezia...I can't exactly complain about some of the gratuitous eye-candy we got. Vastly preferable to the plethora of Game of Thrones Why Porn we're subjected to so frequently. I WILL MISS YOUR FACE AND YOUR TORSO AND YOUR SLUTTINESS AND YOUR EVERYTHING, CESARE BORGIA.
~Also, all the points to Francois for his accent. I didn't even realize he wasn't British for all of season 1. I have an irritating propensity to critique faulty accents (accents are my hobby, so I find it inconveniently distracting when they're done poorly), and even actors who are typically very good at their assumed accents slip up sometimes (an eventuality whose identification I have fashioned into a veritable game). But Francois rarely, if ever, erred, at least not badly enough to take me out of a scene. So, well done, French Canadian. Also, he speaks French, so. Hmm, I could have sworn I put on panties this morning...
~I'm fascinated by the way people react to Cesare. Obviously, he runs a tight ship of terror psychology, and usually setting disloyal henchmen on fire in front of said henchman's comrades does the job on that front. But it's not just that people fear Cesare Borgia. They don't love him, though - only his sister and his mother really, truly love him (and probs Micheletto, lbr). But there's a kind of allure to Cesare that I find fascinating. People join him because they would not oppose him, but then it becomes a lifestyle. It occurs to me that all his converted second son allies could have continued with their original plan to aid Caterina Sforza, or at least stand by and let that one rando betray Cesare without outing him. But they don't, because, basically, once you're Team Cesare, you stay Team Cesare. And maybe this is part of why Machiavelli found him so interesting.
~Also, can we talk about how he murdered his brother and has had not a moment of remorse for it. He asks forgiveness for his father's sake, but never for his own. #could be Cesare's creed, tbh
~Ugh, this post is getting so long and I haven't even gotten to my flawless incestuous duo yet! So much to do.
~INCESTUOUS DUO TIME! Guys, Cesare/Lucrezia has been flying under the radar as one of my subtle but intense OTPs of OTPs for a while now. I haven't talked of them much, but they've been there, just biding their time while I dreamed the impossible dream. But lo, what wonder. It is not impossible. IT HAPPENED. IT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. AND EVERY BIT OF IT WAS GLORIOUS. Honest to god, people, this show had its ups and downs, but Cesare/Lucrezia was never anything but utterly flawless. I probably use that word more than I ought to, but I mean it so wholeheartedly this time. Their each and every scene together was so charged, so effortlessly intimate, so essential to both their characters. They really were stunning to watch. Their scenes were consistently some of the strongest of the entire series, and I say that not just as a shipper. I think few could argue that Francois and Holliday are not absolutely amazing together. People throw around the term 'chemistry' practically willy-nilly these days, but UNF did these two have chemistry. From the very first, they had such a natural ease with each other, such poignant understanding. They both did such a phenomenal job of being DIFFERENT together. Lucrezia had a special demeanor for Cesare, but jfc, Cesare was damn near unrecognizable when he was with Lucrezia. This is so much of what made them just gorgeous to watch together. Historically, their relationship was the most important of both their lives - spouses and children came and went, and yet, incestuous or not, Cesare and Lucrezia never found anyone who could compare in their esteem to the other. So the way they just gracefully slide into their particular rapport and, jfc, the physicality of them, just. Spot on. But even beyond their mutual respect infatuations, their genuine happiness together just destroys me. They just like each other, in a way that really can't be replicated. I think that scene when they're reunited in front of Alfonso (lol) really drove that home. Beyond just growing up together, Cesare and Lucrezia had a regard and adoration for each other that is intrinsic to who they are. And fuck if that doesn't just get me right in the feels every time.
~LOL forever @ Neil Jordan initially not intending to *go there* incest-wise. I mean, that's what I read in season 1, so I never got my hopes up too high (until this season, obvs), but dude, come on. Literally the FIRST scene they had together, which, was it not the first scene for both of the individually as well? Was RIDICULOUSLY sexual. Like. They never had a chance. And from what I read, Francois, bless that boy, agrees completely. I do love it when the actors just GET their characters, whether or not the writers have clued in yet, and while I haven't read much from Holliday, I assume she's on board. And I know that Francois is pretty much the biggest Cesare/Lucrezia shipper ever. Well done, sir. Well done.
~And to that end, can I just flail about Francois for a second? The both of them were so phenomenal at being almost unconsciously adoring of each other, but Francois in particular was just so utterly, unrelentingly infatuated with her in literally every scene they were ever in together, even if that wasn't even close to the forefront of the action. He always found a way to gaze/caress/smile/eye-fuck his most beloved sister even when the scene itself had fuck all to do with the inevitable sibling boning. And for that, we thank him. But seriously, all shipping aside (lol, not possible), Francois was just a rock star in this. Cesare pretty much only has eyes for Lucrezia - she is the center of his universe, and Francois made that very clear, even when Cesare probably didn't even realize how much his incest was showing.
~UGHHHHH GUYS BUT ACTUAL CANON INCEST. And it was stunning. And so much more tasteful than it could have been. Like, if it really wanted to go big, this show could have made the incest plotline as depraved and explicit as it wanted to. Hell, I probably would have rejoiced in that. But instead, it showed surprising restraint. Obviously we had our longing looks and charged moments, but honestly, we got very little actual acts. We got some, and I will forever be grateful that the show got canceled AFTER the incest officially happened, but still. Restraint, guys. For realz. I said it. I meant it.
Ok, I still have tons more to say, but this post is already way too long and no one is going to read this anyway it's just me flailing about awesome stuff everyone already knows is awesome I JUST HAVE A LOT OF FEELINGS. But to conclude:
~While I recognize that they a) didn't know it was a series finale and b) these characters were of lesser importance at this particular moment in the story, I could have done with a proper (or at least more proper) goodbye from Giulia and Vanozza. And Rodrigo, tbh. I'm in this show for the kids, let's be real, but Rodrigo didn't really have much of a send-off, amirite? Don't get me wrong, if I could choose anyone to have a halfway decent ending point, it would be Cesare and Lucrezia, and that's what we got, but still. It will always feel a bit unfinished (and IMAGINE THE INCEST WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN IN S4. IMAGINE IT. AND MINE. AAAAAHHHH).
~I'd like to take a moment to appreciate the unsung hero of this show: Cardinal Ascanio Sforza. That dude was awesome, and the best lieutenant a corrupt pope could ask for, and he had the JAUNTIEST hats. You will be missed, bro.
~I <3 Cesare's bromance with Machiavelli. Fashion advice BrOTP for the win (speaking of, come on, Cesare. When do you ever wear ANYTHING but black? Fool.).
~This whole length-tastic post doesn't even mention Juan, which is a travesty. I just got distracted by the shiny siblings in love.
~And the most important question of all: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO GIOFFRE??? I have legit been wondering this for ages. He's there in season 1, I was suitably horrified when his brother boned his new bride in the next room, and then...he vanishes. And then after Juan dies, Rodrigo is whinging about how Cesare is his only son, and I'm just like, "ummmm, no he isn't?" WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OTHER ONE, GUYS. I'm super serious about this. I have no idea. Did I miss a mention of his random death or something? I will be forever haunted by this. #the case of the disappearing brother
THUS ENDS THIS PARTICULAR FLAIL POST ABOUT THE BORGIAS SORRY ABOUT THE LENGTH BUT IS ANYONE SURPRISED REALLY I THOUGHT NOT.
And because Mean Girls is always relevant: