(no subject)
I decided last week to give Bones a try, since I know a bunch of people who love it and, you know, it seemed up my alley what with the crime-solving and the UST! And I AM actually loving the show (Bones! Booth! Hodgins! Angela! Sweets! Cam! Caroline! ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥), so this is really not a reflection on my general enjoyment of it, but I just got done with the season three finale and WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK.
I actually enjoyed the Zack reveal in terms of sheer shock value. He certainly had the opportunity and I can even buy motivation. I think Caroline hit it right on the head when she said it was a typical case of a strong personality finding and taking advantage of a weak personality, because, God knows, intellectual superiority does not automatically equal a strong character. So I liked that part of it! But then, to be honest, the aftermath kind of freaked me out. Everyone in the Jeffersonian after Zack's arrest, going through his things and feeling wistful, seeming so fond, almost, and regretful that they had failed him somehow that just... did not work for me. At all.
Frankly, I was completely with Cam when she burst out that Zack was an adult who'd made his own choices, and that he was a murderer who deserved to be locked up forever. I'm not saying there are no redeeming circumstances in his case; obviously there are some mental issues, even if Sweets said that he was not clinically insane - I actually thought they were maybe going the PTSD route with him in the beginning of the season, but then that got kind of dropped - and he's very young and, in a way, very sheltered, but, like, the guy willingly became the apprentice of a murderous cannibal and helped him commit his crimes! It's revealed by one of the characters that Zack personally killed the slimeball lobbyist! (Even though they apparently backtrack on that in season four, if I read spoilers correctly? Which makes it slightly better, I guess, but still, APPRENTICE TO A MURDEROUS CANNIBAL!) But then, of course, Cam didn't actually mean that, she's just angry and grieving, and then Angela confirmed with someone that Zack had never eaten anyone himself, so I GUESS THAT'S OKAY, THEN. What is this show's philosophy on murder? It's awful and terrible and deserving of the death penalty, except when one of your loved ones commits it, in which case they should be forgiven? I. What. Huh?
I don't know. Maybe I'm biased because I never really warmed to Zack the way I did to all the others. I don't know if it was the way Eric Millegan played him or personal preference or what, but I spent three seasons finding him more annoying than endearing. /o\ I don't think it's the lack of social skills or the overly analytical responses to life and death, because it's not like Bones is particularly gifted in that arena and I still love her. A character like that can still be relatable and sympathetic and lovable to me, like Bones is, and like Reid is (because apparently I am unable to NOT compare any crime procedural to my beloved Criminal Minds), but even in situations where Zack should have resonated with me emotionally, he didn't. He hardly ever went beyond dead-eyed and robotic, which is kind of a shame, because Eric Millegan is clearly very talented, and he had some great moments, but, yeah. Not feeling the Zack love, so much.
BUT APART FROM THAT, I do really kind of adore it! SQUINTS AND THEIR CRANKY HANDLERS! ♥
I actually enjoyed the Zack reveal in terms of sheer shock value. He certainly had the opportunity and I can even buy motivation. I think Caroline hit it right on the head when she said it was a typical case of a strong personality finding and taking advantage of a weak personality, because, God knows, intellectual superiority does not automatically equal a strong character. So I liked that part of it! But then, to be honest, the aftermath kind of freaked me out. Everyone in the Jeffersonian after Zack's arrest, going through his things and feeling wistful, seeming so fond, almost, and regretful that they had failed him somehow that just... did not work for me. At all.
Frankly, I was completely with Cam when she burst out that Zack was an adult who'd made his own choices, and that he was a murderer who deserved to be locked up forever. I'm not saying there are no redeeming circumstances in his case; obviously there are some mental issues, even if Sweets said that he was not clinically insane - I actually thought they were maybe going the PTSD route with him in the beginning of the season, but then that got kind of dropped - and he's very young and, in a way, very sheltered, but, like, the guy willingly became the apprentice of a murderous cannibal and helped him commit his crimes! It's revealed by one of the characters that Zack personally killed the slimeball lobbyist! (Even though they apparently backtrack on that in season four, if I read spoilers correctly? Which makes it slightly better, I guess, but still, APPRENTICE TO A MURDEROUS CANNIBAL!) But then, of course, Cam didn't actually mean that, she's just angry and grieving, and then Angela confirmed with someone that Zack had never eaten anyone himself, so I GUESS THAT'S OKAY, THEN. What is this show's philosophy on murder? It's awful and terrible and deserving of the death penalty, except when one of your loved ones commits it, in which case they should be forgiven? I. What. Huh?
I don't know. Maybe I'm biased because I never really warmed to Zack the way I did to all the others. I don't know if it was the way Eric Millegan played him or personal preference or what, but I spent three seasons finding him more annoying than endearing. /o\ I don't think it's the lack of social skills or the overly analytical responses to life and death, because it's not like Bones is particularly gifted in that arena and I still love her. A character like that can still be relatable and sympathetic and lovable to me, like Bones is, and like Reid is (because apparently I am unable to NOT compare any crime procedural to my beloved Criminal Minds), but even in situations where Zack should have resonated with me emotionally, he didn't. He hardly ever went beyond dead-eyed and robotic, which is kind of a shame, because Eric Millegan is clearly very talented, and he had some great moments, but, yeah. Not feeling the Zack love, so much.
BUT APART FROM THAT, I do really kind of adore it! SQUINTS AND THEIR CRANKY HANDLERS! ♥