Being Human 5.03
In which ghost girls don't just wanna have fun and we reach a turning point.
When Larry the phony started with his spin to Tom, I groaned and said, ANOTHER manipulator story? But of course that wasn't the point at all. A side issue was that Larry underscored something else the show stated before, that what makes someone monstrous isn't the supernatural element (some vampires excepted; I think it's hard to argue with the fact that Cutler, Crumb the annoying nerd or Adam would never have harmed anyone in their lives had they not been sired). The teaser told us all we needed to know about Larry being an obnoxious jerk before a werewolf ever scratched him; it was just a convenient excuse (and a way to mess with Tom's head) to blame the wolf later for his lackluster life.
Here's the thing, though. Note that for all his obnoxious jerkness, here's what the show didn't make Larry, and they easily could have: he wasn't shown to be a killer (as opposed to some werewolfs we've met), he might have been awful to Tom but he had no murderous designs on him, he was a property damaging jerk to his ex wife and a sleaze in conversation to Lady Mary but he was not, as far as we know, a sexual predator (again, as opposed to some other previous characters). This is important because Larry is finally the one to make Hal break his 50 something years non-killing streak, and the show went out of its way to create a situation where the audience may despise Larry BUT Hal doesn't have the excuse of defending anyone's life or safety by killing him. He killed him because Larry pissed him off that much. Given this is also the episode where Lady Mary reiterates for us the moral lesson of the entire Mitchell saga (the on the wagon, of the wagon, on the wagon, off the wagon - how often, and how many people killed is one vampire's endless cycle of reformation and fall worth, and on whom are the future deaths?" question), I'd say that seals Hal's fate at the end of the season/show. I thought Hal would probably die because the opening episode made him personally responsible for the devil/Hatch being around in physical form to begin with anyway, but this brings an additional and more intentional reason. (Oh, and making Hal's first intentional killing in 50 plus years not a driven by vampire bloodlust one - he strangles Larry, following what the show established from the get go, that werewolf blood is a no go for vampires - was another interesting storytelling choice, emphasizing the "your choices are about character, not your supernatural part" theme.)
For all that the Mary & Alex plot line had much humor in it and was in turns hilarious and touching to watch, it also tied into the Mitchell saga of years past. Because Mary's mistaken belief that she's the one keeping Hal from killing for the last two centuries and needs to play the fragile innocence in order for this to work is basically the last spin Mitchell tried to give for his relationship with Annie (to which she said a firm no). Incidentally, Mary was a great character. Both because the show avoided the obvious cliché by making her into just that cliché by letting her pretend (but for not-sinister reasons) and because it didn't treat her actual persona as villainous, either. Moreover, when all is said and done Mary doesn't end the episode by now passing through the door but by deciding to explore more of the world. Alex, who starts the episode afraid that Mary as she first appears (somewhat crazy) is her future, has reason for some optimism now even if she should stay round for many more years to come. Also some reason for caution (re: Hal).
Who coincidentally saves Rook's life by remembering he has access to cleaner who can remove dead bodies before his friends get home. The episode draws some visual parallels between Rook and Hal - the stopwatch use, the meticulous clothing - and of course Rook, who has no supernatural powers and is physically a "normal" human being - is another case of someone in between; as he himself admits, he has done monstrous things, and the justification has always been his work, so without said work there is no justification left and he's unable to live with himself. Until he gets that phonecall, just in time. I'm starting to get actually interested in the character and where they go with him. Previously I assumed he'd be the Little Bad to Hatch's/The Devil's Big Bad, but he might be used in another way. Wild guess: Hal as I said is for the chops, presumably as part of the eventual defeat (as far as that's possible) of Hatch at the end of the season, but maybe Brooks will take the place of either Alex or Tom (which would assume he's turned in either a ghost or a werewolf just before that) in whatever big trinity sacrificial gesture will be necessary to bind the Devil as a way to atone for what he's done.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/869302.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
When Larry the phony started with his spin to Tom, I groaned and said, ANOTHER manipulator story? But of course that wasn't the point at all. A side issue was that Larry underscored something else the show stated before, that what makes someone monstrous isn't the supernatural element (some vampires excepted; I think it's hard to argue with the fact that Cutler, Crumb the annoying nerd or Adam would never have harmed anyone in their lives had they not been sired). The teaser told us all we needed to know about Larry being an obnoxious jerk before a werewolf ever scratched him; it was just a convenient excuse (and a way to mess with Tom's head) to blame the wolf later for his lackluster life.
Here's the thing, though. Note that for all his obnoxious jerkness, here's what the show didn't make Larry, and they easily could have: he wasn't shown to be a killer (as opposed to some werewolfs we've met), he might have been awful to Tom but he had no murderous designs on him, he was a property damaging jerk to his ex wife and a sleaze in conversation to Lady Mary but he was not, as far as we know, a sexual predator (again, as opposed to some other previous characters). This is important because Larry is finally the one to make Hal break his 50 something years non-killing streak, and the show went out of its way to create a situation where the audience may despise Larry BUT Hal doesn't have the excuse of defending anyone's life or safety by killing him. He killed him because Larry pissed him off that much. Given this is also the episode where Lady Mary reiterates for us the moral lesson of the entire Mitchell saga (the on the wagon, of the wagon, on the wagon, off the wagon - how often, and how many people killed is one vampire's endless cycle of reformation and fall worth, and on whom are the future deaths?" question), I'd say that seals Hal's fate at the end of the season/show. I thought Hal would probably die because the opening episode made him personally responsible for the devil/Hatch being around in physical form to begin with anyway, but this brings an additional and more intentional reason. (Oh, and making Hal's first intentional killing in 50 plus years not a driven by vampire bloodlust one - he strangles Larry, following what the show established from the get go, that werewolf blood is a no go for vampires - was another interesting storytelling choice, emphasizing the "your choices are about character, not your supernatural part" theme.)
For all that the Mary & Alex plot line had much humor in it and was in turns hilarious and touching to watch, it also tied into the Mitchell saga of years past. Because Mary's mistaken belief that she's the one keeping Hal from killing for the last two centuries and needs to play the fragile innocence in order for this to work is basically the last spin Mitchell tried to give for his relationship with Annie (to which she said a firm no). Incidentally, Mary was a great character. Both because the show avoided the obvious cliché by making her into just that cliché by letting her pretend (but for not-sinister reasons) and because it didn't treat her actual persona as villainous, either. Moreover, when all is said and done Mary doesn't end the episode by now passing through the door but by deciding to explore more of the world. Alex, who starts the episode afraid that Mary as she first appears (somewhat crazy) is her future, has reason for some optimism now even if she should stay round for many more years to come. Also some reason for caution (re: Hal).
Who coincidentally saves Rook's life by remembering he has access to cleaner who can remove dead bodies before his friends get home. The episode draws some visual parallels between Rook and Hal - the stopwatch use, the meticulous clothing - and of course Rook, who has no supernatural powers and is physically a "normal" human being - is another case of someone in between; as he himself admits, he has done monstrous things, and the justification has always been his work, so without said work there is no justification left and he's unable to live with himself. Until he gets that phonecall, just in time. I'm starting to get actually interested in the character and where they go with him. Previously I assumed he'd be the Little Bad to Hatch's/The Devil's Big Bad, but he might be used in another way. Wild guess: Hal as I said is for the chops, presumably as part of the eventual defeat (as far as that's possible) of Hatch at the end of the season, but maybe Brooks will take the place of either Alex or Tom (which would assume he's turned in either a ghost or a werewolf just before that) in whatever big trinity sacrificial gesture will be necessary to bind the Devil as a way to atone for what he's done.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/869302.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.