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| 5.03 The Two Lisas | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 11 2015, 07:35 PM (1,115 Views) | |
| Jessica | Feb 1 2015, 05:26 PM Post #11 |
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aka soulisthirsty
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I meant to post more about this episode sooner but I had to work extra hours at the library this week and it was surprisingly exhausting, so I never really had the energy for it. Like most people, I loved the scene between Mickey and Ian at the beginning. It was the one bright spot in an otherwise "meh" episode. It wasn't bad, it was still somewhat enjoyable and had some good scenes, but it just felt uneventful somehow and I say that about an episode that had Frank blowing up Sheila's house and Debbie raping Matty. Which I might as well talk about that last one first. It's been confirmed that, however the scene may have come across, it was not meant as humorous and it was not meant to make light of rape. And as unnecessary as I felt including that scene to be, I do believe that. They gave us an excellent scene about biology not being consent, a concept a lot of people still struggle with. And the writers showed us that with Lip, whose first reaction isn't to be concerned that Debbie raped someone, but instead that some guy much older than her had sex with her - something he could go to jail for - and is now claiming it's rape. He thinks the guy seems like a creep and tells Debbie she should stay away from him. His confusion at how a guy can even be raped in the first place makes it obvious that he doesn't really think Debbie raped him at all and that the guy instead took advantage of her. His reaction in that sense is believable, because not many people would believe a 20-year-old if he claimed a 14 year old girl raped him, and Lip especially is very protective when it comes to someone younger having sex with someone much older. I think the writers were trying to balance that reaction with the very real belief some people have that men cannot be raped, and as a result both things they were trying to accomplish in that scene fell short. For me it wasn't believable for Lip to ask how a guy can even be raped and saying "tons of guys would kill to be raped by you," was just tasteless, period, and no amount of context can make up for that. I think it was very sad and disturbing how happy Debbie was after they had sex (the scene where she's smiling at the empty condom wrapper) and that she completely ignored the word "rape" and latched on to Matty saying "date." Even if she didn't understand how a guy could be raped, the word alone should have stopped her in her tracks and forced her to re-evaluate what happened and her part in it. She knows what rape is, how serious it is, and as soon as that word came up, child or not, I feel like she should have had a more serious reaction to it. She seemed genuinely apologetic when Matty confronted her, after the "date" slip up, but after that it was just a tantrum over him not wanting to be bothered with her anymore. And I just really hope that as the season progresses, Debbie realizes the gravity of what she did and accepts it for what it was. I'd like to think that's why she left that detail out when telling Fiona she lost her virginity, because I do believe Fiona would see how Debbie's actions were wrong and would react far differently than Lip. I don't want Debbie to only think it was wrong because Fiona found out and gave her shit about it. I want it to be because she realized for herself that Matty told her before he didn't want to have sex with her, that he was drunk and barely conscious, and she took advantage of him because she was desperate to lose her virginity. I think the way they're handling Kev and Veronica's storyline makes sense. Veronica never wanted children, not until they had Ethel for a while and she took off. Veronica decided she wanted kids of their own to kind of fill that void, and because she thought kids couldn't be that bad if she had them with someone she loved. Obviously, she didn't realize how much their lives would change as a result and she's struggling with that. It was different with Ethel, who was already a teenager. They had to take care of her but she wasn't solely dependent on them. And Veronica's struggle with motherhood is a very real issue that many new mothers experience with just one child, never mind two. I also feel like people forget that when Veronica agreed to take Ethel in, it was only ever meant to be temporary - she was trying to pay off a bill and they get paid to be foster parents. Kev was the one who wanted to be a dad, who wanted to keep Ethel and foster Jonah as well. Veronica went along with it because it made him happy but there was always an escape if she wanted to take it. With their own kids, there isn't, not unless she wants to lose Kev too. And I figure that's the ultimatum that'll be coming up soon. I actually liked Sammi's scenes this episode, at least more than the past few. We've finally seen the resolution of her blind and horribly misplaced faith and love in Frank. The way he just offered her body to some total stranger for his own gain was despicable, per Frank's usual behaviour, and for the first time this season I really felt bad for Sammi. She's another character with very low self-worth and who has never really had anyone to tell her otherwise. Spoiler: click to toggle I'm hoping that we can see more positive interactions between her and her siblings now that she understands what they've been trying to tell her all along about Frank. Even if her future interactions with him end up being annoying again, if we can balance it out with some fun scenes with her siblings, we might not resent her character sticking around while other's are written off or pushed aside. I'm glad that Davis is finally out of the picture and we can cross another love interest off the list. I wasn't really feeling his scenes with Fiona either so I'm glad it's over and although what he did was a shitty move, kudos to Fiona for getting back at him by playing along a little too well. I enjoyed her scenes with Gus but I still feel like it's moving too fast and I think she's just being drawn to him because he's a nice guy who treats her well (so far) and because the song he was singing, she really related to. Right now I can't see it lasting the long haul but we'll see if I'm proven wrong. I feel like the point of all these love interests who are each so different is for Fiona to address her own issues - why she's attracted to certain guys, why certain relationships never work out or why she self-destructs in them, etc. And at the end either the "right" guy for her will be left standing, or she'll decide she's better off alone until she works out her issues. For me the last option would be preferable but what I really want is for her to be happy and to stop getting in the way of her own happiness, so whatever achieves that will be good enough for me. I guess all I have left to talk about is Lip and Mandy. I do believe Lip was on the way to genuinely loving Mandy until she ran over Karen and from that point on no matter how much he cared about her he could never actually be with her. I think this episode was probably the nicest he's ever been to her and the scene where he told her she was smart and beautiful was very raw and touching. I actually found it intriguing that she told him she loved him during sex, just like he'd done to Karen so long ago, because I feel like it made that storyline come full circle for him. I was disappointed though that he ignored her, just like Karen, and kept having sex. I feel like that made Mandy's decision for her and that's why she looked that way when he left. He was naively hoping it'd be enough, to just offer a little companionship and friendship, but it wasn't. Mandy was in love with him and she wanted more. He broke it off with her before and made her think it was hopeless, that she'd ruined it, but he kept coming back to her and it really led her on and made her believe they could have a chance. He basically did exactly what Karen did to him, and I vaguely recall Ian talking to Lip about that before in the third season. The unfortunate casualty in all of this is of course Mandy. The last shot we have is of her heart breaking and her resolve to leave being cemented rather than wavering. There's no farewell, no closure, and certainly no happiness. I wish that her friendship with Ian would have been enough to make her value herself, to make her realize she is loved and she will be loved the way she wants to be some day, but that's not the way the writers decided to take her storyline. I don't believe she'll be gone for good, but I also don't know if she'll ever come back and be a part of the show the way she was before and that makes me sad. I guess time will tell, but I think for this season at least, we've definitely seen the last of Mandy Milkovich. |
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12:57 AM Jul 11