Why do I love the shows that make me cry?

[mrissa]

Anybody else watched up through 3.2 of Flashpoint? Uff da. Big uff da.

I think the thing about Lew's death that got me was not just Lew--although I liked Lew--but I like all these characters, there is no "drown in a bucket" character on Flashpoint for me any more. So it was not just loss of Lew. And it was not just the rest of the team's reaction. It was Spike. It was that Lew died in part because he just didn't believe in Spike's nerdery enough to risk both their lives on it. And the guy who plays Spike, Sergio di Zio, he knows how to play the gadget nerd enough that he showed how devastating that was--not just to lose a friend, but to lose a friend when you have this near-hopeless but totally geektastic plan to save him. Spike was willing to put his own life on his geekitude, and Lew didn't let him, and we have textual support from the rest of the characters that it probably wouldn't work. But I know the complete crumpling and losing your knees when you realize what's just happened in your life. And separately I know when you have a plan and other people do not believe that getting your nerd on will work and how frustrating that is. And di Zio nailed that, and I love this show.

I can't even tell you who my favorite character is. I mean, I love Enrico, so Greg Parker's got to be up there. But I am even not hating Sam any more. This show. This is my show.

Also I am glad that the season opener deviated from the usual episode structure, because it's time they let themselves do that.

Comments

[jebbypal]

Oh wow, I remember when I saw that ep. It made me go back and rewatch all the show because I'd seen it so hit and miss thanks to the way CBS airs it in the states.

absolutely devastating.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Although in the next ep when Leah gives them bracelets with Lew's name and badge number, I confess to thinking, "Yeah, and Greg Parker and Ed Lane are thinking, 'Shit, another year or two in this job and we're going to look like we're from a culture that wears its wealth as bracelets.'"

[jebbypal]

Well, fortunately, this is the land of tv where few people die, and no one's career advances, ever.

At least, that's what I generally think when I watch criminal minds and other shows. "Seriously, you guys have all been in the same job for 5 years with absolutely no promotions -=-- you know that the FBI forces retirement after 20 years, right? Right??"

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Yah, honestly Flashpoint needed this death. Because as much as it is a fantasy of police nonviolence, some of the situations they get into really are that dangerous, and there's only so many times the odds can come out in favor of the good guys.

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes. And, you know, the way di Zio shows us Spike dealing with the loss in episodes I don't think you've seen yet. (I got all caught up on Netflix, and then had enough Friday nights free that I haven't missed any. The season 4 ender is making me very impatient for season 5. I felt manipulated, but they were so good at it that I didn't really mind.)

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

...season 4 is out? This is the first time the IMDB has been completely unreliable in terms of which episodes exist and have been aired, because it's claiming only ep 1 of S4 is out.

[txanne.livejournal.com]

...oh, no, I was wrong. I keep getting confused by the completely illogical things CBS does to the airing order. They aired the last ep of s3 just before 4th St. (This is what happens to people who have no fixed schedule. Everything is "before the con" or "after the con.") :-P

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Whew, sense has been restored, except by CBS, apparently.

Of course "before the con" and "after the con" are the logical time points. "Before the con." "During alecaustin's visit." "When markgritter was in California and Grandma was having that fight with the landlord." This is how time actually works. Hardly anybody actually remembers, "Oh yes, that was the third Tuesday in March."

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Yah, it's why medieval people dated things by liturgical feasts ("at Pentecost," "St Swithin's Day").

Yeah, have you seen that last ep? Because AAARGH.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

No, I have only seen up through 3.2. I only watch things on DVD. This afternoon I will watch 3.3 and 3.4, but I won't hit 3.16 for several more days. (Not clear how many--it's Tour de France time, so timprov may want to watch that with my workouts if I'm wanting early morning workouts--on the other hand, it's Tour de France time, so timprov won't probably have as much urge to watch Six Feet Under on top of Tour de France. It's all very complicated. Still, I expect to have seen 3.16 before the end of the month.)

[txanne.livejournal.com]

I will be very glad to talk about it when you get there.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Hurrah! I like having friends to talk about this stuff with.

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Me too! I only watched it once, though, so it'll be all off-the-cuff and "oh, I forgot about that".

[chinders.livejournal.com]

*studiously avoids spoilers*

Ooooh, another cop show! I love cop shows, especially ones that are actually good!

Perhaps I will go track this one down.

[kalmn.livejournal.com]

i think it's set in canada. mris, is it actually set in canada?

[jebbypal]

Yes it is set in canada. Not sure if it's just the US editing, but it's not generally explicity stated or advertised here in the US which city it is, but you do occassionally see the canada logos/locals at times.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I think it's amusing if US advertisers think they can get around the massive Toronto scene shots to make it "any city, North America," because the producers are not aiming at that, not remotely--rather the opposite. "LOOK HERE IS THE CN TOWER," says a shot towards the beginning of every episode. All the neighborhood shots. The waterfront shots. It is practically a love letter to Toronto.

(It amuses me how often I look at it and go, "Wow, that is so totally Toronto!...hey, wasn't that supposed to be Chicago in some other show I watch?")

[txanne.livejournal.com]

It's set in Toronto.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

This is, in fact, an actually good cop show. It's the story of a crisis response team--so they do hostage negotiation, they do some bomb squad work, they set up snipers when needed, etc.

There is at first only one woman on the team--and they are realistic about what that means, so it's not just "here is your token chick," it's "here is what it's like to be female in this line of work where there really aren't lots"--and exploring the stuff that's nuanced, not just making one co-worker a jerk or something. Later, with additional characters, they do not stop handling that issue--it does not become "all better now." Also one of the quiet manly men turns out to be an incredibly sensitive handler of domestic violence situations and getting people out of them; the episode where that becomes clear is one of the many that won my heart completely.

Because it's a Canadian show, they understand about the existence of seasons, and different episodes take place with different weather. This may seem like a small thing, but the number of shows that never have snow or cold or rain or heat causing any trouble for police officers is unreasonably large.

Also because it's a Canadian show--and because of the heightened drama of the circumstances--they can have some very understated characters as well as some higher-affect characters. I appreciate this more than I know how to say.

[chinders.livejournal.com]

That all sounds *super awesome.* And it is even on Netflix' instant queue! Thanks for the recommendation.

[orbitalmechanic.livejournal.com]

That scene with Wordy (right?) recognizing the domestic violence situation was amazing. Well--I think more amazing was the way that ep opened with everyone else making fun of him for watching a chick flick during a workout, and him saying: "I don't see my wife and daughters a lot, I want to know what they care about." As I remember it he wasn't even defensive, because dude, a manly man has to be in touch with his family.

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Yes, it was Wordy, and I loved that he was so matter-of-fact about it.

[orbitalmechanic.livejournal.com]

(I am mostly off LJ these days, but I hope you'll report in on the rest of the season. I adore this show so much.)

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I am through ep 6, but I'm watching some other things with my workouts, so it may be awhile. On the other hand, I love this show, so I'm pretty sure I'll have more to say.