Lost Girl: Season 4, Episode 08, Groundhog Fae
When the ice cream promo was released, I thought it was a clever way to draw new fandom without trying to sum up three years – or even three minutes – of the show’s mythology. Instead of trying to convey
‘she’s a succubus who needs sex to live but was raised without knowledge of the fact that she’s a member of a powerful type of beings called fae and oh this dude’s a wolf shifter and this chick is a human doctor and she has the hots for both of them because she’s bisexual and there’s this other best friend named Kenzi who’s human and is essentially her sister and the sinister-ish old guy is her grandpa but she didn’t know that for like two years . . . ‘
they went for
‘our star is a hot chick and she has some fun romps and also other good-looking people she likes to play with.’
Which of these is more likely to attract new viewers, as well as please old viewers without actually giving anything away from the upcoming season? I mean, it’s not subtle, but it’s effective. It plays to fans of the show and it catches the attention of strangers to the show, who may have been turned off by a promo about a ‘supernatural’ show. Win-win.
I didn’t realize it was actually part of an episode. And not just part of, but an en medias res drop-you-right-down-into-the-middle-of-it opening scene. It does tell us Bo and Hale and Dyson and Lauren have been going around looking for the helskor, so that’s continuing, and that they’re mostly getting along, and that they’ve hit a few ogres – real and probably metaphorical – along the way. But mostly, it tells us Bo is full-out throwing herself at Lauren and Dyson, and lets the audience enjoy the show.
Let’s get this out there: as a filmmaker, I have been and will almost certainly [ie shall my career continue] continue to be in the middle of situations where there is potential for exploitation. This can range from working reality TV (exploitation city!) to asking an actor or actress to engage in a scene which objectifies him or her and/or their characters in some way. This is not new to a show like Lost Girl. While some television sex scenes are meant to convey emotional turmoil or power dynamics or trauma or intense emotional connection or various other things (the Sopranos in a swimming pool springs to mind), most actual sex scenes are a little about the character dynamic and a little about plot and a lot about looking at pretty people doing sexy things. You don’t have to show the foreplay or the naked or the various rollings and rompings to convey a sense that the two characters have converged, right? You show it because it’s aesthetically pleasing, because it’s a certain kind of enjoyment. This can be potentially exploitative.
That’s just for scenes with sex! Scenes like this don’t even have ‘sex’ as a cover. This is for pure eye candy. So, is a scene like this exploitative or not? I think there are four elements:
1. There’s the old obscenity/porn definition, ‘I know it when I see it.’
That’s the most subjective definition possible. I watch this scene and it feels cheeky, not obscene; pleasurable, not exploitative. Your mileage may differ.
2. Then there’s intent, which is somewhat more parseable.
Michelle Lovretta’s rules for the show stated “both genders are to be (adoringly!) objectified,” and this does adoringly objectify Bo, but it’s important she’s hardly the only one to whom something like this has happened. Heck, in Season 2 she sprayed Dyson down with a hose and he wriggled out of his wet shirt.
There’s a suggestion the show is flipping the idea of the male gaze by having Lauren be the one who is agape and watching Bo’s performance.
I don’t want to call it ‘admirable’ when a show takes a woman who has recently given birth and looks at her like she’s a desirable, sexual being, because that seems to suggest the show is overlooking some ‘fault’ which would make her undesirable, that this presentation is noble or some such bullocks. But it’s true that Anna Silk isn’t the uber-stick-thin action heroine we’re often used to seeing, and it’s true she had given birth shortly before shooting, and it’s true she’s beautiful and sexy, and it’s rad the show is going to openly admire all that without reservation, and that is definitely an intent of this scene, to just admire a beautiful woman.
3. There’s functionality.
What is this scene doing within the framework of the show? Showing us how hard Bo is throwing herself at Lauren, and then Lauren and Dyson. / Showing us how Bo’s succubus nature manages to powerfully attract others even when she’s scrubbing ogre guts.
How is it shot? In an exaggerated fashion which is both emulative and parody of what I like to call ‘video pin-up shots.’
What does it tell us about the story? They hit an ogre because they’ve been literally running down leads to Angel and the helskor.
4. Last and not least is communication with and feelings of the actors.
Of course I can’t sit here and tell you what Anna Silk thought about the whole thing. I can’t condemn or condone something based on an actress’s feelings without hearing something straight from her about it, and even that really only after a show has ended and she’s no longer under contract, and even then only after she’s really truly retired because she doesn’t want to make anyone skittish about casting someone ‘hard to work with.’ You see how in this business it’s hard to know what really happened unless you were standing on the lot.
I can tell you how it vibed to me, which should partly land under point the first, up there. I can tell you I think Silk has good body confidence and presentation, – as well she should, damn, woman. I can tell you in the few interviews I’ve seen she seems a great sport and all. I can tell you I think it’s empowering. Last, I must point out people who decry things like this by saying ‘it’s innately exploitative when women present on screen in a sexualized manner’ are actually removing power from women to decide what is right for themselves and their bodies.
And now I think it’s important to differentiate between why I’m down with this scene and why I was not down with the scene in Table for Fae and the gaze that camera took, which – so far as angle and body-skimming etc – is fairly on par with this. Table for Fae was objectifying a character in the show, essentially presenting her as a sexual object with no recourse, and never refuting that within the scene, either by that character or anyone else. We don’t know Marissa, we get no real other context for her as a fae other than ‘Ryan watches her do things he finds sexy.’ [I did explain in my review there I think the show wanted us to see Ryan’s objectification as a bad thing, but it didn’t do a clear job of that.]
Here, we know Bo as a fully formed character with agency – her whole point is agency, really – and if she decides to indulge in a little carwashing fun, of her own volition, who are we to tell her nay?
Melanie, you’ve written a THOUSAND words about the first minute and twenty seconds of this show, and none of them are even about the ice cream dripping or jaw dropping. Move on already.
Truth be told, all this rambling may be me putting off actually starting the review. I mean, ten minutes in, a full quarter of the way through, all I had in my notes was the following:
– carwash scene not just promo
– Lauren and Dyson friendly rivalry dynamic; problematic, out of nowhere, or best thing ever?’
– the bastardization and hyperconflation of all traditions that is Christmas in America, I mean Canada – hallucinogenic gumdrops
– Tamsin/Bo a manifestation of Bo’s subconscious sexual thoughts (as much of last week was) ? Don’t think they make Tamsin viable romantic option?
At that point I simply gave up and grabbed on for dear life. I may want a return to more serialized fae-crime-fighting of S1 and 2, with some of the fae becoming pieces of the overall puzzle that is overthrowing the two-party system with occasional stand-alone trope setpieces. What I’m getting, however, is not that. This season is more serialized setpieces, and a lot more genre’d than before. So long as it’s good, I’m going to try not to parse the hallucinatory gumdrops until the second time through.
While I’m being honest, I’ll mention I was a bit biased against the episode before it started. In fact, the Groundhog Day trope is my least favorite episode stunt ever. It’s below Body Swaps (which are usually awesome), Invisible Characters, Mystical Muteness, Big Syndrome, It’s A Wonderful Life (which LG already did this season, well), pretty much anything in the trope-archy. Of all the shows I’ve watched prior to this which have done a spin on Groundhog Day, I’ve only liked one episode. “Groundhog Fae” practically screams ‘we’re going to rehash similar scenes until Bo finds the key to what’s going on.’ That’s not just a nightmare for continuity and the script supervisor, but it generally makes an episode feel like a skipping record, and I knew I was going to have to watch at least a few times in order to write my review, so I wasn’t over the moon about that.
The show assuaged my fears slightly when Bo figured it out only the second time around, and then straight-up calls it Groundhog Day. Then Tamsin grabs a random rash-y passerby to demonstrate exactly how absurd it is when people try explaining the loop to those extras stuck inside it, and I let my hopes get up, and thankfully they were rewarded. Damned if this isn’t a good use of the trope.
It gives us two characters who know what’s going on, and who are trying to solve the thing together. It slowly introducing us to the bit players who aren’t in on the loop – bodybuilder, rash guy, amphibious fae – and then gives them tiny roles to play. It gives us a threesome who haven’t previously been left alone to interact, and lets them hash out their issues seemingly outside the loop entirely. It gives us Hale and Kenzi who seem to be unawares of the loop, but then slowly clues the audience in on the fact Hale, like Tamsin and Bo, grasps what’s going on.
Through all this, it uses the Groundhog trope to allow everyone to exorcise their demons, express fears and feelings, and indulge all of their instincts.
And I do mean all. Arm wrestling, beer swilling, making out, heck, give it another half hour and Bo would have tried some hallucinatory sweat and Tamsin may have tried more than just the one fae boy. All this is really happening smack-dab in the midst of Tamsin’s coming of age, so she’s kind of using this space to explore all the things, and also Bo.
I’ve said before that these two as long-term romantic partners isn’t a good idea because they tend to bring out the worst in each other. Not that either is innately bad, or would bring down / corrupt any partner she was with, but that everyone has strengths and weaknesses and these two have almost the same weaknesses, and when put together they only amplify those parts of themselves. All that said, making out is not a relationship, and let them gather their rosebuds and all that.
Rosebuds and beer bongs and smooches, oh my. It’s incredibly true to character for these two to go full hedonist. When the cuts came fast and thick of them doing exactly what the two of them would in a world with no consequences, I started to feel like this episode is all about that: examining how the characters react to consequences or lack thereof. It gives the characters a space of time where they can simply do-over what they don’t get right the first time, where they can let out what’s been bottled up for three years and gauge what happens. Kenzi and Hale are busy in Kenzi’s room, Tamsin is exploring her new life without limitations, and it becomes clear the episode is about regret and consequences, love in all forms, and forgiveness.
Even before Dyson and Lauren start a drinking game over telling Bo what’s the mysterious box/package.
I keep finding more ways this show parallels LOST, and this feels very much like Sawyer and Kate’s drinking game, which started light and got intimate and touchy quickly and also involved a monster and mysterious black smoke. Only in LOST, we didn’t have a corseted Vex over in the corner pointing out when someone got a good jab in.
And Lauren does get her jabs in, then Dyson’s gloves come off, and they start fighting for keeps, dragging out every protest any fandom has talked about, but also doing a very real thing; idealizing their own actions while smearing the good name and deeds of the other. Though fighting over a person as if she’s a trophy to be rewarded for selfless deeds can be quite tired, what makes it work is both our history with these two, and how adorable and wonderful it is to see a guy and a girl going at it without ever disparaging the other because of genitalia or gender. Speaking of, the wooden latched object is sometimes referred to as a box, and sometimes as a package, and that is certainly intentional.
The idea that they are (how intentionally is unclear) treating Bo like a trophy is underlined when Dyson argues that because he saved Bo, ‘I should get to say what she does with her box.’ Lauren counters that she was the one to help Bo learn to control her powers. This all-fair-in-love-and-war-and-sex thing reveals the worst in people, but we’ve all got dark spaces. It’s great to have a safe space to get blitzed and hash everything out, and truly I could have watched an entire bottle episode with just these three, getting drunk in Bo’s room and trying their best to sort out their lives.
While they’re blithely nattering on about kinky hand surgery (well, now we know how they’re going to get around Paul Amos always having to wear a hand covering) and how they wish they could have done more for Bo and not failed her so much (to be fair, she let both of them down at some points, too), and feeeeeeelings and such, Bo and Tamsin discover Bruce is missing.
Suddenly, consequence-free playtime is over, and they have to figure out what’s causing the loop, preferably before more people get gone. Trick is no help whatsoever, though he is hilarious and this is the first time we’ve seen the barkeeper drunk. After a couple failed attempts there, Bo and Tamsin interrupt Hale and Kenzi trying to get their groove on for the upteenth time. Hale’s behaviors and foreplay are delightfully in character, in keeping with his thinking/acting like a studmuffin, but not really being that smooth of an operator. Hale exasperatedly explains it’s that friendly holiday Krampus, who puts people into the loop so they can get into ‘trouble,’ and then feeds on their regret. Hale didn’t pay much attention because he was busy manipulating the system to make his and Kenzi’s first time be perfect, but he does feel badly and said he was going to tell her. Out of everyone, Hale’s the one with the most, what do you call it? Oh yes, a conscience.
Immediately after discovering the who of what’s happening, Tamsin gets snatched by some creeper in the yellowing wallpaper. Bo comes to the realization the audience came to when we got a close-up shot of the gas station gumdrops – also especially because they were just out in the open at a gas station, ew – and goes back to the source, where she falls through a car-trunk-portal-to-a-neon-lit gumdrop factory. I wanted nothing more for her to walk in and scream, ‘IT’S PEEEEEEEEEEOPLE,’ but she settles for the more understated approach of jamming her knife into the conveyor belt (We needed a blade of steel, hilt of bone, poetically described knife for that?) and breaking Tamsin free.
Tamsin doesn’t really want to be set free, though, she’s fine becoming complex-emotion-candy.
Because Tamsin has been so childlike this whole season, and is really still quite young in her regeneration cycle (Skarsten is bringing a much more innocent quality to Tamsin with her regeneration; surely they knew they were going here and she had to display both hardass and this at her audition), we also have Bruce in candyland, to give us a point of comparison. That Bruce is also excited to be made into candy tells us they have been roofied or stupefied or in some mystical way manipulated, and Tamsin’s reaction is not because of being a teenager.
[NOTE: it was pointed out to me on Twitter Tamsin is supposed to have progressed to adulthood now. She still acts young sometimes, and in her regeneration cycle she’s still getting her bearings on the world. Besides her innocent and youthful behaviors, the very collegiate sex sampling and beer bonging, the last thing I saw of her in this episode was calling Kenzi ‘moms’ and making faces at the thought of sex, which suggested to me she was still working up to her full age even if she looked older on the outside. But if she’s an adult, then looking at it from the point of she and Kenzi having a special bond, and then wrinkling her nose thinking of ‘moms’ having sex, does make sense as well. This doesn’t negate how much of this episode functions as part of her ‘coming of age,’ since she has yet to have many of these experiences in this lifetime, but she’s not a teen here. She may be in her college years, but it’s more likely she’s . . . whatever age she was supposed to be in S3.]
Tamsin was the perfect target because of her guilt complex, because she believes she brings bad things and everything terrible ‘usually has something to do with me.’ Tamsin has multiple lifetimes of regret, and doesn’t believe she deserves to live, and thus has enough gumdrop juice to tide Krampus over. The candyland realm makes people passive in their own death, believing they’re better off this way. It’s interesting when Jeffrey says he ‘chooses’ Tamsin to be made into candy, she acquiesces, and Bo is the one who gets rankled on Tamsin’s behalf; Bo is furious someone is trying to dictate Tamsin’s life and insists Krampus let her go.
Which Krampus does, because apparently Bo has enough baggage to make Krampus candy for years. Guilt over her past, denial over her present, fear and refusal to face her future, something else dark and nameless, it’s all there. Until Bo faces her past and deals with it, confronts her fears, and accepts what’s coming and what’s inside her, the guilt will only compound. Speaking it on the Conveyor Feelings Activator is the first step . . . and apparently it’s enough to make Krampus snap his fingers and put her back to rights. Yay, story mechanisms.
Bo and Tamsin decompress a little, and Bo has truly accepted Tamsin’s revelations about Tamsin finding Bo on The Wanderers behalf, although Bo still lets Tamsin go her own way and doesn’t invite her to stay, which I think would have been nice of her. It was also good to get a tiny flashback into Tamsin’s past, though it almost raises more questions. Why Tamsin? How is The Wanderer looking for Bo hundreds of years before she’s born? Is he a time-traveler, or does this play into the whole ‘it was foretold’ bit that’s been running throughout the show? What on earth does ‘ideal mate’ mean, and is it as creepy as it sounds?
The specifications The Wanderer gave Tamsin, “eyes both brown and blue, virtuous yet lustful, neither dark nor light, yet both,” ring like an old Greco-Roman poem issued by Oracles. In fact, it rings like a really specific classical prophesy, one I can’t quite put my finger on. Bo’s declaration ‘Let me go and I’ll consider letting you live’ also feels very much as a referential line from something, but the internets didn’t help me with either of these.
In the end, we’re no closer to the helskor than we were at the beginning, but we have gotten a glimpse of The Wanderer, and know more about how he approached Tamsin. Tamsin is working through her guilt, and Bo is learning to forgive. Vex apparently has his hand back. Lauren and Dyson are falling into a friendship, though even with the hug and some more touching moments I love that they haven’t simply forgone the tension; they’ve allowed the relationship to maintain its rivalry, though on a much more friendly level which I find more interesting. The episode succeeds at being moving yet funny, and develops friendships as well as forwarding some individual characters.
The episode’s conceit allows everyone to indulge: all in assorted beverages, some in sex, some in cross-dressing, some in emotional purging, but all in the telling of truth. Whether it’s the booze or the feel that in this weird loop there are no consequences, they all speak what’s in the darker recesses of their minds and hearts. That is the entire point of this episode, and that may be more important right at this moment than the location of a pair of shoes or when the world will end.
Stray Observations
– Crystal is in a back room somewhere playing poker with the first Ash, Meyer, and Aife.
– Hale’s assorted responses to Kenzi’s ‘my Kenzi sense is tingling’ are various degrees of hilarious, but the more absurd the better.
– Of course the Choga came with Vex. (I believe this is the same type of fae as in Raging Fae.) I’d hate to be the PA in charge of misting down that extra.
– That ‘blade of steel hilt of bone’ is awfully convenient.
– Note the signs in candyland. Oh candy, candy, all is vanity.
– Note that ‘I want you to have first lick’ is apparently the impetus for Bo to save Tamsin.
– I’m still unsure what sparked the loop to begin each time. At one point it seemed to be Kenzi. Am I trying to make too much sense of this? [On a rewatch, it seems to be the glasses being broken.]
Comments
44 Responses to “Lost Girl: Season 4, Episode 08, Groundhog Fae”Trackbacks
Check out what others are saying...-
[…] mehlsbells […]
-
[…] Am I still biased to some degree, even if readers disagree over which way I lean? Yeah, sure. What’s so funny is I mention one bias right in the review. “While I’m being honest, I’ll mention I was a bit biased against the episode before it started… […]
-
[…] WYNONNA EARP’s first episode is directed by Paolo Barzman, who directed twelve episodes of LOST GIRL, including the series finale. Episodes 6 and 7 are directed by Brett Sullivan, who directed LG 2.17, The Girl Who Fae’d With Fire. Episodes 2, 3, 8 and 9 are directed by Ron Murphy, who directed nine LOST GIRL episodes including Groundhog Fae. […]
Mel Killingsworth - Film and TV blog 
Firstly, let me admit that I watch this show because of Doccubus specifically and Bo in general. So maybe you can help me understand… I am really struggling with all the loose ends in their storyline. For example what happened to the talk they were going to have? And what’s with the threesome/ Lauren-and-Dyson-vying-for-Bo storyline when Bo has repeatedly made it clear she wants to be with Lauren, who in turn rejects her… Makes no sense to me.
As for loose ends, this season is not really about the tying up of loose ends, as I noted with the Crystal observation. I think that talk got curtailed . . . or put off, again.
I enjoyed in 4.05 how we say them actually trying to have a talk, but both of them wanted to dance around their own issues and talk about the other person’s thing, and then they kept getting interrupted. It’s how I feel a lot of their off-screen talks would have gone.
Well, first, I don’t think Bo making up her mind one way or the other would make either one stop vying. Dyson has made that pretty clear verbally, and Lauren pursued and played her angles even when Bo was with Dyson. Neither are going to be like ‘oh, ok, ride off into the sunset with that one.’ Whoever isn’t picked will commandeer a horse and ride alongside saying ‘are you sure about this? Huh? C’mon, there’s extra room on my saddle over here.’
Second, I don’t think Bo has repeatedly made it clear she wants to be with Lauren, *exclusively.* She wants to be with Lauren . . . and Dyson . . . and possibly Tamsin . . . and definitely that hunky fae over there . . .
I don’t know how much of this is an unwillingness to commit (and she is scared both of making that call but how that call will endanger people in her life, as she said here) and how much is wanting to be polyamorous, and how much is a succubus’ nature, and how much is loving the one she’s with . . . but she does want them all pretty badly at one point or another.
Ok, I’m with you. So how do you see this playing out? In season 4 and beyond?
During Season 4, I don’t see Bo being a long-term relationship, with anyone. Both because she doesn’t seem to be particularly interested, and because narratively, she’s been in or getting into or getting out of a relationship of one sort since the beginning. Dyson, Lauren-iish, Ryan, Lauren, Dyson-ish . . . since she discovered her fae-ness – and her ability to get close to someone without killing him or her and thus be in a long-term romantic relationship – she’s still never really had a period to just shop around.
At the end of S4, or somewhere in the hiatus, I plan to make wild predictions and speculations about what comes next, but right now everything is so in flux I don’t think I could really give a good answer. Perhaps the finale will set up a coupling or tripling or quadring, perhaps not. But I promise I’ll make a post on it.
(Also, sorry, I’ve no idea who are these characters you’re referring to.)
Characters from 2 Spanish TV shows. Both love conquers all type stories, but with similar tragic endings. What is it with gay on tv… either it ends in tears, or goes nowhere, or is falls to the greater good.
ps. I’m a sucker for a good ending, probably a bit desperate too after the Pepa & Sylvia and now Cristina & Isabel endings. I’m beginning to realise I am pinning my hopes on a duo that may not deliver in the end… 🙂
I’m not sure I agree that Bo has not made it clear re Lauren. She keeps on talking about doing things ‘together’ and I am sure she knows that with Lauren that would mean exclusively. In addition, the way she looks at Lauren… I think she uses Dyson for sex. Sure they get on really well, and make good partners, but on a deeper emotional level she’s with Lauren.
With Lauren it wouldn’t (presumably) mean exclusively. Before, Lauren opened up the relationship for Bo to have at least sex with anyone except Dyson, and who knows that their little lovefest won’t ultimately make her change her mind.
And don’t forget Bo is forever hopeful and optimist. I called it, “she wants to have her beefcake and eat Lauren, too.” And she also seems to want a side of Tamsin, followed by a swig of random fast food workers, and some characters we’ve yet to meet on top. I think she’s really getting used to the open idea.
Your analysis of the carwash scene is very insightful, IMO. I think if people looked a little harder, they’d stop zeroing in on the “objectifying AS” and see what you’re saying about empowerment, shifting the male gaze, and the validity of that scene.
Regarding Tamsin: at this point, I do not think that their relationship has anywhere near the depth and emotional attachment as Bo’s relationships with Lauren and Dyson. That’s just fact. However, I do believe that Bo and Tamsin complement each other. Bo helps Tamsin see that she is more than her Dark-Fae status (something that bothered T a few times when she thought that people didn’t like her because she’s Dark). And I find it interesting that Tamsin has shown this much dedication, and even love, to Bo without having had sex with her yet. There was always some element of sexual attraction first with Lauren and Dyson when they first met Bo, yet Tamsin for some reason is willing to sacrifice herself and help Bo repeatedly with no expectation that Bo will repay her somehow. This element of their relationship is refreshing, IMO.
If you were to talk about amplifying each others’ weaknesses because they’re too similar, I’d venture to say that that would apply to Dyson and Bo as they are both “heroic” characters who both have a great potential to fall prey to hubris.
PS. Tamsin was an adult, with most of her memories intact, throughout the episode. Her talk with Bo (“I have a lot to amend for”) and interactions with the other characters suggest that she is an adult now. Her calling Kenzi “moms” is likely because Kenzi pretty much “raised” her in this life—I believe it’s more a term of endearment rather than a reflection of her mental age.
Thank you much, and thanks for taking time to comment!
I love Bo and Tamsin’s relationship. I love how it went from distain to grudging respect to now mutual friendship. I love how Tamsin obviously deeply loves and admires Bo. I enjoy their interplay, I and it was good to see them together again.
I personally like portraying people, even people who are attracted to each other and deeply love and respect each other on several levels, as capable of having a deep abiding friendship. I hold this view with EVERY show I watch. Just because Bo is attracted to ladies and Tamsin is attracted to ladies doesn’t mean they have to sleep together.
And so far, Bo seems incapable of having a deep *friendship* with someone who is attracted to women. So far she’s slept with them all! And perhaps it’s a little unfair of me to land the ‘responsibility’ for this on Tamsin, since Tamsin came last and it kind of defaults to her. But I’d love to see them as intense friends, for more reasons than this. Like you say, selfless friendship is refreshing.
I know plenty of people out there ship them, and I don’t want to throw cold water on that. In fact, I thought their scenes here played perfectly within the episode and I’d never ever say ‘oh man that was terrible they shouldn’t have kissed.’ I just personally don’t think they should, say, move in together and buy a puppy.
It’s not that I think they’re too similar, per se, but they both have a couple of the same exact bad qualities. I have a problem with the fact that when Bo is with Tamsin, she 1) acts without thinking [which is hardly exclusive to her being with Tamsin, but ‘punch first ask questions later’ does tend to compound with them around] and 2) Bo lies. She lies to Lauren, she held out on telling even Kenzi about the kiss with Tamsin for a long time.
Tamsin is willing to sacrifice herself for Bo, and in fact she essentially thought she may have been doing that in 3.13. But so were Romeo and Juliet; that doesn’t necessarily make for a long-term romantic relationship.
Look, I’ve held this opinion since Fae-ge Against the Machine, and perhaps now Tamsin is regenerated, it’s time to reevaluate. We’ll see what impact they have on each other going forth. But in this episode, they solved the crime, but they also got super distracted by beer bongs and cute boys and indulged in all the hedonism (which was fun!) until one of their friends went missing and could have died. This sort of lack of responsibility and facing problems is what Bo is talking about with the train, and what could get them killed if they aren’t careful.
But then, Tamsin proves here she is really good at holding her alcohol, so she can probably hold her own whatever comes.
(also, you’re right about Tamsin’s age. I added a paragraph to the review, since this was pointed out to me on Twitter, too.)
Thanks for the reply—appreciated the thought and insight that you brought although I have a slightly different view of an ideal relationship. I’m still interested to see how Tamsin’s and Bo’s relationship is going to evolve, and again, thank you for writing such a well thought-out recap of the episode!
I really enjoy that my blog manages to garner replies from people who see things differently than I, or point out things I miss [particularly 3.13 was a great example of this]. If everyone agreed with me all the time, I’d be doing it wrong. And you’ve obviously thought this through and wrote a clear summary of said thoughts, which I appreciate, too. So bring on your different point of view, and let’s watch together how this friend-mance evolves!
I actually saw the opening scene differently. Well, only slightly. I didn’t think Bo was actually putting on a show for Lauren and Dyson. I thought she was just washing the car but what we see is what Lauren see’s in her mind of Bo washing the car because Bo, as a succubus, makes even washing a car sexy. I don’t think real Bo actually got on the hood of the car and doused herself with bubbles and water to entice two lovers. I think all of that was what they were seeing, because both of them are that attracted to her. Because when they go to real Bo she’s making snappy comments about orge guts on the grill of her car, which is pretty much the opposite of sexy enticement. The rest though, about the show presenting it the way they did and Lauren being the one to first take note is interesting and I agree.
I did think the whole thing was an exaggerated/fantastical take; I mean, time wasn’t really slowing down, slow-mo is a technique used in the edit to convey a certain thing to the audience. I simply read the fantasy as being initiated by Bo. Rewatching, I agree that the fantasy instead being initiated Lauren and then Dyson’s mind is a much more likely interpretation of the scene, and I think Hale’s snapping his fingers to break the moment confirms it.
The stuff about objectification and empowerment versus exploitation still stands, because that’s about what’s onscreen, but then my point about Bo throwing herself at Lauren/Dyson turns moot, and instead it’s about how she’s able to enrapture people even while doing things like scrubbing ogre guts.
Bo is usually either totally unaware of the effect she’s having on bystanders (Kenzi’s frustration when she was trying to flirt with the pizza boy but pizza boy was completely enamored with Bo) or she’s very aware even when she covers it with a veneer of innocence (like when she charmed the waitress in 1.01). At first glance I did take it to be like the latter, and perhaps that was influenced by seeing the scene out of context (in the promo), I don’t know. But now I agree with you, and thanks for taking time to mention it. Welcome to the comments section!
I too thought the opening scene was how Lauren and then Dyson reacted to Bo washing the car. What caught my attention was Hale snapping his fingers and the music stopping as well as Bo’s comments about Ogre guts and her shirt being wet. I loved the back and forth throughout the episode between Dyson and Lauren, with Lauren getting the one up in getting in the back seat with Bo and the whole sequence with Lauren, Dyson and Vex. There is definitely a natural chemistry between the actors on the show and the writers are taking full advantage of it.
I’d love to know how much of the Lauren/Dyson/Vex scene (particularly body language and gestures) was ad libbed. It had a very natural vibe, and yes I think much is due to the actors. I’ll take more of this any day. And that would mean we’d be getting more Bo and Kenzi together, too, which I’d also be fine with. I like when everyone gets to be in new or various configurations, but the Bo/Kenzi dynamic is really the foundation of what makes the show work, and any time we go too long without it I go into withdrawal.
“Melanie, you’ve written a THOUSAND words about the first minute and twenty seconds of this show.” Yes, you did, but that is why your reviews are so interesting.
Regarding the Bo/Tamsin dynamic, a couple of episodes ago Tamsin said that Bo showed her what love feels like. In both her previous life and in this life, Tamsin has been attracted to Bo. However, in this life she’s welcoming the emotion rather than struggling against it. I think Tamsin is being positioned to be a loyal defender and ally for Bo, one who would do anything for her.
Thanks, OAD. (Can I call you OAD?)
I think Tamsin is talking about more than just attraction and romantic love. She’s really finding a place where there’s love and acceptance and it’s often messy but she wants to be part of it, and she wants to do it herself (and I believe this was much of the impetus for her speech in the bathtub). I love your observation that in this life she’s welcoming love and acceptance, and not fighting it. I think that will be key.
Right from the start of this life, she had Kenzi as protector and ‘moms’ and that bond is also far different than last year. She came clean to Bo, and found herself still accepted. She’s less acrimonious with Dyson and the world at large. Besides the fact they’ve ‘shown not told’ us about Valkyrie life cycles, they’re also really using this as an opportunity to give her more relationships with people she wasn’t really in contact with, and somewhat different relationships with people than she may have had last lifetime. I’m interested to see whether her conversation with Dyson about choosing sides will pay off, either in her choosing more of her own destiny this time around, or her deciding to fight the binary system as well.
Why did Bo wash her car with the roof down? Does anyone know how in the very first episode why and how it changed from blue to yellow? Kenzi and Hale are not at all convincing as a couple. It appears really fake and forced. Hale comes over as a scheming player and Kenzi as a childish wimp. The dynamic worked much better hen they were friends and not lovers. What has happened to Hale’s sister? Why was the light Fae party being held in a dark Fae house? Does Bo’s dawning continue?
I agree about Kale. That side of Hale always rubbed me the wrong way and this episode only made it worse. I enjoyed when they were friends because this side never showed. We’ve also seen Dyson being a player yet it didn’t bother me as much. I guess his comments about using his powers to get into women’s pants marred his character for me. As Melanie pointed out, Bo does it too. Still her powers are related to sex, and more importantly, I as a female viewer still live in a society where it’s mostly men who use their powers to get their ways with women, so a male character doing it makes it much more difficult for me to enjoy him (not that it’s any less troubling when a woman abuses a man, when Aife raped Dyson or Bo was violent with him this season it was just as painful to watch, and both times the show failed dealing with it).
Here Hale did it again. I don’t buy he wanted to make it perfect for Kenzi. Nothing was going to happen. He just wasn’t getting any because of how he objectified her, period. He kept trying until he got it. He was making it perfect for himself. And admitting he never did it with someone he cared about IMO is not enough to redeem him. I didn’t like how they solved it. Maybe if they left it hanging it wouldn’t be so bad, but the fact that Kenzi said they already did it makes it look like it’s ok. It was too quick.
Also, there’s some theory that Hale is going to die, especially after his saying they have time. I got that feeling too.
This is your first comment, and having no context, I’m not sure how to take it, so I’m going to act as if your questions are asked in a spirit of jest or honest curiosity and not contrariness.
Because she can, and raising a convertible’s top exponentially lowers its sexiness quotient.
Because of the budget and access to various vehicles the show had at any given time. Possibly they ran over or had to reshoot, and the car they used before wasn’t available, so they winged it and realized it wasn’t the Most Important Thing. Perhaps we were supposed to suppose both Bo and Kenzi had access to a car. It disappeared for a long stretch of S1, and then Lauren borrowed it in S2 to get it and her out of the way, and now it appears only when needed. Cars are expensive, and moving them is expensive, and moving them actually while shooting costs more insurance than just having them sit there, and it all adds up.
Convincingness and chemistry are somewhat subjective. I’ll agree the sexual tension seemed higher with they were in ‘will they won’t they’ mode, but that’s based on mostly vibes I’m reading. You give statements without explanation or specifying what makes you think that way, so I’m not sure where to agree or disagree. Most of all, I don’t get where ‘childish wimp’ comes from. I think overrainbows [below] brings out a couple more specifics about what may have made the plot grate on you, but you’re welcome to expound, too.
I believe they gave a throwaway line in Season 3 about why Val wasn’t around. It did feel as though they were setting her up for more in 2.22. [I also thought Hale’s storyline as Ash and acting against the ways of his father and clan were going to be more prominent, and Val would be tied up in that. Perhaps it all got ditched in one fell swoop.] It may also have had to do with the actress’s availability; a small character like this would likely be signed on an episode-to-episode basis, and without having a contract for S3, perhaps she decided to take another part. I simply don’t know.
Because the show was busy redressing the Dal as another set. Or because it was made clear by Tamsin everyone could party together until midnight. Or because Bo’s friends and random acquaintances are ignoring / have yet to process the fact Bo is truly Dark and now has to live by those rules. Also, though it was never spelled out, it was hinted Vex had gone around and invited everyone he knew to come drink the clubhouse’s stash of booze. That certainly seems something he would do.
Personally, I don’t subscribe to the theory this is all still Bo’s Dawning. I do think it’s possible she’s still having some hangover symptoms and it affected her personality. It’s also possible the Dawning is simply never to be spoken of again. Some think it continues, and I suppose if it does, we’ll find out this season. More than a whole season inside the Dawning would require this to be a Newhart or St Elsewhere scenario, and in a show already supernatural and thus surreal, I don’t see that happening.
I think they changed from the blue car to the yellow car because a cash poor succubus would never own such a cherry car like the blue one. She would own one like the yellow one with rust and dings all over it 🙂 The blue car was shown only in S101 never to be seen again.
Indeed! It’s wise for a show which doesn’t have much money to write main characters who don’t, either.
For some reason I thought the blue car reappeared in Faetal Attraction, but when I checked the recap I saw it was a blue car Kenzi and Bo were beating; not the same. Also, if I’m not mistaken, that’s the only time we’ve seen Dyson driving. I suppose he commandeered an unmarked squad car.
It also bothered me that Krampus just let her go because she admitted her fears. The plot device didn’t have to be so obvious. In my head, he did because she mentioned the Wanderer. Krampus wouldn’t want to mess with the Big Bad’s plan by turning her into candy, so he just fed from her regrets and let her go. They could have made him say something or just look worried at the mention of his name. It wouldn’t take much more screen time, but oh well. I always liked Krampus and I loved their take on him. He’s also considered an incubus, which reminds me we’ve never seen one in Lost Girl.
The hints at incest remind me of Xena. They went there with Ares. Though they toned it down and just made it dubious, the original script was very clear. I see so many parallels with Freud’s first findings of incest before rejecting it all for his Oedipus theory and how society deals with cases of rape in families, etc. It fit well with Xenaverse and Greek mythology. Norse mythology also has cases of incest, so I’m still wondering if the Wanderer is Odin. I’m excited for this storyline. Apparently I’m the only one since I’ve only seen people wishing they don’t go there. I really don’t see why people are criticizing it so much since unlike Xena nothing happened nor is ever going to, so what’s the problem? It’s just to show how “Voldemort-bad” he really is.
Very nice to see Tamsin back in the days. So he hired Tamsin to find Bo before she was born? Because by Tamsin’s clothes it was centuries earlier. Maybe there was some kind of prophecy about someone with those traits so he put Tamsin after her, but later it turned out he had the opportunity to make it come true with Aife so he did and once she escaped Tamsin’s contract came in handy? Because if Tamsin had no problems dressing like that about thirty years ago, why isn’t she doing it now? She should. I’m glad she’s not so heavy on the eyeliner nowadays though. lol I would like explanations, because I end up obsessing over such big plot holes. And I also got the feeling the descriptions of Bo sounded similar to some other famous story. The Mirror’s description of Snow White keeps coming to mind but I still don’t think that’s it.
Bo’s father is hideous, isn’t he? How could Trick give his own daughter to him? I’m still waiting for Trick to be fully called on his BS. I’d like punishment for what he did. Emily Andras said there would be a third Big Bad this season. I’m so hoping it’s Trick! Her last interview on The Loop gives me hope. She said Trick is very complex and hinted the third Big Bad could be close to Bo. It would be so interesting for the show.
It’d be much more interesting to me if Krampus let Bo go because he wanted nothing to do with the Wanderer. Otherwise, I can’t see him giving up his chance at blue candy simply because she bared her soul, even if doing so made her candy slightly less potent, or whatever it is made.
Ah, incest. There’s just so much there; I almost mentioned Oedipus specifically, in fact, in relation to the Wanderer’s prophesy/description, because Oedipus was prophesied/described by the Oracle in a manner which rang like the Wanderer’s depiction . . . more a cadence thing than an actual likeness. Now, Oedipus ended up unwittingly committing the incest, and I must admit, I would have a problem if Bo slept with a guy who ended up being her father. It’s so very Greco-Roman, and they’ve been doing a lot of that lately, and you mention Odin, and they could conflate the two somewhat as well. But besides the ick factor and the power dynamics problem, this would be taking the soap opera to another level, and it’s far darker than this show should go. I know it’s going darker, and that’s one thing, but to actually essentially *show* incest . . . I don’t think I’m down for that. But I don’t think I’ll have to be. This is all wild speculation, which is fun but not to be taken seriously.
You mention Xena. There are some similarities, but I think a few things set it apart from this. 1) Despite not having so much blood or explicit anything, Xena was a darker show. We’re talking a butchering traitorous murderous warlord whose soul was damned to hades. 2) there was much more the overlying greco-roman god structure, which is a dark and dirty place full of things like incest and statutory rape, and since the whole series is set far in the past, there’s the feel we’re not dealing with modern ideas of civility and social mores. 3) As you say, whether Ares is her literal father is obfuscated by the show, possibly because they realized it was a line they didn’t want to cross, possibly to negate a hint that she was a half-god. Ares represented (or retconned, if you prefer) as being more father in spirit, the same as he takes on other protégés, though he’s never as invested in anyone as much as Xena. Xena was never (that I know of/remember) presented as having any immortal blood, and that to me is a far more interesting choice (which is why I’m vehemently opposed to Lauren or Kenzi turning out to be / becoming fae). But, I’m wandering off topic. In short, Lost Girl is presented as occurring approximately in our modern reality, and thus even if we say The Wanderer is more ruthless and unconscionable than Ares, his incestuous relationship would be in a far different context socially, narratively and mythologically.
And all this would be if it were actually consummated. I suppose that’d be my issue? I’m working this out as I go, because I hadn’t been seriously considering it – that caveat stated: introducing the darkest and creepiest of characters as someone chasing after a weird supernatural rape-mating [based on the narrative so far either he’d be forcing himself on, or lying to, Bo] with his biological or supernaturally-connected-somehow daughter as a neon sign for HEY CREEPY is one thing. Committing on-screen (or even off-screen) incest . . . I think I covered that would be gross and weird and wrong, right?
Yes, the Wanderer was hiring ancient-Tamsin, not just because she said ‘in a previous life’ and S3 Tamsin seemed to have been around at least a hundred years or so, but because of the flashback clothing and set. Thus my comment about The Wanderer being a time traveler.
Despite how adorable his Rudolph sweater and how hilarious he is in this episode, Trick has never been an innocent / benevolent barkeep. He’s always been more, and even if one could argue his actions as king weren’t malevolent but done ‘with the best of intentions’ (and we know what road those pave), he’s shown himself to be involved in dark, double-crossing, nefarious, self-serving, murderous deeds aplenty. I’d like the characters to finally fully realize he’s a bad dude, and I think one of Dyson’s decisions in the near future is going to be whether to keep his loyalty to Trick, or siding with Bo and/or Lauren and/or the gang against whatever Trick’s got up his sleeves.
I never considered the possibility of the incest actually happening. I don’t want them to go there at all either, let alone showing it! I didn’t really consider he might have done something to Bo while she was there. Given how many clues she sent her present self, she had some freedom. I think that if he wanted to marry her he was trying to convince her to do it willingly. I assumed Bo has some leverage to his powers, so forcing her could be worse for him? Although we know he had a Koushang when Aife was his prisoner, so he could’ve abused her easily. English is not my first language, is there a non-sexual meaning for “mate”? I couldn’t find it. Other than adding to his levels of creepiness, why would they make him need Bo as his mate story-wise? If taking over the Fae or coming back to this plane was his goal, they’re really going out of their way with this “mate” aspect. It’s totally unnecessary for the story. And now I’m on board with everyone else not wanting this storyline. lol
The time-traveler theory is not bad, but it seems too much trouble to go back in time just to get Tamsin to do the job. He could’ve asked her to do it in the present day as she was still a bounty hunter not long before working with Dyson, and if he is imprisoned he wouldn’t be able to time-travel or wouldn’t he try to change what led to his imprisonment, or if he isn’t imprisoned he would’ve come for Bo himself? I guess the prophecy is more likely. So many questions. Let’s hope we get satisfactory answers. Also, I want to see if they dropped the idea that when a Valkyrie likes someone she needs to make them go away as Tamsin mentioned back in S03. I’d like to see how it plays along with the Wanderer’s other plane and his kidnapping Bo. I don’t think it fits the story now.
It’s always very frustrating how Bo and Kenzi overlook what Trick does. I’m really glad to see the writers have this in mind because Bo’s blindness has been going for so long that sometimes I wondered if the writers overlooked it too.
In the US at least, I’m not familiar with a non-sexual meaning for ‘mate.’ A few countries use mate as friend as in ‘that’s my mate,’ but context kind of seals that’s not what’s going on here. (Relatedly, I never thought english wasn’t your first language until you said something.)
I’m glad to see Tamsin coming into play more, and I agree it’s about time Bo and Kenzi look critically at Trick. I think now we’re really headed towards catalysts in some of our major plotlines and relationships.
Really appreciate your breakdown of the car wash scene- you put into words why i enjoyed it, while at the same time I am sometimes uncomfortable with the fandom objectification of the characters/actresses (i.e. the ZP “arm porn” “hair porn” stuff.) This felt fun and teasing, and was very in character with the Bo that we know (whether or not this was just happening in Lauren and Dyson’s minds), who can turn on that succubus charm when she wants. And AS is a gorgeous woman, and comes off as confident (although Emily Andras has said in multiple interviews that Anna Silk wasn’t sure if she could pull it off. To which everyone in the world with eyes said- what are you, nuts?) Bottom line, it felt like Bo had complete control of the fantasy, even if it was not initiated by her, and to me that negated any thought that this was exploitative.
I’m glad you appreciated it. Every episode I try to pick one aspect – often related to film production, but it varies – and expound on it. Hearing people are interested and getting a variety of viewpoints in return is always rewarding.
Whoa! This has become a very busy place!
It’s funny the details different viewers fixate on. I loved the car wash scene. As a promo, I thought it might be among the best I had ever seen. Michelle Lovretta, the credited creator of the show, once related in an interview a series of guidelines she developed for the writers. One of them was the adoring objectification of both sexes. I think sex is another character on this show. It is how Bo expresses herself, and objectification is an essential part of its personality.
Perhaps that is why the most significant moment of the show to me was when Tamsin suggested incest. It completely rewrote the narrative. My mind blew back over everything that had been happening and it all took on a different significance.
Bo’s behavior was strongly suggestive of trauma. But I felt as if it was overshadowed by the expectation that she was “going Dark” this season; not just in alignment, but in personality. It has been foreshadowed so many times, that it seemed like the next logical step. Now I feel as if the writers took advantage of that expectation to build a misleading picture. They left us clues, particularly in 406; then abruptly flipped the narrative here. I also thought it was too dark a concept for them go down that road. Yet here they are..laying the stones. Even if they only make it a suggestion, it strikes at the very heart of the show. Bo is the embodiment of feminine power through sex. It was heartbreaking in 406 to see her expressing a shame reaction with Dyson. The darkest implication is that Bo has been sexually abused by her own father, which imposes the most vicious form of patriarchal dominance on feminine sexual agency imaginable. I cannot conceive of anything more demeaning to the character and themes of the show. Naturally, I can also cannot conceive of any more powerful storyline than seeing Bo fight through it.
I’ve written somewhat about how I appreciate the show not making its female characters invincible. With Bo in “Dead Lucky,” just because she was flirting never made the implied rape [being stabbed with ice picks is pretty suggestive] even an iota her fault, and she and Kenzi killed the guy in self-defense. The show occasionally gives glimpses of Kenzi’s Darkest Timeline, where she would have been presumably on the streets getting by in various ways. In the end of S3, I like how fallible they made Lauren, how it explicitly showed that a strong capable person who happened to be woman could be so misled, and then in “Those Who Wander” there was strong suggestion of sexual harassment/assault, and it wasn’t her fault. I also like the fact she got revenge; yeah sure in ‘the real world’ if it’s not actively happening we go through the system, but this isn’t the real world, this is metaphorical. We’ve seen metaphors for child trafficking and drugging and raping and much more. So with all the ways the show has shown its ability to go dark, I’m unsure why this is the line I assumed they’d drawn. It’s not that it would be ‘more Bo’s fault’ than anything else; it’d not be her fault in any way. Maybe it has something to do with incestuous rape generally involving children while Bo has been becoming her own woman this whole time. Maybe it’s the societal mores and ick factor. Maybe it’s because as terrible as rape is, abusing the sacred position of parent is the only thing which could make it worse. Maybe it’s because I can’t remember a show I’ve watched which has seriously gone this direction as a plotline [not something like CSI which uses it as a case to be solved, and we talked about Xena above], let alone a supernatural show. And thus, maybe it’s because I’ve never worked through it before.
But I still hope it doesn’t go this direction, and thus I won’t have to work through it, in public, on my blog. The suggestion and the conversations it’s sparked has been enough for me.
I agree with Old Ain’t Dead that I don’t think Bo’s confession while on the complex-feelings gumdrop maker is “enough” to really address all that’s going on with her, but I think it’s a great start and am really happy/hoping they’re ‘going there’ (i.e. she’ll continue addressing her complex-emotion stuff). It’s also REALLY nice to see her denial, fear, etc named and addressed on-screen. You’ve/we’ve all talked before on this blog about how Bo’s capacity to be in relationships (romantic, friendships, etc) is at some level stunted by her lying, denial, obliviousness to others’ feelings, fear, using others… and so it feels to me that this episode potentially helped start her acknowledging and addressing it. I also think it’s the lying, denial, etc that drive Bo’s ‘anti-hero’-ness. And for me as a viewer it moves the characters and show to new levels if she (and all the faemily) are addressing it. And, I’m noticing we’re not discussing lately how characters are being sacrificed in service to plot… which makes me wonder if plot, these last few episodes especially, is being used to develop characters, and if decisions characters are making are also shaping plot. Any thoughts?
In a similar fashion, I’m liking Dyson more and more the last two episodes, because with a window into his backstory I understand more his chivalrous fealty to Fae and Trick (and that he was a playboy for a few centuries!), and also I appreciate that he’s having to face his adherence to rules and traditions that felt so one-dimensional and held him back as a character. I loved the scenes with Lauren, Dyson, and Vex… and appreciate the balance between Lauren/Dyson friendship/respect, yet with the tension still present regarding their love of Bo.
I also wonder what’s up with Trick…
Thanks for the review, as always!
The first step, as it were, is Bo acknowledging what’s going on. And I find it highly amusing – both within the overall show and this episode’s narrative structure – that this acknowledgement doesn’t come in a fight with Dyson or Lauren, it doesn’t come in a heart-to-heart with Kenzi or an interrogation or fireside chat with Tamsin, it comes to a total stranger. A total stranger who is trying to kill her and turn her into candy.
It works because Bo has to be quite literally forced to speak her feelings and fears. Much as I want to turn this into a symptom of years of fundamentalist oppression, because that’s a definite thing, I think it has simply built up over the seasons to where it’s a part of the show that there’s no long, wild exposition about internal feelings on Bo’s part. Rather than have some sort of intervention or make this a deep dark night of Bo’s soul, they put her on a conveyor belt towards a Wallace-and-Grommit looking candy machine, and there she spills her guts. Brilliant.
I do believe we’ve seen a lot of character revelation and emotional grappling, especially in 4.04-4.06 though not quite so much in La Fae Époque (backstory yes, characters shaping events, no).
I think Dyson having to break up with Trick would be the best decision this show has ever made. And the drama and the fallout could fuel a couple B-plots as well as intersect with / shape A-plots. Huzzah!
That’s a great observation — that Bo’s acknowledgement comes when a total stranger is threatening her life and trying to turn her into candy! It feels very very Lost Girl too… ohhh, crushing on the show.
Great review Melanie. I enjoyed the opening sequence as I thought the comments and reactions of the characters witnessing it really kept it from being some random exploitative scene of showing Bo doing something “provocative” without any context. It’s even carried through to Lauren and Dyson both trying to be the one that assists Bo after her comment about changing clothes.
As to Tamsin’s comment about the Wanderer and Bo constantly jumping to “he’s my daddy”, I don’t see those both being true. Bo has a horrible track record with not only figuring out her genealogy, but dealing with her blood relations after connecting with them without the lingering amnesia. That is not someone I would bet on suddenly being able to solve the mystery of her father with only vague clues and a creepy comment from a guilt ridden Valkyrie.
I wouldn’t put it past someone like this Wanderer to have arranged for Alfie to be kidnapped by some other psychopath in order to make sure the two of them got together so he could have his ideal mate. Still creepy and sadistic, and doesn’t speak highly of Bo’s actual father if true, but not molesting his own daughter creepy and sadistic.
I also think it speaks more to a reason to be afraid. Alfie is described, and briefly seen, as a powerful Fae in the first season. She fights in the war, then leads a rebellion, has to be contained by her father at first, then a very powerful artifact is used against her and finally she escapes after centuries of imprisonment only to survive on the run for decades. Alfie’s description of Bo’s father in S1 and S3 seems to paint a picture of a Dark Fae that is certainly not of a lackey and I get the impression the Wanderer didn’t mention the price tag for his matchmaker talents, which would make his actual entry into the show interesting in terms of his side of the story actually clearing up Bo’s conception.
We also have a clear condemning of incest at the start of the season by Lauren literally telling off who she believes to be the cronies of some Elder for their boss’s habit of feeding from blood relatives and it’s negative effects for said Fae. I don’t see them putting that in a season where they are going to reveal Bo’s father wants to marry her.
Welcome to comments! Keep ’em coming.
Genetically engineering one’s mate via manipulation and coerced insemination of sorts? Ok. That’s interesting.
[I’d bet someone out there has suggested the possibility Trick is The Wanderer, what with him giving Aife up and being all super concerned about how powerful she is and such. That still doesn’t kill the weird incest angle, assuming we’re correct about ‘mate’ and he wasn’t lying about being her grandfather. And I agree I don’t think they’re going full incest. Suggestion of it is creepy enough.]
I like your phrase “a reason to be afraid,” and I think they’re doing that thing supernatural shows do of building up a dark, looming, foreboding presence (a la Buffy, Torchwood, etc). They did it with the Garuda too, though hopefully this pays off bigger.
I think Bo is going to mirror her mother to a point – powerful, leading a rebellion – but I think she will be successful. I think her success will be a combination of several things including her good heart and especially her constructed family. Aife didn’t have Kenzi/Dyson/Lauren/Tamsin/Hale/etc, (even Vex and who knows, Ryan or Val or Crystal or anyone else may come into play). That’s the key, as it was in S2.
Thank you for the welcome.
The genetic engineering theory seems to be the most interesting way I could think of to reconcile The Wanderer pursuing Bo as his ‘mate’ and the hints that he was somehow involved in her birth.
Trick is certainly not helping the situation any. For a guy that knows a lot he doesn’t actually seem to offer that information when asked and I’m hoping that Bo does challenge him on his silence not only regarding The Wanderer, but in general.
The prevailing theme in the show that everything happening right now links back to Bo’s father and The Wanderer hopefully does not end when the two characters are officially separated as it would be a shame to waste two seasons of the show on a bid bad only to have it end like the Garuda arc did. It would also be a great opportunity to introduce a member of Bo’s family that would take an active part in the character’s life.
It would be interesting to see Bo truly get involved with the Fae to where she actually pushes against the established norms in a way that goes beyond checking the Unaligned box on any paperwork she has to fill out.
Points for the ‘checking the Unaligned box’ bit.
Trick will only help a situation if it helps him. I enjoy him as a character, but it’s about time Bo get fed up; I hope her griping at the Dal and her confronting him during Yule are only the start. And my greatest hope is that all of this leads to a showdown at high noon between Bo (and assorted friends) and the whole fae system. BURN IT TO THE GROOOOUND.
First and foremost I’m a Lauren fan so really seasons 3 and beyond made me cringe while watching. Two things that irk me still are why does Bo as a succubus need to be in a relationship? She’s really a super hero and we all know they can’t really committ especially time wise. Secondly why did they start the triangle over when she chose Lauren and never said they were over, only Lauren did? Having watched years of television triangle’s mean they are loved equally, she hadn’t loved Dyson like that since season 1, if you could really call that love compared to her feelings for Lauren. I won’t mention the others because they never reached that level.
Ha, yeah, very good point about time and commitment and superheroes having a general lack of both.
Not sure if it’s just me, but it seems the over-reliance on a love triangle is especially prevalent in the superhero genre. I think networks push it a lot, because it’s what they see as a sure way to drive ratings / conversation / new viewership, and because it means they have ready-made season posters. But it’s not always best for the show, and it’s really annoying in general.
I curse Zoie Palmer. I curse her. I curse her. I curse her for being fabulous and the reason I watched this show. I’m older than her, I can do that.
I should have stopped watching after this episode. This season was a mess and I get we were supposed to “think about everything being turned upside down”, or what have you. But come on. This is season 1 Bo stuff too.
Lauren’s a liar and Tamsin is just perfect. So perfect that it only took Bo all of two seconds to forgive her. Lauren? Oh dear sweet drunk Lauren. Why weren’t you there to see that? I would have loved to see a fed up ZP walk away, then when Bo tried to stop her, she’d clock her. Think Dark to be Dark baby!!
Because sleeping with Bo because she wanted her: Breaking up with her because she was no longer happy: Leaving with Taft because he blackmailed her, and she deserved the recognition he was giving her: Saving Bo’s “sex boy”, and then running for own life because Bo didn’t “know where they took her”. Staying with the Dark because the Una Mens could overpower Bo, and not coming home to her “real family”,(LOL LOL) because Bo wanted her to, was not two seconds of forgiveness worthy.
I love Bo and Lauren but Bo had very little respect for Lauren. Either she poked fun at her work, embarrassed her in front of two of her lovers, either she did it or allowed people to live in her home, wear her clothes, drink her liquor, read her police files, rummage through her desk, and eat her food. Or didn’t care where she was until she wanted her or remembered her.
Loved Choga. Lol I wish he would have been in scenes with Kenzi though.
Lastly at the end when Tamsin said Dark Fae can’t party with the Light when they are celebrating Yule after midnight…umm so I guess Bo couldn’t go in her own house again until the party was over because she was Dark too.