muchcelebrated

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Op this is just the kind of analysis I EAT UP. I love this so much you’re so right.

Like yes Belle is idealistic and hopeful and willing to take risks in a way Jack isn’t at first but it’s because she’s lived a life of privilege Jack hasn’t but that privilege has also made it so that she’s willing to challenge society and it’s norms. And because of Jack’s lack of privilege he has a lot more compassion for people who are struggling but then isn’t willing to push back against societal norms thus preventing progress. They have both positive traits and flaws that stem from the same source and are perfect foils of each other it’s genius.

Something I wanted to add is that these aspects of their characters and the dynamic it creates between them (which you’re right is so perfectly established by their meet cute) also so perfectly aligns with their backstories.

Like we see that a reason Jack isn’t willing to take risks as much is because it landed him in jail once and the last time he took a risk the only reason he didn’t end up in jail was due to the compassion of the captain who was willing to see past the attempted theft and give Jack a chance as a surgeon. His experiences have made him believe that he is at the mercy of whoever is in power and there’s no changing that.

On the other hand we see Belle who has a life threatening condition that no one around her will take seriously. They lie to her and deny it to spare her parents’ and her feelings. She sees compassion as dishonesty because that’s been her experience with it. She also doesn’t see why she shouldn’t take risks not only because of her privilege but also because if she doesn’t she’ll die anyways so she might as well try.

Their meet cute isn’t just about romance it sets their character arcs in motion and establishes how they’ll help each other see them through. Jack’s outlook influences Belle’s character arc as she learns more about the realities of the world and as she learns to remember that her patients are people. And then of course we see Jack willing to take the ultimate risk and operate on her.

Anyways tl;dr this show and Op are both geniuses.

The reason why the meet cute in The Artful Dodger is so good (other than just being fun) is that it encapsulates their entire dynamic.

First of all because it shows us how they're alike and how they're different. You've got the different sides of the tracks thing as just the baseline. They're bickering but that's actually more based in their similarities than their differences-- they both have a quick wit and sharp tongue. And they both respond to an emergency with the immediate impulse to jump in and help.

But even more important is the bigger picture of their approaches to treating the boy with the broken leg (Charlie)-- Belle wanting to use the ether to operate which is riskier but would save the boy's leg, and Jack wanting to amputate because it's a more sure way to save his life. It sets up the way that they push and balance each other throughout the series.

Belle is idealistic. She has very clear ideas of what should be done, both in a practical and moral sense. And she's usually right (saving Charlie's leg is better; the hospital should be cleaner; stealing with Fagin is wrong.) But she's operating from a place of privilege and self-righteousness that can't always see the realities of the people involved. Jack balances that, grounding her by forcing that ideal of compassion into a practice of compassion. He's less willing to take the risk on the surgery because he's the one holding Charlie's hand and whispering "stay with me Charlie-boy". He's the one who's been holding dying men's hands since he was a teenager. He's the one who sees (and has lived) the struggles of the people around him. And he's able to open Belle's eyes to that as the show goes on.

But, despite Jack's real lived-in compassion, the things he's seen and experienced have made him a bit jaded. He's burned out and stuck in a mindset of "that's just the way things are". The fool will run the hospital. The poor will be trampled on by the town leaders. Most of his patients will die. So he stays in his patterns and does what he can, eases the suffering that he's able to, and comforts the dying. And Belle galvanizes him. She gets him to push back, to take chances, to try to actually change things for the better, even if it's risky. She gets him to hope and aspire, and to strive more for what could be, instead of just bearing up under what is.

That's how they make each other better. And they do that so well that, and that mix of empathy and idealism is so electric that it immediately sparks dramatic changes for both them and everyone around them.

And the meet cute immediately puts this dynamic on display.

#another long ass analysis post from me I’m sure no one is surprised #sorry if this is kind of repetitive I love to over analyze and yap #this analysis was just too perfect like I’ve been trying to figure out how to word this for so long #dodgerfox #commentary #jack dawkins analysis #lady belle analysis #my post #dodgerfox analysis

[muchcelebrated]

I have a twenty six pound debt on my head. And if I don't pay it, I get my hand chopped off.

— THE ARTFUL DODGER | 1.01 The Yankee Dodge

#gifs #norbert fagin #fagin #episode 1 #the yankee dodge

[muchcelebrated]

THIS except you’d also catch me funding a renewal of The Artful Dodger

If only rich people today had taste or were involved in fandom because they literally have the resources to make what they want happen.

If I was rich I’d patron the fuck out of the arts. You’d 100% catch me personally funding the Lockwood and Co renewal. No price too high.

#i’d say we need to show a rich person the show #but in order for that to do anything they’d need to have taste #which it appears most do not #eat the rich #<<prev #my post #commentary

[muchcelebrated]

THIS!

I just posted about how Belle is “not like other girls” but in a little weirdo way and not a pick me way and just gah I love her.

She is so well written and her feminism actually makes sense in the context of the story unlike so many other shows. I could write essays defending why she’s a complex character and so much more than your standard period drama girl boss feminist type.

It's UNHINGED that Belle tests the acid by just pouring quite a lot of it on her own leg. Girl you did not have to do that!

The mad scientist vibes on this absolute weirdo, for real:

She just hangs out in her bedroom in a plague doctor mask for no reason other than maybe the aesthetic, since she's up to date on the latest medical developments and that's definitely not it

She deals with unwanted social situations by just dropping disgusting medical facts that will alienate people

She blackmails a criminal into training her as a surgeon

She's touched to the point where she looks like she might tear up when she gets to open up a corpse

When faced with an obstructive, incompetent authority figure she'll just get him out of the way by casually chlorophorming him then lying

Doing dangerous surgery is her favorite thing in the world

Letting her make the first incision is the most romantic thing ever and will get her to kiss you over an unconscious idiot she's about to do surgery on

She just tests new dangerous medical developments on herself and, after she gets it working, on her very startled loved ones

Mostly does it in the puffiest skirts ever that seem to have come out of my childhood daydreams

She'll just lie and pull rank to get what she wants, she simply ignores rules that are inconvenient to her, but otherwise she's all haughty and expects to be called milady

She's intelligent, passionate and stubborn, she's extremely confident, arrogant actually, a bit hypocritical, but she cares deeply and she's learning

What she's learning is how to do gory 1850 surgery, how to do CRIME, the wrongs of colonialism, and that making out in a hospital supply closet is hot

I love her so, so much 😭

#this is my opinion and people are welcome to disagree but you will never make me hate her #commentary #my post #lady belle analysis #lady belle #lady belle fox #belle fox #gifs

[muchcelebrated]

What I need everyone to understand is that while Belle is “not like other girls” it’s because she’s a little weirdo with a hyperfixation/special interest for medicine and surgery in the 1800s (due to her own life threatening health condition might I add) and it’s not because she is a pick me.

Those of you that think she’s a standard girl boss feminist know it all character with no flaws are entitled to your opinion, but that personally could never be me.

#like I see this criticism and just wonder if we watched the same show #i don’t pick fights especially online but I’ve come close for belle fox #like I love her #commentary #my post #lady belle fox #lady belle analysis #lady belle #belle fox #the artful dodger #the artful dodger hulu #the artful dodger disney plus #artful dodger

[muchcelebrated]

Heavy on all of this

So I've been thinking of watching The Artful Dodger. What are your favourite things about it? What made you watch it?

Honestly I just decided to watch because I stumbled across some GIFs and it looked fun.

What kept me watching however is:

I really like adult Jack Dawkins/Artful Dodger as a character.Idk he's just convincing and Thomas Brodie-Sangster is really good in this role. He is not a conman avoiding his true calling of crime by trying to be respectable, he really is a surgeon who loves his job and cares about his patients and has made it into a major part of his identity. He just also happens to still be a thrill-seeker and a trickster at heart, and his past is still very much present in the story.All of this without turning him into Gregory House II (I love House don't worry but one is enough).

I expected Belle to be one of those annoying female characters that are modern and perfect and Not Like other Girls and always right but surrounded by backwards morons. I was very pleasantly surprised to find out that she isn't. She's right a lot of the time, sure,but she's also flawed and a bit unhinged and still a product of her environment.She and Jack bond over surgery and it's so. good.The other female characters are varied and well written as well.

Honestly good characters and actors all round.There's one or two towards the end that didn't quite work for me (no spoilers) but not so much as to ruin the show.

It's very funny without being so snarky it loses genuine emotion.

The pacing is very good. It's snappy and quick but still manages to fit a lot of different things in those 8 episodes.

It balances the medical drama and the heist movie genres well.

The romance is present, and important, but it's written in such a way that it doesn't obscure the other storylines but adds to them, and it's honestly beautiful. (This is coming from a person usually annoyed by romantic storylines)

This is very specific, but 8 episodes in and not a single character has complained about corsets, skirts and crinolines! Not even the Spirited Female Lead!!

Fairly realistic 1850's medicine.Yes there are no antibiotics yet yes germ theory is still new, yes there are random people watching surgeries like a show yes anaesthesia has just barely been invented and it's absence is a major problem for surgeons. They're still trying to keep people alive though. (A doctor would probably find more faults but I'm not a doctor).

#i think television has peaked with this show #like it’s been months and im still beyond obsessed #everyone go watch it #review #commentary

[muchcelebrated]

It might sound like I claim every single ship I like is autist4adhd, but you have to take into consideration the fact that I'm always right and have great taste

#dodgerfox

[muchcelebrated]

#episode 8 #gifs #untapped potential #norbert fagin #fagin

[muchcelebrated]

This is so so so good. I’m obsessed with Jack denying he’s soft for Belle and everyone seeing right through him.

Knives, and other forms of courtship

Jack buys Belle some new knives for surgery. It's not romantic, it's practical, no matter what Fagin says. The kissing when he gives them to her, that might be romantic though...

Rating: Mature Word count: 2,548 Ship: Jack/Belle

You can read the fic on AO3 here!

#dodgerfox #fic rec #fic #hc

[muchcelebrated]

#dodgerfox #gifs #episode 5 #the duel

[muchcelebrated]

My Artful Dodger Masterlist

Rated T

And Spit at the Stars (And Scream in the Dark) Belle dies on the table. Jack x Belle | 962

Fair Days Jack's troubled by questions of love and fairness. Hetty knows something of both. Hetty x Jack | 2k

Lettuce-In-Law The first marriage proposal of the evening might be ill-conceived, but the second is quite sensible. Belle x Jack | 2.1k

Take What is Given Following Red's caesarean, Hetty reassesses what Belle means to the Port Victory Royal Hospital—and to her. Hetty x Belle | 912

Rated M

Long Leaving For Belle, studying the human body usually comes before intoxication, so this is new. Belle x Jack | 1.6k

Rated E

Amputated Nights Scissors, scalpel, needle, saw—Hetty is always passing Jack his instruments in surgery, and then they pass the night together. Hetty x Jack | 776

Bodies in the Theatre Jack and Belle make a new memory on the operating table where she almost died. Jack x Belle | 1k

Experimental Treatments Belle was the one who'd poured acid all over her thigh. How could Jack not help her? How could he not, afterwards, recall the sensation of rubbing salve into her skin? Jack x Belle | 1k

Private Practicing Belle's waiting until she's married to do all the things she seems to want when she kisses him. Jack's waiting for her to admit she's not that patient. Jack x Belle | 2.5k

remember it once “I’ve never wanted this before.” “What?” “To devote my life to another person. To live instead of just keeping myself alive. I don’t know… I don’t know how to say it…” “You said it very well.” Jack x Belle | 22k

#one of my fav fic writers #fic rec #fic #hc #dodgerfox

[muchcelebrated]

#hurt eyes The Artful Dodger 1.07

#dodgerfox #gifs #episode 7 #wet lettuce

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I’m very normal in the way that I finish doing in depth analysis of class material for midterms and then as soon as I have a break I turn around and do in depth analysis of fandom media for fun.

#cursed to always overthink things #i must engage critically with any media I consume #the gods command it unfortunately #my post

[muchcelebrated]

#gifs #episode 6 #bully in the alley #hetty #hetty baggett #nurse hetty #nurse baggett

[muchcelebrated]

The Artful Dodger has the vibes of an episodic 20+ ep show despite fitting the serialized 8 ep streaming model: an analysis

I think one of the things I love so much about The Artful Dodger is that it feels so much like the old 20+ ep format of shows. And I’ve been trying to place why, and I think I’ve pinned it down to a few things. Also this is going to be a long post so bear with me.

Each episode has a beginning middle and end and they connect to each other but also there isn’t really a super strong overarching conflict across all 8 episodes.

Instead, there’s multiple mini conflicts that connect to each other but are also each their own contained plot. Episode 1 and 2 deal with the issue of Jack’s gambling debt and that’s a conflict that we see the full resolution of. But that plot line introduces the issue of the stolen money and Darius which is the focus of episodes 3 and 4 and something we again see the full resolution of. The beginning of episode 5 is part of the aftermath of Jack and Belle’s argument in episode 4. Episode 6 connects through episode 5 a number of ways but especially through Jack and Belle’s romance. And episodes 7 and 8 focus both on a new plot line, Oliver Twist, as well as established ones, Gaines and Jack and Belle’s romance.

The main plot line is made up of multiple plot points that each have a conclusion while still connecting to each other and the overarching story. But also, there isn’t a super strong overarching conflict and I don’t mean that there isn’t a main plot, but rather than centering the main plot line on a single conflict like Jack’s gambling debt, they instead keep it centered around a single character, Captain Gaines and the many different issues that he causes for our main characters. It’s genius because allows for there to be different central conflicts to be dealt with in different episodes while still feeling cohesive.

There’s also multiple subplots that occur and cross over into other episodes which provide variety so we’re not even stuck on the same conflict within a single episode and instead get to cut between different things. But since these subplots carry over, they still weave seamlessly into the main plot points and overarching story. Obviously a big one is the romance which is a subplot turned main plot. But also each episode generally has a surgery subplot happening as well. And we have the continued conflict of Belle’s condition that’s given to the audience in bits and pieces but isn’t explicitly revealed until we find out with Jack. Rather than relying on a single main conflict to connect the episodes they allow for the main conflict of some episodes to be resolved then and there and instead use the sub plots to solidify a stronger connection. It’s satisfying and so incredibly genius.

Another big reason I think the show feels episodic is that there’s a distinct feeling of the passage of time between some episodes. Part of this is through things that come back up like Charlie making a reappearance, Rotty having a scar, but also just things in the dialogue and way the characters act. The whole show in general has great control over the passage of time in the sense that it’s very clear when time is supposed to have passed and when it hasn’t. Episode 8 clearly happens right after episode 7, but then between episodes 4 and 5 with Jack and Belle fighting and then Jack deciding to do a heist you get the sense there’s been a couple days between the two events.

I also feel like the repeated sets aid in this feeling but am not quite sure how to articulate why.

Anyways TL;DR one of the things I love about The Artful Dodger is that despite fitting the standard 8 episodes an hour long each streaming format, it actually has a more episodic feel reminiscent of the days of 20+ ep seasons that’s very satisfying and genius for a variety of reasons.

#can you tell I love this show not just from a fandom pov but from a craft pov as well? #I’m incapable of consuming media without analysis #please feel free to add! #i could actually talk about this even more believe it or not #very on brand of me to disappear for months then come back with an essay length analysis post #commentary #my post #the artful dodger #the artful dodger hulu #the artful dodger disney plus #artful dodger

[muchcelebrated]

#that little smile The Artful Dodger 1.05 “ The Duel”

#dodgerfox #gifs #episode 5 #the duel

[muchcelebrated]

There is nothing more genius than having your two love interest leads both be doctors and having one of them have a life threatening heart condition that she doesn’t tell him about and keeps writing off symptoms he sees and inquires over and then following through with an emotional discovery scene after he asks her to run away with him where all he has to do is listen to her heart and we see his face shift from confusion to disbelief to the utmost sadness and devastation.

#like this is the most perfect romantic plot line for two doctors in a period drama #dodgerfox #commentary #my post #the artful dodger #the artful dodger hulu #the artful dodger disney plus #artful dodger