Shawn just goes absolutely off the rails in the s7 opener after Henry’s been shot and I wanna talk about it!! It’s so interesting because we really genuinely haven’t seen him like this before - even Jules says as much — “I’ve never seen you like this! … you’re acting impulsively in a very dangerous way, you don’t see this behavior is erratic?!” — and it made me think
Of course we haven’t seen Shawn like this— this is the Worst Thing* that’s ever happened to him and he can’t deal! But you know who has seen him like this before?? Henry. Because the last Worst Thing* that ever happened to Shawn was the Divorce, and baby 18 year old Shawn…. Goes absolutely off the rails. Shawn remembers absolutely nothing of his senior year and apparently Gus has zero idea how bad Shawn has gotten at this time (I wanted to link @incomingalbatross here bc we had a whole post conversation on this last night but apparently you can’t hyperlink on the app??? This is why I once more must say I miss my laptop) — so we know he’s just spiraling. A lot here is inferencing but I think it’s a safe guess to say Shawn wants revenge— he wants to hurt his father the way he feels hurt, and he finally pushes his father to the edge and gets himself arrested and ends the Cop Dream. It’s reckless and self-destructive, but he succeeds in hurting his father and himself and apparently alienates himself from… pretty much everyone (I think we can safely presume Gus included).
And now in s7, a Bad Thing happens again and Shawn can’t deal, again. He is going on a reckless, destructive, revenge rampage. But the difference this time is he has a support network. He has people who love him. Gus is with him most of the way, he never actually takes the Out. Lassiter helps Shawn out and is even empathetic. And when Shawn DOES end up alone, facing down another barrel of a gun, when it seems like he’s blown it again— Jules saves him.
Jules saves him. i cannot stress how much I love this. I’ve been thinking about it all day. She saves him!! She loves him!!! And she’s been worried all episode and SHE SHOWS UP AND SAVES HIM.
He doesn’t have to be alone in this one. And then one step more— this time he does get to go home to his dad. What’s more!!! — it’s not JUST that he gets to go home to his dad— it’s that Henry’s grown too!! He is so furious by the time of the arrest— he’s worried about Shawn’s future and what kind of stuff he’s getting into! But instead of saying any of that out loud— he arrests him and tries to teach him a lesson. At the end, in the hospital too Henry starts in on criticizing— you’re an idiot, it was stupid to go after them— but STOPS— and says what he really means— “I’m glad you’re ok” — because that’s what he means!! He’s been worried!!
*I don’t think any of the serial killer episodes are the Worst Moment of Shawn’s Life because he Wins. No one he loves gets hurt. Here, he doesn’t win. He’s too late. Henry’s shot and almost dies.
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notes on episode 2 of netflix three body problem spoilers for the books as well
• da shi is perfect. no notes
• MORE BUG MOTIF… i really like that they added more. hopefully it doesn’t get too on the nose
• don’t like how they made the sophons manipulate the camera footage… i don’t doubt that they had the ability to do that in the books, my issue is that it’s not SUBTLE… the trisolarans didn’t want people to think something supernatural or alien was going on, or that there’s some saboteur working against humanity. they wanted them to think that their understanding of physics was incorrect... they really missed the mark with this
• the VR game scenes are pretty good! and the Sophon cameo… <3
• having da shi’s wife be dead was a good choice i think. considering he was kind of not really an involved father in the books iirc. a good talk on the fragility of the human race
• also this random woman they added in to move the plot along is so unecessary. like idk why it couldn’t have been wenjie doing all this
• oh sorry i was wrong. will downing is supposed to be tianming!! that actually works out better. i think they’re doing the staircase project this season as well
• oh they made wade the one who says “there’s someone behind everything”…. i feel like it worked better in the books coming from da shi… it’s his practical mindset against the academics and “intellectuals”
• still annoyed they didn’t include wenjie’s sister, HOWEVER the confrontation btwn wenjie and her father’s killer was good, it shows how wenjie views humanity now, how she humans as unable to come to a “moral awakening” on their own since the girl didn’t repent for what she did. i believe this happened in the books as well, just not with the girl that dealt the final blow
• also. small detail. but the button wenjie pressed should have been red like in the books. like the way they talk about the “red sun” and the cultural revolution etc in the books makes the colour seem meaningful to me. beyond just being a red button
• OVERALL: things are getting interesting! not too invested in the characters aside from wenjie and da shi just yet, but i don’t actively dislike them
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