you are possible with me.

[ever_neutral]

So I assume everyone has heard that The Hour has been axed. Right after I'd finally finished watching both series, no less. IS THERE NO GOD IN THE WORLD. Cry @ me and spam Bel/Freddie gifs.

Also, mollivanders asked me a while back for a picspam of Freddie/smoking for that screencap meme thing. Back then I hadn't actually watched a full episode of the show so I put it to the side. Until yesterday when, in the midst of choosing caps, I heard The News. What a terrible night. Anyway.

all caps from grande-caps on lj.

And... posting a review seems redundant now, but brief thoughts for the sake of masochism:

• I am in love with everyone and their hair.


• Except Hector, I guess, whom I didn't really warm up to until midway through S2 -- right about that time he got his corrupt police officer friend whose name I don't give a shit about on the air to blast him good and proper. Good.


• My caring more for Hector in late S2 also coincided with him recognizing his poor treatment of queen Marnie and the mini-arc of him learning to respect her. I even had some warm fuzzy feelings at their last scene in 2.05! Chaste sleeping-in-bed-together gets me every time. And I adored the scene in the finale when she tells him she's pregnant with another man's child, and Hector is so understanding and genuinely happy for her successfully moving on, because he can't be otherwise, not after everything he's done. Also:


• MARNIE MADDEN EXISTS. Both the scene where she confronts Bel about the affair and the scene in the car where she tells Hector that their marriage is for all intents and purposes over were some of the best in the series. Her development in S2 was such a highlight.


• Kiki Delaine's arc through S2 was another. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH THAT FINALE. God bless this show for caring about women.


• Related: "All I could see was the men who buy these photos." WEEPING.


• This show gets a lot of comparisons to Mad Men, and while I think that that show is actually also pretty good with its women, The Hour will always have the edge in my heart for not making a program ostensibly showcasing the social injustices of a given era revolve around a privileged abusive white dick! I feel like Hector as a character is the far more succinctly executed (and tolerable) Don Draper, but free of glamorization and the show's catering to self-absorbed angst. (Lord, why does Don Draper exist.)


• LIX STORM EXISTS.


• BEL ROWLEY EXISTS.


• (you see where i'm going with this)


• Lix/Randall is the OTP, y/n? Don't even talk to me about how we'll never get in-depth fill-in-the-blanks flashbacks about their history. Don't even talk to me about it.


• Also, Randall is Sid Jenkins' father.


• RME @ the half-baked Bel/Freddie/Camille triangle storyline in S2. Disappointed that Camille was literally invented just to give Bel and Freddie angst, never fleshed out as a character, and then shipped away off-screen in service of the show's OTP. Uncharacteristically lazy writing for this show, tbh.


• And I say this as someone who is completely far and gone with Bel/Freddie. They are the air that I breathe. I don't want to talk about it. I particularly don't want to talk about how much I lost it at Freddie's last "moneypenny" in the finale. Oh God. I can't.


• Okay fine I'm talking about it. The thing that really makes Bel/Freddie for me is that despite their differences, they are completely kindred spirits -- they BELIEVE IN what they're doing, they would die for it, and even with their mutual plain ambition they're both driven at the end of the day by caring too much. They are so gloriously dissatisfied with the state of the world in which they reside. OTP.


• (Aside: I don't believe for a second that Freddie got married in an attempt to ~lure Bel in because she has a bad habit with married men. I think that was his honest attempt to actually move the hell on. Which, obviously, failed miserably.)


• On a related note, the moment I really fell for Bel was in S1 when she admitted to her mother that she can't take things lightly, that everything affects her too much. It was the moment where everything about her character fell into place for me, especially the inexplicable affair with Hector. I like the idea that she fell into that relationship -- that she keeps falling into these sorts of relationships -- because she wants to prove that she can not care so much. Not about the adultery, not about the romance, not even about the person themselves. Compare this to how much she is consumed by Freddie, and runs from it -- until she can't anymore.


• ALSO: "I am tired of it not being possible. It is possible. You are possible. You are possible with me." -- IS A LINE THAT EXISTS. DON'T EVEN LOOK AT ME. DON'T FUCKING LOOK.


• OH NO I CAN'T STOP. "But I am not as brave as you. I want to write and say I’ll be there. I’ll get on a plane, I’ll come right now. I really do. But I can’t. Not because I don’t love you. I love you, Freddie Lyon. But because you won’t even get this letter. Because I won’t ever send it. I’m the coward Freddie, not you. So, instead, I’m sending this prayer out there. Just hoping that somehow you’ll know to come home. Just please come home. Now, soon and maybe your courage will make me brave too. Just come home and I will leap too." NOTHING WILL EVER BE OKAY AGAIN.


• DON'T EVEN TALK TO ME.

Comments

[rosaxx50.livejournal.com]

As I said to cranmers,



I haven't even watched s2 yet, and I am already too sad about this. I CANNOT SPAM YOU WITH THINGS THEY MAKE ME TOO SAD.

(I love/hate that cap where Bel and Freddie are staring at each other and discussing their lives in five years, which is still inevitably together.)

Also, Randall is Sid Jenkins' father.

Hahaha, I don't know who Randall is yet but ok.

[upupa-epops.livejournal.com]

Not reading because I still haven't seen s2 (I FAIL AT LIFE SO HARD), but I wanted to tell you that those pictures are offensive :(.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

Thank. I'm touched you got your icon of me out, too.

There x2.

[upupa-epops.livejournal.com]

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

yeah ok see that doesn't work because I'M the one ostensibly comforting YOU (about your reported life failure).

[upupa-epops.livejournal.com]

I'm just showing you the gif you should've used.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

Oh. Well, I already make copious use of that gif, fyi. But the thought is appreciated.

(LMAO what is this comment thread.)

[upupa-epops.livejournal.com]

The thread is made of random, as it should be.

[verdant_fire]

Dude. I kid you not, I got the first disc of S1 from Netflix ON THE SAME DAY the series was cancelled. I have been meaning to watch the show for forever, and now that I finally start, they kill it. I am very sad/taken aback. On the upside, I suppose I'm guaranteed to love it now.

I'm skipping the review for now because spoilers, but those pictures are glorious/cruel. Especially his face in #3 and 5. What is it with British actors and smoking? How do they manage to make that sexy? Because normally it is repugnant, but I will make an exception for Whishaw. And Cumberbatch. *dies*

Speaking of Whishaw and romantic torture, have you seen Bright Star? He is great in it, and that is some ~quality despair, man. I think you would approve. He and his hair are also freaking adorable as Q in Skyfall.

PS I can think of no more appropriate way to celebrate Valentine's Day than to glory in the broken, bleeding hearts of fictional characters. L'AMOUR.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

Yes. Watch the show and cry. For nothing will ever be okay again.

Thank you, I am glad the pictures hurt you. And Ben Whishaw makes smoking look sexy because he is Ben Whishaw, tbqh.

I've never heard of Bright Star! I'll make of a note of it. And yes, I've seen gifsets of him in Skyfall and you are correct.

PS I can think of no more appropriate way to celebrate Valentine's Day than to glory in the broken, bleeding hearts of fictional characters. L'AMOUR.
This sentence is why we are chums.

[catteo.livejournal.com]

ALL MY CREYS FOR YOU AND YOUR PERFECT THOUGHTS AND POOR FREDDIE AND BEL AND THE KNOWLEDGE THAT WE COULD HAVE HAD IT ALLLLLLL..ANYWAYS:

Your picspam is beautiful and I am super glad that you posted it regardless. BECAUSE FEELINGS.

One of my all time favourite things about this show is the hair and make-up and the clothes. I COVET ALL OF BEL'S CLOTHES. ALL OF THEM.

Agreed about Hector. I mean, I could see why Bel was into him, but really he was just a cad. And then shit got real and he suddenly seemed to realise that he need to change and so he did AND THAT SCENE WHERE HE CALLS MARNIE A CLEVER GIRL JUST ABOUT BROKE ME.

I am 110% on board with all the things that you say about the women in this show. I love that it's so female-centric and that the women are such glorious flawed 3 dimensional characters.

DID I MENTION THAT I HAVE SIGNED UP TO DO LIX(+RANDALL) BACKSTORY FOR THE HEROINEBIGBANG?

EVERYTHING THAT YOU SAY ABOUT BEL/FREDDIE IS EVERYTHING THAT I FEEL. I WANT TO ROLL AROUND IN THEIR DYSFUNCTION AND DENIAL AND TRYING (BUT FAILING) TO MOVE ON ACTIVITIES FOREVER. I COULD BARELY BREATHE WHEN I WATCHED THE S2 FINAL. WHY MUST YOU MONNEYPENNY AT ME? I CAN'T HANDLE IT. YOU ARE POSSIBLE. WITH ME. FUCK MY LIFE HOW CAN SOMETHING BE THIS AMAZING. I HATE YOU BBC. THE END.

Everything hurts and nothing will ever be beautiful again.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

WE COULD HAVE HAD IT ALL.

my pain is so great.

i don't want to talk about it.

DID I MENTION THAT I HAVE SIGNED UP TO DO LIX(+RANDALL) BACKSTORY FOR THE HEROINEBIGBANG?
OMG. DON'T PLAY WITH ME, WOMAN.

DON'T PLAY W/ME.

also tyvm, I am glad you enjoy Ben Whishaw's face too.

[theramble.livejournal.com]

So I assume everyone has heard that The Hour has been axed.

I HAVEN'T *CRIES* (not literally, but, sigh.)

i'm behind on s2 so i only skimmed through this but,

This show gets a lot of comparisons to Mad Men, and while I think that that show is actually also pretty good with its women, The Hour will always have the edge in my heart for not making a program ostensibly showcasing the social injustices of a given era revolve around a privileged abusive white dick!

bless.

[mollivanders.livejournal.com]

BEAUTIFUL PICSPAM! I shall save it and treasure it for ever, y/y, because I have an obsession with Freddie/Ben Whishaw that is only slightly embarrassing.

Your thoughts on Hector parallel my thoughts on him. Actually, this post is basically a testament to our similar reactions/preferences because pretty much every line you wrote I've a) thought before or b) wrote previously. Not to take away your original thoughts and stuff, but I was very pleased when reading this post, i.e. "Yes, good" *twirls evil mustache*. I am also very glad that someone else doesn't think Freddie got married just to make Bel jealous; I think he was honestly trying to move on and then HAHAHA NO NOT ALLOWED. Poor Camille. While I do think it was a weak plot device especially given this show's strengths, I come from the Downton Abbey fandom so basically the fact that Camille was allowed to live makes everything okay for me. Also, I really liked her even with the little bits we got. I also loved Bel's sassface around her because omg, be more obvious Bel. Be. More. Obvious. "I hear the Seine is very polluted."

LIX STORM IS MY QUEEN. I am distraught over the fact that she only exists in twelve episodes but hey, at least twelve episodes? Also while I refuse to have hope in that SaveTheHour campaign a tiny part of my distressed soul is hoping. What we got in S2 was beautiful though and I will treasure it forever. Even if I'm not on board with 1957 Lix/Randall, I sort of dig what we got of their backstory from the Spanish Civil War.

And I say this as someone who is completely far and gone with Bel/Freddie. They are the air that I breathe. I don't want to talk about it. I particularly don't want to talk about how much I lost it at Freddie's last "moneypenny" in the finale. Oh God. I can't.

I KNEW IT WOULD DESTROY YOU. Welcome, welcome to my corner of shipping them. They've both got news running through their spines; they are the poetry between the lines of history and they will never be together and be happy but what-ever I am an adult I can - I CAN'T I'M SORRY I CAN'T.

P.S.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

TY! Very pleased you like.

Not to take away your original thoughts and stuff, but I was very pleased when reading this post, i.e. "Yes, good" *twirls evil mustache*.
lol good good

re: people thinking Freddie got married to make Bel jealous -- I DON'T UNDERSTAND AT ALL. There's nothing in his behavior to suggest that. If anything, he's trying to PUT DISTANCE between himself and Bel because he thinks it's a pipe dream.

Bel's very obvious jealousy was an absolute delight. I love her.

Also while I refuse to have hope in that SaveTheHour campaign a tiny part of my distressed soul is hoping.
I DID NOT KNOW THIS EXISTS. IDK what to feel. : | : | : |

I KNEW IT WOULD DESTROY YOU. Welcome, welcome to my corner of shipping them. They've both got news running through their spines; they are the poetry between the lines of history and they will never be together and be happy
Just be quiet. Just be quiet.

Oh no. Now I've fallen into the Bel/Freddie tag on Tumblr and can't get out.




Nothing is even approaching okay.

[dante-kent.livejournal.com]

AAAAAAAHHHHHHH THIS. So I feel terribly guilty, for I feel I am rather responsible for quite a bit of the pain you're going through. While I know I wasn't the only one doing so, I most certainly nagged you to watch this show. Then I told you it was canceled. .............apologies.

PICSPAM. Freddie and his face are things that exist(ex - NO TOO MUCH PAIN). Skyfall is worth a watch for Ben's face alone. Plus, his hair is fantastic in it. P.S. That gif on the third row right of Freddie and Bel looking at each other LIKE THAT - Exhibit A of why I will never recover.

So I don't know if you ever went back and read my post about the Hour now that you've watched, but unsurprisingly, your thoughts are my thoughts. Often to the letter. We are gross, etc., etc.

That final Hector/Marnie scene is flawless. Just wonderful. There are so many things he could have said to that admission, good and bad and everything in between, but then he said, "Clever girl," and I was just like, "OH." This show is better than all the things.

MARNIE MADDEN EXISTS.

THIS x A BILLION. Marnie Madden is my queen, I adore her, I need her always.

Both the scene where she confronts Bel about the affair and the scene in the car where she tells Hector that their marriage is for all intents and purposes over were some of the best in the series. Her development in S2 was such a highlight.

Yesssss this. God, I LOVE that scene with Bel. She has such a quiet fire to her, and usually I hate women who stand by their horrible cheating husbands, but something about Marnie Madden and what she does and how she feels, guh, it's all just glorious. Stunning arc from start to finish.

Peter Capaldi is a perfect human. Tell me you've seen The Thick of It. TELL ME YOU HAVE.

I CAN'T TALK ABOUT BEL/FREDDIE. I CAN'T DO IT. I JUST. WHAT IS LIFE WITHOUT THEM. WHAT IS AIR. DEAD.

NOOOOOOOOO THE MONEYPENNY. JUST KILL ME. JUST END IT.

The thing that really makes Bel/Freddie for me is that despite their differences, they are completely kindred spirits -- they BELIEVE IN what they're doing, they would die for it, and even with their mutual plain ambition they're both driven at the end of the day by caring too much.

This is what makes them the best. Yes, they're attracted to each other, yes, they're best friends, yes to all of these things that would already make them an OTP of OTP's to me, but through it all, though they are different people who clash and argue and drive each other crazy, they have the same core. They are both driven by the same, all-consuming passion for truth. And that's what makes them the only one for the other. Camille got it right when she basically said that Freddie only cares about the news. Because he does. He will always be the one staying up all night researching a story. And Bel will be right next to him, researching the same story, not for him, but for herself. They are the only two people who will ever really understand that about each other. BASICALLY THEY ARE PERFECT KILL ME NOW.

I don't believe for a second that Freddie got married in an attempt to ~lure Bel in because she has a bad habit with married men.

Ugh, are there people who say this? Incorrect. It was clearly Freddie trying to move on out of desperation, because he was always going to be in love with this girl, but he couldn't always be waiting for her.

YOU ARE POSSIBLE WITH ME IS THE GREATEST LINE TO HAVE EVER HAPPENED TO ME. SOMETIMES I JUST REPEAT IT TO MYSELF APROPOS OF NOTHING WHEN I AM COOKING OR IN THE CAR OR BRUSHING MY TEETH. I DON'T EVEN KNOW. THAT LINE IS SEARED INTO MY SOUL.

So, instead, I’m sending this prayer out there. Just hoping that somehow you’ll know to come home. Just please come home. Now, soon and maybe your courage will make me brave too. Just come home and I will leap too.

I AM DEAD. THERE IS NO LIFE BEYOND THIS.

THIS IS A GOOD POST (SAYS MY GHOST).

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

So I feel terribly guilty, for I feel I am rather responsible for quite a bit of the pain you're going through. While I know I wasn't the only one doing so, I most certainly nagged you to watch this show. Then I told you it was canceled.
My pain is my own, you can't have it, I'm afraid.

lol, I hear that about Ben Whishaw's hair. Perhaps I'll rent the movie at some point.

Just went and looked at your post. As ever, our souls are made of the same stuff.

There are so many things he could have said to that admission, good and bad and everything in between, but then he said, "Clever girl," and I was just like, "OH."
YES, UGHHHHH. It could have been resentful and spiteful but instead it was the most genuine expression of sheer remorse, I can't.

I think Marnie's such a great character largely because the show invites you to sympathize with her and prioritizes her POV over Hector's? Because the show cares so much about her voice it's impossible not to care too.

Peter Capaldi is a perfect human. Tell me you've seen The Thick of It. TELL ME YOU HAVE.
I HAVEN'T. MUST I? (I WILL FOR HIM, TBH.)

Camille got it right when she basically said that Freddie only cares about the news. Because he does. He will always be the one staying up all night researching a story. And Bel will be right next to him, researching the same story, not for him, but for herself.
A-TO-THE-MEN. They are kindred spirits, nothing else can compare.

It was clearly Freddie trying to move on out of desperation, because he was always going to be in love with this girl, but he couldn't always be waiting for her.
Word. And yeah, apparently some interpreted that marriage as just being for Bel's benefit. Ridiculous.

YOU ARE POSSIBLE WITH ME IS THE GREATEST LINE TO HAVE EVER HAPPENED TO ME. SOMETIMES I JUST REPEAT IT TO MYSELF APROPOS OF NOTHING WHEN I AM COOKING OR IN THE CAR OR BRUSHING MY TEETH. I DON'T EVEN KNOW. THAT LINE IS SEARED INTO MY SOUL.
I'm the exact same.

THIS POST THINKS YOU ARE GOOD TOO.