noblealice | (no subject)

The week focused mainly on Olivia as she came to grips with her fading memories, and what would happen to her as time went on. We see her using her best skill as an agent - her ability to read people. They could have wasted a night at the wife's apartment, but Olivia has an amazing ability to empathize with people and pick up on tiny cues other's might miss.

Watching the beginning-to-middle of this episode felt like watching an episode from earlier in the show. There were so many callbacks to S1 and S2 episodes with the Observer's sphere and 'be a better man than your father' and Olivia suited up in FBI gear and her beanie and Lincoln referencing her offer earlier with being there to talk (also staring a whole awful lot, mah poor bb).

So I was loving this episode with it's Nina/Olivia scene and just how casual their affection is for one another, how they really act like a mother/daughter (Nina being late on purpose to let Olive collect her thoughts ect) and although it didn't pan out on screen, Astrid doing more things out of the lab. (There was one scene where Astrid asks how Olivia is. Her stock answer is 'I'm fine' even though it's a huge lie and Jasika is an amazing actress because we can see the disbelief on her face, how she wants to push for more, but doesn't. (I kinda wish they had had a longer scene there, but that's not new).

Okay, so then the rest of the episode happened and it was....not as amazing as the beginning.

She had let go of the possibility of being in love, of finding love, and I could see myself in her and I didn't like who I was.

I just don't understand, you don't like the idea of just giving up on finding your own love and that means....you do exactly that? That you give up on finding your own love? On trusting YOUR heart and instead just give into these memories that are not yours? It just didn't make sense to me. I thought the speech would have the opposite effect, that Olivia would fight for her life, for her memories, for NINA. I thought that the woman's speech about her husband always being her friend and helping her get over other guys and not seeing what was right in front of her, of mistaking loving someone with being in love with them would be a major Lincoln/Olivia deal (and I'm not going to be told I'm delusional - the rack focus during that scene was emphasizing them during that conversation and that was a major directorial choice and it was a misleading 'gotcha' and I'm now I'm all poutyface.)

Anyways, I didn't expect a Lincoln/Olivia kiss or anything because she still had all these broken heart feelings, but when she got out of her car, I legit thought she'd go to Lincoln's diner to get coffee and wait for him with a shy smile.

Because Lincoln never made her feel like she was inadequate. Olivia says that original-timeline Olivia is the “better version.” This isn’t a new belief. Olivia, after returning from the Other Side, was so worried about Alt-Livia being the “better version” of herself. She believed this because Alt-Livia was able to laugh and smile and give peter the girlfriend he wanted. See the common thread? Peter (inadvertently) makes Olivia feel like a failure.

Next up, Legend of Korra feels!

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Yeah, there was so much about this episode that made me wildly, wildly uncomfortable--and that's coming from the pov of someone who wanted Olivia and Peter to be together, and believed that we were in the original universe/changed timeline all along. I just thought the means of how they got there were so very awkward and wrong, and is not doing a lot to help me justify the end.

What was the point of the last episode's fallout in this if Peter's just going to stand-there all, "Oops, messed it up again!" While Olivia's all "Lol, no problem!"

And I'm also really starting to resent all this "Your" Olivia language. Gross.

God I hope this picks up before the finale.

I saw this great post on tumblr comparing this season with the DW episode "Turn Left" where the AU Donna had to sacrifice her life in order for the other timeline to survive. (And in order to save the world). This quote really got me:

The difference between Donna’s and Olivia’s situation, and why it angered so many fans, is that Donna sacrificed her identity to save the world and give better lives to the people she loved, while Olivia is doing it solely to be with one man.

Because if Olivia was going to make this huge personal sacrifice and lost her relationship with Nina, I'd want it to be....well, I guess she did it to be happy. And I was her to be happy. I want someone who is good at their job and their relationship, so I feel weird saying "it's only acceptable if she's saving lives!!" because her personal happiness matters as well. Olivia shouldn't have to be alone and miserable all the time just so her character is consistent. It's just that it could have been done BETTER. It could have been presented more as the tragedy that it was or have them fall in love all over again without any magical memories.

I would have loved a season of Peter trying to woo Olivia again, being completely head over heels and taking her out on dates (so long as it wasn't like his actions in S3.5). I'd want Peter meeting amber!Olivia (who is very much like S1 blue!Olivia) and having to start back at square one. So he's just already in love and BEING PATIENT and quietly supportive instead of pushy.

And I'm also really starting to resent all this "Your" Olivia language. Gross.
Ditto.

Yes, I saw that post! It's a really good point. There's so much back and forth between people right now on tumblr that I'm really trying to ignore, but some is starting to irk. I think people who are very defensive about the end of this last episode see our discomfort and immediately think "AHH, YOU HATE OLIVIA BECAUSE SHE CHOSE LOVE AND HAPPINESS AND ALSO THIS IS HER REAL LIFE AND MEMORIES ANYWAY SO WHY ARE YOU UPSET?"

Whereas I'm just sitting here thinking, "um no, I think you've missed the point." For me at least, again, I have NO problem with Peter and Olivia ending up together, with Olivia choosing to value her own happiness, with finding their way back to the first timeline, with any of that. It's the way the writers wrote it--especially with Olivia feeling she had to choose the love of one person over those of family and friends. One of my favourite things about this show has always been how all its motivations can break down to the importance of love, but until now it's never seemed to value romantic love over all the other wonderful kinds. There is NOTHING wrong with romance (hello, giant fangirl here) but it's not the only thing that Olivia as I understood her cares about.

IDK. I think I've lost my point here, but that's the problem. This season has really made me loose my sense of who Olivia and Peter are, not because of the new timeline at all, but because of the choices the writers are having them make.

CAN WE JUST GO BACK TO THE REDVERSE WHERE THINGS ARE (HA!) BETTER?

This season has really made me loose my sense of who Olivia and Peter are, not because of the new timeline at all, but because of the choices the writers are having them make.

Yesssssssssss, this is what's been bothering me but I haven't been able to find the words! I know the writers are still capable because with only a few scenes I feel like I totally understand Lincoln and Nina (and even David Robert Jones' motives) but Olivia and Peter seem off.

I WOULD TOTALLY SUPPORT A FIELD TRIP TO THE REDVERSE!

(ugh, LJ isn't letting me change my icons)