{"id":6972,"date":"2018-09-07T13:00:33","date_gmt":"2018-09-07T20:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=6972"},"modified":"2018-08-28T18:05:35","modified_gmt":"2018-08-29T01:05:35","slug":"mark-watches-slings-arrows-s02e04-fair-is-foul-and-foul-is-fair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2018\/09\/mark-watches-slings-arrows-s02e04-fair-is-foul-and-foul-is-fair\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Slings & Arrows’: S02E04 – Fair Is Foul and Foul is Fair"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the fourth episode of the second season of Slings & Arrows<\/i>, many epiphanies are had. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to read Slings & Arrows<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Once more, I have a LOT of thoughts about this. LET\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S GO.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Richard<\/b><\/p>\n

Again, Sanjay is occasionally<\/i> right on the nose, but his approach is just so wrong in every other way that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard to see him as a force for good in Richard\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s life. But he does nail one thing perfectly: Richard is immensely<\/i> detail-oriented, and he exists on the opposite end of the spectrum of Geoffrey, who is much more concerned about the big picture stuff. His obsession with detail and logic is frustrating and harmful, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a big reason why he got himself in trouble in the first season! So, recommending that Richard let go of these obsessions and pursue a more instinctual approach to life is\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 not necessarily an awful idea? But it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the context in which that appears that is deeply flawed. Richard should lighten up, yes, but that in no way justifies the offense ads, which are costing the theater TENS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS. Perhaps hundreds at this point??? We don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how many other group ticket reservations were cancelled, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s probably safe to say it was\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 all of them???\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Plus, Richard takes Sanjay\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s advice at the precise time Richard tries to hold Frog Hammer accountable. THIS IS NOT LOST ON ME. It still makes me think that Sanjay doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t believe what he says, that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just trying to get the festival\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s money while stringing Richard along. Remember a couple episodes again when Sanjay and his employees belittled and insulted Richard from that weird viewing room? I still think they feel exactly<\/i> like that about him, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s only a matter of time before Richard realizes that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been had.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Anna<\/b><\/p>\n

I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m actually really pleased that Anna is getting a storyline out<\/i> of the office! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s about time, too, and\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 the plot is very strange. Which is kinda par for the course in Slings & Arrows<\/i>. The arrival of the Canadian playwright who is responsible for this seasons\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s play brings Anna a chance at\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 well, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know! Romance? A possible sexual fling? Lionel Train is the first time the show gets to address the writing side of theater, and IT IS ONCE AGAIN FAR TOO REAL. Yes, Lionel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nervous nature is exaggerated for comedic affect, but look, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so much there that is based in a harsh truth. Creating fiction is a deeply challenging act, and I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know a single creator who hasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t gone through a struggle that looks suspiciously just like Lionel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Fair Is Foul and Foul is Fair.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d I went through something just like it for Anger<\/i> and on my second novel as well. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s insidious how that kind of doubt in your own work can creep into your mind, and I know that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s partially because writers create in such a solitary environment. Here, through, Lionel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s creation is experienced by others, and his worst fear comes true: it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s lifeless. Trite. Boring. He doubts everything<\/i>, and he never lets the actors perform his words either. Not truly, that is. It was painful watching Ducky be forced into improvisation when\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 well, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not what they were there for.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So what does Anna see in Lionel? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m curious if she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s drawn to him because he notices<\/i> her. So often on this show, Anna is nothing more than a glorified assistant, and Lionel doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t treat her like this at all. Granted, he swings in the opposite direction and becomes obsessed with the notion that she is \u00e2\u20ac\u0153real\u00e2\u20ac\u009d compared to the other people who surround him. To an extent, I understand that; I recall the shallowness I experienced in Los Angeles when I lived in Hollywood and worked in both that industry and the music industry. Sometimes, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s refreshing to meet someone who isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t invested in your career as others are. So, maybe this will turn out to be a good thing!<\/p>\n

Darren Nichols<\/b><\/p>\n

I expected a trainwreck. I expected condescension. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what comes along with Darren Nichols, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, but my excitement at those things was immediately dampened by how GROSS Darren is in this episode. Like, there is nothing great about the optics of a man explaining misogyny to a woman, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s even more horrifying that he tries to put himself outside<\/i> of misogyny and claim that Sarah<\/i> is the obsolete, misogynist one here. YOUR VERY ACT IS PART OF THE SYSTEM YOU CLAIM TO HAVE TRANSCENDED OUT OF, DUDE. And while I have some complicated things to say about Sarah and Patrick, I did love that these two actors went to Geoffrey to try<\/i> to learn. It can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be much longer before Romeo & Juliet<\/i> is in previews, and they HAVEN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T BLOCKED A SINGLE SCENE IN WHICH THEY ARE LOOKING AT ONE ANOTHER. How are they supposed to get to the heart of this story if Darren is stringing them along with one absurd exercise after another?<\/p>\n

Ellen<\/b><\/p>\n

I do wish the show would get back to a thread that I feel was dropped earlier this season in regards to Ellen. At this point, her story feels a bit like it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just about what her life is like without Geoffrey in it. She unravels so quickly here, though admittedly the tax audit doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help. I liked that the show was dealing with her struggles to cope with aging in an industry that is not kind to women. And you could probably look at this episode through that lens, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a bit of a stretch at points. Mostly, Ellen just feels like a mess. She is super<\/i> gross to the woman in charge of her audit, and I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t help but notice that the racial optics of the scene were gross. (Did she seriously call a Black woman a Nazi???) She\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s stubborn, mean, and unwilling to admit that her predicament is her own fault. Then, when her sister\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s husband is convinced to help out, she continues to pick at him<\/i>, too. It paints Ellen in an irrational light, which feels weird to me? If there wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t so much here that made it clear that Geoffrey and Ellen were parallels for one another, maybe I wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel like the show is harsher on Ellen than it is on Geoffrey. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re both a mess, they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re both flawed, but Ellen\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s flaws are getting to be all<\/i> that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re seeing. Seriously, slept with her brother-in-law!!! Then had the nerve to call her sister and apologize for keeping him late. WHAT THE HELL. I get that the scene is about her guilt over what happened, but how does Ellen come back from that? Are they going to focus the same amount of energy on criticizing the brother-in-law, too?<\/p>\n

Vision<\/b><\/p>\n

I feel somewhat validated by \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Fair Is Foul and Foul Is Fair\u00e2\u20ac\u009d because I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d posited earlier that one of Geoffrey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s struggles was that he was confined to put on someone else\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s play. And while Oliver has a fascinating and challenging vision of Macbeth<\/i>, Geoffrey has ignored his artistic instincts in order to please others. He wants Oliver to leave him alone, but his ghost only gets more and more invasive as the show progresses, and his haunting of Geoffrey is downright terrifying. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s far more involved than ever before, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear why Geoffrey and Oliver clashed over the years. Oliver cannot take criticism, and he believes that since he worked so hard on his version of Macbeth<\/i>, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the only interpretation that matters.<\/p>\n

Yet Geoffrey makes an important point about the nature of theater, at least the kind of theater that Oliver wanted with this production. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ironic that Geoffrey made Darren promise not to rely on his absurd practical effects because, in the end, it was Oliver<\/i> who actually relied on them too much. The various stagings across the play are technically impressive to an extent, but what about the acting? The storytelling? These things suffer<\/i> in the wake of Oliver\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s directing. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the same problem: the details matter, but not the heart of it all. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why Geoffrey pushes Sarah and Patrick as hard as he does. That<\/i> is the kind of directing he thrives off of, and the results are undeniable.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But then there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Henry Breedlove. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not just that Henry wants to pursue Oliver\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vision; Henry wants to be safe<\/i>. He wants to play his part in the way that the audience will respond to most positively. He has no desire to challenge them or<\/i> himself, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 well, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the complete opposite of what Geoffrey wants. His artistic vision has been blocked and denied this entire time, and so I looked forward to the preview night because Geoffrey finally took control. This was going to be his<\/i> version of the Scottish tragedy. AND THEN HENRY THREW IT AWAY, quite literally! I was so goddamn shocked when he tossed that rag aside and refused to let Ellen bath him. HOLY SHIT, IT WAS VICIOUS AND DEFIANT and you generally don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t do that??? At all?<\/p>\n

He may have had some points about Geoffrey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s failures, but I, for one, am pleased to see the man go. How the hell is Jerry<\/i> going to fill his shoes, though? How many others will resent the fact that Henry has been fired???<\/p>\n

Patrick and Sarah<\/b><\/p>\n

I have\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 thoughts. Feelings on this. I realize that there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a reason Sarah and Patrick are drawn to one another. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Geoffrey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s thing<\/i>. He wants the words of Romeo & Juliet<\/i> to inspire the actors so fully that they actually fall for one another. And what better way to speak to the power of theater than having a gay actor fall for a woman because his lines are so powerful, so realistic?<\/p>\n

Except that falls into a really dangerous trope, one I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure the show even considered. A lot of people under the queer or LGBT umbrellas are told they they just have to meet the right person under the right circumstances, and then that pesky sexuality will be taken care of! I heard this for years<\/i>, both before I was outed and in the years since. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153How do you know<\/i> you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re gay if you haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t had sex with a woman?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Or perhaps, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Maybe you just haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t met the right one.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d This is further complicated by the fact that this appears to be the second<\/i> time this show has utilized this trope. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve never gotten any more insight into why Oliver, a gay man, slept with Ellen aside from the fact that she was just the one<\/i>. It is, of course, entirely possible that neither man is gay. (Well, Oliver says he was, so I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll take that as truth.) Like I said before, displaying sexual fluidity is important. And it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not like Patrick or Oliver are the only gay characters on Slings & Arrows<\/i>. We cannot forget about Ducky and Cyril, who are<\/i> a constant presence in every episode. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s more that the repetition of this trope feels not like an intentional thing, but an accidental usage that made me feel weird, and I would rather say something about it\u00e2\u20ac\u201dhopefully to spur conversation\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthan to just stay confused. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also that the next episode will prove me wrong, and this wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t what I thought it was, so I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll have to see!<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Foul Is Fair and Fair Is Foul\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– My YA contemporary debut, ANGER IS A GIFT<\/a>, is now out in the world!\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>If you’d like to stay up-to-date on all announcements regarding my books, sign up for my newsletter<\/a>! DO IT.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"