where I am seeing double...

I'm pretty sure Colin O'Donoghue (Hook on Once Upon a Time) and Jonas Armstrong (Robin Hood) are related...

Robin Hood, silent movie style

Many thanks to Nat for posting this wonderful, hilarious video on her blog. Personally I think the end of season 2 and then season 3 of Robin Hood would've been much improved if the storyline had been a little more similar to the one set forth in this video. Though poor Jonas Armstrong doesn't fare too well in this revisionist filmmaking exercise, Richard Armitage comes off spendidly! :)

Robin Hood

Random observation: I rather feel like the same people who designed the above poster also worked on this one...what do you think?

When I first heard that Ridley Scott was making a Robin Hood film, I was incredibly excited - especially when I heard that it would be somewhat similar - perhaps an unofficial sequel - to Kingdom of Heaven, which is my favorite Scott film. (Please, if you've never seen the director's cut of Kingdom, do so asap!) And then this teaser trailer came out, and my interest in the movie nose-dived. That has to be one of the worst teasers ever cobbled together for a major film. Thankfully for this movie I stumbled upon a much, much better trailer back in April when I was putting together this post - and my interest in the movie revived. :)

This is most definitley not your traditional Robin Hood story. It's a dark, intense origin story where Scott has attempted to place the character of Robin Hood in a very real historical context. Though not a true sequel to Kingdom of Heaven, it makes an excellent companion film (sort of the "homefront" to Kingdom's Crusade-set action). The film opens with Richard the Lionheart (Danny Huston) leading his weary army back home to England, sacking French castles on the way. If you're expecting a traditional Robin Hood storyline, Scott dispatches that notion pretty quickly as Richard kicks the proverbial bucket and dies enroute. Robin (Russell Crowe) and his men (Little John - Kevin Durand, Will Scarlet - Scott Grimes, and Allan A'Dayle - Alan Doyle) are lowly archers and men-at-arms in Richard's army. With the king dead, the four decide to strike out for home. But their plans change when the come upon Richard's loyal lieutenant, Sir Robert Loxley (Douglas Hodge - almost didn't recognize him, he played Dr. Tertius Lydgate in Middlemarch), tasked with returning Richard's crown to England. Loxley and his men were ambushed and massacred, and he tasks a reluctant Robin with returning his sword to his father, Sir Walter Loxley (Max von Sydow) in - wait for it - Nottingham. :) Robin & company assume the identity of knights in order to make their way home easier - and of course Robin assumes Loxley's identity.

I'm going to stop with the story recap here (that's probably enough of an introduction, anyway) and delve into the characters and acting for a while. I'll save Robin and Marion for last. :) Back in England Richard left behind a very selfish, immature younger brother - John, played by Oscar Isaac - with serious mommy issues. Eleanor of Acquitaine is played superbly by Eileen Atkins. She's regal and powerful and has a wonderful screen presence - an unexpected jewel of a performance. John is, of course, a disaster in the making, and as soon as the crown settles on his head he goes full steam ahead with his plans to tax, tax, tax. Isaac's performance is interesting and makes you wonder how John would've turned out if he hadn't grown up knowing he was viewed as so obviously the lesser brother. William Hurt makes an interesting appearance as the loyal William Marshal, pushed aside by John for disagreeing with his taxation schemes. Marshal is a rather interesting "bridge" character - thorughly loyal to the crown, he also has a very realistic view of the crown's shortcomings when dealing with its subjects.

It's absolutely tragic that this is the only picture I could find of Mark Strong in character as the villainous Godfrey. It really doesn't do the man justice, just so you know. As I discussed with Lori and then some other friends on Facebook, if this movie couldn't feature Richard Armitage as Sir Guy, there's no one I'd rather see stand in the role of Robin's nemesis than Mark Strong. Ever since appearing as Septimus in Stardust, Strong has become the go-to guy to play villains and you can't turn around without seeing him in a new project - Sir John Conroy in The Young Victoria, Lord Blackwood in Sherlock Holmes, and now upcoming appearances in new sci-fi franchises like the Green Lantern. While he makes a habit of playing evil, morally repulsive characters, can we just take a moment to appreciate this:

The man is gorgeous, no? Look at those soulful eyes. *swoon* Give me a second to scrape myself off the floor and we'll get back to the point of this post....okay, yeah, Godfrey. Excellent villain. Strong quite simply owns the screen every time he appears. Intense, magnetic, evil, and brilliant, Godfrey is a worthy villain in the tradition of all on-screen Gisbornes.

While Strong delivers in spades, I have to admit to being disappointed in Matthew Macfadyen's appearance as the Sheriff. Now I have a long history of loving Matthew's screen appearances (click to read my reviews of his performance in Little Dorrit), but in Robin Hood he appears nearly unrecognizable (the hair was gross people, I just need to say it) and for maybe, maybe all of about five minutes of screentime. REALLY?! It was a bit disappointing to say the least. However, I have got to give Matthew credit for giving this largely thankless role a slyly comic turn. In fact, if Ridley Scott ever decided to make a sequel - and frankly, the end of this movie begs for one - I think Matthew's take on the iconic Sheriff of Nottingham role would be a highlight.

Last but certainly not least, this brings us to Robin and Marion (Cate Blanchett). I had serious reservations about Crowe and Blanchett's casting in such iconic roles, but both performances blew me away. I've always been rather ambivalent about Russell Crowe - while I think he's inarguably talented, and I've enjoyed his performances in movies like Master and Commander, I've never been nuts about him like so many people I know. And I've never, EVER gotten the whole Crowe-is-a-dreamy-heartthrob thing until this movie. Oh my word. Excellent job playing the whole strong, man of few words, incredibly charismatic and intelligent type. Wowzers. :) I will say that I thought Robin's backstory and connection to Sir Walter was just a little too convenient, but all things considered it worked.

Here Robin's lady is no maid, rather the widow of Sir Robert Loxley. Married as a self-described "old maid" for only a week before Robert left for the Crusades, Marion has spent ten years trying to keep her father-in-law's estate going, which is a largely thankless job in the face of crippling taxes and thievery from what I'm going to call the "Lost Boys of Sherwood Forest." Like Marian in the lately lamented Robin Hood television show, Blanchett's Marion is a fighter, but infinitely more mature and seasoned by circumstances. I really loved Blanchett's portrayal of Marion, though I do think her fight scene at the end of the film was rather poorly thought out and generally unnecessary (though it did allow Crowe and Blanchett to enact their own version of the famous water kiss in From Here to Eternity, LOL!). Oh, and before I forget, the "Lost Boys" really, REALLY needed to be explained better. Their appearances felt rather random.

I wasn't expecting such a strong romance to develop in this movie. After all, it is a Ridley Scott film, chock-full of the requisite battle scenes and political intrigue. But Crowe and Blanchett have some crazy on-screen chemistry that I never expected to see and it works really, really well. When one brings together two actors of that caliber sparks are bound to fly, right? :) This film gives us the most mature, grounded, real Robin and Marion love story that I think I've ever seen brought to life. The relationship between these two characters grows as much or more with a look than dialogue, and I just loved that. Watching the two of them get to know each other and appreciate each other's character and strengths is absolutely wonderful to see, and the way Crowe looks at Blanchett can steal your breath - he's so. freaking. HOT. in those scenes.

I love Scott's ability to bring this time period to life. It's gritty and violent (though in keeping with the film's PG-13 rating miraculously bloodless), but there's a wild beauty to the scenery that you just want to lose yourself in. I also thought Marc Streitenfeld did a good job with the score - prior to this, I am not familiar with his work. Ridley Scott and company have crafted a fascinating exploration of Robin Hood's origins, but the last five minutes or so of the film will, if you're like me, leave you desperate for a sequel. That's when the storyline heads into more traditional Robin Hood territory. Given how Ridley Scott has set up this world, and the life Crowe and Blanchett have brought to the iconic Robin and Marion roles, I would love to see how this team would continue their version of the Robin Hood legends. After all, King John has to see sense and sign that pesky Magna Carta... ;-)

Robin Hood 3.13: Something Worth Fighting For, part two

Spoilers...

I honestly meant to get a post up on the Robin Hood finale Thursday or Friday, but I thought I was getting sick, and what with one thing or another it never happened. Where the first half of "Something Worth Fighting For" reminded me of many of the reasons I've been frustrated by the direction the show took in season 3, part two reminded me of everything I've ever loved about Robin Hood. It made me positively nostalgic, and I have to admit, I cried a bit at the end.

I neglected to mention in my previous post that we saw the return of the Sheriff - the real Sheriff, the supposed-to-be-dead Sheriff that all fans of the show know and love (played by Keith Allen). It's tempting to complain about the fact that Sheriff Vaisey disappeared for six episodes, with no logical explanation for why he faked his death or how he's managed to raise an army, with no one around Nottingham getting wind of the fact that he was alive. Speaking of the army thing - how did no one notice Vaisey & crew hauling freaking trebuchets across the countryside? Seriously, I would think it would be kind of hard to sneak up on someone with that kind of weaponry in tow. Anyway, seeing Allen back on-screen was a good reminder of the fact that no matter how interesting (or not, depending on your point of view) Isabella's (Lara Pulver) presence shook up Guy and Robin, she pales in comparison to the real Sheriff as the show's central baddie.

Guy (Richard Armitage) and Robin (Jonas Armstrong) made this episode, and as far as endings go, and as wrenching as it was to witness, I have to admit that the two one-time enemies ended very well, all things considered. Let's talk about Guy first, shall we? :) My hope for Guy's character, from season 1, was that he'd discover his inner good guy and turn heroic (and when Armstrong announced he was leaving the show, I wanted Richard Armitage to take over the lead!). But considering my dearly hoped-for dream scenario was not meant to be, I've got to give Armitage credit for once again taking Guy's scenes to a whole new level of emotional insight. It would've been so easy for Guy to abandon the beseiged outlaws, but instead he recognizes the fight as his moment to work towards redeeming the direction his life had taken thus far. He even has a moment of twisted brotherly consideration for Isabella, providing her with poison so she can kill herself before those she's wronged would try to harm her (that doesn't work out so well). The final confrontation, resulting in Guy's brilliantly played death scene, was fantastic because it was so focused on the principle players, especially Guy, Robin, and the Sheriff, since they are three of the main reasons the show worked as well as it did. If Guy had to die during this show's run, I'm glad he died as he did - fighting whole-heartedly for Robin & the people. And his last words, about losing the love of his life, but dying a free man - very classy Guy, and well played as always, Richard. :)

This final hour was also a fantastic send-off for Robin. The show has really come full circle, from the first episode in the courtyard where Robin stood alone against the Sheriff, to this finale where he's once again fighting the Sheriff, only this time he's surrounded by the people he's sacrificed so much to protect. It's LONG past due, but Robin & crew finally, finally get to see some action out of the villagers. Thankfully, even before he was poisoned, Robin really backed off his interaction with Kate (Joanne Froggatt). Words cannot describe how glad I am that Armstrong's last episode as Robin wasn't too polluted by Kate's presence. Robin's final conversation with Guy provided a bit of a reset for his romantic life, a reminder that there was only one woman for Robin. Speaking of Marian (Lucy Griffiths), part of me can't believe that the showrunners went for the whole "vision-of-beloved-dead-character" returns angle, but after the whole Kate debacle I was just relieved to see Marian again. She's completely forgiven for all of her too stupid to live moments during season 2. Armstrong and Griffiths at least had actual chemistry and affection for each other in their scenes, and their last moment together is even more poignant considering the show was ultimately not renewed.


Little John (Gordon Kennedy) and Much (Sam Troughton) both get some nice scenes in this episode. Little John gets to show off his strength in the tunnels, which is more than Kennedy's gotten to do for much of this season. And Much finally shows that he can operate outside Robin's shadow. He acts like a warrior instead of a mouse for once, and we finally get to see that there's a reason he survived the Crusades - he can actually fight effectively. That type of scene was LONG overdue. I have a sneaking suspicion that Kate would've turned into a love interest for Archer (Clive Standen) in season 4, but the final look she exchanges with Much makes me hope that the showrunners would've developed the Much/Kate angle. I think I could've stood that. :)

As far as Archer goes, I really am rather sorry that we didn't get to see more of Clive Standen. He fits the swashbuckling nature of the role probably better than Armstrong and yes, even Armitage, could. Archer would have proven a charismatic and capable leader, methinks. With the deaths of much of the original cast, and a nod to the actual historical timeline (Richard has been captured by Leopold of Austria, leaving the outlaws on their own a bit longer), the show was perfectly prepped for a fresh beginning. As much a I hate to say it, the show could've had a decent future beyond the departures of Robin, Guy, the Sheriff, and Isabella. But at least it's not a completely depressing ending for the show - Robin's battle against the Sheriff and fantastic reconciliation with Guy were just one chapter in the outlaws' story. And this chapter, all things considered, gave the characters I've grown to love over the last three years an ending I'm pleased with. Long live the outlaws!

Robin Hood 3.12: Something Worth Fighting For, part 1

(This picture isn't from episode 12, but it's a nice shot, don't ya think? *wink*)

Spoilers...

Well...I'm sure no one has noticed that I never got around to blogging about the conclusion - of season 3 and the show itself - of Robin Hood. However, because I am a COMPLETIST (*grin*) and the DVDs of season 3 just released on Tuesday, I thought I'd finally get around to checking this item off the blogging to-do list. This season was so hit-or-miss it was rather hard to get up the motivation, so it was extra easy for me to be distracted by the holidays.

Anyway - the last time I blogged about my favorite outlaws, Guy (Richard Armitage) and Robin (Jonas Armstrong) had reached a somewhat uneasy truce, bonded over the knowledge that Guy's mother and Robin's father had an affair that resulted in a heretofore unknown brother, the oh-so-conveniently named Archer (Clive Standen). Considering that the announcement of the show's cancellation was made after the season finished airing in the UK, but before it began on BBC America, it's even easier than it should be to recognize Archer as the heir apparent to the lead of the show, a cocky, self-assured mash-up of Robin and Guy's personalities. While I think the showrunners/scriptwriters completely killed this show due to lack of focus, lack of a plan, Clive Standen is enough of an Errol Flynn clone that I would've definitely continued to watch the show should it have produced a fourth season. Oh well, perhaps Clive will move on to more interesting roles (there was a rumor that he was in the running to star in the fourth Pirates film).

Let me back up for a second - so, the basic set up for this storyline is that King Richard (who was LAME, if you've seen the season 2 finale) is "supposedly" returning to England, and Prince John & his minions are planning a hostile takeover. Robin and Guy decide that they must take Nottingham Castle and imprison Sheriff Isabella (Lara Pulver). This is make it or break it time for Isabella, as she realizes if she doesn't deliver the men Prince John needs for his army he'll dispose of her as easily as he does all of his other enemies. In and of itself this isn't an awful set up for a climatic battle, (can you sense the "but" coming? LOL) BUT there's a few missed opportunties here in my view.

One: the return of Kate's (Joanne Froggatt) mother. Isabella blackmails her into tricking Kate that Robin still loves her. Kate, because she's an IDIOT, falls for it. And the fact that Kate's mother has suddenly, out of the blue lost all of her anti-Robin bias just adds insult to injury. I mean she hugged Robin in order to plant Isabella's evidence on him - and he didn't think that was freaky and insincere? Of course I should just acknowledge Robin's legendary stupidity about women, but this my friends is a new low. Also, for as much as I like Clive Standen because of his uncanny ability to channel Errol Flynn, his character arc here is quite dicey, even by this show's standards. Episode 11 did a fine job of establishing that Archer has a real mercenary streak, but since he's Robin's half brother, of course there's a heart of gold buried in there somewhere, right? :) So that makes his about-face in this episode a little puzzling. He goes from working for Isabella to turning outlaw as soon as he sees Kate willing to die for her principles (typing that last bit made me gag just a little, I can't lie). What is with the men on this show and KATE?! It's so WRONG!! Talking about Kate reminds me of another thing that bugged me about this episode - Tuck (David Harewood). How annoyingly sanctimonious can a character get, yeesh! His bright idea is having a sit-in with the men of the village to stop Isabella's supply train to Prince John from leaving the castle - a SIT-IN?! Seriously?! That was lame. Thankfully it only lasted for about three minutes.

One of my all-time favorite characters on the show bites the dust in this episode - Allan (Joe Armstrong), who was criminally under-used this season. There was a time, mind you, when Allan's death would've positively devastated me. But this season has been such a roller coaster of highs and lows that I really didn't care. The only thing that did bother me, though, is that he had to die all on his own, after Robin and his band of fickle men accept some rumor that he was working with Isabella, rather than pay attention to the fact that he'd been suffering through all of season 3 living in the woods with the gang. Would he do that if he was a double agent? I think not, just sayin'...Allan, you deserved a better end, methinks.

I realize this post is mostly a gripfest, but I figure the show's canceled, I might as well blow off some steam about how frustrating it's been to watch one of my all-time favorite shows just fizzle out. Not that this season has been all bad (see episode 9), but overall it's ended up more about missed opportunities than what I would've preferred. However, I'll end this episode commentary by reiterating what a dream come true it's been for Guy to finally, finally see the proverbial light and work with Robin instead of against him. Oh, what this show could've been if they'd made Richard Armitage the new lead. What a dream come true that would've been! *sigh* :)

Commentary on part 2 coming tomorrow...

Robin Hood 3.11: The Enemy of My Enemy

Spoilers...

"The Enemy of My Enemy" is the beginning of the end for Robin Hood - only two episodes left after this, SOB!! There was a lot to like about this episode, starting and ending with the fact that Guy (Richard Armitage) is front and center. If the showrunners would have learned that lesson a long time ago, maybe the show would've survived cancellation...just sayin'. *sigh* Anyway, the show opens with Guy and Robin, together again, haha. I loved all of the scenes that show them working through the kinks in their new "partnership." You of course start out with a knock down, drag out fight, which leads to lots of sarcasm and hilarious quips flying back and forth. My favorite moment of the first phase (LOL) in their partnership is when Guy exclaims that he can never ask Robin's (Jonas Armstrong) forgiveness for killing Marian because he can never forgive himself. I confess, I swooned. ;-) That moment was superb & very much longed for.

We get to see a little more of the gang in this episode, sadly though most of those moments are either annoying or forgettable. Of course Kate (Joanne Froggatt) is so head over heels in love with Robin that she'll put up with Guy. But Little John (Gordon Kennedy) throws some sort of childish hissy fit when Robin brings Guy back to the gang's hideout, claiming he now trusts him. Seriously, what is it with Little John and acting like a stupid fool? VERY annoying. However, this did lead to a nice moment for Allan (Joe Armstrong), FINALLY, who's been criminally under-used this season. Allan had such a great story arc last season it's been extremely disappointing to see how they didn't do anything with his character this year, especially since the show's ended. However, it was nice to see him go after Little John and help him escape Sheriff Isabella's (Lara Pulver). Instead of the overused battle cry of "We are Robin Hood" this episode brought out the family side of the gang - a bit sappy but nice to see nonetheless.

So Robin and Guy's brother, Archer (Clive Standen) is a bit of a rake and a ladies' man, who apparently all of a sudden has knowledge of "powerful weapons from the East." That was a little lame, but whatever. The point here is that Archer is Errol Flynn reincarnated, and I'm now in luv with Clive Standen. The way he talks, the inflection of his voice, the gleam in his eye - it's Errol Flynn all over again, and in my little world that's a very good thing. :) If you've never seen The Sea Hawk or Captain Blood, check them out immediately - I could see Standen easily playing those roles. It's interesting to see, just in this introduction, how the Archer character is a sort of mash-up of Robin and Guy. He definitely has a LONG way to go in the self-sacrificing/altruism department, but I have no doubt that if the show had continued he would have come around, in the best Errol Flynn hero tradition. (Incidentally, I just realized that Standen appeared in 3 episodes of season 4 of Doctor Who.)

Guy and Robin have decided that Archer's mysterious weapons knowledge is necessary for them to defeat Isabella (who BARELY has a handle on this whole sheriffing thing), so they head to York to spring their errant brother from prison. I LOVED the little "planning" session they had in the pub, that was hilarious. They sort of trust each other, but they still have to fight over who's half-baked plan is the better option for freeing Archer. Boys, boys, boys. ;-) When Guy is the one who gets hauled off to jail to play the "inside man," the look on his face was priceless. As always Richard Armitage played Guy's scenes beautifully. He's got a long way to go but he's finally, FINALLY, acting more like the hero all of us Guy fans have been wanting to see since the beginning of the show.

Since Archer grew up dirt poor, he's developed this "must have money" fixation, which leads to a poorly thought out attempt to betray Guy and Robin even though they're the ones who just rescued him. Silly boy. He's foolishness only leads to all three brothers waiting to be hung, but of course by this time the gang has arrived in York setting up a big final showdown. I absolutely LOVED the "money shot" moment - when Robin and Archer set up arrows at the same time to break Guy's rope and free him, and the arrows hit the exact same mark. The look on Robin's face was priceless, absolutely hilarious to see. Archer, of course, is going to more than live up to his name. It also really warmed my heart to see Guy stepping up to rescue Little John from certain death and destruction. Beneath that black exterior beats a heart of gold. I always knew this but I suppose it's to be expected that Little John would be a little slow on the uptake. *sigh*

Part one of the two-part series finale airs tonight.

Robin Hood 3.10: Bad Blood

Spoilers...

Weeelllll, this was an interesting episode of Robin Hood. As the title implies, "Bad Blood" delves into Robin (Jonas Armstrong) and Guy's (Richard Armitage) complicated past. Let me get the best point of this storyline out of the way first - Guy and Robin are together at last, and they are the only members of the regular cast to appear in this episode. Hip, hip, hooray! Now let me get out a major gripe...after two and a half years of watching this show, all of a sudden Robin and Guy HAVE a past? They grew up together?! WHAT THE HECK?? Robin and Isabella never even let on that they previously knew each other at earlier in this season. Talk about pathetic storyboarding. This really drives home the biggest problem with the show this season - lack of focus. The Black Knights storyline in season 2 really gave the entire season focus and purpose, and the results were glorious. *sigh* I'm apt to get all choked up remembering the good ol' days... ;-)

Apparently Robin's widower father Malcolm, played by Dean Lennox Kelly, and Guy's thought-to-be widowed mother Ghislaine, played by Sophie Winkleman, started having an affair resulting in a pregnancy (more on that later). Kelly is a very familiar face to obsessive viewers of British TV like myself. :) He's appeared as Puck in ShakespeaRe-Told, Shakespeare in a Doctor Who episode, Cranford series 1, Being Human, and most recently in the fantastic Collision. Sophie Winkleman looked very familiar but she's only played in a handful of projects that I recognized: the "Five Little Pigs" Poirot episode, an episode of Inspector Lewis, and as the older Susan at the very end of the first Narnia film. I didn't recognize Guy's father at all so he's not worth talking about. LOL!

However, the return of Guy's father from the Crusades throws a crimp into Malcom & Ghislaine's plans, especially since he returns infected with leprosy and cannot possibly cover for the birth of their illegitimate child. And now to talk about this kid for a second...I know the show's already been canceled and all, but I cannot believe this is the direction the showrunners chose to go after the announcement at the end of season 2 that Jonas Armstrong was leaving the show. This would've been a PERFECT opportunity to turn Guy into the hero all of us Richard Armitage fans know he could've been. It would've been fantastic, a freaking dream come true. But NOOOOO, we to go the route of creating a third random person, mashing up the best qualities of Armstrong and Armitage (it's arguable that that's even possible, but whatever...LOL!). And to add insult to injury, this random Robin/Guy sibling is named ARCHER. That has to be some of the worst telegraphing EVER. *sigh*

It was marginally intersting to see youngish versions of Robin and Guy. However, what was with the selective recreation of their childhoods? Where were kid versions of Marian and Will? Why wasn't Little John living in the village in his pre-outlaw days? That's too much to ask for, obviously. *sigh again* Kid Robin was a jerk, it is easy to see where his need for a hero complex comes from. And kid Guy was quite a brooder back in the day, wasn't he? No shocker but I had much more sympathy for Guy's tortured past than Robin's, LOL! ;-)

So the episode ends with Robin and Guy going off to rescue their previously unknown brother. Oh, before I forget - the whole Robin's dead father suddenly reappearing thing - and the whole leprosy angle in general - that type of storyline just felt wasted. It's been done better before but what can I expect when the writers just decide to spring this kind of thing on the viewers? *sigh for the millionth time* The best thing about this episode was seeing Robin and Guy come to terms with each other and unite with a common purpose. That's been a long time coming, hasn't it?

Guy video

In the comments section of my post on Robin Hood season 3, episode 9, new friend of the blog Maria (from Fly High) shared a link to a Guy video she'd compiled, which puts together Richard Armitage's best moments from that episode. I thought I'd share it here:



*swoon* Proving that 10 minutes of Guy footage are worth more than 10 hours of everybody else on that crazy little show. :)

Robin Hood 3.9: A Dangerous Deal

Spoilers...

I'll start off by saying this episode is the crowning jewel of this otherwise horribly uneven and spotty season of Robin Hood. If the episode focused entirely on Guy (Richard Armitage) it would've been absolutely perfect, because his storyline here was a freaking dream come true. But, before I talk about the really good stuff, let's get everything else out of the way first. :)

Sometime between this episode and the last, Isabella's (Lara Pulver) been officially appointed Sheriff of Nottingham. Go figure. We are allowed to see some of just how conflicted a woman she is - her marriage has scarred her, but it's not left her entirely without some good impulses. She's got a female empowerment agenda thing brewing, but she barely gets started implementing that by freeing village girl Meg (Holly Grainger) from an unwanted marriage before the much talked of but never seen husband Thornton (Nicholas Gleaves) shows up. Gleaves looked terribly familiar, but in glancing at his IMDB page I didn't recognize any credits. (Oh, and more on Meg later.)

Thornton is a terrible piece of work to say the least, and when you see the fear in Isabella's eyes at his appearance you can't help but have compassion for her situation. She is obviously a victim, but she hasn't lost her ability to use her past circumstances to manipulate Robin. This of course plays right into Robin's biggest weakness - the need to be the hero/savior. *sigh* Robin needs to get a grip.

The whole Robin (Jonas Armstrong) - Kate (Joanne Froggatt) - Much (Sam Troughton) thing gets a lot of screentime and is so wrong, on so very many levels, and so pathetically executed...well really is there more to say besides that (I realize that's rhetorical because OF COURSE I'm going to say more...haha!!)? I felt like the scenes involving that threesome were so junior high it wasn't even funny. And every scene involving poor Much's crushed hopes and dreams as regards Kate were downright painful. Why didn't Kate just cut out Much's heart and stomp it into the ground??? And so all of a sudden Kate is the best thing to ever enter Robin's life - even Little John (Gordon Kennedy) talks her up. Yeesh what is wrong with all of these people?! Robin has gotten unforgivably stupid about women, but this has been going on so long, with no promise of correction, that I sort of feel numb to it all by this point. Marian is rolling over in her grave, Robin. Yeesh!!

So by the end of this episode, Isabella's dispatched her evil husband - personally I think they could've milked that storyline a little longer, but oh well. She's got a nice evil queen vibe going on - she is CRAZY, but really her brand of crazy just ultimately made me nostalgic for Keith Allen's take on the Sheriff. *sigh*

And now for talk about the best Guy scenes EVER! *swoon* Guy is in prison awaiting execution, and let me tell you, NO ONE can rock the whole dark, brooding, facing death yet unbelievably appealing thing like Richard Armitage. Excuse me while a swoon some more for a second (AGAIN!). :) He's thrown into the company of Meg, a self-proclaimed man hater who Isabella automatically connected with - but sadly Izzy's plans for her new BFF are going to fall through BIG TIME. Because no one in their right mind can resist the allure of the dark knight that is Guy. :) (Except of course the crazy sibling...)

Meg and Guy's scenes are fantastic. Because they're both in jail they're on equal footing, and Meg isn't afraid of speaking her mind and calling Guy out on everything from his attitude to his past actions. This is the kind of self-reflective time and turning point moment that I have wanted to see from Guy ever since he snapped and killed Marian in the finale of season two. He's just not supposed to be that guy who can do something like that without suffering consequences and repercussions. As he tells Meg, (referring to Marian) she believed in the better side of him, believed he could be a good man, and he let her down. When he says death means nothing because he's already in hell, you know that's true, because until he met Meg, he'd destroyed the only other person that believed in him at all. When Meg defies Isabella to try and free Guy, for the first time in ages, if not ever, his first thought is to save her instead of himself. There's no ulterior motive, no desire to play the system. He's reached a point of selflessness and heroism that I always knew was there, and I was just dying to SEE it. So thank you, Richard Armitage, in the midst of the mess that is season three, for giving me this performance.


Since we already know that Robin Hood's been cancelled, it's a bit pointless I guess to wish for what might have been. But I can't help but wish that the showrunners had wanted to develop the Meg/Guy relationship a bit further. Granted, her death scene was gut-wrenching, and having Guy actually break down and cry was a fanastic moment to witness. I'm going to pretend to read Richard Armitage's mind here, but who cares? ;-) (Isn't that what an obsessed RA fan would do? It feels right...haha!!) I felt like Armitage wanted to convey that Guy was crying for more than just Meg's death - it was for all of his character's lost opportunities. So tragic, yet so loverly to see. :) I thought Grainger and Armitage had great chemistry together, and I loved how Meg was not a character who was going to give Guy and inch. She was quite a spitfire, and their relationship would've been a lot of fun to watch develop (much more rewarding than the Robin/Kate debacle). I look forward to seeing Grainger in more shows (she's appeared in an episode of Merlin, to name one recent credit).

This was a beautiful, fantastic Guy-centric episode and it's definitely a highlight of the season - one ep that will be getting rewatched a lot in the future once the DVDs release. ;-)

Check out this link for some great Guy wallpapers!

Robin Hood 3.8: The King Is Dead, Long Live the King

Spoilers...

For episode eight of this season, the writers of Robin Hood drag out the ol' is the king dead or is he not plot, and can the usuper successfully stage a coup/fake coronation (any guesses as to how that always turns out? ). The episode opened with an assassin/knight called Lord Sheridan (who just happened to train Robin back in the day) played by Robert Pugh. He looked very familiar so I checked out his IMDB page - turns out he's appeared in Marple, Poirot, Bleak House, The Virgin Queen, and Torchwood, to name a few appearances. The fact that Sheridan's joined John's camp is a textbook chance for Robin (Jonas Armstrong) to act all brooding and angsty. Why oh why doesn't the whole world see things Robin's way? Poor guy. *sigh* Two things about this first segment of the episode - did anyone think it was weird/odd that such skillful wax artisans were around in King Richard's day? Maybe I am just not up on my history in that era. Also, is it weird that Isabella (Lara Pulver) would be making a play for the position of sheriff? Also - three things, I lied - part of me really loved how over-the-top hammy Prince John's (Toby Stephens) response to the news of his brother's "demise was - Stephens seems like he's really had a heckuva lot of fun with this role and it shows. He's in on the joke - I only wish Prince John had been able to make an appearance in season two, which for my money was the most consistent and well-scripted run of episodes.

The Gisborne siblings sure are messed up, aren't they? Despite the fact that Isabella jumped the shark and became completely unhinged in episode seven, I loved the nuance that Richard Armitage gave Guy's character in their first scene together. Sure, Isabella ends up smooth-talking her way out of imminent danger by offering reconciliation and promising to speak to the prince on Guy's behalf. But for a few brief moments, it seems like Guy hesitates killing Izzy because he's changed, because he can't quite make himself cross that line and kill family. The Marian thing still haunts my favorite dark and brooding anti-hero. ;-) He's still got a LONG way to go though, as he walked right into that whole drugging and betrayal scenario, didn't he?


You know I've got to say, it cracks me up that Robin & Co.'s bright idea for stopping Prince John is stealing the crown so there can't be a coronation. Seems flimsier than usual, even by this show's standards, but what do I know? *rolls eyes* I do have to say, though, that I got a kick out of Robin navigating the obstacles in the booby-trapped strongroom. Just like the good ol' days of Indiana Jones-style action in season two. ;-) Speaking of crowns and coronations, I have to call out the actor playing the archbishop - Ian Gelder. He was most recently seen as Mr. Dekker in Torchwood: Children of Earth.

Love, love, loved Guy going off on Isabella and Prince John ("I can't be disfigured for my coronation!!" - HILARIOUS!). This is what I've wanted to see since the beginning of this show, practically - Guy exploring his potential good side and being forced to realize that the corrupt, power-hungry people he's banked on don't care about him, they only care about him as long as he's useful to them. However - in case you haven't figured this out yet, the showrunners really dropped the ball on running the show this season in my opinion, the lack of focus directly leading to the cancellation of the show. Tragically SQUANDERED potential. *sigh*

You know what this episode really made me miss? Storylines that actually made me interested in the various members of the gang. Storylines like Allan's (Joe Armstrong) betrayal in season two, that made me care about his character more than every other one in the show (save Guy, of course). Now all Allan and Much (Sam Troughton) are good for is crushing on Kate (Joanne Froggatt), and all she's good for crushing on Robin and engineering a play for a little upward social mobility. Even when Marian was at her most annoying, she had Kate beaten by a mile.

A few words about the coronation scene. First - the outlaws' play to stop the proceedings by impersonating Richard behind shiny shields? Completely lame. LOVED Guy's appearance and how he and Robin seem to be able to set aside the past to some degree and recognize that for the first time ever, they have common enemies. Also got a chuckle out of the fight turning into a fist fight after the archbishop threatens anyone who draws blood in the church with eternal damnation. Way to work around that little problem. ;-) Final verdict: this episode had one or two good moments, but it's one of the weakest of season three so far.

Robin Hood 3.7: Too Hot to Handle

Spoilers...

A drought's hit Nottingham in episode 7 of Robin Hood - a potentially deadly situation exacerbated by Prince John's need to be loved by the people. Robin (Jonas Armstrong) and Isabella (Lara Pulver) still have a thing for each other. I mean you know its real when Robin waltzes into town to bring his lady luv strawberries. The double entendre in that scene had me rolling, LOL! But I have to say, how freaking stupid do you have to be to stage your little strawberry rendevous in full view of Prince John's (Toby Stephens) window. Yeesh. *rolls eyes*

So Prince John sees Robin and Isabella together and orders Guy (Richard Armitage) to follow the two of them around to determine her where her loyalty lies. At this point like there's any question about that, but whatever, I get it, it's not like there's no precedent on this show for characters being really dense. I loved every single scene Toby Stephens appeared in, the man's portrayal of Prince John is everything I wanted and then some. It could be a bit disturbing to analyze how easily he plays characters that are so in love with themselves, but where would the fun be in that? ;-) I also enjoyed Guy's interaction with the Prince - poor Guy, he obviously thought getting rid of the Sheriff would mean great things for him right off, but that dream has not played out according to plan (huuuugggge shocker, right? LOL). And maybe I'm reading too much into Guy's expression, but Armitage gives the performance a layer that almost, almost makes you believe he feels bad about the whole situation with his sister.

I've got to give credit to the fight choreographers for the way they staged the three-way fight between Guy, Robin, and Isabella - with Robin and Isabella shackled together, no less! (Seriously, Robin is losing his touch - to let Guy sneak up on them like that is tremendously pathetic.) But I thought the fight scene was quite entertaining. And once again Richard comes through as the finest actor on the show by making it seem just barely possible that he wants Isabella to choose him over Robin. Does he not want to lose his one remaining family member? Does Izzy remind him of Marian? Am I completely and overly obsessed with every nuance of Richard Armitage's facial expressions? The questions are endless.

So once Robin and Isabella escape Guy (for now), Robin reveals just how seriously deluded he is about the whole Marian/Guy relationship. I cannot believe he actually tells Isabella, with a straight face, that Marian never gave Guy a reason to feel anything for her. What planet was he living on for the last two years?!

Anyways...Robin & Isabella manage to make it to where the water is blocked, followed (of course) by Guy who locks them in and leaves them to drown. Poor Guy is once again missing a critical principle of this show, that is, if you don't kill someone right off they will always find a way to escape. In the ensuing scene Isabella reveals just how badly she's pinned all of her hopes for escape & a new life on Robin, and not-so-shockingly Robin begins to cave under the pressure. He just can't go there because of the whole Marian debacle - as an outlaw, he can't have it all. Poor boy. So after this revelation, Isabella goes all Gisborne on us and turns on Robin, who has never learned the idea that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. As brilliant as he likes to think of himself, Robin is not the brightest star in the sky, is he?

One of my favorite Prince John quotes: "Oh please, don't go all enigmatic on me Gisborne. Are they dead?"

So Isabella turns on Guy and Robin, and Guy just can't believe the sister he sold would throw him under the bus, but whever. This leads to not only another solidly staged and entertaining fight scene in the dungeon, but some freaking hilarious humor courtesy of Prince John. One of the strongest points of this episode are John's scenes - Stephens gets the chance to throw around some really funny, dry one-liners over and over - LOVED it. Now that Isabella has screwed up Guy's plans for royally-sanctioned power and position, he's got to go rogue...that makes me very happy. Just sayin'. :) I think it could be way healthier for Guy and Robin to bond over being dissed by Isabella (as opposed to the whole Marian mess).

Every scene with the rest of the gang bored me to tears - Tuck (David Harewood) comes off as really pompous and annoying to me, and Much (Sam Troughton) is just sad with this hopeless crush he has developed on Kate (Joanne Froggatt). I have to give Kate some credit for annoying me less this episode than she has in all of her previous appearances. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that her hairstyle has changed? I don't know, but don't worry, I'm not about to jump ship and become a Kate fan. ;-)

Robin Hood 3.6: Do You Love Me?

Spoilers...

Do You Love Me? is probably my favorite episode of season 3 of Robin Hood to date. At long, long last we're treated to the introduction of Toby Stephens as Prince John. I freaking love Toby Stephens - whether he's playing a baddie as he does in Die Another Day or a romantic hero as he does in Twelfth Night or Jane Eyre, he does it brilliantly. And to have Stephens playing opposite Richard Armitage (who smolders more than usual as Guy in this episode - yay!) is a bit of a dream come true.

I think it was my friend Kaye who made the comment that any episode that starts off with a shirtless Richard is sure to be good. ;-) I think that's a very good rule of thumb, just sayin'. The episode begins with Guy being dragged before the Prince and ordered to kill the Sheriff (Keith Allen) - since he's failed to deliver Robin Hood's head on a platter, it follows that he doesn't love his prince enough. Right away Stephens gives the character of Prince John the perfect balance of vanity and menace. And he speaks about himself in the third person, just hilarious! I think Prince John is a bit of a tricky character to get right. It's too easy to make him a complete fop, you know? However, since the showrunners made King Richard a complete & total loser (as seen in the season 2 finale), I wanted Prince John to be a legitimate threat. Thank goodness Toby Stephens was cast as the Prince...that is one thing the showrunners got right this season. John may be wonderfully vain and full of himself, but he's a real threat to doofus Richard's claim to the throne.

Likewise, this episode is a fantastic showcase for Guy and the Sheriff's deteriorating relationship. Guy is on fire here - once the prince gives him the sort of approval and validation that the Sheriff never has, he's out for blood (and an intense, smoldering Guy is always fun to watch). :) It's also interesting to see Allen play the Sheriff with a little uncertainty. He knows, or suspects, that Guy is out for his job, but he also recognizes that Prince John isn't to be trusted. It's a case of the devil you know, or the one you don't, I guess you could say. When Guy and the Sheriff start their fight, wowzers, was that a satisfying scene. The Sheriff's been manipulating Guy for over two seasons now, and to see Guy snap - and how he blames the Sheriff for driving him to kill Marian - made for fantastic, dream-come-true viewing. It was a total Richard Armitage fangirl moment. :) Guy wasn't after the Sheriff to curry favor with the prince - this was a moment for him to try & kill the Sheriff's control over his life. Easily the most intense fight scene in the show's history, very well executed.

Isabella (Lara Pulver) makes her second appearance here - and she's two-for-two as far as appearances go & my liking the character. She's a resident of the castle, but makes it clear that she doesn't approve of the Sheriff, Prince John, or her brother's methods. She's apparently biding her time - not sure if we're supposed to get that she's out to revenge herself against Guy for selling her into a bad marriage or what. I have to say, I did enjoy Isabella's little moment with Robin (Jonas Armstrong) after she helps him put out the fire started on the prince's orders in Locksley. Pulver and Armstrong have some serious on-screen chemistry in this scene, and it's a good little moment for Jonas Armstrong reveal some rakish charm. ;-) I also liked Isabella's scenes with Prince John - he's so obviously smitten with her, and she plays him like a fiddle - their moments together are quite humorous.

The biggest downfall to this episode is, once again, Kate (Joanne Froggatt). This episode is just mean...Kate goes and gets herself wounded when the outlaws attack Prince John's decoy, and then she has the nerve not to die. *sigh* The potential there just crashed & burned. And to add insult to injury I had to watch Much (Sam Troughton) and Allan (Joe Armstrong) trip all over each other with concerns for her welfare (GAG!), and then, THEN she goes and has the nerve to make eyes at Robin. SERIOUSLY?! We had to go THERE?! Brace yourselves, people, I'm sure it's only bound to get worse. *sigh*

That annoyance aside, the Prince John-Guy-Sheriff dynamic made this episode one of season 3's best. There were many, many more moments of Toby Stephens' brilliant portrayal of Prince John that I could have gushed over, but I'll refrain. :) And yay for Guy finally snapping and turning on the Sheriff. It's not quite the same as owning to his mistakes, but it's a step in the right direction that's been a long time coming. Love it.

Robin Hood 3.5: Let the Games Commence

Here there be spoilers...

After an interminable two-episode absence, all of Richard Armitage-fandom rejoiced when Guy returned to Nottingham (at last!!). More on my favorite baddie's return in a second. :) This episode of Robin Hood opens with a mysterious noblewoman being chased through the woods. Just when all hope seems lost (eekk!), Robin (Jonas Armstrong) magically appears and of course rescues her. The woman, Isabella (Lara Pulver), *claims* to be the maidservant of the squire's wife and her decoy, ordered to help her escape her wicked husband. Robin, of course, buys this story hook, line, and sinker, because he's that kind of guy & because electric sparks immediately fly between him & the spunky Isabella (who's eerily reminscent of Marian in this scene, in both looks and attitude).

Robin, Isabella, and the gang run into Guy & his men returning to Nottingham. This is quite a different Guy than the one we last saw in episode 2, Cause and Effect. Then he was cowed & fearing for his life, "betrayed" (I think one can use that word, because he's apparently dumb enough to "trust" Sheriff) by the Sheriff (Keith Allen) and sent to Prince John to account for Nottingham's unpaid taxes. This time Guy's returned flush with pride and purpose, with a mandate from Prince John to kill Robin Hood (like that's gonna work in episode 5 of the season *rolls eyes*) a secret weapon (unbelievably silly), and men to command. Guy's starting to think that he doesn't need the Sheriff for success or validation, and personally I love the edge Richard Armitage gives his portrayal of Guy here.

Besides the Isabella/Guy's secret "weapon" storyline, this episode also serves as a much-needed showcase for Little John's (Gordon Kennedy) character. While Guy & his men are herding Robin & crew towards their arena-inspired end (really...a freaking LION?!), Little John falls in with a traveling troupe of performers who stage, of all things, gladiator-like fighting tournaments. Let's just be honest here, this is a ridiculous conceit, right up there with season 2's foray into Las Vegas-style gambling. Generally when this show is cheesy, I don't mind - it's part of the fun, after all. ;-) This fighting troupe was interesting for me because it's headed by a woman named Bertha (gotta love that name!) played by Denise Black, who I last saw play a similar role in The Scarlet Pimpernel Meets Madamoiselle Guillotine (if you've never seen the Richard E. Grant Scarlet Pimpernel films, do yourself a favor and track down copies of them asap!). Bertha's goal is to of course betray Little John for cash (though this idea occurs to her only after her amorous advances towards the Sheriff are turned down flat - hilarious!). Little John immediately hits it off with one of the kid's in Bertha's entourage, and their interaction is a nice reminder of the fact that John's a father, who's outlaw life has cost him a relationship and life with his wife & son. Plus, as cheesy as the fixed arena fights may be, the fact that they rely on brute strength plays nicely into Little John's purpose as "muscle" on the show.


Of course, the most interesting aspect of this episode is, for me anyway, the introduction of Isabella - who turns out to be Guy's sister!! Apparently Guy's selfish, thoughtless impulses go way farther back than season 1 - years earlier Guy sold his sister in marriage to an abusive squire in order to help further his own social position. The way things stand now, Isabella's been away from her brother for years, so she doesn't really know him anymore. And the fact that she's an abused woman would, one could think, make her a sympathetic, pro-outlaw character. However, Isabella is first and foremost a Gisborne. So where will the show take her character? Personally, I love the fact that the show chose to delve into Gisborne's past a bit. I find it interesting that Isabella is so out of touch with her brother, and so desperate for escape, that she's seeking sanctuary from her betrayer. Only a chance meeting with the charismatic Robin appears to have made her think twice about blindly jumping from the frying pan of her marriage into the fire with her brother & his plans. There's a lot of potential with her character, so we must wait and see how fast & to what degree the writers squander Isabella's potential.

Post-Marian, I vastly prefer the introduction of Isabella to the show rather than the unforgivably annoying, grating, pull-my-hair-out-I-can't-stand-her-that-much character of Kate (Joanne Froggatt). Kate was introduced so obviously, so badly, as a "poor man's Marian." This characterization sin is only compounded by the fact that the writers only seemed to transfer Marian's annoying characteristics to the new blonde stand-in - whininess, ingratitude, and to top it off bad hair. ;-) Isabella has TONS of potential IMO because she's got a tension-frought history with my favorite Guy, she appears capable of intelligence and spunk, and she's got some genuine chemistry with Robin (that last scene shows off some serious sparks!). Of course, a lot could change over the course of the season - but for now, Isabella is my favorite introduction to the cast.

*Great Sheriff quote: "For once I'm pleased to see you, Hood! It means Gisborne has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory again!!" - that pretty much sums up the relationship between the Sheriff & Guy, doesn't it? LOL!

*It just dawned on me that Isabella married Squire Thornton - could this be a nod to Richard Armitage's breakout role as John Thornton in North and South? Methinks it must be...

Robin Hood 3.4: Sins of the Father

Spoilers...

I am WAY behind in my Robin Hood blogging, I know, I know. But let the record show that I am determined to get caught up THIS WEEK. Just in case you need a refresher, the last time we visited Nottingham, Robin & the gang are accused of being heretics, and the Sheriff (Keith Allen) has sent Guy (Richard Armitage) off to pay homage to Prince John. The Sheriff is apparently becoming a bit stressed about his struggles to collect the cash he needs to keep Prince John happy - so he calls in a new tax collector - Ruthless Rufus. Yes, that is the best name the scriptwriters could come up with. *rolls eyes*

So Rufus arrives in Nottingham with his son Edmund, and starts throwing his muscle around. This of course antagonizes my least favorite addition to the cast EVER, Kate (Joanne Froggatt), who's taken to Rufus's home in order to spare her annoying mother. There Rufus forces her dance for his entertainment. Lame. Will Kate survive the attentions of the dastardly Rufus? Unfortunately for the show, yes, Robin (Jonas Armstrong) & crew stage a rescue. *sigh* Since Kate is now a known associate of outlaws, she has to take to the woods. In typical Kate-and-her-relatives-are-complete-ingrates, she and her mother aren't grateful that Kate's been saved from Rufus - instead she and her mother find a way to blame Robin for the fact she has to leave the town. ARGH!! To add insult to injury, Much (Sam Troughton) and Allan (Joe Armstrong) both apparently want Kate to like them - Much falls all over himself to try and appear in a favorable light. (Aside: Why are men so stupid?!?!)

In spite of Ruthless Rufus's alliterative moniker, he's a fellow with a somewhat interesting history. Unfortunately for the Sheriff, Rufus has a history in Nottingham - he saw the Sheriff take his father's shop from him years before. Since the Sheriff has no conscience, he of course isn't going to remember wrecking Rufus's boyhood - and since suffering hasn't made Rufus a more compassionate person, he's willing to trample anyone in the way of his quest for revenge. This extends to his son, Edmund, who's somehow grown up with some scruples and obviously doesn't approve of his father's tactics. I've got to say, it's a nice change watching the Sheriff get played - well, he's usually played, but by a good guy - it's a switch when a baddie is the one pulling the wool over Sheriff Vasey's eyes.

As you can tell by the above picture, Kate & Allan get themselves taken prisoner by Rufus, while Edmund gets himself taken as a hostage by Robin & the gang. Kate and Allan have a nice, nauseating moment bonding over their shared misfortune. If Allan was imprisoned with any one else I don't think I'd care...he's my favorite member of the gang, and I love and adore his smart-aleck sense of humor. I just hate to see it wasted on Kate. *sigh again* However, this prisoner exchange does have an upside. Little John (Gordon Kennedy) actually gets a bit of screentime since, as a longtime resident of Nottingham, he's the first to recognize Rufus (only he just can't place him at first). Poor Little John's been pretty criminally underused so far this season, hasn't he? Tuck (David Harewood) also gets the chance to practice being Dr. Phil when he tries to convince Edmund to quit making excuses for his father's criminal behavior.

There are parts of the "big reveal" at the end of this episode that I actually really liked. When the gang descends on Rufus's hideout to rescue Kate & Allan, the Sheriff also appears - in hot pursuit of the money he discovered Rufus has stolen. When the Sheriff goes all "fatherly" in his talk with Edmund about the fact that Rufus "has issues" I just rolled. This is a major case of the pot calling the kettle black, no? ;-) The icing on the cake is when Robin makes one of his impossible shots and the arrow magically hits the mark, preventing a crazed Rufus from killing his son. Gotta love Robin's bow work, I'm just sayin'...

By the end of the episode, Kate is an official member of the gang and she's magically let go of all of her anger issues (thanks to Allan's therapy session I guess). Thankfully there's a shakeup coming to the show with the next episode. I made a mistake in my post on episode 3 - for some reason I was under the impression that Guy was returning this week...don't know what I was thinking but of course, that's not the case. It's really TRAGIC, this being the last season of the show & all, that Guy's AWOL from TWO WHOLE EPISODES. Oh well, c'est la vie. :)

Robin Hood 3.3: Lost in Translation

Spoilers...

This episode of Robin Hood suffers from an unforgivably fatal flaw - Guy (Richard Armitage) is AWOL. Didn't the scriptwriters realize that he is the #1 reason 99.9% of this show's fanbase tune in on a weekly basis? I'm just sayin'...crazy, crazy move people!!

Now, aside from some annoyances I'll expound on later, the essential conflict of the episode is pretty fascinating IMO. Our favorite Sheriff (Keith Allen) has learned that the Abbot of Kirklees is guilty of heresy - he's been translating the scriptures into English. The Sheriff threatens to destroy the Abbot's work unless he agrees to help bring down Robin Hood (Jonas Armstrong) by turning the villagers against him - so the Abbot condemns Robin & crew as heretics. This episode, with its religious theme, was obviously designed to highlight newcomer Tuck (David Harewood), and it does a pretty decent job all things considered. Tuck's raging crusader-for-Robin Hood mentality still occasionally gets on my nerves, but the content of the translation storyline is strong enough for me to overlook that. The interaction between Tuck and the Abbot is pretty interesting - the Abbot, of course, will do anything to protect his life's work, while Tuck wants him to worry a little less about translating the scriptures and live some of the principles instead. The whole idea of the scriptures being in English does lead to some cute Much moments, when he rather redundantly can't wrap his head around the concept. ;-) And the Sheriff has several priceless moments throughout the episode as well - Keith Allen loves to ham it up and he takes advantage of every opportunity - like when he supplies a faux relic with which to intimidate the villagers. When he starts "preaching," and then kissed the decaying hand, it just cracked me up. Just when you think you've seen the Sheriff do it all... *sigh* ;-)

This episode - unfortunately - also provides plenty of screentime for annoying Kate (Joanne Froggatt) and her even more annoying mother. They (especially Kate's mother, because it's GLARINGLY obvious that Kate's starting to crush on Robin) are so blatantly anti-Robin and stupid about it to boot that it's just annoying. We could have had some originality, but NOOOO...we had to have some half-baked rehash of Marian & her father's conflicts with Robin. Now I realize that the way Kate's mother takes the Abbot's words to heart is fairly historically accurate considering the position of the church in society at the time. But I don't CARE, I can't STAND that woman!!

I have to mention the whole Kate/Much (Sam Troughton) thing. While Kate is in complete and utterly pathetic denial that she's got a crush on Robin ("*sob* I don't ever want to see you again Robin, do you hear me?!" Puh-LEEZE. *rollseyes*), poor Much is developing a crush on Kate. This does lead to a brief, but cute, scene where Allan (Joe Armstrong) attempts to give the hapless Much some advice on how to woo a lady. Unfortunately this is followed up by the scene where Much attempts to execute the plan, and he's told off by Kate because he smells. SERIOUSLY?! That's a little like the pot calling the kettle black...the girl is apparently also in denial about the fact that she's a peasant TOO. Yeesh!!

So let's wrap things up...Robin & the gang are captured when they fail to convince the Abbot to denounce the Sheriff. Kate attempts to rescue Robin by attacking him on the way to the pyre and slipping him an arrow so he can try to cut the ropes. Then - and this made me GAG, I kid you not - she WINKS at him. OF ALL THE NERVE!!! She has to be one of the most exasperating fictional characters EVER to pollute one of my favorite TV shows. I'm just sayin'...

Of course all's well that ends well, especially since this is only the 3rd episode of the season. If the episode didn't include all of the Kate-related scenes I would've been a lot happier with it, but that's just me - and I freely admit to being biased. :) Just think of the episode that could have been if the writing had been a bit tighter and Guy had been given a role in the story...a girl can dream, right?

Thankfully, Guy's back next week...and so is his sister. And people I think you're in for a treat - I loved the introduction of Guy's family - it's an example of a new character being written in a new, fresh, and fascinating way (especially when compared to KATE...okay, I'll get off that soapbox...).

Robin Hood 3.2: Cause and Effect

Spoilers...

So sorry I'm a little late blogging about the latest episode of Robin Hood - "Cause and Effect." I suppose I didn't really feel an urgency to write about this episode since it's one of the ones I watched on YouTube back when series 3 first started to air in the U.K. The primary reason probably has more to do with the fact that I now have to start mentioning the above woman in my episode reviews - Kate, played by Joanne Froggatt. But perhaps I'm getting a bit ahead of myself... :)

The episode opens with a nice montage of Robin (Jonas Armstrong) & the gang in action, robbing the rich to feed the poor and antagonize the Sheriff (Keith Allen) and my lovely, angst-ridden Guy (Richard Armitage). I think it's safe to assume that some substantial amount of time has passed between this episode and the last, which marked Robin's return. It's at this point that I might as well note that Tuck's (David Harewood) predisposition for going on and on about how people "need a hero" gets a little obvious and annoying after a while.

The action then moves to the village, where we learn that Guy still hasn't seen fit to cut his hair, his rage is simmering barely below the surface, ready to explode at any moment (go Richard!), and he's collecting the village men to ship off to Ireland. This is the latest of the Sheriff's grand and overly complex money-making schemes that are always destined to fail - however, even if you think the plot conceit is a bit over-the-top, the visiting Irishmen are by far the best thing about this episode.

Kate, acting the part of plucky village girl to the hilt, attempts to smuggle her brother Matthew to safety, but the plot is caught by Guy, and in the ensuing scuffle Matthew is taken captive to the castle along with Robin (unbeknownst to Guy). It's so painfully obvious that Kate is the "poor man's Marian" it's not even funny. She, and especially her mother, really seem to hate Robin and everything he stands for, which is weird considering this is their FIRST APPEARANCE IN THE SHOW (but I digress). I guess the simplest way to boil down how Kate & especially her mother feel about Robin is that they'd rather roll over and take the oppression and abuse rather than support anyone who tries to do anything about it. In fact - they'd rather serve other people up for execution - as Kate does in a stupid, asinine, foolish, and ultimately futile attempt to "bargain" with Guy for Matthew's life.

It's not that I object to the introduction of a new female character to the show - in fact, it was going to be needed sooner or later. But I hate the lack of creativity - it's like women in the world of Robin Hood are required to endlessly whine about everything he does. How is Kate any different from Marian, only poorer and blonde? Why do Much (Sam Troughton) and Allan (Joe Armstrong) have to welcome her so readily into their rescue efforts when she sold their leader up the proverbial river a scant fifteen minutes prior? Did the writers just get lazy and decide to rewrite Marian as a peasant and make her father the most annoying woman to ever live in the village?! And what is with the stupid fake braid in Kate's hair?!?!

Whew...sorry to go on such a rant...but I'm really not a fan of Kate. What can I say, I got carried away... *sigh*

Now to talk about my favorite aspects of the episode...any scene involving Guy (of course!) and our guest star Irishmen, led by Finn (played by William Houston). The whole Irish storyline fascinated me. Finn and his loser younger brother have this "bright" idea to buy slaves from the Sheriff to serve in their army. Their goal - free Ireland from the British and set Finn on the throne. When Finn witnesses Robin's ultimately futile attempt to escape with the other prisoners, he's left impressed with Robin's ability to rally men to fight for his cause. He attempts to recruit Robin, Robin refuses, he attempts to rescue Robin, attempt fails due to betrayal by brother, both ultimately escape (of course! :)) in a thrilling hang gliding sequence (compared to the whole Kate thing, the hang gliding thing worked perfectly for me). Ultimately Finn "sees the light" and realizes that an army of men who believe in his cause is to be preferred to a conscripted army of slaves. Excellent object lesson, I think we can all agree, no? :)

Regarding Guy...dear man, I love you no matter how moody you get, but this long hair thing you have going on is trying my patience. :) I've got to say, it's really nice to see Guy actually start to show some real attitude towards the Sheriff. Setting up some conflict between the two of them is long overdue in my opinion. Even with Guy's callous involvement in Matthew's death, Richard Armitage seems to play the anger so well that I can never forget that his anger and rage is part of his grieving process.* Guy sort of has this self-loathing thing going on, only Guy being Guy, he lashes out at anyone and everyone. I think that's why he's become such a loose cannon where the Sheriff is concerned - since he killed the only woman he ever loved, he just doesn't care anyone. I mean after all, what does he have to lose?

*I suppose a person uniformed to the awesomeness that is Richard Armitage could argue that I'm reading WAY too much into his performance. But they would be WRONG. Just wanted to clarify that... :)

The lovely picture below captures one of the episode's best moments, when Robin calls out Guy's anger act. As much as I have loved Jonas Armstrong in this series, he's not had too many moments where I have felt that he rises to the occasion and delivers a strong performance equal to Richard's. This, however, was one of those moments, and it worked exceedingly well for me.

Till this Saturday's episode...think happy Guy thoughts. :)

Robin Hood 3.1: Total Eclipse

Spoilers!!

Oh Robin Hood, how I love you. :) The third (and sadly, final) season of Robin Hood finally, at long last, began on BBC America this weekend. And it starts off with a bang. Since it's been about a year and a half since season 2 aired over here, how about a quick recap?

When we last left our intrepid band of outlaws/freedom fighters, they had traveled to the Holy Land (apparating Harry Potter-style, apparently, since the journey took no time at all) to save King Richard from yet another attempt on his life spearheaded by the Sheriff (Keith Allen). The world of Robin Hood fandom was set ablaze by the controversial ending to season 2, which saw my favorite baddie in the whole wide world (a.k.a. Sir Guy of Gisborne, a.k.a. RICHARD ARMITAGE!!) go off in self-destruct mode and kill Marian (Lucy Griffiths), after finally (FINALLY!!) realizing that she's been playing him for a fool for two years.

Personally, Marian's death was remarkably anticlimatic. She'd gradually become infected over the course of season 2 with one of the worst cases of TSTL (Too Stupid To Live) syndrome that I've ever seen. And the whole will she choose Robin or will she choose Guy thing had been taken WAY too far. Where Guy was concerned, she was far too blinded by his appeal and feelings for her - she thought she could control him, and failed MISERABLY. Her father never taught her that if you play with fire, you get burned (or stuck in the gut with a sword by an emotionally eviscerated, incredibly good-looking man). The best part of Marian's death was how it allowed Robin (Jonas Armstrong) to emote...that man has beautiful, beautiful eyes. Just sayin'. :) You can read my post on the season 2 finale here.

Fast forward to tonight's episode...strangely enough it takes MUCH longer to journey back to England from the Holy Land than the other way around. Weird, no? And apparently the second the boat docks one must run all the way back to Nottingham in order to avenge the death of one's beloved. (Question: Why did it seem like Guy & the Sheriff had been back in England so much longer than the boys in green? Also, all the running was a little crazy...it reminded me of all the running that occurs in The Two Towers.) Can I just tell you that I LOVED angry, angst-ridden Robin? That was played well, I liked seeing Robin cope - or not, as the case may be - with his grief and anger, and I think, guilt over not being able to save Marian. Over the course of the previous two seasons he's poured so much of himself into the anti-Sheriff crusade, that it's actually a wonder he hasn't reached the breaking point before. But of course, after perhaps realizing that your king is a MORON (seriously, go back and watch the end of season 2 if it's been a while, Richard was written very poorly IMO) and it's cost you the woman you love and are perhaps FINALLY ready to commit to, it's natural that one would have to lash out a bit. This is really the first time that being an outlaw has really cost Robin something near & dear to him - a wake-up call that was probably long overdue.

The man that brings Robin back from the brink is a new addition to the team - Tuck, played by David Harewood. In keeping with the way this show likes to shake up tradition, this incarnation of Tuck definitely isn't a roly-poly, jolly type - this Tuck may still be a priest, but he's a fighter and crusader. Out of all members of the gang, Tuck is being set up as Robin's best equal - how can I say this - mental acuity. I love Little John (Gordon Kennedy), Much (Sam Troughton), and most of all, I love and adore Allan (Joe Armstrong), but excepting perhaps Allan's occasional flashes of brilliance, they are definitely more followers than leaders and planners. I think it's interesting that Tuck, newly returned to England from foreign parts himself, has such a passionate drive to see the Sheriff and Prince John ousted from power - the urgency of his mission seems just a tad contrived for a new arrival, but whatever. Perfect logic has never been this show's strongest suit. ;-)

I absolutely loved this episode's focus on the Robin/Guy conflict. It's hard to find Richard Armitage's equal for playing the tortured soul, and he uses that skill to full effect in this episode. He may have incredibly nasty, greasy hair, but somehow I can look past that and see the tortured soul, know what I mean? *sigh* Not that I in any way condone how he dealt with his relationship problems at the end of season 2, but Marian just didn't get him, did she? Stupid girl. ;-) Guy had some great moments in this episode, from the encounter with Tuck, where he talks of the demons that haunt his dreams, to the moment where he begs Robin to kill him, only to be spared, to perhaps the best moment - where he tells the Sheriff that he FINALLY realizes that he doesn't like him. OMG, is the light dawning?! LOL

So, by the end of this episode, Robin realizes that he can't not do what it is he does, he can't suddenly deny Robin Hood. For as much as he created the legend the people love, it's an intrinsic part of who he is - and since the people love him enough to risk a massive forest fire with their candle-filled tribute (that cracked me up!) when they think he's dead, well Marian wouldn't want him to let them down, would she? :) Two things I absolutely loved in the ending segment of this episode: 1) the insane giant arrow the Sheriff tries to kill three people with. When will the man realize that elaborate death traps never, ever work? *rolls eyes* LOL! And 2) Robin's grand entrance and heroic speech. I am a total and complete sucker for those moments, they do me in every single time.

Till next week...WE ARE ROBIN HOOD!! (Haha, sorry, couldn't resist!) ;-)