Your reviews of Agent Carter have been part of my enjoyment of the entire series. I, too, am hoping for a second run.
I think Ivchenko's abilities are amazing, but can only work on something that's core to his target, about something the person cares deeply about at a heartfelt level. the Russian soldier's longing for his mother; Jauch's self-respect; Dooley's love of his family; presumably self-respect and respect from others for the black policeman (extraordinarily rare in wartime New York which, from a Watsonian point of view, would make him vulnerable) etc. Ethical regrets, no matter how deeply felt, do not trump love or yearning, so Ivchenko might use the Finnau guilt as an entree, which he did, but then move on to what he might know would be the more deeply felt issue.
I, too, have cheered the lack of a romantic tie for Peggy, and the construction, instead, of strong friendships. It rings true, and healthy. (Although can someone remind me of whether Sousa was injured in the European or Pacific theater? Didn't Peg ultimately marry someone who'd been in a Japanese camp? Am I completely mad here?)
I also love how each of the characters were, to my mind, sympathetic, even when they did rotten things (humans are like that); for instance, I knew Thompson would act as he did, and yet I appreciated us seeing that what he was was an extremely fallible man unable, because of arrogance, to be better than what he was. I could appreciate the amount of flexibility he was able to show when backed into a corner, and realize he would still be what we see as a complete dick at the end, without failing to recognize the qualities that got him to the SSR. I felt much the same for Dooley (only with more positive emotion; by the end of his run - an unfortunate phrase, I recognize - I liked and respected him, even as I saw his fallibility.
That's the kind of writing of secondary characters that I can cheer for.
Dottie .... what a tragic and dangerous creation she is. And yes, Dottie, even though you survived, Peggy was indeed that good.
My only rather intellectual question is how to retcon the first short film we saw Carter in, in which she was basically held in even lower regard by the nascent SHIELD folks before she was put in charge. Surely the SSR would want to keep her?
Augh. Definitely want to see a second run. Is it ready yet?
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I think Ivchenko's abilities are amazing, but can only work on something that's core to his target, about something the person cares deeply about at a heartfelt level. the Russian soldier's longing for his mother; Jauch's self-respect; Dooley's love of his family; presumably self-respect and respect from others for the black policeman (extraordinarily rare in wartime New York which, from a Watsonian point of view, would make him vulnerable) etc. Ethical regrets, no matter how deeply felt, do not trump love or yearning, so Ivchenko might use the Finnau guilt as an entree, which he did, but then move on to what he might know would be the more deeply felt issue.
I, too, have cheered the lack of a romantic tie for Peggy, and the construction, instead, of strong friendships. It rings true, and healthy. (Although can someone remind me of whether Sousa was injured in the European or Pacific theater? Didn't Peg ultimately marry someone who'd been in a Japanese camp? Am I completely mad here?)
I also love how each of the characters were, to my mind, sympathetic, even when they did rotten things (humans are like that); for instance, I knew Thompson would act as he did, and yet I appreciated us seeing that what he was was an extremely fallible man unable, because of arrogance, to be better than what he was. I could appreciate the amount of flexibility he was able to show when backed into a corner, and realize he would still be what we see as a complete dick at the end, without failing to recognize the qualities that got him to the SSR. I felt much the same for Dooley (only with more positive emotion; by the end of his run - an unfortunate phrase, I recognize - I liked and respected him, even as I saw his fallibility.
That's the kind of writing of secondary characters that I can cheer for.
Dottie .... what a tragic and dangerous creation she is. And yes, Dottie, even though you survived, Peggy was indeed that good.
My only rather intellectual question is how to retcon the first short film we saw Carter in, in which she was basically held in even lower regard by the nascent SHIELD folks before she was put in charge. Surely the SSR would want to keep her?
Augh. Definitely want to see a second run. Is it ready yet?