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The Alienist season 2
Finally getting around to writing this up! I finished it a little while back and really loved it.
Well, aside from the plotting, which was bananas. I watched it with![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
rachelmanija and scioscribe, and the only explanation we could come up with for the last couple of episodes is that they thought they had 4-6 episodes to wrap everything up, ended up with only two, and had to shed plotlines right and left. The Markoe plot is the most egregious casualty, considering that it's the main mystery in the first few episodes and then is dropped completely and never explained or addressed again, beyond a throwaway remark from John's editor at the Times that actually makes things worse. (John's editor: "Good job covering the Markoe scandal, John!" All three of us: BUT WHAT WAS THE SCANDAL THOUGH?!!)
Anyway, we just kept coming up with more stray loose ends that were never addressed. There is clearly at least one missing scene between Hearst, John, and Violet, considering that somehow they get from John standing her up at the party where Violet's family is planning their summer vacation, to John getting a promotion at the Times, apparently content with his position in life with no lingering issues with Hearst trying to coerce him over to the tabloids. You can see the shape of what's missing by where they end up (presumably there must have been a scene with John standing his ground and Violet taking his side, perhaps also some sort of scene in which he and Violet proved that they would be there for each other - I mean, you can see that it's happened by the way the characters relate to each other at the end ... we just didn't see it).
It also seems like some characters are set up for a bigger role only to disappear from the plot in the last few episodes, like Joanna, or Oggie Guildersleeve and his little crush on Sara, or Paulie the magic-trick kid, and there's a half-episode disdain-to-respect speed run of a relationship arc with Byrnes that goes from actively undermining Sara's investigation to backing her up with Libby and sending his daughter (I presume) to be trained by her detective agency.
So yeah, there had to have been some editorial meddling and a mad scramble to wrap up as much as possible without losing too much of the character arcs.
Because they did actually manage to keep most of the character arcs, and they were lovely.
If the first season was mainly about the characters moving past their trauma and learning to love each other, this season felt very much like a coming-of-age story, in which having freed themselves of their past, to an extent, they began to figure out who and what they want to be. And in the end I found all their fates very satisfying. If we never get any more, this is a good place to leave them, but it would also be a good springboard for a season three if the show ever decided to give us that.
(Well, except for killing Marcus, but that was just so gratuitous and had so little actual impact on the plot that I tend to forget it happened. I still can't believe they did that. WHY?!! Nothing would have changed if he'd just been badly hurt and ended up in the hospital, and he lived in the book! It was just so pointless. So I choose to ignore it.)
Anyway, though, the finale included some things that if I had heard them described out of context, I would have recoiled vehemently, like Violet/John being endgame ship with a sudden surprise pregnancy, or the characters all going their separate ways at the end. And yet, the way it was done left me feeling very happy and satisfied. I think the eventual breakup of John/Sara due to irreconcilable differences about how they want to live their lives was very much in character for both of them. I love that we've watched a two-season arc of Sara figuring out that her career is more important to her than family and kids - and let's face it, living in the society she lives in, that really is the choice she'd have to make; there is no way, without reliable birth control, that she and John wouldn't have kids, and even if they'd had the option to choose not to, John wants kids and Sara wouldn't have wanted him made unhappy for her sake. And giving in and forcing herself to do something she doesn't want to do for his sake wouldn't have made them happy either. I like that the show made the comparison with Sara recognizing her own feelings in other unhappy and consequently bad mothers that she's known, and realizing that she doesn't want to be like that herself.
And similarly, John has never really enjoyed going out and being in danger, being constantly uncomfortable and off balance, the way the other two do. John wanting home and family, and a job where he can make a difference and still clock out and go home to a wife and child at quitting time, is just as in character for him as it is in character for Sara to want to live a life of adventure and danger. I think I'd feel differently if he seemed unhappy about it but he doesn't; he hasn't compromised his principles with Hearst, and he's not drinking again - if anything he seems to be dragging Violet over to his side, and the compromise position at the end (he has dinner with his friends, and then he goes home to her) feels like ... well, growing up, honestly, in the same way that Sara's completely opposite lifestyle means growing up for her.
It's also one of the vanishingly few times that I've seen, on Western TV, a passion vs. duty/responsibility love triangle resolved in favor of the responsibility option with that being portrayed as a positive outcome. I really liked that. Sometimes passionate love affairs don't work out, and sometimes having someone loyal and steady to go home to at the end of the day is the happy ending you both deserve.
(Like I said, there clearly should have been some intervening scenes to get them to this point that we didn't see, but I can see where those would have gone and what they must have looked like; it's not that it's totally out of the blue, it's just that it's only vaguely sketched in where it would have been nice to see it all fleshed out.)
And Laszlo and Karen! They are delightful! This is another place where the show could have lost me with Laszlo leaving his friends and going to Austria, but instead it feels like a lovely fresh start and the outcome of two years' worth of character growth. The Institute will continue running just fine without him; he's not the only person there, after all. Laszlo in season one could never have handled a relationship with someone as strong-willed as Karen, or a new life in a foreign land; now he clearly thrives on the challenge. I love that they also showed that Karen genuinely cares for and appreciates him as the darling little weirdo he is ("Don't change too much") and shows up to support him, and that he can talk to her about things - though I'm sure he'll miss his friends, he's not going to be lonely.
Oh, and a small character grace note that I adored was Laszlo and Sara going from her (validly) dressing him down in 2x02 for ordering for her without asking what she wants ("You never listen to me!") to Laszlo ordering her signature drink ... for himself, and then asking her what she wants in the final restaurant scene. It's also the outcome of a two season mini-arc of Laszlo training himself to drink whiskey just because she does! Their friendship was glorious this season, from Laszlo being able to trust her to listen when he needs to talk, and her trusting him to hypnotize her, and Laszlo holding her hand when she was afraid for Bitsy - they were just so loving and sweet, without a hint of romance anywhere in the picture.
And the final scene affirms that the main three will always love each other even though they're going their separate ways for now. If anyone needs help, you can bet the others will be there in a heartbeat. (Er, or a two-week trans-Atlantic steamship ride.)
I never would have expected from the extremely dark and sad first couple of episodes that this would end up being such a warm, optimistic, and happy show despite all the bleak and bad happening along the way. I love that the show not only didn't walk back the characters' season one growth in season two, but kept it going and brought them to a very satisfying conclusion. It's not where I thought they would end up, but I was very happy with the endings they got.
I hope someday the show gets another season, or a miniseries or movie, or anything, but if it doesn't, I've really enjoyed the ride.
Well, aside from the plotting, which was bananas. I watched it with
rachelmanija and scioscribe, and the only explanation we could come up with for the last couple of episodes is that they thought they had 4-6 episodes to wrap everything up, ended up with only two, and had to shed plotlines right and left. The Markoe plot is the most egregious casualty, considering that it's the main mystery in the first few episodes and then is dropped completely and never explained or addressed again, beyond a throwaway remark from John's editor at the Times that actually makes things worse. (John's editor: "Good job covering the Markoe scandal, John!" All three of us: BUT WHAT WAS THE SCANDAL THOUGH?!!)Anyway, we just kept coming up with more stray loose ends that were never addressed. There is clearly at least one missing scene between Hearst, John, and Violet, considering that somehow they get from John standing her up at the party where Violet's family is planning their summer vacation, to John getting a promotion at the Times, apparently content with his position in life with no lingering issues with Hearst trying to coerce him over to the tabloids. You can see the shape of what's missing by where they end up (presumably there must have been a scene with John standing his ground and Violet taking his side, perhaps also some sort of scene in which he and Violet proved that they would be there for each other - I mean, you can see that it's happened by the way the characters relate to each other at the end ... we just didn't see it).
It also seems like some characters are set up for a bigger role only to disappear from the plot in the last few episodes, like Joanna, or Oggie Guildersleeve and his little crush on Sara, or Paulie the magic-trick kid, and there's a half-episode disdain-to-respect speed run of a relationship arc with Byrnes that goes from actively undermining Sara's investigation to backing her up with Libby and sending his daughter (I presume) to be trained by her detective agency.
So yeah, there had to have been some editorial meddling and a mad scramble to wrap up as much as possible without losing too much of the character arcs.
Because they did actually manage to keep most of the character arcs, and they were lovely.
If the first season was mainly about the characters moving past their trauma and learning to love each other, this season felt very much like a coming-of-age story, in which having freed themselves of their past, to an extent, they began to figure out who and what they want to be. And in the end I found all their fates very satisfying. If we never get any more, this is a good place to leave them, but it would also be a good springboard for a season three if the show ever decided to give us that.
(Well, except for killing Marcus, but that was just so gratuitous and had so little actual impact on the plot that I tend to forget it happened. I still can't believe they did that. WHY?!! Nothing would have changed if he'd just been badly hurt and ended up in the hospital, and he lived in the book! It was just so pointless. So I choose to ignore it.)
Anyway, though, the finale included some things that if I had heard them described out of context, I would have recoiled vehemently, like Violet/John being endgame ship with a sudden surprise pregnancy, or the characters all going their separate ways at the end. And yet, the way it was done left me feeling very happy and satisfied. I think the eventual breakup of John/Sara due to irreconcilable differences about how they want to live their lives was very much in character for both of them. I love that we've watched a two-season arc of Sara figuring out that her career is more important to her than family and kids - and let's face it, living in the society she lives in, that really is the choice she'd have to make; there is no way, without reliable birth control, that she and John wouldn't have kids, and even if they'd had the option to choose not to, John wants kids and Sara wouldn't have wanted him made unhappy for her sake. And giving in and forcing herself to do something she doesn't want to do for his sake wouldn't have made them happy either. I like that the show made the comparison with Sara recognizing her own feelings in other unhappy and consequently bad mothers that she's known, and realizing that she doesn't want to be like that herself.
And similarly, John has never really enjoyed going out and being in danger, being constantly uncomfortable and off balance, the way the other two do. John wanting home and family, and a job where he can make a difference and still clock out and go home to a wife and child at quitting time, is just as in character for him as it is in character for Sara to want to live a life of adventure and danger. I think I'd feel differently if he seemed unhappy about it but he doesn't; he hasn't compromised his principles with Hearst, and he's not drinking again - if anything he seems to be dragging Violet over to his side, and the compromise position at the end (he has dinner with his friends, and then he goes home to her) feels like ... well, growing up, honestly, in the same way that Sara's completely opposite lifestyle means growing up for her.
It's also one of the vanishingly few times that I've seen, on Western TV, a passion vs. duty/responsibility love triangle resolved in favor of the responsibility option with that being portrayed as a positive outcome. I really liked that. Sometimes passionate love affairs don't work out, and sometimes having someone loyal and steady to go home to at the end of the day is the happy ending you both deserve.
(Like I said, there clearly should have been some intervening scenes to get them to this point that we didn't see, but I can see where those would have gone and what they must have looked like; it's not that it's totally out of the blue, it's just that it's only vaguely sketched in where it would have been nice to see it all fleshed out.)
And Laszlo and Karen! They are delightful! This is another place where the show could have lost me with Laszlo leaving his friends and going to Austria, but instead it feels like a lovely fresh start and the outcome of two years' worth of character growth. The Institute will continue running just fine without him; he's not the only person there, after all. Laszlo in season one could never have handled a relationship with someone as strong-willed as Karen, or a new life in a foreign land; now he clearly thrives on the challenge. I love that they also showed that Karen genuinely cares for and appreciates him as the darling little weirdo he is ("Don't change too much") and shows up to support him, and that he can talk to her about things - though I'm sure he'll miss his friends, he's not going to be lonely.
Oh, and a small character grace note that I adored was Laszlo and Sara going from her (validly) dressing him down in 2x02 for ordering for her without asking what she wants ("You never listen to me!") to Laszlo ordering her signature drink ... for himself, and then asking her what she wants in the final restaurant scene. It's also the outcome of a two season mini-arc of Laszlo training himself to drink whiskey just because she does! Their friendship was glorious this season, from Laszlo being able to trust her to listen when he needs to talk, and her trusting him to hypnotize her, and Laszlo holding her hand when she was afraid for Bitsy - they were just so loving and sweet, without a hint of romance anywhere in the picture.
And the final scene affirms that the main three will always love each other even though they're going their separate ways for now. If anyone needs help, you can bet the others will be there in a heartbeat. (Er, or a two-week trans-Atlantic steamship ride.)
I never would have expected from the extremely dark and sad first couple of episodes that this would end up being such a warm, optimistic, and happy show despite all the bleak and bad happening along the way. I love that the show not only didn't walk back the characters' season one growth in season two, but kept it going and brought them to a very satisfying conclusion. It's not where I thought they would end up, but I was very happy with the endings they got.
I hope someday the show gets another season, or a miniseries or movie, or anything, but if it doesn't, I've really enjoyed the ride.
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My personal favorite was Laszlo realizing that everything does not in fact depend solely on him, and that that's actually a good thing, because it means the world won't end if he goes on vacation or makes a mistake, and also he can go off and enjoy kinky sex clubs in Vienna and setting Freud straight on the reality of child abuse.
But the Sara/John story was also lovely, especially because I felt more and more uneasy about what would realistically happen to Sara's life if she married John. Well, Sara knew too, and she didn't.
Markoe though. What WAS he doing with the babies?! It will forever be my headcanon that he was experimenting on them to raise an army of psychic child soldiers, because absolutely nothing in the show contradicts that.
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I mean, when it comes right down to it, there's also nothing to contradict the idea that he was fusing them together into a megababy that he planned to send rampaging through the streets of Manhattan.
My personal favorite was Laszlo realizing that everything does not in fact depend solely on him, and that that's actually a good thing
Exactly!! It's just such a lovely, satisfying arc. He goes from being almost entirely emotionally isolated and unable to make connections with people, while simultaneously viewing himself as the lynchpin holding the Institute together ... to making friends, and loving people, and realizing that he's just one small part of a bigger whole, and that's fine. The world will not end if he goes off to Austria and spends a year or two pursuing Freud around Vienna lecturing him about all his wrong ideas and having extremely kinky sex with Karen.
But the Sara/John story was also lovely, especially because I felt more and more uneasy about what would realistically happen to Sara's life if she married John. Well, Sara knew too, and she didn't.
Yeah, I never really got the "wrong" vibe off them (and their sex scene was really tender and lovely!) but I also feel like the show did a very good job of setting them up as characters so that when we finally got to the breakup, rushed as all of that was, it felt like the right choice for both of them.
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The complete lack of Markoe resolution does have the advantage of giving me a new personal shorthand for that kind of rushed semi-wrap-up.
The character growth in this season was so lovely, and I feel like it really perfectly walked the line of keeping the characters emotionally connected to each other while also giving them room to grow and follow the different paths their own actual individual wants and needs. That's something shows can (understandably) struggle with sometimes, because you need to keep the characters together--and often in some kind of status quo--so you have those workplace dramas where no one ever gets promoted or moves on, and it's kind of depressing when you think about it outside of the show's context ... but you as a viewer don't really want the characters to split up, either. The Alienist does a really great job handling that issue.
Laszlo/Karen and their very real affection and scorching chemistry and kink potential and overall tenderness! I love what a gift those two turned out to be, and I think they'll have a fantastic time in Vienna.
I also have a lot of Feelings about Sara becoming an acclaimed and respected private investigator with an in with the Vanderbilts, no less, and with press coverage that tried to tear her down but instead just wound up bumping up her reputation as someone who gets results. <3 Also about John Schuyler Moore, respected investigative journalist, nicely settled in the comfortable but purposeful life he deserves. I just love them all so much.
Marcus is definitely not dead. In a collision of out-of-nowhere plot developments, he's actually adopted one of the Markoe kids.
Bitsy and Lucius were delightful together, and I ship them intensely now.
EDIT: Just realized that I really want to know whether or not Violet's engagement ring is the one Laszlo meant for Mary, that he gave to John at the end of S1. I feel like this could tie in well to a lot of my unexpected Laszlo & Violet feelings.
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RIGHT??? I am going to feel smug from now on that no matter how abysmally I bomb the climax of one of my books, I really doubt that I'm going to fail to wrap up or answer the main question from the first half.
That's something shows can (understandably) struggle with sometimes, because you need to keep the characters together--and often in some kind of status quo--so you have those workplace dramas where no one ever gets promoted or moves on, and it's kind of depressing when you think about it outside of the show's context ... but you as a viewer don't really want the characters to split up, either. The Alienist does a really great job handling that issue.
Yes! I think it's one of the best handlings of that particular issue that I've seen in a show of this type, where emotionally you want the characters to just keep solving crimes together forever, but actually they're all growing as people and their happy ending involves pursuing different goals. But the last scene underscores how much they care about each other and that they'll always be part of each others' lives, even though they might go their separate ways for a while.
They just all get the BEST endings; I really like how each of them gets exactly what they want and/or need, even if it wasn't what they wanted or needed in the beginning. I'm still hoping for a season 3 someday, but I'm also worried it will wreck the good feelings of this ending - though I was also feeling that way at the end of season one and then really liked how season two worked out (minus a dropped plot thread here and there), so hopefully a hypothetical season 3 would be able to walk the line as well as this one did.
Just realized that I really want to know whether or not Violet's engagement ring is the one Laszlo meant for Mary, that he gave to John at the end of S1. I feel like this could tie in well to a lot of my unexpected Laszlo & Violet feelings.
... okay, something about that needs to go in the epic Vienna reunion fic that I am definitely not writing.
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EDIT: Also, I had that basically happen to me with White Collar (not this exact thing, but an ending that vehemently didn't work for me, including a surprise baby), so I know where you're coming from even if this one didn't hit me that way.
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I did love how their relationships and their trust in each other and themselves grew so much. I would be happy to check in with them again at any time in the future, though as you say, it's a satisfying end if that never happens.
The plot? I watched s2 much more recently than s1 and have mostly forgotten the dangling threads you mention, except Paulie—what happens to him? Laszlo saved him, but we still don't know: was it a suicide attempt or an accident? Will he blame himself for Laszlo's departure? He's very attached to Laszlo!
I really wanted John and Sara to be together and was disappointed when Violet announced her pregnancy, but you're quite right: that's not the life Sara wants, and she's not in a setting where she could be a professional woman and a wife. She'll be a wonderful auntie. I hope she and Violet can be friends—is that silly of me? And I liked Violet better by the end than I did at the start.
They also really developed professionally. The first season, I could not get over the botched stakeout where everyone was wrapped up in their personal dramas at the crucial moment and so they missed a chance to get the killer! Nothing like that this season: they've matured a lot.
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except Paulie—what happens to him? Laszlo saved him, but we still don't know: was it a suicide attempt or an accident? Will he blame himself for Laszlo's departure? He's very attached to Laszlo!
I know! I wish we'd at least had a small scene checking back in with him.
I hope she and Violet can be friends—is that silly of me? And I liked Violet better by the end than I did at the start.
Not silly at all - I want the same! I have a long post-series reunion fic playing in the back of my head (it's my "falling asleep at night" entertainment) and that's definitely part of it! I just want everyone to be friends and still part of each others' lives.
And that's a really good point about being much more professional this season! Actually this is making me think back to one thing that occurred to me in season 1, which was that unusually for a show like this, no one really had "badass" or even any particular investigative skills - they were all very much amateurs. Not so this season; they've actually gotten pretty good at it! Awwww. <3
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Perhaps, if Mary didn't die and their romance continued, it would have become more obvious, with Mary being subservient in public, but de facto dominant in private when there were just the two of them? (I even thought that the scene with Mrs. Williams and the brewery foreman, when she says that he is used to giving orders at his work, but prefers taking them at her house, could have been intended as a parallel).