Arctic Light

A gifset on Tumblr that made me go "Wait, what scene was that from, I don't remember that?" led me to the existence of this staggeringly depressing deleted scene from the season one finale. (Contains animal harm.) On the one hand, this provides some closure on two otherwise open-ended threads - what happened to Joseph (the child prostitute) and Ezra, the troubled kid that Laszlo had a few bonding scenes with throughout the season. On the flip side, it's monumentally depressing and actively undermines the general tone of "you can do better and be better" that the season ends on, so I think I'm glad they decided not to include it. But it's nice to know where the writers intended Joseph to end up, anyway.

I typically avoid candid photos of celebrities or really knowing much about their personal lives at all - it feels unpleasantly intrusive to me - but this series of photos of Daniel Brühl and his wife may have singlehandedly boosted my serotonin levels into the stratosphere, especially the first one.

sovay found some, in case anyone is looking for any!

Very beautifully colored icons of all the mains (including the Isaacsons!) in a multifandom icon post.

Large icon sets of Sara, John, and Laszlo (from whence this one came)

Finally getting around to writing this up a couple of days late.

( Full season one spoilers )

If you've seen the season, I recommend looking up the Behind the Episode features on Youtube if you want more background on the episodes; I found some really nice extra tidbits in those, as well as getting to see the actors talking about their roles. (John's actor has a Welsh accent!) Group interviews are also delightful, because the actors clearly bonded closely and really enjoy each other's company as people. Their rapport in interviews is really sweet and fun. Here's one I liked and here's a different, longer interview.

I've already watched the whole first season (and really liked it!) but rachelmanija and scioscribe are watching it now, so I'll pace these posts to their watching so they can participate in the discussion. No spoilers beyond the discussed episodes, please!

So basically this is a moody, atmospheric psychological thriller set in late 1800s New York. A serial killer is leaving mutilated corpses of young male prostitutes, and between the nature of the victims and institutional corruption in the city, the police are doing nothing. So a group of outsiders set out to conduct their own investigation and find the killer themselves.

The murder plot is probably the part that I'm least interested in; I'm mostly here for fascinating character dynamics (which really reward rewatching, btw), the gorgeous and seedy recreation of Gilded Age New York, and the show's nuanced portrayal of various dysfunctional coping mechanisms for disability and trauma. Despite being dark, bloody, and violent, it's overall an optimistic show (at least I'd consider it so) with a lot of empathy for its flawed and complicated characters.

There is a really great twist in episode 4 that's worth being unspoiled for if you enjoy watching unspoiled, because it was such an "Oh!" moment and beautifully recontextualized all of a particular character's scenes that came earlier, as well as being a masterclass in misdirection and putting something in front of the viewer in a non-obvious way. This twist is discussed beneath the cut, along with various other spoilers from the first four episodes.

And yes, I started watching it because of Daniel Brühl (the actor who played Zemo), whose puppy eyes and prickly/empathic character in this show are worth the price of admission alone. Other enticements: a female character who is basically 1800s Peggy Carter, crimefighter Teddy Roosevelt, and a plausibly diverse 19th-century New York, as well as some very catnippy and painfully twisty character dynamics.

I do have a couple of content warnings if you want to watch: ( Content warnings )

( And now, on to the spoilers )