shut up mulder

If only every day were Halloween…

I guess if your frame of reference is The X-Files, than The Fall s3 is high class television, but by the standards of what is considered “prestige drama” it’s a crippling disappointment and some of the worst television I’ve ever seen. 

Shows like Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Sopranos, The Wire, Deadwood, etc…managed to have nuanced character studies and slow burning development AND a clockwork plot. They also had more than one person of color in them! And let their queer characters *gasp* have actual relationships! They had whip smart dialogue, perfect costumes, and stunning scenery. The Fall has….Gillian Anderson’s flawless face. And we didn’t even get to see much of that this season. 

“OOOh it makes us question our morals, ooooh it challenges us to accept the aftermath of what happened”—is to me excusing the fact that Alan Cubitt had no idea what to do with s3 and that it was all an excuse to keep Jamie Dornan around long after his character should have met his demise. It’s filled with long monologues that are completely divorced from the way people actually speak to one another. Instead of investing energy into existing characters like Dani or Sally Ann or Eastwood, we’re forced to spend hours with new characters that are basically cardboard cut-outs and completely disposable. 

And I never questioned my morals while watching The Fall. Because I’m pretty confident that criminals who go around terrorizing and murdering women deserve the fullest punishment of the law, regardless of how awful their childhoods were. I did often question why the series kept trying to make me feel sympathy for someone who ruined dozens of lives, including that of his own family, all while claiming to be “feminist television.” Making a murdering serial killer the focus of your television show instead of the numerous brave women onscreen is not innovative, it is sadly business as usual. Insisting that a woman is “flawed” because she enjoys casual sex, or that her refusal to be warm is somehow on par with a man who violently kills women….I can’t even. 

Stella Gibson is a wonderful character and I will treasure her always. But she deserves so much better than what her creator has given her. I can only pray that if the series returns it is with more women behind the camera and in the writers room. Because I am tired of seeing “strong female characters” written by men whose understanding of feminism is limited to a Margaret Atwood fridge magnet quote. 

here’s a fun fact did you know that LGBT actually stands for 

            Let 

  Stella Gibson 

            Be with 

            Tanya Reed Smith

Me

The Fall. Stella Gibson / Danielle Ferrington / Tanya Reed Smith / Gail McNally

Gillian Anderson at the home of Gabriella Hearst

April 27, 2016

Feminist Bones

You are responsible. If you made the problem, if it was your idea, then you’re responsible.

When a man interrupts you.

The Fall. Stella Gibson / Danielle Ferrington / Tanya Reed Smith / Gail McNally

—- sketches.

Well, of course she stole the show (and of course it was an X-rated reading)

^ The letter discussed in the article, as read by Gillian.