Quote:
|
In the end, I will always blame the writers and Conde more for that miserable storyline than Mary. I truly appreciate Shu's perspective. I agree. It was certainly not a "feminist" storyline. It could have been. It could have been extremely powerful. Instead, it was...disgusting. It is what it is, and we all have to process it in our own way. Season 2 happened, and I for one can't "forget" it. But, I can certainly try to forgive Mary's character. She was lost. Perhaps that show has not done enough onscreen (even with the beautiful Season 3 moments) to prove to all of us that Mary never really stopped loving Francis and she was truly sorry for what she had done. I absolutely hate that their journey to reconciliation was so rushed. However, I don't doubt Mary's sincerity for one second. After everything she had done, Francis still believed that Mary was worth dying for. If she did anything (on or off screen) to earn the forgiveness of a character as AMAZING as Francis... then I can try to forgive her myself.
|
Hi,
Keri. My problem with this is that the writers had Mary telling Conde that she loved him several times, and the way Adelaide played it made Mary seem quite sincere. Even when Francis had recovered from his illness, she still considered herself committed to Conde and their love. So, no, I have not forgiven Mary, and if the writers wanted me to get behind her, they should have written her that way. I NEEDED to see...on-screen...the moment Mary realized that she truly loved Francis and had never stopped. I NEEDED her to make a sincere apology to him for the pain SHE had caused and not cop-out with "I'm sorry for the pain we caused each other." Exactly what pain did Francis cause her during S2? Oh, yeah, his love for her was too painful for her to bear.
So, the minute she trusted herself again and could give herself to someone again, she chose a double-dealing cousin with a claim to the throne of France instead of the husband who had been nothing but patient, kind and loving? I am so glad that Catherine told Mary off in S2E18. Frankly, she deserved a far worse beat down. The fact that the writers didn't feel it was necessary to show Mary's genuine regret (and an attempt to repair the damage they were all too willing to show) cast a shadow over Mary's return to Francis and her declaration that she always loved him in IMO (S2E22). And as I said, while the rushed Frary reconciliation scenes they gave us in S3 were nice, they did not redeem Mary 100% IMO or soften my attitude toward her. Had TPTB chosen not to include the Conde mess with Mary's rape s/l, I'm sure I would have been more sympathetic to the character. But the story they chose to tell sucked.
Emory
ETA: Thanks for the lovely gifset.
