grisslybear
CSI Level Two
MissDee, I bow down to you. Seriously, thank you for such a thorough analysis of the interaction in this episode.
This episode, in my opinion, showcased great "continuity", contrary to what people think. Continuity in the sense of Gil Grissom's progression as a person throughout the series, as Miss Dee explained so well. The comment about "beauty and rejection" is, I think, a very good case in point:
Now, for this to make sense to anyone reading this, two things should be assumed:
1. Gil Grissom thinks Sara Sidle is beautiful. (Ref: Season 2, Primum Non Nocere; Season 4, Butterflied). If one cannot accept even this as a fact, then I think the discussion of this episode from a GSR standpoint is moot anyway because this means that predispositions will be convoluting people's views.
2. The reason that Gil Grissom has not been in a relationship with Sara Sidle is because he was scared of its consequences on his life. Professionally, or otherwise.
Again, Butterflied speech. ("I couldn't do it, but you did"). And again, if people's counterargument to this is that he wasn't talking about Sara, I would say, please go and watch the commentary.
So, basically Grissom making the beauty and rejection comment was important in the sense that he was finally able to voice it in front of Sara. It's not that Sara didn't know it before. She witnessed his speech. But presumably, he wasn't comfortable voicing it in front of her before. I think this is a big step for Grissom. And if you look at Sara's facial expression at the very end of that scene, she has bit of a shock on her face, like she can't believe he said that openly.
The end scene was also important because Grissom says, looking at Sara: "don't confuse fantasy with reality". I think here, he openly accepts that Sara has pretty much been a fantasy to him, off limits, and dangerous to indulge in. The difference is that he is so open about it now. I think this episode's biggest point was to show us that he is now less scared of a relationship. He still has his doubts, but at least he is not running away from it.
My take on why some people have been disturbed by this episode so much is as follows:
1. If you ship another pairing, it is normal to not like this episode, frankly. I think the major reason is that the "moments" in this episode were initiated by Grissom, and thus, harder to explain away. And if you don't accept that GSR has been a running arc in this series since Cool Change, then, again, this whole discussion is moot.
2. Again understandably, this episode came in a season of relatively scarce GSR moments. So, people may very well be thinking "what is the background? Why now?". But I completely agree with Miss Dee in the sense that this season showed us that Sara is not chasing Grissom anymore. Their interaction this season was much less angsty, Sara is not a broken woman who "needs" Grissom anymore, and she has accepted her situation with Grissom as what it is, although she still loves him. So, I think it is a good background for this couple to move to the next level.
This episode, in my opinion, showcased great "continuity", contrary to what people think. Continuity in the sense of Gil Grissom's progression as a person throughout the series, as Miss Dee explained so well. The comment about "beauty and rejection" is, I think, a very good case in point:
Now, for this to make sense to anyone reading this, two things should be assumed:
1. Gil Grissom thinks Sara Sidle is beautiful. (Ref: Season 2, Primum Non Nocere; Season 4, Butterflied). If one cannot accept even this as a fact, then I think the discussion of this episode from a GSR standpoint is moot anyway because this means that predispositions will be convoluting people's views.
2. The reason that Gil Grissom has not been in a relationship with Sara Sidle is because he was scared of its consequences on his life. Professionally, or otherwise.
Again, Butterflied speech. ("I couldn't do it, but you did"). And again, if people's counterargument to this is that he wasn't talking about Sara, I would say, please go and watch the commentary.
So, basically Grissom making the beauty and rejection comment was important in the sense that he was finally able to voice it in front of Sara. It's not that Sara didn't know it before. She witnessed his speech. But presumably, he wasn't comfortable voicing it in front of her before. I think this is a big step for Grissom. And if you look at Sara's facial expression at the very end of that scene, she has bit of a shock on her face, like she can't believe he said that openly.
The end scene was also important because Grissom says, looking at Sara: "don't confuse fantasy with reality". I think here, he openly accepts that Sara has pretty much been a fantasy to him, off limits, and dangerous to indulge in. The difference is that he is so open about it now. I think this episode's biggest point was to show us that he is now less scared of a relationship. He still has his doubts, but at least he is not running away from it.
My take on why some people have been disturbed by this episode so much is as follows:
1. If you ship another pairing, it is normal to not like this episode, frankly. I think the major reason is that the "moments" in this episode were initiated by Grissom, and thus, harder to explain away. And if you don't accept that GSR has been a running arc in this series since Cool Change, then, again, this whole discussion is moot.
2. Again understandably, this episode came in a season of relatively scarce GSR moments. So, people may very well be thinking "what is the background? Why now?". But I completely agree with Miss Dee in the sense that this season showed us that Sara is not chasing Grissom anymore. Their interaction this season was much less angsty, Sara is not a broken woman who "needs" Grissom anymore, and she has accepted her situation with Grissom as what it is, although she still loves him. So, I think it is a good background for this couple to move to the next level.
