OFMD 2x08 and let the harassment of Maxwell begin

[finefoxyladies]

Gotta say: I finished the finale and my first order of business was to unfollow the few fan accounts I followed on IG. I could sense the impending fandom drama like an old war wound acting up. The ache of fandom_wank was upon me.

I was really truly delighted/emotionally invested in this season overall. The finale felt a little rushed to me, but I suppose that's because Max cheaped out and only allowed for 8 episodes, because they are bastard people. And the finale was packed with some of the best of the series:

• Absolute bone-deep goofery from both Rhys Darby (his body language and line reading after Zheng rejects his shoulder pat... perrrrrfection) and Taika Waititi (his beautiful face in closeup with the wretched dumb staring at the fish scale and THEN dropping an entire fish into a fire)
• The beach run reunion, which managed to be both poignant (fantasy obstacle = Izzy; reality obstacle = themselves + dozens of British soldiers) and silly (life really IS a dick sometimes)
• Crew works together and laughs together and loves together
• Izzy's death, which felt well-earned and sad, even for me, someone who saw him, like S2E1 Stede, as an antagonist and an obstacle. The cross with the cravat kind of choked me up. Also: you can't tell me he's not going to show up as Ed's Obi Wan at some point. Or hell, even Stede's. If Buttons can turn into a bird, Izzy can most certainly turn into a ghost. Also I find it deeply, richly, chocolatey-ly ironic that this fandom, which heralded itself as nothing but inclusivity and joy, showed itself, at last, to be no different than any other fandom. Every fandom inevitably has its moment like this where you get to see the emotional immaturity and, let's face it, unchecked mental illness symptoms flare up.

The triumph of knowing we will see Ed and Stede attempt to turn that shithole which clearly has a dead animal and/or human inside it into something resembling a home makes me overjoyed. But I sense that the tension of their relationship will lie somewhere in Stede's "discomfort in a married state" past and Ed's clear hearty-eyes has-a-wedding-journal yearnings. Also: dude, Stede has so much baggage he still hasn't unpacked. The last week or so, I kept thinking about his statement to Ed at Anne and Mary's: "You shaved your beard off... for me." The engine of that conversation was Ed's focus on his interpretation of that statement... but that "for me" keeps coming back to me.

And finally: I was CONVINCED Prince's "When Doves Cry" would play during the Ed/Stede reunion. I was wrong. The author regrets this error, but I'm not sad I lost out to Nina Simone.

Comments

[dollsome]

Also I find it deeply, richly, chocolatey-ly ironic that this fandom, which heralded itself as nothing but inclusivity and joy, showed itself, at last, to be no different than any other fandom.

Yep. :( I've felt so sad at this all day, while also wondering why I'm surprised. Why does it always have to be this way? Even for this show? Ugh. Ow. 💔

Love all the things you listed!! I would have loved if this episode had like five more minutes and could've fit another Ed/Stede talk in toward the end (I may be scribbling said talk into a Google Doc right now for some good ol' fanfic therapy!), but I really enjoyed the whole thing so much, just like this glorious season! It's been such a gift. Don't let the haters get you down, D. Jenkins & Co.!

The triumph of knowing we will see Ed and Stede attempt to turn that shithole which clearly has a dead animal and/or human inside it into something resembling a home makes me overjoyed.

lolololol

[finefoxyladies]

It was kind of a journey for me to see you becoming a fandom elder the past week. I'm sorry it was a bummer... but honestly, and I know the fandom elites don't want to hear this: OFMD is being watched by a LOT of normies too. Several of my friends who are either using soc med primarily for following doggie accounts or for fam pictures or, in one case, ONLY ON FB watch and enjoy the show. I think OFMD is more than a fandom hit at this point, and the reactionary contigent may be loud, but they're really a minority of the voices on this.

Love the notion you're doing Ed and Stede convo fic and look forward to it. Overall, I felt really, really satisfied after the finale. Like, maybe I'll read some HGTV-esque fics about the early days of Jeff's Inn by the Sea, but unlike S1, I don't have this burning desire to run to fic to fill the vacancy in my heart.

Anyway, it's definitely either a dead person or it's a raccoon covered in spiders; if it's the latter, I get the feeling Ed and Stede will have burned that shack down and have started over somewhere else by the beginning of S3. Which is happening.

[dollsome]

Ahh, the wearying life of a fandom elder! 🤣😭

I wound up just blocking all forms of the word "Izzy" on Tumblr (sorry mate! RIP!), which wiped out almost all of the discourse, and my experience since has been extremely pleasant and way more full of people loving on s2! It's so nice to be way more in the love bubble.

I know a fair amount of people who aren't in fandom who love the show too! Oh, I hope this bodes well for season three: Season HG TV By The Sea. And in the meantime, it's just hilarious to think up all the dumb inn antics that could occur. So many! An infinity! It feels so grand to be in a state of peace after an OFMD finale!

if it's the latter, I get the feeling Ed and Stede will have burned that shack down and have started over somewhere else by the beginning of S3

LOVE this vaguely Anne and Mary-coded energy for them!

This post about how they're not going to be able to fit any customers in their inn is cracking me tf up. Maybe it will be a sort of clown car situation.

[anxietygrrl]

You want more episodes AND a Prince song? Do you think Maximus is made of money?!

As one of the normies (LOL you know what I mean) watching this show, I thought it was a good finale that did what finales need to do. Maybe a bit mechanical, but that's hard to avoid in a finale. Action, comedy, character development, a milestone here and there. Why, one character even completed his evolution with a big speech and fulfilled his purpose in the story in a way that I'm sure was thoughtfully considered by the writers, so I simply can't IMAGINE what anyone might be in a huff about.

[finefoxyladies]

If Maximus can renew [injury-inducing eyeroll] And Just Like That... they can certainly license a Purple King (TM Jimmy Pardo) song. Maximus, I put the challenge to thee.

The button on your 2nd paragraph earned a belly laugh from me. Good gravy.