Hello dear ML fans!
Finally I found enough time to read your VERY SMART comments on this TERRIFIC episode!
BTW, It is one of my favorites... ;D
And
jpen... Wow! Great questions!
I'd like to share my thoughts with you...
1. There are several “role reversal” scenes in this episode, where David acts as the rational, analytic counselor (“d’
you mind if I just talk some sense into you?!”) and Maddie, driven by emotion, acts impulsively. How do these scenes
enhance our understanding of their characters? What do you think they reveal about David and Maddie’s priorities at this
point in the show?Yes, you're absolutely right,
jpen. The whole episode is based on role reversal. Which, IMO, is an interesting writing
choice, because it highlights an essential ingredient of David and Maddie's Chemistry:
Balance.
Whenever David gets wrecked, there Maddie is, stone-cold sober, willing and prepared to deal with new clients and keep
the agency running...
Most of the time, Maddie and her professional behavior make up for David's recklessness.
In this episode, well... Things are turned upside down! HALLELUJAH!! Maddie is passionate about something, at last!
For the first time since The Pilot we're shown a completely different Maddie, an enraged woman filled with an overwhelming
desire to take the law into her own hands.
She puts rationality on hold... hence she steps into David's shoes... While David steps into hers ( Ouch!
) .
Obviously, Maddie isn't satisfied with her new life as a PI... Otherwise she wouldn't have rushed to the airport!
I can't blame her... After all, she was a rich ex-model, she was used to having someone cook for her, clean her house,
etc.
She didn't need to wake up every morning at 7 am, in fact she spent her mornings sleeping (see "Atlas Belched"), going shopping...
But most important of all... Money was not a matter of concern to her...
Now, everything has gone... And Maddie has to deal with people angry at her because she hasn't paid a bill... She has to
face the eventuality that no client will step into her office tomorrow... She has to shop for the best bargains... Maddie,
the Blue Moon Shampoo girl... Well, I believe this must be a nerve-wracking situation.
She does the only thing she can do: she fights the good fight. (Attagirl! ;D)
What's David's role in this predicament? He plays...The Cricket!
Remember Carlo Collodi's "The Adventures of Pinocchio"?
Well, for the ones who didn't happen to read them... The Cricket is Pinocchio's adviser. It's the voice of conscience.
That's exactly what David is to Maddie in this episode.
He remembers her what she has got, and how lucky she is in having them.
David wants to protect her partner. He wants to keep Maddie away from a man who made her suffer.
I think David's argumentations are completely selfless at this point in the show.
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2. When they are arguing in the office, David sarcastically says to Maddie, "Things are tough all over, kid." Maddie shoots back, "Not ALL over, kid" and slams out the door; later, in the casino restaurant, she says sadly, "Things are tough all over." Are David and Maddie talking about the same "things" here?I gave it a lot of thought.
I think David referred to life in general: "Things are tough all over, kid"... Maybe it means life is not easy. Neither in L.A, nor in Buenos Aires, nor anywhere else.
None of us can have everything we long for...
That beautiful dress in the store window at the corner of the street, more money in the bank, a tanned reptile returning all the money that was rightfully yours...
"Things are tough all over,kid"... We can't always get what we want.
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3. What do you think is/are David's motivation(s) in the poker game, especially when he urges Maddie to fold?David to the rescue!! ;D
What a blinding vision: A beautiful prince charming in a white tux!
My my my... I'll have to don my goggles...
And wipe some drool off my chin...
;D
At the casino, David really wants to help Maddie get some of her money back.
Gosh, they make such a wonderful couple! ;D
Al Jarreau's "Murphy's Law" fits these scenes to perfection!
About the poker game:
I believe David urges Maddie to fold because he wants her to understand
her dignity is at stake. Not just her house, not just the BMW... but also something that really matters.
David might be a lot of things: an irresponsible, a womanizer...
But this man knows that dignity is what distinguishes fine, upright people from devious worms.
Maddie must not play at Sawyer's own game: he's not even worthy of being in the same room with someone like Maddie!
I don't really think David had by-ends... OK, maybe a little!
He wants her back, of course... But I believe David flew all the way to Buenos Aires because he truly cares for Maddie and her integrity.
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4. What exactly makes Maddie so angry when she uncovers that fifth card? And what makes her so sad in the final scene, when she confesses to Agnes, "Just when I think that maybe, just maybe, I can show him a little piece of my heart...He knocks [me] down and steps on [my] aorta"?Well, "Ace in the hole" Addison was supposed to win!
He had to win! David was expected to know what hand Sawyer had...
Maddie had great trust in him and in his ability.
But he lost.
The thought that Maddie could've won a hundred grand made her crazy!
About her confession to Agnes:
Maybe Maddie thought David had lost on purpose, in order to have her back at the office...
How can you show someone a little piece of your heart, if you believed he cheated you?
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5. This is kind of a rhetorical question, but--what the HECK is going on with those elephantine polka dots on Maddie's evening dress?!Has any of you ladies ever had a dress like that in the closet?
Gee, I'M ENVIOUS!!!
I didn't live the 80s... I'm too young...
But when I watch the scene where Maddie gets dressed and ready to "christen a battleship" (LOL ;D), I just stand there, speechless, then whisper: Wow.
What a personality, Maddie! ;D WAY TO GO, girl!
Now I understand my mom's stories about her youth!!!
ENVIOUS, ENVIOUS, ENVIOUS!!!