Random Thoughts on Gaza
Written by Toniann
I cannot begin this week's edition any other way than by saying: Fitz, you
old polecat, you old muckety muck. Admiral Sissypants, you will be sorely
missed, having been sacrificed for a random plot point dreamed up by the
powers that be. Indeed, having been written off the show earlier, I would
have thought you'd been spared such an end. Well, the show will be less
without his guest appearances. Unless they're planning a future show where
both Fitz and Mrs. Landingham come back to ghost it up, that is.
Another person I missed quite a bit in this episode: Nancy McNally. I
understand that it's probably common for the NSA to be elsewhere in the
globe, and that's why she has deputies. I'll even confess I'm not too fond
of the character of Deputy Kate Harper (the president had to remind her to
call him sir? Geesh). That said, I still say it was a bit cheesy to
manufacture a connection between Fitz and Deputy Kate, so that she could
accompany the president to visit Mrs. Fitzwallace. It should have been
Nancy. In lieu of her, Leo.
Before I get to the only other real storyline in this episode, can I just
ask how Toby went from being a man newly-awoken to the joys of fatherhood,
at the end of last season, to a man who has to be reminded to spend time
with his children? Furthermore, I have to admit, they had me a tiny bit
fooled: with all the strange and circuitous conversations between them
lately, I thought Congresswoman Wyatt was a goner in this one for sure.
But while we're on the subject of foreshadowing, there was so much of it
going on, leading up to this episode, that the actual execution seemed like
an afterthought. Even the staff's general lack of concern about *Gaza* being
the destination of this trip seemed like a head's up: you'd have thought
they were going to Switzerland for some chocolate, for all the concern
anyone showed on that count. The arguments between Toby and his ex-wife, the
tension with Donna and Josh, and even, really, the last-minute decision for
Donna to go, it was all rather heavy-handed, I'm afraid. And if we had any
doubts about Donna being seriously injured (at the least), those evaporated
the moment Josh began to criticize her lengthy emails. Hmmm. Bet you that's
just eating at him right now, isn't it?
So. What can I say? I actually enjoyed Donna's scene with Lucius Malfoy --
I mean, the photographer, Colin Ayres. There's some suspicion floating
around out there that he was somehow involved in the bomb, but I honestly
think that just 'cause we're all used to seeing him play bad guys. I thought
her confidence with him was refreshing: Donna's too beautiful a woman to not
be used to men hitting on her on a regular basis, and I was glad the writers
didn't go the "awed and flattered" route. No, instead, on her own, she was
poised and intelligent, and charmingly non-whiny. It was nice. Not the part
with her car blowing up, but the rest. I liked how she spent her day,
learning what she could. And I don't particularly blame her for spending her
evening/night with the alluring Mr Ayres. Which reminds me, is it just me or
did Andy sound a little pissy when Donna walked up to the car? "Enjoy your
break?" It sounded like the woman was accusing her of taking too long on a
coffee run. Also, before I forget: Donna was right, apparently. Would've
been a good day to choose a different color car.
But the foreshadowing isn't what bothered me about this episode. It's
that, in an episode whose emotional heart was the loss of lives and the
possibly fatal injury of one of the show's main characters, the rest of the
cast seemed oddly unaffected by it all. Leo didn't even tell the president
about Donna being injured. Josh is forced to go through all kinds of
runaround to get any news on her at all. CJ, Toby, and Will only ask about
her later, and casually, and in what was supposed to be some funny
repetitive wordplay. I think. It didn't work very well, so it's hard to
tell. Leo, upon hearing her condition, muttered, "Poor kid." Meanwhile,
Donna lies completely alone in a hospital in Germany, and it's even a
decision that someone needs to go to be with her? I mean, not necessarily
someone from the White House, but, her family, maybe? My point is, maybe
there were better things to focus on in this episode than Donna, but that's
not how they wrote it -- the slo-mo opening with her getting in the car, the
photographer, etc. And having written it that way, they asked the audience
to be invested in her outcome. But then, they dropped that ball. The
characters barely seemed to care about what happened to her; why should I?
Except, of course, for Josh. I have the distinct feeling that J/D shippers
everywhere are rather joyful right now (though, you all are counting on her
making it, I assume, or else that was a short-lived glee). And I will say
this, Josh's characterization in this episode was, for one of the first
times all season, completely on the mark. This is exactly how I would expect
him to act in this situation. I mean, yes, yelling in the Oval Office foyer
about "killing them all" was a little over the top, but it was better than
when he got out of a cab and yelled at some buildings, after all. And this
reminded me much more of his PTSD bit in "Noel", and equally authentic. No,
this was the one bit that rang true -- of course he went to her side,
probably without stopping for a beer or for red lights (who *didn't* think
of that line?).
So, if you've reached the end of this post and you're thinking, "You know,
she didn't mention a thing about the Israel/Palestine situation," then give
yourself a gold star. Honestly, without meaning this as too harsh a
criticism, I didn't feel the writing in this episode shed any new light on
this very complicated war (for war it is, for those living it). Maybe
there's no new light to be shed, and it's as Toby said, too tribal, the
Hatfields and the McCoys, and we're never going to be able to end it. But
even that's been said before so -- I don't know.
"Don't promise that. I know the world."