anintriguedintrovert

[anintriguedintrovert]

Carol during season 1 probably

[anintriguedintrovert]

The flawed perfection of Carol Peletier

 "I'll show you what a woman can do." - Artemisia Gentileschi

The Mona Lisa is one of the most well-known paintings of all time. Da Vinci poured his expertise into it, and every brush stroke whispers "perfection". The painting is a masterpiece; people want to witness her, feel the enigma behind her smile, and taste that mystery. The bare bones of the story? It's a painting of a woman named Lisa Gherardini, commissioned by her husband, a wealthy merchant. In my opinion, the painting is rendered for a male gaze, which follows the conventional standards of female beauty at the time. Da Vinci used the sfumato technique — making the shading soft, elegant, dainty, and patient. It's a demure depiction of femininity where you can stand and admire the subject and the art techniques. It doesn't make you feel anything; it encourages you to look for the "secret hidden behind her smile."

I was frustrated but not surprised when this painting was used to subtly suggest that Carol is similar to the Mona Lisa because the entire show is written for the male gaze. One of the most compelling female characters on TV — who broke gender norms and societal constructs — is compared to the most well-known painting in the world, which also happens to be a painting of someone's wife.

Carol is not a muse of a man. She isn't a masterpiece that people are still trying to understand. Carol is a force of nature; you know exactly who she is because she isn't afraid to show you. She doesn't represent a subject to be contemplated or held under scrutiny by the male gaze. She embodies the flawed perfection of a woman revered by the female gaze.

Which brings me to this masterpiece.

Judith Beheading Holofernes, Artemisia Gentileschi, 1620 Judith was a widow who entered the enemy camp pretending to be a traitor who wanted to share information about her town. Assyrian general Holofernes was enamoured by her beauty and invited her to his tent, so she charmed him and waited for him to drop his guard. When he drank himself into a stupor, she sawed his head off with a sword to free her people. She and her maidservant returned to her town with Holofernes' severed head.

Artemisia Gentileschi is a celebrated female painter from the 17th century. Although this story has been immortalized in art many times — including Caravaggio's painting, which inspired this one — almost all depictions of this biblical story show Judith as dainty, demure, and passive. But Artemisia's work is imbued with her life experiences.

(trigger warning: mentions of SA, depictions of gore)

Artemisia lost her mother when she was twelve. She was raped by the painter Agostino Tassi when she was a teenager and then tortured at her trial, where she was asked to give evidence of the assault. He was found guilty and banished, but his punishment was never carried out because he had received protection from the Pope. She was the first woman to join Florence’s Academy of Design. She lost four of her five children. She married a Florentine artist and owned a successful workshop in Naples without the help of a wealthy husband or a patron (which was almost impossible at the time). She used her influence as an artist to highlight female agency, and elevated women to be bold and assertive in her paintings. (source)

Now, look at the painting again and tell me what you see.

Judith is identical to Artemisia herself, and Holofernes resembles her abuser, who was never punished. Judith is muscular with a softness to her skin; her sleeves and bracelet are rolled up, and her maidservant helps her but never clouds the composition. The chiaroscuro technique carves the subjects in sharp shadows and light. Judith's and her maidservant's faces are determined and calculated, and the most emotion you see is the horror in Holofernes' eyes as the blood sprays from his neck and pools around his body. Once you notice the blood, it permeates the painting — even the velvet blanket that covers him becomes an extension of it.

A wise woman once said, "Give him the greatest night of his life. Get him to drop his guard, and then when he's sleeping, you can end this."

Judith is ordinary, flawed, and resourceful because she has to be. Her goal is to protect her people, and she will do what is necessary to save them. She gives into the male gaze to achieve that goal, but ultimately, even though she's in a camp full of armed men and is at "the mercy" of a powerful man who underestimates her — she holds all the power.

The woman in this painting is feminine, violent, beautiful, terrifying, determined, and unafraid.

Remind you of anyone?

Women written by the male gaze for the male gaze often fall into two-dimensional categories: they're either violent or scared, sexy or demure, good or evil, selfish or self-deprecating, perpetrator or victim, etc. The writing is often surface level, doesn't capture the depth of the woman's personality and keeps morphing to suit a male character's story. More often than not, the person most affected by their personality is a man who either saves them or shuns them. Or worse, he kills them or watches them die — sometimes both. In these scenarios, the woman becomes the narrative device that furthers the man's story. Her story is stripped down to build the man's tragic hero arc — he lives, but she dies for it.

Carol Peletier is the antidote to this structure because she broke the stereotype. Carol is perfectly flawed because she makes mistakes and choices women aren't "supposed to make," yet her beauty, strength, motivation, and honour remain unchanged. Her losses are the scars that mark her journey, and she commands her story completely. She is capable of extraordinary things, and I have never once doubted her integrity.

Carol deserves a story that sees and honours the beautiful and terrifying force of nature that she is. A showrunner who follows gimmicks to portray strong women, makes men punish them for their choices and then compares his female lead to the Mona Lisa because "there is a secret hidden behind her smile" hasn't even begun to fathom who Carol is and what she's capable of. She deserves leadership that recognizes and respects the flawed perfection of an ordinary woman who will beguile a powerful enemy and behead them to save her loved ones. She deserves leadership who knows she isn't here to pick up the pieces of a man's story — she is the story.

That is what a woman is capable of. That is what a woman can do.

The current leadership of The Book of Carol is trying their best to box Carol into a misogynist trope that will never hold her, even if it tries to. Melissa McBride is the only person who tends to Carol's integrity and keeps it strong for us through all of this. She holds this show together even when she doesn't have compelling writing, equal billing or an inclusive title.

Carol Peletier deserves a showrunner who not only sees her flawed perfection but reveres it, cherishes it, immortalizes it, and sears it into the story so fiercely that you can see it from the heavens long after the flame has gone out.

[anintriguedintrovert]

Is there a reason we as Carol fans can’t appreciate that she has had mature loving romantic relationships with other men? Why is it misogyny if it’s not Daryl? No one will answer this for me. Personally I wish she would have stayed where she was adored, and that was with Ezekiel. It’s actually more harmful that the writers pulled her away from that loving marriage and have her chasing dusty Daryl. That’s the real problem.

I'm pretty sure you don't want my answer to this, but since you asked, no, that's not the real problem.

Ezekiel adored his own idea of who Carol was, not the actual flawed woman and she didn't love him. He came with the bargain when she wanted to raise a child (who chose her). That's not a mature healthy relationship. He was also emotionally abusive, calling her a coward for not going in search of Henry when he went missing, despite not doing anything useful about the situation himself and he tried to cut off her emotional support in the wake of Henry's death by telling Daryl to make himself scarce. At best, Ezekiel's behavior is tone-deaf and selfish, and at worst, he's emotionally manipulative because he knows he can't "win" Carol's affection on a level playing field. He's a much better man than Ed, but he was using a lot of the same gameplays from the book of abusive spouses.

Carol's shaped by her past, just like real people and living with abuse changes your sense of self-worth and ability to ask for support and respect from your partner. Tobin wasn't love at all. It was an attempt at what she perceived as normalcy with a man who not so incidentally had the same body type as Ed. It was testing the waters. It was going back to the housewife who, in addition to making casseroles and baking cookies out of offbeat ingredients, had sex with a man she didn't love. By her own admission, she was lost during the time period when she chose both men.

I think Carol was raised (or indoctrinated) from childhood that parenthood meant a nuclear family. She obviously couldn't "take" Henry from Ezekiel. He'd been the brothers' family since their dad died and Benjamin had recently been killed. So, she had to take the man in the bargain and she'd settled for worse in the past. "King Ezekiel" was a ridiculous persona and their personalities were incredibly mismatched. He hid things from Carol, like retrieving that light bulb from the movie theater because he knew she wouldn't approve. That's not a healthy partnership. Ezekiel also tried to pressure her into changing to fit his fantasy, to be Queen Carol and the person he thought she should be. A gilded cage is still a cage.

Daryl has never tried to change who Carol is. He's always swallowed his own feelings, his pride, his concern... until things boiled over in S10. He was raw and honest and scared. Hurt, most of all. The fight at the cabin in "Find Me" was about him feeling unseen. He's been willing to settle all along for what Carol wants and trying to let her define what they are to each other, but he came very close to losing her entirely in the cave and on top of the cliffs. He wants it to be reciprocated that he lets her temper him, that he checks his impulse control for her. Daryl needs Carol to be cautious with herself because she's the loss he can't bear, not because he wants to tell her what to do or how to be.

He's the only one of Carol's men who's gotten in on the passenger side of the car and let her do the driving, and that's why Daryl is the one she's chasing to France. She loves him (as she herself has said) and she loves that he doesn't try to "tame" her. He understands the emotional and physical abuse she's suffered, he's been there for her losses and is the only one left who's met Sophia. They have history and emotional support that isn't conditional with each other. They understand each other's need for space and freedom. As Melissa said in an interview, Daryl is Carol's life partner.

[anintriguedintrovert]

Carol may not always be there with Daryl, but she’ll always be there for Daryl

❀➹ Daryl Dixon & Carol Peletier ❀➹ [requested by @failegaidin]

[anintriguedintrovert]

🔒 new Melissa McBride reaction gifs unlocked 🔓

[anintriguedintrovert]

I love this version of the teaser so much better. The imagery of Carol on a white horse on her way to rescue Daryl is great, and I'm glad Melissa gets to be an action hero, though I also hope to see all the other layers to her as well. I really want the show to reflect the sentiment of Caryl being "bound by one soul." I want to see them both "fight to reunite" and get the payoff they deserve.

[anintriguedintrovert]

Day 2 of "what the hell is going on with TBOC's promo," which is kind of a rhetorical question because I'm pretty sure we're witnessing a duel between two opposing marketing strategies again. I wish AMC would just put their foot down already and tell the dudes trying to ruin everything for Melissa and the fans to sit in the corner and stfu because the whiplash is not serving anyone, especially not two weeks before the premiere. Let's look at these bios...

Carol’s bio really does capture the true nature of what Daryl means to her and it gives her a strong emotional drive for her journey in S2. I think it also could've touched on her dealing with the trauma of losing Sophia all those years ago to round out her arc, although I'd argue that even that isn't separate from finding Daryl seeing as though that loss "ignited" their "unbreakable bond" in the first place. In any case, I like Carol's bio a lot and I have no doubt Melissa's performances throughout the season will bring it to life. Whether or not Zabel's writing can live up to it is a post for another day (Notice that the word "friend" did not come up once? That's how you know Zabel didn't get final approval on this one). Here's the thing about soulmates, though. If one feels that deeply connected, the other should too. If one of their stories gets damaged, the other's does too and that's what's bothering me right now. We should see their soulmatism reflected in Daryl's story as well, but we don't and without that mirroring, both his and Carol's journeys just feel sad.

Long before the promo circuit for TBOC started, I was worried that we wouldn't get to see Daryl fighting to get home to Carol (specifically), catch glimpses of him missing/thinking about her (specifically), or feel that spiritual connection that Carol does and this bio does absolutely nothing to alleviate my worries. This makes it sound like Daryl is going to be solely focused on whatever is going on in France until Carol arrives and even then, I worry about how he'll interact with her (thanks again for your unthoughtful analysis on that, Zabel). Similar to how Daryl has been taken hostage by the French characters, albeit through gaslighting, it feels like he has also been taken hostage by Zabel, Nicotero, and other men in charge who desperately want to use him as a stand-in for the generic, emotionally unavailable action hero that male viewers are supposed to identify with and/or aspire to. They won't let him be the character many of us were drawn to in the flagship show: the unconventional hero who's loyal to his family and falls in love "forever" with one woman (Carol). Like I said yesterday, "loyal" Daryl is the only Daryl I recognize and the only Daryl I want to watch, so it needs to be explicitly clear where Daryl's heart lies. We need to see that Carol is his first and only choice and we also need to see that Daryl has no romantic interest in Isabelle. That's the other problem...

Without Daryl's and Carol's bios mirroring each other as they should, Carol and Isabelle get framed as opponents in a quest for Daryl's heart, which is completely unnecessary, gross, and straight out of the "book of TV tricks" Zabel claims not to use. Daryl and Carol have 11 seasons of chemistry to capitalize on. Caryl's romance is the only one that's been earned, the only one I'm invested in, and the only one that needs payoff. Clemence is an extremely talented actress whose portrayal of a nun could've added something really fresh to the story, but having her catch "feelings" for Daryl after knowing him only a few months and question her long-standing faith of over a decade not only paints her as a weak woman whose weak principles are no match for a man's charm(?), but also glosses over the string of lies and emotionally manipulative plays she made against Daryl in S1. Isabelle's character has become nothing more than Zabel's and Nicotero's seriously problematic projections of what defines a woman, and I don't want it. It's an insult to Clemence, to Caryl's bond, to Daryl's history of childhood abuse, and to fans who have also suffered through CA or DV. So believe it or not, retconning her as a "former" nun all of a sudden does absolutely nothing to make this forced romance less abhorrent, AMC.

If the last couple of days have proved anything, it's that Daryl's and Carol's show needs a female showrunner who understands how to write not only complex female characters like Carol (and like Isabelle could have been), but complex male characters who don’t fit the dudebros’ definition of what makes him masculine or heroic. That's what Caryl, Melissa, and the fans deserve. They deserve a successful show and promo that gets everyone excited instead of confused and anxious. I enjoyed the clip of McReedus discussing the scene where Carol flirts with Daryl on top of the bus in S3, I liked hearing them confirm that Daryl's reaction was due to trauma and not lack of desire. I wish AMC would let them do the heavy lifting instead of trying to placate three EPs who keep self-sabotaging (seriously, you don't need all of them hogging the mic and spewing nonsense at Palyfest/NYCC). I don't appreciate being given consolation prizes (today's video, Carol's bio, yesterday's poster) after being kicked in the teeth. It says a lot about what I can expect from the season, which isn't very encouraging. It just means AMC is still trying to make everyone happy and will end up making no one happy and potentially ruining two iconic characters in the process.

[anintriguedintrovert]

Daryl and Carol’s most iconic moments with Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride - 10.01 Friendship bracelets Daryl and Carol give us all the feels... #TWDCaryl

[anintriguedintrovert]

Daryl and Carol’s most iconic moments with Norman Reedus and Melissa McBride - 3.01 When flirting during the apocalypse... goes wrong! #TWDCaryl

[anintriguedintrovert]

Believe it or not, I was already going to make a post about the shipbaiting today, but thanks for the scarring visual aid I guess, AMC. I’ll start by saying that I see how the new teaser tries to center the story around Daryl’s and Carol’s anticipated reunion, but you know what? It doesn’t make me feel better because once again, their fans are expected to dig and dig for some subtle hint of the story they want while ageist and misogynistic EPs happily throw a painful image in their faces—one that simulates sex between Daryl and a nun—and for extra shits and giggles, they use an anti-Caryl media outlet to do it.

The 206 sides that were leaked a couple of months ago tell us the beat in the teaser is Isabelle’s ghost appearing to Daryl while he thinks he’s dying, so those of us who follow spoilers know that it’s “not as bad as it seems.” Caryl fans have had to sing that song for years now, and clearly AMC thinks this time won’t be any different. Not sure what that means for all of the fans who aren’t active online.

Despite fans shouting about it for over a year, AMC still doesn’t understand that shipbaiting of any degree does irreparable damage. It doesn’t matter that Isabelle dies. It doesn’t matter that Daryl leaves with Carol. The how and why is what matters. Character integrity fucking matters. For example…

Scenario 1: The scene in the teaser plays out exactly how it reads in the sides. Daryl thinks he has nothing to live for despite reuniting with Carol, he sees Isabelle’s ghost, there’s face touching and closeness, she gives Daryl hope to keep going, he meets back up with Carol and then treats her like a complete stranger.

Scenario 2: The scene in the teaser plays out, but when Isabelle tells Daryl to bet on hope, he has memories of Carol. That encourages him to get up and when he finds Carol again, he holds her tight, not wanting to let go.

Scenario 2 is still shitty for a number of reasons, but the shading keeps Daryl in character and positions Caryl as the romantic unit, not Isabelle and Daryl. I wonder which version we’ll get. Or rather, which version Gimple, Nicotero, and Zabel will let us have because apparently they’re allowed to run amuck whenever they feel like it. (Notice how the vast majority of panelists for NYCC are non-cast members? What are you promoting, AMC? The show or the EPs?)

How does releasing a Carol poster—that reverted to the old logo by the way—make things better after a really disturbing teaser? That’s like kicking us in the teeth and then handing us a bandaid afterward because you still want us to watch. That’s unethical and abusive. I don’t want insignificant consolation prizes. I just want a fucking good story for my favorite characters, but that’s never going to happen as long as AMC keeps letting those EPs ruin everything. Will they even blame them if the season doesn’t do well or will they predictably try to blame it on the woman?

Melissa deserves 1000x better and so do her fans.

[anintriguedintrovert]

ENDGAME ♡

[anintriguedintrovert]

Carol x Daryl: Seasons 9-11

The way they understand each other without having to say a single word... Soulmates in every sense of the word ♡

[anintriguedintrovert]

Carol x Daryl: Seasons 9-11

The way they understand each other without having to say a single word... Soulmates in every sense of the word ♡

[anintriguedintrovert]

Do we have a future?

Spotify | Youtube 

[anintriguedintrovert]

Carol x Daryl: Poetry - Silence

A few frames from a new edit I'm working on. This poem by Rumi suits them so well ♡

[anintriguedintrovert]

Incorrect Caryl inner monologue - 11x20, What's been lost.

I wanted to do a lighthearted one (+ all the gifs by the illustrious @mcbride )

Now they were definitely thinking about saving the kids during these scenes. And it obviously never crossed their minds just how well they worked together and how hot it was. It definitely 100% never crossed their minds. All of us just invented the sexual tension in these scenes, right. RIGHT? 👀

~

Carol, internally: I'm close enough to feel his breath on my face. His lips look a bit chapped. Ok, he's really hot right now, and I'm kinda turned on. Maybe... I don't stop him. NO WAIT TORTURE IS WRONG. Daryl, stop that.

Daryl, internally: I wanna punch this asshole, but I can't when she's touchin' me and lookin' at me like that. Did her eyes just flick to my lips? My heart's beating faster because of adrenaline, definitely. Don't look, that's how them impossibly blue eyes getchya.

__________________________________________

Daryl, internally: Did she just womanhandle me? Yeah, she pushed me away. If she thinks I'm gonna let her push me around like that... she's right. Damn straight I am. My wife Carol's such a badass.

Carol, internally: ok, that's the first time I've touched him in a bit. That's ok, that's fine. It's just his pecs, Carol. You've felt them before. On your face when he wraps you in his arms. Damn it, Carol. Focus on the torture.

__________________________________________

Carol, internally: This is weird. I don't know how to be a good cop. Daryl, don't look at me like that it's distracting. I wanna stab his face. Can I stab his face?

Daryl, internally: *sigh* She's so hot when she gets all quiet and stabby. I'm not turned on. But Carol, torture is wrong... Keep going.

__________________________________________

Daryl, internally: Please be safe. I'll find you. But if I die here, I want yours to be the last face I see. 'Cause I love you.

Carol, internally: Then please don't die. Be safe and come back. Please just come back to me. Find me. I'll be waiting. Because I love you.

__________________________________________

Carol, internally: You're safe. You're alive. You're here. I love you. You came back to me. You found me.

Daryl internally: You're safe. You're alive. You're here. You're beautiful. I love you. You waited for me.

__________________________________________

Daryl, internally: I just wanna hold her so badly. But we're not there yet, and we got company. Fuckin' Lance. DARYL, BE COOL. Just do your cool strut so she can't tell how much you wanna hold her and kiss her right now.

Carol, internally: ok he's doing that cool strut again. My heart is beating faster because of the adrenaline, obviously. Would it be weird if I tripped and fell into his arms for a quick second or... hour? REEL IT IN CAROL, you've got an audience. Fuckin' Lance.

__________________________________________

+ Bonus

Daryl, internally: Hey Lance. Get fucked. A'right I needta NOT think about "gettin' fucked" when I'm near her.

Carol, internally: K Lance, party's over. My husband Daryl's home. Time to fuckin' die. Nope. Can't think about "fucking" when I'm near him.

[anintriguedintrovert]

"You'd give up everything to look for him?" "Yes."