#gideon and natasha: commentary

[shipcestuous]

1/ 2 I don't know if this makes any sense, but I'm watching Mad Men for the first time and am currently in the second season, when Don and Betty are separated and Sally constantly asks for her dad and clearly misses him a lot. I know bc of tumblr that they'll have a more strained relationship as she grows up, but anyway what I was thinking about is that I really love father/daugther relationships in fiction where the daugther feels neglected, and Sally and Don's relationship kind of reminds me

2/3 of that song Emily Blunt sings in Gideon’s Daugther. As you know, it’s about a daughter who feels neglected by her womanizing father, and that is something that fascinates me: a daughter seeing her father give so much attention to other women, but not to her, and how that may blur the lines of filial & romantic loves in her mind. And it reminds of Sally because she clearly yearns for Don’s presence and love, while he’s busy with affairs.

3/3 I’m only on the second season of Mad Men, so I don’t know if their relationship will continue to be interesting, especially because I know I’m already projecting a lot on something that offers very little, but that’s what my interests make me do! So if you have any other relationships like this in mind please share with us.

I’m hesitant to say too much about Don and Sally’s relationship because I don’t want to spoil you, but I always don’t want to give you the idea that there’s anything big to spoil, which there’s not. 

You’re not alone in picking up on something. I spent the entire series waiting for /dreading something awkwardly incestuous to happen from Sally towards Don. Obviously when she was grown I would have had an interest in there being something canon there, but I didn’t want to see a child humiliating herself. 

Nothing happened. Their relationship does become more strained as Sally sees Don more for who he really is, which is interesting in a different way. Their relationship is really unique on the show, because Don is motivated to care about her in a way that’s different from all the other women and people in his life (he can’t just brush her off or move on), and she’s the only one of the children who is a character in her own right. 

The scene that struck me as the most suggestive in the entire series - and Anon you can ignore this paragraph if you want to but since Don/Sally hasn’t come up before I figured I might as well get all my main thoughts out - but it’s in one of the later seasons about Don goes to visit Sally at her boarding school. I think I have this right. And they go out to dinner together but a bunch of Sally’s friends join them. And Sally has the impression that all her friends are flirting with him and that he’s flirting back. I felt it was kind of ambiguous about whether that was really happening or not but that’s what Sally felt was happening. It was interesting - but not that surprising - that she would think that her friends would think he was hot. And that she would be thinking about him being interested in someone her same age. 

I like the comparison to Gideon’s Daughter a lot. I was also thinking that the father/daughter relationship between William and Emily on Westworld is similar. These three fathers are all sort of existential-type characters living very independent lives with daughters who feel/are neglected. But I like the Gideon/Don comparison relating to all the women in their lives who are getting the attention that the daughters should be or feel like they ought to be getting instead. This is one of the dynamics that interests me most in father/daughter relationships. 

Thank you for bringing this up!

[ot5ismyhome]

12. What Does The Future Hold?

To read from begging click here.

December 1945, Europe

A tall dark-haired person was sitting in the high stood of the bar sipping their drink. A man, in army uniform walked up to them and settled on the next stool. He ordered his drinks and tried to start a small talk.

“I haven’t seen you here much? New here?” he said. He English had an undertone of strong German accent.

“That’s none of your business” they answered. “You and your war” they muttered to themselves, glancing at the man’s uniform.

“You aren’t so better off,” he commented. He added, “Vielen Dank” to the bartender who set down his drink.

Anger burned in their eyes. “How dare you?”

“You have much more potential than sit alone in a bar and sulk over the past. You could create what your mentor always wanted. Fulfil your destiny.”

The words went straight to their heart as they looked at the lanky man in front of them. “How do you know?”

“Words travel faster now-a-days, my friend.”

The person’s mind waged a war on its own. To say they weren’t intrigued by this stranger would be an understatement. “You know bullshit” they said, their voices full of spite at the man, their eyes burning like fire. The person got up to leave.

He chuckled. “I should have expected this reaction. Let me put my offer on the table before you leave.” His eyes studied his companion meticulously. “I provide the resources; you hunt them and bring them to me.”

“Who are you?”

“Werner Reinhardt.”

…..

Present time, New York

Steve and Bucky had moved past their awkwardness and differences. They had finally decided to get back on dating. Given their history, they were afraid of how it would work out. But everything went smoothly for them.

The couple were seated in Bucky’s favourite diner waiting for their food. The conversation was flowing easily between the lovers. It was interrupted by the ringing of Bucky’s phone. He looked apologetically at Steve as he attended it. His face became paler with each passing second.

“Okay I will be there” he said ending the call.

Before Bucky could explain the situation to Steve his phone rang again. This time it was Pym’s assistant. He said he will be there as soon as possible and hung up.

“What happened?”

“Hank had a heart attack. Hope and Scott have left abruptly and they aren’t responding. I need to- I’m so sorry. It’s just-”

“Hey, I understand. We’re good.” 

Bucky hastily kissed Steve goodbye and left. 

…..

The Council of Five except Bucky landed in Washington DC. At the airport they were met by Rosalind Pierce, the head of Advanced Threat Containment Unit (ATCU). After the smuggling came to light, the government wanted to form a face organisation to deal with advanced threats. Rosalind Pierce, former MI6 and CIA agent was apt for that. She greeted them with a warm smile. They got in the car and left for ATCU headquarters.

“Our advisors are eager to meet you. Mr. Banks will show you to the conference room” she said once they arrived at the headquarters.

The Council of Five waited in the conference room. None of them were eager for the meeting.

“Do you think this is a good idea?” Steve asked, looking at Jiaying.

“They know about us. We can’t do anything other than make a treaty.”

“Pierce sounds fine. Let’s get on her good sides and renegotiate our terms.”

“I wouldn’t put much faith in her. She is still human”

“It beats me that you hate humans and still run a hospital for them.”

“I don’t hate them. I just don’t trust them” Jiaying said. Her voice had lost a friendly banter. Natasha noticed the sudden change in the ambience of the room.

“We can’t oppose them directly. But whatever decision we make, we will give a united front.”

Gideon Malick and Senator Ellen Nadeer walked into the room. Seeing the two vampires, Malick broke into a grin and shook their hands. But the Senator kept her distance with a disgusted look on her face. She took her seat without as much as greeting the others. Natasha rolled her eyes as she and Steve exchanged a look. The meeting hadn't even started and here they were showing hostility. Rosalind Pierce, Luther Banks, General Talbot and Colonel Rhodes joined them soon.

The group settled down to discuss the treaty between vampires and the government. To say it shortly, the meeting didn’t go well. The one person who was worth speaking to was Rosalind and the other two were pissing off The Council. General Talbot was a reasonable man to talk with but he wasn’t able to convince the Senator.

After the meeting, the Jiaying, Steve and Rosalind along with Luther Banks left to visit the Museum of Natural History. Jiaying and Steve planned to get to know their new ally better.

“Will it be okay if I ask you for the history tour?”

“Always glad to be of help, ma’am” smiled Steve

“I did History major in my college. I’m just curious if what is studied is true.”

“To say shortly, no. Most of the time the winners write the history. Most of the significant things don’t get recorded. While others get changed as time passes.”

“Then enlighten me.”

….

Talbot, Rhodey and Tony were walking out of the ATCU headquarters. They were talking about the new weapon deal and the budget. Tony was engrossed in the talk that he almost collided into the woman who just rounded the corner. 

“Hi there,” he said without missing a beat.

“Hi stranger.”

“I’m Tony. Tony Stark. And you are?”

“Virginia Potts.”

“May I ask what’s your role in ATCU?”

“To keep the President in the loop.”

“Does the work require you to fly to New York?”

“Does it?” asked Pepper, cocking her head.

“I think it does. Are you free tonight?”

“I am. Why don’t you give me a call?” she said, slipping her number card into his hand. “I got to run now. Having a meeting” she said and walked down the corridor.

Tony put the card in his pocket and stared at the retreating figure with a smile on his face.

“If you are done staring, Mr. Stark, we may to proceed to Smithsonian”

Rhodey snickered at the commentary which made Talbot frown. Tony and Rhodey enjoyed the evening. It’s been long since they had met and this provided a perfect opportunity to catch up.

…..

Malick Mansion

“Let me pour you that scotch,” Stephanie said turning her attention away from the book.

Gideon settled in the arm chair near her chuckling.

“I should thank you for today. Your idea to go public could improve our stand.”

“One thing we need to learn from history. Never repeat the same mistakes.” Seeing the amused look on her father’s face, she continued. “Whitehall wanted to eradicate them. But he was too closed off to the world. Operating from castles and chasing them with a predator prey dynamic. If the world come to know about him, no government would openly support him for the fear of backlash.”

“So, we get to register them and keep a note on everyone. Once they slip up, we act the law enforcement to protect the people for the vampire threat,” Gideon finished.

Stephanie raised her glass. Gideon followed suit with a proud smile.

“To my daughter, who proved to a Malick.

*****

Chapter 13

[shipcestuous]

One of my personal favourite films is Gideon's Daughter (Poliakoff, 2005) starring Emily Blunt and Bill Nighy. It's not incestuous per se and I strongly dislike overt parent/child, however ambiguity is always fascinating to me. I really recommend you watch Emily singing Papa on YouTube. I'd be really interested in your thoughts (even if it'll be out of context if you haven't seen the film). Also, telling a story through gifs is genius and I don't know why more people don't do it!

I have to do that thing again where I say that I swear this movie has come up before but I can’t find the post. I’m almost certain I remember fielding a question about Gideon’s Daughter. 

I actually have seen this movie, though I didn’t see it for father/daughter reasons, I saw it for Tom Hardy reasons. 

Rewatching that scene where she sings, I’m amazed the father/daughter relationship hasn’t made more of an impression (though I don’t mean to say that it didn’t make any impression at all), because, as you know, she specifically mentions an incestuous father/daughter relationship as an introduction to the song. The song is called Papa, and her father is sitting right there in the audience! That’s extremely suggestive. 

I remember the relationship between these two being very intense. There was a lot of distance between them but a lot pulling them together at the same time. It wasn’t a happy relationship but there was a longing. 

You see on Gideon’s face as Natasha is singing that he’s, not horrified exactly, but troubled. Either by the incestuous implications and/or by how dark Natasha’s thoughts are. You get the impression that Marie-Jo, Georges Simenon’s daughter, at least in Natasha’s interpretation, committed suicide because she wasn’t getting enough from her father, and there’s a parallel with Gideon/Natasha. A kind of neglect. 

I’ve seen a few gifsets around tumblr using scenes of actors in other movies put together as AUs for characters we know, and there’s roleplayers who use faceclaims and often use reaction gifs and things like that in their back-and-forths, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a multiple-gifset story with original characters before. Daphne & Dylan definitely isn’t revolutionary or anything like that, I can’t take any credit for creating something new. But I would love it if people copied what I had done with it and told their own stories!

Actually, people in the film industry do something similar. Directors who are making an appeal to investors for funding will often scrap together a fake trailer of the movie they want to make using scenes from other films. I forget what they’re called. Fans have been doing something similar on youtube for years. This is really just another form of that same thing. Giffing with limited narration gives you a little bit more control though, which is nice. I’m not a very good vidder. The only program I have is Windows Movie Maker!