#plodding on

[unreesonable]

[local-blog-for-local-people]

[wintersoulwitch]

Plodding On // Drop Dead

Inside No. 9 S09E06 Plodding On (my gifs) // Inside No. 9 S08E01 The Bones of St. Nicholas (my gif) // Inside No. 9 S05E06 The Stakeout (my gif) // Inside No. 9 S01E03 Tom and Gerri (my gif) // Inside No. 9 S04E06 Tempting Fate (my gif) // Inside No. 9 S06E02 Simon Says (my gif) // Inside No. 9 S09E02 The Trolley Problem (my gif) // Drop Dead lyrics

[weltonbmarsland]

i have feelings about the little meanders steve&reece took to calling their final episode what they did

The Inside Inside No.9 podcast (released on 17-2-20) about the episode 'Love's Great Adventure' contains the following exchange about what title they were originally going to give it [from 18:29-18:50]:

Steve: ...but we'll probably have to face this again, and they say, you've just got to keep plodding on, haven't you? And I love you.

Reece: It was going to be called Plodding On actually at one point. But it was that, just that resilience [...] and it's not always a happy ending [...]

Steve: I'm glad we didn't call it Plodding On! There's something a bit...

[both start laughing]

Reece: Dour!

Steve: Would you *watch* an episode called Plodding On?

Reece [derisively]: Plodding On!

The fact that this is how they felt about calling an ep Plodding On (it's dour! it's laughable! it deserves derision! we're glad we didn't do it!) and then did it anyway for their final bow (and it's not always a happy ending) because you do have to keep plodding on (and I love you) makes me love it even more. All titles are deliberate, of course, but they really hefted a goodly amount of baggage onto their naming of Plodding On. I like that.

[silverview]

i want to share some highlights from this very detailed & glowing review of reece's performance in the dresser (2016-17) – wish i could have seen it, but this person's descriptions almost make me feel like i did

also makes me wonder if urban was in any way drawn from this character. he sounds like a total heartbreaker

He anchors Norman’s multifarious elements (his fastidiousness, discretion, waspishness and campness, the role of confidant and carer) and his manifesting emotions (bitterness, resentment, anger and despair) in the finely detailed, choreographed physicality of his performance, with beautifully precise gestures, posture and changing countenance. Each fleeting facial expression gives something away and the “soulful eyes” of Norman are reflected in the twin pools of sadness that Shearsmith summons from his own eyes.

[...]

There are many traits to this man and one elicited from the dualism in Shearsmith’s performance is Norman’s need to conceal, to be in control, closed-in, guarded. This can be seen in the physical detail of his slicked down short hair, in the bib apron that sheaths him, in the fastidious way he mans his domain and serves his master and in those glimpsed moments in the dressing room and as he stands in the wings silently watching Sir on stage, where Norman seems to shut down, momentarily lost in his own thoughts. These carefully delineated components in Shearsmith’s portrayal produce a feeling of a life having always been lived on the periphery and in the shadows.

[...]

Shearsmith’s creative decision to foreground Norman’s campness in his portrayal – through gesture, a fluidity in his body language and an exaggerated tone to his voice – reinforces the idea that performance is a form of protection for Norman. Camp is heightened behaviour, in which ostentatiousness and artifice are used to form an impression of command and being in control. There is a dynamism and energy associated with camp which Norman uses to bolster his position and own sense of usefulness and importance. Amplified energetic endeavours –  he keeps himself busy and immersed in activity – are a distraction from his fraying inner doubts and done to try and convince himself that he is indispensable to Sir. There is such energy and drive to Reece Shearsmith’s performance in Act I – the liveliness and forced cheerfulness (“It’s a disease…hopefulness” as Madge terms it) he gives Norman is discernible and striking. You really get a sense of the desperation behind it and the feeling that the dresser is not only trying to rescue Sir but also save himself.

[...]

Norman has the full spectrum of co-dependency symptoms: Seeing oneself as indispensable to the care receiver; a tendency to become hurt when their efforts aren’t recognised; an exaggerated sense of responsibility; an extreme need for approval and recognition; a fear of being abandoned; chronic anger and feelings of inadequacy. These elements resonate powerfully as the dresser increasingly falls apart during the second act.

[...]

Over the course of the play Sir censures Norman harshly several times, reminding him of his lowly status, that theirs is a master-servant relationship based on the dresser’s servitude. When Sir fails to praise or even thank him backstage during the interval breaks between his performance of King Lear, when the dresser is desperately seeking it the most, the audience watches as Shearsmith (as Norman) almost visibly crumbles, his face registering desolation. The climax of the play unleashes a deluge of emotion from Norman. It is what the relationship between Sir and his dresser has been leading up to. Shearsmith’s performance scales new heights of artistic brilliance as the crushed dresser’s fragile facade shatters and a torrent of feelings – anger, pain, bitterness, outrage, regret, distress – come pouring out. There is such a truthful, natural force to the way he expresses Norman’s damaged, broken sense of self that it is truly devastating to watch. One is hushed, mesmerised and completely transfixed – it feels like a cry from the heart that speaks to anyone who has given everything to someone and had nothing back in return. The intensity of emotional commitment from Shearsmith is so grounded in honesty, sincerity and pure truthfulness that there’s not a trace of actorly artifice on show. It is as if he is experiencing Norman’s pain for real as he faces the traumatic realisation that he has given sixteen years of his life and is now alone and left with nothing. So forceful is that final, emotionally gut-wrenching scene in the dressing room that it becomes Norman’s storm – to match and equal the one in King Lear – such is the outpouring of rage, emotional potency and heartbreaking poignancy in Shearsmith’s acting. The first time I saw him perform this scene it left me feeling overwhelmed and completely stunned. It was simply an extraordinary moment in the theatre for me, witnessing an actor give of himself to that extent.

i am leaving in some extremely high praise here because i find it very evocative, but i'm cutting out even more, which you can read in the original post. this author is definitely biased by being a fan and clearly in love with reece, but i also 1000% believe that his performance was that good. (because i too am a fan and in love with him)

[not-xpr-art]

Inside no 9 - Series 9 painting studies ~

Final series!!!

This series (at least the screen shots I picked lol) is so dark which, again, is great for me cos dark is really easy to paint lol!

I never thought I'd end up painting a tube station tbh and whilst doing so I did realise how weird of a shape tube stations are?? like when you're in them I don't think you really notice but... you're literally in like a weird shiny tunnel it's so odd pfft...

It was honestly kinda fun to do a completely black and white painting for this series with the Mulberry Close one especially since I think that piece turned out legitimately SO creepy and I really like it lol!

& of COURSE I had to paint the 'number nine!' moment from CTRL ALT ESC lol!

There were a few shots from The Curse Of The Ninth I was toying with drawing, but in the end went with the most classic gothic looking one! (did have to turn the brightness waaay up to see it though lol)

Also feels v fitting that the last painting I did was also their last shot of the series! (I'll say that I didn't know it was the last shot when I picked this shot since the documentary hadn't come out yet lol it's just a spooky coincidence lol!)

There isn't much else to say other than thank you to everyone AGAIN (for the 50th time probs) for continuing to support this series (& honestly all my in9 artworks and writing!)

I've genuinely really adored being in this lil fandom with a bunch of the loveliest freaks (affectionate) for the last 6 or so months and this series was part of my way of expressing that appreciation to both the show & you guys <3 <3 <3

[markgatissappreciationsociety]

As requested by @lavenderandvanilla, gifs of Mark's cameo from the final episode of Inside No. 9, "Plodding On".

[radarscookies]

on the floor over inside number 9 if ur going to cry cry tears of laughter fr

[unreesonable]

Happy Party's Over Day for those who celebrate.

[in9-character-tournament]

[local-blog-for-local-people]

Inside No. 9

Series 9, Episode 6 - Plodding On

[yonderghostshistories]

Honestly, I respect Reece & Steve for including gender neutral bathrooms in the final episode of IN9 Series 9 , "Plodding On". I thought that was quite nice tbh 😊🫶

Imo, it shows that the world in this episode (and possibly the entire IN9 series if we are to assume all the episodes take place in the same universe) is probably more progressive and accepting than our irl world, ya'know?

Anyway uhh, rambling over, I just love this episode so much <33

[vagueeyes]

i finished scriptbook 3 🥲

[silverview]

speaking of career-based humiliation: plodding on bad ending au where s goes to hollywood and r is left behind full of rage and bitterness and self-loathing. if nothing he ever did was good enough for steve then why even bother anymore? starts phoning in performances & accepting trash projects he never would’ve considered before. and part of him is mortified at the idea of steve seeing his decline, while the other part wants him to see & feel guilty/sorry about it