{ my storm has been a long time coming. }

[delga]

So, over a year ago I did that top 5s meme and zeitheist asked me to name my top 5 fandomgasms. I fluked massively on presenting for that, but today I realised that I still wanted to do it. So, a year belatedly, my top 5 fandomgasm moments (albeit in no discernible order). Insert usual disclaimers here about my fickle, ever-changing tastes, and how you shouldn't hold me to shit I say because I am a massively flakey mcflakerson of a flake. And now that word no longer holds any meaning for me. Guys, this post is really, really long, and not at all dial-up friendly. Just saying.

NCIS, 3x24, Hiatus II: Ziva confronts Jethro







"What can I do?"
"Remember."
"I've been trying to since I woke up in this room!"
"Well try harder!"

I can - and have - watch this scene over and over again without tiring of it. I don't even have to watch the rest of the episode, just this scene. Even with more recent developments this scene is pivotal to my love of this show. I just think that so much happens in this small space; so much is revealed and resolved, and so much is set up in this moment, too. And it's also beautifully shot - under-saturated, dark, all the light in the background, and all these secrets revealed in half-light. Jethro's frustration is explosive - what are you talking about?! - and Ziva's is fraught and grief-stricken - Ari killed Kate, and I - I killed Ari. My gosh. What a scene.

Criminal Minds, 4x03, Minimal Loss: Emily and Reid after the ordeal

Hey. I need you to listen to me. What Cyrus did to me is not your fault.
It was my decision, and I would do it again. Do you hear me?

In an episode that put two of my favourite characters together and had them operating in tandem and as individuals, the closing scene was the perfect conclusion. Despite the dialogue I am of the firm belief that Emily doesn't so much lift the burden of responsibility from Reid's shoulders (whatever her intention) but, rather, allows him to share it. It's a conversation about partnership and team work, and is the denouement to an incredibly satisfying episode. (The episode also follows one of the best examples of collaborative work in the whole run of the show - Emily on the loudspeaker and Reid profiling, speaking in her ear. Fuck yes.) Relatedly: Paget Brewster, fuck yeah!

Wire in the Blood, 3x04, Synchronicity: Do you ever wish we were still lovers?





"Do you ever wish we were still lovers? That weekend in Paris; we spent two days in bed.
Oysters from room service. We should do that again."
"Tony, we were never lovers."
"Well, it felt like it to me."
"No, what I mean is, that never happened."

My gosh. The two of them, invading each other's personal space, pushing each other's buttons - Tony's habit of speaking directly to his imagined unsub whilst Carol was around and Carol's habit of asking Tony all the questions she knew she probably shouldn't. "So apart from your parents, you've never loved another living thing?" "I wouldn't say never. Almost." "Who? How long ago?" OH CAROL. I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE. Synchronicity is a great episode, and this scene is heartbreaking. As a side note, it is also fucking gorgeous - all those reflections and double images, and then Carol fading in and out of focus. Beautiful.

bonus spam! "I'm tired of putting things off. Come with me."

"Looking for faces in the clouds?"
"No, I was just thinking about... hang gliding."
"Shouldn't you wait until you lose the staplework?"
"No, I'm tired of putting things off; come with me."
"No, I've got work to do."
"You're making excuses."
"Yes."
"Life's dangerous. Come with me."

Spooks, 7x02: Ball-buster

Other scenes that I would have capped for the Spooks portion of this meme had I not sold my DVDs to The Flatmate: Danny's death (OMG); the end of the S2 finale; Adam Carter and Mrs Whatsherface face-off in 3x02; the climax of the EERIE episode; Ruth's departure; Ros and Zaf go undercover as IT techs (fuck me, I love that scene); other stuff.

As it is, I had to make do with episodes I could get my hands on at short notice and Ros being badass never fails to make me smile like a loon - every Ros moment is a fandomgasm. Don't mind her, she's just going to casually squeeze your balls until you cry for your mother. You know how it is.

This episode also features: Ros and Harry in a bar! Ben and Jo pretending to be coppers! Elizabeta! Goddamn, season 7 was amazing.

This is also the episode in which Ros ninjas around and tasers Lucas North. Yes. Yes, it is.

Big Love, 1x12, The Ceremony: Barb gets outed




Oh, Boss Lady.

I love this show. I love this show a ridiculous amount. I love these stories - from the far-fetched inanity to the real, honest, brutal family truths. These women, my gosh. This is a family. When Nikki spoke those words, you can hear the love and sympathy in them. My gosh. This is easily my favourite scene of the show. It was the pinnacle of a fantastic first season and was just beautiful.

Sarah Connor Chronicles, 1x07, The Demon Hand: Cameron is fucking scary

So, I love Cameron. I mean, I loved this show, especially the first season, and I love Sarah, but I love Cameron. Mostly I love how often we as an audience are looking for her soul and then sometimes she does something to remind us that she is not a she but an it. The Demon Hand does this so, so well, from Cameron the ballerina, the friend, to Cameron the traitor. This spam is technically two scenes but they link together so well. In the first Cameron manipulates the dancer and her brother, and then walks calmly away whilst they are murdered. In the second, Cameron dances to Chopin whilst Derek looks on, horrified. Sarah asks, what makes us human? but it's Derek who is asking that question at the end of the episode. This is a great episode in other ways - namely Ellison's journey - but Derek encountering Cameron (and the music) is one of the show's most powerful moments. The look on his face; my gosh. Side note: I completely failed to do justice to the absolutely stunning backlighting in these scenes. Sadface.

Kings, 1x07, The Sabbath Queen: Silas and the Angel of Death






"Finish the book."
"You. You make the music that drives me mad."
"A gift. Others meet me in silence.
Out of deference to those who love you I give warning."
"You came for her; you cannot have her."
"Can't I?"

Again, technically this is two scenes, but whatever. I don't really know what's going on in the overall arc of the show right now, mostly because I've been watching the episodes by skipping through to parts that I find vaguely interesting. That paid off in a big way this week because lo! Saffron Burrows! AWESOME. To make matters even better, she faces-off with McShane in a scene that is cold and weird and in stark contrast to the two romance plots that were also ongoing this week. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the flashbacks, and the muted colours. Mostly I enjoyed watching McShane and Burrows speak in those clear, theatre-born voices. A great sequence, dramatic in the best way: through words alone.

--

This endeth the spam. I was going to say that this took me all week but then I realised, no, it took me all year. Goddamn.

Comments

[daygloparker.livejournal.com]

Oh, hey, I sort of adore that idea and shall now adopt it as my own. He always is going to be just slightly bonkers, isn't he? OH TONY AND CAROL. (See, and I'm okay with it, I suppose, since I really have convinced myself that, like Touching Evil, Wire in the Blood is merely a 3-series show. THAT'S IT. Those other series are... just... based on the canon, but not actually related! Yes!)

asjkfhakjsfhkasf why do I see Wire in the Blood as next up after the epic Spooks re-watch? That might ACTUALLY get me through the entire summer then.