> I do want your opinions on something that has been puzzling me for
> a while. In the episode a Feasible Solution, why did Neil react
> so abruptly with Willie when Willie returned from Cyprus? Was
> Neil really angry that Willie wasted an opportunity in giving
> Jill false information (I don't know the correct term when you
> give an known plant false information).
When I went back and thought more carefully about that episode, it
seemed to me that the situation at the end was contrived. First,
how long could the Russian "Jill Ferris" have expected to remain
undetected as the Nicosian Number Two? Surely the real Ferris' personnel
file, complete w/ photo, would have caught up with her in short order.
(And we know they had photos in their files. Neil had Laura's blown up
and framed.) Given that the Soviets should have been counting on
her detection, and that the British should have expected them to be
intelligent about it (one of those "We know that you know that we
know that you know" games), it almost seems pointless to try to
feed her false information. The Soviets should be smart enough to
treat it as suspect, and the Brits should be smart enough to be
suspicious of any action the Soviets appear to take based on it, ad
infinitum.
But that's real-world logic. In the SB world, I think we were meant to
take the scenario of feeding "Ferris" false information at face value,
as witness the fact that Caine wasn't stupid, and he accepted
Burnside's alternative scenario as reasonable, kicking himself in
the process.
> It seemed to me that Neil
> was jealous even though he was in Cyprus and couldn't have known
> what had transpired. ^ "not"
I think he was angry because he demanded that the Sandbaggers be as
relentlessly single-minded as he was, or tried to be. He suspected
what Caine admitted: that Caine felt comradeship (at the least) with
an enemy. Caine's reports back did seem to be somewhat admiring of
her.
> And just what did happen? Did Willie admire
> Jill (seems to me that he did) as a fellow agent or did he harbor
> some romantic feelings for her even though he knew her for such a
> short time?
I'd say both. I'd say the feeling was mutual, too, recalling their
parting words as being along the lines of, "They [their respective
bosses] wouldn't understand." It could have been an act on her part,
but my guess is she was sincere about that much.
> As you probably guessed, AFS is one of my favorite episodes and
> I'd love to hear what other fans think about it.
A good "caper" episode, sort of mini-Mission Impossible, but my tastes
run to the really depressing episodes. :)
On Wed, 10 Aug 1994 13:04:14 -0400 (EDT) <scamardella@library.umass.edu>
writes:
>In regard to Karen Yost's posting about A Feasible Solution, I'll put my
>$ 0.02 in. When Willie returned from Cyprus, Burnside was genuinely angry
>with him. He was upset that an opportunity for deviousness was passed by
>- but fully justified by Burnside's hatred of the KGB.
I agree.
>I think he was also disguising his deviousness of holding back Laura
>from going to Cyprus with Willie - this was his chance to get close to
>Laura.
Here I think he was telling the truth when he said he didn't want to
run the risk of suddenly finding himself without any Special Section
whatsoever. It took him months to find Denson and the Field School
had no other likely SB material when Caine went down to recruit
Dickens. Burnside obviously believed very strongly in the need for
Special Operations capability, and didn't want to find himself
possibly going months without any.
>In a sense too Burnside sees himself as vulnerable because of his
>affection for Laura, and vented this concern about himself against
>Willie and Jill.
I'm not sure this follows. There's one crucial difference between
Laura and "Jill": "Jill" was working for the other side. That opens
Willie up for a professional vulnerability that Neil would not be
prey to with Laura.
>I saw Willie's working relationship with Jill as a great expression of
>the character - he's a more honest individual than Burnside.
Certainly more open.
-Micky