Re: We have disgraced Him

Gayle Feyrer (agile@crl.com)
Wed, 14 Jul 1999 15:58:47 -0700 (PDT)

Some general comments....

Jeff is obnoxious, but he does know Karen is a good agent. I
like the strong women characters in Sandbaggers. Far better than what
American TV was dishing up at the time.

> However, some say Diane would make a good sandbagger. Really? I forget this
> episode but I am re-watching them to find this point. I will concede that
> such a request may have been possible. Please. Again, let us refer to

Marianne requests to be a Sandbagger ( and I think would make a
good one). It's in the second to last ep, I believe?

> letter to all of you. On the bridge Laura look Neil in the eye and begged
> for that bullet. It is true, the author knew much more about women then we
> do. Neil was her savior, did he know it?

What I see is Laura smiling at Neil, her savior, with no
self-destructive ambiguity whatsoever. He's brought someone in trade for
her, and she will be free to return with him, to him. She's survived, she
hasn't broken (presumably), she's haggard but glowing with hope. Although
Laura is presented as a woman with sexual inhibitions, we see her growing
and changing, looking forward, not defeated by the past and longing for a
way out. For me, it is one of the reasons that Neil's betrayal of her is
so crushing.

You could make a far better case for Willie being self-destructive
- though I'd say he's just a combination of loyal and fatalistic. But
when he furiously confronts Neil in Special Relationship and says he's the
last one left and Neil won't kill him too, did anyone here not think "Oh
yes he will." ??

Gayle