Dance...

So, what did I do during the dance? There's a question for the ages...no, it isn't actually. I watched two episodes of Deadwood. I love that show. I now order you all to find a way to watch Season One before Season Two starts next month. I love that show so much. If you all just see the first, you have to stick with it: you can't really get into it with the pilot. And the writing is brilliant - actually I agree with my parents' assessment that it's Mamet-esque. And actually the guy that plays Eddie is in a lot of Mamet productions, so maybe he is related to the production of it.

Anyway, if/when you first see the show: you'll see a character named Al Swearengen (played by Ian McShane, who won a Golden Globe for the performance this year) who you'll assume is the "bad guy". I mean, he smacks Trixie, one of the whore's at his saloon, The Gem, around after she shoots a guy in the head for roughing her up. However, Al is one of the most complex characters I think I've ever seen. I love him so much. And I mean when Cy Tolliver comes to town and you see him torture and kill the siblings that try to rob him. Although Flora, the girl, was a real bitch. I actually didn't feel sorry for her watching it this second time. My dad didn't want to see it again, so I watched it on my own this morning.

If you're at all curious, here's the complete Season One guide from TV Tome (my source for TV shows, kind of like how the Internet Movie Database gives me all my movie information): http://www.tvtome.com/tvtome/servlet/EpisodeGuideSummary/showid-16362/season-1

My favorite character is probably Al Swearengen. He's just so awesome. One of my favorite quotes from Season One is:
Al: *of the men that frequent the saloons* You know, sometimes I just wish we could hit them over the head, rob them, and throw their bodies in the creek.
Cy: *sarcastically* But that would be wrong.

My next favorite character is Sol Star. He's Seth Bullock's partner and they've known each other since Seth (and therefore probably Sol, since they're about the same age) was about seventeen. Sol is so sensible, especially next to Seth's eternal male PMS.
Seth: *grouchily (is he ever any other way?) about Al's anti-Semitic remarks* Did you hear what he called you?
Sol: I've been called worse by better.

And Sol loves Trixie, Al's favorite whore. Although Al loves Trixie a lot too. Actually, in the end of the episode where Cy kills the kids (the episode's called Suffer the Little Children: tres telling, non?), there's a scene at the end I love. Trixie had just messed up with suicide and had decided to live (Doc Cochrane told her that he would do the job right for her if she really wanted to die...Brad Dourif - Wormtongue in The Lord of the Rings - plays him brilliantly, he's another one of my favorite characters). So Trixie goes back to The Gem and goes up to the bedroom where Al's dozing. She puts some gold on the table (long story), and he looks up at her. The whole scene is silent. He looks at her arm, which she covers, since that's where she tried to kill herself. He takes her arm, but she refuses to remove her right hand. He forces her right hand away and looks at the mark, then up at her with a little surprise. She slaps him, then proceeds to undress and go to sleep. He looks at her and then the episode's about over. Just the scene where she slaps him and he doesn't respond is so telling. I mean this is the guy that orders a killing about every episode. It shows that, although he treats her roughly, he really loves her.

Actually, you see that Al does have a very developed personal moral code that he sticks to unfailingly. For example, if Flora and Miles had tried to steal from him, yes he would have killed him, since he would have seen them as a threat. But he wouldn't have tortured them: it would have been quick and quiet. No one would have known about it. Or maybe he wouldn't have killed them. He has been known to just give people a horse and tell them to get out of town and never show their face again (Jack McCall after he gets off for killing Wild Bill Hickock).

Well, now that I've drooled over that enough (I want to marry John Hawkes - Sol on the show)...I'll just go now. Namaste.