Ok, this is the first episode in a while that I've actually felt excited to write about. Don't even get me started on last weeks. I'm trying to forget it happened...
Robin and Guy are riding through the forest towards the camp. Already their truce is becoming strained. A few 'your father this' and 'your mother that' comments, and they're back to rolling around on the forest floor trying to kill each other. Allan witnesses the skirmish and runs to get the rest of the gang.
They run to help Robin, only to have Robin stop Kate from killing Guy. After having a slightly more honest discussion of Marian's death between punches, Robin's willing to resume their 'alliance'. Guy comes back to the camp with them, and Robin explains what he and Guy have learned about their family situations.
Guy and Robin head off to York, while the rest of the gang stays behind to keep an eye on Isabella.
Meanwhile in York, Archer does not seem to be terribly in need of rescuing after all. Despite the fact that he's in the dungeon, he's got the unhappy wife of the Sheriff of York wrapped around his finger. He has already persuaded her to talk to her husband when he gets back to get him pardoned.
Robin and Guy ride as quickly as they can towards York, only stopping to rob a toll house on the road. Unfortunately for them, the toll master is in the pay of Isabella, who is desperately looking for revenge on her brother and Robin Hood. As soon as she hears they are going to York, she sends and emissary up ahead to inform the Sheriff of York that two dangerous criminals, Guy of Gisbourne and Robin Hood, are headed his way.
In the forest, the outlaws are not taking Guy and Robin's teaming up lightly. Little John is so distraught that he drops his stick and storms off. A little while later when he has not come back, Allan goes to look for him. From a view in the trees, Allan sees Little John get captured by Isabella on her way to York. She sends two of her men back to the castle with Little John bound behind. Allan helps him to escape and then they quickly go to inform the others that Robin and Guy are in danger, and they have to be sure that Isabella doesn't reach York.
Robin and Guy have now reached York, and are trying to formulate a plan. They have quite a bit of trouble making one, seeing as neither one truly trusts the other, but in the end, Guy gets captured by York's guard and taken to the dungeons for brawling in a tavern (Robin's plan). There he finds Archer and they wait for Robin to turn up and rescue them.
However, things get a bit more complicated when Archer shows that his loyalty to his new brother's rates about 0, and York decides to disregard the Sheriff of Nottingham's request that Guy and Robin be returned to her alive...
The Good:
Jonas Armstrong and Richard Armitage were in rare form this episode. It was very fresh and fun watching them try to work together. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. But this is the good section, so I won't go into that. The tavern scene was really good, where they argued about who's plan to go with. And Robin's grin when he manages to get Guy captured is priceless! This is the Robin I know and love!
Guy was really good too, this ep. He got some really funny lines which were nice to see. He hasn't really been a humorous character up till now, and RA does a great job delivering lines. Also, the genuine fear when Guy was in the dungeons or about to be executed was very well played. He looked completely terrified!
I'm still undecided about Archer. If they would have played down his affair with Mrs. Sheriff of York, I might have liked him better. He was very good in his scenes with Robin and Guy, managing to be both a shameless rogue, and someone who does care about fellow human beings, both at the same time. I also think he was very well cast. Clive Standen looks very much like a cross between Robin and Guy.
Izzy was good this week, but I've come to expect that from her. She's utterly unpredictable, but I really like Lara Pulver as an actress. Plus her costumes are scrumptious!
Now, the best for last... Allan and Little John! Allan finally got some screen time. I was bouncing and clapping during their whole exchange. The only thing which could have made that scene better would have been for Much to be there. All that is left of the original gang. *sigh* However, it was really good the way it was. I liked the fact that it was Allan who was concerned about Little John. Tuck is too busy with his high and mighty ideals, and Kate is only good for holding sword while they're sharpened. And Much has never been one to be a leader. Allan is the one who is stepping up and caring about the individuals in the gang.
The Bad:
Ok, seriously. When did this show start having so much kissing? I know season two had some, but probably about 1 or 2 per episode. I think you could count the number of kisses in season 1 on one hand. I think there were that many in this episode alone, let alone all of season 3! As I said before, I could have done without the Archer/ Mrs. York scenes. They were seriously bad, and I did not like the actress they either. Kate's scenes with Robin were just as bad. Where did the 'Just come home safe!' thing come from? Where's the feisty-ness in that? There is absolutely no chemistry in their scenes at all, and I find myself not believing it at all. Which is bad because then I start thinking about Marian, which makes all of it worse. *sigh again*
If you actually think about the character of Gisbourne, none of this episode actually makes sense. However, thankfully, RA is a good enough actor not to make it stand out too much while you're watching the ep. In fact, watching this and seeing how well RA and JA act together, I think that the whole, Guy/Robin team up thing should have been done a lot sooner. Maybe they could have planned for it a little, and not made him such a despicable character in season 1. RA obviously enjoys doing the wry humor angle of his character. It's just a matter of being too little, a lot too late.
Kate and Tuck still continue to be useless members of the gang family.
The Ugly:
Continuity and Kate. Ugh. The two plagues of this season!
In Summary:
Well, only two more weeks of this. Then I'm free! I heard many people describe it this way, but the rest of this show feels very much like a train wreck. I just can't look away! The first (and most painful) casualty(s) come just next week. I think I'm almost going to be relieved when it's over. Then I can pretend that everything after season 2 episode 12 ever happened.
~Paige
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