Did Frank really go "too far" in killing the Polaroid Stalker?

[Guest Jim McLean]

Having just watched end of season one and beginning of season two I have to I'm not quite comfortable with the expression of Catherine's decision. Not from the sense of her leaving for a bit (or Frank more specifically), I can buy that, but I found her verbal reasons far too dramatically coloured. It sounded nice, but when analysed (which TV shows would dare say isn't the intention of the product) it doesn't feel true to a real character, but a fictitious one.

This is no attack on the writing (I do enjoy Beginning of the End), but the jump it style between season one and two transcends more than plot. The mysticism of season two's core agenda is infectious; even normal characters beat around the bush.

Basically, I felt Catherine left because of the intimacy of the horror and how it had finally infected her husband, her house, her life and threatened her child. In a way, that's sort of what she said, but the way she said it just didn't seem natural. It was too pointed directly at Frank, whether he could get back what they'd lost. I don't know, to me, the question of whether Frank had sacrificed something to get her back and whether he could get that back to make them whole again, narratively it nicely linked to Peter and Frank's conversation in act two, but didn't really feel quite how you would naturally express such concerns.

I suppose season two is more "fairy tale" in its mythology and tone, playing closer to dramatic fiction that the illusion of reality - I just never really took in quite how far this extended. With Jordan's angels and the Group's transformation this episode very much shifts a lot elements possibly a little too fast in retrospect.

I don't know if this was mentioned before, but Jordan's angels - did they leave because she was safe, or because Frank had committed a sin? Could one take that idea further and say his family was no longer protected post this event, rising to the tragedy of The Time Is Now?

[hippyroo]

I always thought Frank deserved better than Cath. You would also think that after what the PM had done to her, she be relieved to see the SOB killed. Her character was always a bit stiff for me. I was so hopeful that Laura and Frank would hook up, but she turned out to be pretty mental hu?

[ethsnafu]

Hi chaps,

I have mixed views concerning the angels quote but with a shiny revolver to my head and a demand to opt for something I would say they leave because of Catherine's decision to remove Frank from the yellow house. My reasoning for this is a similar statement made by Ben Fisher in Anamnesis which tells us that Lara's angel devoted her in a simlar fashion due to fear of a higher power. Whilst the statement does seem to be pseudo-mysticism devoid of any relative meaning the episode implies that Anamesis begins Lara's 'descent' if you will and infers that she has sold her soul to the Group and is now working at the behest of Peter Watts by manipulating events in the Group's favour. Morgan and Wong knew in pre-production that Catherine would be killed by the end of the season and Catherine's decision to remove Frank from her life begins a sequence of events that leads to her death. For this reason I have always assumed Jordan sees the angels leave as a foreboding in much the same way this was used with Lara.

On the issue of Frank and Lara. Whilst I have seen it said many times, here and elsewhere, that a Lara/Frank tryst would be a desirable thing I am of the opinion that such a move would have been unwise. Frank's raison d'etre would have been conflicted if he had begun an affair during the turbulent time of his marriage break up. In addition the effects of Catherine's death upon him would have been muted and by depicting Lara as an opportunistic scarlet woman her own fate would have elicited less sympathy. I believe it was right to keep any notion of romantic feelings between the two firmly in Lara's quarter and perceivable on only a couple of occasions. As Kristen only signed for one season and had no intention of doing a second a relationship wouldn't have had the time to emerge, cement and then end all within a single season so any attempt to do so would have been rushed and fruitless anyway.

Best wishes,

Eth

[Guest Jim McLean]

In response to Hippy, it's the very point I was making; that to be dramatically interesting I think the message is lost. Catherine doesn't blame Frank per se - she wanted TPM dead. What she can't recouncile is intended to be what Frank also can't recouncile - the gradual infection of his work upon his home, so much so for a moment his actions no longer represented the man Frank is to both himself and Catherine. I feel the whole point Catherine is making is that the threat that Frank looked to protect them from has began to taint and distort who he is and there is no way to ignore all this contributory threats that all come from Frank's work (which Catherine explains in "Monster").

In the end, Carter's concept of "Who cares (?)" underline's Frank position. He doesn't just care for his family, he cares for those who need help - which is why the Group doesn't work out because Frank's morality cannot be compartmentalised to what is in some organization's interest. This of course means he's constantly balancing the struggle to love his family and fulfill his ability to help others. While "Pilot" infers Frank's need to work is soley to protect his family, I think the character's needs are broader. He takes on jobs which initially have no threat to his family (Paper Cuts, for instance). Frank is the ultimate caring man, and for a moment, in TBOTE he no longer does care. I think when Catherine sees the man who has fought so hard to be the barrier to the violence and horror he sees daily become that violence, she no longer feels that Frank holds that bi-partisan line, keeping his work and his family separate. Frank sees this too.

I think it's important to see that Catehrine's concerns are shared by Frank. Where they differ is as to whether they can get back what they once had. Frank believes, Catherine is uncertain, but they are very much on the same page in regards to TPS.

I think the final scene in the end does Catherine too much of a disservice because she ends up a cipher for the writer's rather naked character motivations. Her answer is too rational, too cerebral. It's an interesting notion spoken at the wrong time for the audience and quite possibly the character. She can feel what she says, but I think dramatically it would have played more honestly (and less confusingly) if she had simply said she couldn't forget that night, and had seen into Frank's life and it had tainted everything. The thought of Jordan being dead, as she had feared, was too much to simply try pretending that Frank can keep them safe. It's the same vibe, but a little more emotive, a little more personal and I think the audience wouldn't have come away feeling Catherine was doing Frank a disfavour, but merely voicing what anyone in her position could conceivably feel.

As for Laura, I still believe it would have betrayed the very crux of Frank Black to have paired him with her. His beauty comes in his simplicity, which a relationship I think would have tainted. His love for his family is sacrosanct, way above his own desires. In this respect I think Catherine was distorted slightly in season two. I don't think she'd have blamed the Millennium Group. I think she would have known Frank well enough to know his work would have brought the same troubles regardless and that Frank wasn't being controlled, attracted or lead by Millennium, but simply seeking to balance his need to confront the evil in the world and protect his family. I always felt Catherine knew Frank too well for her to put so ownership on the Group for Frank's choices early in season two.

Edited October 11, 2008 by Jim McLean

[BillQS]

To answer the original post, no, Frank did not go too far in killing the Polaroid Stalker. It was a murder committed in self-defense, both of himself and Catherine. While the separation of Frank and Catherine was important to the story arc for Season 2, I agree with many that it was not handled in the best way.

However, although it is Catherine that initiates the separation, there is evidence in some episodes in Season 2 that the continuance of the separation has as much to do with Frank as it does Catherine. There are intimations that Catherine wants Frank back, but Frank seems to stay apart most likely in another attempt to protect his family. (Staying close to them didn't protect him because evil was targeting him, so perhaps his family was better off if he could divert the evil away from his family to where he was alone.)

There was definitely chemistry between Lara and Frank, but the writers were smart not to have them hop into an affair. As many others have noted, Frank's love and devotion for his family is central to who he is as a character.

[Guest VioletBear]

This is a wonderful thread, and having discovered this site only yesterday, I have decided to provide my first post to this topic. I do have all the DVDs and have not watched them for a long time, but this will be my inspiration. Now, onto my response.

Regarding the original post, I do not think that Frank went too far. I was always disappointed at Catherine's reaction.

Basically, I think that Frank did what a person in any line of work would have done. It was an emotional response to the overwhelming fear that the people closest to him were about to die at the hands of the PM who had been threatening them for a long time. So the way I looked at this, Catherine was making a connection between what Frank deals with in his work, and what she saw him do. I think she was concluding that the evil that Frank sees through the eyes of murderers was seeping into Frank's persona and causing him to be of the same evil capability. It was overanalysis. Had Frank been a plumber, she may have been shocked at what she saw him do, but thankful that he had saved her life.

Secondly, Catherine had the same fears building up inside of her and then these fears culminated as she experienced a personal life threatening situation. Catherine and Frank had been drifting apart, so it may have been a natural consequence for this situation to pull them apart further. If they had had a supportive, close relationship, then the experience may have drawn them even closer together. I suppose it could've worked the opposite as well, but I'm just speculating.

Further, I find it ironic that Catherine was in the field of helping others by supporting and advising them when they experience trauma, but she chose not to listen and support Frank after he killed PM. Sometimes it's easier to help a stranger, than someone you are emotionally attached to, although I also had a sense that she found it difficult to separate her work and her home life, that is, she analyzed Frank's words and behaviors, and then provided what seemed judgmental advice to a loved one (something that would be welcomed by a patient seeking help from a professional).

Also, another poster expressed curiosity about how Catherine and Frank met and their courtship. Thinking about this a bit, Catherine had to be aware that Frank worked for the FBI. Those who work for the FBI sign non-disclosure agreements and gain security clearances. From the beginning, Frank had to inform Catherine that since he worked for the FBI, he couldn't share what he does at work with her. She may have been naive and thought this would change over time, even though the foundation had to include secrecy being part of their relationship. She should understand this as well since dealing with patients in her work, she can't divulge private information. Another thought I had about this was that she realized at the beginning how he was somehow troubled inside, and perhaps this was the primary reason she was attracted to him, thinking that she could help him. As the years went by, she had to acknowledge to herself that she could not help him, and this frustrated her to the point where she had to give up trying.

[Guest Bad Boy Dazza]

I always thought Catherine was a bit of a biatch for separating from Frank over that.

[Guest DezarasPrime]

I have a strong opinion on this subject that can be whittled down to a few words.

Yes Catherine was freaked that her husband stabbed a guy to death but, when all's said and done, he did it to protect her and Jordon. For her to seperate him from his family was wrong!!!

In short I think Catherine was an ungrateful b***h and I wasn't too upset when she died!

[IHaveGoodInstincts]

Yes, she was not the "Yellow House Mate" that she was in season 1. I have a hard time deciding on if they could have made Cathering nicer in season 2 without losing the intensity her character brought to season 2 plotline. I think that she had legitimite concerns about the Millennium Group and what it was doing to Frank. The hard part with conflict in television is that you eventually have to resolve it because a lack of resolution brings down the credibility of the plot of the show. I wouldn't have killed her off, but that's me!

[Guest DezarasPrime]

I wouldn't have killed her off either but I just wasn't that upset when she died. Now if she'd sorted things out with Frank sooner...