#cabe gallow

Season 1 was excellent. No notes. Loved it.

Season 2 and beyond...less so.

What I LOVED:

Ralph:

Perfection. Adorableness and brilliance all in one package. No notes.

Happy, Toby and Quintis:

Equally as strong apart as they are together, these two were the reason I loved this show so much. God their whole relationship is just...😍😍😍😍 Where do I find me a man like that?

I loved every interaction and I loved how they both grew throughout the series, both as individuals and as a couple.

Sylvester:

I really liked how Sylvester and Megan were together. I loved his dedication to her and that last episode really made me sad for him. But I also like how he (along with Happy and Toby) really matured throughout the series. He realized that if he wanted things in life he was going to have to do things he feared and that was great to watch. I loved seeing him as a lawyer and the episode where he took the test was hilarious.

Cabe:

Found family is probably my favorite trope of all time, and while I don't think this show's execution was the best I've ever seen of it, I did really like how they treated Cabe, and how all of them recognized him as a father-figure in their lives. Also I really liked how the show used someone older for the fighter character. And I really liked Allie.

Paige:

Similar to the others, I really liked how she grew into her own in the series. I liked how she took control and basically forced them to listen to her. She had a lot of good sense and I loved her openness.

Tim/Florence: I'm bundling these two because they're clearly meant to be love interests rather than independent characters. That being said, I liked them both. Tim was a genuinely cool guy and Florence, though definitely uncertain, has a lot to offer.

Now for what I didn't like.

Bet you noticed that Walter wasn't in the list above. There's a reason for that. And I know that I'm probably going to catch flack for this opinion (though probably not much since the show's been over for 6 years).

Season 1 Walter was great. He was brilliant but misunderstood. Trying to understand people, making an effort.

Then came Season 2 and it was like all of that progress was tossed out the window.

Honestly, I started to HATE Walter in season 2. I don't remember when exactly, but when he deliberately started sabotaging Paige and Tim's date...(dude...that was pathetic AF)was what cinched it for me. I recognize that he didn't have any experience with jealousy, and that emotions are hard for him, but he makes it harder on himself by his unwillingness to see what others are pointing out to him. Everything surrounding him and Tim and Paige gave me such an ick that by the end of season 2 I didn't even care about him any more and I really didn't care about him and Paige.

He can't even use the excuse of his high IQ because Ralph's IQ is higher and Ralph understood that he was an ass to his mother, and that what he did was wrong. All of them did. Walter hides behind his intelligence, his score. It's all he has going for him. It's what bothered me the most, I think. How focused he was on a meaningless number (yes, IQ is a functionally irrelevant number that measures one aspect of a person's skillset - it's not an end-all-be-all number) and how much of his worth he attributed to it and his smarts. Every other character in their show had other things about them that made them dynamic and interesting. Walter really didn't other than Megan - and then she died and his story with her was over.

And what made it worse was his unwillingness to learn. Even when he and Paige DO get together, it's obvious that he doesn't compromise for her at all. She consistently points out to him things that are inappropriate or that she doesn't like and he promises to do better...and then never does.

It's one (of many) reason(s) that I don't see Paige X Walter as a survivable relationship. Contrast it with Happy and Toby and it's obvious. Toby is consistent in telling Happy how he feels about her, but he also shows up. Prioritizes her. And when she tells him that he needs to kick his gambling habit or they're done - HE DOES - without even a blink of hesitation. And he sticks TO IT (except for that one episode, but I'll get to that later). Toby and Happy recognize that they BOTH need to make changes to make their relationship work. Happy has to open up more and be more vulnerable, Toby has to mature, and they DO.

Paige recognizes this and tries to accommodate Walter's lack of EQ, but even she points out (multiple times) how exhausting it is always being the one doing the compromising.

The only episode I REALLY hated in his series was the one where Toby helps his ex-fiance with her identity theft problem. Narratively it's meant to show the foil between how Happy/Toby and Paige/Walter work in their relationships, but I still hate that they did it. Happy trusts Toby, never even thinks that her husband is going to cheat on her. But she worries that he's being tempted by his old life. Toby immediately rejects what's her name's kiss and says that he loves his wife and only his wife. He immediately comes CLEAN to his wife about what happened, he is open and honest with her about what he did and why. She's upset, and tells him why. In other words, they communicate and then move past the issue.

Paige and Walter...not so much. Even in that episode it's clear they're not on the same page about their relationship. The whole thing about the first kiss/etc. But this is even more important with Walter's whole lie fiasco. Yeah, he admits to the dream about Florence, but then he lies to Paige about the lecture and takes Florence. And lies about it. Again. And again. Even as the others are pointing out to him that he really shouldn't do that because even if it meant nothing his obfuscating of it makes him seem guilty. He even snaps back on Toby and Happy about how Paige will never find out about the lie because he thinks he's too smart to get caught (Dude, haven't you learned by now that Karma's a Bitch?).

So, all of this to say: Walter deserved every second of that ending. Lying to Paige was bad enough. But ALL of them tried to explain to him why what he was doing was bad. And Paige was 1000% correct in ripping him a new one about it. Sly, while I don't agree with him blaming Walter for Florence rejecting him, was correct that he needed time to move on from Megan. Walter blowing up at him about it was absolutely wrong. The way that he in particular told Paige that she was being ridiculous for her feelings and for pointing out how wrong he was to LIE about what he did just made me absolutely hate him. You can basically see the entirety of their relationship die in that second. Cardinal rule - never tell someone who is mad at you that they are being ridiculous. And I know he's lashing out in fear and anger, but it's another sign among many that he doesn't have the emotional maturity to handle an adult relationship. And it's not on Paige or anyone else to do the work necessary to get him there. In fact, I agree with her assessment that he started out at about age 9 emotionally and was about a 15/16 at that last point there. Then the way he snaps back at Happy and Toby for (AGAIN) pointing out to him that he's the architect of all of this was absolutely wrong. He's blaming everyone else for his failures except himself.

So, in the end, I'm glad they walked. I think the show is stronger without Walter in it. I'm not saying that Walter CAN'T grow up and mature, but I'm saying it's been made clear through the previous seasons that he doesn't WANT to. And it's not their jobs to do that for him. It's his. Maybe if it'd gotten picked up for a season 5 they'd have been able to change my mind, but I honestly doubt it. His smugness when he meets them in that office building in the last scene says it all about him - he cares more about his own ego, his own smarts, than he does about the well-being of his team. He cannot let go of his own ego. So yeah, I like the way they completely demolish him with the succinct little detail that they already got the other job.

Realistically they have a better chance of success anyway. Despite his smarts, Walter cannot do what Happy, Toby, Paige or Sly do. He can do some of it, but he lacks their skills and mastery, and Florence and Cabe are not enough to even begin to compensate for that.

I do understand why Cabe stayed. But I also think the others wouldn't blame him for it. Florence staying was just...😬😬.

I also really liked the contrasts between the two teams: Centipede is in crisp, white, matching uniform shirts. Very cohesive and professional. Walter, Florence and Cabe are in dark colors but different textures and styles. They're loosely grouped together.

My personal head-cannon is that Centipede would eventually become the de-facto government arm and that Cabe would be reassigned to them instead. Walter would end up going to work for Elia, maybe taking Florence along. I could see Paige re-starting a relationship with Tim and it actually working without Walter interfering.

Ralph could fairly easily replace Walter's role and I think he'd enjoy doing it. I also think he'd have a hard time forgiving Walter, not only for hurting his mom (AGAIN), but for the way he's treated the other members of the team. I know he mentioned really wanting Walter to be his dad, but I think he'd let go of that after what Walter did to his mom (AGAIN).

I could see Walter eventually making progress and growing up, but it definitely wouldn't be fixed within a season. I'd see that kind of re-evaluation of life and priorities taking a good 3-5 years, possibly longer.

The other thing that really started to rub me wrong on this show was its predictability - i.e. opening relationship drama, then job, job is easy then - NOPE something goes wrong - usually something one of them does. Then at least one of them almost dies. Then they have to figure out how to save the other(s), save the day, and then fix the relationship drama of the week. It's all a bit...boring.