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Below the cut there are #124 gifs of Russell Tovey in Looking: The Movie.

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***Spoiler Alert for Season 2 of ABC’s Quantico***

Russell Tovey plays Quantico’s resident MI6 agent British charmer, and after episode 12, he also plays the most well-written character on the show. When Harry was first introduced in the first episode of season 2, it was clear that he was filling a role in Alex’s narrative. Essentially, he was her snarky, charming, sometimes ally/sometimes obstacle. It was a good relationship for Alex’s character to have in the new season. Also, Harry is gay, so it was a fresh dynamic to have a male character that wasn’t romantically linked to Alex now that Simon was gone. In the first few episodes, his main interactions were with Alex, with the occasional interaction with the other recruits. The only other interactions that were going somewhere past comedy and/or furthering the plot were with Sebastian. Basically he was a supporting role for the first few episodes, which is fair because he was a new character and after all, this is Alex’s show. I honestly wasn’t expecting much from Harry as far as character development goes due to the fast paced nature of Quantico’s plot twists, but the writers have done nothing but surprise me. Harry’s storyline is the best side plot line to come out of the show. We learn that Harry is part of an MI6-CIA transfer program, but he has his own agenda. The show, through Harry and Sebastian’s interactions, shows that Harry, under all of his charm and confidence, has a past tragic enough to rival our hero, Alex. His friend who died, Elliot Bishop, is revealed to be Harry’s past lover. Elliot was with Harry until his father, who is a very powerful man in the UK gave Elliot a choice: Harry or his family. Elliot chooses to go back to his family, leaving Harry devastated. Harry is unable to get in touch with Elliot until he receives a cryptic wedding invitation to Elliot’s wedding to a woman. Harry ignores it and Elliot turns up at Harry’s messed up. He can’t take being trapped in his life anymore. He realizes that he can’t be with Harry and commits suicide in front of him. Harry couldn’t save Elliot, and that moment in episode 12 gives new meaning to Harry’s entire presence on the show. Harry initially seemed antagonistic to Sebastian. Poking and prodding at Sebastian’s life, at his secrets. It seems initially like Harry is doing this to annoy Sebastian, or because he just wants to sleep with Sebastian. Now it is because he sees Elliot in Sebastian. Sebastian is denying who he is, clinging to religion and the woman he is dating, denying his feelings and blaming Harry for bringing them up. Their interactions have comedic value on their face, but represent deep issues of identity when examined further. The viewer starts to slowly see the layers of both characters through these interactions. We see that there is a deep sadness in Harry that is brought forward through Sebastian. He wants to avenge Elliot. Harry wants to take down Elliot’s father because his father, Lawrence Bishop, is the reason Elliot is dead. This is Harry’s driving force. Sure, Harry is working for MI6 and the CIA, but at his core he is driven to avenge his partner.

Russell Tovey has done a phenomenal job in crafting this character. The subtlety that he portrays Harry with creates so much depth in the character. In  the scene where he is telling Sebastian about Elliot, Tovey says more with his eyes than the entire scene does. The tragedy and sadness that is Harry’s driving force comes to life is all Tovey’s doing. In particular, when Sebastian tries to choke Harry, the look in Tovey’s eyes as Harry stops trying to throw Sebastian off of him was the best performance of the night. With that one look, he sees Elliot in Sebastian. He sees the pain and the inner struggle as Sebastian lashes out at him. He also, through this character, represents an important struggle in the LGBT community; the high suicide rate. It is important that we recognize that even today, people’s families are still not accepting and that does serious damage, especially when people are financially dependent on their families, like in Elliot’s case with his father. Having a narrative like this on a popular show on a major network is so important to the LGBT community, and it shows the strides forward we have made in our culture. But there is still much work to be done, and my only hope is that people watching this show who were unaware of the problem see that. Storylines on TV aren’t always trying to make a statement, but I’m glad this one is.

So why is he the best character on the show? Surely the best character has to be our hero, Alex Parrish? Harry Doyle is Quantico’s best character because he isn’t the hero. Not all of his actions seek to forward the main plot line, and it allows the character some flexibility for a more dynamic performance. The side conversations that we get between Harry and Sebastian flesh out both character’s driving motivations. Harry isn’t fueled by a desire to stop the AIC, which is Alex’s whole plot line; he has personal motivations that are much more compelling to watch. Getting this extra layer to the character makes him -dare I say- spinoff worthy. If the AIC crisis gets solved at the end of the season, I would love to see Harry finally get justice for Elliot. In Quantico, Harry Doyle doesn’t need a plot twist every episode to be a compelling character that we identify with. Obviously we want Alex to win, but the writers have made a supporting character’s narrative just as compelling as the high drama of Alex’s story. In my opinion, he is the breakout character of the second season. In 12 episodes, the writers have crafted a character that viewers can be attached to. We don’t always see that in supporting characters, especially not this soon. Harry’s narrative is more fleshed out and complex than any of the supporting characters of the first season, and the only person who has a backstory as interesting as him is Alex. I sincerely hope that we get to see more of Harry Doyle as the season progresses, because it would be awful if his quest to bring down Eliot’s father is neglected. Very rarely do we get such rich character development in supporting characters, and I can’t wait to see how Harry develops further, or how his crusade will be translated into the future timeline.

For reference, the scene where Harry reveals his past to Sebastian:

“Do you like being alone?” he asked.

“No. No one likes being alone. But I’ve learned how to live with it.”

I read the book in two sittings, both times stopping when the title was invoked: “call me by your name”. The first time this line appears, it’s like a drug. I felt elated after reading that scene and went to bed at 4am with heart palpitations. (Yes, this book almost fucking killed me). When these words are echoed at the very end of the novel, it’s with profound melancholy and I felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest. No, I’m not being dramatic. I was in physical and emotional distress.  

*spoilers*

I wonder if this novel is so affecting, not because Elio and Oliver didn’t stay together but because we know that if they did, their relationship wouldn’t have held the same meaning for them–that meaning is shaped by loss. The greater the loss, the greater the meaning. Another thing that struck me was Elio’s father’s take on the relationship. He recognized how rare and precious their bond was, even if it was just for a few fleeting summer weeks. (Oh God I’m crying again). Elio and Oliver really truly understood each other, inhabited each other, became each other, and I don’t think I appreciated just how rare that is until Aciman brought it to life on the page. And that is, I think, ultimately the saddest part of the book–that we’re lucky to experience a connection like this once in our lives, that most people don’t experience it at all. 

Actor Armie Hammer poses for a portrait to promote the film, “Call Me By Your Name”, at the Music Lodge during the Sundance Film Festival on Monday, Jan. 23, 2017, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Taylor Jewell/Invision/AP).