Eames On the Job

[Rose]

I think Kathryn Erbe has been playing Eames a little differently since returning from pregnancy leave and I wanted to know what you guys think.

[Rose]

JUST TO CLARIFY... the poll is about EAMES, not the actress ERBE. Since my comment with the poll was about Erbe I didn't want to create any confusion.

[trisha]

I think that maybe this poll belongs in the discussion board then. This board is for discussion of the actress, not the character.

Just calling it like I see it according to the borderline obsessive compulsive organization here. Maybe the Major can clarify?

[Major Hathaway]

Moved from the Erbe thread to a more general discussion area.

[Rose]

Trish I was trying to find a general discussion board for CI and everything seemed too specific. This was the closest board I could find to do the poll. If I offended, I apologize.

[Major Hathaway]

if you had offended the rules I would have let you know

you have just tread close to a line not crossed here, but you are well on "right" side

Memebers will let you know things like Lil'E and trisha did when you are heading in a dangerous direction, you know, like saving you from falling in a manhole

If you are taking the manhole cover off for others to fall, that's when I'll step in

[trisha]

Just getting back to the topic at hand.. I have felt a difference in Eames.

She looks tired, but I'm not sure if that's Erbe's tiredness, or Eames'. She is also not as upbeat as she used to be.

I hope this doesn't mean postpartum depression, because that falls into the melodrama category, imo. A little sign that she is a different person for having gone through such a profound experience must be expected, though. I'm all for character development in this respect.

I don't want to see the baby she had, but when Eames and Goren come in contact with babies, I'll definitely be watching Eames for her reaction, and Goren's reaction to her reaction. I mean, there's got to be at least a little of something. There are some things you just can't ignore, even if melodrama is being avoided at all costs, right?

[janetcatbird]

Yeah, I know I'm close to soap in wanting to see a baby, but that's just me and I know it's not likely. I mentioned somewhere that I would have liked to see Eames discuss it with Skoda as part of a standard review or whatever they call the procedure.

Just because something deals with family and emotional life does not make it soapy--these are important issues for a lot of people and thus they have been dealt with in different media. Obviously Eames the character will have some stuff to wade through as part of the carrying and birthing of a child. I think the only issue is where it would be appropriate to deal with such things, and breaking the flow of an investigation to have her talk it out would not be conducive to the show. Unless the writers take away from GOren and let the cases hit close to HER home for once, it might be interesting to see the different reactions.

I think everyone has been more subdued since Eames came back, maybe it's just feeling each other out to try and redefine Standard Operating Procedure. I mean, after something like that it could be a little awkward, especially with someone as complex as Goren. Even though Eames has been working with him for some time, she's still got to readjust after a fairly-lengthy absence.

[trisha]

Just because I don't like soap, doesn't mean I think others are retarded for feeling otherwise To me, too much drama takes away from the story, but for others, having a lot of emotion from the characters makes the story more human, and thus more intriguing.

I have enough drama in my own life, I don't care to experience anyone else's, but to each their own.

One of the reasons I have been watching L&O for the better part of 13 seasons is the fact that, while there is a bit of melodrama here and there (usually in the courtroom), the story takes the lead over any character.

I tried SVU out for the first few episodes and felt like I was drowning in melodrama. To me, the show uses it's horrific and grotesque crimes to cover for weak writing and the fact that the whole show is nothing more than a night time soap opera just like NYPD Blue.

Even though I couldn't stand SVU, I decided to check out Criminal Intent just to see what it was all about (and because, as you know, I'm Dick Wolf's B***h,) and found it to be the best of the three for three reasons:

1) Unbelievably well written stories for series television.
2) Great acting from all sides.
3) The crime plays the lead in every story.

I also really like Goren's approach to crime solving. You won't catch Lennie or any of the mothership 'tecs say their most important investigative tool is their library card, or keep a copy of the PDR in their desk. And while Lennie's lie detecting skills are right up there, Goren has it all over him when it comes to subconscious reactions and their psychological triggers.

But as facinating as Goren is, I don't want to follow him home or meet his mother. I also don't want to meet Eames' sister or see the baby. It's fine, even fun, when these little things come up in an investigation and we can piece it together over time, but the crime just has to come first or we are watching just another night time soap. There are so many of those already. It would be absolutly tragic for me if CI became one of them.

[Rose]

Yeah, SVU is too much for me. I don't think it's a bad show, it's not, but it hits you with the most horrific crimes possible and resolves them in a way that makes you want to crawl under your bed and remain there in the fetal position because they make it seem life sucks so bad. The acting is good and sometimes the stories are riveting but I'm just too wimpy for the show. A lot of people on the usenet L&O group think it's the best of the lot tho. They like how relentlessly hard hitting it is. So potato potahto I guess.

But anyway, as to Eames, my theories about her are as follows. 1) After having her sister's kid she's decided she wants her own and she's thinking, no steady man, job that consumes my life, biological clock ticking, what now? That's pure speculation on my part, there is no evidence on the show. Or 2) After three months away from Goren she now finds him annoying. What makes me think this is possible is her sarcastic "It's so good to be back" line after Goren grabbed the suitcase from the trash can...when it could have been a bomb. Maybe the show wants to create a little friction between them. That can happen without soapifying the show, as long as it's subtle and doesn't take over the show's stories. Or 3) Erbe is tired after giving birth to a baby and from being awakened at all hours by a crying infant who wants to be fed and we're picking that up onscreen. You know...the working mom syndrome. It's not easy being a TV star and it's not easy being mom to an infant. I can't imagine being both.

One thing I'm pleased to see is that Erbe is keeping some of her post baby weight. I think she looks better and I also think TV needs to get away from pushing the idea that attractive women have to be stick figures. Some women are naturally very thin (I used to be) and that's fine but it shouldn't be a prerequisite for being pretty.

[trisha]

I'm going to say a little of both #1 and #3. I'm sure a little of the tiredness I'm sensing is KE's.

I don't think Eames is frustrated with Goren, there was too much of an attachment in seasons 1&2 for that. I always come back to The Third Horseman in times like these and have to say that her overt emotional reaction to abortion suggests that the subject is near and dear to her. We found out not to long ago that Eames is a widow, and her husband, a cop, was killed in the line of duty. I wonder if maybe she had an abortion and now regrets it as her only chance to have one of her own, this being compounded by carrying and giving birth to a child she can't keep even if she wanted to.

I know I've gone on and on about this before and I'm sure no one wants to hear it again, so I'll let it go now.

[romulanavatra3]

i just thought a possible reason(god forbid) why eames might be less upbeat than she used to be.

would alex tell goren if she was terminally ill( please do not let this happen), but iam just wondering if she was would she let any body know, being her usaal stubborn self and all.


reagrds rom.

[trisha]

You know I would have to break up with this show if that happened, right? Talk about your Sipowitz-onian twists, ack!

I'm hoping we'll see Alex gradually get back to her snarky self, and I'm going to leave it at that.

[romulanavatra3]

i have recently been rewatching some episodes and i found something quite intresting, has any body noticed how eames is Impeccably polite towards elderly people and young children. she is very gentle and also very caring towards them. goren is good with children at times but i think he gets a bit carried away sometimes.

i have also noticed is that eames has a certain vulnerablity about( it is often hard to notice except it comes through in her facial expressions sometimes)her.

i think she is often worried about her job and her own safety(with good reason). she strikes me as the sort of person who is very conscious of things going on around her. i think alex is a little insucre in some respects and that could explain why she has trouble opening up to people. she is very much hiden in herself even though i dont think she would admit it. and i think this could possbily be taking a toll on her because a lot of her insurcerities are hidden that could be grinding at her and affect her general temperment and manner.

reagrds rom

[trisha]

I think everyone has insecurities, but some of us are better at hiding them than others. Eames really has to hide any insecurities and counteract female stereo types just to be considered a good cop. Any weakness she shows will be seen as feminine, not just human weakness. This is really not and issue with Bobby, but with any other cop she has to be on her guard. Even Deakins has some prejudice, even if he doesn't mean it that way. He treats Alex like a girl, and even called her a girl once. She is not a girl. She is a woman, and not just any woman. She is a smart, witty, strong, and confident woman who works in a tough business that women were excluded from until fairly recently.

So, I don't see any insecurities in her on any regular basis. I only recall one case that seemed deeply personal to her, and that was The Third Horseman. I won't go there again, though, so don't worry