How SFU was 'tied up' (Warning: SPOILERS for those who have not watched Series 5!)
Joey
This is a lengthy post, so if you're a obsessed fan maybe you will read to
the end and comment..
Before I criticise the series, I want to say that it was one of the most
moving and unique shows on TV, that there is not yet anything that replaces
it emotionally for me, and I hope Alan Ball does not wait too long before
bringing another dysfunctional family to our hearts.
I just watched all 5 series in one month, and I feel there are a lot of
'loose ends' - but maybe that's because I crammed it all in and missed
something... What generally bothered me overall throughout all 5 series was
how characters of interest just suddenly disappeared without any proper
finale. (Claire's school psychologist, Nate's favoutite rabbi, Arthur,
Ruth's Russian boyfriend, Edie (Menu Suvari), Gabe etc..). I strongly
suspect that the behind-the-scenes actors' contracts was the major factor in
these sudden inexplicable departures...
Also too were sudden changes in people - Lisa's transformation between
Series 2 and 3 from creepy stalker of Nate to sweet-natured housewife, Ruth
and Claire's sudden hatred for each other in Series 5, Nate's sudden
transition from devoted husband and father at the start of Series 5 to
'quaker adulterer' a few months later ... it's the only major criticism I
have of SFU in general - that the screenwriters wanted to 'move on' so
impatiently to new plots that they introduced these dramatic changes without
really taking note of whether they fitted in behaviour with the same
characters from a few episodes prior.
But not everything in the rounding-up was bad - I think the show sets an
example on how to properly end a long-running TV series. I will outline my
major opinions here, maybe someone would like to respond...?
* What was unsatisfactory:
1. Nate's death:
In my opinion, one of the biggest mistakes on the part of the scriptwriters
was how they arranged Nate's departure from SFU. Not how he died, but how
he was portrayed to us in the episodes prior to his death. To be honest, he
had become such a jerk that I was not sad at all to see him go. It seems to
have started around the time he flipped out at his birthday party, attacking
that bird, and then he became pretty unfair to Brenda. Even his last words
to Brenda about just calmly leaving her while she's heavily pregnant with
their possibily-ill child, along with his lack of remorse about cheating on
her, just left me with a really bad final impression of the character, when
in truth he was not like that throughout the whole series. Nate was always
the most sensitive to the bereaved clients who walked through the doors of
Fisher & Sons / Fisher & Diaz, so it seemed ridiculously out of character
for him to behave so coldly to his own wife, who had not really done
anything this time to piss him off. For the departure of such a major
character, they should not have tried so hard to make us dislike the guy as
much as possible at the time of his death - overall he deserved buckets of
tears, but it was hard to remember the good old Nate in the last few
episodes...
2. The murder of Ruth Fisher's joy:
I know coping with a mentally ill husband, a moody narcissistic teenage
daughter and the death of your first child cannot be easy, but I really wish
the screenwriters had allowed us to catch a glimpse of the wonderful Ruth
Fisher at her happiest before taking away SFU. Throughout most of the 5 SFU
series Ruth was an absolute pleasure to watch, a lady who managed to embrace
change and maintain a kind and fun-loving spirit. We don't often find
characters of this demographic who are so entertaining and inspiring on our
TV screens. For me she is without a doubt the most interesting older female
character I have ever watched on any TV show or film. Therefore I think
it's a shame that for most of the 4th and 5th series we seemed to be
witnessing her infectious spirit decay into someting lonely, bitter and sad.
On this point too I wish they had've brought Arthur back to the Fisher home
for a few episodes - not just in Ruth's shotgun fantasy :-)
*What was done well:
1. Brenda's evolution
I think the most inspiring story of character development is that of Brenda,
who gradually matures and strengthens over the 5 series. We first meet this
wild lady in the pilot episode banging Nate in an airport closet, and then
watch her insane behaviour gradually lose more and more control, peaking at
the end of Series 2. Brenda's gradual transformation from Series 3 to 5, as
a desperate woman who has actually learned from her mistakes, is an
inspiration. She chooses to stop focusing on her own neuroticism and take
charge of her own life and start caring about others (including the child
that was fathered by Nate when he cheated on her). By the last episode she
has managed to become a likable character without becoming boring - rather,
she is a fine example of how stability and happiness can be more appealing
that self-absorbed craziness.
2. The final 5 minute 'future glimpses':
A lot of shows try to tie up the end of a series by hinting at what may
happen to the characters after they have left the screen forever. The
creators of SFU released that would not be enough for the fans and so
actually showed us what would happen to these guys we have grown so attached
to, right up until their last breath.
I cried so much during that last 5 minute sequence, because it's so real to
the nostalgia we all feel about life's inevitable change and the death of
our loved ones. When the ghost of Nate whispers into Claire's ear "You
can't take a picture of this; it's already gone" it really melted my heart,
because that's exactly what life is like - that we should cherish present
memories and moments because soon they will be gone forever.
It was also nice to see that George remained in Ruth's life right up until
the end, that the medicated-but-likeable Billy wasn't killed off in some
weird stereotype-psycho melodrama, and that Brenda found a man to complete
her 'stepfamily'.
Finally, just as an aside, I am wondering if anyone else is wondering about
Maggie's hospital appointment: In the final episodes after Nate's death,
Maggie disappears and we only see her again when Ruth calls her to find out
if Nate was happy on his last night of life. When Maggie answers the phone
she is in a doctor's waiting room - is this a hint that perhaps she's
pregnant to Nate or are we supposed to assume that its just a day in her
normal life as a pharmaceutical rep? She seems to be meeting a doctor in
overalls, not a business rep...
Joanna