Wednesday, October 28, 2015

iZombie 2x04 "Even Cowgirls Get the Black and Blues" (No Such Thing as Fate?) [Contributor: Isabella]


"Even Cowgirls Get the Black and Blues"
Original Airdate: October 27, 2015

This week's homicide case got sent to the backburner, while the true heart of the show — character relationships and interactions — were at the forefront. From Ravi to Clive to Peyton, it seemed like everyone got their fair share of screentime and that screentime was with each other, I might add. What makes iZombie memorable isn't the action, or trying to solve the cases or how to get rid of this season's baddie, but the actors' ability to become their characters so completely that it makes us feel all the emotions we didn't think possible.

What I'm trying to get at is that this was one of the most emotional episodes and I need someone to cry with. Applicants may use the comments section to do so.

THE CASE

Sometimes I feel like I have get the discussion about the case over with before I can move onto the really good stuff. This is one of those times.

What I enjoyed most about this particular case is that Liv seemed to mostly be herself, even when singing in the bar. She sang a song about letting Major go and moving on, which I will discuss more about in a little bit. The persona Liv embodied this week was a waitress at a country music joint — Lacy — who was murdered in her bedroom. Lacy ended up being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The man who murdered her hadn't intended to kill her.

Liv had a Texan accent from time to time, but wasn't very prominent. The one takeaway from the case I enjoyed was Liv's musical talent. Writing and singing the song about her relationship with Major brought her to realize that she really does need to move on from him. It doesn't seem like he wants to be in a relationship anymore, so neither should she. Then again, at the end, she throws away the song she wrote about moving on just in time for Major to come to her door and ask for help. She threw away the paper because she knew it wasn't true. Moving on wouldn't be that easy for her.

With that note, let's get to the good stuff: the characters' relationships with each other.

First up...

PEYTON AND LIV

By far, this is my favorite relationship in the entire show.

When we last saw them, Peyton had run out on Liv after seeing her transform into her zombie self and killing someone right in front of her. Last episode, although they didn't see each other face to face, Peyton did take the time to deliver a birthday cake to Liv. She was also the only person to remember Liv's birthday.

It seems like taking that break for a couple of months did Peyton some good because she's back and ready to work on the Utopium case. But, most importantly of all, she is ready to continue her friendship with Liv, as exemplified within the first few minutes of this episode.

There's no fighting. There's no yelling. It's as if nothing ever happened between them — as if Peyton simply went on a vacation for a time. This isn't to say that Peyton didn't get mad. As she tells Liv, when she left, she resented Liv for being a zombie and for not telling her.

Peyton — being a great person and as empathetic as she is — understood how hard it must have been for Liv to 1) become a zombie, 2) lose her job as a surgeon, and 3) lose the love of her life, all in the span of a few months. Liv dealt with those things the only way she knew how, which makes me think I might have been too hard on her last year. I definitely didn't agree with a lot of Liv's actions last season, but she was doing what she thought was best. Now, Major's doing the exact same thing — killing zombies because it'll keep Liv alive. Luckily Peyton understands this and is able to determine when there's something off with Major. She is able to be Liv's support system through all this.

Luckily, Aly Michalka and Rose McIver have bucketfuls of chemistry and we get to see more of it when they're catching up at Liv's house. Peyton has incredible people skills and instantly gets the hint that Glinda's a sketchy character and maybe Liv should do a background check on her. Unfortunately, Peyton doesn't get that feeling with Blaine who seems to be her newest romantic interest. Yikes.


#LadiesSupportingLadies

CLIVE AND DALE

Malcolm Goodwin hinted at the fact that Clive might be getting a love interest this season and it seems to be coming to fruition. FBI agent Dale Bozzio was introduced as someone working on several missing persons cases in the area. She mentions a few like the famous astronaut who went missing. This should ring a bell, seeing as he was one of the guys Blaine had his henchmen kill for his brains. Matt Fowler from the "Real Housewives" episode is also mentioned. Blaine had him killed too. But the most interesting is the mention of a man that went missing jogging in the park — the man that Major killed.  

She'll be using the desk next to Clive's, giving them plenty of time to interact. Becoming involved with her will most likely propel Clive even further into the whole zombie situation. Like I said, this show is fantastic at weaving separate storylines together. It makes me all the more excited to see how everything will connect by the end of the season.

I'm also mildly frightened and preparing for the worst with this relationship. She's made Clive smile multiple times already, which I love since Clive deserves all the happiness, but after years of TV pulling stunts on me, I can't help but suspect that she's going to be "bad" or she's going to die. TV shows can't all be too good to be true.

GROUND CONTROL TO MAJOR TOM

Major completely hit rock bottom this episode, with his addiction to Utopium now messing up the relationships in his life. First, with Ravi. After Major leaves the back door open and Minor — their new dog, walks right through it, — Ravi and Major are forced to go look for the dog. Someone finds the dog back in the same park where his previous owner was killed by Major and then dumped in the river (cue my crying). 

Ravi confronts Major about how weird he's been acting and tells him he needs to get his act together because the night before, he didn't even respond to his name and the question of when he'd last seen Minor. Ravi's also pretty angry that Major didn't tell him Peyton would be living with them for a bit while she's trying to find a new place.

Liv's decided that it's about time for her to move on from Major, no matter how much it hurts, and sings a song about their relationship: "they love each other desperately, but they can't seem to stop hurting each other."

"It's Time I Let You Go" by Olivia Moore:
There's only nightmares ahead of us
And sweet dreams long ago.
It's time to wake up, baby.
It's time I let you go.
I've got to let you go.
After her song, she heads to Major's house to tell him this face-to-face:

From the moment that I met you, I knew that we were meant to be together. I was sure of it. It was like fate.  
But that was before I had witnessed a mass murder. Before I had eaten fresh brain. Before I had lied to you or let you put yourself in a mental hospital. It was before I watched you die. And it was before all this cruelty was directed at me.  
I don't think space can fix what's wrong with us. We're a dream that's dead. And I doubt I will ever stop loving you, but it's over now. I've got to let you go... completely... forever.

Major seems hurt by what she said, but quickly closes the door. Liv doesn't take any of this crap, and confronts him about how cold he's being to her. It's not fair because she didn't ask for any of this. She couldn't be this monster and his wife. Her confusion over what had happened to her made her distance herself from the people she loves. And, most of all, all of the decisions she made last year were to keep Major safe. Even if he doesn't agree with them, it's the best she could do.

While Liv wants to get closer to him, Major wants some space. But no matter how many times he tells her this, she's always there. It's like no matter how many times Liv decides to move on or officially end it, something always brings them back together. Although it seems pretty final.

Major doesn't fully realize how low he's sunk until he goes to buy some Utopium from a kid he had tried keeping off drugs while living in the shelter last season. The realization that he's become who he's tried to keep other kids from becoming hits him hard. So he turns to the only person he knows will help him. The only person he truly does miss. Liv.

He goes to her door and says, "I need help." She instantly pulls him into a hug, completely understanding. When they hug, it seems like such a relief to both of them. They exhale. This is how it's supposed to be. As they pull their heads away from their embrace, they kiss once. Major looks at her before they continue. It seems right. It seems like a good ending, but we know there's still a lot more that needs to be fixed before they can be fully happy and at peace together.

As this is all taking place, Angus and Julia Stone's "Crash and Burn" plays in the background. Apart from it being a gorgeous song that I can listen to over and over again, the lyrics are pretty telling of their relationship:
Will you come back
If I turn and run?
Will you come find me
If I crash and burn?
Will you come find me
If I crash and burn?
I definitely don't think they're in the right place to resume a relationship right now, since Major still has things he's keeping from Liv — like being a zombie killer. Although I'm pretty sure he'll tell her about his addiction to Utopium, he wouldn't tell her about being a zombie killer and his short-lived relationship with Rita, who also happens to be Liv's roommate "Glinda." That could get pretty messy and even more terrifying for Major if he finds out that Rita's gotten herself even closer to Liv.

If they do happen to resume the relationship, I don't think it'll end up too well for Major. Liv wouldn't take him being a zombie killer well. It'll be just like last season with her, but this time, Major's the one making all the decisions that he thinks are best — the ones that keep Liv safe.

In the long run, maybe these two will crash, but I don't think they'll burn. They'll just keep going back to each other. Maybe it is fate.

Brainy Quotes and Undead Notes:
  • Peyton and Liv are friends again. My heart is floating.
  • So Glinda's real name is Rita. Is this the first we've heard of this? I feel like it is.
  • "I hate that phrase, 'made love.' It's like sex went and hired a PR firm." — Same, Liv! There's just something about it that doesn't sit right with me.
  • "I just say 'do sex.' You know, like uh... Thank you for doing sex with me." — Ravi to Clive
  • "That's the smell of sex and self-loathing." — Major, I just want to hug you. Don't turn to Glinda/Rita, turn to meeeeee.
  • Ravi named the dog Minor. Major and Minor. This is great.
  • Okay, the more they show Liv cooking her brains into fancy dishes, the more I want to eat them. The fried brains she made looked so good. What's wrong with me?! This is like when I marathoned Hannibal in the confines of my bedroom and suddenly wanted some of what Hannibal was cooking. Never again.
  • I adore every scene involving Clive, Liv and Ravi together. They're so hilarious when they mess with Clive.
  • I'm so glad they were able to incorporate Rose McIver's gorgeous singing voice into an episode, especially with her singing the song "I Have to Let You Go."
  • I literally gasped when Peyton walked in on Ravi and his girlfriend, Steph. There are still feelings there and now I want them to get back together. I did chuckle when Steph wanted to high five Ravi for having dated Peyton. I see you, Steph. I see you.
  • "Have you heard the good news, brother? Jesus saves." "That's good news... where does he shop?" — Blaine
  • Ooh, Clive's getting a love interest. I don't know how I feel about this yet, but they actually seem sort of cute.
  • Blaine and Peyton. Oh lord. They're just matching up everyone aren't they?
  • There wasn't that much of Liv acting like someone else on account of the brains she'd eaten, which is a positive for me.
  • iZombie always has great music in their episodes, but playing Angus and Julia Stone's "Crash and Burn" during the Major/Liv kiss completely tied the episode together.

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