That interrogation scene, that was Shaw grieving. Reese is right, it doesn’t look like anyone else’s grief. She’s angry, not sad. She’s angry that Root’s dead, but it’s not a simulation. She’s angry that the Machine sent them after a half-assed assassination attempt instead of giving them something they can use to fight Samaritan or find Harold. Above all, she seems angry that she can’t be anything but angry.

“I’m angry that you have people you can love and you chose to sign their death warrants.”

There are two parts of this that I think really stand out:

/People you /can/ love./ She’s angry that she couldn’t love Root, at least not in the same way that Root loved her. She cared, and Root knew in some way. Still, Shaw’s grief manifests as anger against something she can control, or wishes she could (perhaps seriously for the first time in her life, since it doesn’t generally seem that it bothers her much otherwise): her PD.

/You /chose/ to sign their death warrants./ Shaw never had a choice. She wasn’t even /there/, and you can bet that she’s angry about it. She’s been stuck in simulations for months, and now she’s used to replaying the same scenarios over and over again, looking for a way to do things differently, and she’s angry that this time, despite months of what could be considered practice, she’s still failed.

This is Sameen Shaw’s grief. It doesn’t look like anyone else’s, but damn if it doesn’t make me ten times more sad.

no but we’ve been seeing the whole season how strong-willed and loyal Shaw is. after 7000 simulations she may have killed John and/or Harold but she never revealed the location of the Machine and she never gave away Fusco. and she never killed Root. Root was her safe space, her termination point for every simulation. 

Shaw knew she wasn’t in a simulation anymore when she had her axe and she killed Lambert and she found herself in South Africa.

but seeing Root again Shaw is no longer certain she isn’t in a simulation. seeing Root again wasn’t part of the plan because that would endanger the team and the mission. but she does see Root again and Root tells her they need to get to the subway, aka the one thing SIM!Root was always trying to get her to do.

and so Shaw tells Root about the simulations and what she’s been forced to do, again and again, to so many people. but never to Root. and it’s interesting because at that point Root does smile. in a way, it’s everything she’s ever wanted to hear, Shaw does care!!

but Shaw pulls a gun on her head because she can’t risk killing anyone other than herself in this maybe simulation. especially not Root. and Root reacts in the most Root way possible - she points a gun at herself. because Root is many things and she can do so much, but live in a world without Sameen Shaw is not something Root is able to do.

and it’s not romantic. it’s twisted and uncomfortable, actually. but Shaw stares at Root, the most dumbfounded I’ve seen Shaw tbh, because Root putting a gun on herself? it’s not something Samaritan would ever have Root do. but Root is unpredictable and reckless and obnoxiously annoying and of course she hasn’t come to this world to see Sameen Shaw die.

and Shaw recognises that. Shaw recognises Root’s behaviour as so characteristically, so ridiculously, so unmistakably Root. Shaw sees it and suddenly Root isn’t the safe place anymore, Root is Root. Root makes her sigh and grunt and roll her eyes. Root is real.

and if Root is real, Shaw doesn’t have to kill herself because there’s no simulation to wake up from.

Yeah I agree, that’s what I was thinking when Max died. Truth is Max kinda reminded me of Suluiman Khan. They tried everything to save him, but in the end his own curiosity killed him, it was his choice and I think that exact same thing would have happened with Max no matter how much longer they tried to change his mind. And they didn’t even have the time for that, few more minutes and they would all be dead. It’s very possible Machine run simulations and decided there is no way to save him without… I don’t know, locking him up against his will, which definitely isn’t something Harold would or should have wanted? It was a bit morally ambiguous on The Machine’s part, but it’s not like that’s the first time it happens, we know already that The Machine does care about them and the arguments about free will… well, the more you think about it the less clear the whole concept is, because how much of our choices are really “free will” and how much is societal pressure, upbringing, personality, idk even our genes and natural tendencies, our past… point is I think The Machine made the right choice, chances were otherwise both Root and John would have died and so would Max. And as much as I value Harold’s opinion and his lack of total trust in artificial intelligence, because that’s what made creating The Machine possible, in the last episodes especially I’m just really damn annoyed with him. He acts as if he’s morally superior, like Kate said - dismisses all of Root’s ideas and refuses to see that the old methods aren’t work anymore. With Samaritan online, they’re in a brave new world, Elias is right saying that old rules don’t apply anymore and Harold refuses to see that.

you can see shaw’s heart stop when she sees root get shot in 6,741; it’s because SHE knocked the gun out of greer’s hand, and this caused the gun to fire. shaw kills herself 6,741 times so she doesn’t have to kill root, and when she sees root get shot, SHE knows she was the reason why root got shot because she knocked the gun out of greer’s hand, and she’s terrified.

Rewatching 6,741 knowing it’s all about locating TM is blowing my mind

Literally every detail is Samaritan pulling an ‘Inception’ trying to get Shaw to reveal the location of the machine but Shaw just keeps deflecting it all like the badass genius she is.

And then there’s just all the things that are slightly off only in the way that Shaw would twist them from her perspective…

Seriously. The writers are brilliant. This show is amazing. 

OK OK BUT BEFORE I SHUT UP YOU MIGHT SAY “BUT SHAW GOT SHOT IN PERSON OF INTEREST I FEEL SO BETRAYED DEAD LESBIAN TROPE QUEERBAITING” okay okay listen liSTEN

Shaw got shot went down saving her team and her partner in crime Former Villain Ultimate Lesbian Hacker Reformed Killer For Hire Analogue Interface for a Sentient Artifical Intelligence in the most beautiful way because it was so right for her character.

Sameen Shaw with a PD sacrificed herself because she ~does the protecting~ and she DIDNT DIE but yes she got shot because Sarah I was On The L Word Shahi was preggers with twins

but WAIT theres more they left the story open so Sarah could come back when the time came AND SHE DID COME BACK

But you know what also happened after Shaw got shot and went MIA to the eyes of her assassins family? We grieved. We mourned. The writers gave THE LESBIAN CHARACTER A WHOLE SET OF EPISODES WHERE SHE GRIEVED SHE CAUSED MAYHEM SET THE FUCKING CITY ON FIRE BECAUSE SHE WAS LOOKING FOR HER LOVE SAMEEN SHAW. (Shes tine and bi and a neauroatypical PoC)

And not only that but it was her persistence and her love that moved the second part of season 4 forward. Not once is Root called out or looked at weird for grieving, same goes for the rest of the team.

Also did you know the song played during Shaw’s fall is called ‘Til Death Do Us Part’ right after she kissed Root to save her and her team?

If you want 704 more reasons to watch Person Of Interest come to me i shall give them to you and you wont regret it.

Now, stay

ʏᴏᴜ ᴄᴀɴ ʟᴇᴛ ɢᴏ ɴᴏᴡ.

#I’ll never be over how long Shaw lets Root hold on to her though #I mean seriously #there are approximately 27 seconds #of Root pushing Shaw against a pile of moving boxes #tenderly #with her whole body #obviously to keep them both from being detected #15 of those 27 seconds happen while the truck’s doors are closed #and it’s a pretty save bet they won’t be detected #and instead of pushing Root off without much ado #Shaw actually tells her she can let go of her now #because she’s there #and they are save for the time being #and Shaw knows that stunt with Martine was a close call #as much as Root does #and so she lets Root have her moment #and maybe just maybe #takes the tiniest moment for herself #not that she’d ever admit that of course #Shaw only pushes Root off after that moment between the two of them #gets interrupted by Harold #and Root answers him #and I just love that fact #and those 27 seconds of cuddling the little grump Root got out of it (via ruhroohroot)

Honestly?  I’m still convinced I hallucinated most of Season Four and definitely everything Shaw and Root related.

Quick reminder that Luke had about five minutes of training with a lightsaber and NONE of it included actually fighting against an other opponent. Remember Ben sparring with Luke? Nope. It was just him playing around with a robot that tased him

Do you remember Yoda sparring with Luke? Nope. He was teaching him about the Force but we never saw him ONCE teaching him how to actually fight with a lightsaber. Luke had precisely ZERO experience when it came to fighting with a lightsaber.  And yet none of you said anything when Luke actually kept up with Vader and later on actually defeated Vader

Rey on the other hand spend her ENTIRE LIFE defending herself with her staff. She is very well versed in fighting with a melee weapon. But when she fought against a HEAVILY INJURED Kylo Ren you immediately cry Mary Sue and unrealistic.

Think about that. Think about what this attitude says about you.

Some thoughts regarding the Annalise/Wes mother-son theory.

This is long (very long) and I’m not saying the theory is canon, I just thought about it some more and came up with these thoughts.

Keep reading

Society and sexism

You know as a dude I understand there is a LOT of sexism in our society but usually under sexism  my first thought is things like sexual harassment or job discrimination and rarely perceive other aspects. But I just watched episode of Bones and the issue was about something called fantasy football. Based on the explanation it’s literally one of the silliest geekiest things a grown man can do. And yet no one in the episode made fun of them. In fact the writers even went out of their way to show that the main male character aka the super awesome perfect hero has also played it and enjoyed it greatly.

And yet we constantly see shows which dismiss more typically female things like shopping, going to yoga or to a spa day things that frankly are far more beneficial for your life and treat them as something to be almost mocked or as being shallow or pointless

And when I began to think about it this is even worse when it comes to real life as well.  I mean look at sport fans. Most of them are grown man with jobs and families and yet they do ridiculous things like paint their faces, shout on top of their lungs, remember sport statistics, get into fights .start actual riots….etc.. And yet society treats them with tolerance and even in positive manner with that old “oh look at those rascals” attitude. But teen girls who are excited to see their favorite signers or actors and behave in frankly far more subdued matter then sport fans are treated as crazy, brainless bimbos and constantly mocked. And I can’t even imagine how a say forty year old woman would be treated if she dares to act this excited

Woman in our society are fucked on so many matters it’s horrifying. Can’t even imagine what it is like to grow as a girl when there are so many things going against you

#John and Shaw are killers#trained killers#they were plucked from the military#and were specifically trained to be very efficient#at putting bullets into people’s heads#and they were very good at what they did#they still are#what Harold did was take two people whose first instinct was to kill#and ask them to do a complete 180 and start saving people instead#and that would just never have worked if they hadn’t had some ingrained instinct to protect people already within them#Harold didn’t just pick up any two random people to work for him#he chose them both very carefully#and even then Shaw was a bit of a gamble#also oh look it’s John shooting a person right in the head even after working with Harold#and absolutely not regretting it (via @potcpoi)

Except I just don’t believe that Shaw’s first instinct is to kill? She started out as a doctor first and foremost. Once she joined the military, it was to carry out mission objectives. Once in ISA, it was to investigate based on the numbers they got and then to squash terrorists if deemed a threat. Once with Team Machine, it is to save the numbers that are innocent. The common thread here isn’t that she kills or saves; it is that she strictly adheres to the organization or profession she is a part of, which she has chosen because their mission and objectives align with hers. Interestingly enough, I think Shaw’s first instinct is to be a part of something greater than herself and support that chosen group to achieve their goals (whether that is saving a life, killing terrorists, or protecting the innocent).

The only thing Harold got her to do that was against her nature was to be NICER about it and improve her bedside manner. He gave her a team to belong to and missions objectives she believes in, but he didn’t flip her character. She has always wanted to save people. It is a disservice to the character to think otherwise.

the way that POI writes their characters is captivating. they take these easily sterotypical characters and turn them on their heads, present them as painfully real characters who surprise you and don’t do what you expect. a prime example is in the memorable 4x11 when TM attempts to predict all possible scenarios and figure out which one would work best, but an unaccountable variable enters into play: human nature. shaw doesn’t do what TM predicts, and its a wonderful nod to the audience, subtly showing the viewers that we cannot predict the actions of these characters because thats simply not realistic. in real life humans aren’t simple. it creates characters like Root, who are “bad” but then “good?” when in reality, Root is and always has been a morally ambiguous character. The only instances we’ve seen her express true compassion and love(?) in her adult life is with the Machine and Shaw, and her relationship with the Machine is more like worship than anything. Her relationships with others truly show that yes, although she obviously cares about Harold and Reese and Fusco, and we do see her display this in season 4, she still doesn’t fit into the mold of “hero.” Finch is a man who we would assume to be “good” but throughout the seasons we see him falter, question his morals, manipulate others, and stray from what he considers the stark difference between good and evil this just barely touches the surface of the complex and relevant writing and construction of this show. so for heaven’s sakes, go watch it on Netflix!