Fallout 3.6: Let's Play a Love Game

Spoilers for the third season V-Day episode coming up just as soon as I show more cleavage in a romantic way at this year's Valentine's Day Zombie Party...

Oh, Gina. You were really asking for it, weren't you? I mean, if you want to be killed on Fallout, here are some easy steps to following to accomplish that goal:

1. Investigate these mysterious deaths.
2. Spend as much time telling everyone you're investigating these deaths as you do actually investigating them.
3. Don't leave town. Like ever.

Bam! It's really a wonder that Gina wasn't killed a long time ago, actually. And even though I'm sorry to see her go (I thought Gina and Ben were supercute!), maybe her death was the linchpin that set a conclusion in motion (since only 3 episodes remain in the series).

To summarize this year's Valentine's Day episode, I thought I'd couch things in terms of character motivations...living, dead, and supernatural. But I also wanted to introduce all of my loyal readers to a new distinction that I have made that I find helpful: the difference between Blake...the lovable, confused, wandering anti-hero who is hoping he isn't a terrible person...and Blunk (Blake + drunk = Blunk)...the horrible, angry, strangely confident and steady maniac who emerges when Blake goes on a bender. Anyway, here it goes:

Supernatural

• Azazel: Azazel appeared in this episode as at least Kaitlyn and Max, and possibly as others. (The tricky thing about Azazel is that if we see a dead person talking to a living person, it can always be either Azazel or the spirit of that dead person (and Azazel doesn't conveniently wear a Minnesota twins hat every time he appears), at least until that dead person reveals him/herself. And even then, we know that Azazel sometimes pretends to be a spirit of a dead person anyway, so what do we know for sure? Well, Azazel (as Max) seemed to want Gina dealt with (courtesy of Blunk), and he (as Kaitlyn) wanted Erin to get in line, as well as for Brett (tool! and sexual predator!) to return stolen information to Gina that Ashley had stolen in 3.1. It appears that Brittany had coerced Ashley into stealing them, but was Brittany motivated by her own schemes, or is she acting on behalf of one of the supernatural beings? Because if it's the latter, then this is just one of a few instances in this episode in which a supernatural being changed zie mind. (I recently became aware of "zie" for use of a genderless pronoun, and I'm going to use it here, since I don't really know if Azazel and Gabriel have gender. Mostly to make myself sound smart.) As in, someone didn't want Gina to have the information, but then did want Gina to have it. Are Brittany's schemes in line with Gabriel's (since Brittany talks to Gabriel on occasion)? Or is Gabriel upset with Brittany, too? And finally, if Azazel wanted Brett to give Gina the information Ashley had stolen, why did Azazel also want Blake to "take care of" (i.e., murder in the journalism office) Gina? Is it for someone else to find? Or was one of Azazel's appearances not really Azazel? Or am I missing something?
• Gabriel: Gabriel appeared exclusively in the form of Martha this episode, and hasn't really changed zie tune. Blah blah blah, you aren't doing what I told you, blah blah blah, you have to help me, blah blah blah it's too late. However, I was shocked when Gabriel changed zie mind this episode and told Chris that he should go after Brittany (in the biblical sense). Again, is this really about Gabriel wanting Chris to be contented and focused? Or was the break-up and getting-back-together all orchestrated masterfully by Gabriel or Gabriel and Azazel in tandem? Gabriel also seems pretty upset with Spirit Sarah, who is technically breaking some rules. Which leads to the age-old question: What does Gabriel want? Is it the same, opposite, or just different from what Azazel wants? Does Gabriel just fear for Laura's life if Laura finds out too much? Or is Gabriel not necessarily as "good" as zie wants us to believe? That is, is it more important to Gabriel to have things play out in a specific way (i.e., for Laura not to discover the killer and put an end to the murders) than to save some lives? Gabriel did ominously declare that things had to play out "only when the time was right" and that the spirits were being selfish. And also, why is Gabriel upset with Jenny?

Spirits

• Sarah: Sarah seems to be simply out to have her killer found out, and she doesn't mind involving an innocent in the process. Gabriel called Sarah transferring some of her past memories to her identical stranger Laura both selfish and "cheating." Is it? I feel pretty sorry for Sarah, which makes me angry with Gabriel and unsympathetic toward the "master plan" argument.
• Max: Max seems both sympathetic to Laura's involvement, but also resigned to the idea that it was the only way. It seems clear that Max was in love with Sarah, and she with him, so it makes sense that Spirit Max would be on Spirit Sarah's side. I hope those two crazy dead kids can make it work. [sigh]
• Jenny: Jenny's motives have always been a little unclear to me. At least, since I knew that Jenny was a spirit haunting Tim. At the time, I thought Jenny just wanted Tim to remove himself from the group to protect him, but now I'm not so sure. It seems like Jenny might be manipulating Chad (HER...duhn, duhn, DUHN!...brother!) into doing things to avenge her death through a profound guilt trip. Or punish people who thought she killed herself. Or something. We don't know yet. We also know that Gabriel is frustrated with Jenny, and thinks that Jenny set in motion this horrible chain of events (i.e., murders). Does that mean Gabriel blames Jenny the spirit? Or that Jenny's death was caused by something that Gabriel blames?
• Beth: Beth! I missed you, Beth. I wish you had been in this episode for more than a brief minute, but it was nice to see you anyway. Basically, Beth wants what Sarah wants: her murderer revealed. What she (and Sarah) want done to that murderer is not yet revealed.
• Gina: I'm going to bet that Spirit Gina and regular Gina are going to want the same thing: The Truth to be found out. I'm curious to see how different Spirit Gina will be from regular Gina, but I can't imagine that Spirit Gina will give up on regular Gina's goals. I'm also curious to find out who the object of Gina's hauntings will be. Will it be Ben, who probably feels terrible for lying to his girlfriend and then fighting about that lying with her just before she dies. Maybe that makes him look guilty? Melony also seems a likely suspect for Gina-formed hallucinations, and it's about time Melony got frustrated with all of these murders.

Living

• Laura: Poor Laura. Don't get me wrong...I love Kelly Lynne Johnson and I'm happy to have her on the show so much, but poor, poor Laura. Falling in love with Blake, only to realize that now it's too late to extract herself from this terrible web of horrors that Blake seems an integral part of. Oh well, it's nothing a DQ Blizzard can't fix, right? (I hope it was a Nerds Blizzard. Boo Oreo!) Anyway, Laura is hesitant to be a willing accomplice to her ghostly identical stranger, and who would blame her? In any case, it now seems like Laura just wants to be left alone...by spirits and by Blunk. But Laura seems like she is going to be involved whether she likes it or not (she is stuck with Sarah's memories, after all, even if she got rid of Sarah the Spirit), and Max's insistence that Laura might be the only person who might be able to help Blake/Blunk seems to secure that fate.
• Erin: Erin sounds like she might not be Azazel's favorite anymore, and she seems to be uncertain which supernatural side is "right" or "good" or even just telling the truth. What information was it that she relayed was "too much?" And is it Erin who wants everyone to be unhappy or Azazel? At this point, the line between what Erin wants and what Azazel wants is really fuzzy for me, but it seems like Erin is in danger of becoming the killer's next victim. But in any case, I can't tell what Erin wants. Her ominous goodbye (in spite of accidentally leaving her coat behind), makes her sound like she is a good candidate for a next target, and Azazel's threats (it was basically a "Help me or die!" ultimatum) add credence to that idea. (Also, WebMD suggests that Erin might be demonstrating some warning signs of suicide, such as talking about how they are all "disposable." If only someone inside the story would notice...)
• Vanessa: Does Vanessa really love Tim? Does she love Zach? Does she love Tim and just want to protect Zach? Or does she love Zach and just want to protect Tim? Vanessa seems to go for guys just when they are at their lowest point, so I can't say for sure. But count me in the camp that thinks that Vanessa really loves Tim, and she wants to get to the bottom of things, but she isn't willing to sacrifice as much as Gina was.
• Tim: I'm pretty certain that Tim is in love with Vanessa, but that he is afraid to really let himself trust her, given her past indiscretions. But I also think that Tim isn't as concerned with getting to the bottom of the big mystery, and is far more concerned with stopping himself from seeing Jenny and anyone else who wants to pester him. Of course, that could all be a front. Oh, and Tim recognizing Chad several episodes back is now sufficiently explained, as Tim probably encountered his high school girlfriend's brother once in a while, even if he went to a different school. (Why he went to a different school is something I'm unsure about.)
• Zach: Zach is out to convince everyone that Blake is guilty, and I can see how he sees that. I'm not so convinced (see more below), but I appreciate Zach trying to stop the madness. I'm not sure who the right supernatural being is to listen to at this point (or if they are both wrong), but Zach seems pretty committed to Gabe. I also don't know if Zach is still in love with Vanessa, and I kind of hope he is and that I was wrong about Vanessa a little ways up because I love the two of them together. Incidentally, it seems as thought Zach was the mysterious person who had contacted the psychology TA before Blake did, so that is one mystery solved.
• Blake/Blunk: I realize that the evidence is pretty incriminating at this point (calling Sarah the night she died, standing in Sarah's apartment wielding a knife the night she died, packing a bag and fleeing back home [where Gina was killed] and then skipping town, etc.). And after rewatching Sarah's death sequence (seen here, but without sound, thanks to the Powers that Be), Sarah was, in fact, clutching a drinking glass when she died. And yes, Blunk obviously makes awful decisions (and Blake continues to make the same bad decision over and over again by allowing himself to turn into Blunk), but this wouldn't be the first time that Blunk had threatened someone with a knife only not to use it, right? (Remember last week? Blunk in the laundry room with the knife?) Yes, both Blake and Blunk have rage problems, but I'm still unconvinced that he could be the Killer, in the sense that Blake is the one behind all of the murders over the past 4+ years. (More on my latest Big Picture theory in a bit.) Also of note about Blake: this episode marked the first time Gabriel appeared to Blake (so said Azazel), because it was the first time Blake felt he "deserved" to see Gabriel. Does this mean that Blake just buried his homicidal memories so deeply that he is now convinced of his own innocence? Or are memories of innocence potentially coming to some subconscious surface?
• Chris: Chris wants to be left alone, much like Tim and Laura, but he seems to be one of the least successful at isolating himself, if you're talking raw numbers of apartment barge-ins. He also seems to love Brittany, and I love that he loves Brittany. I want to love Brittany, too, but I think (as Chris in some of his less lust-driven moments also seems to think) that Brittany is probably evil. She might just be insane, but she seems way too calculating to just brush off as insane. In any case, Chris is the character who is most in the clear, I think, both due to his left-townness and his investigation from Season 1 when no one believed him about Max's death.
• Brittany: What are you up to? Sarah's memories (as passed on to Laura) suggest that Brittany has had a thing for Chris for a long time, but is it okay that she seems so obsessive? Who cares? I love them together. But for the sake of the characters, these two together might not be such a great idea. Ashley's phone call seemed to suggest that Brittany is still up to her scheming (although how much does Ashely really know?). The fact that Brittany sees Gabriel suggests that she doesn't think she's evil, but do the evil ever really think they're evil?
• Melony: I don't think that Melony really loves Blake, but she really doesn't love Chad. Up until this point, I don't think Melony has really been that motivated to uncover The Truth, but after her attack last week and Gina's death this week, I'm thinking Melony is about to get involved in a big way.
• Chad: Chad's motives are as unclear to me now as they ever were...sort of. On the one hand, everything Chad has done up until this point seems to be in service to his dead sister (JENNY!). But on the other hand, we don't know if he has been keeping his distance (a.k.a. lying) to protect himself, or because he wants to punish everyone for his sister's murder. I like this new angle for Chad, and I hope that he is willing to stop lying and start cooperating.
• Brett "The Tool": Brett seems pretty selfishly motivated, and Azazel seems to be playing him just right, in only disclosing enough information and enough reward to get him to play his role in the mess. I still don't trust him with Ashley, but then again...
• Ashley: I'm not sure I trust Ashley. How and why is she involved with Brittany? How long have the two of them been friends? She kept professing how much she wanted to help Gina, but then stole and hid something from her? Did Gina ever notice that this file was missing? Did she suspect Ashley? Anyway, I certainly question Ashley's motives, and I continue to wonder how deeply she is implicated.
• Ben: Maybe I'm wrong, but I like Ben. I think he really liked Gina, and her death is going to really hurt him. Then again, he didn't tell her about Chad, but as I remember it, Chad might have threatened him, so who's to say if Ben is in the wrong? I'm curious to see whether Ben will continue to play a role in the remaining episodes or not, as he might want to carry on Gina's work himself, or just withdraw out of misery. :(

So that's the breakdown I came up with. Now let's return to Erin's ominous foretelling of events:

• 3 breakups:
1. Ben & Gina. Not only did they break up...Gina died! It doesn't get more over than that.
2. Melony & Chad. They don't love each other and they never did. But what will become of them now?
3. Ashley & Brett? This was the best that I could figure, although I'm not exactly sure what happened. Are they on opposite sides, unbeknowst to one another?
• A sad realization for Blake/Blunk:
• He killed Sarah. Or it could be that Laura knows that he killed Sarah. It was a pretty craptastic night for Blake all around.
• A decision Chris will make that will ruin his life...assuming he lives long enough to make it:
• This seems to indicate his decision to get back together with Brittany. If this is true, now I question Gabriel's motives in pushing Chris to get back together with Brittany, and Brittany's true intentions with Chris (she might have schemes that involve him even if she is also crazy obsessed with him).

Wild Speculation

• Here is my list of most likely suspects at this point in time:
1. Azazel: So my best theory now is that Azazel manipulates people when they are weak, and coerces them (when they are either conscious or unconscious?) into carrying out his corporeal dirty work. This would mean that Blake is "guilty" in a technical way, but that Azazel was truly behind Sarah's murder, as well as Willy's murder of Max. This seems like the best-fitting theory to me so far, since it ties Max's death into the Big Picture, and stays consistent with the idea that Willy didn't kill Sarah or Beth, as others suspected. In this theory, I think Azazel could play off of a person's negative feelings toward another individual and exacerbate them to the point of murder, even if that person would never do so otherwise. This is why emotionally involved people like Blake (who cared about Sarah and wanted to be Max) and Willy (who wanted to protect Beth from Max's possible incrimination) make highly convinctable targets. As to how this fits into the Master Plan...I couldn't say yet. Since I'm speculating, though, perhaps Azazel has been playing these games for years, and Gabriel has to constantly keep him in check. But if that's the case, it can't explain Gabriel's less-than-perfectly-good behavior, either. So I'm stuck.
2. Blunk: Blake's drunken alter ego sure looks guilty here, at least when it comes to Sarah's murder. But why would Blunk kill Sarah when he had the chance and not even attack Melony when he had a similar chance in the last episode? That doesn't add up for me. I want to believe that Blake is innocent as much as Blake does, but if I have to concede that he looks a little bit guilty, I'm going to give the alter ego a name to save Blake in my mind.
3. Jenny & Chad: The tension between dead Jenny and her living brother seemed high in this episode, and I can easily envision a scenario in which Jenny convinces Chad that if he really loved her, he would punish all of the people who believed her death was a suicide. This would explain why Tim is hence unscathed, and predict that everyone but Tim would meet an untimely end. It would also explain why Gabriel is so mad at Jenny, but wouldn't explain why Gabriel said things had to get worse before they got better. If Jenny isn't behind the killings, though, then to what end was she forcing Chad to date Chelsea, room with Blake, and then date Melony? To find out the truth? Consider me intrigued.

Non-Sequitors

• After rewatching Season 3's premiere, I have decided that I really miss a well-groomed Chad. His hair was crazy long in this episode.
• Brad Norman? Who is Brad Norman and why is he Chad's potential enemy? Say more when you speak, Ben! And don't leave the show just because Gina is dead!
• I loved speculating about what Laura's roommate had planned for Valentine's Day. We only know it involved a large, cowl-neck sweater, a shiny tiara, and a trip to Dairy Queen. It must have been epic.

What did everyone else think?