It's a miracle I didn't shoot my television tonight

Or is it?

SPOILER ALERT re: ROBIN HOOD (2006) BBC with Jonas Armstrong
...if you don't want to know important bits don't read below the photograph...

I hope I made the picture big enough... Gee, I wouldn't want an unsuspecting fan to read what's coming next or miss out on a good-looking face either (not as handsome as my husband, but he'll do).

************

And that is that YOU CAN'T KILL MARIAN!
I thoroughly enjoyed the series through season one. I loved the filmography. One quality in particular was how they ended each episode with a black and white freeze frame.  It always struck me.  I loved the music, the introduction...


Which is why I was wary at the start of season two. Things changed...the look, the feel of the creation. For example, Marian's clothes became much more provacative. Not horrible, but definitely different than season one. The introduction changed, too--new music, new images. No freeze frame, either. How funny something so small and seemingly unimportant would stand out to me? But it did. I didn't like that they took that out. 


But, all in all, I continued to enjoy the story line. 


GREAT villain. Tortured heroes. Good vs. Evil, always a winner in my book.
And then, they killed Marian. 

Marian, in the scene where she finally starts to marry Robin. Yes, that's him behind her... They've been strung up in the desert to die. (oh, oops. SPOILER ALERT!) I wonder who did her brows back in those days?

So, though a small part of me wanted to shoot my television, perhaps it's not such a miracle that I didn't. 
I see a swift and sudden end to the series. One more season, two at the very most, but I haven't done my research, so I'm not sure how many seasons the series had before it ended. What a shame... 
They didn't just kill Marian.
They killed their success...
Poo. How disappointing.

Heroes -- The Series

You might think that women would be tired of the Apha Hero. He's demanding. He doesn't explain himself or any of his actions. He's overprotective and hardly cares to hear if you've got a better idea....


The perfect example--Han Solo. Now I say this because heroes have become a little more complex over the last twenty years. Alphas showing signs of Beta, Betas showing signs of Tortured. Somehow, because of this I've spent the last twenty minutes wracking my brain for a good example. Han is a loner.

According to Modernman.com, an alpha male, upon entering a room, will assume high status, take on the role of the leader (or at least one of the leaders) and simply expect others to follow him and show him respect. Oh hey! I think I married one of these!!! :D Although, like a good leader, mine will look for the one who is ACTUALLY in charge instead of being an ass. One of the aspects that separates my hubby from being a beta is that he'll leave if he doesn't like what the other leader is demanding. A beta would NOT do this. :D

Look to your books for the best examples of a true Alpha Male. Elizabeth Lowell and Christina Dodd write alpha males that any romance reader can appreciate. Read about Archer Donovan in Lowell's Pearl Cove or Jasha Wilde(yes, we heard about him yesterday at Penny's blog, too) in Dodd's Scent of Darkness. You won't be sorry.

Thursday Threesome

Featuring Nora Roberts -- who holds the award for My Favorite Book--a book not for the faint of heart.

Nora Roberts has twenty-three trilogy and series books. OMG, twenty-three!!! I'm skimming her booklist, contemplating what makes a series so compelling.[and wondering which one I should reread next] I think I figured it out.

Connections.

I'm a strong believer in human nature. Needing companionship, needing acceptance, needing unconditional Love. Connections. It's not always the individual character that I remember from a book, but the familial bond that made me want to be part of that book. Nora's books, especially, portray a bond that is close to becoming extinct. Tightly knit families, living close to each other and sharing the daily grind.

One Trilogy I most recently read is her Dreams Trilogy.

Three women connected by a shared childhood. A gorgeous display of characterization that carried from one book to the next. Each book had a happy ending, yet left me with an amazing hook for the coming story. By the time the third book rolled around, I was dying for Laura to have her happy ending. In movies, I can usually take or leave a sequel. Not so much if I'm reading a Nora Roberts trilogy. They are just too darn interesting!

I think for my next reread, I'll pick up her Loving Jack trilogy...or maybe her Irish Trilogy. :D I love to go back to the early books. Harlequin doesn't bother me so much if I'm reading a Nora Roberts.