Question of the week #50

[treonb]

At the end of the Season 3 finale Philip started saying something, but Elizabeth (and Reagan) interrupted him.  What do you think Philip intended to say?

You can expect spoilers for the entire first three seasons in the comments.

(There's no expiration date on these questions, so if you're reading this post months later and feel like jumping in, please do.)

Comments

[sistermagpie]

Yes, if he even tried to confide something abstractly to Sandra he'd have to figure out some cover story for it to make it fake. And how can he explain his problems without explaining that he's living a lie and killing people etc. It's pointless without that.

I hadn't thought about the risk in talking to Elizabeth but yeah, it really does say something that he's trying to tell her how feels like shit all the time--that does show an amazing amount of trust in her. She's certainly not the first person I'd think of to talk through my doubts about what I was doing. It's especially risky since he doesn't even really know what he's trying to say--who knows what could come out of his mouth?

[saraqael]

It struck me that Elizabeth, like Gabriel, sensed that something was wrong with Philip, but Elizabeth rationalized it as Philip having confused emotional feelings for Martha. That's something she could easily understand and forgive. If Philip were suddenly reveal to her that he no longer knows how to believe in their mission, I doubt that Elizabeth would support him. She is 100% heart, mind and soul about the mission. She can't even tolerate the fact that Philip admits to liking the comforts of the Western lifestyle.

Philip told Sandra that Elizabeth was the person he could be authentic with, but that's not entirely true. He can't entirely trust her because she values the mission more than she values him. He needs it to be true though, or he will continue to crack apart. I think that they do love each other, but Elizabeth loves the mission more than she loves him.

He's in a terrible place right now. The one person he is closest to and relies on the most would very likely turn on him if he was able to articulate that he's lost his faith in their joint mission. In a strange way, I think he's actually safer confiding his thoughts and emotions with Martha right now. It would help convince her that he does love her. It would give him an outlet to talk about his doubts and desires, and she could still be dispatched if necessary so his secrets would be safe.

If Elizabeth could even just be equally devoted to him and to the mission, I think that Philip would eventually be okay. Sadly, unless Elizabeth undergoes some amazing emotional growth next season, I don't see that happening.