Arrival of Ruth

[lwhite53]

(03-01-2010 06:23 PM)almh Wrote:  In one sense Ruth is unique in that she's the only person seconded from GCHQ. It seems sort of odd to me - they seem to steal a lot from 6, but they've only taken one person from GCHQ - I thought they would have borrowed other people from there, they'll have been vetted already so it would be relatively easy to get them transferred.

I'd imagine the folks at GCHQ are good at intercepts, computer hacks and general info analysis but they're not really trained to be spooks, so how many would you really want to second to MI5?

[pennyfeather]

I've been re-watching Season 2 with a particular interest in seeing the development of Ruth's character and hoping to see some 'moments' (I know a bit unlikely) between Harry and Ruth. Peter Firth's right when he says on a disc 2 special feature that the growing connection between those two characters is ' on a very low light.' I mean, it's well nigh impossible to see anything!

I was however happily reminded of how incredibly animated and perky Ruth could be, and how hilariously clumsy. Whenever she opens her mouth in that ep she's just bouncing for joy.
I vaguely remember watching those scenes for the very first time and thinking how weird and annoying she was, esp when she almost destroys the lamp. Anyway, its lovely to go back and see those more light-hearted moments when her only worry was being sent back to GCHQ and impressing the boss.

Btw does anyone else find it a bit off that someone like Sam can get into M15 (I mean she's not exactly Sherlock Holmes) and a genius like Ruth who has always wanted to be a spy can only get in by subterfuge??

[beatrice4ruth]

I can't believe that I am disagreeing with you and PF. To me it was obvious that Harry had started to be interested in Ruth from the moment she entered the conference room. His silly joke and the way he looked at her when she said "Bugger the Home Office" and his reply "Hmm, if only" showed that he was somehow unsettled by her.

I love the way Harry looked at Ruth when she was struggling with the lamp. He was also impressed by Ruth's hacking skills into the French secret service computers (by the way NW has a very good French accent) and her discovery of the Algerian agent.

Ruth was not interested in Harry, the man. She only wanted to impress Harry, the boss.

[lottanyman]

I'm also currently re-watching series 2 and I'm always looking out for moments between Ruth and Harry but I'm with PF here and would deny that Harry had an interest in Ruth right from the beginning.

If there is anything at all on his side it's more of an irritation on Ruth's enthusiasm which is in total contrast to the usual behaviour of Danny, Zoe or especially Tom who are all ambitious about their jobs but who have long settled in and kind of adapted to the downsides and doubts of being a spy.
Especially in the first episodes Ruth is clearly not yet used to this and is happily welcoming any threat whereas everybody else is just trying to avoid the worst.

In 2.5, in the EERIE episode for example Ruth gets a very annoyed look from Harry when she exclaims something like "Oh goody" while Harry tries to make his team take this excercise seriously and I think he's also a little unnerved when she starts crying upon her explanation of the VX gas so that Harry advises Sam to take over from her.
I think Harry's irritation is slowly going down over series 2 but there is nothing else and him slowly developing feelings for her is only starting in series 3 and even more in series 4.

[beatrice4ruth]

I love how each fan has a different reaction to the H/R saga.

In Series 2 Harry seemed to be irritated with everybody. He was really in a grumpy mood.

Harry might be irritated with Ruth, but he did treat her differently from the others. In 2.5 Harry felt sorry for Ruth and gently asked Sam to take over. At the end of the Eerie exercice, he also looked at her more as a man than as a boss. Then he rushed after her in the pods when they went for a drink at the "George". In 2.8 "Strike Force", Ruth touched him like no other member of the Grid. I am thinking of the scene in his office, when she asked him about her secondment. He started to twist his neck and touch his tie, a reaction to Ruth that we will see more and more during the series, except for S9. I do not recall the same reaction to the other grid officers.

Let's us not forget that Harry chose Ruth as his confident and asked for her moral support in 2.10. I know that he could not ask for the assistance of Zoe and Danny. In my modest opinion, it was the start of the many bench scenes that have come to symbolize Harry's special relationship with Ruth.

Obviously, I cannot argue with PF. Perhaps it is my romantic streak that makes me want to believe that Harry was touched by Ruth from the start.

[richliga]

I think as well he DID treat Ruth differently from others in s2, but whether it was because he started to get feelings for her or because of the fact that she was an outsider who became one of them almost direct, I dnt know. But im sure he did NOT fell in love w Ruth from the moment she walked into the conference room... so i do agree w PF that Harry had not an romantic interest in the Ruth from the beginning... after all we know this relationship was not scripted and only made by NW & PF and in later seasons picked up by writers and producers...