I’ve plunged into big revisions on my second YA novel, but after revising two chapters today I decided to watch the final episodes of Season 2 of the BBC’s Robin Hood so I could send the discs back to Netflix. If you haven’t seen it and think you might and don’t want to be spoiled, stop reading now.
What the heck were they thinking killing off Maid Marian!!!!???? I don’t mind the reimagining of shows — after all I like the new Battlestar Galactica much more than the original — but honestly, how can you have Robin without Marian? And now the BBC says that Robin might have a new love interest at some point in Season 3. I’m sorry, but that is just wrong. And I predict if they do this, that character will be universally hated. Remember how much everyone hated Riley in Buffy the Vampire Slayer? It wasn’t that anything was wrong with Riley. He just wasn’t Angel, the character we’d been led to believe was a destiny kind of love, a forever love for Buffy.
I know Lucy Griffiths (who played Marian) wanted to leave the show. While I’m not a fan of recastings, that would have been better than killing Marian. I’ve read some online message boards full of irate fans who vow not to watch Season 3. As one said, “You didn’t just kill Marian. You killed the show.” And with talk of Jonas Armstrong (who plays Robin) leaving after the third season, I’m thinking that will be its last. Or at least it should be. Shows just lose their power and chemistry when beloved actors and characters leave. A classic case is Northern Exposure. It wasn’t the same after Dr. Fleischmann left.
In honor of Robin and Marian, here’s a nice fan vid with a pretty song.