Garrett/Deirdre

Five-minute adventure; in and out.

Do I think this ship had any chance of happening in the show?

No. Garrett wassn't in the show long enough to challenge Rohan/Deirdre as the end-game. She hadn't warmed up to the idea by the end, and she was never favour during it. And in the short amount of time Garrett was around, they gave the guy a different love interest with Princess Lynette. As funny as two love triangles at once would've been (Rohan and Garrett and Deirdre, and Deirdre and Lynette and Garrett), I feel liike it's too complicated for a kids' show. Lynette's not gonna be promoted to a recurring role like Aideen anyway, so you would've had to have Garrett staring at the moon Bruno Mars-style and pining over her from afar, and then - I guess - defending his betrothal from Rohan during the day. Sure, you can drop Lynette, but then you're also back to harrassing Deirdre into something kept saying she didn't want. It's a weird message to send to kids in a show that positioned her as a young woman able to make her own decisions: that even a princess has to do what she's told when it comes to the 'real' choices. Off you go, political commodity. Make babies.

Would I have supported the two of them actually getting together?

Eh. Not really. They had chemistry when they bickered and fought, and that's not exactly a fate I'd want to sign Deirdre up for. I didn't even let Angus/Deirdre get away with it. Plus, when Garrett got back from being with Lynette, he got nicer and more therefore boring. ANd his hair was still bad. You've got four men around you; that's the one you pick? The rattail? Deirdre.

Did I want them to get together?

No. A little bit, but no. I was doing all the hard work on reasons for why they'd be okay together; the show was not selling me on it.

If they were together, do I think they’d be happy?

Nope. Too much baggage, too much obligation, too much resentment at how it was arranged. They wouldn't hate each other, but that bedroom is DOA.

You know Black Mirror? The "Hang the DJ" episode about finding your perfect match? Deirdre and Garrett are like the second match the guy in that had: the purple woman did not like him and there was just zero chemistry and everything was uncomfortable at all times. That's about the best I can imagine for these two three years after they're married - but with politer small talk, I guess. They would never be imagining each other. :/

And the million dollar question: what do I think of the ship overall?

It's whatever. It sucks. Like - I know I gave Rohan/Deirdre grief for being generic, but at least that would roll into a generic romance. These two don't even have that. It feels so unfair to keep mashing them together like Barbie dolls.

Unless we're doing a tragedy. Are we doing a tragedy? Some drama? Some grief? Now we're cookin'.

Garrett never strikes me as someone who wants to marry Deirdre for Deirdre. He only wants to marry her because she's been promised to him. If it was any other princess, he'd be 'handling' her the same way. If there wasn't a betrothal, he'd've left after the first time they talked. Part of his humbling from the test at Tir Na Nog means, yes, we get him to see Deirdre more as a person, but even then, it feels like he's just trying to re-do his first impression - better this time, more "about her," so he can walk off with the gold star from daddy he came here to get.

Actually, that's what it is: Garrett has some fucking daddy issues, and he's getting it everywhere and it's pissing me off. He puts more effort into courting Conchobar than he does into courting 'the daughter.' I already give Rohan so much grief about his family, but at least he makes that interesting by starting shit with Angus. Garrett is - just... :/ And I'm not even talking about the episode where Garrett literally goes to save the king to prove himself; I'm talking about the evolution of Conchobar distrusting Garrett after betraying them, then slowly coming to appreciate Garrett as an ally and someone he'd be happy to call his son one day. Y'know, the arc they didn't give to Deirdre?

So leave her alone. They can friends, their kingdoms can be allies, but they don't need to be married unless they're forced into it, and that'd be a shitty for the show to do. If we're going to watch them try and struggle to be together, only to reveal they can't keep up the charade and need each other's help to go be with the ones they respectively love (Rohan and Conchobar - UH I MEAN LYNETTE), then fine. I'm down for the tragedy. But that means all the romance they might perform was them going through the motions to convince themselves. Good angst for Rohan!! YUM YUM, come get your fresh angst, Rohan m'boy! But beyond that, nah.

As I've said before, though, I would've been down for a team-up between Garrett and Aideen. Unfortunately, that casts them both into an atagonistic role, but I would've found it very funny. Garrett is a great villain - I'm so sad he got cured so fast. But for some reason, they couldn't have him be too unlikeable, or else they'd have to close the door on him being an acceptable love interest.

(just close the door. we don't need him)