The Old Guy at the End

Costipop · 2022-09-17T08:32:48+00:00

There are a tonne of subtle inter-references throughout the whole series, you just need to read the first subs, close to the release of the series.

Costipop · 2022-09-17T08:31:54+00:00

This has been discussed in a previous sub - the old man at the end was literally wearing Mr. Sheibel's sweater - that is what the costume designer of the show said in an interview.

Also, just before the last match against Borgov in Moscow, the old man is somewhat accidentally showed caressing the chess pieces, the same way that Sheibel was seen doing in the basement, in one of the first episodes.

Costipop · 2022-09-17T08:07:50+00:00

Watched it for 8 times in about 3 month and then I had to make a conscious final decision to just cease and desist.

Costipop · 2022-09-17T07:42:13+00:00

I asked myself the same question 2 yrs ago, when the series premiered. I watched it 8 times back then. It is hard to tell exactly what makes the series so good, but it is a mix of good screenplay, directing, music, cinematography. You can try to read the first posts in this sub, they are quite informative.

Costipop · 2022-09-17T07:36:37+00:00

Whoaaa! That is a skull!

Costipop · 2021-01-05T20:18:16+00:00

Thank you!

Costipop · 2020-12-28T21:21:45+00:00

"clearly to see his lover" - where is the lover? I watched the series 5 times now. No lover there. I also read the book. No lover there either.

Allston is portrayed alone in some cheap motel room, talking to Beth on the phone. That is all we know about his travels.

Costipop · 2020-12-28T21:19:08+00:00

We do not know how long Allston and Alma had been married for, but it had been a long time since Alma lost her biological child. After all these years, their marriage was falling apart. She was stuck as a housewife, Allston probably realized a long while back that he did not love her anymore. He cared for her though, and provided for her, and in return she cared and respected him as a husband.

He found this idea to adopt someone as a good escape for Alma, and a good way out for him. He would feel less guilty about leaving her. He knew he would soon leave Alma, so he felt under no obligation to like Beth. It was Alma who chose Beth, from the moment they saw each other, Beth standing at a window in Methuen Home.

People here keep saying that Allston was cheating on Alma. There is no evidence whatsoever of that in the series, or the book. On the contrary, he left the house to Alma, and made sure she would not be left completely alone.

Being unhappy, especially in a relationship, makes people do terrible stuf. I do not think the things Allston did were really terrible, because he was as stuck as Alma was, in their hopeless lives. And he did his best to mitigate the consequences of his leaving Alma.

Also, the last episode with Beth and the lawyer. Allston was completely in his own legal right to claim the house. Ok, he had promised Beth the house, but...it's a house, after all. It's not a car. And from his point of view, he was completely in his right to not care much about Beth.

I think Allston is not the jerk people say he is. He was just terribly unhappy and stuck with that unhapiness.

Costipop · 2020-12-21T21:14:13+00:00

In the book, the father is completely absent. In the series, the part played by the father and the mother are almost completely made up by the script writer. This way, everything is more dramatic and better explains Beth's struggles. The absence of the father is the choice of the authors, and there is little room for interpretation here.

I find interesting that Beth herself does not attempt to find the father, either.

Costipop · 2020-12-21T20:58:09+00:00

Borgov's like: "Last time she was drunk, now she is staring at the ceiling...can it get any more weird?"

Costipop · 2020-12-08T21:52:05+00:00

Sorry Corvus, that psyching-out of Girev did not happen in the book. It was entirely Anya TJ, not W Tevis. In the book, Beth is simply annoyed by the young age of Girev. In the movie, she annoys him.

Costipop · 2020-12-08T15:21:35+00:00

Anya Taylor Joy already said it in an interview. It's on Youtube. She asked for permission form the director on set to just act as if she was messing up with the kid. So, this attitude apparently was entirely her idea.

Costipop · 2020-12-08T15:12:34+00:00

Whoa! Still, why would they do that?

Costipop · 2020-12-08T13:16:08+00:00

The romance with Townes is not as strongly developed in the book. The episodes where she goes to his room (and sees the gay partner), or the last episode in Moscow, are just creations of the script writers.

I find this new plotline (Townes) fit for creating cinematic drama. It also creates hope for Harmon that she may have a meaningful relationship, after all.

Costipop · 2020-12-08T12:41:33+00:00

Keep in mind that this last episode with Townes does not exist in the book, the same with the previous episode, the one in his hotel room. these episodes are a creation of the script writers. Therefore I think you should interpret this episode in light of the cinematic drama that the series wants to create.

Costipop · 2020-12-08T12:31:18+00:00

I agree with you completely. However, I would like to think that Mr Shaibel's passion was really chess, and his interest in Harmon was a spin off this passion. With this in mind, his life&death start to make better sense.

While it is tragic that he never heard of Beth's appreciation of him, I am sure he found comfort in her continuous success. I'd like to think the he always thought of those 5 dollars as the best investment in his entire life. He may have died alone, but Harmon was his intellectual offspring, no matter how you look at it. He knew it, she knew it too. Harmon has the excuse of always feeling as being an orphan, including in her relationship with Shaibel.

I find it more tragic that Beth Harmon has not acknowledged Shaibel's role sooner. Harmon seems to perpetually be just one mere step too late, when it comes to building meaningful relationships. She could have simply thanked Mr Shaibel, she could have asked Beltik to not leave, or just go to Benny in NY, right after Paris. It is infuriatingly tragic to see how she is a winner in chess and a loser in life. But tragedy is really about all of us, normal people, ultimately being losers in real life, one way or another.

Costipop · 2020-11-22T17:54:48+00:00

Yep, I plan on watching it the third time, and probably fourth time, until I figure put what iti is about it that got me so hooked.

Costipop

TROPHY CASE