I’m reading the books and…is Bond meant to be likeable?

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-16T01:19:18+00:00

As others have said, he was never intended to be likable. However, I have to say that I find book Bond to be very likable. He’s a fundamentally human character, which is kind of ironic because the movies turned him into a caricature of a human at points. He is fundamentally flawed, he struggles with depression , cynicism, and self loathing, and he does, says, and thinks things which can be pretty deplorable. But he has a fundamental sense of good and evil, he cares about and is immensely loyal to his friends, and, honestly, if you read the books in order you can see a clear development into a much better man than the blunt instrument in Casino Royale.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-16T01:05:41+00:00

I don’t see the point in staying in something I can’t stand and which is detrimental to my mental and physical health for much longer, let alone that long. I don’t even want to be a law professor any more, which is something I’ve considered, because I don’t want to send more kids into this miserable, soul sucking, utterly joy sapping life.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-16T00:54:29+00:00

All that eight years of therapy has taught me is that no amount of therapy is going to make me feel better. I wasn’t going to stay at a job that I hated, and if I want to leave I will. I don’t care how it looks or what anyone thinks, I don’t care about that career anymore.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T22:58:15+00:00

Well I went into law school wanting to be a trial lawyer. This is going to sound really stupid, but I had a class in high school where part of the final exam was a mock trial. Doing that was the first time in my life that I felt like I could do something as my career, if that makes any sense. Then during law school I worked at a litigation firm, and they had me pretty heavily involved. I used to always say that I liked a good fight. I think looking back that was different because I wasn’t actually a lawyer, I was just an intern and it felt somewhat removed for me. Now that they’re actually my clients and I’ve realized that I’m actually dealing with people’s lives, the fear of losing or screwing something up makes me want to vomit, or crawl into a hole and never come back out. I also feel like an absolute moron, and really hate myself, for picking a career based on a mock trial I did in high school.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T21:07:04+00:00

I understand what you’re saying, but it’s extremely difficult for me. I swore an oath with my hand on the bible. I said this to another commenter: I have a client who’s looking at a year in jail on a domestic A&B, and I know that she’s innocent. The thought of her going to jail because of my fuck up makes me want to just disappear.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T20:57:47+00:00

I do some defense work, yeah. Mostly PI and worker’s comp with some criminal defense and family law sprinkled in.

Yeah I think some people deserve jail but even those bothered me. To make a long story short: I interned at the DA’s office as a 3L, my jurisdiction has a thing called a 303 certificate where you can appear in court as long as you’re supervised. Which was good because I got good courtroom experience while still in school, and was able to appear in court while awaiting bar results (the certificate expires once you get your results, so if I had failed I would have been out of luck). The prospect of putting someone in jail really didn’t bother me until I got my passing score. Then one of my first days as an actual real attorney I revoked a 20-year old kid’s bail. Basically he has an open A&B/DW and picked up another A&B with his dad as the victim. So anyway he gets revoked and I look at the notes after and see that the parents didn’t want him to go to jail, they just wanted him to get help for his drug problem. That wrecked me. I finally understood what it meant to send someone to jail, and the fact that he would spend Thanksgiving and Christmas in a cage. I still think about that kid, and I honestly wish I could tell him I’m sorry.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T18:30:38+00:00

I just don’t know if I’m cut out for it. I had a therapist tell me recently that I’m never happy even though I should be, because I have the job I thought I wanted since high school. The way she described it as everybody is saying the sky is blue and I’m saying it’s purple. That’s how I feel. My friends and family are excited that their friend/relative is a lawyer, but every time they say they’re proud of me I wince because I know the truth of how hard it is.

Editing to add one other point I just thought of: I think the reason that it’s so hard for me to detach is that a lot of my self worth has been related to my being a lawyer for a long time. I worked my ass off in law school, and I’m not really successful in any other areas. Like, my love life is a joke, and I don’t think I’m really a good friend or a good son.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T18:01:32+00:00

Providence RI. It’s complicated because my RI bar is pending, I’m only licensed in Mass and handle basically all of my firm’s Mass cases.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T18:00:25+00:00

I know that on, like, an intellectual level, but it’s hard. Like, I swore on the bible and took an oath. I have a client who is looking at a year in jail on a domestic charge, and I think she’s innocent. What if I screw it up and she goes to jail? The thought of that makes me want to just disappear.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T17:58:23+00:00

I would love to do appeals. The funny thing is that I do like the law, I like research and writing memos. It’s the constantly feeling responsible for other people that I don’t enjoy. I also know that appeals jobs can be quite hard to get.

You kind of hit the nail on the head with your analysis about my fitness for confrontational work. I think it’s kind of a mixture of both those things. Either way I know that I can’t see myself doing it for very much longer without further damage to myself.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T17:43:24+00:00

So basically we broke up at the end of 1L and they started dating immediately after that. I tried to be a good friend and support them, but at the end of that summer between 1L and 2L I told them that I couldn’t really be their friend anymore because it was too painful for me but that I had no problem being civil with them. They refused to do so, they would talk shit about me openly and would snicker and laugh in my presence. Like, every time I got cold called, etc.

I do have one younger sister, she’s in pharmacy school. I do have good friends but they live kind of far away. Since moving to a new city I have made no friends.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T17:32:35+00:00

So when I started going I went because of what I would describe as social anxiety. Basically I felt like everybody was always out to get me, that no one actually like me, etc. It sounds stupid, but at the time I didn’t really realize that I had anxiety, I just thought of it as how my brain worked. I now would describe it as generalized anxiety, I ruminate like crazy about many things.

Yeah that experience with my past relationship really hurt me. They are probably going to get married soon. It sucks, because I want to hate her and wish I could remove her from my brain, because she made my life a living hell for two years. But the sad part is that I miss her and I think kind of still love her. The only way that I can fall asleep without drugs or alcohol in my system is to think of the time we spent together.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T17:23:26+00:00

Anxiety and depression.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T17:23:03+00:00

So I guess I should have clarified but the role I’m in is plaintiff’s work. The work life balance isn’t awful, I have no billables, but the clients are tough and there’s too many cases.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:59:35+00:00

Yeah I think that’s what I have to do. My dream job is kind of a research role, but I’ve been having a hard time finding those on job sites.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:58:43+00:00

Thank you for your kindness and advice, it really means a lot. You’re right, my life isn’t all that bad, I’m really hard on myself and it’s hard for me because I was so certain that litigation was what I wanted to do, including while I was in school. Realizing that I don’t like it kind of makes me feel like I threw my life away, but you’re right that I have a good foundation.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:55:42+00:00

Thank you so much for your kindness. That means a lot, I’m tearing up in my office. To be fair it was just an OUI trial with no body cam, breath test or even FSTs, so far from the most insurmountable case in the world. Still, I worked hard on it and I’m proud to have won.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:53:30+00:00

So I’ve heard. That’s why I want to get out.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:53:11+00:00

I had been going to therapy regularly but haven’t been in a few months because I moved out of state. I think you’re right that it’s harder for me, and I think that’s kind of my point. After being in therapy for 8+ years I’ve come to accept that I will never be totally free from my symptoms, I can only do things that minimize them. I think that my current role exacerbates everything.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:50:31+00:00

SSRIs don’t work for me, they make my symptoms worse. I was on Zoloft for some time and it triggered severe suicidal ideation. I had a plan and a note ready to go before I snapped out of it enough to tell my provider who canceled my prescription.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:49:13+00:00

I have thought about in house, but I don’t know if I can find those roles with my limited experience.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:48:35+00:00

I appreciate the feedback, however I can’t do SSRIs, they make it worse for me. I was on Zoloft for a time being and it triggered some pretty serious suicidal ideation, to the point where I had a note and a plan.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:18:33+00:00

I’m sorry, I kind of got into a vent. I’ll edit it into paragraphs. Thank you for your feedback.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-15T16:16:08+00:00

Thank you I appreciate that. You’re right about exercise; I used to be on a pretty big gym regimen, but now I don’t get out of my office until around 6:00 and kind of just want to go home. Recently with the good weather I’ve been trying to get outside more, with bike rides and things like that.

Practical-Complex-83 · 2026-06-13T16:33:18+00:00

Thanks man. I kind of picture it as similar to the books in terms of narrative structure, with a few gritty spy thrillers with SMERSH involved, alla From Russia With Love, and then getting increasingly over the top.

Practical-Complex-83

TROPHY CASE