Dying at Badon was actually the easy way out for Lancelot, in my view. I've been playing off that idea in both this and in Res, albeit in completely different ways. As much as the idea that Arthur abandons Britain for Lancelot might appeal in a Lancelot-survives scenario, I don't really see it, although I have toyed with the idea at least once. Although I realize that Arthur isn't coming across as particularly attractive in this AU, by one point of view, he's actually living up to his ideals here. He's spent his life on what he views as duty, and I don't really see him ignoring the Briton's appeals for what would seem to him selfish (and possibly damming) personal desires. If anything, I think the fact that he's tempted to do so would swing him more rigidly in the other direction--he's used to the ideal of sacrifice. Of course, there are all kinds of alternative possibilities, and therefore no end to the fun you can create.
I find the tension between the legendary Lancelot and the movie's version pretty much irresistible. Here, while this is the movie version, I'd like to make it believable that this is also the figure that comes down to us in legend—if the storytellers mixed up a few things pretty badly. He is noble, heroic and self-sacrificing from one perspective, but not from his own--he doesn't give a damn about anything like that. And of course, this, to me, anyway, makes him far more fascinating than if he were just the hero-type.
Sometimes, I see Lancelot as a character striving for nihilism. He acts like he doesn't care about anything in the movie (and perhaps believes it), but clearly he does: he cares deeply about Arthur, his lost home, and I would add the other knights, but that may be more my fanon than the movie. In this AU, he is being driven closer to the reality, as he seemingly loses each thing he cares for, but still, he can’t manage to let go. Or maybe he’s just acting out of habit, with nothing better to guide him.
I'm also, as you note, interested in the idea that idealism cannot survive without someone paying a price. Every "golden age" we look back at and admire is built off the back of someone's suffering, some fissure in the vision, some hypocrisy. I also just enjoy the irony of this Lancelot being Camelot’s protector.
I'm really pleased to be blamed for recreating any interest in the myth, and for what you call your melodrama. :) Of course, there's nothing I like better than getting horribly poetical (or just horribly long winded) about this stuff. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts with me!
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I find the tension between the legendary Lancelot and the movie's version pretty much irresistible. Here, while this is the movie version, I'd like to make it believable that this is also the figure that comes down to us in legend—if the storytellers mixed up a few things pretty badly. He is noble, heroic and self-sacrificing from one perspective, but not from his own--he doesn't give a damn about anything like that. And of course, this, to me, anyway, makes him far more fascinating than if he were just the hero-type.
Sometimes, I see Lancelot as a character striving for nihilism. He acts like he doesn't care about anything in the movie (and perhaps believes it), but clearly he does: he cares deeply about Arthur, his lost home, and I would add the other knights, but that may be more my fanon than the movie. In this AU, he is being driven closer to the reality, as he seemingly loses each thing he cares for, but still, he can’t manage to let go. Or maybe he’s just acting out of habit, with nothing better to guide him.
I'm also, as you note, interested in the idea that idealism cannot survive without someone paying a price. Every "golden age" we look back at and admire is built off the back of someone's suffering, some fissure in the vision, some hypocrisy. I also just enjoy the irony of this Lancelot being Camelot’s protector.
I'm really pleased to be blamed for recreating any interest in the myth, and for what you call your melodrama. :) Of course, there's nothing I like better than getting horribly poetical (or just horribly long winded) about this stuff. Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts with me!