We all have a way that we look at things that is particularly ours. No one ever sees anything really the same. Even as you grow, your vision of things starts to change. For Clare, her vision has been clouded by the Henry that she grew up with and her vision has been clouded by the Henry that is now.
But here’s the thing about vision – it’s okay to see things in your own way. Because seeing things in your way allows others to see things that they may not normally see. Sometimes being able to look at things through someone else’s eyes is a part of survival.
LETS BE FRIENDS
After last episode, I have to admit, I have not liked Gomez. I found him to be arrogant and rude. I found him to be swept up in himself versus seeing the way that his actions could and would hurt people. Henry is no saint, I get that. But isn’t everyone flawed.
They both are flawed, but I admire the fact that there are trying to having a drink together to try and be kind to each other. The silence between them is awkward, followed by questions that are awkward. They two want to be friends for Clares sake, however, part of me thinks that Gomez wants to just know more about time travel.
Future Henry has said that they would be best friends, though 28 year old Henry didn’t think that they could be friends. Henry doesn’t believe that they have anything in common apart from the obvious – we both wanna fuck Clare. Gomez tries to deny it, but he can’t. It is obvious, everyone knows it. Henry says you do anything about it though, “I will tie a knot in your windpipe, but short of that I accept your envy.”
One thing that Gomez wants to believe is that he’s able to hide his feelings. He doesn’t want to be the man that has a crush on someone but it isn’t returned. He becomes so angry, he wants to leave. But I am not sure that he is actually angry. I think that Gomez is embarrassed, so he wants to put Henry in his places. He comes back and is like if I am giving you funny looks it’s because I recognize you. It’s only later that we would learn it’s from a picture.
The thing about The Time Traveler’s Wife is that there is always a piece of the puzzle that ties all timelines together. And this one it’s a picture. It’s a picture that Clare draws of Henry in the clearing. Big props to her though for drawing him naked even thought he was fully clothed.
He’s smiling and you can tell by the look on his face he’s remembering something. Something that hasn’t happened for Clare yet. How frustrating that must be, but also, the vision that it gives Henry about Clare, the way he sees her, I love.
THE DRIVE TO THE PARENTS
Who would ever not be nervous to meet someones parents? I would be. It’s like the moment that everything changes and it’s not always one of those things that you’re gonna know if it’s good or it’s bad, until it happens.
Henry and Clare are a hot complicated mess, but I try not to focus on that because I feel like the two of them have got to be really confused, knowing that they are meant to be together, but Clare’s hooked on a version of Henry that isn’t yet.
Clare lights up when talking about future Henry, but the current one, there always seems to be a little bit of disappointment that is on her face. How can she be with this Henry, when she feels like that she would be betraying Henry.
Clare is also trying to guide this Henry to be the person that she knows he can be. She has him pick up the phone to talk to Gomez and wants them to get along. But these two just don’t like each other. Mostly because they don’t understand each other.
That’s a road that they will have to find their way on. But that’s what Henry has to do in a lot of respects. Find his way.
The trouble with revisiting childhood is nothing is where you left it. You tell yourself it looks the same, but then someone else sees it.
ClARE – THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE
CLARES FAMILY IS A LOT
I think we can all agree that Clare’s brother is an asshole. He’s been that way since they were kids. When he meets Henry, the first thing he says something along the line of, “you’re the guy whose been violating my sister.”
How Henry and Clare don’t both slap the shit out of him, I am not sure. I would have punched him.
Henry knows that he’s going to have to deal with peoples questions and shit. He knows that her parents are going to have a lot to say. Henry is just not a charmer, but he’s trying. He wants to be good for Clare. He wants everyone to like him, because he knows that he’s going to end up with Clare.
Henry wants Clare to see him for who he is right now, and understand that future him is still gonna be him. Clare gets it, but in the same respect, she doesn’t. She doesn’t because who would. It’s very fucking confusing.
But Clare also needs to take responsibility that she’s making it hard. She’s part of the problem versus a solution. It’s not fair to expect someone to be this person that they aren’t yet, just because you want them to be that way.
It is also okay for Henry to call her out and tell her how she’s being. It seems to make him feel less than he is. Sure, every relationship goes through ups and downs, but they need to find a way to communicate.
Only when they try and talk, Clare’s expecting him still to be this other Henry. And he’s still being cold. He’s not understanding her sentimental ways. He’s not understanding why she hangs onto things from the past.
He’s like there is nothing special about old. Old is what happens to new stuff if you wait around long enough. She is like lecture me. He’s like why not you non time travel people don’t get it. You hang onto the past and you think about the future as if it matters. The only time is now he tells her. That’s the only time that matters is now. The past is what didn’t kill you. The future is what definitely will. The only thing that matters is you and me right now. He repeats the you and me, right now.
LUNCH IN FIVE
We all knew that things wouldn’t be simple for Henry and Clare. But even I was like what is happening when another red head enters the room and starts making Henry feel uncomfortable, but also how does she know about Henry.
Maybe I was sleeping when Clares sister was mentioned. My bad. She apparently likes to fuck with people and she definitely turned it on thick with Henry. I laughed and loved that Clare had someone to share it with.
Alicia chose to believe in her sister, the alternative was that my sister found a bunch of naked men in the house. Time travel seemed like such a disappointment in comparison, she thought it must be true.
And she mentions the drawing, he has to see the drawing. She keeps repeating it and telling Henry to see it. I do believe that there are things that can be a catalyst to change. I feel like that picture just may be it.
GOMEZ OF THE FUTURE
Have to admit that I am shocked that it took so long for Henry to time travel. I thought maybe he would do it in front of her parents. But nope, he does it while he’s freshening up.
When you land naked on someone, it’s no shock that he wants to beat your ass. Henry can hold his own, until there is a bunch of bikers that kick his ass. But, in rolls Gomez, like he’s an Avenger, ready to kick ass if needed. But you know, with his words.
Clare’s meanwhile pushing lunch for an hour. She’s trying to do everything that she can to cover for Henry. She doesn’t want her family to think bad of him but she’s also not going to tell them he’s a time traveler. They don’t want to deal with anything so telling them that is not an option.
Meanwhile, Gomez and Henry are sitting in a bar, having a conversation. Henry is asking all sorts of questions and Gomez is answering them. But the two of them come to an understanding, a weird one, but one none the less.
The two of them are both in love with Clare, which makes their friendship odd to me. But, I also feel like they both bring something to the table that evens them out. They’ve become the best of friends, despite them both loving the same woman and hey, that’s a beautiful thing. Gomez feels important and useful in this friendship.
Henry doesn’t get how he can be best friends with someone who loves his wife. Gomez is like cause things change and these days I am hot for your current wife. They both laugh (and we do too). What doesn’t change is Gomez knows it’s hopeless. He’s known Clares been in love with Henry before he knew who he was. He saw the drawing.
This drawing is more and more looking like a catalyst for something. Everything is important, even though Henry would tell you that nothing is. But this drawing has changed so much for so many people – I just can’t imagine that it’s not.
I HEARD HIM
Alicia hears the faucet and runs to tell Clare that Henry may be back. Clare heads up to check on him.
Henry is getting out of the shower. He’s really beat up. The two speak through a door, and it is such a simple but pivotal moment. Both are letting their guard down a little. She is willing to say he’s ill, to cover for Henry. But this trip changed him somehow, and he’s like no, I will be down. He asks her to go easy on him. She says you go easy on me. He says he’ll do his best. She feels something has changed, you can see that in her eyes.
Clare is at the table, wanting her family to calm down. She tries to tell them to go ahead and eat, that Henry will be down.
There is no part of me that understands why Mark is such an uptight asshole, treating his sister like she’s beneath him. Ummm, she’s not. Don’t know why but Clare feels like she needs to cover again for Henry, who is taking his times.
Clares tells her family, I am gonna be honest, Henry and I have been fighting. Alicia tries to cover for her, saying it’s new relationship stuff. Neither one of them want anyone interrogating Henry.
It’s something that backfires a little on Clare, because when Henry comes down, he’s pretty banged up. Her whole family thinks she hit him, after her excuses and Henry jokingly says, ” I don’t have to tell you guys, disagree with Clare.”
Clare looks at them all shocked that they would believe that she would do something like that. Henry and Clare are trying to make excuses. But no one seems to believe that he fell in the shower and Clare just forgot.
Alicia may be the MVP here, trying to change the subject and redirect them to get off the conversation of what happened to Henry. But Mark, well, he doesn’t let them move on. He wants to know when they would have hard time to fight.
No one can really blame Clare for loosing her shit when she does. Her parents seem to have these expectations of them all and the only person that they are proud of is Mark. Alicia wanting to be a hair dresser and not play the cello, seemed to be a trigger.
What happened to wanting your kids to be happy? I think we all get our parents wanting the best for us, but their version of the best isn’t always the best. It’s a starting point. But Alicia and Clare – they are happy. They only want to be happy. Why not let them be happy?
THE EXPLOSION
Mark is the kid of theirs that doesn’t seem to have a grasp on what happiness is. He’s instead a first class asshole and he keeps pressing the situation about why Henry is beat up.
For years, Clare has held it all in, but when she explodes and tells her brother to fuck the fuck off, I applauded. I would have jumped across the table and beat his ass, so who she is being is a lot better than who I would be.
It breaks her. Everything about being home breaks her. She’s been holding on to this idea of having to be perfect, but also has long accepted that nothing about her life is perfect. Especially her family. So telling them off, has been a long time coming.
She runs to her room, but sneaks out and runs straight to the meadow. It’s been her comfort place, but the truth is that what once offered you comfort, doesn’t always do just that. The way you saw things as a child, isn’t always the way that you’ll see things as an adult. Sometimes you just get lost in the pain.
Henry going after her to her room, and Alicia helping him in – we finally get Henry to see the drawing. It’s kinda crazy how a drawing can change everything, but you can tell by looking at it, all of the love that she holds for Henry.
And isn’t that what it’s about. The love that they hold.
When you’re young you see what you want to see and nothing gets in the way of the fairy tale. When you grow up, your vision clears and you see so much less.
the time traveler’s wife
Look, Clare isn’t always my favorite person – she’s self obsessed, stoic, hardened. She is judgmental. I have to wonder if it’s been a survival thing for her versus who she really is. But that picture, you can see that she just wants to love.
And that changes Henry.
He wants to be the man she needs. That will take a lot, but for him, the first step is cutting off his hair and showing her that he can be that man in the picture. He can be that man that she feels that she needs.
When we’re young, we have a vision of how life is supposed to be. We see the world through rose colored glasses and as we grow up, it changes. We’re no longer so innocent and our expectations have to fit other peoples expectations in also. For Clare, letting go isn’t something that she can do.
And maybe it’s not something that she wants to.
That being said, life can change when you fall in love and you have a reality slap. You can find your balance and you can try to see the world as it is and not how you want it to be. You can see that change can happen.
But you allow yourself to change too.
Clare and Henry are doing just that. It won’t be easy, but nothing worth it ever is. Both are going to have to let walls down and let each other in.
Especially now that Clare has said yes to that all important question of marriage.
OTHER THOUGHTS
- When Clare’s family housekeeper tells her that she’s not put out, that’s what she’s paid for, I felt bad for her. She thought they had a closer relationship. You can see it in Clare’s eyes.
- And then when she thought that the imaginary friend was Alicia’s, my heart broke again. It’s hard when you think something and it isn’t the way you thought.
- Clares brother is a first class asshole.
- When Gomez tells Henry to write down Bruckners, September 21, 2022, 7:35 – 8:02, I think we can all agree we need and want to know what that is.
- Gomez leaving the bar like he’s a superhero – too funny.
- Clares parents only being impressed with Henry when they found out who his parents were made me wanna slap them. Like so judgmental.
The Time Traveler’s Wife season finale airs next Sunday.
