Some people just initially make you feel at ease.
Turning on Zoom, I always have a sense of anxiety. I have a tendency to over share on interviews. It’s because I am nervous. It doesn’t matter if I know that the person on the other end is just a person.
I see Carra Patterson in the corner of the screen and I feel a little scared. Scared that I won’t be able to artciulate what I love about her character.
Officer Kaya Blanke has ambition. She wants to be a good cop and advance in her career. Yet when it comes to Blanke, she is loyal, courageous, and driven by emotions. But she also finds a way to balance them.
However, todays episode, who she is will be put to the test. In the episode, “As Elsbeth’s investigation into Wagner heats up, this week Kaya will be put on the spot by Wagner to begin looking after Elsbeth on the low. Also, as you know, Kaya has already had suspicions of Elsbeth but she does care for Elsbeth and wants to continue building a friendship with her.”
At its core, Elsbeth is about the relationships that are formed in life and the way that loyalty plays into these relationships. While we have no idea what it is that Elsbeth is trying to find and what her boss is pressuring her for. As we try and figure out everything – because truthfully it’s hard to figure out what is going on in this show.
But as you watch, you take it for what it is. It’s a show where not only is New York is a main character, but the relationships vs. the individual characters are more prevalant. Perhaps the most captivating relationship/friendship on the show is between Elsbeth and Officer Kaya Blanke. The two don’t seem like they would be the best of friends, but what has happened is that circumstances have made them just that.
When the interview starts, immediately I am oversharing. However, Carra goes with it and she flows into my questions, where I immediately talk about the friendships and what she thinks makes people flock to Elsbeth.
She smiles and says, “I think people are craving that authenticity. But I think it’s surprising, because these are two women who you wouldn’t peg to have so much in common. Elsbeth is quirky, and you know Kaya is more stoic and by the book, but at the same time. They’re both highly intelligent, even though they express it in different ways, and they respect each other.”
She continues, “They’re 2 women in these male dominated in this male dominated space, and I think they really kind of hook into each other and can support each other. And I think Kyle has so much to learn from Elsp]beth, and I think she respects her, and that’s why Kai is like, Hey, she’s different.”
“I think she sees how Elsbeth this underestimated, and she’s like there’s more that meets the eye and she’s willing to. She wants to learn from her. So I am glad to see that everyone is responding to it, because it’s something that I hooked into from the beginning. It’s great when that translates from the page to the screen.”
I can’t help but love the way that her passion for the character comes across. She knows her character, you can just see it.
From the beginning it definitely felt as if Office Kaya didn’t want to work with Elsbeth, but she grows to show you that the two really do find a balance with each other.
You can’t imagine them not being partners. I guess that’s part of why I think that Kaya having to spy on Elsbeth is going to be hard for her. But why is it that their partnership works?
Carra saids, “I think Kaya gets a front row seat to Elsbeth’s process, you know. She’s forced to to to follow her around and to observe her and be sure that she’s doing things by the book as the consent decree. So she gets to see more of Elsbeth than anyone else in the department. Had she not been assigned to her, I don’t think they would have, had the opportunity to become friends.”
She does have a point, but that’s why it is that special. She continues, “She’s you know sent to cover Elsbeth. She’s forced to see that like, hey? There’s more than meets the eye with her.”
“I think you know at first glance Kaya does what everybody does with Elsbeth. We judge a book by its cover, and it’s like she has this Statue of Liberty hat on, and you know her fashion is loud and all the colors. It’s like Whoa! What doesn’t belong here? But you know you have to give people another chance, and I also think you know we love rooting for the underdog.”
“By no means is Elsbeth the underdog, but I think she kind of gets brushed to the side in this world of the NYPD.”
I have to think for a second about what she’s saying. The thing is, I do think that Kaya and Elsbeth are the underdogs, but I also think that is what makes them strong. Being the underdog is a motivator.
And what comes with being the underdog is a genuineness. Officer Kaya is genuine. She’s New York. She has a no nonsense attitude like she’s got this innocence yet. She’s like strong, and you’re not gonna take advantage of me attitude.
Kaya is complex and maybe that’s part of what Carra likes playing her.
“Now that we finish the first season, you know, when I first meet a character I don’t really know. I’m sort of discovering throughout the process what I have in common and what’s different. But I think you know, I can kind of present as an an introvert when in new spaces, even though I’m an actor.” she tells me, “And when I’m like in one on one situations with new people. It takes me a while to warm up, and I think Kaya has to have these walls up, you know, working on the streets of New York, being in these spaces that you know. These men come in and they take charge. And not only is she a woman, she’s a she’s a black woman, she’s a woman of color. It’s like so many walls and defenses, and also just having toprotect yourself just on the streets day to day.”
“So I think that she is just used to.” she continues, “I think Kaya’s super power is. She’s patient, and she observes everything first, before you know she’s not the loudest one in the room, but she sees everything, and I can identify with that in my own life. And so I just kind of brought that forward. That’s kind of what I hooked into with Kaya, and I think throughout the season you’ll see her getting the confidence to speak up, and seeing that you know that she does have power in in her voice, and standing up for what’s right.”
Standing up for whats right is not going to be easy. Especially after tonights episode where she says about Kaya, “when this episode ends she sees Elsbeth, you know.make some choices that she’s starting to question as well. And it’s like, Okay, who do, I trust?”
It’s definitely intriguing and having seen the episode I would agree with what she’s saying. Because I am questioning everything and everyone. Well except, Office Kaya.
Elsbeth airs Thursdays on NBC.
