“How can I unfeel the way I feel today?”
Warning: Full spoilers for the episode below.
Galavant has been working towards making Richard the hero for a while. Even when he was the evil king, he wasn’t mean. Not really. His actions were matter of fact and didn’t seem to come from a place of being willfully malicious. He was sort of obliviously swept up in the role. Now, he’s Galavant’s friend and on a more noble path. The humor built into the character makes it easier to buy into his transformation, but it’s been guided slowly through the story too.
It’s different with Madalena. She wears her ambitions on her sleeve. She’s ruthless and happily stomps on those around her. She’s terrible, but I respect that she doesn’t apologize for who she is and what she wants. I point this out because I never expected to connect with her, much less care enough about her pain to weep.
Learning about Madalena’s past and understanding how she made it her goal to become equals to the women who mistreated her brings things into focus. Seeing her relive the embarrassment and pain from her childhood hurt, and the song “Is This a Feeling?” was so successful not because it showed Madalena’s vulnerabilities but because it made her realize they existed. It’s not a stretch to believe she hasn’t felt a feeling since she was a child. Her pure confusion about what was happening was as heartbreaking as the lyrics.
Robert Lindsay and Karen David in Galavant
Mallory Jansen stole the episode with her performance. It’s a showstopper equal to “No One But You” from Season 1 but with a completely different tone. Jansen brought so much weight to the words. I’m still in pieces over it.
I don’t expect a total flip for the character; that wouldn’t be realistic given what we know of Madalena. Still, it was wonderfully surprising and moving to see her wrestle with the experience. And I know Gareth’s gesture was disgusting, but for these two, his move was romantic and kind. It’s a testament to the writing on Galavant that I found the gift of detached ears sweet instead of revolting.
Elsewhere in the episode, we got a peek into Chef and Gwynne’s life at Harry’s palace. They’re “upper lower class” now, and as ever, there’s humor to be found in their relationship — the sort of humor that makes you think, “I shouldn’t be laughing at this.” I mean, the whole musical number started with Chef reminding Gwynne she doesn’t have to dig in the trash for leftovers anymore. The sobering while being amusing line is a delicate one to walk, but they keep it in check.
Galavant and Richard’s relationship moved forward too, as Gal attempted to set Richard up with Roberta. Sure, he was mostly doing it in order to keep Richard occupied and out of his hair, but I believe part of it came from a place of wanting Richard to be happy. Whatever the motivation, the scene in the restaurant with the song reminiscent of “Kiss the Girl” made me laugh out loud.
Madalena hasn’t shown much of her humanity, just a desire to have her way and to be powerful and wealthy, etc. Tonight’s Galavant hit her with a hammer of emotional growth, and Jansen carried it beautifully. Insight into why Madalena is the way she is along with Richard and Galavant’s antics and Chef and Gwynne’s commitment to each other made the episode a strong one.
