Ruth Arc


I really didn't buy Ruth's arc. It seemed like the first 75% of the series she was evil, money grubbing bezie. Then the last 1/4 of the show she develops out of nowhere this affinity for Marty and compassion for her family which didn't feel earned or genuine. Had they spread it over the course of the season it would have been more realized (or over 2 seasons). The way it was handled, seems odd.

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She's young. The character is growing. Marty has showed her respect, put his confidence in her capabilities to run a business for him. Probably, nobody has ever fine that before.

A lot of criminals are criminals because they see no other way to make a living. Maybe she's seeing there is another way. Although, she knows there is still crime involved, so, lol

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She's young. The character is growing. Marty has showed her respect, put his confidence in her capabilities to run a business for him. Probably, nobody has ever fine that before.

A lot of criminals are criminals because they see no other way to make a living. Maybe she's seeing there is another way. Although, she knows there is still crime involved, so, lol

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I dont like her part in the show. Wish Russ stayed on, and she was gone. He was a much more interesting character.

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Seriously disagree. She is the big new thing to come from this show.

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agree. she is perhaps the most interesting character in the show.

hell of an actor. had a large role, playing a very different kind of character, in 'the americans'

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Her character is just one example (among many) of how the writers were clearly making the show up on the fly. A lot of it, anyway.

Season 2 is a good example. One day Ruthie is defiant and willful and telling her father to F off, the next she’s scared crapless and blubbering like a schoolgirl and telling him she’ll do right by him and not disappoint him anymore ... but then the day after THAT she’s up in his grill telling him to F off.

Now, you can say, “Well, people are like that — they’re inconsistent,” etc. But more than anything else it felt like the writers were just being wishy-washy with her characterization, mostly because they had to tread water to stretch a 2 1/2 or 3 hour story into 10 hours.

There’s a lot to like about Ozark. The acting, the cinematography, some of the witty dialogue. All good. But there’s a lot to dislike about it too. Namely the attenuated storytelling.

But that’s endemic to the form. Serialized TV is about the taffy pull. It’s about the streeeeeeeeetch.

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Her character is just one example (among many) of how the writers were clearly making the show up on the fly. A lot of it, anyway


Very much agreed and I thought it was only me who noticed this. The character's motivations and attitude seems to be all over the place making me think the writers have been uncertain and indecisive about where they want to go with the character.

Interestingly I still find her to be an alright character and the actress does a decent job.

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It's totally believable behaviour by a nineteen year old to me. Brought up by an abusive father in a cursed backwood and then finding appreciation and confirmation can do wonders. Don't forget it's why the military wants them around that age for a reason.

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Don’t disagree. But the show didn’t portray her that way. At first she was frightened but loyal to her father — exactly the way you’re describing.

But then she was angry and defiant with him (Remember the way she had him tossed out of the strip club?). And then later she was blubbering and scared around him (“I’ll make you proud of me Daddy ... oh God I’ll make you proud of me ...”) And then she was angry and defiant again. Whatever the show needed her to be in a particular episode, she was. It’s one of the pitfalls of doing a 10 hour movie.

The other thing you need to do in a 10 hour movie whose plot hasn’t been carefully worked out ahead of time: You need to have your characters dither a lot. They have to TALK about taking a certain action ... and then NOT take it (Remember how enraged Wyatt was when he found out Marty may’ve murdered his father? The kid was out for blood. He was right up in Marty’s grill. And then, bizarrely, the show had him become passive again.)

Why? Because the writers were obviously making up a lot of the plot as they went along, and that particular plot thread was proving inconvenient for them — it was getting in the way — so they just kinda dropped it.

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The torture affected her, when she was exposed to water she would break down.

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EXcatly, I couldnt believe how she went from a 1 season where we ended with a strong determined Ruth to begging for daddys love on her knees despite him constantly and really constantly telling her how worthless she is and what a loser. But shes like "no, love me daddy". Who wrote this nonsense?

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