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Bond and his Women
Let's face it, James Bond tends to treat his women pretty badly. He puts them in danger, uses them, and then leaves them. He's a first-class bastard. And man I wouldn't have him any other way. But every once and a while Bond enters a meaningful relationship with one of his ladies. It's a rarity. Honestly I think only 4 qualify (Tracy, Kara, Electra, and Vesper) and only 1 of those girls lives through the end of the movie. I guess the FYEO poster was right in saying "Nobody Comes Close to James Bond 007". Anyway for fun lets rank each actor's most meaningful and meaningless relationship with a lead Bond girl. I'll repeat lead girl. Don't list the girl on the boat from the opening of TLD. It's worth mentioning that only Connery and Moore never really got attached to anyone. Appropriately those are the two actors most associated with the role.
Sean Connery (This is clearly the toughest. His Bond didn't really care about anyone)
Meaningful= Honey Ryder- He seems to genuinely care about her safety and his is quickly ready to fight the armed guards after Dr.No suggests rape. It's the best example I can think of
Meaningless= Tiffany Case- He hits her, he calls her a bitch, calls her a stupid twit, and all the while sporting a pot belly. The only thing missing is Bond wearing an wifebeater and boxer briefs and I can see this as a domestic violence case on an episode on Cops. Plus Bond is pretty much setting her up to be arrested but still has plenty of sex with her.
George Lazenby
Meaningful= Tracy- He marries her. I think she's the obvious choice.
Meaningless= Nancy- She's just here by default. Lazenby only had 1 film and he spends the least time with her.
Roger Moore (Like Connery he didn't seem to care about his women much. But he was defiantly nicer to them. I.E. He wasn't hitting them all the time)
Meaningful= Octopussy- Maybe it's just because Moore and Adams had chemistry but Moore's Bond seemed to respect her as an equal more so. Plus they were closer in age which made them look like a more appropriate couple. The scene where Bond forces himself on her always stood out to me as proof that Moore could act.
Meaningless= Solitaire- Does she get the short end of the stick or what? No pun intended. Bond uses her faith in the tarot cards to trick her into sleeping with him, in effect taking away all her powers. Bond then uses her as human bait to get another shot at Kananga "This a valuable piece of merchandise we're carrying. With with any luck they'll want back". I always wondered what Solitaire did after the film. Maybe became a fortune teller at some circus. Probably not as glamorous as the life she was living before haha.
Timothy Dalton
Meaningful= Kara Milovy- This was the infamous late 1980s attempt to make James Bond more monogamous. He spends the majority of the film with her and develops a more tender and caring relationship.
Meaningless= Pam Bovier- Since Dalton only had 2 films it's a tossup between Pam and Lupe. Pam gets my vote as Bond seems to be more impatient with her. True he chooses her at the end but that seemed more out of pity.
Pierce Brosnan
Meaningful= Electra King- Bond seems to legitimately be falling for her through much of the film. So much so he either ignores the obvious or is just stupid. This was Bond at his weakest and found it hard to believe that such a hardened character could become such a sentimental idiot. TWINE sucked.
Meaningless= Electra King- He shoots her at point blank range. Oh the complexities of relationships.
Daniel Craig
Meaningful= Vesper Lynd- He's ready to quit the service and start a life with her. Im assuming marriage would follow. Vesper was in many ways a modern-day Tracy.
Meaningless= Solange- Bond uses her to get information about her husband, abruptly leaves her, gets her killed, and doesn't give the sight of her dead body being carried away a second thought. Indeed Sean Connery would be proud. The real James Bond is back.
Sean Connery (This is clearly the toughest. His Bond didn't really care about anyone)
Meaningful= Honey Ryder- He seems to genuinely care about her safety and his is quickly ready to fight the armed guards after Dr.No suggests rape. It's the best example I can think of
Meaningless= Tiffany Case- He hits her, he calls her a bitch, calls her a stupid twit, and all the while sporting a pot belly. The only thing missing is Bond wearing an wifebeater and boxer briefs and I can see this as a domestic violence case on an episode on Cops. Plus Bond is pretty much setting her up to be arrested but still has plenty of sex with her.
George Lazenby
Meaningful= Tracy- He marries her. I think she's the obvious choice.
Meaningless= Nancy- She's just here by default. Lazenby only had 1 film and he spends the least time with her.
Roger Moore (Like Connery he didn't seem to care about his women much. But he was defiantly nicer to them. I.E. He wasn't hitting them all the time)
Meaningful= Octopussy- Maybe it's just because Moore and Adams had chemistry but Moore's Bond seemed to respect her as an equal more so. Plus they were closer in age which made them look like a more appropriate couple. The scene where Bond forces himself on her always stood out to me as proof that Moore could act.
Meaningless= Solitaire- Does she get the short end of the stick or what? No pun intended. Bond uses her faith in the tarot cards to trick her into sleeping with him, in effect taking away all her powers. Bond then uses her as human bait to get another shot at Kananga "This a valuable piece of merchandise we're carrying. With with any luck they'll want back". I always wondered what Solitaire did after the film. Maybe became a fortune teller at some circus. Probably not as glamorous as the life she was living before haha.
Timothy Dalton
Meaningful= Kara Milovy- This was the infamous late 1980s attempt to make James Bond more monogamous. He spends the majority of the film with her and develops a more tender and caring relationship.
Meaningless= Pam Bovier- Since Dalton only had 2 films it's a tossup between Pam and Lupe. Pam gets my vote as Bond seems to be more impatient with her. True he chooses her at the end but that seemed more out of pity.
Pierce Brosnan
Meaningful= Electra King- Bond seems to legitimately be falling for her through much of the film. So much so he either ignores the obvious or is just stupid. This was Bond at his weakest and found it hard to believe that such a hardened character could become such a sentimental idiot. TWINE sucked.
Meaningless= Electra King- He shoots her at point blank range. Oh the complexities of relationships.
Daniel Craig
Meaningful= Vesper Lynd- He's ready to quit the service and start a life with her. Im assuming marriage would follow. Vesper was in many ways a modern-day Tracy.
Meaningless= Solange- Bond uses her to get information about her husband, abruptly leaves her, gets her killed, and doesn't give the sight of her dead body being carried away a second thought. Indeed Sean Connery would be proud. The real James Bond is back.
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Comments
I was really impressed with an interview with Dalton when he said that he had read all the books to get an understanding of the character. What I thought was great was when he spoke of Bond having that moment of weakness when he truly falls for a woman. For all his failing he is chivalrous, after all.
It was great to see that in TLD as it was as much to do with Fleming as it was to do with making Bond more monogamous.
Connery era:
Most meaningful-Domino Derval. I like how he actually has to woo and court her to get her into on his side. Then later, when he tells her about her brother's death and Largo's involvement in it, his hand shakes and he puts his sunglasses over his eyes to make it easier.
Least meaningful-Fiona Volpe. Unlike the Elektra King mess in TWINE, this is exactly the way Fleming's Bond would handle a femme fatale. "My dear girl don't flatter yourself. What I did tonight was for king and country. You don't think it gave me any pleasure do you?" Nothing against Fiona since she's my favorite 1960s Bond girl.
Lazenby era:
Most meaningful-Tracy a/k/a Mrs. James Bond for obvious reasons
Least meaningful-The Chinese "angel of death" that it's implied he's wooing at Piz Gloria as well.
Moore era:
Most meaningful-Octopussy Smythe. For reasons already stated. I'd like to think his Bond retired to India with her.
Least meaningful-Bibi Dahl. Way too young.
Dalton era:
Most meaningful-Kara Milovy. The most plausible and believable Bond/Bond girl romance in the entire series.
Least meaningful-Pam Bouvier. Pam got awfully clingy for a so-called "tough and independent" woman who did not seem any more or less special in this viewers' eyes than the majority of Bond's female conquests.
Brosnan era:
Most meaningful-Paris McKenna Carver. The fact that most of their relationship happened prior to the events of TND helped to give it a mystery and came off more plausibly than the Bond/Elektra Vavra King mess in TWINE where he gets all sentimental over a girl who's practically a stranger. Perhaps Babs thought up this TWINE storyline?
Least meaningful-Jinx. Their dialogue when they first meet gives a huge indication of this.
Craig era:
Most meaningful-Vesper Lynd. Again, for reasons already mentioned.
Least meaningful-Camille. Just a platonic ally.
Wow. That's completely the opposite to what Haphazard thinks. He said they should have gone full out with the "Bond being played" story ;)
I also don't buy that the original character was that "hardened". Yes he says "the bitch is dead" at the end of the CR book but its also revealed that he visits her grave once a year in OHMSS.
Let me try:
Connery
Meaninful: Jill Masterson - although they only knew eachother for a few minutes he seemed genuinely saddened at her death.
Meaningless: Plenty O'Toole - Yes she was sexy but Connery barely batted an eyelid when she was killed and left in the pool.
Lazenby
I'm going to skip this one
Moore
Meaningful: Octopussy - The two were a good match. Close in age and thus believable as a couple.
Meaningless: Andrea - A Maud Adams double bill. Moore comes off as a complete dick here. Slaps Andrea about and effectively causes her to get killed.
Dalton
Meaningful: Kara. A sweet relationship between the two.
Meaningless: Lupe. Wooden actress simply there for Bond to bed.
Brosnan
Meaningful: Natalya. Worked very well off one another ("Yes, basic rule, always call their bluff")
Meaningless: Chiristmas Jones ("I thought Christmas only comes once a year")
b]b][/b]Craig[b][/b[/b
Meaningful: Vesper for obvious reasons
Meaningless: Solange for the reasons @Doubleohhseven stated.
Bond can and has been played in the past but everything is made so obvious in TWINE it just makes him look really stupid. It's one thing if we don't know the character but this the 19th Bond film and the 3rd with Brosnan. And one thing everyone knows about Bond is that he's sharp as a tac regardless of how beautiful or charming the woman is. I can see were the writers were coming from but all-in-all I found it to be very poorly excuted. It's my second least favorite Bond film. You can proabaly guess the first.
Well he still fell for Vesper didn't he ;) He didn't see that she was effectively playing for the other team.
I'll agree with TWINE was clumsily executed at times but I like its intentions.
Yes but Vesper wasn't a villan was she. She was trying to help him in the end. And I though it was made very clear that we're dealing with a new James Bond in Daniel Craig in the reboot. So Bond is very much a different character in CR.
Yes TWINE suffered from melodrama and occasionally bad acting but I think the idea of Bond falling for a female antagonist is a good one.
Most: Honey. A gentleman until the end. Didn't leave her behind even when Crab Key was blowing up.
Least: Kissy. Bond just wasn't to thrilled about arranged marriages and sloppy seconds on Japanese female agents.
GL:
Most: Um, Tracy.
Leaast: We really didn't see too much of the Indian angel. I'll go with her.
RM:
Most: Andrea/Octopussy. Maud and Roger worked really well together.
Least: May Day. Roger just had to have been dying on the inside.
TD:
Most: Kara. Again, great onscreen chemistry between those two,
Least: Lupe. How does it feel to be dumped for a drama queen?
PB:
Most: Natalya, about the only beauty of the Brosnan era who didn't come off as shallow.
Least: Wai Lin. At least Paris, Christmas, Elektra and Jinx were f******e.
DC:
Most: Vesper obviously.
Least: Fields. Probably wouldn't have considered her if it weren't for the threat of being sent back to London.
When did this become about the books? Im talking about the cinematic James Bond. Comparing TWINE the film (which wasn't even based off a Fleming novel) and CR the novel seems pretty unfair considering how they are 2 completely different things. In alot of ways the literary James Bond and EON's James Bond are different characters.
Bond has primary objectives in getting a mission accomplished, the obligatory eye candy will sometimes take a back seat, although more often than not said Girl and Bond will be together at the end, Casino Royale and OMHSS were refreshing to take a different path for a change
I don't know what I would of done if say Honey Ryder, Solitaire or Major Amasova had ended up in such a way, i.e. been killed off before end of picture. I can't tell you the number of times I watch A View to a Kill, and wish - 'Sutton, please fall off the Golden Gate bridge and plummet to your demise', and every time she survives, more's the pity :-<
OK: Sean - most: Honey and Domino least: Kissy
George - Tracy (natch) least (no main one was there?) any Angel will do
Roger - most: Octopussy (and I want to add Melina from FYEO)
least: Goodnight (did he really care at all? don't think so)
Timothy - most: Kara
least: Pam (I don't include Lupe as main Bond girl)
Pierce - most: Natalya for sure
least: Jinx or Christmas (toss up)
Dan - most: Vesper (natch)
least: ?? who counts; well, Camille (but he cared as a friend)