Hey y'all,
Woof, here we go. Early in the episode, you'll hear Allison talk about a safe jump-ahead point for anyone who might want to avoid our discussion of the sexual violence in "Never My Love." You can listen safely until the five-minute mark and then skip ahead if you want to avoid all prolonged discussion of the first half of the episode. If you jump to 33:50, you'll hit the section where we talk about the dissociative episodes (the "Never My Love" stuff); if you jump to 49:52, you'll skip to the battle in the woods and Claire's recovery. Any mentions past that point are fleeting, though we do discuss her recovery at length. You should also stop reading these show-notes now, we love you, you look super nice today, love that top, your hair is so shiny, you're doing great, we'll see you next week.
For the rest of you: There's a lengthy discussion in this episode about the show's history of sexual violence, and we wanted to mention that our list is depressingly and distressingly incomplete. The fact that it's difficult to remember every instance of sexual violence in this show is, frankly, bonkers. But we forgot Fergus in season two. We forgot Weeian in season three. We forgot Jamie in season three (biting or no biting, Geneva Dunsaney extorts sex from Jamie, so that's another one.) And sadly, we're pretty sure there are others. That's messed up. Our feelings about that are really complicated, so just know that if yours are too, you're not alone—and whether or not these stories are well-handled is a separate issue from when, why, and how often they're addressed. Anyway, however you feel about it, your feelings are valid.
Lots of love,
Allison, Julie, and Janine