Robin Hood 2x05 "Ducking and Diving"

This is probably the very best episode of the entire series. This is Robin Hood at it's absolute peak. I cannot even begin to explain how much I absolutely adore this episode. It ripped my heart apart and stomped on it, sure, but it is genuinely excellent in every way and contains the scene that is probably my OTP's finest moment. We're at the episode where Robin finds out he has a traitor in his gang. Personally, I think it would have been better to go another episode or two of Allan being a traitor before the big reveal as I think it would have made even more of an impact, since at this point he hasn't really betrayed them that many times. He might've told Guy something the night he escaped the dungeon (but I don't count that as a betrayal since it was to save his own life), he told Guy they were going to break into the strongroom again (but Guy already knew that so he didn't give up any valuable information at all), he told Guy about the fake order from the sheriff to release Daniel and about the pitch backup plan (the first real betrayal that actually mattered), he told Guy about the letter Roger was delivering which Guy then used to kill Roger despite it going against the terms of their arrangement (the first time Allan's treachery actually got someone killed), and at the start of this episode we have one more before the cat's out of the bag (warning Guy that Robin was planning to intercept Henry). I don't mean to make excuses for Allan, but all in all, that's not really that bad. Unless he was betraying them a lot more offscreen/in between episodes, that's barely anything. Only four times he sold a secret and one of them wasn't even a secret? I just think another episode or two of being a spy would've made it better and besides, I liked having Allan as a part of the gang better than at the castle. Regardless, this episode is still absolutely fantastic. We have several plots going on at once and lots of fascinating interaction between the gang as the Allan-as-spy storyline comes to a climax. I'm excited to watch this one, so let's begin.

Fair warning: This post is going to be LONG. There is A LOT to discuss in this episode and A LOT to break down. It's one of, if not the most, important episodes of the entire series, a major turning point, and in my opinion, the best episode, so I'm diving deep into this one.

Thoughts While Watching:

• The episode opens with Allan angrily confronting Guy in the tavern. He says he has nothing more to tell him because he killed Roger. Guy replies, "Allan, you knew I'd kill him. You just didn't want to admit it to yourself." How true is this statement? Did Allan assume that Roger would be killed or did he assume that Guy was being honest about not making Allan help him kill anyone? I'm honestly not sure and I don't even think Allan is sure either. I think he started to see someone likable or relatable in Guy, got kind of comfortable around him in "Childhood," and maybe stopped really considering how dangerous this all really is. After that comment, Guy asks him again what information he's brought and Allan tells him to change Henry's route. I don't actually fault him for that. I think Allan did intend to refuse to give him anything, he wanted to confront him, he saw Guy didn't care at all about the confrontation, showed no remorse for either the murder or breaking the terms of the arrangement with Allan, and it reminded him of how cold-blooded Guy can be, and he knew there was no way he could just call off the arrangement at this point and walk out of the tavern without giving him anything without risking his own life in the process. As he'll describe later in the episode, he's truly "stuck" now. Even if he were to confess at this point and Robin were to ask about what all the specific acts of betrayals were, he would have to confess about Roger. He didn't intend for Roger to die, but if Guy is accusing him of knowing that he would kill him, Robin would likely do the same. I believe him when he says later on that he's stuck. I can completely see where he's coming from and I don't even fault him for telling Guy about Henry here.
• I don't think that Robin has collected enough evidence yet or that Guy and the sheriff have been one step ahead of them enough times for Robin to come to the conclusion that he has a traitor. Either there is a lot more going on off screen and in between episodes OR the idea came to Robin just now when he heard the gang's reactions to this. Allan immediately starts coming up with excuses while most of the rest of the gang are silent (except one suggestion from Will). As soon as Robin says he's been tipped off, Allan asks by who in an overly shocked voice and suggests he's probably just late and gives a few reasons why that might be. Once Will asks if Marian had gotten the time wrong, Allan jumps on this and says what a good point it is and how Marian could be making all kinds of mistakes since she mostly gets her information from eavesdropping. Allan is clearly nervous that Robin could be putting the pieces together and starts rambling way too much. I think it's Allan's reaction that gives Robin the idea that he might have a traitor and if that's the case, that means that Robin's main suspect was Allan all along.
• I really dislike Robin's reaction to this though. He tells the gang to go back to the camp and stay there. When they start to ask him what's going on, he interrupts them with an angry, "That's an order!" I get that he's the leader, but they are not part of some military unit. This isn't the Crusades, it's not a war, they're not actually soldiers. This is a group of volunteers who choose to follow Robin and help fight for his cause. What right does he have to give them orders to go home and stay there? What if someone had something they were supposed to do today? It just rubs me the wrong way. Like I get that they don't know what's going on yet and for all they know, this order could be for their safety, so they're not that upset about it, but I am. But then again, I have major issues with Robin's leadership skills throughout this whole show.
• While I totally get that Allan's reaction was fishy as hell and while I know that Robin's intuition is right here, I still don't think there's enough information for Robin to be making accusations that there's a spy in the gang. What if this was another instance like in the first season when Guy told his sergeant fake information to see if it made it back to Robin? Marian could have overheard something that was meant to flush out another spy. OR what if they suspect Marian (not far fetched, she's been acting fishy as hell to the castle team and her open defiance in "Childhood" certainly raised red flags for the sheriff) and they intentionally set her up knowing that she was listening in to see if she would get the message to Robin? I can think of several other explanations before jumping to the spy-in-the-gang theory. If I were Robin, that would be my first thought was that the sheriff suspected Marian and set a trap to catch her as a spy. I think that's honestly the most likely scenario even if it isn't actually the right one. If Allan hadn't acted so suspiciously, I think it's more likely that Robin would've jumped to this conclusion instead.
• Why does Much assume that it's specifically Gisborne and not the sheriff that is getting information from someone?
• Much puts two and two together here really quickly. When he asks Robin if he suspects him, Robin says that he has to suspect everyone. Does he ever really suspect Much though? I think that he knows he has to treat them all equally and not play favorites, but I don't think he actually suspects Much at all, not even for a single second, not even knowing that Much was the only one who disobeyed his orders, not even after seeing how quickly Much puts it together, not at all.
• Much: What do I have to do to prove my loyalty to you? What? Tell me! What? I'll chop off my own arms! Well, one arm, because once I chop that off then I wouldn't be able to chop off the other. (Robin gives him a smile like he's fighting back laughter. Much is the sweetest thing ever and I love him so much. He deserves a better friend. Robin doesn't deserve this level of loyalty. But I don't think that Robin ever really suspected Much at all.)
• The Sheriff to Matilda: Cure this man or you die, anyone that you love, and even some that you have a passing liking for. (Another great line from the sheriff who gets all the best lines in the show.)
• How much of Matilda's agreeing to help was out of fear, how much was out of a sense of duty to not let a patient die, and how much of it was just to piss off Blight?
• Marian's flirting with Guy is really cute. She's getting better at this.
• You know what kind of scares me? I've never been stung by a bee before in my entire life. For all I know, I could be allergic too and end up in as bad a shape as Henry if the day ever comes.
• Okay, we have got to talk about Robin here. This is Robin, the man who believes in not killing unless it's absolutely necessary, or used to believe in that when he had just come home from war. Here he is ready to kill this man for being a traitor to the king, even though the king's life is not in any immediate danger as a result of this man's information. And not only that, but he's ready to kill this man WHILE HE'S UNCONSCIOUS and completely unable to fight back or defend himself. These are not the actions of a hero. This is Robin inserting himself into a political squabble between two brothers, who let's face it, neither of them were good kings of England for the English (Richard's claim to fame and reputation as a good king was strictly due to his success in the Crusades, he did nothing for his English subjects themselves), and he's ready to commit murder over it. That's what this would be: murder. This isn't a battle in a war, this isn't a fair fight, this isn't even an unfair fight, seeing as there would be no fight here. This is murdering someone in their sleep. This is not okay. It is a completely immoral act. AND THEN he suggests cutting out his tongue, which is torture and mutilation and almost certainly ineffective anyway. The same torture and mutilation that he criticizes and fights the sheriff over, he's willing to do himself in the name of "Good King Richard." The fact that this man is a messenger and so likely knows how to read and write so having his tongue cut out wouldn't even solve the problem just adds to the stupidity and cruelty of the suggestion. 
• Marian hears Guy tell the woman at the tavern, "When he finally arrives, give him this." Now, Djaq is openly presenting as a woman now. No one would ever think she's a man anymore. Marian hears the male pronouns being used, but when she confirms Robin's theory that he has a spy, she doesn't think to include this information so he can rule out Djaq? Why wouldn't she do that?
• So Marian says, "the serving maid knew him," which is the only time she uses male pronouns. So maybe she has assumed that it's one of the guys based on what she heard, but she doesn't specify that Guy used male pronouns and Robin doesn't ask or put anything together here because later on he treats Djaq as a suspect too.
• Wanted to spend time with him by stalking him? How is that excuse believable? Wake up, Guy, you absolute dumbass.
• We're at the scene where Much comes back to the camp and reveals that Robin thinks there's a spy in the gang. I'm gonna break this scene down bit by bit because it's one of the most important scenes in the show and gives us a lot of information about who these people really are and their relationships to each other.
• Much gets back to the camp and starts smacking things and throwing them about, obviously having a hissy fit about something. Allan asks him what his problem is and whether or not he spoke to Robin. Does Allan suspect that Robin might suspect something at this point?
• Much starts making accusations like "You like to know his plans, do you? What's the sheriff's and Gisborne's plan?" and he's aiming them at everyone at first, but then he narrows in on Will specifically when he asks, "How much do they pay you?" 
• Everyone else seems confused at Much's behavior and John's "Pay who?" sounds a bit angry and frustrated like he's not in the mood for whatever bullshit Much is pulling today.
• Much reveals that there's a spy in the camp. The camera gives us a close up of Allan who's realizing all his worst fears are coming true, but I'm still wondering whether or not he already suspected that Robin suspected this. They then show the reactions from the rest of them and Djaq's face is particularly interesting to me because I think she's already starting to put two and two together as soon as she hears this.
• Allan is the first to speak up, once again talking too much, and asks how Robin knows.
• Much says that it's obvious because Gisborne is always five or six steps ahead of them. Again I ask, why are they specifying Gisborne here? Much doesn't know that Marian found out Guy was the one meeting the spy. And "always five or six steps ahead of us" seems like a false claim too. We haven't seen Allan betray them that many times, so I guess I'm going to have to assume there was more going on that they didn't show.
• Will is the first to get offended, probably because Much zeroed in on him and asks, "Are you calling me a traitor?"
• John jumps in with "Traitor? Wha-? Ugh!" That's the closest I can get to typing that out, but he sort of shakes his head in disgust. I don't think he believes that there's a traitor yet and mostly thinks Much is full of it at this point.
• Will immediately looks at Allan who responds with, "What are you looking at me for?" Will laughs and says, "Well, you're the one who tried to persuade me to steal from Robin. You know, that time we thought the king was coming?" Which...okay, listen, Will. Yes, it was Allan's idea to do that BUT you chose to go along with it. Even if you changed your mind and you both came back, even if it was you who admitted it and offered an apology first, that betrayal is still on both of you. Don't go acting high and mighty now.
• Much jumps at this suggestion though and is quick to turn on Allan and calls him a traitor.
• Allan retaliates with, "We thought about it, we decided against it, didn't we?" Now, I realize that Allan is actually the traitor and his main concern is not being found out, but he brings up an excellent point here with the use of the word "we" because they both decided to do that and they both came back.
• In the middle of this scene we get another look at Djaq's face. She's staying quiet, she's observing the shit show, and I think she's putting the puzzle pieces together. Rather than join in on the bickering and pointing fingers, she's carefully reviewing the evidence in her mind to come to a conclusion that will end up being the right one. She probably starts off by thinking about who has been around the whole time and who has had opportunity to sneak off and then once she concludes Allan has been the one missing lately she probably then remembers the bruises and it clicks for her. I think she's thinking back to "Sisterhood" when Allan came back with bruises all over him, she's probably thinking about how he ran off on his own during "Booby and the Beast," how he offered to go to Guy in "Childhood" and offered to deliver the message in "The Angel of Death," and realizing that everyone else was there the whole time. Djaq is a scientist and has a way of looking at things logically rather than emotionally when she needs to, so I think that's why she's the only one not joining in the fight and reacting horribly (John's not acting horribly either and he's only joining in so that he can break up the fights). She's too busy actually solving the mystery with facts and evidence.
• Will and Allan aren't so calm and collected. They immediately get in each other's face. Will's response to Allan's "we" statement is to scream, "Because I said not to!" And then they get into a slapping fight while John yells at them to stop and gets in between them.
• Another cut to Djaq's face and it's all scrunched up in thought. She's either figured it out already or she's in the final stages of putting it together. I love her. Will, Allan, and Much are all acting like children, John is acting like the parent trying to stop them from fighting, and Djaq is acting like the detective solving the crime.
• Much says, "Yes, if anyone's gonna kill the traitor, it's gonna be me." Excuse me, Much? What the absolute fuck? You're already prepared to kill someone over this? Damn. You used to be more rational than this. Robin's already taken a quick turn to thinking murder is okay in Nottingham with Henry, but remember the last time Robin went nuts like this? When he had Guy captured in the woods? And Much spent an entire episode protecting Guy of Gisborne? And now he's ready to kill one of his own friends himself? Has everyone lost their fucking minds?
• Allan tells Much, "What makes you so high and mighty? He obviously doesn't trust you either or why'd he send you back here?" That's the final straw for Much who absolutely loses his shit and does this scream/growl thing before charging into Allan and attacking him. John is tired of this shit and gets in between them as well and pulls them apart. 
• The scene ends with Robin shooting an arrow into the camp and then they all go to him for the next scene.
• I think we can tell A LOT about who they all are and their relationships to each other from this scene:
• Djaq is the most logical and rational of the group. She doesn't get involved in the bickering and fighting, she isn't pointing fingers, she isn't openly discussing who she suspects, and she isn't even concerned about defending herself. She's quiet, observant, and calculating. Her main concern is putting the clues together to come up with the answer. Now, part of this might be due to the fact that no one directly accuses her specifically, but I suspect that she would stay calm anyway.
• John is also acting very rational about this, which shows how far he's come. Remember how he attacked Roy without even knowing the full story when they realized Roy was going to kill Robin? Back then, it was the rest of them who had to pull John off the "traitor" (who wasn't even really a traitor), but now it's John pulling the others apart. He doesn't appear convinced that there even is a traitor yet, he doesn't seem to trust that Much isn't blowing things out of proportion or misunderstanding what Robin said, and he doesn't point the finger at anybody. All John is concerned with is breaking up the fight between Will and Allan and then breaking up the fight between Much and Allan. He's very much acting as the father figure of the gang here. In later episodes once he knows for sure that Allan is a traitor, he won't continue to be so calm, but right now he is. He's not ready to jump to any conclusions yet. I wonder how much of this is due to the wisdom that comes with being the oldest member of the gang and how much of this is him learning his lesson from what happened with Roy about jumping to conclusions.
• Much clearly views himself as the most loyal member of the gang, feels that he should be above suspicion, and thinks that any of the rest of them might be capable of this. However, despite initially pointing the finger all around, the only two he actually narrows in on are Will and Allan. I think that Much really has narrowed it down to those two and I don't think his later claims about how he "knew it" was them, even though he says it for both of them, are a lie. He might not have been sure of which one, but he's narrowed it down to the two of them. So then the question becomes, why? 
• Why does Much accuse Will at first specifically? Is it because he refused to follow Robin's orders in the last episode and was willing to lie to them to get an excuse to leave the quarantine and go to the castle and was willing to poison the sheriff despite knowing the deal with Prince John? Or does Will get a pass for that because of his grief? Even if Will gets a pass for that, does he get a pass for shoving Djaq in the closet? I pointed out then that Much seemed genuinely worried about what Will had done to her, like he might have considered the possibility that Will hurt or killed her. Since Will was willing to essentially kidnap one of the gang and put them in a dangerous situation, does he think Will might be more willing to betray them? Could he be wondering if Will's ability to get into the castle in the last episode might be because he was a traitor and maybe his extreme rage over the incident might be due to feeling betrayed that the sheriff still killed his father despite being a spy for him? I'm not saying any of these are rational thoughts because I think the fact that the sheriff killed his father would make Will the least likely suspect (or that even if he was betraying them before he would have stopped after that), but I'm trying to get into Much's head because he clearly zeroed in on Will right away.
• I think Much accusing Allan makes sense because I think the two of them have always had a bit of a rocky relationship (not that they weren't real friends, because they were, but they argued the most) and Will reminded him of the incident in 1x12, but I think being reminded of that probably led him to conclude that it had to be one of those two and that he didn't rule Will out just because Will was the one who brought it up.
• It's interesting that despite Will and Allan obviously being so close that Will turns on him so quickly here. Allan is the only person that Will suspects and his reason for suspecting him is something that they both did. Is Will maybe holding onto some guilt over that incident and projecting? For being someone that views the world in such black and white terms, that incident struck me as very out of character for Will, yet he was willing to go along with it at first, despite his values and despite his feelings for Djaq. Is he ashamed of how quickly and easily Allan was able to talk him into it? Does he resent Allan for convincing him to almost make a huge mistake? Does Will have any real right to point the finger at Allan over that incident specifically? Because I don't think so. 
• I also think it's interesting that Will and Much are both so quick to turn on their friends here. Even Allan doesn't start pointing the finger at anyone to protect himself, just points out the hypocrisy of the other two (with pointing out that they both almost abandoned the gang and Robin suspects Much too). John and Djaq don't start pointing the finger either. It's Will and Much who handle this the most immaturely and with the most emotional reactions, but they're both right. Well, Much is half right because he suspects two people, but Will is right. Does Will just know Allan well enough to rely on his intuition here?
• Why do none of them question whether or not Robin even knows for sure what he's talking about or whether Much understood him correctly? Robin just decides that there's probably a traitor (at the point when he told Much he hadn't gotten proof yet), Much comes back and just starts making accusations as though he's sure it's the truth, and everyone just accepts it? Except John who seemed kinda iffy about the whole thing at first. Why are they all so quick to assume the worst about each other? Why didn't anyone say, "Robin has to be wrong about this. I can't believe that any of us would stoop that low and I refuse to believe it unless he has definitive proof." or something like that? Is the level of trust between them so low that none of them thought they could all be innocent? If any of you have ever read the Distant Shores trilogy fanfiction (which is amazing, by the way) by Bostonchickadee (go read it NOW, I cannot recommend this highly enough), in the first part of the trilogy, Djaq figures out that it's Allan but Allan doesn't get found out. She instead uses this tactic to basically convince the rest of the gang to come to the conclusion that none of them would ever do this and that Robin has to be wrong, so they tell Robin that and it essentially backfires on her and Robin starts questioning how they all came to that idea, figures out it was her idea, and then accuses her of being the traitor before Allan finally confesses, but the fact that it backfired in a fanfiction isn't the point. The point is why don't they assume that? I think it shows that they all kind of have some major trust issues between each other. In a lot of ways, they're a "found family" and they act as such, but on the other hand, they are very quick to turn on each other and that can't be ignored. The fact that they and Robin are right about this doesn't negate the fact of just how quickly they're willing to turn on their own.
• Anyways, moving onto the next scene now. Robin shows up with Rosa, Matilda's daughter, who is in the early stages of labor. God, I really feel for this girl. At least I had an epidural, although my epidural didn't work the first time they put it in and I went like six hours without pain medicine and it was horrendous but at least I didn't have to go through the actual process of pushing him out with nothing (though they do tell you to stop pushing the button for more meds a bit before they know the baby's about to come so that you can still feel to push). When I think about what I went through and then think about all of the billions of women who came before me throughout most of human history who had to go without pain medicine, I absolutely shudder at the thought. Especially when I think about the high mortality rate for women in pregnancy. Even worse when I think about the high mortality rate for infants back then. And the fact that there wasn't reliable birth control. Like honestly, can you even begin to imagine how life must have been for women before modern times? You get to your early teen years (like middle school or high school age today), you get married off (likely to someone older and if you're lucky you have a choice but a lot of them had very little say), you get impregnated over and over again throughout your life, you go through the pain of childbirth with nothing to ease it over and over again, you never know whether this is gonna be the childbirth that kills you or not and essentially go through each pregnancy wondering if you're living out your last days, then you give birth and survive it if you're lucky and get a sweet baby that you love and become attached to, and then a not small percentage of the time the baby's dead within a year and you have to bury your own child? No wonder there were so many more women willing to sign up to become nuns. I don't even think it's because they were actually all that religious, just the alternative sounds like absolute horse shit. I wouldn't be able to handle it. When I think too much about what women used to go through, it literally makes me want to cry.
• Robin tells them they're taking her to the camp and John questions him so he says, "This is Rosa. Matilda's daughter." Like that's supposed to mean something to them. How many of them even know Matilda? Maybe Will, John, and Much do if she worked in Locksley and has lived there for awhile, but Allan and Djaq probably have no clue.
• Allan says, "so much for it being a secret," meaning the camp and Robin replies, "so much for a lot of things being secret." Ooh, that salt. Oh, my.
• Robin tells Djaq, assuming she'll take over as a physician like she usually does, that the baby's the wrong way around. And she does immediately go to Rosa as soon as she sees she's in pain so he's not wrong to assume she's going to handle this. Rosa asks if she knows how to turn it and Djaq just pauses and says, "Let's get you to a bed, shall we?" and Rosa immediately knows that Djaq doesn't know what she's doing. We'll get to this a bit later, but I have a comment to make about this and the incident from last episode.
• So what if Matilda was the midwife that Robin's mother used? That makes her suspicious? That means she's working with Robin now? I mean, she is, but that's not really evidence of anything.
• Will and John confront Robin about the traitor, Robin reveals that he knows one of them has been meeting Guy to sell their secrets, and all of them deny it (as though that makes any difference). Then Robin says he will give them one chance to step forward and admit it, explain what happened, and that he'll listen. He doesn't say that this one chance means they can still stay in the gang or even offer them any protection other than he'll hear them out. He's asking the traitor to come forth in front of everyone, which also makes the offer unappealing, although he doesn't realize the fighting and killing threats that just took place in the last scene. Robin's leadership skills here aren't necessarily terrible, because he is offering them a chance to confess which is better than nothing, but they're not great either. Very few people would confess given the circumstances, although Allan seems to be considering it for a moment. If Robin had made some kind of guarantee like, for example, promising them that he would not allow them to be hurt or maybe deciding to talk to each of them individually, I think that would have made a huge difference. If he would have said that he was willing to listen and that it doesn't necessarily mean they'd be kicked out, it would have made a difference. Maybe Allan would have confessed and maybe he wouldn't have, but at least then if he still didn't confess, I'd be able to side completely with Robin in the last scene of the episode and have more faith in his leadership abilities, because as it stands now, I don't really side with Robin at the end and my faith in his leadership skills at this point is practically nonexistent. 
• Djaq is kind of looking around and seems about to say something during that scene too. Was she about to speak her suspicions or was she just anxiously waiting to see if Allan would confess on his own? Either way, she says nothing. 
• I want to take this opportunity to think about who Robin might be considering as the traitor at this point and what motivations they might have (even though we know for sure it's Allan, Robin can't be 100% sure so I'm trying to get in his head):
• Much: I don't think he thinks it was Much at all, as I said earlier. I think he's only treating them equally because he's the leader and he feels that he has to, which is a good thing. It's an example of good leadership for once. Much would never betray Robin. Although, to be honest, if anyone was going to betray Robin, I think Much has the most cause. Robin treats him like shit repeatedly. Robin may have thought about all the times he treated Much like shit and wondered about it briefly, but I think he knows deep down that Much is a better man than he will ever be and Much would never do that. Much following him to Nottingham and figuring out that there's a spy on his own might seem suspicious, but then why would he come back and spill the secret? Much is absolutely the one he's closest to, his best friend, and the most loyal, so I don't think he was ever a thought.
• John: John is an unlikely suspect just because the sheriff has tried to torture his son before and I don't think, at this point in his life, John would want to do anything to make his son ashamed of him. That being said, as I've said before, I think John has done some dark stuff in his past. I really do believe that he killed someone to get outlawed in the first place and we see the way he treated other people in the first two episodes when he had his own gang. He's also shown, time and time again, that if he disagrees with Robin on something, he won't follow; he'll just knock him out and do as he pleases. On the one hand, this might make Robin suspect that he might be more likely to betray him, but on the other hand, that also makes him less likely since John is not a sneaky man. If he had a problem with something, he's direct. He's not going to hide his feelings and double cross anyone, he's just going to yell and beat you over the head with his staff. Also, as I've mentioned before, even though John was willing to sell Robin to the sheriff in 1x02, by the time 1x04 rolled around, he was ready to kill (or said he was ready to kill, though I don't think he would have killed Roy, just beat the shit out of him) the man he viewed as a son for betraying Robin. I think overall, if Robin reviewed the evidence to himself, he would realize that John is an extremely unlikely candidate.
• Djaq: On the surface, Djaq might seem to be a likely candidate. She's the "outsider" in a lot of ways and she is the one who is most likely to have a problem with King Richard, whom the sheriff and Guy have aligned themselves against. Seriously, why does she not have a bigger problem with Robin's loyalty to him? I have bigger issues than she seems to have. I'm mad on her behalf most of the time and she's not even phased. I, for one, despise King Richard and honestly? If she had betrayed Robin to help the sheriff kill King Richard, I would support her 100%. I'd be rooting for her over Robin any day. But that being said, I'm glad they didn't go that route because it would have had nasty implications if the only Muslim in the group turned out to be a traitor, especially with what was going on in the real world at the time this aired (and now for that matter). But if you think about it, the sheriff and Guy have never hurt anyone she cares about other than herself and the other members of the gang. She's never lost or nearly lost family members to either of them, unless you count Guy breaking what might have been a peace treaty. She would also be the one most likely to have a problem with Robin, specifically, because he was a Crusader. He might be wondering if she's held a grudge against him the whole time and was just waiting for the right time to strike, although I think if his mind did go there, it would be out of pure paranoia. She's never given him any reason to believe she's capable of being filled with that much hatred. There's also the fact that Robin saw her pull the black powder ledger out of the fire, which proves that she's capable of being sneaky and that she's willing to disobey him and then hide it from him when she wants something bad enough. He might also be thinking back to how she was the only one that he completely let down. When any of the rest of them were captured, and they all were at one point, he was on the ball and ready to go rescue them, but he failed her completely. Maybe he's wondering if she never really forgot or forgave that? Which, I mean, I don't think she's held a grudge about that at all, but I think she would have every right to and I would if I were in her shoes. However, on the flip side, Guy and the sheriff originally bought her as a slave and Robin was the one who freed her, so he might think it's unlikely because of that. Other than the ledger incident, she's shown nothing but loyalty to him and saved Marian's life. If Marian would have said that Guy and the woman at the tavern referred to the traitor as a "he" then I think he would have ruled Djaq out right away, but she didn't specify that and he says here, "if the guilty man or woman confesses," so I think she's still in the running for him. I don't think that Djaq is his main suspect (I think it's Allan, which I'll get to in a minute), but I do think that he probably thinks she's a possibility or maybe views her as a runner up for top suspect. Basically, I don't think he's ruled her out yet, although I think the only person he's really completely ruled out is Much, and I think he thinks she's more likely than John or Will.
• Will: Will is an extremely unlikely candidate because of all the pain that he and his family have suffered under the sheriff and Guy. He lost his mother, his father lost his hand, and he and his brother both nearly lost their lives. He's spent the past several years living in Locksley and seeing the suffering of all the villagers. He's the most passionate about helping the poor because this fight is the most personal for him. And he tends to view the world in black and white terms. He also just lost his father to the sheriff, though I don't think that rules him out from being the traitor before that happened, but since the traitor is still active now, it makes him unlikely. I think that it's pretty obvious that Will would never want to do anything to help the sheriff. However, that being said, Will did betray them by running away with Allan in 1x12, no matter how much he tries to claim it was all Allan's fault, and he did essentially betray them in the last episode, even if it was for a good reason. Finally, Will is the one confronting him here and demanding to know who he suspects, which is something the real traitor is unlikely to do. I think the evidence speaks for itself that Will is definitely not the traitor and given Robin's choice to frame Will later on, I think he thinks so too. He might not be as sure of Will's innocence as he is of Much's innocence, but it's close. The only difference between Will and Much is that Much is unlikely to betray Robin because of his loyalty to Robin and Will is unlikely to betray Robin to the sheriff and Guy because of his hatred for the sheriff and Guy, even if he is sometimes willing to betray him in other ways and for other reasons.
• Allan: I think that Robin's main suspect is Allan. As I said at the beginning of the episode, I think the puzzle pieces start falling into place whenever Allan starts rambling off a hundred excuses for why Henry could be late. He sounded shady and I think Robin picked up on it. If Robin did pick up on the shadiness of Allan in that scene, then once he realized he was right about there being a spy, he probably cast his mind back to last episode whenever Allan was grilling him about the letter. He even questioned then why Allan was asking so many questions. And if he put those two and two together, he's likely going through the same mental process that Djaq probably went through and figuring out that Allan is the one who has chosen to be separated from the gang several times recently ("Booby and the Beast" and "The Angel of Death") or chosen to go on missions by himself ("Childhood" and "The Angel of Death"). He's likely also thinking back to when Will and Allan abandoned them in 1x12, which would make them both suspects, but Will has several other things working in his favor that Allan doesn't have, plus Will was the one who confessed right away when they got back when Allan was still trying to lie about it, showing both that he's willing to betray them and lie to them about it. On the flip side, Robin did save Allan a couple times in the first episode alone and the sheriff was responsible for killing Allan's brother, which would make him unlikely. But Allan's not from this area, so he never had to live under the sheriff and Guy's rule as a legal citizen nor did his family, which Will and John's families did and Will had to suffer under their rule himself. Allan has some reasons that would make him unlikely, but he has far less than the rest of the gang, except Djaq, and far more reasons that would make him more likely than the rest of them. Allan and Djaq might be kind of equal here in reasons to betray him versus reasons to be loyal, but considering the evidence, Allan is the one who has been acting shady, Allan is the one who has been separated from the gang and going missing, Allan is the one who has proven his willingness to lie over and over again (whereas Djaq only hid something once that he knows of), and Allan has proven to care more about money than about loyalty to the gang at least once in the past (in 1x12), whereas Djaq never has. Therefore, I think going by all the evidence, Allan is Robin's top suspect. 
• In fact, I'd go so far as to say that Robin's probably already like 80% to 90% sure he knows exactly who it is and that it's Allan, but on the off chance he's wrong, he probably likely thinks that Djaq is the runner up and after her, John, then Will, and finally Much is dead last. Maybe flip John and Will around, but the rest I'm pretty sure I'm right about. 
• Djaq's trying and failing to help Rosa who doesn't even want to be touched because she's in so much pain and Djaq decides to go to John, of all people, for help. She says she's worked in the battlefield, only treating men, and has never dealt with childbirth before. John says that he hasn't either which is an excellent point. He wasn't there for Alice's birth so why would he know anything about this? Yet somehow, he does, which is completely unbelievable. Why would John be any better at this than Djaq?
• Blight's facial hair is too much for me to handle.
• Guy is technically right here that those allegations do spread by association and speaking up would certainly put Marian at risk. I think that he is genuinely worried for her. However, the fact that Guy knows it's bullshit, knows exactly why Matilda is being framed, and is still willing to let her die still makes him an evil bastard.
• IT'S MY FAVORITE SCENE OF THE WHOLE ENTIRE SHOW! 
• Allan: Djaq. *offers food*
• Djaq: Later.
• Allan: Are you alright?
• Djaq: There's a spy in the camp. How can anything be alright?
• Allan: *looks guilty for making her upset* Well, he probably knows he's made a mistake then.
• Djaq: He had his chance to confess.
• Allan: Maybe he's stuck. People get stuck, you know.
• Djaq: Your brother said he was stuck. He refused to change and he hanged for it.
• Allan: *mumbles* He was an idiot.
• Djaq: *full of emotion* No! He was a good man underneath it! *nearly crying for the next part* And you saw that.
• Allan: *looks away to see if anyone else can hear this conversation because Djaq has obviously figured out it's him*
• Djaq: And I believe Robin would see it too, *practically begging Allan* if the spy confessed and begged forgiveness and changed his ways. *looks back to face Allan* I believe you're a good man, Allan a Dale.
• Allan: *instantly extremely uncomfortable and walks away from her*
• I can't even begin to explain how much I love that scene and Allan/Djaq.
• Djaq is the only one who has absolutely figured out it was him. Much and Will accused him, sure, but Much also accused everyone and zeroed in on Will first, and I've already explained above about Robin who I think is almost sure, but not 100%. Djaq is confident enough to confront him, although later on she will say she didn't know, but guessed.
• Djaq is hopeful that her reaching out to him will be enough to change him. It's not, but I think it would have been under slightly different circumstances. I think he wants to do the right thing and do what she wants, but he's afraid that the real Robin won't be as forgiving as the Robin in her fantasy scenario.
• She's the only one who could talk to him like this and get that kind of a reaction. He's not defensive or denying it, he's hurt that he let her down.
• She's practically begging him to confess so he can stay in the gang. I think she overestimates Robin's compassion here though and just in general gives Robin way more credit than he deserves.
• She knows what buttons to push by bringing up Tom. She remembers his fear of Tom living on in him. He mentions in "Brothers in Arms" that Tom living on inside him is what he's afraid of, he takes on Tom's identity in "Sisterhood" just like she had done with her own brother right before he starts betraying them, and here again he's being compared to Tom because both of them were "stuck" in their ways. She's definitely making the comparison as a way to reach him, calling back to a previous time when they opened up to each other, because what she says isn't even entirely accurate. Tom never really said he was stuck and I don't think she ever gave much thought to whether Tom was a good man underneath it or not or whether or not he was an idiot. She's 100% talking about Allan.
• Allan only feels comfortable enough to nearly confess (this is practically a confession, or an "almost confession" as I've seen this scene described as) to Djaq, no one else. He knows that out of everyone, she's the one who would be the most forgiving and understanding and he's right.
• Djaq just obviously knows Allan well enough to know he's the traitor and what to say to him to get him to think about what he's doing, she cares about him enough that she just desperately wants him to confess so he can stay in the gang, she's understanding and non-judgmental about the whole situation, and she still believes that he's a good man. She's not angry like the rest of them, she's upset and hurt, and there's a difference. And Allan is clearly the most affected by her, by knowing he's hurt her, and wants to do right by her but feels like he's stuck and can't do anything.
• THE WAY SHE USES HIS FULL NAME/TITLE OMG
• She's so heartbroken through this whole speech, holy shit.
• Allan is definitely calling himself an idiot here.
• Djaq will never lose faith in him even after this episode. I love them so much. I ship this so hard. I'm just kind of gushing about this scene at this point but I literally don't care.
• There are literally people out there who watched this show and didn't think that Djaq had feelings for Allan. I'm not sure how these people came to this conclusion, because I think it's obvious she did. Worse yet, there are people out there who watched "Tattoo? What Tattoo?" and actually believed that Allan's "The thing is...I like her." was meant as a friend. Are you serious? I can understand if you don't ship it, but to outright deny that that was an admission that he had feelings for her is wild. 
• "I believe you're a good man, Allan a Dale." is my favorite quote in the show. It's my favorite moment in the show. It's everything.
• Anjali Jay acted the hell out of this scene. She was absolutely fantastic. 
• Was Much eavesdropping on that conversation? Or just looking at Rosa moaning in pain?
• So Marian comes racing into the forest on horseback to warn Robin about Matilda. I want to know how she managed to get away considering she's on lockdown. Whatever. She starts screaming that Matilda is being ducked as a witch and just as she tells him that he has to gather his men to go save her, Djaq appears to tell Robin that the baby's coming. There's no reason that Robin needed to be told this, so it's basically done for exposition. This scene has some great acting from Lucy Griffiths though.
• Robin tells Djaq to stay with Rosa and the rest to go with him, but Rosa asks John to stay too, partially because he's proven to know more about childbirth than Djaq (HOW?!) and partially because I think she's just developed some kind of sense of trust when it comes to him. I'm not sure why she's latched onto him more than anyone else, but okay. Maybe because he just has that fatherly feel to him.
• "Constipated ground." LMAO! One of the few lighthearted, humorous moments of this episode (some people found Matilda hysterical but I'm not one of them, sorry).
• Did someone just yell, "You can't do that!" in the background? Wow...brave man, whoever you are. 
• I LOVE that Matilda starts acting like a witch to scare them.
• John has a better bedside manner than Djaq does for sure. Although, she seems a bit more comforting here than how straightforward and direct she was with Marian. Maybe she knew Marian could handle it? John is super sweet though.
• Rosa says her husband is off fighting in the Crusades. Could that be a reason why she wanted Little John to stay? I hope it wasn't because she didn't want to be alone with Djaq. I think she just feels more comfortable around John because of his personality, although I've seen some fans make the case that she might also be prejudiced.
• Aww, poor John. In universe, we can come up with all kinds of reasons why John was asked to help, but from a writing standpoint, there's no doubt. It's to give John a chance to deal with his guilt over not being there for the birth of his own son and to remind us, as the audience, the regrets that John carries with him everyday.
• OMG I love Matilda cursing the sheriff! I love that smile as she goes underwater. The sheriff seems legitimately, honestly terrified. He's like, "oh, shit! She really is a witch. I was just kidding. What now?"
• It's interesting and kind of terrifying that Will suggests just killing Henry. What happened to the Will that told Robin he couldn't just kill Guy while he was tied up in the forest without a trial? Guess he's gone now. Now he thinks it's cool to kill someone who's drugged up.
• Allan comes up with an excuse for not killing Henry, but I think it's because he's terrified that the gang now seems so willing to kill someone when they used to have a no killing policy. He's worried about himself.
• Much takes this opportunity to accuse Will and Allan of being the traitor and Will hits him and tells him to keep his accusations to himself, even though Will was also making accusations earlier.
• Where did this pump and hose system (I don't know what it's called) come from? Did they just have this lying around and if so, why? They couldn't possibly have had enough time to make it. It's like Robin and Much's strings tied to branches system in 1x01, it makes absolutely no sense.
•  So does the sheriff think that he actually caught a real witch who managed to escape with the Devil's help or once he sees that Henry's gone does he realize Robin's behind this?
• Rosa! Don't put your mother through hell like that! Don't make her think the baby was stillborn, explain faster! What the fuck?
• AWW, LITTLE JOHN! He looks so sweet holding the baby. And AWW, SHE NAMED THE BABY ALICE FOR LITTLE JOHN!!!
• Banish him? To where, hell? What power do you have to banish someone, Robin?
• Geez, Will. Calm your tits. Allan's definitely scared now. I wonder how much of this was Will really thinking that a traitor to the king doesn't deserve to live and how much of it was him intentionally trying to scare Allan because he suspects him.
• That all being said, killing Henry is probably the only logical solution here. Robin can't banish him, he has no authority to do so. He can't keep him tied up in the forest forever. If he lets him go, he's going straight to the sheriff. He could try threatening him, but it almost certainly would only buy him time. If he wants to prevent the sheriff learning where the king will land, killing Henry is his only real choice. But I think doing so while the man is asleep or drugged is completely unfair. Make it a fair fight and give the man a chance to fight back. I mean, it's not what *I* would do, but it's what a hero should do, if they're going to insist on killing someone. But honestly? I don't know that I agree that killing someone for being a messenger is the right thing to do at all. He's not directly killing the king himself, just telling the sheriff where he plans to land, and the king doesn't actually try to come home until season three so there's plenty of time to come up with a backup plan or send a message to the king telling him to change his plans.
• Henry grabs Much with a knife to his throat which gives Robin the excuse he needs to kill Henry without losing his hero cred.
• Here's another important scene: Robin using Will as a decoy to lure out the real spy. He tells Allan later that it didn't necessarily mean he trusted that Will wasn't the spy, because it still could have been Will he ran into at the Inn, but I think this scene does sort of imply that he's pretty much ruled Will out by this point. However, like I said before, I think he's ruled out Much from the beginning. So then the question becomes, why did he choose Will for this plan instead of Much? I think it's because honestly, everyone knows it wasn't Much. It would be too unbelievable for him to choose Much. They'd figure out something was up. It would have been interesting for him to choose Allan actually, because then Allan would be lured into a false sense of security thinking that Robin actually trusted him when he doesn't. As I've mentioned before in a previous post, I don't think there was ever any chance of him choosing Djaq for the decoy plan, because I think he does view her slightly differently because she's a woman and wouldn't want to beat her up. I think the rest of the gang would also have a visceral reaction to seeing their leader beat up a woman too, despite usually viewing her as one of the lads. And believably beating up John would be difficult due to his size, although he did manage to best him in 1x02, but as I've said above, John isn't good with the sneaky stuff. The only logical choices here would be Will or Allan and I guess Robin decided to go with the one that he's pretty much ruled out and mostly trusted rather than the one that I believe is already his top suspect.
• Now for the gang's reactions to the Will decoy plan.
• Much claims that he knew it was him and I partially believe him because I do think Much had it narrowed down to two people. Other than wildly pointing his fingers around when he first got back to camp, he never gave any indication that he legitimately suspected Djaq or John. Although, I do kind of suspect that no matter who it was, he'd have acted like he'd known. 
• John seems shocked and appalled at this. He can't believe what he's seeing.
• Allan quietly says "no" and shakes his head. It's hitting him hard that he just watched his friend take the fall for something he did, but not hard enough. He's willing to let it happen to save himself. This is his lowest moment, though he does say, "Robin..." and I wonder if he was about to confess or at least plead a case for Will's innocence. I also wonder if Robin picked up on it too but decided that it's too late for another chance to confess. 
• Djaq breaks my heart a bit with her reaction. She was ready to rat Allan out. She had a good reason though. She barely manages to stand up for Will though and gives up once Robin yells at her. Actually, this entire exchange is pretty interesting, so let's take a deeper look.
• Djaq: *approaching him nervously* I need to speak with you.
• Allan: *had his hands up behind his head but immediately brings them down and looks panicked that he's about to be outed* (he doesn't seem to be sure whether he wants it to happen for Will's sake or not and I wonder if he's feeling betrayed by Djaq)
• Robin: Not now.
• Djaq: Believe me, Robin. I need to sp-
• Robin: *interrupts her, yelling* No, you don't, Djaq!
• Djaq: *shuts her eyes when he snaps at her and starts yelling and looks like she's biting her tongue, trying to hold back*
• Robin: *still kinda yelling, but not as loud* Trust me.
• Robin then starts explaining the stuff about the Trip Inn and Djaq gives him a very hurt, concerned, and almost pissed off look in the background. I think that not only is she convinced he kicked out the wrong person, but she's probably also feeling pretty upset that she was just screamed at for trying to speak up. Allan hears the "scatter" part of the plan and falls right into the trap. You can see the wheels turning in his head. Djaq continues to give Robin a weird look and still has a weird look on her face after he leaves. 
• I wonder if at some point near the end of that exchange if she started to doubt her own intuition and wondered if maybe Robin was so sure about it because he was right. I also wonder why she didn't follow Allan and confront him, despite Robin's orders. Either way, I think she was seriously disturbed by Robin yelling at her and refusing to let her talk. She's probably wondering why. She's probably also wondering whether or not she'll ever see Will again and upset about that too. Her facial expression at the end there breaks my heart.
• I wonder what was going through Robin's mind when he yelled at her. Obviously, he wanted to keep her quiet so his plan would work, but what did he think she was going to say? Was he still pretty sure that it's Allan and that she just wanted to plead a case for Will? If that's the case, he wouldn't want her to say anything about Will being innocent because it would ruin the trap. Did he realize that she knew who it was and that they both suspected the same person? In that case, the "trust me" makes sense. If she stays silent and trusts him, they can catch him. But I have to wonder whether her asking to speak with him privately led to him suspecting that it was her and that she was about to confess. As I said before, I think she was probably his runner-up theory, although I think Allan was his top suspect by quite a lot. If he did suspect she was going to confess, it's interesting that he wouldn't give her the chance.
• Here we are at the tavern scene where Robin and Allan finally have their confrontation. My first thought is that I'm not sure why this actress delivered this line about the silver that way. But anyway, Allan starts off by telling her to tell Guy to keep the money, that he's not doing this anymore and that he's changed. She challenges him by saying, "it's a bit late for a conscience, isn't it?" and he agrees that it's "very late" right before an arrow shoots the bag of money in his hand. I believe him here. I believe that he really is done with it and had no intention to continue betraying the gang. The thing is, he still let Will take the fall for his actions and refused to confess. It's too little, too late. I really feel for him though when Robin shoots that arrow. The look on his face just screams a defeated, "fuck..." The first time I watched this, I was so rooting for him and for Robin not to figure it out, even though I knew he would.
• Now for the conversation between Robin and Allan:
• Allan: *looking at arrow, muttering* Robin...You're early. 
• Robin: *to girl* Leave us.
• Allan: *terrified* Stay there.
• Robin: *screaming* Get out! *girl leaves, Robin continues with deadly calmness* I need to talk to my spy.
• Allan: What was that with Will? You banished Will.
• Robin: It was an act. *Allan realizes he fell right into the trap.* Only she knew who was guilty and I knew the spy would want to come here before me to cover his tracks. For all I knew, it could've been Will standing there. But it's not, is it? It's you.
• Allan: Robin, it was over. Ask her. I made a decision.
• Robin: Then what's this? *gestures to money*
• Allan: No, I was giving it back.
• Robin: So you betray me, you betray yourself, you betray your king, for what? For a few silver coins. What have you told Gisborne, Allan?
• Allan: *shakes his head, unsure of what to say* Nothing really.
• Robin: Does he know about the camp?
• Allan: No.
• Robin: No? Does he know about Marian?
• Allan: No.
• Robin: More lies?
• Allan: No! This was the last time, I promise. And I was wrong. But he captured me, Robin. He tortured me. I had no choice.
• Robin: *screaming* Everything is a choice! Everything we do.
• Allan: That's easy for you to say though, isn't it? Yeah? You get the glory, you get the girl, everyone loves you. Then when the king comes back, you'll have lands, property, a wife, everything. What will I have? You are always in the sun, Robin, and I'm always in the shade.
• Robin: *shoves him against pole* Is that meant to be an excuse?
• Allan: Give me another chance. Please. I wouldn't have let Gisborne hurt any of us. I never told him anything like that.
• Robin: Harmless lies, innocent betrayals, they don't exist, Allan!
• Allan: Robin, I've changed. How can I get you to believe that?
• Robin: You can't, and the funny thing is, you might be telling the truth.
• Allan: I am.
• Robin: And how am I supposed to believe you anymore?
• Allan: Robin, I swear to you on my life.
• Robin: *pulls out dagger and holds it to Allan's throat*
• Allan: Don't kill me, please.
• Robin: You're lucky I've left you with a life to swear upon. Never, never let me set eyes on you again.
• That scene is one of the best written, best acted, most powerful and emotional scenes in the whole show. Jonas Armstrong and Joe Armstrong both did an absolutely amazing job here. Robin didn't seem surprised in the slightest to see Allan there, which adds to my theory that Robin had already pretty much figured out who it was. So what was his plan going there? Did he ever intend to kill the traitor or was it his plan all along to let them go? Was there ever a chance that he would have let the traitor stay in the gang and gave them another chance? If so, where did Allan go wrong to prevent being given that chance? I think his biggest mistake here was turning it around on Robin and coming up with excuses. Now, I think his excuses hold a lot of weight. I understand what he's saying completely, but it's not what Robin wanted to hear. I think if Allan would have said that he wanted to explain what happened and started from the beginning, with being captured and tortured in detail so Robin knew exactly when it happened and could think back to the situation and realize how recent it was and could know that it was true (reminding him of his bruises that night in "Sisterhood" I think would have been enough to convince him), that would have been a good start. He could have explained how Guy threatened him, how he tried only giving him meaningless information but he was scared of Guy's threats, and actually explain what the betrayals were. If Robin knew how insignificant most of them were and how recently it started and about the torture and threats, he might have been more willing to forgive Allan. But then, and the most important part is, Allan would have to end it by simply saying that 1. he was wrong because he should have just confessed and trusted that Robin could protect him, 2. he will never do it again, and 3. do NOT make any excuses for why it was justified or twist it around on Robin in any way. I also think it would be best to leave out the Roger thing entirely. Basically, play up the parts about being scared, downplay the parts where he really fucked up, and do not in any way turn it around as if it was Robin's fault. That's what I would have done and that's what I think Allan should have done for a chance to stay in the gang. Maybe it would've worked, maybe not, but I think that Robin wanted a real explanation out of him and instead got whiny apologies and a speech putting the blame on Robin. I may get what Allan was saying, but it wasn't in his best interest to say it and I think that "You're always in the sun and I'm always in the shade" speech is what really ticked Robin off.
• Alright, now we're at the last scene of the episode. Robin goes back to the meeting place, the rest of the outlaws come out, and Robin calls for Will to come out too. As soon as Will comes out, Much pulls his sword. He's ready to throw down immediately.
• As soon as Robin confirms that it wasn't Will, Djaq immediately goes over to check on Will's bruises. This episode not only contains the best Allan/Djaq scene, but also pretty much the first Will/Djaq scenes that aren't one sided in the whole show. I still think she's pretty much only acting as a friend, but I recognize how it could be more.
• As soon as he confirms that the spy was Allan, Djaq is the first one to speak up and asks if Allan is alive. Her face looked panic-stricken right before she asked the question. My ship! She's the only one who cared. She then asks where he is and Robin tells her he's gone.
• John asks him why Allan did it and Robin replies, "For money, John. Why else?" I kind of hate Robin here. Allan just told him that he was captured and tortured, but Robin leaves all that out. It's bullshit.
• Djaq says, "I believe he could have changed." She definitely wanted him to stay in the gang and she's still defending him. She'll continue to defend him. My ship! She never gave up faith in him and always believed he was a good man.
• Much asks her, "You knew it was him?" and she replies, "I didn't know, I guessed." So did Much overhear that conversation earlier? Or is he thinking back to how she tried to talk to Robin?
• Much says, "I knew it was him. Knew it was Allan." The first time I saw this, I kinda laughed at Much because it seemed like he was just saying that about both of them, but like I said, now I buy it. I think he narrowed it down to two which is why he felt justified saying that he knew it both times. But I still also think he would've pretended he knew no matter who it was.
• Robin asks Will if he forgives him for beating him up and Will sadly says that it worked. Then the episode ends with them going as a unified gang to attack travelers on the North Road, which I hate. Just let it end sadly, don't try to give it a happy ending. None of them are happy. None of the viewers are happy. Let's not try to fake it. 

Final Thoughts:

Whew, damn that was long! I went into almost everything I wanted to say in the actual episode thoughts themselves, pausing several times to work through my thoughts as I went. There's just so many important things happening in this episode and so much character exploration that couldn't be glossed over. There's at least one more thing that I can think of that I want to discuss that really didn't get covered above, so I'm gonna go into that here.

I've sometimes heard the opinion that Djaq is a Mary Sue, which I greatly disagree with, or the softer opinion that 'Djaq comes off as far less of a Mary Sue than she has any right to,' which is probably closer to the truth (I forget where I read that but it's a direct quote from a fan somewhere online). Now, I'm a bit critical of the entire concept of a Mary Sue unless the people who criticize them equally criticize the Gary Stus of the world too since I think it often gets used as a way to just diminish female characters, but let's look at this for a second. Admittedly, Djaq does have some Mary Sue-ish qualities. I love her and she's my favorite, but it is what it is. This woman is simultaneously a scientist/alchemist and an extremely skilled one at that, a trained physician/medic, is fluent in at least two languages that we know of, Arabic and English, but also knows at least some Latin (and she's probably fluent in that too, let's be honest), and likely knows more than just those, has a lot of random knowledge on various things (the bat trivia for example), and she's a great fighter who's been trained in both archery and sword fighting. She does all this while still being an extreme tomboy and somehow still manages to get not one, but two members of the gang to fall for her within the first four episodes that she's on the show, one of whom is claiming to be in love with her. She's given a tragic backstory but is also shown as open-minded and forgiving enough to be willing to be friends with Crusaders after everything she's gone through and is often shown to be the "heart" of the gang, meaning the one that everyone can kind of go to or connect with (especially Allan). And she's a triple minority (sex/race/religion) without ever feeling like a token character. That's a recipe for a Mary Sue right there and even I can see it. 

However, she has certain moments that I think really stop her from actually becoming a Mary Sue, two of which are in this episode. She can't always do it. Her skills actually fail her several times throughout the show. She has now relied on Little John twice to save the day when her medical knowledge isn’t enough, both with his knowledge of the mushroom antidote in the last episode and (for some unknown reason, since he wasn't with Alice) childbirth in this one because she doesn't know enough about it and never dealt with it before. It often feels like Djaq knows everything, but she really doesn't, and she has to rely on others several times to get the job done. She also doesn't seem to be quite as good at fighting as the rest of them, including Marian, and often relies on Much for backup during fight scenes as I've mentioned before. Finally, even though she managed (without trying and possibly without even knowing) to get two guys to fall for her right away, they obviously haven't fallen enough or they both wouldn't have considered leaving without saying goodbye to her in 1x12 and Allan wouldn’t have betrayed her (because by betraying Robin, he betrayed the gang as a whole and the values they stand for, meaning he betrayed her too). Despite his feelings for her, she’s still not able to convince him to confess even though she tries. She's sort of a Djaq of all trades but a master of none (ha, see what I did there?) which saves her character from falling into the more ridiculous and unbelievable parts of Mary Sue-dom.

Plus, as I’ve said above, male characters tend not to get this treatment. Look at Robin for example. He’s constantly making lucky guesses that prove to be right even though there’s not really enough evidence for them when he makes them, he constantly bests the sheriff and Guy (have they ever actually bested him other than “Brothers in Arms” so far in the show? I don’t recall.), three out of the only four main female characters on the show fall in love with him (yay Djaq for her Robin immunity!), he’s an open minded former Crusader that speaks fluent Arabic and read the Quran and is all about religious tolerance now, and he wins nearly every fight he gets into, including a fight against Little John in 1x02 who is twice his size, but I have literally never heard anyone call him a Gary Stu, so what gives? Djaq is not a Mary Sue and even if she is, so what? Leave her alone.