The Dual Nature or Dark Side of Vincent

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Title:	The Dual Nature or Dark Side of Vincent
Creator:	Elaine Landman
Date(s):	March 1994
Medium:	print
Fandom:	Beauty and the Beast
Topic:
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The Dual Nature or Dark Side of Vincent is a 1994 Beauty and the Beast essay by Elaine Landman.

It was printed in Soulmates - A Neverending Dream #1.

Series

It is part of a series, a regular column, by Landman called "One Fan's View."

• The Dual Nature or Dark Side of Vincent
• Vincent's Contradictions and Obstacles, or Just Exactly When Will We See That Lake, Vincent?
• Hurt-Comfort in "Beauty and the Beast"
• Once You Are Real...
• Parallels and Contrasts in "Beauty and the Beast"
• possibly an additional three more

Some Topics Discussed

• Beauty and the Beast (TV)
• is Vincent Wells more a beast, or more a human, and does he have a "split personality"
• "For better or worse, the fan writers have always done a much better job of satisfying their audience than have the show's creators."
• tensions between the writers of the show and the fans -- many fans' "obstinate refusal to understand why their Beauty and her Beast couldn't be together," something that forced the writers to make Vincent more and more beast-like: "It is well known that CBS executives thought the relationship between Catherine and Vincent was imploding, and that [CBS] wanted to shift the emphasis from romance to more action-adventure"
• "the final three episodes of second season as the beginning of the end"

Excerpts

In letterzines and phone conversations, I and many others have debated at length about whether Vincent is a beast or not. While I feel that this particular discussion may be pretty well exhausted, I'm going to briefly resurrect it, because it is so closely linked to the subject at hand and exhibits a major difference (yet again ) in how the fan's and the show's writers ultimately envisioned Vincent.

It has always been my contention that Vincent is human in every way that matters. Clearly he qualifies by any dictionary definition. But at this point it's irrelevant to me whether Vincent is actually part beast or not. In fact, I no longer have any desire to know his origin. We've developed our own theories by now, and I prefer Vincent cloaked in an aura of mystique.

But what is still very relevant to me is the "nature" of the beast. Vincent is truly unique in the annals of television and complex enough to keep "B&8" fans engrossed after all this time. And while I see Vincent as multi-faceted with many sides to his larger-than-life character, I cannot accept the split personality theory. With the exception of the trilogy , which I'll discuss i n more detail later on, I have never seen any definitive evidence that Vincent was ever unaware of his actions or "possessed" by his dark side. On the contrary, he always seemed totally cognizant of what he was doing and why. In fact, in "Beast Within" and "China Moon," the stalking and killing was planned, purposeful, and methodical. In "Outsiders," Vincent instantly went from full killing fury to trying to pacify the feral child. He demonstrated time and time again that he could turn his violent tendencies on and off at will.

At an early Creation Convention, Howard Gordon was asked how much control Vincent had when he "beasted out." Howard answered, "Not much." Well, Howard and the other writers may have believed that Vincent was out of control at those times, but if that was their intention, they didn't convince me. If Vincent were in the throes of an uncontrolled and uncontrollable killing frenzy, he wouldn't be able to distinguish friend from foe, and there would be little or no intellect in play. Such is obviously not the case. Also, Vincent lost his temper , becoming enraged at Father, etc. without resorting to violence. Again, with the exception of the trilogy, the killing mode was enraged only for protection of Catherine and others he loved, self-defense, and less justifiably, vengeance, as in "Beast Within."

I have always felt that Vincent believed himself to be out of control in order to preserve the delicate balance of his sanity. If Vincent were ever to admit that he was in full possession of himself and his faculties when he killed, he would also have to take full responsibility for those actions. He could not blame the injuries and deaths on some other dark "beast within. The belief that he "loses himself" enables him to maintain the necessary delusion that the "killer" in him is separate and removed from the gentle, noble, poetic pacifist that he sees as his true self. Tragically, the price of this delusion is his fear of a complete relationship with Catherine.

I have chosen to address the events of the trilogy as isolated from the rest of the first two seasons. purpose for doing this can be attributed to events not directly related to the show itself, but things that were taking place behind-the-scenes that very much influenced the direction of "Beauty and the Beast" and what was ultimately aired. Despite some of the best acting of the entire two seasons, and individual wonderful scenes and moments, the trilogy was to become the transition from second to third season, and because of it's lack of any real resolution, I will always see those final three episodes of second season as the beginning of the end.

It is well known that CBS executives thought the relationship between Catherine and Vincent was imploding, and that they wanted to shift the emphasis from romance to more action-adventure. Additionally, the writers were becoming increasingly irritated that the fans' view of Vincent was not in sync with their own. George Martin has made it very clear that it was Ron Koslow's vision of Vincent was that he was a beast, period, and the other writers concurred.

The fans, on the other hand, either didn't see Vincent as a beast and/or didn't consider his beastly nature sufficient reason to prevent him from being with Catherine. It is my theory that between the problems with CBS and the fans' obstinate refusal to understand why their Beauty and her Beast couldn't be together, the writers desperately needed to provide a more compelling obstacle. So, in the trilogy the writers presented Vincent's dark side as an entity unto himself with Vincent totally out of control, traumatized, and unstable. What's more, this was the first time that Vincent was provoked to kill, graphically and savagely, with mere words. (We still don't know if Vincent knew who he was killing in "Ceremony of Innocence" or what precisely triggered his breakdown.) To sum it up, the writers provided CBS with a "Beauty and the Beast" much darker in tone and shamelessly exploited Vincent's dark side as a better, stronger reason to keep Vincent and Catherine apart. If indeed this was their plan, in this instance they certainly succeeded with me. By the end of the trilogy, I was definitely beginning to wonder if Vincent was stable enough to be with Catherine or even to be entrusted with the schooling and guidance of the children. Had the writers continued along these lines, they could well have managed to persuade me that Vincent suffered from a condition comparable to "multiple personality syndrome," leaving him hopelessly overpowered and at the mercy of his increasingly dominate inner nemesis.

In that event, I would have felt that for her own safety and well-being, Catherine probably should not be with Vincent. The problem is that once I had been convinced of Vincent's unsuitability as a partner for Catherine, I would feel that there really was no point in continuing to watch the show.

Although I enjoyed and admired many aspects of "Beauty and the Beast," my overwhelming reason for watching and loving this show was the belief, well established and nurtured in the first 41 episodes, that Vincent and Catherine's love and bond was strong enough to overcome all obstacles. Third season notwithstanding, I still believe that.

Since my view of Vincent's dark side as put forth in the trilogy is somewhat tainted by what I believe were the motives behind it, it's difficult for me to maintain much objectivity on this matter. However I still enjoy fanzine stories that focus on Vincent's dark side. For better or worse, the fan writers have always done a much better job of satisfying their audience than have the show's creators.

Fan Comments

I found your article very interesting, to say the least. To be honest, I had never thought too much about Vincent's dark side. I just figured he lost control during a "rage," but in looking back, I now have to admit I'm no longer convinced of that fact. The writers never once portrayed Vincent as undergoing a "metamorphosis" when provoked -- something where he became uncontrollably angry (the key word here being uncontrollably). From the very beginning, in the Pilot Episode in fact, we saw it in Vincent's eyes; not a frightened look when his "rage" suddenly soared within him, but a very focused look when realizing Catherine was in danger. He "beasted out" in order to save her from certain death, but then he snapped out of it as soon as the killing was over. When he saw Catherine's horrified face, ha silently backed away from the body he had just mauled, noticeably ashamed. Perhaps he had thought he "honored" her by his actions, but then felt he "offended" her when he saw her reaction to it? He just sat there, mute, until Catherine took his hands and let her words reveal the truth) that she wasn't as disgusted by his actions as her shocked facial expression had indicated.

If Vincent had truly been "out of control" outing that rage, I don't think he would have been cognitive enough of an emotion as self-possessed as "shame." There seems to be a very fine line of humanity that Vincent crosses over when "losing control." We don't have the extra wrath within us to call upon when needed, and that's what I now believe Vincent does when enraged. He calls upon his "dark side" even if subconsciously. He might want to believe he's out of control, but it looks more like he allows his "dark side" to surface when he wants to right a wrong or when he wants to protect or avenge a loved one. Or even when ha simply needs more strength, as when fighting the giant in TO REIGN IN HELL.

And what about the time he purposefully suppressed his "dark side?" In TERRIBLE SAVIOR, when Catherine came Below to accuse him, did he simply tell her that the beastly protector of the subways was not himself? No. He hissed the negation at her, he clenched his fist tight to prevail over his indignity and disappointment that she could even think such a thing of him. In other words, Catherine had insulted him deeply — her distrust had obviously provoked anger within him — but he kept his "rage" at bay. (Later in the series when Father verbally provoked him in CEREMONY OF INNOCENCE, I blame his loss of control on his break-down. Another topic entirely.)

Vincent's rage — it's a tangible thing within him. It's very physical . . . and in his relationship with Catherine, it eventually became sexual. She told him repeatedly that she "loved all that he was," and each and every time he came to her rescue, she not only accepted his rage into her life, she welcomed it as a way of receiving a much more intimate level of his affection — the very thing they both really wanted in the first place. (She practically confessed this to Father during Vincent's break-down!)

Anyway, thanks for such a stirring article, Elaine.

I am thoroughly enjoying your column. I am a newcomer to B & B, having only discovered it this past February on the Sci-Fi Valentine's marathon. Your column is a welcome forum for me because, being six years behind on things, it's hard to find a topic that isn't "old news" to those readers who have been involved in fandom from the beginning. I appreciate your willingness to bring out these old topics or issues, dust then off, and re-address them, I have come to feel a bit cheated having missed out on the early discussions, theories, and debates that took place during the time the show was on the air, as well as immediately following its cancellation, and I hope your column will stir up some of the same kind of exchange that took place during the early years of B & B fandom.

One small comment an Vincent's dual nature ... while I agree with most of what you said, I tend to think a little differently about how much control Vincent had when he was in the throes of his "beastly" side. You thought he was pretty much in control all of the time — I think he had least control in some situations. I'm not as intimately familiar with all the episodes yet, but in my recollection of his rages, in a few instances they only stopped because Catherine was there to stop him, such as with Stephen in DOWN TO A SUNLESS SEA, or the intruders in THE OUTSIDERS for example. So, while I agree with what you said about Vincent's control over his nature, I feel that the comments didn't go quite far enough. Even in the best of us, there are dark moments when wa could easily lose control in certain situations.

Vincent surely had this possibility to an enhanced degree ... I think it would be denying his distinctive characteristics to ignore this aspect. He is, after all, of a different nature — and I think we need to remember, as Father once told Catherine, that the Vincent we know hangs by the most fragile of balances, that his internal battles are ongoing and more strenuous than we can imagine. So, yes while most of the time, I agree that Vincent maintained control over his darker side, even to the point of manipulating it if needed, I still contend that there were a feel times when he seemed to be beyond any reason, having only Catherine's voice or face to guide him safely back.