Would Michael hurt a woman?

[Foodie]

P.S. Welcome to the board, Foodie!

Thanks, I'm glad I finally joined! I've enjoyed reading the posts for so long now I just couldn't resist.

I've always thought of Michael as a bit of a pirate, so I think the Pirate's Code works well for him! By the time I finished watching the series, I was thinking of him as "Michael Caffee: Land Pirate"! He's a thug, violent, doesn't care who he hurts to get what he wants. It all fits! Hmm...now I'm getting a vision of him hanging out with Captain Barbossa on the Black Pearl!

-Foodie

[lyra70]

Hello Foodie, I am a newbie here as well and I am enjoying the discussions with everyone who have been very welcoming. This question is great, thought-provoking because it really makes you examine Michael's character, background and past. i completely agree with you, Michael seems to have very old-fashioned views regarding women and I don't think he would be physically violent, even if provoked. If a woman came at him wit her fists he would be the type to just grab her wrists and subdue her that way. BUT I don't think it stems out of a reverence/respect thing but more that he sees women as weak or needing protection. He would not approve of women joining the army or that kind of thing, you know? It's a very machismo attitude, not enlightened at all, not borne of the idea that women are equals by any means. If Eileen got a job for instance he would be completely disdainful of her.

Ths is a character whom I would never want to associate with, even if he wasn't a violent gangster. Men who are so macho like this make me uncomfortable because you get the feeling they are always thinking we (women) are incapable of this or that. Michael Caffee would probably even have a problem with women having the right to vote! Anyway this is my take on it.

[Hilary the Touched]

Hiya, Foodie! We're glad you've joined us!

I agree, Lyra--I'll bet that Michael would regard it as chivalry, but I suspect his attitude is more plain old chauvinism.

[fruitbat]

I've been visiting some of the older threads and found this one particularly interesting. I can see that is over a year old and may not interest anyone else. But, that's the good thing about the internet; you can ignore me and all my posts!

I've done some multi-quotes in one post. Please tell me if this is not done here. Some people may find too it cumbersome.

..... The one woman Michael was violent towards was a "bull dyke" who molested a fifteen year old girl. In Michael's mind, he may have thought he was protecting a helpless female from a woman who was nothing more than another predatory "male."

Moira,

I agree that the "bull dyke" might not have counted as a female to Michael and therefore his actions would have been, in his eyes, no different than if his victim had been a man.

....(I confess, I have a fanfic bubbling in my brain, gods help me, and the plot, such as it is, will depend on what I think the answer to this question is.)

Is there fanfic on this board?

...... Michael is bad and quite capable of hurting or killing a woman.....

I agree, But, do you think he could do it premeditatedly (that word passed the spellcheck, so I'm sticking with it.)
I could see him attacking a woman in a rage, if his family were in danger or something like that, but a planned "hit"? (Not that that is what you were suggesting, Marie. I'm just using your post as a starting point for this aspect.

...I think Rose in her own way was abusive, and manipulative...

And she scares the bejeebers out of me. If looks could kill, (and I think she might have that superpower).....
I think I'll wear reflective glasses next time I watch her.

(Sorry, threadnap here. I keep saying "she"; how do you pronounce "Fionnula"? Where is the stress?

[Gillian]

Is there fanfic on this board?

Not really. We tend to shy away from it here. Some of it can get fairly graphic/sexual, and as we have a wide viewership, isn't all that appropriate for the young 'uns.

There are plenty of places that do cater to fanfic though. We're just not one of them.

[Hilary the Touched]

I ain't sure what to do with "Fionnula" either . . . there's an Irish restaurant around here that's called O'Faolain's (with a diacritical over the second A), which is usually rendered "O'Feelin's".

As for whether Michael would hurt a woman, well, he nearly injured Kath any number of times during a seizure . . . I take your point that he likes to think of himself as chivalrous and abiding by a code, but I also think he makes it up as he goes along, and if he thought someone else had violated it, he'd respond accordingly.
Dude throws teenagers off rooftops, yo!!

[RaveGyrl]

Hey Hilary forgot all about that rooftop thing. It pains me to say that as much as I love Michael, when someone does that you can't absolutely say what they won't do.

As some men growing up with domestic violence they either repeat it or do the opposite. I think Michael made a concious decision that he wouldn't hurt a woman or stand by and see a woman get hurt.

Just look at how he reacted when the father hit his girlfriend. Or how when he saw that crazy chick Shannon get hurt in the first episode. Shannon told him that the guy said that he would have some guys rape her and Michael told her that he wouldn't let that happen.

He handed out his own brand of justice and gave her the trophy from it (the ear). In a twisted way letting her know that she was protected.

It reminded me of the movie Goodfellas when Ray Liotta's character pistol whipped this guy that hurt the girl he liked and when he was done he gave her the bloody gun.

Anyway, Now I don't think that he will never hurt a woman. Like someone said he makes up the rules as he goes along. Michael is a guy who is all about getting results, now if a woman stood in the way of his goal I think that she will have some serious problems.

[fruitbat]

......
Dude throws teenagers off rooftops, yo!!

Was the teenager a girl? I thought it was a boy. Not that that makes it ok.
I've only seen season one so I may be thinking of another episode, which would be really bad as it would mean throwing people off buildings was one of Michael's favourite activities.

....
He handed out his own brand of justice and gave her the trophy from it (the ear). In a twisted way letting her know that she was protected.

Ah yes. The ear.
I prefer flowers and chocolate myself, but to each her own.

[kjshd05]

it was a guy, an Asian drug dealer, who was thrown off the roof
(probably physically by Pete, with orders from Michael)

Michael had stabbed Paddy's Lesbian sister, after she molested a young
girl. That was why he had to leave in the first place...I think Michael throw
her off a roof, after he stabbed her...cant exactly remember....

[marilaine]

I think, after his head injury(thanks a hell of a lot, Decco ), he changed quite a bit.
He still nearly hit Kath at the gas station, when she fought him over the gas pump. But, his mental health took a u-turn in Season 2. He is actually trying to control his temper(i.e. Eddie at Kath's door) and consider how the other person must be feeling. Damn! That's pretty deep. He took the fall when Moe told Nazzolli he was the one who can't control his temper.
(Frankly, I would've loved to see that little rat pee his pants with the gun to his head. )
Michael may never change....and he may surprise us all.
I guess that's up to Blake, Henry and Jason.
That's all I have to say about that......so far! ~M'L

[kjshd05]

the official release from Showtime read that Michael has increasing
paranoia about being the "Head" of the Irish mob, and that his cousin
Colin falls for Kath....seems like a bumpy road ahead for Michael
in this Season...he deserves it after the way he treated Kath with the whole abortion issue....

[marilaine]

Let's just pray he doesn't go off his meds, and do something he'll regret for the rest of his life.
Kinda hoping he finds someone else.......and not Shannon.....again.
~M'L

Wait, is Dana still in RI? (j/k Tommy, j/k)

[Soule]

I love complex shows like this, the characters are well developed to enable discussions like this.

And just in case there are SPOILERS below!

I don't think Michael would hurt a woman per se, Although he did murder that woman at the beginning of the show, but that was due to the awful thing that she had done, i would imagine as someone else has said he saw her no longer as a woman but as a monster to have that ability to do something like that.

To look at the evidence in Season 1 (only seen season I have seen so far) when taking over the shop he went after slow charlie to intimdate the woman into giving him the shop, it would suggest that he would not hurt a woman unless he deemed the womans actions were an attack on The hill in someway. to remove a challenge presented by a woman he would look for other means to intimidate rather than hurt directly.

Michael works within his own morality, sometimes he does what he thinks he needs to do to survive or to protect The Hill, and the uneasiness in his face on occasion can be seen, his uneasines is down to the fact that he has overstepped his own morality, but sometime this line is fluid.

I am guessing that season 2 will give me further insight into him and this topic. Changing the subject slightly I think the reason tht Michael is such an intriguing character despite his sometimes awful actions are that there is always a hint of redemption with him. Underneath his harsh way, there is someone else trying to get out, and it is hard I think for any woman to over look a character that they feel they can change.

[marilaine]

I'd really like to know how he even became a "mobster" in the first place?
What's the history in this, and when exactly did he start working with Freddie? In Season 1, he's wanting 'in' with Freddie....and in Season 2 Freddie intimidates him(rotten bastard...I'll show him ).....so it's a really vague story behind this.

There's a lot of complexities in him. In Season 1 when you think he's going to kill that young man for the murder of Patty Mullen, he merely ships him off somewhere safe, with a bag full of money. I was really nervous about the ending until the episode finished.....that's what made me a fan of Michael James Caffee *sigh*
~M'L

[RaveGyrl]

Marilane,
They eluded in the first season that Michael was a pretty powerful player on the hill in the Irish Mob before he split. The reason why he was asking Freddie to be in was because power roles had shifted and Moe was now the one he had to answer to, and when Michael left 7 years ago people were promoted and his responsibilities was taken by Moe. Remember the first episode when he cut Moe's ear off, that was Michael making a play to get his part of the action back that was once his.

And about the Colin thing, I had a feeling that was coming full circle. That whole Kath/Colin thing. Even though Michael is his cousin he was on her side and really supportive unlike MIchael. I just knew that Michael and Colin's relationship would become complicated, but not in this way.

The question is will Kath fall for Colin? I've said this before Michael and Kath will never be able to go back to what they once were pre-abortion.

This season is going to be soooooo good.