Save this article to read it later.
Find this story in your accountsSaved for Latersection.
JAMES BOND WILL RETURN.
For many years, it even included the title of the next movie, sometimes incorrectly.
Ill admit, it was nice seeing this message at the end ofNo Time to Die.
By now, you presumably already know that the film ends with James Bonds death.
And its not a superhero death, or a slasher-villain death, or aFast & Furiousdeath.
No, hes dead.
[Insert smug villain cackle here.]
And yet theres that promise, which comes as a relief:James Bond will return.
Could that possibly be true?
Admit it, though: Isnt there somethingincrediblyrefreshing about all this?
Its a cathartic rebuke to the nauseating, never-ending interconnectedness and self-referentiality of just about everything else.
Maybe Im overreading it.
Lets operate under the assumption that will not happen.
instead of some broader, overarching story line.
But by and large, the movies effectively reset themselves.
The Daniel Craig era, of course, changed all that, with its increasingly interconnected story lines.
He mourned and avengedCasino Royales Vesper Lynd inQuantum of Solace, but things didnt stop there.
Everything had to be intertwined.
Emotional stakes had to be jacked up.
And the prevailing mood had to be gritty and gloomy.
EvenSpectreseemed to go kind of emo.
Still, this approach has not been without its benefits, beyond the obvious financial ones.
Intentional or not, the Craig films brought the character back to the original idea.
If nothing else, this Bond was a dogged functionary.
I am, however, starting to appreciate the sacrifice.
His performance is so distinctive that it would be absurd to ask another actor to replicate it.
He had a great run, and now its over.
- and just proceed as if nothing happened.
I also wouldnt be surprised if the series let up a bit on the soap operaisms.
A pivot back to a more lighthearted, fantastical Bond might be welcome after all that Sturm und Drang.
Surely Im not the only person suffering from moody continuity fatigue.
There have been understandable calls to update him in all sorts of ways.
But hasnt this always been the case?
He has always been a man out of step with his times.
Thats the odd mixture at the heart of this series.
He never really belonged anywhere because you cant really embody a fantasy if you do.
Bond wasnt just a fantasy of the good life; he was a fantasy of relevance.
Its not surprising that his rise coincided with Britains decline as a superpower.
His wrongness was part of his appeal.
Younger viewers came to see him even as he slagged off the Beatles.
Female viewers came to see him even as he often treated women like shit.
These viewers werent stupid.
They were all-in on the joke.
