Teresa Rubel: Trubel Under Another Name

[formerlyfreedom]

Discuss Trubel here!

[Ottis]

I think the reason Trubel didn't seem affected by "Kelly in a Box" is because the actress is so wooden. Her emotional range runs the gamut from A to B.

 

 

Which is perfect for that character. I like how Truble takes care of business. No overreaction (Juliette). No overwrought grief (Nick). No forgetting to share details with others (everyone). Truble shows up, assesses the situation and acts. The opening shot of her beheading the one wesen and walking off was a great example. Finally, someone taking care of business. See Nick's mom in a box? Yep, see it, so what's the next step? One issue with this show is the constant emotional anguish by the characters over almost anything (Wu excepted).  Make a decision people, and own it. 

[SmithW6079]

Which is perfect for that character. I like how Truble takes care of business. No overreaction (Juliette). No overwrought grief (Nick). No forgetting to share details with others (everyone). Truble shows up, assesses the situation and acts. The opening shot of her beheading the one wesen and walking off was a great example. Finally, someone taking care of business. See Nick's mom in a box? Yep, see it, so what's the next step? One issue with this show is the constant emotional anguish by the characters over almost anything (Wu excepted). Make a decision people, and own it.

Interesting that people excuse the terrible acting of the actress who plays Trubel because they like the character, but because they hate Juilette, they excoriate the acting of the actress who plays her.

I don't like Trubel, and I'm sorry they introduced the character. Her addition, as much as Nick's de-Grimming, turned him into an emo mess.

I watch "Grimm" to watch Nick kick Wesen ass, not some annoying teenager taking that role.

Edited May 20, 2015 by SmithW6079

[OtterMommy]

I do think Trubel is an interesting character, but I don't think that Jacqueline Toboni is an especially mature actress.  I mean, she's young and her entire career is ahead of her so I don't want to label her as "bad actress" at this point.  I do think she could work a bit on her vocal modulation and articulation, in particular.

 

But, as for the character, she is a bad-ass and she is, in some ways, very hardened.  However, I do think she should have some vulnerabilities that the audience sees.  She has been rejected her entire life and had no one in her corner until she came to Portland.  I think Toboni does well when Trubel is being tough, but she has trouble (ha ha!) dialing it back when needed.

 

I'm not sure I would want Trubel as a regular character.  When she was on the show the first time, I would have said no way, but I'm not so against it now.  That being said, I do worry that, if TPTB make her a regular, she will cut even more time away from Monroe--who I think should be the #2 person on the show (at the end of this past season, he was like #8 after Nick, Juliette, Renard, Adalind, Wu, Hank, and Rosalee). I think I would be more comfortable with Trubel on the periphery--someone who comes and goes as needed.  I mean, I think we should see more of her than we did of Kelly, but not a regular.  Think Meisner in season 2 (and, can I just say, can they PLEASE bring Meisner back to at least that level?)

Edited May 20, 2015 by OtterMommy

[OakGoblinFly]

I do think Trubel is an interesting character, but I don't think that Jacqueline Toboni is an especially mature actress.  I mean, she's young and her entire career is ahead of her so I don't want to label her as "bad actress" at this point.  I do think she could work a bit on her vocal modulation and articulation, in particular.

 

 

If Ms. Toboni can improve as much as David Giuntoli has I think she'll do well;  Grimm, is after all, her first acting job.  

 

I like Theresa as a character too - I like that, through her, we get yet another side of what being a Grimm means.

 

I'd like to think that some of the stilted/emotionless reactions are an acting choice - this is a character who has been in the foster system for years, (I think) institutionalized or was going to be institutionalized, thought she was going crazy, and murdered (albeit in self-defense) before she learned that what she was seeing was real and she was a Grimm.  It me, it is understandable that she would be guarded and closed off.

 

I do remember seeing some moments of warmth from the character, most notably with Grimm (love the sibling vibe the two actors have) and I would like to see some of that explored in Season Five.

[Fable]

Interesting that people excuse the terrible acting of the actress who plays Trubel because they like the character, but because they hate Juilette, they excoriate the acting of the actress who plays her.

 

I don't necessarily agree.   I haven't seen either actor offer up anything worthy of an Emmy reel, but my like or dislike of their characters has nothing to do with it.  I like Trubel, and I liked Juliette until she became a raging hexenbeist.  I didn't even mind when found out she was a beist.  It wasn't until the writing for her went off the rails and she started wreaking havoc that I took a serious dislike towards her, but frankly I don't think I would like Rosalee either if the writers had given her that story instead (though I do think that actor may have pulled it off better). 

 

I did think Toboni's acting choices seemed a little off when she found out about Juliette and when she was telling the gang about Nick's mom.  It did seem like she was just reciting lines without putting much thought into it, and I thought it was a bit off putting, but maybe that is how she was directed.   In any case, overall I like the character.

Edited May 20, 2015 by Fable

[SmithW6079]

My main objection to Trubel -- aside from the bad acting -- is that if I had wanted to watch "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," I would have watched "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" when it was on. 

[SnarkyTart]

I did think Toboni's acting choices seemed a little off when she found out about Juliette and when she was telling the gang about Nick's mom.  It did seem like she was just reciting lines without putting much thought into it, and I thought it was a bit off putting, but maybe that is how she was directed.   In any case, overall I like the character.

It may be that she was directed to act those scenes in the way she did because the plot/writing was so murky in those storylines.  Even after the end of the finale, I see viewers speculating as to whether or not Juliette is really truly dead, and whether or not Nick's mom is really truly dead.   Some viewers are still asking if Truble, Juliette and Ma Grimm are all involved in some covert op together.  Personally, I'm not sure if Juliette is really truly dead, so I can see where these kinds of questions are still being asked.  I chalk that up to shitty writing of muddy storylines.  If your Grand Finale Episode leaves viewers asking if the on-screen death of one of the main characters was real or not, something's wrong.  I can't blame Toboni's acting for that.  I have enjoyed her character most of the time, but would like to see her acting improve.  Then again, I've always said that about David Giuntoli as well, though I do see him getting better.

[SnarkyTart]

Is it possible that  the idea of the unsure death, and perhaps the reason for Toboni's acting in relationship to it, has to do with the show wanting to have something like a cliff hanger that will get people to come back when the show starts next season?   If she reacted too strongly in one direction or the other, she might give away the future plot line.  It wouldn't be the first time this ploy was used.

At this point anything's possible, so you could be right.  And I think that's a problem, one that's reflective of poor writing and direction for the show.  Usually when I've seen cliff hangers in a finale episode, they don't end with the (presumed) death of a main character showing them dead dead with a bunch of arrows going all the way through them.  They leave a little ambiguity...like the character has been shot a single time and it's not inconceivable that the wound may not be fatal.  Or, they don't show a (presumably dead) character's severed head in a box.  If the writers wanted this to be a cliff hanger, they didn't leave any trace of the ambiguity that would build anticipation for the next season's resolution.   It seems the writing/directing is very poorly done, whether deliberate misdirection is intended, or if it's not. 

[Bruinsfan]

While I wouldn't hold Toboni's acting up as a shining light of her generation or anything, I do think she's largely playing her character's stoicism as intended. At the very least she doesn't leave me wondering what Teresa's motivation is in any given scene, an offense Tulloch is guilty of all too frequently.

 

I wasn't keen on the character when introduced but she's grown on me; now pretty much the only thing I dislike about her is the annoying nickname.

[Syme]

While I wouldn't hold Toboni's acting up as a shining light of her generation or anything, I do think she's largely playing her character's stoicism as intended. At the very least she doesn't leave me wondering what Teresa's motivation is in any given scene, an offense Tulloch is guilty of all too frequently.

 

I have no issues about her acting at all. Her writing, like everyone's, leaves something to be desired... but her's less so that others...

 

 

 

I do like the character...when others are muddled in ambiguity (looking at you, Nick), Trubel sees straight through to the answer (decapitate; done). 

 

Trubel is a street-smart survivor; followed by a Hundjager, she does not muddle in angst, she solves the issue.

[Morrigan2575]

I like Trubel, I think they write the character to work in the actresses range. The one time I was fairly impressed with her ability was in the episode with the Wesen shoplifting ring.

[OakGoblinFly]

I love her in any scene with Nick - they have the best sibling chemistry ..... I wish the show would explore that a bit (not necessarily make them siblings, but allow Nick and Theresa to bond some more).

[OtterMommy]

From the spoiler thread....

 

 

I don't think that Theresa and Nick are long lost relatives. First, it would be very convenient for Nick and Theresa to meet. It's one thing for them to be Grimms, but it would be even more convoluted for them to long lost brother/sister or long lost cousins. I mean Theresa literally hitchhike into Portland while Nick just happens to live there. Now, I think that the show has established that at some very distant point in the past, all Grimms are related to each other through a common ancestor/common Grimm. I think that would make a lot more sense than running into some kind of long lost relative that you just happen to meet during an investigation. Anyway like you have said, Kelly would've said something if they were brother/sister (IMO, it would be a totally dick move for her not to tell them if she knew about it).

 

I don't really care if Nick and Trubel are long lost relatives or not.  My problem is that Trubel really doesn't have raison d'etre on this show.  If they are going to expand her character (and, honestly, I'd rather they didn't based on the current state of things), they have to do a better job of connecting her to the central plot of the story.  Having Trubel and Nick be long lost siblings/relatives is one way to do that (and, as I said in my original post, the way things are set up, it would at least be "easy" to do it...the wouldn't have to go back and re-write history to make it work), but it certainly isn't the only way.  If they come up with some way to make sense of Trubel without making her related to Nick, that's fine by me.

[Darklazr]

From the spoiler thread....

 

 

I don't really care if Nick and Trubel are long lost relatives or not.  My problem is that Trubel really doesn't have raison d'etre on this show.  If they are going to expand her character (and, honestly, I'd rather they didn't based on the current state of things), they have to do a better job of connecting her to the central plot of the story.  Having Trubel and Nick be long lost siblings/relatives is one way to do that (and, as I said in my original post, the way things are set up, it would at least be "easy" to do it...the wouldn't have to go back and re-write history to make it work), but it certainly isn't the only way.  If they come up with some way to make sense of Trubel without making her related to Nick, that's fine by me.

 

For me, the Grimm writers should just move Trubel off to her own show that is FBI oriented with Chavez or another agent.  I don't like the character or the actress in the role, and quite frankly don't see the need for another Grimm.

[ShadowFacts]

I'm pretty happy with Theresa as is.  I like her character and the naturalistic acting.  I don't think she's redundant as a Grimm, because Nick can always use backup, being that there are craploads of Wesen in Portland, and one Grimm.  He's a little outnumbered currently.  Heck, I'd be OK with them bringing Josh back if he ends up Grimmified. 

[OtterMommy]

From the media thread:

Quote

If there were better ratings and DG wanted to leave, Trubel was already in place and could have taken over as lead. I am not a fan of Trubel, but the actress is young and shows tend to want the younger viewers. 

The idea of this is possible, but I just don't think that Jacqueline Toboni is a strong enough actress (yet) to pull off a leading role.  I also don't think that Trubel is a well enough written character to take center stage.  I mean, she's been on the show--on and off--since the end of season 3 and I still don't know what purpose she serves to the narrative....

[Darklazr]

2 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

From the media thread:

The idea of this is possible, but I just don't think that Jacqueline Toboni is a strong enough actress (yet) to pull off a leading role.  I also don't think that Trubel is a well enough written character to take center stage.  I mean, she's been on the show--on and off--since the end of season 3 and I still don't know what purpose she serves to the narrative....

I agree and think the show may have set the stage for Grimm#2 show with Trubel/JT, but she is way too green to be a lead, yet.   Trubel for me should have never been on the show at all, because I think Josh served the purpose of showing us a child who grew up thinking his Grimm parent was BSC.

[OtterMommy]

Just now, Darklazr said:

I agree and think the show may have set the stage for Grimm#2 show with Trubel/JT, but she is way too green to be a lead, yet.   Trubel for me should have never been on the show at all, because I think Josh served the purpose of showing us a child who grew up thinking his Grimm parent was BSC.

Yeah, I never figured out why Trubel was there. I don't like the idea of her being related to Nick, because it is all too "neat," but--at this point--that's the only way I can see that they can justify her presence.

I wish that when they decided to introduce another Grimm, instead of going the route of finding an ingenue, they would have brought on a "traditional" Grimm and had him or her as an enemy (and a mirror) for Nick.

[Darklazr]

2 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

Yeah, I never figured out why Trubel was there. I don't like the idea of her being related to Nick, because it is all too "neat," but--at this point--that's the only way I can see that they can justify her presence.

I wish that when they decided to introduce another Grimm, instead of going the route of finding an ingenue, they would have brought on a "traditional" Grimm and had him or her as an enemy (and a mirror) for Nick.

It really bothered me in s5 when Trubel was talking about all of the Grimm's that she met all over the world by working for HW and Nick could barely get any scenes with Marie, Kelly and Roland.  Trubel ended up being better trained and more knowledgeable about being a Grimm than Nick!

Edited September 4, 2016 by Darklazr

[OtterMommy]

From the Cast thread....

Quote

I honestly think Trubel/JT was brought on if DG decided to leave after s3 and they transitioned the show over to her.  It reminds me of how Josh Wedon had a couple of vampire slayers show up around s3 or s4 when there were rumors SMG was thinking about leaving her role.

Quite possible...if DG had a 5 season contract, the time would be right for that.

Another possibility...she was introduced at a point when the ratings for the show were growing and were strong enough, at least for a Friday night, to possibly consider growing the Grimm franchise to a spin off show.  

Still, they really could have come up with a stronger actress.  I remember reading that they had been looking for an actress for *months* to play Trubel and then they ended up with Toboni?  She's not Madonna-tries-to-act horrible, and she is better than she was, but....really? 

[Darklazr]

5 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

From the Cast thread....

Quite possible...if DG had a 5 season contract, the time would be right for that.

Another possibility...she was introduced at a point when the ratings for the show were growing and were strong enough, at least for a Friday night, to possibly consider growing the Grimm franchise to a spin off show.  

Still, they really could have come up with a stronger actress.  I remember reading that they had been looking for an actress for *months* to play Trubel and then they ended up with Toboni?  She's not Madonna-tries-to-act horrible, and she is better than she was, but....really? 

DG looked just as green when I watch the early episodes of s1.  However, you are correct that it made no sense to hire JT when Hollywood is filled with a lot of talented young actors just itching to join a successful TV show and maybe having their own show at some point.

[OtterMommy]

38 minutes ago, Darklazr said:

DG looked just as green when I watch the early episodes of s1.  However, you are correct that it made no sense to hire JT when Hollywood is filled with a lot of talented young actors just itching to join a successful TV show and maybe having their own show at some point.

There is a difference though....We'll say Toboni has been on for 2 seasons (which isn't quite true, because she comes and goes).  DG had improved far more between s1ep1 and s2ep22 than Toboni has in (roughly) the same amount of time.  Also, DG's "Greenness" played better into season 1 Nick than JT's did into season 3/4 Trubel.

Argh...look, I don't hate the girl.  As I said in the other thread, I am going to check out what looks to be a truly awful show just to see her.  And, to be fair, I can't blame all my Trubel issues on Toboni (again, looking at you K/G/C....)  Trubel--not Toboni--makes absolutely no sense to me in this show.  I don't see her adding anything.  In fact, I see her taking away "cred," I guess, from Nick--which pisses me off.  And, frankly, that is not Toboni's fault.

[Darklazr]

2 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

There is a difference though....We'll say Toboni has been on for 2 seasons (which isn't quite true, because she comes and goes).  DG had improved far more between s1ep1 and s2ep22 than Toboni has in (roughly) the same amount of time.  Also, DG's "Greenness" played better into season 1 Nick than JT's did into season 3/4 Trubel.

Argh...look, I don't hate the girl.  As I said in the other thread, I am going to check out what looks to be a truly awful show just to see her.  And, to be fair, I can't blame all my Trubel issues on Toboni (again, looking at you K/G/C....)  Trubel--not Toboni--makes absolutely no sense to me in this show.  I don't see her adding anything.  In fact, I see her taking away "cred," I guess, from Nick--which pisses me off.  And, frankly, that is not Toboni's fault.

"Grimm" has become about the female characters (Adalind, not dead Eve Juliette, Diana and Trubel), while Nick is really wallpaper and has not improved his skill set one bit.   I agree Trubel should not be on the show after she left in s4 and think she's only back because of her age/advertisers.  I don't blame JT for the writers decision to bring her back at the end of s4 and her current arc on the show, but she is NOT needed when the main character is a male Grimm!

[neh]

Trubel is freaking amazing and I want to be her when I grow up!

The actress that plays Trubel is pretty amazing too and I love her haircut!

Edited August 13, 2018 by neh
Spelling

[Gothish520]

On 8/13/2018 at 6:21 PM, neh said:

Trubel is freaking amazing and I want to be her when I grow up!

The actress that plays Trubel is pretty amazing too and I love her haircut!

I thought Trubel was awesome too, I was always happy when she showed up, total badass.