Significant Male Relationships
(I want to openly acknowledge that some of what I wrote here is built upon the episode recaps of S3 by @jeneep. What wonderful insight you have! You are also a fantastic writer!)
There were a lot of fandom FEELINGS when Henry Fisher showed up at the beginning of series 3 and âslowed progressâ in Jack and Phryneâs budding relationship. Â
Trust me, I was aggravated as well.
But as I was reading some of the recaps a few things started to come to the surface about what could be seen as an advantage of Henry Fisherâs presence at this particular relationship juncture for Jack and Phryne.Â
There is no doubt that Phryne knows that she is falling for Jack and she wants to give this a go. However I donât believe for a second she has any idea how to proceed. I think she is open but also knowing Phryne and her level of confidence in herself, it is possible to believe she will default to what she knows. (And she actually does a little later.) Jack as well. Â
I think had Henry Fisher not shown up, Jack and Phryne would have, at the very least, moved the physical relationship further without really addressing the underlining issues until things came to a head.  And then it might have been too late⊠and too damaging.
(What exactly is nerve tonic, btw?)
Henryâs presence however and the way Miss Fisher handles it so sketchy from the start seems to cause Jack to proceed with a different kind of caution. At the end of the episode he seems warily fascinated by the father/daughter dynamic and his acquaintance with Phryneâs father seems to be a bit of a puzzle piece that further explains Phryneâs beliefs and lifestyle.
Jack has seen Phryne with a lot of âold friends"⊠But here he is seeing her interact with her first significant male relationship. Heâs learning things about Phryne that he didnât quite know. She is further exposed to Jack and she canât stop it from happening!Â
Naturally, Phryne is not afraid of exposure. She is naked all the time! However, she likes to be the one to expose the particular details of her life. Understandably. Her father is a particular detail. Bleh. Â
Cut to the very next episode and despite the fact that Phryne had seem to give Jack the âgo signâ to pursue herâand the fact that she hasnât taken a lover in some timeâin walks Compton and before long she is âreminiscingâ.
This isnât a coincidence. She does it practically out of spite and possibly fear of losing herself when Jack shows signs of challenging her loyalty and marking his territory. Â (itâs all her territory after all!) What a mess.
Let me stop here and sayâI donât believe that Phryneâs liberal sexual pursuits are an indication or a result of âdamageâ. I believe the way she lives her life is based on her independence, her strength, confidence in herself and getting what she wants. (And letâs be honestâher current position of privilege) Â Itâs also based on a very strong feminist world view. Â
I do believe however, that one of the reasons she is strong, independent, fierce and an avid feminist is built upon some of the negative interactions she has had with that first significant male relationship (among others-namely René ). She put as much distance as she could between herself and her father until very recently when he appeared on her doorstep.
Has the pursuit of a possible monogamous relationship conjured a ghost?
Her father was a drunk. A gambler. A con artist. Secretive. Unreliable. He took from the family anything of value to fund his own vices. He disrespected his wife and his daughters. Did she know other men who were different? Probably. But they were not men whom she was meant to rely upon.
In fact, throughout what we know of her story in the TV series, there arenât any men she truly relied upon. There areâŠ.
Men who are lovers, men who are employees and men who are friends in need.
Cec and Burt are trustworthy and like family but they are employed by her. She cares about them for sure but sheâs in the power position. Mr. Butler adores her - he gets paid too. Hugh isâŠa puppy.Â
She doesnât rely on her lovers, in fact she is typically the one who is rescuing them.
Again, she is in the position of strength. (itâs pretty awesome). Â Bart, Samson, Charles, Raymondâall platonic friends in need.Â
Her relationship with Jack however has no historical parallel for her that we know of.
There is haggling with Jack but never payment. Â There is need and protection and information from both sides. There is always an even exchange.Â
Even when she feeds him itâs food for two. Â They drink TOGETHER.
They play a lot. And they are competitive with each other while still being on the same side.
Itâs egalitarian at its best even when sheâs batting her eyelashes and flirting. They are honest with the good and the bad. They both have issues and the other one knows about them. They argueâsometimes for the purpose of understanding, sometimes just to win.
(The fact that he is a man she is attracted to but has not yet slept with is a whole other fascinating analyzation and Iâll let someone else do it. Â [Someone do it].)
She tries to have a similar sparring with Compton when he comes back into her life for a hot second but then realizes heâs not been forth coming. He isnât a partner. Her relationship with Jack isâŠ
Unusual for her and the time period.
It is something other. Â Itâs a relationship of the future, really. Â What does one do when one actually discovers something they were sure did not exist? They may flounder a bit.Â
Itâs a time period when women married and went from their fatherâs house to their husbands house. This hasnât happened with Phryne and itâs never going to. She has her own damn house. Â
I doubt she wouldâve even been opened to marriage even if Henry Fisher had been a really great father and husband. Yet there is that possibility that having such a crappy dad could have factored into her never really having a man as her partner up until now.  (letâs not even mention RenĂ©. Bad all around.)
Back to HenryâŠ
Jack is taking notes on Phryne and her Pops. Watch his face anytime Phryne tells him a story relating to her dad. As @jeneep points out, Phryne loves her father. Even though he is an ass. Jack sees this too. And heâs there for her with regard to Henry. But Jack uses this to his advantage and becomes calculating and I love it! Every Henry-ism is countered with a Jack-ism. (Does that sound dirty⊠Wasnât supposed to.)
Henry stole Phryneâs  swallow brooch to buy beer. Jack âfindsâ a swallow brooch to give to Phryne - a return of âlost propertyâ he calls it.Â
Henry manipulates the system at The Grand to waltz with Phryneâs mother years ago. Jack asks Phryneâstraight upâfor the privilege of a waltz at the Grand THEN expresses a gratefulness that she even exists. Somehow redeeming her fatherâs past actions and motherâs foolishness in falling for it all. Â Â
Phryne is concerned with old memories that her father murdered someone because he has done a lot of really rotten things⊠Jack finds the defining answer to Phryneâs questions. Jack exonerates her father for HER.Â
Henryâs âresourcefulnessâ (as Jack so kindly puts it) reeks havoc! and brings Phryne a lot of angst and embarrassment. Jack builds her back up and points out that THAT resourcefulnessâlike her ownâwith the proper motive is a thing he appreciates and relies upon from her.  She knows she shares some of her fatherâs qualities⊠but Jack reminds her she is not her fatherâŠ.but Neither is Jack. Â
He once told Phryne regarding her sisterâs abduction that he âdismissed the chargesâ. Jack is an officer of the law as Phryne told her father when she introduced him. He is also a good personâsomeone you would want to think well of you. And Jack thinks well of Phryne.Â
Phryneâs father has a dubious past and present - Jack seems to very easily dismiss any charges with relation to Phryneâs connection to him. Jack is OFTEN dismissing the charges if you think about it.
Â
Itâs why she trusts him.
Phryne has never truly been on the receiving end of Jackâs Judgement and feels safe to complain; express fear, exasperation and genuine concern to him. She lets him see more of the embarrassing dysfunction of her family and more of her wounds which is what we all have to do before we invite someone to truly be a member by way of a serious relationship. And it is serious.
The fact that Henry is even in the final scene with Jack and Phryne kissing passionately is very telling as to where these two have navigated just in the last 8 episodes (only eight!) As @jeneep astutely points out, heâs shouting and they are completely ignoring him!
Possibly illustrating that Jack has somehow exercised any ghosts, dispelled any judgement and any possible correlation between that first significant male relationship with what he hopes is Phryneâs last significant male relationship.
