111 replies to this topic

[Bella]

Nolan Ross, the socially awkward dot com billionaire with panache for clothes reflecting every color on the color wheel; serves deliciously snarky observations of the Hamptonites and is Emily Thorne’s anchor to humanity.

He is funny, quirky, witty, sentimental, and insightful. He relishes a good takedown, but nothing bloody. Shamu Cam, Nolan’s voyeuristic ally, gains all the juicy Intel on the Hamptonites’ secrets, lies, weaknesses, and misdeeds.

Need to take a break from all that spying? Want to have a great time? Take Nolan to a gun range! As Daniel Grayson says, “It helps if you keep at least one eye open.”

[Spartan Girl]

I think I officially fell in love with Nolan in between "I haven't been this disappointed since...Phantom Menace" and "Baaaaaaad girl." I don't trust him completely, but he's a great character.

[Sara Sunshine]

Need to take a break from all that spying? Want to have a great time? Take Nolan to a gun range! As Daniel Grayson says, “It helps if you keep at least one eye open.”

I absolutely loved that scene. Him not even hitting the target made me crack up. Nolan is my favorite character on this show.

I like that his and Emanda's friendship is now more in the open. Once they reconciled, it seems like they spend most of their free time scheming. Prior to that, it seemed like they were secret friends.

[MysticalTime]

Nolan is easily the best character on the show and the perfect counterpart to Emanda. I find their friendship so refreshing and sincere amongst all the other convoluted relationships on the show. And Nolan always has the best lines.

As a bonus under that horrible hair the actor is rather cute with decent abs.

[FurryFury]

I think Nolan is one of the few characters on the show not completely described by his archetype. Victoria is the Ice Queen, Emanda is the meticulous plotter, Daniel is an easily duped golden boy, etc. But the fun in Nolan is that I can't really put my finger on his essence - he's more than just a nerdy billionaire, and there is a darker side to him I don't yet understand.

And yeah, I totally love his relationship with Emanda.

[Luckylyn]

I'm dying to know Nolan's back story because he seems so intensely lonely. No wonder David's faith in him made so intensely loyal. It's seems that David was his only friend. Now he's attached himself to Jack and Emily. It just seems he's more invested in them than they are in him.

[FurryFury]

I think he was implied to have an abusive father, but we know nothing more about his past, which is a pity, I agree.

[name234]

I'm dying to know Nolan's back story because he seems so intensely lonely. No wonder David's faith in him made so intensely loyal. It's seems that David was his only friend. Now he's attached himself to Jack and Emily. It just seems he's more invested in them than they are in him.

FurryFury, the only other thing I recall is that Nolan pitched his idea for the company dozens and dozens of other potential backers (who all said no, and not nicely) and David Clark was not only, the only one who backed him but also, its implied heavily was very kind and mentoring about the whole thing.

I hope we get a well timed, well written flashback scene, if only because I think Gabriel Mann could act the hell out of it. If the producers are keeping James Tupper around for flashback scenes, this would be a good use of him. It would go a long way to showing the reason for Nolan's loyalty and also the kind of father Emanda missed out on having.

[FurryFury]

Yeah, I'd love to see more exploration of David, and it's somewhat jarring we've yet to see any of his flashbacks with Nolan. They shot one such scene a few episodes ago, but it was deleted from the final version of the episode :( I wonder if it will be shown later, or ever.

[atyleung]

Yeah, it was promised a long time ago that we would see more backstory on Nolan, and we still haven't gotten it yet!

Nolan is so multi-dimensional; there's playful Nolan, snarky Nolan, sweet and vulnerable Nolan, serious Nolan, and even sexy Nolan. :-) And he has chemistry with EVERYONE...One character I particularly think he has great chemistry with that doesn't get mentioned very often is firecracker Amily.

As far as his fashion, I LOVE that he loves to wear colors. I know dark clothes are considered classy and all, but I think color schemes are so much more interesting and creative (especially on the suits Nolan wears to events).

I love him and Emanda together, but if I had to choose a side, Nolan wins every time.

Edited by atyleung, Jan 23, 2012 @ 4:17 AM.

[MysticalTime]

All we know about Nolan's background is about his dad and by the sound of things no wonder he's not around. What interests me about Nolan is that while he's so lonely and as odd as he is, he's still very sociable and openly affectionate, which interestingly enough shouldn't be traits of a lonely scorned person. But maybe he reserves that side of him for people don't immediately suck up to him like Jack and Emanda and even Ashley. I imagine people like that aren't very many.

But the fun in Nolan is that I can't really put my finger on his essence - he's more than just a nerdy billionaire, and there is a darker side to him I don't yet understand.

With that fashion sense and certain implications I see a whole other side to him being perhaps a former decadent bad boy when he initially struck gold, something of a Dorian Gray if you substitute godly beauty for godly wealth.

[mac123x]

But the fun in Nolan is that I can't really put my finger on his essence

Oddly enough, I think of him as the audience surrogate. I mean, ignoring his lack of social skills and crippling fashion sense, he's the character I'd most like to hang out with.

[FurryFury]

Hmm. Maybe you're right. He is a Watson to Emanda's Sherlock, in a way (although she's, like, anti-Sherlock in her motives and actions). But he's still more than that, I think.

Edited by FurryFury, Jan 24, 2012 @ 3:24 AM.

[darkestboy]

I think he's awesome. I've only watched the first six episodes of the series so far (will be catching up with the rest soon) and he's by far the best character on the show.

[atyleung]

Gabriel Mann interview with I Am Rogue (2/1/12)

[darkestboy]

Just watched episode 9 and it's making me hope that at some point, Nolan gets a love interest that wants him for him and not for his cash or to keep his quiet.

[sadangel]

Because I'm nosey as hell. Is Nolan a top or bottom?

[Bella]

Because I'm nosey as hell. Is Nolan a top or bottom?

I peg Nolan as versatile.

[jadesfire]

Is it just me or does Nolan seem to be half in love with Jack for whatever reason?

[Bella]

Is it just me or does Nolan seem to be half in love with Jack for whatever reason?

No, it's not just you. Nolan appears at times to have a little crush on Jack. I think ultimately, Nolan appreciates that Jack has never tried to use Nolan for his money. Jack has never tried to pretend to be Nolan's friend to gain advantages. Jack referred to Nolan as his friend in tonight's episode "Perception," and the look on Nolan's face spoke volumes of how much Nolan has longed to have a true friend... a friend with no hidden agendas.

[darkestboy]

I don't think Nolan fancies Jack but definitely sees him as someone worthy of being friends. I guess Nolan likes Jack's down to earth nature. Maybe it reminds him of Emily's dad. I mean Amanda's father.

[atyleung]

I always side with Nolan when there's a conflict between him and Emanda, but I was disappointed with him in this episode. I think he is being overboard protective of Jack...Emanda clearly regrets getting Jack caught in the crossfire and was trying to fix it, but Nolan kept rubbing it in and bringing up Jack getting hurt in every conversation they had. Then he made things worse by showing Jack the tape.

[doram]

I've pegged Nolan as being in love with Jack from the first episode.

[Peekay]

I agree that Nolan's always acted like he's harbouring a big crush on Jack. Regardless, it's not hard to see why he gave in and showed Jack the tape even if we don't go down the crush route, because Nolan seems to be quite vulnerable when it comes to relationships. In two significant relationships he has (Tyler and Emanda) that we'e seen, the other party has always wanted something from Nolan. Even if Emanda genuinely considers Nolan her friend and confidante (which at times is rathe questionable), she's never been above flat-out manipulating Nolan into doing things she wants him to do.

Jack, on the other hand, has never asked Nolan for anything, and certainly never manipulated him or demanded something of him. When Jack thanked him for being a good friend, he actually meant it. I'm sure that was a shock to the system for poor Nolan.

[atyleung]

But even before the tape incident, I never understood why Nolan always talked about or acted as if Jack is a great friend. Nolan's certainly been good to Jack, but so far, it's still a one-way street. Yeah, Jack's never asked Nolan for anything, but that's because most of the time, Jack seems to be merely tolerating Nolan's presence and can sometimes be just as dismissive of him as Emanda used to be.

[doram]

I think that's the reason right there: without wanting anything in return, Jack was willing to put up with Nolan's company. None of Nolan's 'friends' from Tyler to Amanda have ever not wanted to use him in some way or the other.

It also makes me believe that Nolan is crushing on Ashley : she's another person that only gives him the time of the day because she wants to and not because she wants something from him.

[sweetpd7]

It also makes me believe that Nolan is crushing on Ashley : she's another person that only gives him the time of the day because she wants to and not because she wants something from him.

I disagree because Ashley wants something from anyone who can advance her in society or make her look good. She and Amanda are really frenemies. Tyler was a means to the end, although he screwed that up. Ashley is most likely interested in Nolan's money and the prestige that could give her.

[angelita100]

If that's true why has Ashley ignored him all this time. Only after they had tyler in common did she lighten up with Nolan. But there's not enough interaction to know. There's a lot of disdain for Ashley when she's just somebody who wants better in life. She's not willing to do any and everything to get it. She's just a small time social climber who actually works while she waits for her opportunity. There are easier ways. I've yet to see that she'll even sleep with someone she doesn't like e.g. Nolan.

[ayla123]

Not true that Jack is entirely guileless when it comes to Nolan, and never asked him for anything. The very thing that brought them together was Jack asking him to buy his boat after Nolan expressed an interest. Sure, Jack did it for a noble reason, to help his dad out with the debt on the bar, but when Nolan made his terms clear that the illusion of friendship was part of the bargain, that's when Jack tacitly agreed to using a lonely rich guy for his cash. Why not, all it cost Jack was some hang out time? Their friendship grew from there, which is nice, but it never would have had a chance if Jack hadn't seen a way to get fast cash.

[doram]

I don't think that Jack needed the convoluted excuse of his father's debt and selling the Amanda to become friends with Nolan. I think Nolan was blatantly telegraphing "I want to be your friend" (or "I want to get in your pants" depending on your slash goggles) to Jack from their first scene together. If Jack was a sycophant or even a "pragmatist" like his brother, their friendship would have taken off a lot earlier than it did.

Also, is it common knowledge that Nolan Ross is a "lonely, rich guy"? When Ashley was giving Emanda the down-lo on the local Hamptonites, she mentioned Nolan's eccentricity and that he earned more than the rest of the snobs put together... she didn't mention that he was wanting for company. Considering that Nolan and Jack didn't exactly move in the same circles until Nolan decided to change that, I doubt that Jack would know if Nolan was a lonely, rich guy.

Nolan didn't just express an interest in the boat, he asked Jack how much he was selling it, in a manner that can only be described as obnoxious. And Jack didn't agree to Nolan buying the boat in exchange for his friendship - he offered to sell him the boat in exchange for cash - he wasn't taking advantage of Nolan at all. (And until I got to know Nolan better, I actually wondered if the banks foreclosing on Papa Porter wasn't machinated by Nolan for this express purpose).

It was after Nolan found out the reason why Jack changed his mind (his father's debt on the bar) that Nolan put the illusion of friendship on the table - an illusion, that Jack didn't bother to keep until he realized that he had (probably against his own judgment) ended up becoming friends with Nolan.

Considering how many other people would have sold that illusion with a great deal more enthusiasm - won't have even needed to be contracted into putting up that illusion in the first place - it's pretty obvious why Nolan is so attracted to Jack and why he has come to value his hard-won friendship above Emanda "Hi. Do this-and-that-and-this for me while I ignore your advice, keep you in the dark and screw up your life when it suits me. Bye."