[spoilers] Lucas. Just Lucas.

[WhiteSwan]

Thanks for some very interesting and fascinating analyses!
There are a few points, though, I disagree with.
First of all I can't remember Lucas ever blaming his country for his ordeal in Russia, in fact I can't even remember him blaming MI5 - it's Harry who gets all the blame. It's a theme that runs throughout series 7, from some of Lucas' hints in 7.2 to his answer to Connie's question in 7.8. As we were told that Lucas had been Harry's protégé, someone he had always promoted, I think it's safe to assume that they had a rather close relationship, that Lucas may have always admired Harry. And so it's quite understandable to what a large extent Lucas is affected by the feeling that Harry may have betrayed him and/or that he didn't do anything to get him out of Russia. So I see the problem he has with Harry, but I've never seen that Lucas has a problem with his country or that he is lacking patriotism. He might be critical of current politics, but of course that's not the same as being unpatriotic.

Apart from Harry there is one other person he blames for his treatment in prison and that's Darshavin in that great episode 8.4. And that scene, when he accuses Darshavin of having him kept in solitary confinement and having beaten and tortured him, for me is also the moment when he manages to really break free from the power that man still had over him, at least to a certain extent.

Thoughout series 7 and 8 I can't see any kind of "abnormal" behaviour in Lucas. We know that during his time in prison he read a lot of books and had discussions about literature with Darshavin. And apparently he owns a lot of books, as we can see in 7.2.. So that's an interest he has, which may have helped him a lot in Russia, especially in those 4 years of solitary confinement, and there really isn't any reason at all why he should suddenly stop reading books about 2 years after his release. And as apparently his Russian his so good that he could pass as a native he must be musical as well. To really pick up the intonation and accent of a foreign language usually has something to do with a talent for music. So it would be just normal to assume he is interested in music. Unlike his interest in literature it's not something we are specifically told about, but we're not told about the contrary, either. Did we ever learn about Ros' or Adam's or Jo's interest in music? Probably not, because Spooks doesn't dwell too much on the private lives of the agents, but it certainly was not supposed to mean they never listened to any music. That remark Lucas makes to Danielle about not having any interests seems to me very much out of character. It's meant to prepare us for the notion that Lucas in fact is JB who in fact is a psychopath. So I just can't take it serious!

My impression is that Lucas has probably always been very meticulous, careful, methodical and controlled. For 8 years he had no control whatsoever over his life and this may well explain those little things like the way he prepared the tea etc.. Very well observed! But again I think it's nothing abnormal, it's nothing which would hint at severe psychological problems. The fact that for 8 years others had control over him can also explain why he normally tries to control his emotions, even though from time to time you can still tell how vulnerable he his (that's one of the reasons why I have fallen in love with him, so of course I'm not very objective about it ).

I agree with the observation that he desperately wants to go back to the Lucas he was before he got arrested and that he desperately wants some of his old life back. In 7.2 he tells his ex-wife how terrible it is when everything is taken away from you. That's one of the reasons why he wants to come back to MI5, that's at least one part of his former life he can get back. I think the other reason is that working for MI5 has always been much more than just a job for him, protecting other people, protecting the country - that's totally in accordance with his "moral fire" and with his moral values. And only because he was so absolutely convinced that he was doing the right thing he was able to survive those 8 years without betraying his country.
Additional to that MI5 seems to be almost like a family for him with Harry being some sort of father figure. That's why he so desperately wants his trust and approval and that's why he is willing to risk his life and his freedom to personally help him in 7.7. But again this isn't really "abnormal" behaviour - people who are devoted to the kind of work they are doing often don't have a lot of private life (Ros would be another example for that). Besides, it's not that he isn't interested in anybody outside MI5: he would have loved to get his ex-wife back and he started an affair with SC. Not the best choice in women, but still great compared to Maya. What he really needs is someone who loves him just as he is, whom he can trust and who trusts him, who tries to understand him and chases all those nightmares away and then everthing will be fine.

Sorry to have given such a long lecture! But I just can't stop thinking about Lucas. (And by the way, as for me the JB story never happened and Lucas is still alive, I'm using present tense when writing about him).