And honestly, I think they came back with a great episode. There were two main plots this episode, the first involving Jack and David crossing enemy lines on a secret mission and the second concerning the outbreak of plague (which is oddly topical, given the episode was filmed like 5 months ag0). I'll get to the specifics in a second, but two overall things I really wanted to commend this show on are the dialogue and the music. First, the tone of every sentence in this episode had a very regal feel. Not being anything close to a linguist, it's hard for me to describe exactly why it was so great, but it had a lot to do with unconventional sentence structure and word choice. I thought it was all very deftly handled. And then the music really created a great sense of tension. Usually I watch TV and never think twice about the score, but this week I was really wrapped up in it all. It all got a little spooky at times, which fit really well with the plague storyline.
David and Jack are sent on a "diplomatic mission" to kill an insurgent leader in Gath, until they get ambushed and have to get all guerilla warfare on things. They eventually find and capture the leader, which leads to some emotional scenes by Sebastian Stan as he more or less throws a tantrum to this complete stranger about David. Honestly, as much as I like Jack and tolerate (to use a term loosely) David, I thought both of them were a little weak. I just can't picture either of them as these fantastic soldiers, especially Jack. And Jack did come off a bit as a brat, which I did not care for at all. But the whole point of this storyline is to put two characters who are at odds with each other in a situation where they have to work together. It's been done a thousand times, but it was still interesting to see the final scene of the two men in the church. I honestly can't tell if Jack is happy or annoyed that David saved his life. Probably a bit of both, although it's always annoying to owe something to a person you detest. I see Jack as trying to do all of these things for David, none of which David wants, until they have a heart to heart and Jack realizes he just has to be a nice guy. We'll see how much of that happens in the last 5 episodes.
I'm not quite sure where to start on the plague storyline. I guess I'll start with the good parts and move on to the parts that annoyed the crap out of me. Silas was (as usual) awesome this week. Him dealing with the signs and portents was really cool, and played up the fantasy aspect of the show. I remember in the first episode, when there was a LITERAL crown of butterflies I was a bit put off by the heavy-handedness of prophecy, but this week it was much subtler. That bit with the candle was great, and the look on Silas' face when he realized who the "poison" was was great as well. The political intrigue parts of this show are where it really shines. Watching as Silas has to navigate these obstacles to his rule highlights Ian McShane's acting ability, and is probably the most engaging part of the series. And the fact that there is some higher power at work makes things all the more interesting. The viewer gets the feeling that Silas really does care for the people, and that he believes he is the best choice for King, and that he will do anything to keep his seat.
I also enjoyed watching Queen Rose deal with the Plague. When Silas said "there will be costs, to you more than others," she basically said "do what you have to do, my children come first." Makes you realize she is not to be trifled with, and I think if they ever let her go she'd level cities.
Now for the thing that pissed me off: Princess Puppy walking into quaruntine without so much as a SARS Mask on. I almost threw a shoe at my screen I was so angry; it is RIDICULOUSLY cliche. Does she not realize her position? Could she not put on at least some gloves and a hazmat suit (sidenote: Does she not care about infecting the kid further?)? Was I supposed to see this as noble or stupid? Are the writers trying to make me hate her? Yes, it's sad that the kid is sick and dying. And it was very nice of her to want to be with him. But someone needs to put a frigging leash on this girl as she is the damned PRINCESS of the country. Even if she's not in line for succession, she's still important, and if she gets killed bad things will happen. This is just as stupid as when she went in to 'negotiate' during the insurgence and got captured. Does she not have a personal guard? Does she not have common sense? I'd really like to see her learn a lesson at some point from all of this, but perhaps that's unrealistic. It is infuriating to me how great a character Silas is and how craptastic a character she is. Or maybe they're both craptastic, it's just Ian McShane is a hundred times better than Allison Miller.
The other thing that annoyed me, although clearly not as much as stupid, stupid Princess Puppy, was why Silas didn't kill his brother-in-law. Is it a "better the enemy you know..." situation? You KNOW this man is after your throne, and if it wasn't for luck and some clever maneuvering on your wife's part, would already have had you removed. Why not slit his throat and dump in a ditch somewhere and move on? Is there a maximum number of people that the King can have offed in one week? "Well, I've filled my quota this week, but just you wait!" I suppose it's good for the drama, and he IS your wife's brother, so I can let it slide this time.
So that was episode 6. I believe they shot 13 total, so we've got *maybe* 7 more before it gets yanked permanently. It still makes me sad, even if I saw it coming. And I'm not naive enough to think it might get picked up by a cable channel, although Sci-Fi or Showtime might have a fun go of it. I think if this show could be a bit more adult it might be more effective, too, but I'm not a TV executive. Mainly because I have taste. Oh snap.
