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Moonlight: B.C.

Lola: "'Evil' is a word that gets tossed around a lot. Like 'great' or 'awesome'."

When this series first aired, "Fever" kept me watching. But "B.C." closed the deal.

Beth is fascinated not just by Mick, but by vampirism. Vampires are sexy and have superpowers, but this episode is about the big one -- immortality. Who wouldn't be tempted? I've always found it a bit hard to believe when the lead human character in a vampire story flatly refuses to consider becoming one. How realistic is that?

So Beth has seen the glamorous side. Here, she saw the drawbacks, up close and personal, and it wasn't just no more sunbathing or prime rib. Josef is absolutely adorable in his Jason Dohring way, but he's also much older and much less human than 85-year-old Mick. Lola, even older than Josef, was torturing her fellow vampires to death and carelessly killing humans with lethal drugs. Yes, Lola could be an aberration, but what if all vampires become less human as they age? Eternal youth and beauty could cost you in evil points. Not to mention dying slowly and horribly in a Matrix-like vat of your very own.

The black crystal in its beautiful little pendant was our Most Obvious Symbolism. Vampirism is like a powerful drug, gorgeous and tempting. Even with all of the drawbacks to give her pause, Beth was still looking longingly at the black crystal at the end of the episode, and at her own reflection in the mirror. She wants it, even though she knows it isn't good for her. Sort of like Mick.

That scene in the shower was sort of amazing. "Turn me..." Two actors in a shower, no nudity, no kissing, and yet it was incredibly sexy. I also thought Sophia Myles did a terrific job in the morning-after scene, where Beth accepted what she'd done the night before with wry humor instead of embarrassment. It just made me like her more.

There was a lot of terrific banter, too, and not just between Mick and Beth. Mick and Josef had several scenes that sparkled, especially the (pun alert) opening scene with the freezer and the nudity. It's a shame we never saw Josef with Lola. But in an episode with so much other good stuff, I didn't mind.

If there's a flaw in this episode (other than the fact that a ton of silver would cost a lot more than the drugs Lola was selling), it's Josh the ADA acting like a cop. It was if they were changing his job to suit the plot, sort of like the way they retconned Mick's silver ring into gold. But Josh does represent the human side of things for Beth. Staying human is staying good, and being with Josh. Going vampire is possibly turning evil -- but then, there's Mick.

Bits and pieces:

-- I love how Mick and Beth keep running into each other at the morgue. And how he could smell her before he saw her.

-- The bit with the microchip at Club Valen was a very Lois Lane thing for Beth to do.

-- Vampires can't be trusted with pets. I guess that means no vampire Pomeranians.

-- Kevin Weisman was back briefly. If this series had taken off, it would have been fun if they'd added him to the cast.

-- The doorman who gave up Lola was one of LaFleur's deputies on Lost.

-- Josef knew Lola when she was building a pirate army. That's delightful. You'd think that particular hint at bloodthirstiness would give Josef pause, but no. Maybe Josef is capable of building a pirate army, too.

-- Some of this episode reminded me of Highlander. With age comes power. And on Highlander, bad immortals usually got even eviller as they aged. Yes, I know "eviller" isn't a word, but it should be.

-- Some of this episode reminded me of True Blood, too, where V, vampire blood, is the most intoxicating, powerful drug in the world. The television series hadn't come out when Moonlight was running. But the books had.

-- And (I'm not done) Mick walked down an alleyway "with his long coat flowing behind him in a mysterious and attractive way."

-- Clearly, drawing the even-numbered episodes to review was good luck on my part. I think I'm getting the best episodes.

Quotes:

Beth: (to camera) "A peek at the exciting new collection of hot young designer, Ghislain Tavares. Outfits only a broomstick could wear."

Mick: "Thanks to your once a decade booty call, a dangerous vampire now possesses a large quantity of a lethal substance."

Beth: "I need this microchip inserted in my hand."
Mick: "Well, of course you do."

Beth: "I had to spend two hours getting myself up to club admissionability, and you're just wearing the same thing you always wear."
Mick: "Yes, well, perpetual coolness is the vampire's curse."
And it was a pun, too. He does sleep in a freezer.

Beth: "You're going to do that vampire jumping thing, aren't you?"
Laugh out loud.

Mick: "Apparently the high is us."

Four out of four microchips,

Billie
---
Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.

1 comment:

  1. I think you're getting the best episodes, too.

    LaFleur's lackey is also one of my favorite Angel bit players (if anyone is wondering why he looked familiar): he played the owner of the conspiracy-theory bookstore at the end of Season Four.

    "Burn it to the ground."
    "Okay."

    ReplyDelete

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