The Musketeers: Emilie

Another solid episode, which again is pretty deft in setting a Musketeer-centric standalone A-plot next to a more serialized ensemble B-plot; in this case separating Aramis from the boys to deal with this episode's guest star, and having Athos, Porthos and D'artagnan cope with threats against the Spanish Ambassador.

It all melds together quite nicely; the B-plot is informed by the A-plot (Emilie's preaching puts the Spanish at risk) and the women are utilized very well: Constance, Queen Anne and Milady are all active participants in how the plot unfolds.

Of course, there's still not a lot of emphasis on the central bromance, for it would seem that only one Musketeer is allowed to stand in the spotlight at a time – but then, I'm not solely in it for the bromance (wow, why does that sound so familiar?)

Woman of the Month: Constance Bonacieux

Constance Bonacieux from The Musketeers

So I realized who Constance reminds me of: a young Molly Weasley! She's a mother hen, a nurturer, a worrywart – but with a soft heart and a steel backbone. Just try and convince me she isn't exactly like Molly was when she was younger.

Maybe it’s just me, but there’s a tendency for writers to try way too hard to portray female characters as “feisty” and “spirited” without really making them either of those things. Instead what ends up on the screen are joyless shrews whose “spunk” is demonstrated by constantly demeaning and browbeating the male heroes (see Lana Lang from Smallville, Kate from Robin Hood, and pretty much every single character that's ever been played by Katherine Heigl).

I think it’s all part of the general confusion that seems to exist when it comes to writing female characters, and how self-conscious some writers can get about making them “strong” without really knowing how. It’s frustrating to watch, and even more agonizing when the inevitable fandom backlash starts – not so much at the writers, but more often than not at the characters (and the actresses that play them).

Yet somewhere between the better-than-it-should-be writing and Tamla Kari’s down-to-earth performance, Constance Bonacieux manages to be grumpy and opinionated, quarrelsome and exasperated, ready to argue, disparage and even slap our male leads – and remain utterly charming while she's doing it.

I really have no idea how she pulls it off. Is it because the Musketeers admire and appreciate her regardless of how fed up she gets with them? Because she’s pulled into circumstances beyond her control (and usually without her permission)? Because she's usually the voice of reason amidst all the Musketeer-related chaos?

Who knows, but there’s something about this character that just clicks. Being a married and rather domesticated homebody, she's not what you would expect from a female lead, particularly once she requests shooting and sword-fighting lessons from D’artagnan – not to prove her mettle, but because she feels the very real need to be able to defend herself.

Now in season two she's been made a lady-in-waiting to Queen Anne, providing her with female companionship and a chance for the two women to sail over the requirements of the Bechdel Test together (not to mention a fancy new wardrobe). A simple draper's wife who is armed only with her common sense and loyal heart makes for an interesting addition to court life – and so far she's doing pretty well for herself.

Review: Penny Dreadful

The trailer for the second season is out,which is why it's time for me to weigh in on the first season of Penny Dreadful. Or as I like to call it – That Escalated Quickly: The Show.

Links and Updates

I've been nominated for a Sir Julius Vogel Award for Fan Writing! This is a New Zealand based fantasy award, and my nomination is largely down to my Big Worlds on Small Screens column that's posted regularly on Helen Lowe's blog. I'm currently in the middle of a sub-column called "Fantasy and Sci-Fi Films You've Probably Never Heard Of", so please check it out.

In other news, Atlantis has been cancelled. I have to admit, I cackled. Now that it's over, I may well end up watching it in full, as I've been grimly fascinated by the assorted Js attempts to recapture the success of Merlin, all seemingly without the faintest idea as to why Merlin was actually a success.

"They had a five year plan!"

The trailer for the second season of Penny Dreadful was released a couple of weeks ago, and it looks just as brooding and spooky as it should.

It looks as though a road-trip to the countryside is in order (just to give us the necessary infusion of mist shrouded moors).

Brona awakes!

Of all things, it's the sight of Caliban and Vanessa dancing that really made me sit up with interest. They didn’t interact once in the first season (in fact, the storylines were so separate that a careful shot depicted Caliban leaving the Grand Guignol just before the camera swooped up into the rafters to reveal the vampire-master sleeping there) and yet I can see the two of them finding a certain kinship with each other, based on their "outsider" quality if nothing else.

And of course, the big reveal is the sight of Helen McCrory relaxing in a bath of blood. It's my understanding that a deleted scene from season one was shown to an audience at Comic Con that demonstrated Mr Lyle (the flamboyant Egyptologist) and Madam Kali (or Evelyn Poole) are in cahoots together, and well aware of Vanessa's true significance.

Perhaps the scene will appear this season, though it seems a little odd to give away Madam Kali's true motivations in a trailer – unless they're assuming we all know about the deleted scene. Ah well, time will tell.

Mostly though, this trailer was about re-establishing the atmosphere of the show, with shots of our main cast set to the strains of an eerie love song. Nothing about the plot or character arcs – but a lot of this show's initial success rested on the unsettling unknowability of existence, so it's no surprise that they're keeping such things under wraps.

Standing Tall #6

There's a bit of a story behind this one. Back in 2013, structural engineer Helen Trappitt worked alongside architect Amiria Kiddle to paint the Intersection Point mural on the side of the Christchurch Central Police Station, as you see here:

The mural was part of a general "brighten up the city" campaign in the wake of the devastation created by the earthquakes, though the building is now scheduled for demolition. So this Point Blank giraffe has been painted as a reflection and (soon-to-be) legacy of the police station mural, currently positioned just across the road from its inspiration.

Meta: The Mystery of Irene Adler

This is a piece of meta I wrote some time ago when Sherlock's A Scandal in Belgravia first aired on television. I happened upon it when browsing through my old LiveJournal pages, and – having brushed it up a little – saw no reason not to post it here as well. It's basically a contrast/compare between Arthur Conan Doyle's original characterization of Irene Adler, and subsequent takes on the character – particularly as she appears in Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat's Sherlock, played by Lara Pulver.

As it happens there is a huge amount of misinformation surrounding the character of Irene Adler. By this point, some are probably aware that she was never a love interest, but perhaps littler known is that she only appeared in one short story, never really interacted with Holmes, and was happily married to another man by the end of the tale.

So let's unpack what we know about The Woman:

Arrow: League of Assassins

So here's an interesting fact: becoming a superhero makes your voice drop. It's apparent in any half-way decent portrayal of Clark Kent/Superman, Christian Bale's Batman took it to absurd levels, and Oliver even uses a voice modulator to help him out. It seems that Caity Lotz also got the memo, as the clearest difference between pre and post-freighter Sara is to be found in how deep her voice sounds.

This episode tackles the job of filling in some of the blanks of Sara's survival story, and how she went from one of Oliver's ditzy Girls of the Week to a stone-cold assassin who doesn't hesitate to kill a man.

Trigger warning: This review has a brief discussion of rape implications.