The Musketeers 1.8 "The Challenge" Review

                                       
The Musketeers must bring in Labarge (Vinnie Jones) who's been wrecking havoc in Gascony and has killed two Musketeers, en route the Red Guard intervene to take him to the Cardinal (Peter Capaldi) but a fight ensues and the captain of the Red Guard is killed by Labarge.  The Red Guard accuse the Muskeeters of causing the captain's death and fight them.  Labarge is taken to the Bastille and the cardinal and Louis (Ryan Gage) have a wager on who is better: the Red Guard or the Musketeers, as Treville (Hugo Speer) states ten of his men can take out the Red Guard.  One man from each side will fight and there will be an entrance fee of 30 livre.  Of course none of the Musketeers have the money, but Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) comes up with the idea that they "need to go fishing for a patron."  He takes him to the church where they seek out wealthy widows and Porthos (Howard Charles) catches the eye of Alice (Zoe Tapper).  She's been in mourning for a year and he walks her home as she pretends that she knows he knew her husband, which he didn't.

She changes her black mourning clothes and invites him to dinner as she's prepared plenty.  Porthos never turning down a good meal saying he's always hungry.  She gives him her husband's gold pipe which is worth 30 livres at least.  As they strike up a friendship and more ,even talking marriage. D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) can't afford the fee and trains with Athos (Tom Burke) who teaches him to be less emotional, as he also provokes him by saying that Labarge is being held in the Bastille and living in luxury, as Treville tells D'Artagnan that Labarge burnt down his farm in Gascony and he doesn't have any income to pay for his rent either.
Athos: "You have natural talent, but too often you let your emotions run away with you.  Talent won't keep you alive if your heart runs away with you."
D'Artagnan: "Can we just get on with it."
Athos: "My point in a nutshell."  Though there probably have been times where Athos too would have been guilty of letting his emotions rule him, especially when it came to Milady, or the Comte. As we've just seen she still has an effect on him, especially when she still makes him kiss her.  Which doesn't last for long, his momentary lapse of judgement.

D'Artagnan secretly goes to the prison where he disguises himself as a guard and he fights with Labarge, who just happens to be better than him.  However Athos saves him.  Constance (Tamla Kari) and D'Artgnan kiss when her husband arrives back home.  Asking for the rent.  Constance sells some of her things from the house to raise the money for his entrance fee.

The Cardinal wants to know what Milday (Mamie McCoy) is up to and tells her that she should stay away from the Musketeers, however she thinks D'Artagnan can be useful and she can seduce him to bring him over to their side.  As she follows Athos who finds her in a an alley, saying she could've killed him.  He doesn't want to be reminded of the past and neither does she, though they do share some kisses, well a long one. She also sees he still wears her necklace and he wonders why he does at times too.  She meets D'Artagnan and gives him the money for the entrance fee, as he calls it a loan. As well as giving him her necklace with the forget-me-not on it.  Obviously not remembering where he's seen that crest before, or at least the flowers.

The Cardial summons Bonacieux (Bohdan Poraj) and tells him he might be in the market for some new attire, however he wants him to spy on D'Artagnan and tell him everything he's up to.  Obviously he sees him with Milady, but also with Constance as they kiss on the street, how public did she want her affections to be known by others, obviously people know her.  Even if she does call herself a "respectable woman."  He tells her he got the money and asks where else someone would give him 30 livres for nothing, as she stares at the money in her hand. Bonacieux searches his room and finds the necklace, which he takes and gives it to the cardinal.

The Musketeers practice and Porthos is good at physical combat, Aramis is the better shot and D'Artagnan is the better swordsman.  Yet after all that, Treville says he can't choose one of his men, so will fight himself.  Athos tells him he just took away D'Artagnan's commission as a Musketeer and they all know he's the better man.  The Cardinal promotes Labarge to the Ted Guard and he's the fighter for him.  Athos says Treville knew Labarge would be his opponent which s why he put himself forward and as they fight, Louis tells him his man broke the rules.  As Treville is wounded he can now pick someone to take his place and he chooses D'Artagnan.  Who is the better swordsman and wins, getting his revenge in the process, not that he was after it now.  Not letting emotion get in
the way.  Louis says there'll be no prize money as the rules were broken and the treasury needs it more.  He gets D'Artagnan to kneel and he becomes a commissioned Musketeer.

As Bonacieux tells Constance to break up with D'Artagnan as he has friends in high places and he can now tells the cardinal  that he spoke of treason.  She refuses but tells him she can't see him anymore and he should go to Milady, also she's a respectable woman and can't do this flirtation anymore.  He thought it was love.
D'Artagnan: "I'm sure you've made the right decision, I mean what use is love compared to money." As Constance makes him believe her material life is what she desires the most, as opposed to someone who has nothing to offer her.
He leaves the house and will live at the garrison, as she watches him at Milady's carriage.  Milady asks him in but he says maybe another time, Constance missing that he didn't go with her.  Porthos doesn't get to propose marriage, as Alice says she can't be the wife of a soldier but this is all he knows and wants to do.  He tells Aramis he has to look after him.

Plenty happening to keep us amused and D'Artagnan finding out he's probably made a mistake with Constance, but hey you can't live on love alone!  But he doesn't want Milady either, though he will repay her money.  As Athos finds he still can't resist her charms of seduction, it was just like D'Artagnan not being able to resist Constance.  Ah these Musketeers and their complicated love lives and let's not forget Porthos too meeting a lady here and she walks away from him cos she doesn't want to be the wife of a Musketeer, with all the killing they do.  Hey Constance said similar in series 3 when she tells Anne that she doesn't want to be a Musketeer's widow and raise orphans.  At least D'Artagnan became a fully fledged Musketeer finally!  Well at least Louis got to keep his loot! ha.

The Whispers 1.8 "A Hollow Man" Review

                                              
As Jessup (Derek Webster) brings Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) to Claire (Lily Rabe) and Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) he tries to explain why he did it, but Sean manages to punch him.  Wes (Barry Sloane) tells Frommer (David Andrews) they killed Drill as there's no electromagnetic readings in
the place and tells him they have to stop with the secrets and if this works out he can be the next president.  He will think about not pursuing Claire.  The research Clarie asked for comes in and there's another boy, Thomas (Jay Paulson) who had the same encounter with Drill but thirty years ago.  He was in a psych ward and also in Delaware.  Was it really a coincidence they were both headed to Delaware.  His father,  Ron (John Billingsley) tells Sean he had two other sons and Thomas killed Elliot.  He worked for NASA and he discovered the first signal coming in.  Thomas used to speak to Drill and he went into the woods one day and killed Eliot.  Claire tells him they need help cos he's talking to Henry and he shows them some footage of the day when Thomas and Eliot went into the woods.  Thomas says sorry as he goes after Eliot.

At Thomas's new place which Jessup finds is under Eliot's name, they find no electricity or electrical appliances  and it didn't take a genius to figure out why!  What was the point of leaving Henry in the car when he'd be safer inside, some of these moves are just so thoughtless when they know he travels through electricity, communicates through it too, so he'd be safer where he is.  His door is locked and he can't get out so he can't warn them that Drill's here.  It found out where they were cos of Claire telling Wes the precise location they were heading to, no wonder these adults get absolutely nowhere in this show with their silly moves and they don't think of the obvious when it's staring them in the face.

Drill gets Lena (Kristen Connolly) to kill someone for it after they play a letter game and she does it cos Minx (Kylie Rogers) will be left alone.  Like she can really trust it.  Minx also lying about Drill being gone and Wes is relieved of his clearance when he reveals to Frommer that Drill is still here. Thomas explains Drill could only communicate with the children when it got here.  They brought him here when they carried out all those nuclear tests and explosions and created a beacon showing it the way to earth.  The energy ran out and it came in search for more.  He tells them it can't be the same Drill communicating with Henry cos he killed it.  Just when he's about to tell them how, Lena shoots him.  See no consequences or thinking about what she's doing but she's going to trust something she can't see, hear or talk to personally, to keep its bargain and leave Minx alone.

Of course it would've been too easy if Thomas could tell them how he did it. But it appears it had something to do with Eliot and killing him cos it doesn't seem like it was a real threat, so why was he killed, cos he was Drill.  Still no clear answers here and that's cos there are another 5 eps left and we can just have suppositions on what's going on.  With some mushy stuff along the way with Sean and Claire reminiscing about the hotel room they were in two years ago and got food poisoning.  Still Minx gets away with so much and is the one Drill relies on, she's lied, manipulated and everything else under the sun.  A pity Lena didn't heed Wes's warning to take Minx away where there's no electricity and Claire and Sean didn't think about the electricity on the streets.  How easy was it for Lena to get away with shooting Thomas.  She may wrestle with her conscience but she too has taken that step now and can't undo it, it's what Thomas tells Michael in the next ep, he's lost his innocence and there's no going back.  Even if she did it for Minx, like I said, there was no guarantee Drill will leave her alone or the others.  Yet Thomas killed Drill No 1 and was sent to a psych ward for it and it wasn't even his brother.

The Whispers 1.7 "Whatever It Takes" Review

                                               
As the military has a briefing with President Winters (Martin Cummins) Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) argues for the rock to be destroyed cos it's going to destroy them otherwise.  However Wes (Barry Sloane) disagrees, they should study it cos they have it here and he asks the President to make a decision but he won't do that until he sees it.  Exactly what Drill wanted in his manipulation, go straight to those in power.  Naturally the President had to have a daughter who likes playing with the Dr Jess doll and she makes a call and leaves the doll behind in the car.  He gets to see the rock and decides that he doesn't want it destroyed.  Dr Tully (Gwynyth Walsh) also wants to study it some more.  As part of his freedom, Frommer (David Andrews) wants Sean to be a part of the study and to help them otherwise he threatens to send him to Gitmo.

Sean returns home and has an awkward moment with Claire (Lily Rabe) but prefers to spend time with Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) and sleeps on the couch, leaving her tablet around which Sean has a look at, okay I said it before and I'll say it gain, any ol' excuse to go shirtless!  ha.  Including the obligatory tighty-whities this time round!  He makes pancakes for Henry and tells him he's got to look after his mother when he's not here and has to go back, so he can help protect everyone.  Henry's disappointed and Claire doesn't want him to go either.  His decision has nothing to do with Wes.  She goes after Wes and demands to know what's happening and why Sean's gone, but it wasn't his decision.  She wants to see him cos she didn't get to talk and he arranges it.  Claire gets an FBI vest from Jessup (Derek Webster) and tells him she needs it to protect Henry, surprised she couldn't obtain that herself.   s an FBI agent, she's not every resourceful is she.  Inside it she puts some tools so she can smuggle them in.

She's allowed to see Sean who's convinced Tully to help him since he's seen the rock and it's been in his mind.  He had flashes, visions of returning home but no one was there, the playground was empty and so were the schools.  Seems everyone was gone but this concentrated more on there being no children around.  Claire gives him the tools and Tully helps them, Sean says they need to create an EMP (electro magnetic pulse) which will destroy the rock.

Meanwhile Lena (Kristen Connolly) plays a dangerous game with Drill, a game involving asking him questions which he will answer and Minx (Kylie Rogers) tells her he wants to play.  They communicate through the lights and the President's wife's phone goes missing, as her daughter says she gave it back to her.  He also finds her doll in the car which Wes finds out is a tracking device so Drill knows where the rock is, after the phone rings in the closet.  En route Lena tells him that Drill has gone after a very important child and this of course was the President's daughter.  Lena also asks Drill to leave Minx alone and she'll do whatever he wants.

As Drill travels via the electric cables and pylons, they try to rearrange the magnets, but the place is put on lockdown and Tully is shot.  Sean tells Claire to leave with Wes and he'll have to finish it himself cos Drill is here.  Saying he forgives her.  He manages to destroy the rock, but it's not that easy since we know Drill couldn't be destroyed so easily.  Wes tells them to go on the run and he can't handle this and fix it already.  Frommer gets Jessup to bring him Henry.  As Minx watches Lena she tells her she wanted something from Minx, well he wants something in return and he's here with them.

There's not much happening again and it's just played out in little parts when you think they could've gone through it faster.  Surely they couldn't have thought Drill would be so easily destroyed especially since it consumed all that radiation from the meltdown, it's more powerful than they think. Now it's communicated through the rock, it's probably getting its reinforcements or its family.

Some funny speech between Tully and Sean when they talk of bugs and higher intelligence, well somewhere out there is an even higher intelligence if it can communicate in such a way and without being seen, except on a thermal imaging camera.   But what she underestimates was that being a military man, he knows the threat they're dealing with but also he's had it inside his mind.

Quite a few similarities and EMP also makes me think of Dark Angel and a few people associated with this who were also involved with the show.  Also Martin Cummins, the thorn in Max's butt in season 2 makes an appearance as the President.

The Musketeers 1.7 "A Rebellious Woman" Review

                                                 
As the royal couple ride through the streets in their carriage, a girl comes forward and is run over. They find a note in her hand and Constance (Tamla Kari) says she knows her.  The note was intended for the queen and it is shown to her by Treville (Hugo Speer) with the cardinal (Peter Capaldi) obviously impetuously grabbing it from her.  The other girl in the crowd with her, Fleur (Alice Sanders) disappears.  The Musketeers will find her.  The note is about wanting the poor educated (a story revisited in series 3) and Anne (Alexandra Dowling) is interested in reading it.  With Louis (Ryan Gage) scoffing over why his poorest subjects would want to be educated.  The countess Ninon De Larroque (Annabelle Wallis) teaches at her house and tells women they are all equal and it is God that created them, not a man.  As she is taken before Louis, who wants to talk with her as he enjoys her company.  She tells her Fleur is someone she taught to read and she does this with her other servants too, but she wrote the note.

The Cardinal wants Milady (Maimie McCoy) to discredit her so that her land and titles can become part of France as they need a navy.  The Musketers arrive at the house, in search of Fleur, Milady makes a quiet retreat into the shadows.  As Athos (Tom Burke) once again misses her presence. Ninon talks with Athos who wants to search her house and she tells them Fleur isn't here.
Ninon: "I know who you are, I've often seen you at court and thought how handsome you are.  There is a melancholy aspect to your looks which I find intriguing, but it's probably only mental vacancy" Which the others find funny.  She doesn't mince words!
Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) says he treats all women equally and Ninon says they have a romanticist in their midst.  She lets him search the house, including her boudoir, where he says he has dark secrets which he doesn't want to talk about.  She kisses him off guard and invites him to dinner.  As Milady watches them.

There was a scuffle in the streets where a papal envoy was attacked and his bag stolen.  Aramis got one bag back but not the other.  He is here on business from the Pope and Louis recalls he wrote a pamphlet on how kings should be subject to a higher power and be removed legally if they are not, which Louis scoffs at.  Later he, Luca Sestini (John Lynch) tells the cardinal he's here as there are many in Rome who'd like to see him become Pope.  Bringing gifts from the Pope he hands him over a box containing the knee bone of St Anthony.  He can't give him the other gifts though.  The cardinal will ponder his request.

Athos goes to the morgue with Ninon and she sees the dead girl on the table.  He sees the bag there too and says he'll send for it the next day, he could've just taken it now,
Ninon: "Don't look so worried, I won't kiss you again if you don't desire it."
Athos: "I'm better prepared to fight you off this time."
But obviously when they get to her house, he sees Aramis throwing a Red Guard out.  There are more inside and they fight.  Also finding Fleur and other girls hidden there.  Ninon is arrested and taken to the church where she'll be tried and executed as a witch.  The cardinal wants Fleur to give testimony and her father tells him she'll do it and will be married off soon, as the cardinal says a husband will keep her in order.  Fleur is disappointed that she can't continue her education as her father takes her from Constance.  D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) says he'll come after him if he hurts her, which wasn't his intention.

At the trial, Ninon's accused of being a servant of Satan and all women are this.  Aramis gives her his cross given to him by Anne, which should bring her luck and his God will help her.  Fleur asks for water and the cardinal pours her a glass, which she drinks and gives back to him.  He also drinks from the same glass too.  As Milady tells them she tried to make her take part in a ritual as she was given something by her and found herself without her clothes.  The cardinal and Luca are adamant that she's a heretic and a witch.  Athos hears Milady's voice and loses his temper, shouting, "This woman is a liar, She is not even who she claims to be.  She is a convicted criminal and deceiver." However no one listens to him and as Ninon is found guilty.  Louis has give her a reprieve unless she confesses herself.  The cardinal has a fit and passes out.  Aramis says he's been poisoned and asks for castor oil and mustard which he makes him drink.

Porthos (Howard Charles) and Aramis ask Athos about the woman but he doesn't tell them.  Once again D'Artagnan isn't around to see Milady, cos he would've known who she is as well, couldn't have that plot being foiled already.  The cardinal will be fine and she is sent to the jail to get a confession from Ninon which she gives to the cardinal, who sentences her to be burned alive.  The Musketeers head to the morgue where they find the man who stole the bag is dead and they suspect poison, as Aramis tells Porthos to open his mouth, smelling something bitter on his breath.  Athos empties the bag and finds everything in there has been poisoned and he tells D'Artagnan to wash his hands, so how come he didn't.  They rush to save the cardinal again, as he has the bone of St Anthony and Porthos wonders why they're rushing it's only the cardinal.  Athos sees the stake being prepared and asks why as she was reprieved.  As Luca attempts to get away dressed as a monk but not before he has a second attempt at the cardinal, but Athos uses his gun and shoots him.  Which made me ask why he didn't do that to Grimaud in season 3.  The cardinal says they will need a body to convince everyone Ninon's dead and uses Luca.  He then sends his ashes back to the Pope, saying he'll get whoever he sends here back in the same condition.

The cardinal makes a full recovery and utters a speech about being not such a good man and he can be cruel as Ninon is taken away to be burnt.  Athos pleads with him and tells him to spare her, there is a way.   He tells her he's taking all her wealth and property and she has to leave Paris.  She tells him her voice won't be silent, but he won't hear her.  She returns Aramis's cross to him and says his God did help her.  After Anne mentioned to him that he'd given it to her, well someone was jealous.  As Athos takes her to a wagon where they say goodbye.  She tells him she's going to teach (cos she can, ha) and he tells her he knew Milady and was once married.  But neither of them are suited to marriage.  As D'Artagnan and Constance can't keep their hands off each other and start an affair!  As if we didn't know that was coming.

Aramis: "For what it's worth, this trial is a mockery of religion.  The God I believe in stands for love, not cruelty.
Ninon: You are a contradiction Monsieur Aramis.  The soldier who preaches love and a famous libertine who cherishes women."
Aramis: "We all search for truth in different ways."  Here we see Aramis's other side as well, not only is he a soldier, but also a lover of women and he believes in their equality, as well as believing in God, which will lead him to take a different path later.  An episode which contained not only the usual backstabbing and intrigue, but also one with themes which are even relevant today, of equality. As Constance also pleads with Fleur's father not to marry her off to some butcher, telling him Fleur will love him for it.

NCIS Ziva's Demise: Some Thoughts

                                                  
It is no mean feat or accomplishment for Ziva (Cote de Pablo) to have ended up dead on NCIS too, aside from the fact most every female agent has ended up in this way, which in some way shape or form has been related to their work, or connection with NCIS.  This included Kate (Sasha Alexander) Paula Cassidy (Jessica Steen) and Director Jenny Shepherd (Lauren Holly).  But with Ziva seems her family was destined for such a fate from the outset.  There was her sister Talia, who was killed in a bomb explosion.  Her half-brother Ari (Rudolf Martin) was killed by Ziva herself to save Gibbs (Mark Harmon).  Her father and Mossad Directer Eli David (Michael Nouri) also having a hand in the death of Ari's mother, Dr Hasmia Haswari.  Now Ziva has been killed too.  Though her death too occurred in an explosion, it was different from the others since this was carried by the CIA and none other than NCIS and Gibbs' et al arch nemesis and thorn in their side, Trent Kort (David Dayan Fisher).  Seems he got around a lot and whilst there never was any love lost between him and Tony (Michael Weatherly) from the outset, it was ironic in many ways that he was the one who took away Tony's love and probably the love of his life.  Worse still, he killed the mother of Tony's baby, Tali.

Though that came a little out of the blue, especially since over the years everyone denied that Tony and Ziva even were intimate, and thought this seemed a little tacked on to ensure Tony's departure in this way, it was apparent they didn't sleep together until he found her in Israel and then they said their farewells. It was unfair of Ziva to not tell Tony about his daughter and how long would she have kept this from him.  Since it was one thing he wanted, a family of his own.  Not to show he'd grown up and wasn't really the clown everyone thought him to be and he didn't need a baby to score some sort of rites of passage and become a man.  But cos he would make a great father and having his problems with Senior (Robert Wagner) he'd know the pitfalls to avoid and would always be there for Tali. More than that, he needed to be with his daughter, to bond like fathers and daughters do.  Ziva should've known that, she shared a bond with Eli, even if she was at loggerheads with him later and joined NCIS. She also knew Tony and how he would feel not ever knowing.  Work wasn't everything to him thought it may have seemed that way.  He was a workaholic cos he was searching for what he could do with his life and he didn't want to end up alone.

Perhaps her other reason for not telling him was cos he was always in danger with his job and maybe she was protecting Tali in a way, from what they went through in their work.  To a degree that was understandable, but as seen, it caught up with her in the end and she did tell Tali about her abba, showing she probably always intended to introduce them one day.

Getting back to the CIA, I think that NCIS also missed a golden opportunity in not bringing back CIRay (Enrique Murciano). Especially since he and Ziva were close and it would've been a good way for him to return out of wherever he's hiding, or ended up, and to also join the hut for Ziva's killer. Maybe not so directly involved but would've made for an explosive ep (no pun).  No matter what he was like, he did love Ziva and if he had known she was in danger, think he would've done plenty to save her.  Though not everyone will agree.

The Whispers 1.6 "The Archer" Review

                                               
Claire (Lily Rabe) gets the notion to get all the children in one room together and have them talk cos children share secrets when they're together.  Her boss agrees to this but it's to be kept between themselves.  She also visits Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) again and he asks bout Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) though he still can't recall anything.  Frommer (David Andrews) asks Wes (Barry Sloane) if he's handling things and then tells him what Claire's doing.  He needs to be in on this cos it's national security and they can't have anything getting out or them finding out anything they're not privvy to.  Also the parents object to this happening, but Claire reassures them insisting she will look after them and her son is with them too.  Yeah nothing like the condescending reassurance of her son being part of the group too, cos at the first sign of trouble, she's going to look after Henry, as it happened, this was exactly the case.  Lena (Kristen Connolly) didn't let Minx (Kylie Rogers) come to the meeting so sure enough it was apparent she'd be in touch with Drill or vice versa and she'd tell him.  Minx is a right little minx, she's like his number one child informant.  As she tells him what's happening.  This is not a Drill, yeah waiting ages to say that!  Ha.

Is Lena really well equipped to know what to do and how to handle Minx and Drill and this has nothing to do with her just being a housewife.  Ethan (Terrell Ransom Jr) is cautious in that he doesn't want to tell them anything and Harper (Abby Ryder Fortson) says that Drill helps them and helped her mother.  Yes but he was the one who made her to do that to her mother in the first place, so he didn't really do much helping.  Although she is too young to understand that.  Even if he made Henry hear again, that was just to use him once more and to harness the radiation.  Lena hears Minx talking to Drill and says that Claire is the one who doesn't like him and is behind it all.

Drill finds them as the lights flicker and he ends up in the room with Henry and is seen on the thermal imaging camera hovering around Henry.  So now at least they can see it when it's around.  It appears they not only have an enemy in the form of Drill, but also the DOD and Frommer who is hell bent on finding out what this is, but at the same time he doesn't care what it can do and is rather flippant about what's happening around them and to those children.  He's more concerned with  controlling it and I don't know, using the powers it may have.

As for the name Drill, it drills into their minds and manipulates and uses the children, but also it did that to Sean.  Even if he lost his memory, was he able to fight it on his own terms cos he's older and wasn't manipulated into doing anything for it or helping someone.  He knew exactly what it wanted and he tried to put those thoughts and visions he had together.  But in some ways it did manipulate him too when Drill sent him the message for him to communicate with it, through it, giving him back his memories cos it knew he would be questioned, thereby furthering its real agenda.

Getting the children together wasn't much help except for discovering they can see Drill through thermal imaging, allowing them to set up cameras and especially Wes using this for Minx, but it still wasn't enough.

The Musketeers 1.5 "The Homecoming" Review

                                              
Porthos (Howard Charles) celebrates his birthday by getting drunk what else, and shoots a jug off Aramis's (Santiago Cabrera) head.  They leave and Porthos leaves later on and is attacked.  He wakes to find himself with a dead man nearby.  He's arrested by the guards and the judge orders a swift sentence of execution immediately.  Treville (Hugo Speer) wants to appeal to Louis (Ryan Gage) which he's entitled to do and he orders the Musketeers to distract them.  Howevrr Porthos is kidnapped by some masked assailants.  D'Artagnan shoots at one of them and he turns out to be a criminal.  Aramis says he knows where they're headed.  As they find the inn, the woman asks if it's "raining Musketeers outside?"
Aramis; "I'm guessing you saw my friend here."
Woman: "Tall, better looking than you."
Aramis: "There's no accounting for taste."

The Cardinal (Peter Capaldi) and Louis plan on making a new and better modern France and to this end they must clear out the criminal quarter, known as the Court of Miracles,as Athos (Tom Burke) explains to D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) it's where miracles can happen.  D'Artagnan thinks Porthos may have shot him cos he was drunk, but Aramis tells him it's Porthos.  They head to the court but have to run back as the people don't want them there.  Athos will return later disguised and is met by Porthos's childhood friend, Charon (Ashley Walters) who gives him a message for Porthos, that they haven't given up on him, but of course, he doesn't convey it to him.  Porthos meets up with his former lover, Flea (Fiona Glascott) as well, who wanted him to stay but he wasn't right for this place and left to become a Musketeer.

Treville tells them to investigate the dead man and they go to the morgue where they find he was shot at close range, Aramis saying it was murder.  D'Artagnan takes his key and a necklace, the inscription bears his name.  Aramis: "killing is not an exact science, but a messy business and as soldiers, it is our business."  Treville tells them he was a man from a great family and they search his place where his father, Emile de Mauvoisin ((Anton Lesser) told him he had gone to live.  Here they find letters and leaflets from a Hugonet church and also a half burnt letter which bears the dead man's name, Jean, having both barrels of stolen gunpowder.  Ye olde gunpowder plot repeated in season 3.  After giving chase and shooting at a masked man, how could Aramis have missed that shot.

The cardinal plots with Emile to blow up the court and Charon plans a celebration for the people, with expensive bottles of the king's wine.  They find out that the gunpowder stored at the church wasn't put there by Jean nor was he planning to blow it up, as Pastor Ferrand (Michael Jenn) tells them, it's not his writing on the letter.  Which just leaves Emile (common name in this show) their family was Hugonet but became Catholic as it was more lucrative, but they're bankrupt.

Porthos relives his youth here and spends a night with Flea, which Charon knows about and he plans on getting Porthos to escape Paris.  As he's shot he asks if the bullet was meant for him, then why not Porthos, yeah cos who exactly knows he's here aside from the people of the court.  Charon tells Flea to pack as they want to leave here and Porthos finds the gunpowder barrels wired to explode.

The Musketeers foil their plans and Flea is shot saving Porthos from Charon.  They find Charon and he fights with Porthos and tries to stab him, Aramis finishing him off and saving his brother.  Treville gets a confession from Emile and asks for his pistol as he's still a gentleman, shooting himself.   Porthos is pardoned and goes back with the others, asking if any of them doubted he did it, D'Artagnan replying not for a second.  They also ask if he didn't think they'd come after him and help him.  Some backstory on Porthos showing where he grew up as an orphan and how he doesn't know when his birthday is but just picked a date as a child.

Seems in this frst series everyone is guilty of something or suspected of it at least and is sentenced to execution, D'Artagnan, then Athos and now Porthos, seems Aramis hasn't been, not yet anyway.  But he's too busy with women to get into nay sort f trouble, though his mistress Adele was killed by the cardinal for her dalliance with him.  Porthos's account of what he did as relayed to the judge: took a walk and "admired the beauty and the serenity of Paris after dark."  Was hardly believable.

Aramis: "religion without art is so much less...seductive."  So what art will he find when he leaves and becomes  a monk at the abbey later.  He usually has the conversation about religion and also how men have killed for less?  More so than the others.  More religious than the others and also as the queen gave him her cross.

The Whispers 1.5 "What Lies Beneath" Review

                                            
Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) is questioned by Wes (Barry Sloane) who says the wrong questions are being asked so he takes over the interrogation himself.  Asking what happened to him, as he says he recalls flying and then ending up with a huge piece of rock in his back.  He knew he had to survive by taking it out, which may explain why he gets those tats on him and how all of them end in disaster.  But by far the best lines he's had in the entire 5 eps so far.
Sean: Look at me, I have nothing, no memories.  No past.  Barely a present and the future.  The mere mention of a future scares the hell out of me.  My shadow knows more than I do."
Which is true, as Claire (Lily Rabe) tells Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) he can't be home soon cos he needs to be helped by the experts first.  How Drill brought him home like he said he would. Jessup  (Derek Webster) drops by for her files and says that she can see Sean cos she's got connections in the DOD.

She asks Wes if she can and meets his assistant, which was some foreshadowing here.  He listens in to their conversation and leaves when he thinks it's getting personal, as she reminds  him of how they met and her father set it up by crashing the car in a ditch.  Sean returned home from training and he asked him to dinner.  She hated him at first but then had feelings for him.  As he says he "swept you off your feet."  Also a reference to him being a superhero here, which he may yet turn out to be.  He shows her the tats and how he went to every place, Seville had a train crash, Bordeaux had a flood each was accompanied by some sort of catastrophe and energy was involved.  But he doesn't know the significance of As33.

Funny she doesn't tell him how they were together and no she wouldn't, but she just says they were married, which doesn't say much cos you can be married to someone and not love them.  But the reason for the affair with Wes isn't revealed to us either.  I mean if you were married to someone like Sean why would you even contemplate an affair!

Claire thinks tat's to do with arsenic and if that's added to nuclear energy it'll cause the mother of all explosions.  Wes thinks his polygraph is a result of his subconscious and the waves resemble the rock structure in Mali.  Of course what they didn't get is that this too was another diversion just like in the previous ep with Henry and the nuclear plant.  He also thinks it's to do with volcanoes since the energy is under it and he hears Callie (Alison Araya) talking about it outside to her son.  Obviously she's Ethan's (Terrell Ransom Jr) mother, as Claire finds As33 is the baseball team.  She speaks with Ethan who tells her about the volcano not having enough power so his mother told him to get another battery.  Drill told him to build it.  Claire realizes too late that Wes was sent there to be taken care of.

But Lena (Kristen Connolloy) hasn't heard from him.  It's silly, one minute he wants her to go to her mother's, but she wants to stay and next minute she's taking Minx (Kylie Rogers) to the party and loses her for a bit.  Obviously she's still being use by Drill who tells her if she helps then her parents will get back together.  Which they kind of do for a bit and Lena leaves a message on his voicemail. In Mali he orders the rock to be raised as it emits a blue light around them.

Jessup is still following Claire and Frommer (David Andrews) tells him it's not what he can see that frightens him, but what he can't.  "...the unknown, that's what this is about."  As they think the nuclear blast was contained so it can be used in some form of deadly chemical weapon.
Previous ep had some X-Files incidental themes music going on in the background, when Henry was on his way to the nuclear plant.
This just keeps going round and round really, not much happened this episode aside from the meeting between Sean and Claire.  Wes seems eager to jump in and raise the rock when he doesn't really know anything about it or the harm it can do, especially since he also heard Sean's recollection of it, which wasn't much..

The Musketeers 1.4 "The Good Soldier" Review

                                            
As the Musketeers are on guard at a parade, Louis (Ryan Gage) welcomes the Duke of Savoy (Vincent Reagan) and his men to the court.  He's here to sign a treaty with France and not with Spain.  As they stand on parade, with Porthos (Howard Charles) being bored, he thinks he should faint, for something to happen.  D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) thinks he spots someone in the trees but doesn't follow up on it, not good training or having his instincts honed yet as a Musketeer.  There's a shot and it misses the Duke but gets a servant.  The Muskeeters look for the assassin and Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) finds a rope which he used to climb down into the palace with.  He then finds Marsac (JJ Field) an old friend of his and they fight.  He asks Aramis not to give him away cos he's here to avenge the slaughter of twenty Musketeers as they slept.  Marsac also saved Aramis's life when he was wounded and dragged him into the forest to hide out.  He then left and Aramis owes him cos he saved his life.  D'Artagnan finds them and he also wants him not to tell anyone until he's heard him out.  A lot of that happening this ep.

They take him to Constance's (Tamla Kari) and she lets him stay in D'Artagnan's room.  Aramis needs to find the truth and get to the bottom of it.  He tells them the orders were signed by Treville (Hugo Speer) and as they head before Louis, Treville asks them why they didn't catch the assassin.  D'Artagnan saying he slipped in the wet grass.  Which Treville doesn't really buy, at least he didn't look like he did.
Treville: "There's a killer ont he loose, the security of the nation hangs by a thread but at least little D'Artagnan didn't get a nasty bruise."
Athos (Tom Burke) knows they're up to something and D'Artagnan tells them if Aramis doesn't tell him then he will.  He tells him and Constance is livid they bought a deserter and assassin into her house.  Secretly enjoying the intrigue of course.  Athos doesn't believe Treville could sign their death warrant and neither does Porthos.  They'll need proof and they confront him.  Treville refuses to answer their questions and Marsac says the traitor or the leader of the Duke' men has a scar on his back.

Treville and the Cardinal (Peter Capaldi) both agree Cluzet (Simon day) mustn't be found as he's a Spanish spy in the court and he's locked up by the Cardinal.  Paying him a visit they talk of his five years in solitary, but why did they keep him alive.  They need him kept here otherwise Savoy will sign with Spain and Louis can't have that.  How many sisters did Louis have anyway, as we see another one, married to the Duke of Savoy.  At the inn, Porthos sees the jailer with Savoy's man, Gontard and he takes him to the prison where he sees Cluzet  (no to be mistaken for Clouseau!  ha.)  But Porthos didn't tell them he followed him there and only later does he say who was there.

The cardinal says the treaty must be signed but Savoy challenges his best man to a duel, that being Athos who is a wonder with a sword.  First to draw blood wins, which Athos does.  Treville tells him to apologize cos he should've let him down and not humiliate him like that.  The treaty will be signed and as Athos apologizes for his over zealousness, he sees the scar on his back....

Aramis confronts Treville again and strikes him down when he's talking with the cardinal and how Cluzet mustn't be found.  He admits to him that he ordered the men to leave for Savoy.  Later explaining that he didn't know they'd be betrayed.  Also that Louis did it to protect his sister who was a French spy in the Savoy court and had to be protected.  She, the Dutchess of Savoy (Phoebe Fox) comes to the Musketeers after learning they have found Cluzet and will be heading for the prison with the Cardinal.  They arrive beforehand and take him to another cell, with D'Artagnan dressed as the jailer, the Cardinal sees him and realizes all is well.  Savoy also admonishes his man for being mistaken and a fool.  Aramis tells Marsac he was right and he heads to confront Treville and after a fight, Aramis must shoot his friend to save Treville.  The orders came directly from the king to protect his sister.

Aramis buries Marsac saying he lost his spirit back there and his body now caught up with it, but his soul is at peace now.  Seems Aramis gets the best of the storylines in these eps thus far.  Having to take the life of the man who saved him.  Elsewhere Constance wants D'Artagnan to teach her how to shoot and sword fight since why should ladies carry themselves with dignity.  D'Artagnan thought he was getting propositioned by her when she tells him her husband shouldn't find out.  All in good time hey!