The Whispers 1.13 "Game Over" Review

                                            
As children are rounded up as they believe Drill is actually in one of them, Claire (Lily Rabe) is the one who's tasked to communicate with Cassandra (Kayden Magnuson) as he's inhabiting her body now and completely taken over like he did with Elliott and so Cassandra is no more.  But still they didn't get it, the subtle clues were there underlying the story in every episode, as Drill says here, the adults leave their children alone, they play games and watch TV, yet still they don't interact with their children.  In short they're not parents and there is a message here that they didn't deserve their children either. Drill sent the message but it doesn't really tell them why.  They call it an invasion but that's not what he'd call it.  He disintegrates but Wes (Sloane) asks why Drill would kill itself and why now.  Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) calls Claire and tells her if it's the last day then she needs to be with her family together.

As Sean thinks he and Ron (John Billingsley) can find a way to decipher the first message that was sent in 1982 and maybe send one back, satellite detects a mass of rock heading towards earth. Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) and Minx (Kylie Rogers) are together and  she asks him to teach her sign language and how to say she hopes that whoever did this to her mother pays for it.  She wishes she didn't become Drill's friend then her mother would still be here, as her head falls and so do the heads of other children, they're not free of Drill and that's what Maria must've found out when she was killed.  That the part remaining in their brain was probably just a dormant piece of Drill waiting to become active when the time was right.

Frommer (David Andrews) prepares for weapons to be fired at the incoming rocks.  As Clarie goes she sees the children and when she goes after them, it's the adults who come after her and abduct her. Again they didn't get it, they found this happened in 1982 but they didn't ask what happened to other children who presumably would've been affected in the same way as their own children and what happened to them now, it didn't begin or end with just Thomas and Elliott.  Sean is also taken, as he tries to work out the signal recalling the 11215 number since it's one of his tattoos.  A brief mention of his tats too and that he has them all over his body but not much more significance than that.  Was this a date, the date that the aliens would get here, looks like a date, 2/11/15 or 11/2/15.

Jessup (Derek Webster) gets a visit from his ex wife, wanting to be with him and he actually goes with her.  Then sees Harper (Abby Ryder Fortson) at the bus stop with a woman who's not her mother.  As he talks to her she tells him she wishes he didn't see her and he finds himself locked in     the boot.  Wes finds Minx and Henry gone along with Sean and he tracks Jessup after he calls him, bringing along the journal and the computer.

The woman tells Claire and Sean that they were children when it happened and as Wes finds Jessup, he also takes a photo of a map.  He shoots his ex on the arm and Sean gets free of his ropes, as Wes shoots the woman and saves Claire.  The FBI has Henry cos they recognized him and at the office Claire asks him what's happening.  Frommer gives the go ahead for the weapons to be fired and they think it's a success.  Claire communicates to Henry with sign language and he tells them they're still here. Wes recalls the map and it forms the same symbol that the rocks were gathered in formation in, which was obvious from the map and Sean draws the x marking the spot on the screen.  Claire asks Henry if he knows where Minx is and as they rush to get there, it's revealed they are after their children, not the planet.  Again it was obvious, they're the only ones being communicated with, so why would they want the adults, they can't and don't want to invade them, but the children.  Was it their way of saving them.  Especially since once more this is the game they were playing.

Lights shine out over the city as the children are taken and Claire saves Henry by pushing him out of the way, but doesn't get out of the way herself.  Wes is too late to save Minx.  Well at least she was there and they were there as a family in the final moments.  Which did end on a cliffhanger note and left hanging too.  No great explanations or thrilling either as to what was happening and neglected children was just too flimsy a response, considering these children all had parents, two or one at least and weren't really juvenile delinquents in the system, didn't the aliens consider them.  They were all from families.  Nor was there anything on where the main adults, Sean, Clarie, Wes, Lena, were back in 1982, they too had to have been children but weren't affected or picked on by the first Drill.

There was a mention of sacrifice, Drill telling Claire through Cassandra that if they had engaged in   the concept and sacrificed the one child, he would've been weakened, probably died and wouldn't have been able to send the message back.  However here Claire learns the full meaning of sacrifice as she saves Henry and is taken instead, well here's a nice word to use, 'taken.'  That could be seen as an ultimate sacrifice after telling Henry she loves him.  We get a reversal from the pilot ep, whereas Henry was coping with losing his father, he now has lost his mother and gained his father, though in contrast Wes has lost all his family.  In some ways was that karmic comeuppance for what Lena did in shooting Thomas, she was killed herself and Minx was taken and especially after he was instrumental in getting the children into quarantine.  He loses Minx twice over.  It certainly was game over and season over too!

Think where this lost some momentum was when Sean got his memory back, it was too soon.  He was the one who had plenty to do in regaining his memories and in putting the clues and his tattoos together.  After he fell back into being a father and husband, lost his hair and beard, it just became routine for him to be a secondary character and mostly in the shadows, tasked with looking after Henry and Minx, when Claire and Wes were doing most of the work.  He had been through it all, had communication with Drill, but that was wasted in the rest of the show.  If he had retained his amnesia for longer maybe the show would've headed in a different direction and many of the eps would've been more engaging and interesting.  But you can't fault Milo in anything he appears in, he's always great to watch in any character he plays.  Sadly Sean should've remained the strong character he started out as early on!

The Musketeers 2.6 "Through A Glass Darkly" Review

                                               
As an astronomer, Marmion (Leo Gregory) prepares an instrument for viewing the eclipse, with masked men wearing doctor's masks, well that was a clue when they arrived there, but no one blinked twice or thought of it, thinking it was just a charade, especially since they wear the masks that doctors would wear when treating the plague and would burn herbs in it so they wouldn't have to inhale the smell.  Louis (Ryan Gage) partakes in a play explaining what happens when the moon overshadows the earth, with Milady (Maimie McCoy) playing the moon and Anne (Alexandra Dowling) the earth.  Athos (Tom Burke) says he can't be there and rides back to the garrison.  They ride out to the place with the Musketeers and Rochefort (Marc Warren).

Witnessing the eclipse, they are then held captives and there is nothing they can do.  Even when they fight Marmion and Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) asks for his compassion in sending out the women and the dauphin, Marmion is far from charitable and asks him what he said.  He shows his compassion by pushing Aramis out of the window and as they fight, Porthos (Howard Charles) and Rochefort are chained  together.  As D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) is chained to Constance (Tamla Kari) when she tells Marmion that she cares about him and he's her friend.

Marmion tells Louis to play his game and to pick a side of the coin, heads or tails, but he refuses to play.   Milady says she will cos she'd rather die than continue listening to his babble.  She picks heads and is allowed to leave when she gets it right and rides straight for the garrison.  When she arrives Athos tells Treville (Hugo Speer) they don't have to believe her, but they must ride out and she goes with them cos she knows the way in.  If they see the Musketeers there they'll kill everyone.  Which was going to happen anyway.
Athos: "She is a liar and a cheat, why should we trust her?"
Milady:" Aramis is dead.  The king is in terrible danger, but by all means, let's discuss my moral character, we have all day."  That's something they always do in here, have discussions when they shouldn't be.  But what has Aramis being dead got to do with it, the others were still there.  Seems Athos always gets the line about her being a liar and a cheat, even next series.  Though he tells her she has his respect for what she did.  But respect doesn't pay her and it's not really her world.

Two courtiers also pick heads cos of Milady and are subsequently dispatched with when he gets it wrong.  Marmion orders Anne, Marguerite (Charlotte Salt) and the dauphin to be taken away and are locked in a room, as the other courtiers are locked in another room.  Louis pleading for their release. Porthos can't get out of his chains or reach the metal hook hanging on the wall and Rochefort tells him he w as held prisoner for five years by the Spanish and he must've enjoyed every single one of them.  He says the love of a woman kept him going, but they didn't get together as she's married.  Oh enough of the small talk already.

Aramis wakes on the roof of a window and climbs back into the house, as Robert (Nathan Wright) gets the servants and other people to pack up their belongings since they'll be leaving here.  Marmion tells Louis to pick a number and D'Artagnan tells him not to indulge him and choose.  He finally picks the number 1 and his man kills the courtiers, with Aramis unable to save them, but he does save Anne.  As Marguerite watches them as she thanks him and he looks at the dauphin, she suspects something but Anne says how he has his saviour once again and he takes them out of the room. Louis wants to know who he killed and D'Artagnan tells him not to keep him in turmoil.  Anne and his son are still alive and Robert, his brother tells him he wasn't going to kill anyone.  He then tells them about his little town which had an outbreak of the plague.  They were cut off and had no food so everyone died, not of the plague but starvation.  Louis didn't send them food and he says they had to be cut off to save the other people.

Marmion had to watch his wife die, then had to choose which one of his sons would have food, so he tossed a coin and let fate decide, but he too was dead within a week.  Now it's Louis's choice, as he must pick a side again.  D'Artagnan tells him not to, but he picks anyway and Constance is his next target.  D'Artagnan pleads with him to let her go and he'll take his place cos all he wants is a life for a life.  She asks him what his wife and family would think of what he's doing and wants him to look her in the eyes before he shoots.  Porthos tells Rochefort to reach for the hook no matter what and dislocates his shoulder in the process.  Well maybe he should've been the one to suffer for a change.
Athos: "that was either a wounded bull, or Porthos."

The others arrive and Aramis takes Anne out, with Athos telling him to come straight back.  As Marmion is about to shoot D'Artagnan, Robert takes the bullet for him, with Marmion trying to escape.  Rochefort goes after him and shoots him.  Louis once again being more grateful to him, yeah cos he saved the day didn't he as per usual.  As they wait for Constance in the carriage, she kisses D'Artagnan and Louis asks if they're together.  As he also said Milady deserted him, he doesn't want to see her again.  An episode where once again it's Musketeers to the rescue, really don't know what Louis would do without them, so much for Rochefort and the Red Guard.  As Constance reveals her feelings, Anne is suspected of hers for Aramis and Athos doesn't want anything to do with Milady.

The Musketeers 2.5 "The Return" Review

                                                     
Athos (Tom Burke) wakes up tied to a chair and is greeted by his villagers back in Pinon.  They want him to take action against the Baron Renard (Miles Anderson) who is taking over his land.  He refuses and wants nothing to do with this place anymore.  He left it and the Baron arrives with his son, Edmond (Barney White) who beats an old man and Athos tells him to stop.  Renard telling him he doesn't recognize nobility and the Comte de la Fere.  They have a discussion about his lands and Athos tells him he's renounced his title but he has kept his lands.  He wants an agreement to treat the villagers fairly from him, and they shake hands when Renard tells them they will be treated "as they deserve."  Which obviously in his eyes will be as peasants and slaves and not with any dignity.  He tells this to Edmond.

Jeanne (Linzay Cocker) tells Athos they sent him letters and he says he doesn't read letters.  The others are worried about him and don't know where he is.  They read his letters instead where the villagers plead for his help.  D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) suggests they ride out to Pinon as it's only a day's ride away and Treville (Hugo Speer) reluctantly agrees.  Renard suspends Athos from a rope and will finish him off, as a woman fires a shot releasing him from the rope.  They ride away saying soldiers are coming and take Jeanne with them.  He tells them he doesn't want to be here and wants nothing to do with them.

Riding away Athos stops at the burnt out house and has a flashback to Milady (Maimie McCoy) being arrested after she kills Thomas and says he forced himself upon her.  With the woman turning up, Catherine (Marianne Oldham) was his brother's betrothed and she lives in the servant's quarters when her father lost his laads.  Porthos (Howard Charles) and Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) are tasked with rescuing Jeanne from the baron and they do this without them even noticing.  They think she escaped by herself as they tie a sheet through the window.  Of course, they didn't really go anywhere.

Catherine tells Athos this place would've been hers now and how they were to be married, but he tells her they were too young.  Instead she got Thomas.  She didn't marry anyone else cos she doesn't have a dowry or money.  As he rides back, he has another flashback with him and Milady frolicking in the grass. ha.  The others say he was all for justice and yet he's deserting his own people, convincing him to stay.  He and D'Artagnan ride for gunpowder, as there's a secret stash at his crypt.
Athos: inspecting a pistol, "a little battered but just about servicable."
D'Artagnan: "are you talking about yourself or that old pistol?"
As the others teach the villagers how to fight and defend themselves after Treville tells them it's their home and their land and family and so they have something to live and to fight for.  They should turn up at sun up if they want to do this.  Which they do.  As they learn and set up a barricade.  Aramis says they can't come here in the night, but they will be here in the morning.

Which they do and are met with a fight.  The baron rides up with a white flag and tells Athos to surrender.  Handing over his lands but he refuses.  Jeanne tells him he handed over the land to them and Catherine says he gave the land to her, Athos replying he did, he gave the land to everyone including her.  She's enraged by this and goes back to the room and breaks her mother's pearl necklace.  She wanted to be mistress of the manor and the land.  After a battle and a half, they finally defeat Renard's men, but not before Edmond and Athos have a sword fight to the death, you could say.  Only he's interrupted by Catherine, who tries to shoot Athos, but gets Edmond instead.

Athos signs over the land to Bertrand (Steve Evets) as Mayor and Aramis says they should get to the country more often.  As Catherine pulls on guns and is probably attempting to go after Milady, as she says she can't breathe in a world where she's still alive.  Athos telling her a number of times she's Louis's (Ryan Gage) mistress.  Also sensing that there's something going on between Porthos and Treville.

Now didn't that shell of a house remind you of Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre and yes I mention it gain cos Tom Burke was Rochester in the BBC Radio 4 adaptation of Jane Eyre this year and he does remind me of Mr Rochester, very dark and brooding, even in his portrayal as Athos!  Although there wasn't much damage caused to the house by the fire.  Athos can't forget Milady even after her betrayal which shows he must have some feelings for her still, but also as he says to Catherine, as she drinks to the past, that's "the one toast I can't drink to."  But he'll have the drink anyway!  ha. He can't forget the past no matter how many times him or Milady say it's all in the pasta and should be left there.  It's not so easy.

Aramis: "...just to fight, to risk everything.  To put it all on the line.  How else do I know I'm truly alive."  Once again Aramis utters words which will have a deeper meaning for him later in the series, as he goes from fighting to not fighting and then to taking up arms again in series 3.

The Musketeers 2.4 "Emilie" Review

                                                   
Emilie (Emma Lowndes) preaches about her visions from God where she's been told to help France and the people rise up against Spain and defeat the Spanish.  As she does this, the people take to the streets and attack the Spanish as Navas's (Oliver Rix) carriage is taken over and he's left for dead, suspended from it.  Louis (Ryan Gage) wants something to be done about this and as the Musketeers arrive at the camp, they hear her talk to the people.  Rochefort (Marc Warren) is given the task, but he is convinced by Treville (Hugo Speer) to let them handle it.  Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) is to enter the camp and discredit Emilie as he is an authority on the Bible and as he arrives at the camp he's stopped by the guards.  Emilie agrees to speak with him and she tells him of her visions.  He tells her he's deserted after hearing her speak.

That night he hears Emilie's nightmares as she screams out.  Anne (Alexandra Dowling) arrives at the camp again thinking that if Louis won't grant her an audience, she can speak with hr and make him see things differently.  Unfortunately she's recognized by Raymond (Charles Venn) and she and Constance (Tamla Kari) are held at the camp.
Aramis: "faith has little to do with reason."

Perales (Will Keen) finds himself in danger and is taken by D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) Athos (Tom Burke) and Porthos (Howard Charles) to the garrison where he'll be safer. He tells Treville he's been granted passage home by Philip and asks him if he's ever eaten an orange from Seville.  Before he's taken away, he visits Rochefort's prostitute and pays her money for taking care of him.  But he stops her and asks who orders his death.  After she tells him, Rochefort strangles her and sends her ear to him at the garrison.  Porthos asks who would do this and they know it's someone who knows he's here, but once again, Rochefort isn't the immediate person they think of. Perales says he will tell them once he's safely away and a carriage is ordered for him by a letter meant to have been signed by Rochefort.

Rochefort wants Milady (Maimie McCoy) to do something for him and she has to agree. D'Artagnan is sent to check the carriage and as Porthos, Treville and Athos escort Perales to the carriage, D'Artagnan tells them it's a trap, but they're too late, as Milady has already struck, poisoning Perales with a prick on his hand.  So once again, Rochefort gets away with it.

Constance is told to eat her soup as Emilie says she's not hungry and that night, she has nightmares about Anne and Louis being murdered and an axeman.  She wakes up and doesn't know why she's had such nightmares since this is the first time.  Aramis takes the soup to be analyzed and asks Constance to give it to doctor (Ed Stoppard).
Lemay: "I'm a doctor, not an alchemist."  He tastes it and find it's been drugged with some sort of mushroom, thus Emilie's visions aren't from God, but her mother has been drugging her.

Athos has to stay with her cos he's familiar with such things and he and Constance make sure she gets over the withdrawals.  They tell her that her mother's behind it and she rides into the village telling everyone it was all a fake, her mother is behind it.  They should disband and go home.  As Raymond throws a rock at her mother, who dies.  Emilie tells them to leave her alone. Once again Rochefort gets everything he wants, including info from Allard (John Harding) on Milady which he used to blackmail her, as he also blackmails him about his wife not knowing of his mistresses.  Being the cardinal's man he would've known everything about her since she was in his pay.

A bit of a Joan of Arc episode which doesn't really go that far as Emilie's visions are not from God but manipulated by her mother to further her daughter's name as well as her own and some kind of feeble attempt to wage war with Spain.  Well it wouldn't be her fighting for France.  Once again Anne goes head first into the camp again without thinking, as if she could possibly influence the rabble and once again must be rescued.  Well that's okay then, as her saviour and hero Aramis was there and does just that.

The Musketeers 2.3 "The Good Traitor" Review

                                           
The Muskeeters capture Spanish General, Tariq Alaman (Colin Salmon) and he tells Treville (Hugo Speer) he needs to see the king urgently.  At the palace Louis (Ryan Gage) is angry he's been woken at this time, people talk of seeing the sunrise when it happens everyday anyway.  Tariq sets a charge and the statue blows up with the head rolling by Louis's feet.  He will give them the powder if they rescue his kidnapped daughter, Samara (Antonia Thomas) from Baltasar (Finbar Lynch) who has taken her hostage.  Also involved is a cipher which he promises he'll give to them in his fight against the Spanish.  Showing them how he was badly treated by them and tortured as he's also a Moor.

They plan to meet in the market to make the exchange, with Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) as the sharp shooter who will take out his man.  As they make the exchange, Aramis is distracted by a woman carrying a baby and he hesitates, then is unable to take his shot as Tariq obscures his view.  A moment's lapse in hesitation and being emotional is what Athos (Tom Burke) told D'Artagnan he shouldn't do all the way back in season 1, that he was too emotional and he needed to set his emotions aside, which is what Aramis didn't do.  This is cos he learns from Constance (Tamla Kari) that the dauphin is gravely ill and could die.  Anne (Alexandra Dowling) is beside herself, as is Louis and he gets in a Swiss doctor, Lemay (Ed Stoppard) to help.  Though he proves useless.

They fight and Porthos (Howard Charles) is hit by an arrow in his leg, as Samara tries to escape but is taken away along with Porthos.  She tries to help him but gives up as she's not a nurse but a poet and goes back to reading her poems.  Porthos doesn't read Arabic, but she reads to him cos it's better than anything else they have.  She asks him where he's originally from as he says he's French, but African on his mother's side.  Samara is from Morocco and she tells him his country will only let him down, so he should find his roots.  He needs to get the arrow out and tells her to pull the belt tight and hold it whilst he pulls it out.  They have a weapon now.

Treville tries to renegotiate with Perales (Will Keen) again and Tariq tells them if they get her back he will give them the cipher and show them how it works.  D'Artagnan gets onto his carriage and ends up where they're holding them hostage.  Tariq tells Perales and Baltasar he'll give them the cipher if they let Samara go. Gunfire is heard as D'Artagnan is unable to hod them off and after a fight, they still haven't managed to get Tariq free or Samara either.  But Tariq says he'll give them the cipher if they release her and they can have him too.  Which they'll have to agree to.  When they leave, Tariq tricks Baltasar into giving him the cipher which was in Samara's book and he throws it into the fire, then sets off the explosive.

Constance kidnaps the dauphin but to make him well again and she's stopped by Rochefort (Marc Warren) who just gets everywhere and tells him she's been summoned by her husband.  She takes him to the laundry where the steam will clear his lungs, or at least she hopes so.  Rochefort also gets Anne's attention when she asks him to sit with her and he tells her he loves her, "like a subject."  Well that was convenient after his 'role playing' with a prostitute dressed up as Anne, clearly he's delusional and dangerous.  Milady (Maimie McCoy) gets to see Louis but he sends her away as he's concerned with the dauphin's health, but he then decides to have dinner with her after he sees her in her 'alluring dress.'  Where she seduces him and gives him back his ring, of course he can't have been that worried about the dauphin if he had time to indulge in pleasures of the flesh.

Next day they find the dauphin's gone and Anne finds them together under the table. so much for her having to be faithful and loyal.  After searching, Rochefort finds Constance at the laundry and tells her she'll be charged with treason.  When they take him back, they find he has recovered and Lemay tells her she was right on this occasion, but leeches do work.  The king rescinds his order for her to be hanged.  As Aramis prays and Porthos says goodbye to Samara.  She tells him she's returning to Morocco and he should think of doing the same.  She misses her father and he tells her she can grieve for him and have her memories but he didn't know his father, he abandoned them.

Here was a topical episode if ever there was one, so many connotations and allusions to the real world in many ways.  Well there was racism, with Tariq saying he's treated like he is cos of his colour, Samara saying only his own country will be his home, not the garrison as Porthos tells her, oh and there was Tariq (the Moor) blowing himself up to save the cipher.

Tariq: "I have never understood irrational hatred.  It stifles every decent impulse, destroys common sense and reason.  The moment a man says, 'all Moors are this or all white men are that.'  He has abandoned his sanity and revealed his weakness."
Baltasar: "yet it is not me who is weak, not me who will die on the scaffold."  What's weakness got to do with it, he wasn't talking about being weak but how people are treated on the basis of who they are and their skin colour, where they come from, etc.

Louis tells Treville and the Musketeers they've let him down yet again and he takes comfort in Rochefort who doesn't let him down.  Treville telling him they don't have the cipher, but neither do the Spanish.  Bonacieux (Bohdan Poraj) being shocked at seeing Constance with a baby, then asking if it's D'Artagnan's, I mean if he's been with her every minute, how could she have had a baby!  ha. Can't help but think the title was an allusion to Rochefort, though he's far from good!

The Whispers 1.12 "Traveller in the Dark" Review

                                          
Minx Kylie Rogers) has a nightmare four years earlier and Wes (Barry Sloane) teaches her 'twinkle, twinkle little star' which seemed appropriate under the circumstances as we're dealing with aliens.
Present day: Frommer David Andrews) is sure that Drill has gotten inside of Minx but Wes tries to convince him otherwise.  Of course that was opportune for Drill as he uses Minx as a scapegoat and yet more revenge for Lena's betrayal in trying to take Minx away.  However Frommer thinks Claire (Lily Rabe) can be of more help if she speaks with her.  Minx is in solitary with gloves on and is restrained.  Claire removes her gloves and as we know Minx is aware that whatever she says will just lead them to suspect her more.

Daniel (Tom Butler) speaks with Jessup (Derek Webster) and Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) and thinks Drill has something to do with the government's nuclear plans and wants to write the story.  Claire wants Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) to tell her his version and if it was Minx who grabbed Cassandra's (Kayden Magnuson) arm and he's positive of what he saw.  Silas (Teo Briones) tells Wes and Claire that he saw Minx with Maria on the night she was killed and the activity on her computer shows that the final note she made was deleted and this was to do with Minx.  Claire is convinced that Minx is hosting Drill and Wes knows she's wrong and he's right.  He isn't just concerned as her father but cos he knows it can't be her and yet Claire doesn't give her the benefit of the doubt.  So much for being concerned about them both.  Seems she was more interested in saving Henry.

Sean and Jessup need to find away to convince Daniel to break the story so that the government must check their facts and what is happening, thus delaying the deadline for the press conference.  Wes visits Minx and tries to calm her also recalling the poem again.  She can't recall it all and also realizes he's testing her, reminding him he's her father and he must believe her.  Minx knows Henry can hear her in the next room and pleads with Henry to tell Claire she's not Drill.  Frommer however is convinced cos of Claire and takes Minx away, urging the president (Martin Cummins) to deal with her, as they didn't deal with Nicholas.  Claire and Wes are removed from the facility and Frommer is going to use the EMP device to kill Drill.  The children are removed and Minx is strapped to a table. Claire makes it to the Whitehouse to get to the president as he prepares for a press conference.

Sean and Jessup mention Orion to Daniel and he tells them all the president's family have code names and Orion is Cassandra.  Oberon is the president and Olympia is the first lady.  Wes tries to get to Minx and Claire realizes the press conference is what Drill wanted all along as he's going to use the live feed to send a message/signal.  Claire is stopped by the Secret Service before she reaches the president.  Cassandra faces the camera and screams thus sending out the signal via the live broadcast. Wes reaches Minx in time and Frommer stops the EMP from being used.  Cassandra tells Claire she's not going anywhere and Wes and Minx say the poem again when she was younger after she had a nightmare.

This episode seemed like a filler to the final episode and very little was done in terms of plot.  By now we know Drill wants to send out a message and contact the others, that was part of his entire purpose for being here.  As well as this, it also proves to be a testing ground for Wes and how he will do anything to save Minx especially since he doesn't have anyone on his side anymore.  Even Claire deserts him in many ways by convincing herself and Frommer that Minx is Drill without a moment's hesitation.  As long as Henry was okay that's all that mattered.  Even Henry didn't do anything to advocate Minx's case and it's really hard to believe him when he says he saw Minx cos there was quite a lot happening and really anyone could've grabbed Cassandra's hand.  So much for Henry being Minx's friend.  Drill also fooling the president when he says in his speech that his daughter told him to be brave.  Especially when those words came from Drill!  

The Musketeers 2.2 "An Ordinary Man" Review

                                             
Louis (Ryan Gage) insists on spending life as a carefree citizen of Paris, well I shouldn't use citizen as they haven't had the French revolution yet, more like his subjects.  Cos they really do have nothing but happiness and joy in their meagre existence, with nothing to look forward to and he wears the clothes of one of his servants.  At the tavern he insists on drinking and playing cards, too making a general nuisance of himself when he accuses a man of cheating.  He gets the Musketeers into a fight as they are accompanying him.  As D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) takes Louis out the back way, they are ambushed.  The others can't find either of them and they question the tavern keeper who denies knowing anything.

They search the morgue where we see a woman, Simone Pepin (Sandra Reid) with her daughter looking for her husband who's gone missing.  The attendant tells them someone matching their description was brought in but it's not either one of them.  Athos (Tom Burke) recalls what happened on the streets a few years ago, when drunks were abducted and a man was held responsible.  He had a brother who is a blacksmith. He also denies knowing anything and Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) finds he's making shackles, the type that are used by the Spanish in their gallies.  They head back to the tavern where he says a man pays him to do it and he was afraid of losing his inn.  Aramis asks where the panel leads to and at the back Porthos (Howard Charles) finds the street has been scrubbed clean and finding blood.  Also the door handle has been removed so they can't get in again.
D'Artagnan and Louis are shackled and are lead in the woods with other men, one of whom is Pepin (Micah Balfour) the woman's husband.

He falls and is threatened with being killed unless someone carries him, D'Artagnan agrees to do so and Louis asks why they must carry him, well he's not the one doing the carrying.  Also saying he should tell them who he is, which would've been stupid.  Showing why he needs his advisers around him and is lost without the cardinal and also Anne (Alexandra Dowling).  They search for them and Treville (Hugo Speer) says his men are looking.  However Rochefort (Marc Warren) says the Red Guard will also search and will fare better, what happened to them then.  He also thinks D'Artagnan led Louis astray and shouldn't have accompanied him.  Constance (Tamla Kari) stands up for him saying he's the king's champion, as Rochefort later tells her not to defy him as she's just a servant, a commoner.  He later sees how close she is to Anne and apologizes, knowing he can get her to reveal Anne's confidences, which she plainly refuses to do.

Rochefort then gets Anne to write letters to her brother in Spain, so that if Louis is killed then she will remain regent and with Spain's help will remain on the throne.  She's reluctant to sign and Constance suggests he should hesitate, but she goes ahead anyway.  Time is running out as the dauphin will be christened and Louis needs to be there.  Rochefort suggests they tell everyone Louis is unwell and Anne tells Treville this will buy them time to find him.

At the camp, a woman rides in and it's Milady (Nainie McCoy) she's behind this as she steals the men's valuables.  She sees the king's ring and recognizes D'Artagnan and helps them to escape. However they don't get far and are caught, as she packs her things and leaves.  Once again she meets up with them and brings horses too for which Louis is grateful and also develops a soft spot for her helping them, as Pepin also helps him but is killed when the inn keeper arrives with his men and is told to finish everyone off by Rochefort. The Musketeers get his brother to tell them where the camp is after he gets his foot caught in a bear trap and he is told by Louis he will be pardoned if he stays and helps them as Porthos takes Louis back.  Also he tells Milady she is pardoned too after D'Artagnan tells him she's a thief and Aramis adds they don't know what else she's done.

At the christening Louis turns up in time as does Milday who watches as well.  Showing Anne was hasty in writing those letters.  Aramis gets a chance to see his son being christened too.  Louis later tells him the innkeeper's brother he's to die and he's showing mercy by executing him, he orders D'Artagnan to carry out the execution, but he refuses since he's a soldier, not an executioner. Rochefort obliges and stabs him with his sword, currying more favour in the eyes of Louis.  Telling D'Artagnan off and the others too for convincing him to go was uncalled for and we know Louis wouldn't accept responsibility for his own actions.  But he still didn't see how his subjects really live and he got no sense of their struggles, even after he was abducted and contrary to what he said to Pepin about changing the laws and ensuring this doesn't happen, he does nothing, easily showing the concept of the 'divine rights of the king' where he stood above the law and subjected himself only to the law of God.

As for Pepin's widow and daughter, all five of them pool together their money and D'Artagnan gives it to her, telling her how her husband died in the service of the king, saying the money was from the king.  Louis still did nothing, so much for reminiscing also with D'Artagnan about his own father, Henry and how he was eight when he was assassinated.  D'Artagnan also saying his father was killed, which is the only thing they shared, being worlds and emotions apart.  Louis caring for no one except his throne and the dauphin, but D'Artagnan having a heart and morals.

The Whispers 1.11 "Homesick" Review

                                        
This episode starts with the repercussions for Wes (Barry Sloane) after Lena's death and how he must carry on, without having any time to wallow or grieve, since he has Minx (Kylie Rogers) to think of and especially more so, as Minx is about to have health problems, which is the least of her worries. Sean (Milo Ventimiglia) and Claire (Lily Rabe) arrive to offer their condolences at the wake, but he doesn't want them here.  Just an inappropriate time as she's back with Sean and has her family intact, but it was rather harsh of Wes to turn them away.  Henry (Kyle Harrison Breitkopf) leaves a card for Minx.  Wes's anger is shown once again as he smashes the bathroom mirror.  Once more he doesn't have time to spend alone as Minx mentions the medicine that Henry's grandmother gave her isn't working and she doesn't feel well.  She faints in his arms.  At the hospital we find that she's not alone and all of the children contacted by Drill, at least as many as are shown, are in the same position. Explaining Henry's dilemma last ep too.

Maria (Catalina Davis) puts Minx in the MRI machine and informs Wes of the influx of ill children flooding in, as things begin to reach a climax in the show.  Obviously it's an attempt by Drill to remain close to the children but also in his search for the ideal child he's looking for.  Maria tells him Drill has put some sort of a 'mark' in their brains.  Cue flickering lights as Henry arrives with Sean and Claire and Henry tells them Drill isn't speaking with him.  Claire follows the light and finds Harper (Abby Ryder Fortson) who tells her Drill told them not to worry and they'll be better soon, "as soon as he finds Orion."  They have no idea what that is, thinking it's the constellation.  They need to protect the children and Wes suggests to the president (Martin Cummins) that they place them all in quarantine, which may have sounded good on paper or out loud, but wasn't in practice.  Drill is using their minds as some sort of "symbiotic link".

How will they protect the children considering they tried that with Nicholas last ep in the abandoned building and Drill still managed to get the better of them.  Jessup (Derek Webster) looks for 'Orion' or whatever he can find and the parents of the infected children are told there's an encephalitis scare, so they need to be checked out.  All the children displaying symptoms of Drill are rounded up and taken to the new facility.  Wes also wants Henry brought in, which at this point just looks like sour grapes on his part, in that why should Minx be the only one who's brought in and singled out and not Henry. DOD men are sent to bring Henry in and go about it heavy handedly, even attacking Sean.  Which Claire isn't happy about.  Sean thinks Drill is affecting them now cos he wants the adults to listen to his demands.  A pity then that Sean didn't have more contact with Drill as he was able to communicate with Sean before.  So that we could've had some adult contact and not just with the children.

The children isolate Minx as Wes is the one in charge and think she's the child Drill is after.  Maria finds some anomalies on the computer and is attacked by a boy and killed as she was also earlier on   the phone to someone.  Her DB shows a burn mark in the form of  a child's print.  The children lose their symptoms and Frommer (David Andrews) now realizes Drill is in confinement with them.  Wes wants Minx to 'spy' but she doesn't want to do it.  Instead Claire will speak with the children and see the 'tells' exhibited by them.  The children are shown being questioned and each one has a different reaction, Henry is unsure, Harper is angry and Minx acts all grown up as she always does.  Harper's funny line when Claire asks, "I dream..."  Harper answers, " you will stop asking these questions." Clearly she was getting nowhere and was quite boring in her approach, I wouldn't have opened up to Claire if I was a child.  Even if she is a mother, yawn!  Ha.  Claire asks Silas (Teo Briones) who the child was that Drill has taken over, showing him photos including Minx and Henry.  He's afraid Drill will hurt his mother and narrows down the photo... just then the alarm sounds and a girl pushes past Minx, later claiming that she grabbed her.  Showing them the marks.  But Henry was there too so how come they just narrowed it down to Minx.

Sean finally gets his hands on the man with Lena and finds he's a reporter, quelle surprise, Daniel Goetz (Tom Butler) and Maria told him to contact Sean if anything happened to her.  Minx is too obvious as the child, Lena was killed by Drill and it's unbelievable that she would help Drill in any way cos of this and it can't be Henry as he's Sean and Claire's son and if anything was to happen to him or he'd be the 'chosen' child something would've happened by now.  It's apparent Drill is after something more bigger than these children can offer, as shown from his actions at the nuclear power plant and in getting the codes from Nicholas and using him.  He's looking for reuniting with his world but also something much more closer to home for the adults here.

Still this episode sets up many scenarios and the penultimate must provide some revelations but Frommer right now is the ugliest threat, we know he's not immune to having to kill a child if necessary and is able to talk the president around, for the greater good and all.  Just a thought did they not use infra red and thermal cameras this time round in the facility instead of the tedious interrogations, I mean Q&A from Claire.  The other thing was when Sean was standing by the poster of Orion golf course, that was funny cos it was clearly a blatant attempt at putting people off the right track, but not a word was made of it from Jessup or Sean even.

The Musketeers 2.1 "Keep Your Friends Close" Review

                                          
As everyone attends Cardinal Richelieu's funeral, Louis (Ryan Gage) asks Treville (Hugo Speer) to take over his position and become a trusted minister.  However he declines as he's not into politics but is more of a soldier and can better serve interests there.  He even refuses Anne's (Alexandra Dowling) behest and Louis is clearly disappointed he had the audacity to refuse him.  He'll be lost without the cardinal.  So much for him being spared last series, not that we're told what he died from, aside from Athos (Tom Burke) saying "he wore out his heart in the service of France."
D'Artagnan: "It's a pleasant surprise to hear he had one at all."
As the Musketeers ride away, they come across a masked man being hanged by the villagers as he killed an inn keeper in cold blood.  They protest and that he should be given justice in the proper way. Then Athos says they should hang him after he finds out it's the Comte de Rochefort (Marc Warren) the cardinals trusty man.  Athos strikes him saying he wanted to know how that felt and "it felt good."

He says he needs to speak with Louis urgently but won't tell them why.  There's a fight as he tires to ride away, stealing a horse and he shoots the man dead.  Catching up to him, they take him to Treville where he tells them that General de Foix (Dominic Mafham) is being held in Spain and he was with him.  Rochefort escaped whilst being transported elsewhere.  This is dire news as he holds all of France's military secrets and strategies which will prove useful to Spain if there's a war.  He's taken before Louis and Anne tells them he advised her on her marriage to Louis and he is respected at court.  His plan is to go to Spain and rescue the general, but Treville says the Musketeers should accompany him and Athos will give the orders.  They can't wear their uniforms which Porthos (Howard Charles) says will mean they'll be executed as spies.

Anne asks Constance (Tamla Kari) to be her lady at court, as all the others gossip about her and make fun of her as she's Spanish and Bonacieux (Bohdan Poraj) thinks she should do this.  Also I thought it'd be easier for her to see D'Artagnan (Luke Pasqualino) at court as well, if ever the desire arose, especially since it' be more convenient than meeting on the street, as per their usual public displays of affection in the past.  Rochefort is of course in league with the Spanish as he meets with the Spanish ambassador in secret to inform him of their plan and also that his men need to kill the Musketeers. But he and the general should be spared.  A priest interrupts them and Rochefort kills him just to be safe, so no one discovered his body and cried 'murder in the cathedral!'

D'Artagnan and Constance have an awkward meeting when he suggests they should carry on their illicit affair and she tells him how hard it is for her in her position.  She needs Bonacieux cos she'd be disowned bye her family and her friends would cross over when they see her.  It's not easy being a woman without any income and if she left him for D'Artagnan she'd be given no benefits or pension were he to die, she'd have to live on the streets or become a prostitute and his children would be bastards.  So clearly, or seemingly, this puts an end to their affair for now.

As the Musketeers travel to Spain, they are ambushed and D'Artagnan leaves them to enter the stronghold on his own, he hears the gunshots but must keep going, entering by swimming the mort. Athos is almost fired upon and tells Rochefort to shoot but he hesitates and only does so when he hears Aramis (Santiago Cabrera) and Porthos approaching, saying he didn't have a clear shot.  The man speaks in Spanish to Aramis telling him nothing really and insulting them.  He should've just given Rochefort away, but that'd be too easy, Rochefort wouldn't have understood his Spanish and then they'd have an entire series trying to bring him down, which would've been too easy a plot for some.

D'Artagnan climbs up the well and enters, dragging the unconscious guard with him, when a woman turns up for a bath.  She says he should've taken his entertainment elsewhere, but he says the guard is unconscious.  She introduces herself as Lucie de Foix (Olivia Llewellyn) the generals sister and she takes him to the general. The general plays chess with Governor Alvarez (Andy Lucas) and refuses to tell him anything.  D'Artagnan ties him up.  If they don't get there in time, then D'Artagnan will have to kill the general and those are his orders.  He points a gun at the general as the man comes round to check on him, but luckily they arrive in time.  The general tells Porthos he looks familiar to him and asks his name.

As they try and leave, they're ambushed again and it is apparent they have a traitor in their midst. However no one does anything about it for now, as once again Rochefort hides out of the line of fire. Lucie says there might be another way out and they head that way with the guards still in pursuit. Alvarez tells Rochefort this wasn't in their plan.  They have to cross the ravine in a basket used for provisions and as they arrive at the other side, the general is shot, so much for rescuing him. Rochefort takes aim at Athos but fires away from him, Athos thinking he was going to shoot him. Which obviously he would've done.  On their way back to France and having crossed the border, Rochefort kills Alvarez stating he was attempting to escape.  Of course it was to cover himself.

At court, Louis is impressed with Rochefort and rewards him by his becoming the Captain of the Red Guard.  He can now manipulate his way into getting things done his way for Spain.  The general tells Treville he needs to tell Porthos who he is and he needs a clear conscience and soul before he dies. Treville doesn't think that's a good idea since they left him and his mother in the slums and she died out of despair.  D'Artagnan and Lucie kiss and Constance sees them, him saying she could be with him, but she refuses.

In a reversal of saying they have honour at the end of last season, Porthos now says praise and glory are two of his favourite things.  Amongst honour and money!  Peter Capaldi as we know was the new Doctor Who and thus could not accommodate the schedule of both shows being filmed.  Thus not returning to season 2, though he would've been more interesting to watch than Rochefort, cos basically he's just a similar character to the cardinal.  Rochefort is the new thorn in their side and already we see how devious he is, even more so than the cardinal.  Though in all fairness the cardinal did take lives at his own hand and to keep himself above the rest.  Just like he killed his mistress Adele.  There's no subtleness with Rochefort as he goes in for the kill at once and then smiles on the other side.